[center][h1][b][color=FF3344]K A G U R A[/color][/b][/h1][hr][hider=♪][youtube]https://youtu.be/vIVXKoKgA-8[/youtube]
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The early morning had been a strenuous one for Kagura. She had awoken long before the sunlight filtered through the forest trees to hear the birds call, and as the sun's rays grew brighter with each heavy step she took, Kagura seemed to be one foot behind finding a plentiful breakfast. She had settled for nothing but handpicked berries for yesterday's morning meal, and went without any sort of food to end last night. Her tongue felt painfully dry and her limbs, usually moving with great confidence and strength, seemed to slug behind her. Her pacing towards an unknown destination was not as swift as the days before, and with each new day as her food supplies got smaller, Kagura would ask the forest to not be so cruel the next coming morning. Today, it seemed, the forest had once again ignored her plea.

An hour passed, and Kagura was still wading through the morning mist. Although her movements grew slow, her senses remained sharp, hoping to hear an animal's crinkling steps against fallen autumn leaves. She tried to keep the grip around her bow firm and tight, her footsteps careful and quiet, but with each minute her body seemed to be doing the opposite. The sunrise began to shine bright in Kagura's tired eyes, and all she could do was moan at her misfortune.

Yet another hour of roaming over uneven levels of forestry passed, and the sun had gone from a vibrant orange to a pale yellow. At that time, Kagura began to question why she had woken up at an unnecessarily early hour. Aside from herself, the towering trees and shrubs that were rooted into the soil, and perhaps the occasional whistle of a bird, everything around Kagura seemed to be dead. Dead still, more like.

But her stomach and the arrows that sat in her quiver were hungry for some meat. Just the thought of having some rabbit meat roasting over a fire was what kept Kagura struggling through this skeletal forest. She licked her lips sore, the imaginary taste of and hunger for rabbit proving too much for the weary teen.

Then, as if the forest had graced her with a solution to her cracking lips and limp tongue, Kagura's ears picked up the sound of running water. She darted straight towards it.

And there it was, a shallow river sheltered by thin trees. She leapt onto the riverside, kneeling on the pebbles and plunging her free hand into the flowing water. Cold. Clear. It looked safe enough.

Kagura made no hesitation in downing as much as she water as she could stomach, cupping her hands to drink as well as wash the dirt off her face and out of her hair. If, or rather, when she found something to call breakfast, she could bring it back here. It had almost been a week since she had found her last clean river, and two and a half days since her flask ran dry. Kagura expressed her gratitude in a triumphant yell, thirst quenched and energy slowly returning.

With a full flask of water and a small pouch of berries from the bushes behind her, Kagura felt prepared for a hunt. Or rather, she was starting to feel a bit more lucky.

And lucky, she was! The tables turned as soon as she spotted living, breathing breakfast after walking a couple of miles away from the river. There, in a small clearing where all the sunlight poured into, a [i]pheasant[/i]. Kagura could feel the drool running from the side of her mouth; she hadn't had pheasant in months.

The bird was big, the bird was fat, and Kagura was very, [i]very[/i] hungry.

Crouched behind a prickly shrub, she drew her bow. Slowly, carefully, she drew her arrow further back and waited. A minute passed as she watched the bird pecking at the undergrowth. Kagura closed her eyes and uttered something under her breath, and upon opening them she saw the pheasant begin to move.

Then, she let go of the arrow.

Kagura grinned, giving the forest her thanks for not ignoring her plea.