Musashi - Eiji Yoshikawa [615]
A maid of twenty or so came in and gracefully poured tea. With a glance at the guest, she invited him to have a cup.
Kakubei shook his head admiringly. “It’s good to see you, Omitsu. You’re always so pretty.”
She blushed down to the collar of her kimono. “And you’re always making fun of me,” she replied before quickly slipping out of the room.
Kakubei said, “You say the more you get used to your falcon, the better you like it. What about Omitsu? Wouldn’t it be better to have her at your side, rather than a bird of prey? I’ve been meaning to ask you about your intentions regarding her.”
“Has she by any chance secretly visited your house at one time or another?” “I’ll admit she did come to talk to me.”
“Stupid woman! She hasn’t said a word about it to me.” He shot an angry glance at the white shoji.
“Don’t let it upset you. There’s no reason why she shouldn’t come.” He waited until he thought Kojirō’s eyes had softened a little, then went on: “It’s only natural for a woman to worry. I don’t think she doubts your affection for her, but anybody in her position would worry about the future. I mean, what’s to become of her?”
“I suppose she told you everything?”
“Why shouldn’t she? It’s the most ordinary thing in the world to happen between a man and a woman. One of these days you’ll want to get married. You have this big house and lots of servants. Why not?”
“Can’t you imagine what people would say if I married a girl I’d previously had in my house as a maid?”
“Does it really make any difference? You certainly can’t throw her aside now. If she weren’t a suitable bride for you, it might be awkward, but she’s of good blood, isn’t she? I’m told she’s the niece of Ono Tadaaki.”
“That’s correct.”
“And you met her when you went to Tadaaki’s dōjō and opened his eyes to the sad state his school of swordsmanship was in.”
“Yes. I’m not proud of it, but I can’t keep it from someone as close to me as you are. I’d planned to tell you the whole story sooner or later…. As you say, it happened after my bout with Tadaaki. It was already dark when I started for home, and Omitsu—she was living with her uncle at the time—brought a small lantern and walked down Saikachi Slope with me. Without giving it a thought, I flirted with her a bit along the way, but she took me seriously. After Tadaaki disappeared, she came to see me and—”
Now it was Kakubei’s turn to be embarrassed. He waved his hand to let his protégé know he had heard enough. Actually, he had not known until very recently that Kojirō had taken the girl in before leaving Edo for Kokura. He was surprised not only at his own naiveté but also at Kojirō’s ability to attract a woman, have an affair with her and keep the whole thing secret.
“Leave everything to me,” he said. “At the moment, it would be rather inappropriate for you to announce your marriage. First things first. It can be done after your bout.” Like so many others, he was confident that final justification for Kojirō’s fame and position would be forthcoming within a few days.
Remembering why he’d come, he went on: “As I said, the council has decided the location for the bout. Since one requirement was that it be within Lord Tadatoshi’s domain, but somewhere that crowds can’t get to easily, it was agreed that an island would be ideal. The island chosen is a small one called Funashima, between Shimonoseki and Moji.”
He looked thoughtful for a minute, then said, “I wonder if it wouldn’t be wise to look the terrain over before Musashi arrives. It might give you a certain advantage.” His reasoning was that from a knowledge of the lay of the land, a swordsman would have an idea of how the fighting would proceed, how tightly to tie his sandals, how to make use of the terrain and the position of the sun. At the very least, Kojirō would have a sense of security, which would be impossible if he were entering the place for the first time.
He suggested they hire a fishing boat and go out to look at Funashima the next