The inside lane was pure chaos. Everyone was shoving and pushing for position at the rail, each uma musume fighting for that precious spot with everything they had.
"Number 5, Pure White Grimoire, takes the lead!"
"But wait, here comes Number 13, Delicious Sundae, closing in fast! She's passing her! Delicious Sundae is in front!"
The lead didn't even last three seconds.
"Hold on! Sakura Eiko O has her eyes on the front! Look at that acceleration! She's breaking through! Sakura Eiko O takes the lead, and she's already opened up a full length!"
The crowd roared. Sakura Eiko O was one of the top favorites, and right now, she was showing everyone exactly why. The question was simple: could she actually hold her lead?
"Now Seiun Sky is making her move! She's charging up from behind, going after Sakura Eiko O!"
Sakura Eiko O felt the pursuit, and her blood ran hot. She pushed harder, refusing to give up even an inch.
From the stands, Hayato watched with crossed arms. He knew Sakura Eiko O's type well. Just like Twin Turbo, she was the kind who'd rather collapse on the track than surrender first place. Pure instinct, pure pride. She'd burn everything early and pray she had enough left for the finish.
If Sakura Eiko O had been a pace chaser or a closer, Hayato might've actually worried. Those running styles had flexibility, room to adapt, and change tactics mid-race. Against someone like that, even the current Seiun Sky might've had trouble finding an opening.
Unfortunately for Sakura Eiko O, she wasn't.
Out on the track, Sakura Eiko O spotted Seiun Sky approaching from behind. Her competitive instincts flared up immediately. She wasn't losing to Seiun Sky as the same front runner!
Ha! Come on, Seiun Sky. You want this position? Try to take it.
She deliberately left an opening, slowing just enough to make it obvious. It was practically an invitation.
But Seiun Sky didn't charge. Instead, her speed dropped slightly as she hung back, watching.
What? Why isn't she taking it? Sakura Eiko O's eyes narrowed. What's she waiting for?
Growing impatient, Sakura Eiko O slowed even more, forcing Seiun Sky to either take the lead or fall behind completely.
Seiun Sky licked her lips, a dangerous smile spreading across her face. "I see... You want me to lead, huh?" Her eyes gleamed. "Thank you very much."
She surged forward in one smooth motion, pulling even with Sakura Eiko O.
"They're neck and neck! Seiun Sky and Sakura Eiko O are running side by side! This is what racing is all about, folks! Who's got more speed? Who's got more stamina?"
Finally. Sakura Eiko O's heart pounded with satisfaction. Now we can really run together!
Sakura Eiko O adjusted her stride rhythm, ready to kick into her true front-running form.
But at this time, golden light exploded around Seiun Sky's body.
Second Wind activated! Straightaway Acceleration activated! Straightaway Adept activated!
Her speed didn't just increase. It detonated.
The burst was so violent it felt like the air itself cracked.
In a single heartbeat, Sakura Eiko O lost sight of her completely. When she spotted Seiun Sky again through the blur, the gap was already seven lengths. Then eight. And it just kept growing.
Is this the great escape?
Sakura Eiko O's mind reeled. She'd expected fast, but not this. Not a great escape executed in the blink of an eye. And worse, Seiun Sky's speed wasn't dropping off like it should after that kind of burst. She looked like she was just getting started.
With her current stamina and recovery skills stacked together, Seiun Sky could sustain this. She was running even stronger than Silence Suzuka had at the Tulip Sho.
Up in the stands, Tojo Hana's eyes tracked every movement with sharp precision. She could see Seiun Sky had gotten stronger, but still... "You're still having her use the great escape in this race?"
"No, I didn't plan on it." Hayato sighed, rubbing the back of his neck. "Because Sakura Eiko O's in this race, I told her to lurk behind and wait, then decide it at the final turn."
That was the plan. Safe, stable, practically guaranteed to work without taking unnecessary risks for Seiun Sky.
What Hayato hadn't counted on was Sakura Eiko O being a complete blockhead. Just taking the lead would've been fine, but no, she had to make it personal. Had to turn it into a battle of pride and force Seiun Sky's hand.
"It's fine, though. At this distance, Sakura Eiko O can't catch up anymore."
She'd slowed down and given Seiun Sky the perfect opening for a great escape. That was basically handing over the victory. Sakura Eiko O had never trained for this style, didn't know the brutal pace distribution or the rhythm. Trying to catch up now? Not happening. Even if she somehow closed the gap, she'd just burn out completely in the final stretch.
That was the fundamental weakness of front-runners. Once they lost their rhythm, they had nothing to fall back on.
"THERE IT IS! SEIUN SKY'S GREAT ESCAPE! She's absolutely dominating with a seven-length lead! Sakura Eiko O is chasing with everything she's got, but can she close this massive gap?"
The stadium erupted. The noise was deafening as people realized what they were watching. A great escape in a senior division Grade race. This wasn't something you saw every day.
"Remember folks, there's only ONE front-runner position, three spots for pace chasers, and the rest are closers! Maintaining this kind of lead all the way to the finish is one of the hardest things an uma musume can do!"
Sakura Eiko O gritted her teeth. She'd completely underestimated Seiun Sky's great escape ability.
"Wow! Amazing, amazing! The great escape is so cool!" Mayano Top Gun was practically bouncing in place, eyes sparkling. She was cheering for Seiun Sky, sure, but more than that, she absolutely loved this running style with every fiber of her being.
Dominating with over eight lengths from the start of the race. That really wasn't something anyone saw every day.
So many people who didn't know Seiun Sky were learning her name right at this moment, watching it burn into their memories.
"Amazing." This was Sakura Laurel's first time watching Seiun Sky race. Even she had to admire what she was seeing. Despite being just a juvenile, Seiun Sky ran like she owned the track, like victory was already decided and she was just making it official.
"Can she really dominate all the way to the end?"
"Of course she can!" Mayano Top Gun answered without taking her eyes off the race. "This running style is incredible. Sei-chan taught it to me. Even at the end, she can still accelerate." She pumped her fist. "Sei-chan ganbarre!!!"
"Still accelerate later?" Sakura Laurel frowned, confusion crossing her face.
She'd tried this running style before. Accelerating at the end after burning that much stamina? It was impossible. You'd be lucky to maintain average speed, much less accelerate.
Out on the track, Sakura Eiko O had just burned through massive amounts of stamina and was finally getting a bit closer when the corner came up. She eased off, adjusting her stride to keep her balance through the turn.
She expected Seiun Sky to slow down, too. Everyone slowed for corners. That was just basic racing.
Instead, she saw Seiun Sky's second burst of acceleration.
Corner Acceleration activated! Corner Adept activated!
Seiun Sky disappeared from her view again, vanishing like smoke. In the blink of an eye, she'd already entered the corner.
"SEIUN SKY HITS THE GAS HEADING INTO THE TURN! Sakura Eiko O can't keep up with this speed! She's losing ground fast and drops back to fourth!"
"And even through the corner, Seiun Sky isn't slowing down at all! The gap just keeps growing! Eight lengths... Ten lengths! This is completely one-sided!"
"Seiun Sky has total control of this race! Absolute domination! There's no way anyone's pulling this back now!"
When the uma musume behind heard the announcer's voice, cold sweat started beading on their foreheads. The realization was sinking in hard.
"How is that even possible... that country bumpkin..."
They didn't want to accept it, didn't want to believe what their eyes were showing them. But the truth was undeniable. This race had become a crushing victory.
"Seiun's really being reckless..." Hayato touched his forehead and found it damp with cold sweat. His heart was still racing.
He'd already explained this to her when they'd talked about Biwa Hayahide's impatience issue.
The reason the race turned out like this was simple. Seiun Sky was pushing even harder than planned, setting the stage for the Tenno Sho Spring. Making her future rival, Mayano Top Gun, fall in love with the idea that the great escape was the strongest running style.
Beside him, Tojo Hana, Rudolf, and the others all had furrowed brows, processing what they'd just witnessed in silence.
Seiun Sky's rapid growth was one thing. They could rationalize that as talent and hard training. But that speed increase in the corner? That was something else entirely.
When they'd seen Silence Suzuka do it, they didn't think much of it. She was a special case. But seeing it appear on another uma musume raised questions they didn't have easy answers for.
Since they weren't asking, Hayato didn't disturb them. He kept his focus on the race, eyes tracking Seiun Sky's every move.
Seiun...
She clearly needed to work on her patience if she was going to run as a pace chaser and avoid this from happening again.
---
Sakura Eiko illustrates in this comment.