Chapter 159: Power Creates Miracles
Over the following week, aside from her regular training and endurance sessions, Kitasan Black kept trying to learn the Burst Front Running technique from Silence Suzuka.
But even without being reminded, Kitasan Black could feel how difficult it was for her to handle these techniques as effortlessly as her senpai.
She was also a racer adept at front running. She understood the importance of posture, center of gravity, and the push-off strength at the moment of leaving the starting gate.
Only by entering an almost-sprinting state from the very start could she seize the lead at the opening and lay the foundation for widening the gap later on.
However, what Silence Suzuka was teaching was not the kind of start that most racers could accomplish.
Not even those who specialized in front running style.
To break from the gate faster than everyone else, beyond posture and technique, you had to adjust your condition during warm-ups and possess greater explosive power.
And after that initial burst, maintaining the lead depended on the body naturally elevating its state throughout the race, as well as the help of the track and even your opponents.
Like taking advantage of slopes, corners, and bends… the atmosphere during the final sprint.
Even after months of training and several official races, Kitasan Black knew very well that every time she left the gate in the lead, it had always been thanks to her exceptional strength.
Suzuka-senpai's strength was clearly not as great as her own, yet she could achieve a faster start even without extensive warm-up.
What was even more incredible was that her senpai accomplished this without relying on the track, opponents, or the race atmosphere—she simply did it.
So what exactly did she have to do to enter that state right from the start…?
For several days, whether during training or rest, Kitasan Black found herself thinking about this constantly.
Not only did she ponder on her own, but after every paired run session, she would ask both Silence Suzuka and her Trainer about it.
One day, after training ended, hearing Kitasan Black once again ask the same question, Silence Suzuka said thoughtfully:
"I don't really understand much about the theoretical side of things. That's something Makoto-san should explain."
She glanced meaningfully at Makoto, who was busy sorting through data, then continued:
"If we're just talking about condition… I'm probably the type of racer who naturally finds it easier to run at high speed."
"Maybe I've been like that since I was little. Back then, I never thought about becoming a racer. I just liked running freely."
"Whether with friends or by myself, as long as I could run without worries, I was happy."
"In that sense… even after entering Tracen Academy…"
She suddenly paused.
In her view, her active career could be divided into three stages.
When she first passed the selection exam and entered Tracen Academy, she was genuinely happy. She felt she could finally run freely on a bigger stage.
But soon after, she realized that running for competitions was completely different from the carefree running she had done as a child.
Training was actually quite dull and tedious.
For example, the starting gate. In the beginning, she had to practice it every day—entering the gate, waiting for the signal, bursting out—repeating this over and over again for one or two hours.
All other training was the same. Only the content of the tasks changed; the monotony and repetition were constant.
These training sessions would eventually turn into a series of instructions before each race. Racing became less free, and she found herself needing to run this way or that way according to directives.
It wasn't that the monotony and repetition made her tired of running—no Umamusume hated running.
It was just that, gradually, she felt herself drifting further and further away from the goal, or rather, the dream she had when she entered Tracen Academy.
Then, after winning some races and losing others, she met her Trainer and finally regained the feeling she once had.
She didn't need to think too much about the instructions anymore—or rather, from then on, her trainer gave her only one instruction for her races.
Run as fast as you want.
It didn't mean she ignored everything else. The techniques needed for racing were things she practiced every day—there was no need to be overly conscious of them during the race anymore.
From that point on, she enjoyed every single race she ran.
Even though she later had an accident because of this running style, and even though she made adjustments after returning to the track, that feeling of freedom on the racecourse had never disappeared.
She had already found the running style that belonged to her.
As she unconsciously recalled all this, she remembered why she had initially been against Kitasan Black attempting Burst Front Running.
This running style was extremely rare in races—not only because Burst Front Running itself was very hard to win with for various reasons, but also because it demanded a wide range of innate talents.
Originally, she wasn't sure whether Kitasan Black possessed the necessary talent; even now, she had only confirmed part of it.
So over these past few days, rather than teaching technique, it might be more accurate to say she wanted to help Kitasan Black find a running style that would truly be her own.
"In short, after experiencing a lot myself, I gradually turned my natural talent into techniques I could actually use in races."
Her thoughts returned, and Silence Suzuka shifted the topic.
"Your natural gifts aren't the same as mine. Even though I'm teaching you my experience, that doesn't mean you need to run exactly the same way I do.
"And there's no need to rush.
"I've been discussing it with Makoto-san these past few days, and I'm quite certain your starting speed has definitely improved compared to before."
"Really?"
Kitasan Black, who had been listening intently moments ago, suddenly got a little excited.
She looked at the smiling Silence Suzuka, then at Makoto.
"Trainer, then… how did I do?"
"Hmm… the data does support that."
Having roughly finished organizing it, Makoto lifted his eyes from the tablet.
"Suzuka's right. Even if you've grasped some Burst Front Running techniques, the way the two of you execute them is still very different."
He turned the tablet around and brought up a chart filled with various curves and lines.
"Look—this is your starting performance over the last few days, compared with Suzuka's."
"Setting other things aside, just your heart rates alone—Suzuka reaches high-frequency heart rate much faster than you."
"The higher the heart rate, the more efficient energy conversion becomes. That's one of the reasons she can enter high-speed mode so quickly."
"By comparison, you're a bit slower in that area."
"But this isn't a problem. Your mitochondrial conversion—basically, your energy conversion efficiency—is higher to begin with. Put more simply, you just have more physical strength, and that strength can, to some extent, be converted into speed."
After switching between two different explanations, seeing Kitasan Black nodding thoughtfully, Makoto suddenly smiled.
"This kind of situation… you could call it 'power creates miracles.'"
Hearing that, Kitasan Black froze, then scratched her head shyly.
"Compared to Senpai, I really do—hehe—have a lot more strength."
Beside them, both Silence Suzuka and Rice Shower—who had also finished assisting in the parallel run—smiled as well. After the laughter faded, Silence Suzuka looked toward Makoto.
"Burst Front Running… Kita-chan has definitely learned a part of it. But this probably isn't the main focus of your plan, right, Makoto-san?"
Seeing Makoto nod, she continued:
"Kikuka Sho is ultimately a race that tests endurance. There are still more than two months until then… surely you don't plan to keep special training going all the way until the race?"
"Definitely not… and I've already arranged the racing schedule."
Makoto nodded, then looked slightly surprised.
"On September 21st, the St. Lite Kinen—Kitasan's next race will be that preliminary race."
"What? She didn't tell you two?"
<+>
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