"Why the hell did you even bring an axe, Gin?" Keigo made his inquiry as he squinted at his seemingly trembling battle partner who was holding his hand-axe up like they were anticipating the appearance of a fearsome adversary. "There are five of us here, and this is just a test of courage, dumbass. I doubt that there are real enemies here."
If it were not for the faintly shimmering lights coming from the billions of stars above, the whole forest would have been blanketed by a shroud of complete darkness. The nightly winter winds howled, giving the impression the barren trees around were murmuring about some misfortunes ahead.
The group consisting of Keigo, Gin, Natsuko, Shizune and Renji trudged on as the deep snow seemingly warned them about the horrors to come by keeping their legs buried momentarily with each step.
"We don't know that, Keigo…" uttered Gin while swiftly shifting his gaze towards all directions. "It's best to be prepared."
