Chapter 021

The GT-R's Weakness (GT-Rの弱点, GT-R no Jakuten, "Weaknesses of the GT-R") is the twenty-first chapter of Initial D.

Plot
Kenji and Iketani are surprised that Takumi is able to recognise the sound of the Eight-Six.

On Akina, Nakazato is glad to hear the Takahashi Brothers are present, as he wants to rub his victory in.

Keisuke and Ryosuke talk about whether Takumi will show up, with Keisuke insisting that he will.

Takumi takes the car off of Bunta, and the trio head back up to Akina. Iketani wonders if Kenji will be able to keep up with Takumi, but Kenji is certain the power difference will allow him to. The two round a corner following behind Takumi, but as the exit it Takumi is nowhere to be seen, having already gone around the next corner.

At the top of the mountain, Itsuki believes Takumi won't be coming and makes his way over to the NightKids in order to apologise. He's unable to commit, and falls to his knees in the road. Much to his surprise, Takumi pulls up behind him in the Eight-Six. Takumi jokes that he'll run him over, and says that a racer needs to defend their reputation when they're challenged.

At the tofu store, Yuichi calls Bunta to talk about the race, and Bunta begins to tell him about the GT-R's weakness. On Akina, Ryosuke asks Keisuke if he's going to tell Takumi the GT-R's weakness, but Keisuke chooses not to as he's the competition, and he's unlikely to lose anyway. Bunta and Ryosuke simultaneously explain that the weight of the GT-R causes it to understeer, and that on a steep downhill its brakes and tires will wear down by the time it reaches the bottom.

Bunta continues, telling Yuichi that he adjusted the wheels on the Eight-Six, which, provided he has enough skill, is something Takumi will be able to use to his advantage.

Finally parked, Takumi steps out of the Eight-Six.

Japan

 * December 11th 1995 (Weekly Young Magazine, 1995 Volume 51)
 * February 3rd 1996 (Tankōbon, Volume 02)

Chinese

 * February 1st 1998 (Tankōbon, Volume 02, Sharp Point Press)

English

 * July 16th 2002 (Tankōbon, Volume 02, Tokyopop)
 * April 17th 2019 (Digital re-release, Volume 02, Kodansha USA)

French

 * March 26th 2009 (Tankōbon, Volume 02, Kazé)

Italian

 * March 28th 2023 (Tankōbon 2-in-1, Volume 01, J-Pop)

Polish

 * December 2022 (Tankōbon 2-in-1, Volume 01, J. P. Fantastica)

Characters (in order of appearance)

 * Kenji
 * Koichiro Iketani
 * Takumi Fujiwara
 * Takeshi Nakazato
 * Keisuke Takahashi
 * Ryosuke Takahashi
 * Bunta Fujiwara
 * Itsuki Takeuchi
 * Yuichi Tachibana

Cars (in order of appearance)

 * Nissan Skyline GT-R V-Spec II (BNR32)
 * Mazda ɛ̃fini RX-7 Type R (FD3S)
 * Toyota Sprinter Trueno GT-APEX (AE86)
 * Nissan 180SX Type II (RPS13)

Tokyopop/Kodansha USA version

 * Kenji says the Eight-Six is a "10-6 Non-Turbo", instead of a 1.6 Non-Turbo. This is likely because the Japanese uses "Ten Roku" (テンロク), which is commonly used to describe 1.6L engined cars . It's possible a translator mistook the "Ten" for the English 10.
 * This error is also present in certain fan scanlations.