Venturing up north at this time of year wasn't a very smart idea, Kuroki was well aware of that, but he knew there was large game up here. A worthy challenge for the newly appointed Chunin. Beating the Shogun had made him cocky beyond belief, he felt as though he was capable of anything and was eager to put himself to the test. To bring back the largest prey on his own and drag it home to show off, as was his right. Back in Ashen the snow reached about his ankles on a rough day, but up here it was well up to his shin, making traversing far more difficult than he would have liked. A shiver worked its way down his spine, even with his panther cloak and tolerance of the cold-after all he'd been born in a wintery spring-he was still frozen to the bone. Why anyone willingly chose to live up here was beyond him, a choice he reckoned they were regretting about now.

Slowing to a walk, Kuroki came across some hoof tracks in the snow. They were large, a little bigger than his paws but not so massive they belonged to a full grown moose. A juvenile then?

"Kuroki Tantō Ōritsu Abraxas"

Grimshaw didn't have any business being this far north. He couldn't remember ever travelling this far north on his own, but he was determined to bring something of value back to the Armada. Either some nice pelts or a fair amount of meat to fill the stores. He'd been training there for some time now, perhaps it would make Sirius proud to contribute more than just the local fare.

He was certain they were all tired of the food that was around the southern part of Boreas, so perhaps traveling a bit north at the face of winter would yield some good results. Of course, on his own he wouldn't be able to accomplish much. Even if he only caught some weasels and minks, that would be better that the rabbits and fish that often filled the storage.

He followed what looked like moose tracks in the snow into a forest, but couldn't be sure. He'd never seen such large hoof prints before and could only assume it wasn't some mutant deer or something. Following the prints some more, he noticed another canids tracks filing up next to the established tracks. The canid's scent was fresh, far more than the moose, but he hadn't caught up to them. Their scent smelled familiar too, was this an Ashen wolf? He decided to follow the tracks, agreeing with himself that if it was an Ashen wolf and the hunt was successful, both packs would benefit.

He followed them for a bit longer until he saw the shape of the wolf ahead of him. He called out then, with a low boof to alert the other wolf hopefully without drawing too much attention from the fauna.

Kuroki turned, peering over his shoulder to the wolf who'd been shadowing him for a little while. The fact he announced himself spoke volumes, he sought to join in the hunt. Which was fair enough, the Chunin supposed, pickings were few and far between and though Kuroki was stubborn he wouldn't say no to a helping paw-even if it meant having to split the kill in half.

"I don't feel like running in this snow." Kuroki said, his voice barely above a whisper. He pushed on, the scent growing all the more present in his nose. He squinted and through the trees he saw the brown of its figure, head down as it fed on a bush. It was distracted, good, granting them a good opportunity to slip in close, unnoticed. "You skirt ahead and drive it to me, then we can bring it down together?"

The younger wolf turned when he called out and was quick to accept his help with bringing down something together. However, it seemed to be only so that the boy could be lazy, to avoid running in the snow. Grimshaw's brows furrowed for a moment at the comment, but kept his mouth shut and instead allowed a sigh to escape. Were the Ashen pups all this lazy? Maybe they should spend a month or two in the Armada, shaping up, if they think they can be so lazy. The boy was kick to spot the moose through the trees, but he was just as if not quicker to spit out his orders that he shaped into the form of a suggestion. Grimshaw had to hold back his eyes from rolling, but figured he could use the exercise anyway. If this little Ashen punk didn't want the exercise, then so be it.

"Sure." Was all Grim could mutter out without saying things he shouldn't say and he was quick to stalk off towards the large moose. He'd never hunted something like this before and wondered how much more difficult it would be. It was much larger than any deer he'd hunted before, so would this be that many times harder based on it's size ratio? Grimshaw didn't allow himself to think about probability now. They didn't have good odds going into this anyway, and that became more obvious to him as he got closer and closer to the moose. Maybe luck would be on their side, however.

Grimshaw got as close as he felt he could to the moose without being seen and hunkered down for a moment amongst some shrubs. Perhaps it was his naturally dark pelt, but he had gone unnoticed by the moose much to his surprise. If that patchwork pup had come down here, he wondered how far he would've made it before the moose ran off in the other way. That didn't matter now though, and he forced all other thoughts from his mind as he tore from behind the foliage and towards the large mammal, snapping wildly at it from a safe distance while trying to usher it in the direction of the pup. He wasn't so sure this was the best idea, but as the moose turned and started heading in the direction of the younger boy, it was far too late to make any changes to the plan.

Kuroki didn't care much for the judgy look the yearling sent his way, if he wanted to exhaust himself in the snow well before they turned around to head back south he was more than welcome to. Kuroki wouldn't remain behind to spoon him and keep him warm either way, he just wanted to make a kill and be done with it.

Not really fond of the strong and silent type, the Ashen Price was quick to shrug him off and instead went about getting into position. Down wind and obscured by shrubbery and the shadows of looming redwoods. Despite the flashes of orange on his coat he blended in well, crouched down and still, ears tipped forward as he caught the thudding of hooves against compact snow.

Yeah, he'd made the right call not running in that shit.

The young moose kicked up clumps of snow in its wake as it hurtled closer, eyes wide with panic. His muscles tensed and coiled in anticipation, exploding into a burst of movement as he lunged up and raked his talons along the expanse of its throat. Blood sprayed against a nearby tree with a wet thwack. Kuroki wasn't done just yet, grabbing a hold of the underside of its throat with his fangs, he ripped and tore, tumbling to the ground with the young moose in a tangle of limbs. Messy but effective.

If the yearling wanted to throw in a bite or two he was more than welcome to help, the moose was down but certainly not out just yet.