Miho continued to stare at the horizon, the sad expression still clear on her face. Now that she was being forced into Senshado again, the joy she felt from moving to a new school and making some new friends was entirely gone. She continued to let herself sink deeper and deeper into despair… until a voice interrupted her.

"Hey, girl."

Hearing that voice tore her apart from her thoughts. Miho felt her heart pounding at a faster rate. This was the second time someone has spoken to her first here in Oarai, after Hana and Saori from earlier that day. This time, however, the voice was that of a male adult; she wondered why this man chose to talk to her first.

By looking at the direction the voice came from, she saw that it was a young male adult who had just spoken to her. He was wearing black pants and a yellow hoodie. Among the most notable of his feature was his spiky yellow hair, which, to Miho, seemed quite attractive. Nevertheless, she ended up becoming startled, much like when Saori and Hana first spoke to her.

"Easy there, I'm not going to harm you," the man reassured. "I'm just concerned to see you in such a depressed state."

"Y-you're… concerned about me?" Miho asked, still in confusion.

"Of course, I am. Mind if I sit next to you?"

She pondered for a moment before saying, "Hai."

The man smiled in response, and then sat next to the copper-haired girl.

Miho took a moment to grasp the situation. First, she was approached by Hana and Saori, easily forming a strong friendship with them. Then came the return of Oarai's Senshado club, which caused her to sink into a deep depression. And now, she was approached by this yellow-haired man who said he was worried about her.

'What's with this turn of events?' she thought in her mind.

"Hey," the man began, grabbing the girl's attention. He handed her a box containing a pair of chocolate donuts. "Try this. I bought it from a local bakery. It might help cheer you up."

When she saw the donuts, Miho felt her heart getting a bit warm. Chocolate donut was one of her favorites; she enjoyed it whenever she visited a café or a bakery.

She had managed to form a small smile. "Thank you," she said before accepting the donuts. She then spent a few minutes eating them.

"So, are you feeling better now?" the man asked when Miho finished the donuts.

"Hai, a little bit," Miho replied. "Thank you again for the donuts. They're one of my favorites."

"No problem at all. I'm just doing what I should do. It's fundamental for kind people to cheer up those who are sad after all, isn't it?"

Hearing those words warmed her heart even more. Before she even knew it, Miho felt her smile getting deeper. She was starting to like this man, even though it had only been a few minutes since they've been together. But his strong humanity was already enough to make her feel closer to him.

"Oh, I'm Takahashi Keisuke, by the way. Nice to meet you."

"Nice to meet you, Keisuke-san. I'm-"

"Wait, let me guess," Keisuke interjected. "You're Nishizumi Miho, aren't you?"

Miho was surprised to see that the man already knew her. "H-how did you know?"

"Aren't you from the Nishizumi family, which is well known for Senshado?"

Miho lowered her head. "Yes, that is true…"

Seeing a sad face forming on the girl's face again, Keisuke felt guilty. "I-I'm sorry. I didn't mean to make you sad again."

"It's alright," Miho said. "It's true, after all."

She then sighed for a moment. "I used to go to Kuromorimine Girls Academy. The Nishizumi style is far more rigid there than anywhere else. My family's style claims that victory is all that matters and that a sacrifice always follows… and during last year's tournament, I did something that caused my school to lose. I was blamed for it, especially since we could have won our tenth consecutive victory. I don't want to ride a tank again because of it, so I moved to here, since I heard that it no longer practices Senshado. But now it's coming back, and the Student Council is forcing me to join it because I have an experience. I don't know what to do now."

Keisuke was shocked, unable to believe everything the girl has gone through. As a matter of fact, he was not seeing Miho for the first time. The very first time he saw her was a year ago; this was just the first time he was seeing her face-to-face. He witnessed everything that happened back then, and he knew all too well that it would stay embed to his mind for the rest of his days. What she did back then was… hard to imagine from a typical Japanese girl.

Keisuke decided to cheer Miho up. He would never leave someone like her in a depression like that. She was the one whom he would call… a 'hero'. Yet he decided against on revealing everything he knows; it wasn't the right time to do so, just not yet.

"Miho-chan, there's something I want to let you know." he said, prompting Miho to look at him.

"What is it?" she asked.

Keisuke took a deep breath. "I understand your current miserable situation, but to be honest, I think this might be a good chance for you."

For the second time, Miho was shocked by his words. "W-what did you-"

"Just let me finish okay?" Keisuke interjected. "That trauma of yours does sound quite severe, but that doesn't necessarily mean running away is the most effective solution. Doing that won't do any good in overcoming your trauma. You don't want to live with a bad memory like that, don't you?"

Miho nodded in response.

"If you keep on running away, the trauma will follow you for the rest of your life." Keisuke continued. "And I also want to remind you that there is much more than your family's style. Basically, I'm saying that you might be able to find your very own Senshado style. This is not Kuromorimine, you know. People here would be completely different from the ones of your old school. By working with them, you would be able to prove your true capability to everyone."

Miho tried to grasp what he said to her. 'My very own style… my true capability…'

"And as for the Student Council telling you to join in, I'm pretty sure that they have a reason to do so."

Once again, Miho was caught by surprise. "You think so?"

"Well, technically speaking, that's at least what I'm thinking," Keisuke answered. "Of course, they might just be compelling you to join in so that they can win, but that doesn't mean there are no other likely reasons for it. People generally have reasons behind their actions, you know."

"I see…" Miho replied in a sad voice.

"I'm not saying this to mock you. You know that, right?"

Miho nodded in response.

"Listen Miho-chan, I understand that you are unable to believe what I'm saying right now, but unless you give it a try, it would be impossible for you to justify your true feelings. If someone gives up on something before even trying it, then that person is nothing but a loser. And like I said before, running
away will do nothing in terms of erasing your trauma. Only if you challenge it again, you will be able to feel the difference."

Miho said nothing, and remained motionless.

"Don't worry Miho-chan. I'll be here for you. I'll cheer for you, no matter what happens. I swear, with all my heart, that you will do an excellent job."

Miho slowly turned her head to Keisuke, a slight look of surprise on her face.

"Y-you will?" she asked, "Will you really cheer for me?"

Keisuke nodded. "Of course! I'm not the type of person who would leave people like you all by themselves. Believe me, Miho-chan, you will make yourself famous in
this school, and make a lot of friends."

Miho remained silent, her mind beginning to fill up with thoughts. Though still unsure, the ginger had no doubt that Keisuke was being honest, and moreover, she
already liked him a bit, even though it was only the first time they met together.

After a moment of thinking, the girl replied, "Well then... I-I guess I can try, Keisuke-san."

Keisuke smiled, then put his arm around Miho's shoulder. "Thank you Miho-chan. And don't worry, I'll give you a time to think. I don't want you to get stressed out because of what I said, you know."

Miho formed a small smile in response. "Thank you Keisuke-san," she said.

"You're welcome, Miho-chan," Keisuke replied.

The two exchanged a smile until Keisuke looked at his watch.

"It's getting late. Shouldn't you be at your home by now?"

"Oh yeah, I forgot," Miho said before standing up. "I must get ready for tomorrow."

Keisuke got up as well. "Capital idea. Come on, I'll give you a ride home."

Miho followed Keisuke to where his car was parked. There, she saw a yellow sports car. It had a streamlined design, a large rear spoiler, and a logo that read 'REDSUNS' on the sides.

Miho couldn't help but admire the car's styling. 'Lovely car,' she said in her mind.

She sat on the passenger seat while Keisuke was starting up the car, and soon enough, the FD was cruising along the road. With Miho's guidance, it arrived at her apartment in a short amount of time.

Miho got out of the car. "Keisuke-san, thank you so much for spending time with me today. And thanks for the ride as well."

"No problem," said Keisuke. "I'll see you next time. Have a good night."

"You too."

And with that, the FD drove away, with Miho watching it disappearing from her sight. She then formed a smile.

'I never thought I would attract his attention,' she thought before heading back into her apartment.

A few minutes later, Keisuke drove into the parking garage of a ryokan that he and his teammates were staying. He parked his FD and walked to the guest room of his team. He ringed on the bell, and the door opened. The one who came out was his brother, Takahashi Ryosuke.

"Ah, welcome back, Keisuke. Had a good day?" he asked.

"I did. It was fun to drive around the town."

"Glad to hear it. Come in, the others are waiting for you."

Keisuke followed his brother into the room, where his fellow Team RedSuns members, Nakamura Kenta, Saito Ryuji, and Fumihiro were watching a TV.

"Welcome back, Keisuke-san," Kenta greeted.

"Welcome back," Ryuji and Fumihiro greeted.

"Hey there. How was today?"

"Not much," Ryuji answered. "What about you?"

"Pretty good. And must I say, this schoolship is truly quite generous."

"Really? That sounds cool!" said Kenta. "I'm gonna go out tomorrow as well!"

"Me too," said Ryuji.

"Me three," said Fumihiro.

Kenta turned to Ryosuke. "What about you, Ryosuke-san? Would you like to go out as well?"

Ryosuke put his hands on his hips and closed his eyes. "Yes, if Keisuke is happy about it, then there's no reason for me to refuse it," he replied.

Keisuke smiled at that. He was looking forward to introducing Miho to Ryosuke and the others; he was confident that they would also be able to get along with her very well.

Ryosuke turned his head towards his brother. "By the way Keisuke, may I ask you a question?"

"Yeah, what is it?"

"I can see that your expression is a bit brighter than usual. Did something good happen today?"

Keisuke jumped a bit, unable to believe that his brother was able to identify this slight change in his usual expression.

"Um, well…" he said, blushing a little.

"Why are you blushing, Keisuke?" Fumihiro asked.

"W-what do you mean?" Keisuke asked, embarrassed. "I-I'm not blushing, for real!"

"I'm not kidding. I can really see your face reddening up a bit."

Ryuji smirked. "I think I get it," he stated, with his arms crossed and a grin on his face. "He has obviously met someone he loves!"

The yellow-haired man's blush became deeper. "Oi!" he shouted.

Ryuji laughed loudly, but upon seeing Ryosuke's scowl, he got nervous and became quiet.

"Leave him alone, Ryuji-san," said Kenta. "Don't you remember what Ryosuke-san told us before? We should not jump to conclusions without asking properly."

"Pardon me," said Ryuji, scratching the back of his head.

Ryosuke sighed. "Never mind him, Keisuke. Can you tell us the story now?"

"Yes, I will," Keisuke cleared his throat. "Well, it all started when I was driving through the town early in the morning."

Miho was sitting on her bed, hugging her Boko doll and staring at Oarai's activity choice paper. Once again, her eyes were focused solely on Senshado. As she stared at it, the memory of a tank sinking into the river seemed to be coming back.

She winced, squeezing her Boko tight, until she remembered Keisuke's words.

"If you keep on running away, the trauma will follow you for the rest of your life."

"Basically, I'm saying that you might be able to find your very own Senshado style."

"By working with them, you would be able to prove your true capability to everyone."

"If someone gives up on something before even trying it, then that person is nothing but a loser."

"I'll be here for you."

"I'll cheer for you, no matter what happens."

"you will make yourself famous in this school, and make a lot of friends."

Miho felt her memories going away. Even when she thought about it again, she had no doubt that Keisuke was not lying to her. It was also obvious that he has a
point, and that he was standing up for her. Miho knew all too well that she wouldn't turn down on someone like Keisuke that easily. It was not only unfair, but also
foolish.

After several moments of thinking, Miho finally decided what she was going to do. With a determined face, she signed the paper.

For those of you who wonder how Saito Ryuji looks like, you can view him as an extra RedSuns member from New Initial D Legend 1, seen during the first meeting between the Akagi RedSuns and the Akina Speed Stars. He is, basically, a guy with a gray t-shirt and a hairstyle
similar to Nakazato's, and his car is a dark blue Toyota Altezza RS200 (This car also appears in Legend 1 as part of the RedSuns).

As for Fumihiro, I will conclude that he is the PR manager of the RedSuns from Legend 1. His car is a mariner blue Eunos Roadster.