Touches up, as a tattoo

As a detective, my first step in solving the mystery of the crossword clue ‘Touches up, as a tattoo’ would be to carefully analyze each word in the clue. The key word ‘touches up’ implies that we are looking for a term related to tattoo maintenance or improvement. Additionally, the phrase ‘as a tattoo’ tells us that we need to be looking within the context of tattooing to find the solution.

After some time spent reflecting on these elements, I might recall that tattoos are composed of ink – and that ink can be replenished or added to over time. This leads me to the term ‘reinks’, which perfectly fits the context of the clue. ‘Reinking’ refers to the process of adding or replenishing ink in a tattoo, and therefore perfectly embodies the meaning of the phrase ‘touches up, as a tattoo’.

In conclusion, my insights and thought process helped me to come to the answer ‘reinks’ as the solution to the mystery presented in this crossword puzzle. By analyzing each element of the clue and connecting them to my knowledge of tattoos, I was able to deduce the appropriate term and advance one step closer to solving the larger puzzle at hand.