Disclaimer: I do not own Ash Ketchum from Pokemon nor do I own characters from Square Enix, Disney, Biohazard, or any other company.

Fandom: Pokemon/Kingdom Hearts

Title: Where They Wait For Him! The New Journey Begins: Kijuju, Africa!

Character (s): Ash (18), Snow (21), Hope (14), Merlin (Unknown), Cid (44), Leon (27), Aerith (22-24), Yuffie (18), Tifa (22-24), Cloud (24), Albert Wesker (Currently unknown), Jill Valentine (Unknown), and Excella Gionne (Unknown)

Genre (s): Adventure/Friendship/Slight Humor/Slight Romance/Suspense/Supernatural/Horror

Rated: T

Word Count: 5,826

Pairing (s): Ash/Aqua, Ash/Cynthia, One-sided Ash/Harem, and One-sided Other Pairings

Summary: Ash's world has fallen to the darkness due to the Heartless and now fate has taken him onto an adventure where he must save many worlds from the forces of evil. But at some point, fate will lead Ash to the one he first loved, Aqua. He will encounter new friends, new foes, and new worlds! Can Ash handle it? We will have to wait and see if he is capable of doing so!

Where They Wait For Him! The New Journey Begins: Kijuju, Africa!

新しい旅の始まり:Kijuju、アフリカを!

"Okay, let's try this again." Snow joked with a grin. Immediately, Ash slightly blushed while scratching the back of his head sheepishly.

"Sorry." That was the only thing Ash can say to his friends.

After an hour worth of eating and another hour of chatting with his friends, Ash finds himself standing right in front of the group outside of Merlin's place, once again.

"It's okay, Ash." Hope reassured his friend that everything was fine with a chuckle. "Sometimes some of us forget to do stuff like eating for example. So don't worry about it." Ash nodded with a smile.

"Thanks, Hope." The silver-haired boy nodded his head as well before giving his friend a smile of his own.

Soon afterwards, Ash would yet again receive temporarily goodbyes from the party and a sneaky kiss on a cheek from Yuffie. Immediately, Ash's face skyrocketed to a crimson color from the female ninja's sudden "good luck" kiss. The guys, except for Cloud and Leon snickered at the blushing teen.

Once the snickering and teasing were out of the way, it was time for Ash to take his leave. But before he could even do that, a certain subject came across everyone's mind and that was… How is he going to travel? "Hey…uh…Ash?"

Quickly, Ash turns his attention to Snow. "Yeah, Snow?"

"Don't get me wrong or everything, but… I was wondering-…"

"Don't you mean we, Snow?" Hope corrected.

"Yeah!" The ninja princess agreed with the silver-haired boy. Clearly, everyone, except for Ash, Cloud, and Leon rolled their eyes at the two youngsters.

"Yeah, we…" The former I'Cie rephrased himself with a snort. "We were wondering how are you going to leave this world? The last time I check, Hope and I found you."

"Yeah, I was wondering about that as well." Leon spoke up with his arms crossed.

"If you don't have a ship, maybe you can ask Cid for one, Ash." Aerith suggested. "I'm sure he would gladly let you borrow one of his Gummi ships. Isn't that right, Cid?" The young woman asked, turning her attention the town's ship mechanic.

"Sure, why not?" The blond-haired man agreed with a shrug. He did not care in the world. But soon that will all change. "I'll let you borrow one of my ships, kid. But… you better not wreck it like that numbskull Sora. That stupid brat needs to stop WRECKING ALL OF MY GOD DAMN GUMMI SHIPS, EACH TIME HE USES THEM! HE'S STARTING TO GET ON MY GOD DAMN NERVES" Cid breaks out into a raging and cursing fit. At this point, everyone and I mean everyone sweat dropped.

Sure, the former prince really appreciates the sudden offer of borrowing one of Cid's Gummi ships. But soon Ash was having second thoughts at this point. Maybe he should not accept the kind offer, after all. By the way Cid was throwing a temper tantrum over this mess, Ash decided to give the cursing man a break for once. And besides, if Ash remembers correctly, he has another way of traveling. So it was basically a win-win situation for him and for Cid.

"Uh…guys?" All eyes fell on him. Well, except for Cid, of course. The town's ship mechanic was too busy cursing and throwing a tantrum to pay any attention to Ash once so ever. "I really appreciate the kind offer, but I must decline." By now, everyone was giving him a look. Was it about Cid or something else that was making the former prince having second thoughts about the offer? To some, it was Cid. To others, it could be another reason. "No offense to everyone and to Cid, but I already have something that can help me journey around from place to place."

"Really?" Aerith asked curiously. Ash nodded. "What is it?" A big grin formed on the young teen's face.

"Instead of me saying it, how about I show it to you guys." Everyone with Cid blinked confusedly. What did he mean by that?

Slowly, the young key bearer took a couple of steps back before summoning out his black and white Keyblade. 'I should thank Aqua for this.' Ash mentally said to himself.

Soon the former prince slammed his left hand on his black and white shoulder plate. Within a second, Ash was engulfed in a bright light, clearly blinding those around him. As the light slowly dies away, everyone quickly opens his or her eyes. The moment they did, they were completely taken aback when they see Ash standing there in a black and white armor, from head to toe with a flowing white cape attached on his back. They were completely awestruck. Even Ash was astonished by this since this was his first time in his armor form.

'This is so cool!' Ash chirped mentally within his mind. But this was not time to be awestruck just yet.

Shaking off his happy feeling, the armored key bearer quickly pointed his weapon up into the air. And before long, the tip of the Keyblade shoots a beam of light upward into the sky.

Suddenly, a magical warp gate opened up within the sky. Soon Ash hurled his Two Become One into the air. And before long, his key-looking blade was engulfed in a bright light. Once the light subsided, a black and white glider, similar to Ventus's glider, suddenly flew towards Ash's direction before hovering right beside its owner's side.

"WHOA!" Yuffie and Hope said in chorus, clearly awestruck by Ash's new appearance and glider.

"Not bad, man." Snow grinned, from head to toe.

Within his helmet, a big grin spread across the young key bearer's face. It seems his friends were pretty impressed with his new gear and ride. But this was not the time to goof off. Ash really needed to start his solo-journey as quickly as possible.

Quickly, Ash jumps onboard his Keyblade Glider. Soon he turned his attention to the group before giving them a mockery salute. The party gave him a round of goodbye waves. However, before Ash can take off, Snow and Hope quickly stopped him from leaving when something came to them.

"Oh…! Hold on a sec, Ash!" Quickly, the gentle giant and the young medic ran over to their friend's side. They wanted to ask him something.

"What is it, guys?" The young key bearer asked curiously, narrowing his attention to his two new friends.

"Can we ask you for a favor, Ash?" Hope asked. Ash nodded.

"Sure. What's the favor?"

Without wasting another second, Snow quickly asked Ash if he ever come across his bride-to-be, Serah and Sis who goes by the name, Lightning during his travels. Snow wanted his friend to tell them to "please come home to Radiant Garden" because they are worried sick about them.

"Hey! And don't forget about Fang, Vanille, Sazh, and Dajh too, Snow." The silver-haired boy reminded his goofball of a friend about their other missing friends.

"Oops! Yeah, them too." Snow laughed sheepishly, rubbing the back of his head embarrassedly while Hope rolled his eyes. "Thanks for reminding me, Hope."

"No problem, Snow." The young boy said sarcastically, clearly making Snow rolled his eyes at his sarcasm.

"Sure, guys. I'll tell them." Ash said, gaining the pair's undivided attention. "But first, what do they look like?"

As soon as the former prince asked that, Snow and Hope did not waste any time. They quickly described each of their friends to Ash. And once Ash narrowed everything down and got all the details memorized in his thick skull, he gave his two friends a nod. "Okay. I will make sure to tell them to come here if I run into them."

"Thanks, man. We really appreciate it." Snow grinned before grasping Ash's hand with his own before pulling apart from each other.

"What this guy just said." Hope laughed with a tease before shaking Ash's hand before they pulled apart as well.

"Who are you calling this guy, Hope?" Snow demanded with a pout. Hope rolled his eyes, clearly knowing that the big oaf could not take a joke. Ash chuckled at the pair. They were clearly an interesting pair, indeed.

"Well, guys, it's time for me to go."

"All right, man, take care of yourself." Snow said with a grin, giving Ash a thumb's up.

"And good luck." Hope added. The young key bearer nodded his head to them before the pair stepped back to give him some room. It was time to take his leave. Unfortunately, that did not happen right away.

"…"

"…"

"…"

An awkward silence filled the air. The reason why was because everyone, including Ash took notice that he was budging from spot. The young teen tried to lean forward from side to side, but nothing happen. Ash tried to move forward and back, but to no avail. His rider was not budging, no matter what he did.

By now, only one and obvious conclusion came out of this and that was… It was the fact that Ash did not have a single clue about his rider. More or less, he did not have a clue on how to move it. If the former prince remembers correctly, his first love did say something about him had to learn things on his own when it comes something like this. 'I hate you, Aqua…'

Honesty, Ash had to take some of the blame as well since he was the one who totally forgot what Aqua just said to him from before, so shame on him for being so damn forgetful. However, he did not have time to worry about that. Frustration started to flow within him 'Oh, just great! Just when I get something awesome, I just realize I do not know how to use it. What else can go WRONG? Why can't you just move forward ALREADY?' The young key bearer stomped his right feet in anger. Ash was just asking for it.

On cue, the young teen's glider suddenly shot forward, completely startling Ash. "WHOA!" Ash yelped in surprise as his glider continues to speed forward until a Moogle's shop came into the young teen's view. Oh, boy. This was not good. Ash was completely heading towards a nearby Moogle shop. Ash started to panic. "No, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, NOOOOOOOOO!"

*CRASH*

Everyone sweat dropped.

The Moogle's shop was completely destroyed and in a wreck. Ash's glider was stuck within the wreckage while the young key bearer and the poor Moogle was hanging upside down with crazy swirls for their eyes. "Please, stop the world from spinning. I wanted to get off…" Ash said dizzily.

Yet again, everyone sweat dropped.

After apologizing to the Moogle and paying for the damages, Ash decided to spend an hour of getting use to his new glider. The hour was all Ash needed to master his glider. Apparently, during the hour, Ash learned that his glider is linked to his mind. In order to make it move, he had to think it. Strange, isn't it? I know. Once the young teen had everything narrow down, he finally took his leave.

Now his journey finally begins.

Obtained!

***Aura Pills***

***Keyblade Glider***

(~ Outer Space ~)

With Radiant Garden behind him for the time being, the young teen pushed aside his mix feelings and stay focus on his main objective, which was to protect each world he come across. It was his duty.

As the young key bearer was slowly surfing through the quiet mass known as space, he took the moment to view the beautiful surroundings around him-especially the beautiful stars.

'This is so cool. I would have never thought in a million of years would I get the chance to see the stars up close. It is unbelievable. If only I can share this moment with Cy-…' Suddenly, Ash's heart sank when he just remember he cannot share this lovely moment with the one he was truly dedicated to, Cynthia. 'Cynthia…'

There was a moment of silence. Sad emotions started to flow within the young teen for a brief second until Ash shook them off. This was not the time to feel down. This was the time to move forward. He knows already that nothing in the world can change the past. No matter what how much it hurts, he cannot let the past memories get to him. He needs to stay focus. In order to redeem his mistakes, he must move forward and correct them. That is the only way he can earn forgiveness from those he let down.

'I know I let you and everyone down, Cynthia… But I know I can fix this. Just please… wait for me a little bit longer. I promise to bring you guys back from the darkness, okay? So just hang in there until then. And do not worry, Aqua, I did not forget about you and your friends. I will save you guys too, so don't worry.'

Ash made a promise that he will save everything soon. And that is what he is going to do. He cannot let them down no matter what. For now, he needed to stay on what is ahead.

Suddenly, Ash snapped his attention straight ahead when he spotted an incoming world in his direction. The new world reminds him a little bit about his own world, Mother Earth. However, there was something strange about it. For one thing, the new world that he was heading to had a bunch of hazard signs all over it, indicating that something was up.

In order to find some answers, Ash needed to head to the planet right away. And so he did.

What will be waiting for Ash once he gets there? Who knows? Only time will tell.

Kijuju, Africa

1st Visit (Part I-III)

Arriving at his somewhat destination, Ash found himself walking along a dirt path within a poverty-looking environment, mostly a village of somewhat. Around him were local buildings, homes, and markets that were poorly constructed and built. Also around him were several tall trees, with some appears to be dead and several telephone poles. On a side note, were those car tires sticking out from the ground? In addition, was that a broken down truck with no wheels near that shop over there? It appears so. It was somewhat weird and somewhat suspicious if you ask me. Even so, the young traveler did not take the time to take notice of it since he was too busy sightseeing his surroundings.

As Ash continues to explore around the unknown village some more, his nose suddenly picks up a foul odor within the air. The stench was so powerful. It made the young teen stopped in his tracks. "What is that smell?" He asked no one in particular before covering his nose and mouth with his hand. 'Whatever it is, it smells worst than that time Pikachu accidentally farted in my face.'

Whatever the bad stench was, it was hundred times worst than Pikachu's gas. The bad odor smelled like rotten meat went past its overdue date for the past three weeks now. Or better yet, it smelled like a dead corpse that has been left out in the sun for two weeks straight without anyone knowing about it as it started to hit the decomposing stage. No matter what it was, it still smells like a pile of rotten something.

The young key bearer started to look back and forth in hopes to track down where the bad stench was coming from. No sooner, Ash quickly spots a lifeless corpse that was a few feet away from him. Whatever it was, it was lying on top of a pile of a small haystack. The young teen could not tell what it was because its appearance was so foreign to him.

Lying on the haystack was a four-legged animal that looks like a small goat. Its body was covered in mud and dirt as its fur lost its color. The same goes with its pupils. They were not showing any sign of life. They were completely blank. Its mouth was wide open with its tongue sticking straight out, to give it a funny expression. Horse flies were all over the body while several black crows were pecking it.

The young key bearer sighed in relief. 'Glad that wasn't a human body…'Ash was so glad it was not a person or else he would start to panic, then freak out afterwards. But still, the young teen did feel bad for the poor creature. It was once alive creature, but now it was a lifeless carcass. 'Poor thing…' Life was so cruel. And there was nothing he can do for now.

Moaning over the dead cannot help him now. No matter how much he hates it, he has to move forward. That is all he can do for now.

The moment Ash continued to move forward, the moment he started to get this uncomfortable feeling that he was being watched. The feeling is mutual.

Far, far off from where Ash is at, there were three mysterious figures standing on a rooftop of one of the buildings. One of which was none other than Albert Wesker while the other two were completely unknown for the moment. A small smirk tugged on the evil man's lips. He did not expect to see his little prey so soon. This must be fate. "Excellent…"

Quickly, the young key bearer stopped in tracks before turning to the direction where he suddenly senses a strong presence. The moment Ash did, the moment he did not see anything out of the ordinary. There was nothing in the clearing. Not even from the same rooftop where he first sensed that strong presence.

Ash blinked confusedly. "That was weird." He muttered to himself. "I could have sworn there was something over there." The young teen continues to glance back and forth towards the rooftop's direction until he gave up. "I guess I'm just a little jumpy… That must be it…" Ash said before shrugging his shoulders, dismissing the case.

Before Ash can take another step forward, he took one final moment to glance his shoulders to make sure his mind was not playing any tricks on him. Once everything was a-okay, Ash went on his way.

Unaware to the young teen, when he had his back turned, Wesker and his two acquaintances suddenly reappeared. But this time, on a different rooftop where they continued to view Ash from a far distance. "I must say, Wesker…"

Slowly, the sunglasses-wearing man turned his undivided attention to his partner-in-crime who appears to be a fine-looking woman with a somewhat flirtatious personality when it comes to her love for him. Her name is Excella Gionne, the self-proclaimed "Queen" of the new world.

"The boy you mention to us before is quite sharp for his young age." Excella said in awe.

"Indeed, he is." Wesker did not sound too impressed. The former leader of S.T.A.R.S. knows fully well his little target has a long way to go before he can become a major threat to him and his plans. For now, Ash was nothing, but a little pup that needs to be fed. "But the boy still lacks a motive to achieve his full potential. If he was not an important asset to our plans, I could not care less about him. Aura Master or Keyblade Master, it does not matter to me at all. In the end, I can easily kill the dear brat and then move forward onto my dear friend, Chris Redfield."

"I'm sure you can, darling." Excella purred seductively as she wrapped herself around Wesker's right arm. "However, I know you can't do it… right now, of course. From what I heard from you about that old witch, the dear boy is still important."

"My dear, when it comes down to being useful or disposable…" Wesker suddenly grasped Excella's face with his other hand before leaning in closer to her face. "The boy is nothing more than another disposable tool when the time comes. Remember that, my dear…" He whispered in a cold tone. The charming woman yanked her face away from his grip. A small smirk tugged on his lips. "For now, all we can do is follow that pitiful woman's orders and keep the boy alive."

"And what about Mr. Chris Redfield?" Excella asked which clearly made Wesker chuckled.

"Oh, don't worry, Excella. Chris will be dealt with when the time comes." The lunatic reassured his partner. "For now, we will fully concentrate on the Uroboros project and Ash." The "Queen" nodded in agreement.

"Very well, darling." She cooed. Soon Excella would turn her attention her partner's mysterious right-hand man who turns out to be Jill Valentine in disguise. Her disguise consists of a long cloak and a beak-shaped mask.

After all this time, not once did Jill open up her mind into the pair's conversation. She just stood there like a statue while gazing at Ash's direction. Excella was pretty curious on what her comrade was thinking about. Was it about their target, or was it about her former partner, Chris? Either way, the nosy woman wanted to find out. "Hey, Jill?"

"…" Jill did not budge her spot when Excella called her name. The masked woman remained still in her position, not losing her composure in the process.

"So what do you think about the dear boy, dear?"

"…"

Immediately, Excella frowned. What was up with her ally? Sure, they might not be friends and all, but that does not give her the right to completely ignored her when she asked her a friendly question. What nerve of her. Who does Jill think she is? "Aren't you going to answer my question, Jill?" The "Queen" growled in a cold tone.

Slightly, Jill turned her head to face her comrade and Wesker. An awkward silence filled the air for a brief second before Jill finally spoke. "If you must know, I think the kid is very unique."

"Is that all?" Excella asked with a raise eyebrow.

No sooner, Jill completely ignored the other woman before turning her attention right back forward. "…Yes."

(~ With Ash ~)

'Hmm… this is so strange…' Ash quickly stopped in tracks before glancing around his surroundings cautiously. 'Where is everyone?' That was a pretty damn good question, Ash.

Apparently, ever since Ash arrived, he has yet come across a living soul, or more importantly, a single sign of the Heartless anywhere within the entire village. It was pretty strange, but at the same time, pretty suspicious. Why would anyone leave a village like this, deserted? What reason can it be? Whatever the reason it might be, Ash did not feel like he was welcomed here at all. He was getting this uneasy feeling that something was going to happen if he does not get his butt out of here as soon as possible. The young key bearer could not agree anymore with his feeling. This village alone was giving off a scale of the heebie jeebies, the more he stays here. It was time for Ash to move out before things get worst.

Unfortunately, for Ash, before he could even take another step forward, an eerie sound caught his attention. It sounded like the eerie noise was coming from behind him.

Quickly, Ash spun around, but spotted nothing out of the ordinary. He blinked confusedly. That was strange. He could have sworn he heard a strange noise right behind him. Was he just hearing things? Must be. But suddenly, the young teen heard another eerie noise. Ash quickly shot forward, but like before, he did not see anything.

Soon the eerie noises were playing mind games with the young key bearer. No matter which way the eerie noises were coming from, Ash could not determine which direction they were coming from. It was like this village messing with his head. It was pretty much the case. The young teen was starting to feel pretty much uncomfortable as we speak. 'Okay, now I'm starting to freak out here…'

After a few moments later, the eerie noises around Ash suddenly stopped, which clearly put a good relief on the young teen for the time being. With the strange noises gone momentarily, a new strange outcome came into Ash's path.

Out of nowhere, Ash spots a dark-tanned man in your "average" everyday orange T-shirt with blue jeans, up ahead. Ash did not know where this guy came from. But, hey, who is complaining? Not Ash. He was actually glad that there was someone else besides him in this eerie village. Now he can ask some questions about this place and other things along the way.

Without hesitation, Ash quickly ran over to the foreign man's direction. As soon as the young teen made his way over to the man's side, Ash started to get a strange, but yet bad vibe from the local native. For one thing, the man's expression tells it all. His expression seems like he was in a grumpy mood or something. Another thing about the man was the fact his face was starting to rot with fresh coming into view and his red eyes were bugging out from their sockets. Ash started to feel a bit concern, but at the same, a little bit uncomfortable by the man's appearance.

"Uh…sir? Are you okay?" Ash asked cautiously, knowing the fact he could not trust the strange man just yet.

Instead of receiving an answer in basic English, the young teen received an angry yell from the deranged man in some kind of foreign language he could not understand. And soon afterwards, the angry villager would give Ash a shove, forcing the young teen to stumble backwards a few inches.

"Okay, okay. You do not have to be a jerk. I'll leave you alone, but are you sure you are okay?" Another rude shove answered his question. "Fine…" Ash sighed in frustration before turning his back on the impolite man and slowly walked off.

Unaware to Ash, the male villager from earlier slowly picks up a crowbar off the ground before trailing right behind his unaware target.

'Boy, what's was that guy's problem? All I wanted to ask if he was okay and other-…' Suddenly Ash snapped out of his thoughts before quickly glances over his shoulders. Once he did, he quickly rolled out of the way from his unknown attacker's sneak attack.

"What are you doing?" Ash demanded with a growl. The crowbar-wielding man did not respond to Ash's question. The crazy man let out another shout in his foreign language and before long, trouble bloomed.

Out of nowhere, a crazy mass of villagers with weapons in hand as they were charging towards Ash's direction. Oh, boy. Ash did not know what was going on, but he did not have time to think about it. He needed to run for it.

However, before the young key bearer can make a dash for it, another roadblock got in his way. Suddenly, another mass of crazy lunatics came charging in from his opposite side. Oh, great. Now Ash was completely boxed in with no way out.

Slowly, the crazy mass moves in from all sides until Shadows and Neoshadows decided to show up to join in on the frenzy. Oh, great. The only way out from all of these now is to fight. That was his only option left. There is no other way.

After a brief second of hesitation, the young Aura Master quickly channeled up his aura before summons out his Two Become One Keyblade. Now Ash was ready to take a stand.

Unfortunately, for Ash, things got worse by the second.

Jumping off a rooftop and slowly approaching behind the back rear was a very large foe wearing a blood-soaked black cloth over his head that conceals his face and a large black apron, tattered and soaked in blood. He was carrying a very large and heavy axe with what appears to be an over-sized hammer opposite to the blade. He is known as the Executioner.

'Oh, crap!' This did not look good at all. Ash could take a risk on fighting all of the villagers and the Heartless, but it seems he was having second thoughts when it comes to the Executioner. He needed to come up with a new plan and fast. Soon something came to him. Instead of fighting head on, how about he tries to fight smart. That might work for the time being.

Calling off his Keyblade, the former prince quickly formed an aura sphere within his right palm before slamming it downward onto the ground.

*BOOM*

A thick cloud of smoke suddenly engulfed the entire area. As the cloud of smoke slowly fades away, everyone including the Executioner quickly realizes that Ash was no longer in their sight. Where did he go? That was a good question.

Thankfully, Ash was safe and secured. The reason why is because the sneaky key bearer was hiding inside of one of the nearby homes while keeping his presence suppressed from his enemies.

Carefully, Ash peeked through the window and took notice that the villagers, the Heartless, and the Executioner were all heading into different directions in hopes to find him. Once they were all gone, the young teen sighed in relief. '…That was so c-…'

*CLICK*

*CLICK*

Ash suddenly froze up. He did not know why, but he suddenly hears a bunch of clicking sounds behind him. Slowly, the young key bearer glanced over his shoulders. The moment he did that, he ended up having a flowerpot crashing down against his skull by one of his unknown assassins.

Immediately, Ash fell to the ground, onto his side with a loud thud. His vision started to become a blur. As he slowly loses consciousness, the last thing he remembers before he passes out was… "…Aqua."

Soon everything went black.

A/N: Sorry if it took awhile to get this chapter updated. I have to make sure things were right before I posted it. Anyway, I hope Wesker, Jill, and Excella were not out in sync. If they acted a little bit OOC then it is my fault. Other than that, the chapter is finally completed. If you were wondering about what is going to happen to Ash and his relationship with the female Resident Evil characters. Do not worry; they will not fall for Ash. They are NOT part of the harem. However, later on, maybe during Ash's third visit, Jill will make a few remarks about Ash, but that is all. It is nothing too major if you were wondering. For now, I hope you like this chapter! Please R & R! Thank you! Until next time! Peace out! ^_^

Johan07!