The date for the Kanto Tournament was quickly set, along with the groupings.
High school games are all elimination rounds, so the importance of the groupings is self-evident.
Seido High School Baseball Team was very proactive about this matter.
They didn't want to encounter any teams from West Tokyo.
However, this time there were three teams from West Tokyo alone, so no matter how the groups were arranged, their chances of encountering one were much higher than not encountering one.
"Not bad!"
After seeing the groupings, the major figures of Seido High School Baseball Team felt quite good.
They didn't encounter any of the noteworthy teams in the Kanto Tournament in the first round.
Their arch-rival from West Tokyo, Ichidaisan Third High School, would only be encountered in the semifinals, barring any surprises.
As for Inashiro, it was only possible to meet them in the finals.
This way, they wouldn't have to fight a bloody battle right away. Although the semifinals and finals would be the third and fourth games respectively, the intervals wouldn't be too long.
But not encountering them in the first two rounds was enough for them.
After all, contentment brings happiness.
"The organizers are quite considerate."
Coach Ochiai nodded repeatedly, holding the grouping list in his hand.
This grouping was clearly designed, and while there were some explosive matchups in the first round, for example, Ichidaisan Third High School met Yokohama Kouhoku from Kanagawa in the first round.
Kanagawa Prefecture itself is strong, and the teams that become champions in this region are even more terrifyingly strong.
Even on Koshien Stadium, they are renowned powerhouses.
Yokohama Kouhoku, abbreviated as Yokogaku.
Like the West Tokyo Three Great Powerhouses, they are all top-tier powerhouse high schools in the country.
Especially their coach, who was famous for being like a mad dog.
One was a Spring Koshien quarterfinalist, and the other was a Summer Koshien semifinalist last year.
Their early encounter, a spectacular clash of titans, was unavoidable.
This classic strong-on-strong matchup was also arranged as the opening game of the Kanto Tournament.
Other notable teams included Hakuryu High School, a powerhouse from Gunma Prefecture, known for its mobility.
Fortunately, Seido High School Baseball Team didn't encounter any of them in the first two rounds.
Their first-round opponent was Shonan Gakuen.
Seido High School Baseball Team had never heard of this name before. It was said to be a team composed of first-year and second-year players, and they had been very eye-catching in the past two years.
"We're really going head-to-head with Kanagawa," Kuramochi blurted out after seeing the opponent.
There was really nothing wrong with that statement.
Ichidaisan Third High School, the runner-up from West Tokyo, met Yokogaku, the champion from Kanagawa.
Seido High School Baseball Team, the champion from West Tokyo, just happened to have Shonan Gakuen, the runner-up from Kanagawa Prefecture, as their first-round opponent.
"There are three teams from West Tokyo, and it's already good that the organizers were considerate enough to separate us. On this basis, we can't complain about encountering strong teams early."
"Shonan, that name sounds familiar? Where have I heard it?"
Asou frowned, deep in thought.
Miyuki also nodded along: "I also seem to have heard it somewhere. I remember now, when I graduated from middle school, besides a few teams from Tokyo, they were among those who invited me."
As soon as Miyuki spoke, Asou also nodded.
"There was such a thing."
After asking around among their teammates, there were indeed a few who had received invitations from Shonan Gakuen at that time.
Moreover, the other party invited them by date, with the most famous players being invited first. For example, for Miyuki, as soon as the summer games ended, Shonan extended an olive branch to him.
As for Asou, he didn't receive an invitation until almost October.
And the treatment was vastly different from Miyuki's.
"These guys also play favorites…"
"This only shows that the other party has great ambitions and initially sought out the most outstanding players in the country."
"Han-san, did they not invite you?"
Someone threw the question to Zhang Han.
All the second-year players on the scene immediately fell silent; you could hear a pin drop.
Given the achievements of the current Seido second-year players, even if the other party only invited one person, they would have extended an olive branch to Zhang Han.
However, the second-year players, especially those from Tokyo, knew clearly in their hearts.
Zhang Han two years ago was completely incomparable to the current Zhang Han.
At that time, the ones truly in the limelight at Matsukata were Hoshida and Miyakawa.
Not to mention he couldn't compare to top-tier star players like Narumiya Mei, Carlos, Miyuki Kazuya, and Hoshida.
It was very possible that Shonan Gakuen did not send an invitation to Zhang Han. After all, Asou's invitation was already close to October.
Clearly, this was just a fallback option when the desired players couldn't be secured.
Moreover, it could be seen from the treatment Shonan gave to Asou.
The other party's invitation to Asou was not very sincere.
The person who asked the question also realized his oversight and quickly laughed it off, preparing to move on.
Zhang Han, who had been trying to be invisible, saw his teammates' discomfort and scratched his head.
So much time had passed, and he had received so many invitations back then that he hadn't really paid much attention.
In fact, general strong baseball teams, not those powerhouses, wouldn't even dare to approach truly top-tier players.
As for ordinary players, they weren't interested.
Players like Zhang Han, who weren't well-known but had solid skills, were like hot commodities.
They received the most invitations instead.
Zhang Han hadn't even finished looking through the invitations he received at the time, so how would he know if...
Thinking of this, Zhang Han suddenly remembered. He had indeed heard the name of Shonan Gakuen.
Among the schools that invited him back then, Shonan Gakuen was indeed one of them.
Zhang Han, who was about to go to high school, needed to pay a considerable school selection fee.
Zhang Han's primary goal when choosing a school was one that could waive the school selection fee. Among the schools that invited Zhang Han at that time, it seemed that only Shonan Gakuen proactively promised to waive these fees.
Not only that, but they also promised to provide a scholarship.
Although Zhang Han had no intention of leaving his mother and sister, a penny can stump a hero.
If he hadn't later gained the favor of Ichidaisan Third High School and Takashima Rei's earnest invitation, he might have gone far away to Kanagawa.
Seeing everyone around him looking at him.
Zhang Han could only answer honestly.
"They invited me too. I don't really know when exactly, I just heard the coach at the time mention it briefly."
The coach mentioned it, and only briefly.
This suggested it was quite early. At least, it couldn't have been September or October.
The gazes of his teammates around him became even more fervent.
Indeed, a genius is a genius.
Even when his reputation was not yet prominent, he could still receive the favor of capital.
Zhang Han had originally intended to casually mention the treatment they offered, but seeing the expressions on his teammates' faces, especially Asou's.
Zhang Han ultimately chose to swallow those words.
He felt it was better not to say it; it would just invite too much resentment.
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