"Overseas expedition?"
Kuroha looked a little surprised at the term.
Hadn't Ginjirou very clearly rejected Hideto yesterday? Why bring it up again today?
Don't tell me he'd come around.
Kuroha nodded, signaling for Ginjirou to continue.
"Kuroha, what do you think of Oguri Cap?"
Ginjirou asked abruptly.
"Oguri?"
Kuroha froze for a beat, not sure why that question was coming up now.
But after a moment's thought, he answered softly, "An extremely outstanding Uma Musume."
"Her physical talent is top-tier."
"Personality-wise, she can be a bit stubborn at times, but she's exceptionally resilient, and her desire to run is very pure."
"Even among the Central Uma Musume throughout history, she's easily one of the very best."
"…I see."
Ginjirou listened quietly. After a short silence, he finally stated his purpose.
"I want Oguri Cap to go on an overseas expedition!"
"That bastard Hideto has a nasty mouth, but one thing he said wasn't wrong."
"So I've thought it through."
The old man suddenly clenched his cane, his voice hoarse but unwavering.
"I'm sending her out there. I'm going to give her an even more brilliant life!"
"…"
"So, Ginjirou-senpai, what you mean is?"
If Kuroha had heard this yesterday, he might have simply thought the old man was feeling fired up for the first time in ages.
But right now, he could more or less guess why Ginjirou had come to him.
Hearing the question, Ginjirou leaned forward slightly, removed his sunglasses, and revealed a pair of weathered eyes carved by time.
"I'm just an old man who's spent his entire life in Central. I don't speak foreign languages, I don't have overseas connections, and I don't know how to plan brand-new races and training programs out there."
"All of that has to be learned from scratch."
"If I rely on myself alone, even if I run these legs into the ground, I still might not be able to pave the road before her peak ends."
"So…"
Clatter.
His crossed legs, unsteady with age, shifted.
Without the support of his cane, his body wobbled.
Kuroha stiffened, but he understood what the old man was trying to do, and he did not stop him.
At that moment—
A veteran trainer who had spent decades at Central Tracen, who had coached countless Uma Musume, who would raise his voice even to the Chairwoman—
was bowing deeply, solemnly, to a junior nearly two generations younger than him.
"Kuroha! Please!"
"I know you understand the overseas racing system very well, and your training ability is far, far beyond mine!"
"Consider it that I, Ginjirou, owe you a favor. Even if you want this old bag of bones to work like an ox or a horse for you afterward, I'll do it!"
"Please… lend Oguri Cap wings, and send that child out into the world!!"
Silence.
After a long moment, Kuroha exhaled softly.
"So what you're saying is, you want Oguri to transfer to Chasing Light, and then I'll lead her on the overseas expedition?"
"…Yes."
"Does Oguri know about this?"
Kuroha's voice stayed gentle. "An expedition isn't tourism. Once she goes out, she'll be facing an unfamiliar environment, unfamiliar obstacles, and powerful enemies with completely different styles."
"And her family and friends are all here. If she runs off to a foreign country, leaving aside whether she can fully bring out her strength…"
"Psychological strain alone will be a massive test."
Ginjirou was left blinking, stunned by the barrage of realities.
Then it hit him.
That was true.
An overseas expedition wasn't something he could decide on by himself.
More importantly, did Oguri Cap herself want to leave this land that carried all her glory and bonds, and challenge an utterly unknown realm?
He'd been so consumed by anxiety over time slipping away, and by the mess with that "pretty-boy" Hideto, that he'd overlooked the core issue.
A transfer was not the biggest problem.
Leaving was the biggest problem.
Still—
Ginjirou slowly sat back down, took his sunglasses, put them on again, and looked at Kuroha.
"Then what you're saying is, if Oguri has the resolve to leave…"
"Then she will be a Uma Musume of Chasing Light."
Kuroha's words landed like a hammer, blunt and uncompromising, yet carrying a calm, steady dominance that put people at ease.
Hearing that, Ginjirou's tightly drawn body loosened all at once. His lips trembled twice, then he shook his head and chuckled.
"Good… good!"
"You brat, you're always that confident. But now I can relax."
He stood again with his cane, straightened his collar as if to conceal the excitement in his chest.
"I'll go talk to the girl."
"If she agrees… then by the end of this month, I'll personally handle the paperwork with the Association."
"I'll be going now."
With that, Ginjirou didn't linger. He turned and walked toward the door.
Only after the old man's figure vanished beyond it did Kuroha slowly pull his gaze back, tapping a finger lightly on the armrest as faint gleams flickered in his eyes.
"Overseas expedition…"
He silently chewed on those words.
In truth, this had always been a key link in Kuroha's grand blueprint for the future.
More than anyone, he understood how vast the world was, and how many monsters stood at its summit.
Central was only a small far-eastern island nation in the world's larger map.
The Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe, the Breeders' Cup, the Dubai World Cup… those were the true ultimate halls of racing for Uma Musume.
But this link in his original plan had been pushed back indefinitely, purely because he lacked the right Uma Musume.
In Chasing Light as it stood now—
March was strong, but the ceiling of her physical body meant that, on the European and American circuits with their brutally intense physical contact, she would most likely be at a disadvantage.
And she was already the domestic Mile monarch. This year was also the heart of her prime.
Keeping her in Japan, engraving the name "Mile Queen" into Central's history forever, was the safer and more sensible path.
Ardan was the same. Even though her glass legs had long since been healed, her constitution was still what it was. The risks of going overseas were simply too high.
If your body isn't hard enough, then no matter how sharp your technique and race sense are, a couple of elbows from the opposition and you're done.
So Kuroha's original intention had been to wait for Teio to grow up.
After she achieved an unbeaten Triple Crown next year, he would take her to conquer the world the year after that.
By then, in her Senior Year, Teio—by his projections—would step onto the world stage with numbers surpassing even peak Inari One.
But that was too far away.
That was a full two years from now.
Kuroha looked at the documents on the table that had originally been prepared for Teio, and a smile tugged at the corner of his lips.
"Ginjirou-senpai's request just happens to fill in this missing piece for me."
Oguri Cap.
A ready-made ace at her peak, a top-class Uma Musume with a body as hard as iron.
If she was willing to transfer, then Kuroha would instantly gain a trump card.
Before Teio fully matured, Oguri Cap could serve as Chasing Light's vanguard, planting roots in that overseas crucible and carving out a name.
At the same time, Kuroha could use this chance to accumulate early experience for overseas expeditions.
Because expeditions were a craft in themselves.
Local food adaptation, training-base arrangements and coordination, and the unwritten rules of dealing with foreigners—
all of it required time to build up, learn, and refine.
"It'll probably be a bit tiring, running back and forth between domestic and overseas…"
Kuroha lifted the teacup and drained the last of the cold tea in one gulp.
"But this is absolutely a deal."
(End of Chapter)
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