"That's true. Many Uma Musume aren't particularly eye-catching during the Classic circuit, only to truly shine after entering their senior years," Otona Shizuko nodded, agreeing with Shuta An's assessment.
"However," Shuta An spread his hands lightly, his tone calm yet decisive, "for this generation, competing directly against last year's Classic generation next year will not be easy."
He paused briefly—then spoke words that carried unmistakable weight.
"I can now disclose one clear piece of information: Oguri Cap will retire after next year's Arima Kinen."
Although many had already guessed as much, this was the first time Shuta An had stated it so explicitly. Otonashi Shizuko's eyes widened slightly as she immediately wrote it down in her notebook.
She then looked up, fixing her gaze on him. "Then…what kind of route will Miss Oguri Cap choose from here on?"
"Honestly," Shuta An replied, a faintly sarcastic smile appearing at the corner of his lips, "I know many people think the schedule I arranged for Oguri Cap is too loose—that it completely fails to squeeze out her full potential."
He leaned back slightly. "But I would rather have Oguri Cap run fewer races and give everything each time, than force her to run constantly and only show seventy percent of her strength."
"According to some people's wishes," he continued, his tone carrying a trace of mockery, "Oguri Cap should have returned via the Sankei Sho All Comers, then gone straight into the Mainichi Okan, Autumn Tenno Sho, Japan Cup, and Arima Kinen. Next year, she should start racing from the very beginning of the season—ideally running twenty races a year."
"And then," Shuta An chuckled softly, "those same people claim they're doing it for Oguri Cap's sake. That they just want to see her race more often. I see those comments online all the time."
He raised an eyebrow. "I don't remember when Oguri Cap suddenly got so many Trainers."
"As for my own arrangement," he continued evenly, "everyone already knows this year's plan. Next year, I'll consider letting Oguri Cap challenge mile races, rest until the Yasuda Kinen in the first half of the year, then go on an overseas expedition—before ending it all with the Arima Kinen as her retirement race."
"An overseas expedition?" Otona Shizuko immediately seized the key point. "Where will you be aiming for, Shuta-kun?"
"America," Shuta An answered without hesitation.
"Eh?" The reporter was visibly surprised. "Not Europe, where Miss Oguri Cap has already proven herself? America's Twinkle Series is mostly dirt, isn't it?"
"You're right," Shuta An admitted readily, before smoothly shifting the focus. "However, America also has many turf G1 races, and quite a few of them are well suited to Oguri Cap. While Oguri was recuperating there, I personally inspected a large number of tracks and confirmed which ones she could adapt to. Based on that, I selected several overseas G1s that would be ideal challenges for her."
He paused, his gaze drifting toward the empty slide in the park.
"And there's an even more important reason for choosing America," he said quietly. "If Oguri Cap wins two G1s this year, she'll stand at seven crowns—just like Miss 'Emperor'. That previous seven-crown Uma Musume also chose an American expedition, but for various reasons, she couldn't perform at her best."
"This time," Shuta An said softly, "I want to try it with Oguri."
Otona Shizuko pursed her lips before asking in a low voice, "So—this is about completely surpassing your senior?"
"You can understand it that way," Shuta An replied. His gaze never returned.
—
The reporter then shifted the topic back to the Autumn Tenno Sho.
"Shuta-kun, what are your thoughts on the Autumn Tenno Sho? Who do you favor this time, and how do you think the race will unfold?"
"Oh…" Although he had expected the question, Shuta An still took a moment to organize his thoughts.
"For the Autumn Tenno Sho, I still favor Super Creek the most," he said after a brief silence. "Of course, that's assuming Miss Super Creek can win her comeback race."
"So you're not as optimistic about Miss Inari One?" Otona Shizuko pressed. "She won consecutive G1s in the first half of the year—much like Tamamo Cross did last year."
"Miss Inari One's ability is unquestionable," Shuta An replied calmly. "But we also have to acknowledge that several powerful Uma Musume were recuperating in the first half of the year. The overall intensity of the G1 races she ran wasn't particularly high."
"In my view," he continued, "Miss Inari One is fundamentally a Uma Musume who grows stronger as the distance increases. The Autumn Tenno Sho is 2000 meters at Tokyo—while it suits her late-closing style, it's still a bit short."
"So," Otona Shizuko summarized sharply, "you believe Miss Inari One's strongest performance in the second half of the year will be at the Arima Kinen?"
"Exactly." Shuta An nodded once. "When preparing for the Arima Kinen, I will treat Miss Inari One as Oguri Cap's strongest domestic opponent."
"However," he added, "for the Japan Cup, I still believe the greatest threat will come from overseas Uma Musume."
"You defended the honor of the Japan Cup against foreign challengers last year," Otona Shizuko said in surprise, covering her mouth slightly. "Yet you still think overseas Uma Musume are more dangerous?"
"That's precisely why I say so," Shuta An replied, raising his right index finger. "Oguri Cap defeating overseas Uma Musume does not mean that the overall strength of Japanese Uma Musume has caught up."
"If top-class overseas Uma Musume come to Japan," he continued steadily, "they will still display terrifying strength. In my eyes, they must always be treated as priority opponents for analysis."
He then brought the conversation back to the Autumn Tenno Sho.
"As for how the race will unfold," Shuta An concluded, "it will most likely be run at a slow pace, favoring front-runners. Super Creek will secure a good position early, then gradually pull away. Inari One will attempt to close from behind—but fail to catch her."
—
After chatting a while longer, today's interview finally came to an end.
"Thank you very much, Shuta-kun, for accepting our interview for Twinkle Magazine," Otona Shizuko said as she stood up and bowed. "We also wish Miss Oguri Cap excellent results this year."
"I'll gladly accept those words," Shuta An replied, standing as well and returning the bow. "Our Sadalsuud team will continue to give our all—so as not to disappoint the fans who have always supported us."
When Shuta Ann returned home, Oguri Cap silently approached him and handed him a letter.
The Young man did not, even for a moment, mistake it for a "love letter." He took it casually, glanced at the sender—and upon seeing the signature of the URA Association's president, opened the envelope without hesitation.
Oguri Cap stood where she was, quietly watching her Trainer read the inexplicably delivered letter. By the time he reached the end, Shuta Ann's lips twitched faintly. He then handed the letter over.
"This concerns you, Oguri. You should read it as well."
"Eh?" The Gray Uma Musume pointed at herself, blinking in surprise. "It's related to me too? Is it about the Japan Cup?"
Shuta Ann didn't answer. He simply placed the letter into her hands.
Oguri Cap obediently read through it. As her eyes moved across the page, the slight tension in her brows gradually eased. "So it's about this…"
"What is it?" Berno Light asked, having just arrived.
"It's about my racing outfit," Oguri Cap replied, finishing the letter and speaking in Shuta Ann's stead. "The URA Association wants to design a new racing outfit for me, themed around 'Christmas'. Inari One and Super Creek will also be getting outfits with the same theme."
"Any extra conditions?" Berno Light raised an eyebrow. "If not, isn't this purely a good thing?"
"No additional conditions," Shuta Ann added. "They're asking Oguri for her opinion on the design. Also, the outfits will be sold in official souvenir shops, with twenty percent of the proceeds going directly to Oguri."
"Wow!" Berno Light's eyes lit up instantly. "That's amazing! Oguri's popularity alone will sell tons of them. She'll make a fortune!"
"Berno and I won't take a share of that money," Shuta Ann said, wagging his finger lightly. "Whatever the URA distributes will belong entirely to Oguri. This isn't prize money—it's income earned purely from her popularity."
He suddenly paused mid-sentence.
"What's wrong?" Noticing the shift, both Oguri Cap and Berno Light looked at him with concern. Oguri Cap even waved a hand in front of his face.
Shuta Ann snapped back to himself, his gaze landing on Oguri Cap's slightly uneasy expression.
"After the Arima Kinen," he said slowly, "Berno and I should start helping Oguri take on some food advertisements, right?"
Though phrased as a question, he already sensed the answer.
"Food advertisements?" Berno Light blinked. "Wasn't it only Miss 'Emperor' who endorsed alcohol before?"
"If Oguri wins two G1s this year, she'll also be a seven-crown Uma Musume," Shuta Ann replied thoughtfully. "At that point, endorsements should be fine. And next year, during the first half—when Oguri rests until the Yasuda Kinen—there'll be plenty of time to shoot commercials. Either way, all endorsement fees would go to Oguri."
"Let's split it like prize money," Oguri Cap said calmly. "Without Berno and Ann supporting me, I wouldn't have achieved what I have now. Any money earned because of those achievements should be shared."
"If that's what you want," Shuta Ann said, smiling faintly, "then I won't object."
But Berno Light waved her hand repeatedly. "No need. Just give it all to Oguri. Whether some of it goes to me or all of it goes to her—it's the same now."
Both Oguri Cap and Shuta Ann understood the meaning hidden in those words.
—
While Oguri Cap in the real world steadily adjusted her condition for the Japan Cup, her counterpart in the Dream World was thrown into a relentless sequence of battles.
After the Sankei Sho All Comers came the Mainichi Okan. After two consecutive victories, the next stage awaiting her was the Autumn Tenno Sho.
"Super Creek's jockey is Yutaka Take," Shuta Ann narrowed his eyes as he rode Oguri Cap toward the training ground, thoughts racing. "After his trip to America, he's improved tremendously."
"Inari One's jockey has been switched to Shibata Masato. He's experienced, but the threat level isn't comparable to Yutaka Take." Shuta Ann exhaled quietly. "Then I'll just mark Yutaka Take."
Having made his decision, he specifically asked Setoguchi Tsutomu to gather Super Creek's recent training data during their post-training discussion.
"So you see Super Creek as the biggest threat," Setoguchi Tsutomu said, understanding immediately.
"Yes," Shuta Ann admitted without hesitation. "In the Autumn Tenno Sho, Super Creek is Oguri Cap's greatest opponent. Regardless of gate position, I intend to mark Yutaka Take aggressively."
"Is that really necessary?" Assistant Ikee joined in. "Strictly speaking, Oguri Cap is stronger, isn't she?"
"It is necessary," Shuta Ann replied, his tone firm. "Super Creek has only run one race. Oguri Cap has already run two. In terms of accumulated fatigue, we're at a disadvantage. If we don't apply tactical pressure, there's a real risk Oguri might stumble."
"I see…" Setoguchi Tsutomu nodded. "If Shuta-kun says so, there must be a reason. Ikee-kun, gather Super Creek's training data."
"No problem!" Ikee thumped his chest. "Leave it to me!"
—
Meanwhile, Super Creek's camp was thinking along similar lines.
"Shuta-kun will definitely mark me," Yutaka Take said with a wry smile. "No surprises there. Ideally, I'd like to run passively so he can't mark us—but if we go full sashi, Oguri Cap's finishing kick will crush us."
"So I can only let Super Creek run from the front," he continued, eyes sharp, "and try my best not to let Shuta-kun lock onto us."
"And your confidence?" Trainer Ito Shuji asked, staring intently at his trusted jockey.
"About thirty percent," Yutaka Take shrugged. "I'll do everything I can. The rest… depends on luck."
"I suppose that's unavoidable," Ito Shuji sighed. "Against Oguri Cap, luck always plays a role. I'll leave the Autumn Tenno Sho entirely in your hands."
"Leave it to me," Yutaka Take stood up, a determined smile spreading across his face. "This time, I'll show Shuta-kun what I gained from America."