Chapter 106. Asahi Futurity Stakes Across the Ocean Part 2
After entering the bend, Tokai Teio immediately encountered the gentle downhill slope that follows the start in the Arima Kinen course layout.
The moment she stepped onto it, Tokai Teio instantly understood why Editor dared to push such a reckless pace at the front.
"Accelerating on a downhill consumes very little stamina. Although this isn't a straight section, the curve itself isn't sharp either, so there's no excessive need to worry about steering. In that case, accelerating as much as possible beforehand allows better use of the terrain advantage here."
Although Tokai Teio understood this point immediately, she did not choose to imitate Editor's strategy.
After all, she was currently running in twelfth place. If she suddenly accelerated now, it would effectively turn into a sprint lasting more than 1200 meters.
Attempting such a long sustained burst in a mile race would be extremely difficult. Tokai Teio believed she could accomplish it, but it would also dramatically increase the risk of injury.
Since she understood very clearly that her Trainer hoped for a safe race above all else, she naturally continued to follow the prearranged tactical plan without deviation.
—
"Editor's idea itself isn't bad, but she's never raced beyond 1400 meters before. Whether she can actually hold on until the finish is a real question."
Shuta An also immediately saw through Editor's intentions, but he didn't believe Teio had anything to worry about.
"Even if she saves stamina through downhill acceleration, once she enters Nakayama's final straight there's still the uphill slope waiting. If she hits that uphill while exceeding her distance adaptability, then even conserving speed like this will become meaningless."
After Editor completed the opening 600 meters, the commentator announced the split time.
"34.1 seconds for the first 600 meters!"
"As expected, she's deliberately conserving speed and minimizing stamina loss." Shuta An pouted slightly.
"She fought so hard for the lead earlier, yet the first 600 meters still didn't even enter the 33-second range. The slowdown between the 400-meter and 600-meter marks was far too obvious. As expected of a debut-year Uma Musume. Her tactical intentions are too exposed."
At the same moment, Tokai Teio arrived at the exact same conclusion.
"With intentions this obvious, everyone behind should've already noticed. The only question is whether anyone is willing to pressure Editor here and force her to accelerate."
Although every runner here was still only a debut-year Uma Musume, nobody was willing to unconditionally pave the way for someone else in a race. By the time half the race had passed, Tokai Teio realized with disappointment that nobody intended to move up and pressure Editor at all.
And Hokkai Fire, who had originally been contesting the lead against Editor, had unknowingly already dropped behind Tokai Teio, who was now running in ninth place.
"Is everyone hesitating because of Hokkai Fire's situation?" Tokai Teio narrowed her eyes slightly.
"Nakayama's final straight is very short. There should only be around 700 meters left now. I need to start moving up earlier."
With that thought in mind, Tokai Teio increased the frequency of her strides and prepared to accelerate. In only 200 meters, she surged from ninth place to fifth.
After reaching the position she wanted, she simply shifted three steps toward the left, moving onto the outermost lane outside the pack ahead of Blizzard.
"Beautiful!" Shuta An applauded Tokai Teio's decisive maneuver.
"She successfully escaped the pack and secured clear running space. Now, as long as she unleashes her finishing burst, victory is guaranteed!"
—
Inside the commentary booth, Trainer Nishizaki had also noticed Tokai Teio's movement.
"Tokai Teio has begun her move."
"Entering the final straight! Tokai Teio has successfully found clear running space! Is she about to accelerate?!"
The live commentator had become fully immersed in narrating the race and no longer had time to respond to Trainer Nishizaki.
Trainer Nishizaki didn't mind in the slightest and simply continued speaking on his own.
"Tokai Teio already prepared her acceleration in advance, so the moment she entered the final straight she could immediately unleash it. She clearly still has tremendous momentum remaining."
"That's right! Tokai Teio has already surged to the very front of the pack!" The live commentator abruptly stood up. "All of her rivals have already been left behind!"
At this moment, Shuta An also stood up and clenched his fists tightly.
"Go, Tokai Teio!"
Although he couldn't cheer for Tokai Teio in person at Nakayama Racecourse, at this moment the young man felt as though he himself were standing among the crowd in the grandstands.
Tokai Teio lowered her center of gravity and fully entered acceleration mode. After breaking free from the pack, she did not angle back toward the rail, instead continuing to charge straight forward.
Shuta An stared fixedly at Tokai Teio's figure on the television screen. The broadcast image now contained only Tokai Teio alone. No other Uma Musume appeared anymore.
The young man could clearly see sweat continuously pouring from Tokai Teio's temples before immediately being blown away by the wind.
"Teio…" Shuta An bit down on his lip. "If she wins this race, then the Satsuki Sho and the Derby afterward are practically secured."
—
Inside the commentary booth at Nakayama Racecourse, the live commentator shouted passionately:
"Tokai Teio explodes down the far outside with overwhelming acceleration! Team Sadalsuud's Tokai Teio! Without question one of the absolute protagonist of next year's Classic Triple Crown!"
The moment Tokai Teio crossed the finish line, Trainer Nishizaki—completely swept up by the atmosphere around him—also shouted loudly:
"1 minute 33.2 seconds! Five lengths clear! Three races, three victories! Tokai Teio wins the Asahi Hai Futurity Stakes undefeated! Silence Suzuka, don't feel sad about retiring from the Twinkle Series! Because Team Sadalsuud still has Tokai Teio!"
Hearing Nishizaki's final sentence, Shuta An's mouth twitched slightly.
"Nishizaki-san, do you realize that with just that one line, I'll probably have to work several times harder tonight just to calm Suzuka down—"
Still, Tokai Teio winning the Asahi Hai Futurity Stakes was naturally a source of immense joy for him. The young man immediately picked up his phone and began drafting an official statement.
At the very end of the statement, he specifically added:
"If Tokai Teio's post-race examination reveals no issues, then her next race will directly be the Satsuki Sho. She will not participate in any Satsuki Sho trial races."
This unprecedented race schedule instantly triggered enormous discussion online.
"Won't skipping the prep races affect her condition?"
"Entering the Satsuki Sho as only her fourth career race means Tokai Teio will definitely be lacking in race experience."
"Is there really a need for such a lazy race schedule? Wouldn't it be better to let Tokai Teio accumulate more race experience?"
"Is this arrangement because they're worried about Tokai Teio's actual strength? Are they afraid her condition might decline next year?"
Faced with these speculations, Shuta An merely pouted slightly before putting away his phone and completely dismissing them from his mind.
"How could Tokai Teio's body handle that kind of intensive race schedule?" he grumbled softly.
At the same time, a subtle emotion quietly surfaced within his heart.
"Only I truly understand Tokai Teio in this world."
After leaving the Box, Shuta An planned to take advantage of the interval before the Hong Kong Cup by personally stepping onto the turf at Sha Tin Racecourse. Today's official track condition at Sha Tin was listed as "fast ground," the driest possible surface condition, which was unquestionably excellent news for Silence Suzuka.
The young man casually stepped onto the turf in one corner, carefully feeling the rebound beneath his feet. The resistance was even lighter than he had expected, instantly easing even more pressure in his heart.
"It really is a perfect stage for Suzuka." The corners of Shuta An's lips slowly lifted upward. "Today, I'll let everyone witness another magnificent grand escape performance."
Meanwhile, Silence Suzuka, seated quietly inside the waiting room, looked up toward the television mounted openly overhead. Shuta An's figure was displayed very clearly on the screen.
"Well, this is interesting~"
The Uma Musume immediately understood what her lover was doing at a glance.
"It seems Teio won the Asahi Hai Futurity Stakes. Otherwise, Ann wouldn't possibly be in the mood to walk around outside right now."
Within Team Sadalsuud right now, perhaps nobody understood better than Silence Suzuka what Shuta An looked like after one of the Uma Musume he trained lost a G1 race. After all, the most recent devastating defeat had been Silence Suzuka herself losing in the Breeders' Cup Turf Classic.
"But when the Arima Kinen comes…" Silence Suzuka lightly shook her head at the thought.
"If Dober-chan get defeated, I wonder what kind of expression Ann will show when he finally faces defeat again after so long."
"Never mind. That's still later. Right now, I should focus properly on my own retirement race first."
Silence Suzuka gently closed her eyes, recalling once more the race pace her lover had designed specifically for her.
"If everything goes smoothly—I might even be able to break the two-minute mark at Sha Tin Racecourse today."
The predecessor of the Hong Kong Cup, the Hong Kong International Cup, had originally been an 1800-meter turf race, so its historical winning times were naturally much shorter than a 2000-meter race.
If Silence Suzuka could complete today's race in under two minutes, it would mean she had established a new 2000-meter Twinkle Series track record at Sha Tin Racecourse. The significance of such an achievement was extremely high.
"It would truly be wonderful if my retirement race could end together with a new record."
Silence Suzuka's ears perked up slightly, as though she were sincerely looking forward to that possibility.
After finishing his inspection of the turf, Shuta An was stopped by a reporter while returning toward the Box.
"Sorry, I'm not accepting interviews right now." Shuta An waved his hand. "If you want an interview, please wait until after the Hong Kong Cup. That's the proper interview time."
"I want to ask Mr. Shuta about Tokai Teio!" the reporter hurriedly explained. "Not about Silence Suzuka!"
Shuta An hesitated briefly before stopping in place and raising a single finger toward the reporter.
"One question."
"Tokai Teio's target is next year's Classic Triple Crown, so after that, would you consider bringing her to Hong Kong to challenge the international races here?"
The reporter's question did not surprise Shuta An in the slightest. After all, this was a Hong Kong local reporter, and this question was precisely what local Hong Kong Twinkle Series fans wanted to know most.
Without hesitation, Shuta An answered directly.
"Next year, Tokai Teio's primary focus will remain domestic races. However, if she eventually decides to begin overseas expeditions, then I think Hong Kong would definitely be one of the highest priorities."
On this point, the young man was not lying.
Tokai Teio's comeback race next year would be the Satsuki Sho, naturally followed by the Japanese Derby. After that would come the Kikuka Sho, a long-distance race that Tokai Teio herself was not particularly suited for.
In Shuta An's plans, Tokai Teio would need more than two full months specifically to prepare for the Kikuka Sho. Working backward from that schedule, preparation would need to begin around August.
The Japanese Derby, meanwhile, was held on the final Sunday of May. In other words, there were only two months separating the two races.
That meant Tokai Teio simply did not possess the luxury of conducting a summer overseas expedition like Mejiro Dober had done.
And after the Kikuka Sho, considering the exhaustion caused by a long-distance race, Tokai Teio would also require at least one month—or perhaps even longer—for recovery. By that point, the only overseas target realistically available in December would basically be the Hong Kong International Races.
Of course, considering the need to properly preserve Tokai Teio's condition, Shuta An would still more likely choose to let her challenge the Arima Kinen instead. However, if Tokai Teio's recovery status at the time was not ideal, then skipping the Arima Kinen would also be entirely possible.
As a professional reporter, the interviewer instantly understood the implications after making a quick mental calculation.
"I understand. Thank you very much, Mr. Shuta, for taking the time to answer."
"Then I'll be leaving first." Shuta An nodded politely before turning and departing.
Watching Shuta An's disappearing figure, the reporter quietly muttered to himself:
"What a pity. It seems a top candidate for Undefeated Triple Crown winner probably won't come challenge the Hong Kong International Races after all. The local URA Association still has a very long road ahead if they want to elevate the international races to an even higher stage."
Back inside the Box, Shuta An casually took another can of cola from the refrigerator.
"The track suits Suzuka perfectly. The gate draw is also ideal. And Suzuka's condition today should be excellent as well."
The young man mentally reviewed everything once more.
"Today should be completely foolproof. As long as Suzuka wins, then achieving G1 victories in two different countries on the same day will become an unprecedented accomplishment for Central Tracen Academy. Even if Nishizaki-san wins the Arima Kinen afterward, I'll still have something to argue back with when he brags at the bar over the next two years."
It wasn't that he particularly wanted to compete with Nishizaki Ryu. The real problem was simply that Nishizaki Ryu would absolutely never stop bragging once he got started.
Last time, Minamisaka had mentioned that Nishizaki Ryu dragged him into listening for two full hours about Special Week's preparations for the Japan Cup.
"Compared to being dragged around by a man talking for two hours, I'd rather spend two hours quietly reading books with Suzuka." Shuta An secretly grumbled.
—
The Hong Kong Cup was the final race of today's Hong Kong International Races, officially scheduled to begin at 4:40 PM local time.
Half an hour before the race began, every participating Uma Musume left the waiting room and entered the paddock area to begin the parade segment.
As the runner assigned gate number 1, Silence Suzuka naturally also wore bib number 1, making her the very first Uma Musume to step onto the presentation stage.
As always, Shuta An had arrived in the spectator area beside the paddock beforehand, deliberately standing in a position where Silence Suzuka would immediately notice him the instant she stepped onto the stage.
Exactly as he expected, after spotting her lover within the crowd, the smile on the Uma Musume's face instantly became even brighter. Even the strength with which she waved her hand noticeably increased.
"Today's Hong Kong Cup is also Silence Suzuka's retirement race. Looking back now, it truly feels emotional. When Silence Suzuka first came to Hong Kong to race, nobody could have imagined that over the following two years she would gradually grow into a world-class middle-distance Uma Musume."
"We sincerely thank Trainer Shuta of Team Sadalsuud for allowing Miss Silence Suzuka to hold her retirement race here at Sha Tin Racecourse, which has also brought even greater prestige to our newly revitalized Hong Kong Cup."
The live commentator spoke with heartfelt emotion.
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