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The Chapter...the development...Saburo's debut...Sakuya and Mayumi's interaction...and finally...

The PREVIEW of Chapter 6...

I only have one way to convey my feelings in how I feel on your ultra-huge update...








Seriously...you just outdo yourself on this update...

And I am not sure if you're still accepting contributions, but if I have any idea on supporting Accel Code...I'll be sure to PM you. Keep it up, Rin...

Keep it up.

This post has been edited by クロイ on Jun 6 2013, 05:27 PM

Now...to give my feedback on Chapter 5...

(sigh) DAMN...Rin...Saburo's debut is quite spectacular needless to say, and I wonder if Saburo will ever show more of his care in future when Sakuya is becoming increasingly active on her activities in joining hand with him on finding a better way to refine their "career" (well, not official for Saburo yet if course...)

The "Baka-Saburo" sure give way to Sakuya did in fact, possess some traits off Asuka, despite their huge difference in personality towards the main leads... (Don't even get me started on how Asuka treated Shinji during the 3.0 movie...) Knowing this, I knew Sakuya is going to leave a huge impact of impression for sure in future...

Just taking a look at her pic at the preview of CH6 made me like her all the more better! And I see you finally took CELL-SHADING/COLORING!! For a moment there I thought you were taking lessons from the guys at GAINAX/Khara Studio since Sakuya looks so live-anime-style there, like an actual screenshot of a live animation.

Anyway, good job on your art-refinement again, and I am sure Imma_N00B will be able to help you further in your writing since even I can see a few errors here and there at the end of CH5. ;P

But on plot development, you really outdid yourself in pouring this magnitude of effort in debuting Saburo.

I really REALLY hope Sakuya has as much awesomeness impending on her future chapter.

One more thing; I wonder who may be Sakuya's Four-Eyed-Phone-Buddy that managed to trigger her temper so easily?

Something tells me in CH6 we'll get to see LOTS of fiery action around Sakuya...!! 8DD

Keep it up, Rin! I really can't wait to see one of my favorite heroines in Accel Code in all its glorious action!!!

This post has been edited by Ruby Kyrie on Jun 5 2013, 02:11 AM

And as usual, I took the helm of floodgate control and opened it up because why the hell not.
For once, I have NOT shown my restraint on this.

You just noticed the resemblance? I mean, did the red hair, fairly beat up body, the snarky smile and love for red not ring any bells?

She's "less-b*tchy-than-Asuka" Sakuya.

less b*tchy but still b*tchy.

I know this is irrelevant but...happy birthday, Kuroi...

6th of June....heh.

happy birthday kuroi~

I finally had time to read and properly digest/review chapter 5...

I must say... the quality of Rin's story-telling is consistent; not too technical that it isolates new readers while being detailed enough that it helps people imagine how things are going.

As for grammar and typo errors, it's rather expected from a rather long input. Unless Rin has his own editor to help him check for the aforementioned errors.

As for Chapter 6... I have the same feedback as everyone else.

All in all, another excellent update and it's worth the long wait.

And now... back to my regular cookie munching...

Be sure to leave some for me, ;P

And...thanks for your feedback mang...I promise Chapter 6 will be just as worth the wait.

Cookies are always available in the Dark Side

Darth Vader is my dream buddy, so I guess I can take it anytime I want. 8D

All I hope is that our efforts don't get us turned into Reboot: The Franchise.

Eh...it's cool. Don't worry and be happy.

@Rin
Btw, I'd like to point out that I like how you presented Saburo's first rival as a very prideful individual but still honorable nonetheless that he was able to accept his defeat and at the same time approach Saburo just to be able learn where he went wrong.

Why thank you good sir.

All humans have redeeming points even if they're antagonistic. That's what I tried to convey actually. lulz

You sure you're not just saying that since it was pointed out?

NU I ISH NOT, MAH GOOD SIR. 8D

Oi, AC inner circle Devs, how's the chapters coming along?

And Rin, you've had your break, now work.

Calm down, I am already busting my ass to draw some scenes for Chapter 6 in promise of sabisu, sabisu~ <3

This post has been edited by Rin on Jun 13 2013, 08:22 AM

Yay, go go go! When do you think you can post it by?

you're a dev yourself, if you won't join us you're missing the good stuff

The time has come for another chapter. Here we go~

Code 6: Crimson

“How are you doing, been a while, hasn’t it, Sakuya?”

The voice on the phone literally puts annoyance toward Sakuya. It was an old friend that she once knew long ago and apparently, she was anything but pleased in hearing that person talk with her rather seductive and teasing tone.

“Four-eyes, so what business you have here now?” Sakuya asked in a rather serious tone, her expression switched into a frustrated side. “Hey, hey hey....we haven’t met for almost half a year and this is how you greet your old pal?” The female voice teased again. Clearly, the female voice behind the phone that is talking to Sakuya isn’t shaken by the redhead’s frustrated tone at all, much to her annoyance.

“Don’t get all chummy with me, little sparrow.” Sakuya shot back. “Everytime you call me, you always bring hectic crap for me if nothing else, so out with it. What kind of trouble did you bring this time?”

“It’s nothing, really.” The voice chuckled. “Your uncle ordered for a crucial meeting at Akagi and you are compulsory to attend, number 2.” Hearing that immediately reminds Sakuya of the mark on her upper left chest where there is a number of a stylized ‘02’ tattooed on it. “Also, if you haven’t already heard, Driver’s Utopia is starting the time attack event and we’re going there to clean house soon, starting with the Gunma prefecture at Akagi mountain.”

“...”

Sakuya is very well aware of the recent news across the world of street racing as she has been keeping in touch towards any updates with her PC and cellular phone. Knowing that if the time attack event is going to involve the community of Muscle Brotherhood, Sakuya is a crucial candidate representing the huge organization. However...

“I have other plans on my end already, hate to bring the bad news, but I won’t be attending the MB meeting today. You spread the word.” Sakuya declined.

“Ah, I know what this is about...” the female voice said in a very provoking tone. “It’s about him, isn’t it? Speaking of that guy, how is he doing? He didn’t....give you a lot of trouble, did he?”

“That’s none of your business.” Sakuya snapped back. “You’re always finding chances to hit on him whenever I am not looking. Don’t think I don’t know what you’re trying to sling here.”

“Oh come on, you snobby little red princess.” The voice teased again, not feeling threatened by Sakuya’s rather fierce tone at all. “You’re not the only lady here that cares for him, you know...now then, we will talk about him later, but I am just going to ask you one more time, will you be attending today’s meeting?”

“No.”

“You sure? Because if you don’t come, bad things will happen to the Brotherhood.” The voice said, but despite what she just told to Sakuya, her tone doesn’t seem worried one bit at all. “I wouldn’t force you though, since I know once you become stubborn you’ll be dead before you change your mind on something. But just so you know, there are LOTS of things that are riding on your presence at Akagi today...so think about it, eh?”

“So what is this activity about anyway...? Why am I so crucial to it that you of all people had to tell me this?” Sakuya asked, curious about the importance of the meeting, even though she has quite made up her mind not to go.

“Secret.” The voice whispered with a mischievous giggle. “Anyway, I am kinda running low on airtime here so I’ll call you back when I got other stuffs worth telling you about. Until then, be sure to give my love to the black prince, okay? I’ve been aching to see him again...”

“Go screw yourself. If you’ve something to tell him, do it yourself!! I am not playing the messenger!” Sakuya blurted out in frustration before she hangs up the cellphone angrily and toss it back to the desk. The phone was encased in an anti-shock case made of steel apparently so the phone didn’t get damaged even from a mildly hard thud on the wooden desk. “Seriously...that four-eyes never change one bit at all...!”

“Well you sure seemed to be in a bad mood...”

One familiar voice can be heard through Sakuya’s ears, as she turned around and noticed that it was none other than Saburo himself. He slowly walks into the garage and examined on the Nissan 180SX. Sakuya immediately brushed her hair off and turned her attention towards the brown-haired young man.

“Saburo...”

“So, it’s done?” Saburo asked, his hand touching on the smooth front-end of the black Nissan.

“Yeah...it wasn’t too hard for me to fix...so...are you ready to go wherever it is you’re planning to go?” Sakuya asked with a smile, trying hard to forget about her conversation with the Four-Eyes that seemed to frustrate her for a moment. Saburo walks slowly towards the desk and examined the jacket that is being put on the chair, with the hat tossed at the leather red sofa as usual, before he turns back and locks his eyes to Sakuya again.

“...I am planning to go to Ibaraki prefecture to run some personal errands. And the repaired 180SX may be the very thing I need most now...so I glad you managed to fix it in time.” Saburo explains. “Also...I need you to know something...”

“What is it?” Sakuya asked, waiting for him to finish.

“...I’ll be going alone at this.”

“What?” Sakuya was shocked when she heard what Saburo just said. “Hold on a second, Saburo! Didn’t you said that I am free to follow you? Why did you change you mind all of a sudden? Did something happen?”

“No...it’s just that I have heard that you have some work to do later around Gunma, so I thought I’ll just let you take the time off and have me do this alone.” Saburo said with a calm tone. “I just checked that the website of your organization saying that there is a crucial meeting where all members are compulsory to attend.” Hearing that, Sakuya’s heart immediately sank. She knew that even though she can go against many of the Brotherhood’s requests in doing something sometimes, but when there are crucial activities involving mandatory attendance under her uncle’s orders, even she cannot go against it.

“Hold it...Saburo, even if that’s the case...I already told the Brotherhood that I will not be attending.” Sakuya tries to reason with Saburo, despite the odds. “I could easily reason with my uncle too, knowing that I am his niece, I am sure he can overlook it. If I could just talk to him, then maybe he can excuse me to spend some more time with you, besides, even if you’re confident, there’s no telling what may went wrong. It’ll be better to have a mechanic like me to look after your machine, wouldn’t it?”

“That’s not really the point, Sakuya...” Saburo shook his head slowly. “You shouldn’t abandon your responsibility just for me. That wouldn’t be fair for you, would it?”

SPOILER

Image size reduced, original size: 1500 x 1080. Click here to view the image in its original dimension.

“Screw it, I said it’s okay, didn’t I?” Sakuya grabbed Saburo’s hands firmly, her eyes are slowly welling up in frustration. “Saburo, don’t tell me you’re going to reject everything else and go off alone again? Man, you’ve been doing that a lot of times already! Don’t you think it’ll be better if we can work as a team more often?”

“I don’t want you to get involved in this...it’s just a feeling alright?” Saburo turned his head away slowly from Sakuya’s concerned face. “I just feel that I got to do this alone...so just leave this one out for a while and do what you need to do, okay?”

“Stupid Saburo!!” Sakuya shouted, slightly surprising Saburo. “I already told you it’s fine, didn’t I? Why did you insist on rejecting me?! Did you hate me so much that you need to push me off and go off alone...again? I can endure the scolding if anything else, seriously! It’s okay for me, so you don’t have to worry about me so much!”

“It’s not that I hate you or anything, okay...?” Saburo said with a sigh. “Look...it’s just that there comes a time when I sensed something I need to take care of personally, I cannot and will not drag others into it. And you can assure that I will always remember the time when you helped me out the most and where I acknowledge you of your abilities. So please, at least for me...sit this one out, okay?”

“...” Sakuya slowly let go off Saburo’s hands and her fists clenched. Sakuya’s expression then slowly changes. “....So that’s how it is huh...fine then. I’ll sit this one out and do as you wish. But do know this...Saburo...you really need to learn how to trust your friends more instead of trying to shoulder everything on your own.” Sakuya then grabbed the jacket and wore it before taking her hat and put it on. “I don’t know what you’re trying to do while traveling at Ibaraki, but I just want you to know...that I appreciate your concern, Saburo...”

“...I wouldn’t deny that.” Saburo confessed as he turns around and reached for his car keys inside his pocket. “Whatever I may do...I will tell you as soon as I felt it’s the time...until then...thanks for repairing my Nissan. I appreciate your work.” Hearing that alone seemed to made Sakuya’s frowning face gone for a moment and replaced it with a small smile of hope, that she is hiding with her hat pulled down by her...

“Stupid Saburo...if you really want to thank me, hurry up and finish whatever job you’re going to do with that fixed Nissan! And I will not forgive you if you go and crash that thing again! I don’t spend all my time and effort on fixing your car just to let you go and ding it out of commission! And I want lots of actions the next time you’re going somewhere! That is a promise, alright?!”

“Consider it done...” Saburo nodded, knowing that Sakuya finally let it slide and allowed him to do it alone, even though it’s not like Saburo himself liked it much either. Saburo proceeds to enter the black 180SX and starts the engine. The Nissan moved itself out of the garage and slowly drove away from Sakuya’s open garage. Sakuya watches as the machine fades into distance on the roads. Then soon after, her eyes began to narrow back to her frustrated look like how she had her conversation with Four-Eyes just now.

“Stupid Four-Eyes, if this is for something stupid I swear...I am gonna beat the CRAP out of you...!” Sakuya thought, staring at her own JZA80 that is sitting idle on the other side of the garage with her hands stuck in her jacket’s pockets as usual. Then she pondered for a moment, as to what kind of event could there be held at the time like this that it has to call for a major gathering from the Brotherhood? This is one of the few things Sakuya kept thinking until now, and what could her old friend possibly want other than giving her that message?

---------------------------------------------------------------

Meanwhile, Vanessa was fuming in her Renault Megane R26.R as she lunges towards the wide roads of Sadamine pass at the Saitama prefecture. The green hot-hatch tackled the curves at a very well-oriented out-in-out tactic and the speed control is consistent. Vanessa is focusing hard on her footwork as well as her steering range, hoping that she can find an ideal point in making most of a cornering momentum after the exit, but much to her frustration, there were some unnecessary tire-sliding on a few exits of a curve and she is not pleased with the results, needless to say.

As she continues to drive toward the tarmac of Sadamine Pass, there are a fair number of crowds taking pictures of her car passing through, even though Vanessa didn’t have much time to pay attention to whoever the audiences are as she is so busy finding a proper rhythm in driving the course that she is yet to master. The Renault Megane was caught not just by photographers, but also by time-watchers as there were numerous people using stopwatches to track her course time. And these individuals apparently all seem to be wearing some sort of matching outfits that has an emblem or badge emblazoned on their clothes that seemed to be a team of some sort.

And finally...one of the most distinguished audience from everyone else that were either impressed or were taking pictures of Vanessa’s driving was a youthful white-haired female. She was apparently, taking pictures too for the Renault, only that she is standing on a higher ground. She wears a simple long-sleeved black clothes accompanied with blue skirt. She also has thick black stockings and paired with brown boots and her hands are holding a camera. The soft breeze blew her short white hair over, unfazed by it as her blue eyes continued to focus on the camera view to capture her ‘target’ in frame.

“Kamiyama!” A man’s voice called behind her, not too far away. “Kamiyama, photography session will start later in 15 minutes, don’t rush your final checks for your own gears later, alright?”

“Understood, I’ll be right there.” The girl complied. She took one more shot at the roads of Sadamine pass accompanied by the cherry blossom petals in her camera’s frame and it was saved in the memory chip. “She’s impressive...Maybe someday I can start an interview with her...Sigh...D.U.’s time attack event will soon begin here along with Gunma prefecture and yet I am still a bit nervous...taking pictures alone won’t really calm my mood down...wish I could participate along too...I shouldn’t be complaining since I do enjoy the scenery here at Sadamine...it’s a good chance to add some collections for my albums...but I just can’t help that there’s something missing...”

“Hey, Aoi!!” A cheery voice called again, stopping Aoi from her brief daydream. It was a slender young man with short brown hair. He wears long-sleeved green clothes and khaki pants with black shoes. “Did you hear? Team Adachi is planning to target that rumored foreigner in the Renault Megane. Sounds like another great scoop to look forward to, don’t you think?”

“Oh, it’s you...Kagurazaka...” Aoi called the name of the young man, immediately stopping her photography activity and turned her back on him. “Team Adachi...? You mean the one led by that female R32 driver?”

“Yep.” Kagurazaka concurred. “I mean you already know that she lost once to that Renault, well...one of her team members did anyway. And now she’s looking for revenge here at Sadamine since Shoumaru is closed for the time being...”

“Oh...” Aoi thought. Clearly she doesn’t show much interest to them despite of what she knows on the said incident. “Frankly, I don’t think there’s much to talk about, seeing as she and her friends were angry at what the driver of Renault did...you don’t mean to tell me to go and request a short interview with them...do you?”

“Well, I don’t mean it THAT way, Kamiyama...haha!” Kagurazaka chuckled, scratching his head. “I mean..there are lots of drivers here that we can interview and help out with...I am just saying that the current driver you’re having interest on is a recent news hotline. That’s all.”

“...” Aoi turned back to the empty roads and watched on. Her mind is a blank at the moment, unsure of what to focus to after hearing Kagurazaka’s news. Aoi was thinking about something else though...following Vanessa’s debut and the recent news of the black Nissan 180SX defeating one of the Speed-Buster’s member at their own homecourse in Happogahara, Aoi’s mind immediately focus to the image of the driver behind the 180SX, Saburo Misaka.

His face was burned into her eyes as she refreshes her memory about what he did. From how he confronted the members fearlessly to how skillfully he defeats the MX-5 driver at the battle. And then she recalled the words from the driver of the Mazda, Makoto Souichiro himself on how he lost the battle that night.

“Racing against Saburo Misaka has cleared a lot of doubts on my mind, bu also reminded me of many things when I first learned how to drive. The reason why he defeated me and left me in dust was actually nothing more than a basic theory; a common sense in preserving tires as well as managing the car’s condition. Why would he choose to drive the damaged 180SX without repairing it before battling me...? Well, I don’t think I’ll ever know why...but one thing for sure; Misaka has an unusual air about him not being a racer, but as a simple driver.”

Aoi’s mind immediately recalled the moment when she watched the clips on the battle and even now, every frame and second remained fresh in her memory.

“Saburo Misaka...it would be nice to know how he is in person...”

Back to the Renault, Vanessa finally finished her practice run as she has reached to the bottom of the mountain pass where there is a familiar driver expecting her presence. It was none other than her new friend, Mayumi Itoh, sitting on top of her Lancer Evolution VI TME version. Vanessa stopped the car and parked on the closest open spot she can find. She then proceeds to walk slowly towards the brunette that is relaxing about.

“So how does it feel to run here on Sadamine at 80 percent of your own strength?” Mayumi began.

“Not so bad.” Vanessa broke a sarcastic smile. “I thought I was gonna pass out though at the beginning...”

“So how do you think you’re doing?” Mayumi asked, looking at Vanessa that is holding her own stopwatch. Apparently, Vanessa isn’t quite pleased with the results.

“Nope. No good at all...” Vanessa confirms it. “If I am to really be competitive to the locals here at Saitama, I gotta shave off at least 15 seconds more to have a sporting chance against the big guys here.”

“Well don’t worry too much about that, you’ll do fine, kiddo.” Mayumi encourages, placing one of her hands on Vanessa’s shoulders. “Even experts and vets take a long time to get it right on this tricky and wide course. I am no exception either...kind of a nice change actually, compared to my hellish practice experience all the time on that shitty road known as Shoumaru...”

“Haha, you hate that course for it’s rough layout, right?” Vanessa chuckled.

“Duh! That road’s a total PITA to navigate through.” Mayumi snapped. “Good thing it’s closed though...so I don’t have to sit through some useless declaration from the guys there again with their team defend-BS.”

“Hehe...sucks to be popular I guess...but even I need to build a rep or people won’t notice me...” Vanessa said on her end, knowing what it means to gain recognition. As they continued to talk, Vanessa noticed that there is a huge gathering on a stand where she is nearby. The inaudible chatter was loud enough even though she is standing about 30 meters away from the crowd. “Hey...what’s with the commotion there?”

“Hell if I know...let’s find out.” Mayumi and Vanessa walk towards the crowd and see what the racket is all about and once they made it through the people waiting there on a stage, Mayumi noticed the emblem that she finds recognizable.

Driver’s Utopia - the name of the organization is emblazoned on the flags that surrounds the big stage and the officials were all wearing matching T-shirts and jackets of blue and white. Mayumi was surprised at the presence of the personnel, needless to say.

“D.U? I thought the event was at the Gunma prefecture...? What the fudge are they doing here?” Mayumi thought out loud, her eyebrows raised with puzzlement. “It’s for that time attack event, it seems...”

“FUN!” Vanessa squealed, clasping her hands as she rushed towards the line that says ‘REGISTRATION COUNTER’.

“Hey! Hold it, Vanny!!” Mayumi reached to Vanessa quick enough and pulled her ear hard.

“Oww!!!”

“Idiot, don’t rush your butt into it! You’re still a newly debuted driver here!” Mayumi said, annoyed. “There may be restrictions as you’re not even a local here...besides, there oughta be many people targeting you by now since your victory at Shoumaru Pass. Who knows what kind of drama you may get caught in this time?”

“Aw, it’s okay! So long as I don’t pay attention to them, they’ll leave me alone. Come on! Let’s register!” Vanessa squealed, being stubborn. “This time attack event sounds like fun! I always wanted to see how fast I can go with the current car at its weakest state. This is always the basic way to see my limits before anything else, don’t you think?”

“Well yeah, that’s a good way to put it...but don’t let that overconfidence bite you back in the butt, know what I am saying?”

“Yeah...I know...so come on!” Hearing that from Vanessa immediately made Mayumi slapped her face mildly in annoyance, as the young brunette is obviously not listening to her warnings. Mayumi then followed as Vanessa rushed towards the registration counter again to sign up for the time-attack event.

Once their turn came after mildly long queue, Vanessa showed up and presented her necessary details for the registration form filling. She signed the form as soon as she is done filling it up and handed the paper towards the lady official. Mayumi did the same soon after and their names were logged in the computer as participants for the Entry Round with a large text stating it is 3 days away from the event day itself.

“Thank you for your participation, we will inform you for your preparation on the event day via SMS and e-mail.” The lady said as she bowed to the two of those drivers before proceeding to entertain her next participant in line.

“Welp, that settles our registration...” Mayumi crossed her arms calmly, staring at Vanessa that is whistling about with her arms behind her head. “Seriously, Vanessa...think twice before you act, would you?”

“Don’t worry, be happy, Mayumi!” Vanessa said with a cheery voice as always. “It’s not like we’re at war against any of the guys here, so just forget about everything else and have a good time together on this time attack event, eh? Besides, this event seemed to have some big recognition rewards awaiting, so this is actually a good chance to prove my worth on this stage and maybe people will stop calling me a Gaijin for being a brilliant foreigner.”

“Sometimes you’re over in your head, despite your talents...that will bite you back someday...just a heads up.” Mayumi shrugged. “But this is a good change of things, and I won’t be doing tedious run all the time without a good reason.” As they continued to talk, a familiar figure walked pass them and is currently taking pictures on the cars parked nearby. That’s when Vanessa noticed that she and Mayumi were standing in front of many colorful cars that seemed to be models that promotes the event along with D.U.

Vanessa and Mayumi saw a maroon Lancer Evolution VIII that is chromed to the core and seems to have a plethora of stickers of numerous sponsors and brands. There were even fake diamonds encased around the windshield! Vanessa thought she might be looking at some ridiculous crazed contraption that is originally an ordinary car. The getup on the Lan Evo was so ridiculous that it felt like an oversized toy of space rather than a sports car as even the rims were painted horrendously with unfitting purple paint! It was a total car-dress-up-disaster!

“Whoa...talk about a major nightmare...” Vanessa chuckled at the sight of the machine, while Mayumi’s face just froze in disbelief at the Evo VIII.

“...Welp, just another poser machine, nothing to do here...” Just as she said that, the photographer stopped taking pictures and turned around to look at who just gave that remark. The white hair shows that she is none other than Aoi herself. Mayumi immediately recognized her face as soon as she smiles. “Hey, Kamiyama! Taking pictures again, huh? You really need to brighten your taste more than spending camera films on these junks.”

“Ahaha...it’s part of my job, Itoh. You know why...” Aoi said softly, brushing her hair aside. “I think every machine has its own beauty, no matter how flamboyant it may be. I am simply giving it a chance to show its unique character to those that has interest to such things. So you’re going to join the Entry Time Attack Round I believe, just like last year?”

“I am not one to show any interests on time attacks to be honest, but hey...anything to improve and refine my driving!” Mayumi shrugged. “Oh and by the way, let me introduce this lady here...come on, kiddo! Say hi to my white-haired friend, Aoi Kamiyama! She’s the official photographer of Driver’s Utopia and a strict time-attacker. And Kamiyama, this is the newly debuted young gun from Stockholm, Vanessa Anderrson!”

“Oh, howdy there, Kamiyama!” Vanessa saluted and offered a handshake with a big smile, her cheerful and bright nature somewhat made Aoi a bit shy, but she nonetheless took it gently. “It’s nice to know someone that is Mayumi’s friend here other than myself!”

“Um...pleased to meet you, Anderrson...” Aoi smiled gently. “I have heard a lot of great things about you since your debut at Shoumaru Pass...it’s unfortunate that the pass is closed due to that accident...for a moment I thought you’ll prefer Tsuchisaka Pass since that course is much favorable to those that were fast on straights and you may like the challenge.”

“Actually, I am just about to get indulged into the rhythm of Sadamine Pass, so...no thanks!” Vanessa chuckled. “Tsuchisaka can wait later since I am kinda addicted in driving here now, and besides...I haven’t met anyone that took me seriously save for that Adachi team...it’s kind of a slumpy progress if you ask me...guess I’ll have to drive hard to really prove my worth here at a country that I am not yet recognized.”

“Work hard and I am sure you’ll get your well-earned recognition.” Aoi encourages. “Anyway...may I take a picture of you two together?” Hearing that almost sent Vanessa into a happy-frenzy. But she managed to compose herself still, fortunately.

“Sure!! Come on, Mayumi!!” Vanessa pulled Mayumi and posed together at the frame of Aoi’s camera. Mayumi was skeptical at first but eventually she gave in and both smiled, with Aoi capturing the moment with a click of the button on her digital camera.

“Thank you, both of you...” Aoi smiled. “Oh...and I hope if you two don’t mind me asking...but...”
“What is it, Kamiyama?” Mayumi asked.

“...have you heard of the driver named Saburo Misaka?”

---------------------------------------------------------------

It was already 1:30 PM at the mountains of Akagi, and the crowd gathered on the parking area of the mountain’s peak was heavy. Huge red flags of Muscle Brotherhood were literally placed everywhere around the PA and most of the vehicles that weren’t associated with the organization were moved to the other side due to not wanting to cause obstruction with the members that are trying to park their vehicles in one spot along. There were many cars of pure power parked together, along with a few muscle import cars such as Camaro SS, Pontiac GTOs and Plymouth Hemis.

The members that chattered around the large parking area were all men and women of different ages, young and old together, and they all seem to own cars like Nissan Skyline GT-Rs, Toyota Supras, Lancer Evolutions and even a few Subaru Imprezas or some good old rotary machines like RX-7 FDs and RX-8s. And eventually, there comes even a few more late arrivals of some Fairlady Zs such as the Z32, Z33 and the Z34 finally. They too carry the emblem of Muscle Brotherhood. Everyone that got of the vehicles eventually join up with the rest of the crew and they gave brotherhood handshakes.

Amongst the crowd, there was a purple colored Toyota Supra JZA70 parked at a separate spot. And on top of it sits a female that is relaxing about, texting messages on her cellphone. She has grayish brown hair, red eyes and a slight pale complexion. She wears a pair of orange glasses, a marine blue tank top, with a choker on her neck, accompanied with a blue long split skirt that shows her dark bloomers with red highlights. She also wears purple boots with orange highlights and has bandages on her left thigh. Finally, she wears a gray glove with orange highlights on her right hand, for whatever reason that may be. There is a simple tattoo on her left shoulder that writes 03 too.

“Ah...27 more seconds before arrival...” She thought, pressing away on her touch-screen phone still. And as the seconds went by, there’s a huge rev echoing from the roads not too far away on the parking area. That is when the red-eyed female recognized the car and driver that she is waiting for has finally arrived. She stop texting on the cellphone and kept it inside her pocket, waiting for the car to arrive. Every member on the Brotherhood locked their eyes on the road, as the crimson JZA80 Supra made its way to the PA.

As the Supra reached the area, it immediately find an open spot and park the car casually in one try without much problem. As the driver got out, her hair reveals that she was none other than the intense fiery redhead herself, Sakuya. And apparently, she is not in a pleasant mood, her expression shows that she is still somewhat frustrated, and her green eyes stared intensely at the sight of the glasses-wearing female. She immediately took off her black hat and every member in the Brotherhood were surprised at her presence.

SPOILER

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“You’re 9 seconds early, red princess!” The young girl called. Sakuya could care less as to what the four-eyed female call her and proceeds to walk towards the JZA70 driver.

“Zip it, four eyes. If this is for something absurd, I am gonna beat the daylights out of you on the spot.” Sakuya said coldly. She is clearly not in the mood for casual talk. Sakuya put back her black hat on and kept her hands firmly on the pockets of her red sweater jacket. The number 02 was emblazoned on it. “So what’s the deal with this meeting? Where is uncle?”

“Oh you mean Mr. Norio? Well he’s busy, as always!” The red-eyed girl replied playfully. Sakuya knew she is doing this on purpose.

“Then why the hell am I compulsory to attend while the big guy himself is a no show?!” Sakuya shouted, surprising everyone around the PA. “Hatori, if you don’t give a damn good reason, I am gonna shove that big-ass wrench in your throat! No thanks to you--”

“Alright, stop, your Redness.” Hatori shows a hand gesture towards Sakuya, her smile remained unchanged. “You know why your uncle can do that, don’t you? He’s not the kind to reason with authority sometimes. So...just drop it...and I am gonna be straight with you just so that you went through the trouble of coming all the way up here.”

“...I am listening.” Sakuya steps back and leaned on her JZA80 as usual. “So why is everyone here?”

“You didn’t read the mail, did you?”

“I was busy.”

“Right. That was a rather silly question I guess, knowing you.” Hatori then fixes her glasses and brushed her hair off for a moment as soon as the breeze came on the peak of Akagi mountain, Sakuya didn’t budge an inch from her spot and her expression remains unchanged. “Anyway, your uncle wants you to lead this meeting to find out who would be representing Brotherhood at this year’s time-attack event that is sponsored by D.U.”
“...What?”
“Well...that’s part of what this meeting is about.” Hatori said. “I mean, I received direct orders from Mr. Norio himself to persuade you to be in charge of this event. Organize any races or tryouts to find out has what it takes to enter the D.U’s sponsored time attack event and represent the organization. Number of candidates are up to 5 people. Akagi will soon have 5 local representatives themselves and we will have a series of friendly battles with them. To be honest, if you really fail to show up, I am gonna have to go through a buttload of trouble, since I am never the type to play the leader role. Cramps my style...anyway, that’s what this is really all about. And most members are taking the chance to practice here before the actual event day, which is 5 days from now.”

“...Uncle left me in charge for THIS...? Oh brother...” Sakuya placed her hand flat on to her forehead in frustration. “Just praying that I don’t have to go through a crap ton of members’ cars and observe their settings before the tryouts, that’s the last thing I want today...”
“What’s the matter? Doesn’t it excite you? I mean this is what you do all the time, right? ...At least to the black prince...”
“No thanks to you, sparrow-head.” Sakuya snapped back. She then thought secretly of what may happen if Hatori never called her or that announcement happened at the official website never appeared before. “I could’ve easily go and went together with Saburo at Ibaraki if THIS crap didn’t happen at first place...that uncle sure loves giving me tedious jobs sometimes...”

“So, how is Saburo?” Hatori asked, her eyes and expression became flirtatious. “It’s been quite a while since the last time we three hang out together. Have you persuaded him to join the Brotherhood yet?”

“You think I haven’t tried? That guy wouldn’t budge no matter what...but it’s not like we need him to get the Brotherhood to work properly. So I kinda given up halfway.” Sakuya shrugged, looking away and stared at the cars parked at the other side where other Brotherhood members were chatting. “But just so you know, I’ve fixed his 180SX...”

“Oh, sweet gorgeous!” Hatori teased Sakuya. “Isn’t that great? That means the black prince is finally opening up to you. Last time when I tried to run a thorough dyno test for his car, he wouldn’t even bother to look at me. That guy is always so cold when nothing interest him. Haha!”

“He still is...but at least I am glad it’s happening this way...but if only I could follow him this morning...” Sakuya whispered at the last line, since she is still obviously frustrated about what happened between her and Saburo. “...Stupid Saburo, what were you thinking...?!”

“Hey...sorry for ruining your moment, princess, I mean it’s not like I liked any of this either...” Hatori scratched her head with her usual sarcastic smile. “But hey, duty calls. So no hard feelings, alright?”
“...Whatever.”

As they continued to chat, not too far away there comes an unfamiliar car on Akagi. It was a maroon Toyota MR2 SW20, with a custom-made carbon fiber hood and is equipped with mixed rims on each tire. The car was also decorated with many flaming vinyls and the Toyota has a Tochigi prefecture tag. Sakuya, Hatori and all other members of the Brotherhood saw the vehicle as it parks itself not too far away from the spots taken by the M.B. Organization.

“...ring any bells on that car?” Hatori asked Sakuya, her expression seemed curious enough.

“Beats me. I don’t remember seeing a flamboyant car like that before back at Tochigi.”

“Hey, think you saw that MR2 before?” One of the Brotherhood members on the other side asked. “I heard rumors about it before....is he here to practice or simply watch us do our stuffs?” As they continued to ponder on about the maroon car, the driver got out from the car and reveals himself to be a fairly handsome man with blonde, spiky styled hair. He also wears a yellow T-shirt with khaki pants and black shoes. He has two piercings on his left ear and one of them is shaped like a skull.

“Hey, are you guys Muscle Brotherhood’s members?” The blonde-haired man asked, waving about casually. The entire Brotherhood organization locked their sights on the man alone, as if they’re about to make a killing on a prey... “I am lookin’ for a strong driver here that can help me refine a bit of my skills and uh, as you can see, I am team-less so...would it be alright if I can ask one of you to represent your team and have a quick friendly downhill match with me?”

The whole crowd went into some chatter and many of the small group people there are discussing as to who should go and face this mysterious blonde driver, all except for Sakuya and Hatori of course. They’re both just staring at him blank-faced and not showing much of a reaction.

“Think you’re up against this yellow bag of hot air?” Hatori asked.
“...” Sakuya then blinks her eyes and walked towards the man behind his SW20. Her expression became intense and she glared into the man’s eyes. The Toyota driver then noticed that he may have very much found his first volunteer for his bold declaration.

“I’ll take your challenge, blonde-face.” Sakuya declares openly. Her eyes became serious. Even the air around her becomes heavy and the blonde-haired driver can sense the immense presence surrounding the redhead that accepts his request. Despite that, the man kept his cool and walked towards Sakuya to give a response back to the Supra owner.

“So...you’re the one who’s gonna represent your team today?” The man said. “Well, I am not really one to take women seriously, but I do believe that a good driver has nothing to do with gender...so, I’ll take you on as a man then...don’t expect me to pull any punches though...”

“Nobody’s asking you to...” Sakuya cracks her knuckles as she slowly unzips her track jacket, revealing her tank top. “So what should I call you?”

“Name’s Matsu Koreshi. I am a former drifter and an avid street-racer with more time to dedicate on driving than anything else. My ride is as you can see...an MR2.” Matsu introduced himself as he points his thumb back at his own chest, his eyebrows narrowed in a rather smug way, much to Sakuya’s annoyance. “So what should I call you, lady?”

“...Sakuya Ishiyama.”

------------------------------------------------------

The winds are blowing strong at the roads that links slowly to the Tsukuba pass outbound as the mist continued to grow thicker, making it hard to navigate even on daylight. But little did it matter to Saburo as he continued to accelerate inside the black Nissan 180SX. He can still predict the road’s layout despite the heavy fog as he has memorized the course since long ago where he has driven the mountain pass for a long time. But seeing as he has no one to race with, Saburo kep a safety margin and is only using 60 percent of his strength to push the car at the area with such limited visibility.

As he continued to drive towards the path, it is not even sure what exactly Saburo is searching under these heavy fogs and there seemed to be no one witnessing the pass, so he has no worries about attracting attention from his unusual driving. Saburo is clearly looking or going somewhere to look for something, but only he himself knows what it may really be.

But as he continued on, he can hear a faint engine sound of a different car approaching from behind and it is coming straight at him. The heavy mists isn’t helping as Saburo couldn’t even see the color of the car that is chasing him from behind.

“...” Saburo knew that there’s no point in trying to find out who is chasing him, so in hoping that there may be some signs of increased strength within his machine at its current stage, Saburo hit the throttle and accelerated away, trying to escape the car that is chasing him, which is now around 150 meters behind.

But despite the acceleration across the path, the gap isn’t widening at all, in fact...the car behind Saburo is still pulling ahead gradually, and the engine’s noise is getting louder and louder. He can almost feel as if he is an animal escaping the misty woods from a swift hunter behind, waiting to ponce on his prey...

And now, only less than a hundred meters from behind, it slowly reveals that the car chasing him was also a Nissan. It’s a white-painted Nissan Skyline HCR32 and apparently, the car has a carbon fiber hood equipped and the turbine sound is almost deafening...

- つづく -

Extra:

The bio of the new character: Aoi Kamiyama (神山 葵)

SPOILER

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This post has been edited by Rin on Apr 26 2014, 12:59 AM

"And I will not forgive you if you go and crash that thing again! I don’t spend all my time and effort on fixing your car just to let you go and ding it out of commission!"

b*tch Saburo does what he wants

also does the HCR32 roll on dem TE37SLs? =3

Why did you not use the other drawing for Aoi? Too much service there that can be easily misinterpreted?

Rear Wheel Drive R32? Nice