Shogun_ A Novel of Japan - James Clavell [253]
And the Anjin-san had been perfectly correct to give the pistols to his consort, he told himself, just as she was equally correct to do what she did. And she would certainly have pulled the trigger, her aim true. It was no secret that Usagi Fujiko sought death, or why. Omi knew, too, that if it hadn’t been for his earlier decision this morning to kill Yabu, he would have stepped forward into death and then his men would have taken the pistols away from her. He would have died nobly as she would be ordered into death nobly and men and women would have told the tragic tale for generations. Songs and poems and even a Nōh play, all so inspiring and tragic and brave, about the three of them the faithful consort and faithful samurai who both died dutifully because of the incredible barbarian who came from the eastern sea.
No, Omi’s decision had nothing to do with this public apology, although the unfairness added to the hatred that now obsessed him. The main reason was that today Yabu had publicly insulted Omi’s mother and wife in front of peasants by keeping them waiting for hours in the sun like peasants, and had then dismissed them without acknowledgment like peasants.
“It doesn’t matter, my son,” his mother had said. “It’s his privilege.”
“He’s our liege Lord,” Midori, his wife, had said, the tears of shame running down her cheeks. “Please excuse him.”
“And he didn’t invite either of you to greet him and his officers at the fortress,” Omi had continued. “At the meal you arranged! The food and saké alone cost one koku!”
“It’s our duty, my son. It’s our duty to do whatever Lord Yabu wants.”
“And the order about Father?”
“It’s not an order yet. It’s a rumor.”
“The message from Father said he’d heard that Yabu’s going to order him to shave his head and become a priest, or slit his belly open. Yabu’s wife privately boasts it!”
“That was whispered to your father by a spy. You cannot always trust spies. So sorry, but your father, my son, isn’t always wise.”
“What happens to you, Mother, if it isn’t a rumor?”
“Whatever happens is karma. You must accept karma.”
“No, these insults are unendurable.”
“Please, my son, accept them.”
“I gave Yabu the key to the ship, the key to the Anjin-san and the new barbarians, and the way out of Toranaga’s trap. My help has brought him immense prestige. With the symbolic gift of the sword he’s now second to Toranaga in the armies of the East. And what have we got in return? Filthy insults.”
“Accept your karma.”
“You must, husband, I beg you, listen to the Lady, your mother.”
“I can’t live with this shame. I will have vengeance and then I will kill myself and these shames will pass from me.”
“For the last time, my son, accept your karma, I beg you.”
“My karma is to destroy Yabu.”
The old lady had sighed. “Very well. You’re a man. You have the right to decide. What is to be is to be. But the killing of Yabu by itself is nothing. We must plan. His son must also be removed, and also Igurashi. Particularly Igurashi. Then your father will lead the clan as is his right.”
“How do we do that, Mother?”
“We will plan, you and I. And be patient, neh? Then we must consult with your father. Midori, even you may give counsel, but try not to make it valueless, neh?”
“What about Lord Toranaga? He gave Yabu his sword.”
“I think Lord Toranaga only wants Izu strong and a vassal state. Not as an ally. He doesn’t want allies any more than the Taikō did. Yabu thinks he’s an ally. I think Toranaga detests allies. Our clan will prosper as Toranaga vassals. Or as Ishido vassals! Who to choose, eh? And how to do the killing?”
Omi remembered the surge of joy that had possessed him once the decision had been made final.
He felt it now. But none of it showed on his face as cha and wine were offered by carefully selected maids imported from Mishima for Yabu. He watched Yabu and the Anjin-san and Mariko and Igurashi. They were all waiting for Yabu to begin.
The room was large and airy,