On the third day of summer vacation, Haizaki Shogo boarded a flight to Africa, bidding farewell to his older brother, Haizaki Shoten.
At Narita Airport in Japan, Shogo stepped onto the plane. It would be a long journey.
First, he would fly to Addis Ababa, the capital of Ethiopia, then transfer to Kenya, reaching the area near Mount Kenya National Park for a month-long extreme wilderness survival challenge.
The area was said to be a paradise for lions, leopards, hippos, antelopes, hyenas, wildebeests, baboons… a human no-go Zone.
When Shogo's plane landed, he saw the event organizers waiting for him—and his two future teammates.
One was Falke Schneider from Germany, the other… Nash Gold Jr.., someone Shogo had never imagined would be here.
Unbelievable.
Of the three participants in this extreme survival challenge, one was an American named Nash. He was clearly no ordinary person.
"Hello! I'm Haizaki Shogo. Nice to meet you. You can just call me Shogo!"
"Hi, I'm Falke Schneider. Call me Falke."
"Hello, I'm Nash Gold Jr.. Just call me Nash."
Both of them were towering and muscular. Everyone stood over 1.9 meters. Shogo, at 1.9 meters, felt Nash was about his height, while Falke looked much taller, perhaps around 2.1 meters.
The three of them arrived at the organizers' designated hotel, where Shogo underwent a series of medical checks and vaccinations as required.
Three days later, after their final meal together, each participant chose a weapon and climbed into an off-road vehicle.
The rules of the Extreme Wilderness Survival Challenge were:
Each participant may choose one cold weapon.
Participants must survive in the area for one month without resupply.
The organizers provide three basic living tools, freely chosen by the team.
An emergency medical team is available; any use of support counts as abandoning the challenge.
…
Sitting in the vehicle, flipping through the densely packed rulebook, Shogo signed his name at the end and discussed the plan with Nash and Falke.
"You go first, I'll add my input last," Shogo said, presenting his idea. The others nodded. Nash made his choice first.
"I'll take a cleaver and a fire starter. I'm good with these."
Falke lazily picked up a large bow.
"Bow and arrow are my specialty. I'll also take this fishing net. Trust me, I can make it into a multipurpose tool."
After seeing their choices, Shogo picked his own.
"I'll take a double-tipped spear and this big pot. We'll need it for food and water."
Falke and Nash nodded. That was the best combination.
Equipped, the organizers handed each of them a signal flare, then the off-road vehicle left, abandoning them in the wild.
Honestly, the organizers' conditions were already generous: weapons, tools, and three capable men. Unlike some extreme shows, there was no requirement to go naked into the wild. Each of them wore a short-sleeve shirt, long pants, and hiking shoes.
Shogo, Nash, and Falke watched the vehicle disappear, glancing at each other in silence.
"So… what do we do now?"
After a pause, Shogo said:
"Let's find a safe spot for camp first. There are lions and cheetahs around."
"Right, we need a safe campsite. Plus, the sun's brutal—we'll dehydrate fast," Nash added.
"Agreed. Let's do that!"
The three men reached a consensus and began searching for a campsite.
With weapons in hand, all three felt confident, without fear or panic, which made each trust the others' abilities.
Soon, near a stand of low bushes, they found a suitable spot.
A massive baobab tree offered support, and it also connected to a nearby water source. Several other baobabs surrounded the area, perfect for establishing a camp.
Without hesitation, the trio got to work.
Nash, armed with the cleaver, cleared large thorny branches around the baobab to form a protective circle, making the African savanna night safer.
Shogo gathered dead wood to fuel the fire and maintain it. The fire needed to burn for over ten hours, so matches were in short supply and had to be used carefully.
Falke picked up the big pot and his fishing net, heading off to hunt.
By "hunting," he meant fishing. Confident with the net, Falke was in his element.
Collecting firewood in Africa was exhausting and dangerous. Shogo had to avoid sharp thorns, venomous scorpions, and the occasional black mamba hiding in rotten logs.
He moved cautiously, thrusting his spear into the brush to scare off snakes.
I really don't want to run into a black mamba, he thought. Snakes are terrifying.
Luckily, he collected enough firewood without incident.
Returning to camp, Nash had finished fortifying the area. The thorn barrier formed a protective circle, large enough for all three to rest inside.
The thorns were sharp and sturdy, enough to deter most predators.
Shogo joined Nash in building the camp.
By the time they finished, the sky was painted red with sunset—but Falke was still nowhere to be seen.
"Nash, first day… do you think Falke's going to be okay? The sun's almost down, and the African savanna at night is dangerous."
"He has a signal flare. If anything happens, he'll use it. And the organizers have someone watching from a distance," Nash reassured him.
"Damn, he took the pot with him. We could've boiled water to drink," Shogo said.
"Yeah, I'm a bit thirsty," Nash admitted.
Just as they were setting up a canopy for shade and rain protection, Falke returned, carrying a huge pot of water and fish.
"Hey! Look at what I caught—enough food to last us a week."
Shogo's eyes widened at the ten or so large catfish in the pot.
Nash didn't waste time and immediately started gutting the fish for roasting.
Shogo took the pot, letting the water settle, filtering out debris before putting it over the fire.