Tonight, there was a good amount of racers ready to run the Fruits Line as it was the weekend. There was a scheduling on the Geo Timer Society Discord Group but the amount of attendees were dropping a little bit from a bit of a mania a month prior.

Only Iori and Shigehiro were able to come here tonight, Norio didn't give a reason but neither of them needed to hear it. They understood that a hobby is a hobby, and should never take top priority in life.

The meeting place was still the Oshito Family Mart, there were 7 cars in total tonight, most of them Iori and Shige weren't really familiar with as they were mostly newcomers who came in groups, and appeared to be pretty independent.

"I've heard from Masayoshi about something amazing." Iori was talking about the Kenji Kumamoto's AE86 that Shigehiro would be receiving, which even now, Shige couldn't believe to be true.

"I see he'd told you about it huh." Shige wasn't surprised.

"Yep." Iori couldn't help but chuckle, "Also thanks for the ribbing about his guitar."

"Considering he asked about a nonsensical seeming hobby? I thought it'd be apt."

"It was apt. I thought it was perfect for a retort."

Iori glanced at the blue BRZ that was parked beside her red Civic, and thought of something she'd never asked Shigehiro.

"Do you have a partner?" Iori asked with a completely straight face, and it made Shigehiro look at her red faced.

"Why exactly are you asking?" Shige was blushing from instinct considering who was asking.

"Well, you know about Masayoshi, I think it's fair, right?"

If it was someone like Norio asking, it would've already been awkward to answer. When it was someone like Iori, it was even more awkward. Although Shige then thought that Iori had a point, so he answered.

"I have a girlfriend" Shige replied and Iori appeared surprise.

"Really? What's her name?"

Shige thought that there was a hint of disbelief in the way Iori asked that question. He had an inkling that she didn't believe someone like him had a girlfriend.

"Tsugumi. She's an engineer working for JAXA." Shige answered completely seriously.

"Really? That's so cool!" Iori gushed a little, which made Shige a bit more flustered.

"It's not like she's a high level engineer or anything... She's just a junior staff."

"But she does appreciate the machinery, right?" Iori smirked knowingly, "Like, she likes your car, right?"

Shigehiro shook his head, which surprised Iori.

"She thinks this car is noisy, uncomfortable, cramped, and she always gives me the look for going out to run when I have spare time." Shige explained, sounding a little dejected.

"A bit like Masayoshi then." Iori replied, and Shige nodded.

"Probably."

After a bit of a pause, the thought returned to the AE86 that started the conversation.

"So, what are you going to do with Kumamoto-san's car?" Iori asked.

"Well, I have to rent a garage, but it's not that much of a burden for me." Shige answered with a slight smile.

"Yeah no, I'm not talking about the logistics of it." Iori shook her head and clarified, "Are you going to sell it? Drive it? Keep it in storage? It's a treasure so you must be feeling a bit of a burden."

Shige didn't reply immediately.

"I don't know, actually." Shige said after a moment, which surprised Iori, "Well, to be honest, I don't even know if it needs anything before it could be driven."

"You've seen the car, right? Masayoshi told me you have."

"Yeah, it's dusty, and it's been sitting for a while, but registration is still current so I don't think it's been that long. It's just, it's an old car isn't it?"

Iori got what Shige was saying even if he was unable to express that feeling clearly.

"Well, whatever you do, surely you gotta run it here, right?" Iori said, slightly in jest.

"It seems apt, considering Kumamoto-san probably drove it on the Fruits Line back in the day. So yeah, even if it's risky. Probably during the day so it's safer, but it's difficult to find the time." Shige replied.

The attention was then turned to the cars that they brought here today. They haven't been on a run yet but it was getting late and it seemed to be a good time now.

"You know, come to think of it, how long has it been since I last had a ride along with you?" Iori suddenly said, and it made Shige think back.

"I can't even remember. July? Maybe?" Shige's reply sounded about right to Iori, who nodded.

"Maybe I'll ride along with you on the first run."

"I'd be glad if you want to!"

It was usual for the racers like Iori and Shige to have an 'observation run'. The curiosity in the ability of both other racers and their cars meant a ride along was often requested. Although it always took a lot of understanding and a high level of trust.

It's a risky hobby. One wrong move and you're in a world of hurt. It's often that the passenger was more vulnerable than the driver because the instinct once things went wrong meant the one in control would swerve away from their own danger, and not the passenger.

Iori and Shige had observed each other's driving so much that they didn't get particularly worried, especially as they'd always drive a notch below their capability to maintain safety.

What Iori really liked about Shige's driving was that he never seemed fazed by oversteer moments if the surface was loose. It's something she admired in him as she was never able to gather enough courage to not get unnerved. If it's someone who wasn't a keen racer, they'd scream because it feels almost like they're going to crash.

Shigehiro was driving the blue BRZ at a decent level of speed, but not constantly attacking the course to his full ability. Sometimes, a slightly more relaxed drive is appreciated.

"I still can't believe after this year, the Geo Timer Application will be no more." Iori mused, as Shige was going through the technical section before the first acceleration zone.

"I'm really disappointed about that too. Although I've driven here for much less than you did." Shige responded, still focusing on the road.

"You only started earlier this year, right? After the snows melted?"

"Sounds about right. It's been 5-6 months?"

"Adult life always goes by quickly..."

As Shigehiro was approaching the high speed left turn, he noticed a headlamp flashed in his rearview mirror.

"Somebody's approaching fast." Shige noted, and it made Iori turn around to see.

"What's that? It's really fast." Iori commented.

"Someone we knew?"

"Doesn't seem like it."

Shigehiro was going to pull away, but decided against it because he wasn't prepared. After the left turn, he stuck to the right side of the road, and slowed down to let the car go through.

The first clue of what that car actually was. The noise. It's a buzzing, high pitch sound, almost like a bee. When it flew by, both Iori and Shige saw that it was a blue Mazda RX-8.

That's not really the unusual bit though, it was the fact that neither one of them had ever seen it, and yet, in the next right hand hairpin corner, the RX-8 brake hard at the exactly right point, and turned in with almost no fear. It was like the person driving was already familiar with the course. Like a veteran.

"Hey, who's that? The guy's really fast." Shige said, surprised, and Iori wondered the same thing.

"I couldn't catch the name on the app, who was it?" Iori asked, but Shige didn't know either.

"It said... 'Kanemaru'?"

That was really weird, a car that was quickly driving this course, but it's not something either of them had seen?

And the name, 'Kanemaru', seemed really ordinary.

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With the brief glimpse that both of them saw. It was a blue, later years revision, Mazda RX-8. There was a huge wing on the back, and the way it sat on the road was pretty clear that it's not any ordinary old sports car. Not only that, when it flew past, on the upshift there was a blob of flame coming out of the twin tailpipes accompanied by a loud pop.

"When was the last time you saw an RX-8 driving the mountain, huh?" Shige commented.

"There's one right outside the school, but it hasn't moved in years." Iori replied, and Shige was bemused by that observation.

"Well, it is a Rotary."

Whatever that comment means while Shige was saying it, both him and Iori were intrigued, even if the thought of an amazing car with a mysterious driver behind it was all too familiar to them now.

Yet, it didn't make it any less exciting when they returned to Oshito Family Mart, and saw that the RX-8 was parked there.

It was especially intriguing, because the number plate suggested that this car came all the way from Chiba prefecture. A one and a half hour drive on a good day. Even though it was not unusual anymore for an out of prefecture car to be driving on the Fruits Line.

Shige parked the BRZ beside it, and both were seeing if the owner was anywhere near, turns out he was. A man stepped out, he looked older than them, maybe mid-40's, and that was a slight surprise. He looked ordinary, nothing about him stood out at all apart from the graying short hair, and the big glasses.

"Good evening!" Iori immediately greeted the man.

What Iori didn't expect was for that guy to turn around, and look at both of them like he's in shock. Iori had this before with awkward guys, but this person was acting the same with Shige. He was averting eye contact, and he was not replying to the greeting.

"An RX-8? It looks fast. We've never seen you around here before." Shige continued trying to converse.

Again, the guy didn't reply, he was now staring at them for a second, before turning his head down, looking a bit awkward again.

This made Iori and Shige turn and look at each other, wondering what the hell was this person doing.

"My name is Yamada, and this guy here is Yamamoto. I drive that red Civic there." Iori tried again to get into the head of this guy.

"Kanemaru."

Finally, the guy replied with his name, the same one that appeared on the app. Although it was almost a whisper, and he wasn't looking at either of them when he said it. It was almost as if this guy, Kanemaru, wanted to run away from having any interaction with strangers.

Iori was relentless though, she wanted to know more.

"This RX-8 is really highly modified, huh... wide section RE71-RS, aero bits, it sounded fast as well." Iori walked over to look at the car, and described what she saw with intrigue.

"Yes. Thank you."

Kanemaru's reply was simple, although it seemed he was getting warmer to having an actual conversation with them.

"For someone we've never seen up there, you certainly drive like you know what you're doing." Shige continued commenting, and it did make Kanemaru turn to look at him for a brief moment.

"Thanks." Kanemaru replied.

Iori and Shige thought it was futile. They weren't going to continue talking to this guy if that's all he's going to be saying.

"Well, it was nice to meet you, Kanemaru-san."

Iori said to conclude ready to just leave the guy be, when Shige pulled on her shirt sleeve and showed her his phone screen.

Iori's eyes immediately opened wide from what she saw.

Kanameru 2:11.42

That time was more than 2 seconds faster than the next fastest time on the board, set by Sunao Morita in the GR Yaris.

"Eh?!" Iori exclaimed with disbelief.

Both Iori and Shige turned and looked at Kanemaru, who seemed to not be showing any emotion. He was barely acknowledging both their existence.

This unassuming looking guy might be just as fast of a driver as Mizuho Noda. Considering the car Kanameru was driving was not exactly new or renowned.

In fact, considering it was a rare RX-8 Spirit R, the condition it was in was appalling. Paint peeling, dented bumpers, cracked tail lights. It didn't seem like a car that the owner cared about very much at all. Compared to Iori's own FN2 Civic, which was not exactly in preserved immaculate condition, it was mint.

"Either one of you knows a guy called Noda or 'Urasawa'?"

That sudden question from Kanemaru alerted both of them from their shock. Both of them wondered how Kanemaru knew Mizuho?

"Eh?" Iori looked confused, because she wasn't sure as to the intention of this guy whom she had never seen before.

Shigehiro was just as confused and a bit apprehensive, so he kept quiet as well even if he wanted to say something.

"It's fine."

Kanemaru was about to walk away as well then, when Iori decided a guy who could associate the name 'Urasawa' with Noda, probably was not some random person, not especially with the way he drove.

"You know Noda-san?" Iori asked with obvious curiosity.

"You know Noda-san?" Kanemaru immediately asked back, which Iori found pretty amusing.

"I may have met him once or twice."

Kanemaru's face immediately lit up as soon as he heard that from Iori.

"No way?! Seriously?!" Kanemaru suddenly shouted, which attracted the attention of a few other racers around there.

The demeanor of Kanemaru completely changed as soon as there was confirmation that somebody within the group of racers did know Mizuho.

"A friend of mine told me about the application, Geo Timer, so I had to try it. I saw the name 'Urasawa' on the leaderboard and thought it seemed too good to be a coincidence." Kanemaru continued now, and it appeared he was much more willing to have a conversation.

"So how did you know him?" It was Shige's turn to ask.

"Oh, I've met him on the mountain a few times." Kanemaru answered with a tiny smile, "I used to live in Tsukuba before moving about 5 years ago."

Iori and Shige turned to look at each other in wonderment. They turned back and were eager to hear Kanemaru's story. But he didn't provide.

"So, do you know where I can find him?" Kanemaru asked.

It was at that moment, while Iori was about to answer, that she hesitated.

"We don't know. If you run the mountains enough you'd find him, I guess?" Iori gave a dishonest answer, which made Shige turn to look at her wondering why.

"Ah. That sounds about right for Noda-san. He never appeared often, but he was always looking for a really fast driver on the mountain." Kanemaru suddenly became talkative, which was curious considering how awkward he was.

Iori guessed that it was because they were strangers, and Kanemaru seemed like a reserved guy. He reminded them of Mizuho in a way.

"Well. I'll see you around then. I'm going for another run."

Kanemaru said as a parting word, while Iori and Shige still had questions, but he walked away far too quickly for them to hold him around. They concluded that Kanemaru was simply really obsessed with running, and didn't care much for conversing.

"Why didn't you let him know?" Shige asked.

Iori sighed.

"I don't want to hold responsibility for leading a weird guy that I don't have a clue if Noda-san had a beef with." Iori answered, and it made Shige wonder more.

"He didn't seem like a bad guy?" Shige commented.

"I don't want what happened with Sunao to happen again, to be honest. I'm curious as to why Noda-san hadn't noticed him on the leaderboard yet. If he felt like it, he'd probably already try to find him."

"Ehhhhh?"

At the same time, Iori was unsure if this was the right decision. Mizuho had not appeared on the mountain for a really long time as far as she knows. Sometimes a decently fast racer in the group would report that the 'Probox' appeared to follow them, but that became really rare.

There must be a reason why, and Iori guessed that perhaps Mizuho didn't want to get involved anymore. It was perhaps the message, the one about the Geo Timer application closing at the end of the year. Iori guessed that there must be an underlying reason which led to that decision.

Still, Iori had to ask Mizuho. A guy that quick who apparently knew him? The curiosity got the better of her.

—

The next morning was Sunday. Mizuho was about to head out to Shimosakata like every Sunday when he saw a distinctive Civic Type R drive up to the shop.

Despite feeling a bit annoyed at first, Mizuho knew that Iori knew he wouldn't welcome her here on days like this, so there's going to be a good reason why she turned up.

Iori got out of the Civic after parking it beside the black Nissan Leopard, which she couldn't help but look at. It was a mint condition classic car, not the usual Probox that she knew Mizuho for.

"You have an F31?" Iori immediately asked about it, as she was hoping it would make Mizuho a bit more open, and she truly admired it as well.

"I do, why?" Mizuho answered simply, looking confused as to what Iori was doing here this early in the morning on Sunday.

"It doesn't seem like your sort of vehicle, Noda-san."

Mizuho scoffed, glancing at Iori's red FN2 Civic which he thought didn't suit a girl like Iori at all, and yet, she was driving it. So what was she to say that he was not a match for F31 Leopard?

"Hey, Yamada-san. I really appreciate what you did." Mizuho said, and it made Iori surprised.

"Eh? What is this about?" Iori was confused, as she couldn't think of at that moment why Mizuho would say that.

"About my son." Mizuho explained, and it made Iori realize what he meant.

"It's just my job, Noda-san."

"Now with that out of the way, I have places to be. Why are you really here?"

Mizuho suddenly turned back to his usual, unfriendly self, and it made Iori grimace with anxiety.

"A guy asked about you, Noda-san. On the mountain." Iori answered straightforwardly, knowing Mizuho probably wouldn't tolerate her much longer.

"Who?" Mizuho asked relentlessly.

"He said his name is Kanemaru, Although I thought you'd seen him on the leaderboard..."

Before Iori could even finish the sentence, Mizuho's expression changed completely to one of great surprise. But it wasn't clear to Iori if it was a good or a bad surprise.

"Oh I saw him on the leaderboard, alright?" Mizuho immediately said with glee, "I've been wondering when a mention of him would turn up directly."

"So you knew him already?" Iori asked again.

"Well, yeah. It's not like I want to, but I do know him."

Iori was very confused by how Mizuho was describing it. He didn't want to know Kanemaru? What does that mean exactly?

"Well, his name is Tsutsumi, I think. Tsutsumi Kanemaru. Most people called him Kanemaru. He's not a bad guy or anything, just..." Mizuho started telling the story, but stopped mid sentence.

"Just what?" Iori wanted to know more now.

"Oh he's just... slightly weird. That's all."

Well duh! Considering what Iori saw Kanemaru was like last night, that's not much of a surprise.

"He's actually pretty harmless, alright? But if you encounter him on the mountain while he's running full tilt. I'd suggest getting out of the way." Mizuho continued, and it did shook Iori. It's quite a frightful statement coming from Mizuho. It made her shudder.

"Why? I have seen that his driving is extremely fast, but..." Iori tried to get more answers out of Mizuho, but he was shaking his head brushing her off.

"Like I said, I have places to be. You'll see if you ever encounter him again. I have to go now."

Before Iori could say another word, Mizuho was already in the Leopard and shut the door. But Instead of driving off, Mizuho hesitated, before he opened the window as he had something else to say.

"Just to be clear. What I said was not a joke. Don't get in Kanemaru's way if he's on a fast run." Mizuho repeated in a completely serious tone.

"Eh?" Iori was utterly confused by that.

"Do you know what we called him back in the day?"

"What?"

"The Intimidator."

Mizuho finally drove off after saying that to Iori, leaving her more curious as to what sort of a person Kanemaru was.

Iori didn't know what else to do, and she was about to get back in the Civic Type R when she heard the door of the PC shop open again.

"Eh?" Ippei exclaimed with great confusion as he saw who it was. He was wondering what a great racket he heard was a few minutes ago.

"Good morning, Noda-kun." Iori greeted him in a complete deadpan.

"Why are you here?"

Iori didn't answer but shrugged.

—

"Guys, have you seen that Chiba RX-8 running?"

"The guy's been running there every single night for a week now. Dozens of runs. Almost like he has no day job."

"I saw him but did not get a chance to catch up. Has anyone talked to him? Who is he?"

"We have not a clue."

"The guy did 2:11. It's unreal."

"That's unbeatable for sure. What's the point in running now if the goal post moved that much?"

"Only someone who sucks would say that."

"Hey you!!!"

The most prominent conversation in the Geo Timer Discord Group during the weekend was about the mysterious RX-8 spotted by a few. The mysterious appearance created intrigue and made a lot of people guess as to the origin of the car.

Mizuho found the conversation pretty amusing, with all the guesses being pretty much wrong. Some said the RX-8 was an actual racing driver in some sort of mid-level professional series, some even asked if it was a ghost.

The truth was, Tsutsumi was just a guy, who probably led an unremarkable life.

Mizuho wanted to catch up with Tsutsumi, have a talk, and ask about what he's been up to all these years. Although at the same time, he was reminded of the nature of Tsutsumi. How he was all those years ago. Then Mizuho felt no more rush to have a meet up with him.