Home Sweet Home (equipment training topic 1.8k words )

Amidst the nicer regions of Konoha, Coal maintained her own private residence. The Konoha suburbs were often considered the finest place to reside in the village, and unsurprisingly enough Coal kept her own home there. I was modest, for the area, but still far above what the others in their apartments would have been used too. Coal’s house was one of the few one story buildings, but the lack of height gave her no worries. The place had two bedrooms, two bathrooms, and more importantly, a yard to call hers. Coal had no fence surrounding her property, as privacy wasn’t something she’d ever been used too, and she enjoyed the act of welcoming her neighbors as friends, and not strangers.

The home was luxurious, covered in marble tile, granite counters, solid wooden cabinets.. and surprisingly modest furniture. There were few actual chairs in Coal’s home, as most seemed to be replaced by large, plush pillows. She had no television, no radio, and no modern electronics in her home, which helped make it more affordable or a single shinobi. It was alright that she spent a lot here, because Coal was rather unique. Where as most shinobi were out spending their paychecks the moments they were handed to them, Coal had no need for new supplies. She never had to replace her weapons, because she wears none. She never had to replace equipment, because she needs very little. All Coal really had to spend her money on, was her home and her books.

Her private library was impressive in size and held a huge amount of stored information. Some five-hundred books fill three different book cases, each one pushed up against the wall of the second bedroom, which bears all the finery and looks of a private study. Coal’s bedroom was decorated with only sparse furniture, and is dominated by her large and soft bed. A pair of French doors led outside to her back yard, where her lovely garden grew. Coal’s only large table, one capable of seating four people, was located. It was simple and round, surrounded by four chairs, though a few other benches and chairs were scattered about for the ease of guests and visitors. It was in the back yard that coal spent much of her free time, often just meditating beneath the small white marble statue of the Buddha she had in her yard. The small shrine was the focal point of her garden was surrounded by fragrant blossoms, green vines, and offerings of incense, followers, and fruit.

Amidst the fine comforts that her large bed and soft blanket offers her, the motivation to actually get out of bed was hard to find. Coal wakes with no alarm long before the sun has risen, and when the chill and haze of night still lingers all along the ground. Only the promise of a steaming hot shower even managed to drag her warm feet across the cold tile floor that surrounded her room in the mornings. Wearing only a grin and several tattoos she flees across the frigid marble floor, and races towards the promise of hot water, and a sense of wonderful cleanliness.

Only once the shower was over was could the fair Lady Coal consider her morning begun. Drying herself off was something easy by her own standards, and she didn’t even need a towel. She pauses in her bathroom in front of the large mirror on her wall, and smiles. She spends only a moment admiring her self, as she always does, though truly it was her own seals that always caught her attention, and not the gracious curves of her fair feminine frame. She had quite the number of tattoos, and only with her clothes removed were so many visible. Only a few peeked out along her arms and legs, while most were hidden away beneath her clothes. Her most important seal was both beneath her clothing, and constantly exposed to light.

The lotus seal that contained her chakra had saved her life previously, but since come with its own other hidden benefits. By concentrating on the seal itself, she could use her own chakra to force the seal open, and extract some of its stored supply. Doing so caused her own inner heat to skyrocket, and in no time the water still on her skin was drying off and forming a haze of steam around her. A few shakes of her head and even her thick, long hair was easy enough to dry from the scalp upwards. In short order Coal would be completely dry, and delightfully clean.

The next step of her morning rituals involved the sparse bits of makeup she bothered to wear, because it certainly wasn’t much. She spends just a few moments with a black pencil, very carefully applying a thin black line to the outer edges of her eyelids. The eyeliner remained dark, but subtle as it matched her own hair, and only help further bring out the bright blue of her eyes. With the small amount of makeup on, she was ready to get dressed and begin her day. She glances over to her clothing, laid out from last night, and clean as they are every morning.

The First thing Coal ever put on was her headband, because remained as hidden as always once she was dressed. Coal wears her headband across her let bicep, and she draws it up her arm until it is high on her arm, almost reaching her shoulder. It lies flat and smooth, even with the two hidden pockets which held much of her smaller ninja tools. She tightens the straps that keep it secure, and soon it is locked in place. The two pockets contain a supply of both smoke bombs and flash bangs, two smallish items which were easy to conceal. It became obvious that Coal had no knives or swords, though a two stacks of what look like explosive notes are carefully tucked beneath the strap on her arm.

She can’t help but snicker just slightly as she thinks of how under-equipped she must look, but it did not bother her in the least. The few tools were more than enough for what she needed. The next article of clothing to go on was her brilliant, flame red robes. Like the woman herself, the robes were soft, beautiful, and an absolute pleasure when grazing her flesh. She slips her arms into the longish sleeves, each one ending just below her elbow and not quite reaching her forarm. The sleeves are loose and flowing, easily hiding her ninja pouch as she draws the double layer of silk closed around her body.

With that simple action Coal would be fully dressed, clearly never one for overdressing. Though her robes were soft and silk, they still stood up to the life of a ninja. The threads had been taken from a massive fire spider, and even steel weapons had difficulty in penetrating the soft but solid defense the robes provided. Dressed as she was, she was not finished just yet. As it was, her robes would easily fall open, exposing much more of herself than she wished too. To prevent this, the last bit of clothing remained, and it was among her most cherished items.

The crimson sash of champions was actually an item far more powerful than her robes. It’d been tailored in the monastery Coal grew up in, and intended for use only by the Lotus Monks. Each championship sash was unique, and coal’s had abilities all its own. The silk itself had once come from a species of massive, supernatural spider that are known to dwell amid the volcanic caves, vents, and other such landscapes where the flames of the inner earth met with the surface world. Once the spider was killed its silk glands were removed, and the thread for the fabric was easily derived from the goo found inside of it.

It totaled some ten full feet in length but was so paper-thin the entire sash seemed to have no weight to it at all. The fabric was still strong, but it was the detailed, numerous, and powerful seals that were sewn along its inside that gave the sash its true power. Having come from a spider known to have a good supply of chakra within it, the silk took naturally to absorbing energy, and sustaining enchantments. The seals were plentiful, but what they did was simple. The moment coal finishes wrapping the sash around her mid-section; she can feel its power leaking into her. The chakra inside the sash easily loosens her joints and flows into her limbs. The extra flowing chakra allowed her to move just a little fast, and with much more grace.

The second, more subtle and most powerful aspect of the Sash was its own Chakra supply. It wasn’t something that simply added to Coal’s supply, as that would never work for her. If the sash forced more chakra into her body, it would have been easily countered by her seal, which was simply no good. Instead, the sash would only offer small amounts at a time, small amounts of chakra which could be used up, before her containment seal captures the extra chakra and sealed it away. Though the Sash only contained a fair amount of chakra, by most standards, the small amount almost doubled her own chakra supply. More importantly, however, this extra chakra acted as an emergency reserve, for when her mediocre chakra supply was being taxed to far.

The sash keeps her robes securely closed, the bright red material easily complimenting her fiery robes. The sash kept her robes tight and form fitting to her torso, slightly lifting and accenting the shape and delightful size of her chest. With a few adjustments the sash covers down across her toned and flat belly, and ends just as her broad hips are flaring out beneath her waist. Even without out all its amazing powers, the way the sash accented her curves was more than enough reason for Coal to fall in love with it. Coal wiggles her toes and laughs softly, because ater this last bit, she was fully dressed.

Coal had no need for accessories. She was a simple woman who took pleasure in the simplest of things. A sunset, singing birds, quite time to meditate, and a place to have a few drinks were all Coal required to enjoy a day, and Konoha had all of these things on a rather regular basis. The peaceful village nestled away in the Land of Fire had long since become Coal’s home, and place of employment.

All these morning preparations are all completed a good hour before the sun actually rises. Konoha’s public library was open every day at sunrise, and the mass population of Konoha wouldn’t often take excuses for why the doors did not open when they were supposed too. After gathering up the key to the library, Coal finally steps out of her home. She wanders the darkened streets, humming quite happily to herself as she went. Only the night watch was typically on the streets at this hour, and on her way to work Coal would greet them all.