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I find it not hard to visualize most of the characters however they seem to come out as re-dressed characters from other anime series...

The most prevalent would be:

Takeshi = Kirito (Sword art online)
Lia = Simca (Air gear)
Toshiya = Shimizu (Supido / my series) or Aizen (Bleach Season 1 type)

But that's just my mind playing with my imagination but they still turned out well and clear whenever I picture the scene.

I VOLUNTEER!
I VOLUNTEER AS TRIBUTE!
no really
as a fan
i'll try to draw the characters to the utmost extent of my abilities
that means i'm willing to go out of my chibi shell just to make this
haha
i'll post it when i get it finished


BTW
Chapter 5, absolute classic
if you know what i mean
XD

This post has been edited by Solstice on Oct 8 2012, 04:56 PM

Lia is a model... WAT?! i definitely saw what you did there!!

chapter 4:

I'm impressed with the appearance of APS and that's something that I'd like to see on some TXR game sadly, it only allows 1v2 maximum (focused on a few rivals) though C1 Grand Prix allows the option of until 1v3. This can probably be recreated in SS Route 5 in GT5, since they have the 35 there.

and Takeshi, that lucky bastard.

For the record, I still see Lia as Simca. It kinda suits her.

Chapter 5:
DAT S30 ATTACK...
If Okami shouted "YOSHAAAAAHHHH!!!" It would've been obvious XD.

Damn! That impact is... well... fatal.

But... WAIT...

truck... spinout... barrel roll... accident.

I SEE WHAT YOU DID THERE TOO!

QUOTE (Gunma's 34 @ 27 minutes, 30 seconds ago)

Lia is a model... WAT?! i definitely saw what you did there!! chapter 4: I'm impressed with the appearance of APS and that's something that I'd like to see on some TXR game sadly, it only allows 1v2 maximum (focused on a few rivals) though C1 Grand Prix allows the option of until 1v3. This can probably be recreated in SS Route 5 in GT5, since they have the 35 there. and Takeshi, that lucky bastard. For the record, I still see Lia as Simca. It kinda suits her. Chapter 5: DAT S30 ATTACK... If Okami shouted "YOSHAAAAAHHHH!!!" It would've been obvious XD. Damn! That impact is... well... fatal. But... WAIT... truck... spinout... barrel roll... accident. I SEE WHAT YOU DID THERE TOO!

Honest to goodness, Reina Akikawa and Lia Kusunoki's similarities in their occupation is SINCERELY COINCIDENTAL! And the similarities between Akio's crash during the start of the Hiramoto arc and the events of Okami's crash is again...SINCERELY COINCIDENTAL

Anyway, I've compiled some of the characters that served as inspiration to the appearances of some of the characters in Saisoku no Gaiden.

Takeshi Kajimoto - Kiyoteru Hiyama (Vocaloid)

SPOILER

Lia Kusunoki - SF-A2 Miki (Vocaloid)

SPOILER

Shinichi Sawaki - Shinn Asuka (Gundam SEED DESTINY)

SPOILER

Ryu Asakura - Dearka Elsman (Gundam SEED)

SPOILER

Toshiya Takahashi - Yuushi Oshitari (Prince of Tennis)

SPOILER

Hana Takahashi - Ann Tachibana (Prince of Tennis)

SPOILER

Akemi Sayuki - Adrianna Eizaguirre (Supido no Densetsu Z: Viaggio Grande)

SPOILER

@Solstice
Dude, that was just epic! Can I post that chat we had here? I think it'll make for some great comedy!

This post has been edited by Antares on Oct 9 2012, 06:10 AM

Honest to goodness, Reina Akikawa and Lia Kusunoki's similarities in their occupation is SINCERELY COINCIDENTAL! And the similarities between Akio's crash during the start of the Hiramoto arc and the events of Okami's crash is again...SINCERELY COINCIDENTAL

Anyway, I've compiled some of the characters that served as inspiration to the appearances of some of the characters in Saisoku no Gaiden.

Takeshi Kajimoto - Kiyoteru Hiyama (Vocaloid)

SPOILER

Lia Kusunoki - SF-A2 Miki (Vocaloid)

SPOILER

Shinichi Sawaki - Shinn Asuka (Gundam SEED DESTINY)

SPOILER

Ryu Asakura - Dearka Elsman (Gundam SEED)

SPOILER

Toshiya Takahashi - Yuushi Oshitari (Prince of Tennis)

SPOILER

Hana Takahashi - Ann Tachibana (Prince of Tennis)

SPOILER

Akemi Sayuki - Adrianna Eizaguirre (Supido no Densetsu Z: Viaggio Grande)

SPOILER

@Solstice
Dude, that was just epic! Can I post that chat we had here? I think it'll make for some great comedy!

This post has been edited by Antares on Oct 9 2012, 06:10 AM

vocaloidisnotanimu

=p

Yeah...they aren't...but their character art styles could be considered anime-esque, right? Gonna edit that one though.

This post has been edited by Antares on Oct 9 2012, 06:09 AM

Lia as Miki/a vocaloid I haven't heard of... WHY NOT LUKA SHE HAS A CUP LEVEL THAT WILL SUI-/shot

Shinichi as Shinn... not sure if want...

Ryu as Dearka... I'm down with that.

Akemi as Adrianna...

I find Luka to be too tall though...and to be honest, Akemi was initially based on M.C., not Adrianna.

QUOTE (Antares @ Oct 9 2012, 07:20 PM)

Honest to goodness, Reina Akikawa and Lia Kusunoki's similarities in their occupation is SINCERELY COINCIDENTAL! And the similarities between Akio's crash during the start of the Hiramoto arc and the events of Okami's crash is again...SINCERELY COINCIDENTAL Anyway, I've compiled some of the characters that served as inspiration to the appearances of some of the characters in Saisoku no Gaiden. Takeshi Kajimoto - Kiyoteru Hiyama (Vocaloid) SPOILER Lia Kusunoki - SF-A2 Miki (Vocaloid) SPOILER Shinichi Sawaki - Shinn Asuka (Gundam SEED DESTINY) SPOILER Ryu Asakura - Dearka Elsman (Gundam SEED) SPOILER Toshiya Takahashi - Yuushi Oshitari (Prince of Tennis) SPOILER Hana Takahashi - Ann Tachibana (Prince of Tennis) SPOILER Akemi Sayuki - Adrianna Eizaguirre (Supido no Densetsu Z: Viaggio Grande) SPOILER @Solstice Dude, that was just epic! Can I post that chat we had here? I think it'll make for some great comedy!

well THIS wrecks my ideas for the characters
BACK TO THE DRAWING BOARD!

CHAPTER 5!: (as seen by the innocent mind of Solstice)

“Sometimes, it's not always about flashy cornering.” came Yuki after he had gotten close to Okami

“I get the feeling something's coming at Ariake.” said Yuki

“Well, we never know that for sure, at least we're sure something is coming.” added Okami

“Crap, we're in trouble here.” said Yuki

“I guess it's time to use this.” said Okami.

The S30 suddenly jerked forward, surprising Yuki “What the heck just happened?” he asked.

“Okami!” Toshiya and Yuki cried out

Yuki looked at Okami and found that he was just barely conscious, he had a cut on his forehead with blood slowly dripping down along the side of his face. “Okami! Can you hear me?” he asked, attempting to get a response from him.

“Y..yeah...just barely...” came Okami

said Toshiya as he focused on undoing Okami's harnesses. As soon as he got it off, Yuki helped Okami out of the car, letting Okami lean on him to get on his feet out of the car.

a truck got him from behind.

Hana groaned as she woke up, looking up at Toshiya with tired eyes. “Come on Hana-chan, I'll take you home now.” he said.


AS SEEN BY THE INNOCENT MIND OF SOLSTICE!

This post has been edited by Solstice on Oct 11 2012, 02:11 AM

well THIS wrecks my ideas for the characters
BACK TO THE DRAWING BOARD!

CHAPTER 5!: (as seen by the innocent mind of Solstice)

“Sometimes, it's not always about flashy cornering.” came Yuki after he had gotten close to Okami

“I get the feeling something's coming at Ariake.” said Yuki

“Well, we never know that for sure, at least we're sure something is coming.” added Okami

“Crap, we're in trouble here.” said Yuki

“I guess it's time to use this.” said Okami.

The S30 suddenly jerked forward, surprising Yuki “What the heck just happened?” he asked.

“Okami!” Toshiya and Yuki cried out

Yuki looked at Okami and found that he was just barely conscious, he had a cut on his forehead with blood slowly dripping down along the side of his face. “Okami! Can you hear me?” he asked, attempting to get a response from him.

“Y..yeah...just barely...” came Okami

said Toshiya as he focused on undoing Okami's harnesses. As soon as he got it off, Yuki helped Okami out of the car, letting Okami lean on him to get on his feet out of the car.

a truck got him from behind.

Hana groaned as she woke up, looking up at Toshiya with tired eyes. “Come on Hana-chan, I'll take you home now.” he said.


AS SEEN BY THE INNOCENT MIND OF SOLSTICE!

This post has been edited by Solstice on Oct 11 2012, 02:11 AM

Solstice...just what the heck have you done!?

Anyway, UPDATE! I've been working on this until two days ago and it would probably be the last update for this week, next chapter would probably come up mid-next week.

As always, I hope you enjoy and please leave your comments or suggestions, I'd really appreciate it

CHAPTER 11 ~ Overture

SPOILER

----Two Days Later--- --2230 Hours, Ginza PA, C1-- Ginza Parking Area, two years ago this place was crowded with street racing enthusiasts awaiting the battle between three of the most dominant racers of Shutokou. Two years later, Ginza has once again hosted the gathering of the same trio, as they attempt to finally put an end to the unfinished battle. There was no enthusiastic crowd this time, as the parking area only had a few commuters that come in for a brief respite before setting off on their drive once more. Unlike their first meeting though, it was Okami Kodokuna's Fairlady Z that was the first of tonight's warriors to arrive at the meeting place. Waiting patiently for his other two rivals while seated on the hood of his rebuilt S30, Okami couldn't help but recall the events of two years ago, one that nearly cost him his life. On his contemplation, a thought crossed his mind. Will we finally reach a result after two years? I don't want to think about me or any of them crashing, but still, given the circumstances it's always possible. He reached for the collar on his black and red track jacket and unpinned the badge that was on it. He looked at the little black shield that he held with his fingers, the badge had the golden number 7 etched in the middle. Tonight's race is for a better reason though, will I gain a higher number than this one, or will I stay holding onto it? he thought before pinning the badge back to his collar once more. Trying to find a way to clear his head, Okami headed for the vendos in the nearby kiosk to get a drink. After getting one of his favorite canned iced coffee, he headed back to his car. He stopped just a meter from his car, observing the restored S30 that suffered the serious crash from two years ago. The car still came with its silver paint, and the J-Spec body kit was retained, but this time, the car was now equipped with a curved-type carbon fiber GT-wing that was angled to focus more on rear downforce, while the old CE28N wheels were replaced with silver Watanabe Eight Spoke wheels. Another thing he noted was that there was now the 'Shutokou Saisoku Society' sticker on his windshield. Just like old times eh? The old gang's coming back together, I guess it's good that we wrap this little game of ours tonight before things get too serious again. Not a minute later, the sound of a tuned engine was heard coming into the parking area, and when Okami looked to see what it was, he saw a light blue Mitsbushi Lancer Evo V driving down. He recognized the Synchro BLiTZ sticker as the car got closer, the car eventually finding its parking space two rows directly behind his S30. The taillights went off and the engine shut down as all four doors opened. The audience is here, I guess I better go make friends while waiting All members of Synchro BLiTZ along with Hana looked around the parking area as they got out of Ryu's car. Toshiya was still missing, he never showed up in the garage or his house since the race against Apollo Speed Racing. That thought, along with the unknown person asking them to come tonight puzzled them even more, and they went to the parking area wanting for some answers. There wasn't anyone in sight, except for the white S30Z. “Will anyone even show up tonight? The PA seems awfully empty.” said Ryu. The number of cars in the PA at that moment could be counted with just his fingers, and there wasn't any street racing crowd tonight. “The letter told us 11pm right, it's only 10:35, Ryu-san. We've arrived too early.” replied Takeshi. He wasn't expecting their host to arrive sharp at the indicated time, but they did arrive half an hour too early. “Hmm...then I guess we'll just have to wait until someone shows up.” said Lia, she then pointed to the nearby kiosk “I'm getting thirsty, anyone else want a drink?” she asked “Sure, anything to relieve the tension, the suspense is killing me.” replied Shinichi. Everyone then made their way to the kiosk and the vendos, getting themselves a can of soda to freshen up. Shinichi then noticed that Hana was awfully quiet and had hung her head, staring blankly at her soda. “Hana-chan, are you okay?” he asked. Hana looked like she was startled when she looked up at Shinichi, she then shook her head and gave him a faint smile “Yeah, yeah...I'm fine.” she said, before she went back to looking down. Lia noticed that Hana had something in mind at the moment, something that's been bothering her for quite some time now. “Hana-chan, what's wrong? You can tell us.” said Lia, trying to have Hana open up to them. Hana released a sigh before speaking “Toshi-niichan...what in the world happened to him? Why hasn't he come back until now?” she said. Toshiya's disappearance had affected Hana deeply, as the person she'd always come to see whenever she came to the garage wasn't around, and she doesn't even know why he was gone, she had become increasingly worried for her elder cousin that she sees as more of a brother to her. “We're all worried about him too, Hana-chan.” said Lia. She could understand Hana's worries, as she knew how close the two cousins were. “Right now though, we're just hoping to get some answers from this mysterious person.” said Ryu. The questions were piling up, and all they wanted tonight was for some answers to be given. Senpai's disappearance, and now this person asking us to be here...could all these things be connected somehow? No way...maybe I'm just thinking about this too much. He thought. Suddenly, a voice spoke out “Team Synchro BLiTZ, I presume?” everyone turned to look and saw a bespectacled man standing just outside the kiosk, holding a can of iced coffee in his left hand. Lia noticed the jacket he was wearing, it was similar to the one Akemi was wearing two night ago “That outfit, are you a member of the Shutokou Saisoku Society?” she asked. “Sharp eye. My name is Okami Kodokuna, and yes, I am a member of the SS Society.” he said “You must be here because of that letter one of our drivers gave you, rest assured though, you didn't come here for nothing, he'll be here tonight.” he added. “Who was that person anyway? With the letter he left us, he seemed to know us personally.” said Ryu. If someone could at least give them some answers, it would probably be Okami. “I'd rather leave it for you to find out later, since I'm sure he doesn't want me telling too much about him.” replied Okami “But enough talking about him, as I'm sure you are also wondering why we gave you the invitation for next week, am I correct?” he asked. I guess it won't hurt to tell a little story while waiting he thought. The Synchro BLiTZ folks had expectant looks on their faces, so Okami began “If Sayuki did not mention this to you the other day, one of the higher ranking members of our group spoke highly of your team's ability when he saw you guys on the road once. Seeing as our group's reunion, as I would like to call it, would be taking place soon, he thought it'd be a great idea to have you there as...distinguished guests, so to speak.” “So...you really aren't planning to recruit us into your group?” asked Ryu. He had that impression ever since Akemi handed them the invitation “That would be up to the leaders of the group to decide, if they ever see something in you that's worth getting.” replied Okami Though right now, I'm pretty sure those old chaps won't hesitate to have jump in the bandwagon. A good driver can sense another with just a single look, and you all share that impression. “Shutokou Saisoku Society was a road racing team formed by professional racing drivers who were seeking talented drivers on the street, in the hopes of training them on the road and create a legend out of them. It was basically a pastime shared by a group of pros who wanted to enjoy road racing without risking suspension of their professional racing licenses as they weren't directly involved with all the driving, and no one but the members even knew of their part in all this. As a bit of a consolation though, some members of the group even went on to become professional drivers themselves with the help of the leaders, though they still continued driving on the streets on anonymity.” “So that's why everything seemed so organized...the people running the whole team were pros.” said Lia. She was somehow bothered by the unusual attitude that Akemi had towards them two days ago, for her, it was either friendly or hostile people you meet on the streets, not some business-like and professional people that you only see at the office. Hearing the team's roots from Okami cleared everything for her. Shinichi though, couldn't help but wonder about the badge on Okami's collar, and opted to ask “What about that badge of yours? Sayuki-san had something like that too.” he said. Okami then followed Shinichi's gaze on his collar and slowly unpinned the badge, holding it with his fingers and showing it to them. “This is a special ranking badge for our team, only the top 10 drivers carry one, and the number inscribed indicates their rank, Akemi's badge had the number 8 if memory serves me right, and mine has the number 7, making us drivers number 8 and 7 of the SS Society.” he said. “Since I mentioned some of the professional drivers amongst the ones still driving around Shutokou, I sort of remember drivers number 6 and 4 being one of them.” “A professional driver still racing as a top driver in Shutokou's once fastest road racing group.” muttered Takeshi Suddenly I wish I was one of those...but Kodokuna-san mentioned that with the help of the team's leaders, some of their drivers went on to become pros themselves...this could be my window to that. he thought “Yeah, and as far as I'm concerned, I think they're really putting a lot on the line out there. It's a good thing they weren't as active as they were before though, because when the team stopped racing two years ago, they too disappeared from the streets. The reunion would mark their return as well.” said Okami, he was contemplating once again on the memories from two years ago. “As for some of us, we didn't stop, we wanted to keep on driving even though everyone else was gone. We took the team stickers off our cars and raced without affiliation. It didn't go all too well for me though, as I ended up in a crash and had to get my S30 rebuilt from the ground up.” he said as he looked back to his parked Fairlady Z. Lia and Hana quickly recognized the Z when they followed Okami's gaze and saw it, “You...you were one of those two cars...nearly a week ago.” said Hana. She could never forget the sight, the silver Z and another passing by seemingly driving off their attackers. Lia too, couldn't forget the Z “Kodokuna-san...you were the one saved us back then.” said Lia. They didn't get a good look of the car earlier when they arrived at the PA, and only recognized the car when they Okami looked confused for a moment, but smiled when he remembered what Lia and Hana were referring to. “That one, huh? Don't worry about it, we were just helping out an old friend—well, speaking of which, another one of the main cast has arrived it seems.” engine sounds interrupted Okami mid-sentence, and when he looked, he started walking back to his S30. A purple-silver FD with a blue flasher on the windshield drove into the parking area and settled on the space beside the S30. The driver of the FD got out and smiled at Okami “Oka-chan, the early bird? The world's probably coming to an end soon eh?” he said. Synchro BLiTZ, who were still at the kiosk recognized the driver as another member of the SS Society by the black and red jacket that he was wearing. The driver of the FD then looked behind him and saw the light blue Evo 5 that was parked facing them, he quickly spotted the Synchro BLiTZ sticker on the windshield as well “Oh? So the kiddie crew are here already?” he asked “Yeah, they're over there, Yuki.” Okami titled his head to the direction of the kiosk, where the guys of Synchro BLiTZ were watching them. “They're just like what he told them to be, nice young drivers.” “I take it you've talked to them while waiting?” asked Yuki. Okami's short nod was his answer. “Always the socially-oriented eh, Okami.” Okami stepped forward and waved his hand at the kiosk, calling for Takeshi and company to come over “Hey! Come on over here!” he called out to them. The younger drivers then went closer to Okami and Yuki, with Lia, Hana and even Takeshi recognizing the FD as well. It was still the same FD from two years ago, and the Shutokou Saisoku Society sticker on the windshield just serves as more evidence to Yuki's membership in the team. “Let me introduce you.” began Okami, he then held out his hand, pointing towards Yuki “This is Yuki Toji, a fellow member of Shutokou Saisoku Society and the team's driver number 5.” Everyone turned their attention to Yuki's collar and saw the same black shield-shaped badge, along with the golden number 5 inscription as Okami had mentioned. “You guys must be the Synchro BLiTZ team that our group's been talking about lately?” said Yuki, like Okami, Synchro BLiTZ felt he had a friendly feeling about him, far different from the feel that Akemi had. “Heard you guys beat old man Tomo's team the other day.” “Tomo? You mean Tomohiro-san and the Apollo Speed Racing?” asked Ryu, he was quite surprised at Yuki's nickname for the ASR team leader, and didn't really figure out who it was when he first heard it. “You know him?” Yuki nodded in response “We knew him since two years ago, he was one of the guys that suddenly became famous for his New Belt Line sprints some time after the SS Society became inactive.” he said. “I think he could have even beaten some of the guys outside the top 10, he's quite the good driver.” he added “True, but he insisted on getting his own team together, and by the looks of what happened, I think he doesn't have much luck in talent scouting.” said Okami. “Anyway, since you won the New Belt Line area from the old man's team, that just means you've clearly justified the praise I've been hearing about you.” said Yuki, smiling at the members of Synchro BLiTZ “I'm actually hoping to run with you guys next week, see just how fast the next generation has become...” he paused for a moment, shaking his head as if he realized something “Ah, let me rephrase that one, it made me sound so old...ahem, we've rarely had any skilled drivers that are as young as you guys are, and we certainly weren't that good when we were at your age.” he said. “Umm...Toji-san?” said Hana, she had been looking at his car intently since he got there and she was now sure that he was the other one that saved them from the ASR's attack a few days back. Though somehow, she was feeling shy of asking about it. Yuki then raised his eyebrows in response, wondering what Hana called him for. Hmm...why do I get the feeling I've seen her somewhere before? Oh, I think I remember. “What is it?” “Umm...you were driving with Kodokuna-san a few days ago, right? Along C1?” asked Hana. She couldn't figure out how to put it directly though. Yuki smiled at them again “Yeah, I kind of remember you actually, that pink 300ZX, right?” he asked. Hana suddenly looked up at him, surprised that he remembered her from that day. “If you're gonna thank us for it, then don't bother, we were just doing a friend of ours a favor back then.” he said. Hana smiled and bowed her head slightly to him, but he simply waved her gesture off “I said there's no need for that, it's all done now, isn't it? You guys did get back at them by beating them squarely two days ago right, so it's all fair.” he said. Okami then looked at Yuki's FD, eyeing it suspiciously Something's not right here, it's not the same FD I ran with a few days ago. He thought. “Hey Yuki, did you do something to your engine? It sounded pretty different when you came into the parking area, it's not the usual rough sound I'm used to, it's more crisp and refined.” he asked. Yuki sighed at Okami's perception Always the sharp bastard, that Okami he thought. He then walked over to his FD and raised the hood, and when Okami took a closer look, his eyes widened in surprise. The guys from team Synchro BLiTZ also took a closer look and Takeshi was amazed at the sight. “Yeah, I might have made some little changes.” said Yuki, wearing a proud look on his face. “Little changes, eh?” Okami wasn't the least bit convinced “Last time I looked at it a week ago, this engine was a 13B coupled with a parallel twin, now it's suddenly become a tri-rotor 20B with what looks like a sequential twin. Tell me this is what you consider a little change?” he said. “Okay, so it's a not-so-little change then.” replied Yuki innocently, “I've been saving this engine for tonight, this one is just as powerful as my old 13B at 650HP but it's got quite the special purpose, you see.” he added, before shifting his attention to Okami's S30 “What about you, I see you've made some little changes of your own.” he said, nudging his head towards the rear of the Fairlady. “You mean the wing? I just added that one two days and let's just say it also has a special purpose for tonight, much like your new engine.” replied Okami, he too proceeded to raise the hood of his S30, “I want to show you something.” he said and Yuki quickly figured out what was different when he went in for a closer look. “A VG30? What was wrong with the last engine? Did it break along with the crash?” asked Yuki. “Not really, the internals and the turbos were unaffected, though the engine block suffered quite the knock on the left side where the car hit the wall, it would be quite risky to run it again after that.” replied Okami “I found myself a good bargain on a guy selling his stock VG30 from a Z32 some time later, and I did the rest of the upgrades from there. It's a lot more compact than the 1JZ since this one's a V6, and the engine feels quite balanced compared to the torque-biased feel of the last 1JZ. I still kept the power output at 600HP, but I went for a single turbo this time around.” he added. The S30's engine bay looked appeared to be a bit too spacious since the compact V6 left quite a lot of engine room because the 240Z's original engine compartment layout was designed for the L24 engine, a classic straight-6 built by Nissan, and a larger predecessor to the current VG30 in terms of mass. It seems they both have trump cards to play...that 20B twin-turbo on the FD...and that GT-wing on the Z, those modificiations aren't normal even for track-built cars, those were reserved for something...but what could it be? Wondered Takeshi, he took note of both cars and it was clear that they were in a league of their own. I'm not having a hard time imagining these two to be some of the fastest on Shutokou. Takeshi's thoughts were interrupted by another car entering the parking area, when they looked, Okami and Yuki were both smiling, as the car that came into view from the entrance of the PA was the naked-carbon fiber black Toyota Supra, the blue flasher visibly darker because of the dark tinted windshield, but the Shutokou Saisoku Society sticker visibly clearer. The 80 slowly parked beside Yuki's FD, and revved its engine a few times before the headlights went out as engine shut down. The loud exhaust notes of the Supra echoed around the PA for a few more seconds after the car had already shut down. Ryu was getting tense seeing the Supra, one question was now about to receive its answer He's here, finally we're about get something out this whole business. He thought as they all eagerly wait for the Supra's driver to reveal himself. Kodokuna-san and Yuki-san, none of them gave any idea who this person is, but finally we don't have to wait. Thought Lia. The driver side door of the Supra opened and a figure with long black hair stepped out, he had his back turned to them but they could see that he too was wearing the SS Society jacket, when he turned to face Okami and Yuki though, they were all left in shock. “Well, how about that, the man we often know as the early bird somehow shows up last this time around.” jokingly said Yuki. “It looks like you've hit quite a bit of a delay, Toshiya.” said Okami “Well, you're here and that's what's important, I guess.” he added. “I never planned on waiting for you two this time around, just so you know.” replied Toshiya, he then looked to the side and saw the Synchro BLiTZ team looking at him with surprised looks on their faces. He sighed as he walked towards them “Let me settle things here for a while.” he said to the other two drivers as he went past them. Everyone looked at Toshiya as he neared them. He was without his glasses tonight, and he was wearing the same team jacket as Okami and Yuki, but he too had a badge on his collar, meaning that he is also part of the team's top drivers. What got their attention most though was the number on Toshiya's badge, a golden number 3. He walked up to them and raised his eyebrows as he noticed their expressions “What's with those looks? You guys look like you just saw a ghost or something.” he casually said, along with an indifferent expression on his face. Hana was the first to react, and she wasn't anywhere near happy about him showing up “What do you think!? You go missing on us for two days and now you show up and talk like nothing happened! What's wrong with you, Toshiya Takahashi!?” she cried out. Hana's eyes were brimming with tears, and Toshiya's expression suddenly turned serious. “Don't you know how worried I was?” she said, holding back her sobs. Toshiya walked closer to Hana and put his hands on her shoulders “I'm sorry if I worried you so much, Hana-chan.” he began, then looking at the rest of his team “I needed to take care of some things and I just couldn't tell everyone about it beforehand. I'm really sorry if I caused you some trouble.” he said. Lia shook her head in reaction to Toshiya's words “We understand, Toshiya-san, but seeing Hana-chan worried so much about you didn't make things any better for us. The least you could do is tell us where you've been the past days, you weren't even at your house.” she said. “That's because I never went home since two days ago.” replied Toshiya “I stayed at a friend's place until tonight, and as for why I wasn't there during the team shuffle, I was hoping that the scenario I've planned for the victory of Synchro BLiTZ against Apollo Speed Racing played out well, and as it turned out, it went better than I expected.” he said “Scenario? What do you mean by that?” asked Ryu. “Simple, without me around everyone had to race without any given strategy and go at their fullest in order to win. The potentials of all the drivers would consequently increase and eventually, it would be enough to win against ASR. It went better as expected, as I said, since the team shuffle ended after Ryu won the race in the New Belt.” replied Toshiya. His disappearance was planned, though it wasn't a fool-proof plan at all. My gamble of having Shinichi step up his game and influence the others wouldn't have worked out completely if it weren't for the one-two finish with Lia. I guess luck was on their side that night, and my plan still worked out in the end. “So you intentionally did not show up for the race just so we could race at the limit? Cruel plan, but an efficient gamble.” said Shinichi. He had to admit, it appeared to be quite the devious plan on their part, as even if they did lose, they'd end up learning a lot more out of racing without Toshiya's strategies to go with. “That's the exact reason why I never showed up that night, as for why I didn't show up after that...” Toshiya paused mid-sentence, as if he wasn't sure if he was going to tell them the reason. “You've received the invitation for next week, right? I think you can put two and two together and figure it out.” he said There was a brief silence before Takeshi spoke up “You were there that night of the race, you were in that black Supra, and everyone kept saying that someone put in a few good words to get the team involved for next week. It was you as well, right Toshiya-san?” he said. Takeshi had been thinking of some key notes to the whole scenario, someone had recommended the team, and that someone was a high ranked within the SS Society. Lia thought about Takeshi's statements and started putting her own pieces of the puzzle together as well A high ranking member of the group, according to Kodokuna-san, had put in the good word for our team...Toshiya-san's ranking badge...Takeshi-kun's right! “I wouldn't have done it if I didn't have my own reasons though.” said Toshiya “But I'd keep those to myself for now.” he added, before he turned around and started to walk back to Okami and Yuki, who were listening in on his conversation with his team. “Shall we begin?” he asked them. “Before that though, I was wondering about one thing.” said Okami “You mentioned you were staying over at a friend's place, care to enlighten us on that one?” he asked. It was personal curiosity though, as he, Yuki and Toshiya were pretty close friends. “I should have known you'd catch on that one.” said Toshiya, he then looked back to his Supra and nodded. The passenger side door of the Supra then opened, and a woman with unkempt brown hair, and oval-framed eyeglasses stepped out, and that surprised Yuki and Okami as they quickly recognized who it was. “A-Akemi!?” both asked in unison. “What in the world are you doing here?” asked Yuki. “This hopeless guy just happened to be staying over at my place when he mentioned about this little game of yours.” replied Akemi. Tonight she wasn't wearing the same jacket that the rest of her teammates were wearing, she was clad in a red halter top under a white blazer paired with a white pencil skirt and cream-colored sandals. “If you haven't forgotten the rules of ranking battles yet, at least one member outside of the rivaling members needs to be present to act as a neutral witness.” she reminded them in the professional tone they were familiar with. Yuki waved his hand at Akemi “Yeah, yeah, whatever.” he said, before switching gazes between Toshiya and her, a suspicious look on his face “So that's why you were late, Toshiya, you and Akemi went on a dinner date first before going here, it's been a long time after all, I can't blame any of you for that.” Okami couldn't help but nod in agreement to Yuki's blatant teasing “I'd even assume Toshiya had picked Akemi up from work before going on that date of theirs.” he said. Toshiya was left speechless by his friends' teasing, he looked away from them, cheeks turning into a fair shade of pink. Okami noticed this and then turned his attention to Akemi, who was also looking away blushing. Oh, it seems we've hit right on. He thought. “Th-that has nothing to do with tonight! Are you three gonna start this or what?” Akemi's composed tone had cracked, and it was obvious she too was affected by the pair's teasing, probably more so than Toshiya was. “Nah, let's get this over with.” said Yuki as he started to unpin his number 5 badge from his collar as he walked with Okami towards Akemi. Okami was holding his number 7 badge in his hand as he went, and Toshiya quietly unpinned his number 3 badge as all three of them went to Akemi. She held out her hand and they gently placed their badges there. “So it's a three-way race for ranks number 3, 5 and 7, winner takes the highest rank while the last placer takes the lowest.” said Akemi as she looked at the badges in her hand “Have you three decided on a route yet?” she asked. Toshiya, Yuki and Okami exchanged glances with each other before Toshiya replied. “From Ginza we go up to Shibaura and head into New Belt until we reach Ariake, then onto the Wangan heading for Ooi JCT and onto Yokohane straight up until the finish past Shibaura back at C1.” “C1 to Wangan and finishing at Yokohane then?” asked Akemi, all three drivers nodded affirmatively in response. “Alright, let's start.” she said before making her way back inside Toshiya's Supra. The three drivers just stood there, exchanging glances once more, now with serious looks on their faces. Takeshi felt a familiar sensation when he looked at them, This heavy feeling, it's the same one around Toshiya-san...but it's a lot stronger now...those three, they have a dominating air about them. He then noticed another thing, as he continued to look at them he saw something around each of the three drivers, something that resembled an aura. An aura? Is this what this feeling tells about? A purple aura surrounds Toshiya-san, a blue one around Kodokuna-san, and a red one around Toji-san. Am I the only one who sees this? “You can feel it too, right?” asked Lia, who was just standing beside Takeshi “Their combined potentials...the heavy aura that's present with them.” she added. So it seems I'm not the only one. Thought Takeshi. “It's the first time I've seen something like this, what an aura.” said Ryu, it seemed that he too could sense the aura emanating from the drivers. “Me too, I'm getting chills just looking, to be honest.” added Shinichi. “What is it? What are you guys looking at?” asked Hana. Unlike the others, it would appear that she doesn't sense any of the aura around Toshiya, Yuki and Okami. Akemi smiled from inside the Supra as she watched the three drivers in front of her These three have been best friends and rivals ever since I knew them, and up until now, their dispute over who is the best among them is still undecided. It is said that only drivers who share exceptionally high potential can sense the aura of other drivers in that respect, and that the appearance of the aura itself varies on the strengths of a driver. She then looked down to her hand, where she still held the three badges I was supposed to be the neutral party...but for some reason...I don't want Toshiya to lose this race...ironic, to think that I'll be rooting for the man that I called my boyfriend until a year ago...oh well, at least I can just keep these thoughts to myself.

This post has been edited by Antares on Oct 12 2012, 02:43 AM

Final exams for the semester are now over, and finally I got the time to write some more. Here's the newest update to the story, the reunion battle of the legendary trio begins.

Hope everyone enjoys and please leave your comments and suggestions, they are highly appreciated

CHAPTER 12 ~ Shutokou's Midnight Chorus

SPOILER

- - - 2300 Hours, Ginza PA, C1 - - - As Toshiya, Okami and Yuki neared the doors of their cars, another set of loud engine noises were heard, as another car was entering the parking area. When everyone turned to look, they saw a purple Mitsubishi GTO running down the PA entrance and onto the PA itself. Synchro BLiTZ quickly recognized the car and were all surprised, they did not expect this one to turn up for tonight's race-an uninvited party. "What's Tomohiro-san doing here?" asked Takeshi, he watched as the GTO pulled up in the middle of the parking area driveway, just a few meters from the SS Society trio. The GTO turned off its headlights but left the engine running when Tomohiro got out from the car. He had an expectant look on his face when he looked at Toshiya, Okami and Yuki who looked back at him with questioning looks. His eyes focused on Toshiya first "When I saw at that note you left behind, I really got the feeling I'd see you here tonight, Takahashi..." he said before he switched gazes to the other two drivers "..but I never thought I'd see you two here as well. What's this, a reunion?" he asked. "Don't remember you being in the guest list, old man Tomo." replied Yuki jokingly "But you're quite sharp to pick up on Toshiya's little note." he added. Okami observed Tomohiro inquisitively and noticed that by how he looked at them, he doesn't look like he intends to race "You don't look like you want a part in this, why are you here Tomo-san?" he asked. Tomohiro shrugged "I told you, I got curious from that silly note and only expected to see Takahashi." he said "Since you two are here as well, I'm guessing this is a repeat from two years ago?" he asked. He then saw the unpleasant looks the three drivers had on their faces and he held his hands up innocently "Don't worry, I'm not here to butt in just like you said, Kodokuna, I'm just like those kids over there, an audience." Toshiya observed Tomohiro for a few more second before he spoke "Alright, but how'd you figure it out?" he asked. "I didn't remember it clearly until just now, but your Supra looked familiar to me, and seeing as you addressed the note specifically to your guys, I figured it would be you." replied Tomohiro. "Fair enough." said Toshiya before opening the door to his car and getting inside, starting the engine after strapping himself in. "Don't expect us to slow down just so you could watch." said Yuki before he got inside his FD and starting the engine a few seconds later. "Just try not to get in the way, Tomo-san." said Okami before he too got inside his car and started up the engine. All three cars revved their engines as they all came to, the blue flashers on all three cars blinking simultaneously. Tomohiro got back inside his car and moved the GTO besides the blue Evo V, where the Synchro BLiTZ team got into after all the SS Society cars switched on their engines. He slid down the driver side window while Ryu slid down the passenger side, revealing Takeshi in the seat next to him. "Don't try so hard to keep up with those guys, they're dangerous and fast as hell." said Tomohiro before sliding his window up, his words meant to be an advice than a warning. Ryu too closed his window as he gently revved the Evo's engine too "I guess you all know we won't be able to keep up for long, but I'll do my best." he said to the others. "Don't force yourself, senpai, we don't need to see this one through." said Lia, she was getting worried about the race, as she felt the overlapping auras of the drivers, and it didn't really feel safe. "I know, but I'm sure you all know by now, this race is big." said Ryu. He wasn't focused on catching up with Toshiya and the others, but rather, he just wanted to experience seeing them race. He thought of their aura as extraordinary, and that their speed was beyond anything he'd ever seen. "This Toshiya-senpai isn't the same as the one we know, this is the real him." he added before lining the Evo up behind Tomohiro's GTO, waiting for the three cars to drive out of the garage. Inside the Supra, Akemi noticed the strange look Toshiya had on his face, it was somewhat emotionless. I think I know what's running through his mind right now, after all, I know what kind of person he is. He wants to race, but he's afraid that someone would end up in an accident again. That's just like him, putting safety over everything else. Even if I don't know the details, Okami's accident two years ago must have been the reason why he stopped driving this car back then. she thought. The Supra then drove out of its spot first, with the FD and the Z lining up behind it as they all prepared to leave the parking area. A few moments later, the trio started to move away from the driveway heading towards the parking area exit. Tomohiro's GTO and Synchro BLiTZ's Evo followed a few meters behind them. Driving in formation, the Supra, FD and the Z all had their hazard lights on as they headed out of the parking area and drove down the merging ramp onto C1. As the Supra reached the Inner Circular Route proper, he turned off his hazard lights and went on full throttle, with the other two cars following less than a half a second later. All cars were driving towards the Ginza underpass road dividers at over 180km/h, and with traffic clear on both lanes, the Supra took the left lane, followed closely behind by the FD, while the S30 swerved away from the FD's slipstream and took the right lane. Ryu and the others were caught off guard by the sudden acceleration of the three cars, as the gap between them quickly increased to at least 50 meters. "Woah, they aren't holding back from the start!" he exclaimed. Tomohiro's GTO slowly accelerated away from them, creating some distance from the Evo but not enough to be within close range of the other three cars. "Tomohiro-san's serious, he really wants to see this race." said Ryu, he then glanced at his rearview mirror, catching the images of the Shinichi, Hana and Lia in the back seats. "What do you think? Should we continue?" he asked them. Shinichi, who was seated at the right hand side seat directly behind Ryu, nodded his head "Definitely! Until they've disappeared completely!" he replied. "Alright, here goes." Ryu went on full throttle, slowly catching up to the GTO and keeping the three racing cars in sight. Approaching the Kyo Bridge underpass, Okami's Z was now side by side with Toshiya's Supra, with Yuki's FD just inches behind them. The cars were now going at over 200km/h passing the underpass and were now on the long uphill straight towards Edo Bridge. The Supra's acceleration was the greatest among them, and was going up the road at 250km/h, however the difference in speed was too little to make a difference, and when all cars hit the small jump, Okami made his attack on the inside lane, braking late going into the left hander. There was traffic on the outside lane, and Toshiya was forced to pull back, Yuki capitalized on this little lapse and squeezed the FD on the inside of the Supra, blocking any attempts to defend and effectively passing him. Okami's S30 entered the tight left corner at over 150km/h, surprisingly at full grip. Yuki followed with his own grip turn but only had a maximum of 130km/h, something was different, and Yuki didn't let that escape his notice. That Okami, since when did he drive around C1 without sliding? Must be that rear wing of his. he thought. Toshiya too had noticed the different driving style that Okami had. Judging from how fast he was able to catch up, and how he took that corner, that S30 has either gotten lighter, or has improved its weight balance in some way. Still, that grip turn would be impossible with just suspension settings and throttle control alone, the GT-wing has really come in handy. Okami has been busy. he thought. When Toshiya attacked the corner, the Supra managed a faster exit speed than both cars, and was slowly gaining lost ground. The GTO and the Evo were again falling back because of the high speed cornering, they were now about 70 meters behind and were slowly losing the three cars from sight, the nearest one being Toshiya's Supra. This is gonna be tough to handle, if those guys keep this pace up, it would only take a minute to leave us behind completely. thought Tomohiro. Driving past Edo Bridge and Gofuku Bridge at speed exceeding 230km/h, the battling cars were on full assault, slaloming through traffic at 200km/h before getting back on the throttle and accelerating beyond 230km/h. On the right curve just past Gofuku Bridge, Okami's S30 extended its lead on corner entry with another high-speed grip turn, the FD and the Supra just catching up with better power on corner exit. Okami glances at his rearview mirror and notices the distance he's creating from cornering entry. The purpose of the new engine was to improve the car's weight balance, but the real reason for all this grip is the GT-wing. The curvature of the S30 has its aerodynamic properties biased at the front, thanks to its unique form, that improves its cornering response but makes the car prone to oversteer. With the additional downforce at the rear, combined with the improved weight balance, the car's aerodynamics becomes nearly uniform, effectively reducing understeer while maintaining the amazing cornering response. It's the ultimate machine for the Inner Circular Route. he thought. Watching the S30's cornering, Akemi couldn't help but be impressed. "He's made a better car, that Okami." she said. "From the way he drives, and to how that car moves, it's obvious a lot has been changed. The sound the car makes is different too, he may have changed his engine along with adding that spoiler." she added "Yeah, and he's adapted to it pretty well." said Toshiya, equally impressed with Okami's updated Z and his changed driving style. "It's been made too good though, like it's lost something in exchange for all that speed." he said. It could be just me though, but I really think something is going to bite back in that Z. he thought. All three cars approached Kanda Bridge, where there is traffic in both lanes, forcing Okami to slow down, letting his two rivals and their two spectators catch up. All cars were held up behind two trucks, and they were all cruising at just 100km/h. Toshiya, Okami and Yuki were all waiting for an opening, the FD was on the left lane right beside the S30 that had the Supra behind it. Tomohiro and Ryu were able to catch a break as it took nearly everything they got to keep up with the three racing cars. "Man, that was tough, it's lucky they got held up behind these trucks." said Ryu, he was analyzing the situation as well. "Whichever truck that moves first will decide who gets the advantage here." he said. "If the left truck moves, the FD gets the lead, if the right moves, the S30 leads. It's a standstill." said Takeshi. Every second that passes builds up to the suspense, and when a truck finally moved, exhaust notes moving up to redline were heard. The left truck had moved first and Yuki's FD was trailing inches behind it, as the truck slowly passed the other truck, so too did the FD pass the S30 and the Supra. The FD was now in the lead, and once a path was clear, the S30 and the Supra followed behind, with the GTO and the Evo trailing. Yuki was going full throttle as they passed the S-curves of Kanda Bridge, bringing his FD to speed over 250km/h as he then passed Take Bridge JCT. He looked at his rearview mirrors and saw that the S30 was gradually dropping back as Okami was driving defensively, holding his line against Toshiya. I can see what Okami's worried about right now, if Toshiya's Supra gets past, then it's gonna be a repeat of two years ago once we go past C1. Not much of a problem for me though, as I got something to tip the balance in my favor later. I'll just play this lead cool and see how it goes. he thought Entering Kitanomaru tunnel, Okami had increased his pace, and was rapidly closing in on Yuki and his FD, with Toshiya in his Supra following fast behind. The FD kept the lead during the whole run inside the tunnel, all three cars running at over 200km/h. Once they reached the short straight heading towards Daikan IC though, Okami attacked once more, taking advantage of a momentary lapse in Yuki's line and swiftly taking the inside line. Both cars were on full grip entering the tunnel, but with his car on the outside, Yuki was forced to drop back as the car was beginning to show understeer, giving Okami the lead once again. Meanwhile, Ryu and the others couldn't believe what they were seeing. "Whoa! Have you ever seen this kind of pace around C1?" asked Ryu. He and everyone else inside the Evo watched as the blue aura they saw around Okami earlier at the PA came about once more, enveloping the S30 in a blue specter. "Kodokuna-san...looks like he's really serious now." said Takeshi, he wasn't bothered by the feeling around the aura anymore, as he knew he wasn't the only one feeling it. Entering the Kasumigaseki tunnel, Okami kicked on the clutch while on full throttle and steered the car hard to the left, locking the rear wheels and sending the Z into a fast drift. The way the car cleared the corner was smooth, the transition from the drift to the minute countersteer and to the car straightening out in a fluid motion with the side mirrors missing the wall by less than 5 inches. It was precise cornering all the way. The way a car communicates to the driver is dependent on how the driver handles the car with his skill. There is no way a car can run smoothly without a driver to guide it, nor is there a way for a driver to maximize his potential without a car good enough to do so. Knowing your car and feeling it as if it was a part of your own body, the Spirit of the Wind. he thought. Akemi's eyes widened in surprise as she saw how the S30 took the corner heading inside Kasumigaseki tunnel. The Spirit of the Wind...I never thought he'd actually go all out this early in the race, I guess he plans to take advantage of C1 as much as he could. she thought. When she looked at Toshiya, his earlier emotionless expression was now replaced with a piercing gaze, aimed directly at the road. His worries suddenly disappear once he starts to drive, but why does it feel like his mind doesn't seem to be in this race? she wondered. Inside Kasumigaseki tunnel, Okami's S30 started to spread the gap to about 20 meters, using his car's full cornering potential to attack the corners, using another fast drift on the left-hander just after passing Miyakesaka JCT. Yuki's FD and Toshiya's Supra followed with grip turns of their own, trying to catch up to the speeding Fairlady Z. On the second left-hander that followed after a short straight coming out of the previous corner, Okami kept on the inside lane with full grip, passing the van that was on the outside as if it wasn't there, the other two cars followed, but the gap wasn't shortening much. Passing the Miyakesaka C1 exit ramp, all three cars were in hot pursuit of one another. Toshiya was trying to pace Yuki up by tailgating him closer, and Yuki obliged, both cars now increasing pace to catch up to Okami's S30 that was breezing through the road. Subtly changing lines to avoid traffic as they cleared the following corners, the FD and the Supra slowly inched closer to the S30. On the final right-hander of the tunnel, the S30 went through the corner using a smooth grip line and headed out of Kasumigaseki tunnel with a comfortable lead. Meanwhile, the two cars of the spectators fell back starting from the trio's entry into Kasumigaseki. The increase in pace was sudden and unexpected, leaving both the GTO and the Evo behind. "What...just happened?" a stunned Hana asked, a moment earlier she could still see the rear of Toshiya's Supra and a little further in front was the rear of Yuki's FD, not a moment too soon later and they just disappeared. "They're starting to go all out, we won't be able to keep up with them much longer." said Ryu, he knew that even without everyone else inside the car, there wouldn't be a chance for him to catch up to everyone. He then looked at the GTO just ahead of them "Tomohiro-san knows that too." he said. The rivaling cars enter the Akasaka straight and there, Yuki and Toshiya started to make their move. The road was clear of traffic, and all three cars went on full throttle, the FD and the Supra rapidly catching up to the Z. Yuki had taken the left lane, followed behind by Toshiya, while Okami was stepping as hard as he could on the gas as all cars hit top gear along the whole straight. The FD hit 300km/h a hundred meters before the left hander that followed the straight, the Supra too was cruising at over 300km/h behind the FD while the S30 was struggling to accelerate after it hit 295km/h. Yuki's FD was slowly surrounded by a red aura as the car continued to run at high-speed, and as he neared the Iikura IC, he quickly swerved to the outside and attacked the left hander at full throttle, his car going into a power drift which he was able control. The FD had snatched the lead from the S30 and was now attacking aggressively, the Supra following behind the rotary while the S30 now trailing behind. Yuki was not finished yet, as he was still continuing to drive at full throttle The rules of this area are clear, what you lack in precision, you compensate for with power. Attacking without hesitation, that's how I drive. The FD is an amazing machine, to be able to handle such power...the rotary engine, nothing compares to this. The car just tells you to push on, even when it doesn't look like it will work, but once you continue to attack, the car just does everything for you. he thought. "The Spirit of the Fire...Yuki's not holding back anymore." said Akemi. After Okami released his potential, I guess it was pretty inevitable that Yuki too, would follow. The smooth, unbounded ability to handle the car with precise control, the potential they call the spirit of the wind...and the relentless attack that stops for nothing, the one they call the spirit of the fire. The hidden potential cased within highly-skilled drivers, unlocking their extremes and pushing their abilities and their cars to the limit. she thought. Once the spectator cars have reached the Akasaka straight, the others cars were nowhere to be seen. They had been left behind and catching up was now near impossible, Tomohiro drove in front of the Evo and turned his hazard lights on. Ryu, surprised at the action, moved his car beside the GTO and rolled down his window. "What are we gonna do now, Tomohiro-san?" he asked as Tomohiro lowered his passenger side windows as well. "The finish line is at the end of Yokohane line heading towards C1, we won't be able to catch up with them now, much less when they hit the Wangan-sen, I think it's best if we wait there at the finish instead of hauling our asses when it's not even getting us close." replied Tomohiro. Meanwhile on the S-curves of Shiba Park, Okami noticed a lapse in Toshiya's driving line and proceeded to take advantage of it, accelerating into the corner with a fast drift, Okami effectively blocked any counter Toshiya would have made, and easily passed him on the right part of the first S-curve, using an inertial drift to take the other half of the first S-curve, closing the gap to the attacking FD by a short distance. Using grip cornering on the second S-curve, Okami closed the distance to the FD some more, and was now within range for another attack. Taking the road away from C1 once they hit the Shiba Park JCT and going onto the New Belt Line, the S30 was still in hot pursuit of the FD. Okami, trying to find blind spots in Yuki's driving, while the latter continues his relentless aggressive cornering to shun any of Okami's attempts at snaking into the lead. Toshiya's Supra meanwhile, was sort of lagging, it was running in the same pace as the other two cars, but it doesn't seem to be doing anything to close the gap. Okami looked at his rearview mirrors to see the Supra running behind him, not showing any signs of attack nor showing any signs of forfeiting. Toshiya's been pretty neutral since the start, I wonder if he's planning something. he wondered. Once they reached the stretch heading towards Rainbow Bridge, Okami kept on the tail of the FD, using the slipstream to get closer. All three cars were now running at speeds over 250km/h as they passed through Rainbow Bridge heading towards Daiba IC, Yuki's FD was running at 280km/h while Okami in the slipstream was running at 285km/h, the Supra behind was keeping a constant pace of 280km/h. Ariake...will something happen this time around? wondered Yuki as they neared the Ariake JCT. He was still in the lead, Okami close behind his rear bumper but not attempting any attack, and Toshiya was about 10m behind them. Applying the brakes weakly as they reached Ariake, Yuki attacked the corner with a high-speed drift, keeping his front bumper close to the inside to avoid any sudden attacks. Okami followed with his own drift, keeping close to the FD to hopefully get a slingshot into the lead. What they didn't expect was that as they were drifting, Toshiya's Supra had also gone into a drift, but with a lesser angle and much more speed than them, in less than a second, Toshiya was already beside Okami's Z. As all three cars straightened out, the Supra, having the fastest speed going into the drift, quickly accelerated into the lead, catching both Okami and Yuki off-guard. The two drivers then saw that Toshiya's Supra now had the deep purple aura around it. Toshiya, he's really saved his cards for the Wangan thought Yuki, shaking his head as he was passed by the speeding Supra. The Spirit of the Shadow, I expected it sooner, but right now everyone's played their aces, there's no room for mistakes from here on. thought Okami, going full throttle as the cars drive down the ramp merging onto the Wangan Line. In the Supra, Akemi's eyes widened at Toshiya, she didn't expect him to pull off a maneuver like that. Her surprise disappeared quickly though, as she saw the serious expression he had on his face, he wasn't holding anything back this time. The unpredictability that not even the most analytical can read, the potential holding a delicate balance of aggression and precision...the spirit of the shadow. Now that they all released their potentials, it's going to be a battle of attrition, who can hold out longest. But what is this other feeling...it's as if Toshiya's still hiding something, like he's got another ace to play. she wondered. The cars finally hit the Wangan Line and without any signal, everyone steps flat on the throttle, their tachometers redlining and shifting up simultaneously. The cars were accelerating harder than before, 200...220...250...270, as if the speed climb was never going to end. The Wangan Line would test the car's power to its fullest, and the driver's courage to the extreme. Driving past traffic, all three cars blazed along the long stretch of road, signaling the start of their top speed sprint battle.

This post has been edited by Antares on Oct 21 2012, 05:31 AM

finally starting to go supernatural ehh
haha
that really puts a new twist to the storyline
XD

Here's chapter 13, but this isn't the final chapter of the arc just yet.

Sorry for the long wait, I hope everyone enjoys this chapter and please leave a comment or suggestion for this chapter, it would be greatly appreciated.

CHAPTER 13 ~ Bayshore Cadenza
_______________________________

- - - 2315 Hours, Ariake JCT, Wangan - - -

Toshiya's sudden attack entering Ariake JCT earned him the lead, despite the defensive lines of both Yuki and Okami. The situation was somewhat reminiscent of the race two years, where Toshiya rocketed into the lead at the same spot in Ariake, but the circumstances before that were different, it was a Deja Vu, but Okami and Yuki were not planning to let it continue into another one-sided sprint along Wangan, they had their real trump cards in reserve for this moment.

The Supra drove down onto the Wangan-sen and immediately went full throttle, reaching speed of over 300km/h in lesser time than one can even notice. It definitely had an acceleration advantage, but the FD and the S30 were strongly behind, not willing to fall back. Reaching speeds as fast as 320km/h as they went past the 13th Region IC, all cars were nearing redline on top gear, the high speeds creating a tunnel vision where their focus remains on the road ahead.

It's now or never, I'm not planning to keep this trump card hidden for later. thought Okami, he then reached onto his car's center console and pressed a button there. The effect was nearly instantaneous, as he felt himself pushed harder onto his seat by the sudden jump in acceleration. It was the same overboost program installed in the S30's ECU, the same program he used two years to catch up to the Supra, only this time it was modified to the specifications of his new VG30 engine. The S30 found itself quickly climbing to 340km/h, passing the FD running side by side with it, and rapidly catching up to the Supra in front.

Yuki, meanwhile, was not fazed when he saw the S30 accelerate ahead of him. That Okami, he hasn't let go of that boost program, it seems, but I've got something to balance my odds out as well. he thought as he stepped deeper on the gas. The FD accelerating at the same pace as the S30, catching up to it and the Supra. There's only one rule on these streets, if you can't beat something with pinpoint precision, you overcome that gap with sheer power. More power and more torque, that rule is what the high speed roads of Wangan and Yokohane have in common. The 20B engine itself was Yuki's trump card, though the engine was tuned to have the same power output as his old 13B, it was further refined to have a greater acceleration value, combining the high speed potential of the three-rotor engine and the new single turbine that is more advantageous on high speeds.

Akemi heard the engine sounds of both cars were getting louder, and when she looked at the rearview mirror, she saw both of them quickly closing in on the Supra. Those two, they are seriously planning to challenge the Wangan emperor on his own road? she thought as she saw the red aura on the FD and the blue aura on the S30 become brighter. No, this is what their true aces are, they knew they'd lose to Toshiya if they couldn't challenge him at the Wangan, after all, Yokohane is too fast and narrow to even make a passing attempt, not to mention crazy and outright dangerous. she then fixed her eyes on Toshiya He still has that serious look on his face, but has his pace dropped so much, or did those two cars just become that much faster? she wondered. She could still feel the aura from him but for some reason, she found the current situation odd for Toshiya, it wasn't like him to be caught easily on the road he was known to be the fastest.

As all cars headed inside Haneda tunnel at 340km/h, Toshiya looked at his tachometer Running at 6800rpm the speed is still as it should be, but why does it feel that it's not running at its fullest? Something's off, like the engine has lost its true speed, or is it just me that's not going all out? His doubt filled his mind as they all blazed down Haneda tunnel, and before he even noticed, the S30 on the right lane and the FD on the left were flanking him from both sides and were slowly inching towards the Supra. He was taken by surprise and for a split second his foot eased on the throttle, and his speed dropped slightly, effectively surrendering the fight for the lead to the other two cars. His focused snapped for that split second, but it proved enough to cost him the lead.

Akemi couldn't believe what she just saw, Toshiya was passed on the Wangan line, and when she turned to look, her eyes narrowed as she noticed his wandering eyes "What happened?" she asked. This isn't like him, something was bothering him, and it was enough to snap him out...I couldn't feel his aura anymore, this is gonna be bad. she thought as she looked at him worryingly.

The three cars accelerated out of Haneda tunnel and were quickly approaching Ooi JCT. Okami's car was passed by Yuki's FD as they got out of the tunnel, having the advantage on the lines as the junction was on the left side. Okami had to steer left to get inbound of the junction entrance, at the cost of some speed which was enough to let the FD past. Toshiya's Supra was slowly gaining ground though, but the earlier lapse had generated quite the lead for the two cars.

No stupid trucks this time around, that's good. thought Okami as they drove along the left hand side of the road with no traffic nearby. The FD lead the trio as they went up the ramp of Ooi JCT and were now heading for the last stretch of their race, the Yokohane line. Now this is where the unknown starts, Yuki obviously has the edge here with his track knowledge, but who knows, maybe luck might be on my side this time around. Okami then thought about what happened with Toshiya just a few moments ago Toshiya...he's definitely not playing with us nor has he forfeited, I'm gonna guess something came up with him to just suddenly let off the gas. Whatever that is, it might have just cost him the race, Yokohane's narrow roads aren't really gonna help the size of his car, and we sure as hell ain't gonna let anyone pass.

Toshiya went back to his thoughts after they got on the junction. Driving behind the Z right now, I guess I still haven't come to terms with the accident two years ago. It's still clear in my mind, how it all happened, how the Z flew up in the air and landed on the guardrail on the other side of the Wangan. Maybe I was too scared that it would happen again, when we hit the Wangan it all replayed in my mind, I was probably dwelling on it too much that I thought I was in that situation again. he thought. He glanced at Akemi from the corner of his eye and saw that she still had the worried look on her face. He sighed before he spoke to her "Sorry, the accident two years ago...it just suddenly returned to me." he said.

Akemi's gaze trailed from Toshiya down to her hands, she knew the crash had affected Toshiya in a way, but she couldn't help but understand how he felt. Knowing that he puts the safety of everyone around him first whenever he's out here, that accident might have affected him more than I imagined. Makes me wonder how the accident felt like, seeing it firsthand...

- - - 2315 Hours, Shibaura, Yokohane - - -

Left behind by the racing trio, Synchro BLiTZ along with Tomohiro decided to head to the finish line instead of hopelessly trying to keep up with Toshiya and the others. Tomohiro lead them to Shibaura Interchange on the Yokohane line, and they had parked the Evo V and the GTO on the shoulder lanes to avoid causing any disturbances with the midnight traffic. They all got out of their cars and looked at the long stretch of Yokohane, waiting for the three cars to cross.

"I wonder who will win, it seems their cars are equally fast, after all." said Shinichi. "But still, to have that kind of pace around C1 is crazy, I couldn't do that even if I wanted to." he added.

"With that kind of speed, it's no surprise they were called the fastest on Shutokou." said Ryu, he then looked over his Evo "Even if I tried my hardest to keep up with them, along C1 which we know so well, it was no use. Those guys are on a league of their own." he added.

"But don't you guys find it weird?" asked Lia, she sounded like she had been thinking about something for quite a while, her question earned her questioning looks from everyone "Toshiya-san was a part of a team all along, yet he still went on with Synchro BLiTZ. Makes me wonder why he went on with it now that the Society is getting back together." she said.

Tomohiro, who was silently looking at the distance, waiting to hear the exhaust notes of the three car, walked over to Synchro BLiTZ. "That's because the Society itself disappeared without a trace, leaving everyone free to do what they want. Takahashi didn't want to stop racing like the others, so he went on to form his own team, a team with members he picked out himself." he said. "That means for each one of you, he has a good reason for choosing you to be part of your team." he added.

"But now that he's obviously returned to the SS Society, what happens to us?" asked Lia, she wanted a good reason why Toshiya would just show up as a member of a different team all of a sudden.

"Think about it for a moment, the SS Society themselves have reached out to you, and that's when Takahashi was a no-show, right?" replied Tomohiro "I've known those three for the past two years, and I can safely say Takahashi doesn't make decisions on a whim, he always has everything planned out." he added.

"Speaking of knowing them, how did you even meet them, Tomohiro-san?" asked Takeshi, remembering how Yuki mentioned knowing Tomohiro.

"It was right after word got out of the Society's disappearance that I met them." began Tomohiro "Back then, Apollo Speed Racing was just a small team, with only me, Hirose and Kimura. We were colleagues at work and we always drove along the New Belt after work. I was always driving my fastest along the New Belt, and I was quite known with the locals then, until I encountered the three of them. They happened to be driving around New Belt, but even then, their level of speed was different. They were exceptionally fast, but I didn't know they were part of the Society until they told me, they didn't have the flashers or the stickers on their cars back then."

"So the team did become disbanded?" asked Ryu

"No, the Shutokou Saisoku Society was pretty much in hiatus during the past two years. They just disassociated themselves to avoid anyone asking about the team's status, because they too didn't know what was up when the rest of the team just went up and disappeared." replied Tomohiro "Anyway, that's how I came to know Takahashi, Toji and Kodokuna. Those three always ran together, and sometimes, they even had the girl driving the black import tagging along." he added

Hana thought for a moment about the other person Tomohiro was referring to "A black import? Do you mean Sayuki-san, the one with the black BMW?" she asked

"Yeah, that's the one. I'm pretty sure she was Takahashi's girlfriend back then, they were always together every time we're at a PA, after all." replied Tomohiro, he was then confused with the reaction of everyone else. They all had shocked looks on their faces, leaving Tomo to wonder why. "What? You guys didn't know?" he asked.

"No! Ah, I mean, he never told us." replied Hana. She was surprised to hear her cousin had a girlfriend, but more surprising was that he never told her about it. "And I thought I was family..." she muttered to herself in mock annoyance.

"Same here." said Lia "But I never expected it to be Sayuki-san...so that's why they were together earlier at Ginza." she added

It was now Tomohiro's turn to be surprised. "Really? I didn't recall seeing her earlier at the PA though." he said.

"She was already inside Toshiya-san's car when you arrived, Tomo-san." replied Takeshi

"Hmm...I see, well I guess that doesn't change the circumstances of the race much." said Tomohiro, he then looked at his wristwatch "It's been 10 minutes since we went off from C1, those guys are bound to be here anytime soon. Wangan going up to Ooi then down to Yokohane won't take that long anyway." he said.

- - - 2320 Hours, Ooi U-turn exit, Yokohane - - -

The three cars headed down from the Ooi U-turn ramp down onto the latter part of the upward Yokohane line, it was only 2 kilometers left before the finish, and if anyone was going to make a move for the win, they had to do it here. Yuki's FD accelerated out as it went on the Yokohane, followed closely behind by Okami's Z and Toshiya's Supra, which seemed to be running back on pace.

"I'm going all out here, I just want to win this race right now." said Toshiya, his expression returning to the serious one that Akemi noted earlier. There's no other place for me to attack, I'm just going to have to exploit every single loophole in their defenses and thread the needle. he thought.

Akemi noticed Toshiya's face change, and smiled slightly He's back to his old self, I can sense the aura has resurfaced, but there's another along with it... she then pondered on the 'other one' that she sensed, and her eyes widened as she realized Could it be!?

The Yokohane Line was a fast curving road, offering a better challenge of technicality than Wangan, but a slightly slower speed. Nonetheless, all three drivers were racing flat out, none wanting to give up their attacks. On the long straight down from Ooi ramp, Toshiya slipped out from Okami's slipstream and accelerated hard beside him, there was no traffic and the power advantage of the Supra was obvious, the naked carbon-bodied car was slowly inching ahead of the silver Z.

Okami gritted his teeth as he saw the Supra gradually going past his car The overboost was only meant to last for a full minute, and I had saved all of it just for the Wangan. It also meant that after I've used it, the program would shut down and cannot be used until it is reset, right now I won't be able to put up much of a resistance to this...damn Toshiya, never knew he was still in the game. He simply watched as the Supra completely overtook the Z before they entered the long winding left, on which Toshiya still held his ground and was now looking to attack Yuki's FD.

Both Toshiya and Okami knew that it wasn't going to be easy to overtake Yuki on the Yokohane Line, the road where he was notoriously fast. Toshiya of course, put that in mind as his Supra, with its more powerful engine, slowly inched towards the rear of the FD. The Winged Mist of Yokohane, even within the top 10, he was hailed as the strongest of this road. Many have tried to pass him, few have found success, but no one could leave him behind. he thought.

The winding corners of Yokohane were fast, faster than even the widest corners of the Inner Circular Line, all three cars were cornering at over 250km/h and were clearing the guardrails by mere inches on corner exit. They were racing on the limit, but the finish was getting closer and closer. Yuki looked behind him and saw that Toshiya was slowly closing in, but surprisingly, he couldn't see any aura now. What the...that's odd, he's catching up to me but I can't see the unlocked potential. Heh, that really won't matter if I can just keep the lead here... he thought as he focused on clearing the inside lines as close as possible to avoid any sudden attacks, while Toshiya was staying behind him by mere inches. If I can't shake him here then he's gonna be able to attack at the last straight, I have to push harder. he thought.

They were rapidly closing in on the Shibaura Interchange and at the last winding left corner, for a moment, Yuki felt his hands numb at the steering wheel, and his right foot unconsciously ease off the gas. As a result, he turned into the corner a split second too late, and at a slower speed than he would have wanted. He then saw Toshiya's Supra quickly go past him as he recovered from that momentary lapse. What the heck...just happened. I lost feel on my hands and my foot just moved on its own for but a moment... he thought as he looked on the speeding Supra with a shocked expression.

Okami too was left confused as to what happened. A few seconds earlier he saw the FD strongly in the lead and moments later an uncharacteristic mistake from Yuki, it was sort of unbelievable. It's not that his focus faded for that moment, as a driver's focus is supposed to be constant while under the aura, and he clearly had it on...but Toshiya...how could he be so fast without his aura...or could it be because he's finally found a way to mask his aura? he wondered, but he then saw that Yuki was still off-guard and he quickly went full throttle to jump on the dropped defense. Don't gawk at it too much, Yuki!

Yuki heard a loud exhaust note closing in from behind, and before he could look, he saw that Okami's Fairlady Z was already beside him. He quickly snapped out of his trance and got back on the throttle on the final straight heading towards Shibaura IC. The S30 was ahead by a bit but the FD was slowly closing in on the side, there was traffic on the right hand side, where the FD was, so whoever gets half of their car ahead once they reach traffic, gets the advantage.

Toshiya's Supra was well ahead of the group, sitting comfortably in the lead driving on the left lane, but about 500m from Shibaura, the traffic from the right lane turned on its left signal lane and slowly started to swerve in to the left lane. Time seemed to slow for Toshiya and he gauged that he would make it past the traffic by just simply speeding ahead, but when he got closer--No! he stepped on the brakes and turned to the right lane. I couldn't do it...not when Akemi's with me... he thought.

Akemi too, knew that they would make it if Toshiya kept on the gas, she was confused at his sudden hesitation and opted to ask. "You could've made it, why'd you pull back?" she asked.

"It's not worth it, I've already won, and I won't give up the victory with a reckless risk like that...not when it's not just me that's gonna pay when things go wrong." calmly replied Toshiya as he got back on the gas heading towards Shibaura. As he passed the interchange, he saw Ryu's Evo and Tomohiro's GTO parked on the side, along with the members of Synchro BLiTZ cheering him on as he went past them.

Meanwhile, the battle between the FD and the Z was still hot, with neither driver letting up as they neared traffic. The battle was still close, with the FD only a quarter car length ahead as they came dangerously close to traffic, both drivers shifting to 5th gear. With better torque at top gear though, Yuki was able to get more of the FD's front ahead and when he steered in to the left, he was surprised to find no resistance from the Z. Okami had backed off at the last moment, knowing that Yuki had the advantage on the straights and it would've ended in another crash if he hadn't.

Sometimes, a victory costs too much. It's alright like this, as long as we were able to use everything we had, I'm fine with that. thought Okami as both he and Yuki passed by Shibaura. I technically won at C1, Yuki took Wangan and surprisingly, Toshiya made it back in Yokohane, it's quits for us three and I think they're fine with that as well. I guess nothing changed in the rankings but surely in some way...we all did.

That was one heck of a race...it's not my win as I hoped, but still, that was the greatest race I've had in some time. thought Yuki as he turned on his signal lights and drove behind Toshiya's Supra, which had slowed down after crossing Shibaura. Toshiya...you're one hell of a driver...always the unexpected. It's strange though, how the hell did I lose my feel at that corner, and it seems so well-timed with the Supra chasing me down...wait, don't tell me...nah, it couldn't be Toshiya's doing, I'm just thinking about it too much.

- - - 2330 Hours, Shiba Park PA, C1 - - -

Tomohiro and the Synchro BLiTZ folk quickly got into their cars and followed the trio as they headed down the nearest parking area, Shiba Park. Setting their cars beside each other on the empty PA, everyone got out of their cars and immediately headed for the kiosk to get some cold refreshments.

"Finally, it's done." said Okami after taking a sip from his can of iced coffee.

"Yeah, we managed to make it through all in one piece this time around." added Yuki, who had just finished his can of lime soda.

"It's a pretty equal result, each stage had its winner." said Akemi, holding her cola can with both her hands. She then placed her beverage on the nearby ledge and reached inside her blazer pocket, holding out the three ranking badges a moment later. "No change in rankings, everyone keeps their badges." she said.

The three drivers picked out their badges from Akemi and pinned them back to the lapels of their jackets.

"I guess it's not my time to move up yet." jokingly said Okami.

"I'll be keeping this for now, but I'm definitely gonna get you back, Toshiya." said Yuki.

"Don't fret, Yuki, you'll be racing to get the number 1 badge from me next time." replied Toshiya. "He still owes me that rematch, after all." he added, looking down on the number 3 badge on his jacket that he held with his fingers. He then turned to face the guys of Synchro BLiTZ "Anyway, I hope we didn't give you guys too much trouble." he said.

"Don't worry about it senpai." replied Ryu. He was practically driving a time attack pace back there, but with the higher level of speed the cars had along with the highly skilled drivers, it somehow proved futile, but nevertheless, he got a bit of a token out of it "At least I was able to get a bit of practice out there." he said

"You guys were running pretty fast, and those cars are really something else, it's no wonder we weren't able to catch up." added Shinichi, the whole time they were behind he was in awe of how fast the three cars were going along C1.

"That's just because of our cars, normal drivers won't be able to keep up for even a minute with us no matter how good their cars are." said Okami "You were pretty good in sticking up until Kasumigaseki." he added before finishing his iced coffee and walking back to his car. "I'm heading home now, I remembered I still have a work meeting at 8am." he said.

"You take care now." said Akemi. Okami simply waved his hand as he continued to his Z, quickly getting inside and starting the engine, driving out of the parking area a few seconds later. Akemi then turned to Yuki "What about you? Don't you have any appointments for tomorrow?" she asked.

"Why do I feel like you want me out of here, Ake-chan?" jokingly asked Yuki, ignoring the glare he received from Akemi at what he called her "As for appointments, fortunately, I got the afternoon shifts for tomorrow so I have all morning to sleep through." he said. "I'm probably gonna head home as well, since I have nothing more to do here." he added as he threw his soda can on the nearby bin and started to head to his FD. As he got to the door of his FD though, he stopped and looked back at the kiosk "Toshi! Come over here, I forgot to ask you something!" he called out

"Wonder what it could be this time?" muttered Toshiya as he walked towards Yuki and the FD. "What is it?" he asked as he got near.

"It's rather simple." began Yuki "Are you planning to make up with Akemi, Toshiya?" he asked. He had an expression on his face that meant he was serious about it and not joking around.

Toshiya took a few moments before answering "I'm working on it, I don't know why I even bothered to begin with...but I guess I just couldn't resist." he said "When I first got the call about the group coming back together, she was the first thing that came into mind. Where we left off, how we arrived at that point and what happened after." he added

"I see, well with the way things looked I'm pretty sure you're on the right track. She let you stay in with her, after all." said Yuki "Anyway, that's all I wanted to ask. It just occurred to me when I saw you with her tonight."

"I'm not even sure things will get better even if we get back together, though." said Toshiya, his tone was completely filled with concern. "I don't want to make all of this pointless."

"Then I guess you two just need to work something out so things will go better this time around." said Yuki, his tone equally concerned "Time was never a reason for both of you, I hope you keep that in mind." he added before getting into his FD and starting the engine. Before he left, he slid down his window, looking out at Toshiya "I'll be seeing you next week then." he said before driving out of the PA. The exhaust notes echoing around as Toshiya stared on the car leaving the parking area.

Toshiya then made his way back to the kiosk where everyone else was waiting, he once again turned to Ryu and the rest of Synchro BLiTZ. "I'll be on the garage tomorrow afternoon, so I guess I'll be seeing you then." he said to them before turning to Tomohiro "Still, I never expected to see you here tonight, Tomo-san." he said

"Nah, I just put two and two together and came to see what was up. It was a good race, Takahashi, I'm glad to see you like the old days." replied Tomohiro "If you'll excuse me though, it's been a long night and I still have work tomorrow, I'll be on my way if you don't mind." he said before making his way to his purple GTO,

"Not at all, it's been a good night." replied Toshiya, looking on as Tomohiro got on his car and drove out of the PA. He then turned back to the Synchro BLiTZ folk "What about you guys, aren't you going home yet?" he asked.

"We were just about to head on, thought you might lead the way?" replied Ryu.

"You go on ahead, I still need to drive Akemi back to her apartment and get my stuff from there." said Toshiya.

"Oh, alright, you two take care now." said Hana, visibly disappointed at Toshiya not coming with them.

"Hana-chan, I know you have a lot to hit me for, but I promise I'll be there tomorrow." said Toshiya, noticing the displeased look on his cousin's face. "We'll be heading out as well, but we'd be taking the inward exit." he added.

"Okay, see you tomorrow then, senpai?" asked Ryu

"Yeah, tomorrow." replied Toshiya. Everyone then made their way back to their cars and went their separate ways. Ryu drove everyone back to their homes before heading on home himself, while Toshiya arrived at Akemi's place a few minutes after leaving the parking area. Taking his belongings that he brought along when he stayed, Toshiya put his bag on the trunk of his car as he made his way outside of Akemi's apartment.

"See you next week then?" asked Akemi as Toshiya set his things on his car.

Toshiya waited for a few moments before answering her "How about you come over to the garage tomorrow? I want to talk to you about something." he asked her.

Akemi looked as if she was thinking about the offer for a moment "Sure, tomorrow's my day off anyway." she said.

Toshiya smiled at her reply "Great. You know the place right?" he asked.

"It's just off Edo Bridge right? About two blocks off? What time?" said Akemi, she remembered him talking about the garage before but only remembered the location.

"Yeah, would 3pm be alright?" replied Toshiya

"It's okay, but didn't you tell your team to meet you in the afternoon?" said Akemi, recalling Toshiya's conversation with the rest of Synchro BLiTZ earlier at the PA.

"It's alright, I'm sure they'd be coming in late after all." said Toshiya. He then moved over to the driver side door and got inside, rolling down his windows and looking out at Akemi "Tomorrow then?" he asked

Akemi flashed him a gentle smile "Yeah, see you tomorrow. Good night, Toshi." she said

"Good night, Akemi." replied Toshiya as he started the engine "Thanks for letting me stay." he said before he drove off. Yuki's right, we just need to work something out this time around...but would she be alright with it, I wonder? I know how hurt she was with how things ended last time...I was too, but thinking about how it must have felt for her hurt me more. I want to see this through, no matter what.

Akemi got back inside her apartment room and leaned with her back on the door after getting in, looking down on the floor, deep in thought about something. I can see what Toshi's planning, I know I still have feelings for him...but I don't want things to end like they did a year ago...it's been too much. I guess I just have to see if my fairytale dream of a relationship would still become a reality... she then shook her head at her last thought How childish of me, but maybe that's just what I honestly feel.
_______________________________

I'm trying this new non-spoiler format since the thoughts aren't really that noticeable with the spoiler. It's not something I'm used to but I'm probably going to edit this one more.

EDIT 1: Turned the thoughts into different colored texts to differentiate them, looks quite well enough.
EDIT 2: Colored the location text to act as sort of a marker, not sure about the color choice though, might have to think more on it.

It's turning out to be a lot of work, since I write the story first on MS Word before copying and formatting it over here, but with the way it looks I think it's worth the time.


[ Post merged on Oct 28 2012, 08:58 PM ]

It's more of a theory surrounding a certain phenomena than a supernatural feat, it would be explained further in the future though.

This post has been edited by Antares on Oct 28 2012, 08:54 PM

So while working on Chapter 14, I was hit with this idea of doing a little background on the top 10 drivers of the Shutokou Saisoku Society. It's not some sort of a spoiler though, it's just to give you guys a little idea of what to expect from Saisoku no Gaiden's equivalent of the Mid Night Club.

Anyway, here you go! Chapter 14 will come in the weekend, school has been pretty busy even when we were still in the first week but I'll make sure to get it finished by then.

- - - Shutokou Saisoku Society - - -
Among the known teams around the Shuto Expressway, the Shutokou Saisoku Society is undoubtedly the most famous. Formed three years prior to the start of the story, the SS Society has risen up the ranks of Shutokou nearly overnight, their speed unmatched everywhere.

What probably was the greatest asset of the team to their rapid rise to the top was their top 10 drivers, the group that was known as the "Shikojuu" or the Supreme Ten. These drivers gained fame as the fastest of the group, and eventually, the fastest of Shutokou. In the year that brought the Society to the throne of Shutokou, no one could rival the speed of these drivers but themselves, they were the true elites of the road.

- - - Shikojuu, the Supreme Ten - - -

#10 - "The Paragon of Speed"
Car: Subaru Impreza WRX STi [GDB]
Gender: Male
Known for being a jack-of-all-trades, a driver that can take any car and adapt to it with no difficulty. He can also adapt to all racing conditions, whether it rains or whether traffic density is too high, he can quickly come up with a strategy to use the situation to his advantage.

#9 - "The Duelist"
Car: Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution VIII [CT9A]
Gender: Male
A specialist of 4WD cars, his driving ability is further amplified by his car that he had completed himself. His title comes from his driving style, where he likes to race in conditions that are to his opponent's advantage, attacking at their strong points to force a duel of pure skill.

#8 - "The Midnight Princess"
Car: BMW M3 [E92]
Gender: Female
Her extraordinary vehicle choice has gained fame enough to be considered the most famous member of the Society. Her car's high performance combined with her equally high driving ability and analytical skills allow her to catch opponents off guard with her tactical traps and speed away to victory.

#7 - "The Shadow Devil"
Car: Nissan Fairlady Z [S30]
Gender: Male
His car may be old, but underneath it is a powerhouse that most would think of as unimaginable for a car of that generation. A highly skilled driver in his own right, he can pull off maneuvers that others would find impossible. Though unconventional, his driving is smooth as silk, as he knows his car inside and out.

#6 - "The Ice Queen"
Car: Nissan Silvia Spec-R [S15]
Gender: Female
The uncanny ability to pinpoint blind spots in her opponent's driving is what brought her to be part of the Shikojuu. Her car has been tuned to her preferences down to the minute details, allowing her full control at any situation. Her title comes from her personality, and it is said that her piercing gaze freezes her opponents on the spot.

#5 - "The Winged Mist"
Car: Mazda RX-7 Type R [FD3S]
Gender: Male
This rotary specialist brought his knowledge and his skill together to become a force to be reckoned with on Shutokou. His driving style always keeps opponents on their feet, as he is known for calmly observing his opponents from behind and attacking fiercely at even the smallest lapse he sees in their defenses.

#4 - "The Arrow"
Car: Porsche Cayman S [987c]
Gender: Male
A sprint race specialist, he is unrivaled when it comes to battles of raw power, as his car is heavily tuned for top speed and acceleration. He is not one to be underestimated on the technical courses though, as his skill level allows him to control his powerful car on even the tightest roads.

#3 - "The Black Scorpion"
Car: Toyota Supra RZ [JZA80]
Gender: Male
Known as the Emperor of Wangan, his car is unrivaled when it comes to the straights of the Bayshore Route. Sophisticated upgrades combined with extensive knowledge of cars, he is one of the most well-rounded drivers of Shutokou. His title comes from his incredible defense, one that wears opponents out before they could even break it.

#2 - "The Alchemist"
Car: Nissan Fairlady Z [Z33]
Gender: Male
A renowned tuner, this driver puts his skills on the table combined with his supreme knowledge of how his car works. He has had many cars in the past but his Z33 remains to be the fastest one he's ever used. His title comes from the way he can create high powered yet efficient tuning out of practically any engine.

#1 - "The Demigod"
Car: Nissan Skyline GT-R V-spec II [BNR34]
Gender: Male
Naturally gifted driving skills and a special ability quickly propelled him to the peak of Shutokou. A well balanced GT-R paired with tuning from The Alchemist turned his car into a formidable weapon. His ability to foresee his opponent's moves as if he was reading their mind and take advantage with a counter has earned him his fitting title.

loving the new format
makes it easier to read
sucks for the new grey font though
it's bloody hard to read
XD

This post has been edited by Solstice on Nov 13 2012, 05:16 AM

First of all, sorry for the extremely long wait (again ), things got way busier now that the second semester has started. I tried my best to give time to make this but with school stuff and family matters appearing out of nowhere, that time grew shorter and shorter. As I promised though, I made sure to release chapter 14 in the weekends. Believe me, I was afraid I won't make it after we rushed my grandma to the hospital yesterday, but thankfully it wasn't anything drastic and my parents along with my aunt are looking after her now.

Anyway, I bring everyone the newest chapter of Saisoku no Gaiden. I'll tell you right now though, there won't be any racing in this chapter, but instead, expect more story telling. But I can assure you that this story telling would be pretty interesting.

That's about enough of me talking here, I hope everyone enjoys this chapter as much as I did writing it, and please leave a comment or critique, it would definitely be well-appreciated.

CHAPTER 14 ~ Over Parfait and Coffee
_______________________________

Legend: 'Thoughts' ----- 'Setting markers'
- - - 1300 Hours, Speed Works Toshi, Tokyo - - -

The next day, everyone of Synchro BLiTZ had agreed to meet up at the garage in the afternoon, and while everyone was still attending to their own matters in the earlier half of the day, Lia had already arrived at the garage, having only dropped by her studio for a short while. She parked her MX5 on the garage's parking spaces, picking the spot that was somehow covered by the shade of the nearby tree.

As she got out of her car she looked over herself on the window's reflection, it was quite a warm day so she had picked an outfit to match the warm weather. She had a purple dress shirt with sleeves rolled up to her elbows that she wore open buttoned, revealing her white tank top inside, black skinny jeans that ended just above her knee and black and white low-top sneakers while her strawberry blonde hair was tied up in a low ponytail.

After looking around the garage for a while she started to make her way inside, where she saw Hana's Z32 raised on one of the hydraulic jacks with someone working under the car, clad in a gray mechanic's tracksuit "Hello?" she called out to get the person's attention.

"Lia-nee?" The person walked out from under the car and looked at Lia, who immediately recognized who it was.

"Oh Hana-chan, I thought it was someone else." said Lia as she walked towards Hana, taking a look at under the Z as she got near "What are you doing here so early?" she asked

"Well, I came up with an idea for a suspension setup after last night and I thought I'd try it out with my car first." replied Hana as she started inspecting the springs and dampers on all four corners. "The effect won't be as great on my Z compared to how it would be to your cars since all of them are already equipped with coilovers." she added, she continued looking at the underbody of the car. After a while though, she noticed Lia was still there, and when she turned to look, she saw Lia smiling at her, and was surprised. "What's with that look, Lia-nee?" she asked

Lia shook her head in response "It's nothing, just that I've never seen you work so much. I can tell you're motivated by something." she said.

"It's not what you think, Lia-nee." quickly replied Hana "But you're right, seeing Toshi-niichan last night, I can't help but feel more motivated. I've never wanted to be out there with everyone so badly." she said. Her tone was serious, clearly implying that she was not kidding, she wanted to do everything she could to be out there at the same pace as Lia and the others.

Lia then took a step back and looked up at the Z32 raised on the hydraulic jack, something then caught her attention. That Toshiya-san...he's always the sly one she then turned to Hana "Could you lower the car down for a moment?" she asked.

"Sure, I was about to check on the engine next anyway." replied Hana before she walked out from under the car and went to the side of the jacks and pressed a button on the control panel. The Z32 slowly lowered to the floor and when Hana walked over to the front to open the hood she saw something on the windshield of the car, something that wasn't there before. "Wait!? Is that?" she was obviously surprised by what she saw, and was left speechless as her eyes widened, recognizing the white sticker that was stretched across the upper end of the window.

"It seems Toshiya-san has given you the go signal, and then some more." said Lia, even though she couldn't see Hana's expression, she knew she was overwhelmed at the very least. "I guess it's right for me to say this now, welcome to Synchro BLiTZ, Hana Takahashi."

"Oh my, I'm finally part of the team." Hana said softly in shock I can't believe it! I'm actually part of the team now! This isn't a dream, right? she thought, unable to believe what was happening before her, she then turned to Lia with a concerned expression, which surprised the older girl. "Lia-nee, is this a dream? Can you slap me hard?" she asked

Lia sighed and shook her head in disbelief "I don't need to slap you to tell you that this is real, Hana-chan." she said "Come on, what's happening to you, aren't you happy about this?" she asked.

"No, it's not that, I just didn't notice it until now...but I'm quite worried still." replied Hana, she then went on to open the hood of her car, looking at the twin turbo VG resting inside "I haven't really gotten over my...problem...out there so I don't think I'll be able to live up to the hype. I don't even understand what was happening last night when you guys started to talk about something you noticed." she said.

"That's always how things start off, Hana-chan." said Lia as she walked beside Hana "Do you think Toshiya-san would put you in the team if he knew you weren't up to it? He saw something in you, that's a simple reason why." she added, hoping to keep Hana from thinking she wouldn't be up to the challenge. I don't know what he saw in her, but Toshiya-san definitely won't put Hana in a position she wouldn't be able to handle, I think he just wants her to unlock her potential herself. she thought.

"I guess you're right." said Hana, who seemed to be more positive now when she looked at Lia "Say Lia-nee, do you mind coming with me tonight out on C1? I wanna see if this new setup of mine works well." she asked.

Lia's response was quick "Sure, I'd be happy to." she said. She then looked at one of the empty hydraulic jacks inside the garage and then to her MX5 outside. "Hey, is it okay if I keep my car inside the garage? It's quite hot outside and the car's gonna get pretty hot even with the shade of that tree." she asked.

"Oh sure, we don't have any cars to work on right now so it's pretty much a free space." replied Hana. Lia then walked out of the garage to her car and started to drive the car inside a few seconds later, Hana guided her onto the platform of the hydraulic jacks once inside. Once Lia had parked her MX5 on the jacks, they heard another car driving inside the garage and when they turned to look, they saw a blue Audi A4 parking outside on the spot where the roadster used to be.

"Who could that be? Never seen that one before." said Lia as she got out of her car and stepped off from the platform.

"Me neither." said Hana, "It's an import, an A4." she then started to make her way out of the garage to see who the owner of the car was, with Lia following moments later.

The driver of the A4 stepped out a few seconds after shutting down the engine, and revealed a woman with brown hair and oval-framed glasses wearing a sky blue tee, blue jeans and black strapped sandals. When Hana and Lia got nearer they stopped as they recognized who it was. "Sayuki-san?" asked Lia

"Hi there." replied Akemi, flashing them a warm smile. "Is Toshiya around?" she asked.

"No, he's at the university right now and he won't be around until about three." replied Hana.

Akemi then looked at her wristwatch and saw that it was still two hours to four. "I see, I guess I'd just come back later then." she said.

"Wait, why don't you come in and wait there?" asked Lia as Akemi was about to get back inside her car "Umm...we've wanted to talk to you about something, actually." she added.

Akemi's interest was piqued, and she looked over to the garage and saw that it was half-empty, with only the MX5 and the Z32 inside. "If you two aren't busy, can we talk about it at the cafe nearby? My treat, what do you say?" she asked.

Lia and Hana were surprised at Akemi's offer, it was a bit too good, she agreed to talk with them, but she wanted to do it over coffee, and her treat to top it all off. "I'm pretty much free for the rest of the day." said Lia before turning to Hana "How about you, Hana-chan, you still have something to do here?" she asked.

Hana shook her head in response "Nope, my car's the only thing being worked on here and I'm practically done with everything on it." she then looked herself over for a moment "Do you mind if I change out of this for a couple minutes?" she asked, referring to the mechanic's tracksuit she was wearing.

"It's alright, we'll be waiting." replied Akemi.

"Are you sure about this, Sayuki-san? I mean if it's a bother we can just save this for another day." asked Lia, worried that Akemi was doing this out of impulse.

"No, it's okay." quickly replied Akemi "It'll be nice to have someone to talk to over coffee compared to just waiting alone." she added

Hana quickly got back inside the garage and inside the office, after a few minutes, all three garage doors started to slide down, with the one in the middle stopping halfway and the other two continuing until it fully closed down. Hana then came out from the middle gate and pulled it down herself before walking towards Akemi and Lia who were waiting by the former's A4.

Hana had changed out of her tracksuit to something more casual, a white tee with solid red stripes running down from her shoulder down the front of the shirt, blue jeans and red low-cut shoes. "Thanks for waiting." she said as she got near the two girls outside.

"No problem, come on, let's go." said Akemi as she got inside the Audi. Hana walked over to the right rear passenger door while Lia took the left rear passenger door. Once everyone got inside, Akemi started the engine and started to drive out of the garage. She then looked at the two girls at the back on her rearview mirrors "Is it really okay to just close shop like that?" she asked.

"It's fine, Sayuki-san, we don't have any cars to work on at the moment so there's really no deadline to catch." replied Hana.

Akemi smiled as she turned her attention back to the road "You know you guys are so polite, has anyone ever told you that?" she playfully asked, even though she really meant it. "I mean you guys surely know me more than just a member of the Society, or at least you've thought me more than just that." she said. These guys surely had an idea from seeing me and Toshiya together, I just hope they aren't dense enough to not notice. she thought

"What are you saying?" asked Lia, though she had a good idea that Akemi already knew what they were going to talk to her about.

"I'm not really used to such polite people, especially those that are younger than me." replied Akemi, glancing at the rearview mirror for a moment "What I really want to ask of you is just to call me by my first name, I'd be more comfortable talking to you guys that way." she said "On that note, I don't think I've known you two by name, just by face." she added.

"Oh, I'm Lia, Lia Kusunoki." said Lia

"I'm Hana, Hana Takahashi." said Hana

"Hana? So you must be Toshiya's cousin then?" asked Akemi, Hana was quite surprised that Akemi knew who she was, then again, she knew Toshiya might have told her about it.

"Yes, I am." replied Hana "How did you know?" she asked. I think I know how, but it's better to be sure than to assume. she thought

"Well, he did tell me a bit about you, told me that he had his cousin from Saitama here in Tokyo." replied Akemi "Oh look, we're here." she said as she gently pulled the car over to the side of the road, in front of a small cafe with a signage that said "The Oasis" hung up outside. They all got out of the car and went inside the cafe, taking the table-for-four by the window, Lia and Hana sitting together on one side with Akemi on the other.

- - - 1315 Hours, The Oasis Cafe, Tokyo - - -

The waiter came over to the table and handed each of them a menu, Akemi skimmed over the thick board until she found her choice "I'm having brown coffee and a single slice of blueberry cheesecake." she said, handing her menu back to the waiter. She then turned to the other two "How about you Lia, Hana?" she asked.

"I'm gonna have the vanilla smoothie." replied Lia. "What'll you get, Hana-chan?" she asked.

"Strawberry parfait for me, please." said Hana before she and Lia handed their menus back to the waiter.

After confirming their orders once more the waiter went back to the counter to get the orders made. The cafe didn't have much people at that time, as it was only the three of them and another group on the sofa chairs in the middle of the cafe. "Before we go on to what you guys want to talk to me about, I want to get to know you two a bit more." said Akemi, turning to Lia first. "Lia, what do you do outside of Shutokou?" she asked

"I'm a model for a fashion studio, only have work whenever the studio gets a contract for something." replied Lia.

Akemi was surprised Hold on, she looks too young...or maybe she started with it early? she thought "You look pretty young for a model, have you been doing this for a long time?" she asked.

"Not really, I just started last year prior to graduating from high school so I'm pretty much new to it." replied Lia "It's not something I really dreamed of doing, but my friend introduced me to it and it just went from there. I feel comfortable doing it, to say the least." she added. "How about you, Akemi-neesan?" Lia then noticed Akemi's surprised reaction Huh? Oh, must be the -nee part she thought "You wouldn't mind if we call you that, would you?"

Akemi sighed in relief and smiled at Lia "No, that was actually better than I imagined." she laughed a bit "Anyway, I'm an interior designer working for this architectural firm, so basically I like to spice things up inside houses." she said

"Wow, so that means you've done work on celebrity houses then?" asked Hana "I've always had a liking to houses like those, ones with beautifully designed themes and all that." she added

"Not directly for celebrity houses, but I've done a few luxury designs for our firm in the past." replied Akemi "How about you, Hana? What's the life outside of driving?" she asked in a joking tone.

"I'm a college student taking up a degree in Psychology." replied Hana "It's not really study by day, drive by night for me, since Toshiya-niisan didn't let me drive out there by myself until recently." she added

"In a way, I understand what he's worried about. You guys are still pretty young and to be involved in this kind of hobby is pretty risky." said Akemi "Not that a 23-year old woman like me couldn't be told the same." she joked.

Lia then looked over to the A4 outside the cafe "Akemi-nee seems to have a liking to European cars." she said

"That A4 is my everyday car." replied Akemi, following Lia's gaze to her Audi "You're right though, I like the styling of European cars, German-manufactured cars to be specific. They're reportedly reliable and I can attest to that, though they're not made as pure speed machines like the Italian makes, they can be made into powerful and efficient cars with not much difficulty." she then looked back to the two girls "I guess me being born in Germany has a bit of influence on that, I lived there for six years before we moved back to Japan." she said.

"What's wrong with having the BMW as a daily car? Just curious." asked Hana.

"Well I could use the M3 as my everyday car, but since it has already established a reputation of its own, it's pretty risky." replied Akemi, she then noticed the curious looks that Hana and Lia had were still there and opted to explain further "The Society is pretty much well-known around Tokyo, and no one save for a few actually knows who we are outside the road and the authorities don't really agree with what we all do, so there's really no good reason for us to use our cars during the day. I assume that you know the roots of the group so I think you can understand." she said.

"I see." said Lia "I think it's a good decision on your part, given how popular you guys are to the road racers and equally notorious to the police." she added

"How did you get into road racing though, and how did you come across the SS Society?" asked Hana

"I actually started driving when I was 16 using my dad's old Impreza that he bought a year after we moved back to Japan." replied Akemi "I didn't really get into racing until the time when a group of racers drove past me in Shutokou, I wanted to catch up to them so badly and that's where it all started. I got my M3 as a late high school graduation present when I was in my second year in college. I met the Society when the name "Yokohane Princess" started to spread among the locals, they offered me a spot on the team and the rest is history."

"A chance encounter of sorts, huh. I guess it was kind of inevitable that they would want you in, given how the quickly the team's fame rose during that time." said Lia, she then noticed the skeptical look on Akemi's face "I'm not flattering you if that's what you're thinking." she said lightheartedly.

Akemi was surprised that Lia knew what she was thinking "Thanks then, I guess." she said. The waiter then arrived back at their table holding a round tray in his hand, he then gently placed their orders on the table before leaving them to enjoy their treats once he confirmed all orders were delivered.

Lia took a sip from her vanilla smoothie and smiled at how it tasted "Nice, I can't believe I've never heard of this place before." she said

"Yeah, me too, the parfait is one of the best I've had." added Hana after taking a spoonful of her strawberry parfait "Thank you for bringing us here, Akemi-nee."

Akemi shook her head and smiled at them "No problem, I'm glad you liked it." she said before taking a bite from her cheesecake "Anyway, you said you have something to talk to me about?" she asked. I guess now is as good a time as any.

"Umm..." Lia stuttered "We heard something from Tomohiro-san yesterday, and we've been thinking about it since." Akemi raised her eyebrows in curiosity "Anyway, we just want to hear this directly from you; what's the story between you and Toshiya-san?" Lia finally asked. Oh dear, I hope she doesn't take this one the wrong way.

So my hunch was right, oh well, I guess it won't hurt to recall a bit of history...just a bit though Akemi remained quiet for a few moments and sighed "Where do I start?" she asked

"It's up to you." replied Hana.

"Okay." Akemi then took a sip from her coffee before she continued "I'm not sure if you know this, but there's nothing between us now, not since last year." she said, her words were cold yet her tone was sad and had a slight implication of what appeared to be regret, something Hana and Lia caught onto but ignored for the time being "We first met when I got into the team, he was already a part of it and we were actually surprised when we found out we were also studying at the same university. Apart from my classmates, he quickly came to be my closest friend, even inside the team he was the one I knew and talked to the most." contrast to her tone earlier though she sounded a bit happier this time.

"So you two were actually schoolmates, quite the small world.." said Lia.

"Yes, then eventually we got closer to the point where I realized I liked him and then one day he just came out and told me that he felt the same." said Akemi "I was probably the happiest girl when it happened, and from there on we started dating. We see each other in the day when our schedules let us and we'll always drive out together nearly every night, it was something we both enjoyed. We went on with our relationship for the next two years, and of course, we attended each other's graduation ceremonies." she added, she looked happier recalling the moments as she told them, but once she got to the last bit, she looked down in what seemed to be disappointment. "After college though, things started to go downhill for us." she said

"What happened? Did you two quarrel often?" asked Hana

"Something like that, but we weren't bickering over simple things or anything...it was about what we both wanted to do." replied Akemi "I got a scholarship grant abroad for my graduate degree in Interior Design, something I was really excited to have coming up towards graduation. He wanted to apply as a computer studies instructor in our university after graduation, since he really wanted to experience teaching." she added.

"So you two wanted different things and conflicted from that?" asked Lia

"That would've been the case, yes...but Toshiya wanted to drop his plans for teaching so he could come with me abroad." replied Akemi "Of course I would've loved to have him with me since I was going to study there alone, but seeing as I would be denying him of what he wanted to do, I objected. That's where we often quarreled, he wanted to follow me, but I didn't want to be a burden to him. In the end, he yielded, and I left for my studies abroad while he stayed and got the job as an instructor. We kept in touch for three months after I left, but somehow, the distance was too great of a factor for me, and I thought to myself that things would not work out the way they stood, so I ended it." she said. She then slowly took off her glasses and held it in her hand, looking at it as if it held some sort of memory.

There was a few seconds of silence between the three women, and it was Hana who spoke up first "Umm...did you regret breaking up with niisan?" she asked, though her tone wasn't condescending. Some might say I have a reason to be angry at her...but I won't be. I can feel she didn't want to do it in the first place, I guess I can give her a chance to tell more... she thought

"Now that I think of it...yes." replied Akemi "But I don't think I want to go back to it again...I've been too selfish." she added. I've tried running away from it, but now it's coming back to haunt me. I've hurt too much and I don't think I'd want to do it all over again if it means I'll just hurt and be hurt again. I'm fine with the way things are...at least I think I do. Akemi was now revealing a side of herself that she wouldn't show others. "You know, I just remembered something." she then held out her glasses in front of her "I've gone through various changes with my lens but this frame has been the same. It was actually one that Toshiya picked out when we both got our glasses together." she said with a warm smile on her face.

Lia looked at Akemi's expression inquisitively, she was onto something, but she wasn't sure if she wanted to bring it up. "You still love Toshiya-san, don't you?" the words came out of her mouth before she knew it, and she quickly covered her mouth with her free hand and inwardly facepalmed Your perception can really get you in trouble, Lia...WHAT THE HELL WERE YOU THINKING SAYING THAT ALL OF A SUDDEN!? she silently cursed herself. "I...I'm sorry, I didn't mean to!" she then quickly spat.

Akemi initially had a startled expression on her face, but she managed to quickly hide it. "That's..." she then looked down and played with her plate of cheesecake with her fork, her cheeks gradually reddening "...one way to put it, I suppose." she said.

Hana then clapped her hands together as if she suddenly had an idea "Then what are you waiting for, Akemi-neechan? Get back with that baka-nii of mine!" she said I really think both of them were at fault in this, but it's never too late to make up, everyone makes mistakes she thought

Akemi quickly took a sip from her coffee before replying "I wish it was that easy, Hana." she said "Then again, I don't think I want to go beyond friends this time around. I'm afraid I'll just end up breaking things again it if does." she added. Observing Akemi's vulnerable, unguarded eyes, Lia and Hana could see that she was tearing up, but somehow she still manages to keep tears from falling.

"Look at it this way," began Hana "at the time before the race with Apollo Speed, Toshiya-niisan stayed at your place, didn't he? Why would he do such a thing, I wonder, when he could've easily went to either Toji-san or Kodokuna-san." she said, clearly implying that Toshiya somehow was not done with being more than friends. Akemi then gave her a look that urged her to continue.

"Because he had a reason to go to you." said Lia, she then looked over to Hana who was looking at her with an amused look, she nodded her head at her in silent agreement. So Hana-chan and I are on the same boat. I feel kinda sorry for Akemi-neesan if she feels pressured by this "We're not gonna ask about what you two talked about or what happened during that time, but we just want you to think back to why he came to you in the first place." she added

Akemi was at a loss for words, she did not expect things to turn out like this. She knew the two girls would be curious about her relationship with Toshiya, but for them to be wanting to fix things up was not expected at all. "I...what do you two intend to do?" she asked.

"We don't intend to be nosing around in other people's business, but what we want is just for things to go well between you and Toshiya-san." replied Lia "He's someone close to us and knowing all of this is quite shocking to say the least. We're not mad at you for what you've done, after all, everything that happened was just between you and him, we just think it's not enough for the two of you to stay as friends when there's clearly more to it." she added.

"You could have just refused to open up to us if there's really nothing else to discuss, but you did, because you were thinking about it all this time." said Hana. "We're not gonna play matchmaker and set you two up on dates if that's what you're thinking." she added playfully.

Akemi shook her head and chuckled before putting her glasses back on, looking at the two girls with a warm smile "Believe me, I never expected that I'd be telling you two this much, honest." she said "I'll admit, I still have feelings for Toshiya, that hasn't changed even then, but I'm afraid that we won't be able to make things work out even if we get back again, that it'll end up like the last time." she added

"You can at least try one more time." said Hana "You know where things went wrong the last time, it'll be easier to avoid making the same mistake again."

Akemi took a moment to think on Hana's words Looking back, she has a point...I wanted too much before, not stopping to understand what the situation had to offer, or what he made of it. But knowing that still doesn't relieve me of what I fear the most, that things would become messed up again and we'd have to call it off for good. I love him...but I don't want to hurt him anymore, I think I've already done enough by being selfish. she thought "Perhaps, but I guess I'll have to think about it more." she then looked at the two girls with a serious expression "I appreciate that you let me open up to you like this Hana, Lia, but can I ask you two to just keep this to ourselves? You are the only ones I've talked to about this, after all." asked Akemi.

"Alright, you have my word." replied Lia

"Same here, but I'm really hoping that things would work out for you this time." said Hana

"Thank you, I really appreciate it." said Akemi

"We never got to ask though, what were you doing back at the shop earlier?" asked Lia "And you were looking for Toshiya-san of all people."

"He told me last night he wanted me to come to the garage today, he said he wanted talk to me." replied Akemi "For what reason? I don't know, but I get this strange feeling that I should remember everything we talked about just now." she added

"That sounds pretty interesting." said Hana "Knowing Toshi-niisan, he won't be asking those things without a really good reason." she added as she took another bite from her parfait.

"I agree, but I think we should enjoy our treat until then." said Lia, taking a good sip from her smoothie "It's rare for us to go at a place like this, more so for free and we had a great time making friends outside our network." she added.

Akemi looks at the two girls with a content expression as she takes another bite of her cheesecake Why do I feel like I can be closer to these two? I just feel so comfortable around them, like when you are with your best friends. "Are you two free tonight? I wanted to ask you to come with me for a drive." she asked.

"What a coincidence, Hana-chan and I were planning to go out for a drive tonight." replied Lia.

"Yes, I wanted to test the new settings I did on my car." added Hana

"That's great, what time do you two plan to go out?" asked Akemi, if she wanted to know more about her new friends, she would have to drive with them.

"About 10pm, I guess?" replied Hana "As long as the traffic's smooth." she added as she took her last spoonful of parfait.

"Okay, you two are going from the garage, right?" asked Akemi, the two nodding in agreement "I'll be coming by the garage then." she said. Akemi then looked to her watch and saw that it was already 2pm "It's already 2pm, do you think we should head on back?" she asked.

"I think so." replied Lia "We could show you around the garage while waiting for Toshiya-san to get back." she added before finishing her glass of vanilla smoothie.

"And hopefully I could get some advice from you on my car." said Hana, who sounded pretty excited at the thought "It's a Z32 I tuned myself."

"So it's that Fairlady I saw earlier, huh? I'm already looking forward to see it better." replied Akemi, she then gestured for the waiter to give them the bill, once the waiter returned, she simply handed him her credit card. The waiter returned the card after a minute and Akemi handed him his tip "Thank you, we'll be coming back again soon." she said to him before she stood from her seat, the two girls following her shortly after.
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So yeah, that's that. You might have noticed I've changed the thoughts color again, gray was pretty hard to read especially when you're reading quite far from the monitor. Tell me what you think of the new color and I'll really be happy if you guys have any good colors for the thoughts since even I don't feel 100% ok with it.

This post has been edited by Antares on Nov 18 2012, 03:35 AM

So after a long, LONG time overdue, I finally present to you, chapter 15! Consider this as my New Year's gift for you guys and I'd like to thank Gunma's 34, Solstice and thirteendriver for helping me get back on track with writing the story. Seriously, I lost my muse sometimes during the holiday season and I was actually thinking of dropping the story if it weren't for them.

But fear not, Saisoku no Gaiden will continue on, especially now that I'm also working on a crossover series with Gunma's Supido no Densetsu series, you guys should check that out, we're planning to update it soon as well.

Without further ado, here is Chapter 15. I hope you enjoy!

CHAPTER 15 ~ Square One
_______________________________

- - - Speed Works Toshi, Tokyo - - -
- - - 1415 Hours - - -

Akemi, along with Lia and Hana drove back to the garage after having afternoon tea at the Oasis, upon arriving at the garage though, they found Takeshi’s FD, Shinichi’s R32 and Ryu’s Evo 5 parked outside the garage, with the boys standing by their cars. Akemi parked her A4 at the open spot beside the other three cars.

“Guys!” Lia called out as she quickly got out of the rear passenger seat after the A4’s engine shut down, followed by Hana a moment later.

“Lia-chan! Hana-chan! Where did you two come from? And whose Audi is that?” a surprised Ryu asked. He didn’t know any affiliate of the team or to that extent, anyone who owns an Audi A4.

Ryu’s question was quickly answered when Akemi stepped out from the driver’s door. She had a warm smile that startled the boys for a moment, and both Lia and Hana laughed a bit when they noticed. “Good afternoon.” she greeted with a slight bow.

“Uh..good afternoon as well, Sayuki-san.” replied Shinichi as all three boys returned the gesture with bows of their own

Akemi’s eyes widened for a moment at how the boys of Synchro BLiTZ addressed her, and groaned as she shook her head in disbelief “Are you guys really this polite?” she asked

“Huh?” Takeshi, Ryu and Shinichi were unsure of what to make of Akemi’s last statement, it was courtesy and ethical to be very polite to strangers and people older than you, after all.

“If it’s not too much, can you guys just call me Akemi?” requested Akemi “I’m not that old yet, and I’m not that much older than you guys so it isn’t really comfortable for me to talk to you so formally.” she added.

“You guys better do just that.” Lia jested “She could be pretty insistent on it.” she added

“Oh, okay then, if Akemi-senpai insists.” said Takeshi, although quite hesitantly.

“Better!” replied Akemi blithely.

“Say, how long have you guys been waiting?” asked Lia.

“Not long, I’d say about half an hour or so.” replied Shinichi “I just got off from school, actually.” he added, glancing down the school uniform he was still wearing. As a high school student, Shinichi wore the standard black Japanese school uniform besides the blue-and-white sneakers he was wearing, and that he had unbuttoned the buttons of his upper uniform from the collar down to the chest area, revealing the white shirt he wore inside.

“I’ve been waiting for less, Shinichi-kun was already here when I arrived.” replied Takeshi. “I actually dropped by the parts supplier across town to place an order Toshiya-san told me to earlier today.” he added. The Speed Works mechanic was dressed in very casual clothing: blue t-shirt, gray jeans and white sneakers.

“Takeshi-kun and I actually got here together, we came across each other on the way here.” replied Ryu “As usual, I came from another boring day at work.” he added with a mock gloom tone. The senior driver was obviously dressed for work, clad in a light blue dress shirt with a loose black tie, black slacks, and black leather shoes.

“If you’re so bored of being a contributor, why don’t you go be a correspondent and cover motorsport events around the world?” said Shinichi “You know a lot about cars and motorsports, surely you won’t have a hard time with that kind of work.” he added. Save for Toshiya, Ryu was the most knowledgeable about cars in the group, though he was not one to personally work on mechanics, even though he knows a lot about it as well.

“Go around the world and not be able to drive whenever I wanted? I wouldn’t really sacrifice the feel of Shotokou for anything.” replied Ryu “I can deal with the boring job, the pay is still good after all, and I still get the experience around cars that I hoped for, and that’s just what I looked for when I took this job.” he added. For him, it was just about cars, writing about cars and being around cars.

Meanwhile, Takeshi and Lia were coincidentally looking each other over, and were surprised when their eyes met, it took a few seconds before they looked away from one another with blushing cheeks.

She looks so pretty today thought Takeshi Then again, doesn’t she always? he then shook his head at the thought What are you even thinking Takeshi!? You haven’t even known this girl for more than a month…

I don’t know why, but I just can’t help but look at him when he's around thought Lia He’s undeniably good-looking though…NO! Don’t jump to conclusions Lia, this might be because he’s just a new friend, it’s always like that, right? You don't wanna slip out any unnecessary comments like you did with Akemi-nee now, do you?

Unbeknownst to them, Akemi actually saw the two look at each other for a few moments before looking away. She simply chuckled and smiled as she leaned in closer to Hana, who was standing beside her. “You know, those two remind me of Toshiya and I back when we just knew each other.” she whispered

“Really? So you and niichan were actually shy?” a seemingly shocked Hana asked

“Of course we were, who wouldn’t be when you’re around someone you don’t know.” retorted Akemi

“By the way, I think we haven’t introduced ourselves yet.” said Ryu as he, Shinichi and Takeshi approached the older brunette. “My name’s Ryu Asakura.” he said

“Shinichi Sawaki, nice meeting you, senpai!” said Shinichi cheerfully

“I’m Takeshi Kajimoto, pleasure to know you, Akemi-senpai.” said Takeshi. He was then surprised by the mischievous look that Akemi was giving him “Is…something the matter, senpai?” he asked.

Akemi grinned in response “Nothing, it’s just I can see why Lia-chan’s taken quite a liking to you.” she said in jest, before glancing over to Hana and winking, prompting the young girl to giggle.

“E-eh!?” exclaimed both Lia and Takeshi, both turning redder as everyone else laughed.

“Akemi-nee! Where did you get that idea!?” an obviously flustered Lia asked

“Call it female intuition, dear.” came the lighthearted reply of Akemi

“I forgot to ask though, how were the three of you together?” inquired Shinichi

“I actually came to see Toshiya today since he asked me to last night, but when I arrived the girls told me he wasn’t here.” replied Akemi “I was planning to spend time in the nearby café if ever Toshiya wasn’t around, and it just so happened Lia-chan and Hana-chan weren’t busy, so I took them along with me.” she added

Hana walked over to the side of the garage gate and pressed the switch to raise all three garage gates up. “Akemi-neesan was really nice to treat us to such a wonderful café.” she said, she then observed that even with Lia’s MX5 and her Z32 inside, there was still enough space for the FD, R32 and the Evo inside. “Guys! Why don’t you bring your cars inside, there’s still a lot of room!” she called out.

“That sounds like a good idea.” said Lia “Go on, we’ll help you on the way.” she said before making her way inside the garage to help the others in bringing the cars in.

Takeshi, Shinichi and Ryu then took turns in bringing their cars inside the garage, and eventually, they all managed to get all three cars in while still leaving some room for possible customer cars. Takeshi then saw that Akemi was still outside standing by her A4. “Akemi-senpai! Why don’t you bring that Audi in as well? There’s still some space!” he called out to her.

Akemi shook her head and started walking towards the garage instead “No need, I’m not a member the team and I’m not even a customer so I feel that would be pretty unnecessary and unfair.” she said.

Ryu looked at Akemi curiously, “I guess we might have pegged you wrong, Akemi-senpai. We actually thought you were too business-like and cold, but you’re actually quite the opposite.” he said.

“That’s just because I was speaking in part of Shutokou Saisoku Society, elsewhere, I actually like to mess around.” replied Akemi.

“Come on, Akemi-nee, I wanna show you something!” Hana called out from inside the garage.

Akemi approached Hana and saw the pink Fairlady Z lowered on the platform, the same car they had talked about earlier. “I take it this is the one you were talking about earlier, Hana-chan, your Z32?” she asked, quite impressed at the car choice of the young girl.

“Yes, my one and only Z.” replied a proud Hana. “I was wondering if you can take a look at it and tell me what you think of it?” she requested. As a suspension tuner, Hana wanted to get as much insight from an experienced driver as much as possible.

Akemi nodded in response before proceeding to observe the car’s exterior, then the tires, wheels, brakes and suspension. “This is interesting, mind if I take a look at the engine next?” she asked. Hana then promptly raised the hood, revealing the VG30 inside. Akemi’s attention was quickly directed to the modifications done on the engine, and what she noticed was the twin turbo kit installed. “Hana-chan, where did you get this turbo kit?” she asked

“Toshiya-niisan was the one tuned that engine, and it was him that got the turbo kit.” replied Hana “Why? Is there anything wrong with it?”

“No, it’s just that this turbo kit can only be found with one of the members of our team, the number 2 driver to be exact.” began Akemi “He designed and made these turbo kits himself, that’s why.” she said. Still, she now wondered why Toshiya had put such a special turbo on to his cousin’s car. “How much power does this car have?” she asked

“When we first installed the turbo, it was quite problematic since the car actually powered down, it was only recently that Takeshi-kun fixed the settings of the turbo in the ECU that we got the engine up to 380HP.” replied Hana

Akemi was stunned for a moment Only 380HP? But that doesn’t make sense, this is the same turbo that’s got the old guy’s car to 800HP. Toshiya must’ve done something else. she thought “I see, then I guess it’s no surprise how you had this special turbo.” she then went on to observe the engine more. Her eyes eventually focused on a certain part: the intake, where she noticed something peculiar Is this?..Oh, I see, so that’s why the power output was so low. she then stepped back from the car, now having finished her observation.

“So, what do you think?” asked Hana, who seemed to be quite excited at the brunette’s impression.

“The engine is quite interesting, it’s got a lot of potential. The body seems to be pretty rigid even with no exterior modifications, the brakes and suspension looked too good to be something used for the expressway.” replied Akemi “Were you, perhaps, using this car on the touge?” she asked.

“Yeah, I was actually driving on the touge before I moved to Tokyo, and that’s where I tuned the suspension myself.” replied Hana

“I must say, that suspension work is at a really high level.” said Akemi “You’ve created quite a good setting here, that much I can tell even without seeing it run.” she added

“If I may take a moment, though we didn’t notice that nice windshield sticker at first, we’re glad to have you onboard Hana-chan.” said Ryu, with Shinichi and Takeshi nodding in agreement.

“Thanks senpai, I can’t wait to drive along with everyone soon.” replied a delightful Hana

“In speaking of driving the car, you’ll still come with us on a drive tonight, won’t you, Akemi-neechan?” asked Lia

“But of course, you can have them join us if they want.” replied Akemi, referring to the boys.

“Not me, I still have some homework left to do tonight, just dropped by here to kill time.” said Shinichi, being out of touch with his studies lately because of the team shuffle with ASR, he had to hit the books this time to avoid getting a failing grade.

“Nor me, I actually have a meeting with the editors later tonight and it would probably take a couple hours or so.” said Ryu, sounding quite disappointed at the lost chance of driving out at Shutokou.

“Toshiya-san told me a customer was coming by today, and that the parts I placed the order for belonged to that customer.” said Takeshi “I’d say I won’t be able to go with you unless both the parts and the customer arrive really early so I can get to it right away.” he added

“Is that so? Then I guess it would just be the three of us later tonight.” said Akemi.

“While waiting for Toshiya-san to arrive, why don’t we show you around the place?” suggested Lia

“I’d love to, Lia-chan, this place looks nice after all, there’s actually a lot much more inside than how it looks from outside.” replied Akemi

The Team Synchro BLiTZ people then took Akemi around the ground floor of the garage, the workshop itself. Showing her the platform jacks where basic maintenance, basic engine tuning and all chassis-related tuning are done, the stock room where all available on-hand parts are stored, the engine assembly room where a car’s engine is overhauled and modified for more advanced engine tuning, and of course the garage’s office where all customer transactions are made and where records of past customers and their tuning menu are stored.

After touring the whole workshop, everyone opted to stay inside the office, the nearest place with air-conditioning to get away from the heat outside.

“Thank goodness it’s at least cold in here, the heat was becoming really unbearable.” said Shinichi, who was fanning himself with a folder taken from the desk

“Anyone want something cold to drink? We’ve got water and soda upstairs since I just stocked up this morning.” asked Hana.

“I’ll have one soda, thank you very much.” replied Lia, who was leaning on the side of the desk.

“I’d like one too.” said Ryu, who was standing by the door.

“Another for me as well.” said Takeshi, who stood by the window blinds, he then turned towards Akemi, who was seated in one of the two chairs in front of the desk “How about you Akemi-senpai? What’ll you have?” he asked

“I’ll just have water, thank you.” replied the brunette.

“Alright then, I’m gonna get them upstairs for a moment.” said Hana before making her way out of the office.

“Hey wait up! Let me help.” Shinichi called out as he quickly followed Hana upstairs.

Ryu shook his head and smiled as Shinchi got out of the room. “Easy there, lover boy.” he said

Lia sighed in disbelief “Shin-chan, he’s never let Hana-chan out of his sights whenever she’s around.” she said “But I guess that’s kinda sweet of him.”

“I agree, he became increasingly concerned for her ever since that thing with ASR.” said Takeshi

“I’ve wanted to ask though, what’s upstairs? I saw the staircase going up earlier and it looked it there was another room up there.” asked Akemi

“Oh, it’s actually just a small lounge that everyone hangs out in when the workshop’s busy.” replied Lia “It started out as a backup stock room but when Toshiya-san formed the team, he eventually turned the place into a mini-lounge so we can have some place to relax in here.” she added

Akemi nodded, it was just like Toshiya to bother with such things. “How long has the team been around, by the way? You guys have established quite the reputation since all of the Shikojuu has heard of your team in some way, and it’s not just because of Toshiya being with you.” she asked.

“Actually, the team’s only been around for over a year.” replied Ryu, being the most senior member of the team, he knew more about its history than anyone “It started when I met Toshiya-senpai in a local meet, we raced each other back then, me in the Evo and him in the silver Supra. He told me he wanted to gather a group of young, talented drivers to become one of the fastest teams in C1.” he added.

“I see, so that’s what he was doing during the Shutokou Saisoku’s hiatus.” said Akemi “Oh well, his efforts have paid off with Synchro BLiTZ becoming the fastest team around C1 and the New Belt Line right now.”

“I wouldn’t go that far, though.” said Lia “You mentioned something about a Shikojuu, is it another group or something?” she asked

“The Shikojuu, or the Supreme Ten, are the ten fastest drivers of the Shutokou Saisoku Society. Toshiya, Yuki, Okami and I are all part of that group.” replied Akemi “Though not all of them have been active on Shutokou since two years ago, they all have heard of your battle against Apollo Speed Racing and were pretty impressed, and that’s a rare occasion.” she added “So you better not be wondering why we handed you the invitation in the first place.”

“I see, but what do you really need us around for during the Shutokou Saisoku’s gathering?” asked Takeshi

“It’s actually not the entire group that would be there, it’s actually just the Shikojuu and the leaders there.” replied Akemi “As for exactly why we wanted to have you guys along, I think it’ll be better if you found out for yourself.” she added, effectively letting known that she wouldn’t speak more on the topic.

A few moments later though, Shinichi and Hana came back into the office with the requested beverages, and everyone quickly took sips of their drinks as soon as they got it. Shinichi quickly downed his soda can in one gulp.

“Wow! That was good.” he said

“Gee, Shin-chan, you look like you can down another can in one go.” Hana joked, she too had finished her soda can quickly, but it took her slightly longer than Shinichi.

“That was enough, I just needed something cold to drink, my throat was getting real dry with all the heat.” replied Shinichi “How about you, Hana-chan? I could get another can upstairs if you want.” he then asked.

“No need, Shin-chan, I’m good with this one.” replied Hana.

Engine sounds were then heard inside the garage, and everyone went out of the office to see who it was. The car that drove inside the garage was a blue Nissan Silvia S13 fitted with an Extreme Dimensions GP-1 body kit, carbon fiber converted bonnet and bronze Volk RE30 wheels. The car parked at the vacant platform jack right beside Hana’s Z32, which surprised everyone.

“What the? That doesn’t seem right, getting the car on the platforms out of the blue.” Hana walked towards towards the Silvia hoping to get the driver’s attention “Excuse me, do you mind getting the car off the platform for a whi-“ she stopped as soon as she saw the driver get out

“What? Am I not allowed do that in my own garage now?”

Hana threw an unpleased look “Toshi-niisan, you could have just called ahead and told me you’d be bringing a customer’s car yourself, and didn’t you just come from a meeting at the university!?” she asked.

“I took the bus, didn’t I?” Toshiya shrugged “Ah nevermind, Takeshi-kun, can you help me unpack the parts from the boot? I dropped by the shop earlier and picked up the order I had you place.” he said, pulling the boot lock release lever inside the car.

“That was fast.” said a surprised Takesh before going to the rear of the Silvia with Toshiya. “Hmm…I can’t believe how fast they got these parts ready. The coilover set, the brakes, the intakes, the exhaust and even the turbo kit, it’s all here.” he said, quite amazed at how quick the parts shop had the order ready.

“Well I happen to know the owner of that shop, and even though the parts are just around their stock room, I didn’t want to kill your time by having you wait for them.” replied Toshiya, then he saw Akemi standing with Lia and the others “I hope it’s alright if you work on this car, just do a usual engine overhaul: polish the head, ports, pistons, cranks and change the oil as well, we still have a lot left in the stock room. Install the intake, the turbo and replace the exhaust when you’re reassembling.” he said before walking away from the car

“How about the brakes and the coilovers, should I make some settings for it?” asked Takeshi

“No need, just install them and make sure they’re working properly, the owner of this car wanted to tune the chassis on their own.” replied Toshiya

“I see, I’ll get started on it now then.” said Takeshi after transferring all the parts from the trunk of the S13 to a nearby cart.

“Sure, keys are inside so just drive it inside the engine room.” replied Toshiya before turning towards Akemi, who was looking at him with a light smile on her face “I hope you haven’t been waiting long.” he said

“Don’t worry, your team has been too kind in keeping me company.” said Akemi, studying Toshiya’s appearance keenly. Toshiya did look like someone who just came from work, much like Ryu was, dressed in a black short sleeved shirt, black pants and black shoes and he also had his rectangular-framed eyeglasses on.

“I’m glad to hear that.” said Toshiya, he then turned to Lia and the others “I’m sorry to be asking this from you guys, but can you-“ Toshiya was cut off when Lia raised her hand

“No need to tell us, Toshiya-san, we’ll all be up at the lounge if you need us.” she said with a knowing smile, along with a wink. “Come on guys.” she and the rest of the guys then headed up the lounge, where they would be out of Toshiya and Akemi’s way.

“Wha…” a surprised Toshiya trailed off, when he looked at Akemi she had an expression on her face that hinted that she knew what was going on “Did you happen to say something to those guys?” he asked her

“Who knows, I might’ve slipped when I was chatting with them earlier.” Akemi replied in levity

“Ugh, anyway, it’s not really comfortable to talk here, why don’t we go inside the office.” suggested Toshiya

“I’d like that.” replied Akemi.

- - - - - - - - -

The two then made their way into the office, where Toshiya offered Akemi a seat on one of the two chairs facing each other in front of the desk, once she sat on the left chair, Toshiya took the right chair instead of the one for the desk.

“Listen, Akemi, you probably know what I wanted to talk about already so I’ll just get to it,” began Toshiya “I wanted to talk about us.”

Akemi sighed, she knew it was going to be about this, but somehow, she didn’t feel uncomfortable about it anymore. “I’d be lying to say I didn’t expect that, but I’d be lying more if I said I didn’t want to talk about it.” she said “Toshiya, do you think it could still work?” her question was sincere, her voice filled with uncertainty “Will it still be the same as before?”

Toshiya took a deep breath before answering “I don’t know, Akemi, honestly.” he said “But no matter what, I still want to try.” he then reached a hand out and placed it on hers “I want to do better this time around, I want to do more to make things work.”

Akemi looked away from him, gritting her teeth “And I do too, but I can’t help but think that things will just end up the way they did.” she said “I don’t want us to be together once more only for me to end up hurting you in the end, I’m scared of that.” tears were now trailing down her eyes, but her eyes still averting from his gaze.

Toshiya then clasped Akemi’s hands and held it with his “Did you really feel that way?” he asked “Because if you do, then I want you to know I felt that I was the one who lacked, that I was the one who just took and accepted things as they happened. Heck, I didn’t even argue with you that night when you told me you wanted to end it!” it was clear from his voice that he regretted not doing anything in the past “I didn’t even try to change your mind, Akemi! I was at fault with what happened with us.”

Akemi finally looked at Toshiya with misty eyes “Then I guess we both had our shortcomings, but it still doesn’t relieve me of what I feel.” she said “What do you want us to do, Toshiya? I’m scared of going back when I can mess things up again.”

Toshiya took another deep breath I guess I need to say it “I love you, Akemi, that hasn’t changed at all.” he then held her hands tighter and brought it closer to his chest “I want to make things work this time around, but only if you can let me. I never got over what you told me that night we broke up, but I never held it against you. I just wanted to get you back no matter what.”

Akemi’s eyes widened at what she heard Oh lords, Toshiya…I never knew. “You don’t know how many times I cried just regretting what I told you, I was just so afraid then. I was selfish, I never gave a thought about what you felt then.” she said in between sobs, tears now freely flowing down her cheeks “My feelings for you, they never changed, I just thought of what I felt first without even considering anything else. It felt so lonely, not seeing you every night, and it made me lonelier whenever I think of what could have been if I had let you come with me abroad like you wanted.” Akemi fell to her knees, looking at the ground, crying.

“Oh Akemi…” Toshiya then knelt on one knee, and gently took Akemi’s glasses off and put it on the desk before leaning in and wrapping his arms around her “I’m sorry I let you carry this much this whole time.” he said as he ran a hand through her hair “We were both on the wrong, dear, but I believe we can make things work this time around. We know where we messed up, and we can always keep it in mind.”

Akemi looked up at Toshiya with a surprised expression “You really think so, Toshiya?” she asked

“Yeah, we were able to last a couple years before things went downhill,” replied Toshiya lightheartedly “of course we can last more than that.” he then moved his hands to cup her face “Even if you’ve cried your heart out, dear, you still look pretty as ever.” he remarked in blithe.

The brunette felt her cheeks burn up at his words, and promptly avoided looking him in the eye “Idiot.” she said in mock annoyance, but eventually, her eyes met his and she smiled “I want to try making things work as well, Toshiya.”

“Really?” a surprised Toshiya asked, to which Akemi happily nodded to in response “Then I guess we can start from square one right now.” he said as he slowly drew his face closer to hers

“I love you, Toshiya Takahashi.” said Akemi, closing her eyes as their lips touched. Oh how I’ve missed this feeling…this time for sure, I will do everything I can to keep this relationship going.

- - - - - - - - -

Outside, Lia, Hana, Ryu, Shinichi and Takeshi were peeping inside from the gaps in between the window blinds. The girls had gathered the guys, Takeshi included, on the lounge and told them Toshiya and Akemi’s story, and no could resist taking a look at how the two would get back together.

“Awww…would you look at that.” said Lia

“Expect to see a different Toshiya Takahashi and Akemi Sayuki after this.” said Ryu

“Yeah, but I think we’ve seen enough, guys, you better go back to the lounge if you don’t want Toshiya-san to catch you looking from here.” said Takeshi, who quickly made his way back to the engine room to work on the S13 Toshiya brought in.

“Good idea, we’ll see you later then, Takeshi-kun.” replied Shinichi as everyone crept under the window then walked carefully up the stairs back to the lounge.

- - - Team Synchro BLiTZ Lounge - - -
- - - Speed Works Toshi, Tokyo - - -
- - - 1530 Hours - - -

*knock* *knock*

“Who could that be?” asked Ryu

“I’ll get it.” replied Shinichi before walking up to the door. Once he opened it, he saw Toshiya and Akemi standing outside “Oh, Toshiya-senpai, Akemi-senpai, it’s you guys.”

“We won’t be coming in, don’t worry.” began Toshiya “I just wanted to tell you guys that Akemi here will be on her way now.”

“Thank you so much for keeping me company while waiting, I enjoyed it.” said Akemi

“Glad to hear it, Akemi-nee.” said a bubbly Hana “Say, you’ll still come back here later tonight, right?” she asked

“Of course, Hana-chan, I promised you and Lia-chan I’d be going out with you, after all.” replied Akemi

“Great, see you later then?” said Lia

“Yeah, see you later guys.” said Akemi before walking back down the stairs to the workshop.

As Akemi was making her way back out to the parking lot, she was stopped when Toshiya held her wrist, prompting her to look back at him. “What is it?” she asked

“Nothing, just wanted to tell you to take care, Akemi.” replied Toshiya before planting a soft kiss on her forehead and letting go of his hold on her wrist.

“I will, don’t worry.” said Akemi “See you tonight then?” she asked

“Yeah, see you later.” replied Toshiya with a warm smile.

- - - Speed Works Toshi, Tokyo - - -
- - - 2200 Hours - - -

Hana’s Z32 and Lia’s MX5 were already out on the parking area warming up their engines while waiting for Akemi to arrive. A few moments later though, a loud engine noise was heard from down the street outside of the garage, and when it got closer, it revealed a silver RIDOX Supra which drove into the garage and parked in front of the Z and the Roadster.

“That car…isn’t that Toshiya-san’s Supra?” asked Lia as she recognized the car. It was definitely the same Supra, as it had the Synchro BLiTZ sticker on the windshield, but when the driver-side door opened, it was Akemi who stepped out.

“Akemi-nee! You’re here!” a delighted Hana called out

“Sorry if I made you guys wait, I forgot where I put the keys to this car back when I was in the apartment.” said Akemi while scratching her head

“Well they were actually too excited for you to arrive.” said Toshiya who came from inside the garage and was walking towards the Supra “How’d the car feel?” he asked

“The car felt good, I didn’t have any problems with it coming here.” replied Akemi “I actually took the car out to C1 for a little detour just now and your new settings worked pretty well.” she added

“Wait, you’re actually going to drive this car tonight?” asked a surprised Lia

“I am, why? Is something the matter?” Akemi asked back

“No, nothing, it’s just that I’m not used to seeing you driving something that isn’t an import.” replied Lia

“It’s just a change of pace, and I’m actually testing out some new settings Toshiya did.” said Akemi “Well then, it looks like you’ve warmed your cars up enough, shall we get going?”

“Of course, I’ve been waiting the whole time for this!” replied Hana who quickly got inside her Z32.

“Lead the way, Akemi-nee!” replied Lia before getting into her MX5.

Toshiya then walked over to Akemi before she got inside the Supra “Can you watch over Hana-chan tonight? She’s not really experienced with racing in Shutokou yet.” he asked

“Don’t worry, I got the girls covered.” Akemi replied with a wink before getting into the Supra and driving off the parking area, closely followed by the MX5 and the Z32.
_______________________________

Sorry if the end looked a bit rushed, it's because it really was. I couldn't afford to delay writing this for any longer since if I did, it would probably take me until the weekends to publish it.

So there you go, that's one broken bond patched up. The next chapters would most likely be more on the racing scenes though, the story scenes would have to be saved for later on. This chapter also marks the end of the "Legendary Trio Battle" arc, and chapter 16 would be the beginning of the next arc, "The Supreme Ten".

See you guys on the next chapter! As for when, you may ask, even I have no idea, but here's something for sure, the next update you'll be seeing from me would be on Shutokou's Catch-22.

just when i thought that this fic already died
BOOM
a new chapter
with a new twist to Toshiya~
Toshiya you sly dog~

QUOTE (Solstice @ Yesterday, 9:40 PM)

just when i thought that this fic already died BOOM a new chapter with a new twist to Toshiya~ Toshiya you sly dog~

It won't die as long as I'm still around, I intend to finish this story, don't worry.

On another note, I just got my Shutokou reference up and running again (it means my PSP is running again ) and out of boredom, I decided to do all possible Shikojuu cars in Street Supremacy. I'm bad at drawing so this is the least I could do for a visual reference, and for a treat, I'm also giving the names of all members of the Shikojuu.

Expect them to appear in the story soon.

#10 - Ken Natsugawa - "The Paragon of Speed"
Subaru Impreza WRX STi spec C [GDB]

SPOILER

#9 - Naoki Arisato - "The Duelist"
Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution VIII MR GSR [CT9A]

SPOILER

#8 - Akemi Sayuki - "The Midnight Princess"
BMW M3 [E92]

SPOILER

#7 - Okami Kodokuna - "The Shadow Devil"
Nissan Fairlady Z Z-L [S30]

SPOILER

#6 - Aya Houdzuki - "The Ice Queen"
Nissan Silvia Spec-R [S15]

SPOILER

#5 - Yuki Toji - "The Winged Mist"
Mazda RX-7 Type-R [FD3S]

SPOILER

#4 - Klavier Faust - "The Arrow"
Porsche 911 Carrera [993]/RUF CTR2

SPOILER

#3 - Toshiya Takahashi - "The Black Scorpion"
Toyota Supra RZ [JZA80]

SPOILER

#2 - Yuiichi Sakamoto - "The Alchemist"
Nissan Fairlady Z Version S [Z33]

SPOILER

#1 - Eiishiro Sugiyama - "The Demigod"
Nissan Skyline GT-R V-spec II Nur [BNR34]

SPOILER

It won't die as long as I'm still around, I intend to finish this story, don't worry.

On another note, I just got my Shutokou reference up and running again (it means my PSP is running again ) and out of boredom, I decided to do all possible Shikojuu cars in Street Supremacy. I'm bad at drawing so this is the least I could do for a visual reference, and for a treat, I'm also giving the names of all members of the Shikojuu.

Expect them to appear in the story soon.

#10 - Ken Natsugawa - "The Paragon of Speed"
Subaru Impreza WRX STi spec C [GDB]

SPOILER

#9 - Naoki Arisato - "The Duelist"
Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution VIII MR GSR [CT9A]

SPOILER

#8 - Akemi Sayuki - "The Midnight Princess"
BMW M3 [E92]

SPOILER

#7 - Okami Kodokuna - "The Shadow Devil"
Nissan Fairlady Z Z-L [S30]

SPOILER

#6 - Aya Houdzuki - "The Ice Queen"
Nissan Silvia Spec-R [S15]

SPOILER

#5 - Yuki Toji - "The Winged Mist"
Mazda RX-7 Type-R [FD3S]

SPOILER

#4 - Klavier Faust - "The Arrow"
Porsche 911 Carrera [993]/RUF CTR2

SPOILER

#3 - Toshiya Takahashi - "The Black Scorpion"
Toyota Supra RZ [JZA80]

SPOILER

#2 - Yuiichi Sakamoto - "The Alchemist"
Nissan Fairlady Z Version S [Z33]

SPOILER

#1 - Eiishiro Sugiyama - "The Demigod"
Nissan Skyline GT-R V-spec II Nur [BNR34]

SPOILER

PSP... PSP... SUDDENLY PC NFSS2! XD

I'll keep the intro short this time. Here's chapter 16, and I hope you guys enjoy reading it. Don't forget to comment and let me know what you think of the story so far.

CHAPTER 16 ~ Levels and Limits
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- - - Ginza, C1 Inner, Tokyo - - -
- - - 2215 Hours - - -

After a 15 minute drive from the garage, Akemi, Lia and Hana eventually found themselves on the roads of the Inner Circular Loop. Akemi, who had managed to link up with the two girls by starting a 3-way call looked at her rearview mirror and observed the image of the wine red MX5 that was following close behind. I know for a fact that Lia-chan's Roadster is the first MX5 I've seen running the Shutokou, but for some reason, I just don't feel the car belongs here. There's something amiss with that car, that's for sure, I just can't put my finger on it.

Akemi then directed her attention to her car's center console, where a sophisticated boost control unit was installed. Count on Toshiya to put some weird gizmos in his cars, but this one's a bit more tame compared to the other Supra...that one looked like you're in a control center than a car. thinking of Toshiya somehow put a smile on her lips Then again, it wouldn't be Toshiya's car if it weren't for these things, that overly t-...my overly techie freak. She then pressed a few buttons on the boost controller's panel until the screen showed the current readings of the Supra's engine. Boost at 1.5 bar and at 550HP, torque at 60kg/cm, just about enough for C1.

They were already on the expressway for a few minutes, but they were still cruising slowly, and Lia found that quite disturbing. "Akemi-nee, is something the matter?" she asked, speaking on the hands-free bluetooth earpiece she was wearing.

"Eh? What is it, Lia-chan?" came Akemi's reply a few seconds later.

"Aren't we gonna run faster yet? Not that I'm in a hurry or anything." said Lia. In reality though, she was itching to dip her right foot deeper on the accelerator. To see how I fare up against one of the best, that's now why I'm here tonight. something then tugged at the thought Oh wait, I almost forgot that I'm here to guide Hana-chan along...what's up with me today?

"Oh, I see. We can go fast now if you want, I'll let you two go on ahead so that I may not get carried away by my own pace, I'm afraid I won't be able to contain myself once I start doing that." playfully said Akemi, but truth is, she honestly meant it. If there was one thing about speed that Akemi Sayuki has not learned to do, it was controlling the urge to drive at full speed. The traffic was pretty clear, there were only a few cars on the road at that time, and anyone with a tuned machine would not miss the chance to just drive flat out.

"Are you sure, Akemi-neechan?" asked Hana, who was surprised at the older woman's request. It was not that she didn't mind though.

"Yeah, I'll just be here checking up on how Toshi's Supra is like at moderate speed." replied Akemi. I'd rather watch these two girls run than have all the fun by myself, besides, it would give me quite an idea on just how skilled Toshi's group of youngsters are.

"Alright then, I'll be attacking the road Hana-chan, just try and keep up but don't hesitate to back off if you feel it's too dangerous." said Lia before finally pressing down on the accelerator. I'll just have to show Akemi-nee just how much I can do.

"Woah! Wait for me!" called out Hana as she too pressed down on the accelerator, attempting to keep up with the MX5 that burst out its distance a second ago.

Akemi too pressed down on the accelerator, but as soon as she was about half a car length from Hana's Z32, she gently lightened her foot on the throttle. She was just there to watch over the two girls to make sure they don't do anything too risky, especially Hana, who was the rookie of sorts.

Passing the divider after the sudden hill, the three cars were now heading towards the Edo Bridge JCT at about 220km/h. Once they got on the junction, Hana's Z32 was still close behind Lia's MX5 as they quickly closed in on the tight downhill right going towards Kanda Bridge. The MX5 dived into the corner with a fast, zero-counter drift initiated with short hard braking in coordination with Lia's deft steering work; the Z32 meanwhile braked later and longer than the MX5 and turned in with a slightly slower braking drift, swinging the car at a greater angle than the MX5.

Akemi though simply entered the corner at full grip and for a moment, closed the distance from the Z32 and had to back off. This car just doesn't want to hold itself back, the suspension settings are perfect, the power is just balanced, the downforce just pushes the tires onto the ground...everything is done so well like a time attack car, which is what Toshiya probably made it for. Something else then caught her attention, looking at the MX5 and Z32 racing just ahead of her she could tell something was different. I guess I have no more reason to doubt them now. What Akemi saw was a light purple haze forming around the MX5 and a blurry blue cloud emanating from the Z32. Who'd have thought I'd find another one who wields the shadow, along with another wielding wind? It wasn't enough to make Akemi make a dash for it though, as she still wanted to observe the two drivers before making a move. The phone line was quiet, typical though as 100% concentration usually came with silence.

It didn't take long for both Lia and Hana noticing the difference in one another, but both still kept on racing seriously. I see even Hana-chan has that...I can feel it, it's a smooth feeling, like a flow but I can't explain it. It's something similar to that night...that feeling with Kodokuna-san, although it's a bit weaker than his, I'm positive this is the same thing. thought Lia as she glanced back at her rearview mirror. What's this feeling? That purple...aura around Lia-nee...is this what they were referring to last time? This feeling? Hana was still processing her thoughts as she continued chasing after the MX5.

For Akemi, she was simply taking in everything she was seeing, and a few things were already evident. These two...this is the first time they've tapped into their deeper potentials, but I can tell Lia's is already at a further stage than Hana's. It's not so hard to keep up with them when I'm in a more powerful car, but I get the feeling they'll leave me behind soon if I keep cruising like this.

The three cars approached the fast, banked bends of Kanda Bridge and while Akemi was still keeping up in the Supra, the gap was slowly increasing as she had predicted, Lia and Hana were running at a faster pace. After entering the series of two tunnels that led to the Akasaka straight, the older female decided to finally start driving faster. The Supra quickly crept up from behind the Z32 and upon exiting the first tunnel, she was already running side by side with Hana's Z. With better acceleration, she simply went past the pink car and was now looking to pass the wine red compact.

So she's finally getting serious, eh? That's much better. thought Lia as she proceeded to run alongside the Supra as they entered the sharp, mid-speed left that went inside the second tunnel. She was then surprised to find the Supra entering the corner faster despite her MX5 being significantly lighter than the Supra, and its power to weight ratio was still better than the silver sports car. Wha? How is this happening? her shock stayed on as the Supra simply went ahead of her MX5 at corner exit.

Even Hana was taken by surprise, she did not expect the Supra to be able to turn in so well. That Supra is not normal...for a car that size to turn in faster than the lightweight MX5, which is already a cornering machine in itself...either Toshi-niisan had that car's weight reduced drastically...or the suspension on that Supra is set-up so well that it was able to withstand the high G's of that corner and keep all four tires firmly on the road.

Akemi took a deep breath after passing the MX5, her eyes then hovered over to the control panel at the center console, which also showed that at the last corner, turning at over 200km/h generated 1.6 lateral G. That's something I've never felt before, not even in my M3 running at Yokohane. The feeling of the car just fighting the corner, and it wanting to throw you out of the driver seat, it's incredible. I can see why this car is tuned this way. Returning her attention to the road, she accelerated further but not at full throttle as she wanted to find out how Lia and Hana would react to being passed, and how they would eventually try and attack.

As they headed down the winding tunnel, the MX5 stayed right behind the Supra, tracing its line and not looking to attack from any angle while the Z32 followed right behind, seemingly attacking but is actually following its own line along the road. Lia took note of the strange lines that Hana was taking I don't know if it's her lack of experience here in Shutokou or that aura of hers, but it looks like she's trying to find a way to weave through the both of us. Her line's not bad too.

The three cars then reached the tunnel exit and onto the Akasaka straight, where the Supra could freely extend its advantage over the two cars with better power output. Akemi simply stayed on about 75% throttle to not suddenly leave the two cars behind, giving them a fighting chance per se. As they quickly neared the end of the straight, something ahead caught her eye. A white '93 Porsche 911 and a red Nissan Silvia S15. That 993 and that S15...that couldn't be... to confirm her suspicions she pressed deeper on the throttle and quickly caught up with the two cars. Keenly observing both cars, she took note of the factory look of the Porsche and the Wise Square aero and the double fin-type spoiler on the Silvia. A smile then formed on her lips as she recognized the two cars Oh these two...can't see one driving without the other on the Shutokou, as always. She then flashed her headlights repeatedly while driving behind the S15, hoping to get some sort of response.

When the S15 switched on its hazard lights, Akemi could see from the other lane that the Silvia also flashed its lights towards the Porsche. She smiled as she realized they had accepted her challenge, and after only a few seconds, all three cars went on full throttle, going on a race of their own. "I'm sorry girls, I have something to take care of and I'll have to go ahead. I'll meet you two back at Ginza, turn in at the parking area when you get there, alright? I'll already be there by then." she said over the 3-way call that she and the other two girls were still connected on.

It didn't take long for Lia and Hana to realize what Akemi meant, as they saw the Supra quickly accelerate ahead and turn in at the quick left at the end of the Akasaka straight, leaving them behind. "Akemi-nee! Wait!" Hana called out.

"Lia-chan, watch over Hana-chan for me, will you?" was all that Akemi replied before the Supra and the other two cars with it disappeared from their view, but not before Lia and Hana was able to catch a glimpse of a purple haze rapidly forming around the silver car.

Akemi's Supra and the other two cars were now quickly approaching the Tokyo Tower area, and on the hard left that continued the C1 Inward loop, the Supra attacked the S15 on the inside lane, but Akemi's offence was countered with a sudden drift from the Silvia that forced her to brake and abandon the attack. She hissed at this sudden maneuver Same as always...have to get around you to get past then. On the narrow esses in front of Tokyo Tower, she came back with another attack, but this time from the outside lane, and when the S15 drifted along the inside line going left, she simply moved up the outside so that when the red car had to swing for the right half of the first S-curve, the Supra was already moving on the inside. As they came out towards the short straight before the next S-curve, the Supra had already inched ahead of the Silvia and had the advantage coming in from the inside of the next curve.

Going out of the next S-curve the Supra had completely passed the Silvia and was now targeting the Porsche that was running a few meters ahead. The Porsche turned its left indicator light on, telling her that they plan to continue racing along the Inner Circular Loop. On the tight, narrow downhill left ramp that lead back down towards Ginza, Akemi attempted to pass the 993 by utilizing the Supra's grip and getting a slingshot out of the exit. Braking hard before the ramp, she turned the wheel hard towards the inside and when she pressed down on the accelerator, the grip of the car stayed planted on the road and propelled her closer to the rear of the Porsche, but when they got to the corner exit, the white sports car simply accelerated away from the Supra, as if it was propelled by a faster slingshot. The Supra too did slingshot out of the corner, but the speed was still slower than the Porsche. Crap...I forgot how powerful that car is, compared to even my M3, that Porsche still has more power, more so with this Supra, which is already less powerful than my M3.

Coming onto the wide S-curves at the merged Yokohane-C1 area, the CTR displayed much better acceleration than the Supra, as it increased the distance on both corner entry and exit. We're nearing Ginza, I have to get off there...it's all or nothing on the tunnel then. thought Akemi as they closed in on the tunnel, which was a tight right-left S curve that exited out onto the C1 loop proper and closer towards the Ginza off ramp. Akemi saw that a few meters before the tunnel entry, the Porsche already hit the brakes, and she opted for a later braking entry, a few meters closer to the tunnel entry. The gamble seemed to pay off when she was able to rapidly close the gap with the white 993 on the first half of the S, but coming out of the corner, the Supra's rear tire gave way for oversteer, that split second slide was enough for the Porsche to quickly gain ground and distance itself from the Supra again. Akemi sighed as she looked at the 993 speeding away It's hopeless, I guess even suspension settings don't do much against the effects of weight on the tires...but it was still fun, driving this Supra to the limit. It's a high-level tune, but Toshiya could do more by making this car lighter. She then pushed the hazard lights switch to tell that she was withdrawing, and to her surprise, the 993 ahead slowed down and let her overtake while the S15 simply cruised behind her, both cars turning on their hazard lights as well.

- - - Ginza Rest Area, C1, Tokyo - - -
- - - 2230 Hours - - -

Akemi and the other two cars parked beside each other in the rest area, and when Akemi stepped out of the Supra, she made her way towards the S15 and looked on with a smile as the driver stepped out of the car. "You've been slacking off, lady." she said jokingly.

The driver of the S15 revealed herself as someone who looked the same age as Akemi and had medium length brown hair tied up in a high ponytail; she was dressed in an open, white track jacket with a red tank top underneath, navy blue jogging pants and what looked to be red racing shoes. "No, you've just been driving too seriously in someone else's car, did you happen to be into auto theft these days, Ake-chan?" she asked in jest.

"True, you've been driving on the edge. That's something I rarely see from you." said the driver of the Porsche as he walked towards them. He looked to be a couple years older than the two girls and he had short platinum blonde hair with long styled bangs; he wore a closed, purple short sleeved dress shirt with a black collar, black pants and dark brown loafers. "Something rare unless something happened recently that either got you mad or overly happy, and looking at you right now I can easily guess the latter." he said

"Knock it off, Klavier, I know you two know me too much by now." retorted Akemi, pouting at the male as she did.

"Come on, Ake-chan, I can recognize that car anywhere and I know who owns it." said the female driver, throwing Akemi a look that somehow gave her an idea on what was coming next "You and To-chan just got back together, am I right?" she asked gleefully.

"Wha...Aya-chan!" Akemi snapped back, quickly averting her gaze from the two, she could feel her face burning but she couldn't care less as she really didn't want to touch on that subject right now. Of all the...I should've known Aya-chan would ask things like these... she groaned inward as she noticed Klavier and Aya were still looking at her, the former with a carefree smile while the latter with gleaming, expectant eyes. "Ugh...alright, you win...and the answer is yes, we did." she said softly.

"I knew it!" exclaimed a gleeful Aya "I knew you two just couldn't bear being away from each other!" she added, and somehow, Akemi was blushing even more.

"Now, now, fraulein, I think herr Toshi and frau Akemi still need some time for all of this to sink in." interrupted Klavier, much to Akemi's delight.

At least someone knows when to hold off on the teasing...it's embarrassing thought Akemi as she gave a slight nod towards Klavier, who replied by tilting his head to the side, effective saying 'You know how she is', obviously referring to Aya. Akemi then had an idea to steer the topic from her and Toshiya "Say, Aya-chan, Klavier, how are you two getting along?" she asked

Klavier's response was a quick move of his arm around Aya's waist and pulling her close to him, which took the girl by surprise "As you can see, things are...well between fraulein Aya and I, frau Akemi." he said in a rather proud tone.

Aya rolled her eyes in mock annoyance and looked up at Klavier with a fake frown "You really like to show off like this, don't you, you hopeless romantic?" she asked in disbelief

"Look who's talking, miss 'oh-you-and-Toshiya-just-got-back-together-right'?" replied Klavier, mimicking Aya's earlier remarks with a rather convincingly feminine tone, which caused both Akemi and Aya to giggle. "Well yeah, things are fine with the both of us." he added as the laughter settled.

"Glad to hear that." said Akemi "It's really hard to maintain that kind of relationship when the two of you are always far apart, obviously because of both of your hectic schedules as pro drivers. I know we failed at doing just that." she added, but there was no hint of bitterness as she mentioned their past failure because of distance.

"It actually is, now that you've mentioned it." replied Aya "I don't remember the number of times I've called him every after round I finish in D1." she said, looking up towards Klavier.

"And I don't remember how many times I've called her every time I finish a stint during my endurance races." replied Klavier.

"Don't your teammates and crew get bothered by it? You two calling up the other every free time?" asked Akemi

"Not really, they were a bit against it at first, but they got used to it as time went by. It became a normal thing, so to speak." replied Klavier

"I don't really have anyone else to work with except my crew, and they don't really bother with it since they're always working on the car when I'm not in it." said Aya, she then remembered seeing the Supra with other cars before their race "As I recall though, I know I saw you driving with other cars before we raced, I don't suppose those other cars are..." she trailed off when she heard engine sounds coming in from the parking area's entrance, and when she and the others looked, they saw the wine red MX5 and the pink Z32 drive inside.

Lia and Hana eventually found their parking spaces beside the silver Supra, and when they stepped out, they saw Akemi along with Aya and Klavier walking towards them. Hana looked at Aya curiously, something tugged at her telling her that she knew the older woman from somewhere. Where do I know this woman? She's so familiar but I just don't remember clearly... she thought

Akemi approached the two young girls and was the first to speak "Hey guys, glad to see you here." she said

"I hope you didn't wait long, Akemi-nee." replied Lia, who was trying her best to not look at the other two people with Akemi too much.

"Don't worry, we haven't been around for long either." said Akemi, who then noticed Hana looking at Aya. "Oh, let me introduce you guys, this here's Klavier Faust and Aya Houdzuki." she said glancing to both people as she mentioned their names, she then went on to introduce the young girls "And these two are members of Synchro BLiTZ like you have probably guessed, this here's Lia Kusunoki and this is Hana Takahashi." she said.

"A..Aya Houdzuki? The female drifter in D1!?" exclaimed Hana, who finally remembered where she had known the older woman

"Umm...yes...errr...I didn't know I had fans. Sorry if I sound weird." said a stunned Aya, it was true though, she didn't know people actually recognized her outside of D1, mostly because she rarely takes off her helmet when the event on the track starts. She then took note of one thing about Hana "Takahashi? You don't happen to be related to Toshiya now, do you?" she asked

"Toshiya is actually my cousin." replied Hana "But...how do you know him?" she asked

"That's because you're looking at drivers number 6 and number 4 of the Shikojuu." replied Akemi

"Wow! Really?" asked Lia, who was quite starstruck at meeting more members of the famed Shikojuu I can't believe it...these two are up there with Toshiya-san as the fastest in Shutokou...no wonder they're so fast.

"More like inactive members of the Shikojuu, frau Akemi." said Klavier "You really won't see me often on the Shutokou actually, because most of the time, I'm in Europe driving in the GTC class of the European Le Mans series." he added

"And same goes for me too, as I'm touring Japan most of the time for the D1GP's Ladies League." said Aya

"Wait, so when Kodokuna-san and Toji-san mentioned about members of the Shikojuu being professional drivers..." Lia trailed off

"Yup, they meant Aya-chan and Klavier here. These two have been professionals for only two years though, they started in their respective seasons around the same time the whole Shutokou Saisoku Society disappeared if I remembered correctly." said Akemi "Though for the team's reunion, they've gladly found time off from their races and are here in Tokyo." she added

"We were actually doing our warm-up runs around C1 when Ake-chan suddenly came in from behind and challenged us to a race." said Aya "I actually thought it was To-chan driving the car all along." she added

"Say, why don't we have a friendly race now that we're all-" Klavier was cut off when his phone rang from his pocket "Entschuldigen sie, damen." he said quickly before walking away to attend to the call.

"I don't know, I think we should be getting back to the garage." said Akemi, looking at her wristwatch to check the time. "I still need to return this car, after all." she added. Luckily, Klavier came back with a change of plan that are in her favor.

"I'm sorry, but I guess our friendly race would have to wait." said Klavier "That was my tuner friend who called, and he told me my other car, which he was working on, is already done, and I need to get to it as soon as possible, so I'm afraid I'm gonna have to leave you early." he added

"Oh, I understand, I guess I'll see you again next week then, Klavier?" asked Akemi

"Yeah, unless we run into each other again on the road, frau Akemi." replied Klavier, he then looked over to Aya, who had an unknown expression on her face, but one that he knew well "I know what you're thinking, fraulein, come on, we'll go take a look at the car together." he said to her before turning his attention back to the other three women "Until next time then, mein damen. Tschus." he said before walking back towards his Porsche.

Aya smiled a knowing smile at Klavier in response, then turned her attention to Hana and Lia "I'm sorry we have to leave early, I was actually looking forward to talking more with the two of you." she said.

"Don't worry, Houdzuki-san, I'm sure we'd have more time for it soon." replied Lia, trying to not sound disappointed. She liked the prospect of meeting professional drivers who are still racing on the streets, but her chance would have to wait longer.

"Yeah, but honestly, I was really looking forward to the same. I've always wanted to meet a fellow female racer from Tsuchisaka." said Hana, who spared no effort to hide her disappointment in not being able to talk to one of her favorite racers.

"No way! You raced at Saitama as well!?" a surprised Aya gleefully asked

"Yes, I actually raced at that pass more often than I did any other place including Shutokou." replied Hana, equally gleeful.

"You know, we should go back there sometime and race." said Aya

"Definitely! I'll hold you to that, Houdzuki-san." said Hana

Aya nodded in response "Deal." she said. "Well I guess we'd be on our way then."

"Okay, take care Aya-chan." said Akemi as she watched Aya walk back to her Silvia and start the engine. A few seconds later, both the Porsche and the Silvia flashed their lights to signal that they were going before driving off from their parking spaces and out of the parking area.

"Well, that was some night." began Akemi before looking back to Lia and Hana "Shall we head on back, girls?" she asked.

The two nodded in response and made their way back to their cars. After a minute, they were all in their cars and ready to set off, and when Akemi once again led the way, they all drove out of the parking area and back down to C1, where they simply cruised until they got off the highway and headed back to the garage.

Meanwhile, Lia was lost in her thoughts I couldn't chase after them no matter how hard I tried...and I know Akemi-nee wasn't going all out earlier, she was still holding back...am I not good enough...is the MX5 not good enough yet. I know those people are professionals but still, I was on the top of my game yet I couldn't do anything...I need to get myself together, I need to become better. I know it's dangerous to push harder but I just have to do it if I want to become faster, then I'll find out whether it's me or my car that comes up short.

- - - CHAPTER 16 END - - -
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This post has been edited by Antares on Jan 27 2013, 04:19 AM

@Antares
I'll be honest with you bro... I'm actually enjoying the race parts of the story... though the characters (or their presentation at least) seem to be a bit too anime... then again, considering that this is a fanfic of wangan midnight, it's no surprise then...

Still, I'm looking forward to how their characterization will progress... and on a side note, while they are clearly still anime characters, their animated versions (based on how you characterized their physical appearances) can actually pass for real life without being too cosplayish

Thanks for the comment sir RB! Really appreciate it

I think anime-ish presentations of the characters has been a habit of mine ever since I started writing, probably because all I've ever written fanfictions on are either video games or anime. I just found it easier to find an anime character to base my characters looks from and start from there, changing some details along the way until I come up with the character's appearance. Making up completely unique appearances for each character is something I'm still hoping to develop someday.

This post has been edited by Antares on Jan 27 2013, 01:28 PM

Another short intro to this chapter. Hope everyone enjoys this one, cause I enjoyed writing this chapter. Oh, and please leave your comments on the story, I'd really appreciate it.

CHAPTER 17 ~ A Helping Hand
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- - - Speed Works Toshi, Tokyo - - -
- - - 1900 Hours - - -

The level of activity on the next day was nowhere near the night before, as everyone's schedule was suddenly filled, except for one Lia Kusunoki. Toshiya had called Hana early in the morning to tell everyone he won't be around the garage the whole day since exams were coming up at the university he worked at and he had to submit a questionnaire to be compiled by the department, and Hana herself only dropped by the garage to deliver Toshiya's message and leave her car there as she had a research paper to work on. Takeshi was still busy working on the S13 that Toshiya had left at the garage last night, and he wanted to make some adjustments to the engine of his FD. Ryu had to work overtime for a big article that was to be the highlight of the next issue of his car magazine, and Shinichi had to rush home after school to attend to some emergency errands.

Everyone had an agenda for today, willingly or circumstantially, but Lia had none. After the most recent photoshoot her manager had signed her up and a few of her model friends on the week before, all their schedules had become pretty open. They were on an unofficial vacation until they get called up for another project, which no one knew when. Instead of finding something to do to kill time though, she was in the garage office, staring blankly out the window while propped on one elbow as she leaned on the office table, seated on one of the two chairs placed in front of the wooden furniture.

I've been getting this...unexplainable feeling lately, where I just want to drive as fast as I can and not care about anything else as I go. The car, the road, it's like they're calling out to me every night, but whenever I go out there, I just end up getting disappointed. Just like last night, I wasn't able to keep up with Akemi-nee no matter how hard I tried, and I couldn't shake off Hana-chan either, when she was still more or less inexperienced with driving on the Shutokou. Last night just made me more confused, and a lot more eager to drive...am I losing my touch, or is my MX5 not good enough? I need something to make things clear...

While she was lost in her thoughts, Takeshi was outside the office looking curiously at her through the raised window blinds. He had already noticed that Lia was strangely quiet since she arrived at the garage late in the afternoon, but dismissed the concern as she was probably just tired. Now that he looked at her though, it was pretty obvious that something was wrong.

I wonder what's bothering her? She's been inside the office for two hours now...and I'm guessing she's been like that since. I don't know if I should go in and talk to her...she might not even tell me anything. pursing his lips, Takeshi thought about what he would do, and after a few seconds, he made the decision to just go in and talk to her. "Hey..uhh, Lia-chan? Are you alright?" he asked.

Lia didn't notice Takeshi enter the room, and so, she jumped a bit after hearing him speak, and when she turned to look, she quickly tried to hide the surprised expression on her face. "Ah...h-hey there, Takeshi-kun. I'm...fine, I'm alright. Did you need something?" she replied.

"Not really, I just wanted to see if you're okay." began Takeshi, who walked closer to Lia, stopping just behind the chair that faced hers. "I saw you spacing out for quite a while now, and I just wanted to ask if there's something bothering you?"

Lia sighed Well I suppose I can let someone know about it, maybe Takeshi-kun can actually help me. she then looked up at him with a serious expression "Are you busy right now? This is gonna be quite the long story I'm about to tell..." she asked.

"Nope, I just finished with the Silvia and my FD can always wait." replied Takeshi, who had a smile on his lips for a moment. The cars can wait, but I think this couldn't. He then moved over to take his seat, making sure to still leave some space between them to not make things awkward. "You can tell me anything." he said in a comforting tone.

His words made her feel a little relieved, and a light smile formed on her lips. "You're the only one I'll be telling of this, though, so can you keep this between us for now?" she asked, a gentle nod followed as his reply. "You see, I've been rather confused lately, because everytime I try to drive at my best, I always feel that I'm not doing enough. I'm confused as to whether I can't drive as well as I could before, or is it my car that's starting to fall short." she started, recalling every single moment that contributed to her current dilemma.

"But you were in form during that last team race against Apollo, it's hard to believe you're going through that right now, to be honest." said Takeshi "When did this begin?" he asked

"Funny you mentioned that, actually, because all of this started with that race." replied Lia, sounding like she couldn't believe it herself "It was that race where I noticed how my car really fared on the road. Shinichi-kun attacked hard, and so did I, but I just couldn't run at the same pace. It was thanks to their mistake that we were able to win outright, that gave me confidence that I could still win with how I drive. After that though, things didn't go so well." she then looked down, away from Takeshi "I was running along C1 when I got challenged by a 180SX, it didn't look to be heavily tuned so I took him on. After going half a lap around the Outer Loop, I just couldn't shake him off, no matter how I tried." her voice sounded stressed, indicating that it still greatly affects her up to now "He gave up eventually, but I still couldn't forget the fact that I couldn't outrun him, despite attacking with everything I could. I always thought my MX5 was well suited to the tight roads of C1, it was lightweight and carries adequate power to go fast on the straights...now I just can't think of it the same way."

"Maybe the 180SX was equal with your MX5 in terms of performance, and you just outplayed him with how you drove the car? You can never discount that possibility." replied Takeshi in hopes of lifting Lia's spirits for even a little bit.

"Of course, that's why I was so eager to have Akemi-nee to join us last night." said Lia, but her mood wasn't improving, it was more like it got worse. "I was so eager to see how I'll fare with one of the fastest drivers on the Shutokou, and she was in Toshiya-san's Supra too, so it was also a good test for my MX5. I started off in the lead, and I willingly went all out, even though I had Hana-chan with me. What surprised me was that even for someone inexperienced and recently afraid of the high speed Shutokou, Hana-chan kept up quite well. She too had the same feeling I got from when we all went to Toshiya-san's race with Kodokuna-san and Toji-san, she was as good as we are." for a change, Lia sounded happy talking about Hana, which made Takeshi feel a bit better "Akemi-nee watched us from behind until we came to the Akasaka straight...she saw two cars ahead of us and just left us behind to race them, I tried my hardest to catch up but no dice, she was gone before we even reached Tokyo Tower."

By this point it was clear to Takeshi what Lia was going through, she needed something to confirm her suspicions, but everytime she went to look for answers, all she got was more questions. If only I had some way to help her get out of this slump of hers, she's starting to lose faith in her car, and her driving is starting to suffer as well...no wait, I can help her! Now I just gotta see if she'd like to try it. He then presented the idea that suddenly popped into his head "Tell you what, I have an idea." he began, which somehow piqued Lia's interest as she looked up at him curiously "I'm actually going to test my FD out later to see some settings I've planned for the engine, how about you take the car out on a spin later instead?" he asked

"Your FD? Really?" Lia didn't expect his sudden proposition to drive his car out later. "I don't know, Takeshi-kun, I don't think I could drive it well." she said

"There's the problem! I think that because you've been losing confidence in your car, your driving has suffered the same impact." replied Takeshi "Look, I wasn't going to ask you if I knew you weren't up to it because I know you can drive my car well. You've driven your car so well before you've started doubting it, so I think driving another car with all you've got would give you the answer you've been looking for." he added. I'm confident she'll find the answer by driving a car that's far different from the one she's used to, but to what conclusion would she come to afterwards is what I'm worried about.

Lia wasn't having it though "Come on, Takeshi-kun, you're just flattering me right now." she said in a convincingly unconvinced tone.

"Lia-chan..." Takeshi trailed off in disbelief "I'm serious, do you think I'd do that?" he asked Is she really this hard to convince...or don't I sound convincing enough? Ugh...how am I gonna get to her like this!!?

"I don't know, that's why I'm asking you." replied Lia in a monotonous tone, still not having any of it.

"Again, no, I'm not flattering you!" said Takeshi before taking a deep breath as if to start over "You won't know if you don't try, Lia-chan, the FD isn't too different from your MX5, so I'm sure you'll be able to adjust it quickly."

I don't know...even if I could handle his car, I'm still quite skeptical of the idea and I doubt it would even help me out right now..but I guess I could give it a shot since even I don't know what I'm supposed to do. "You really sure about this, Takeshi-kun?" she asked

"Yeah, I told you, I wouldn't be asking you this if I knew you couldn't handle it." he replied Huh? That was fast, I just hope she agrees before she thinks of another excuse to not to.

He's pretty insistent too...but whatever, might as well do this for myself too, I've got nothing to lose but time after all. "If you say so, maybe I can give it a try." she said

"Really?" he quickly asked in disbelief, but quickly corrected himself "Err..I mean, that's great!" he then stood up from his seat "Well, I'm gonna go back to working on the car then, I still need to get all the settings dialed in for later." as he made his way out of the office though, he was stopped when Lia called him, and when he looked back, he saw that she too had already stood from her seat "What is it?" he asked her

"Do you mind if I go with you and watch how you work on the car?" she asked, her eyes wandering.

Wait...really? "No I don't...but why that? The lounge is open if you didn't know." he said, he was finding it hard to believe that Lia actually wanted to watch him work on his car instead, not that he didn't like it of course.

"I don't know, I get the feeling I'd understand things more if I get to see it closer. Plus I'd rather be with someone than be bored to death sitting alone in the lounge." she replied rather confidently I really don't want to be alone right now, I'd rather have someone to talk to than go back to thinking about it again...

"Oh alright then, come along. I can't promise you won't be bored though."

- - - Engine Room - - -
- - - Speed Works Toshi, Tokyo - - -
- - - 1910 Hours - - -

Lia sat on an empty table inside the engine room as she watched Takeshi work on the 13B engine he had taken off from the car, the blue frame of the RX7 sitting just outside the engine room with its hood raised. She observed him as he wrenched, oiled and adjusted different parts on the engine and smiled as she noticed how serious he was at what he was doing. He seems to be very distant at first, but when you look at him like this, it's obvious he loves what he's doing. "I never got to ask you, Takeshi-kun, how did you get into racing? You look like you've been doing this for a long time now."

"I've only been into it for two years, actually." replied Takeshi, glancing up at Lia for a moment before continuing his work "I've liked cars since I was little, but it was only after my father bought me my FD that I started to drive fast. Every night in Osaka I started to run as fast as I could, and it was only when I met the local racers that I started to learn about tuning."

"I do remember you telling about coming from Osaka, but why move to Tokyo when the racing scene there is as big as the one here?" she asked out of curiosity

This time, Takeshi stopped working on the engine and looked over towards Lia "When I told my friends back at Osaka about wanting to become a pro racer, they told me that racing there wouldn't be enough, that I needed a bigger challenge." he began "Regularly going to the circuits was too expensive so they told me to go to Tokyo, where the roads felt closer to that of the racing circuits."

"About the tuning and mechanics stuff though, where did you learn all that stuff? Toshiya-san has told me about everything he's done on my MX5 before but I didn't even understand half of what he said." she said

"I actually learned by just watching the older guys back at Osaka when they were working on my car, they told me about some things and then I started from there. The CPU tuning was something I practiced on my own, messing about the settings in my car before I dialed the right one in, from then on I just worked on refining it. I've never touched anything besides a 13B rotary until I started working here so I'm not really that knowledgeable when it comes to tuning." he replied, before returning a curious look at her "You seem to be interested in mechanics too, Lia-chan?"

"I'd rather not get my hands dirty working on my car and produce catastrophic results, thank you very much." she replied lightheartedly "I'm just curious as to how you can drive well and work on your car without causing a disaster."

"For me it's just a personal preference, most of the well known professionals are also capable tuners, and I believe that knowing about how your car works will allow you to drive it even better." said Takeshi "So far though, I think I've already gained new experiences to help me as a driver and a tuner." he then looked out the engine room's window towards the MX5 that was parked on one of the floor jacks "How about you, Lia-chan? What got you into racing?"

"I just found the Shutokou to be a place where I can find a change of pace. The adrenaline rush I get everytime I attack the road is unlike any other I've experienced, and it's become so hard to resist ever since." she replied "It became more irresistible when I met Toshiya-san and had my MX5 tuned. The speeds I once thought were fast were not even close to what I was able to do with my tuned car."

"I see, but do your friends at work know about you racing on the Shutokou?" asked Takeshi

"A few of them, including my manager." replied Lia, sounding quite amused "My friends don't have anything against it, but my manager just wants me away from my car every single time. It's not like he can do anything once the shoot was over, though, so I just let him be." she added

"I can understand where he's coming from though, I wouldn't want my prettiest talent to get hurt for driving too fast if I were a manager." Takeshi said rather quickly

Hold on, I caught that bit! "What was that?" quickly asked Lia, though she heard every word of Takeshi's remarks and was resisting the urge to giggle a bit

"Nothing! Nothing!" said Takeshi innocently "It's just that I agree with how your manager looks out for you, we're practically doing something other people would call reckless or outright dangerous, after all." he added, trying to look as innocent as possible. Lia simply laughed at him and he was now clueless as to why she did "What? Is there something wrong with what I said?" he asked

"No, it's just that you're just too shy and indirect." replied Lia, giving him a knowing look "You do realize by now that I actually heard what you said earlier, and I have to be honest, it felt good." she added

"Eh?" Takeshi was confused, she had caught up to his not-so-sneaky comment but her reaction was unexpected.

"Yeah, talking to you, I mean." began Lia "It made me forget about what I was thinking of earlier, and I like how it felt, so thanks, for hearing me out."

Did the topic just make a sharp 180? That was a fast transition... "Don't worry, Lia-chan. I'm just glad I could help you feel better at the very least." he replied, giving her a warm smile

Lia was startled by his smile for a moment before her eyes wandered. This again...why do I always have to be caught off guard with that smile... Then she had an idea "Say, are you gonna finish with that soon, Takeshi-kun?" she asked

"A bit, I just need to adjust the ignition timing on this and I'm done." he replied while tinkering with the compact rotary engine once more "Why? You wanna drive out already? It's still too early and traffic's bound to be everywhere." he added matter-of-factly

"No, no, I actually wanted to ask if you'd like to have dinner out tonight? Right before we take the drive out?" she asked "This place we went to yesterday was pretty nice." she added, hoping it would spur him into agreeing.

Oh great job Takeshi, the girl had to be the one to ask you out...way to go Takeshi berated himself inside, but now that the chance came to him, he wasn't about to pass up "Sure, I'd like to, but umm...can you give me about half an hour? I'll be done with the tuning in a few but I still need to get the engine back in the car." he asked

"I can wait, and uh, I'll just be at the office." said Lia before starting to make her way out of the engine room. Once she was at the door though, she turned around to look back at Takeshi "Thanks Takeshi-kun, really." she said before opening the door and walking out of the room.

- - - Garage Office - - -
- - - Speed Works Toshi, Tokyo - - -
- - - 1945 Hours - - -

While waiting in the office, Lia had already dozed off, resting her head on her arm on the table, still seated on the chair she was on earlier. When Takeshi went to knock, he saw the sleeping girl from outside and gently opened the door instead. By this time he had already finished reinstalling the engine back onto his FD and checking if it works and have changed out of his mechanics overalls to a casual getup consisting of a light blue short sleeved buttoned shirt, black pants and black sneakers. As he slowly approached Lia, he noticed that she had probably just closed her eyes and suddenly drifted off.

The sleeves of her gray sweater were hastily rolled down, and her black loose fitting jogging pants hung from her legs down to her ankles, partly covering her pink sneakers; her strawberry blonde hair was sprawled across the table and a few strands covered her sleeping face, he took a moment to admire her peaceful appearance before gently placing his hand on her shoulder to wake her up.

Pretty? Yeah, she definitely is...and probably some more. "Lia-chan? Lia-chan?" he said as he gently shook her shoulder.

Lia's eyes slowly opened and she groaned as she sat back upright on her chair, stretching her arms and pulling the sleeves of her sweater up. "Heya, Takeshi-kun, you done already?" she asked

"Yup, you ready to go?" he replied as he watched stretch some more as apparently her short nap had given her quite a good rest.

Lia looked up with a skeptical expression "I should be the one asking you that, you know?" she said, though out of levity. A moment later, she stood up from her seat and headed for the door "Let's get going then."

Takeshi's FD was already outside the garage and the garage itself looked ready to close for the day, as all the lights except the one above the office were all turned off. As they were heading outside, Takeshi stopped to hand over the keys of his car to Lia "Here, why don't you go ahead and start the car? I'm just gonna check if all the tools are back in the storeroom then I'll go close the garage." he said before making his way to the storeroom at the far end of the garage.

Lia went on to get inside the FD and once she had the keys in the slot, she quickly turned it and let the engine come to. Right away, she noticed something different with it. The sound, I can tell even from idle that the tuning has been definitely refined. I haven't heard any car sound this good before, maybe I'll actually get something out of tonight as a driver. It only took a couple of minutes before Takeshi had closed the garage gates and got on the passenger seat. As a girl though, I hope I can get something out of a dinner date.

"So, where to?" he asked

"There's this cafe called the Oasis a few blocks from here." began Lia "Akemi-nee actually took us there yesterday, they serve mainly coffee and a few sweets but I remember seeing a few main courses on the menu, I think you'll love it." she said before setting off out of the garage. As they were driving down the road though, Lia felt that the clutch of the FD was heavy, way too heavy compared to the one on her MX5 "Is the clutch really this heavy?" she asked

"It's a modified clutch unit so yeah it is really heavy." began Takeshi "But don't worry, once you get up to speed later you won't even feel it." he added reassuringly

"You better not blame me if I keep on missing shifts later because of how heavy the clutch really feels." said Lia, really insisting on how heavy the FD's clutch is "I'm no bigfoot either, so don't expect me to be able to step on it deep really quickly." she added

"Come on, Lia-chan, I know you're just whining about it right now." said Takeshi in blithe "Once we eat up, I'm sure you'll find the strength to drive this car well. You're just hungry right now, is all." he teased

"Whatever, Takeshi-kun." she replied in mock annoyance "I hope you don't beg me to slow down later once I get in the groove."

"Don't worry, I won't stop you from doing whatever you want. You're the one behind the wheel, after all." confidently said Takeshi "Besides, you're the one who's looking to get something out of this, so there's no reason for you to hold back."

"I guess you're right." replied Lia, as she turned into an intersection. A few meters later they were already by the Oasis "We're here." she gently parked the car in front of the cafe and shut the engine off moments after settling the car on its space.

- - - CHAPTER 17 END - - -
_______________________________

Why did I release another chapter so soon though? It's because the next chapter of Saisoku no Gaiden would come near the end of the month, or maybe even early March if time doesn't let me work on it. I needed to open some time for me to work on Catch-22, especially since I owe the readers of the crossover two chapters now that I've promised a double-header.

I'm actually looking forward to writing Catch-22 updates now that all the info of the OCs are in, but rest assured, after Chapter 5 of Catch-22, I'd go back to working on SnG.

This post has been edited by Antares on Feb 3 2013, 05:13 AM

I've been thinking about this story recently and with the way I've steered it, it just went in the wrong direction and I just don't know how I'll get this story back on track. So I've decided that I'm gonna stop posting updates here and instead reboot the story from scratch. Inconsistencies, lack of a central point and many other reasons, it's just too much to deal with just a rewrite, starting from scratch is the only thing I can think of doing with this right now.

This story has been sort of an experiment for me since this is my very first original story. I know where I've hit and where I've missed in this story, and I'm sorry if I had to come to a reboot. I'll do my best to avoid making the same mistakes next time.

It would take me time to publish the first entries of the reboot as a new thread, and I've talked with The J about having this thread closed and moved once I get it up and running.

Again guys, I'm sorry to disappoint, it's been a learning experience and I hope you guys would read the reboot of Saisoku no Gaiden once it's up.