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Yup, you saw what I did there alright


[ Post merged on Oct 4 2012, 05:28 AM ]
Anyway, I took Gunma's advice and found myself (in my opinion) a better looking bodykit for Toshiya's Silver JZA80 in Street Supremacy.

SPOILER

I would've taken the body kit 6, which is basically the stock body with bigger wheels and a visible roll cage, but seeing as how body kit 10's wheel arches look a lot more similar to the RIDOX kit, I chose it instead.

I checked my PSP's Street Supremacy. You'd Want Aero 2 or Aero 3 for Toshiya's Dark Silver JZA80. That's what I meant by it being close to the stock front bumper. Your call which of the two.

QUOTE (Gunma's 34 @ 23 minutes, 44 seconds ago)

I checked my PSP's Street Supremacy. You'd Want Aero 2 or Aero 3 for Toshiya's Dark Silver JZA80. That's what I meant by it being close to the stock front bumper. Your call which of the two.

Hmm...aero 2 does look close to the stock front end, but somehow the rear looked to long for me, so I'll probably stick to aero 10 since it felt like a better look for me.

Oh, and here's a car I forgot to add into the character cars pics.
Hana Takahashi - Z32

SPOILER

This post has been edited by Antares on Oct 4 2012, 06:19 AM

Hmm...aero 2 does look close to the stock front end, but somehow the rear looked to long for me, so I'll probably stick to aero 10 since it felt like a better look for me.

Oh, and here's a car I forgot to add into the character cars pics.
Hana Takahashi - Z32

SPOILER

This post has been edited by Antares on Oct 4 2012, 06:19 AM

So basically, the front is a custom modified one and the rear + fenders + GT wing lean on RIDOX Engineering's own JZA80. I can live with that. Shame Street Supremacy can't make you merge aero parts together unlike in TXR3. Aero 2 or 3's front with the rear of Aero 10 would look nice.

Definitely! Shame my uncle sold his PS2 before I could even get my hands on TXR3...
Oh, and a little trivia, the appearance of Toji Yuki's FD3S was based on my friend Solstice's Rarity-themed FD3S.

This post has been edited by Antares on Oct 4 2012, 06:26 AM

^ It needs to be purely white and stripes are dark purple for a Rarity theme. lawl, sorry for being such a pony nazi with the colours.

I think he was going for the blue diamond cutie marks rather than Rarity's hair, and I'm not sure but I remember him telling me that he really wanted to put the Purple Silver paint for the theme, I dunno if he had white as the starting color or if he had the Pale Blue Metallic at that time, which was the next inspection color after unlocking Purple Silver.

His current Twilight Sparkle theme has the Light Purple Metallic paint and red vinyls, probably based from her mane. (Do correct me if I'm wrong Solstice) and his previous Pinkie Pie theme was obviously full of pink, Pink paint and of course, pink vinyls.

This post has been edited by Antares on Oct 4 2012, 06:35 AM

IF HE gets Pink neons on his P. Pie, IT'LL BE A PINKIE PARTY! XD

If only he had the Bathurst R instead of the regular Type-R, then he would have been able to make an FD for each of the Mane 6.

Bathurst R for Applejack...

:MEGUSTA:

Wait! How on earth can he make Rainbow Dash? Aside from the basic teal colored body?

I dunno...I think we were debating on that few days ago...even I have no idea how he's gonna do it if he ever plans to.

Oh, and the Bathurst R yellow doesn't just go with AJ, it goes well with Fluttershy too

This post has been edited by Antares on Oct 4 2012, 10:00 PM

The RX-8 has better curves IIRC than the RX7 and that so fits fluttershy better; unless all pony based cars are strictly FD's then I guess give Fluttershy some wavy pink vinyls and Applejack brown/red/dark orange vinyls.

That or AJ gets the PAC MAN set vinyls

dear heavens...
another brony!!!
and i got the pink stripes for my Twilight Sparkle Theme
LOL
I'm going for AJ next
going with the Orange paint job and Red Vinyls

For a change of brony pace, here is Chapter 7! I never thought I'd be able to do it, but seeing as I had nothing else to do in my aunt's office when I stayed there from 8:30am to 6pm because I only had two classes today which were 8 hours apart.

Anyway, I hope you enjoy the new chapter and I think if I get in the mood, I might write another chapter before my final exams begin starting on the upcoming Tuesday.

CHAPTER 7 ~ Theory Into Practice

SPOILER

--2200 Hours, Shiba PA, C1-- After a few minutes from leaving the PA, Shinichi’s GT-R came back. After parking his car at his spot earlier, he got out and rushed towards Hana to check his time. Everyone else gathered to see the time, as they felt it was going to be a fast one. “How long did I take?” asked Shinichi, excited to know his recent lap time. “Well…” began Hana, she sounded like she couldn’t believe what she was seeing on her laptop “It was a 4’56.5, two seconds faster than your personal best and exactly a second behind Toshi-niisan’s.” she said in amazement. “Wow, that’s fast, faster than I even expected.” said Ryu, then giving Shinichi a high-five “Great going there, buddy.” “Thanks, senpai.” replied Shinichi “One second off from Toshiya-san’s time? Amazing!” said Takeshi. Having driven against and in the passenger seat of Toshiya, he has quite an idea of how fast he is, and having someone come as close as one second to his best time would have to be very skilled. “That’s our ace, always the unexpected.” said Lia “Nice work, Shinichi-kun.” said Toshiya, putting a hand on Shinichi’s shoulder in acknowledgment before he looked towards Ryu. “You’re up next, Ryu.” he said. Ryu nodded and quickly went to his Evo and started the engine, letting the modest rumbling of the 4G63 unit be heard. Toshiya then walked towards the driver side door and Ryu pushed down on the power window button, letting the tinted glass slide down before it stopped halfway. “What do you think about Apollo’s lineup, senpai?” he asked. “Most likely they’d be putting a 4WD against you, probably more powerful too.” began Toshiya “Though I’m not sure whether you’d be racing at C1, or New Belt or even the mixed run, I think refreshing up your defense would be enough for any of that.” “We aren’t even sure I’ll be ahead by then, you know?” replied Ryu Toshiya raised his eyebrows “Knowing you, I’m sure you’ll always find a way to be in front.” he said. Ryu sighed and shook his head before waving his hand out to Toshiya as he guided the Lancer out of its parking space and out of the PA. The high exhaust notes of the Evo V echoed around the vicinity, signaling the start of Ryu’s time attack around the outer loop of C1. Once Ryu started his time attack after exiting the PA, Toshiya approached Hana, who was busy looking at her laptop. “Are you really sure about this, Hana?” he asked. “Yeah, I’ve thought about it for a while and I realized I have to do this sooner or later.” she replied, even though it was obvious by her tone she didn’t want to discuss it further. “I’m really surprised you just agreed without saying anything about it, Toshi-niichan.” Toshiya smiled at her “You can’t hold potential back forever.” he said before he changed to a serious expression. “The only thing I’m worried about in all this is your safety. I hope you understand why I’ve been so tough on you.” Toshiya was now ready to let Hana drive on the Shuto Expressway, but even still, he could not help but worry for the safety of his cousin. More so now that he’s given her the green light. “Don’t worry, I understand.” replied Hana “I’m sorry if I’ve been a brat at times, nii-chan. I just wanted to drive fast, be free on the road as I was back in Saitama.” she said. “I want to drive without being afraid, enjoy it as much as I did on the mountain passes.” “Then I just want you to be careful out there.” said Toshiya, he then looked towards Lia and Takeshi, who had been listening to their conversation “You don’t mind if she’ll sit with you out there, do you?” the question was directed towards Lia. “Of course not, I’ll be glad to help Hana-chan out.” replied Lia. She had been more of a sister to Hana than a best friend, and of course, Lia understood well what Toshiya’s reasons were. She knew how much faith Toshiya had in his cousin. “Hana-chan, do you mind if go all-out later?” she asked. Hana simply shook her head in response “No need to worry, Lia-nee, I need to get used to the fast pace of the highway after all.” she said. “Okay then.” Lia then walked over to her MX5 and opened the hood revealing the 2-liter LF-VD unit equipped with the small twin turbocharger set. Takeshi followed Lia over to the car and observed the engine “This is the first time I’ve seen the engine of your MX5, and I have to admit, it looks pretty cramped.” he said. “I’m not surprised, the Roadster was never designed to have so much power…more so have a turbo installed.” replied Lia, showing a hint of discontent with her own car “In fact, the only reason why this car has so much power is because I ran out of cars to drive fast with.” she added. “Ran out? What do you mean?” asked a curious Takeshi. A slight chuckle was heard from Toshiya “She had an MR2 before she got the NC Roadster, I wonder what happened to that one?” he said, making the last bit sound suggestive. “Knock it off, Toshiya-san.” replied Lia, who appeared to be quite embarrassed about it “The only reason why the engine blew up was because I bought it second-hand.” she said “Are you sure it’s because of the second-handed buy, Lia-chan?” came Shinichi “If I remember right, the car was dangerously over-revving before the engine went bust.” he said. Lia sighed in defeat “Okay fine, I stuck on fourth gear too long on the Akasaka.” she said, though her voice obviously noted that it was an unwanted memory. “Hope you haven’t forgotten though, Lia-chan, your MX5 doesn’t have much longer at this state.” said Toshiya, his tone stern. “What does that mean, Toshiya-san?” asked Shinichi “It was like Lia said earlier that the Roadster was never designed to be powerful.” began Toshiya “From the NA6C, the NB8C and the current NCEC, the engines that Mazda designed for the MX5 was always meant for low cost reliability. There have been turbo-equipped MX5 engines but none of them went beyond 280HP. Even though it’s a 2-Liter, the engine was not designed for consistent high-speed runs and high horsepower output, unlike Nissan’s SR20, Mitsubishi’s 4G63 and Subaru’s EJ20 engines. Right now Lia’s Roadster has 380HP, 100 more than the stock output of bigger displacement engines like the RB26 or the 2JZ, and because the power up was done with a twin turbo system alone, leaving the engine internals stock, the risk of an engine blow increases as time passes.” “That means I have to find another car soon if I want to keep racing.” said Lia “The only reason I bought the MX5 was because it was the cheapest sports car around last year.” “What happened to the MR2, by the way? Did you sell it?” asked Takeshi “You see, that’s the miracle,” replied Shinichi “her car was without an engine, and for whatever reason, someone came to her wanting to buy the body of the SW for a pretty hefty price.” he said “Yep, he said he was in the car restoration business, and since I just left the car outside my house since the engine blew, he thought it was already scrapped and wanted to buy it from me. I didn’t give him any exact price for it, he just offered me an amount, and I thought it was more than good so I sold it at that moment.” said Lia “That’s what I used to buy the MX5 a month later.” “I see, so that’s why the MX5 looks too new.” said Takeshi “Do you have anything in mind for that new car yet?” he asked her. “None yet, I’m still trying to find someone to help me pick, since I don’t know much about other cars. I don’t want to buy something like the MX5 again, cars that can’t be tuned better.” she replied “I’m not planning to sell this one though, I love how I can use this car everyday at work, probably going to have it detuned once I got the new car.” A minute later, Ryu’s Evo arrived back at the PA, parking back in his old space between Toshiya’s Supra and Shinichi’s R32. The engine shut down after a few seconds of setting engine revs on idle. Hana walked towards the Evo as Ryu got out. “How long was it, Hana-chan?” he asked. “Umm…the time was 4’59.1, half a second faster than your previous personal best around the Outer Loop.” replied Hana Ryu then looked towards Toshiya “I didn’t think the defense line was actually fast.” he said “Well at least, whether here in the Circular Loop or the New Belt Line, you won’t be having much problems even against a more powerful 4WD.” replied Toshiya, who then turned his attention to Takeshi “Takeshi-kun, are you ready or will you have Lia go first?” he asked Takeshi was surprised, he didn’t expect to do a run soon, but he wouldn’t save the chance for later. “I’m fine with running now, I think I can manage.” he replied. Toshiya nodded and Takeshi quickly got into his FD and started the engine, Toshiya then walked beside the driver side door. “Just recall the track from earlier and I’m sure you’ll be fine out there.” said Toshiya before walking back to his Supra. Lia then appeared beside the FD moments after Toshiya walked away “So, how long do you think you’ll take?” she asked “I’m not sure, but surely not close to Shinichi-san’s 56 seconds time. I still remember a lot from Toshiya-san’s run earlier, so I think I can get under 5 minutes with a bit of luck.” replied Takeshi Lia let out a soft chuckle “If that’s the case, good luck then.” she said Takeshi smiled before gently pressing down on the clutch and shifting the car into first gear “I’ll be going now then.” he said before setting off. The FD’s modified 13B engine sounds echoing across the whole PA as he went for the exit. Once on the Shiba Park exit, he immediately went full throttle on the straight leading up to Ichino Bridge JCT entrance, reaching as high as 4th gear on the straight, he quickly felt how much the engine performance was changed. Wow, what response, it’s a lot better than how it felt before. I didn’t think single turbo cars can be responsive as well. Guess I thought wrong before. Braking and shifting down to 3rd gear on the mild right past the junction entrance, he felt another change, this time on how the car takes the corners. The suspension changes were really small…but with that small of a change, the expected oversteer just wasn’t there, the car has so much grip now. Going past the junction exit and Iikura IC entrance and into the long S-tunnel, traffic was now present on the inside lanes so Takeshi had to adjust. Using the car’s improved grip, he easily weaved from left to right without fishtailing as he avoided the two trucks. On the next straight leading up to Tanicho JCT entrance, Takeshi went on full throttle, hitting 5th gear and over 200kmh before decelerating for the right sweeper, taking the corner with an out-in-out line. It’s just as it was with Toshiya-san earlier, but I didn’t feel how fast and narrow the road actually was. The outer loop is certainly faster, better be careful on the next ones. As he went on the straight approaching Kasumigaseki tunnel, the FD hit 240km/h, feeling it was too fast, he hit the brakes a bit too much coming in to the tunnel and the FD understeered. Oh shit! Understeer! He turned the wheel harder to the right to control the car and just barely missed the wall. Phew, close one. If I remember correctly we took the left on this interchange. Takeshi kept on the left lane and now pressed the throttle down halfway, keeping the car at about 180km/h as he went past the Kasumigaseki IC exit, a downhill left leading up to the tunnel exit. Going up the Miyakesaka JCT entrance, he slowly pressed down on the throttle as he used the car’s grip to go around the left hander towards the Miyakesaka tunnel. Traffic was on the left side and the whole tunnel was a long right hander, letting up on the throttle to about 75% he carefully controlled the FD as it went past the trucks and cars inside the tunnel. Seeing the junction exit clear of traffic, Takeshi once again went on full throttle, hitting 250km/h before he decelerated when he saw the tunnel heading towards what looked like a slow right all the way to the tunnel exit. I remember this part, now to brake here… He braked a few meters before the right and kept on the right lane, and with throttle control, he managed to maintain a full-grip exit. Entering the Daikan tunnel, he kept a speed of 200km/h going past the Take Bridge JCT entrance where he slowly accelerated on the uphill road and kept it low enough to avoid jumping coming in to the fast right hander that followed after. Nice, this is just as I remembered it. Coming past the Take Bridge JCT exit where he went full throttle along the downhill road leading up to the mid-speed S curves of Kanda Bridge and onto another set of S curves along Kanda Bridge JCT. Wow, I didn’t think these corners carried so much G…or is it because of the grip? I felt like Toshiya-san’s Supra was sliding a bit here earlier, so maybe that's why it didn't feel so heavy. Going past the Gofuku Bridge exit merging with C1, he eventually arrived at Edo Bridge and Edo Bridge JCT, which featured the narrow low-speed right hander. Testing the car’s grip too much, the car’s rear gave out in the middle of the corner, sending it into a power drift, which Takeshi got to control as he got to the merging exit. Woah, I guess the tires are slowly losing grip, better take it easy from here on then. On the long, wide downhill straight, Takeshi used all 530HP of his modified 13B and reached speeds of above 250km/h going past the Takara underpass, slowing down just before the Kyo Bridge JCT and the dividers underneath. The route towards Shintomi underpass looked pretty clear and after the uphill and downhill combination past the dividers, Takeshi went full throttle once more going past the dividers on Shintomi underpass and reducing speed as he approached the tight S curves of Ginza. By this time I think I’ve gotten used to this section. Going out of Ginza tunnel and onto the Shiodome JCT exit merging into C1, and onto the wide sweeping S curves, Takeshi realized that bit by bit, he was beginning to get used to C1. This whole circular loop feels like it’s a race track with traffic, I think it’s pretty amazing, I want to know this place better. Coming into Hamasaki JCT, Takeshi took the long, narrow right heading back to Shiba. He drifted through the corner and felt that the optimized suspension settings were made to improve cornering performance and control on all conditions, either grip or drift. As he headed back down to Shiba Park PA, he looked back at how his car had improved and how he was gradually getting to know the Circular Loop. My FD, it’s become a lot better. The response has improved, the overall power has increased and even the cornering performance that took me months to get right, was finally completed. I feel like I could take on anyone back at Hanshin. As for the circular loop, there are so many junctions and exits that it gets confusing sometimes. I think I need to run the whole place a lot more often if I’m to race for the team. I don’t think I’ve done a good lap tonight, seeing as I was still getting the feel of the road, but I think I can go faster with a lot more experience. Shinichi-san’s lap was just amazing, I might have to use that as a target if I want to become a lot better. The race is in two days, but I wonder, will I get to race by then? I don’t think so, Toshiya-san wouldn’t be brave enough to put a rookie of Shutoko against some guys who are pretty used to it. Takeshi parked his FD in his place earlier and left the engine revving on idle for a minute before shutting it down. Once he got out of his car, everyone had already gathered around Hana to see his time. Takeshi walked closer to the group and Hana showed him the results. He could see what looked like a map of the entire Shuto Expressway with small different-colored icons labeled 'TOSHI', 'SHIN', 'LIA', 'RYU' and 'TKSHI 'gathered at one place, Takeshi guessed it was a GPS tracking system. He then looked at the separate grid on the side, where it looked like a time sheet, highlighted was 'TKSHI' with the time reading of 4'58.1 beside it. "4'58.7" Takeshi read the time aloud "Really? I was inside 5 minutes!?" He was surprised, he didn't expect that time at all. "Yeah, you even beat Ryu-senpai's time!" said Lia, equally surprised at the results. "For a first time attack, that's a pretty good result." said Ryu, who was quite amazed at the record "Are you sure you haven't driven here before?" he asked. "Well, some lines I took I remember from riding with Toshiya-san, but that's about it, I nearly even crashed on one corner." replied Takeshi, even he had a lot to wonder about. "First time or not, that lap was pretty amazing, Takeshi-san." said Shinichi, the time wasn't anywhere close to his, but he had to admit, he was impressed with how a first timer took the course so fast. "This just proves how well you know the car, and how quick you adapt to unfamiliar environment, Takeshi-kun." said Toshiya "Even though it's become more powerful, we tried our best to retain the feel that you gave to this car with your own tuning when we did ours. That and you still managed to remember the lines that I took for that quick five minutes." "So does that mean he's gonna be part of the main lineup now?" asked Ryu "Not necessarily, but I'm willing to put Takeshi-kun here as a primary backup, specifically as my backup. Lia-chan is still primary backup, but she gets to choose which one of you to act as a backup to." replied Toshiya "Are you okay with that, Takeshi-kun?" he asked "Of course, no problem on my end." replied Takeshi Of course I have no problems, it's not as if Toshiya-san would just have an accident and not be able to race now wouldn't he? "Then we're all set on that matter." said Toshiya, he looked towards Lia, who nodded in response. She and Hana got into the MX5 and quickly headed out the PA for her time attack. --to be continued--

This post has been edited by Antares on Oct 12 2012, 02:46 AM

Why not yellow vinyls to match her mane?

Hmm...he might be going for the apple cutie marks here. But I agree with Gunma, it'll look better with the yellow vinyls for the mane and probably bronze wheels for the hat

Update! Finally, the tension-built team shuffle race between Synchro BLiTZ and Apollo Speed Racing begins. I hope you enjoy!

CHAPTER 8 ~ First Contact

SPOILER

---Two Days Later--- --2300 Hours, Ginza PA, C1--- The night was clear, the moon shone brightly above the skies, illuminating the cars resting on the parking area, waiting for their rivals to wage war against them. The vicinity of the parking area was filled with a variety of cars and people, commuters looking a bit of respite from their tiring long-distance drive or youngsters wanting to show off their modified vehicles to others. While both groups seemed to pay no attention to one another, they all seem to distance themselves from another group of cars gathered on the far end of the PA. The cars of Team Synchro BLiTZ were still waiting for the cars of Apollo Speed Racing to arrive. They had arranged to meet up at Synchro BLiTZ's area at 11pm, but for some reason, they haven't shown up yet. For Synchro BLiTZ though, ASR's tardiness wasn't much of a problem as the absence of one silver 80 Supra. Toshiya had disappeared all of a sudden the night before, along with his car, and with no way to contact ASR about it, they just had to wait and see if he would show up at the needed moment. “Damn it, what's happened to him!?” a frustrated Shinichi cried out after looking at his wristwatch. It was already past the meeting time, and ASR is bound to arrive soon, but as for their leader, they have no idea if he'd ever show at all. “Calm down, Shin-chan. I'm sure he's gonna be here soon, he'd never miss this race.” said Hana, who had insisted to come along as she became increasingly worried about her older cousin. “He must have had emergency to take care of, but I'm sure he'd be here soon.” she added. She had already considered the possibility of Toshiya being a no-show, and now she needs to calm the person who holds the biggest chance of winning without him. “Still, you have to admit, showing up last minute was never senpai's thing. Something must have happened.” said Ryu. Being the one besides Hana who knows Toshiya for the longest time, he's known him enough to tell that their leader was always one for punctuality. “We're just gonna have to wait and see, then.” said Lia. She was getting nervous at Toshiya's absence, but she still believes he will show up. “If ever Toshiya-san doesn't show up, what happens next?” asked Takeshi, he knew Toshiya's significance in the team race, and he wants to know the plan if their leader doesn't really come, “I don't wanna think about that, but the backup is going to race in his place.” replied Ryu, then giving Takeshi a serious look “In Toshiya-senpai's case, you're the replacement.” Takeshi remembered how Toshiya assigned him to be his exclusive backup after his time attack two days ago, as a result, he drove around both inner and outer loops of C1 last night. He has got about 75% of the Circular Loop Line's layout memorized, but he didn't think he'd possibly have to race in the place of their leader of all people. “I see.” was all he said. He couldn't help but become tense all of a sudden. Suddenly, loud overlapping engine noises were heard from outside the PA, and they knew exactly what it is. “Shit, they're here.” cursed Ryu. Not a moment later, several headlights came down the area, along with the loud combined rumbles of their engines. The line of cars was led by a dark purple Mitsubishi 3000GT, the Z16A model, followed by a black metallic Mazda Eunos Cosmo, then the four cars that Takeshi, Lia and Hana quickly recognized as the ones from three days ago. “Hey, aren't those four...” Hana trailed off, her voice cracking. “It's the same cars from three days ago, no mistake about it.” said Takeshi, sending a piercing glare on the four cars on the back of the line. “Purple Evo 8, black Z34, silver R35 and a gray 70 Supra.” said Lia, recalling the events from the time they were attacked. The six cars lined up in front of the cars of Synchro BLiTZ and flashed their headlights before shutting down their engines. Each of Synchro BLiTZ observing the car that was directly in front of them, taking note that all of them had the 'Apollo Speed Racing' sticker on their doors. In front of Ryu's Evo 5 was the dark purple 3000GT, it had an Extreme Dimensions Kreator stlye body kit installed, along with silver Enkei NT03+M wheels and a carbon fiber open type rear spoiler. Facing Shinichi's R32 was the black metallic Cosmo, the body was all stock but it had a set of gray Volk GTM wheels. Takeshi's FD had the black Z34 facing it, the SunLine Racing body kit with a whale tail spoiler highlighting the car's looks along with silver Advan TCII wheels. Lia had the purple Lancer Evolution 8 facing her MX5, like the Cosmo, the Evo carried a stock body with modifications only done by the set of white Enkei Tarmac WRC EVO wheels and the straight-type carbon fiber GT-wing. The black 70 Supra and the silver R35 were parked on the side, looking like they weren't gonna part of tonight's races. Both cars looked to be stock except for the 70 Supra having a set of silver Enkei RPF-1 wheels. All the drivers stood by the doors of their cars, and the driver of the 3000GT called out to them “Hey! Where's Takahashi? Did he get scared and ran off?” he taunted the Synchro BLiTZ members. He was a tall man, possibly as tall as Toshiya, and looked like in his late twenties. He had swept back brown hair. He wore a black leather jacket, black jeans and black leather shoes. Toshiya was nowhere, and someone had to take control of the team, Ryu stepped up “No, he figured we were enough to beat you all, Tomohiro-san.” he said. He couldn't allow them to lower everyone's morale more by getting affected by their taunting. “Oh? So he thinks the kids can take us on? How pathetic.” said the driver of the Cosmo. He looked to be the same age as Tomohiro, but was a bit shorter. He had straight black hair with bangs that are slightly longer on the left side covering part of his eye. He was wearing a white, short sleeved shirt, gray pants and off-white sneakers. “Don't worry Hirose-san, you'll see who drives like a kid later.” replied Shinichi. He wasn't about to let their leader's absence throw him off, after all, Toshiya's race wasn't his to worry about to begin with. “You talk big, but you couldn't do a thing without Takahashi.” taunted the driver of the Z34. He was a man who looked to be in his mid-twenties, and seemed to be as tall as Shinichi. He had short, spiky brown hair, and wore a silver t-shirt, gray jeans and black and white sneakers. “Say, Kimura-san, I see you've found yourself some new lackeys to drive with you. Figures, you weren't that much of a driver anyway.” Lia taunted back. She seemed to know the Z driver well, seeing as he glared at her, having taken offense at her words. “You can say whatever you want, Kusunoki, but I'll tell you right now, you are nowhere close to these guys when it comes to skill.” said Kimura, pointing at drivers of the Evo, the Supra and the R35. “My name is Osamu Mishima.” said the Evo 8 driver. He looked to be the same age as the Synchro BLiTZ drivers, and had short, curly brown hair. He wore a gray sweater, beige pants and brown shoes. “Hope we didn't overdo things last time around.” he said rather mockingly. “I'm Taiki Ono.” said the 70 Supra driver, and like Mishima, he looked to be the same age as Lia and the others. He had short, straight black hair, and wore a black t-shirt, blue jeans and gray sneakers. “Please don't worry about last time, it was only an impression.” he said “And I am Nobuhara Saeki.” said the R35 driver, he too looked to be the same age as Mishima and Ono. He had medium-length black hair that ran down to his neck, and wore a silver t-shirt under a white jacket with thin red stripes running from the shoulder down the front, black jeans and red sneakers. “It was good that you were skilled enough to avoid crashing into us.” he said. “You've waited for so long, why don't we get things settled now?” asked Ryu, he wasn't willing to wait long. If Toshiya won't show, then they just had to run like mad and outrun the guys of ASR. Tomohiro then noticed Takeshi's FD, and him standing beside it “Before that, I see you have a new face in your little tea party.” he said, then tilting his head in Takeshi's direction. “I'm Takeshi Kajimoto, driving on behalf of Takahashi-san.” said Takeshi, making them aware of his status as Toshiya's backup. Tomohiro then had a smirk on his face “Oh, so you'll be my opponent then.” he then looked back to Ryu “Very well, since we're the ones who issued the challenge. It's three races, and we will do the C1 run first, it'll be a two on two race, the winning team decided by the car that crosses the line first.” he said “Meaning that if the car that crosses first belong to us, we win, and if it's your car that gets to the finish first, then it's your win. Am I right?” asked Ryu “Right.” replied Tomohiro “For the first race, we'll have Hirose and Kimura for our team.” he said, before looking over to the two, who nodded and quickly got back in their cars and started their engines. “Okay, we'll have Sawaki and Kusunoki in for this one.” said Ryu, before raising his hand and signaling the two to come over. Once Lia and Shinichi got near Ryu, he started “They plan on maximizing our numbers for the event, they get the first pick since it's their challenge, but we get the pick for the second, and if we win this first, we also get the pick for the third.” he said “But are you sure about this? My MX5 doesn't stand much of a challenge out there.” said Lia, noting how underpowered her car was compared to the others. “Just do everything to keep from crashing, Lia-chan, they're just gonna box you out if you get too close to both of them. It doesn't need to be a one-two finish for us.” replied Ryu “That's why I need you to attack from the start, Shinichi, they're gonna target you first but if you just drive like you did the other day, they won't even catch you. We're gonna use that momentum to win the race.” Both Lia and Shinichi nodded in agreement to their plans before heading back to their cars and starting their engines, lining up their cars beside the Cosmo and the Z not a minute later. Ryu looked at Tomohiro again and asked “It's your pick right, what's the route?” “Inner loop, starting from Ginza and finishing at the exit of Kasumigaseki tunnel.” replied Tomohiro, Ryu nodded and took out his phone from his pocket, dialing Lia and Shinichi's numbers to call. “Listen, the race starts as soon as you merge into C1 from Ginza and finishing up after the Kasumigaseki tunnel, in other words, we'd be running the Inner loop.” he said before cutting the connection. The cars eventually made their way out of the parking area with their hazard lights on. The R32 lead the formation, followed by the Cosmo, the MX5 and the Z34. Lia dialled Shinichi's number and the call quickly connected. “What do you think, Shin-chan? Can we win this?” she asked “Don't worry, if these guys are as focused on playing hardball as I think, then they'd bite into my trap later on.” replied Shinichi. He was rather confident, like he had planned the whole race out. “I hope they do, just don't do anything reckless, Shin-chan.” said Lia. Knowing how fast Shinichi could drive, she became worried he was going to attempt something dangerous. “I won't, kaachan.” replied Shinichi, calling Lia a mother out of her worrisome behavior. The rumbling engines of the cars making their way out of the parking area was enough to draw the attention of the crowds, and all of them watched as the four cars cruise out of the parking area and into the expressway. They eventually started talking about the group of cars on the far end of the PA. “Hey, do you think those two groups are having a race?” “Probably, those guys who've been here earlier are surely from C1's Synchro BLiTZ, I wonder who those others guys that just got here were though.” “I've been to Daiba before and I'm pretty sure I saw that purple GTO there.” “You think those guys are from the New Belt?” “I can't say for sure, but that's definitely a team battle going on.” Once they went down the ramp towards C1, Shinichi turned off his hazard lights and started the race, the rest of the cars following suit. Not long after merging into C1, they encountered a divider passing under Ginza underpass, Shinichi's R32 kept the lead while the Cosmo followed closed behind, and the Z34 passing the MX5 with a more powerful engine. Passing the uphill road of Kyo Bridge leading up to another divider, the Cosmo and R32 took both halves, the Z34 following close behind Shinichi. Entering the Kyo Bridge JCT merging into C1, the Cosmo lined up beside the R32 on the left lane, while the Z34 inched up closer from behind the R. Shinichi then noticed both cars coming closer to him, attempting to force him into making a mistake and crash. He read ahead of their plan and stayed on his lane, feeling they won't actually make first contact. As the group went past Takara IC, Shinichi went on full throttle, gaining a bit of distance from the two cars chasing him, entering Edo Bridge JCT, Lia noticed that Shinichi was going faster than usual. “Shinichi, you're going too fast!” she cried out. She had already started to decelerate but the other cars weren't decelerating as they went past the rightmost junction exit towards the New Belt Line, they were approaching the exit towards Gofuku Bridge fast. As the cars approached the leftmost entrance that goes towards Gofuku Bridge at over 220km/h, Shinichi suddenly braked hard before turning in with a 4WD drift, forcing the other two cars to back off and mess up their lines, the Z34 nearly going into a spin while the Cosmo managing to control the unexpected braking. Lia then noticed a window to overtake both the Z34 and the Cosmo during their mishap and attacked the corner with a power drift. As she went past the Z34, she saw the Cosmo turning to the left, cutting off her line, but she was drifting at 100km/h and couldn't make a big change her line. Luckily, she was drifting fast enough to go past the Cosmo without being rear-ended. Lia shook her head and sighed in relief as she exited the corner “Bastard, he tried to hit me on the corner.” she said, before turning her attention to Shinichi “Damn you, Shin-chan, what the heck were you thinking!?” she said. “What? At least the plan worked and they're both behind now, right?” he said. Shinichi intended to go into the corner with a 4WD drift, and therefore he was able to brake as late as possible. That threw the rhythm of the two cars off and forced them into making mistakes. His tactical trap paid off, as both cars were set on playing aggressive, they weren't able to judge the corner correctly. “I didn't expect they'd try to run you off there though.” “Luckily they were one beat too late on that.” said Lia. If the Cosmo had closed her line off earlier, she would've crashed into it for sure. “Just dash straight on to the finish, Shin-chan.” “Get into my draft, we don't know what those two are gonna do next.” replied Shinichi. Even though Ryu told them it wasn't necessary, he wanted to get a one-two finish for the team. Heading into Edo Bridge and Gofuku Bridge, Lia used the R32's slipstream to keep up as they both drove through at full throttle. The cars of ASR were still behind, and on the sweeping right of Gofuku Bridge, the MX5 and R32 attacked at full speed, evading the van that was luckily on the outside lane of the corner exit. When the Z34 and the Cosmo took the corner though, the van had already swerved to the inside exit, messing up their lines once more and extending Synchro BLiTZ's lead. When Shinichi and Lia head reached the Kanda Bridge JCT and Kanda Bridge itself, the lead was considerably large, and as they took the familiar banked curves carefully, they knew the chances of winning were now higher. Heading into the Take Bridge JCT, there was still no trace of ASR. Once they reached Daikan IC though, they heard the engines sounds of the Cosmo and the Z34 slowly closing in from behind. They had dropped pace and now their opponents, who were now at full attack, have caught up. “Look, they've caught up.” said Lia as she saw the headlights of both cars getting closer “I don't think they'll manage to pass us though, not with what comes up ahead.” replied Shinichi. The four cars headed inside Kasumigaseki tunnel, and were headed for Miyakesaka JCT. Once there, the R32 and the MX5 attacked the left handed with an out-in-out line, carefully guiding their cars as the corner straightened out midway. The other two cars weren't so lucky though, as the Cosmo oversteered coming in to the corner and hit the wall with its rear bumper, sending the car into a 180-degree spin before stopping, the Z34 managed to brake hard and weave past the spinning Cosmo, but the gap had already increased so much. The R32 went first followed by the MX5 going past the Kasumigaseki IC and onto the tunnel exit, the Z34 was nowhere behind. The race was over, and with a one-two finish, Syncrho BLiTZ was the unanimous winner of the first race of the team shuffle.

This post has been edited by Antares on Oct 12 2012, 02:45 AM

hmm
good point
i already have the red aura to match her cutie mark
XD

This post has been edited by Solstice on Oct 7 2012, 03:30 AM

Another Update! I didn't expect to update two chapters in one weekend but I just couldn't resist, I found myself in writing mode and everything went from there.

For the second part of the team shuffle races of Synchro BLiTZ and ASR, we have Ryu's race. It's a relatively short chapter compared to the earlier one but I think it's just enough since I just wanted to cover the whole of Ryu's here.

As always, thanks for reading and I hope you enjoy!

CHAPTER 9 ~ Breaking the Walls

SPOILER

--2300 Hours, Ginza PA, C1-- Shinichi and Lia came back to the parking area first, and everyone had an idea of what the result of the race was. The R32 and the MX5 parked beside the other cars of their team and turned off their headlights, but kept their engines on idle for a few more seconds before shutting them down. Takeshi, Ryu and Hana rushed to the pair when they got out of their cars. When Shinichi smiled and pumped his fist up in the air, it brought smiles to Synchro BLiTZ, while sour expressions were found amongst the Apollo Speed Racing team. “Where are the other two, though?” asked Ryu, it was strange that both the Z34 and the Cosmo didn't return to the PA as the others. “The Cosmo spun out inside Kasumigaseki.” replied Lia, who saw it happen. “The Z made it through, but I didn't see it after we got out of the tunnel.” “I see, well that's done, nice going, you two.” said Ryu, giving a high-five to both Shinichi and Lia. Moments later, they heard low engine rumbles from the Z34 and the Cosmo that were driving down the parking area. The Cosmo was visibly damaged, as the right side of the rear bumper was hanging down, along with a broken right side taillight. The two cars parked beside their team, and when the two drivers got out, they couldn't look straight at their opponents. Shinichi then walked closer to Hirose and held out his hand, offering a handshake. “That was quite the close call there, Kimura-san, are you alright?” he asked. Hirose looked bewildered at Shinichi for a moment, before he sighed and shook his hand. “I'm fine, but that was quite the driving you put up, Sawaki. We lost that one fair and square.” he said. Lia then walked beside Shinichi as Kimura went beside Hirose. The two drivers also shook hands. “I didn't think you'd become this good, Kusunoki, sorry about before.” said Kimura. “Don't worry, Kimura-san, all that's forgotten tonight.” replied Lia. After the friendly gestures, both pairs returned to their team's side. The first victory belonged to Synchro BLiTZ, and now they just had to win one more to clinch the victory in the team shuffle race. Ryu stepped up as it was now their race pick. “For the second race, it will be the race around the New Belt Line and I'll be the one racing for our team.” he said. Tomohiro nodded and looked at Mishima. “Very well, then it'll be Mishima for our team.” he said. Mishima quickly got into his Evo 8 and started up the engine. The Evo 8 started to drive out of its parking space a few seconds later. “What about the route? It's still your pick.” asked Tomohiro. “Straight sprint from Hakozaki JCT to Wangan, finish line would be past the Ariake ramp.” with that, Ryu got inside his Evo 5 and started the engine before lining up behind Mishima's Evo 8 moments later. The two cars then made their way out of the parking area and onto C1 with their hazard lights on. They would cruise along C1 and go full throttle once they've reached Hakozaki JCT. Back at Ginza, the rest of Synchro BLiTZ talked about how their odds fared in this race. Even without Toshiya's guidance, Ryu proved himself to be able to control the situation nicely, but if he were to lose this race, they would have to put their faith on the gamble of Takeshi racing as Toshiya's backup, something the latter insisted on. “Do you think Ryu-san can win this race?” asked Takeshi. If I were to be honest, I want him to win this race, I don't want to cost the team the victory just because I couldn't race properly later “On one glance, I can already tell that Evo 8 is more powerful than senpai's Evo 5.” replied Lia. “Though I think Toshiya-san and Ryu-senpai had a plan for this race two days ago.” A faint memory of the little conversation Toshiya and Ryu had during the latter's practice run came to mind. “Didn't Toshiya-san predict that they'd be putting a 4WD against Ryu-san tonight? I think they were talking about some sort of defense.” asked Shinichi. He was nearby when Toshiya was talking with Ryu about the time attack. “Yeah, I remember that.” replied Takeshi “Maybe they do have a plan, we'll just have to wait and see.” he added. Over at the Apollo Speed Racing side, Tomohiro was observing the young drivers of Synchro BLiTZ, more specifically, he was observing Takeshi and his FD. He looked like he noticed something in Takeshi, but he couldn't piece together what it was. This kid, this feeling I get from him...it's similar to the feeling I got when I first encountered Takahashi two years ago. Then again, it's also similar to the feeling when I saw...them...running along the New Belt. I'm not sure what it is, but I can tell a race against him would be quite interesting. “Tomohiro.” he heard Hirose call out to him “You seem to be quite interested in those kids, eh?” he said Tomohiro looked at Hirose for a moment “Yeah, it's just that new one of theirs, that Kajimoto-kun. I feel something whenever I look at him.” he said before looking back to the chatting group. “The sensation is similar to the one I feel whenever Takahashi is around.” Hirose looked at Takeshi for a moment before he realized what Tomohiro was referring to “Do you think he also has...that?” he asked “No, it's not that, it's more of the extraordinary level of skill I feel from him. The same kind that Takahashi had.” replied Tomohiro “Don't remind me of 'that' again, Hirose, it was already worse as it is. I'm just glad he's not here tonight.” he said. “Yeah, let's just hope Mishima wins this one.” said Hirose, Tomohiro nodded in agreement before he looked back to his car. To be honest, win or lose doesn't matter to me tonight. I just want to see how good that Kajimoto kid is. What this feeling is telling me, it's undeniable, this boy is good, but just how good is he compared to that monster? Thought Tomohiro. Back at the road, the two Evos made it past Edo Bridge JCT and were now heading to Hakozaki JCT, their starting point. As they headed up to the right side of Hakozaki, both cars turned off their headlights off simultaneously as if on instinct and went full out. The Evo 8 lead the race as they went up the ramp leading to the main Ring Road of the New Belt. Going past Hama IC, Ryu kept behind the tail of the Evo 8, but he could feel he was going to be slowly outrun. I don't think there's not much difference in terms of numbers, but that 4G probably has more torque than mine. I'm not gonna be able to beat that thing in an acceleration duel if that's the case. I could still try to attack in the corners though, seeing as the Evo 5 is a bit lighter than the Evo 8. On the long right that followed after Hama IC, Ryu attempted to pass the Evo 8 on the inside, but his line was blocked by about a quarter of a car width. Ryu kept on his line but relented on the attack. It turned out the corner was a long S-curve, with another long right ahead heading up to the Fukuzumi exit merging on to the New Belt. Ryu wasted no time and immediately dived onto the inside lane, this time, he was able to get the front end of his Evo 5 ahead of the Evo 8. Though because the Evo 8 was a bit more powerful, Ryu wasn't able to capitalize and take the lead as the Evo 8 was able to keep the lead by just a short margin. The Evo 8 was accelerating from 160km/h to 220km/h in less than two seconds, while the Evo 5 takes just a little above two seconds to do the same. Damn, I was right, that acceleration is something else. It's like a hard kick whenever the boost kicks in. Now that I'm racing in the New Belt Line and not C1, I guess I'll have to scrap any plans of using defense as my primary weapon, I'll just have to attack until I get the lead. In the long straight from Fukuzumi IC up to Kiba IC, Ryu kept on the Evo 8's slipstream, allowing him to keep up even when slightly underpowered. Once they approached another long S-curve after Kiba, Ryu once again attempted to attack, aggressively braking late and entering the corner at over 200km/h and using the generated understeer combined with throttle control to pass the Evo 8 on the long right, the first half of the S-curve. On the shorter half of the S-curve, which was a quick left, the Evo 8 tried to attack back from the outside lane, but with Ryu intentionally running the corner wide, Mishima had to back off, giving the lead entirely to Ryu. There, that's done it, now I just have to defend along the whole straight. This isn't gonna be easy though, any lapse in my defense and he'll quickly break through. After the S-curve came another long straight, where both cars continually swerved from lane to lane, slaloming along the whole road at 220km/h, the Evo 8 trying to get past the Evo 5 with bigger power output, while the Evo 5 using its smaller body to quickly defend the possible attack lines. Entering the Shiohama IC tollbooth was a quick left, and when Ryu tried to run the corner wide to block Mishima's attacks, the Evo 8 feinted attacking using the outside lane and quickly took back the inside lane once the Evo 5 ran wide. With a slightly lesser exit speed, and weaker acceleration, the Evo 5 was once again passed by the Evo 8. Hmm...I guess I took the bait on that one. This guy's good, he definitely knows his car and this area, that's gonna make this race a whole lot more challenging. Still, going into Tatsumi..there's one more thing I can try, but I'm gonna have to bet all-in on it. On the long straights and light bends of the New Belt Line, the Evo 5 once again kept behind the Evo 8's slipstream. Ariake ramp was still quite far away, and a well-timed attack could give Ryu the lead again. Coming in to Tatsumi JCT and the wide sweeping right at over 250km/h, Ryu once again attempted to attack aggressively using only throttle release to lose speed. The effort paid off and Ryu used the momentum to slingshot into the lead at over 220km/h, barely clearing the concrete barrier by less than an inch, though he did gain considerable distance from the Evo 8. But now he had one last problem, coming down after Tatsumi JCT was the Wangan line, where the more powerful engine of the Evo 8 could easily catch up to his Evo 5. Whew, I never thought the tires' grip would still hold, at least I'm lucky to be in one piece after that one. Though Wangan's gonna be the last hurdle, I just hope I made that last attack big enough to keep me running straight for the win. As both cars went down the ramp merging into the Wangan at over 260km/h, the result of the battle would rest on one thing, was the distance Ryu created going into Tatsumi JCT enough to hold the Evo 8 back until they reach Ariake? Ryu shifted into 5th gear and was now on full-throttle, putting all 550HP of his 4G63 into use, the rampaging 580HP 4G63 of his opponent slowly inching the car closer. Down on the Wangan both cars hit 280km/h and were slowly accelerating up to 290km/h. The gap between the two cars has decreased considerably, and the Evo 8 was now using the draft of the Evo 5 to accelerate faster. The Ariake ramp on the left-hand side of the road was now getting visible, and the Evo 8 jumped out of the slipstream, slowly inching closer to the side of the Evo 5. It would seem like everything slowed down for both drivers, as their cars were driving at the fastest speeds, and as the hundreds of meters left before the finish slowly dwindled down, Ryu noticed that the Evo 8 was moving faster than his car, the purple front bumper gradually inching from his rear doors...then to his driver side door...then parallel to his own front bumper. The cars hit the imaginary finish line at Ariake and both of them knew it was a photo-finish. Braking gently after hitting top speed, Ryu pushed the window button for his driver side window down, while Mishima's front passenger side window slid down as well. “What do you think eh, Mishima-san?” asked Ryu, he had a smile on his face. Win or lose doesn't matter here, I've done all I could and I can tell this guy's an amazing driver in his own right. I'd love to race him again, that's for sure. He thought “I gotta say, I thought I had that one in the bag.” replied Mishima, and he too was smiling. “It's your win, Asakura-san, your Evo was about 3 inches ahead of mine when we crossed the edge of Ariake's guardrail.” he said “I see.” said Ryu weakly, he turned his head away from Mishima and closed his eyes for a brief moment before looking back “I was lucky this time, but hopefully, I get to enjoy another race with you soon, Mishima-san.” he said “Likewise, Asakura-san. I really enjoyed the race today.” replied Mishima, he paused for a moment before he spoke again “My apologies if we were a bit rude earlier tonight.” The gesture wasn't for saving face though, it was out of the newfound respect they both had for each other, they weren't the bitter enemies from warring teams anymore, they were now two young racers that enjoyed each others' challenge. “Don't mention it, I think that was already given, considering how much tension there was between our teams. It's all good now, since we've both seemed to enjoy this race.” said Ryu. With two wins to nil, Synchro BLiTZ has now successfully won the team shuffle races against Apollo Speed Racing, effectively making New Belt Line their team territory along with the Circular Loop Line.

This post has been edited by Antares on Oct 12 2012, 02:45 AM

two chapters in one weekend
damn
you're really getting into this
but don't you have your finals coming up?
LOL
superb chapters as always
very detailed
i really thought Ryu was gonna lose that one
seems like the ASR aren't much of the bad guys after all

I actually have my finals starting TOMORROW but since I don't think the subjects tomorrow aren't much of a problem yet, I continued writing up until the afternoon where I started studying...and alas, ANOTHER UPDATE! Yes, three updates in two days, even I couldn't believe it.

Anyway, here is the conclusion to the Apollo Speed Racing arc, chapter 10. I hope everyone enjoys and please leave a comment or suggestion, I'd really appreciate if you do.

CHAPTER 10 ~ The Pervading Mythos

SPOILER

--Midnight, Ginza PA, C1-- Ryu's Evo 5 led Mishima's Evo 8 when they both entered the parking area. By this time, the crowd's have been reduced to the young racers looking to attract others with their modified cars, they all looked on as the two cars went back to their teams. Both Ryu and Mishima got out of their cars as soon as they parked it back, walking towards each other and sharing a handshake. They both still wore the smiles they had earlier after their race. “It was a close call, probably a lucky win too.” said Ryu, his eyes meeting Mishima's. “I agree, it was a close one. Let's have a race like that again sometime, Asakura-san.” said Mishima. Ryu nodded in agreement before they both went back to their teams. Synchro BLiTZ was more than happy with Ryu's win, with two straight wins, they easily claimed victory in the team shuffle races. Toshiya would have acknowledged everyone's efforts if he were around, but his absence was not enough to deter them. Shinichi ran up to Ryu and quickly gave him a high-five for his hard-fought victory. “That was brilliant, Ryu-senpai!” exclaimed Shinichi. “With that victory, we win both the team shuffle and New Belt Line.” said Lia, she was very happy with the result. It was redemption, at the very least, but their revenge was nowhere in cold blood. “Nice going out there, Ryu-san.” said Takeshi, before giving Ryu a high-five of his own. He was glad he didn't have to race for the team, but he was happier that their team won. “Thanks, Takeshi-san, though I was cutting close. A win is a win.” replied Ryu. “If niichan were here, I'm sure he'd tell everyone that you all did a great job. Amazing, everyone!” said Hana. She was positive that the team would pull through even with Toshiya, and how right she was in putting her faith in them. Tomohiro then walked closer to the group, but he didn't have a scorn on his face. He reached his hand out to Ryu “It's a clear victory, Asakura, nice work. Takahashi would be proud.” he said. His voice wasn't sad or anything, in fact, it sounded like he was sincerely congratulating their rival group, even after they just lost their own territory. Ryu was hesitant at first, but he eventually took the handshake “I didn't expect to come out like this, Tomohiro-san, but it's been fun.” he said Tomohiro then turned his attention to what he went there for “Even if we lost though, I have a favor to ask.” he said. “What is it?” asked Ryu. He was quite surprised, he expected ASR to just pack up and go home after their loss. “If you could let me, I'd like to race against Kajimoto here.” replied Tomohiro, his eyes fixed on Takeshi. “Me? What for, may I ask?” Takeshi was bewildered, he didn't expect it at all. The question that ran in his mind was why does the leader of Apollo Speed Racing want a race, against him, of all people? Tomohiro walked a few steps closer to Takeshi “Let's just say I felt you have something in common with Takahashi, and I've had this unknown want to race you.” he replied “You can choose the route, as long as you let me do this tonight. There would be no team pride at stake here, it's just something between two individual road racers.” he added Takeshi thought for a moment, it seemed like a too good offer. He's opening my choices...no, he's letting me make all the choices. What should I do? It doesn't seem like a bad idea, and I could use the experience. I guess there's nothing for me to lose as well. “Alright, Tomohiro-san, I'll take you up on the offer.” he said “Okay, the route?” Tomohiro had a slight smile on his face when he heard Takeshi's agreement, and he wasn't going to wait any longer. “The same route from the first race.” replied Takeshi. “Ginza to Kasumigaseki tunnel exit? Alright then.” said Tomohiro before he went back to his 3000GT and started the engine. He quickly lined the car up along the driveway, where he turned on the car's headlights as well. If Kajimoto is as good as I think he is, then it'll prove to be quite the challenge, but I just want to see how similar he is to Takahashi. As Takeshi made his way to his FD, the other Synchro BLiTZ members hurried to him, wanting to know his reasons for accepting the race. It was the most unlikely move he made, accepting the challenge of ASR's leader. He had his own reasons, he never denied a challenge, and he was not racing for the team, he was racing only for himself, and so did Tomohiro. It was a personal decision for both drivers. “Are you sure about this, Takeshi-kun?” asked Lia, she didn't object to the race, but she at least wanted to know what made him accept. “Yeah, I just want to see how much I fare up against him.” replied Takeshi as he opened the door to his FD. “In that case, just be careful out there, okay?” said Lia, she won't do anything to stop him, now that he's fully decided. “I will, don't worry.” said Takeshi, getting into his FD and strapping up. “What are you planning to do in the race, Takeshi-san?” asked Ryu as he wanted to be able to give Takeshi a bit of advice. “I don't know for certain, but I'm gonna give my all out there.” replied Takeshi, starting up the engine of the FD. “Go for it, I know you can beat him, Takeshi-san.” said Shinichi, who had quite the high hopes for Takeshi. Takeshi nodded to them as he shifted his car into 1st gear “I'll be off then.” he said as he carefully drove the car out of his parking slot and lined up beside Tomohiro's 3000GT in the driveway, turning on his hazard lights as well. “You can lead on the way out if you want.” said Tomohiro. The FD then went ahead heading out of the parking area, followed closely behind by the 3000GT. Their race would start as soon as they hit the expressway coming out the parking area ramp. As they headed out, the sight of Tomohiro's car driving out for a race drew the attention of the crowds once again. “Hey look, isn't that the GTO from the New Belt?” “Yeah, and it's gonna race against that FD?” “Oh-ho, this is interesting. That FD seems quite new here though.” “Ha! There's no way that FD is gonna beat the GTO, have you seen how fast that car goes around the ring road?” Making their way out of the parking area and onto the ramp, Takeshi couldn't help but feel uneasy. What is this? Why I am getting uneasy...there's nothing to it, I'm not gonna risking anything here, but what is this feeling? Maybe this will go away once we start racing. Once the FD had come down the ramp, Takeshi pushed the hazard lights switch off and went on full throttle, the GTO following close behind. Going in to the dividers under Ginza underpass, the FD took the left lane while the GTO took the right lane. The GTO was gradually inching ahead with better acceleration on the right lane, but on the winding right just before the Kyo Bridge underpass, Tomohiro relents and lets Takeshi ahead, following the FD's line taking the right lane. On the long straight from Kyo Bridge JCT heading towards the uphill road going to Edo Bridge JCT, the GTO just kept behind the FD. I wonder what he's planning, he didn't pass me after the first underpass outside Ginza...and now he's not attacking on the straight even when he can. Thought Takeshi One thing to note when watching other drivers is to study their movements from behind, that gives you a mental advantage and a tactical opening whenever they make a mistake. Great drivers never let up on the attack whenever they are passed, their concentration just increases more. I'll surely find out a lot about him once we hit the Edo Bridge junction. Thought Tomohiro. The cars hit the small jump just before Edo Bridge JCT and with traffic on the center lane heading out of Shutokou and on the right lane heading towards New Belt Line, the FD started to keep to the left lane, where the Inner Circular Loop continues. As he started braking for the sharp left, Takeshi saw the GTO brake about half a second later, and enter the corner with a 4WD drift, passing the FD in the process. Takeshi was caught off guard by Tomohiro's surprise attack. What the!? Such fast cornering...I can't be outdone though, that car has more power than my FD and I'll be left behind if I don't do something. He thought. Now let's see what you're gonna do to get the lead back, as this is where your skills will be truly measured. Thought Tomohiro. Given how he didn't attack earlier on, he knew there would be a lapse in Takeshi's defense coming into the Edo Bridge JCT, that was enough to get him the lead. Going past Edo Bridge and Gofuku Bridge at full throttle, both cars were now going over 200km/h, Takeshi used the FD's improved grip to let him stay close behind the GTO. With the FD driving behind the GTO's slipstream, the gap between both cars was at a stalemate. As they both neared the mid-speed right curve coming to the ramp of Gofuku Bridge, Takeshi made an attack. Lessening his press on the throttle, he quickly swerved away from the GTO's slipstream and took the corner without braking, while the GTO went on the brakes for only less than a second before turning in. The FD was taking the inside line at just below 200km/h and at full grip while the GTO slowly fell back as it's speed decreased to 180km/h after braking. With the heavy G forces due to the high speed cornering, the FD's rear slowly went into a powerslide after hitting the corner apex, Takeshi quickly went off the throttle and turned the wheel slightly to the left, the minimal countersteer proving enough to regain traction and getting Takeshi to succeed with the attack and regaining the lead. However with better grip coming out of the corner, the GTO quickly made its way closer to the FD. Takeshi felt his pulse race after the attack Lucky exit, good thing the grip held on enough to reach corner exit or else that would have been the end. Tomohiro was surprised at the attack by the FD, and he smiled at the thought That was beyond dangerous, no one could attempt that maneuver and succeed without understanding the limits of their car and having the skill to use all of the car's potential in a single corner. You're definitely something else, Kajimoto Takeshi. On the fast curving straights that lead to the high-speed banking S-turn of Kanda Bridge, both cars hit 250km/h, Takeshi's FD defending the lead, driving in the middle of both lanes to block any subtle passing maneuver, while Tomohiro's GTO trying to find a loophole in the defending FD's lines to pass through. Every minute change in both of their driving lines would be critical, and as they approached Kanda Bridge, the FD positioned itself for an out-in-out maneuver for the banked right, the rotary went on the outside lane a second too early though, and the GTO took the inside line, forcing the FD to stay on the outside line and go wide as they both attacked the corner at full throttle. Damn, what timing. I thought I'd moved to the outside at the last possible moment, but my timing was actually off. What a guy, to capitalize on such a small window! Thought Takeshi. He fought with the car's gradually decreasing grip to keep control, and was able to continue driving side-by-side with the GTO as they cleared the first corner and neared the second half of the S, the shorter and lesser-steeped banking left. Knowing he was now at a disadvantage going in to the next corner, Tomohiro couldn't believe how Takeshi still managed to hold on. He still had enough grip to take that banking right at full speed? I wasn't able to gain distance from him, and I know he has a slightly faster exit speed coming out of that one. I just hope my 4WD grip would hold on long enough in the next corner, I'm gonna need all the grip to slingshot into the lead. Entering the banked left, Takeshi's FD took the inside lane, but understeered as it neared the corner exit, he couldn't regain control quickly, as the car was going over 180km/h, it was going to make contact with the GTO if it continues like that. Tomohiro saw the FD understeering and applied full throttle towards the corner exit, barely missing the understeering FD as the GTO's rear bumper was just inches away from being hit by the FD's front bumper. The GTO took the lead and was slowly gaining distance from the FD. That move he did at the Gofuku ramp, then the first half of Kanda Bridge, both of those must've taken its toll on the FD's tires. I can tell the suspension was set up for precise control at any driving condition, but the improved tire grip comes at a cost of increased tire wear. The maneuvers he did takes so much skill, but it exerts equal stress on the tires. Right now, I have the advantage of tire grip, so I might as well use it. Thought Tomohiro as he went on full throttle going past Take Bridge JCT. Takeshi saw the gap increasing and went on the attack once more, My tires are getting worn out, I'm not gonna be able to use the grip much longer The moment he pressed deeper onto the throttle though, he felt the rear wheels generate excessive wheelspin, and he had to depress the throttle to regain grip and slowly go back to full throttle. Crap, even my rear tires are shot, this isn't gonna be good. I have to catch up somehow, I guess I need to push it harder, I just hope my tires don't totally give up on me. On the straights going past Take Bridge JCT and headed for Kitanomaru tunnel, Tomohiro was getting a comfortable lead, driving along the straight at about 240km/h and clearing the sweeping right tunnel at just above 200km/h, nearing Daikan IC. As he went past Daikan IC and nearing the entrance of Kasumigaseki tunnel though, he noticed the FD was closing in from behind fast. He could hear loud tire squeals as well and when he looked at his rearview mirror, he noticed the FD performing a low angle, zero countersteer power drift. The GTO went with an out-in-out approach towards Kasumigaseki tunnel while the FD attacked with a low angle drift, the distance was closing in slowly and when Tomohiro looked back once more, he noticed something completely different with the FD. In his eyes, there was a deep blue aura emanating from the car behind. Oh, so he's finally unlocked his potential, guess there's no reason for me to hold back now. Both cars went flat out heading towards Miyakesaka JCT, and both of them attacked the tricky left at 100%, the same corner that cost Hirose and Kimura their race against Lia and Shinichi, and the same corner that caught Takeshi off-guard during his first run with Synchro BLiTZ. The GTO went for a 4WD attacking drift similar to the one used in passing the FD back at Edo Bridge while the FD attacked the corner with a full-on power drift. The FD's entry speed was much faster than the GTO though, and the gap closed more to about a quarter car length as the corner straightened out. On the next wide left leading to the Miyakesaka JCT ramp merging onto C1, the GTO did another 4WD drift but with the tires getting worn out as well, it wasn't able to hold the inside line and went wide towards the right lane, while the FD went with an aggressive outside-in attack, both of their racing lines crossed, the two cars ended up running side-by-side coming in the long straight that lead to the Kasumigaseki IC exit ramp. On the mid-speed right that followed the ramp, the GTO was forced to fall back because of traffic on the right lane, and the FD consequently got the lead. The GTO was not out of the fight yet, though, as it used its power to gain ground on the FD quickly, and on the next right that was to be the final corner of the Kasumigaseki tunnel, the GTO switched tactics and used the remaining tire grip to go with an attacking grip turn on the inside lane, the FD kept on using the fast drift but with the it's tires having lost nearly all grip because of the aggressive high-speed drifts, the car wasn't able to hold its line and drifted wide to the outside. The GTO managed to keep its grip and continued the inside lane attack, passing the FD and coming out of the Kasumigaseki tunnel first, leading by three quarters a car length. It's over, in the end...his car gave out first. Thought Tomohiro as he looked at the FD decelerating behind him But what tenacity, he was still able to catch up to me even after his tires was showing signs of wear, and still be able to pull off those fast drifts. He discovered his potential at the final moment, it would've been my loss, but his car had already taken too much stress. He then decelerated the GTO to drive alongside the FD Takeshi Kajimoto, he's a skilled guy, and he'll become even better. Takahashi must've felt his potential as well...though I wonder, where the hell is he? I lost...but what an amazing driver he is. Thought Takeshi. Once we passed Kanda Bridge...I thought it was over...I don't even remember what happened next clearly, all I know was that I was thinking of nothing but chasing after the GTO, I don't know how I caught up to him with my bad tires...Ah nevermind, it was an amazing experience, and I feel like I can race faster now. We might not have made it today FD, but I'm sure we'll become better. The two cars turned on their hazard lights once more as they cruised along what remained of the Inner Circular Loop until they got back to Ginza PA. The two cars drove down the parking area and parked back beside their teams. Tomohiro got out of his GTO first and started to walk towards the FD as Takeshi opened the door. The two drivers met eye to eye for a brief moment before Takeshi held out his hand to Tomohiro. “I lost, but thank you for the race, Tomohiro-san.” said Takeshi as he extended his hand, offering a handshake to Tomohiro. Tomohiro was startled for a moment, but then shook his hand with a smile on his face “No, I should be thanking you instead, Kajimoto.” he said, earning a curious look from Takeshi “I realized something during the race, and it was your potential, you have what it takes to become better, better than even Takahashi. I hope we get to race again, Takeshi Kajimoto.” he added before walking back to the rest of Apollo Speed Racing. Takeshi then faced Lia and the others, who all had content looks on their faces. “I'm sorry, everyone.” said Takeshi, he was then surprised when he felt Ryu's hand on his shoulder “What are you saying? You weren't racing for us out there, remember?” replied Ryu. “How was it though, racing against Tomohiro-san?” he asked. Ryu had only heard stories from Toshiya about how good Tomohiro was on the road, and he has never seen him race personally. “He was really good, he pushed me to the limit out there.” replied Takeshi, he couldn't even describe what the experience was. “Racing him, I feel like I learned a lot, I feel like I can become faster from today and I too hope I can race him again someday.” he added. “Well, the important thing is you're back here in one piece.” said Lia, she then crossed her arms and gave Takeshi a questioning look “Though I'm sure you could explain what the deal was with those tires of yours?” she said. Everyone else, Takeshi included, then turned their attention to the tires on the FD, the sides of the rubber were just littered with blisters, and the tread area was now considerably thinner, making the grooves themselves blurred and less visible. “Wow! Did you just drift along the whole of C1!?” exclaimed Shinichi. The tires were now completely useless, and need to be replaced as soon as possible, and all that happened in a short span of less than ten minutes. “Kind of...maybe drifting around 160-200km/h.” replied Takeshi, scratching the back of his head. He knew during the race that his tires were worn out, but he didn't expect that much tire wear. “So he pushed you that hard, eh? Tomohiro-san's one hell of a driver it seems.” said Shinichi, before letting the team remember their spoils for tonight “What do we do now? We've won against ASR!” he exclaimed. “That just calls for celebration, but we're all tired tonight, maybe tomorrow back at the lounge?” replied Ryu. “I'm game for that, aren't we all?” said Lia. The entire team cheered in response. Over at ASR, things weren't looking so bitter as they did earlier. They may have lost races, but they have gained great rivals in the process. Every single member of Apollo Speed Racing now has one thing in mind, to race their rivals at Synchro BLiTZ again, but not for their pride as members of ASR, but as rivaling road racers. Tomohiro got to his car and called out to his team. “Let's go everyone, tonight was a good night!” he said. All the members of ASR had started their engine and were preparing to leave the Ginza parking area, when suddenly loud engine noises were heard from outside the PA. It got everyone's attention and when ASR, Synchro BLiTZ and the crowds on the other end of the PA looked, they all saw two cars heading down the parking area fast. The two cars were headed for Synchro BLiTZ and ASR and stopped in the middle of the driveway, blocking the ASR group from going anywhere. Both cars revved their engines and by the exhaust sounds alone, it was obvious that both had powerful engines. Tomohiro and the rest of ASR quickly opened their doors and stood by their cars, looking at the new arrivals. When Tomohiro looked at the two cars though, his eyes widened as he saw something. One car was a black Toyota Supra, it was not an ordinary street car as the body itself looked similar to that of Super GT cars. The other car was a glossy gray BMW M3 E92 with a set of Savini Black di Forza BM-4 wheels. Both cars had square blue flashers on the upper left corner of their windshield, and what caught Tomohiro's attention was the sticker on the windshield of both cars, it was a line of golden brown, cursive text that read 'Shutokou Saisoku Society' “Damn, they're back.” cursed Tomohiro. The driver side door of the BMW opened and a woman stepped out. She was a tall woman who looked to be in her early twenties. She was a beautiful woman who had long, unkempt medium brown hair running down to just below her collarbone and oval-framed glasses shielding her hazel eyes. She wore a yellow tank top under a black track jacket with red stripes running down from the shoulder to the sides, the same 'Shutokou Saisoku Society' text embroidered on the upper left pocket side and a small, black, shield-shaped badge with a golden number 8 inscription in the middle pinned to the collar, her jacket was coupled with black pants and black leather boots. The female driver walked closer to Ryu and Synchro BLiTZ, she observed their cars first and saw the team sticker on their windshields. “You must be Team Synchro BLiTZ?” she asked. “Yes, we are.” replied Ryu, he sensed there was more to this woman than at first glance, as her tone wasn't one of those wanting to make friends “Who are you, if I may ask?” “Oh, pardons.” said the woman “My name is Akemi Sayuki, of the Shutokou Saisoku Society.” she then took out a white envelope from her pocket “I came here to give you this.” she then handed out the envelope to Ryu. Ryu took the envelope and looked at the flat side, where the words 'Team Synchro BLiTZ' were written. “What is this?” he asked “It's an invitation for one of our team meetings next week.” began Akemi “One of our prime members recommended that we invite your team to join us in that event, it would be our first gathering in two years, after all, and we'd be happy to have such a skilled team present.” she said. “So in other words, you're inviting us to join your team? Is that right?” asked Ryu. Although Akemi was putting it into different, and frankly sugarcoated words, Ryu thought that it was the main reason for the whole invitation. “Not necessarily, we just want you to be there during our team meeting, distinguished guests, per se. Who knows though, you might even consider what you're saying when you get there.” replied Akemi. Her voice was cool and professional, like she was talking to Ryu as a business partner. “Either way, it's still up to you if you're going to be there or not, that is just an invitation, after all. Needless to say, every one of you is welcome to join us.” she said before she started walking back to her car. Once she got inside her M3, Akemi turned the car around with a quick 180 and headed off. The black Supra though, flashed its headlights facing the cars and followed with another 180, before it set off to follow Akemi's M3 though, the driver side window slid down halfway, and the driver threw a piece of paper towards the direction of Ryu and the rest before setting off from the driveway. Both cars of the Shutokou Saisoku Society generated some buzz among the crowd though, they once again chattered as they recognized both. “That black M3, it's the Yokohane Princess, right?” “She's back, and it looks like she challenged the Synchro BLiTZ guys.” “And that black Supra...wasn't that...” “No doubt, that car...that's the Black Scorpion.” “You mean the legendary Wangan Black Scorpion that suddenly disappeared two years ago?” “The very same...but now he's back, along with the Yokohane Princess. What does this mean?” “It could very well be...the Society is coming back.” Tomohiro picked the crumpled paper that the Supra driver left behind on the ground, when he opened it, he immediately gave it to Ryu. “Asakura, this one is addressed to you guys as well.” he said. Ryu took the paper from Tomohiro and read it loud enough for the other members of Synchro BLiTZ around him to hear “Asakura, Ryu...Sawaki, Shinichi...Kusunoki, Lia...Kajimoto, Takeshi...Takahashi, Hana. Two days from now, Ginza parking area, 11pm, I'll be waiting.” he said. “What does that mean? Is that a challenge?” asked Lia. The tone of the letter did seem to be provocative. “I don't know, but whoever that person is...he knows us personally, Hana-san included.” replied Takeshi. “I don't think it's a challenge, but it's definitely something different from the one that woman gave us.” said Ryu “The letter was addressed directly to us, so we might as well take him up on it, whatever it is.” “But who was that woman earlier, and that Shutokou Saisoku Society group?” asked Shinichi. “The Shutokou Saisoku Society was once the fastest group in the entire Shutokou area.” replied Tomohiro “You might not have heard them since I think you haven't been around Shutokou for long, but those guys live up to their name. They were the fastest in the whole expressway, there was no fastest team in C1 or New Belt Line back then, it was just them. A lot of people tried to oust them, but no one succeeded.” “But didn't she say that meeting was to be their first in two years?” asked Hana "What she said was true, the SS Society, as everyone calls them, suddenly just disappeared two years ago.” replied Hirose “We were already around when they started climbing up the ranks three years ago, but when they disappeared, no one knew what happened. Everyone expected them to return a few months later, but nothing, that's how this whole team shuffle business came into play.” “Anyway, I advise you kids to be careful around them.” said Tomohiro “Let's go everyone, we've stayed around for too long.” he added before getting into his car and driving off, the rest of ASR following behind him as they headed out of the parking area. As he and his team drove down C1 headed back to New Belt Line, Tomohiro couldn't help but wonder about something. It wasn't a coincidence that the letter the Supra left behind included everyone besides Takahashi himself...I better go there as well, I have an idea who the hell that guy in the Supra was.

This post has been edited by Antares on Oct 12 2012, 02:44 AM

So...I've been reading a lot of this lately...just curious...did you draw your characters before?

If my hands actually listened to my brain whenever I draw, I would've.

So no, I haven't drawn them. I just make their appearance up in my mind when I introduce them to the story, so sometimes I go back to reading my past chapters whenever I'm thinking of new looks for them.

Drawing them; even in a not-so-refined manner would've helped in visual aid. Sometimes its better to give your readers a simple view of how your characters look.

As to how good looking they are or how refined they look is really another problem, so there's no need to concern yourself if you're not really good at drawing.

I guess you're right, maybe I need to try my hand at drawing soon.