Disclaimer: Yes, I know; Super Canine at the end of the day is a clone of Super Saiyan. I wasn't trying to hide that. I just hope it doesn't take away anything from the battle. Even though this is merely a prologue to my Orion story, I still want to give it my all to make this part of the story memorable. Feel free to say how well I did. All feedback helps. So long as it's about the CHARACTERS AND STORY, and not your own personal drama. Keep this in mind.

Also, I don't own any Ginga characters, aside from any OCs I may add in. If you're a Ginga fan, you'll know which is which.

The Ginga Legend: Weed's Story

Super Canine arc Episode eight: Super Canine Weed

Continuing from where the previous chapter ended off, Weed was staring Hougen down as he got ready to give him the beatdown of his life. With his Canine Spirit energy all charged up, Hougen was left with little to no options by the puppy. He was left frozen in fear, unable to move due to the sheer horror he was feeling. And that was the worst thing that couldn't been for him. As soon as Weed dashed at him, at speeds faster than even GB was able to muster, he struck Hougen in the gut so hard that he ended up coughing blood from the impact.

Weed dashed at Hougen as he flew back from his punch and kneed him in the face before kicking him into the air. He dashed up at him again while dashing into the air, kicking him again and dashing at him to continue striking him. He barraged him with punches and kicks that gave Hougen brutal blows all over, and Weed finished it by ground pounding him towards the ground. After Hougen crashed into the ground, Weed launched a Spirit blast at him, which he barely managed to evade in time.

Even after evading the blast however, it still exploded, and it was big enough to send Hougen back due to the sheer force. He tumbled on the ground a bit before activating a barrier around him, this one being stronger than the one he made before. Weed landed on top of the barrier with Hougen calling up to him in a taunting voice. "Ha! You can't defeat me now, Weed! This barrier is twice as strong as the previous one!"

Hougen laughed a bit more, but Weed's words made it clear this was nothing to him. "Just twice as strong?" Weed raised his fist and punched the barrier, taking it out in one strike. As the shattered pieces of the barrier shattered around Hougen, the Great Dane watched in horror as his only means of outlasting Weed's Canine Spirit were literally broken before him. Weed then dashed down to him, reminding him of how much stronger he was. "Hougen, you're barely a tenth of the power I have now. Surely you know what one times fifty is."

Hougen started charging his Spirit energy, knowing that running away wasn't an option for him. As much as he wanted to. The second Weed took another step forward, Hougen launched a powerful Spirit blast at him, but he deflected it and sent it into the air. After that, he kicked Hougen's shin and caused him to fall to his knee. He then started punching him across the face several times, up until the Great Dane started bleeding a bit.

Weed clenched his fist tight and aimed one more punch at Hougen, who tried to block it, only for the punch to send him flying into several trees. Hougen's back crashed against the last tree he collided with, and he fell to the ground before Weed dashed up to him. Weed kicked Hougen in the chest before kicking him upward. He then launched several Spirit blasts himself, and with every blast, he caused Hougen to stay in the air. Blast, after blast, after blast, Hougen was unable to come down. And Weed made sure this lasted until the twentieth blast hit.

When Hougen finally DID fall, he regained his balance mid-air, which took quite a bit of Spirit energy to do. When Weed rose up quickly, he started charging his own Canine Spirit, only for Weed to elbow him in the gut, causing him to cough up blood again. He then used the back of his paw to hit Hougen in the face, causing him to roll back a bit. He Spirit vanished in front of him again before landing a powerful kick on him that sent him towards the arena they fought on.

Hougen crashed into the arena, and some of the soldiers were climbing up to continue watching the battle. GB and Gin were the first ones up, and as GB helped Rocket up, Gin expressed his amazement in Weed's power. "I knew the Super Canine transformation would guarantee Weed's victory, but I didn't think it would do this!"

GB and Rocket looked to see that Hougen was barely able to get back up thanks to the beating Weed gave him. GB then looked at Weed and sensed the fury that was in him. He couldn't help but worry about how far he was going to go with this. "It's impressive, but so is the rage Weed gains when his Super Canine Spirit activates."

"That's right. Depending on how long this battle takes, he might lose himself." Rocket added, matching GB's fears exactly.

Koyuki climbed up next, confident that Weed would stop Hougen before that happened. "I won't deny this vicious side of Weed coming out, but he's still Weed." Koyuki looked towards the battle, which showed Weed continuing to smack Hougen around while dodging any desperate attacks he made to survive the battle. "I heard him call out what Hougen did before too. Even if his temper is rising through the roof right now, at least his morals are still intact."

The adults were impressed by that observation, and GB even went out of his way to compliment Koyuki for making it. "That's a clever insight there, Koyuki. Perhaps just talking to him would help him avoid going too far."

"My point exactly." Koyuki said with a wink as Kotetsu and Mel climbed up with Tanto. She had no doubt in her mind that Weed would be okay by the end of this battle.

Hougen was flying through the air again, and this time, he started charging up his Canine Spirit in a fit of rage. Alongside his fear of Weed's power, his pride made him beyond furious that he was being smacked around by a child. "THAT IS SO, FUCKING, IT! I'M DONE GETTING THE SHIT KICKED OUT OF ME BY A PUPPY!"

"At this point, you don't have many other options." Weed told Hougen, dashing up to him and kicking him back. But Hougen continued to hold onto his Spirit energy with all of his might. He refused to let Weed beat him, despite knowing that his chances of winning at this point were next to impossible. When Weed ground pounded him into the ground, he took the hit on the ground and held on with some Spirit holders he conjured up during the dive down. Weed then dove down at him and kicked him in the gut, making him cough up blood once again.

Weed kicked Hougen to the side and caused him to drag on the ground with immense force. Once Hougen was done dragging on the ground, he stood up and got ready to defeat Weed with his ultimate ability. As Weed started walking over to him slowly, he mustered up the rest of his Spirit energy. Weed was taking his time, knowing that Hougen was planning something. Despite being confident he could defeat Hougen now, he knew it wouldn't help to ignore what he was trying to do.

Weed continued walking towards Hougen, who called over to him as he threw a sphere shaped device at him. "You're finished, Weed! CIRCULAR SPIRIT MURDER!"

Weed caught the circular Spirit device in his paw, only for it to start holding him in place. It then spawned what looked like a clone of Hougen. This caught Weed off guard, and prompted him to question Hougen once the clone started charging its Spirit energy. "What the hell is this thing, Hougen!?"

"Oh, this? It's my Spirit Ability." Hougen began to explain, and he conjured up some kind of remote as he continued with it. His devilish grin showed how he felt he regained control of the battle. "You see, if I muster up the rest of my Spirit energy into that sphere like device on your body, I can use it to trap you, and amplify the power of the clone it spawns to as high of an extent as my Spirit energy will allow." However, the maximum feature was less than Hougen would've liked. "The battle left me only able to go up to times seven, but it'll have to do."

That was more than half of the power Weed could muster, but he could take it. He just had to put in the effort to endure the attack. Hougen gave a sadistic laugh before declaring himself the victor once the clone aimed its paw at Weed. "It would appear I have time for one final lesson, Weed." Hougen was ready to finish Weed once and for all, and right before the clone fired at Weed, Hougen gave his final words to Weed for the end. "YOUR SPIRIT CAN'T LAST FOREVER!"

Hougen's clone launched a massive beam at Weed, which was bigger and more powerful than all of the previous beams that were fired. The mountain they were fighting on before was about forty feet in the air, but Hougen managed to strike two feet above even that! It was very wide too. By some miracle, Hougen's beam missed the arena, but everyone else was still left in awe by how much power it possessed. And to think this was Hougen's power at seven times his current strength. Lord only knows what he would've done if could've doubled that.

The blast ended after about twenty seconds, and when the smoke cleared, Hougen grinned devilishly at his alleged victory. However, he was stunned once again when Weed was revealed to have survived the blast. While he was definitely hurt from this blast, he endured the blast well enough to avoid making it anything too intense to keep fighting. Hougen was once again a blubbering mess, leaving Weed to start getting annoyed by his constant shift in confidence. "This is getting old, Hougen."

"It's your fault for constantly overpowering what I throw at you!" Hougen shouted at Weed in anger and fear.

Weed then gave a confident smile, deciding to demonstrate something else for Hougen, since the Circular Spirit Murder still had a hold of him. "Then let's make this the last time I do that." Hougen watched as Weed used a high amount of Canine Spirit energy upon charging up to make the Circular Spirit Murder shake. He still wasn't moving, but that was because he was waiting for the right moment. After ten seconds of charging up, he smirked, and he let out a burst of Spirit energy. This burst was strong enough to completely destroy the Circular Spirit Murder.

That was the last bit of confirmation Hougen needed. Weed had overpowered his ultimate attack, and with what looked like little to no effort. Even after being hit with the strongest blast he could muster no less. Now, all he could throw at Weed were small Spirit blasts, which Weed took with ease as he walked up to Hoguen. When he reached Hougen, he grabbed him by his chest, and Hougen punched him to make him let go. "JUST! STOP! WINNING!"

Weed vanished behind Hougen, readying a roundhouse kick as he responded. "We both know I won't do that, Hougen." When he landed the Roundhouse kick, Hougen was sent into the air with several of his bones breaking from the power of Weed's strike. Once Hougen was above the arena, Weed vanished again and back-pawed him into the arena floor. By then, all of the Ohu army had gotten back up, and were back in their original positions. Seeing Hougen getting beaten to a pulp like this was a taste of beautiful irony compared to when he had all that power.

Hougen's soldiers were less than thrilled to see their leader being beaten down like this. And even less thrilled when Weed descended to his body. Hougen was cowering for his life as he watched Weed start walking towards him. He launched a Spirit beam at his leg, preventing him from getting up on both of his hind legs. He then shot him with another Spirit blast when he tried to get up. This forced him to the ground, And when he tried to get up again, he met the same fate.

Kotetsu got psyched when he saw Weed winning and called out to Weed. "Hell yeah! You've almost got him, Weed! Finish him off!?"

"Really? Now?" Weed asked, surprising Kotetsu, and chilling him along with the other Ohu army soldiers with what he said next. "But he hasn't finished suffering yet."

That shocked the Ohu army, and horrified Hougen, along with the remaining Canines in his army. Hougen begged him to stop before getting blasted again. "No, please! Weed, I-" And after said blast hit him, Weed took another step closer, blasting him again. Every blast was one that Weed knew Hougen would be able to survive. This was because Weed wanted to prolong his punishment until he felt he'd suffered enough. The more he blasted him, the closer he got to satisfaction. But because the blasts were so small, they didn't increase his satisfaction by much.

The fact that Weed was torturing Hougen didn't bother the Ohu army. They all wanted to see him suffer, and it'd been like that for some of them for months, if not years. It was the look in Weed's eyes that scared them. It almost looked as if he... enjoyed what he was doing to Hougen. If it were anyone else, they wouldn't be surprised. But this was Weed. Even during his angriest moments, he never gave off the vibe of someone who enjoyed torturing his foes.

As they saw this, GB, Koyuki, and Gin looked back on the moments Weed ensued Super Canine Spirit energy. The first time, during the first battle against Lector and Thunder was the one Koyuki thought of. In that battle, his desire to protect his friends was the clear cause for his power up. For Gin, he thought about when Jerome killed Lector and Thunder against his wishes. Weed's confusion contributed greatly there. For GB, it was the moment after he told Weed about Petal and Clover. Weed loathed what Hougen did. These moments all had one thing in common.

They all occurred when Weed was furious.

Upon thinking about all three of these moments, Gin got an idea and walked over to Weed as he continued hitting Hougen with small Spirit blasts. Everyone noticed him walking over to Weed; except for Weed, who was focused on making Hougen suffer for his crimes. While it wasn't his main concern, Gin still had remorse over not being there for Weed. And now, he saw a way of being there for him. This tied into his main concern, which was making sure Weed didn't lose himself to the Super Canine's fury. He knew exactly what he had to do to prevent this.

Before Weed launched his next blast, Gin put a paw on his shoulder. This caught Weed's attention, and he got rid of the Spirit blast before looking at Gin. Gin gave him a look of concern as he addressed what he was doing. "That's enough, Weed. You don't have to do this."

Weed was confused about this, especially since his rage towards Hougen was still intensified. "What are you talking about!? After everything he's done, he needs the worst punishment imaginable! I can't let him off easy!"

"I agree, Weed! But this isn't you!" Gin told Weed sternly, and Weed was caught off guard by what he said. The fact that he didn't retort right away showed that the real Weed was still in there, past everything the Super Canine transformation gave to him. When Gin saw that he wanted clarification, he started giving it to him. "That look in your eyes. It heavily insinuates the taste for torturing your enemies."

Weed was stunned that he gave off that vibe, showing that he wasn't as out of control as he was when his Super Canine Spirit form went out of control before. "But I don't! I just... I just want Hougen to feel the pain everyone he's hurt felt."

Gin knelt down to Weed, emphasizing with his desire to make Hougen pay. He also punched a Hougen soldier back when he tried to attack him. "I know, Weed. I'm as angry about what he's done as you are." Weed could see the concern in his father's eyes. He could see how much he wanted him to remain as himself. "But this act of torturing him. It won't make you anywhere near as bad as Hougen. Nothing you could do would." Weed's eyes showed him reflecting on everything he did to get to this point. "But torturing someone isn't who you are."

During his reflecting, every act Weed took against a major foe crossed his mind. Him attempting to save Blue. His fight against Kaibutsu, which was about saving Futago Pass. His fight against Rocket and his brothers, where he spared them, and recruited Rocket as a result. Sparing Lector and Thunder. Giving Kamakiri another chance. Fighting Genba to save Koyuki. And the last moment he thought of, stepping up to fight Hougen... was because he knew he was the only one strong enough to kill him.

All of these actions by Weed were done for pure reasons. Along the way, Weed had learned so many things. Among them, were that just because he killed someone, that didn't make him as bad as someone else, or that he enjoyed killing. It was how one went about it mentally that said something about them. And Weed's reason was because he wanted to save all of Ohu, along with the Tohoku Region. He gave Gin a hug as thanks for helping him remember this before it was too late. And Gin wrapped his arms around him to reciprocate for him coming to his senses.

Hougen tried to get up despite his broken bones, hoping this somber moment meant that he would be spared. "Does this mean you're not going to kill me?"

Weed and Gin pulled out of the hug and looked at Hougen after he asked that. When they looked back at each other, they couldn't help laughing at the fact that Hougen even bothered to ask something like that. Anyone with eyes, ears, and even a nose could tell you that he was dying today. And when Weed looked back at Hougen, his smile showed that as one who was ready to help everyone in Ohu, whether it be in Futago Pass, or anyone else in the Tohoku Region. "No. It just means you'll die faster."

Hougen became horrified again as Weed jumped up and dove down at Hougen, stomping him as hard as he could to prevent him from moving another muscle. At first, this caught everyone else off guard. But the fact that Weed picked him up immediately after, along with what he said next, gave them another idea. "You used your Signature Ability earlier. I've seen a couple of what my friends can do with theirs'." Weed then walked towards the cliff of the platform everyone was standing on. "I think it's a good time to show you MY signature ability."

Weed threw Hougen into the air and used his Nature Spirit to trap him in the rain, snow, and wind. All three of those things on their own would've been enough. But combined, they were strong enough to hold anyone down. It wasn't necessary for one of Hoguen's current state, but Weed wanted to take every precaution he could in making sure this attack hit. After all, Hougen's Spirit ability was Conjuring, which meant he might be hiding something that'll help him dodge Weed's attack.

Once Weed had Hougen in place, he started charging his Canine Spirit, along with getting into the right stance to fire his Signature Ability with. He then cupped his paws together as he started putting his Spirit energy in between them, just like the previous times he used this attack. He set his sights on Hougen as he continued to charge his Spirit energy. He knew he couldn't hold back, even with the wounds Hougen faced during the battle. It wasn't as complex as Hougen's attack, but it was just what Weed needed to finish him off.

Hougen could sense the power Weed was harnessing in his paws. He became even more horrified at the same rate as the increasing power of the attack. Hougen had to think fast, making an attempt to dig into Weed's philosophy. "Wait! You believe everyone deserves a chance to prove they can change, right!?" Weed raised an eyebrow as Hougen continued. "You didn't offer ME a chance at redemption! Maybe you should let me try and grow as a person before you kill me!?"

Weed closed his eyes and shook his head, having already made up his mind about Hougen being a lost cause. "Sorry, Hougen. It's not gonna happen." Hougen was stunned when he saw this, and several of the Ohu army soldiers were proud of Weed's growth. Especially Kyoshiro, who could see that Weed learned how to deny someone redemption. "You've done so many awful things, and you don't even care about the Canines you've hurt. Most people deserve a chance to prove to the world they can be better, but it has to come from a desire from within."

Weed glared directly at Hougen as he stated where he went wrong when playing with his ideals. "People won't change if they don't want to. And you've shown more than enough times that you've never even thought about it!" Weed wasn't sure how long it would take him to master holding these ideals. But he couldn't think of a better start to doing so than Hougen. "Just know that I'm not taking you out for me. I'm taking you out for Ohu, the Tohoku Region, and everyone you've hurt in your life!"

Once Weed finished charging up his Signature Ability, he smiled to himself before staring Hougen down with some final words. "Besides." And what he finished with showed that he was happy with who he was, and with how he was growing as a person. "I'd rather be a naive puppy than a sadistic monster." Weed then started calling out the name of his attack. "Ooooo... huuuuu... zaaaaa...miiiii..." Maybe the name wasn't perfect. But the addition of Ohu was enough for Weed. Either way, he fired his attack with brute force, tenacity, and incredible power.

"HAAAAAAAAAA!"

The blue Ohuzamiha beam made its way to Hougen at high speed and power, causing Hougen to cry out in horror. "NOOOOOOOOOO!" He became engulfed in the beam, which flew into the air while covering his entire body. The ropes Weed formed with the rain, wind, and snow were destroyed as well. Hougen's body was completely evaporated by the blast. And his look of horror vanished alongside it. Weed's beam shot past the mountains as well, and even shot into space! It was a long beam too, flying past plenty of stars during its time in space.

When the beam was finished, Weed stood valiantly over the cliff as he looked in the direction of the beam. A huge weight had been lifted off of his shoulders thanks to his victory. He'd done it. He finally saved Ohu from Hougen. And everyone in the Ohu army was right there beside him, overjoyed and proud of Weed for his victory. Weed remained in his Super Canine form, since he still hadn't figured out how to get out of it yet. But for now, he didn't really mind.

The rest of the Ohu army ran over to Weed, primarily, GB, Koyuki, Kotetsu, Mel, Gin, Kyoshiro, and Rocket. Weed continued to look over the cliff as they did, and GB was the first to congratulate him on his victory. "You did it, Weed! I knew you had it in you!"

Gin expressed proudness as well, being incredibly happy that he could be here to witness what is currently Weed's greatest achievement. "Welcome to the legend, son. You're a savior of Ohu now."

Weed smiled as he turned around. He took a liking to what Gin just said. "'Legend', huh? That sounds kinda nice."

One of the Hougen soldiers shouted in fear as he announced the departure of himself and his comrades. "I don't care what you call it! I'm not sticking around to fight what you are now!" He then ran off with the rest of his soldiers,

Koyuki ran up to Weed and wrapped her arms around him before giving him a kiss to celebrate his victory. He was more than happy to receive it, especially after a battle that beat him down as hard as that one. Of course, his current state would have an outsider be, understandably skeptical over that bit of context. Koyuki also got a feel for his Super Canine fur. He felt much stronger now, and she was all for it. "My oh my, Weed. It's almost as if you've been working out for ten years nonstop."

"Hehe. Yeah, I know. The power increase is insane." Weed admitted, and then he expressed concern over not knowing how to get out of it. "I just wish I knew how to turn it off. I don't wanna risk hurting any of you guys."

"Try controlling your Spirit again." Jerome suggested, feeling the transformation's relation to Canine Spirit would help to turn it off too. "If channeling Canine Spirit helped you unlock it, then channeling it in a different way should help you get out of it."

Weed let go of Koyuki and started doing as Jerome said, lowering his Canine Spirit energy to more down to earth levels. Once he did, he also started repressing his rage, which played a big role in him unlocking the transformation. And after a few seconds, Weed was able to exit the Super Canine transformation, thus turning his fur back to blue. He was relieved when he did, showing his joy once again over having taken down Hougen. "I still can't believe we really did it. We actually saved Ohu!"

Weed then walked up to his father, and Gin gave him his full attention for how he helped him maintain his composure in Super Canine. "Dad. I want to thank you for stepping in back there. If you didn't, I might have found, joy, in what I did to Hougen."

Gin smiled, glad that he was able to help Weed avoid losing himself. "I just did what any father would for his son."

"And I hope you'll keep being that father for me." Weed told Gin, wanting to stay in his life, and for Gin to stay in his. "I didn't start my journey to find you, just to have our time together end after we stopped Hougen." Gin rubbed Weed's head to show that he would be sticking around, and then the two embraced in a hug. It was a warm hug, one of a true father and son. Once Weed let go, he addressed Jerome, wanting to thank him as well. "And Jerome. If you hadn't taught us Canine Spirit, we wouldn't have stood a chance against Hougen and his army."

"I'm not so sure about that, Weed." Jerome admitted, knowing that anyone could've taught Weed about Canine Spirit. "Canine Spirit is in all Canines. Your teacher could've been anyone."

"But my teacher was you." Weed reminded Jerome, and then he pointed out a crucial moment in his journey that worked out because of it. "And if you hadn't, we probably would've gotten killed by Kaibutsu." Jerome couldn't help smiling as Weed reminded him of that, and then he addressed what he wanted him to do. "And I still want you to be one of my new advisors."

Jerome was more than honored to have such an achievement under his belt. "I'll be the best that I can, Weed."

Weed was glad to hear that, and then he took Koyuki's paw and expressed his love for her. "Koyuki, I know we already confessed our love for each other, but fuck it; I'm gonna say it again! I wanna start a family with you!" Koyuki beamed when she heard that with Weed starting the conversation. "I don't know how many puppies we'll have, but I'll be ready for whatever you want!"

"I'll be ready for whatever YOU want too!" Koyuki exclaimed, showing the same amount of love that Weed had for her. "Oh, I can't wait to go over what kind of house we'll live in! It's gonna be amazing!"

"It sure is!" Weed then released Koyuki's paws before addressing GB, the Canine who left the biggest impact on him in his life. "GB." GB gave Weed his full attention, and Weed walked up to him with a proud and loving smile. "I want to thank you the most of all. If you never came into my life, I wouldn't have had the journey I do now." GB's smile showed that he was trying really hard to hold in his tears of joy. "Right from the beginning, when you gave me that bird to feed my mother. You went out of your way to make sure I was safe and happy."

Weed continued to express his gratitude to GB for all he's done for him. "Whether it was as small as returning a bag of chips I dropped, or something as big as protecting me from Hougen... you never stood down when it came to protecting me." Weed took GB's paw, trying to hold back his tears as well as he finished his words. "Thank you, GB." And what he chose to finish off with pulled on GB's heartstrings. I know I'm not Petal and Clover. But I'm honored to be your Godson."

GB started crying tears of joy before wrapping Weed in a big hug, which he happily reciprocated as he started crying silently himself. The two of them didn't care that everyone was watching. In fact, what GB said next made it clear that he wanted them to. "I'm honored to be your Godfather, Weed! I want the whole world to know what you mean to me!"

Weed laughed a bit before advising GB to slow down. "Slow down there, GB. We've got plenty of time for that." Weed and GB embraced a bit longer before Weed started speaking to the army upon letting go. "We may have stopped Hougen everyone..." He wiped his eyes as he declared the work of the army to still be ongoing. "But we still have a lot of work to do."

Everyone listened as Weed declared his plans for Futago Pass. "The Tohoku Region needs the Ohu army. Maybe not right now, but someday. And we're gonna be ready for them." Koyuki and Kotetsu looked at each other with smiles before Mel wrapped his arms around them in a hug. "Let's make Futago Pass our home again. And in our own way. With enough hard work and help from the humans, and even other dogs, we can make this into our paradise." Gin and Tanto smiled and hugged as Weed spoke again. "A paradise we'll protect with all of our hearts."

Weed's smile showed how confident he was that Futago Pass would be even greater than before once it was finished. "We have a lot of work to do when it comes to fixing what Hougen did. But this is still our home. And I know we'll all put as much love as we can into making it the best home we can." Weed finished his speech with a powerful final sentence for all to hear. "So let's all band together..." And he raised his fist as he finished it. "And rebuild Futago Pass!"

The army all cheered for Weed, who was honored to see everyone ready to stand beside him and help him make Futago Pass the best that it can be. He didn't know how long it would take, or how much work exactly would need to be done to make it the home everyone dreamed of. And he knew it wouldn't look the same as it did before. But he was ready for whatever changes came for the land, and what he had to do to accommodate for everyone in the Ohu army. Because now that Hougen was gone, it was up to Weed and his army to rebuild.

One week later.

It recently turned Spring in Futago Pass; with the flowers blooming, and the birds chirping with Mel studying them while sitting on a tree branch. Weed was walking in a field of flowers by himself, thinking about everything he went through to stop Hougen and save Futago Pass. Now, he was finally able to just relax, and continue helping his home grow alongside everyone else. He knelt down and picked a flower, sniffing it before looking up at the sky. He had so much to look forward to in his new life. And he wasn't about to take any of it for granted.

Just then, Kotetsu called to Weed from afar with some good news. "Hey Weed!" Weed looked to see Kotetsu walking up to him with Gin, Kyoshiro, and as a surprise visitor, Daisuke! Daisuke looked very happy to finally see him again. "We have a visitor!"

Kyoshiro flicked the back of Kotetsu's head while reminding him of Weed's status. "He goes by 'leader' now, Kotetsu! It's part of his role!"

"It's okay, Kyoshiro. He can call me whatever he wants." Weed assured the two while laughing a bit at the start.

Kotetsu decided to play around with this and gave a sly grin when teasing Weed. "So that means I can call you 'Tree hugging bitch?' from now on?"

"Don't push it." Weed warned his good friend, and Kotetsu shrugged before standing down to let Weed and Daisuke talk. "Daisuke! It's great to see you again!"

"Likewise." Daisuke agreed, kneeling down to shake Weed's paw as he acknowledged his new rank. "So you succeeded Gin as leader, huh?" He then laughed a bit before wrapping an arm around Weed's head. He couldn't help joking about this predicament. "Guess you had to retire early!"

Daisuke laughed as Gin rolled his eyes while smiling at the joke. "No, I'm an advisor to Weed now." He winked to Weed as he brought up another thing he was helping out with. "I'm also his resident 'dad joke' expert."

Weed laughed a bit at Gin's joke there before he addressed the fact that Daisuke was visiting Futago Pass. "I'm glad you could finally visit, Daisuke. What made you finally decide to stop by?"

"Well I wasn't gonna miss my favorite dog and his son in helping to revamp their home!" Daisuke exclaimed, elaborating on why he waited a week to do so. "I know you guys were really good at getting supplies, but I wanted to make sure I had some of my own to spare before I came by. I was thinking we could open up a weapon's shop in town."

Weed shrugged, showing that he wasn't a fan of the idea, nor was he gonna stop Daisuke. "I'm not wild about the idea, but some people like weapons. It'd be a good way to appeal to the members of my army who like fighting."

"Exactly. And we could even set up a place to practice fighting and weapon training." Daisuke added, and Weed was a little more fond of that idea. Mostly because he knew it would help everyone use their weapons safely. "I can show you the blueprints when we get back."

"Why wait?" Weed asked, heading off with Gin and the others to see what Daisuke had in mind. Daisuke took the time to rub Gin's head, which he smiled in response to. Even with the time they spent apart, Gin and Daisuke's bond was as strong as it was when the two of them were young.

Daisuke did have a request for Weed before they got back to where they were headed off to. "Oh yeah. Do you think I could see the Super Canine, Weed? Gin and Jerome told me a lot about it after I arrived."

"Sure thing. I'll show you after we meet up with GB and the others." Weed said, being happy to grant Daisuke's request. "We're building something really cool near Cross and Ben's new home." Daisuke was now interested in two things: The Super Canine, and what this building was GB and some of the others were building was.

In the same area, GB, Koyuki, Kotetsu, and Rocket were helping a bunch of other Canines in setting up a school of some kind near a cozy looking two story cottage. As they did this, GB heard Weed's voice from nearby. "Hey! GB!" GB looked to see Weed being given a piggyback ride from Gin. He kissed Rocket, who took over their part of putting up the school so he could go greet Weed.

Gin set Weed down and let him run over to GB, who picked him up and gave him a hug, spinning once as he did. "There's our Super Canine!" GB rubbed Weed's head as he asked how he was doing. "How's your first Spring in our new home so far?"

"It's amazing! Even after everything that's happened, it's so full of life." GB then set Weed down as the Akita remembered something else. "Oh; right." Weed got a decent amount of distance away from the school, and he then started harnessing his Canine Spirit. Daisuke realized what this was instantly and got excited, allowing Weed to transform into the Super Canine. His fur color changed from blue to orange, same with the color of his eyes. Daisuke cheered as he ran over to Weed, who explained why he backed up. "I'm still working on Spirit control."

"With how easily you tapped into it just now, you should pull that off in no time flat!" Daisuke assured Weed, taking a picture of the Super Canine transformation to show everyone back home. "I gotta show this to Hidetoshi, my wife, and my kids."

After Daisuke took his picture, Weed went out of his Super Canine form and walked up to GB with the human. "How's the school coming along, GB?"

"It's going great." GB answered, being more than proud of the progress everyone's made so far. "We won't have to wait too long now before we can start teaching the puppies how to channel their inner Spirit!"

Mel ran over to Weed and the others with a question in mind for Gin, revealing that the school was his idea. "I've been meaning to ask you, Gin. Are you gonna help puppies who wanna join the Ohu army, or is this gonna be for all Canines?"

"Just like Canine Spirit's possibilities, our offers are limitless, Mel." Gin informed Mel, being more than happy for what the future of Canine Spirit had in store for everyone. "It's going to be a big step for me. I never thought I'd be the headmaster of my own school."

"Well, you try something new every day. Isn't that right, Gin?" GB asked when patting Gin on the back.

Gin laughed as he agreed with GB in that aspect. "I can't argue with that." He then gave a sly grin as he whispered to GB about a certain 'something'. "By the way... we still have a certain 'contest' we should have before the village is fully built."

GB saw what Gin was insinuating there with Mel making a request in regards to that. "You two better not have it near any animals!"

Weed, Kotetsu, and Kyoshiro laughed at the sudden question with GB assuring Mel they'd keep that in mind. "Don't worry, Mel. Cross agreed to let us have it in her cottage so long as we clear it out."

Weed then got to talking about the blueprints Daisuke had in mind for Futago Pass. "We have an open table in one of the classrooms, Daisuke. Let's get a look at those blueprints!" Daisuke nodded and smiled, glad that he was a part of helping with the rebuilding of Futago Pass. No one knew how long it would take, but it was clear they were all hard at work and ready to give it their all.

To be continued.