Chapter 6: Frozen Time

"O land of Dreams! I Have Returned!!!"

As the plane flew over The United States, Sawamura, sitting by the window, opened the small curtain and looked down at the land below.

Because the altitude was so high, all he could see were buildings that looked like ants.

He couldn't make anything out clearly…

But still, a surge of ambition rose in Sawamura's heart.

Nagano was where Sawamura grew up, and this place was where Sawamura would fight for his future.

After many years, he was finally stepping onto this land again.

Perhaps the event Robert organized was still small-scale and insignificant.

But to Sawamura, it held special meaning.

This marked the beginning of Eijun's second crusade in The United States.

Before his regression, Sawamura came to The United States alone.

He received an invitation from a Major League team, and so he joined the league.

Given the accomplishments and personal fame Sawamura Eijun had in Japan at that time, the honor of being invited was undoubtedly a pleasant surprise.

This event caused a huge stir in Japan and was one of the few glorious moments.

Before he left, the media in Japan swarmed him for interviews, and even TV shows invited him.

At that time, Sawamura was a hero in Japan.

However, when he boarded the plane to this land, the reception was cold and indifferent.

There was no one there to welcome him.

A major news event in Japan had caused no waves at all in this country.

Not to mention media interviews or TV recordings—those were just pipe dreams.

If it had been an ordinary person, the contrast would have been hard to bear.

Luckily, Sawamura had a strong heart and quickly adjusted.

He swore to make a name for himself in the Major Leagues.

But unexpectedly…

At that time, Sawamura was still too naive. He thought that as long as he worked hard, he would surely make achievements in the Major Leagues.

Wasn't that how he came to be in Seidou's baseball team?

When Sawamura first joined the Seidou High School baseball team, he was nothing more than the weakest link in the team.

Although he had only played baseball for a few years at that time.

But baseball isn't a sport you can figure out by just thinking about it in a room without any guidance.

If Sawamura had that kind of brain, he wouldn't have played baseball. There are many other things he could have done!

In the days that followed, Sawamura relied on hard work and practice to gradually become the team's Ace.

And then he caught the eye of scouts from The United States.

When Sawamura had just joined the Major League team, he thought the same way.

He believed that as long as he worked seriously, he would achieve success.

And that is what happened partially, after two years of playing and training in the MiLB, he was moved to the MLB!

The first year wasn't bad!

Although Sawamura didn't make an explosive impact and dominate the scene.

As a newcomer, the achievements he made were still noteworthy.

The Japanese media, while not as crazy as before, still gave positive coverage.

Over here in The United States, Sawamura's strength began to be recognized.

Although at that time, Sawamura had yet to see any signs of becoming a superstar, everything was still moving in a good direction.

The unexpected happened in his second year.

After one year of adaptation, American hitters seemed to suddenly become immune to Sawamura's pitching.

They gradually started to make contact with Sawamura's pitches and even hit them.

Sawamura, who had originally thought his skills had improved rapidly, found himself surpassed by many players without a way to fight back.

What was truly terrifying was not the shadow in front of him, but the people chasing up from behind.

His professional journey became difficult, and every time he stepped onto the mound, it felt like walking on thin ice.

At that time, Sawamura even began to doubt his own abilities.

"Was I really cut out to be a pitcher?"

"Why didn't I feel any joy when pitching?"

"Knowing fear is a good thing. It means you've grown. The fear on the pitcher's mound is something that a player who hasn't reached a certain level can never experience."

During the offseason, Sawamura returned to Seidou High School.

At that time, the now somewhat famous Coach Kataoka said this to Eijun.

This conversation had a significant impact on Eijun.

Fear wasn't necessarily a bad thing.

Why would fear arise?

The simple reason is that he realized how tough this thing was, and how formidable the opponents were.

The deeper the understanding, the more one discovers the charm of baseball.

Eijun grew through this struggle.

Ultimately, through hitting, he kept his place on the team.

Before that, Sawamura had never considered himself talented in hitting!

At that time, he was extremely grateful for the training he received last year in Seidou. If it weren't for the period of training under Coach Kataoka's supervision, which had him meet certain hitting targets, Sawamura would have never gained the foundation in hitting training.

Though his hitting truly started to mature after joining the professional league, if it weren't for the early groundwork, it would have been impossible for him to achieve such high accomplishments just by relying on his professional training.

It was precisely because of the thorough development during his high school years that he was able to make a significant breakthrough in his second year in the pros.

He became an indispensable asset to the team.

The Japanese media that had originally given up on Sawamura were now begrudgingly reporting that his career had entered a second spring.

However, his hitting was still limited, and his tactical contribution far outweighed his raw power.

If Sawamura wanted to stay in the professional league for the long term, relying on tactical hitting would never be enough.

Ultimately, it all came down to his pitching.

The heavens eventually favored Sawamura. Just before he was about to fall into despair, he found a new pitching style.

That's when he truly secured his position in the pros.

Although ten years of effort didn't turn Sawamura into a world-class star or a legendary player who could lead an era, he still achieved a certain level of success in the professional league.

Seidou High School had proudly displayed Sawamura Eijun's photo on their honor walls.

In conclusion, if we had to define Sawamura Eijun's life before his regression,

He had done well.

Thanks to his experiences, Sawamura originally thought that this time they came to The United States, the situation would be similar to his last time there.

Last time, he was obscure, and this time, the Seidou High School Baseball Team probably wouldn't be that expected either.

This doesn't mean that Seidou High School didn't achieve great things; it's just that people in The United States are like that.

To avoid discouraging his teammates, Sawamura specifically reminded them before they boarded the plane.

This was his way of giving his teammates a bit of a "preventive shot."

However, what Sawamura didn't expect was that, when they got off the plane, there were actually people waiting to watch, and aside from the fans from Japan, there were also media reporters.

These reporters weren't all Japanese; among them were several American reporters.

The reception wasn't exactly grand, but compared to Sawamura's previous expectations, the difference was still significant.

'What the f*ck is going on here?'

Sawamura couldn't help but wonder.

Could it be that his memory was wrong, or was there something going on that he didn't know?

Sawamura wasn't dumb, and this unexpected situation clearly indicated that something had changed along the way.

But what exactly that change was, Sawamura had no idea...

After disembarking, the Seidou players were given a simple interview and then taken to the accommodation that the organizers had prepared for them.

The accommodation wasn't a hotel; it was a stadium.

It was a row of small wooden cabins, and in front of the cabins was an open-air baseball field.

The environment wasn't classy, but it wasn't dirty either.

Like it was made for training camps.

Sawamura wasn't sure how Robert found this place.

"Let's rest here for now. In the afternoon, we're going to start the games."

Because the Seidou Team had very little time before the Summer Tournament started and wanted to play more games after arriving in The United States, there was almost no time for the players to rest.

After a brief adjustment, the players had to continue with the games.

Looking at the clock in the wooden cabin, Kuramochi felt it was incredibly strange.

They took a 10:30 flight and had been flying for more than ten hours.

But when they looked, it was still 10:30 in the morning.

"This is crazy! It's as if time froze," he muttered.

"Don't be ridiculous. Time didn't freeze, it was just stolen for more than ten hours," came the reply.

Without realizing it, it was already the next day.

...