"Too damn strong…"
Mizuno lay sprawled on the ground, watching from a distance as medics carefully lifted Hiroshima Baoza onto a stretcher and into an ambulance. His heart still trembled with leftover fear.
Good thing El Condor Pasa had only thrown him, instead of slamming him waist-first into the ground like Baoza. Otherwise, he'd probably be just like him now—spine shattered, never walking again.
He'd gotten off easy this time. After borrowing a bit of Hope Energy to speed up recovery, Mizuno managed to wobble back onto his feet.
"No way I can beat her…" The sting of defeat burned deep in his chest.
He hadn't even seen El Condor Pasa move. In a blink, she'd rushed him, locked up his limbs, spun him by the leg like a chicken, and flung him clear across the field.
She was smaller and lighter than him, yet facing her felt like standing before a mountain. He'd thrown everything he had at her and couldn't move her an inch—while she toyed with him like it was nothing.
"…"
Mizuno brushed the dirt from his clothes and looked up. In the distance, El Condor Pasa had already found another young trainer to challenge.
Before she could make her move, though, a long-haired Uma Musume dashed in between them.
"Don't touch my trainer!" she cried, planting herself protectively in front of him.
It looked like a heroic rescue, but instead of feeling touched, the young trainer twitched, his mouth tightening.
"You weren't stalking me again, were you?"
"Uh… cough, cough… not important right now!" The long-haired Uma forced a laugh, quickly changing the subject.
"Trainer-san, if I protect you, let's get married tomorrow!"
"Uh… I don't think that's necessary…" The terrified trainer shook his head, clearly unwilling.
"Then it's settled!"
Ignoring his protest completely, she beamed.
"Hehehe, I'm gonna marry Trainer-san!" Her eyes sparkled with determination. For that dream, she'd go all out—one-thousand percent power!
"Can she actually win?"
Mizuno, now watching from a very safe distance with binoculars, couldn't help wondering.
He figured that since both were Uma Musume, the long-haired one might at least hold her ground for a bit.
But in less than thirty seconds, El Condor Pasa had already slammed her into the dirt, leaving her down for the count.
"Phew…" The young trainer sighed in relief, glad to have escaped marriage—only for El Condor Pasa to suddenly turn toward him.
Bang!
"…"
She looked down at the poor trainer, now stuck head-first in the dirt like a buried onion, disappointment clouding her face.
"Not him either, huh…"
She touched the mask on her face, remembering her father's words—the world's greatest luchador—and her spirit reignited. With renewed resolve, she took off again, searching for the man who could finally defeat her.
"…"
Seeing her headed in his direction, Mizuno immediately turned and bolted.
Now he finally understood what President Rudolf meant by "destroying the academy." If El Condor Pasa kept wrestling every male trainer in sight, it wouldn't be long before the hospital was packed to capacity.
"Way too strong…" Mizuno muttered as he made his retreat.
But at least he'd gathered some useful intel.
El Condor Pasa's wrestling technique wasn't perfect yet, but her sheer physical power already surpassed that of most Uma Musume. Even without finesse, she could crush anyone through brute strength alone.
No wonder Grass Wonder couldn't control her. With that kind of power, even President Rudolf—the "Emperor"—would probably have her hands full.
The scholars say to fight magic with magic—but what he faced was a monster of raw force. A head-on match was suicide.
So Mizuno reached one conclusion: only the highest level of technique could defeat overwhelming power.
Just like how only Guo's perfect mastery of technique could stand up to Baki's "strongest creature," Yujiro Hanma.
"Let's see if there's any record of a human beating an Uma Musume through pure skill…"
He pulled out his phone and started searching.
Nothing.
Every supposed "case" online turned out fake, followed by comments like, 'OP tricked me into wasting my youth wrestling Uma Musume!' Clearly, all scams.
With nothing credible online, he decided to search in person.
...
The next day, Mizuno left Tracen Academy.
He scoured the city, visiting every wrestling dojo he could find, asking whether any of them knew a technique that could defeat an Uma Musume—and if they'd teach him.
Most masters thought he was picking a fight and instantly had him in a chokehold before tossing him out.
A few didn't throw him out right away. After a long look, they silently handed him a slip of paper with a single address.
When he followed it, Mizuno found himself standing in front of… a mental hospital.
"A human defeating an Uma Musume? You nuts?!"
At the last dojo that evening, the doors slammed open and the dreadlocked master shoved Mizuno out, barking,
"Get lost, you crazy bastard! Where'd you even crawl out from?"
"Listen, kid—it's physically impossible for a human to beat an Uma Musume! It's sad, but that's just how it is!"
"My brother once won tons of wrestling titles. His skills were top-tier, his body was perfect—calling him number one in the world wouldn't be exaggerating."
"But twenty-odd years ago, he got cocky and challenged an Uma Musume. Wanna know how it ended?"
"She flattened him. Now he's the father of several kids. Their eldest daughter's a student at Tracen—the biggest Uma Musume school in town."
"You should know Tracen. Every afternoon, trainers duel outside the gates just to board the bus without getting snatched. It's practically a local tradition."
"So take my advice and drop it. I don't wanna see another guy get squeezed dry by an Uma Musume just because he couldn't let this go!"