They had to wait for everyone to arrive, Shimakaze coming in second, Yuudachi third and Murasame a close fourth.
Samidare took the time to enjoy the view and thus came in last.
Akio explained that the escalator was used for transporting goods and cargo, the engineer duo "putting the damn thing to good use" and used the escalator to transport the go-karts back up the hill, the escalator sheltered by the metal sheets and window panels.
The ride back up the hill had quite a view of the forest as the windows were kept relatively clean, if only marred by the dried marks of the wipers used to clean the windows in neat arcs.
The five of them chatted the entire time, Yuudachi loudly proclaiming that she was going to finish first this time and tried to out-proclaim Shimakaze, who was more confident in her boasts.
Samidare tried to diffuse the situation between the duo, Murasame enjoying the conversation and Shigure taking the time to enjoy the view of the forest.
The individual leaves that hung from the trees were a lively green, and along with the sun shining down at an angle upon them, the whole escalator was illuminated in a soft neon green glow and created a picturesque scene, the lights fixed to the ceiling currently turned off and connected by wires bolted to the ceiling.
Finally, they reached the top of the hill after a 20 minute climb, the conveyor belt moving surprisingly fast for a machine located so far out into the woods.
Along with the fact that the whole course took about 5 minutes to complete, it was a little more than half an hour after the start of the race, the clock now reading 3.32 p.m.
Again, the five of them lined up in two rows to begin the downhill race, and this time, Shimakaze and Shigure went first while Murasame and Yuudachi were behind them, Samidare naturally positioned last.
Kousuke announced that the first run was more for them to familiarize themselves with the course.
Now, Eurobeat music was available for them to listen to as they raced down the track and could be played by fiddling with the buttons on the steering wheel.
Shigure looked down and noticed the music player buttons on the steering wheel reading.
Play/Pause,
Next,
Previous,
And a plus and minus button beside a sticker named "Volume'.
Shigure tore her eyes away from the steering wheel and looked to Shimakaze, asking.
"So, how was today?"
Shimakaze looked back at her, replying.
"I had a lot of fun today, thanks!"
Before her eyes narrowed, and her smile widened.
"But I think this afternoon's going to be even more fun, now that I'm with you."
The Shimakaze-Class destroyer looked back at the road, adding on.
"I've never had anyone race with me like this in a long while, so for what it's worth, thank you."
Shigure was a bit touched by the genuine show of affection from the destroyer, but she looked closer into her eyes, and discerned something.
Yes, something did happen to her.
But what?
Shigure shook her head, remembering Akashi's words.
"Shimakaze isn't the kind of person to properly express herself when it comes to anything that isn't related to speed or racing. And with her lack of sister ships, she's probably more closed off and reserved than the average destroyer.
This is the easiest way to bond with her and get her to slowly open up, because let's face it. If you competed with Shimakaze in any other kind of race, you'd already been left in the dust long ago. But I know you, and I trust you to be smart and skilled enough to keep up with her if it's a race of pure skill."
And as the traffic light changed to green, the two of them bolted from the starting line, gaining speed as they sped down the winding road.
Shigure allowed Shimakaze to overtake her, having already run this course once and already knew the layout of the course, allowing her some brainpower to think as she kept up with Shimakaze in the first section of the course.
So fast!
Shigure exclaimed as Shimakaze vanished behind a corner, Shigure struggling to keep up with her.
Why is she so fast? It isn't because of the go-karts, they're all the same. The tires aren't a major factor yet since they're still mostly intact, which means…
Shigure gulped as she braked to enter another turn at what she deemed to be the appropriate speed, noticing the widening gap between her and the leading go-kart.
It's my fault that I'm falling behind.
She looked down to the music player options, having never noticed them until now as she was focusing all her attention on not getting into an accident.
She pressed down on the "Play" button and heard the comfortable volume of the track,
"Dejo & Bon — Wheelpower & Go!"
Sounding in her ears, shifting gears to catch up with Shimakaze as she continued to theorize.
Alright, so it's established that she doesn't like others knowing her on a personal level, but I don't like asking others for what happened to her, not without people saying I'm becoming like Aoba-san.
But since she's giving her all in this race, I guess I'll have to do the same and hope for the best!
Pulling the emergency brake to drift into a hairpin left, Shigure watched Shimakaze slowly pull away, Shimakaze's precise movements to guide her go-kart into the corners a result of her earlier observations which likely allowed her to correctly deduce the best line for the go-kart to follow.
Shimakaze had lost someone close to her, likely resulting in her reluctance to form close bonds with anyone to prevent herself from being hurt again in the same manner.
As she changed the music track with the "Next" button to play,
"Ken Blast — The Top"
She observed the roads and how the destroyer before her was able to blitz through them without much effort, pressing the pedal to the metal in hopes of keeping up with her.
I can easily detect the signs because I look in the mirror everyday and sometimes see that same look of pain and loss. It's not hard to see through that smile of yours, Shimakaze-san. But who was it? Was it someone whom you looked up to, or loved so much that you couldn't bear to see them go?
The second section of the course was coming up, and Shigure could feel herself catching up to the fastest Japanese destroyer, who thankfully had her physical advantage negated by being placed on equally fast go-karts.
She couldn't hear or even feel anyone behind her anymore, her world now only consisting of the two of them rushing down the course at breakneck speed, the speedometer now reading 96 km/h.
Shigure shifted her gears and aligned her go-kart upon approaching the wide corner with the narrow exit, initiating the drift two and a half seconds after Shimakaze initiated hers.
The two go-karts drifted into the corner, Shigure counter-steering as she saw Shimakaze barely doing the same and working the pedals effortlessly as she arrived at the narrow exit.
Shimakaze's bumper kissed the grass blades sticking out of the gutter on the outside of the corner as she exited the corner at breakneck speed with her brake lights on and entered the final section of the course, Shigure allowing Shimakaze to pull ahead as she trailed behind the destroyer, thinking.
It would be a sortie, obviously. If I understand her correctly, her initial loneliness would be exacerbated after the loss, but since she's a prideful destroyer, she would want to project a facade of normalcy and strength, especially since she harps on about being number one in speed. And the "Fastest Destroyer" wouldn't want to show any signs of weakness, or, God forbid, slowing down, right?
Shigure approached the "FINISH" banner, letting Shimakaze win this round. She decelerated, braked and shifted down as she approached the T-section, Akio whistling as he looked away from the monitors overlooking the course, Shigure's three sisters captured on several of the cameras as Akio announced.
"Yo, you girls cut, like, four seconds off of your previous time. Shimakaze, you ready to break your previous lap record?"
As Shimakaze gave him a thumbs up, Akio chuckling and starting up the escalator.
"Well, no point holding you two here, not when your fastest sister isn't even three-quarters of the way down the course, so you girls go first."
Shigure nodded at him, barely trying her best to calm her heart down and think about the third run against a seemingly unstoppable Shimakaze.