Ichigo had been walking for about an hour and he had not seen any trace any animal. "I think this was a bad idea. Byakuya was right. I should have waited for tomorrow,' he mumbled to himself. Just when he was going to turn back, he heard a sound. He thought it was only the wind, but was too desperate to return home. He searched everywhere but there was nothing. He heard the sound again. It sounded like a deer.

He hid behind a bush and looked over. He was amazed at what he saw. It was a white moon deer; the rarest deer in the forest. Ichigo aimed his bow at the deer. His hands were trembling. What if I miss it? He thought. He released the arrow. It went flying through the air. He was sure that it would hit the deer.

Unfortunately, he missed. The arrow landed just a few centimeters away from the animal. The deer seized the opportunity to run away. Losing no time, he pursued the animal. It was very fast and easily outran Ichigo but the ground was muddy and Ichigo could see its footprints.

Suddenly, Ichigo heard a growl behind him. He spun around and saw four wolves snarling at him. Before he had the time to realize what was happening, one of them jumped on him. "Get off me!" he screamed. He tried to push the wolf away but he was not powerful enough.

Ichigo thought that this was the end. If only I had listen to Byakuya he thought. He was struggling desperately when he remembered his dagger. With his last remaining strength, he shielded himself with one hand and reached out for his dagger with the other. He raised the dagger and stabbed the wolf in the eye. The wolf roared in pain and stumbled backwards.

Ichigo quickly got on his feet and ran as fast as he could. He did not dare look behind. He could still hear the wolves running behind him. Why aren't they attacking me? They surely are fast enough to catch me. And why didn't they finish me off me when the wolf was on me? I was more vulnerable then. Are they playing with me like a lion plays with its prey? Ichigo suddenly caught the sight of a cave. Without thinking, he headed inside. He expected to see four wolves behind him when he would turn around but when he did, there was nothing.

"Where are the wolves? I was sure I heard them ten seconds ago", Ichigo said to himself.

He decided to go deeper in the cave through a tunnel in case the wolves find him. As he walked, he realized that no cave has ever been seen in the forest. This must be the very first cave discovered in this forest. I think I'll name it… The Ichigo Cave… or The Kurosaki Cave.

Ichigo was so lost in his thought that he did not realize that there was a light at the end of the cave. As soon as he saw it, he started running towards, thinking that it must be the other end of the cave. As he got closer to the light he noticed that there were sculptures of strange figures on both side of the tunnel. Curious, he walked towards the figures. They looked like humans but each one had a hole in their chest and they all wore masks with creepy faces. The sight of it was frightening and he wanted to turn back and return home but the wolves might still be there.

Suddenly, the tunnel broke into an enormous chamber. There were hundreds of sculptures of soldier, all facing someone on a throne. He could finally see the source of light. It was coming from a ring worn by the person on the throne. Amazed, he approached it and saw that it looked like a dead, decayed man. A white mask covered half of his face. His skin was grey and he was as thin as a rake. The sight of him sent a shiver down Ichigo's spine.

The ring in his hand shone bright. "What the hell is this? Is it magic?" he wondered. He reached for the magical ring but as soon as he touched it, he felt a tight grip on his hand.

"THIEF!" came a dark voice.