Shun and his teammates headed straight inside the stadium as soon as the bus parked. Since their game was the first of the day, Shun could see people still arriving at the stadium and heading toward the stands. He took a moment to think about his family, who should also be arriving soon. He wasn't sure if anyone else he knew would come to watch his game today, but he was determined to win regardless of who was in the audience.
The Shoto players quickly reached a door, and since it was their third time in this tournament, none of them hesitated to enter the dugout. Shun stepped through the door and saw the familiar dugout. He took a quick glance at the field but then turned his attention to organizing his belongings for the game.
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As both teams settled into their respective dugouts, the spectators in the stands were also finding their seats. The Takahashi family arrived in the stands to watch Shun, but when they saw that the seats above Shoto's dugout, where they usually sat, were completely filled with students from Shoto Junior High who had come to cheer, they had to find other spots.
After searching for a while, they managed to locate a few empty seats near the dugout where Hokuto's team was. Despite being close to Hokuto's cheering section, they didn't hesitate and quickly sat down to claim their spots. While Aiko and Mika settled in and started sending messages on their phones, Yumi stood up, trying to spot her older brother in the dugout. Meanwhile, poor Kenshin was busy placing various items on the surrounding seats to save them for others who were on their way.
A few minutes later, a group of five young people arrived and greeted the Takahashi family before taking the seats Kenshin had saved. Mika quickly began chatting enthusiastically with her friends from Tokyo Nakanos. Being a Saturday, they didn't have school, so they were all able to come and watch Shun's game.
Of course, the three boys, Akira, Toji, and Satoshi, seemed even more thrilled, not because of the game itself but because they weren't studying for their final exams. It was obvious that their lack of baseball activity was starting to drive these baseball fanatics crazy. Even though they couldn't play, watching their friend's game was a nice change of pace, especially since Shun's opponent, Hokuto, had two players they knew from the U-15 national team.
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As Sora began warming up with a few practice pitches, Hokuto's team gathered in their dugout, watching the young pitcher on the mound intently.
"Looks like you were right, Suga. They're starting with the screwball guy." - Kohei Sasaki, Hokuto's left-handed ace, commented with a smile as he observed Sora on the mound.
"Hmph! Of course! Just stick to the plan, and we'll take this guy off the mound as quickly as possible." - Yoshinori Sugawara, the white-haired maniac who was also Hokuto's captain and catcher, responded in a serious tone. Unlike his teammates, his gaze was locked onto a certain someone in right field.
'You better not disappoint me, blue-eyed idiot!' - Sugawara thought silently as he stared at Shun in right field. Only he knew how much he had been waiting for this match. After Shun had figured out a pattern in his calls and used it to win their practice game, not a single day had gone by without Sugawara thinking about his revenge. And there was no better stage than this, the semifinals of the Kanto Tournament, to crush the dreams of Shun and the rest of the Shoto Junior High team. Explore more adventures at empire
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With that, after Sora signaled that he was ready to the umpire, Hokuto's leadoff hitter, shortstop Isamu Endo, climbed the dugout steps and began walking toward the batter's box.n/ô/vel/b//jn dot c//om