Chapter 196: Things Beyond Training and Racing Can Be Left to Him as Well
When she talked about entering the Autumn Tenno Sho, Satono Crown deliberately raised her eyebrows in a carefree manner, yet her voice was clearly trembling ever so slightly.
Now, as Kitasan Black gazed at the Kyoto Racecourse before her, that forced smile seemed to resurface vividly in her mind.
She felt a sense of helplessness.
That's right, Autumn Tenno Sho was certainly a major race no less prestigious than the Kikuka Sho.
When the URA Association and the international bodies evaluated all races each year, the weight given to Autumn Tenno Sho was even a bit higher than that of the Kikuka Sho.
That race was indeed filled with powerful senior racers. Being able to compete on the same stage with them was exhilarating, a dream stage every racer yearned for.
But for every racer, the Kikuka Sho held a meaning far too special, something no numerical rating could ever measure.
You only get one chance to participate in it in your lifetime.
That rarity was like the brightest lone star in the night sky.
Whether one won or not was beside the point, simply being able to step onto that racecourse was, for many Umamusume, an extraordinary luxury.
She herself had been looking forward to the Kikuka Sho with all her heart, pouring countless hours of sweat and effort into it, giving her all in every race leading up to it.
Satono Crown was the same. Kitasan Black had seen with her own eyes the effort her friend put into training, the way she fought with everything she had in races, and her yearning for victory.
None of that was inferior to her own.
But perhaps this was the unpredictability of fate. The family's decision stood before Satono Crown like an insurmountable mountain, forcing her to narrowly miss the Kikuka Sho.
'If I were in Crow-chan's position… what would I do?'
That thought suddenly crossed Kitasan Black's mind.
In the next instant, she felt regret and frustration. Realizing that this was exactly what she had sensed from Satono Crown, she found herself wishing she could say something, some perfectly chosen words that might offer her friend a bit of comfort.
But from the moment they parted that day until now, no matter how hard she racked her brain, she couldn't come up with what those words should be.
"…Kitasan? Kitasan!"
After two calls—or perhaps many more—Kitasan Black snapped back to her senses.
Turning her head, she met her Trainer concerned gaze. Realizing she had been spacing out, she panicked.
"S-sorry, Trainer, I—"
She spoke in a rush, only to realize she didn't know how to explain herself.
After waiting a moment and seeing Kitasan Black lower her head, Makoto smiled and spoke gently.
"It's fine. Let's stop the explanation here for today."
"The Kyoto course isn't something I'm explaining to you for the first time anyway, and you've written down everything I just said."
"There are still more than two weeks until the race, there's plenty of time to digest it slowly."
"Don't put too much psychological pressure on yourself over this."
It wasn't that he hadn't noticed Kitasan Black's distraction.
After all, they had been together day in and day out for more than half a year now. Many times, he felt that just from a single look in the girl's eyes, he could roughly tell what she was thinking.
When he first noticed her lapse in focus, he thought she was pondering the Kikuka Sho, or perhaps reviewing the St. Lite Kinen as a rehearsal.
Manhattan Cafe had been right, he really had been bold.
Even with Kitasan Black's popularity before the race, she already had more than enough support to head into the Kikuka Sho. But St. Lite Kinen was still a G2 race, and her opponents were hardly unknown Umamusume.
Or rather, among the hundreds of Umamusume who qualified to run in graded races each year, there were no true weaklings.
Leaving aside the nebulous factor of luck, when competitors like that raced together, the difference between victory and defeat was, more often than not, a matter of the slightest margin.
In a situation like this, treating a G2 race as a rehearsal and testing the tactics and strategy for the next race on the real stage could indeed be called bold.
However, it wasn't something he had never done before.
In Kitasan Black's debut race, given her ability as a racer and the fact that he already knew in advance that she excelled at front running, simply going for a front running run would have made it very hard for her to lose.
Even so, he still believed that learning to hold back and endure from the rear was a necessary experience, and insisted that she run from behind in that race.
Looking back now, many of those judgments had been correct. In her current races, Kitasan Black truly no longer had opportunities to spend long periods patiently waiting at the back.
Since there had been a first time, there could naturally be a second.
What's more, the next race was a higher-tier, more meaningful G1. If they could win it, then the risk wouldn't amount to much.
Especially after analyzing the St. Lite Kinen, he truly had confidence when it came to the Kikuka Sho.
Originally, he had planned to talk about that confidence after breaking down the course characteristics.
But now, it seemed that addressing the girl's worries was far more important.
After all, she had grown up, she's no longer the simple, slightly foolish girl who only knew training and racing…
Thinking this, Makoto couldn't help but take a closer look at Kitasan Black.
When he had first met her, this girl had been like a spotless sheet of white paper, radiating an unpolished, naive air.
New to the world, she approached everything with a green, innocent curiosity. In training, she carried that clear, earnest simplicity common to Umamusume at that stage.
In races, she changed somewhat, still pure, yet filled with excitement for competition and a hunger for victory.
Put simply, training and racing were everything Kitasan Black was back then—simple and pure.
Now, that simplicity and purity still remained.
But like the heavy thoughts she was showing at this very moment, the girl had clearly undergone a transformation from the inside out.
She stood taller and more graceful, her posture more upright, the lines of her body increasingly strong and athletic. Every gesture carried more confidence and composure.
Much of the childishness had faded from her face, and her already delicate features had become even brighter and more striking.
In her bright red eyes, the joy of racing and the desire for victory burned even hotter, now accompanied by a depth that felt as though it carried stories of its own.
'October… in two more months, it would be a year since they met. Time… really did fly.'
Unable to help himself, Makoto felt a wave of emotion at the changes in the girl before him compared to his memories, and sighed inwardly.
After that brief reflection, he paused for a moment, then continued:
"You seem to have something on your mind. If you don't mind… why not tell me about it? Maybe I can help."
In the middle of blaming herself for being distracted, Kitasan Black heard those words from above and couldn't help but look up.
Meeting her Trainer gaze and seeing the sincerity and concern there, warmth suddenly spread through her heart. The tension in her body and the knot in her chest loosened all at once.
She gently bit her lower lip, countless memories flashing through her mind.
From the accident of their first meeting, to the patient guidance on the training field time and again, to the unwavering support during races…
As she looked back, she realized that she had long since come to rely on the person standing before her.
Whenever she felt lost during training or competition, it was enough to leave it to him—there would always be a solution.
And now, perhaps it wasn't just training and racing anymore.
Perhaps things beyond that… could also be entrusted to him.
'That's right, what happened with Ribbon-chan… I had only made that decision after asking trainer about it.'
'I even told Rasen to talk to her trainer, and yet I forgot about myself…'
A look of realization flashed through her eyes. After only a brief moment, she made up her mind.
"Trainer, I…"
She spoke slowly, her voice filled with expectation and trust.
"I want to talk to you about Crow-chan…"