Uma Musume: From Being Knocked Ten Meters Away

Chapter 373 Wedge Array
Yodo no Slope shimmered with verdant light in the afternoon sun, but in the blink of an eye, the verdant green was trampled into waves of grayish-blue.

The Northern Black Steed lowered its body first, and its rapidly accelerating pace kicked up fine and dense green dust on the track.

Upon seeing the familiar, continuous acceleration, the fans in the stands cheered before the commentators could even react.

The uniform "Northern Black Steed" was quickly overwhelmed by the equally surging "Clever Maze" and "Medal of Honor," but then it charged out again, not to be outdone.

In response to the cheers of the supporters, on the track, when Kita Genko took the lead and rushed onto Yodo no Saka, the Clever Labyrinth and the Medal of Honor reacted almost simultaneously.

Still trailing by about a horse length, the two female racehorses cut into the bend, one inside and one outside.

Ahead lay the silhouette of the Northern Black Steed, its tail whipping straight in the wind, and grass and mud flying everywhere. They were chasing so closely that their noses were stained with specks of green grass juice and dark brown mud.

After that, the figures of the Golden Actress and the Myriad Sounds kept intersecting. As they rushed forward, their shoulders almost brushed against each other, and their eyes, like those of the Clever Labyrinth and the Medal of Honor, were fixed on the Northern Black Steed at the very front.

Later on, all the racehorse girls gradually entered a state of increased speed.

The second Yodo-no-Saka Scenic Area, where the Emperor's Spring Viewing is held, is a decisive signal; this is common knowledge that any player qualified to step onto the G1 stage must possess.

This renowned obstacle course is indeed a challenge that deters countless racehorse girls. It will devour everyone's already enormous stamina even more frantically than the last time they passed through it. At the same time, this is also the last chance to unleash their energy.

Once you reach the top of the slope, you'll be only 800 meters away from the ultimate spring race title, "Spring Shield."

Behind this glory lies an unparalleled reputation; "the victory of the horse in spring is by no means a fluke."

Just like the Chrysanthemum Prize of the Classic Front, only the strongest horse girl from the Year of the Horse can win the Emperor's Spring Prize.

Head and tail gradually became almost connected, shoulders and necks almost touching, and tail hairs were visibly tangled in the struggle.

Driven by the momentum of the northern black horse, the entire race team, which was originally a long, loose line, compressed into a tight wedge shape as they rushed toward the final corner exit.

With an unstoppable wedge formation, the eighteen racehorses once again charged toward the final straight line directly opposite the stands.

Despite the fierce clash of waves crashing against each other in the storm, the thousands of spectators still managed to create a roar that sent shivers down the spines of the entire stadium.

In every place where Uma Musume fans are most concentrated, they are shouting the name of the Uma Musume they support, and the flags that represent the colors of their idols are surging.

In this frenzied atmosphere, even the seemingly casual gesture of Xingmu stepping onto the railing at the very front of the stands didn't seem so out of place.

Beside Almond Eyes, Strong Attack, also suspected of violating spectator rules, stood directly on the railing and shouted hoarsely at the track:

"Gao Shangjunyi—! Charge at me—!"
"I've told you not to go fishing all the time. Your slow, lazy nature is all from fishing!"
"Hurry up and charge forward! Do you even want to win, Gao Shangjunyi?!"

Equally tense to the point of holding his breath, Jifeng sensed something was amiss with the current match situation, but had no inclination to think about it.

She didn't even care about the issue of addressing her as her sister; instead, she gripped the railing tightly with her knuckles turning white, staring intently at the front of the oncoming race team and the sky-blue figure.

Just as Jifeng stared at Gao Shangjunyi, Yasui Makoto was also staring at Beifang Genko, whom he had been paying attention to from beginning to end.

However, after experiencing numerous training sessions and competitions, especially witnessing intense battles of that level overseas, Makoto Yasui is still able to think things through.

The acceleration of the Northern Black Horse on Yodo-no-Saka was indeed a long-distance sustained acceleration technique that had always worked. This is an advantage of endurance-specialized racehorse girls, and there's no reason not to take advantage of it.

Under normal circumstances, other female racehorses can only gradually accelerate on the final straight, or at most at the exit of the final bend, in order to use their energy as much as possible to enter and maintain the highest speed and ensure victory in the race.

If the final straight distance is too long, such as in a 2400-meter race like the one in Tokyo where the straight is 525.9 meters long, you have to wait until the final straight to enter acceleration mode.

Endurance-specialized racehorse girls can accelerate earlier.

Accelerating from the final corner entrance, the third corner exit and entrance, or even from the more extreme opposite straight is all possible.

This is a tactic that not only Northern Black Horses, but also that is well-suited to by racehorse girls such as Golden Ship, Mejiro McQueen, Miyu, and Super Little Bay.

When Yasui Makoto and Kita Genkoma decided to adopt this tactic during preparations for the Emperor's spring festival, they also had the strategy of triggering the domain.

The 17 opponents in this match must have studied their past matches and even their training; the tactic of continuous acceleration cannot be kept secret.

The speed control at the beginning couldn't be hidden either.

Leading the pace and slowing down the pace in the early and middle stages of the race to conserve energy is an essential skill for runners.

For other horses that excel at long-distance escape, controlling speed in the early stages and continuously accelerating can only be considered a standard tactical combination.

However, after experiencing a competition of that caliber in Dubai, this combination will create a huge difference in pace before and after the race.

Especially in terms of subjective feeling, the Northern Black Horse will feel that the later stages of the race, or more precisely, the final straight-line clashes, will be particularly intense.

The intensity might not be the same as in Dubai, but this was the best way the two could think of to experience the area again over the past month.

This approach, or strategy, is not just for the Emperor's enjoyment of spring, but for his entire competitive career.

Admittedly, doing so carries a significant risk: a low initial pace, coupled with the possibility of being targeted while accelerating, makes it difficult to create distance on the straightaway and makes it easy to be overtaken.

However, through repeated analysis, deduction, simulation, and training during preparations, both Yasui Makoto and Kita Genko are confident in dealing with that kind of risk.

To withstand an attack from behind in such a short distance requires extremely solid basic skills and extraordinary perseverance.

It is no exaggeration to say that while Beifang Xuanju may lack other things, she has the most solid basic skills and extraordinary perseverance.

“600 meters to go,” Yasui Makoto stared at the black-haired girl at the front of the race, glanced at the sign, pursed her lips, clenched her fists, and nodded silently.
"Very good, everything is still in the plan, that's it..."

The sudden increase in the volume of the narration interrupted Yasui Makoto's thoughts.

"The team is about to rush out of the bend, and the Northern Black Horse is still in the lead. The Northern Black Horse is leading the way and is still ahead."

"And then...it came!"
"The Golden Performer has come from the unorthodox path! In the end, he has chosen to break through through the unorthodox path, the Golden Performer?!"

(End of this chapter)