Time flew by, and before we knew it, there were only days before the end of the summer camp.
Normally, most would spend the last few days of the summer camp simply relaxing. Enjoying the beachside resort they'd lived in for two months before they'd return to Tracen Central Academy.
But we didn't. Instead, all of Team Kitahara were now on a shinkansen, speeding back to the place where our dreams began.
Unlike the shinkansen heading to the summer camp, this was a private trip booked only for ourselves, which meant we didn't need to be separated. We all found seats within a single cabin, either taking the chance to rest or simply watching the window as the scenery outside sped by.
I fell into the latter group. After all, we'd headed straight for the shinkansen barely an hour after we woke up, so I didn't feel particularly tired. The same couldn't be said for Belno and Oguri, who were sitting next to me. They both spent yesterday training and playing to their hearts' content to celebrate the end of the summer camp. Kitahara himself was also asleep, apparently not having slept well last night.
Which only left Musaka and I as the only ones awake.
"Should you really be drinking this early in the day?" I asked, smiling wryly as I saw Musaka pull out another can of beer from his plastic bag.
Musaka scoffed as he popped the can open. "It's fine. I ain't that fool who can barely handle a single glass." He grinned as a small tuft of fuzz arose from the opening. "And it ain't that early, girl."
"Right~" I said, clearly not believing.
He scoffed. "Kids these days."
I playfully scoffed back. "Old men these days."
"You…" He whispered threateningly, but sighed when all I did was raise my hands and wink. "Forget it." He eventually said as he began drinking his beer.
I grinned, though I didn't attempt to stop him from drinking. I knew full well that trying to do so would only incite his anger. I would know; Kitahara had tried that once, worried for his health, and ended up being thrown into the dumpster for it.
I turned back to the window, smiling slightly as I saw the scenery speed by.
Since we still had a few days before everyone would return to Tracen Central, we decided to stay in Kasamatsu for a few days before heading back. It's been half a year since we last went home, and we wanted to take the chance to catch up with friends and family.
Personally, I wanted to head back to see my family again. After all, my decision to join Oguri Cap also stemmed from my parents' excitement, and I wanted to come back to show just how far I've come since I entered Central. Not that I'd need to—my dad often kept up with the news, so he probably already knew about my Classic races.
Well, that, and Oguri had asked me if I wanted to go and see her mom, and I agreed. More than just being Oguri's mother, I wanted to thank her for raising Oguri—for the time and care she'd given, eventually allowing Oguri to stand up and run as her heart wishes.
Oguri Cap might be this era's hero, but the same could be said for the mother who raised her.
Musaka noticed my ears flicking occasionally, and he raised an eyebrow. "Exciting about being home?"
My lips twitched as I shrugged. "Who wouldn't? Been half a year since I was home." I grinned slightly. "Wonder how everyone at Kasamatsu Tracen's doing."
He grinned. "Pretty damn well last I heard." He took another sip of his beer. "That Fujimasa girl won the [Tokai Derby] last I heard."
I smiled.
That was another change. Team Kitahara's combined win-streak had ravaged through Kasamatsu like a storm, but it also lit a fire in many. Fujimasa March was one of them, having formed a particularly strong friendship and rivalry with Oguri Cap, though I wasn't sure if the rivalry was shared with Oguri or not.
Nevertheless, with Oguri unable to run in the [Tokai Derby], that mission was taken by Fujimasa March instead, who trained endlessly to try and chase Oguri's shadow. And while she couldn't quite manage to do so—there were few umamusume who could match Oguri's monstrous strength—but her efforts weren't in vain.
While Team Kitahara racked up win after win, the same could also be said for March. Sure, she didn't quite have a seemingly unending win-streak like we did, but she consistently placed on the podium whenever she raced, with her achieving 4 victories in 6 races.
And one of those victories happened to be in the [Tokai Derby] which happened a couple months back.
"I wonder if she'll want to head to Central as well." I said out loud.
Musaka huffed. "She probably will." He swirled his half-empty can. "Your team damn pried open to floodgates; won't be long before more umamusume from outside begin flooding into Central." He grinned sharply. "Ain't too sure, but I've heard whispers that the URA's scrambling to prepare for the possibility."
I nodded slowly. I already knew that said speculation would actually turn out to be true. In the manga, many umamusume had also tried breaking into Central, though many would eventually fall back due to the sheer difference in talent. The only one who managed to fully break through was Inari One, who'd go on to become one of the members of the Heisei Top Three alongside Oguri and Super Creek.
I was confident that it'd be even more dramatic this time around.
Before I could ponder any further, I felt the shinkansen begin to slow down. I blinked as I turned to the window, and my eyes widened slightly as I saw the buildings of Kasamatsu as we sped by. A fond smile lifted my lips as I gazed at the familiar sights. "Seems like we're home."
"We sure are." Musaka said, his tone a little softer than normal. He quickly drank the rest of his beer before placing the emptied can back in his plastic bag. "Went by pretty damn fast this time."
I smirked. "Maybe because Kitahara's not awake enough this time."
He barked out a laugh. "That's true!" And saying that, he grabbed his cane and swung it over his chair, perfectly striking the head of the sleeping Kitahara. "Wake up, you fool! We're almost here!"
"The hell was that for, you old geezer!?" Kitahara screamed as he held his head.
"Who's the old geezer, you fool!?" Musaka quickly shot back.
"Yeah, I sure wonder who that is!"
The two men quickly returned to their usual bickering. The noise caused Oguri and Belno to wake up, and I gave the two a small smile. "Wakey, wakey." I said as I patted their heads.
"Nn…" Oguri slowly blinked. "Are we there yet?"
"I think so…" Belno said as she gazed out the window, yawning softly. She then realized that I'd been patting her head, and her cheeks flushed slightly. "U-Um, you can stop now, Star-san…"
"Woke you up, didn't it?" I said with a playful smirk, though I soon obliged.
Oguri blankly stared at Belno, confused as to why she'd ever ask me to stop patting her head. And as if to further deny such a foreign concept, Oguri gently nuzzled her head into my hand, her ears flicking happily as she did.
I watched Oguri in slight confusion, while Belno only sighed as she looked away, feeling second-hand embarrassment from being right next to such an intimate scene.
"Anyway, what're you two going to do once we stop?" I asked.
Belno smiled fondly. "I'm going to see my parents!" She patted the small bag on her lap. "And I have to show them my new G1 outfit!"
"That's nice~" I sighed slightly. "I would've liked to show my parents mine too, but I completely forgot to bring it."
"Me too…" Oguri whispered, her ears drooping. "I can't show my mom…"
I shrugged. It couldn't be helped. It wasn't as if we'd planned this trip back to Kasamatsu. It'd all been somewhat last-minute, with us booking our shinkansen tickets just a few days ago.
"How about you, Star-san?" Belno then asked.
I hummed. "Well, Oguri did want me to go and meet her mom." I turned to Oguri. "You still up for that?"
At that mention, Oguri's ears perked up, her previous sadness forgotten. "Nn!"
"Eh…" Belno whispered, her cheeks turning somewhat red.
From the sounds of it, it was Oguri who asked me to come and meet her mom. Wasn't this basically like-!?
I raised an eyebrow at Belno's strange look. "What?"
"I-It's nothing." Belno said, though her smile was somewhat crooked. "Just a little surprised, that's all!"
"...right." I said. "Anyway, whatever the case, we'll meet back at my parents' izakaya for dinner." I smiled fondly. "I can't wait to eat there again."
"Ooh!" Oguri perked up once more. "I wanna eat!"
Belno giggled. "It'll be like the old days."
Soon enough, the train came to a full stop. We then began taking the luggage we'd brought over from Central, and together, we all stepped off the shinkansen.
.
.
.
AN: Only one chapter today, unfortunately. There were strangely a lot of formatting errors in this and the next few chapters, so I've been busy fixing them.