Chapter 097

Kyle Sudoh's Secret Weapon (須藤京一の秘密兵器, Sudō Kyōichi no Himitsu Heiki, "Kyoichi Sudo's Secret Weapon") is the ninety-seventh chapter of Initial D.

Plot
At school, Natsuki talks with Takumi about the night before, and asks when they can go racing again. She teases him, saying that if he plays his cards right they could end up in one of the love hotels at the foot of Mt. Akagi, which leaves Takumi flustered. Itsuki shows up, and Natsuki leaves. Itsuki tells Takumi that they have to go to Akagi that weekend, as Emperor are facing the RedSuns.

At the Irohazaka, Kyoichi talks with Seiji about racing techniques, and how that the misfiring system removed the need for left foot braking, as it reduced turbo lag significantly. He says that the misfiring system is his secret weapon, and that he used it against Ryosuke the last time they raced. Kyoichi tells Seiji that he will be racing Keisuke Takahashi on the uphill. He says that tomorrow they will be heading to Akagi to practice.

At the gas station, Iketani and Kenji say that they already knew about the Emperor and RedSuns racing, and that they plan to be there. Kenji asks Takumi if he has any predictions, as he's raced both Seiji and the Takahashis. He isn't very sure, but says that that the Evo IV's acceleration was scarily good. Kenji and Iketani are both rooting for the RedSuns, as they think they're the only ones who can get rid of Emperor completely. Natsuki shows up, and tells Takumi that she was on her way home from school and wanted to see him, which confuses Takumi, as she doesn't live anywhere near the gas station. She leaves, and the SpeedStars tease Takumi. He tells them that they're only friends, and Kenji says that she looked like a girl in love.

Later that evening in a love hotel, Natsuki thinks about Takumi and feels bad about her situation.

Japan

 * August 11th 1997 (Weekly Young Magazine, 1997 Volume 34)
 * December 5th 1997 (Tankōbon, Volume 09)

Chinese

 * September 1st 1998 (Tankōbon, Volume 09, Sharp Point Press)

English

 * December 9th 2003 (Tankōbon, Volume 09, Tokyopop)
 * April 17th 2019 (Digital re-release, Volume 07, Kodansha USA)

French

 * April 22nd 2010 (Tankōbon, Volume 09, Kazé)

Characters (in order of appearance)

 * Keisuke Takahashi (Cover only)
 * Natsuki Mogi
 * Takumi Fujiwara
 * Itsuki Takeuchi
 * Kyoichi Sudo
 * Seiji Iwaki
 * Koichiro Iketani
 * Kenji
 * Yuichi Tachibana

Cars (in order of appearance)

 * Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution III GSR (CE9A)

Tokyopop/Kodansha USA version

 * A panel with Natsuki drawn nude was censored in the Tokyopop release.
 * Unlike the scene in Chapter 006, this censorship is maintained in the Kodansha USA release.