?McQueen-senpai??
Kitasan Black?s ears twitched as she first caught the name.
Then her ears twitched again, this time in clear surprise.
?Rice Shower-senpai?? You? how could you also?? No! Welcome, senpai, welcome!?
Remembering how Suzuka had just ?misunderstood? her a moment ago, she quickly corrected herself.
?My name is Kitasan Black! Nice to meet you, Rice Shower-senpai. Please take care of me!?
As if startled, the petite Uma Musume shrank into a corner, fingers tightly intertwined, a look of pure embarrassment on her timid face.
?Th-that? you don?t have to be so polite, Kitasan Black??
Kitasan Black was about to speak again when Yasui Makoto suddenly cut in.
?These are the rooms prepared for the two of you and Kita-chan. They seem to be mostly tidied up. Are you two satisfied??
?Yes. Although I haven?t been here before, it?s much more comfortable than the training camp hotels I?ve stayed at previously.?
Smiling and nodding, Silence Suzuka bowed slightly and looked toward Rice Shower.
?What do you think, Rice Shower??
?Rice? anything is fine??
Her ears?noticeably longer than most Uma Musume?twitched. Rice Shower quickly added, ?You?ve really gone to a lot of trouble, Yasui Makoto-san? and you, Suzuka??
?That?s good,? Yasui Makoto said with a smile. ?I still have some luggage that Kita-chan needs to help me look after, so the two of us will take our leave first. If you two need anything, you can speak directly to the staff or contact me.?
Seeing both Uma Musume nod, he bowed slightly, gave a still-bewildered Kitasan Black a meaningful look, and walked out.
Kitasan Black paused for a second, then quickly bowed to Suzuka and Rice Shower.
?Two senpais, I?m going to help the Trainer now!?
One with a warm smile and the other with a shy one, Suzuka and Rice Shower waved to Kitasan Black as they watched her leave the room.
?Just as I heard, she?s an enthusiastic child, isn?t she??
Smiling with a touch of emotion, Suzuka looked at Rice Shower. ?I hope she didn?t make you feel uncomfortable??
?N-no, it?s fine? it?s Rice?s own problem??
Smiling apologetically and glancing toward the door, Rice Shower nodded slightly and chuckled softly.
?She?s very lively, very energetic, and? very much like Tokai Teio before.?
?Kita-chan isn?t here, and Tokai Teio isn?t here, so??
Suzuka covered her mouth with a light laugh. ?She?s much more obedient and well-behaved than Tokai Teio was when she was active.
Do you remember? There was a training camp once, and Tokai Teio, for some reason, secretly ran off without telling anyone.
Then, when everyone was anxiously worried, she came back proudly and cheerfully.
I heard the President found out about it later and even got angry, which was rare.?
?Rudolf President???
Rice Shower?s eyes widened in surprise, then she chuckled. ?I did hear about that? that?s definitely something Tokai Teio would do??
Smiling, Suzuka pondered for a moment.
?But speaking of which, I didn?t expect you to agree to McQueen?s request. At first? it wasn?t that I thought you?d refuse. It?s just that McQueen thought of you? I didn?t expect it.?
Rice Shower was silent for a long moment. After a while, she suddenly chuckled weakly and spoke softly.
?What McQueen was thinking? Rice doesn?t know either?
But, to be able to do my part for the juniors, to let them run the races they want? races that make everyone happy? something like that? Rice will definitely try my best to help?
Because?
That?s the meaning of the name Rice Shower??
===
On the other side, in the corridor of the hot spring inn.
Walking toward the bathroom, Yasui Makoto?who had said he needed Kitasan Black?s help with something?glanced sideways at her.
?So I said, you probably didn?t read the training camp plan I gave you, did you??
?Training plan? What training plan???
After a moment of confusion, seeing Yasui Makoto clearly roll his eyes and press a hand to his forehead, Kitasan Black quickly racked her brain for a second and then giggled foolishly.
?Hehehe? Actually, actually, I did read it! I really did! And I even brought it with me, Trainer!?
Yasui Makoto rolled his eyes again, hoping Kitasan Black understood that he didn?t believe a word of it.
?Really! I?m telling the truth! It?s just? just??
Understanding his meaning, Kitasan Black emphasized again, then poked her two index fingers together in front of her as her voice grew quieter and quieter.
?It?s just that I read a few pages? maybe I was tired from training, and without realizing it? I fell asleep?
The next day, I was busy with tutoring, and also went shopping with Crown-chan and Almond Eye, and forgot to read the rest?
But I really did bring it. It?s just?
At the very bottom of my backpack??
She scratched her head, her voice even lower.
?Anyway? you?re here, Trainer, so if I don?t finish reading it? it probably doesn?t matter? right??
No longer rolling his eyes, Yasui Makoto took a few deep breaths. Both annoyed and amused for a moment, he looked directly at Kitasan Black.
?Alright. Indeed, many of the theories and arrangements inside are too tedious, so it?s fine if you don?t read it. I?ll also tell you during training.?
Seeing Kitasan Black?s eyes light up and about to speak, he waved his hand to stop her.
?But there?s one thing you definitely did wrong.
While training camps indeed have a different effect with more people, this isn?t just about everyone coming out to play.
This is part of the training. Whether it?s our current batch, previous batches, or future Uma Musume and Trainers, the process of each training camp must be documented in logs and reports submitted to Tracen Academy.
This is very important reference material.
Precisely because of this, the training camp location, training plan, and participants all need to be submitted, reviewed, and reported.
If you had honestly read through the entire training plan, you would have known that Suzuka and Rice Shower would be coming this time.
You would also know that they are here to help you complete some very important training.
And then you wouldn?t have been so clueless just now, making things awkward.
You must have noticed or heard before that Rice Shower is very introverted.?
Kitasan Black froze. Rice Shower?s small, timid figure and appearance flashed through her mind, along with the vague sense of being at a complete loss when faced with her own overly enthusiastic welcome.
??I?m sorry, Trainer. I was wrong??
Her ears drooped. She bit her lip, then suddenly turned.
?I?ll go apologize to senpai right now.?
Before she could run off, Yasui Makoto quickly grabbed her.
?Don?t be so impulsive.?
He said with a quiet chuckle, ?As I said just now, this senpai of yours is very introverted.
I heard when I was talking with Suzuka and Mejiro McQueen that they went through quite a few twists and turns when they first met and got to know Rice Shower.
If you go and apologize now, it will only make her even more flustered.?
Seeing Kitasan Black stiffen, her small face filled with a complex expression as she looked at him, Yasui Makoto pondered for a moment.
?And? if we?re talking about apologies, there are things I didn?t consider either.
Since I knew how important this training camp was, I should have told you earlier, and I should have required you to read the plan.
But there?s no point in saying such things now. Let?s wait a bit before going back, have a good meal, get some rest, and start formal training tomorrow.
That way, we won?t let down the intentions of these two senpais who came here.?