Chapter 273: Are All Kids with a Closing Kick This Reckless?
Staring at the speed monitor, Makoto's eyes were filled with satisfaction.
This was not only recognition of Almond Eye's tenacious fighting spirit, but also a glimpse of the limitless potential hidden within her.
Although Almond Eye was still far behind Kitasan Black at this moment, her unyielding determination and relentless effort in the face of adversity were exactly the qualities required of an outstanding runner.
With proper guidance and training, she would undoubtedly shine brilliantly on the race track in the future.
On the track, Kitasan Black, relying on her rich experience and sharp awareness, clearly sensed Almond Eye's relentless pursuit from behind.
Each time she tilted her ear slightly, she could catch the increasingly rapid yet firm and powerful footsteps closing in.
Every time she glanced back with her peripheral vision, she saw Almond Eye's figure—still behind, yet filled with fighting spirit, never showing the slightest intention of giving up.
In her heart, Kitasan Black couldn't help but praise her:
"I didn't expect Ai-chan to have such strong perseverance even before stepping onto the Twinkle Series stage…"
"Then as her senpai, I absolutely can't lose in terms of spirit either!"
As she resolved this inwardly, she also recalled her own early training days. Facing many powerful opponents back then, she had felt hesitation more than once.
Even though she eventually built up confidence through relentless effort, hesitation was still hesitation.
There was nothing embarrassing about admitting that.
But Almond Eye, from the very beginning, was already showing such an unyielding spirit—this was truly rare.
Over the past year of training and racing, Kitasan Black had gradually realized something:
In the world of runners, talent was important, but an unbreakable spirit was often the key factor that determined how far one could ultimately go.
Almond Eye's current performance already made her look like a rising star.
Meanwhile, Almond Eye herself was filled with frustration.
Staring at Kitasan Black's back ahead—so distant, yet so clear—it felt as though a blazing fire was burning within her, scorching her heart and leaving her unable to calm down.
"I'm running with everything I have… so why… why am I still so far behind?"
She kept questioning herself, each breath carrying that unwillingness, transforming into even stronger drive in her legs.
She swore to herself that today, she would close the gap with Kitasan Black as much as possible—even if only by a little—just to show her senpai her determination and progress.
No… not just close the gap…
She wanted to win against her senpai!
She had to surpass her!
As Almond Eye pushed forward with everything she had, the joint run had already passed the halfway mark.
At that moment, it was also exactly when Kitasan Black, following her planned strategy, adjusted her pace.
Her originally rapid speed slowed slightly, her rhythm becoming more controlled.
This was a normal tactical adjustment—but in Almond Eye's eyes, it became a perfect opportunity to catch up.
Sure enough, the distance between them began to shrink.
This discovery filled Almond Eye with joy, her eyes shining with excitement and surprise.
Her fighting spirit was instantly ignited to its peak, and without a second thought, she accelerated again.
The ground beneath her feet seemed to tremble from her forceful strides as she focused on one thing only—taking this chance to completely overtake Kitasan Black.
However, the thought—"She's going to lose speed"—flashed through both Kitasan Black's and Makoto's minds at the same time like lightning.
Although Umamusume possessed speed far beyond that of humans, their stamina was by no means infinite.
With limited stamina and fixed race distances, how to properly distribute energy became a crucial skill that every Umamusume and trainer had to master with precision.
During a race, speed, stride usage, and stamina consumption were tightly interconnected, directly proportional to one another.
This meant that once a runner had secured a favorable position within their optimal stride range, blindly accelerating further was absolutely unwise.
Unless there was a major change in race position, reckless acceleration would cause stamina consumption to increase exponentially.
If the acceleration was sustained for too long, let alone winning the race, even simply finishing it could become a serious problem.
Under normal circumstances, maintaining a controlled pace in a good position allowed a runner to conserve enough stamina for the final stretch, where they could unleash their full speed and power at the decisive moment.
But because Almond Eye had fallen behind at the start, she had been chasing at full speed from the very beginning.
Now that she had entered what should have been the optimal phase to ease her pace, she was still pushing herself to accelerate.
As a result, even if Kitasan Black intentionally let her catch up, in the final 200 to 300 meters, Almond Eye would inevitably suffer severe deceleration due to exhaustion.
Thinking of this, Makoto couldn't help but smile wryly.
He understood Kitasan Black's personality very well. Even though she didn't possess Almond Eye's almost extreme competitiveness, she would never easily allow herself to be overtaken.
After all, every Umamusume had her own pride, no one was willing to be surpassed by an opponent.
Especially for someone like Kitasan Black, who excelled at front running tactics, there was an innate attachment to holding the lead.
More importantly, given Kitasan Black's ability, at a distance of 1800 meters, even if she used a Burst Front Running strategy all the way to the finish, she still might not completely exhaust her stamina.
She had more than enough confidence and capability to maintain her lead in this joint run and defend her advantage.
Just as Makoto and Kitasan Black had anticipated, even before finishing the final turn, Almond Eye was already showing clear signs of deceleration.
Her strides were no longer as light and powerful as before. Each step became heavy and sluggish, as if her legs were filled with lead.
The rhythm of her arm swings completely fell apart. Her arms moved stiffly at her sides, not only failing to assist her running but actually consuming extra stamina due to their lack of coordination.
Her breathing grew rapid and erratic. Her heavy gasps echoed clearly across the empty track, as if each breath was a struggle to draw in the last remaining traces of oxygen.
Her chest heaved violently, her clothes soaked through with sweat and clinging tightly to her body, outlining her exhausted form.
And all of this happened without Kitasan Black even using her usual mid-race long-distance acceleration strategy.
After all, having won a 3000-meter Kikuka Sho, she had the ability to consider accelerating early in the race.
But doing so would have deviated from the standard "Slow Front Running" that Makoto had instructed, effectively turning it into a Fast Front Running or Burst Front Running strategy.
At this moment, facing an increasingly exhausted Almond Eye, although Kitasan Black didn't fully accelerate, the gap that Almond Eye had painstakingly closed was once again visibly widening as her deceleration worsened.
Watching all this, Makoto nodded slightly.
The current situation wasn't unexpected, and if the goal was the entrance exam simulation race, it wouldn't be difficult to handle.
However, just as he was about to think about how to address Almond Eye's issues and design a more effective training plan, something caught his attention out of the corner of his eye as they exited the turn.
His expression shifted slightly.
More than ten seconds later, he quickly glanced at the speed data on his phone, then looked back at the track.
Another fifteen or sixteen seconds passed, then nearly twenty more—each time, he checked the data again.
A moment later—
"No way…"
His lips twitched unconsciously before he let out a small laugh, muttering to himself:
"Kids with a closing kick… are they all this reckless?"