Puppet Cleaning Co

Missions:

Hibiki had found himself with a little spare time in recent days as a calm seemed to have settled over the village for the most part and so he spent most of his days carrying out low rank missions around the village and so it was that he found himself with a cart full of cleaning supplies moving through the villages and cleaning properties in rapid succession with the use of his puppets to lend an extra hand or six in the case of Jorogumo whose extendable arms were certainly useful for cleaning the more difficult to reach areas and the task also served as fine tune training with his puppetry skills. Hibiki had recently become proficient enough to increase the distance the puppet strings could move and he could even use less strings per puppet now which also allowed greater flexibility during his missions and in general tasks.

As he left one of the houses on his list he spotted his friend Hikari walking down the road. Having noted she did not seem to be in a deliberate rush. Hibiki was unsure that Hikari ever fully relaxed as he understood it but he had learned to read her body language and speed of her stride to an extent that he could at least guess as to her mood with some level of accuracy. He doubted he would ever truly understand the kitsune mental workings, and would almost certainly tire himself long before succeeding.

“Hey Hikari, how have you been? Been on any cool missions recently?” Hibiki gestured to the trolley of cleaning supplies. “I am just doing some house cleaning whilst people are on missions, it turns out puppetry can really help cut down the time required and is a lot cheaper. My mum even has me cleaning the inn with puppets now even though she finds Jorogumo creepy for some reason. If you need your place cleaned let me know and I can add it to the least as a favour between friends. I bet it must get pretty dusty with all the books there.”

Hibiki of course had never been to Hikari’s residence, but he could only imagine it as a small dusty library filled with books everywhere. He mentally chuckled to himself as he imagined an entire staircase and bed made of books with bed covers and pillows on top with writing all over them so she could read as she fell to sleep. Hibiki was sure he would not be surprised if it was actually the case but knew he was the opposite and kept his books in a locked chest under his bed so he deliberately did not need to see them until it was time to study.

WC:454 TWC:454 TMWC: 454/500

Hikari's affairs were always one that involved taking care of various responsibilities. Her desire to do more and help improve Kumogakure was a huge priority but sometimes she found herself in situations like this, cleaning. She was used to keeping her room at home clean but there were always catches. Her heritage's growth brought forth changes within the clan as priorities were sent to providing for her. She focused on herself though and disallowed as much as she could due to the understanding that many were simply currying favor. She would sigh as she continued to do the mission she was tasked with, Cleaning Duty.

Acquiring cleaning supplies, she used her natural Kitsune form to help due to her tails being used as variable cloth/rags due to her fur. They were versatile and helped with the process of cleaning. The home itself is that of a normal villager, she had requested them to spend time away while she did her job. Being an up-and-coming genin within the village, she had made a name for herself to make the comfort of her client for the day to be comfortable with leaving their home in her care. It was a slightly messy house and thankfully it was just being orderly.

Once finished she departed from the home, it being cleaner and tidier now she shuffled onto the next objective for the day. On the way, Hikari heard a familiar voice that she saw pushing a cart of cleaning supplies. She gave a wave, "I was also doing some cleaning myself." She declared her tails have a faint lemony scent of cleaning products intermixed in them. Hearing the solution of puppetry for efficient cleaning, the young Kitsune gave a nod of understanding. "That is a clever application of your specialty, I would love to discuss the more specific utilization of your threads in that manner if you want to talk it over." She proposed even after the offer to clean her room, which she waved her hand in a dismissing manner. "My room is the epitome of cleanliness though I take a simplistic approach to my personal quarters." She added in clarification. She knew there were likely a few reasons she found comfort in the young boy's enthusiasm, Hikari felt that his purity was representative of what shinobi of Kumogakure could be but likely would not remain.

Once she voiced the idea, Hikari waved him onward as she continued to her next destination.

[Exit]

WC: 400, TWC: 400