A short while later, the Rustbucket arrived at the stadium.
"Huh? Why are there so many special agents up ahead?" Ben scratched his head and looked toward the entrance in confusion.
At the gate, a large number of black-uniformed tactical officers stood rigidly in place, scanning every incoming spectator and vehicle with special detectors.
"I heard the President of the United States came too. He really likes baseball," Grandpa Max said with a smile.
There were a lot of vehicles waiting to get in.
They sat in line for a full half hour before it was finally the Rustbucket's turn.
A squad of tactical officers walked over and swept the Rustbucket from top to bottom with their detectors, making sure no one was trying to cause trouble.
Lucian stayed calm as he watched them carry out the inspection, though a thought crossed his mind.
The Rustbucket's got so many weapons hidden in it. They're not going to find them, right?
As it turned out, he had worried for nothing.
After finishing the scan, the officers found nothing unusual. One of them waved them through and signaled for the Rustbucket to move on.
"That's strange..." Lucian muttered.
But after thinking it over, it made sense. Security at this level really had no way of detecting what was hidden inside the Rustbucket.
After all, the Plumbers were something very special.
They were practically the highest level of military force there was.
Once inside the baseball stadium, the Rustbucket was parked in the underground lot, and everyone got out and headed toward the field.
But the game had not started yet, so the stadium was not open to the public for the time being.
With nothing else to do, the group followed the map and made their way to the baseball practice field.
The moment Ben saw there were baseballs to hit, he lit up with excitement and laughed happily. "Oh yeah! The Baseball Prince is making his move!"
As he spoke, he ran onto the bright green grass, eager to play for a while.
But before he could reach the baseballs, a large hand grabbed him by the back and lifted him off the ground.
Then that same hand hooked Ben onto the iron fence.
"Who did that?" Ben's face flushed red with anger as he gritted his teeth and glared at them.
Two teenage boys in blue baseball uniforms appeared in front of him.
One was a chubby kid with glasses.
The other was tall and skinny, with dark skin and a smug, flippant look that made him seem like a delinquent.
Both their jerseys and caps were marked with the letter "C."
"Hey, JT, look who this is." The tall boy grinned mockingly at Ben as he struggled. "Oh, it's weakling Ben Tennyson! Hahaha!"
The fat boy named JT burst out laughing. "I thought Ben Tennyson had gone missing. So this is where you've been, you little shrimp."
"Haven't seen you in forever, and you still suck just as much."
The two of them stood there with their arms folded, eyes full of ridicule and mockery, as if Ben were nothing more than a joke to them.
"Cash, JT, don't push it too far!" Ben ground his teeth, his eyes practically spitting fire. "This hero has been busy saving the world all summer."
"Hahaha! You're killing me!"
"Seriously, what a clown. Why don't you just run home to your mommy?"
Off to the side, Gwen could barely stand looking at the two bullies anymore. "You guys are going too far."
"What? We're just messing around with him." Cash gave a fake smile.
"Messing around? Then I'll play with you." Lucian walked over slowly with a smile on his face.
He had just gone to buy a drink, and when he came back, he found Ben and Gwen getting bullied.
How was he supposed to let that slide?
"Who are you? I'm warning you, stay out of this." JT pointed at Lucian.
Lucian said nothing.
Suddenly, his eyes sharpened. In one swift step, he rushed forward and hoisted Cash and JT up off the ground.
Like he was carrying two chickens, no matter how hard they struggled, Lucian did not budge.
"An eye for an eye." With a slight curl of his lips, Lucian hung both of them on the wire fence.
Ben froze for a second. Then his eyes burst with excitement and admiration. "That was so cool! Thanks, Cuz!"
"So handsome. Cuz is really manly..." Gwen murmured softly, her cheeks tinged red.
Lucian just smiled and said nothing.
Dealing with two kids like this was easy.
Cash and JT might have been school bullies who often picked on Ben and the other students, but to eighteen-year-old Lucian, they were nothing.
"Put us down right now! I'm warning you, I'm not someone you want to mess with!"
"Yeah! I'll call some guys from school and have them beat the crap out of you!"
Lucian shot them a cold look.
In an instant, Cash and JT were so frightened that they clutched their heads and started crying. They were one step away from wetting themselves and did not dare utter another word.
"Let's go."
Lucian took Ben down from the fence, then led the two of them toward the stadium, leaving the pair behind on the grass, still cursing under their breath.
...
The game was about to begin.
The stands were packed solid with spectators, and the noise was deafening.
On the broad field stood two teams lined up for the match.
One team wore blue baseball uniforms with a "C" on them. This was the Cannons.
The other team wore dark red uniforms. Every player was expressionless and stood ramrod straight. They were the Gentlemen.
After the host finished a brief speech, the game began immediately.
The President sat beneath a luxurious canopy, surrounded by tactical officers in sunglasses. Security was extremely tight.
The red team pitched first.
A barely noticeable red glint flashed through the pitcher's eyes. Then he whipped the baseball forward with tremendous force.
The blue team batter clenched his teeth and swung at once.
The instant the bat connected, a massive force slammed into him.
Gripping the bat as hard as he could, the batter put his whole body into it and barely managed to knock the ball back.
The baseball shot high into the air.
"Cool!" Ben blurted out.
But the next second, he froze.
The red team pitcher looked at the returning ball with a blank expression, bent his knees slightly, then launched himself upward like a human grasshopper.
He jumped five meters into the air.
And snatched the baseball right out of the sky.
A wave of shocked uproar swept through the stands, followed by excited, piercing screams.
"That's weird. Can a human even move like that?" Gwen said suspiciously.
"Not unless they aren't human..." Lucian said slowly.
Soon, the red team pitched again.
This time, the blue team still managed to swing and connect with the incoming ball.
But the red team catcher behind them stared at the baseball as it flew into the air, climbed straight up the wire fence, and leaped.
He actually caught the ball that had just been hit.
"Blue team, out!" the umpire called.
"Oh man. At this rate, they're going to lose." Ben sounded a little unhappy.
"What's with you, dummy? Shouldn't you be happy to see Cash and the others lose?" Gwen covered her mouth and laughed.
"Yeah, I want them to lose." Ben shrugged. "But I don't want my school to lose."
Suddenly, a lightbulb seemed to go off in his head.
He stood up and said, "I'm going to the bathroom. I'll be right back."