Shinkai's demon sprint allows Hakone to slowly pull ahead of Sohoku even further. Not wanting to lose any ground or teammates, the seniors of Sohoku step to the front of the line and decide to rotate the lead while gaining ground. Eventually Tadokoro takes the lead and announces this will be his final sprint, but he promises he will go full blast until they catch up to Hakone. Slowly but surely Tadokoro gains speed, and as he gains speed Sohoku makes up ground on Shinkai and Hakone. He is able to pull even with Shinkai just as the two teams reach their final climb, but the energy he has used causes him to drop behind everyone. He isn't alone. Shinkai also drops back, with all his sprint energy having been spent. Hakone and Sohoku begin the final climb knowing only one team will prevail, and knowing only the best of the best can compete the final climb. (thetvdb.com)