Chapter 6 – The Man Who Doesn't Drift
Gunma – 5:18 AM
The rain had stopped.
But the mountain was still wet.
Mist hung between the trees, drifting across the road in slow waves. The asphalt reflected the first gray light of morning, every puddle looking like a piece of broken glass.
At the bottom of Akina, the gas station was still closed.
Except for one person.
Bunta Fujiwara stood beside the Fairlady.
He stared at the tires.
The rear-left was worn almost completely smooth.
Yuichi stepped outside, still half-asleep, holding a cup of coffee.
"You raced last night."
Bunta nodded.
"In that rain."
Another nod.
Yuichi looked at the tire.
"You almost killed these."
Bunta took a cigarette from his pocket.
"They held."
Yuichi sighed.
"That's not the point."
Bunta lit the cigarette.
"The point is they held."
Yuichi stared at him.
"You know, sometimes I wonder if you're actually human."
Bunta looked toward the mountain.
"Sometimes I wonder too."
Later That Morning – 9:03 AM
A black Toyota MR2 entered the gas station.
It wasn't loud.
No huge exhaust.
No flashy body kit.
No stickers.
No teenager leaning out the window trying to look cool.
It simply rolled in and stopped.
A man stepped out.
Mid-twenties.
Short black hair.
Dark jacket.
Calm eyes.
He looked at the Fairlady.
Then at the mountain.
Then at Yuichi.
"Fujiwara?"
Yuichi wiped his hands on a rag.
"Which one?"
"Bunta."
Yuichi immediately became more cautious.
"Who's asking?"
The man reached into his pocket and pulled out a folded piece of paper.
He placed it on the counter.
Yuichi opened it.
There was only one sentence.
I want to know if the stories are true.
Yuichi looked up.
"And you are?"
The man smiled slightly.
"Shinoda."
9:17 AM
Bunta walked out of the garage.
He saw Shinoda.
Stopped.
Shinoda looked at him.
Neither spoke.
For several seconds, the only sound was the hum of the refrigerators inside the station.
Finally, Bunta asked:
"You came from Tokyo?"
Shinoda nodded.
"Last night."
"Why?"
"I heard about you."
Bunta took a drag from his cigarette.
"That's usually how trouble starts."
Shinoda smiled.
"I'm not here to cause trouble."
Yuichi laughed from behind the counter.
"That's exactly what people say before causing trouble."
Shinoda ignored him.
"I watched the race."
Bunta's expression didn't change.
"You weren't there."
"I was."
Bunta looked at him.
"Where?"
Shinoda pointed toward the mountain.
"Above the third hairpin."
Bunta's eyes narrowed slightly.
"You were hiding."
"I was watching."
"Same thing."
Shinoda smiled.
"Maybe."
10:41 AM – Akina
The mountain looked completely different under the morning sun.
No fog.
No rain.
No spectators.
Just road.
Shinoda stood beside his MR2 at the starting line.
Bunta leaned against the Fairlady.
Yuichi stood between them.
"This isn't a race."
Shinoda nodded.
"I know."
Yuichi looked confused.
"Then why are we here?"
Shinoda answered.
"Because I don't want to race him."
Yuichi blinked.
Bunta looked at him.
"Then what do you want?"
Shinoda opened the driver's door.
"I want to follow you."
Bunta smiled faintly.
"For how long?"
"Until I can't."
Yuichi looked between them.
"You two are insane."
Bunta dropped his cigarette onto the asphalt.
"Five minutes."
Shinoda started the MR2.
Bunta got into the Fairlady.
The engines came alive.
10:48 AM
The Fairlady launched first.
Shinoda followed.
No crowd.
No countdown.
No cheering.
Only tires touching wet patches of asphalt.
Bunta took the first corner smoothly.
Shinoda followed.
Second corner.
Same line.
Third.
Same.
Fourth.
Shinoda stayed close.
Yuichi watched from the bottom of the mountain as the two cars disappeared into the trees.
"He's keeping up..."
Upper Akina
Bunta entered the next corner.
Shinoda followed.
The Fairlady's rear stepped outward.
Just slightly.
Shinoda didn't drift.
He simply adjusted his steering and stayed behind.
Bunta noticed.
Another corner.
Same thing.
Bunta pushed harder.
Shinoda remained there.
No dramatic movements.
No tire smoke.
No wasted steering.
Just precision.
Bunta's eyes narrowed.
He's not fighting the road.
He accelerated.
The MR2 followed.
Another corner.
Bunta braked late.
Shinoda braked even later.
For the first time, Bunta glanced into the mirror.
The MR2 was right there.
Close.
Too close.
Shinoda wasn't trying to beat him.
He was studying him.
10:56 AM
Bunta suddenly changed his line.
He went wide.
Shinoda reacted instantly.
The MR2 moved with him.
Bunta cut back inside.
Shinoda followed.
Then—
Bunta lifted.
Shinoda didn't.
The MR2 shot forward.
For half a second, it looked like Shinoda had passed him.
Then Bunta smiled.
He turned the wheel.
The Fairlady rotated perfectly through the corner.
Shinoda's eyes widened.
The Fairlady appeared beside him.
Then ahead.
Then disappeared around the next bend.
Shinoda laughed inside his helmet.
"So that's it..."
He accelerated.
11:03 AM – Summit
The Fairlady stopped.
Bunta stepped out.
A minute later, the MR2 arrived.
Shinoda opened the door.
He wasn't angry.
He wasn't disappointed.
He looked excited.
"You weren't racing me."
Bunta leaned against the hood.
"No."
"You were testing me."
"No."
Shinoda frowned.
"Then what were you doing?"
Bunta looked down the mountain.
"Driving."
Silence.
Shinoda laughed.
"You're exactly like they said."
Bunta turned toward him.
"Who?"
Shinoda's smile disappeared.
"People in Tokyo."
Bunta's expression hardened.
Shinoda continued.
"They've been talking about Gunma."
"About the mountain."
"About you."
Bunta flicked ash from his cigarette.
"And?"
"They don't think you're just some retired street racer anymore."
Bunta looked at him.
Shinoda stepped closer.
"They think you're building something."
Bunta said nothing.
"A network."
"A team."
"Something bigger."
Bunta stared at the road.
"I don't have a team."
Shinoda nodded.
"Not yet."
Meanwhile – Somewhere Outside Tokyo
Ken Kogashiwa sat inside a small café.
Across from him was the same man from the previous night.
The Tokyo man placed a photograph on the table.
Bunta's Fairlady.
Taken from a distance.
Ken stared at it.
"He's getting attention."
The Tokyo man nodded.
"More than we expected."
Ken leaned back.
"And the guy from Tokyo?"
"Shinoda?"
Ken nodded.
"He's already met him."
Ken smiled.
"Too soon."
The Tokyo man frowned.
"You know what happens if Fujiwara starts attracting people."
Ken looked through the window.
"The mountain changes."
Akina – 11:21 AM
Bunta and Shinoda stood beside their cars.
Shinoda put his hands in his pockets.
"One more thing."
Bunta looked at him.
"Why do you drive like that?"
Bunta frowned.
"Like what?"
"Like you're not trying to win."
Bunta was silent.
Shinoda continued.
"Every racer I've met wants something."
"Money."
"Respect."
"Fame."
"Revenge."
"But you..."
He looked at the Fairlady.
"You drive like you're searching for something."
Bunta stared at the mountain.
For the first time that morning, his expression changed.
Just slightly.
"I am."
Shinoda waited.
"What?"
Bunta looked toward the distant ridgeline.
"The road."
Shinoda smiled.
"I don't believe you."
Bunta opened the Fairlady's door.
"You don't have to."
The engine started.
Shinoda watched him disappear down the mountain.
Then he whispered to himself:
"See you again, Fujiwara."
That Evening – Gas Station
Yuichi was closing the station when he noticed something.
A black envelope.
Sitting on the hood of the Fairlady.
No name.
No address.
Just one symbol drawn in red ink.
A circle.
With a single line through the middle.
Bunta stared at it.
Yuichi swallowed.
"What's that?"
Bunta didn't answer.
He opened the envelope.
Inside was a photograph.
An unfamiliar car.
A white Mazda RX-7.
Underneath it was a handwritten message.
Akina isn't the only mountain that remembers you.
Bunta's cigarette stopped halfway to his mouth.
Yuichi looked at him.
"Bunta?"
Bunta slowly folded the photograph.
His eyes were no longer calm.
"Lock the station."
Yuichi froze.
"Why?"
Bunta looked toward the dark mountain.
"Because tomorrow..."
He lit his cigarette.
"...we're going somewhere else."
To be continued.