Chapter 355: Shattering Takumi's Pride!
"Natsuki-chan is a very beautiful and lovely girl. Besides me, no one is qualified to make her cry."
Hearing Shen Anyu's words, Suzuki Natsuki's eyes widened in surprise.
She had originally thought that she was nothing more than a pet or a fleeting amusement to Shen Anyu, this incredibly wealthy and handsome Yanxia man. She had prepared herself to be discarded once his interest waned. But she never expected to be personally acknowledged as his girlfriend in front of everyone.
Moreover, he even said such domineering words: Besides him, no one was qualified to make her cry.
At this moment, Suzuki Natsuki was extremely moved. Her beautiful eyes brimmed with tears, shimmering like stars in the night sky. A warm current surged through her heart, dispelling the cold fear she had felt just moments ago.
She looked at the man holding her. His chest was broad and warm, emitting a faint, reassuring scent of ambergris and expensive cologne—a scent that spelled safety and power.
Compared to her childhood friend, Echizen Takumi, who stood before her with a distorted expression, screaming and questioning her choices like an immature child, she felt a world of difference. In Shen Anyu's embrace, she felt completely safe and at ease, no longer needing to worry about any storms or the financial burdens of her family.
Echizen Takumi's image, which had once occupied a small corner of her heart due to their shared childhood, completely faded from Suzuki Natsuki's mind. It was replaced entirely by the domineering figure of Shen Anyu.
Suzuki Natsuki took a deep breath, savoring Shen Anyu's scent, letting it fill her lungs. She wiped her tears, her expression turning resolute. She then spoke to the distorted-faced Echizen Takumi, her voice calm but piercing:
"Takumi, there's nothing to explain to you. An Yu and I are together."
She paused, her gaze unwavering.
"It's exactly as you see. I have chosen him."
When a woman makes up her mind, she can be far more ruthless than a man. Especially when she realizes that the "innocence" of the past cannot feed her or protect her in the present.
Suzuki Natsuki's words were like a heavy hammer, smashing the last pillar of hope in Echizen Takumi's heart.
"No... Natsuki... how could you..."
With a dull thud, Echizen Takumi's legs gave out. He fell directly to his knees on the hard asphalt, hitting the ground hard. He covered his face with his hands and burst into tears, wailing like a child who had lost his most precious toy.
[Ding! Child of Destiny Echizen Takumi's state of mind has been damaged. Plundering +9,999 Destiny Value!]
[Ding! Child of Destiny Echizen Takumi's relationship line has been completely severed. Plundering +200,000 Destiny Value!]
...
The atmosphere at the mountain pass became heavy and awkward.
The surrounding spectators—members of the Speed Stars team, the Red Suns, and random onlookers—pointed and whispered at the scene.
"Hey, isn't that Takumi? The Ghost of Akina?"
"My god, crying like that over a woman? That's pathetic."
"Who is that man in the suit? His aura is terrifying."
Some of the younger crowd wanted to take out their phones to take pictures or record videos of the famous downhill specialist's breakdown, but before they could even unlock their screens, they were stopped by Shen Anyu's bodyguards. The bodyguards in black suits moved like silent walls, their cold gazes forcing the phones back into pockets.
Shen Anyu stood tall, looking down at the weeping boy. A faint, imperceptible golden light flashed in the depths of his dark eyes.
Using the [Tianji Observation Technique], he scanned the figure kneeling before him. He could clearly see the invisible "Qi" of destiny above Echizen Takumi's head. What was once a vibrant, soaring golden dragon of luck had now dimmed significantly, looking sluggish and sickly. The System's plunder record corroborated this; Echizen Takumi's Destiny Value had plummeted to less than one-third of its original amount.
'The emotional blow is the most effective weapon against these hot-blooded protagonists,' Shen Anyu thought, a playful smirk touching his lips.
He didn't feel a shred of pity. To him, Echizen Takumi was just a resource to be harvested, an ant blocking his path.
Shen Anyu's eyes held a gentle, elegant smile—the kind of smile a aristocrat gives to a beggar. He tightened his arm around Suzuki Natsuki's slender waist, declaring his ownership, and walked over to Echizen Takumi.
He leaned down, his expensive Italian leather shoes stopping inches from Takumi's knees, and slowly said:
"You're Takumi, right? I have to thank you."
Echizen Takumi froze, slowly lowering his hands to look up through his tear-blurred vision. "W-what?"
Shen Anyu's voice was smooth, magnetic, and utterly cruel.
"If you hadn't overtaken me on the pass earlier and caught my attention with your... reckless driving, I wouldn't have noticed such a lovely Sakura Country girl like Natsuki-chan sitting in your passenger seat."
"I'm from Yanxia, and she's from Sakura. We are separated by a sea. But because of your desire to show off your drifting skills, you brought her right to me. Our destined connection, this cross-border romance... it is all thanks to you."
Shen Anyu's words were like poisoned daggers, stabbing precisely into the wounds in Takumi's heart.
It was my fault? Takumi thought, his pupils trembling. If I hadn't tried to race that Mercedes... if I hadn't driven so fast to impress her... she wouldn't have met him?
"Pfft..." Takumi felt the metallic taste of blood in his throat.
Saying this, Shen Anyu even reached out and patted Echizen Takumi's shoulder encouragingly, as if comforting a junior. Then, without looking back, he took Suzuki Natsuki and walked towards the vehicle parked nearby.
It wasn't the Mercedes from before. It was a beast that had been delivered by his subordinates moments ago.
A low, sleek, blood-red Ferrari LaFerrari.
"Is that... the red Ferrari?"
Echizen Takumi's pupils constricted violently. The tears in his eyes dried up instantly, replaced by shock.
He immediately recalled the red Ferrari that had overtaken him on the uphill section earlier—the "Red Ghost" that had appeared out of nowhere, utilized a grip run to crush his drift, and almost caused him to crash into the guardrail from the sheer pressure of its wind.
For a moment, Echizen Takumi knelt on the ground, his eyes red, his face full of regret and pain.
He never expected that a moment of triumphant overtaking earlier in the night would attract the Yanxia Evil Dragon who would steal his beloved girl, Suzuki Natsuki.
Vroom...
The engine roared to life. It wasn't the rough, mechanical growl of his modified AE86. It was the sophisticated, high-pitched scream of a V12 engine, a sound that represented the pinnacle of human engineering and money.
At this moment, Shen Anyu had already driven the car beside Echizen Takumi. The window slowly rolled down.
Shen Anyu sat in the driver's seat, one hand casually resting on the steering wheel, the other holding a cigarette. He looked at Echizen Takumi and smiled:
"Natsuki-chan said you're very good at racing. Since you seem so unwilling to accept reality... how about we have a race?"
"A race?"
Echizen Takumi was stunned at first, unable to believe his ears. This Yanxia man, this wealthy young master who looked like he only knew how to sign checks, actually wanted to challenge him? On his mountain? On Akina?
After he came to his senses, a fire began to burn in his dead ashes.
He propped himself up with his hands, his knuckles turning white against the asphalt. He slowly got to his feet. He wiped the snot and tears from his face with his sleeve, revealing a look of fierce, desperate determination.
He sneered at Shen Anyu, his voice hoarse:
"Alright, let's race!"
'I might have lost in money. I might have lost in status. I might have lost Natsuki to your charm.'
'But on this mountain... on the downhill... I am the God.'
After saying this, Echizen Takumi looked at Suzuki Natsuki in the passenger seat of the red Ferrari. She refused to meet his gaze, looking straight ahead.
Takumi gritted his teeth and said:
"Natsuki, watch closely. I will prove that I am better than this Yanxia man. I will prove that money isn't everything on the mountain road. You missed out on an incredible man!"
He had originally wanted to tell his childhood friend, Suzuki Natsuki, during last night's Akina Mountain race that he was the Akina Mountain Car God, the true legend who could defeat Sakura Country's top racer, Fujii Yusuke. He wanted to confess to her after crossing the finish line as a champion.
He would bring a beautiful future to the woman he loved.
But now, it was all too late. The confession would never happen.
Echizen Takumi's eyes blazed with fire, looking angrily at Shen Anyu.
He would crush this Yanxia man. He would crush the outsider who took away his beloved childhood friend.
'I don't care if you have a V12 Ferrari. On the five consecutive hairpins, horsepower means nothing. It's about weight transfer. It's about guts.'
'I will make you see only my taillights. I will make you feel the despair of being left behind!'
He had to reclaim his lost dignity with his own hands!
...
Not long after.
The night wind on the summit of Akina Mountain was biting cold, carrying the scent of damp leaves and gasoline.
At the starting point, two machines stood side by side, like beasts waiting for the cage to open.
On the left, the blood-red Ferrari LaFerrari. Its aerodynamic curves reflected the overhead streetlights, looking like a spaceship that had landed on earth. It exuded an aura of oppressive wealth and technological superiority. Shen Anyu sat inside, calm and relaxed, tapping his fingers on the carbon fiber steering wheel.
On the right, the white Toyota AE86 Trueno. It was boxy, old, and smelled of oil. But it had a menacing aura of its own—the aura of a veteran warrior that had survived countless battles. The "Fujiwara Tofu Shop" sticker on the side seemed to mock the expensive supercar next to it.
Fujii Yusuke, the Takahashi brothers, and other members of the racing teams gathered to watch this unprecedented duel.
Most of the Sakura Country professional and amateur racers looked at the red Ferrari with disdain and skepticism.
"What good racers does Yanxia Country have? I've never heard of any top-tier drivers from there. They don't even rank internationally."
"Exactly. Just a rich second generation playing with a toy he can't handle. Does he think he can win on the technical downhill of Akina just by driving a supercar? He'll understeer into the guardrail on the first corner!"
"Victory definitely belongs to Takumi, no doubt! The 86 is invincible on the downhill!"
"Heh heh, that red Ferrari will be lucky if it doesn't flip over and fall off a cliff! Akina Mountain is so steep and dangerous, with several five-hairpin turns. Even professional racers can flip over, let alone a rookie tourist?"
The crowd was overwhelmingly biased. To them, Akina was sacred ground, and Takumi was its guardian deity. An outsider in a flashy car was nothing but a joke.
...
Fujii Yusuke stood by his RX-7, leaning against the door. He looked at the red Ferrari, his eyes narrowing slightly.
He recalled the scene from earlier that evening—the crazy car that had flown past them, drifting with insane precision at speeds that shouldn't be physically possible.
He raised an eyebrow, took a drag from his cigarette, and exhaled a plume of smoke into the night air.
"That red Ferrari is interesting... The driver's line earlier was perfect. Perhaps it won't be as easy to deal with as you idiots think."
"However, I still believe Takumi can win. He's the Akina Mountain Car God who defeated me! If he loses to a random tourist, where would I put my face?"
Akina Mountain Car God?
Hearing this title whispered reverently by the crowd, Suzuki Natsuki, sitting inside the soundproof cabin of the Ferrari, felt her heart skip a beat.
Her pretty face immediately changed. She had often heard the legend of the Akina Mountain Car God—the phantom of the pass—but she had never connected it to her dazed, sleepy-looking childhood friend, Echizen Takumi.
'Takumi... is a legend?'
At this moment, Suzuki Natsuki began to worry for Shen Anyu. She looked at his handsome profile, her hands clasping together nervously.
"An Yu... be careful. He... he really knows this road. You must win!"
Shen Anyu glanced at her and chuckled softly. "Don't worry. A God? In front of me, there are no Gods."
And at this moment, at the starting line on Akina Mountain's summit, Echizen Takumi rolled down his window. He looked across at Shen Anyu with a cold, arrogant gaze—the gaze of a king in his own domain.
"I lost Natsuki because I was poor and naive. But I will definitely not lose the race! On this road, I am the law!"
Shen Anyu smiled at Echizen Takumi, his expression languid.
"Really? I don't believe it!"
Crack!
A vein throbbed on Echizen Takumi's forehead. His anger spiked to the limit. He wanted to punch Shen Anyu's smiling face right now, but he held back. He would do it with his driving.
Looking at Shen Anyu's smiling handsome face, and seeing his beloved childhood friend Suzuki Natsuki in the spectator seat not far away—her gaze fixed on Shen Anyu with worry and affection—Echizen Takumi felt his heart shatter all over again.
He gripped the steering wheel tightly. His knuckles turned white. His breathing synced with the idle of his engine.
Rev... Rev...
The countdown began.
5... 4... 3...
The starter raised the flag.
The moment the small flag signaling the official start waved down, Echizen Takumi's eyes snapped open. He immediately floored the accelerator, his footwork precise and aggressive.
Rumble!
The white modified AE86, like an enraged beast, roared towards the winding mountain road. Its tires screeched, biting into the asphalt as it launched with perfect traction.
The moment he gripped the steering wheel and pressed the accelerator, Echizen Takumi's expression became incredibly focused. The tears were gone. The heartbreak was shoved into a box in the back of his mind.
There were no longer any distracting thoughts—no Yanxia rival Shen Anyu, no beloved childhood friend Suzuki Natsuki—only the road ahead, only the apex of the corner, only winning!
He had to win; this was the battle to reclaim his dignity!
The surrounding spectators, all Sakura Country people, cheered in unison for Echizen Takumi, their voices echoing through the mountains:
"Takumi, go! Show him the pride of Gunma!"
"Crush that rich boy! Make him cry for his mommy!"
"Takumi, you can do it! The 86 is forever!"
...
Watching Echizen Takumi take a commanding lead at the start, utilizing the 86's lightweight body to accelerate quicker off the line than the heavier supercar, Fujii Yusuke and the others were excited and cheered loudly.
"He's got the lead! The first corner is his!"
"That Ferrari is too wide for these roads! It's over!"
But the next moment.
All their cheers for Echizen Takumi abruptly ceased!
[Akarin Note:
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