Uma Musume: To The Top!!

Chapter 337: 448

Dancing Brave's counseling of Suave Dancer was naturally something Kuroha and the others had no way of knowing.

After sending Mejiro McQueen and the other two girls back to Ireland, he took a plane back to Tokyo alone.

There were three main things he had come back to handle this time.

The first concerned the hidden worry of Tokai Teio's old injury.

Although the race had ended several days earlier, as Teio's trainer, Kuroha had been worn down by her pestering and had no choice but to agree to give her some compensation.

The second was his wedding with Maruzensky.

Among his own uma musume, she had voluntarily placed herself second from last.

Well... Oguri Cap had joined the team too late, and Nase Fumino was not an uma musume, so those were separate cases.

The third was to replenish Darley Arabian and Byerley Turk with Blessing Power while he was at it.

After all, even Godolphin Arabian, who had been staying by his side, felt as if she was about to run out of mana. The state of the other two could be easily imagined.

If he did not top them up, the next time they met, they would probably turn back into two specks of light again.

However, when he decided to come back, Kuroha had wanted to give his girls a surprise, so he had not informed them in advance.

Because of that, he had assumed the people picking him up would once again only be a few high-ranking association officials.

Instead, he saw two figures that surprised him greatly.

"Hideto-senpai, Roppei-senpai, what are you two doing here?"

Below, apart from several association staff members, Naise Hideto and Ginjiro Roppei were standing at the very front.

Ginjiro was still dressed in that casual outfit of his, with his eternally unchanged sunglasses perched on his nose, a round hat on his head, and a cane in hand.

If someone who did not know him saw him at first glance, they would never think this old man had once been a veteran trainer famed throughout Central. They would probably think he was some old farmer from who knew where.

As for Hideto, he was still in a suit and tie, hands clasped behind his back as he stared straight ahead with a meticulous, serious expression.

"Yo, Kuroha!"

Looking at Kuroha as he walked down the airstairs, Ginjiro tugged at the corner of his mouth. He seemed to be in a rather good mood, his facial wrinkles bunching together until his smile looked like a chrysanthemum in full bloom.

"I had drinks with those old guys from URA a few days ago and heard you'd booked today's flight, so I figured you were probably coming back. I happened to have nothing to do, so I came to pick you up."

As he spoke, he tugged at Hideto's clothes beside him.

"As for this guy, he happened to want to come pick you up too, so I brought him along."

"..."

Hideto gave the cane-wielding old man a sidelong glance, lowered his eyes, and said calmly, "I originally had an overseas itinerary yesterday. He dragged me here by force today."

"Can't you let me save face once in a while?"

Ginjiro's veins jumped as he snapped back irritably. "And what's the point of you going overseas? You can't even bring back a G3. Embarrassing."

"I am merely telling the truth," Hideto said, his tone still flat.

"Haha, all right, all right." Kuroha smiled and stepped forward to smooth things over. "Since you two senpai rarely come looking for me, why don't we find somewhere to sit?"

...

After they arrived at a nearby café, Kuroha took his seat and asked with a smile, "Speaking of which, how have you two senpai been lately?"

"Pretty... smoothly, I suppose."

Ginjiro pulled his sunglasses down a few inches and added a lethal amount of sugar cubes to his cup before saying, "Most of the team's matters are being handled by Jo now, so I'm happy to be idle."

"Oh? Kitahara has already taken over your team?" Hearing that familiar name, Kuroha was somewhat surprised.

"What's strange about that?"

Ginjiro waved a hand indifferently.

"Ever since Oguri Cap went to your place, what active uma musume do I still have on my team? They're all newly recruited this year."

"It works out perfectly. A rookie trainer leading rookie uma musume, while this old man backs them up from behind."

At that moment, Hideto, seated beside him, took a sip of coffee and suddenly cut in.

"That boy named Kitahara has average fundamentals, but his thinking is fairly flexible. Much better than the current you, Ginjiro."

"Are you trying to start a fight...?" Ginjiro stared gloomily at the old rival beside him.

Kuroha could only helplessly try to mediate.

After all, one was a senior who had helped him before he officially joined Central and entrusted Oguri Cap to him.

The other was Fumino's father, his future father-in-law.

He really could not take sides, so he could only choose to blur things over.

After the simple quarrel subsided, Hideto set down his cup. A sharp glint appeared in his lifeless eyes as he looked at Kuroha and said, "I originally had no particular business, but since Roppei dragged me here, there is one question I want to ask."

Kuroha was somewhat puzzled. "Please."

"Have you prepared for your wedding with Fumino next month?"

Kuroha paused, then nodded. "Naturally."

Although he had come back this time to complete his wedding with Maruzensky, in truth, not only Maruzensky's wedding, even Fumino's and Oguri Cap's weddings had already been arranged.

Though most of it had been prepared by Godolphin.

This blue goddess who longed for "love" had awakened to something after assisting Kuroha with the previous weddings.

Not only had she taken responsibility for all the later preparations, before this expedition, she had completed every wedding arrangement in one go.

It was so perfect that even Kuroha could not find the slightest fault in it.

All he could say was that when the Three Goddesses of uma musume encountered something they liked, their capacity for action truly left nothing to criticize.

"If only Godolphin had this much enthusiasm when assisting with training..." Kuroha sighed inwardly.

"I see... That's good." Hideto nodded. "When the time comes, you two can handle it as you see fit."

Kuroha frowned slightly. Suddenly remembering what the other man had said earlier, he quickly asked, "Hideto-senpai, are you going overseas soon?"

The middle-aged man nodded calmly. "Yes."

"But my wedding with Fumino..."

"Do not mind me. I will come back when the time comes."

Hideto interrupted him, then muttered to himself with a trace of distress, "Speaking of which, I don't know what has gotten into Fumino lately. She has not been very willing to see me. So I may as well go to America and meet some old acquaintances."

"..."

Kuroha fell silent.

He had not expected that, even now, Hideto still did not know Fumino actually disliked him.

A father-in-law under the same roof...

Kuroha knew very well that even now, Fumino had not forgiven this "biological father" of hers.

There was nothing Kuroha could do about that.

If Hideto had merely been devoted to his career, that would have been one thing.

But he had been devoted far beyond that, almost dedicating his entire life to Central's uma musume training career.

That also caused him to miss almost every important milestone in Fumino's growth.

Back when Kuroha played Pokémon battles with Fumino and listened to her pillow talk, she had once complained to him about it.

When she was little, because Hideto was so often away from home, she ended up eating dinner alone, sleeping alone, and spending most holidays by herself.

Hideto had even gone so far as to never attend any of her entrance ceremonies, never watch her sports meets, never spend a single birthday with her, and never give her even one word of praise.

Even after he officially gave up overseas expeditions a few years ago, returned home, and took charge of Bamboo Memory, the few conversations they occasionally had still sounded terribly sarcastic to Fumino.

At the time, Kuroha's scalp had gone numb after hearing it. All he could say was that being disliked by his own daughter really was somewhat deserved.

"This is entirely your own fault!"

Beside them, Ginjiro immediately mocked him. He had never been gentle with his words toward this old rival.

"And what do you mean, Fumino hasn't wanted to deal with you lately? Hasn't she always not wanted to deal with you?"

"If not for the fact that Fumino and Kuroha's wedding still requires your attendance, you might as well not come back."

Hideto glanced at Roppei without the slightest hint of anger. Instead, after thinking for a moment, he calmly refuted him.

"My relationship with Fumino should not be that poor."

Ginjiro: "..."

The old man instantly fell into contemplation.

How had he gotten to know this bastard back then?

"Oh, right, Kuroha."

At that moment, Hideto suddenly spoke. "Have you considered America as a direction for your future expeditions?"

"America?"

Kuroha paused at those words, then thought for a moment before replying, "I did think about it before, but Chasing Light's current active uma musume are not very suitable for that direction, so I have not prepared to include it as a target for now."

"I see."

Hideto nodded and said, "If you want to develop toward that race circuit in the future, I know quite a few American trainers, as well as several legendary uma musume."

"When the time comes, I can introduce you to them."

Kuroha did not stand on ceremony and nodded directly. "Then I'll be troubling you, Hideto-senpai."

America...

Compared to turf, the mainstream tracks over there leaned more toward dirt.

If he had someone like Smart Falcon under him, he might perhaps consider that side.

Unfortunately, whether it was McQueen and Teio, who were currently at their peaks, or Bourbon, Rice Shower, and Suzuka, the three little ones who had just gotten started, their aptitude leaned more toward turf.

Even Haito Star and Fine Motion, whom he might possibly take into the team in the future, were mostly turf-oriented.

As for dirt...

All he could say was that he would leave it to fate.

The three Central trainers, who had not met in a long while, sat together chatting for a while. Then Hideto glanced at his wristwatch, seemed to remember something, and was the first to rise and take his leave.

"Since I've seen you, I should be about ready to go as well."

Kuroha realized something and asked, "Your flight is now?"

Hideto nodded. "There is nothing much for me to do if I stay in Central for the time being, but I need to head over early."

As he spoke, he paused. After hesitating briefly, he added, "Speaking of which, Kuroha, you have not returned to Central for some time, so you probably are not very familiar with the current rookie uma musume."

"A while ago, I saw a child in the elementary division who had not yet entered True Blooming. Her aptitude is quite good. If you are willing, you can try recruiting her into Chasing Light rather than letting her waste away in the General Division."

"Pfft!"

Beside them, Ginjiro nearly choked on his coffee.

Kuroha asked in confusion, "Why introduce her to me? Hideto-senpai, do you not plan to teach her yourself?"

Although both Ginjiro and Hideto had a massive gap between themselves and the current Kuroha, their training standards were still extremely high by Central's present standards.

At the very least, they would not hold back their assigned uma musume.

Normally, if one discovered an outstanding uma musume, would they not bring her under their own wing?

At Kuroha's question, Hideto straightened his collar and ignored Ginjiro's glaring look. He said calmly, "First, as Central's current best trainer, handing talented uma musume to you is the most reasonable choice."

"Second... I am now about the same as Roppei. You could call it a state of semi-retirement. After I finish training Bamboo Memory, I do not plan to take on any other uma musume."

After hearing Hideto's explanation and looking at the wrinkles at the corners of his eyes, which were more obvious than before, Kuroha roughly understood what he meant.

At the current Central Tracen Academy, although the number of outstanding uma musume was increasing, the trainer side was showing a shortage between generations.

Right now, the only ones who could truly shoulder the main burden, aside from Kuroha, were Fumino and no one else.

As for rookies like Kitahara, or the other Central trainers who had already been beaten down by Symboli Rudolf once, "adequate" was about all one could say.

They were still not ready for major responsibilities.

All that could be said was that Central's road of development remained long and difficult.

No wonder Hideto's first thought was to introduce good seedlings to Chasing Light.

"What is that child from the elementary division called?"

Kuroha asked softly.

Hideto paused, then took out his phone, operated it for a moment, and brought up a document.

The first thing to appear was a headshot.

It showed a very cute little girl with long, straight black hair tied in a high ponytail. She stared expressionlessly into the camera.

What made her more distinctive was the strip of white tape stuck across the bridge of her nose.

"Narita Brian. Among her grade in the elementary division, her results are almost first by a broken margin. Her talent is exceptional."

Hideto said, "If she does not catch your eye, please mention her to Fumino and have her make contact."

"Narita Brian... I'll remember that."

Kuroha had already found the photo familiar, and after hearing the name, he confirmed it instantly and nodded seriously.

This girl was indeed a genuine genius: the future Central Triple Crown uma musume.

Come to think of it, she seemed to have another title as well.

The future vice president of Central Tracen Academy's student council.

Looking at Hideto's departing back, Kuroha rubbed his chin and thought to himself, "In that case, Luna's workhorse life is finally about to end?"

...

After Hideto left, Ginjiro did not stay for long either. After chatting casually for a few more lines, he also left.

Kuroha followed the street and took a walk back to the Mejiro training ground.

Four o'clock in the afternoon was an excellent time for training.

The moment Kuroha stepped onto the grounds, he heard a clear, energetic voice.

"Yeah! Another great victory for the mighty Teio!"

He looked toward the sound and saw that at the end of one track, Tokai Teio had just blown past several sparring uma musume behind her and was happily flashing a peace sign.

At the edge of the grounds, Aoi Kiryuin and Berno Light were holding notebooks and discussing something.

On the track on the other side, Mihono Bourbon and Rice Shower were also sweating hard under Fumino's guidance.

Little Silence Suzuka should not have finished class yet at this hour.

The only ones he did not see were the two Triple Crown uma musume from the Mejiro family and Team Sirius.

With McQueen away on expedition, they no longer had any reason to stay at the training ground. Most likely, they were off playing somewhere outside.

After confirming that everyone who should be here had arrived, Kuroha did not deliberately hide himself. He directly smiled and greeted everyone.

"Everyone, I'm back!"

After a brief silence, the training ground instantly erupted.

Very soon, everyone gathered around him, and a "facehugger" also attached itself to Kuroha's head.

"Trainer, heehee. Trainer."

Tokai Teio clung to his head, grinning especially brightly.

Kuroha helplessly moved the restless Teio from in front of his face to his back, steadily supporting the girl's plump thighs.

Then, amid a wave of cheers, everyone surrounded him and escorted him into the trainer's office.

...

Mejiro training ground, inside the trainer's office.

"Trainer, you didn't come watch my Derby! Teio is very, very angry right now!"

Tokai Teio planted both hands on her hips, puffed out her cheeks, and accused him with righteous conviction.

"That is why I rushed back, isn't it?"

Kuroha helplessly reached out and rubbed the girl's hair, smiling softly.

Teio, however, put on an expression that said, "I saw through you ages ago," and turned her head aside, pretending to be angry.

"Liar! You clearly came back this time for Maruzensky-senpai's matter. I'm just on the side!"

"Sigh."

In the next second, Tokai Teio felt her cheeks being cupped by a pair of warm palms.

Then her trainer's gentle smile, which seemed to come with its own seven-colored sparkling special effect, filled her vision. For a moment, Teio felt her energetic little heart begin to beat wildly for some unknown reason.

"Huh? Did Trainer become strange?"

Teio was a little dazed.

Then, suddenly, she felt an odd warmth that had already existed for a long time burst open around her heart, causing her mind to go hazy.

Only then did realization dawn on her.

"Oh. So it isn't that Trainer got strange. I'm the one who got strange!"

"Who said that? Teio is very important to me too."

Just then, Kuroha gently comforted her while patting her catlike head. After he finished speaking, he thought for a moment, tapped Teio on the forehead, and smiled.

"However, not being there for the Derby really was my fault."

"How about this? I will be staying in Central for this period. Whatever compensation Teio wants, as long as I can do it, I'll satisfy all of it. How does that sound?"

"...Mm... O-okay."

The girl with the crescent forelock stared blankly at Kuroha's face, then nodded a little dazedly.

After Kuroha released his hands and turned away, she suddenly covered her face. Her cheeks were burning frighteningly hot, and spiral swirls began turning in her eyes.

"N-not good! I feel like I'm about to cook until I explode! What should I do?!"

On the sofa, Fumino, who had watched the entire process from a third-person perspective, took a sip of tea and glanced sidelong at the confused Tokai Teio.

Did that man Kuroha have any idea how absurdly lethal he was right now?

Remembering how she herself had fallen last year, Fumino could not help shaking her head.

"Speaking of which, did Maruzensky go out to play again?" Kuroha turned back and asked.

Aoi thought for a moment, then answered, "This morning, she came with Oguri and March to accompany Teio for a few laps. As for now, I don't know."

Kuroha nodded.

Based on his understanding of Maruzensky, if she was not at the Mejiro training ground at this hour, then she was either wandering around the academy, drinking tea with Symboli Rudolf at the student council, or racing on the highway.

But it did not matter. In any case, he would always see her at dinnertime.

Drawing back his thoughts, Kuroha looked at Berno Light, who was wearing a uniform and looked just like a little trainer, then asked with a smile, "How have you been lately, Light? Aoi hasn't been bullying you, has she?"

At those words, Berno Light scratched the back of her head somewhat embarrassedly.

"No, no. Aoi-nee has been very good to me. I'm still far from good enough, so I'm working hard to learn."

After that, Fumino, Mihono Bourbon, Rice Shower, and the others also spoke about their experiences and thoughts during this period.

Listening to everyone's accounts, Kuroha gained a rough understanding of everything that had happened while he was away.

At present, Chasing Light could be said to be flourishing.

Whether it was Fumino, Aoi, and Light as trainers, or Teio and Bourbon as uma musume, everyone was fighting for their own goals.

They had handled the details extremely well. He only needed to grasp the overall direction.

Except for one person...

Kuroha sighed softly, his gaze falling on the blue rose girl who looked somewhat timid in the corner.

Rice Shower... Her condition is still a bit of a problem.

(End of Chapter)

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