Everyone was staring at the dead body of Riki, the dog who had been the former leader of the Ōu Army, and the bravest dog of Ohu, in the army's opinion. Blood had been pooling from his wounds, and everyone had been upset, howling and crying over the loss of their leader. However, Riki's son Gin had been appointed the new leader of the Ōu Army, and Gin couldn't help but feel he was too young for the job despite being 2 years old now. Gin had no leadership experience, and he didn't know what leading a whole heap of dogs would be like. What would it be like? Young Gin had no idea, but he was traumatized that his beloved father was dead. Tears streamed down his face as he began to howl, showing his grief, the most possible grief one dog could exhibit. Gin would have his revenge on all bears one day, and he knew he would no matter what, however, he felt his father would not want to see his son this way now. Gin missed Riki, and hadn't really known him. What would Fuji, Gin's mother think? She was still at the village, living her life as a pet dog, so maybe she didn't know the father of her offspring was dead after being killed by the bear Akakabuto. Gin could feel the temptation to run back and tell her Riki was dead, but Gin would be literally forced one day to have to stay here in the Ohu Mountains all the time, until he appointed a general, and the current general was still Sniper, that nasty Dobermann.
Just then, once the howling was cut off, Cross, the Saluki and mother of her and Ben's pups George, Ken, and Minnie, headed over to Gin. "I understand this may be a hard time for you, being Riki was your father." She said with pity. "It is a hard time." Gin agreed. "I'm worried my father may never be with me again, or my grandfather, who I never got to meet." Cross then let out a smile. "Dear Gin, Riki and Shiro will find ways to communicate with you, as spirits." She said. "The afterlife is a thing." Gin could then feel some hope. What if Riki and Shiro would be able to talk to him as spirits? The tora-ge akita felt some excitement as well. "Hopefully that will happen one day." He said. Eventually, everyone relaxed, and Ben looked over at Gajō, the rock fortress that could be put to good use now that Akakabuto no longer posessed it, being he was dead.
"We should use Gajō." Ben suggested, looking at his comrades. "Maybe place Riki's body in it so he won't rot out here." Kurotora tilted his head. "But Ben! Can't we just bury Riki in a makeshift grave?" He asked, a bit snappy. Ben sighed. "We can, but being buried in dirt sounds disrespectful to a dog who did a great job being the founder and boss of the Ōu Army." He said, in a curt way. "Ben's right." Gin said, stepping forward. "My father would want that, right? I think we should bury him in Gajō." Everyone began nodding in agreement, but all Kurotora did was just snort and walk off. "We'll bury him when the moon is high up in the air and visible. For now, we will leave him in a cave." Ben said, looking at all of his comrades. "Yes, Ben." They all said before heading off. As Ben began arranging Riki's body for burial in one of the caves, Gin headed over to watch, wanting to pay his final respects to his dead father, who was probably in the afterlife now. "You're the new supreme commander, Gin. Don't you have other things to do?" Ben then asked, looking at the young akita. "Yea, I do, but I want to pay my final respects to Riki." Gin answered, and the Dane moved out of the way, giving Gin a chance to maybe say any last words to the great akita who had been the Ōu Army's founder and boss. Gin plopped down on his rump beside Riki, tears welling up in his eyes. "Dad?" He asked, looking down. "I know you may be able to hear me, wherever you are, so I just want to say, I won't let you down, and will be the best leader I possibly can." Ben cracked a small smile of approval as he watched Gin. He would be a great supreme commander either way. Gin then looked at Ben and nodded before heading out.
---
Time had passed since Riki was laid in his tomb in the cave, and Gin kept being tempted to go inside, but he knew he couldn't at the moment. Riki would be placed in Gajō soon to where he wouldn't be visible to anyone except other Gajō-inhabiting creatures. Gin had been spending most of his time glancing at the cave Riki's body was in here and there, and he even peeked in once, only to see the dead body of his father with his scars and dried-up blood, dried-up blood all over his neck where a slit was. Gin had been mortified by the sight of seeing his dead father, and when he would go to look at his face, he had only seen closed, peaceful eyes, and he dare not open them. Gin had felt horrible for going in there, disturbing Riki's peace. As Gin looked around, looking for something to do, Smith had approached him. "Hello Gin!" The spaniel mix greeted the akita in his usual chipper manner. "Oh, hello Smith." Gin responded, smiling. "What do you want?" Smith sat down, scratching an itch on his feathered ears real quick before looking back at Gin. "You're suspicious of Sniper, right?" He finally asked. "Yea...so?" Gin replied, confused. "I saw Sniper around a few hours ago, and Hyena isn't with him. Odd, isn't it?" Smith explained. "Yea, that is odd." Gin agreed, looking down. "Usually Sniper always has him following him everywhere." Smith then froze for a moment. "I do recall smelling blood somewhere over by the river." He said. "I wonder if...do you think Sniper may have killed him!?" Gin froze as well, but the evidence Smith had provided made it seem true. "Maybe. Should we talk to Sniper about it? After all, he's the general, my general technically but he doesn't like that." He suggested. "You already know how Sniper's gonna react! He's a cold-hearted bastard!" Gin sighed. "Hyena was still a comrade, in my opinion. All Sniper was doing was using him as his minion and lackey." He said. "Maybe we should talk to Sniper. I saw him in his den near ahem Riki's former rock." Gin had been struggling with talking about his father's rock ever since he died, it just left a pang in his heart. "Let's go." Smith said, following after Gin.
Eventually, the 2 dogs managed to get to Sniper's den, and when they looked in, they saw the familiar figure of the Dobermann with his collar. Sniper peeked his head out, snarling. "Gin! Smith! You bastards! What do you want from me?" He asked, looking as if he was ready to tear out the throats of the 2 dogs. "We wanted to talk to you about Hyena." Gin explained strictly, trying to sound like Riki. "Why?" Sniper asked, his tone then changing to somewhat confused. "He was your minion, right?" Smith then asked. "Yea." Sniper replied, rolling his eyes. "But apparently he wanted to turn against me and show some bravery." Gin and Smith exchanged glances real quick before looking back at Sniper. "Smith told me he had smelled blood over by the river nearby." Gin said, narrowing his eyes. "Does that mean you killed him?" Sniper then froze, and his eyes widened. "Hehe, no, no I didn't!" He exclaimed. "I would never dare kill any of my comrades, especially my minions! Sure, Hyena was a coward, but he did everything I told him!" Smith narrowed his eyes as well. "Would it surprise you if it was Hyena's blood?" He then asked. Sniper then growled. "Maybe not." He said, his voice taking on a darker tone. "I'll tell you the story, idiots, if you two would just shut up, stop asking me questions, and listen." Gin and Smith quieted, interest clear in their gaze.
"Alright, so. It all began at that river you hooligans were talking about, actually ends. I was fighting Ben over a cliff, don't ask why. I eventually pushed myself and Ben over it and we fell into a river. Hyena decided to interfere and began to fight me, much to my dismay. Knowing he was just a coward through and through, I killed him." Sniper explained, eyes narrowed. "Happy now?" Gin let out a small growl. "So you did kill him!" He exclaimed. "Yea, so?" Sniper asked, rolling his eyes. "Damn coward ambushed my chance of killing one of the dogs I hated." The Dobermann then looked at Gin and Smith. "And I would kill you both if I had a chance, but since Gin is the stupid supreme commander now, I can't do that." He snarled, glaring at Gin, who bristled at the general's words. "And don't even think about replacing me, or maybe I will kill you both. I already know two candidates you may have in mind." Sniper said before retreating back into his den. Gin let out a sigh. "Let's go, Smith. I think we may have some stuff to do." He said, heading off towards the base. Smith nodded, following his leader.
---
Gin had been bored during the day, and he tried to resist the urge to banish Sniper. That dog had gotten on his nerves badly, and he had wanted to banish him, so the Ōu Army could be safe. All Sniper was, was basically a dog with the desire to become boss one day, and lead the Ōu Army, and basically want to kill Gin. Gin had not forgotten the squabbles he had gotten into with the dog over the past, when Riki was alive, and not dead. "What am I supposed to do now?" He asked, looking up at the sky. Gin had been out in a forest in the Ohu Mountains, where he felt he would be secure. However, he was not alone, as then suddenly, 2 dogs appeared. One looked exactly like Riki with all of the scars, brown eyes, and proud look, and beside him, was a silver-and-white dog like Gin. Gin instantly recognized the dogs as Riki and Gin's grandfather Shiro. What were they doing here? Weren't they dead? "Aren't you guys dead?" Gin asked in disbelief. "We have noticed your grief, my son." Riki said, calmness in his tone. "Shiro and I want to show how proud we are of you, and that everything is alright, and that nothing is wrong." Gin looked down. "But how am I supposed to lead hundreds of dogs when I have no experience, and have an evil dog among us?" He asked. "I don't want to banish Sniper, it seems cruel." Shiro let out a sigh. "Sometimes, Gin, you have to do what's best for the pack, or group, for their safety. Based on what we have seen, Sniper can be an unsafe dog, and he is. You have to banish him, whether you like it or not, for the army's own good." He explained truthfully. "It's the only way for everyone to be safe." Riki nodded in agreement with his father. "You cannot let Sniper do any harm." He said. "You've been doing a great job as a leader, but you cannot let cruel dogs stay." Before Gin could say anything, Riki and Shiro vanished, leaving Gin with nothing. Maybe I should listen to them. He thought, and he began to head back to the base, feeling like he needed Sniper to be chased out, and not have a "trial".
However, as Gin started to head back to the base in Futago Pass, he came across something, surprising. Everyone was looking at him, and there was Chūtora, and he had puppies in his mouth. Kurotora was standing next to him. The puppies in the brown brindle Kai Ken's mouth all looked unique. 2 of them also had floppy ears, the rest had odd patterns, like speckles. "Gin." Kisaragi said, looking at Gin, and then the puppies. "These are Chūtora's offspring. He has brought them here so they can have a home. Their mother was not a soldier of Ohu, and died recently." Gin nodded and looked at the puppies, who were placed on the ground by their father. "Do they have names?" Gin then asked. Chūtora nodded. "Yes, they do. Buru and Dodo are the ones with floppy ears." He replied. "Shigure and Shōji are the ones who are speckled." Gin nodded and looked at the puppies. "They may stay, Chūtora." He decided, nodding. Chūtora smiled and nodded. "Thank you, Leader." He said gratefully before picking up his puppies and heading off. "Kurotora has a surprise as well." Cross then said, smiling. "He has his own children, named Kagetora, Harutora, and Nobutora." Kurotora smiled and stepped to the side, different-colored Kai Ken puppies dashing around, playing at their father's paws. Kagetora looked the most like his father, while Harutora had a patch on his face, and Nobutora looked slightly like Kagetora. "Where's the mother?" Hakurō then asked, tilting his head. "She's not an Ohu Soldier either." Kurotora explained. "She doesn't wish to join, either." Hakurō rolled his eyes. "Stubborn bitch." He murmured under his breath. "Hakurō!" Cross then snapped. "Don't say such things, especially in front of my children!" Ken, George, and Minnie were hiding behind their mother, afraid of the husky who had cursed under his breath. "Whatever." Hakurō said, looking back at Gin. "Well, if you accepted Chūtora's little brats, will you accept Kuro's?" Gin nodded, and smiled. "Everyone deserves a place here." He said, and Kurotora gladly guided his offspring off. Gin had completely forgotten about what Riki and Shiro had suggested he do to Sniper, and he remembered. "Is anyone in favor of Sniper?" He then asked, looking at everyone. No one nodded, but everyone shook their heads. "We are not." Akame then said, breaking the silence. "I need some dogs to help me chase him out." Gin then said, looking around. "Would anyone want to help me?" After a bit of discussion, some dogs began to seem eager to do so. "I will!" Wilson, the collie who had tried to kill Tesshin, Kurojaki's son, a while ago, offered. "So will I." Akame said, narrowing his eyes. "As will I!" Moss said in a brave way. "You're far too dangerous." Gin murmured, before waiting for everyone else's answers. "I'll help." Bill said, with a grim smile. "Me too." John said, and Hakurō offered as well despite having 3 legs after getting his one leg torn off by the Ten Fighters of the Underworld. "Alright." Gin said. "All of you may come with me." The dogs who had volunteered to help Gin chase out Sniper gladly followed him to where Sniper's den was.
As they reached Sniper's den, Gin's companions began growling, wanting to ambush the den. "Get out, asshole!" Hakurō snapped. "Yea! Stop being a coward!" Kisaragi had taunted. The husky had decided to join them after a moment's hesitation. Gin silenced his companions and then backed away so Sniper could emerge, and when he did, his eyes were full of questioning. "What is this?" He demanded, narrowing his eyes. "You're being chased out for the crimes you committed." Gin explained coldly. "Everyone, get moving!" Almost instantly, the dogs began nipping and biting at Sniper, pushing him forward, forcing him to run. Sniper began to run, and he looked back at Gin. "You'll regret this, Riki's son!" He snapped, and then he was never seen again as he dashed off into the distance. Gin watched, and then looked at his comrades. "That was easy." Wilson murmured. "Sniper's weak, apparently." Hakurō said, Kisaragi nodding in agreement. Gin felt some regret, but Riki and Shiro had wanted this, therefore, so be it.
---
Gin yawned as he began to wake up. When he woke up, all he heard were puppies squeaking, and he had known those squeaking puppies were Chūtora's and Kurotora's. Kagetora was playing with Ben and Cross's puppies, mainly Ken and George. "I'm still young, but too old to play games like that." Gin murmured. He felt as though being a leader had made him more mature and shaped him into nearly a Riki behavioral clone, and Gin felt bad about it. He didn't want to play with puppies really, and he was more strict, and more focused on patrols and the Ōu Army being safe. "Are you alright Gin?" Cross had asked, noticing the young akita's seemingly melancholic behavior. Gin then looked up and faced Cross. "Yea, I'm fine." He replied. "It's just...I've changed, ever since chasing out Sniper, becoming supreme commander, I've been...different." Cross then cracked a smile. "Gin, that's a very good thing." She said. "All leaders are supposed to be like that." She then perked up as she heard squeals coming from nearby and headed over, noticing Ken and Kagetora playing. "They've been getting along lately." Cross said with somewhat pride. Gin smiled as he looked at them, but he had never played with his siblings before. Hiyan and Giyan always wanted to, but after Gin left, and during Gin's training with Gohē, Gin never got the chance to play with them. "Do you miss your family?" Cross then asked. "Of course I do!" Gin snapped. "I never even got to do anything with my brothers, all because of me leaving early, exploring, going on adventures with Daisuke, and Gohē training me!" Cross was stunned by the young akita's behavior. "I understand." She said sweetly, calming down. "No need to be upset or angry." Gin began breathing roughly, looking around. "Do you know where the platoon leaders are?" He then asked, calming down. "Indeed I do." Cross replied with a smile. "Great, where?" Gin asked, getting to his paws. "Over there." Cross replied, pointing with her tail to a cave. Gin recognized it as where most of the platoon leaders lived, and discussed things, or held meetings with their platoons. Terry had recently died, killed by bears while fighting Kisaragi, and therefore Gin was still planning on who to replace him.
As Gin got closer to it, he looked around and thought he saw no one until the familiar brown-and-black head of Ben peeked out. Ben, the 1st platoon leader, had been poisoned by makibishi spikes when they had went to Mie Prefecture and encountered Akame and the Iga Clan, and the after effects had not been good. It had included Ben going blind, and Cross had to help "be his eyes". "Oh, hello Ben." Gin warmly greeted. Ben had trouble finding Gin for a few moments before finally looking at the akita. "Hello Gin, what is it you need?" He then asked. "Do you know where the other platoon leaders are?" Gin asked. Ben nodded and "looked" behind him, and nodded. "They're over there." He replied. Gin nodded and headed deep inside the cave. Inside, he found Great, Smith, Karasu, and Luke. Gin couldn't help but miss Terry being in here, and he disliked the emptiness the cave had, being Riki had not added more platoon leaders. "Are any of you accepting new dogs into the ranks as platoon leaders?" Gin queried, looking around. "I am!" Smith replied cheerfully. "So am I." Great said, nodding. "I think we're fine the way we are." Karasu replied, doing a kind of shrugging motion. "We do need more platoon leaders for strength and more dogs." Luke then said, nodding slowly. "So I'm in!" Gin smiled brightly. "Great! I'll be possibly holding a new meeting to appoint some platoon leaders." He said happily. Great tilted his head. "A meeting? Gin, you can just recruit some dogs." He asked. "We can join you, maybe along with the others." Gin sighed. "Shouldn't everyone else know?" He asked. "You told us." Karasu then said. "You don't need to tell anyone else." Gin nodded, and then looked around. "We'll follow you." Ben then said. "Cross will watch Ken and the others." Gin then started heading off, avoiding confused glances as he made his way out of the base and into the forests of Futago Pass and then into the Ohu Mountains, followed by some other dogs and the platoon leaders.
Gin couldn't help but think this place was a bit...unplentiful of dogs, and he didn't see why any dogs could live here unless they wanted to join the Ōu Army. Gin was confused slightly, and he noticed villages off in the distance, but was worried that he would encounter his mother and siblings there. Gin wasn't going back there, so maybe he would go in forests and other places. As he looked around, he suddenly spotted movement, his hackles raised a bit in case the dogs were enemies. However, no one appeared, much to Gin's dismay. Gin figured this was rather odd, and he looked at his companions. "Did you hear that?" He asked them. To his relief, everyone nodded. "We should investigate it." Ben declared. "That would be a good thing to do." Gin nodded and continued on, and as he looked, he noticed a...puppy. A Kōga puppy, judging by the mohawk on his head. "He looks familiar." Great whispered. "Moss may know him, since he loves puppies." Gin stared at the Kōga puppy, who was eating something. "Tesshin? Is that you?" Gin asked. The puppy turned around and nodded. "Yea! You're Gin, right?" He asked. Gin nodded, then gestured to what Tesshin was eating. "What is that?" He queried. "I don't know." Tesshin answered. "A Dobermann gave it to me, said he figured I needed something to eat." Gin raised a brow. "Did he have a collar?" He asked. "Yea." Tesshin replied. Sniper. Gin instantly thought with worry. Apparently that dog, after being chased out of the Ōu Army, was trying to manipulate others. "What kind of food is it? Kōgas eat dog meat, that better not be dog meat! I'm not letting a cannibal pup into my pack, even if they've been a member!" Smith said, a bit afraid. "Deer meat." Tesshin replied after taking a gulp of the meat. "Sniper can hunt deers, from what he told me." Gin sighed. "Okay, Tesshin, you worried us. You need to get back to the base with us." He said, before turning around and leaving. "Wait! Weren't we going to recruit more dogs?" Ben asked, confused. "I forgot." Gin murmured. "Tesshin, you go back to the base with Cross." Obediently, the Kōga pup headed off, stumbling over rocks here and there. "Where should we look?" Great asked, tilting his head. "Maybe the trees?" Akame suggested. "Do you seriously think we'll be able to recruit ganin?" Karasu asked. "I doubt that." Akame rolled his eyes. "If I was accepted, then all ganin can be accepted." He said. Rolling his eyes, Karasu looked back forward, and then at the trees. "I suppose we can." Great said, shrugging. "I can climb trees." Smith added. "Maybe." Gin knew he could climb trees as well, being he had ninja skills, slightly. John looked around, his ears twitching here and there. "I found something, guys!" He called. Gin and the others looked at the shepherd and bounded over to where he was, and looked up at where John was looking.
A dead dog.
Gin and the others froze for a few brief moments, stunned by the sight. What was a dead dog doing here? It appeared to be...a light grey Weimaraner, with its collar on another branch, while a branch was sticking in the dog's neck, leaving the dog hanging. Blood was dripping from the branch, and the dog's stomach was slit open. "Is that...Hyena?" Ben asked, shocked. "He was killed by Sniper!" Smith exclaimed. "I thought he left him to drown!" Gin was searching for words as he stared at Hyena's body. "Maybe Sniper is trying to scare us, you never know." Smith then said, casually. "Why would he do that?" Luke asked, raising a brow. "You know how Sniper is! Before he was chased out, he was a cruel general." Smith replied. "He tried to drown me in a waterfall once!" Luke slowly nodded, taking in the spaniel mix's words. "And he did tell Smith and I he killed Hyena..." Gin then said. Smith looked at his friend, grimacing a bit when it appeared Gin was attempting to get Hyena's bloody body off the branch. "Hey, Gin? You may not want to get blood all over you." He said, doing an awkward laugh. "Leave him there, maybe Sniper will come back to 'clean up'." Gin raised a brow in confusion but obeyed his friend and left Hyena hanging. "I still don't understand why he would leave him here then, maybe a warning to his enemies?" Great asked. However, right when Great finished making his guess, he was grabbed by a dog. "Great!" Gin yelped, hurrying over. It was Sniper, and he was bringing Great to maybe where he would kill him. "No, don't do this, please!" Gin then pleaded. "This is what you get for chasing me out." Sniper snarled. "Maybe I could've been a better general, maybe I could've changed, but this is what I get? That, what I did to Hyena, is a warning to all members of the Ōu Army who wander here." Being Great had advantages against Sniper based on his height and weight, he was able to release himself and get away from Sniper. "What do you want, Sniper?" Gin asked, sighing. "Tell me, I'll let you back in."
"Why did you chase me out?"
Sniper's question had been nothing but an aggressive snarl, his eyes narrowing. He looked as though he would kill Gin if he stepped any closer, and everyone knew Sniper had wanted to kill Gin since he had claimed he was Riki's son. "Riki and Shiro told me to." Gin replied, narrowing his eyes. "They said it was the best choice, so the army could be safe." Sniper rolled his eyes. "Like your father and precious pet hunting dog grandfather could give you the best advice." He said sarcastically. "Riki was the main reason of my downfall. He wanted to probably make you the boss when he died, and here you are, as the boss." Gin was emotionless, and was showing no pity. "I wanted to be boss for myself, I wanted to make the Ōu Army what it should've been! A true pack of wild dogs!" Sniper continued. "And now you became the boss instead, because Riki then remembered you were his son." Gin looked down, sighing. "But there's no reason for you to kill." He said. "You can't join us. I don't want to disappoint my father and grandfather." Sniper scoffed. "What does your grandfather know? He never founded the Ōu Army, wasn't even alive when Riki made it! All he was, was just a stupid pet!" He spat. "Shut up, Sniper." Gin growled. "You're a danger to all the dogs part of the Ōu Army, and dogs living in Ohu." Before the Dobermann could say anything else, Gin and his companions were gone, off into the distance.
---
Gin had been tired as time was beginning to pass by. Sniper hadn't been seen much lately, and Cross and Ben's children were growing up, along with Kurotora's and Chūtora's. However, Chūtora hadn't been seen lately, and all most of Gin's packmates knew was that "he went missing". Gin was already getting suspicions, but didn't know who he could suspect and point the blame at. Pointing fingers was something the akita wasn't going to do now, though. It seemed that maybe Sniper had done this, Gin could see why. But it seemed as though Sniper wanted to unleash his revenge on all the Ōu dogs, but Sniper and the Kai brothers never really interacted much. Sighing, Gin woke up, only to notice Shigure and Shōji, along with Dodo and Buru looking quite confused, and yelping for help. Kurotora was trying to help them, as he would be their only father since Kurotora was the uncle of Chūtora's children.
"Gin! Gin, we found Chūtora!"
Gin whipped his head around to notice Smith, Ben, and Kisaragi hurrying towards him, some blood on their fur. Blood, for sure, could only mean one thing, and that was Chūtora being killed. "Where was he?" Gin demanded, getting up. "We found him slaughtered in a cave." Smith explained. "We're thinking it could be Sniper being we smelled his scent." Gin raised a brow. "Any more clues?" He queried. "Paw prints." Kisaragi then said. "They were bloody, and smelled of Sniper as well, so he left the scene." Confused, Gin sat down and tried to regain his thoughts. In his opinion, this was odd. "But they never knew each other!" He said. "Why would Sniper want to kill him?" Kurotora then asked after his nephews fell asleep. "A warning, simple." Ben then said. "He wants revenge for what we did to him, after we chased him out." Chūtora being dead was a horrible thing, why him? Why a Kai brother?
"But why him? Why did it have to be a Kai brother?"
Moss' booming voice broke the silence and everyone turned around to notice the large, bulky mastiff. His young son Jaguar was by his side, nodding in agreement. "Why did it have to be a Kai brother?" He repeated. "Heh, maybe Sniper began hating them like Dad!" Jaguar then cast a glance at Moss and chuckled a bit. "Still immature as always, son." Moss said, rolling his eyes. "Laughing seems super disrespectful now." Hakurō then said, narrowing his eyes. "I mean, a dog is dead, and we're joking around?" Everyone who was laughing with Moss and Jaguar instantly lowered their heads in shame and apologized, and Gin sighed. "We have to make Sniper pay." He then said. "We won't kill him, but give him wounds for him to remember." Everyone nodded and chatted with each other about it, coming to an agreement. "What wounds?" Akame asked, raising a brow. "The worst will be a facial wound." Gin explained. "And we will tear off both of his back legs." Everyone was slightly stunned, and they all looked hesitant. "That's...quite a horrible thing to do, Gin." Cross said, narrowing her eyes. "Sure, he may be evil, and may have killed two of our comrades, but we don't need to do this." Hakurō, Kisaragi, and Kurotora narrowed their eyes at Cross. "It'll serve him right, though!" Kisaragi snapped. "Yeah, you're a petty female, you wouldn't let any males get hurt!" Hakurō taunted. "Hey! Enough!" Bill snarled, nipping at the ears of the huskies. "Don't you dare say such things to a brave woman!" Hakurō and Kisaragi rolled their eyes, and Cross looked at Gin. "Well, Gin?" Cross asked, tilting her head. "What will we do? Attack Sniper or leave him be?" Gin seemed to be now struggling with the choice, and he looked around, then at the sky, and then came to a decision. "While it may not be the best choice, we must do this. Puppies will stay here, guarded by Moss and Cross. They shall not see such violence." He declared. Moss and the Saluki nodded, and guided Tesshin, Shigure, Shōji, Buru, Dodo, Kagetora, Harutora, and Nobutora away to a cave, while Gin and the others headed off. "We'll find his current location, and ambush him." Gin said, before dashing off.
---
Gin and his companions were feeling confident about ambushing Sniper, or giving him his wounds, but Gin was also secretly feeling some doubt. What if something went wrong? What if Sniper secretly had gathered up some dogs to help him? After all, Sniper had been hungering for power, but as Gin and his friends searched, they smelled Sniper, Chūtora's "death scent", and that was all. "Corner the area." Gin whispered, nodding to his comrades. They all nodded back and did as told, searching for areas to corner. "And hide, so we won't be found by him." Gin and the others began hiding in bushes, moving around in the bushes to mask their scents, then watching and waiting. Akame would usually be up in the trees, so that was where he was. Just then, they heard Sniper, and noticed him walking along in a casual manner, seemingly not giving a care about what would happen to him.
"Odd, feels like someone's watching me."
Sniper felt an odd feeling that someone had been watching him, and he stopped to smell the air. However, what he smelled were not dogs, but bushes, as well as Chūtora's scent. Sniper had buried the Kai Ken's body somewhere he would never be found, unless someone managed to. "Great, he doesn't notice us." Ben whispered confidently. Sniper's cropped, black ears twitched, and he looked over at the bushes. Once he got a bit closer, Akame leapt from the trees, digging his teeth into Sniper's neck, while everyone else dashed out of the bushes, leaping for Sniper. Akame moved to the side of Sniper's face, trying to avoid the snapping of jaws, and he began tearing away, while everyone else went for the Dobermann's hind legs, tripping Sniper and causing some bloody wounds. Eventually, Sniper let out a yelp as blood began profusely pooling out from one side of his face, and it was super bloody and...graphic. His eye was missing, and only skin was visible. "Gah!" Sniper yelped, and he whipped his head around and looked at the dogs attacking him with the good side of his face, noticing Gin and the others attacking his hind legs. Sniper kicked up his legs, laughing. "Pathetic." He spat. "A ganin dog can rip off half of my face, yet a group of strong wild dogs can't tear off any limbs?" Just then, Gin got an idea.
The Battōga.
If he could, Gin could use the ancient skill to chop off Sniper's hind legs without problem, and if Sniper tried to attack him, Sniper would get injured either way, or maybe not. Taking a deep breath, Gin retreated into the forest. "Coward." Sniper scoffed, not caring he was missing one side of his face at the moment. However, Gin started charging, leaping up into the air and spinning, much to Sniper's shock. In an effort to maybe make Gin go away, Sniper prepared to kick him, but Gin spun along his hind legs, cutting them off. "GAH!" Sniper then yelped, falling to the ground. Everyone watched him, with no emotion.
"That's what you get for the crimes you've done." Gin snarled, his eyes narrowed. "I have no pity for you whatsoever, Sniper." Sniper looked at the akita in disbelief and began to limp away, using his remaining legs, his front legs, to carry himself forward.
---
Gin couldn't help but feel some confidence. Sniper was done for, no longer really a threat, but maybe he could somehow end up continue being a threat, but how? Gin just felt the Ōu Army was safe now that their biggest enemy besides Akakabuto had been defeated, and the rank of supreme commander was making Gin feel a bit braver now. He didn't really have to worry anymore, but there was one thing that was making him feel a bit nervous. To be honest, secretly, he wanted to have children of his own one day, so maybe they could succeed him. Gin felt that was something important that had to happen, but he didn't have to. Akatora was kind of old enough to have children, except he had died so he never got a chance. Sighing, Gin decided to get up so he could walk. However, when he was about to go for a walk, he was disturbed by something.
"Gin! Gin, Akame and I found something!"
Gin turned his head around, only to notice Akame and John hurrying over to him. "Akame, John." Gin addressed them with a bow of his head. "What is it?" John nodded to Akame and decided to explain. "We found someone trapped in a snare, a pet dog." John said, rolling his eyes slightly. "Apparently a Kishu mix. May you come help us? We need someone like you to free her, but she's pretty aggressive, be careful." Gin nodded. "Of course." He replied. "Lead me there." John and Akame nodded and began heading off into the distance, Gin hot on their heels.
Once they had traveled for maybe 20 minutes, they came across a place in the village. There were cabins all over the place, and Gin was worried Daisuke, Fuji, and Gin's siblings lived in one of the cabins. However, not too far from one cabin was a Kishu Inu mix, a female, who was trapped in a snare and struggling to get out. "Good luck." John grumbled. Gin nodded to his friends and began heading over to the dog. "You got trapped in a snare, am I right?" He asked. However, the female growled. "You're one of those dangerous wild dogs!" She spat. "Get away from me!" Gin was stunned slightly by the female's behavior. Why was she so aggressive? Before the akita could continue, the Kishu mix bit him on the muzzle. "Get away!" She growled. "Let me at her." Akame murmured, and while avoiding the female's hostile movement, Akame managed to break the snare so the female could get out. "Thank you." She said, bowing her head in thanks. "What's your name?" Gin then asked, looking at the female. "Sakura." She replied, a bit defensively. "I'll take you back to your owner." Gin offered, and he ignored Sakura's protests if she tried, guiding her back home. "Thank you." Sakura then said, smiling. "Sorry if I was mean, I'm just a bit defensive and shy." Gin nodded and then headed back, following John and Akame. "Sakura seems interesting." John commented, and winked at Gin. "You may have found someone." Gin rolled his eyes. "She's young, only 1 year maybe, and I'm what, 4 years old now?" He said. "She still looks fine." John said. "You two can just be close friends maybe." Gin slowly nodded and looked behind him, raising a brow at the cabin Sakura hurried into. If she decided to head to the Ohu Mountains, Gin would maybe be in for a surprise.
---
It seemed to have been a few weeks, and Gin had noticed that the female he had recently met, Sakura, had not wandered by at all. Who knew if she did, honestly? What if she was secretly around somewhere, but had her scent masked? Gin decided to find her, walking along the grass, until he found a dog looking like Sakura standing there, smiling.
"I've decided to join you."
Gin cracked a smile, and he went over to the female, smiling. "Welcome to the Ōu Army, Sakura." He said, and the 2 walked side-by-side back to the base, not leaving each other.
THE END.