Chapter 98. It Is Not The First, But It Is Memorable
After greeting the overseas Trainers gathered at the venue and spending a long time exchanging conversation with them, Shuta Ann finally managed to find an excuse to leave shortly after the fourth race at Tokyo Racecourse concluded.
"Everyone was way too enthusiastic..."
The young man muttered as he rubbed his cheeks, which had already become sore from maintaining polite smiles for so long.
"One after another, they kept coming over to greet me. And after introducing themselves, instead of leaving, they'd just stand nearby and watch me continue greeting the next person."
If Shuta Ann had not slipped away early, the URA Association officials probably would have ended up completely sidelined.
Eventually, every overseas Trainer would have gathered around him instead, discussing the newest developments in Uma Musume training theories, the current trends of turf middle-distance races overseas and in Japan, and the methods required to cultivate an elite Front Runner Uma Musume.
From a certain perspective, Shuta Ann leaving early was the best possible outcome for everyone involved.
By the time he stepped into Team Spica's private box, Nishizaki Ryu was standing in front of the refrigerator, preparing to grab a drink.
"Get one for me too," Shuta Ann said casually as he entered.
"Yeah, yeah, I got it." Nishizaki Ryu was startled for a second before grumbling back. He randomly pulled out a bottle of carrot juice and tossed it toward the young man.
Shuta Ann caught it effortlessly with one hand before dropping himself onto the sofa nearby.
"Nishizaki-san didn't go greet the overseas Trainers today?" he asked while twisting open the cap.
"I already met them yesterday." Nishizaki Ryu took a sip from the bottle in his own hand, then immediately frowned. "Ugh... this is ridiculously sour."
"Miss Rudolf had me represent the Trainers from Central Tracen Academy."
Shuta Ann leaned back against the sofa as he stretched his shoulders tiredly.
"They surrounded me the entire time and wouldn't let me go. If I hadn't escaped midway through, I probably would've been trapped there until evening."
After speaking, he glanced around the room.
"Where's everyone from Team Spica? Why are you the only one here?"
"What? Planning to talk with McQueen about Miss Dober again?" Nishizaki Ryu looked at him knowingly.
"Huh?" Shuta Ann visibly froze for a moment. "Nishizaki-san…how much do you know?"
"Well~" Nishizaki Ryu scratched the side of his face awkwardly.
"Minamisaka told me. Apparently McQueen was pretty depressed for a while recently. Since Ikuno Dictus is her roommate, she found out the reason. After that, Minamisaka guessed it was related to Miss Dober, and eventually it reached me."
"It does have something to do with Dober." Shuta Ann lowered his gaze briefly before speaking again.
"But Miss McQueen doesn't need to involve herself. This is my problem. I'll find a way to solve it myself."
"Ann-san helped me before." Nishizaki Ryu sat down across from him and looked directly into his eyes. "So your problem is my problem too. If you need my help, just say it."
"If it comes to that, I will."
Though inwardly, Shuta Ann did not believe Nishizaki Ryu could help much with this particular matter. At worst, getting more people involved would only create unnecessary complications.
As the afternoon approached and the parade for the Japan Cup was about to begin, Shuta Ann followed Nishizaki Ryu toward the upper levels of the grandstand, where the members of Team Spica had already gathered.
"Ann-san" Nishizaki Ryu suddenly asked while leaning against the railing, "what do you think the result will be today?"
"Montjeu is undeniably strong."
Shuta Ann's gaze settled upon the turf below.
"But Tokyo Racecourse's turf conditions may not suit her perfectly. Special Week's stride looked excellent during the chase-up footage. I think her chances of defeating Montjeu here are quite high."
Although he only mentioned two names, Nishizaki Ryu immediately understood the implication behind those words.
"I didn't expect Ann-san to have this much confidence in Special Week." Nishizaki Ryu raised an eyebrow.
"Does Nishizaki-san not have confidence in his own Uma Musume?" Shuta Ann's lips curved upward slightly. "You probably shouldn't say something like that in front of everyone else."
The members of Team Spica immediately turned their hostile gazes toward Nishizaki Ryu.
"Of course I believe in Special Week!" Nishizaki Ryu hurriedly corrected himself.
"It's just...her opponent is Montjeu, after all. The Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe champion who defeated El Condor Pasa."
As he spoke, even his own tone became slightly more serious.
"Honestly, Special Week herself is probably incredibly nervous right now."
"Yes. Montjeu is the Uma Musume who defeated El Condor Pasa."
Shuta Ann continued staring quietly at the racecourse below.
"Just because of that almost single Arc victory, El Condor Pasa's status has already almost caught up to Oguri Cap's."
"That never used to happen before." Nishizaki Ryu shrugged helplessly. "People once considered the Washington D.C. International Stakes the bigger accomplishment."
"There's no helping it." Shuta Ann spread his hands slightly.
"The Washington D.C. International Stakes no longer exists. Right now, the Arc is unquestionably the pinnacle turf race in Europe. The Japan Cup still hasn't fully reached that level yet."
Then Nishizaki Ryu suddenly looked at him again.
"So, will Team Sadalsuud challenge the Arc someday?"
Shuta Ann glanced sideways at him.
"You've definitely thought about it, haven't you? After seeing how the public reacted to El Condor Pasa's overseas campaign, there's no way you weren't tempted."
"Of course I've considered it." Shuta Ann admitted the point directly.
"But I won't send an Uma Musume who isn't suited for Longchamp Racecourse. Dober, for example, is almost certainly not a candidate."
"So that means Tokai Teio?" Nishizaki Ryu immediately caught onto the implication.
"Teio first needs to become a Triple Crown winner." Shuta Ann shrugged lightly. "Until then, talking about the Arc is still premature."
"Triple Crown~" Nishizaki Ryu sighed with unconcealed envy. "If Tokai Teio really achieves it, Ann-san will become the first Trainer in Japanese history to hold both a Triple Crown winner and a Triple Tiara winner."
"Titles like that don't matter much." Shuta Ann waved his hand dismissively. "What matters is that Teio keeps winning."
"Yes." Nishizaki Ryu nodded slowly. "As Trainers, that's probably the greatest wish we can have."
Then Shuta Ann suddenly smiled.
"If Special Week wins both the Japan Cup and the Arima Kinen after this, then sweeping those three major middle-to-long distance G1 races in a single autumn would also be unprecedented, wouldn't it?"
He looked toward Nishizaki Ryu with amusement in his eyes.
"If that happens, the URA Association should prepare some kind of special recognition. And if they don't, I'll personally go argue with them myself."
"Then I'll leave that to you," Nishizaki Ryu laughed as well. "Assuming Special Week actually wins."
Even while saying that aloud, however, Nishizaki Ryu had already begun imagining what such an achievement should be called.
At that moment, the announcer's voice echoed throughout Tokyo Racecourse.
"Here at the familiar Tokyo Racecourse in late November, fifteen elite Uma Musume gather to compete for this year's Japan Cup! Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe champion, Derby winners, top-class contenders from every direction—who will seize the crown of this year's Japan Cup?! In just five minutes, the answer will finally be revealed!"
One after another, the participating Uma Musume stepped into the starting gates.
Beside him, Shuta Ann could hear Nishizaki Ryu quietly murmuring to himself.
"She can win...right?"
Even now, Nishizaki Ryu still held enormous faith in Special Week.
After the starting gate opened, all fifteen Uma Musume burst forward at nearly the same instant.
"As expected of the Japan Cup—not a single one had trouble at the start,"
Shuta Ann muttered quietly as he watched the pack surge across the turf.
"Before the race, I specifically arranged additional gate-start training for Special Week," Nishizaki Ryu added from beside him. "I also asked Silence Suzuka to help her practice how to settle into a forward position with the least possible stamina loss under a fast pace."
"If it helps, then that's naturally for the best." Shuta Ann gave a light nod, his gaze never leaving the track.
"It's a pity Seiun Sky isn't participating in the Japan Cup. Otherwise, this race might truly have turned into a Great Escape showdown."
"You can't say that for certain," Nishizaki Ryu replied with a faint smile. "After all, Hug Me is also in this Japan Cup. She ran a terrifying 58-second split for the first 1000 meters in the Tenno Sho (Autumn). That's precisely why we asked Suzuka to help Special Week adapt to an extremely fast pace."
"To be honest, European Uma Musume usually dislike races run at overly fast tempos."
Shuta Ann paused slightly before continuing,
"But today, Hug Me is unlikely to commit to a true Great Escape."
"Because the result in the Tenno Sho (Autumn) wasn't ideal?" Nishizaki Ryu seemed somewhat surprised by how decisively Shuta Ann had reached that conclusion.
"That's part of it." Shuta Ann raised a finger lightly.
"More importantly, this is a 2400-meter race. If her Trainer wants to win, there's no way they'll allow her to waste too much stamina at the front from the very beginning. She'll definitely hold something back early on."
His eyes narrowed slightly.
"If there are no surprises, Hug Me will probably bring the field through the first 1000 meters in roughly sixty seconds."
"Then let's see if Ann-san's prediction comes true," Nishizaki Ryu laughed. "If you guessed correctly, I'll cover your drinks at the next gathering."
"In that case, Nishizaki-san should prepare his wallet in advance," Shuta Ann replied with an amused smile.
As the field entered the backstretch opposite the grandstand, Special Week gradually dropped several positions.
"What is she doing?" Nishizaki Ryu frowned immediately, unable to understand the adjustment.
Even Shuta Ann's brows drew together slightly.
"It looks like she's deliberately conserving her legs," he said after a moment. "That's probably why she chose not to maintain her earlier position."
"I think so too," Mejiro McQueen whispered softly from nearby.
Gold Ship folded her arms and nodded with unusual seriousness.
"Most likely."
"I just hope it doesn't affect the outcome," Nishizaki Ryu muttered quietly, unable to fully hide the concern in his voice.
At that moment, the live commentator's tone suddenly sharpened with excitement.
"Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe Uma Musume Montjeu is now shadowing Special Week directly from behind! Her movement looks incredibly relaxed!"
"Montjeu is marking Special Week—" Nishizaki Ryu sounded genuinely surprised. "I assumed she would simply maintain her own rhythm throughout the race."
"Special Week has dealt with marking tactics many times already, though," he added quickly. "The pressure shouldn't affect her too much."
"I don't think this was a pre-planned tactic," Shuta Ann said quietly.
His gaze remained fixed on Montjeu's position.
"It feels more like she was uncertain about the pace after the start, so she instinctively chose to follow Special Week's movement instead."
After a brief pause, he continued in a lower voice.
"It seems my earlier judgment about Montjeu's turf adaptability may unfortunately prove accurate after all."
"In that case—" Nishizaki Ryu suddenly thought of something. "If the Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe had been run on good ground, would El Condor Pasa have had a chance to win?"
"No." Shuta Ann shook his head without hesitation.
"That situation would be completely different. If Longchamp had been on good ground, the other European Uma Musume would also have improved significantly. In that scenario, El Condor Pasa might not even have secured second place."
Nishizaki Ryu fell silent for a brief moment before finally nodding.
"That's true. Just taking second place there was already an incredible achievement. There's no need to fantasize about alternate possibilities."
His gaze returned toward the track.
"Then today…let Special Week avenge El Condor Pasa."
As the field entered the final bend, Special Week subtly angled outward to prepare acceleration space. Almost simultaneously, Montjeu mirrored the exact same movement.
For Uma Musume at this level, preserving freedom of movement before the straight mattered far more than saving a few meters of ground along the rail.
"Special Week will probably begin accelerating only after entering the final straight," Shuta Ann said calmly. "And Montjeu will almost certainly respond at the exact same timing."
"As expected of Montjeu" Nishizaki Ryu let out a helpless laugh.
"Originally, I planned for Special Week to lure Montjeu inward by creating space early. Then Special Week would slightly adjust pace and box her in. But Montjeu didn't fall for it at all."
"Top-class Uma Musume prioritize avoiding restriction over saving distance," Shuta Ann explained. "So next time, don't design tactics based on that assumption."
"I understand." Nishizaki Ryu gave a resigned nod. "I'll consider this another lesson learned from Montjeu."
By the time the field approached the exit of the final bend, Special Week had already shifted outward completely and begun building momentum.
She was currently sixth.
Montjeu remained in ninth.
"The next five hundred meters will determine everything," Shuta Ann murmured.
His eyes narrowed slightly.
"Montjeu's adaptation to Japanese turf appears even worse than I expected. If she doesn't begin accelerating before Special Week now…she probably won't have another chance to overtake her later."
"But Montjeu's closing speed still looks frightening," Nishizaki Ryu admitted honestly, tension creeping into his expression.
"I really can't tell whether Special Week can hold her off. If she loses this race—then she'll never have the chance to add a Japan Cup title to her Twinkle Series career."
"If retirement comes early because of circumstances at home, then that can't be helped," Shuta Ann said quietly.
"All we can hope for is that Miss Special Week leaves no regrets behind before the end of her Twinkle Series career."
At that moment, Special Week exploded from the pack with astonishing force.
One after another, the Uma Musume ahead of her were swept aside.
"Montjeu didn't accelerate immediately!" Shuta Ann's eyes sharpened at once. "It really does seem that she dislikes Japanese race pacing."
"Montjeu is still holding back!" Nishizaki Ryu's eyes brightened briefly before a trace of regret surfaced within them.
"What a pity. Even if Special Week defeats her like this, it still won't be Montjeu at one hundred percent."
"If you truly wanted to see one hundred percent Montjeu," Shuta Ann said with a faint smile, "then El Condor Pasa already showed everyone what that looked like at Longchamp."
Nishizaki Ryu immediately shook his head.
"No thanks. I'll pass on that."
Just like Shuta Ann, he valued victory for the Uma Musume under his care far more than romanticizing overwhelming opponents.