Our story starts with Hakomiru, a man who has studied diligently all his life in the art of pencil-making. He first apprenticed with his grandfather 58 years ago, and inherited the the family tradition several decades later. Hakomiru will walk 11,000 kilometers in the coming year, exploring forests and woods looking for the perfect lumber for his pencils. Not just any wood will do. Once a tree is selected and a price negotiated with the owner, the process of felling this tree will begin. Delicate wood saws are employed, no axes as these impact on the tree stump may subtly alter the grain. These saws cost upwards of $40,000 and must not be mistreated! Our artisan Hakomiru will spend no fewer than 16 days sawing it at exactly 67cm above the point at which the tree meets the soil. As the saw approaches the point at which the timber may start to fall on its own, Hakomiru hurries to retrieve it so that it isn't twisted in the felling. The saw will not be ready to fell another tree until it has been polished by a master sawblade polisher, a job that can take up to 18 months! Next, Hakomiru loads the log onto a traditional pencilmaster's log-hauling cart, which he and his assistants will pull by hand into town. From there, it will be loaded onto one of Japan's 296 maglev high-speed trains, where it will take another 17 minutes before it arrives in his workshop on the other side of Japan. Hakomiru is very excited, this may be the best log he has ever harvested and well worth the $190,000 price tag. But that is still unknown, and will be until he can peel the bark in a grueling 30 month ordeal. Should things turn out well, the log can then begin air drying. A translator speaks: "We never let the lumber air dry less than 22 years, and with luck I will live to see this one ready for the next phase, since I will only be 94 years of age at that point!"