After Super Creek finished, Yasui Makoto still hadn't fully digested her points when Inari One spoke right after.
"There's another trap people fall into with the zone."
As she said it, an irritated, vexed, almost regretful look twisted together on her face.
"If you get too obsessed with it, it's like sinking into a swamp. The moment you stop paying attention, you're buried—and you can't crawl out."
While she spoke, she clenched her fist. Her whole body tensed like she was about to launch into a full sprint, veins standing out along her neck.
"I didn't even know it was called the zone back then. I just felt that state when I ran the Mainichi Okan against Oguri Cap, and it was crazy strong. And after that, for a bunch of races, all I could think was, 'If that state shows up again, I'll crush Oguri Cap and the rest of them for good.'"
"And what happened?"
She shrugged helplessly, spreading her hands, a self-mocking smile pulling at her mouth.
"I lost."
"I lost completely…"
After a beat, her expression shifted, and her voice lowered.
"After that… I guess I got lucky. Before the Arima Kinen, I met Mr. C.B.-senpai."
Her tone snapped sharp, and despite her small frame, a powerful aura burst out of her.
"That senpai… she really fit my taste."
"Common sense. The zone. 'States'…"
"Boring. Pointless…"
"So boring—so pointless!"
"Isn't racing supposed to be—run however you want, run however lets you show off, run however feels bold and grand?"
"Racing… is supposed to feel good, damn it!"
Her voice rose hard on those last words—then her momentum abruptly dropped. She shrugged again, palms out, and smiled.
"And then I just ran however I felt like… and I ended up entering that so-called zone."
"Sure, I'd had something like it before. But that time it was especially natural. I didn't think about what it was or why it happened—I just ran to my heart's content. It was incredible."
Then, as if refusing to be outdone, Tamamo Cross spoke up too.
"Honestly, Yasui, my man, you probably already know this—don't get too hung up on the zone."
Yasui nodded quickly, and Tamamo Cross nodded as well, continuing.
"Then that's fine. I've got notes on the zone, actually—pretty sure I wrote 'em down. Before I went overseas, I handed them to Oguri."
"When Oguri comes over later, I'll ask her. We'll find a time to get you a copy too, Yasui."
"As for whether you use it, and whether you tell Kitasan Black about it—that's up to you."
At that, Super Creek—the one who'd spoken first—also nodded.
"I have notes as well, but not about the zone itself. They're about how to deal with that kind of opponent—by controlling the race."
"I'll call home later and put a copy together for you too, Yasui-san."
Yasui Makoto was genuinely grateful for their willingness to help.
In the days that followed, once he received those notes, he studied them every spare second.
Now, he relayed it all to Kitasan Black in a tight summary, adding, "…I figured I should fully understand what I learned from Tamamo and the others before I explained it to you bit by bit."
"I've got a decent grasp of it now, and you also happened to ask about 'a reason to run.' So I think it's time to apply what's in those notes."
As Yasui spoke, Kitasan Black's eyes kept sparkling with excitement and anticipation.
The moment he finished, she couldn't hold it in, and she asked eagerly,
"Then tomorrow we start trying the senpais' notes, Trainer?"
Yasui's gaze dropped to the tablet on the table, the screen still displaying information about Sounds of Earth. He nodded, thoughtful.
"Yeah. We'll start with Super Creek's strategy—'controlling the race.'"
...
"Controlling the race" sounded a little mystical at first. But after reading Super Creek's notes closely, Yasui quickly got the shape of it.
At its core, it was still the idea of know yourself, know your enemy: understand your opponents from every angle, then design your plan and strategy for the next race with that in mind.
But the notes also made him realize something he'd been neglecting—more like a habit.
Up until now, he'd always handled that work alone from the trainer's perspective. And most trainers did the same.
Super Creek's notes emphasized that for an Umamusume with good intuition, letting her take part in the preparation process made a real difference compared to simply following a trainer's instructions.
If trainer and Umamusume prepared together—talking through their thoughts as they went—it could significantly improve how well the strategy actually worked in practice.
And the longer the distance, the stronger the opponents, the more pronounced that effect became.
Conveniently, Yasui considered Kitasan Black an Umamusume with excellent intuition.
In past training and pre-race briefings, in many cases he only needed to tell her a little, and she'd grasp it immediately.
That meant the groundwork was there to use the notes.
So on the next day's training schedule, Yasui deliberately carved out time to take Kitasan Black to observe the Arima Kinen opponents during their training.
And the first one they watched was Sounds of Earth.
They stood off to the side of the training grounds. It didn't take long for Kitasan Black to look surprised.
Because compared to the dashing, lax, overblown image she'd seen at their first meeting, Sounds of Earth on the training grounds radiated seriousness. Every movement was focused and meticulous, without a hint of slack.
Hearing Kitasan Black's comment, Yasui nodded and began to analyze patiently.
"Most outside evaluations… probably underestimate Sounds of Earth. Like, uh… that nickname—'silver medal collector' and all…"
He tugged at the corner of his mouth, a bit awkward, then continued.
"But 'second place a lot' depends on what races those seconds came in. Kyoto Shimbun Hai is a G2. Kobe Shimbun Hai is also a G2. Kyoto Daishoten is a G2 as well.
"And the Kikuka Sho is a G1."
"Just entering races like those already puts you near the top of your generation. Repeated seconds… sure, that's some bad luck. But it also means her strength is already top-class among her peers."
"Especially the Kikuka Sho."
Yasui's expression grew more cautious.
"Kita-chan, you won the Kikuka Sho. You know what her finishing level means."
"In that race, the winner—Toho Jackal—shattered the record by a full 1.7 seconds. And Sounds of Earth cleared the old record too."
"I'm sure you felt exactly what that level of strength means."
When Kitasan Black's expression turned serious as well, Yasui nodded and pointed toward the training grounds.
"And you can read a lot from her race pattern, too. Not just what I said earlier—when she gets great results, she's basically always a late charger, and she loses by a tiny margin."
"That tells us her final spurt and chase aren't weak. But she definitely has a shortcoming when it comes to fighting for position in a crowd. And at the Arima Kinen, that's probably something we can use."
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T/N: hmm should i make zone caps hmmmmmmmmm thoughts thoughs send a comment, like, and subscribe for more videos