Inkstones & Inksticks
Japanese Living

In order to be able to write with a brush (called a fude) one must have ink. Inkstones are long, flat and often black stone containers that are used to make ink. Traditionally, ink was sold as a hard stick, which was ground into an inkstone and mixed with water. This process is still used today for calligraphy and sumi-e (ink painting).

Relevance to Ranma ½

Kuno and the Martial Arts Calligrapher have both been shown using these.