“I’m sorry to hear that it will be impossible to field a proper force to wipe out those bandits,” Kaze said, choosing his words carefully. “Twelve men are too many for me to take on alone, but those bandits are ruining the economy of this District. Perhaps there is something I can do if I spend some time thinking about it.”
CHAPTER 15
Lies men tell women.
Lies women tell men. Somewhere
precious truth must live.
Kaze approached the hut door and called out, “Sumimasen! Excuse me!”
There was a scurrying noise inside, and after a few minutes the door slid back and a sleepy-eyed face poked its way into the sunlight. Although it was afternoon, it was obvious that Kaze had roused Aoi from her slumbers. When she saw who it was, Aoi’s eyes widened. “Chotto matte, kudasai. Please wait!” she said.
She poked her head back into her hut, and Kaze waited for a few more minutes as Aoi scrambled around, fixing her hair and putting on a better kimono. As he waited, Kaze put down the earthen jug he was carrying and looked around the village. Several faces, which were watching him from open windows or half-opened doors, retreated to the darkness of their houses as he looked in their direction. Kaze sighed. A small village has too little to keep it busy when the local economy is bad. The hut’s door slid open.
“Samurai!” Aoi said, stepping outside her hut and bowing deeply. “How can I serve you?” She put a sly smile on her face.
Kaze lifted up the jug he brought with him, and said, “I thought we might drink together. It gets lonely in such a small village, and I’ve heard that you’re good company.”
Aoi stood to one side and bowed again. “That would be nice,” she said. “Please enter, and I’ll stir up the fire to get hot water going. I would love to drink with you.”
Kaze ducked into the low door of the hut and looked around, letting his eyes accustom themselves to the gloom of the hut. Like most peasants’ huts, the interior had a raised wooden floor with two cutouts with dirt floors. One cutout was by the entrance, so people could sit on the edge of the raised floor to take off their sandals, and the other was in the center of the hut, where a charcoal fire could be built for warmth and cooking. The fire was just glowing embers and white ash, showing that Aoi hadn’t even made her morning meal yet, but the hut was still filled with lingering hints of smoke.
Kaze sat on the wooden floor and removed his sandals. He placed the jug of sake next to him, and when Aoi had stirred up the fire, she scurried over to pick up the jug. She removed the cloth cover and wooden stopper from the jug and poured some of the sweet sake into a flask. She placed the flask into a metal pot of water that she had hanging over the fire. She looked at Kaze and smiled, then she filled a second and third flask, placing them into the water.
Aoi prepared a small plate of food. “It will just be a minute for the sake to warm,” she said. “Please sit down and relax.” She put a zabuton cushion on the floor.
Kaze moved to the cushion and sank down. Aoi moved to his side, placing the plate before him.
“What a surprise,” she said. “I’ve seen you in the village. It’s hard to miss such a handsome and manly samurai!”
Kaze said nothing. Aoi leaned into him, the edge of her kimono negligently hanging open so Kaze could see the curve of her breast. “I’ve been hoping you would visit me,” she said in almost a whisper. She placed her hand on his arm. “You are so good-looking, and a gentleman, too. The whole village knows you saved the life of the charcoal seller.” She sighed. “I’m sure all the girls fall in love with you! Handsome, kind, and I’m sure virile and generous!” She rubbed his arm softly.
“No,” Kaze said, extracting his arm from her grasp. “Not handsome, not a gentleman, and too poor to be generous. And today, not even virile. I just wanted some company while I drank my troubles away.”
The smile dropped from Aoi’s face. Kaze took a small, paper-wrapped bundle from his sleeve and placed it down before her. It made a pleasant clink as the coins stacked inside the paper hit each other. “Of course, I intend to pay you for your company.” The smile returned to her face.
“Oh, you don’t have to do that,” Aoi said as she scooped up the bundle and placed it in her sleeve. “It’s my pleasure to drink with you!”
“I’m glad,” Kaze said, amused. “I feel like some company today.”
Aoi returned to the kettle and tested the temperature of one of the flasks. She looked over her shoulder, “Not really warm enough yet,” she said, “but let’s start anyway!” She took the flask out of the water and brought it and two tiny sake cups to Kaze on a woven tray.
She poured two glasses of sake from the flask and handed Kaze his cup, holding the cup with both hands, bowing slightly, and saying, “Dozo! Please!”
Kaze took the cup and sipped the tepid wine. “Ahh!” he said, smacking his lips. “I needed that!”
Aoi filled Kaze’s cup again before picking up her own. She tossed hers down with a practiced hand. “Oishi! Tastes good!” Aoi said. She picked up the flask and poured herself another drink. “Now, if I can’t make you feel better in other ways, why don’t you at least tell me your troubles?”
Kaze looked at her over the rim of his cup. “It’s very frightening.” He finished his drink and held his cup out for Aoi to refill it.
“What’s frightening?” Aoi asked, puzzled. She pick up the flask, shook it slightly to judge the amount of liquor still in it, and filled Kaze’s cup.
“All the things that are happening.”
“What’s happening?”
Aoi expected Kaze to talk about the brigands and the attempt on his life, which the brigands had told her about. Instead, he leaned toward her, his voice a hoarse whisper, and said, “Ghosts!”
Aoi, who was in the process of fishing another flask out of the pot of warm water, paused. “Ghosts?”
“Yes.” Kaze shook his head. “It seems to get worse every place I go, and I think this District may get to be the worst yet.”
“What are you talking about, samurai-sama?”
“On the way here I passed through a village where a kappa had stolen a child. Do you know what a kappa is?”
Aoi, her eyes wide, shook her head no.
“It’s a disgusting creature, all slimy and white. It looks like a jellyfish made into a man. It lives in water or wet places, such as in deep ponds or the still water under a bridge. It has a saucer, made of flesh, growing out of the top of its head.” Kaze touched the top of his head to illustrate his point.
“What for?”
“The saucer contains water. As long as the kappa is near water, he can’t be defeated, so he carries some with him always. The only way to kill him is to knock him off his feet, so the water spills out of the saucer. Then you can kill him.”
“You … you’ve seen such a creature?”
“Of course. I once killed one, but the one in the village near here was too strong for me. I had to leave him, despite the fact that he will steal more children.”
“What do they do with the children they steal?”
“No one knows. The children are found dead, floating in a pond or river, usually drowned, but no one knows what the kappa does with them.” Kaze looked around, as if making sure they were alone in the hut. “I think they mate with the children before they drown them, and that’s where new kappa come from.”