A short while later, on the outer ring road of Lake Okutama.
Whether it was due to coordination between the association and Tracen Academy, or simply for the sake of the greenery, the path was a flat concrete surface with equally flat grassy areas stretching along both sides.
A rigid concrete surface would certainly allow for faster running, but the grass was closer to actual race conditions.
Right now, two figures were speeding one after the other across that grassy stretch outside the path.
The one in front, short black hair, wearing the Tracen Academy sports uniform, was Kitasan Black.
The smaller figure trailing behind, long black hair, also in a sports uniform, was the Uma Musume Rice Shower.
From the temporary starting point, it was clear that Kitasan Black was very aware of the senpai following her. She glanced back every few dozen or hundred meters.
Rice Shower, by contrast, remained completely focused. Her purple eyes stayed locked on the figure ahead from beginning to end, as if glued in place.
Yasui nodded slightly as he watched the parallel run, jotting notes and diagrams on his tablet.
"Rice Shower's marking ability… is seriously strong," he muttered without thinking as he wrote.
Standing beside him and observing the grassy track, Suzuka also nodded.
"Mm. Rice Shower's running style… is extreme focus.
"That's actually quite rare. Race environments are complicated. It's easy to lose concentration if you're not careful. To be able to mark someone this thoroughly…
"Maybe only Rice Shower can do it… Ah, I mean among the Uma Musume I'm familiar with."
Hearing that, Yasui grew thoughtful.
Just as Suzuka said, in an actual race there were the opponent's movements, the feel of the track, the lighting, the roar of the crowd…
Many factors could affect an Uma Musume, and the ability to shut out interference was part of training itself.
Kitasan Black had received that kind of training as well, but her talent in that area was solid enough that she hadn't needed special focus work.
In the past, whether in training or actual races, she could run with full concentration and rarely lost focus in any significant way.
That was exactly why, during these long-distance parallel runs, the fact that she kept glancing back at Rice Shower made the latter's unique running style and strategy stand out so clearly.
After finishing his notes on the tablet, Yasui looked over at Suzuka.
"I remember you haven't raced against Rice Shower, but you've trained together, right? If you were the one facing this kind of situation, do you have any good ideas?"
Suzuka's eyes shifted slightly.
"You think… Kita-chan might run into this in future races?"
"There's a possibility," Yasui nodded.
"Hmm… With Kita-chan's current popularity, her strength, and the fact that she's an Uma Musume herself… yeah, it's possible."
Suzuka thought for a moment, then looked a little apologetic and troubled.
"Even though we trained together at Tracen Academy… I'm really sorry.
"Rice Shower and I specialize in different distances, and our leading styles are different from Kita-chan's as well.
"In my case, the only real way to shake off Rice Shower's tight marking… would be to open up an even bigger gap.
"And that would have to be in a middle-distance race. For long-distance… I don't have much experience."
Yasui fell into thought at that.
Looking at past race records, Suzuka and Rice Shower did specialize in different distances.
The former excelled in middle-distance races around 2000 meters, where she could open a significant gap. She had once taken a championship by a full 10 horse lengths.
The latter specialized in long-distance races and was extremely skilled at using a close-marking strategy against her biggest rivals.
In the 3000-meter Kikuka Sho and the 3200-meter Tenno Sho (Spring), she had tightly marked Mihono Bourbon—who had already claimed the Satsuki Sho and Japanese Derby undefeated—and Mejiro McQueen, who had won the Tenno Sho (Spring) twice, respectively.
Even against opponents of that caliber, she had still managed to take the win.
"Then… is it possible for Kita-chan to open up more distance?"
Yasui murmured, looking at Suzuka.
"For example… more than 10 horse lengths?"
Suzuka was quiet for a moment.
A 10-horse-length gap for an Uma Musume could only realistically be achieved by employing a Great Escape.
If that kind of lead could be established before the final straight, unless the opponent possessed an exceptionally top-tier final spurt, the chances of catching up would be very slim.
This was Suzuka's preferred running style, and when she had first arrived here, Yasui had asked her about it as well.
Her first reaction back then had been an absolute no.
Being skilled at the Great Escape, she understood better than anyone how the style could lead to victory… and how dangerous it was.
The higher the speed, the greater the pressure on the legs. A single lapse in concentration could lead to an accident.
She had experienced exactly that kind of accident during her own career. If not for timely treatment and a smooth recovery afterward, she would have left the track long ago.
Because of that, whether it was Yasui and Kitasan Black or other juniors who had come to her for advice, she had never lightly recommended adopting a Great Escape.
However, after these past days of discussion with Yasui, and after observing Kitasan Black's training condition, new thoughts had begun to form.
To use the Great Escape running style, one had to consider not only oneself but also the opponents.
Not many Uma Musume truly believed their own speed was insufficient.
In actual races, Uma Musume who showed excellent speed and final spurts in daily training—and were confident in those abilities—would often allow a front-runner to set the pace and open a gap.
Running in the lead meant enduring more wind resistance and burning more stamina. The opposite was true for those running behind.
With that give and take, simply bursting forward with speed on the final straight to take first was often enough. That kind of thinking was extremely common.
From that perspective, Kitasan Black might be able to incorporate some Great Escape techniques.
This junior had already run quite a few races. Her opponents had certainly researched her and understood that her pure top-end speed was not the absolute highest.
Therefore, as long as the gate position and early-race situation were favorable, opening a larger gap in advance was not impossible.
If things went smoothly, the advantage would naturally appear.
It might even catch opponents off guard through pure unexpectedness, disrupting their original plans.
Even if it did not go smoothly, by carefully controlling stamina consumption and stride through technique, she could always fall back to her more familiar leading style without hurting her overall race performance.
Changing stride and other elements naturally required stamina, but for Kitasan Black that did not seem to be a problem.
If that was the case, then perhaps…
As she was still thinking it over, Suzuka heard two sets of footsteps approaching from a distance. She gathered her thoughts and looked up.
Kitasan Black and Rice Shower had just finished their parallel run and were walking over while chatting and laughing.
"Rice Shower-senpai… you're seriously amazing! It felt like you were glued to my back the whole time. I couldn't shake you off at all!"
"Kita-chan… you're exaggerating… Rice was just chasing normally…"
Your "normal chasing" for anyone else… probably isn't normal at all, Rice Shower.
Amused by the thought, Suzuka watched as Yasui began asking Kitasan Black about her condition. She pondered for another moment, then made her decision.