Chapter 77
The next day, as Kitasan Black walked toward the Tracen Academy track, Yasui Makoto's words from the night before still lingered in her mind.
When she had heard them, she suddenly felt as if her trainer had changed somehow. She could not quite put her finger on what was different, but he suddenly felt a little closer… and a little clearer to her.
From the time they first met until recently, she had been well aware of Yasui Makoto's age. Although the development of Uma Musume differed from that of humans, by human standards she was only a few years younger than him.
Even so, every time they interacted she had always felt that her trainer seemed much older than her. Sometimes it even seemed like the person standing in front of her was not an eighteen- or nineteen-year-old youth, but a mature adult in his twenties, thirties, or even older.
Yet last night, for the first time, she sensed a youthful energy from Yasui Makoto. It reminded her of the young hopefuls her grandfather and father used to bring along. Each one brimmed with a lively, spirited energy that set them apart.
It was probably that youthful spark that made the distance between them feel shorter and brought his face and figure into sharper focus.
Just what was going on…?
As she stepped onto the track, she spotted Yasui Makoto with his usual shoulder bag and an extra large travel backpack. The sight made her think about the change in him again, but she quickly shook her head.
No matter what, her trainer now had a dream, and that dream had come about because of her. She had to work even harder!
Filled with excitement, she ran over to him.
"Trainer! Let me help you carry your things!"
When Kitasan Black saw Yasui Makoto, he also noticed his Uma Musume.
"No need. We can talk about that later."
He patted the large backpack on his back, took it off, and set it on the ground. Then he pulled out a tablet and a stack of papers from his shoulder bag. After a quick glance around, he pointed to the steps beside the track.
"As usual, we'll start by reviewing the Spring Stakes, then move on to training."
"Okay!"
Kitasan Black took out her small notebook and carrot-shaped ballpoint pen from her pocket and answered energetically, her expression serious and focused.
This review of the Spring Stakes was different from the previous two. Especially now that the training race was on the schedule, the analysis needed to be much more detailed.
The level of this major race was significantly higher, with far more factors to consider. Kitasan Black's performance in it served as a summary of everything she had achieved so far.
To build properly on that foundation, they first needed to combine her existing experience with clear explanations of the underlying theory. They also had to go over the content for the upcoming training sessions.
Since Daiwa Scarlet and the others had agreed to the training race last night, future sessions would naturally include preparations for both the training race and the Satsuki Sho.
While explaining, Yasui Makoto carefully watched how well Kitasan Black was absorbing the information and soon gave a small nod of satisfaction.
His Uma Musume was no longer the complete rookie she had been at her debut. Through classes, training, and actual races at Tracen Academy, she had grown and learned far more than she realized.
Compared to before, she was no longer just passively listening and taking notes. She now asked many thoughtful questions.
From both her notes and her questions, it was clear she understood almost everything he had explained and had already formed her own thoughts and conclusions.
"…So if I mainly use the slow-paced Front Runner style going forward, sprint training will be really important."
Kitasan Black pressed the carrot-shaped pen against her lips like she was nibbling on a carrot and murmured,
"During the Spring Stakes, the horses behind me were really close. A few times I thought they were about to overtake me. If they had sprinted just a little faster, I might have lost."
Hearing this, Yasui Makoto nodded with satisfaction.
"You're right. That was definitely a possibility. Real Steel's final spurt is actually very powerful. However, I think her trainer still hasn't fully decided on her running style and tactics yet. That's why some parts of the Spring Stakes weren't handled perfectly.
But you already had most of these things figured out before the race… or rather, three months ago. That's our big advantage.
Still, it won't just be Real Steel. The Satsuki Sho will have opponents with even stronger finishing kicks, like Satono Crown and Duramente. They will definitely train hard before the race to make better use of their strengths. That will narrow our current lead quite a bit.
To deal with that, even if you can't suddenly match their final spurt, developing a much stronger sprint of your own will still give you enough of an edge at the finish line to win this G1."
After analyzing Kitasan Black's weaknesses and her opponents' strengths, Yasui Makoto didn't seem worried at all. This was an issue they had noticed since the very beginning of their training together.
Because of her self-control problems, Kitasan Black had always held back when it came to sprinting. In previous races, she had relied on a longer, sustained burst of speed to win.
After more than three months of steady work, her bones, muscles, and ligaments had strengthened enough that they could now begin proper specialized sprint training.
"Slow-paced Front Runner style… requires special sprint training…"
Kitasan Black repeated Yasui Makoto's explanation under her breath as she carefully wrote it down in her notebook with the carrot pen. After a moment of thought, she asked,
"We've done some sprint training before, but the kind Trainer is talking about now is different, right?"
"Smart girl."
Yasui Makoto smiled and nodded.
"What I've prepared for you is called parachute sprint training. It's not exactly a new method. It's been around for twenty or thirty years, but other trainers don't seem to use it much.
This training will effectively boost your explosive power and sprint ability. At the same time, it will also greatly increase your lower body strength.
But training only your lower body isn't enough. If your upper body stays relatively weak, it will affect your balance.
So the next training session is going to be quite tiring. Make sure you're mentally prepared."
Kitasan Black didn't think much of Yasui Makoto's warning about it being tiring.
Over the past few months, while completing her own training, she had also chatted with her classmates and friends about their training routines in class and at the dormitory.
After comparing notes, she realized her own training volume was a bit higher, and the sessions lasted one or two hours longer than most. To her, that seemed completely natural.
She had heard from Yasui Makoto long ago that she had excellent physical potential that hadn't been fully tapped yet. If she wanted to win major races, she would naturally have to work harder than others.
After several months of training, she still felt she had energy to spare at the end of most sessions.
She had always hoped her trainer would increase the intensity, and now her wish had finally come true. Instead of feeling worried, she was actually looking forward to it.