[Hahahahahahahahaha! You arrogant brat, weren't you all high and mighty saying you didn't need my help? Enjoy this defeat, loser! Hahahahaha!]
"Tch!" – Shun clenched his fists tightly. As annoying as it was to hear the old man mocking him in his head, he had nothing to say.
In that moment, seeing his precious teammates discouraged with their heads down, some even crying, he had nothing to say. In the end, he really was a loser.
"Let's go." – Shun felt a hand on his shoulder as he heard his captain's voice. He looked back and saw Kazuki with a forced smile.
"We have to line up." – Kazuki said calmly. He then gently tapped Ren and Kenta on the shoulder before going to help Jiro up. It was customary for both teams to line up and greet each other after a game, another sign of respect present in Japanese baseball.
The Shoto players climbed the stairs, forming a line. The same happened on the other side of the field, as the Hokuto players emerged from the dugout.
"Thank you for the game!" – The players from both teams shouted as they bowed towards the opposing team.
Shun quickly glanced at Kohei and Sugawara before turning and heading back to the dugout with his team. They began packing their things and clearing the dugout, after all, this was only one game of the third round of the Tokyo tournament, and there were still many games to be played in the stadium today.
Most of the fans in the stands also started to leave. Many had come just to see the unknown team that had defeated Seishin, and only a few supporters stayed for the next matches.
Coach Yamada looked at the young faces of his players. He could feel the sadness and disappointment in their eyes. He took a deep breath before starting to speak.
"We lost. There's nothing anyone here can do about that. Unfortunately, today was the last game for the third-year students, and I'm sorry that your final game turned out like this... but the baseball journey for each of you is just beginning!" – The coach looked into the eyes of each of the third-year students and spoke loudly:
"Next year, you will step onto an even bigger stage! You'll face challenges far greater than this! You'll have new uniforms, new teammates, and even a new coach! Because of this, I ask each of you: don't give up! Keep working hard, remember this defeat, and use it as fuel to improve!"
"Yes, Coach!" – All the third-year players felt a strong sense of resolve after hearing their coach's words. They shouted with all they had, tears streaming down their faces.
"As for the second and first-year students, your chances aren't over yet! Train hard, mark this feeling of defeat on your soul, get stronger, and come back here next year with all this experience and frustration!" – The coach said, looking into the eyes of all his players.
"Yes, Coach!" – This time it was the second and first-year players who shouted. Shun, Kenta, Ren, Sora, and Jiro all felt a burning desire to return here next year. They never wanted to experience this feeling of defeat again.
"Well, in the end, I want to say one more thing to you. You've worked hard to get here, no matter what you think or what anyone says to you, regardless of the outcome of our last game, you've made me proud." – Coach Yamada said with some emotion, his entire speech coming straight from the heart.
"Thank you, Coach!" – Kazuki also got emotional. He then took his final action as the team's captain, bowing deeply as he thanked his coach.
"Thank you, Coach!" – All the other players followed their captain's example, bowing as they expressed their gratitude loudly.