Disclaimer: Sorry I was a day late. I got distracted with other stuff.

So this is where I stop doing things in 100% the same way the anime did them in terms of story structure. The same enemies will still be faced, just in different ways, and at different paces. This is going to be the first chapter that focuses less on the story, and more on the characters that drive it. Enjoy!

The Ginga Legend: Weed's Story

Futago Pass arc Episode three: New Friends, New Lessons

An empty spot in the forest was shown with Koyuki seen slashing some kind of symbol on a tree near the group's rest stop.

On the way to Futago Pass, Weed, GB, and Smith had befriended three traveling puppies: Koyuki, Kotetsu, and Mel.

The symbol in question was in that of a wolf, which caught Weed's attention when he noticed when walking by.

Now, the six were traveling together, and were at a resting spot with the intention to eat, sleep, and train.

Weed had never heard of wolves before, and Koyuki could tell, even before he asked. "Is that some kind of dog breed I haven't seen yet?"

"Not exactly." Koyuki was more than capable of explaining this to Weed. She was quite ecstatic to do so too, proving a fondness for wolves. "They have a lot in common with dogs, but are a lot stronger and can take more brutal blows. They could probably survive getting hit by trucks, like the one that killed Blue." The mention of that hit Weed a little with Koyuki stating the main reason she loved them so much. "They represent loyalty to those they love more than any animal out there."

Weed was starting to catch on and felt an example from the group would be fitting. "Ah, I get it. Like when you and Kotetsu worked to save Mel from Blue."

Koyuki was glad to see that Weed was catching on, putting her dagger away as she confirmed it. "Yeah, now you got it!" She then offered Weed a suggestion she had in mind regarding the wolf symbol she made. "Kotetsu, Mel, and I used this symbol to mark our bases during our travels. I was hoping we could keep doing that."

"I don't see anything wrong with it." Weed assured Koyuki, taking quite a liking to the idea as he smiled at Koyuki. "It'd definitely come in handy if one of us got lost. And if any animal should make our base clear, it's one of an animal that's loyal."

"My thoughts exactly." Koyuki responded, and then she noticed Weed smiling at her and felt warm inside for some reason. She decided to distract herself by bringing up a possible benefit to this that would happen right now. "It'll come in handy for the others too. At least if they take too long to get food."

Weed felt bad for making the others do all the work, hoping Koyuki wouldn't mind joining them. "Maybe we should go and help them."

"You go. One of us should watch the base. Might as well be me." Koyuki advised Weed, who nodded and ran off, leaving Koyuki to start wondering why Weed made her feel so warm inside. It's only been a few hours since she joined his group.

Kotetsu and the others were by a nearby river with the Kishu struggling to catch any fish for the group.

New Friends, New Moves.

GB was clearly getting frustrated, just like GB was three days ago. "God damn it! What do fish have against being eaten! They practically live for it!" Smith was setting one of his fish down as he saw Kotetsu fail once again to catch another one. His technique wasn't like the one he used, as he was grabbing down at the fish with his front paws while standing on his hind legs. "Fuck!"

Smith went over to him to observe, trusting that the fish the group had gathered already would be fine. "Your grab might be too quick Kotetsu. You need to be more patient."

"Our techniques are totally different Smith." Kotetsu pointed out, doubting that Smith's advice would work for him. "And when it comes to catching fish, speed is key."

"You're not wrong. But focus and timing are just as important." Smith reminded Kotetsu, knowing a thing or two about catching fish himself. "Try focusing on one fish you want to grab, and then strike when the time is right."

Kotetsu felt it wouldn't hurt to try, only to hear GB shout in anguish nearby. "Gah! I still can't get any!" Kotetsu and Smith noticed GB struggling as he bit down at another fish, barely missing. He then looked to Mel, who was just watching them swim. This confused him, and he reminded Mel of why they were out there. "Come on Mel! This is our lunch we're looking for!"

"Oh, right; sorry." Mel started to focus and started grabbing at the fish, despite not really making much progress himself. "Why do you think fish reside in the water anyway?"

GB didn't really understand the question, but felt it wouldn't hurt to answer as he sat down. "Weird question. Maybe genetics? They do need water to breathe."

"Makes sense to me." Mel responded, and then he heard Kotetsu laughing and boasting nearby. When he and GB looked, it was revealed to be because he finally got a fish. "Alright! Nice work Kotetsu!"

Weed had just arrived to help the others, hoping he wasn't too late to do so. "Hey guys! How's the fish search going?"

"See for yourself." Kotetsu suggested as he pointed to the fish he caught. "Turns out Old Timer Smith knows what he's doing!"

"Just Smith is fine, thanks." Smith politely advised Kotetsu, only for...

BLUBBLUBBLUBBLUBBLUB

...a five second underwater fart to come from nearby, leaving the others to look at GB while it was happening. The English Setter just so happened to unleash a five second barbecue scented fart by accident, leading to a decent amount of bubbles to come as a part of the water turned green. GB blushed upon this happening with Weed chuckling in response and Smith putting a paw on his forehead. Kotetsu couldn't help finding this funny as he called GB out for this. "Dude; did you just fart in the river!?"

Four fish popped up behind GB, leaving him to chuckle nervously as he confirmed this to be true. "I suppose I did. Sorry about that."

Mel got a look at the fish GB farted on, and the odor alone made it clear that the group couldn't eat those as he covered his nose. "Just keep those fish away from me!"

Weed and the others were eating the fish the group recovered nearby, having at least twelve, with Koyuki being quite annoyed by GB's fart timing. "As if you farting on the way over here didn't smell bad enough. At least you didn't risk ruining our food then."

"Give me a break. I can't control my gas ALL the time." GB replied in annoyance, not being a fan of being lectured by a kid. "And I doubt you're immune to the occasional fart yourself."

"At least MINE aren't on what we're trying to catch." Koyuki jabbed back, leaving GB to grumble in response as Koyuki started eating.

Weed couldn't help but notice Kotetsu bringing some rocks back and putting them into a pile. When he noticed Mel not eating, he got worried. "Is something wrong Mel?"

"I guess not." Mel picked up one of his fish and smiled as he admitted to Weed why he wasn't eating yet. "I'm just not used to eating it raw."

Weed wasn't entirely sure what Mel meant by that, by continued to eat as Koyuki handed her dagger to Kotetsu. "Don't burn it Kotetsu. I can only carve so many daggers."

Kotetsu silently mouthed what Koyuki told him in annoyance as he then got started twirling the dagger into the rocks. Weed became curious again and asked about it as he finished eating his portion of the food. "What're you doing Kotetsu?"

"You'll see." Kotetsu finished twirling as soon as the fire started, tossing the dagger back to Koyuki once he did. "Boom!"

Koyuki stabbed one of Mel's fish and held it over the fire, cooking it for Mel as she assured him his food would be ready soon. "Don't you worry Mel. No one's gonna let you go hungry before training."

"Yay! Thanks guys!" Mel cheered, knowing that Koyuki and Kotetsu would have his back like always.

Weed liked what he saw when the fish Koyuki was cooking started slowly, but surely, changed from raw to cooked. As the process began, he looked to GB and Smith to see if he could have it that way too. "Can I try it that way sometime!?"

"Find us a second dagger and you've got a deal!" GB joked, laughing a bit before eating his second piece of fish.

Koyuki paid close attention to the fish to make sure it was how Mel wanted it as Smith chimed in with an idea. "Perhaps you wouldn't mind teaching us how to carve our own daggers Koyuki?"

"If you can learn to walk on two legs and hold one, then yes." Koyuki answered, and Weed then noticed how happy Mel was. Seeing Mel clap with joy made Weed smile. Even though they just met, he was glad to see his friends happy.

After the group ate their lunch, Weed was now ready for his first lesson with Koyuki on how to walk on his hind legs. "The start of this is pretty simple, Weed. Just put all of your strength into your hind legs after you push your upper body up with your front legs." Koyuki was already in four leg mode so she could demonstrate. "Like this." When she did as she told Weed, she was standing on two legs perfectly. She gave Weed a serious nod to see if he could do it himself. "Give it a shot."

Weed did as instructed by Koyuki, focusing all of his energy on his front paws as he prepared to raise his upper body. When he did his first attempt at this, it was far from graceful. He barely managed to hold for three seconds before falling flat on his face with his butt raised into the air. When he looked up at Koyuki, she sighed, feeling that Weed could've done better than that. "Well... at least you lasted longer than Kotetsu and Mel on THEIR first go." Suddenly, Weed's butt was shown as he accidentally released...

PFFFFFT

A loud and squeaky three second fart, one that made both him and Koyuki flinch as they looked back at the green, bird scented cloud that made his butt vibrate. Weed chuckled as he looked back at this, getting back up as Koyuki put a paw on her forehead in response. "Sorry about that. I'm not as gassy as GB, but... ya know."

"It's not surprising. Believe it or not, Gin's a bit of a gasbag himself." Koyuki revealed, leaving Weed surprised as he got back on all four legs. Koyuki couldn't believe that caught Weed off guard and had to snort in response. "What? It shocks you that the leader of Ohu wasn't always sophisticated outside of battle?"

Weed couldn't deny that farting was something that everyone did. He just didn't expect his dad to be gassy like GB. "You think he's as gassy as GB?"

"Beats me, I've never met him in person." Koyuki admitted, which led to her revealing something about herself and Kotetsu so Weed could understand it better. "Our mom was close with him before Futago Pass was attacked. Apparently, he always tried to be polite around the female dogs, but wasn't always successful."

Weed could believe that one, since his fart in front of Koyuki was an accident. Another question came to his mind, this one regarding two leg mode. "Do you think my dad knows how to go into two leg mode now?"

Koyuki was confident that was the case, since she doubted she was the first to learn about this. "Weed, this technique has been around for decades. Gin learned it during the war against Akakabuto."

Weed felt more determined than ever to get this right, doing the same process he did before to stand on two legs again. He managed to get four seconds this time, but almost fell flat on his face again. Koyuki stopped him this time, giving him another tip to help him with his standing formation. "Try leaving some of your hind leg energy there for your next attempt. That way, it won't leave them lifeless when moving the energy back, and you'll have more time for it to fully process."

"Okay. Will do." Koyuki set Weed down and let him give it a shot. He repeated Koyuki's last bit of advice to make sure he got it right. "Some energy in my front legs, and some in my hind legs." Weed transferred sixty percent of his energy to his front legs this time, and then he used them to jump up again. It was a little slower than before, but this time, he was able to reach the full standing formation of standing on his hind legs. When he noticed, he started laughing when he saw that he reached ten seconds. "I'm doing it! I'm doing it, Koyuki!"

Weed then started to lose his balance due to his excitement, and Koyuki caught him, leading to the eyes of the two meeting directly. The two couldn't help blushing for a bit when this happened, and they even smiled softly during this moment. Koyuki quickly helped weed back onto his four paws as she praised him for his efforts. "Nice work, Weed. We definitely need to work on your balance with this technique though."

"It sure looks that way." Weed admitted humbly, knowing that he would be able to get this technique down eventually. "Hopefully I'm a fast learner like my dad." Koyuki could tell that Weed's optimism would be both a blessing, and a curse. In this instance, it was definitely the former.

A few minutes after his first training session with Koyuki, Weed was walking with Kotetsu and Mel in the woods near their stop sight. While he was walking with them, he was more than happy to take the time to marvel in the beauty that nature had to offer. It helps that it was his only real hobby when it was just him and his mother. Kotetsu was quick to point this out with a grin on his face. "A bit of a nature snob, aren't we."

Weed looked to Kotetsu as he heard what he said, laughing a bit as he admitted to his love for nature being true. "You could say that." Weed then opened up a bit about his life back with his mother. "I did this pretty much all the time before setting off on my journey. There was just something about nature that was always so... peaceful."

Kotetsu couldn't deny that Weed was speaking the truth there. Nature was something more than worth protecting. "And it's something worth fighting for."

Weed nodded in response, seeing that he and Kotetsu had a similar belief in that regard. "Which is exactly what dogs like us are here for." Weed and Kotetsu bumped their paws together, having already established a strong bond over their mutual desires to protect Ohu. Weed then noticed Mel looking all over the place and couldn't help but ask about it. "You okay Mel?"

"Yeah, I'm fine. Just wondering about a lot of stuff." Mel assured Weed, and then he started talking about one of those things, which involved a squirrel he saw carrying nuts in his mouth. "How do squirrels avoid choking when they have all of those nuts in their mouth?"

That was definitely a question Weed didn't think he'd want an answer to. "Good question. They are different animals. Maybe it has something to do with their cheeks?"

Mel then had another question in mind, this one involving how much of the woods there was. "And another thing. How come no one thought to put a subway train or something in between all of these trees?"

Weed and Kotetsu didn't follow, raising their eyebrows as they asked Mel in sync what he was talking about. "What do you mean?"

Mel picked up a nearby stick and walked on ahead, making some kind of dirt chart to show Weed and Kotetsu what he meant. "It'd be a lot less time consuming to get to Futago Pass if we had a subway for dogs to ride on." Weed observed the Subway closely, finding the design to look cool, but also that it would interfere with nature's beauty. "True we wouldn't have as much time to train, but we'd get there so fast that we'd be able to get some training from Gin before whatever battle they're preparing for comes up, and get even stronger than we are now!"

Kotetsu couldn't help laughing at how much thought Mel put into this within a short amount of time. "Oh Mel. You always have a unique vision on everything."

Weed had his own thoughts about the vision himself, and while he wasn't against the idea, there was a setback about it that was on his mind. "As great as that would be, Mel, that would kind of defeat the part about admiring nature that walks like this are made for."

"Yeah, you're probably right." Mel admitted as he put the stick back right where he found it, making sure the exact spot and angle were perfect. "And we wouldn't get to see the birds and fish as much either." Weed looked to Kotetsu with intrigue on Mel's insightfulness, and Kotetsu smiled in response, having taken a liking to it for a while now.

While Weed, Kotetsu, and Mel were having their walk, GB and Smith were getting their own first lesson in two leg mode with Koyuki. GB wasn't having the best of luck, whereas Smith was managing to get it down quite easily. When GB fell on his face again, Koyuki sighed, showing that she was starting to get impatient at GB's poor coordination. "Pick it up, GB! I want you to manage for at least five seconds!"

GB did what Koyuki instructed Weed to do, putting a little too much energy into his front paws as he did. "I did it!" GB's hearty laugh was soon met with him falling onto his back, which frustrated Koyuki greatly. "I didn't do it."

"Clearly." Koyuki then looked to Smith, wondering how he got it down so fast. "You're missing a leg, and you make it look as easy as I do. Hopefully, we can still get both of you to walking and running at the same pace."

Smith chuckled a bit before explaining why he was able to stand up for as long as he has. "I actually haven't moved a muscle since I stood up."

Koyuki helped GB up as the Setter admitted that he still had much more work to do than that. "At least you managed to stand up at all, Smith. I can't seem to get a good focus on my energy transferring."

Koyuki put GB back on all four of his paws as she gave him an extra instruction. "Pay extra close attention to when you feel strong enough to push yourself up, and then use that energy right when you reach that moment."

GB did his best to do as instructed, and when he did, he was able to stand up for real that time. It only lasted for five seconds before he started laughing, which led to him falling flat on his rear end. Koyuki was glad to see some progress however, dropping her drill sergeant exterior for a more relaxed one. "Only half the time of Weed, but at least you got a few seconds in."

Weed, Kotetsu, and Mel were arriving back to the base with Mel explaining to Weed how subways worked. "Believe it or not, they even have exits made specifically for in case of an emergency."

Weed was definitely intrigued, and Koyuki, having heard their conversation, couldn't help laughing a bit as she saw this play out. "Got Mel into another knowledge tangent again, Kotetsu?"

"You could say that." Kotetsu admitted with a laugh, making it clear to Weed that Kotetsu and Koyuki were used to this from Mel. It made sense though. They were traveling alone with him for what could be a while now.

A little while later, Koyuki and Kotetsu were training with Koyuki testing how Kotetsu could do with dodging blade slashes. They were doing basic training for this, where Koyuki was slashing at Kotetsu, and he dodged at the angle that was best suited for him. She almost hit him with a downward slash that he dodged to the right. He then got a little carried away and tried to kick the dagger out of Koyuki's paw. He wasn't strong enough however, and Koyuki held onto it as Kotetsu almost fell down. Koyuki was quick to call this out while smirking to him. "Yeah. Nice try."

Kotetsu laughed a bit with Koyuki aiming another slash at him, which he ducked under and grabbed the knife. When he started wrestling her for it, he taunted her back after laughing a bit. "Damn right it was!"

Koyuki put Kotetsu into a headlock after that by spinning his arm around and bringing his back towards her. She gave him a sly grin as she pointed out just how much his move missed the mark. "It just wasn't good enough."

Koyuki and Kotetsu laughed a little with Mel walking up to them after seeing them and getting their attention. "Hi, Koyuki. Hi, Kotetsu."

Koyuki and Kotetsu stopped their sparring for now and gave Mel their attention as Koyuki spoke up. "Hey, Mel." When she noticed his conflicted expression, she started to get worried. "You okay?"

"Yeah, just..." Mel started, and when Koyuki and Kotetsu saw him pause, he struggled to finish what he had to say. He decided to go ahead and ask what he had on his mind outright. "Do you think the others like me?"

Koyuki and Kotetsu weren't surprised by this, but instead worried, looking at each other with concerned expressions. When they looked back at Mel, Kotetsu was quick to tell him something he felt would help. "Weed didn't get annoyed during your subway tangent. I can totally vouch for him."

Mel did feel better when Kotetsu brought that up, even if his concerns didn't go away. "He didn't, did he." Mel could tell that Kotetsu was telling the truth, and felt it would be better to further explain why these thoughts came up. "I guess it's kind of a dumb thought. It's just that... you two are the only friends I've had my whole life. And this trip was just the three of us." Koyuki and Kotetsu knew what was up as Mel said the rest of what he had to say. "And now we have three other dogs I've never met before traveling with us. I don't wanna upset them."

Koyuki was quick to walk up to Mel and kneel down to him after he said that, being just as quick to assure him that this wasn't the case. "As if anyone as nice as them could be annoyed by your sweet face." Koyuki refrained from touching Mel, but she still let him know that he was doing great. "And even if they are, it's probably just because they don't understand you entirely yet."

"Like with GB at the river." Kotetsu reminded Mel, pointing out GB's perspective to him to ensure that he wasn't trying to be rude. "Obviously he wasn't trying to be a dickhole when he wanted you to focus. He just doesn't get that your ability to focus isn't always aimed at one thing."

Mel had to admit; his friends did have a point there. It was pretty early for the others to know everything about him. Still, he wished they would understand. "That's true. And, I'm glad we have more canines to travel with." He couldn't help rubbing his arm as he expressed his friendship insecurities. "It's just hard for me to make friends sometimes."

"Believe me; we know." Kotetsu assured Mel bluntly, and as Koyuki looked to him with a stern look, which he ignored, he let Mel know how great he was. "I think the dogs we know now are more than capable of getting to know you. And if they don't, that's their fuckin' problem."

Mel felt better upon hearing that, and was quick to make a request for how to let the others know about this. "Maybe we could talk about it with them during dinner?"

"That would be perfect." Koyuki said in response, knowing full well that the perfect moment for something like this was a relaxing one. Mel smiled with Koyuki and Kotetsu smiling back at him, glad that he was able to reach common ground with this one.

Weed was sitting by the lake while looking at the waterfall, taking some time to reflect on what's happened after his mother's death. The day before, he met GB, who he had no idea would become an important part of his life. He didn't think Smith would be a vital member either. And they've already been through very rough events together, such as Blue's death, and the death of his mother, which was what started this journey. He couldn't help but wonder what it would be like when he met his father. Would he even be aware that he had a son anymore?

GB sat next to Weed and got his attention by asking him about his thoughts. "Got stuff on your mind, kid?"

"Yeah." Weed answered, expressing to GB how he felt about his life suddenly changing in the way that it did. "Ever since I was born, it was just me and my mom. And my life's been getting a more serious lately." Weed looked at the waterfall as he talked about all that's happened. "I think I've seen more deaths in this past week than I have in my whole life before."

GB couldn't help but feel bad for Weed as he spoke up about this. This was a lot for a kid to deal with at his age. "A kid as young as you shouldn't have to be dealing with all of these burdens." GB then realized that he didn't know how old Weed was and hoped he wouldn't mind answering. "How old are you anyway?"

"Ten. As of last week, I'm ten." Weed answered, giving a little more detail on his birth. "I think mom said that she was eight months pregnant with me when Futago Pass was attacked. She and Smith barely got out of there alive."

GB still couldn't believe that Weed had to go through hell, even before he was born. True, he wasn't going through it directly, but it was still clear that he was going through a lot right now. He didn't want him to go through it alone. And he was more than ready to help him. "I'm here if you wanna talk Weed."

"Like you are right now." Weed responded with a smile, leaving GB to chuckle a bit before Weed thanked him for the support. "Thank you GB." GB rubbed Weed's head, leaving Weed to laugh a bit as the two of them were shown sitting in front of the waterfall. Even in four days of knowing each other, they clearly developed a very good bond.

Later that night, Weed and the others were cooking up their dinner, which in tonight's case, was bird. And they had a lot of it! Weed was definitely excited to see what cooked food looked like. Just by looking at it, he could get an idea of why Mel preferred his food that way. Koyuki handed Weed his bird as she finished cooking it, and he happily accepted when reaching out to it. "Thanks Koyuki." As he grabbed it however, he definitely felt a sting on his paws that almost made him drop his food. "Whoa! That's new."

"You get used to it." Koyuki assured Weed. Thankfully, the sting wasn't THAT big, so he could believe that. Koyuki then looked to Mel and reminded him of what she and Kotetsu told him about earlier. "Ya wanna tell them now?"

Mel had just finished his bird, and he felt that now was as good of a time as any. "Yeah. It should be easier with a full stomach."

Weed, GB, and Smith caught notice to this, and Weed saw that Mel was struggling to know how to say it. "Is everything okay Mel?"

Mel tried to think of the best way to word this, and the best way to show how much it meant to him. Since he wasn't very good with direct eye contact, he couldn't look at the others 100% as he said this. He decided to start with a question on his mind to see how aware they might be. "Weed, GB, Smith? Do you guys know about Autism?"

Weed wasn't aware of what this was, and while Smith caught on quickly, GB didn't, and gave the best response he thought of. "I know it exists."

"I've never heard of it before." Weed admitted, being curious about what it was. He hoped asking about it wouldn't seem rude. "What is it?"

"It's a developmental disorder. I think it carried over to dogs from humans, like walking on two legs did." Mel began to explain, and then he talked more about it to help Weed better understand what it was. "It makes it harder to make friends and do normal stuff than it would for those without it. I think you've noticed my weak eye contact skills."

Weed couldn't deny that even if he tried. Mel's lackluster eye contact was obvious to anyone. "That never really bothered me. It's been pretty easy to tell when you're talking to me."

Mel felt better about this after Weed assured him of that fact. It made talking more about his condition a lot easier. "It can also be hard for me to focus on stuff out of my special interest. For me, it's animals. My brain works kinda differently from other canines, so my attention span is kind of all over the place." Weed listened closely with GB and Smith doing the same, and Weed was shown being highly interested as Mel told him more. "I can also get more upset about stuff that's usually not a big deal."

Smith finished up his bird as he assured Mel that he would know how to handle that. "I worked with kids a lot before Futago Pass was attacked. I think I can handle those moments in a way that works for all of us."

"That's good. Just bare in mind that I'm also extra sensitive to raised voices, and other loud noises. And being touched unexpectedly." Mel informed Smith, which led to GB wondering if he was too harsh with Mel by the river. Mel didn't seem to take it personally as far as he could tell. Mel then told the others one more thing about his condition that he felt they should know about. "I also tend to need some form of instruction on what to do, even if sometimes, what I can do is plainly obvious."

Kotetsu had something else to add to this, looking to Weed in as he warned him about something else regarding Mel. "He also has a huge thing for whatever plans he makes going in his own way. So if something changes in a way he doesn't expect..." Kotetsu did a mouth explosion and stopped clenching his fists to show how big this could get. "Watch out."

Mel chuckled a bit at Kotetsu's jokey way of explaining that bit as Weed then asked a question he had in mind for Mel about this. "So... Autism is something that has an effect on your feelings too?"

Mel nodded his head yes in response, being glad that Weed was listening as well as he was. "And don't worry. I'll do everything I can to make sure my condition is a benefit and not a setback. It's just that sometimes, a little, can seem like a lot." Mel then proved this point as he bit down on his second bird, only to realize that he waited a little too long. He gagged and looked away from it, giving it to Koyuki so he could reheat it. "Ugh; it's undercooked now!"

"Don't worry, I got it." Koyuki put the bird back on her dagger and started cooking it over the fire again. Weed was definitely happy after Mel spoke up about his condition. Even though he wasn't having any problems with him beforehand, he was glad he got to understand him better with his new knowledge.

Later that night, the group was sleeping with Weed struggling to do so, and he couldn't quite figure out why. Could it be that he was having a nightmare? Or were past events on his mind again? Regardless of what it was, what happened next made it clear that he'd picked a poor sleeping spot that night...

PFFFFFFFFFFT

...GB's butt was pointed at the right side of Weed's face, and the English Setter hit Weed with a five second fart with a green cloud that reeked of rotten fish and bird gut. Weed gagged from the smell of the fart from GB's vibrating butt and wafted it away the best he could. Somehow, the others managed to sleep through that, despite the stronger noses of dogs. After being awoken by GB's expulsion, Weed noticed that Koyuki wasn't there and looked around for her. When he saw her at the trees of their rest stop that led to their zone, he walked over to her to see what she was doing up so late.

Koyuki had a reflective look on her face as she looked up at the sky, which she was snapped out of thanks to Weed's voice. "Hey, Koyuki."

Koyuki looked to see Weed walking up to her and smiled, hoping she wasn't worrying him. "Oh, hey, Weed. You couldn't sleep either?"

"Not really. Having GB fart in my face just now didn't help." Weed joked, and then he sat down next to Koyuki, who scooted away a bit after the fart comment. Weed hoped Koyuki wouldn't mind him asking what she was doing away from the others. "How come you couldn't sleep?"

Koyuki felt telling Weed was only fair, since he clearly cared about her. It also wouldn't help to keep secrets from those you were working with. "I had a nightmare about when my dad died." Weed listened closely as Koyuki then held out some kind of heart shaped necklace with the initials F.I.F on it. "You probably remember how Kotetsu mentioned that he died when that monster who attacked Futago Pass came to our village."

Weed nodded in response, remembering that context clear as day. "That's right. How long ago was that?"

"Six months." Koyuki answered, still being shaken as she did. "The fact that I saw it still sickens me." Koyuki then flashed back to the very moment her father died, which she was a direct witness of, as he was trying to protect them while they hid in a box. "No one deserves to see their family die like that." The monster was shown in a silhouette along with Koyuki and Kotetsu's father as the beast headbutted him into the ground, causing Koyuki's fear and sadness to intensify like nothing she'd ever felt before.

The flashback ended as Weed tried to comfort Koyuki. "I'm so sorry, Koyuki. You're right. No one deserves to have that happen to them."

"Yeah; no fucking shit!" Koyuki snapped, and when she saw that she startled Weed, she quickly corrected herself after sighing. "Sorry. That was wrong." She then held her locket tightly as she brought up a vow she made towards that monster vaguely. "That bastard signed his own death warrant."

Weed didn't want Koyuki to start feeling too intense there, so he decided to ask about the locket, which she clearly cherished. "What do the initials on your locket stand for?"

Thankfully, Weed's move there worked. Koyuki calmed down significantly from that question. She also held her locket tightly as she answered it. "Family is forever." Weed couldn't help loving that sentiment, and Koyuki could tell judging by his smile. "It was his gift to me for my ninth birthday last month, but my mom gave it to me early for obvious reasons." Koyuki looked up at the sky, wishing her father was still there with them now. "I just wish he could be here for it."

Weed wanted to console Koyuki, but he wasn't sure what to do, since he'd never comforted anyone before. What he was doing now seemed to be working though, so he kept at it. "Kotetsu said he was a soldier, right?" Koyuki looked at Weed, who had a question in mind about that. "Do you think he'd be proud to see you out here now?"

Koyuki wasn't sure if she had a definitive answer for that yet. She still had a long way to go before her mission was successful. "Hard to say. I'd have to take down the bastard who killed him first." Koyuki looked at Weed, wondering if he had any family stories to share himself. "What about you? I mean, obviously you haven't met your dad yet, but you have a mom too, right?"

Weed certainly had a lot of positive things to say about his mom, even if he was still mourning her death. "She was the only one I knew for so long." The way Weed worded that shocked Koyuki. Weed really WAS sheltered from the world. "She helped me do a lot of the stuff I know now, like hunting and seeing the good in others. Her hunting skills weren't much compared to what I'm seeing from you guys now, but I still managed to do a lot for us then after she got sick thanks to that."

"She got sick?" Koyuki asked, putting two and two together on why his mother wasn't with him now. "Is that why she's not here now?"

Weed nodded his head yes before looking up at the stars himself. He was confident that his mother was looking over him from above. "Her death is what led to me starting my own journey." Koyuki was surprised to have that in common with Weed. Even if she didn't start her journey until a while after it, the fact that a parent's death was both of their motivations said a lot about them. Weed then smiled as he looked at Koyuki and mentioned something he noticed as soon as he saw her. "You look a lot like her actually."

"You mean she was a pure bred Kishu too?" Koyuki flinched when she realized something else, hoping that Weed wasn't saying what he thought she was saying. "Please don't tell me you're using me as a backup mother!"

"No, not at all!" Weed assured Koyuki while laughing, finding that concept to be rather silly. "I just mean you have really similar appearances. I mean, your eyes are different colors, but everything else is on point." Weed's observation skills surprised Koyuki quite a bit. Good thing these were obvious compliments. "And even though you're a lot more no nonsense and cautious than she is..." Koyuki was glad to be noticing Weed's smile there, as it made it clear to her that he was going somewhere with this. "I think the two of you would've gotten along great."

That was when Koyuki started smiling again. And not just because she was growing fond of Weed. She could tell he was being honest with her. Weed did have a question in regards to how Koyuki was handling her father's death, but he kept it away for now after a bit of thought, to avoid ruining the moment. "She mentioned a couple times how excited dad was for me to come before Futago Pass was attacked. Maybe he had the same idea of family your dad did."

"That makes sense. My mom was good friends with him after all." Koyuki reminded Weed, and then she started thinking about what she and the others would do once their mission was complete. "Do you have any idea what you'll do after you meet Gin?"

"Nope! No idea!" Weed answered with a cheerful smile, making Koyuki laugh a bit at how much optimism he had with that answer. "I don't even know what to say when I meet him." Weed looked up at the sky as he finished what he had to say, smiling in regards to what the future held. "Maybe, when we finally meet... we'll just know."

Koyuki felt even warmer inside after her talk with Weed. She knew that he was someone she wanted to go to Futago Pass with after that. As she responded to his words, she looked up at the stars with him. "You really are something else Weed." Weed and Koyuki were both shown looking up at the stars together, deciding to enjoy the moment before returning to bed. Both of them were hopeful that their journey to Futago Pass would be worthwhile, even if they didn't know what would happen.

To be continued.