Bespoke [Kiz]

Murata sits at the front counter of Yagi & Itoshi, going over the inventory order. She would usually don an apron, but Mr. Yagi has insisted that she keep her chuunin flak vest on today.

Much like Snapper's, this business is a grab bag. Tasteful, modern fashion shares wall space with glass cases of weapons and armor pieces. It's a tailor's shop for civillians and shinobi alike, equipped to sew and forge in equal measure. The interior feels light and professional, a designer's eye applied to make it quite the welcoming space. The back areas, which take up much more space than the front, are busy with private commissions for the village's shinobi forces or other clients. It's much more common for the tinny ring of the phone to disturb her than somebody physically walking in.

Outside, crowds mill up and down the always-busy Rooster Street, colorful stores all flaunting their own wares. A bold iron sign of a snake coiled around a pheasant is Yagi & Itoshi's offering in competition to the pufferfish balloons, gleaming signs, and bright lights.

Murata is unsure how she keeps ending up working in stores, but she does not necessarily mind. It gives her an opportunity to talk to people and understand the village better. Junko Itoshi, upon seeing Murata's armor, immediately fretted over it and insisted that she have it properly refurbished... which Murata had rebuffed, unwilling to have strangers pick at it. Their compromise had been for Murata to have an active hand in doing so herself - thus, stints at Junko's son's business. Their mission of working on her armor has fallen slightly by the wayside, as it's turned out that she's quite good with customers, but it's on the to-do list.

---

290

Sitting in his office, Kizmaru had been thinking about this for a long time. He was lacking in his military strength and should push come to shove with bad blood currently brewing. He figured it was time to upgrade his military strength, even at the cost of the sources coming from his own pockets. He'd strengthen gate security and overall military power in general, figuring now was the best time to do it. Reaching for his phone on the side of his desk, Kizmaru decided to call one of his assistants in order to get them to summon both Xijion and Scyxion at once. After he was done issuing the order, Kizmaru got up and walked into the common room nearby in order to grab himself a cup of tea. It probably wouldn't take long for Scyxion to show up as he was always nearby doing his duty of safeguarding him and the estate. it might take a bit of time for Xijion to show up. After he had finished making his tea, he walked out to meet Scyxion silently standing near his desk waiting for an order of some kind. This made the Mizukage make a sound similar to going, 'hm' before walking back towards his chair without saying a word.

Sipping his tea, he sat back down in his chair before nodding towards his bodyguard and telling him to be at ease. This made the anbu relax a bit but still maintained a rather attentive demeanor. A few moments had passed before Xijion had made his way into the office with a wide smile on his face. The Mizukage always noticed he was always awfully sanguine about everything whether it was good or bad news and has never seen him visibly upset before. Well, he'd be giving him something to smile about today as he had some good news to tell them. "Good day gentlemen. I've summoned the both of you here to inform you of some changes that will be taking place to your current equipment. I have a select few materials that you both may choose from in order to upgrade your current gear. I have also taken the liberty to order some material I recommend you both use to better defend yourself when it comes down to it. Now then, downstairs in the lobby, there's a warehouse where I keep precious items and materials. You may pick up whatever you need to strengthen yourselves. I will also be giving each department a hefty sum of money in order for them to do the same but they'll have to find their own materials to augment their gear with. This is a personal gift from me to you."

Both of them nodded towards the Mizukage before setting out of the office in hopes to find a shop in order to take care of their respective needs. While going out, Romp had placed his aright arm around Scyxion which made Scyxion give him a side eye him. He didn't brush it off or anything but he did give an audible sigh, signaling to Romp that this was not okay. Of course, in typical fashion Romp ignored and began to start conversation once they had both grabbed the materials they had wanted and left. "Well, that was awfully nice of him. Didn't think he had it in him to do something nice for a change other than scrap other shinobi for parts. What are you gonna get on your equipment, Scy," Romp had asked his oldest friend. Scyxion let out yet another audible sigh before responding to him, "I don't know yet nor do I care as long as its put to good use and watch your tongue, that's the Mizukage you're talking about. I know you're not fond of him but he's still our leader and he did save you from that pit fighting arena when you were a slave," Scyxion retorted. Giving a chuckle, Romp began clarify a deceased Jounin of old had saved him from the pit and the current Mizukage had nothing to do with that as he can tell he was far older than him even behind his veiled hat and robes. 

Giving a small shrug, Scyxion still felt that wasn't appropriate but he wouldn't speak on the matter as they both had more pressing matters to attend to. They had to find a local smith that was experienced enough to handle the materials they needed in order to get the things they wanted. Romp had found a shop he was pretty satisfied with taking his work there. Releasing Scyxion from his hold, he waved him off and told him they should meet up later to see which one of them was better at an arbitrary competition. This only made Scyxion groan but he had discovered that no matter what the competition was about, it always drew out his competitive side. Separating, Scyxion went about to attend to his own devices and Romp entered the shop he had been looking at with the materials he had gathered beforehand. "Hello! Can anybody in here assist me! I got some things I want augmented, even brought my own materials," Romp exclaimed loudly. Disregarding who might be inside, what they were currently doing or other potential customers. 

W.C: 881

Murata has not been through the gates of Kirigakure since her first arrival - shivering from the unexpected cold, unsure, and quiet, too worried about the litany of papers in her hands signing her life away to fuss too much over who was manning the gates. The only thing that had caught her eye was a strange cloak of horizontal red stripes.

She supposes it was bound not to be too long before she saw it again. Curiously, she watches as he steps in, preparing a greeting of her own... but he swiftly beats her to the punch. She has observed that such behavior strikes more seasoned retail employees as wildly obnoxious, but she has not been so jaded yet. In addition, this man is shaped like a friend.

"I can absolutely help," she says, voice pleasant and accent thick on her tongue. Murata steps out from behind the counter, looking over the armfuls of curious material that this man has brought with him. Ah, they are going to get to work with some of the fancy stuff. Mr. Yagi's eyes had absolutely lit up when Murata had presented her own sample of Senju Wood. He had immediately asked her how she'd gotten her hands on it, and she had to admit that it was a question she could not think on very hard without her brain going all funny.

Murata takes a small notepad and pen from the desk, tapping the blunt end of the pen against her chin thoughtfully.

"What exactly are you looking to get done, sir ANBU?"

---

260
TWC: 550

Looking around the store beaming, it didn't take too long for him to get a response to his exclamation. A sleek, strongly-built woman of above average height had called out to him. Turning his head towards them, he continued to beam widely before as he approached the one that had called out to him. "Ah yes, I'd like to have my Anbu armor augmented with these choice materials I've brought. I have three large chunks of meteoric iron, a large chunk of Senju would, all the way from Konoha mind you, and Pufferfish gills. I need them to do certain effects I have in mind for me. Do you guys do that here or am I in the wrong place, could have sworn it was here," Xijion asked quizzically as confusion began to settle in briefly. He then blinked a few times as he looked round the room once more wondering if he should pick something up for himself to use as weapons and armor before deciding against it as he could literally use his bones as weapons and armor. It didn't hurt to be prepared just in case something disabled him from using his techniques and there were materials that would aid his armor in being a lot more useful than just his techniques alone.

W.C: 216

Murata jots down the ingredients they will have to work with, nodding once in understanding.

"That is absolutely doable," she reassures, sounding amused. Shinobi, she has noticed, tend to distrust any environment that looks nice. They demand either sterility or an absolute dump. She jots down a few bullet points on her note pad. That much meteoric iron will certainly go a long way, and she can certainly imagine what the pufferfish gills will require - probably an extension of the armor's coverage... though she has been only here a short while, she has absorbed as much as she can, and speaks like a natural. "What do you need these materials to do for you? Do you have any wishes for the looks? In order to integrate the gills, I may need to ask for your mask as well, but we may be able to make something work with just the throat if that is unacceptable..."

There are certainly some nice weapons around - the gleam of a pair of crystal-bladed swords in a display case is especially enticing. Murata has already purchased one for herself, as evidenced by the empty shelf below the pair that once held a third. Equally enticing may be the sharp and fashionable clothing items - surely Romp doesn't wear his shinobi gear ALL of the time? ...well, he is ANBU, so it's quite possible he does.

---

229
TWC: 779

Reassuring him, the woman had told Romp they indeed did augmentations here in this little shop to which he gave hearty before he continued to listen to her as she asked him what he wanted the materials to. Romp indeed did ponder on what he wanted the materials he picked out to do as he didn't have the forethought to plan out his wants meticulously like Scy did. Instead, he decided to have each of the materials appraised to see what ability or effect he could get onto his Anbu armor that will make him seem like more of a monster in his opponent's eyes. "Erm, I actually don't know what I want them to do nor do I know what properties they have in general. Do ya think you could appraise these for me or give me a quick rundown on what each material does before I decide," Romp had asked sheepishly before putting both of his hands together in a sort of apologetic manner. He wished Scyxion was still next to him or had asked him what each material's property was before he stepped into the shop but the idea had escaped him as he was excited to see his old teammate and friend after a very long time of gate guard duty. 

W.C: 215

Murata looks over what Romp has to offer. She is not yet an expert, but she has done her own reading on the properties of both meteoric iron and Senju wood. Pufferfish gills, as a plentiful, useful and unique material unique to Kirigakure, has also been something she has worked with in her time here.

"Meteoric iron," she begins, "Is a top-quality metal in all respects. You can prioritize a sharper-honed edge or durability, work the alloy to keep it lighter in weight, or bring out its magnetic properties. Senju wood is a potent sink for chakra. Pufferfish gills are generally used as part of a filtration system, either to assist underwater breathing or to deal with toxins."

She scratches her chin in thought. "If you were to have all of this integrated into one set of armor, you would be starting to push what is possible to achieve, but I think we would be able to work in one other material at a later date as well."

---

168
TWC: 947

Listening to the woman's explanation, Romp began to take in all the information he could store for the short amount of time he needed in order to get what he needed done. According to her, the meteoric iron was used to strengthen the durability of armor or sharpen the blade of his weapons, if he had any to use anyway. He was a Kaguya after all so he figured he'd just make his own weapons using the ones out of his body when he needed to. It was far cheaper and easier to do so than using ryo on it so he can buy more of his 'pinup fashion' magazines. Smirking at this thought, he quickly went back to paying attention before he could miss a word of what the woman who was helping him currently was telling him. It also has powerful magnetic properties that can be utilized in the armor. That would come in handy if and when he was throwing things. Senju wood apparently has properties relating to one's reserves. He doesn't know what he'd do with that yet but he'd figure it out eventually. Pufferfish gills were easy to understand, even for himself which had to do with filtration. 

Now that he had the rundown on how the materials work, he mostly knew what he wanted. Before he could finish up his little list, the woman assisting him informed him they might possibly be able to squeeze in an extra property which Romp took great interest in. "Oh, I see, I see! Well, I think I know what I'd like for augmentations. I'd like to use two of the Meteor Iron chunks for durable armor and one of them to repel materials when I throw them, two Senju Wood in order to absorb chakra attacks thrown my way and lastly, the puffer fish gills in order to help me breathe underwater on my mask," the anbu known as Romp had explained. He had hoped he could get all of this done in a timely fashion so he could and test it out against his rival, Scyxion sometime in the future.

W.C: 354

Now that Murata has a full idea of what their client is asking for, it's time to call in the cavalry. She takes a few final notes and then vanishes towards the back of the store to call for Mr. Yagi - a short, pleasant man with dark skin and wavy hair, looking to be in his early fifties.

"Ahh, they finally let you away from the gates!" he says - the two have likely briefly met in passing, as Mr. Yagi frequently travels in and out of the village on business. If they have not, Mr. Yagi certainly recognizes the build of the village's 'watchful' guardian. "Let's see what we can do for you..."

Mr. Yagi hands off the raw materials to Murata to safely store in the back areas, while he himself spirits Romp away to take his measurements. Once that is finished, he presents Romp with a price quote, takes his contact information, and informs him that they will have his armor ready for him in a week's time - if it is done earlier, they will notify him promptly.

---

180
TWC: 1127

Watching the woman take notes down as he spoke, Romp began to nod approvingly keeping the grin on his face the entire time. He was glad he could get the hard part for him out of the way now. He probably should have paid attention in class when he was younger but it was too late for regrets now. Besides, there was also some reliable person or two around him who could always ask for help with these sorts of situations. Afterwards, the woman had disappeared from his sight in order to get the things ready for whatever  she needed to do. On another note, Romp was created by a short man, even by normal standards, who seemed to have recognized him. Romp can't say he's memorized the names of everybody that walks through the gates so he can definitely keep track of faces. "Yeah bro. it's nice to be able to walk around INSIDE the village for a change instead of just guarding the outside. Lucky break for me!" With that, he followed Mr. Yagi in order to have his measurements taken, exchange contact information and get a quote. When the business was complete, Romp waved at the people who assisted him before leaving the shop in order to go and loaf around elsewhere before returning to his duty. 

[Exit.]

W.C: 220
T.W.C: 1,886

Ability Claims (Using 25% Max Stat Discount)
Using 1,875 words into Lava Clone

Claims
Giving Murata 3x meteoric Iron, 2 Senju Wood, a Puffer Fish Gill and Romp's Anbu Armor.