Riki, the grandfather of Weed and the father of Gin, was born smaller than his littermates. He was born to Shiro and Yamabuki, but unfortunately, his true owner was sickly and couldn't take care of Yamabuki and another dog. Though Riki missed his mother terribly, he never gave up hope of seeing her again. While traveling to see Yamabuki, Riki comes across a boy named Daisuke who is hit by a truck. Riki fights against the pack of dogs that attack Daisuke and manages to save him. This event leads Riki to discover that his father, Shiro, lives nearby.
Later on, Gohei leads a group to fight Akakabuto, a bear that has been terrorizing the area. Though Gohei intends to kill the bear, he only manages to wound it, which drives it insane. Unfortunately, during the attack, Shiro is bitten and falls off a cliff. Riki witnesses this and is devastated. These incidents eventually lead to the storyline for the Ginga Nagareboshi Gin series.
