After several days of training, Yasui Makoto found himself genuinely amazed by Kitasan Black's progress.
When it came to extreme acrobatics, she showed talent beyond anything he had anticipated.
He'd always known Uma Musume were natural-born athletes—indeed, their athletic prowess could hardly be measured by human standards.
For a human, just getting started with extreme acrobatics required at least six months of foundational physical preparation. Afterward, another six months of focused skill training was necessary. Throughout that training, athletes had to pass rigorous tests of cardiovascular strength, core muscle stability, limb power, and joint flexibility.
Uma Musume, however, had no need for such lengthy preparations.
Due to their unique honkaku-ka maturation stage, their strength and stamina far surpassed even the most seasoned human athletes after minimal conditioning. Their only real requirement was learning specialized techniques.
Yasui had initially expected to spend significant effort explaining these techniques. Based on past training experiences, Kitasan wasn't bad at theoretical learning, but she wasn't exactly a quick-study prodigy either.
Yet during these past few days, after explaining a move once or demonstrating it just once more, Kita-chan would confidently say, "I've got it!"—and then immediately replicate about ninety percent of what she'd just learned.
Perhaps this was Kita-chan's real, hidden talent all along, Yasui couldn't help thinking.
In recent years spent preparing to become a trainer—and these past few months actively coaching—he'd grown deeply passionate about Uma Musume racing.
He'd never shared his passion for extreme acrobatics with anyone before. Equally unspoken was his curiosity about how far these superhuman Uma Musume could push the limits of this discipline.
Now, seeing his own Uma Musume display such natural aptitude and enthusiasm for the sport, he found himself eager and excited to discover just how far Kitasan Black could go.
...
Friday evening, at Tracen Academy's dining hall.
Eyes shining brightly, Kitasan waved her fork—which was still dripping curry sauce—dangerously close to Satono Diamond's strawberry milkshake, not even noticing as she excitedly recounted her day:
"You guys won't believe it! Today, Trainer showed me another new move! This one's called a 'Wall Bounce Triple Spin Cat Leap' or something!"
"There were these super tall walls, and before I could even react, he just went whoosh, and suddenly he was all the way at the top!"
"But it's so frustrating! No matter how many times I ask, he just tells me to keep practicing basic wall-running. He won't even teach me the really cool stuff yet…"
Watching her younger sister discreetly slide her strawberry milkshake away from danger, Satono Crown twitched her lips slightly, quietly shifting her own carrot-glazed meat set further away from the waving fork. With a smile, she remarked teasingly:
"Kita-chan, you really seem to like these kinds of thrilling activities… Oh, I mean, extreme acrobatics."
Cradling her milkshake in both hands and leaning comfortably back in her chair, Satono Diamond nodded, eyes suddenly twinkling mischievously.
"Well, this is Kita-chan we're talking about. Climbing and jumping around recklessly—it's practically second nature to her."
"There was this one time we went camping together in the mountains," Diamond recalled with a playful cough. "I was busy setting up our tent, and suddenly Kita-chan started yelling—"
She cleared her throat dramatically and raised her voice, perfectly mimicking Kitasan's tone:
"'Oh no! Dia-chan! A monkey just stole my bananas!'"
"So I turned around—and saw Kita-chan scrambling straight up a tree, chasing after that monkey."
"Dia-chan!"
Kitasan's ears burned scarlet, her fork clattering loudly against her plate.
"Y-you… Oh—oh right! Speaking of Trainer, he really loves extreme acrobatics too."
"Remember how you said he always talks like a teacher giving lectures during training, Dia-chan? Well, whenever he mentions extreme acrobatics, it's like he becomes a totally different person. His eyes practically sparkle when he shows me new moves!"
Diamond's eyes widened in surprise, while Crown paused thoughtfully, nodding slowly.
"Now that you mention it, your trainer always did seem so mature and reserved."
"But then again," she continued thoughtfully, "he's only eighteen, right? Or nineteen? I guess it's not too surprising that a boy his age would like thrill-seeking activities."
After summarizing it like this, Crown's ears perked up, and she grinned mischievously again.
"Speaking of extreme acrobatics… Kita-chan, has your trainer ever shown you movies featuring a famous kung-fu star?"
"Movies? Kung-fu star?" Kitasan tilted her head curiously.
"Yes! An international superstar from Hong Kong!" Crown replied enthusiastically. "You know how much I admire Indigenous-senpai, right? I visit Hong Kong pretty often, and in one interview, she mentioned that this kung-fu star was her idol."
"He starred in lots of incredible movies with really daring stunts. I thought it was CGI like those superhero films, but apparently, it's all real!"
"Oh! I know him!"
Kitasan excitedly interrupted. "Trainer showed me those movies too!"
"He said that kung-fu star was his idol as well, and that he was actually one of the pioneers of parkour and extreme acrobatics! Trainer even used movie clips to teach me moves!"
"Just yesterday, I saw a scene where he slid down an enormous glass building—I couldn't believe it was real either!"
Satono Crown's eyes sparkled with excitement again.
Usually, at school or at home, she rarely met anyone with knowledge or interest in Hong Kong films. Unexpectedly finding that Kitasan was somewhat familiar—albeit not deeply—was an extremely pleasant surprise.
Unable to contain herself, Crown eagerly pulled her chair closer, starting an animated discussion with Kita-chan about the movies.
"…Yes! Exactly! In the behind-the-scenes footage, he actually slid down that pole from seven or eight floors up! Can you believe it?"
Just as Crown and Kitasan's discussion reached its peak excitement, Duramente, who'd remained silent throughout the meal, suddenly stood up, tray in hand.
"I'm finished eating. You two keep talking."
Surprised, Kitasan stopped mid-conversation, turning toward Duramente with an apologetic expression.
"Oh! Sorry, Dura-chan… Were we too loud?"
Recently, Duramente had grown closer to Kitasan, and gradually became friends with the Satono sisters as well. Still, whenever everyone gathered together, Duramente usually remained quiet, appearing as though she'd been overlooked.
Duramente paused briefly, flashing a faint but reassuring smile, her tone calm as always:
"Loud? No, not at all. Your conversation was interesting—I was listening."
"Then—"
Kitasan trailed off, eyes flickering down at Duramente's tray with a puzzled expression.
"Dura-chan, you… Didn't you eat too little? Are you sure it's enough?"
"Too little? Probably not."
Glancing at her tray, Duramente pulled a neatly folded note from her pocket, skimming it briefly before nodding:
"This is the training meal Air Groove-san prescribed. It should be sufficient. Otherwise, she'll get angry."
"Training meal? Wait… Are you still planning to train tonight?" Kitasan asked, stunned. Even the Satono sisters looked surprised.
"Yeah," Duramente replied calmly. "Air Groove-san finally agreed to help me practice tonight. Specifically, pacing strategy for the Derby's final turn."
She didn't bother hiding her intent, a fierce determination shining briefly in her eyes.
"The final turn of the Japanese Derby…"
"This time, I won't lose to you, Kita-chan."