As if fate sought to compensate the four riders for last year's hellish ordeal, their second-year training camp brought as fair results as they had hoped. Just as Yasutomo had prophesied, Kinjou aced the menu and earned himself the number one tag, while Yasutomo came in third, and Jin and Yuusuke nabbed fifth and sixth place, respectively.

Having made the roster, and pleased to hear that the combined efforts of last year's team brought Sohoku to seventh place out of twenty, all they had to do now was announce their goals for the biggest tournament of their lives.

Kinjou had but one objective, terrifying in its simplicity: overall victory for Sohoku. Jin talked of collecting green sprinter tags, and Yuusuke of relishing his rivalry by besting Toudou in the mountains, until the seniors could not help but smile when Yasutomo proudly declared his own dream, which was to take Kinjou to the goal and finish second.

"Man, they pissed me off," Yasutomo grumbled to Yuusuke once they found themselves alone during practice that afternoon. "What was so funny, huh?"

"Well, not funny per se," began Yuusuke, "but everyone else had a goal that equaled first place, sho. A green sprinter tag, overall victory for Sohoku, beating Toudou to the peak.. compared to that, second place just doesn't sound very grand, sho…"

Yasutomo stared, then shook his head.

"You got it all wrong, Yuusuke," he said gently. "Second place is first place when you're an assistant. We're not meant to shine, but that doesn't mean I don't have any pride. You remember the Nagatoroyama Hill Climb..?"

"How could I ever forget, sho!" Yuusuke flushed a happy pink. Yasutomo smiled.

"What we did that day made me want to become an assistant, Yuusuke. I could tell when I got you out of the pack and launched you that you felt like you were on top of the world, and I remember thinking, Hey, I did that. I trained and practiced my ass off so I could get you a head start, and when you disappeared way ahead of everyone, I felt so proud of myself it was unreal."

Yuusuke stared at him mesmerized. Yasutomo lowered his eyes.

"But.. I do have a dream I couldn't share with the others," he rubbed his nose. "Wanna hear my real dream?"

Yuusuke nodded fervently. Yasutomo broke into a lopsided grin.

"After Kinjou takes first place and wins the Inter-high, I wanna fall back to you and take you to the finish line, arm in arm like a gross couple."

Yuusuke snorted. "Don't be ridiculous, sho!"

"I'm serious, dammit! I wanna glue you to my hip, Yuusuke! I wanna be synchronized riders with you! So what do you say?"

After a moment of amused hesitation, Yuusuke pulled closer and reached out an arm, placing it tentatively over Yasutomo's back.

"So, like this, sho..?" he flushed crimson. Yasutomo cracked a grin hard enough to ache.

"Yeah! Exactly!" he threw out his own arm, bonking their helmets together.

Except some dreams don't come true, and of all people, Yasutomo should have known that.

On the first day, with his assistance, Yuusuke challenged Toudou and earned himself the fastest climber award. They then worked hard to finish close to the front, so close, Yasutomo had no doubts about Kinjou's victory when he launched him on the second day, some eight kilometers from the goal.

I can't rest just yet, though, he rubbed his nose. Gotta hurry so he can have me tomorrow!

And then he turned another corner with hardly two kilometers remaining, and tomorrowbecame right now as he spotted a battered Sohoku jersey.

"Kinjou!" Yasutomo pulled to his left. "What happened?!"

"Arakita.. I fell…" heaved Kinjou. "I'm sorry…"

"You're bleeding! Fuck!"

"Go…" Kinjou wiped his drained face. "It's.. a real race… we can't.. give up now…"

A moment later, Yasutomo anchored Kinjou to his side.

"You're right, Kinjou," he growled as he raised his cadence. "So hang on, I'll take you!"

"No.. leave me… I'll just.. hold you back..!"

"Shut up, dumbass! You're injured! I'm not gonna leave you!"

"Arakita.. please…"

"Save your breath, Kinjou," hissed Yasutomo. "Unless your name's Makishima Yuusuke, you can't tell me what to do! Don't worry, though.. I'll go as fast as I can! I'll jam you across the finish line, and get you to a doctor!"

"Thank you.." Kinjou hung his head. "You're too soft.. but I'm glad we're teammates.. Arakita…"

To balance Kinjou's weight and broken road racer, Yasutomo compromised speed, teeth gritted as several riders passed them before they made eight and ninth place. Kinjou was soon rushed to an ambulance and his road racer placed in Koga's care, leaving Yasutomo idle and frustrated.

"FUCK! We were SO CLOSE!" he bashed his fists against the ground, then froze as a shadow spilled over him - Fukutomi Juichi's.

"You're from Hakone Academy.." murmured Yasutomo. "You were riding in the front with Kinjou.."

"I'm sorry," Fukutomi bowed to him. "I did something terrible. When Kinjou passed me, I reached out without thinking and grabbed his jersey. We both fell because of my weakness.. There were only two kilometers left…"

Yasutomo's eyes widened.

"You FUCKING BASTARD!" he slammed a foot into Fukutomi's shoulder and sent him hurtling across the ground, only to close the distance in the blink of an eye and seize him by his collar, wrenching the fabric. Fukutomi hung his head.

"I'm sorry… For what I did, I intend to withdraw from tomorrow's race—"

"WALK HOME FOR ALL I CARE!" Yasutomo jolted him, face convulsing. "Who do you think you are, huh?! You're so proud and full of yourself, Hakogaku, but the moment someone truly great comes along, someone worth chasing, you throw a tantrum and break them?! You realize what you've done?! That was our only ace!YOU ROBBED US! YOU TOOK MY DREAM FROM ME!"

Tears rolled down Fukutomi's face. Yasutomo trembled.

"STOP CRYING SO I CAN KILL YOU!" he shoved Fukutomi, not realizing he was crying, too.

On that evening of despair, Sohoku received an unexpected visitor.

"Toudou..!" Yuusuke greeted him in the hall. "What are you doing here, sho?"

"I came on behalf of Hakone Academy to deliver a message, Maki-chan," explained Toudou as Yasutomo caught up, eyes narrowed. Toudou cleared his throat.

"First, Fukutomi sends his apologies again. He wanted to come with me, but considering what happened this afternoon," Toudou's eyes flitted to Yasutomo, "I advised against it."

"Aww, you're so smart," quipped Yasutomo, his tone dry. Yuusuke gave him a look. Toudou seemed unfazed.

"Fuku asked to retire, but our seniors denied his request, so when you see him riding tomorrow, know that he had every intention of keeping his word."

"Big fucking deal," Yasutomo bared his teeth. "If he was so intent, he could have just ripped up his tags! You ever heard of taking a moral stance, Toudou? Huh? A shred of fucking decency, you ever heard of that?"

"Yasutomo..!" breathed Yuusuke. Toudou's brow twitched.

"So you would abandon your team in his place?"

"Tell you what, Toudou," Yasutomo cocked his head. "The day I stoop so low that I injure another team's ace, I'll tell you for sure, but if you were wondering, whenever I'm right, my seniors' words don't mean jackshit to me!"

"Yasutomo!" hissed Yuusuke. Toudou took a deep breath.

"One more thing, then. Hakone Academy has a proposition for you, Arakita."

"Haah..?" Yasutomo scowled. "What are you talking about?"

"We talked to our seniors, and we understand you'll be riding in the front alone."

"No thanks to you!"

"The point is," Toudou raised his voice, "if you catch up with us, Hakone Academy has agreed to cooperate with you."

"Haaah?!"

"You heard me," Toudou withstood his glare. "You can join our train, and we'll pull you for as long as possible."

Yuusuke gasped in hope, but Yasutomo broke into rancid laughter.

"Oh? Will you, Toudou? For as long as possible? What, are you gonna take me to the finish line? Is that what you're saying, that you'll get me through every stage and give me a chance to dethrone your lot? How naive are you to think I'll fall for that!"

"This is our offer, Arakita," Toudou furrowed his brow. "Take it, or leave it."

"You're damn right I'll leave it! You're fucking nuts!" Yasutomo's voice shot through the roof even as Yuusuke elbowed him in the side. "You don't give a shit about Sohoku! You're just trying to wipe your hands clean and you think I'm too stupid to know a trap when I see one! How do I know you're not gonna injure me too, huh?! Is that why that stone-faced bastard's staying on the team, 'cause he has experience now?!"

"YASUTOMO!" snapped Yuusuke. Opposite them, Toudou heaved a sigh.

"I see it's no use talking to you, Arakita," he said at last, his expression unreadable. "I'll go now.. Call you later, Maki-chan."

And with that, Toudou turned to leave, composed until the bitter end.

The moment Toudou disappeared, Yuusuke turned on Yasutomo, expression livid.

"That was uncalled for, sho," he hissed through gritted teeth. Yasutomo stared at him bewildered, blood rumbling in his ears.

"Uncalled for? Uncalled for?! That bastard wrecking Kinjou was uncalled for!"

"Toudou came to apologize and he's just offered you a chance to win—"

"It's a TRAP!"snapped Yasutomo. "And now that my hopes and dreams have been shattered, I'm not gonna walk into it just because you think the sun shines out of Toudou's ass! You think he really gives a shit about us when it's his team against ours?! OPEN YOUR EYES!"

Yuusuke paled. Yasutomo snarled.

"I can't believe you! You think we've got some noble rivalry going on?! We're not opponents to Hakogaku, we're pests to them, Yuusuke! They stomped our ace because he got in the way, and without Kinjou, we can't win anymore, Toudou's help or not, so I'm not gonna sacrifice myself and end up next to him just so we don't hurt your precious rival's feelings!"

Yuusuke's face froze in a grimace.

"…What about my feelings then? Or Sohoku's feelings, sho?" he forced out the words, a storm brewing in his eyes. "You care about those, you selfish jackass?!"

Silence blared. Yasutomo's hands clenched.

"Don't call me that," he breathed.

"Or what?" retorted Yuusuke, his throat bobbing, and Yasutomo's eyes glazed over as implied alternatives flashed through his mind. His shoulders slumped, hands growing limp by his thighs.

"Nothing," he said at last, hollow and quiet. Yuusuke hesitated, but after a pause, tense as wires, he brushed past Yasutomo and hurried down the hall, pace quickening as Yasutomo rushed after him.

"Alright, alright, I'm sorry!" he called out, tone exasperated. "What more do you want from me?!"

Yuusuke stopped in his tracks. His shoulders stiffened, and when he turned around, Yasutomo's chest grew cold.

"I want you to do everything to win tomorrow, sho," said Yuusuke, his expression inexorable. "If it takes swallowing your pride and riding with Hakone Academy, then do it. Even if it takes every ounce of your strength, if it takes every drop of sweat and blood you've got, do it, because if you don't, then Kinjou will have suffered for nothing, and I'll never forgive you for being a selfish coward, sho."

He then pushed forward on trembling legs, leaving a stunned Yasutomo behind, and all but collapsed on his futon in the temporary safety of the second-years' room.

"Makishima..? What happened? You look awful," mumbled Jin. "You're not ill, are you?"

Yuusuke shook his head, mouth sagging.

"I'm gonna call Toudou, sho," he grabbed his phone, then slipped onto the terrace, pulling the door shut behind him. Jin scratched his head.

Alone again, he sat down and waited for Yasutomo to come and supply the explanation Yuusuke refused to give, but he waited in vain. Unable to face Yuusuke, Yasutomo stepped outside, then mounted his Bianche and fled, clad in nothing but his night shirt and shorts.

"Yo, Kinjou.." Yasutomo sank down by his friend's hospital bed fifteen minutes later, placing a cold Pocari Sweat on his nightstand. "It's me.. your local asshole."

Kinjou made an effort to prop himself on his elbows. Yasutomo waved a hand.

"Don't bother. You probably hurt like hell. I just wanna run my mouth, and I have no one else to turn to."

Kinjou sank back onto his pillow and hummed encouragingly. Yasutomo sighed.

"I don't know what to do, Kinjou. Toudou just came over to tell me I could join the Hakogaku train tomorrow, but it's clearly a trap. There's no way they're gonna pull me for long, and if I cling to them, I just risk getting injured once they had enough of me… And now Yuusuke's mad at me too, and thinks I'm a selfish coward for not accepting Toudou's offer."

He clutched his head, fingers clawing at his hair. "What am I gonna do..?"

Kinjou paused in thought. His expression softened.

"Arakita.. remember what you said earlier today?"

"I said a lot of shit, so you gotta be more specific here."

"You told me that only Makishima Yuusuke could tell you what to do. Well, what did he tell you?"

Yasutomo froze.

"…He told me to take Toudou's offer, and win."

"Then do that."

"But, Kinjou, I'm just an assistant! And I'll be riding alone tomorrow! There's no guarantee the others will catch up to me!"

"And that's why you have to take your chance, Arakita," concluded Kinjou. "Riding with Hakone Academy means you'll be in the front, where Sohoku needs to be. You're good at thinking on your feet. I'm confident you'll find a way to outsmart them."

"…At least someone acknowledged it's a risky setup, and not just me being a nasty jerk."

"It's unreasonable to think Hakone Academy would pull you until the end, but if you latch on and don't let go, they'll have no other choice."

"I'm not the Snake of the Stone Path, Kinjou."

"You're not," smiled Kinjou. "You're the Daredevil of Sohoku, and right now, it's a daredevil we need to win, Arakita."

Yasutomo scoffed. "You really think I can win..?"

Kinjou paused.

"Do you remember the Nagatoroyama Hill Climb?"

"Do I ever! I ended up a complete mess, but I did get Yuusuke in first place, didn't I? I only finished thirty-seventh, though…"

"That didn't matter, Arakita," said Kinjou, "because when I saw you with your fist in the air, even though I soon passed you, all I could think of was how you had beaten us all."

Yasutomo stared at him wide-eyed. Kinjou's face hardened.

"Be that rider tomorrow. Be the hero Makishima and Sohoku needs."

Yasutomo's eyes fell.

"Kinjou… can I stay here?"

"You'll need all the rest you can get. Go back to the inn."

"I can't."

"You're scared to face Makishima?"

"I'm terrified."

"Go back anyway. Face your fears, and never give up."

Yasutomo groaned and bonked his head against the bed's rail, willpower fading.

END NOTE:

Since this telling of the second-year Inter-high comes from the racing third-years, and I purposefully kept things vague in Part 4 of this AU series, I'll supply the contemporary first-years' (now second-years') experiences in the notes.

The four of them spent most of their time in the various feed zones, or the road between the various stages and said feed zones. While Teshima, Aoyagi, and Yaniguchi enjoyed themselves, Koga not so silently cursed Yasutomo for two days straight, wishing something unpleasant would happen to him for not allowing Koga to attend as a member of the team. His grudge didn't affect the quality of his maintenance work at all, but Arakita could smell his anger all over his road racer. Koga then experienced crippling guilt as karma seemed to rebound on the second day and Yasutomo rode in with an injured Kinjou.

Yasutomo spent the rest of the day fuming over Hakogaku, but even though everyone agreed that Fukutomi was the one at fault, Koga still held onto his grudge against Yasutomo for not letting him become a member of the team so Koga could take over as the ace in Kinjou's absence. Teshima told him it was a good thing because Koga's knee had just barely healed, and he sounded like he would do something desperate if he had the chance. Koga ignored him for the rest of the evening, half angry and half miserable at the idea that he might have jinxed Sohoku by wishing misfortune on Yasutomo, who was just as, if not infinitely more upset over Kinjou, and now carried Sohoku's hopes on his shoulders.