Uma Musume: From Being Knocked Ten Meters Away

Chapter 592 The Slowed-Down Race: Reaction Speed
After watching California Shining and the others board the plane, Northern Black Horse did not go to find the Emperor of the East Sea.

It wasn't that she didn't trust her friends' advice, nor that she didn't intend to use it; rather, although she wasn't clear on what it meant to like these things, she knew it wasn't appropriate to discuss them in public.

She knew very well that the Emperor of the East Sea was usually very busy with his work, and this day was his day off when he had to come to see off the horse racing girls from overseas. She couldn't bear to cause him any more trouble because of her own affairs.

After thinking it over, she decided to take advantage of the second day of training and use her senior's time a little during lunch break.

So, after another restless night and a morning of practice, with sweat still on his forehead, Kita Genko awkwardly sidled up to Yasui Makoto.

"Trainer... um, I have some things to do at noon today, so... I won't be going to the cafeteria with everyone."

Her voice was lower than usual, and her eyes were somewhat unfocused.

Yasui was writing something on the whiteboard with his head down when he heard this, and quickly looked up and casually replied:
"Okay, I got it... I'm almost done writing it here, but if you're in a hurry, you can go ahead first."

After he finished speaking, he lowered his head again.

Already feeling a little guilty, Beibu Xuanju breathed a sigh of relief when he realized that he hadn't attracted any attention.

Seeing that Elise and Yamato Akaki were also watching the training data on the other side, a feeling of apology flashed through her mind.

Just as she was about to leave, she didn't expect that the almond-eyed girl beside her would tilt her head, blink her clear, large eyes, and ask:

"Eh? Aren't we eating together... Well, does Senior Xiaobei have something important to discuss?"

"Huh? No, no... nothing, nothing's wrong!"

Like a thief caught red-handed, Beifang Xuanju was startled and quickly waved his hands, his voice unconsciously rising slightly:
"I...I just wanted to pack it all up...oh right!"

As if she had suddenly found a lifeline, her eyes lit up when she met the surprised look in the almond-shaped eyes:
"I...I was looking for Crown Sauce!"

"She, she...she's going to Hong Kong for a competition!"

"Yes, yes, that's right, we... agreed to talk about this, yes, talk about it!"

These words were spoken quickly and urgently, with a hint of panic as if trying to cover something up.

Almond-shaped eyes gave an "Oh," her face still showing a bewildered expression, seemingly accepting the explanation:
"I see, I understand now. Senior Xiao Bei, keep up the good work! With you here, you can definitely help Senior Huangguan a lot."

"Um, um, I... I will try my best!"

Northern Black Steed, as if granted a pardon, gave a vague reply, turned around abruptly, and left the training ground almost jogging, his back view revealing a sense of haste.

Looking in the direction she had gone, a look of confusion slowly appeared on her almond-shaped face.

She hesitated for a moment, then turned around and whispered to Yasui Makoto, Alice, and Yamato Akari:
"Hey trainer, and you guys, Hayate-senpai and Yamato-senpai, have you noticed that Koki-senpai seems a little off these past few days?"

After he finished speaking, the air was silent for a moment.

Yasui Makoto paused in his writing.

Alice pushed up her glasses.

Yamato Akaki also crossed his arms.

The three of them almost simultaneously showed a thoughtful expression, clearly having noticed something.

Seeing their reactions, Almond-shaped eyes froze, then slowly widened:
"You...did you find out too?"

She paused, as if she had thought of something even more astonishing, and her voice became slightly hesitant:
"Wait...you...found out a long time ago?"

Alice broke the silence first, shrugging her shoulders, her tone as straightforward and data-driven as ever:

"Well... it's quite obvious."

"Even with recovery training, Xiao Bei's current performance is too poor based on the data."

"Delayed reaction time, fluctuating focus, and lots of spikes... it's just so obvious." Yamato Akaki nodded in agreement, adding:

"Hmm. For example, during the obstacle reaction training just now, she was clearly a beat slower on the third turn, the data..."

She glanced at the instruments around her:
"It's 82 milliseconds slower than the previous average."

At this moment, Yasui Makoto also sighed, nodded, and echoed:
"It was the same during starting training, once... not today, today is fine."

"The main issue is that during training recently, after the Japan Cup ended, her start was more than 0.1 seconds slower than before after the starting signal."

As they presented their examples one by one, her almond-shaped face fell, revealing obvious panic:
"W-what should we do? Kita-senpai... Arima Commemoration is coming up soon! There are only two weeks left! This, this..."

Seeing the little guy's anxious look, Yasui Makoto's expression softened.

After thinking for a moment, he calmly comforted him:
"It's okay, Almond, we're all here for you."

He paused, trying to lighten the mood:
"And for now, when Suko says it's 'too bad'... that's only true for her."

"In my opinion, this fluctuation is within an acceptable range. After all, the intensity of the two G1 matches in the Emperor's Autumn Appreciation and the Japan Cup is too great. It is normal to be physically and mentally fatigued."

"Besides, we should trust Xiao Bei, shouldn't we?"

After Yasui Makoto finished speaking, as if they had planned it beforehand, Alice and Yamato Akaki both nodded.

Seeing this, Xingmu's tense emotions calmed down slightly, and she breathed a long sigh of relief, patting her chest exaggeratedly:

"I see... That's true. How could the trainers and seniors not have noticed what I could have noticed? I guess I was overthinking it."

Upon hearing this, Yasui Makoto smiled and naturally changed the subject:

"Instead of worrying about that, we should think about whether we can get a good seat in the cafeteria later. You know, there are a lot of competitions and training sessions at the end of the year, and everyone will be very hungry after training."

"Oh, yes!"

Almond-shaped eyes were suddenly diverted from their train of thought. Remembering that the Northern Black Horse had been rushing to the front to save seats for everyone the past two days, she immediately perked up:

"The past two days, Senior Xiao Bei helped reserve seats... Okay! Since Senior Xiao Bei has something to do today, I'll take on the task of reserving seats!"

After saying that, she seemed to have received some important mission, and turned around and ran towards the cafeteria with great interest.

Watching that energetic, petite figure run off into the distance, a smile flickered across Yasui Makoto's face as he murmured to himself:

"Hmm, not bad, this kid's talent... is visibly outstanding."

"Well, that's true."

Alice agreed, but then quickly changed the subject, her gaze behind her glasses fixed on Makoto Yasui with a hint of inquiry:

"But... haven't you figured out a solution for Xiao Bei yet?"

The smile on Yasui Makoto's face vanished instantly, and he fell silent.

His words just now were indeed only meant to appease Xingmu.

In fact, as Eliseko pointed out, the recent training performance of Kita Genko is far from optimistic.

The problem is not related to physical fitness or technique.

A decline in form after consecutive Game 1 matches was expected; the problem lies in something more subtle:

The reaction speed of the Northern Black Horse in the race... is too slow.

More accurately, her attention is easily distracted, and she can suddenly drift off into a daze.

(End of this chapter)