Flower Spelling - Chapter 37
Chapter 37 – Injury
“Mr. Katsura, this is Sogetsu. I heard you requested me.”
“Ah, please enter.”
The moment she said yes and opened the shoji, a light brown mass flew into the room like a bullet and landed in Katsura’s lap where he was writing.
“Oops.”
“Ah, hey, Kohagi! And here am I wondering where you been hiding all this time… Excuse me, I’ve told her not to go into any room except mine.”
Sogetsu seated herself before Katsura, feeling obliged. The tiger-striped kitten on his lap was purring contentedly as Katsura stroked her.
“Even so, she has become quite attached to Mr. Katsura, right? Does she knows her parent who named her?”
The kitten was to be cared for at the clan’s residence, and everyone was discussing what kind of name to give it, when Katsura, passing by, simply said.
“A kitten from Choshu domain, ‘Kohagi’ will suit her well.”
There the kitten mewed in satisfaction, thus earning the name “Kohagi”.
“I wonder,” Katsura gave a slightly nasty look. “I suppose she’s sulking because she thought she was a male cat at first?”
“You are the only one who noticed that it was a girl. Indeed, when I was dressed as a man, I was slightly disappointed when people looked at me like I am a man. ??Ah, so what can I do for you?”
“Oh, actually, I want you to go to Takasugi’s place.”
“… Mr. Takasugi?”
The name came to Sogetsu with complicated feelings.
??As a matter of fact, Takasugi was so frustrated by the fact that his theory of the division of the country was not readily accepted, and when Asada told him that “the situation would change in ten years’ time” he said, “Then I will take ten years’ leave.”
When Takasugi showed up with his shaved head, Sogetsu was so shocked that no words escaped her lips immediately.
“Um, Mr. Takasugi… What’s happening?”
What finally came out were words that sounded rather dumb even to her.
“Now I, Takasugi Shinsaku has changed my name to Togyo.”
“Togyo?”
“It’s a reference to Saigyo Hoshi, who went to the east. Isn’t it a good name?”
“Ha…”
The fearless smile was indeed the familiar trademark of Takasugi. Yet with his bald, lushly shaven head and sumi-dyed kesa, he appeared to be a distinctly stranger.
Kurushima and Terashima were present during his shaving, and Seishi Sadahiro apparently showed understanding towards Takasugi, but for Sogetsu it was nothing more than an act of caprice.
Even if I am told to wait for the right moment, it is inconceivable to suddenly become a Buddhist priest, and what about the people around you who tolerate it!?
While Sogetsu remained baffled, Takasugi was so pleased with himself that he even composed a song.
“If I had to describe my current state of heart,
I would say,
God knows my heart is longing for someone who is going west and I am going east.”
“If I had to describe my current state of heart,
I would say,
the person I saw yesterday is not the same person today. God, please do something about it.
… But.”
In response, the new priest broke into amused laughter.
As of now, after leaving the clan residence, he resided in a room in the precincts of My?man-ji Temple in Teramachi.
“??I thought he would mature after leaving the residence, but he only became more extreme. He visited the residence of Lord Takatsukasa to express his views on national affairs and sent a letter of opinion on the defense of Kyôzaka to Lord Anekoji Kintomo… Well, if it’s merely that, I wouldn’t mind that much.” Katsura’s brow wrinkled deeply. “You are aware that there was a rumor that the Shogun was going to leave the capital against the will of the Imperial Court, right? He went to tell Mr. Asada that if the Shogun really intended to return to Edo, he would cut him down so please give him a sword.”
Sogetsu looked at Katsura’s astringent face lengthily and then remarked.
“Um, I dare to ask… That is supposed to be a joke, right?”
“Since you already know the answer, don’t bother to ask, that guy has always been serious. Furthermore, instead of restraining him, Mr. Asada handed him a sword, which he had received from his lord, and encouraged him. Though Takasugi refrained from doing so as he could not afford to use a sword bearing the Mori family crest. Seriously, what an outrageous thing to say, both of them, master and pupil.”
“Master and pupil?”
According to him, Yoshida Shoin once requested the clan to provide him with weapons to assassinate a key figure of the Shogunate.
Wow, what a resemblance between the master and pupil…
Apparently, the troublemaker had been spending his days in a restaurant in Higashiyama, intoxicated and out of control.
“I want you to go and check on him, and if you can, bring him back. Will you do that for me?”
Though it is doubtless that Takasugi will listen obediently…
“I understand. I will go.” She nodded her head with a resigned expression.
?
After asking for directions, she was brought to a room where Takasugi was surrounded by glamorous geishas who were engaging in revelry.
“What did you come here for?”
Once noticing Sogetsu, Takasugi glared at her with sober eyes not befitting a monk. The gaze alone was overwhelming enough to kill, but Sogetsu was not intimidated by such things anymore.
“That’s what I want to hear. What are you doing here, being so intoxicated?” She stared straight in the eye, determined not to be outdone.
I honestly have no idea for what purpose you chose to be a priest. This is no different from what you have done before.
Her anger grew rapidly at the sight of the unrepentant man.
“At any rate, Mr. Katsura must have sent you to fetch me back. I am telling you, I am not returning.”
“Ah, is that so? Day in, day out, you do nothing except drinking, and you seem to have forgotten the state of the country. As expected of someone with a rounded head.”
When she replied ironically, Takasugi’s cheeks twitched. But before Takasugi could retort,
“Oh, please, both of you. Don’t get upset, please settle down a bit.”
From among the geisha, an unknown samurai stumbled out.
“Oh, pardon me, sir. I had no idea there would be other guests.”
In a hurry, she straightened up her posture and introduced herself as Sogetsu, who had been staying at the Choshu domain.
“I am Hamada Tatsuya of the Tosa clan. A pleasure to meet you.” The dark-skinned young samurai flashed a pleasant smile.
“I am sorry to interrupt your party. But I can’t simply leave without doing anything, since I am here on duty too.” Turning to Takasugi, she said firmly.
“What are you going to do? Are you planning to convince me?”
“No way. I already know that you are not the kind of person who can be easily persuaded to obey. So, why don’t we play a game?”
“A game?”
“Yeah. If I win, we will return to the residence together. If I lose, I will give up and return without a second thought.”
“Hmm.” Takasugi’s eyes sparkled. “But if it is only that, it would be rather boring. If I win, you’ll join me for a drink.”
“Eh!? Impossible! If I return drunk or so, who knows what Mr. Katsura might say to me…”
“That’s what makes it interesting, isn’t it? What do you say? Do we do it or not? Otherwise, this conversation is over. Now, immediately go back.”
“…”
If it were possible, she would have done her utmost to reject the idea, but at this point, she was in a bad mood and determined. She reluctantly accepted the terms.
“And what are we supposed to compete in? You can’t beat me in most of the Ozashiki games.”
“Yes, that’s what I thought too, and I’ve given it proper consideration.” Sogetsu took a deep breath and said. “Let’s play the Yamamoto Line game.”
“Yamamoto Line game?”
“Yes. It’s a game from my country. It’s a simple game of words, but one that requires quick thinking and a lot of luck. How about this…?”
‘Alright’, agreed Takasugi.
Sogetsu also approached Hamada and the geishas, who were watching with interest.
“It’s more fun with a crowd, so please join us.”
Having explained the procedure and practiced with a simple theme, the actual performance was finally about to begin. The first player to win three games was declared the winner, and the theme was decided by the geisha to ensure fairness.
In the first round, the victory belonged to Sogetsu.
In the second round, Sogetsu prevailed once more.
With little chance of success, Takasugi demonstrated his competitive nature and took the game to the fifth and final round.
The destined subject was “The name of a volume of the Tale of Genji”.
At the end of the third and fourth week, Hamada was left out, and two geikos were also eliminated, leaving only three remaining: Sogetsu, Takasugi, and a geiko. And then the fifth round.
“Uh?… wait, wait, I can’t think of anything!”
In the end, the game was clogged up by Sogetsu, and Takasugi was declared the winner.
?
True to her word, Sogetsu was obliged to accompany him for a long period of drinking, and she headed out of the restaurant with a sluggish pace. The sun had already set in the west, bringing down the curtain of night. Under the thick cloud cover and the lack of moonlight, once you take a step into the backstreets, the darkness is unrecognizable. In these days of frequent incidents, nobody prefers to venture out at night, and the streets are deserted.
“Mr. Takasugi is truly a fascinating man.” Hamada, walking slightly ahead with a lantern in his hand, said in a bouncy tone.
When Sogetsu was about to leave, he offered to walk with her, as it was unsafe for a girl to do so alone.
The residences of the Tosa and Choshu clans were located on the same street along the Takase River, separated by a distance of only five or six streets. Therefore, Sogetsu was grateful to be sent here.
Hamada patted himself on the head in a jocular manner. ‘If you tap the head of a shaved head, you will hear the sound of a cheap watermelon.” He imitated Takasugi and chanted.
“It is simply a mess.”
She thought she was striding in a straight line, but somehow she nearly crashed into a willow tree, and she hurried to correct her track.
“Mr. Hamada is a strong drinker, aren’t you? You drank more than I did, yet your complexion remained unchanged.”
“Tosa people are strong drinkers, so that’s nothing to be concerned about.”
Hamada’s cheerful laughter reverberated through the silent streets.
Tosa…
Sogetsu’s head was hazy from the liquor as she thought.
Does Mr. Hamada knows about Sakamoto Ryoma?
Even though she would like to ask him, it would be difficult for her to answer when asked in return how she came to know him. Unable to work out a reasonable way to ask, they reached the Sanjo Bridge.
Running from a narrow alley on the side of the road, she collided with a man. Sogetsu, who had fallen flat on her backside, didn’t notice and in a flash, the man’s figure was lost in the darkness.
“What’s the matter with him, bumping into people and not even apologizing…? Are you fine, Sogetsu?”
“Um, yeah.”
Sogetsu tried to stand up, but against her will, she staggered.
“Sorry, I am too drunk.”
Hamada’s hand, supporting her, felt slimy.
“Hey, this is…”
“It’s a Tsujigiri?! There’s a Tsujigiri?!”
From the end of the alley, where the man had stepped out, came the scream of a young man.
“No way, the guy from earlier…!”
Warm blood slowly seeped out from the left side of Sogetsu’s chest.
“Ms. Sogetsu!? Hold on! Can you hear me!?”
“Huh, did I get slashed? When did it…”
Even as she spoke, she felt as if she were slipping away.
Holding her with both hands, “Hold on tight! We are near the residence.”
“Ah, excuse me, I stained your kimono…”
“You idiot, who cares about such things! Damn…!”
After hearing Hamada’s swearing, Sogetsu’s consciousness faded out.