Uma Musume: From Being Knocked Ten Meters Away

Chapter 308 Two Battles in a Row
In California's gleaming impression, trainers who can guide Northern Black Horse to achieve 3G1 in a classic year are either experienced old men in their fifties or sixties, or shrewd and capable middle-aged men in their thirties or forties.

There are some in their early twenties, but they are extremely rare, and it's hard to imagine how long it will take for one to appear.

The young man in front of them looked... like he wasn't even 20 years old.

With her neat short hair, regular features, and bright eyes, even California Shining, who hadn't seen many Asians before, thought Yasui was not only beautiful but also very attractive.

Then his posture was very upright, and his body was full of the agility and strength of long-term exercise. Moreover, his every move was full of the spiritedness of a young man or even a teenager.

And within this spiritedness lies a composure beyond his years, such as in his eyes, which are clear, confident, and carry a hint of contemplation.

Looking at this energetic face and his overall demeanor, California Shining, who was used to seeing mature and composed trainers, suddenly became interested in Yasui Makoto.

"Yasui Makoto... OK, I understand."

After briefly responding to Almond's comment, with a smile, California Shining took the initiative to greet Yasui Makoto, extending his hand and saying:

"Hello, Mr. Yasui Makoto, I am California Shining. It's a pleasure to meet such a great trainer as you."

Extending his hand as well, Yasui Makoto paused slightly upon hearing this, then naturally shook hands with California Shining and replied in fluent English:
"A mere empty title, Ms. California Shining is too kind."

"I've long admired your name, but I never expected to meet you here."

"Thank you for your suggestion. This is undoubtedly a rare learning opportunity for the Northern Black Horse."

After shaking hands, California Shining curled the corners of his mouth slightly:
"Same here. I think I can learn a lot from racing a horse as good as Miss Black."

"I just did a quick warm-up, but it's not enough."

"Now that Miss Blake has changed her clothes and we have you as our trainer, you can take charge of guiding us. After we warm up, we can go for a run."

As she spoke, she looked at the northern black steed and smiled again:
"What does Miss Blake think?"

Despite having a direct and generous impression of Americans, Yasui was still momentarily surprised by California Shining's bluntness and his familiarity with the subtlety of the Japanese.

Although Kita Genkoma didn't understand English very well, she sensed from Yasui Makoto and Kashuu Shin's expressions and actions that it must have been a good exchange just now.

Feeling the friendly atmosphere and seeing California Shining approaching, she couldn't help but excitedly swing her arms, look at Yasui Makoto, then at Almond-eyed, and impatiently urged:
"How's it going? Are you all ready? Can we start running now? I think the California students want to start running too!"

Seeing her so eager, Yasui Makoto and Alimee, who had come over, couldn't help but smile. Alimee quickly translated the English she had just spoken and then looked at Yasui Makoto.

After thinking for a moment, seeing that both female racehorses looked eager to try, Yasui Makoto first used English and Japanese to confirm the race venue and distance with Kita Genko and California Shining.

Since its debut, the Northern Black Horse has only participated in grass races, with increasingly longer distances, and it is quite well-suited to long-distance races.

California Shining is different; American tournaments are mainly on clay, such as the Kentucky Derby, the Beverly Hills Championship, and the Belmont Championship, which are all clay tournaments. Other top G1 tournaments are also mostly on clay.

In terms of distance, she excels more in mid-range races.

Taking these differences into account, Yasui Makoto suggested:

"We just arrived here today. Apart from resting and adjusting to the time difference, we don't have any other plans. We can take advantage of the race to run around and get some sleep when we're tired."

"So my idea is to fight two games in a row."

"The first mud track race, a 3000-meter long distance."

"The second grass race, a 2000-meter middle-distance race."

"The first match is on a court that California ladies excel at, and at a distance that Xiao Bei excels at."

"The second match is on a court that Xiao Bei excels at, and at a distance that Ms. California is good at. Is that alright?"

"Oh, right."

After asking, Yasui Makoto looked at California Shining and added:

"Running two races in a row, even with a break in between, and even though it's just a practice race, still takes a lot of energy."

"Xiao Bei may not be good at other things, but her stamina is outstanding, so there's no problem with that."

"Is this okay, Ms. California? We're not in a hurry. We'll only schedule one session today, and we'll talk about the next one tomorrow or later."

Upon hearing this, Beibu Genko looked bewildered due to his limited English proficiency.

Almond-eyed nodded in deep agreement.

She had known Northern Black Horse for a long time, and they had started training together in the last month or two. She was quite aware of just how terrifying her senior's stamina was.

Especially before the entrance exam, her training intensity was not high, and she didn't feel the impact as much then.

As she has recently entered more formal training, she has gradually come to understand the true extent of the training that Northern Black Horse undergoes every day.

In terms of workload, it is not only more than twice that of a newcomer like her, but also nearly 30% more than that of other Uma Musume contestants of the same period.

In terms of performance, the sheer amount of work was exhausting, while her senior seemed relaxed and enjoying himself most of the time.

They only show real signs of fatigue towards the end, then after a good night's sleep, they're full of energy again the next day.

With such terrifying endurance, let alone running two races plus a 5000-meter practice race.

Ignoring the fatigue and injury risks brought about by high-intensity competition, playing two consecutive Game 1 matches is probably not a problem for Xiao Bei.

To Alimee's surprise, upon hearing about this level of practice match, California Shining simply smiled, raised a finger, and shook it at Yasui Makoto.

Then, just when she thought this meant rejection, the blonde, blue-eyed racehorse girl laughed as if complaining:
"It's rare that I actually have some goodwill towards Mr. Yasui, but your words... let me think, how would you say that in your area? Oh, right."

"That's really bad for your image, very rude."

"Mr. Yasui, I'm a racehorse girl who won the classic Triple Crown, so don't underestimate me."

As soon as she finished speaking, she laughed confidently, looked at the Northern Black Steed, winked, and ran towards the field first.

Northern Black Steed paused for a moment, then clenched his fist excitedly and quickly followed.

Looking at the backs of the two seniors, Almond-eyed was stunned for a moment, and subconsciously looked at Yasui Makoto. Just as she was about to ask what was going on with California Shining, she saw the bitter smile on Yasui Makoto's face.

"...What's wrong, trainer?" she hesitated, then changed the subject.

"Uh, well... I did underestimate them by accident."

Scratching his head, pointing to California Shining who had started jogging to warm up, Yasui Makoto awkwardly explained, "His stamina... is really no worse than your senior, Kobei."

"Mud tracks inherently require greater strength and endurance, and racehorses that can compete in such events as their main races are not lacking in endurance."

"More importantly, the US triple crown... 2000m, 1900m, 2400m, three G1 races, scheduled within 5 weeks, must be completed in this period of just over a month."

(End of this chapter)