Shortly after, they were thrown into the next part of the system’s training plan which involved some brutal running and diving exercises.
Before long, the entire team was covered in dirt and sweat, their breathing uneven as they fought through the torturous work out.
While some were fairing better than others, all of them seemed to be glaring at Daichi with malice. If looks could kill, he’d be 6 feet underground by now.
Thankfully, the coaching staff let them have a decent break once they were done. Ken sucked down some water like a camel, not forgetting to pour some over his head.
Both Daichi and Hiroki stared at Ken as if he was the one sending them to the gallows. Out of the entire team, only they were aware that something this diabolical had come from him.
Yet Ken ignored them. It was Daichi’s fault that they were in this mess anyway.
After getting around 10 minutes rest, the team began their drills which focused on more positional aspects of the game. The pitchers and catchers were separated from the rest of the team as they moved to the bullpen.
The group still hadn’t recovered from the high intensity workout and could feel their muscles sore from fatigue. However, this seemed to be the goal of the coaching staff.
After a grueling 2 and a half hour session, the players were ushered into the cafeteria, forcing their weary bodies through the doors.
Unlike the last time that they were here, the large space was filled with University students.
Their arrival drew a lot of eyes onto them, however, most were too exhausted to care.
Ken felt his muscles twitch with every step he took as he regretted ever asking the system for assistance with the training plan.
Just as he was lining up for food, he could hear the grumblings of the other players. They stared directly at Daichi beside him, cursing him under their breaths.
“Bro please tell me, what did we do to offend you?”
Riku’s face was filled with pain and discomfort as he addressed Daichi. His usual carefree smile was nowhere to be seen as he aired his grievances.
“I…I— Nothing” Daichi stammered in response, sending a look to Ken as if asking for help.
Ken raised his hands in response, wanting nothing to do with the affair.
While it was true that he had a part to play by insinuating Daichi wrote the training plan, it was the man himself who had agreed to let Miho show the coach.
‘You reap what you sow’ he thought inwardly.
However, by the looks of the rest of his teammates, it was clear that it wasn’t just Riku who was feeling upset with Daichi.
‘This could be bad…’ Ken thought.
Yet in the next moment he shook his head. There was no way that the coach would allow discourse within the team, especially when it would directly affect team morale.
Unfortunately for Daichi, he would have to deal with this kind of treatment for a while still.
Ken moved down the cafeteria line and had to give his name to the lady behind the counter. She looked at the list before nodding, grabbing 2 bowls of rice and some fried chicken cutlet, along with various side dishes.
The rice bowls were stacked high, similar to when he was here for the tryouts.
He could already tell that Miho had given instructions to the staff.
However, it wasn’t just him. Even Daichi who had only been allowed a single serving of rice was given 4, causing Ken’s eyebrow to raise in question.
‘Maybe they’re increasing the amount of carbohydrates and protein for muscle recovery.’ Ken thought.
The two made their way over to one of the few empty tables left open before sitting down gingerly. They were joined not long after by Hiroki whose jersey was covered in dirt.
He looked exhausted as he placed his tray down upon the table and sat across from them.
Out of the entire team, he was probably the only one who suspected that Ken had written the training plan. This was because he’d experienced the so-called strength and conditioning training before at Yokohama.
His eyes fell upon Ken before letting out a sigh.
“Dude, this is even harsher than our extra curricular training…” He said weakly.
Ken shrugged, trying to look on the bright side.
“At least it’s lumped together with our other training… I was going to pull you into it regardless.” He said with a wry smile.
Hiroki paled briefly before nodding like a pecking chicken.
He coudln’t imagine doing that sort of training after practice. Though, if it really came down to it, he wouldn’t be one to shy away from such a thing.
The reason he was able to surpass his limits was because of the teen in front of him. He trusted Ken completely when it came to this sort of thing.
The trio began to dig into their food, doing their best to keep everything down. Soon enough, they were joined by another two players since most of the other seats were taken.
“Do you mind if we sit here?”
Ken looked up to see the gloomy looking Kuro and clumsy Akimitsu, waiting patiently with their tray of food.
“Be my guest.”
“Thank you Ken.”
“Thanks man.”
The two got comfortable, letting out a contented sigh after finally being allowed to sit down.
A few moments of silence drifted between them all, with only the sound of eating and the ambient of chattering students detectable.
That was until Aki spoke up, his shaved head obscured by his baseball cap.
“Daichi bro, your training plan sucks. I can already tell that I’ll be sore tomorrow.”
The guy didn’t pull any punches, speaking his mind without any qualms and causing Daichi’s cheeks to redden in embarrassment.
The words were so out of the blue that Ken had to force down a laugh.
‘Man this guy is blunt…’ He thought.
“Come on Aki, I’m sure that the training plan will be beneficial.” Kuro said, his tone rather considerate.
However, Ken could see his legs shaking beneath the table, a sign that he had not taken the training all that well.
It was clear that despite his gloomy disposition, Kuro was a nice and considerate guy.
Aki seemed rather unconvinced, though he did not rebut.
Wanting to change the subject, Ken piped up.
“So, is this your first time being on the National Team?”
“Yes this is my first.” Kuro said, nodding along.
Yet Aki shook his head. “I was part of the U15 squad for 2 years, but when I tried out for the U18 team I pissed off the Head Coach.”
“Huh? What do you mean?” Ken felt that there must have been a bit more to the story.
After all, what kind of coach would not include a good player just because they were pissed off.
Aki thought for a little while before responding.
“I told him that his toupee was fooling nobody and that he should just shave his head like me.” He said, lifting his hat off and showing his shaved head.
Silence…
‘Yep, this guy is crazy…’
No one spoke, but they all had the same opinion of the guy.