Sutomi

Most Chimps in Waterfall City look up, towards the grand temples and the source of the water. Sutomi always looked down, to the roots of the bamboo that held the city's foundations together. For years, their hands were known only for carving fishing floats and mending skiffs for the folk in the sprawling lower city, their art practical and attuned to the river. When raiders tried to scale the wet rock face, the city’s warriors met them with steel, but their heavy armor was a liability on the slick stairs. Sutomi saw this and retreated to their workshop. They emerged not with a sword, but with armour woven from hardened bamboo—light as a basket, yet stronger than iron. They ascended the stone stairs, an artisan no more. The mask they now wear isn't for hiding, but for focus; it narrows the world to the essential lines, like a carving waiting to be finished.