Chapter 84: Training Race – Turf 2000m
When Kitasan Black walked toward the gate, the cheers from the stands suddenly reached a small climax.
Amid the shouts of encouragement and the heated excitement, some gazes remained unusually calm.
Arms crossed, Satono Crown fixedly stared at the black-haired girl drawing closer to the gate, then tilted her head toward her younger sister.
"To be honest, Diamond, I'm kind of envious of Kita-chan. To be able to suddenly race against so many well-known senpai…"
Standing beside her, Satono Diamond nodded.
"Kita-chan has always been really warm-hearted. She's popular wherever she goes, and she got along well with those senpai from quite a while back."
Then, hesitantly, she glanced at her older sister.
"But envious… does that mean you're feeling some pressure, onee-chan?"
"Pressure… not really. Actually, compared to Kita-chan…"
Just as she was about to continue, Satono Crown's gaze shifted.
In her line of sight, a short-haired, light-brown Umamusume wearing red-and-white earmuffs was looking back at her.
Noticing Satono Crown's eyes, the brown-haired girl smiled, waved, then turned her attention to the track.
"Compared to Kita-chan, I'm still more concerned about REAL STEEL…"
When she spoke again, Crown's voice dropped slightly.
In the din of the crowd, Satono Diamond had to lean in to catch what her sister was saying.
"REAL STEEL…?"
"Yeah… In the Satsuki Sho, which is 2000 meters, speed is far more important than in the Japanese Derby or the Kikuka Sho, especially the closing kick at the home stretch."
Lowering her voice, Satono Crown continued:
"Our family's trainers already analyzed it. Kita-chan's running style is quite unique. It demands extremely precise control of rhythm, distance, and stamina distribution. A tiny mistake could cost her the win."
"Furthermore, she's not good at final stretch battles. Otherwise, she wouldn't have almost been caught by REAL STEEL back in the Spring Stakes."
"And in a public training race like this, there are plenty of chances for others to test against her."
"By comparison, REAL STEEL's closing kick, and…"
Her gaze shifted again, this time toward the front row of the stands.
"…Duramente's closing kick."
"They're the ones we really need to watch out for."
Meanwhile, in the front row of the stands—
"…So, Dura, when you went 'mm' just now, was that supposed to mean you agree or disagree…?"
With a headache, Air Groove kept her eyes on the track while sneaking glances at Duramente beside her.
She had only learned last night that a training race would be held today.
She originally had a university division meeting scheduled, but upon hearing about the race, she had asked a friend to attend in her stead and practically dragged Duramente along to the track.
The reason why she does that is because she knew very well just how strong the Umamusume racing alongside Kitasan Black today were—especially Special Week.
She had once competed against Special Week in the Japan Cup.
The result was that she managed to edge out a win. But that didn't mean Special Week was much weaker.
Especially with the closing kick Special Week had shown in that race—which when she later analyzed it with her trainer, concluded that if she hadn't taken a different-than-usual strategy of staying back and then surging forward, the result might have been far too close to call.
With that in mind, Air Groove couldn't help but want to set up a similar training race for Duramente.
However, Duramente wasn't good at socializing, and with her usual taciturn nature, when she had immediately brought up the training race today, she still hadn't gotten a clear answer.
While Air Groove nursed her headache, Duramente continued to stare unblinkingly at the starting gate. After a long moment, her lips finally moved.
"'Mm' means—"
At that moment, Tokai Teio's voice came through the speakers around the stands.
"Alright! The long-awaited training race is about to begin! Let me hear your applause, your cheers, and your support for our racers!"
She opened with an energetic introduction that instantly lifted the atmosphere, and after stirring up the crowd, she smoothly moved on to introducing the runners just like in an official race commentary.
Compared to a professional commentator, her rundown was much briefer—not because she didn't know the details, but because she understood just how well-known her fellow peers already were.
At the same time, she didn't want to put too much pressure on Kitasan Black.
After all, compared with these older Uma, a girl who had only debuted three months ago couldn't hold a candle in terms of achievements.
If there were to be a popularity vote here and now, Kitasan Black would definitely rank near the bottom.
And it's for that very same reason that the starting gate positions had been drawn by lot, while the race numbers followed debut order.
"From runner No. 1 Special Week to runner No. 4 Gold Ship, all have entered the gates. Now runner No. 5, Kitasan Black, is stepping in."
"Entry complete without issue. Racers and staff, please stand by."
"Turf training race, 2000 meters, clockwise, with good track conditions, and now—"
"Start!"
Since the training was meant to prepare for the Satsuki Sho, the course setup was identical to the real race.
But with only five runners, the instant the gates opened, the start of each Uma was clearly visible to the crowd.
As the race commentator, Tokai Teio reported the scene truthfully.
"Excellent! All Umamusume with a clean break, even—"
Before she could finish, Mejiro McQueen's ears twitched. She swiftly snatched up the microphone in front of her and cut in:
"The first to accelerate is Daiwa Scarlet! Just like in her past races, she's taking her specialty—the front runner strategy!"
As in an official race, Tokai Teio handled live commentary, while Mejiro McQueen provided analysis.
But this time, McQueen had actually stolen a bit of the commentary role, while Teio realized belatedly the near-slip of her tongue.
Having known Gold Ship for a long time—both during academy days and through their careers—Teio was well aware that her friend's starting ability was below average, which was why she so often ran from behind.
Seeing her friend make such a rare clean break today, she had almost blurted out "the often-late-starting Gold Ship."
That would have clearly affected Gold Ship mid-race, so Teio felt embarrassed but secretly relieved at McQueen's quick save.
Casting a grateful glance at her friend, she hurriedly picked the commentary back up.
"With her wealth of front running experience and peerless talent, seizing the lead position right now is runner Daiwa Scarlet!"
"Right behind her is… Vodka!"
"As expected of rivals. Even in a training race, neither is willing to yield an inch."
"In third position is runner Kitasan Black. A strong start, but she couldn't quite take the lead. Hopefully she'll keep calm in this situation."
"Next comes runner Special Week!"
"She's keeping a certain distance from Kitasan Black—seems she's aiming for a closer running style."
"And finally, no surprise, it's runner Gold Ship at the back."
"As one of the strongest active racers of the Twinkle Series, her come-from-behind style has brought us countless thrilling finishes."
"Will she, as always, overtake her fellow racers in the final stretch?"
"Let's wait and see!"
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