Chapter 34. A Nostalgic Name
On Thursday, after receiving Shuta An's reply, the Tokyo Racecourse, along with Green Channel and the URA Association, announced that Shuta An would be a guest commentator for this year's Japanese Oaks.
Then, to the Tokyo Racecourse's surprise, Sunday's tickets sold out directly.
"The estimated attendance is 150,000 people! Shuta's appeal is indeed extraordinary."
A URA Association staff member joked.
"How could that be?"
Shuta An himself didn't think the attendance could reach 150,000.
It should be noted that the Tokyo Racecourse had already started limiting attendance to prevent accidents—in the past two years, several stampede tragedies had occurred in European football stadiums, and a certain unfortunate Liver Bird was subsequently heavily targeted by the Prime Minister.
It was reasonable for the URA Association to worry about accidents, but the Racecourse would lose a lot of money.
However, this had nothing to do with Shuta An; the URA Association and the Racecourse wouldn't give him a cut of their earnings.
When everyone in Team Sadalsuud learned that their Trainer would be doing commentary, their first reaction was unanimous—
"Does this mean Trainer won't be able to accompany us this weekend?"
Shuta An's answer to this was also consistent.
"I can watch with you for the earlier races, but I'll have to go to the commentary booth to prepare when the Uma Musumes for the tenth race come out."
Only after receiving this promise were the Uma Musume of Team Sadalsuud satisfied. They were now accustomed to being taken to the Box to watch races by their Trainer, and Kurofune and the others would feel quite unaccustomed if they didn't go—
—
On Sunday, Shuta An drove to the academy to pick up Kurofune and the others, and then headed to Tokyo Racecourse.
"We just came last week, and now we're here again this week."
Kurofune stretched, yawned, and then sighed.
"If you're tired of coming, I can send you back to the academy right away to train with Rice."
Shuta An raised an eyebrow, reminding her.
"No, no, no! I really like Tokyo Racecourse! My dream is to win a G1 here!"
Kurofune quickly waved her hands.
Admire Vega glanced at her senior, feeling that Kurofune's image in her mind was increasingly leaning towards the frivolous one.
The earlier races at Tokyo Racecourse today had no upsets; they were unremarkable and thus seemed quite boring.
Shuta An checked the time and rose from the sofa.
"I need to go to the commentary booth to prepare. Kurofune, you all stay here. I'll be back after commenting on the Japanese Oaks."
"Yes."
Admire Vega replied.
"Ayabe, keep an eye on Kurofune and the others. Don't let them run around."
Shuta An's gaze fell on Admire Vega, and then he instructed her.
Admire Vega looked up, met her Trainer's gaze, and after a moment, she nodded gently.
"Understood."
"Eh~~~" Tokai Teio grumbled. "I'm not a child anymore. Ayabe-chan is so much younger than me, how can she control me!"
"I told her to." Shuta An turned back to Tokai Teio. "Do you have an objection?"
"HMPH!! No, none."
Tokai Teio pouted and turned her head away.
The reason he asked Admire Vega to keep an eye on the two of them was because Shuta An was worried that Tokai Teio would run around and cause trouble.
With only a little over a month left until the Takarazuka Kinen, any incident would surely affect the preparations for the Takarazuka Kinen. Considering that she would be competing against Mejiro McQueen in this Takarazuka Kinen, if she couldn't perform well due to external factors and lost to Mejiro McQueen, then the public opinion surrounding Tokai Teio would definitely turn into a strong headwind.
"If she loses the Spring Tenno Sho, everyone will think it's okay, after all, Mejiro McQueen's long-distance ability is very strong, but if she loses the Takarazuka Kinen—"
This was a 2200-meter race at Hanshin Racecourse, A Middle-Distance!
Losing this race would mean Mejiro McQueen had dominated Tokai Teio in both middle-distance and long-distance. Even if Tokai Teio won against Mejiro McQueen two or three times consecutively in the future, this race would still be brought up.
While Tokai Teio and Mejiro McQueen were good friends, Shuta An couldn't be certain that their friendship would remain strong after such an event.
—
When Shuta An arrived at the commentary booth, commentator Sugimoto Kiyoshi, from Green Channel, and the staff of Tokyo Racecourse all stood up and bowed to him. Given Shuta An's current status, he was certainly worthy of this gesture.
"Please guide me today as well, Mr. Sugimoto."
Shuta An bowed slightly and proactively shook hands with the commentator. This gentleman was also a veteran, having debuted even before Shuta An was born.
"It is a great honor for me to cooperate with Shuta. I hope we can provide a good commentary for the audience today."
Sugimoto Kiyoshi smiled.
"With Mr. Sugimoto here, today will definitely be a good commentary."
Shuta An grinned and then sat beside him.
On the table in front of the young man, the list and basic information of the 18 Uma Musumes participating in the Japanese Oaks were already laid out.
"Before this, I remember Shuta-san predicted in 'Twinkle' magazine that Nishino Flower would not win the Oaks this year. Do you still think so?"
Sugimoto Kiyoshi suddenly asked after they had gone live.
"Yes, I still stand by my original opinion. Nishino Flower might finish in the top five in this race, but first place is impossible."
Shuta An lightly tapped the table.
"Not only that, but I believe she shouldn't attempt races over 1600 meters in the future. Of course, I am not Nishino Flower's Trainer, so I can't make the decision, but I hope her Trainer listens to suggestions and truly doesn't let Nishino Flower try middle-distance races in the future."
"Even if Nishino Flower finishes second in this race, it's the same, right?"
Sugimoto Kiyoshi pressed.
"Exactly, even if she finishes second, it's the same." Shuta An's tone was decisive. "I believe the most likely winner of this Japanese Oaks is the Oka Sho runner-up, Adorable, and—"
The young man's gaze fell on a name on the list.
He gazed at the name, his thoughts traversing this world.
"Sanei Thank You, the Oka Sho seventh-place finisher, Sanei Thank You."
Shuta An read out the name.
At the commentary booth, Sugimoto Kiyoshi didn't know how, but he saw an infinite sense of nostalgia in Shuta An's eyes when he looked at that name.
"Has he had any interaction with this Uma Musume?"
Sugimoto Kiyoshi mused, but he couldn't find an answer.