Well.........

Kyle's mum's a bit...

Wait, wrong meeting, sorry. Okay it's been a while since we heard from our budding touge racers and I won't disappoint with the chapter. (Not a guarantee). Anyway, this chapter is actually going to be a departure from the norm in Initial D, it will have car activities, but not on the mountains. One thing Initial D doesn't highlight is the fact that touge guys and girls quite often participate in other events on the track.

Look out for some familiar faces today, there will be a few of them, they're done some growing and they're new and improved.

Anywho, on to the show!

The Opening Gambit.

It had been nearly two months since that fateful discission Takuya had made to goad his best friend Dysuke into socialising with Kogashiwa Kai and really, if he had been able to go back in time, he wouldn't have even thought to do it. The problems between the two became apparent as soon as they began training together. It annoyed Dysuke that, out of the males in the team, he was always setting the worst times. Kai on the other hand was setting the best, with Takuya himself only a second or less slower. However, if Dysuke was aggravated that Kai was faster, Kai was just as frustrated at Rina's love of Dysuke's outrageous drift-style. The first practice session Rina had caught a look at Dysuke's Altezza already counter steering at the apex of a corner as his tail sailed diagonally with supreme control. After that she had insisted on learning to drift, despite Kai's best efforts to convince her that a midship car was probably one of the worst cars to attempt the style in. Dysuke had quickly stepped in and offered to teach Rina the basics in an industrial estate, where there would be no danger of colliding into a mountain face if she fumbled. That left Kai and Takuya to spend most of their time on either Enna or Happohagga, keeping clear of the local teams whenever possible. In that time Kai had asked Takuya a lot about Dysuke, his upbringing, his relationships, everything that he could possibly think of. Doing that, and in the process slowly revealing more about himself, two things became clear to Takuya, firstly, he liked Kogashiwa Kai and secondly, Kai and Dysuke were vying for Rina's attention, and both of them thought that the other had it.

Things had gotten easier after the first four or five weeks. Dysuke had called and told Takuya that Rina had gotten the basics down fine, and that they were both ready to start on the mountains again. For the occasion Kai had suggested Asigiri, but Dysuke had startled both Kai and Takuya by saying he knew a place. The place turned out to be Momiji, home of Seven Star Reaf. They ran it Friday night, when the presence of the local team was minimal, just a kid with a white s13 and couple resting on the bonnet of a red Mazda Roadster, parked in a car park that set the starting line for both up and downhill runs. Previewing the course, Kai sat in the cabin of his car, sweating bullets. He'd only been to Momiji once or twice, and never to race in his dad's car, in all honesty, he was surprised that there was even a home team here. Deep gutters ran either side of the road, easily deep enough to lose your wheel down and spell instant disaster for a car at speed. It would take concentration to take this course, even for Kai. What would Rina do, considering her inexperience? They slowed to a stop in one of the few safe wider areas, hazard lights winking in unison, exiting their cars to quickly discuss the course and whether or not it would be safe enough to run tonight. Rina exited her ZW30, now sporting a convertible rollcage and removable hardtop in black but was neither overly excited or worried. Takuya didn't seem to be too worried either, but Kai had learned a lot of respect for the Saitama native. He did boast more than a little, but the scary thing was, he could back up every word and more. In the month that they had been training solely together, Takuya had gotten even closer to Kai's times, until now, any given day, either of them could be faster than the other. The only unsettling look in the group was Dysuke, there wasn't a definite smug look on his face, but there was the shadow of one. Like he knew something that no one else did.

Momiji had been a proving ground for Dysuke and Rina, the pair had shown the incredible leaps that their skill had taken in their time away. Not only had they been able to run the tight course at speed, but Dysuke had improved his time slip to second; behind Takuya. Kai had actually come in only just ahead of Rina, something that shocked everyone. Kai had gone beyond cautious when running on Momiji, refusing even to push his tires towards their limit. On the other hand Dysuke had shown that he had accustomed himself quite nicely to his new settings and was getting more confident in tighter spaces every day. Even Rina had shown up the second-generation racer, for although she set the slowest time, she not only bettered her previous paces greatly, she had done so whilst drifting, very impressive considering the disadvantages to using it compared to grip. Takuya had sat back and watched, seemingly impassive, but knew that there was something to the marked improvement in the skill of the two drifting members of his, as yet, unnamed team. It would be another week before he had his confirmation.

Nikko circuit is one of the most popular venues for the Japanese art of drifting, regularly holding drift events with many drift clubs, touge teams and even D1 competitors regularly attending competitions, if only to obtain another trophy for their cabinet. These events, held once a month, actually were rather lucrative for the winning competitors, with many workshops and big brands contributing prizes for the podium finishers. Such an event was currently being held, despite the overcast weather and reports of heavy rain, actually, it was being held around Kogashiwa Kai. It had been Rina's brother that had encouraged Dysuke and Rina to attend, and, involve their friends Kai and Takuya. It would be something special in this instance, because the crew from Drift Tengoku would be attending and filming the meet and the first placed contestant would be invited to attend eliminations for D1. This prize had prompted an incredible turn out on the day. As Kai watched from the pits, a handsome space that Rina's older brother Ken had set aside to work on Rina's ZW30 and Dysuke's Altezza and change the tires that they would go through quite regularly during the day, he spotted members of the Seven Star Reaf and Asigiri Kamikaze Lunatic teams, several flamboyant drift teams and even caught a glimpse of professional driver Taniguchi Nobuteru talking animatedly to a long-haired gaijin. Kai's attention would soon be taken away from the pits by an excited girlfriend. Looking very much the part, with a newly stitched Ken Works racing suit on her petite frame and a brightly finished helmet under one arm, Satou Rina slung the remaining arm around Kai's neck and gave him a lively kiss.

"So, are you going to be cheering for me from the pits?" She asked when they had both regained their composure. Wrapping both arms around Rina's slender waistline and pulling her close for an Eskimo kiss Kai replied.

"Of course I will. Who else would I cheer for?"

"I would imagine that you should be cheering on all your teammates."

Trust Dysuke to spoil the moment. Dressed in a racers suit to match Rina's and off sided by the ever present 'sinister mind' of the budding team, Takuya, Dysuke stood confident, with that haunting, confident, smile he had adopted since the practice at Momiji. If the mountains were the element of Kai and Takuya, the drift tracks were Dysuke's, and he was making it well known. Noting the tension between Kai and Dysuke, and quick as always to defuse it, Takuya stepped forward.

"They wanted a team name to enter Dysuke and Rina-chan..."

Kai leaned forward in interest, waiting for Takuya to continue.

"it's just something I made up on the spur of the moment..."

A lie, but the other three drivers leaned forward, prompting Kai to continue.

"so we're now called Five Fire Flame."

Takuya waited for the news to sink in...

"Five... Fire... Flame." Rina tried it on her tongue. Kai and Dysuke settled for amused snickers. Five Fire Flame, it just sounded so... well, absurd. But with little time to argue it, and the knowledge that they probably couldn't think of anything better themselves, the new Five Fire Flame members silently agreed to let the name stick... for now at least. With the name settled, Dysuke clapped Rina gently on the shoulder and nodded towards their cars. It was time for them to move into the pit lane. Judged eliminations were about start.

Something quickly drew the attention of all the assembled drivers, announcers and general hangers on, and this time it wasn't the antics of Keiichi Tsuchiya or his fellow judges. It was the whine of a rotary engine. With a flash of red the first competitor, a series 8 RX7, most commonly called the FD, spearheaded it's way onto the track, and although it was quickly followed by other competitors, the FD was the centre of attention. Nakamura Kenta, active leader and number one driver of the Akagi RedSuns, was used to being the centre of attention. He sent his FD perfectly into every corner, exited with speed unmatched by those who followed him and generally did his best to make every female spectator swoon. It must have been something he picked up from his mentor, Takahashi Keisuke.

Kai and Takuya thumped their fists in the air as the calls for the final sixteen were announced. Both Dysuke and Rina had made it. Of the other touge racers Tooru from Seven Star Reaf, Yoshi, leader of Kamikaze Lunatic and of course Kenta of the RedSuns had made the cut to compete in the quarter-finals. From this point on the top sixteen would battle each other until only two remained, and one took the coveted first position, and the right to challenge the D1 competition. In the first round Rina had the misfortune to draw the RedSun's leader, who had set the standard for the others that day. Better news for Five Fire Flame was given when Dysuke drew a drifter that had been, apparently, struggling with failed power steering all day. It wouldn't have been so much of a problem in a lightweight 86, which actually preceded power-steering, or a Silvia, but the competitor drove a heavy four-door Toyota Chaser and controlling the heavy beast was undoubtedly going to be too much against a driver as polished as Nobutachi Dysuke.

As predicted the rain, common in the mountainous regions of Japan in this season, crashed the party, but failed to dampen either the spirit of the finalists or the lively announcing of Tsuchiya, Orido and Taniguchi. What it did do however was separate who enjoyed drifting and who lived drifting. One by one they fell. Rina, predictably, in the first round, before the rain had even begun, but put up a good fight. She finished as the highest placed female and midship car in the tournament, and received a special encouragement award for her effort. Kai was there, along with Takuya, and between them they managed to hoist the young woman onto their shoulders and walk a victory lap through the parked cars, Tsuchiya's voice, booming over the speakers, cheering them on. In the rain, Nakamura Kenta and Nobutachi Dysuke had quickly asserted their dominance, and the skill of their support teams. In both the Ken Works' and RedSuns' pits, mechanics were kept busy checking engines, oil levels and tires, so that the cars would be fresh for the final battle. Showing his skill Dysuke sauntered through his opponents, finishing off Yoshi from the Asigiri team in the quarter-finals and one of his old drifting associates in the semi-finals. With rain still coming in strong, and standing pools of water now making many corners treacherous at best, both Dysuke and the RedSuns' ace, who had dominated his opponents more and more as the rain had gotten steadier, would need to be at the top of their game in this difficult two-lap drift battle.

Unlike an actual race, the rules of a drift battle were a little subjective. Rather than the victory going to the fastest competitor, it would be the competitor who showed the best and most controlled drift that would take the prize. However there was an exception, if the chaser, whose main role was to put pressure on the driver in front could overtake cleanly, then he would be awarded the victory. When two opponents were of such equal skill that the judges would be hard pressed to tell them apart they would often push from behind to overtake, making for incredibly exciting viewing. With Five Fire Flame assembled Dysuke pushed his helmet over his head, gave the thumbs up to Satou Ken and climbed into the mismatched leather interior and Bride Brix racing seat and buckled himself in, ready for the battle. Defying Dysuke's confidence and defying the pouring rain, Nakamura Kenta stood, his expensive silk shirt and black slacks smeared with wet streaks and his black leather of his shoes probably ruined, but if he cared it was unperceivable on his face. Ignoring the looks of the people in the galleries and the other, defeated, drivers he simply shrugged his shoulders, raked his hand through his died brown hair in a practiced, too practiced, manner. To Takuya it looked as though the young driver had spent hours in front of a mirror practicing, but he was male, and the move certainly left a few of the women on the course.

The young ones.

The young and impressionable ones.

Gaining some last minute advice from an older RedSuns representative he finally belted himself into his FD and signalled that he was ready. The camera crews and team members quickly cleared the area as the 13B and 3SGTE barbled into life to the delight of the entire attending populace. The final battle, the first against another team for Five Fire Flame, would be decided in the hairpins and lagoons of Nikko circuit.

And it will be decided NEXT CHAPTER! Hahahaha.

Ain't I a stinker?

Anyways, you're probably wondering what am I doing to Kenta. Well if you think about it, now that Keisuke's a pro, and Ryousuke's a doctor, who does that leave to fill the void in the RedSuns? Well, Kenta, that's who. Before I'm pelted with rotten fruit I want everyone to think about this, the kid has been trained personally for years by Keisuke Takahashi AND he's been around Project D for the entirety of it's existence. When you think about it Kenta would be one hell of a driver now. But to be a competitive driver, especially considering that Nakazato Takeshi has his GTR and more experience, he'd need a different car to his s14 Q... well why look beyond the car of his mentor? But at least this time he has a more sensible colour...

Hope everyone liked the inclusion of a bonafide drift competition, like I said at the beginning, Initial D really doesn't show the fact that most drivers compete in different forms of racing for fun or practice. The most that is ever mentioned of it is in reference to Ryousuke and Kyouichi practicing autocross (also called gymkhana), but anyway, I thought it would be a good way to introduce a Gunma racer without it being to stereotypical, headlights in the distance, sort of challenge.

Truth be told, I'm not incredibly happy with this chapter, but I had a lot of time to make up and get the footwork done to begin to introduce later events, so I was working within parameters and this is what I got.

Any way, stay tuned, more on Five Fire Flame, and Dysuke's battle with Kenta next chapter.