III

37: The Seven Star Leafs

III

It was about seven-thirty in the afternoon when I began to work on a new engine setting for the FC. The 13B-T I was still using was approaching its sixth birthday mark, and I needed to raise its horsepower settings for the race with Sudo.

The problem still remained, a naturally aspirated engine would always outperform a turbo on the downhill. I needed to use mechanical tuning to raise the 13B-Ts to about 230 HP, which took a lot of time, about two hours to do.

I needed to use a lot of parts to upgrade the ECU and the intake and outtake systems of the entire engine. I couldn't make the power systems better by improving the spark plugs or conductors anymore, both B-Ts spun as efficiently as possible. All that was left was to make the natural aspiration of the engine as smooth as possible. Luckily, the Gamer and the fortune I had amassed with it let me reach the exact peak of horsepower before losing speed in the corners.

Takumi Fujiwara's second engine was a racing class performance 20 valve silver top Toyota engine. It was likely de-tuned to around 220 or 210 HP for street racing use, and that was the peak of power for a downhiller to reach N/A wise. Adding a turbo would change my entire strategy for the downhill as well as trash any current simulations I had running.

Finishing the last change on the engine with my monkey wrench, I sat down to turn to my laptop in the garage. In a few clicks I completed the finishing touches on my race with Kyoichi Sudo.

Again thanks to the Gamer as well as my natural ability to read cars, I had compiled layout of all of the Evo III's capabilities, which were impressive actually.

On any race, there were four main factors to consider for my simulations, as well as dozens of smaller ones, but the most notable were clear. The car, the driver, the course, and the conditions which there were many sub-factors as well.

First, Kyoichi Sudo's Evo III was among the best-tuned machines in the entire series of Initial D, and here it was easily the best-tuned car I had ever encountered. It was a LV 95 WRC Class Evo III that rivaled my own LV 96 Infini III FC3S. I don't think a single system in the Evo was tuned improperly.

Every part of the Evo was well suited for a rally course like Irohazaka and any public mountain course in Kanto or even the country for that matter. Everything from the car's traction, to the engine's pistons, were more than optimized. I actually respected Sudo a lot for it, because his was probably the only car in the series that would be tuned as meticulously as mine, or as close to it.

Then there was the driver. Kyoichi Sudo's techniques included a vast array of LV 100 WRC techniques, everything from [Advanced Braking] which the best WRC drivers in the world tended to use, and a LV 110 [Linear Acceleration] which only a few drivers could really master effectively, including myself, Keisuke, and a few other drivers.

The course would favor Sudo no matter the conditions. Dry or regular conditions favored him, leaves would favor him, icy roads, wet roads, it didn't matter, Sudo's advantage of incredible course knowledge would need to be offset by my adaptability.

Irohazaka's downhill was brutal. The straights were narrow and the corners sharp and constant. Out of any course so far, Irohazaka had the most corners. Sudo would have an incredible advantage in the flatter center section of the course, and were it not for my 20 HP gain I would've lost un-gainable time.

However the hardest part of the course would be when the slope switched instantly from low speed to high speed corners from the middle to the end of the course. It would take hours of practice in the Abyss to properly prepare for the sudden change in pace.

Because Kyoichi Sudo was a much more skilled and much more strategic opponent than Takumi or even Tachi for that matter. This race would be the one that would be among the ones I would be remembered for.

Tomoyuki Tachi would be higher level than Sudo yes, but Sudo was far more adept at knowing mountain roads than he was.

As I looked over my FC silently, I continued to think.

Irohazaka. October 12th. At 10 PM. This wouldn't be an all-out drift battle to decide the fastest in Gunma like it was with Takumi. This would decide the future of street racing.

Whether circuit racing or street racing technique was superior.

Kyoichi Sudo was a more competent racer and skilled strategist than Takumi Fujiwara could ever be. Takumi Fujiwara was fast yes, but nothing could compare to the man who would've dominated Gunma's racing scene were it not for me in canon.

Canon made it very clear that without my technical knowledge and logistics, Takumi never would've been able to become the fastest downhiller in the Kanto Region under Project D. It also made it clear how necessary luck was to win all his races.

Sudo's downhill best, the course record for Iroha, was exactly two minutes, fifty-three seconds, and 3 tenths of a second.

My best ever recorded downhill run according to my simulations was almost the exact same. Only about a third of a second faster as I would be ahead of him by the skin of my teeth.

None of canon would be on my side for this race. Were it on Akagi I could rest comfortably knowing my blocking drift could win me the race. Now I would have to use every ounce of speed the Gamer gave me. Kyoichi Sudo had every advantage possible in this race, except for the Gamer.

He wouldn't beat me outright, nor would I be able to beat him as decisively. But I would have all the odds against me.

It was already 8:34 PM. Yakuma should be setting our second uphill record in Tochigi before the leafs next week.

III

Yakuma's white Supra zoomed uphill on Nyoho Pass a few seconds ahead of a red 180SX. The Nyoho racer was struggling, knowing he was losing in every way.

Grunting in frustration, the racer was having trouble keeping up at all, barely seeing Yakuma's white JZA80 speed off ahead. Even with a custom twin turbo SR20DETT, the red 180 couldn't compete at all with Yakuma's higher performance 2JZ-GTE. With equal horsepower, Yakuma's technique was far better than the 180 driver's and soon the gap was clearly impossible to close.

In a desperate attempt to catch up, the 180 driver pushed himself as hard as he could but he over accelerated. His tires slipping, the 180 spun out and barely missed the guardrail, the driver missing a crash by the skin of his teeth.

Panting, the 180 driver wiped the sweat off his face.

'The Akagi Red Suns. The fastest in Gunma. How could we ever compete with these guys!?'

III

On the downhill, Takihiro brought the win for the Red Suns easily. His silver S13 was more or less tuned as well as the orange MR2 he was facing, but his technique, similar to Yakuma's race, was far superior to his opponents.

Because of this, Takihiro's speed was completely different than the Nyoho racers.

Keisuke watched as Daito saw Takihiro speed downhill two seconds ahead of the MR2 to check his stopwatch.

As the MR2 passed the guardrail in front of the checkpoint, Keisuke took note of the stopwatch Daito was showing him.

'His pace is better than I thought. Taki is kicking these guy's asses really badly.'

Knowing he was beaten as the gap was so wide he lost sight of the S13 completely, Nyoho's MR2 driver sighed.

'Even with how well I know this mountain. They're so much better than us...'

Nearing the finish line, Takihiro's corners were lazy, as he knew that giving his best at this point would be embarrassing from how far ahead he was. Fumihiro watched this from behind the guardrail and noticed.

III

Keisuke watched as Takihiro pulled up to the peak of the mountain with a bright smile on my face.

"So?" he got out of his S13 victoriously. "How'd I do?"

"Don't act so smug," Aisuke said. "Fumihiro saw you near the last hairpin. You were getting sloppy."

"And?" asked Kenta. "The race was over. Who cares how it looked?"

"Aisuke has a point," Keisuke said. "But for now we gotta go back home. The Momiji Line won't be easy as these guys."

III

On Momiji Pass, a young man named Shinichi of the Seven Star Leaf was on the phone. "Uh huh, thanks." he cut the line and put his phone away. "A buddy of mine up in Nyoho told me they just got beat by the Red Suns."

"Again? What's that like, their fourth win in a row?" the driver of a Red Miata asked. "Who cares? They have no idea who we even are."

"Toru that's the thing. They don't. Meanwhile, the Red Suns are like a pro team in their own right. Everyone everywhere knows them. Could probably put Emperor in their place too, likely in the same league as them at least." said Shinichi.

"Please." Toru scoffed. "I got a new flywheel and a fresh set of tires and I know our downhill backward and forward. I don't care who these guys are."

"Well, you should." Atsuro Kawai, the driver of the blue ER34 said. "They're the best in Gunma. They're superstars."

"Superstars?" Toru still wasn't convinced. "No way."

Shinichi spoke calmly. "The only driver no one knows anything about on their team is the guy in the S13. Everyone else is really good. The guy in the green FD, he's a two time circuit champ. The driver of white Supra? Fastest on Usui for two years. Both the kid in the S14 and the guy with the 180 are like the best Nismo's ever known. The S14 kid was some sort of karting champ, and his dad runs the best Nismo Facility in Gunma. Their cars are miles ahead of anybody else's, even here in Tochigi man."

"Right they've got big pockets and big names." Toru rolled his eyes. "Big deal."

"That's not even mentioning the Takahashi Brothers. People are calling 'em the best rotary engine drivers ever for becoming these so called Rotary Brothers. Mazda even reached out to them. I mean these Red Suns went to four different mountains, and in just a few practice runs beat the local teams there in like three days each." said Shinichi. "They have this unbeatable routine. They show up on a pass, do a practice run or two, race, and win. I mean, what're we gonna do against guys this good?"

Toru chuckled. "I still don't care. This is our mountain guys."

"I mean people are saying that Kyoichi Sudo of the Emperors, like the best driver we've ever seen here is completely even with the Takahashi Brothers. Or, Ryosuke Takahashi at least. Forget money man." said Shinichi. "The Red Suns have skill. Serious skill."

III

Driving out to Myogi tonight wouldn't cut it for me. I'd need to visit the actual mountain out in Nikko. I needed to start getting ready for Irohazaka itself.

The average speed of the lower speed corners in Irohazaka's downhill was about 65-75 kph. And the higher speed turns were anywhere from 90-100. This massive leap in cornering speed would break up anybody's rhythm, and I could see why in canon's Third Stage that Sudo thought only I could pull it off.

I could win this. But it would be anything but easy.

I'd need to master full use of the third and fourth gears for how fast the higher speed corners at the end of Iroha would get. Mostly the second gear for the lower speed turns.

Because the Evo would have superior traction and horsepower, any turn requiring grip I would lose time. Only at the higher speed turns could I gain time. I estimated in the overall trade off, I gained about a second.

On the flatter section near the midpoint of the course, Sudo could gain that second back. Putting us on even ground.

My best chance of winning was to stay in the lead until the third checkpoint where Sudo would overtake me. If I let him pass me before then, the race was instantly over.

I decided that using my bike now was a bit boring, I was getting recognized far too often for it to be enjoyable for this time of the week. I had more important things to do.

I opened the front door. I looked at my FC sitting in the driveway. The crystal white paint job was just as well kept as the rest of the car and still looked brand new even after years of racing in it.

I promise you FC. I won't hurt you. Ever.

This would be almost impossible. I would be racing the best racers in Kanto in the most notoriously fragile engine in history. Repeated use of the 13B-T in the high revs in multiple races would wear down the races.

I promised myself and the FC that even after I pass the finish line at the final race. I couldn't damage my 13B-T. I couldn't damage my FC. There would be no greater shame as Akagi's White Comet than damaging the most precious thing in the world to me. I loved Mako, I loved running the Akagi Red Suns as its proud leader.

But damaging my FC at all would give me no greater shame. It would be as great a challenge to become the fastest in Kanto as it was to not hurt either rotary, B-T 1, or B-T 2. I had kept them in good condition with my race with Takumi, but the four hardest races would definitely strain them.

My races with Kyoichi Sudo, Tomoyuki Tachi, Toshiya Joshima, and Shinji Inui.

These four races alone would push the FC to its limits during each one of them. I would need to spend an immense amount of time I didn't make it reach its breaking point. Then the question remained if I wanted to challenge anyone else who would be a challenge as great as them.

I admired the FC in every way. The naturally aerodynamic look, the way the entire car seemed to be made for downhill racing. I knew this car would be my favorite from the moment I saw it in the series, and seeing it even now after all this time made me very grateful for the opportunity.

My greatest challenge would be not only the entire completion of the Fastest Racer Theory but not damaging the FC in the process. It would take about a year, starting from my defeat of Takumi Fujiwara on Akina to the final race in Kanagawa.

I would need to do it as the leader of the Akagi Red Suns, in part as Akagi's White Comet.

I turned to go back inside my home. I needed to analyze some tapes.

III

"This is the grand finals of the National Gymkhana Championships, Sudo and Rinsaka are neck and neck here!"

I was rewinding a certain corner in one of the moments from arguably the best overtakes in professional circuit racing history.

"Kyoichi Sudo just took the lead coming out of turn three! What a stunning pass by the Evo III!"

Goto Rinsaka was on one of his best laps ever, crushing the previous course record for any lap in two consecutive laps by one and one and a half seconds each in his blue BNR32.

Despite his breakneck and legendary pace, Rinsaka had Sudo well within his rearview the entire time which was very impressive. I could tell Sudo was waiting for the moment to make the right move the entire race, and he saw his opportunity coming out of lap 17.

Passing one of the fastest ever racers in KPRC history on his best-ever pace was nothing short of incredible. Sudo had to thread the tiniest of needles with the smallest string in the world, and he executed it flawlessly.

During corner four of the first curve section on the Yimito Circuit in Saitama City, Sudo's misfiring system and perfect timing let him take advantage of the tiny bit of space to hold the outside while leaving a turn.

Normally Rinsaka's pace would've been high enough to leave him in the dust but Sudo was fast enough and skilled enough to both use the fifth of a second he had to simultaneously exit a corner faster than a 650 HP BNR32 and take the outside well enough to set up the overtake when taking the inside on the next corner.

I think there were very few drivers who could still drive at all who could execute something so flawlessly.

It told me two things about my race with him on Irohazaka.

First was that the Evo had great cornering speed in low-speed corners, as well as enough traction and horsepower to change gears at pretty much any speed. Should Sudo feel he needed to increase or lower the pace of the race on his terms during any part of the race he could do so basically instantly if he was in the lead.

The second was that Sudo was more than a great driver. He was incredibly strategic. There was no better place to overtake the Goto Rinsaka in any part of the race. He knew the 32 was only slow on a single turn, and he could outpace him once during a split-second exit of a corner.

I couldn't outpace or out-tune Sudo. We were even in both regards. I would need to out-strategize him. Our technique on the downhill was more or less the same, and the advantage the Gamer gave me was offset by the course knowledge Sudo would have on Iroha's downhill.

The win was doable, but it would be extremely difficult to pull off. Almost impossible actually.

I had to use Sudo's overtake of Rinsaka as my entire template to run my simulation well enough to win. I would have to reach the exact speed I needed from the exact position I needed dozens of times over and over again on the same turn over on Iroha until I was sure I could pull off for real when I raced Sudo.

III

I typed on my laptop while reading the readout for the stats for the FD and FC.

The gearbox couldn't be improved any further. They were tuned as could be, and mechanically speaking there wasn't much to be done. I had calculated the best possible gear ratios down to the sixth decimal place, which meant that a gear ratio that normally would've been something like 1.0:2.0 would be more like 1.000000:2.000000. This would maximize the efficiency of the gearbox as much as mechanically possible. The tuning for this was rather simple yet extremely effective at maintaining maximum efficiency.

The teeth count for each gear in the transmission of both the FC and FD was one of the first things I calculated. I had used simple calculus to come up with a few functions on my computer to determine at which rate both the FD and the FC would have maximized speed and control in each system. Each system had a function, the gearbox, transmission, twin rotaries, turbos in Keisuke's case, anything that would vary with speed and rev count.

The x values tended to be either time or pressure and the y values were things like percent efficiency I could determine from other metrics and how much speed or total displacement was being used. Just one or two runs on the dynamo and the FD and FC would give me more than enough data to start running calculations on.

I would use the derivative of all functions to determine the best spots for improving the efficiency of it, as the overall rate of change and sensitivity. Should the derivative of any function be erratic or obviously strange in any areas I could quickly pinpoint which part of the system would need changing and then alter the function and test it again.

The antiderivative system was equally as simple yet important. The antiderivative or integral of any system function would give me a very clear look at where the system was faltering if at all. If the derivative check told me how to improve a system, the antiderivative told me how to maintain it and keep it running at the same level I needed.

Fortunately, I could not just write out the integrals of functions as complex as these on pen and paper and with a calculator but I had a much better alternative. I would need the very advanced graphing systems I had on my computer to tell me all this.

Speed is one of the most important factors in racing because just by determining a car's maximum and average speed it can tell you a whole lot about its suspension, gearbox, engine, and just about everything you'd need. Because of this, Kyoichi Sudo's Lan Evo III was very fast, but it also was tuned very well.

Tire grip and any other system that might fail in a car are reliant on speed. If a car is running too fast and the driver is pushing it too hard thusly, it can exhaust its tires too quickly, or cause a piston to fail. Engine failure tends to happen from the car's determinant speed, and about a dozen other systems can fail from pushing a car too hard in an attempt to go too fast.

Sudo was very smart in how he set up the entire CE9A WRC Lancer Evolution III GSR. And above that, he made it clear how well he understood how to bring out every possible bit of power in every part of his CE9A.

I greatly respected him from both how well tuned the Evo was, and how well Sudo could drive it. After hours watching his performance on the track through recordings at many circuit events, Sudo was meticulous and skilled enough to be considered a true rival to have.

He was by far the more strategic and the most detailed yet effective racer I'd met.

Sudo didn't just make no mistakes. He actively knew which parts of a course he'd need to pay more attention to things like his brakes or his steering. From enough analysis, I knew Kyoichi Sudo could perfect his times. It likely took hours of practice in just a specific kind of turn to be this fast and this consistent.

There was no other explanation for how refined his driving was. While the CE9A he drove was indeed powerful, it took hard work for him to be so effective with it.

Sudo's speed told me more than enough to complete my simulation of our race. I would win it, but first I would need to practice hard enough to be prepared.

For now I had to continue refining some logistics and mechanical projects for the Red Suns. Our race on Momiji would require the entire team including myself to go out. Then I would have to dedicate as much time as possible to perfect my times on Iroha's downhill.

But the moment the races in Momiji ended, I would have to repeat the exact same turn on Irohazaka enough times so as to be able to replicate it in actuality when racing. I would need to again do what I did for my race with Takumi Fujiwara. Calculate any detail that could be against my favor and fix it, mostly by practicing as many hours as possible in certain parts of my technique.

Speed was only the beginning of my training. I wouldn't just have to make my technique faster overall, but strong enough to both match Sudo's pace, and not cause any component in the FC to fail. Driving out to Irohazaka once and loading up the Abyss' version of the course was the start, then I would need to learn how to perfect my times in each section and subsection of it.

III

Ryosuke Takahashi's white FC and his younger brother's yellow FD led the Akagi Red Suns down the street leading towards the Momiji Line. Behind them two support vans followed with proudly stickered 'Red Suns' labels on them.

The three Seven Star Leafs at the top of the pass heard the sound of rotary engines first, as the FC and two FDs entered the peak first.

Toru Suetsugu leaned off his red Miata Roadster and flicked his cigarette away. He instantly took note of how strong the engines sounded. Even the N/As like Ryosuke's FC and Kenta's S14 were impressive simply from how distinctive the 13B-T and SR20 engines respectively could rev even when just pulling up to the top of the mountain.

Atsuro kept his arms crossed in thought. 'Gunma's fastest. The best rotary drivers Akagi or even Kanto have known for that matter.'

Ryosuke left the FC first, followed quickly by the rest of the Red Suns. The unmistakable 'thunking' of car doors opening proceeded.

III

Fumihiro spoke next to me. "We're the Akagi Red Suns from the Gunma area."

"I mean you guys all have that sticker on your cars. Think we know who you are buddy." Toru raised an unimpressed eyebrow. "But we're the SSR, the fastest here on Momiji. You need something?"

"All right then." Fumihiro ignored the slight, Keisuke and Kenta stayed quiet. "We do. We came here to trade styles and grow our connection to other mountains. The routine of just racing each other got old very fast for us. We need to mix it up. If you'll allow us to, we'd like to run a couple of practice runs on your mountain tonight. Then we can have a proper uphill and downhill race tomorrow night at 9 and 10 O'clock."

The ER34 driver I knew to be Atsuro Kawai spoke. "Can you give us a sec? We need to huddle up for a second and discuss this."

Fumihiro put his hands on his hips. "That's fine. Take as much time as you'd like."

While the Leafs talked to each other, I quietly took the moment to strategize.

Observe told me some very important facts.

The N/A Miata Roadster Suetsugu drove had a max output of 190. Kenta's S14 only could reach 170 even with almost 200 CCs of extra pressure displacement. Meaning I could improve Kenta's power output while still keeping it an N/A.

On the other hand, Atsuro Kawai's ER34 had a very inefficient 400 HP. The RB26DETT other Skylines used operated on a completely different level than the RB25DET Kawai was using. Even with a single turbo, the amount of turbo lag he would have would put Daito at an incredible advantage. With more or less the same amount of horsepower but completely different cornering abilities, skill levels, and engine efficiency, the uphill would be a walk in the park for Daito.

However, Kenta could have some trouble. Even with the extra tuning, he would only have two chances to overtake Suetsugu in his Roadster.

My best chance for a complete victory would be to demoralize Suetsugu with a quick and decisive defeat of Kawai. Then have Kenta beat him out of superior engine performance and downhill ability.

III

In the Seven Star Leaf's huddle, Atsuro spoke to Shinichi and Toru quietly. "These guys have pulled this stunt all over Gunma. And then they did it here over on Nyoho and Nantai. We should at least use the weekend to sharpen our skills, then agree when we're ready."

"They're here right now." said Toru. "We'll look like total cowards if we back out now."

"Toru they're not just the fastest in Akagi. People call them the best drivers Gunma's ever had in any sort of organized team. We're basically driving against a pro street racing team. Look at those vans they brought." Shinichi said. "We've been over this man."

Toru ignored his friend, turning to the Red Suns. "Fine. Sure."

III

Fumihiro nodded again. "All right. Here's who you'll be racing. Kenta will represent us on the downhill in his S14. And Daito will be our hill climber in his FD. They'll be the only ones from our team practicing tonight. The rest of the team will be reporting to us from various turns on the mountain."

"Whatever," Toru said.

I turned to Fumihiro who was leading the group of mechanics that came with us tonight. I spoke quietly enough for the SSRs to not hear me. "We need to improve the S14's power output while keeping it naturally aspirated. Intakes, outakes, any sort of cooling improvements to tune the SR20DE as efficiently as possible."

"Even with better airflow and a new ECU," one of our Red Sun mechanics said knowing how we couldn't let the other team hear us. "We could only bring up the S14 to no more than 210 horsepower without needing to add turbos."

"That's good enough. Should be more than enough actually." I said.

Fumihiro acknowledged the obvious. "What about Kenta? He only has today and tomorrow night to get used to the new power settings."

"Let me worry about Kenta," I said. "You four just use start some good old-fashioned mechanical tuning. I assure you it'll be critical tomorrow night."

I approached Kenta and Keisuke's conversation. When Kenta saw me walking towards them he spoke. "Ryosuke. Thanks for picking me to race tonight. But why not just go with Keisuke's FD on the downhill and have him blow by this guy with like 100 more horses?"

"I'll explain later why I chose you. For now I have to tell you something important. Fumihiro and the others are going to classically tune your SR20 to about 210 horsepower."

Kenta's eyes widened. "Whoa. Like forty extra horses? Why so much?"

"Again, for now, you just worry about how it handles on the downhill with the new power settings. I promise you, you will learn enough in time to be prepared for the race tomorrow night."

Keisuke took issue as well. "Big brother think about this. The pipsqueak can't handle over 40 new horses in just two days. I don't even think I could learn that fast."

"He will. You just trust me."

"What about the Roadster? Compact N/As are made for this kind of course. Should help me as much as him." Kenta said.

I nodded. "Good catch Kenta. Yes, he will be fast. However, this race will come down to your instincts. If you trust your instincts tommorow night, I guarantee you'll win."

Keisuke still objected. "Ryosuke-"

"Daito." I said, as I instantly got the pro circuit racers attention. "I want you at the bottom of the hill in fifteen minutes. The rest of the team will time your runs, same with Kenta on the downhill. We'll make adjustments as needed afterward."

Daito nodded silently while Kenta spoke loudly. "Understood!"

III

It only took about a half-hour to tune the S14 up to 210 HP.

Fumihiro stood with his walkie-talkie in his hand. "Okay. Spotters count off." he said.

"This is the first checkpoint. We're all set for the uphill test."

"Corner number thirteen. We're in position to time the FD."

"Checkpoint two. All clear."

"Turn seventeen. We're ready."

"Third checkpoint. All clear."

I spoke to Kenta. "I want you running at three-quarters of your maximum speed. It's important you get accustomed to the new settings before going all out. Then I want your full speed, maximum throttle on your last three runs."

"Gotcha Ryosuke."

III

Aisuke's headlights flashed twice, indicating Daito had to push the FD as hard as possible on the uphill.

Tapping the throttle, his muffler hummed as air left it. Revving the green FD, Daito was confident he could meet each benchmark Ryosuke had set for him on the uphill.

Flying off the start line, the green FD began to accelerate up Momiji's hill. The 13B-REWs sang and hissed as they spun together.

Braking for the hairpin turn, the pitch of the turbochargers and both B-Rs changed for the downshift. Fire flashing from Daito's exhaust, his uphill speed was as strong as ever.

Shifting twice after leaving the corner, Daito pushed the FD as hard as he could, and his resulting hill climb speed was just as fast as Ryosuke was expecting. On every turn, Daito's power over relied solely on the strength of his engine and gearbox, and the FD could more than perform as needed.

On the straightaways uphill, Daito was so fast that he could shift twice from second to fourth gear, using a professional circuit technique of 'gear skipping' to maximize speed.

Using the FD's excellent traction, Daito could accelerate from any gear at any speed no matter the straight. The corners were similar, and the FD's cornering speed combined with Daito's years of training resulted in the fastest turns he could muster.

Following his invisible opponent, Daito knew he was on a very good time for his first run on Momiji's uphill.

Screeching around a turn, the FD swung just before the guardrail before accelerating up Momiji's hill again. The FD's muffler flashing with flames, the 13B-REWs whirred like jet turbines as Daito zoomed past the first checkpoint loudly.

Announcing it to the mountain, Takihiro watched as the green FD disappeared from his vision by flying into the corner uphill. "Daito just beat the times we set for him by an entire half-second. He just set an incredible first section!"

The rest of Daito's hill climb was equally as fast. He could push his FD quickly in the corners, in the straightaways, and the transitions between them seamlessly. Daito's shifting, braking, and acceleration was so smooth that most Red Suns were too impressed by his speed to make note of any of his techniques to stay on his pace.

III

Kenta heard Daito's circuit-tuned twin rotaries and spoke in surprise. "Already?"

Fumihiro clicked his stopwatch as the green FD crossed the finish line for his test run. "Excellent work Daito. You just beat our set times by over three-quarters of a second."

"Well done," I said. "Kenta. You're up."

"Right," Kenta said.

III

Kenta revved his SR20DE, sitting in the driver's seat of his orange S14.

'She revs up much faster. I don't think I'll be slower, but I'm sure Ryosuke took care not to bottleneck the gearbox with the engine.'

Fumihiro gave Kenta the thumbs up, and Kenta pressed the gas to go downhill.

His tires screeching off the start, Kenta flew downhill.

'Okay. Let's see how you changed!'

Immediately, Kenta noticed how much faster the S14 was on the straights. Only with a little throttle, the S14 shot forward and revved up almost instantly.

He lost no speed in the corners with the extra horsepower, Kenta changing gears to enter the turn. The rear of the S14 swinging around the turn, Kenta cleared the curve with very little countersteer as the S14 faced the inside.

When leaving the turn, Kenta changed gears and pressed the gas.

'I know she can go faster. I just need to learn how the gears can work with all this power.'

Opening the throttle, Kenta accelerated downhill from third gear. His SR20DE hummed loudly down the straightaway, and Kenta was confident he could get accustomed to all the power Ryosuke had added to his car.

His S14's N/A roaring with a new 40 HP, Kenta's straights slowly but surely got faster and faster. He knew how much more responsive the clutch was when changing gears, and so Kenta was confident enough that he could learn the corners quickly enough after enough practice with all his extra power.

Again losing no speed from the new power in the turns, Kenta could enter and leave a corner a bit faster than he could before. His S14 could grip the inside of a curve and drift the whole way at the exact speed Kenta wanted, but he still knew he could go faster.

Turn after turn, gear shift after shift, Kenta's SR20 hissed with power as the driver grew alongside the car. Momiji's downhill was perfect for the kind of car Kenta drove, and his corners were fast. His straights were fast, all of his driving was fast.

Still, the hardest part of the practice had no arrived.

Full throttle work would be the ultimate stress test for both Kenta and his S14's new settings.

III

"Kenta's struggling here!" Yakuma said into his walkie seeing the S14 on an all-out downhill run. "I don't think he's losing tire grip, but his times are slipping for sure."

Grunting, Kenta wiped the sweat off his forehead. He knew that while going at 75 percent or so, he could handle the S14's new engine settings well. But at his full speed, the times Ryosuke had set for him were completely different to how fast he was going now.

The SR20DE's pistons humming loudly under the hood of Kenta's S14, he pushed himself as hard as he could.

Braking hard while the S14 faced the inside, Kenta knew his actual cornering speed was much faster. His N/A S14 was made for hairpin turns, and he was having trouble keeping up with his actual best.

The rear of the S14 swinging out of the turn and almost hitting the guardrail, Kenta changed gears and flew down the straight.

Kenta took a deep breath, trying to not pant himself into more nerves.

'I have to stop panicking. This whole run isn't a failure yet.'

Calming down a bit, Kenta just focused on the curve. Knowing how fast his S14 could be in the curves, Kenta hit the gas and the brakes at the same time. Clearing the turn with some very skilled counter steer, Kenta swung around the turn now entering his rhythm.

By the next checkpoint, Kenta's S14 was now on a much better pace.

Keisuke smiled from behind the guardrail looking at his stopwatch.

'He recovered an entire second. Nicely done Kenta.'

III

Toru watched as the FD was raised with its tires taken off.

Fumihiro and the other mechanics were checking the FD's internals.

"Looks like the air pressure is okay." said a mechanic. "Both rotary boosters seem to be in good shape. Think she's all ready for the uphill tomorrow."

"Softs huh?" another mechanic asked fixing the tires with an electrical drill. "Well, I guess Ryosuke does know best."

Atsuro muttered to Toru. "Looks like a professional pit crew to me, not street racers."

"And those vans," Shinichi said. "One looks like it's filled with spare parts. And the other with tires."

"Looks like they got the money to be as well known as they are," Toru said. "We'll see tomorrow if they have the skills to back it up."

While the Seven Star Leaf left the peak of Momiji, Aisuke spoke to Keisuke. "Hey man, Ryosuke told everyone except for you, Kenta, and Daito up here along with all the mechanics to head home at around nine-thirty. Is it cool if we leave too? He's been gone for a while."

"Huh? Oh, yeah sure man go ahead."

"Thanks."

Keisuke watched as Aisuke's white Type X 180 turned around quickly and headed downhill with Yakuma's Supra, and Takihiro's S13.

Fumihiro spoke to Kenta. "How's it feeling Kenta?"

"The entire throttle is way better. She's got a lot more juice, but I don't feel slower at all in the turns. You guys did a great job!" Kenta said chugging some soda.

Keisuke put his hands in his pockets.

'Why'd you have to leave me here Ryosuke? Don't you know all this technical stuff better than I do man?'

"Hey Keisuke." a Red Sun mechanic walked up Keisuke. "Mind if we take a look around your FD? We finished looking around Ryoma's, so we can just compare it to yours as a template since both have been tuned for the uphill."

"Sure why not," Keisuke said.

Fumihiro spoke as Keisuke had his driver's side window down. "Just rev her up to about 3 thousand for us."

Nodding, Keisuke throttled a bit.

Every mechanic there knew it. Ryosuke had more than tuned the FD well.

The Red Suns mechanics then waited for Keisuke to turn the engine off before poking around the FD under the hood.

Closing the hood to the FD, Fumihiro spoke. "Everything looks alright. Both you and Daito have about the same specs. There's only a small power difference overall, but the settings are very similar."

"You guys got what you needed?"

Fumihiro nodded.

"What about Kenta? Is the S14 ready for tomorrow?"

"It is." Fumihiro checked his clipboard. "Seems he got used to the new power settings tonight. We can check both cars tomorrow night, but everything looks in order. They're both ready."

"Great. Sick of all these weak drivers. Can't wait for a real challenge here." Keisuke said. "Guess we should head home for the night. Unless you guys want to run any more tests."

"No, we're all good," Fumihiro said. "There isn't a whole lot more we can do except wait for tomorrow night and race."

"Great. Night Fumi."

"Night Keisuke."

When Keisuke got back in his FD and began to drive downhill, he was confident.

'No punk in a little Roadster can beat an S14 on the downhill. People call it one of the best cars ever made for cornering. And the ER34? Please, our FD can outclass it too. Not much mention how much practice Ryosuke put us through tonight. We've got this, I know it.'