Chapter 78
"No problem at all! I've been looking forward to a day like this for ages!"
Kitasan Black thumped her chest enthusiastically, brimming with confidence.
"No matter what kind of training it is, I'll listen to Trainer and see it through to the end. That's the promise I made right from the start!"
"Mmm, excellent. That's the spirit."
Seeing his Uma Musume so fired up, Yasui Makoto felt his own motivation surge. He pointed toward the track and smiled.
"Then go ahead and warm up first. I'll get the equipment ready."
"Yes! I'm off to warm up!"
Kitasan Black snapped to attention, answered brightly, and dashed onto the track with an energetic "heya!" She began her warm-up lap, calling out "hooya hooya" as she went.
It was still early, so only a few other Uma Musume were out for morning exercise. Across the wide field, the black-haired girl's lively shouts rang out clearly.
While she warmed up, Kitasan Black kept most of her focus on her form, but she kept stealing curious glances toward Yasui Makoto.
She had never heard much about this "parachute sprint training" before. When he first mentioned it, she had wondered whether parachutes were only for jumping from high places and how they could possibly help with running.
After listening to his explanation, she understood it involved attaching a parachute behind her and using wind resistance during explosive sprints over different distances to build power.
That answer had only led to more questions. If a parachute was tied to her back, would the wind just blow her away while she ran?
She finished the required warm-up distance, jogged lightly to cool down, then walked over to Yasui Makoto to begin her stretching routine.
Safety came first in all of Yasui Makoto's training instructions, and he had given her plenty of real-world examples. If she ignored the rules, an injury during training was entirely possible.
An injury could delay upcoming races, but more importantly, it might affect her entire future career. She understood that very well.
Emperor's brilliant performances on the track were one of her greatest inspirations, yet Emperor had been forced to withdraw from the Kikuka Sho after her undefeated Two Crown season because of injury, and the setback had weighed on her for a long time afterward.
Having seen that happen, Kitasan Black was determined not to cause worry by getting hurt herself. So she headed to the fence and patiently did leg presses and torso twists, all while buzzing with curiosity about the special training ahead.
Once she had carefully finished her warm-up, excitement began to build.
"Trainer! Warm-up complete!"
"Good. Come put this on."
Yasui Makoto had already noticed she was done and had the equipment organized. He motioned her closer and handed her a vest that looked a lot like bungee-jumping gear.
Kitasan Black slipped on the special vest with a curious expression and immediately felt a sense of familiarity.
"Huh? This… it feels a lot like the stomp-and-step running we did before."
"The principle is similar," Yasui Makoto replied as he picked up the parachute he had prepared and fastened it to the back of the vest. "But the intensity is much higher."
"You don't need to worry about that. This level is just right for you right now. Your foundation is solid enough, and in theory, working on your sprint ability at this stage should bring the biggest improvement in your next race.
We have a training race coming up soon, so starting focused sprint work now will let us compare data before and after and make any necessary adjustments."
Kitasan Black noticed that Yasui Makoto was explaining more and more of the guidance directly to her these days. The change thrilled her. It meant he recognized how far her abilities had come and trusted that she could understand things she might not have grasped before.
With that excitement carrying her forward, she listened carefully to the rest of the instructions, then returned to the track with confidence.
Compared to her warm-up, she now had an extra "tail." A full set of parachutes trailed behind her, the cords evenly spaced across her back and attached to four separate canopy cloths.
Each canopy was roughly the size of a small table. Yasui Makoto held the tops of the cloths in his hands, standing four or five meters behind her with the cords pulled taut. He looked at her back and raised his voice.
"Ready for 100-meter parachute sprint training?"
"Yes! I'm ready, Trainer!"
"Okay. Same as always… three, two… one!"
The instant he said "one," Yasui Makoto let go. The canopies dropped and snapped open almost immediately.
Kitasan Black shot forward just in time to avoid them. Yasui Makoto jogged sideways to stay clear, then followed along behind.
Her posture and stride looked fine, exactly like in her earlier sprint drills, but her speed was only a little more than half of her usual pace. Uma Musume training speed normally sat around fourteen to fifteen meters per second, so this was roughly eight or nine.
As a human, keeping up with that pace was still manageable for him.
Even so, Yasui Makoto had no plans to run right beside her. Parachute resistance was powerful and tricky to control. For beginners especially, any change in posture, wind direction, or speed could make the parachute shift wildly.
That was exactly what happened. Kitasan Black started cleanly, but her steps quickly grew a little unsteady.
Running alongside let him keep her safe and judge whether they needed to switch parachute sizes.
At the same time, Kitasan Black was discovering just how different this training felt. She had done plenty of dragging heavy objects and elastic-band work before. She had even helped pull stalled trucks or heavy loads back home or on the street when she came across them.
Those kinds of resistance always felt straightforward and linear, pulling straight back.
But the parachute was something else entirely.
Weight-wise, it was far lighter than tires, bands, or trucks. Yet the drag it created was on a completely different level, and the force spread across her whole body. It felt like countless hands were grabbing her, yanking her backward with everything they had.
Even the smallest shift in her stride or posture sent huge changes through the parachute, throwing off the balance she had worked so hard to keep.
So… so difficult…
I never imagined this kind of special training would be this hard…
Just as the thought crossed her mind, she heard a familiar voice beside her.
"Okay, you can stop now."
She instantly recognized Yasui Makoto and reflexively came to a halt, turning her head.
"Tra-Trainer, I…"
Her ears drooped without her realizing it.
"Did I… run really badly just now?"
Yasui Makoto thought for a moment and decided to be honest.
"It's normal for a first try. What I mean is… yeah, it didn't look great."