Ranma 1/2 Fan Fiction / Initial D Fan Fiction ❯ Initial D: Anything Goes Drift Racing ❯ Season 2: Chapter 3: NSX v WRX. ( Chapter 12 )

Initial D: Mt Furinken. Anything Goes Drift Racing.

Season 2: Chapter 3: NSX v WRX.

A chill wind was blowing in the trees and winter was definitely on its way but it didn't matter to Ranma because it was Saturday night and the racers were gathering on Mt Furinken for another night of exhilaration, with Ranma and Kuno as the main event.

Kuno had seemed indifferent when Ranma had told him he was driving the NSX now instead but there was still the matter of the grudge match, so Ranma had put a few nights of solid practising in around teaching Akane some of the drifting basics and now he decided, he was ready. Kuno's closer friends, the fact that Kuno had close friends shocked Ranma almost more then their news, was that he had improved since their first battle but so had Ranma and he'd quickly realised driving the mid-engined NSX that the far greater balance of the car greatly improved his specific cornering techniques though they required even more precision control than he'd previously been able to produce.

Another bonus Ranma had discovered was the cars speed, his S15 had been fast but it lacked some acceleration in the mid range because of his close ratio gears meaning on the straights he would lag behind but in the NSX that problem was removed by the turbo giving a constant source of power at his feet.

Of course Ranma knew he still had a disadvantage over a four wheel drive like Kuno's Subaru simply because his rally setup meant his car was built to take full advantage of physics and drift at high speeds far more easily. Still Ranma was nothing like the cocky novice he started as he would win surely, he thought as the two cars line up at the launch. From the side rail he could see Akane watching and smiling her white FTO just visible through the crowd behind her and Ranma found himself wondering, what Edy would have said to him for a race like this? He knew the answer though,

"Keep calm and don't get over confident, if you find yourself behind just wait and look for the perfect moment to recover."

He looked across at Kuno as the starter began the countdown, he could see the concentration on his face and knew Kuno was putting everything he had into this race, he too was being sure not to let confidence go to his head, tonight would be all about skill.

"Go" The starter shouted, and the two cars were off the line before the single syllable was finished. The NSX taking the lead showed its horsepower advantage but as Ranma lifted his foot from the gas for the first corner the WRX passed him still accelerating. Ranma blinked, was Kuno on a kamikaze run, could he be that desperate to win.

Than Ranma realised his mistake as Kuno braked sharply across Ranma's line forcing Ranma to take the slower line through the corner and as they exited the WRX began gaining distance over the NSX. While it had been a slightly rash move and a little dirty it was still a clever tactic to force a good early lead for a car underpowered at the start and now all Kuno had to do when Ranma caught up, was block.

"Well there's still plenty of time." Ranma said allowed but he was surprised to find the distance closing slower than he'd expected and by the hairpins before the tunnel he still had four of five car lengths to catch, he knew if he hadn't closed by the tunnel exit there was a good chance he'd loose, "He has gotten faster." Ranma exhaled slowly and cornered into the hairpin, instantly he could see the gap shrink at least two car lengths and then another two as they entered the second but as they began the third corner Kuno's car seemed to pick up some extra speed keeping the gap about a car length between them and on through the milder turns the gap now remained constant as they pulled at last into the tunnel straight.

Ranma felt his confidence grow, a car length was the perfect distance he needed to pass Kuno at the tunnels exit, he would beat Kuno easily now. Suddenly sitting behind the wheel of the NSX about to perform the special technique Edy had taught him he was reminded of his earlier thoughts of what Edy would say. `Don't get cocky, look for the perfect opportunity to recover' and Ranma knew what Kuno was planning.

Then they were at the tunnel exit and Ranma was but a few inches behind Kuno ready to shift drift past but instead he braked hard just as Kuno braked too using his four wheel drive angled drift to create a perfect block across the line Ranma would have taken but instead the two cars parallel drifted Ranma using the perfect balance of an MR to match the 4x4's angle and then he saw his perfect opportunity as the two cars left the corner side by side the extra horses of the NSX screaming as it pulled the car ahead of the WRX and into a long smooth drift round the long gently left hander putting some clear distance between the two cars.

The race was Ranma's and both drivers knew it.

In the car park at the base of the mountain the two faced each other, Ranma spoke first.

"That was a good idea, if you hadn't used it at the start…" Kuno shrugged.

"I set the car up to maximise the angles I could take but it meant I lost to much high revs acceleration but I see I still need more than just good tactics to defeat you. Maybe next time aye Soatome?" Kuno said raising an eye brow and climbing back into his car.

"Maybe Kuno, maybe." Ranma whispered after the rapidly disappearing WRX.

Meanwhile a lone figure sat in his bedroom in front of a laptop going over race statistics and crossing off from a list of names, when he'd finished he looked at the remaining unchecked names.

"Let see, the next one is Mt Furinken." Ryosuke Takahashi sat back in his chair and remembered the races he'd watched that night. There were some strong racers there, this would be an interesting challenge.