Chapter 6: Join the Team!
Sakura Bakushin O was an Uma Musume with the heart of a champion. When faced with her own potential shortcomings, she wouldn't shy away from acknowledging them. Considering the possibility Kisei had mentioned—if it were the Derby or the Kikuka Sho, could the running style she had just employed truly secure her victory?
With a simple thought, Sakura Bakushin O concluded: No! This running style wouldn't do!
"What should I do?" Her eyes were filled with intense longing.
Kisei smiled. This was exactly the look he wanted to see.
"Take your time. Let's talk about the third issue first."
"There's more?!" Sakura Bakushin O exclaimed instinctively.
"Of course, there are plenty of issues. For example, your final sprint timing was too late. Although you managed to win with a powerful late burst, such an explosion comes at the cost of straining your body. If you had started accelerating earlier, say when entering the fourth turn, you could have won without such a physically taxing burst."
"To put it simply, you originally needed only 90% of your strength to win by sprinting a bit earlier. But because your timing was too late and the distance insufficient, you were forced to exert 100%."
"If this happens repeatedly, it increases the risk of injury and could significantly shorten—or even end—your racing career!"
After all that explanation, this last point was what Kisei cared about most.
"End…"
Sakura Bakushin O forced a smile. "Trainer-san, aren't you exaggerating? It's just..."
She trailed off mid-sentence as a phone was thrust in front of her. Sakura Bakushin O took a closer look.
Physical therapist, fitness trainer, nutritionist, and massage therapist... So many titles? Are you selling fake certificates?!
After a brief moment of shock, Sakura Bakushin O looked at Kisei differently. With these credentials, what did his earlier words represent?
Authority!
He was a professional!
"Sakura Bakushin O, you have the potential to become the strongest of your generation. But such immense potential requires the most professional sculpting to fully manifest. What you desire surely isn't just victory in a mock race, is it?"
Sakura Bakushin O felt a surge of inspiration. Yes, what she wanted was never just a single mock race victory. It was the highest stage—the Classic Triple Crown!
"Trainer-san, please teach me!"
Sakura Bakushin O bowed deeply at a 90-degree angle and shouted.
Seeing this, Kisei smiled with satisfaction. He extended his right hand and spoke slowly.
"Let's reach the pinnacle of this generation and make the cherry blossoms bloom at the summit, Sakura Bakushin O."
Sakura Bakushin O straightened up and reached out, firmly shaking Kisei's hand.
"Yes! Trainer-san!"
Under the setting sun, the pink-haired Uma Musume flashed a smile worth five trillion yen.
As Sakura Bakushin O followed Kisei away from the training ground, the other Trainers exchanged bewildered glances. Wait, is this... is this right? Staring at the meticulously crafted training plans in their hands, the Trainers fell into silence.
"Haha, you actually pulled it off, kid! Tell me, how did you do it?"
As soon as Kisei led Sakura Bakushin O out of the training ground, Koji approached with a wide grin.
"Personal charm."
"Damn, you really did rely on your looks!"
Koji looked at Sakura Bakushin O with concern. "Young lady, I should warn you..."
"If you say one more word, I'll go tell the master." Kisei quickly stopped the improper Koji.
Koji's voice cut off abruptly as he awkwardly scratched his head.
Kisei stepped aside and introduced: "Bakushin O, this is Trainer Okino, a senior in the field."
"Hello Trainer Okino, I'm Sakura Bakushin O." Sakura Bakushin O nodded with a smile as she introduced herself, carrying the demeanor of a well-bred young lady.
"Alright, alright, Bakushin O, let me be serious with you."
Koji gave a preface first, "My junior here, though he just became a full-fledged Trainer, is quite remarkable. At only 20 years old, he already has four years of work experience."
"Twenty years old?!" Sakura Bakushin O turned to look at Kisei in surprise. She had thought the Trainer was young, but never this young. At that age, he shouldn't even have graduated from Trainer school yet, but he already has four years of work experience?
Is Tracen Academy employing child labor?
Wait!
"Trainer-san, could you be that genius Trainer from the online rumors—the youngest in Tracen's history?"
It all came back to her now.
After hearing Koji's description, Sakura Bakushin O finally understood where her initial sense of familiarity with Kisei came from. About a month ago, when she began her serious training, she naturally started paying attention to the academy's Trainers.
While checking the Trainer profiles on the academy's official website, she had noticed Kisei's name.
"Yes, that's me." Kisei admitted openly, as this was nothing to be ashamed of.
Hearing this, a spark of delight flashed in Sakura Bakushin O's eyes. She tilted her head and raised the corners of her mouth in a playful smile. "Now I understand why Trainer-san invited me."
"Oh? Do tell."
"Because," she clasped her hands behind her back and took a light skip forward, her voice full of laughter, "geniuses attract each other."
After saying this, she hummed a tuneless little melody and skipped happily ahead, in extremely high spirits.
"This girl..." Kisei shook his head with a smile.
At that moment, Koji nudged Kisei with his elbow and said, "This young lady is quite talented. Train her well, and she might actually win a G1."
"G1?" Kisei lifted his chin, his tone confident. "My Bakushin O has what it takes to win the Triple Crown!"
"You kid..."
kino Koji shook his head with a bitter smile. The Triple Crown—it's not that easy to achieve.
...
At the student dormitory building, Kisei and Sakura Bakushin O stood facing each other.
"Go upstairs and write a team application. I'll wait here for you."
"Huh? Trainer-san will wait here?"
"It's fine, it'll only take a few minutes. Give me the application once you're done, and I'll take it to the student council to give to Rudolf right away."
Sakura Bakushin O nodded and entered the dormitory building, quickly returning to her room. In just three minutes, she came back downstairs with a team application.
"Very good."
Kisei took the application. Before he could even look at it, a sharp, intense pain suddenly shot through his head, and his vision went completely black.
Sudden death?
This was Kisei's only thought in that instant.
Could it be that I had just signed a contract with an Uma Musume, and before I even had a chance to showcase my skills, I was going to meet an untimely end like this?
The intense pain in his head was unbearable for Kisei, but fortunately, it lasted only a few seconds, and his vision gradually cleared.