Chiemi Hanayo did not have time to admire the sunrise as the orange glow basked the capital of Kyushu in its glowing rays. She took a quickly glance to take notice of how the light played with the tall buildings and brightened up the dark corners of the streets, and how shadows crisscrossed across the cityscape to provide protection from the light, but that was all the time she took. Today was the day that she, along with a battalion of troops, would be briefed on a very important mission, a mission into Oni territory in an attempt to find a way to route the creatures. Chiemi had heard rumors about the 7 blades that were supposed to travel with the battalion on the mission and she had to admit the descriptions she had heard all seemed rather outlandish and fantastical, a blade that could sweep aside a dozen Oni in a single swipe and blades that made men strong or incredibly fast sounded as if they came straight out of a fairy tale. While she had her doubts about the usefulness of these legendary blades at least the leader of the mission was a man of honor and integrity.

Yasushi Miyoshi, was a great samurai with a fantastic record, honorable, and a good leader. If someone else had been in charge Chiemi would have had greater doubts about traveling back into Oni territory. Now, even if the legendary blades proved to be as amazing as described by some of the soldiers who she had trouble believing, partially due to their love of excessive alcohol, certainly there was no marvelous blade that could heal the sick and that is where her particular services would be particularly useful during the mission. A blade was only as strong as its wielder and it was her mission to make sure they were all up to the task, which is way she had been up 2 hours earlier, using her time in the capital to restock on her medical supplies, bandages, exotic herbs that would be impossible to find by foraging, and tea leaves that promoted health and strength.

While she was more of a country type of girl she was still no stranger to bartering and she knew well the value of the materials she needed. She played merchants against each other like a pro, "But you know, your rival on the other side of the street offered a much lower price for the same amount, I suppose I'll just have to go over there."

"Oh I'm sorry, did I say 10 mon? I meant 6 mon of course." The merchant clapped his hands together invitingly, but Chiemi did not bite, not yet.

"I think we both know you can go lower than that. I’m certain everyone would be shocked about how high your original price was.” Chiemi stared into the merchant’s eyes which tried desperately to find a chink in her armor but her no-nonsense sentiments made her eyes like steel.
“I can see you know your craft, alright I’ll concede.” Giving in, the merchant handed over the dried herbs which quickly found their way into Chiemi’s medical box, strapped on her back. Another bargain done, Chiemi moved on from that street stall in the capital market to continue her search for cheap materials. If they were going to be ready for the trials ahead no doubt she needed to be as prepared as she possibly could be.