Daiki let out a tense exhalation as he lifted his foot off the accelerator; his car ripping out gunfire-like noises as he downshifted.
Everything surprisingly felt fine and wrong at the same time.
The team was starting a new and possibly their final season within Infinity Drive with an outdated vehicle--some might argue that the term 'outdated' was an understatement.
Swiftly, he slammed back onto the accelerator; his wheel spinning back into its original place as he cleared a hairpin--the tyres protesting for a brief moment before finally connecting with the ground again.
"You'll start to notice a slight decrease in traction, try and go easier into those corners..." Kenta let out, pushing his glasses back as he studied the telemetry before him, "...you can also feel free to box now, for fresher rubber."
"How's the car?" Daiki questioned, flooring the car through a straight.
"Everything checks out on our end, you?"
The sound of rubber squealing interrupted their conversation, a sigh coming through Kenta's end as Daiki lowered his pace.
"She understeers, a lot more than the 35..." Daiki responded, sliding his car into the pit lane, his tone holding a hint of disappointment.
"That's the R32 for you," Aya sighed out, taking off her headphones as she reclined on her seat, "...takes some getting used to."
"But its fast...possibly faster than our previous GTR." Hiroshi joined in, pacing around the garage.
Both Kenta and Aya shot a surprised glance at him for a moment; he'd gone silent throughout the entire session, his existence within their space had practically been erased before he spoke out.
"Yeah, but what good is speed when I can't control it?"
Daiki's voice tore into the pit box as he exited the car, slowly taking his gear off.
His frustration was written all over his face; He'd been driving for what felt like an entire day now yet each lap yielded the same results.
Negative ones.
The Nissan GTR R32 was a tricky bit of machinery to deal with, especially with everything Aya had stuffed into it.
The R32, better known as "Godzilla" was an icon within the world of motorsports even whilst being stock, it was known for one core characteristic...its speed.
It was fast; abnormally fast. Pair that with Aya's creative work and you got an animal that lived up to its title.
its acceleration far surpassed that of the R35 already and it easily cleared 300+ Km/h on each straight. What they sacrificed to get that much power was what Daiki was bothered with--it took corners like a boat.
Each turn was a rough battle between the driver and the car; and considering Daiki needed it to battle other drivers with, his frustration was justified.
"This'll have to do for now," Hiroshi responded, taking a glance at the car before shifting his attention back to his team, "...the higher-ups won't pour in any more cash into our budget until we prove to them that it's worth it."
"So they're basically sabotaging their own team..." Kenta let out, shaking his head slowly as he took off his glasses; leaving behind deep prints along the sides of his nose.
Unfortunately, as much as Hiroshi would like to disagree, there was no point he could bring up to argue against this; nor could he blame anyone for anything.
Nissan had failed to make it past the first stage of Infinity Drive across each and every season that had been held; if he had been there from the start, Hiroshi would have probably gutted the team before it even made it to its current stage.
This was all just a final stand; like a gambler sliding their remaining chips onto the table in hopes that at least the tables could turn.
Relying on luck wasn't something Hiroshi liked, but with how everything looked--that felt like the only thing he could do. The team he had formed had already done all it could with what it had...
The thought of them diving head first into Infinity Drive in this state left him with a deep uneasy feeling.
Despite it falling under the same title, Infinity Drive was a whole different category of motorsports itself; a category that was centuries apart from the regulars.
'The proving grounds' some would call it.
1000 drivers racing each other in 1000 different vehicles across each and every continent... Infinity Drive never was for the weak.
It had practically become the pinnacle of motorsports; the longest, most challenging and most diverse endurance race in the entire globe--its popularity and difficulty easily outclassing Formula 1 itself.
The chances of them surviving in their current state against everyone else was slim to zero; best case scenario, they end their run being among the top fifty within its group 2 class.
For a brand as iconic as Nissan, that was beyond disappointing; Hiroshi himself had to cross his arms in frustration as the thought lingered in his mind.
To race constantly for weeks and months, aiming for that top spot, each team either needed incredible drivers in decent cars or incredible cars with decent drivers--Nissan had an incredible driver and astonishingly underwhelming cars...trying to save anything would be a pointless battle.
Unless, of course, you added miracles into the equation.
With one more driver and a miracle, perhaps they stood a chance.
Or better yet, with one miracle disguised as a driver...
"Hiroshi, thinking too much's going to make your head of yours bigger than it already is."
Hiroshi took a moment to process those words, his mind still deep in thought for a while before it finally clicked.
Rapidly, he darted his gaze towards its origin; eyes widened as he locked onto two figures that were approaching him.
After a quick second, a wide smile flashed on his face as his heart's beats quickened.
For a moment, he couldn't help but think that Lady Luck had just examined their situation and chose to lend a helping hand--one he most certainly was grateful for.
"My word, is that really you, Yamato?" He let out before switching his focus onto the lad accompanying him; his smile widening further, "...Riku?"
Quickly, everyone's gaze darted towards the two individuals; each quickly skimming past Yamato before locking onto Riku.
The most intense gaze of them all being from Daiki himself.
It wasn't his first time hearing Riku's name come out of Hiroshi's mouth; the praises had been distributed from the moment Hiroshi joined the team.
Slowly, he examined Riku's figure; leaning closer to him with his eyes squinted.
Regardless of how he looked at him, there was nothing special he felt--his physique was below average and he seemed a tad bit too young to be joining the team as their second driver within Infinity drive.
Regardless of how long it would take; the sport would eventually chew him up and spit him out mercilessly.
"Hiroshi...you sure this is the kid?" He let out, taking a few steps back with a disappointed look on his face.
Hiroshi couldn't help but widen his smile, a feeling of nostalgia creeping up his body. Riku's previous team reacted the same way when he got introduced; challenging other drivers at just the age of 16 felt like an overestimation of his skills, but the title he came out with proved them wrong.
Calmly, Hiroshi approached the two with an arm stretched out ready to greet them; his smile still stuck to his face as relief oozed out of him.
"I'm glad you considered my offer..."
"You'll have to forgive me, Hiroshi..." Riku interrupted him before awkwardly scratching the back of his head as he gathered the confidence to utter his next words, "...I haven't fully decided yet."
Riku's response came as a slight punch to Hiroshi, but he'd expected that much.
In reality, he knew Riku's struggle a lot better than he gave off; its why he never attempted tried to make him stay at the team after his crash.
He considered that to be one of his biggest regrets--and paradoxically one he didn't regret.
"I expected as much," Hiroshi responded before turning to his team, his eyes scanning them for a moment before his gaze quickly fell onto the car and back to Riku, "...maybe tonight's session will help you come to a final decision..."
Swiftly after, he gestured towards his team to prepare the telemetry before calmly grabbing a spare helmet off the counter.
After a second or two, he stretched his arms out towards Riku, eyes narrowed with his smile widened; an air of confidence surrounding him suddenly.
"...take her for a spin, my golden rookie."