The Old Baseball Player System
Chapter 96: Learning Master

Days passed quickly for Shun and his friends. After facing Hokuto, Shoto Junior High participated in a series of friendly matches. None of the teams were as strong as Hokuto, but Shoto managed to win all the games with relative ease.

Shun was still giving up more walks than he would like, but the technique of testing new grips was working. At the moment, he was able to control the horizontal slider much better, so he used this pitch as his base.

Sora, on the other hand, was incredible. After giving up a grand slam to Sugawara, he dominated all the teams he pitched against. His screwball was proving to be a dangerous weapon, and the boy was starting to build up confidence.

However, surprisingly, the pitcher with the worst results on the team was also Shoto Junior High's ace, the nerdy kid, Jiro Fukuoka. The problem was that Jiro was pitching very well, but Daigo had a lot of difficulty catching Jiro's unpredictable knuckleballs.

Because of this, it was normal for runners on base to score on wild pitches when Jiro was on the mound. There were situations where Jiro even struck out batters, but since his knuckleballs dropped to the ground and escaped Daigo, the runner would reach first safely.

POFT

"Hey Daigo, take a break!" - Shun shouted to the young catcher who was trying to catch Jiro's pitches in the bullpen.

"Just a bit more, senpai!" - Daigo and Jiro pleaded together. The two boys had been doing extra pitching practice every day so Daigo could catch the pitches, and it had become normal for Shun to go to the bullpen to make them stop.

After all, even though knuckleballs don't put as much pressure on Jiro's arm or shoulder, it wasn't good for him to overdo it. The problem was that both Jiro and Daigo were very dedicated, and they didn't know when to stop, so it always fell to Shun to make the boys stop.

"Hahaha, relax, I'm not going to make you stop!" - Shun laughed as he signaled for Daigo to come closer.

"Here, I asked my dad for this some time ago, but even he found it difficult to get a glove like this in your size, Daigo!" - Shun said with a smile as he handed a baseball glove to Daigo.

"A glove? Senpai, I really appreciate it, but..." - Daigo was confused by the sudden gift. He tried to explain to Shun that the problem was his skills and not his glove, but he was interrupted.

"Tch! This isn't just any glove, you idiot! This is a glove that professional catchers use to catch knuckleballs!" - Shun hit his kohai on the head before he could start belittling himself and explained.

"Huh? A glove for catching knuckleballs?" - Daigo said, confused, but he quickly started paying more attention to the glove in his hand.

"It's bigger..." - Daigo seemed to have realized something and murmured.

"Hahaha, so you noticed, huh? It won't automatically make you catch knuckleballs, but it will definitely help! Besides, since it's bigger, the chances of the ball hitting the glove and dropping forward instead of escaping are much higher!" - Shun said with a smile, not even mentioning how difficult it was for him to get this glove. He probably wouldn't receive any birthday presents this year...

"Thank you, senpai!" - Daigo bowed deeply, showing his sincere gratitude.

"Thank you, Shun-senpai!" - Jiro did the same as Daigo and expressed his thanks. The boy couldn't help but feel a bit emotional, realizing how much Shun was dedicated to helping him.

Anyone else in Shun's position would have been glad Jiro was struggling, as it would mean more time for them to pitch. But Shun wasn't like that. Especially when it came to Jiro, his number one fan, Shun wanted the boy to be at his best.

"Hehe, there's nothing that your super senpai can't solve! Now go on and test the glove. Remember to stop early, understood?" - Shun said cheerfully, clearly enjoying being praised by his kohais.

"Yes, senpai!" - The two replied a bit awkwardly at seeing Shun boasting, but quickly returned to training.

Shun couldn't help but look at Jiro with admiration. The boy was really incredible. Most pitchers in his position would be annoyed that their catcher couldn't handle their pitches, but all Jiro did was give his best and pitch as many times as Daigo wanted to help him improve.

Shun then returned to the field and began doing some finger push-ups. Since last year, he had been doing them every day to complete his mission.

After several repetitions, Shun heard the system's notification sound in his head. He stopped exercising and took a deep breath while starting to smile.

[DING]

[Mission Total Integration 2 Completed! Rewards have been sent to the user!]

"Finally!" - Shun celebrated silently, he didn't want anyone on the team to think he was crazy for talking to himself. He then remembered all the finger push-ups he had to do over the past year and sighed with relief. It was finally over.

[# Total Integration 2

Achieve full integration of the new fingers with the user's body.

Requirements for integration:

10% - 1,000 finger push-ups

25% - 2,500 finger push-ups

50% - 5,000 finger push-ups

75% - 7,500 finger push-ups

Your next chapter awaits on m v|l--NovelFire

100% - 10,000 finger push-ups

Finger push-up count: 10,000

Rewards: Quirk Learning Master]

"I hope this quirk is useful..." - Shun thought as he opened the system menu, selected his newest quirk, and looked at its details.

[Learning Master

Increases the user's analytical ability. Enhances the user's ability to identify and learn patterns. Boosts the user's ability to learn new skills.]

"Damn!" - Shun exclaimed in shock. This quirk was far more than just useful, it was exactly what he needed at the moment. He couldn't help but remember the old man saying there was a surprise for him that would help him improve his pitching. A feeling of gratitude filled his heart, but it quickly faded.

"That damn old man! What kind of surprise is this? He didn't do anything for me to get this quirk, I did all the hard work! How dare he try to steal my credit?" - Shun complained indignantly.

[You ungrateful brat! You just gained an amazing quirk, and you're still so hung up on the little details! You should be thanking me for helping you get this far!] - The old man's voice echoed in Shun's head.

"You..." - Shun was left speechless. Just how shameless was this old man?