01x09 - Western Powerhouses (Part Two)

[bunniefuu]

KYOTO UJI ICE ARENA

I didn't decide

against the high-scoring jumps

because I don't think you can do them.

Huh?

If you can perfect the jumps

that you're already doing,

it'll get you more points

than something flashy.

Oh Really?

Make sure you take off

from the correct edge, one.

And two, think about the flow

into your landings.

If you can just focus in on those

two little things, that's extra points.

Just focus.

Yep. So get out there and nail it

like I know you can.

And you're gonna knock the socks

off all these guys.

Keep calm and skate on.

That face.

He really believes I can win. I can tell.

Number 24, Inori Yuitsuka

from Lux Higashiyama FSC.

- Knock 'em dead!

- Okay!

What did you Oh.

I'm going to do my absolute best!

Wait. What?

- Why did I fall?

- Inori!

Your set hasn't started. It's okay!

Just get in place quick!

Okay.

Well,

that took a few years off my life

I think that just about k*lled me.

What a huge burst of speed.

How did I do that?

I was focusing on my skates,

making sure I started out firm

Wait. That's the stuff

Coach Tsukasa's always telling me to do.

Her victory today is riding

on a perfect run.

No falls, no missteps, no mistakes.

Please recover.

You can do it.

WESTERN POWERHOUSES

First jump, single Axel.

Yes!

Good, an effortless landing.

Keep it up. Here comes the hard one.

Double Salchow!

- Perfect!

- I've got it now.

If I just put all my weight

on the edge I'm skating on,

I can go faster and faster.

It's really effective.

But

it's really exhausting!

I'm gliding smoother than usual, though,

so I gotta keep up.

Nice!

The right point of balance will maximize

your speed and your grace.

So find your center

and just keep practicing.

Before you know it, you'll be flying.

Of course.

Align your weight. Keep your core strong

"Get it right, and the ice and your blades

will do all the work for you."

I think I finally understand

what you were saying, Coach.

My skates are working with me.

They're making me stronger!

Those two double jumps

were her biggest challenges today.

And they were the best

she's ever done 'em.

Next, she'll tackle the step sequence,

which is a required program element

from here on out.

Not that I'm worried about it.

Our taiyaki method is gonna make this

a great new source of points for Inori.

Oh, no. She's tired.

It's probably muscle fatigue.

Please, hang in there.

My legs are like jelly.

I feel like I'm about to mess up.

But I don't want all my taiyaki practice

to go to waste!

How does Coach do it?

His hands were so beautiful.

It was mesmerizing, like magic.

But I bet I can do that, too.

Inori

Graceful skating has both fast

and slow movements.

And the slow ones take strength.

I may not have the muscles for that yet,

but I will one day!

For now,

I just gotta show them what I do have!

One more big push!

- Whoa!

- Is that a flying sit spin?

Come on, come on, come on!

Extend your arm way out,

arch your back as far as you can

For the tougher, elevated broken leg

that we worked so hard on!

That's my girl!

Oh!

It's over.

Huh?

Coach Tsukasa

Inori.

How you feeling? You okay?

Hold on.

Where are we going?

Is Inori hurt?

She'll be fine. You need to focus

on your own performance now.

Okay.

Inori Yuitsuka's score is

24.32.

She is currently in first place.

NURSE'S OFFICE

Looks like

you sprained your ankle.

I might recommend going to the hospital

for an X-ray, though, just in case.

Okay, thank you.

- Sorry, Inori.

- Hmm?

I think it's best if you skip

the award ceremony.

Okay.

I'll go get her things

and arrange for a taxi.

Um, Coach?

Is it okay if I stay long enough

to watch Ema's performance?

She goes last, and

I at least wanna know what place I got.

Yeah, you got it.

Do you hurt anywhere else

besides your leg?

Oh, no.

Mostly I'm just sore, but it's fine.

I noticed the pain kinda goes away

after I've warmed up.

I don't see a problem

with her staying longer to watch,

but it's possible that

she may have shin splints.

Um, Coach, what's a shin splint?

We can get into that later.

But it's almost time for Ema to skate.

Let's go talk to your mom

and find a good spot in the audience.

Ah

Hey. Mr. Sekoma!

Are you feeling all right, Inori?

Yep. Thank you for coming.

I'm happy to see you.

Number 32. Ema Yamato

- from Rengecha FSC.

- Wow, we're right on time.

You got this, Ema. Debut the new you,

and let's win this thing.

You want to introduce her

to a different club? Seriously?

She's gonna hear that as, "You're

not good enough to stay here with us."

Rengecha FSC

picks up 20 new skaters a year.

And they all whip past level one.

But Ema's been in Prelim how long, now?

I'm only thinking

about what's best for her.

- Howdy!

- Oh

How ya doing?

Is that leg still bugging ya?

It's okay.

There's something

I wanted to ask you about.

Hmm?

What's with this?

Practice starts in ten minutes.

You should eat up.

Nah.

Huh?

When I eat a lot, I get taller.

And it makes my legs hurt.

So if eating is gonna keep me

from skating,

then I'll stop.

Ema

I

What's the matter?

You're being awful silly.

We're gonna make you a brilliant skater no

matter how tall you might get, you hear?

So you don't gotta go

and do something dumb like that.

Now get this down, and let's keep at it.

She's been through so much.

But with how far she's come,

she can take it easy and win no problem.

That Lutz was ridiculous!

Yeah, she didn't even look like

she was trying!

A double Lutz

A Lutz takes off from the right outer edge

and twists leftward,

which is tough to pull off

and even harder to land.

Yet she made it look so simple.

They'll never know how much blood,

sweat, and tears went into this.

LEVEL ONE - ESSENTIAL ELEMENTS

FAIL

This was just a bad day

for growing pains, huh?

I really hate

how bad I am at this right now.

But it's fine. I'm gonna keep doing it.

And I'll never hate skating.

Ema,

I thought you were like me because

we took the level one test together.

But you're not. You're so much better.

Your moves, your jumps

It's impossible to do

what you do overnight.

You mastered a million things,

and then put them all together.

Stuff I'm just now learning,

you've been able to do for a long time.

With as much as I've practiced,

all the work I've done,

even the hard jumps are nothing special

to me.

A double flip/double toe loop combo!

Those are the highest difficulty jumps

level one will allow this year.

Take that pain, the experience,

the hurt,

and leave it all out there on the ice.

Not being able to practice,

getting left behind by other skaters,

other coaches,

I'll put everything into this performance.

A flying camel spin!

Yeah!

- Never mind.

- Hmm?

I take back what I said

about level one sucking.

There weren't no triples in there,

but you can't deny that girl's skill.

Level don't matter skating like that.

Hmm.

You know,

I can't stand you when you act all mature.

That was amazing.

Ema Yamato's score is

25.57.

She is currently in first place.

You were wonderful.

Thank you.

CHANGING ROOM

One more, look.

- Right at the camera, please.

- This rules!

This sucks!

I can't believe

I didn't even make the podium!

Big fish left the small pond.

I'd like to see you try!

- Ah, Miss Ritsuki.

- Huh?

These young ladies are going

to be your new clubmates soon.

Meet Seira Shishido and Miihi Kurosawa.

Hey! Why's your face look

so familiar to me?

'Cause you hit her face with your face.

They've decided to commit

to figure skating over speed skating.

So they'll be transferring

from Hiroshima next month.

Wanna be friends with me?

I need your name and favorite color.

And favorite dinosaur if you got one!

Nice to meet you.

No!

KYOTO UJI ICE ARENA

The Women's Novice B

Free Skating Competition

will begin shortly.

Suzu, don't get carried away out there.

Remember that this is our last practice

match before nationals.

Focus on the details.

Don't you worry none!

I told you this would be the year that

I finally surpass Hikaru as Novice Queen,

didn't I?

Why would I let my guard down now?

I've got this, Coach.

Athletes in group one,

your practice period starts now.

You have six minutes on the ice.

There we go!

Thank you very much for that.

- Inori.

- Huh?

Starting tomorrow,

I want you to take a break.

No practice till the fall.

What? Take a break?

But summer vacation is the only time

I get to practice all day.

Why are we stopping now?

Do you remember what the nurse said

this afternoon?

That you could have shin splints?

Oh, yeah. What about them?

Shin splints are a result

of overusing the muscle.

Everything in there is strained

and swollen right now.

If we ignore that,

it could lead to a stress fracture.

A fracture

The pain you've been feeling

in your other leg?

That could be an early symptom

of an issue.

And if you wind up with a stress fracture,

you'll be out of practice for months.

We cannot let that happen.

So, a break is good

- Inori.

- Yeah?

Forgive me.

I learned an important lesson today

about what I'm lacking as a coach.

In the future, I'll be focusing more about

how to prevent accidents and injuries.

Yeah, I think this competition taught me

a lot as well.

I'm not the only one who dreams

of being a great figure skater.

Not at all.

There are lots of kids who love skating.

And they're working hard, too.

I'm pushing myself to the limit

- to keep up with everyone.

- Okay! Huddle up tight!

And so are they.

- Now say cheese!

- And there are some

who couldn't practice how they wanted,

but kept it up anyway.

I'm never gonna surpass the skaters

who have built up all their skills

from an early age.

I started later than normal, and

it's not like I can get that time back.

There's just gonna be a gap there,

and that's okay.

But

I'll work through it.

And I'll never use it as a reason to quit.

Some things are just out of my control,

so I won't panic

or get upset over them anymore.

I'll keep believing that, late or not,

I can win my next fight exactly as I am.

You sure

you wanna do this?

Yes. I want to believe and I want to try.

Good.

'Cause I believe in you, too.

Your sister said

she can come pick us up at the station.

Oh, that's good.

In that case,

we gotta get ready to show off your medal.

Really? Right now?

The b*llet train

award ceremony will now begin!

Inori Yuitsuka, LHFSC.

Present.

I present you with this silver medal!

The first medal of many.

Yeah.

You should be very proud of that silver.

But we'll take the gold next time.

What do you say?

Yes!

FIVE DAYS LATER

UJI NO MACHI STATION

What? Are you for real?

You came all the way to Kyoto

to apologize?

Yes. I also want to express my gratitude

- What is that guy's deal?

- and report to you.

Did you say "report to me"?

Just take them!

FROGGYCOOKIE

So, I talked to Inori. And we decided

to abstain from winter meets.

We're just going to focus on progressing

through the Badge Tests for now.

I see. That's your report?

It is.

Oh and by the way,

thank you for sharing Ema's story with me.

It's filled me with determination.

And that's the gratitude.

Well, then,

this box of snacks ain't gonna cut it.

Tell ya what will, though,

if you and Inori's progress a year

from now blows my doors off.

Think y'all can do that for me?

Yes, sir.

That's the plan. We'll spend this year

finding our new normal.

And the next time I see you,

it'll be at the All-Japans.

Good!

A triple Axel!

Beautifully done.

This is the second victory

for Hikaru Kamisaki.

Hikaru

CERTIFICATE OF HONOR

Piece of sh*t.