The Old Baseball Player System

"Wake up, you idiot!" - Kenta shouted angrily as he kicked Ren.

"Ow!" - Ren yelled in pain as he nearly jumped up in surprise. The poor samurai had been having a wonderful dream, laughing and spending time with several beautiful girls, only to be woken up by an angry shout and a kick.

"What the hell are you doing, Kenta?" - Ren looked shocked at the source of the kick, but as soon as he saw it was his friend, he stood up and yelled back in irritation. What kind of friend wakes someone up in the middle of an erotic dream? Didn't Kenta realize how rare it was to have such a dream?

"Huh? What the hell are you doing, you idiot! Why were you sleeping outside all night? Are you trying to get sick?" - Kenta shot back without hesitation as he marched toward Ren, ready to give the boy another kick. Fortunately, Shun quickly stepped between them, preventing the young samurai from taking another hit.

"That's enough." - Shun said firmly, stopping Kenta. He then looked at the samurai standing before him and asked: "If you're so tired, why did you come so early, Ren?"

"Ah, that... I couldn't sleep last night, so I decided to come to the field to get some exercise..." - Ren replied, a bit embarrassed. He didn't want to admit he was nervous about the tournament, but he couldn't think of a better excuse. Luckily, he refrained from mentioning his frustration at having his erotic dream interrupted, otherwise, Shun might have let Kenta go ahead and hit him.

Shun and Kenta listened to Ren's explanation and softened their stance. They understood Ren's nerves to some extent. Now that Shun thought about it, aside from Ryosuke, who came early to show his determination, and himself, who had the system controlling his sleep, most of the others who showed up early were probably too nervous to sleep properly.

Even Kenta wasn't an exception, as Shun could clearly see the tiredness in his friend's eyes. Shun grew a bit concerned about his friends' physical condition, but there wasn't much he could do now. Nervousness was part of competitive sports, after all. Considering that the Kanto Tournament was likely the most important event any of Shoto's players had participated in, it was normal for them to lose some sleep due to anxiety and nerves.

Everyone sat back down, chatting while waiting for the rest of the team to arrive. Ren also joined the conversation, but for reasons unknown to the others, he seemed particularly dissatisfied. Of course, they couldn't imagine that the young samurai was still silently lamenting the interruption of his erotic dream.

Shun sat down next to the first-year boy, Sho, as he rummaged through his bag. After a few moments, Shun finally pulled out a camera.

"Are you sure you want to do this?" - Shun extended the camera toward Sho but hesitated before handing it over. Sho was a shortstop, the same position as Kenta, which meant he hadn't played a single minute since joining the team.

For this Kanto Tournament, since many games were scheduled for the first day, the two brackets were being held in separate stadiums. However, since the winner of the other bracket would face Shoto in the final if they advanced, it was important for someone to record those games so Shun and the team could analyze them.

Shimizu couldn't take on this task as she had other responsibilities as the team's assistant, and she was already in charge of recording all the games in Shoto's bracket to prepare for their second-round and semifinal opponents. Your journey continues at empire

Because of this, Shun needed someone to record the games at the other stadium. When Sho heard about it, he volunteered for the task. At the time, Shun accepted eagerly without much thought, but now he realized that by doing so, Sho would be sacrificing a lot. Sho would spend the entire day alone at a different stadium, missing any chance to play and even the opportunity to be in the dugout with the team.

Not only that, but since the Kanto Tournament games were elimination-based, if Shoto lost in the first or second round, all of Sho's efforts would be in vain, and the boy would lose this rare opportunity to be part of the dugout in such an important tournament. This made Shun hesitate to let Sho go through with it, but the boy's reaction surprised him.

"Don't worry, Senpai. I understand everything, but... this is the only way I can help the team. So please, let me help!" - Sho said loudly, looking at Shun with a determined gaze. Without hesitation, the boy took the camera from Shun's hand.

Shun stared at Sho in surprise, and it wasn't just him. Everyone present looked at Sho, feeling the boy's determination. It was impossible not to feel motivated to win after seeing a first-year reserve player willing to sacrifice his chance to play to help the team. Even Ryosuke glanced at Sho, feeling something strange. He couldn't say he fully understood the boy's sacrifice, but he couldn't help admiring him a little.

"Alright, we're counting on you, then." - Shun said with a smile, giving Sho a light punch to the chest. At that moment, Shun felt even more determined to win. Not only that, he was resolved to ensure that Sho's recordings would be instrumental in their victory in the final.

The rest of the players began arriving, Sora, Jiro, Takeya, Tomo, Hisashi, and the others, all looking a bit nervous but also excited to finally step onto the stage of the Kanto Tournament. A few minutes before 7 a.m., the entire team had gathered, and a large bus pulled up in front of the school's baseball field.

Coach Yamada stepped off the bus and looked at his players with approval, seeing that everyone had arrived on time. After taking roll to make sure no one was missing, he spoke.

"Alright, everyone, get on the bus!" - Yamada called out loudly as he opened the bus door.

"Yes, Coach!" - All the Shoto players responded in unison as they began boarding the bus one by one. Within minutes, everyone was seated, and the bus carrying the Shoto Junior High School baseball team departed for the Kanto Tournament.