When Kitasan Black opened her eyes again, she was back in her own world.
Just as she'd guessed—once the race ended, she returned.
I hope my influence helps the other me improve.
Because that world's "her" had been genuinely painful to watch. Not just in terms of results—the attitude, the lifestyle, all of it was unbearable.
...
In the other world.
Kita-chan woke to find herself back in her own body.
She bolted upright, savoring the simple sensation of having physical form again.
I'm back!
No more floating behind herself like a ghost.
Though her return meant the other her was gone, right?
Yeah... I can't sense her presence anymore.
The realization brought unexpectedly complicated feelings.
She found that she actually missed the other her.
At first, she'd despised that arrogant interloper.
But now she realized she'd never truly hated her.
Thank you, other me. I'll do my best!
She'd disliked the other her's attitude toward her friends and trainer. But after learning the truth, Kita-chan understood why that attitude had existed.
If she'd been transported into another version of herself—only to discover that version had been walking the wrong path, working hard in the wrong direction, while nobody around her said a word—wouldn't she be angry too? Wouldn't she start wondering whether all those friends and senpai had been faking their support?
Once she framed it that way, everything made sense.
"Okay—time to work hard!"
Now that she knew the mistake, starting today she'd sprint in the right direction.
The Japan Derby had been won by the other her. But the Kikka Sho was coming, and she still wasn't confident she could beat Duramente.
And Duramente had thrown down a challenge.
Even if that challenge had been directed at the other her, it was her responsibility to answer it now.
(Other-world Kitasan Black: Heh. Thinking way too much about this.)
Satono Diamond, roused by the commotion, looked up. Since the other Kita-chan had turned off all the lanterns, she hadn't needed her sleep mask these past few nights.
"Kita-chan?"
One look at those eyes and she knew.
This was her Kita-chan.
"...Sorry, did I wake you, Diamond?"
"It's fine. Welcome back, Kita-chan."
Satono Diamond's gaze was warm.
"Mm. I'm home."
They caught up for a while. Kita-chan gave a rough account of what the past few days had been like—conscious the entire time, floating behind her own body like a ghost, only shutting down when the other her slept.
Satono Diamond found it fascinating, and brimmed with curiosity about the other Kita-chan.
Kita-chan said she didn't know much about the other her's background, but she knew this much: the other Kitasan Black was not only incredibly strong, but also an incredibly good person.
After chatting, Kita-chan headed to the training grounds, full of energy.
Satono Diamond, now wide awake, decided to tag along—after several days of being cold-shouldered by the other Kita-chan, she was severely Kita-chan-deficient.
She was being a little clingy.
Kita-chan didn't notice anything unusual. She just thought Diamond was being caring.
Unlike the other her—who'd realized immediately that Satono Diamond had romantic feelings—Kita-chan was catastrophically oblivious in this area. She had no idea her childhood friend's feelings were special.
In the original timeline, she'd eventually be blindsided by the intensity of Satono Diamond's racing and obsession. But that hadn't happened yet, and the future had already been altered.
At the training grounds, Kita-chan started speed drills.
Was it her imagination, or did her body feel incredibly light?
This is so easy! What is this? Was my stamina always this good?
She still didn't realize she'd been racing under multiple debuffs all along—her natural stamina had been completely suppressed. Like someone who exercises while chronically sleep-deprived and operates at half capacity.
Now, with the other her having restored her body to proper condition, running felt effortless. She was performing far beyond her previous levels.
Satono Diamond watched in amazement.
"Kita-chan, did the other you... power up your body?"
"Ehehe, maybe? I don't know, but I feel great!"
Kita-chan grinned.
She felt like she had boundless energy. She could run forever.
This was a sensation she'd never experienced before. In the past, everyone had pegged her as a sprinter with mediocre stamina—decent recovery, but her training distances topped out around 2,000 meters per lap.
Improper training compounded by a poor mental approach had crippled her performance.
Now, with her body restored and her mindset transformed, Kita-chan was finally showing what she'd always been capable of.
The other me was right. I really had been doing everything wrong.
Confidence surged through her.
If I keep pushing in this direction, the Kikka Sho—I WILL win!
If nothing else, she had to prove that the other her had been right.
She would win.
Satono Diamond watched Kita-chan train with intensity—then found herself thinking of the other Kita-chan, who had never wasted a single second during practice.
The other Kita-chan's training had felt like a precision instrument: every motion calibrated toward a specific goal.
This Kita-chan... was just enthusiastically going all-out.
Satono Diamond's mind stirred.
Having witnessed both versions' training side by side, she'd grasped something important. Training could be this different. Blind effort without thinking could actually reduce efficiency.
She felt like she'd opened a door to a new world.
She watched Kita-chan, who clearly hadn't realized the gap yet, and hesitated. She wanted to say something—but figured Kita-chan probably wouldn't understand the nuance.
Besides, after days trapped as a ghost, Kita-chan probably needed to blow off steam.
Let her enjoy this for now.
And surely Kita-chan's trainer would notice the issue too.
Satono Diamond chose to observe for the time being.
...
After morning training, Kita-chan returned to class—and walked into a gauntlet.
The other her had skipped multiple days, and now classmates were eyeing her strangely. Even the teacher was paying extra attention, calling on her repeatedly. She was trying to follow along, but incomprehensible material was incomprehensible. She stood up with a blank stare.
Seeing this version of Kita-chan, the teacher and classmates felt reassured.
Because the other Kita-chan—during the rare classes she'd attended—had openly zoned out and played with her phone. Yet when called on, she'd delivered flawless answers with complete nonchalance. An absolute academic prodigy.
This dopey Kita-chan was the one they knew.
During breaks, Kita-chan patched things up with her friends. She didn't hide anything about what had happened—just told them straight.
It sounded fantastical, but everyone knew Kita-chan couldn't lie. Combined with the dramatic personality shift they'd all witnessed, they believed her.
She was bombarded with questions about what it felt like to be possessed by another version of yourself, and could only offer vague, fumbling answers.
She could hardly tell them she'd spent most of those days being angry.
When upperclassmen and students from other classes congratulated her on the Japan Derby, Kita-chan could only explain, flustered, that the person who'd raced yesterday wasn't really her.
It never occurred to her that saying this might affect the race results. She simply felt she couldn't steal glory that belonged to the other her.
Word reached the administration. But neither the Student Council nor the association intervened.
Regardless of what Kita-chan claimed, the body that raced was hers. As far as they were concerned, that was that. Whether she'd been "controlled by a parallel-world self" was irrelevant—there were no rules covering such a scenario.
And since it was her body, it followed that if she could fully harness her own potential, she could achieve the same results.
What's that? She didn't know those skills?
That was her own problem.
The minor stir faded without incident.
Nishizaki Ryu overhauled the training plan. After confirming Kita-chan's aptitude through a proper bone-reading examination, he verified everything the other Kitasan Black had said.
For this, Gold Ship kicked him again. Then made him buy everyone an expensive dinner.
His body hurt. His wallet hurt worse.
His handling of Kita-chan's training had been genuinely terrible. But as a trainer, Nishizaki Ryu was a rare breed in other respects. Most team expenses came out of his own pocket. He regularly treated his runners to restaurant meals. That was why, despite earning well, he was perpetually broke—he spent most of his income on his team. Few trainers could say the same.
Still, none of that excused the training catastrophe. Kita-chan happened to be a guileless girl who'd been set on joining Spica from day one, so she wasn't going to hold a grudge.
It was simply a case of star-struck devotion overriding common sense—idolizing Tokai Teio and her trainer to the point of surrendering all independent judgment.
Nishizaki Ryu was deeply moved.
"I swear I'll design the best training program possible," he said earnestly. "I'll make you stronger, Kita-chan. We're winning the Kikka Sho."
"I believe in you, Trainer!"
Kita-chan was completely won over.
Despite the other her having explicitly warned her not to blindly trust the trainer—to start thinking for herself—here she was again, outsourcing all critical thought.
If Kitasan Black could see this, she'd have had an aneurysm.
This world's Kita-chan and Nishizaki Ryu were simply made for each other.
On the bright side, at least Nishizaki Ryu's ability was solid once he was pointed in the right direction.
Over the following months, Kita-chan focused on speed and power training, managing to pull her other stats up to baseline by the Kikka Sho.
If she'd been running the Kikka Sho from the original timeline, she'd have won easily.
But in this world, the butterfly effect meant Duramente hadn't fractured her leg after the Japan Derby. She was entering this race too.
Facing this formidable enemy, Kita-chan felt enormous pressure.
Before the race:
"You're not her. I won't lose."
Duramente delivered the declaration as she entered the track.
Because Kita-chan had been completely open about everything, the whole school knew her story—Duramente included. Upon learning that the Kitasan Black who'd beaten her wasn't the real one, Duramente had resolved to deliver a crushing defeat.
Because maybe—just maybe—if Kita-chan lost, the real one who'd beaten her and fled would reappear.
She would not allow that person to win and run.
...
While Kitasan Black was preparing for the Arc de Triomphe in her own world, this world's Kikka Sho got underway.
And in the stands, several figures wearing masks and sunglasses blended into the crowd. They were Mejiro McQueen, the Demon King Ship, and others—having just unlocked access to this world.
The moment they'd learned that "that slacker Kita-chan" had unlocked a new world, they'd rushed over. Kitasan Black had already left, but they had a feeling that if they staked out this place, they'd catch her eventually.
Honestly, McQueen and the others were starting to worry that Kita-chan was slacking off in Story Mode.
"This world's Kita-chan is in trouble. Duramente is on the verge of entering that realm—probably from the pressure Kita-chan put on her last race."
Tokai Teio spotted the irregularity in Duramente's condition immediately.
That junior was standing at the threshold. She'd already pushed the door open—one step away from entering the domain.
Meanwhile, this world's Kita-chan showed zero signs of awakening ZONE.
The stat gap also favored Duramente in most areas. Kita-chan's stamina was higher, but everywhere else, Duramente held the edge.
"Hmph. A bunch of sub-third-rate weaklings." Gold Ship's disdain was absolute.
The outcome of this race was obvious at a glance.
Rice Shower said nothing, watching the other world's Rice Shower and Mihono Bourbon with quiet curiosity.
McQueen stayed silent. She didn't care who won this race. She just wanted to catch that worrisome girl as soon as possible.
...
In the other world.
Kitasan Black, mid-game, suddenly shivered.
What was that? This uneasy feeling...
A premonition that something was about to go very, very wrong.
She couldn't figure out why.
She'd clearly forgotten one crucial detail: her senpai had System access. Any world they'd crossed into, they had the right to enter.
Her personal Story Mode worlds were locked by the System on their behalf—but the parallel worlds Kitasan Black had visited? The System wouldn't lock those for her.
...
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