Disclaimer: Disney owns Kenai, Koda and everyone else in the movie. I only own the list of characters in my ff profile.

Dawn…Koda and Ken'ichi has decided to leave in the morning. But Ken'ichi isn't too thrilled about going. In fact, he feels like going to the salmon run is going to be a mistake…

Chapter 4: Not the best of start

Ken'ichi got up and walked in the morning sunlight, a gentle morning breeze brushing against his fur. He closed his eyes and sighed as the wind blows in his face. It made him almost forget about the tragedy that claimed his father's death, but that heavy blow will never be taken away from his heart, it has left a tremendous wound in his heart to witness his father's death.

Ken'ichi shook his head; he's not going to the salmon run. He turned around and froze in his place when he saw Koda. Koda was still sleeping though, but his mere presence made him remember his agreement to go with him.

Ken'ichi scoffed, but he agreed to go with him there. As much as he hates to admit it, he doesn't have anyone else to go to; he really needs Koda's help. But what does Koda has planned for him that wants him to go to the salmon run so badly?

Ken'ichi shook his head and walked to the sleeping Koda and gently shook him.

"Wake up kid!" Ken'ichi cried, "We got a long walk ahead of us."

Koda groaned and turned over, "Three more months…"

Ken'ichi glared at Koda with great anger; he's not cut out for this, "Hey! Wake up you lazy bear!" He angrily pushed Koda, turning him over and having his face land onto a puddle, wakening him up.

"Ok, ok. I'm up!" Koda announced as he lift his head from the puddle to see the angry Ken'ichi.

"Let's go." Ken'ichi said as he started walking. He knows the way, he been to the salmon run many times with his father, he practically knows the way better than Koda.

"Wait!" Koda cried as he ran to Ken'ichi, "Shouldn't we eat something before we head off? It's a long way and we might get hungry before we find something along the way."

Ken'ichi rolled his eyes and turned to Koda and started saying sarcastically, "Oh sure, let's waste our time looking for the freshest berry bush, eating berries all our morning to end up heading to the salmon run like what time?" He made a motion like if he was thinking, then faced Koda and looked at him right in the eye, "The afternoon?!"

"Well I'm hungry, and I'm not going hungry through all of this because of your attitude." Koda managed to say to Ken'ichi.

Ken'ichi scoffed and started walking, "Don't expect me to wait for you."

Koda shook his head as he looked at Ken'ichi and ran ahead of Ken'ichi, he hoped he didn't meant what he said by not waiting for him.

Through the field and over the bridge
I look back from the main road

Koda stopped in front of a hill and opened his mouth with a happy look on his face; a field of bushes filled with berries was over it. Koda raced down the hill to have an early breakfast. Ken'ichi stopped and looked how Koda raced down the hill to fill his belly with berries.

Together with the horizon I grew up with
We say goodbye to the ole town

Koda stopped and began eating berries, munching on the branches and swallowing any berry juice and berry bits falling in his mouth. Ken'ichi just walked past Koda like if he was invisible, but he stopped in front of a berry bush just out of Koda's sight. He looked back and ate a few berries, but he flinched and stopped eating when Koda ran to the bush next to Ken'ichi to eat berries there. Koda smiled at Ken'ichi with berry juice all over his mouth, but Ken'ichi growled lowly and walked away.

We all have our secret wings
With which to soar through the sky

After eating, Koda and Ken'ichi reached the edge of a river. Koda was still a little hungry and he saw a few fishes swimming upstream. Ken'ichi however didn't care; he just continued walking to his destination. Koda, being the little rascal that he is, made a daring attempt to grab a fish, but he missed and slipped to the river.

Until the day we pirouette
Onto a distant peaceful land

Ken'ichi looked back and stopped when he couldn't see Koda anywhere. But he turned and continued to his destination. He said he wasn't going to wait for him, so he's planning on keeping his word. He wonders why he agreed to go with this cub to the salmon run. What is it to keep him company? Or was he scared to be alone now that his father is gone?

Ken'ichi took a glimpse at the river, but immediately gave a closer look when he saw something weird in the water. Upon closer inspection, he could make a figure of a bear swimming toward him. Ken'ichi was about to walk away when the bear's head popped out of the water, revealing to be Koda. Koda smiled weakly as Ken'ichi gave him a look which expressed 'What were you doing?'

Together with the horizon I grew up with
We say goodbye to the ole town

Koda got out of the water and shook himself dry; Ken'ichi rolled his eyes and continued walking. Koda gave a playful glare at Ken'ichi, he then ran and stopped next to him and pushed him in the river. Koda laughed and then jumped to join him.

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Wings of Youth (TV Mode) by Takai Yoshihiro

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Ken'ichi's head popped out of the water. Second was Koda's. Ken'ichi glared at Koda; he was not in the mood for this. Both of them could feel the current of the river pulling them, but it didn't face a challenge for Koda and Ken'ichi swim back to land.

"Ha-ha, got ya huh?" Koda said as he got out of the water, but his smile dropped when he saw Ken'ichi glaring at him like if he was ready to kill. Koda lowered his head and moved his eyes to look at the ground, "I guess…you're not in the mood huh?"

Ken'ichi glared at Koda and turned his back; Koda shook himself dry and stood next to Ken'ichi. Ken'ichi, without any warning, pushed Koda back into the river, "Payback!"

Koda abruptly popped out of the water, he gasped when the river's current was pulling him faster than usual. He also noticed Ken'ichi's grin. Koda suddenly went under water and arose, coughing water, "Ken'ichi…help?"

Ken'ichi kept walking downstream, following Koda, "You pushed me into the water and I pushed you back. I think you can get out of the water by yourself." With that, Ken'ichi turned to head to the direction to the salmon run.

"Wait Ken'ichi…" Koda stopped when he heard a roaring sound, that isn't his stomach. Koda turned around and almost screamed when he saw what he was heading for was a…"Waterfall!"

Ken'ichi was almost out of Koda's sight when he heard Koda's voice shouting, "Ken'ichi help!" Ken'ichi turned to see Koda being carried to a waterfall. Ken'ichi gasped; this was going to be some rescue he's going to have to pull.

Ken'ichi ran back, grabbed a vine from a tree with his mouth and jumped into the river. He swam to Koda to reach him faster; he hoped the vine was long enough. Koda was trying to grab any rock he could, but the current was pulling him too fast.

Ken'ichi is a strong bear, practically very strong for his age, so swimming was nothing to him, but the current made a formidable foe at pulling Koda away from him.

Koda managed to grab onto a rock, he coughed up swallowed water, his claws grinded on the rock slowly, Koda was grabbing on with all the strength he could, hoping for anything to save him. Luckily, his rescue came in the form of a black bear, "Ken'ichi!"

Ken'ichi couldn't talk though; the vine in his mouth is the only thing keeping him between life and death. Ken'ichi grabbed a rock which is a feet away from Koda. He tried to reach Koda but the vine has reached its limit, Ken'ichi can't reach him unless he lets go of the vine.

Koda knew Ken'ichi can't reach him, but he was surprised he jumped in to save him. After how Ken'ichi acted toward him, he thought Ken'ichi didn't cared what happened to him. So Koda decided to try to swim at Ken'ichi, but the current was too strong and Koda was slowly being taken away.

Ken'ichi had to make a choice, either declare the rescue a failure and pull himself back to safety, or go after Koda and find another way. Ken'ichi has hated Koda so much for how his father died because of him, he preferred Koda dying than his father, and this could be his revenge. But his father raised no abandoner, he released the vine and swam to Koda, tackled him to push him to a rock, and they both grabbed the rock. "Ken'ichi what'll we do?" Koda cried as he grabbed the rock for dear life. "I'm working on it…" Ken'ichi replied.

Ken'ichi looked around and blinked twice when he saw a tree branch submerged in the river. The tree branch is still connected to the tree; they can use it to pull themselves to land. Ken'ichi didn't had time nor the interest to explain his plan to Koda, he just pushed him off the rock.

Koda couldn't believe what Ken'ichi just did; he just pushed him into the river again. But Koda immediately saw the tree branch and quickly grasped Ken'ichi's plan. As soon as he came into range, Koda grabbed the tree branch and slowly pulled himself toward land with whatever strength he had left, but he stopped midway to catch his breath, "Keep going!" a childish yet determined voice shouted from behind him. Koda blinked and looked back; Ken'ichi was holding unto the same branch, "Keep going or we'll both drown!"

Koda didn't want to agitate Ken'ichi any longer; he looked forward and kept going. In what seemed forever in a struggle against the strong current of the river, Koda and Ken'ichi were out of the river and into dry land. Both bears sat down to catch their breath.

"Thanks," Koda said to Ken'ichi, "I thought you were going to leave me." Ken'ichi just stood up and shook himself dry, "Don't flatter yourself, I only did it because I felt bad about pushing you into the water."

Koda shook himself dry and walked to Ken'ichi, "Well it was your fault I almost drown in a waterfall and…"

"Shut up!" Ken'ichi cut him off, "It's your fault anyway! You pushed me into the water!" Koda backed up a little, Ken'ichi was so mad he was one step away from attacking him. "Do that again and next time I won't save your neck." With that, Ken'ichi continued his walk to the salmon run. Koda sighed in sadness and fear; this was going to be a long journey.

What'd you think? And no, not all chapters will have a song, I might if you ask.

See ya next chapter!