"AND T.M. OPERA O ACCELERATES!! Finally! T.M. Opera O has unleashed her terrifying final spurt and is closing in on Mejiro McQueen at astonishing speeds! 5 lengths! 4 lengths! 3 lengths!!!!"
"The anticipated showdown has finally started! Mejiro McQueen VS T.M. Opera O!! Will the bloodline of the Mejiro Family prevail, or will the Overlord ultimately dominate this era??!!!!"
Akasaka Misato's screamed with extreme excitement until even her voice turned hoarse. Such a scene was enough to make countless spectators watch from the edge of their seats.
Just then, Mejiro McQueen and T.M. Opera O successively rounded the final corner, and the two Uma Musume finally entered the final straight!
This was the stage of finale! There was about a gap of 2 lengths between Mejiro McQueen and T.M. Opera O at this moment, yet, this gap was visibly shrinking at a rapid pace!
"DON'T LOSE T.M. OPERA O!!!!"
"T.M. OPERA O, GOOOOOOO!!!!!"
"KEEP RUNNING, MCQUEEN!!!!!"
"WIN, MCQUEEN!!!""
From the stands, the desperate cheers and shouts of the audience continuously rang out.
They were all supporting their respective Oshis, encouraging them to run with all their might, even if they knew that such shouting won't have any effect.
It's just that, when the emotions built up, not yelling a few times just felt wrong.
On the stands, Meisho Doto's eyes were now welling up with tears of excitement.
She watched T.M. Opera O, using her infamous final spurt, steadily close in on McQueen, feeling as if she hadn't seen this scene in a long time.
This was the T.M. Opera O she had admired so much—that astonishing acceleration rate, those confident strides, that 'Overlord' who seemed capable of dominating the entire Racecourse!
"She's back, Trainer, do you see her?"
"T.M. Opera O is back. She has once again broken through her limits."
It was a strange feeling. Meisho Doto and T.M. Opera O's rivalry had been incredibly intense, and the two girls had more than once developed rifts due to their competition.
But now, as Meisho Doto had grown and once again saw the Overlord on the Racecourse... she was almost moved to tears.
This was the Overlord she knew, the powerful opponent she had never been able to catch up to, the T.M. Opera O who possessed both confidence and strength!
"Yeah... I see her."
Beside Meisho Doto, Wada, who was standing with Fumino Nase, had unknowingly already shed tears.
As he watched T.M. Opera O become faster and faster, speeding across the Kikuka Sho's turf, he had already lost control of his emotions.
However, this time, Wada's emotional outburst did not lead to desperate cheers. He simply watched like a retainer, observing his proud Overlord giving her all on the Racecourse, as always, securing victory.
It was quite embarrassing, wasn't it? Wada had initially thought that if he could go back in time, he could definitely help T.M. Opera O in some way.
However, reality had delivered a harsh slap, bringing him back to his senses.
He was still not someone worthy of T.M. Opera O's talent. Even if he started over again as his current self, T.M. Opera O will still be the one who teaches him. All he could do was try his best to not drag her down.
But as he watched T.M. Opera O confidently soaring across the racetrack, he was still moved to tears.
Perhaps I still can't help you with anything, T.M. Opera O... Perhaps my mediocre self will never be someone worthy of you.
But... I truly want to see you run again, to see you win again.
I want everyone in the world to know how strong my T.M. Opera O truly is.
T.M. Opera O isn't undefeated all year due to mere luck; she is The Overlord of the Century's End who will dominate everyone!
"I know, I know—I've always known that you are the ruler of this era!!!"
"NOW!! GO WIN, T.M. OPERA O!!! GO WIN THE WHOLE WORLD!!!"
Wada cheered for his T.M. Opera O with tears and mucus streaming down his face, while beside him, Fumino Nase was stunned by Wada's appearance.
She had never seen Wada so emotional before, but she truly felt the emotions he was conveying at that moment.
'Could this be the bond that should exist between a Trainer and their Uma Musume?'
Fumino Nase couldn't help but feel a little surprised.
She suddenly felt as if she was the mediocre one; the feelings between Wada and T.M. Opera O even gave her the feeling that "if an Uma Musume and Trainer cannot achieve such a relationship, it is a failure."
Fumino Nase considered herself a Trainer who was very attentive to her Uma Musume. But even when Super Creek overcame her obstacles, she hadn't been as emotional or tearful as Wada.
Not only that, Wada was not a particularly emotional person; Fumino Nase, having spent time with Wada recently, could vouch for that.
"Wada Ryuji... T.M. Opera O..."
"This truly is a one true pair... that one cannot interfere with."
Fumino Nase murmured to herself, but, unknown to her, on the other side of the Racecourse, a late newcomer had just arrived.
And just as he arrived, he witnessed the astonishing final spurt of T.M. Opera O as she sprinted towards the finish line.
This newcomer was none other than Hidehito Nase, who had helped Wada at the train station earlier.
And now, as he witnessed the scene before him, noticing the tearful Wada and T.M. Opera O running on the racetracks, his slightly uneasy heart finally settled completely.
"Good... My dear daughter, this time, your judgment has indeed improved."
Hidehito was relieved, relieved that his naive daughter, who had once misplaced her trust in Shadai, had finally regained clear sight after so many years of reclusiveness.
But at the same time, a new worry arose in the old father's heart.
This worry, would be pretty inapropriate to bring up now, but he felt that, in that young man's heart, no one's position could surpass that of the Overlord currently racing on the Racecourse...
And back on the Racecourse, the showdown on the final straight had reached its climax, and the distance between T.M. Opera O and Mejiro McQueen had closed to an almost parallel level.
T.M. Opera O, with her absurd final spurt, was now only about less a nose length behind McQueen.
However, T.M. Opera O's speed seemed to have reached its limit; McQueen had also reached her limit, and was struggling to make her aching legs run.
But McQueen also noticed that T.M. Opera O's eyes, from beginning to end, were not looking at her... but rather, fixed on the front.
"I won."
Right then, a soft whisper from T.M. Opera O entered Mejiro McQueen's ears, causing her muscles to tremble involuntarily.
'She won? Why did she sound so certain?!'
However, what Mejiro McQueen didn't know at that moment was that T.M. Opera O wasn't speaking to Mejiro McQueen, but rather to her.
"Yes... you won, T.M. Opera O."
"T.M. Opera O" who was just millimeters ahead of T.M. Opera O also slowly closed her eyes and turned her head around, saying with a bright smile:
"You have defined your 'self,' you overcame your inner fear..."
"...And—you will realize that, in fact, overcoming these fears is not all that difficult for you."
"Because, in this world, you have that fool who is always by your side."
And I... have long been prepared to leave that fool's side.
"...You've grown, T.M. Opera O, and you've grown too, Wada."
"Move towards the future without being bound by the past. This is the last thing I can teach you two."
And with that final advice, "T.M. Opera O" slowly converged with T.M. Opera O's figure... and gradually surpassed.
With that, "T.M. Opera O" slowly dissipated as T.M. Opera O overtook her...
And in the final straight, when T.M. Opera O once again fixed her gaze forward, her speed, which seemed to have reached its limit, increased once more!
BANG!!
"WHAT??!!!"
Inches before the finish line, Mejiro McQueen, who was in the lead, only felt a gust of wind flash past her side.
And in her peripheral vision, there she was, T.M. Opera O, crossing the finish line ahead of her.
"—What a pity, McQueen."
"But this era belongs to me."
Time seemed to stop for a moment, then immediately resumed flowing after T.M. Opera O successfully crossed the line.
And with the victor of this race determined, it marked the conclusion of the Kikuka Sho.
"AND—FINISH—LINNNNEEEEEE!!!!!!!!!!"
"T.M. OPERAAAAA OOOOOO!!!!!! THE VICTOR OF THE KIKUKA SHO IS T.M. OPERA O!!!!!!!"
"IT'S T.M. OPERA O'S COMPLETE VICTORY! BREAKING ALL PREVIOUS RECORDS IN THE KIKUKA SHO, COMING IN AT 3F33.0! ABSOLUTE DOMINANCE!!!"
"THIS IS T.M. OPERA O'S ERA! THE ERA OF THE OVERLORD! SHE HAS CONQUERED JAPAN WITH HER UNDENIABLE STRENGTH!"
"SO LET US WELCOME THE BIRTH OF JAPAN'S NEW CLASSIC TRIPLE CROWN UMA MUSUME! AND HER NAME IS: T.M. OPERA O!!!!!!"
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Peak like this is why I translate
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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.