Sakura Bakushin O, saved by the sudden appearance of Chairwoman Akikawa, still clutched her hood tightly even after walking a long distance, glancing back occasionally, terrified that an Old Driver would suddenly dart out from behind her.
Symboli Rudolf couldn't possibly do such a thing, but when it came to Maruzensky, Sakura Bakushin O wasn't so sure.
After all, this one was notorious for dragging Hayakawa Tazuna, Chairwoman's secretary, to a bar and making her stay until the last train left, forcing Hayakawa Tazuna to take her beloved car, "Ta-chan," for a pedal-to-the-metal late-night race.
Whatever Maruzensky did, Sakura Bakushin O wouldn't find it strange.
"Haha!"
Chairwoman Akikawa saw Sakura Bakushin O's expression and let out two hearty laughs.
"You've walked this far; she won't catch up. What are you still worried about, Sakura?"
"I'm afraid Miss Maruzensky will suddenly appear behind me..." Sakura Bakushin O replied helplessly, "By the way, Yayoi, why are you still at school so late? Haven't you gone home yet?"
"Well~ who knows~" Akikawa Yayoi didn't explain, glancing aside.
"Could it be that every time I come to school, Yayoi, you're always here watching?"
Sakura Bakushin O always felt things couldn't be such a coincidence; it just so happened that she was caught red-handed by Symboli Rudolf and others, and Akikawa Yayoi appeared to help her out.
"It's just a coincidence, don't you think?" Akikawa Yayoi reached out and stroked the calico cat on her head. The kitten seemed to enjoy her petting, purring comfortably.
As the two spoke, they had already arrived at the Chairwoman's office inside the school.
"Sakura, you can sleep here tonight. There's no bed, so you'll have to make do. You can go back tomorrow morning."
"Uh, I'm really causing you trouble, Yayoi..." Sakura Bakushin O suddenly felt a little touched and quickly grabbed her bag, starting to rummage for something.
After searching for a while, Sakura Bakushin O found a can of cat food from her bag.
Akikawa Yayoi's cat usually lay on her hat most of the time, but there were exceptions, and that was when it saw Sakura Bakushin O take out a can of cat food.
The little calico cat's eyes lit up the moment it saw Sakura Bakushin O pull out the cat food. After a clear "Meow~," it immediately jumped to Sakura Bakushin O's side and began rubbing against her ankle.
Sakura Bakushin O opened the cat food and placed it by her feet. The kitten immediately buried its head in it and happily began to eat.
"It's a small matter. I can't believe you even brought something."
Although Akikawa Yayoi said this, she was clearly extremely happy. She looked at the happily eating kitten with a doting expression and exclaimed:
"By the way, she's only this happy when she sees you take out a can of food. Even when I buy the same brand, it doesn't have this effect. Why is that?"
"Haha, maybe she's just happier to see me." Sakura Bakushin O laughed.
"By the way, Sakura, why are you at school today, practicing?"
"The Takarazuka Kinen for Teio and McQueen is coming up soon. There's a steep incline in the Takarazuka Kinen, similar to the one on the school track, so I wanted to find the most efficient way to climb it."
"McQueen and Teio are truly fortunate to have such a dedicated Trainer~"
Akikawa Yayoi's cute, girlish face showed an envious expression as she sighed softly.
But when she saw Sakura Bakushin O look up at her, she immediately dropped the envious expression, replacing it with a sweet smile.
Sakura Bakushin O hesitated for a long time, finally swallowing the words "If you're envious, I can be your Trainer" that were on the tip of her tongue.
She could tell Akikawa Yayoi was deliberately hiding her Horse Girl identity, and now was clearly not the right time to speak.
Sakura Bakushin O was mainly worried that their harmonious relationship would be destroyed if she discovered Akikawa Yayoi was an Uma Musume.
She stared at Akikawa Yayoi for a while, unconsciously muttering, "So small..."
"Hm? What did you say, Sakura?" Akikawa Yayoi turned to look at her.
"Nothing..."
Sakura Bakushin O gave a perfunctory reply, lowered her head, and turned her gaze back to the kitten at her feet.
But just then, Sakura Bakushin O suddenly felt a light touch on her ear. She slowly looked up at Akikawa Yayoi, who was curiously touching her ear.
"Curiosity!"
"Sakura, how do you usually hide your ears? Why don't I see your ears when you're at school?" Akikawa Yayoi asked.
"Oh, I can make my ears disappear normally." Sakura Bakushin O said in a joking tone.
"That's amazing." Akikawa Yayoi replied with a smile, then reached out and patted Sakura Bakushin O's shoulder, her voice very gentle, "Get some rest early. You have a whole morning to rest tomorrow."
"You too, Yayoi."
Akikawa Yayoi nodded, picked up the kitten that had finished its food, placed it back on her hat, and then walked to the door, ready to leave.
But she seemed to suddenly remember something and gently turned her head to look at Sakura Bakushin O.
"Sakura, there are only two years left until your suspension is over. Time passes quickly. Soon you'll be able to return to the racecourse."
"Perhaps." Sakura Bakushin O said with a smile, "If I enjoy being a Trainer by then, maybe I won't return to the racecourse."
"It's fine, I'll handle the identity issue for you. Just do what you like."
"Alright, we'll see then." Sakura Bakushin O laughed.
"Good night."
"Good night, Yayoi."
After Sakura Bakushin O said that, she lay down on the sofa in her office. Akikawa Yayoi gently closed the door after turning off the lights in the office for her.
--
The next morning, Sakura Bakushin O was awakened from a long-awaited sleep by Akikawa Yayoi, who had arrived at the school.
After changing into her usual Trainer clothes in Akikawa Yayoi's office, she left Akikawa Yayoi's office.
Sakura Bakushin O returned home, took a shower, put everything away, changed clothes again, and then came to school for lunch.
The Horse Girl had classes in the morning, and formal training began in the afternoon.
Sakura Bakushin O waited in the activity room for her four team members to arrive, then placed the organized Takarazuka Kinen strategy in front of Tokai Teio and Mejiro McQueen.
"The difficulty of the Takarazuka Kinen lies in the steep uphill slope before the finish line. The gradient of this slope is twice that of McQueen's Spring Tenno Sho, and you have to go through two uphill sections in total."
"I've already researched the fastest way to climb the slope. You and Teio take a look, and we'll go train in a bit."
--