Kagura had watched "the law of seven or eight" and all those weird fanservice beach episodes in anime more times than she could count. After coming to the Umamusume world—and especially after joining summer training camp—she'd been endlessly curious whether the girls here would do the same: summer fun on the sand, the kind you only ever saw on-screen.
Back then, she'd been a spectator. Now she was the one stepping onto the stage.
It felt… oddly fresh. And she couldn't deny the curiosity.
"Ah! Bizen Nishiki-senpai is here! And Kagura's here too!"
In the afternoon, Kagura and Bizen Nishiki arrived at the beach in their swimsuits. Nice Nature, who'd already been waiting with the equipment, spotted them immediately.
"Afternoon, Nature—and hello, everyone. Ardan-ojousama, Maruzensky-senpai, Mejiro Ramonu-ojousama, hi~"
Counting the two who'd just arrived, there were six of them in all. Mejiro Ardan, apparently having hit her training quota that morning, was floating along the shoreline in a swim ring. At Kagura's voice, she sat up on the ring and turned, waving.
Her full figure surged—really surged—with the movement.
Kagura's vision went faint for a second, like her blood sugar had crashed.
Ah… so when you look at it like this, I'm the only one who's basically a kid…
She wasn't surprised. The moment she heard summer training camp involved the seaside, she'd pictured exactly this. Still—actually facing it made her reflexively drop her gaze to her own perfectly flat, endless plain.
Then she looked around.
Even the youngest one here, Nice Nature, had an impeccable silhouette—full in a way that didn't look like high school at all. Kagura felt jealous just staring.
"Kagura, Kagura! Perfect timing—team up with us! We've got enough people for volleyball now!"
Of course. Of course beach means volleyball!!
Kagura couldn't help the thought—but she was genuinely curious about the game. After all, she wasn't the frail old her anymore. She wanted to know what she could do now, with an Umamusume's physical ability. Could she, with her own hands, produce the legendary "killer volleyball"?
So she agreed without much hesitation and joined Nice Nature's team. Since they'd arrived late, Bizen Nishiki teamed up with them too.
Their opponents were Rudolf, Maruzensky, and Mejiro Ramonu.
Honestly… just looking at that lineup made Kagura feel sweat prickle down her back. It wasn't only the overwhelming height and build difference. Those three were all senior-division veterans—people who'd already made a name for themselves on the pro circuit. Their physical specs had to be ridiculous.
Why do I feel like I'm about to get farmed?
A bad feeling crawled up her spine. And beyond the pressure of her opponents, there was something else bothering her—she kept feeling someone's eyes on her.
But no matter how she looked around, she couldn't find anyone suspicious. Aside from the players, the only people by the court were Trainer Tojo and the other trainers. And with that many gorgeous, curvy women around her, Kagura couldn't imagine why anyone would choose to stare at a flat little kid like her.
"Everyone, take your positions~!"
As the organizer, Trainer Tojo naturally served as the referee too. The activity had two purposes: help the girls from different groups bond a bit, and count as a decently intense workout for the day.
"Kagura-san, go to my back right. Nature-san, back left. I'll take point."
Bizen Nishiki, the oldest on their team, stepped up to direct. Kagura and Nice Nature were both first-timers and had no idea what they were doing, so they didn't argue. They quickly took their spots.
There's a coconut tree on my side… When I rush in, I'd better not slam into it…
Kagura scanned her area. A coconut tree stood not far to her right. Normally it shouldn't interfere, but it was close enough that she made a mental note.
Across the net, Mejiro Ramonu glanced at their opponents. Bizen Nishiki was at least a peer, but the other two—Nice Nature and Kagura—were far younger. Nice Nature hadn't even debuted yet. Meanwhile, their own side was stacked with well-known names, all of them already shining on the professional stage.
"Rudolf-san… aren't we kind of, uh… bullying newbies here?"
"Don't be afraid, Ramonu-san. Have faith in them."
Maruzensky turned and smiled at Mejiro Ramonu, then shifted her gaze forward—to their point player, Rudolf.
Because the two teams looked mismatched in age and strength, the right to serve went to Bizen Nishiki. Trainer Tojo tossed the ball in from the side. Bizen Nishiki bent slightly, raised her hands, and with a sharp upward bump—
The volleyball floated up like a balloon, soaring absurdly high into the sky.
Whoa… that height… So this is Umamusume volleyball…
From the back, Kagura watched. Bizen Nishiki didn't even seem to use much force, and the ball still climbed until it was almost hard to see. Kagura couldn't help marveling at the terrifying physicality. A human would have to strain like crazy to send it up there. Watching Bizen Nishiki launch it so easily made Kagura itch to try—she wanted to see how high her skinny arms and legs could send it.
On the other side, Rudolf's team responded immediately. Rudolf dashed forward first, lightly bumping the ball back and up. Behind her, Maruzensky sprang into the air, lifted her palm midair, and hammered the ball down—
"Nature-san!! Watch out—spike!!"
With a quick read, Bizen Nishiki called it. Nice Nature hurried a step forward to receive—
But Maruzensky's power wasn't a joke. Kagura hadn't even tracked where the ball was headed when a white blur had already reached Nice Nature—
"Wah!?"
At that distance and speed, Nice Nature didn't dare take it head-on. She twisted aside on instinct. The ball slammed into the sand by her feet with terrifying momentum, blasting a crater of impressive size into the ground.
"…"
Killer volleyball. This is absolutely killer volleyball!! If that hits you in the face, you're dead. You're definitely dead, right!?
Nice Nature had been scared straight onto her butt. Kagura, drenched in cold sweat, stared at the smoking-looking ball sitting in the pit and screamed internally.
And—she was starting to understand why those "seven-or-eight law" episodes always emphasized beach volleyball. Because when you played, it wasn't just the volleyball you had to watch.
There were… other "balls" bouncing up and down as the girls moved.
Not that it had anything to do with her.
What am I even looking at… I can't take this!!
"Kagura-san! Nature-san! Help me out—I'll pop the ball up. If either of you gets an opening to jump and attack, slam it over!"
Bizen Nishiki retreated, hauled Nice Nature back to her feet, and snapped them back into formation.
The second serve went to Nice Nature, who'd retrieved the ball. This time, she learned from Bizen Nishiki's example and didn't send a huge high lob. Instead, Rudolf returned an ultra-high ball—and she aimed it straight at Kagura's side.
Kagura was short, thin-armed and thin-legged. She couldn't leap like Maruzensky, soaring several feet into the air.
She hesitated for a heartbeat—
And, as if possessed, her eyes flicked to the tree beside her.
—Be cool for a few seconds, or back off and let the ball go?
Some instinct answered first. Her body moved before her mind did.
She dropped low. Under a chorus of puzzled, startled gazes, she sprinted toward the tree, planted a foot on the trunk, kicked off into a wall-jump, and flipped into the air. The ball descended at just the right moment, hanging a short distance in front of her.
She raised her hand, lined up the face of the ball—
And slapped down with everything she had.
BAM!!!
Kagura felt something surge inside her, power spilling out beyond even her own expectations. She landed, stumbling a couple steps before catching herself.
And on the other side—
The volleyball roared past Rudolf's face, missing by a hair, then detonated at Mejiro Ramonu's feet before she could react. Sand erupted like an explosion, a massive plume blasting upward.
"…"
"…"
For a moment, both sides just stared at Kagura—who'd dropped out of the sky after pulling off a sequence that looked like a full-on stunt routine.
Nice Nature's eyes were practically shining.
"So… so cool!! Kagura!!"
"Wow… Kagura-san, have you trained in stunt moves or something? That was insanely awesome!"
Bizen Nishiki and Nice Nature both blurted it out. It was the first time they'd ever seen Kagura move with that kind of agility. Before this, only Tokai Teio and Rudolf had known Kagura could pull off such baffling "how is that even possible" tricks.
"See, Ramonu-san? I told you this isn't us bullying newbies. Kagura's always practicing weird footwork like that when she's got nothing to do in the kyudo club…"
Rudolf watched Mejiro Ramonu stand there, utterly stunned, and chuckled, patting her snowy-white shoulder.
"I… honestly, I'm shocked. I didn't think a kid that small could do something like that."
"Hehe. Ramonu-san, there's a lot more about her that'll surprise you. Once you really get to know her, you'll find she's always bringing you new kinds of unexpected delights~"
...
"Must be nice…"
Out on the water, Mejiro Ardan floated in her swim ring and watched the heated rally across the sand, unable to hide the envy in her voice.
She'd wanted to join in too. But her body simply couldn't handle that level of intense exercise. All she could do was watch from afar—more specifically, watch Kagura moving around on the court.
"Kagura is amazing… She can even do movements like that…"
One of the gazes Kagura kept feeling was, at the very least, Ardan's. Ardan had nothing to do while floating out there, so she'd just been watching Kagura the whole time.
To be honest, she hadn't seen much of Kagura these past few days. Kagura had been busy with her debut race. Now that Kagura finally seemed free, a thought took shape in Ardan's heart.
Tonight… should I ask Kagura to take a walk with me by the sea?
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T/N: bouncing boobs, yeahhhhh bouncing boobs