Small character design illustration / sprites for animation

Project Summary
We need a professional illustrator to recreate our Scout fox companion as a clean 2D animation rig asset pack for a children's mobile app.

The target character style is the provided reference image:

reference/fox_scout_reference.png (to be shared), this character has to be reused for reference.
The current generated rig assets are included only as a technical reference for the required file names and separated body parts:

current-rig-assets/ (to be shared)
Important: the current generated rig assets are not the desired final style. They are too detailed, too painterly, and do not match the small cute Japanese/kawaii fox in the reference. The final work must match the reference image much more closely.

Visual Direction
The final companion should feel like a small cute Japanese/kawaii fox:

compact chibi proportions
warm golden-orange fur
cream muzzle, belly, inner ears, paw pads, and tail tip
thick rounded dark-brown outline
simple soft gradients, not realistic fur
friendly children's mobile game look
rounded shapes, minimal detail, high cuteness
expressive face with closed happy eyes as the default mood
Please avoid:

realistic fur rendering
overly painterly texture
tall/proportional animal anatomy
thin or inconsistent outlines
separate parts that look like different characters
hard crop lines where parts connect
Required Deliverables
Please create transparent PNG files with exactly these filenames:

body_base.png
head_base.png
tail_base.png
arm_left_base.png
arm_right_base.png
leg_left_base.png
leg_right_base.png
eyes_idle.png
eyes_normal.png
eyes_happy.png
eyes_sad.png
eyes_surprised.png
eyes_blink.png
eyes_sleepy.png
eyes_alert.png
mouth_idle.png
mouth_normal.png
mouth_happy.png
mouth_sad.png
mouth_surprised.png
mouth_sleepy.png
mouth_grin.png
Please also provide the editable source file, preferably layered PSD, Procreate, or AI.

Rig Part Requirements
Each PNG must contain only one isolated part on a transparent background.

All parts must look like they come from the exact same character and same illustration pass.

Use this side convention:

left means the fox part visible on the viewer's left side.
right means the fox part visible on the viewer's right side.
Base Parts
body_base.png

Torso only.
Include orange body and cream oval belly.
Do not include head, ears, arms, legs, feet, tail, eyes, mouth, or nose.
Top should have a clean connection area for a separate head.
head_base.png

Head only.
Include ears, face shape, inner ears, muzzle/cheeks, and nose.
Do not include eyes or mouth, because those are animated separately.
Lower chin/muzzle must be fully rounded, not flat-cropped.
tail_base.png

Tail only.
Match the curled fluffy tail from the reference.
Include orange body of tail and cream tail tip.
Root should be clean for attachment behind the body.
arm_left_base.png and arm_right_base.png

Raised arms only, matching the joyful pose from the reference.
Include the paw pads at the top.
The shoulder end should be clean for attachment to the body.
Do not include any body/head pixels.
leg_left_base.png and leg_right_base.png

Small chibi feet/legs only.
Match the compact foot style from the reference.
Include cream toe highlights/pads where visible.
Eye Expressions
All eye assets should be centered on a consistent transparent canvas so they align in the rig.

eyes_idle.png: default closed happy curved eyes, like the reference.
eyes_happy.png: stronger closed smiling arc eyes.
eyes_normal.png: small open oval kawaii eyes.
eyes_sad.png: gentle sad downward-curved eyes.
eyes_surprised.png: small round surprised eyes.
eyes_blink.png: short closed eyelid lines.
eyes_sleepy.png: sleepy half-closed eyes.
eyes_alert.png: attentive open eyes.
Mouth Expressions
All mouth assets should be centered on a consistent transparent canvas so they align in the rig.

mouth_idle.png: small neutral smile.
mouth_normal.png: simple cute smile.
mouth_happy.png: open happy mouth with tongue, matching the reference.
mouth_grin.png: bigger cheerful smile.
mouth_sad.png: small gentle frown.
mouth_surprised.png: small round "o" mouth.
mouth_sleepy.png: tiny sleepy relaxed mouth.
Technical Requirements
Format: PNG with transparent background.
Recommended size: around 1024px on the longest side for main body parts; expressions can be smaller but should be high resolution.
Keep generous transparent padding around each part.
No background, no shadow, no text, no watermark.
Keep edges clean and antialiased.
Keep all parts front-facing.
Keep outline thickness consistent across every part.
Keep all expression assets aligned around the same eye/mouth center.
Acceptance Criteria
We will consider the work successful when:

The assembled character looks like the provided Scout reference image.
The character still feels compact, round, cute, and Japanese/kawaii.
The separated body parts do not look obviously mismatched.
The head/body/arms/legs/tail can be layered without visible crop problems.
Eyes and mouth variants can be swapped without jumping around.
Transparent edges are clean with no colored background fringe.