"Cling."
In a relatively secluded spot at Tracen Academy, where few people passed by, Wada and Hana Toujou started to speak freely. Hana Toujou bought two cans of coffee, gave one to Wada, and then asked,
"Alright, let's reintroduce ourselves calmly, Mr. Wada Ryuji."
Hana Toujou's Aura was not as aggressive as it had been initially; she seemed to be in the mood for a serious discussion. And this time, Hana Toujou disallowed Air Groove, T.M. Opera O or even Symboli Rudolf from coming along. Clearly, the matters that the two Trainers were about to discuss about needed privacy.
"Perhaps my initial perception of you was indeed somewhat skewed, but your confidence just now truly made me feel that you possess some extraordinary qualities."
"Your confidence in T.M. Opera O surprised me a little. Now, tell me, how much do you truly understand about T.M. Opera O?"
"—Before I answer that question, I would like to ask you the same question, Senior."
However, Wada threw the question back at Hana Toujou. When he arrived at this private meeting, and Hana Toujou didn't do anything unreasonable or tried to strong arm him, he knew that Hana Toujou was a Senior with whom he could negotiate with. At that moment, he calmly asked,
"Since Senior is the Trainer of Tracen Academy's strongest Team, and even legendary Uma Musume like Symboli Rudolph and Air Groove are members of your Team, then, from your perspective, Senior, what is T.M. Opera O's upper limit?"
As Wada asked this, his eyes sparkled with anticipation and curiosity, an expectation for Hana Toujou, the Trainer of Tracen Academy's strongest Team.
In Wada's original world, T.M. Opera O was not so universally admired; in fact, he encountered many setbacks from the very start.
T.M. Opera O's bloodline was of the Sadler's Wells lineage, and in that era, this bloodline had no famous progeny in Japan. However, by the time this bloodline proved its excellence, it had already claimed many victories and were seen as excellent stallions abroad, which was enough to demonstrate T.M. Opera O's excellence in terms of bloodline.
However, it was regrettable that this bloodline, which shone brightly abroad, had mediocre results as a Racehorse in Japan and thus was not popular. And because it did not show good results in Japan, T.M. Opera O was treated as a Racehorse with an ordinary bloodline.
—All of this was known to Wada Ryuji at the time. He was just a rookie Trainer then, following the Racehorse owner who bought T.M. Opera O at a low price, the training Jockey, and Mr. Iwamoto. Together with him, a novice, they formed an inexperienced Team. Even Wada never imagined that this "low-priced Racehorse" with an "ordinary bloodline" could take him from the local circuit to central, and even to a level comparable to the "Emperor."
By the time Wada realized all of this, it was too late. He was young then, lacked experience, was conceited, and failed T.M. Opera O, a truly excellent Racehorse. Therefore, he now wanted to know if, whether in this world, Hana Toujou, as the Trainer of Tracen's strongest Team, would have a different opinion of T.M. Opera O.
Facing Wada's question, Hana Toujou also fell silent for a moment. After a long pause, she took a sip of coffee and said objectively,
"...T.M. Opera O, she has great potential. She won't drag down my Team's performance. After the training I give her, she will have the standard to challenge a GI."
"Some Trainers think T.M. Opera O isn't that good, and that I am overestimating her potential as an Uma Musume, but I believe T.M. Opera O has that potential, the potential to challenge a GI race."
"It has nothing to do with her bloodline, lineage, or surname. No one says that you can't succeed without an excellent bloodline. Oguri Cap proved this point back then, and Tamamo Cross did too. I believe T.M. Opera O can be a top-tier Uma Musume, second to none."
Hana Toujou's words were all taken in by Wada, and at this moment, Wada's eyes sparkled with a mixture of regret and relief.
Regret that even an existence of Hana Toujou's caliber could not truly see through T.M. Opera O's potential, and relief that T.M. Opera O in this world finally had someone who could appreciate her—even if it wasn't her full strength.
"Then what if I say, 'surpassing the Emperor' is not some nonesense I made up, but my determination for T.M. Opera O? Miss Toujou."
This time, Wada looked directly at Hana Toujou, speaking with absolute determination and confidence:
"I believe T.M. Opera O's potential far surpasses the level of just challenging a GI, or even being the favourite when being in a GI race. I believe that she is an Uma Musume who can dominate an entire era."
"She has the chance to win the Undefeated Triple Crown, to win a number of GIs not inferior to the Emperor—she will definitely not just win one GI racce."
"I will train her to be an Uma Musume who surpasses the Emperor, the next Undefeated Triple Crown, even an existence that surpasses the title of Seven Crowns, reaching a higher level."
"I want her to leave her mark in the URA Hall of Fame, to let everyone see her shining honors and achievements."
And not belated achievements, and talents discovered only later. Wada kept this sentence in his heart, left unspoken.
And finally, Wada took a step back, bowed deeply towards the slightly stunned Hana Toujou, and said with immense conviction:
"So, Senior Toujou—please, please let T.M. Opera O be my trainee. I swear, I will never return to see you with T.M. Opera O until she wins at least Seven Crowns."
Seven Crowns was T.M. Opera O's historical record in Wada's memory. After T.M. Opera O retired and passed the glory of the racetrack to the new generation, her achievements were set at seven GI victories, the same as the "Emperor," Symboli Rudolph. And Wada knew very well that his youthful self at the time had caused T.M. Opera O to miss more than one GI victory. But even so, this record lasted for more than ten years before being broken, which was enough to demonstrate T.M. Opera O's excellence. (T/N: Almond Eye mention)
And this time, Wada was no longer the unexperienced self he once was, nor was he merely an "accessory" to the Japanese Jockey who achieved the "Autumn Triple Crown" with T.M. Opera O. He had won a GI on his own, proving his strength, and proving that his current skill was truly worthy of being T.M. Opera O's Trainer.
—Although, perhaps he was still somewhat unqualified and not up to the standard to teach T.M. Opera O, but this was his dream, he wanted to achieve it personally, to make T.M. Opera O shine even brighter than before.
Perhaps this made Wada Ryuji seem somewhat selfish, but he truly did not want to give up T.M. Opera O like this.
After all, he was the person who understood T.M. Opera O the best in this world.
Facing Wada Ryuji, who was bowing deeply before her, Hana Toujou's expression was also somewhat mixed, showing struggle, shock, and surprise, but more than anything, incredulity.
She hadn't expected that T.M. Opera O, whom she considered "capable of competing in a GI race," would be given such a high evaluation by this young Trainer. She also hadn't expected that this newcomer would even say that T.M. Opera O could dominate an era.
Could it be that she had truly misjudged? Was T.M. Opera O's potential more than what he believed?
Hana Toujou thought in silence for a long time, and Wada Ryuji maintained his posture for a very long time. Finally, Hana Toujou spoke faintly,
"Mainichi Hai."
"Huh?" Wada slightly raised his head, looking at Hana Toujou with some confusion.
"—T.M. Opera O's next race will be the Mainichi Hai GIII race in the latter half of March. If she changes Team affiliation midway, it will affect her participation in this race. I think neither of us wants to see that situation, do we?"
Hana Toujou took a deep breath, finally extended a finger towards Wada Ryuji, and said word for word:
"In the Mainichi Hai race in the latter half of March, bring your trainee and compete against my T.M. Opera O."
"I have enough confidence to make T.M. Opera O win this race, and what you need to do is to make your Uma Musume surpass T.M. Opera O, win first place, and prove that your determination and strength are not fake, and will not waste T.M. Opera O's talent."
"If you can do that—then, I will immediately have T.M. Opera O sign the withdrawal agreement, and then hand over the signed agreement to you, and T.M. Opera O will truly become an Uma Musume of your Team."
"How about it, Wada Ryuji, do you have the confidence to compete against me and T.M. Opera O?"
And facing Hana Toujou's challenge, and the opportunity to realize his dream laid out before him, Wada Ryuji did not hesitate this time and immediately replied without hesitation,
"I will."
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Hydrogen Opera VS Coughing Wada!!!!
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If you spot any errors, feel free to comment about it and I will fix it as soon as I can.