Pathway to Japanese Literature

On the morning of September 13, Kyōhō 18 [1733], at the edge of Shiochō in Yotsuya where he maintained a small dojo to instruct in the Gisei-ryū school of swordsmanship, Suzuki Dennai was drinking tea in the inner tea room while viewing the autumn grasses in the landscaped garden when his son Mondo entered and began casually gazing at the garden.

When he asked, “Are you going up now?” his son nodded amiably and replied, “Yes, I will go up.”

Dennai had long perceived roughly what Mondo was thinking and what he intended to do, but upon seeing that uncharacteristically fabricated smile, he felt: "Today is finally the day."
Today, there was to be a Later Moon-Viewing banquet at the lower villa in Ike-no-Hashi, but Mondo was resolved to commit decisive violence before His Lordship.
Since their hearts were in accord, there had been no need to leave words now, but he wanted to confirm only those matters pertaining to the examination of bushido - that the end might not become too wretched.
No matter what acts of impropriety one might commit, there was this dread - that one must absolutely never transgress those things forbidden between lord and vassal.

Descended from Suzuki Densuke of Mikawa who distinguished himself in the Uesugi Campaign, they had served the Sakakibara clan for generations as foot soldier captains; but Dennai, being an eminent disciple of Akizuki Noritsuna at Kanda Otamagaike and a master of Gisei-ryū who also skillfully wielded the spear of Mugenmukyū-ryū, came to be promoted to head guard and chamberlain during the time of the previous lord Masasuke, receiving a stipend of seven hundred koku.

Mondo was Dennai's only child, having served as Masasuke's page since his forelock-wearing days when he was called Ko-Mondo. Born with exceptional looks, he grew into such a beautiful youth that even the renowned young courtesans of Fukuya-chō would cover their faces with their sleeves in bashfulness when before him. For this, he received favor and was selected as a close attendant, granted an honorary stipend of one hundred koku.
Mondo's beauty at that time seems to have been unparalleled.
His skin was alabaster white as if shedding its outer layer, his frame slender, with long lashes that even women would envy framing eyes of such exquisite beauty they seemed to swim in liquid.
He was neither artificial like a doll nor static like a painting, possessing instead an innate elegance and graceful charm that, once witnessed, lingered long in memory and proved impossible to forget.

This recounts his days as a close attendant: his hair tightly bound in a large topknot with white paper cord; white satin undergarments beneath a brown unpatterned kosode kimono bearing the family crest; a stiff Hakata silk obi with solitary vajra motifs at the waist; Sendai-hira trousers lined with indigo-striped fabric; a black crested haori fastened high on the chest with white cords; oversized long and short swords at his hip with seven-tenths coral beads adorning their stamped leather fittings; white tabi socks and auspicious sandals; a winter bamboo whip bearing crimson tassels gripped like reins as he rode daily to Mikawadai riding grounds with grooms in tow - this figure radiated such imperious beauty that even habituated townsfolk along his route would reportedly feel breathless constriction in their chests each time, habitually lowering their gaze rather than endure his overwhelming presence.

Dennai was a swordsman said to have been one of the Three Eminent Disciples under Akizuki Noritsuna, but he entrusted Mondo to his elder brother Ogasawara Jūzaemon—who operated a Taihei Shinkyō-ryū dojo in Kōjimachi Sanbanchō—having him study archery under Takasu Jūrōbee of the Chikurin school, jujutsu under Yoshioka Jirōemon of the Kōshin-ryū style, and horsemanship under Tsuruoka Tankyō of the Ōtsubo tradition.

In the spring of Kyōhō 10 [1725], Mondo underwent his coming-of-age ceremony, was appointed Commander of Thirty Matchlocks, received a stipend of 200 koku, and that same year married Yasushi, second daughter of the domain's Supply Magistrate Akira Shigesaburō.
The following year she gave birth to Taro; soon after came O-Toku.

On August 29 of Kyōhō 17 [1732], Masasuke died, and the fourth son of the branch family's Sakakibara Katsunao came to inherit the 150,000-koku Himeji domain under the name Shikibu-no-taifu Masamine.
He was called Ōsuga Tanomo - a dependent guest retainer of the main house who had been receiving three hundred koku in support rice - but when his elder brother Katsuyuki died prematurely years prior, he was suddenly elevated to a one-thousand-koku direct shogunal retainer; now with Masasuke's death came hasty adoption, whereupon he abruptly rose to become castle lord of Himeji in Harima Province.

In October, the inheritance of family headship was completed, Takehime—second daughter of Nosé Inaba-no-kami—was welcomed as official wife, and there were new land grants, stipend increases, and position changes.
Until now, even through successions of lordship, there had been no significant personnel changes; but this time, through decisive official action, all retainers who had served the previous lord—from Senior Inspector and Chief Guard down through council members, guard captains, chamberlains, to the lowest pages—were without exception removed from the lord's inner circle and replaced with branch family attendants styled as "Young Lord's Retainers" and former guest-retainer chamberlain pages.
Though terms like "Chief Guard" and "Chamberlain" sounded imposing, all were promoted from Noh chanters, kyōgen performers, renga and haikai poets, kyōgen playwrights, and such—among them even Shimada Jūjūroku, the second son of a Shinagawa Honjuku brothel owner.
These were nothing but frivolous entertainers who considered managing revelries their duty, but the newly appointed inspector Oshihara Uchū was a rōnin from Echigo who had been dispossessed during a family dispute—a man who abandoned his position as guard lieutenant to debase himself as a Bungo narrative music shamisen player, then through Harada Budayū's recommendation attained chamberlain status under Ōsuga. Now it was said he had obtained the Senior Inspector position by presenting some girl called Oito to the lord's inner circle.

When they repeatedly investigated who could have orchestrated such drastic personnel changes in the first place, lo and behold, it became clear this scheme originated solely from Oshihara Uchū.
In February of Hōei 6 [1709], he cited the historical precedent where Ienobu dismissed all of Tsunayoshi's close retainers upon his appointment as shogun and submitted a plausible-seeming proposal—which Masamine adopted exactly as presented.
All who heard this were filled with resentment, and even hereditary retainers who had sought favor since Mikawa times—now facing such treatment overnight—began despairing of their future and requesting dismissal.

The first to break ranks was Chief Guard Tsuda Tomoemon, holder of one thousand koku, who swore an oath never to serve another house henceforth and requested dismissal; following him came Foot Soldier Captain Ogita Jingobei with four hundred fifty koku, Council Member Hira Zaemon with five hundred koku, Messenger Chief Guard Taga Ichigaku with five hundred koku, and others who tendered their resignations and withdrew in rapid succession.
Mondo’s father Dennai had been reassigned from Chief Guard and Chamberlain to Chief Accountant; but upon declining the role of Keeper of the Storehouse as beyond his capabilities, he was then formally dismissed.

Harima-no-kami Masamine, though born of a branch family, possessed a highborn lineage that left no vacant dullness in his features—indeed, his countenance was rather splendid—but his smooth, refined slender face bore such an artisan-like air that nowhere could one discern the dignified bearing befitting a lord. He spoke rapidly in a high-pitched, penetrating voice; always voiced his opinions first; interjected puns and wordplay even into serious discussions; and adopted a tone verging on mockery. He demonstrated basic competence in everything from swordsmanship, spearmanship, archery, and horsemanship to Shikata dance and Bungo narrative music—even actor's mimicry—leading people to overestimate him as a man of considerable talent; but in truth, his temperament combined strong self-will with narrow-mindedness, loving those who flattered yet detesting presumptuous advice, sometimes flying into fits of maddened rage. When intoxicated, he became unrestrained; on one occasion he shamelessly mimicked Yanonegoro's performance at Yoshiwara's thoroughfare edge, becoming the laughingstock of all.

Harima-no-kami Masamine was this sort of troublesome lord, but both Dennai and Mondo kept all they felt buried deep in their hearts; even when father and son were alone together, they never once spoke a word of criticism. To enumerate one's lord's faults was conduct unbefitting a samurai; under no circumstances would they ever engage in such behavior.

Amidst such circumstances, that year came to an end, and Kyōhō 18, the Year of the Water Ox, arrived.
In the previous year, rice crops failed in the southwestern provinces, resulting in a great famine where people starved to death.
In the early days of New Year, a rice riot broke out in Edo, and there was commotion over transporting Ōshū rice to distribute as relief provisions; but Masamine went out to Yoshiwara in company with Muneharu, Junior Third Rank Gon-Chūnagon and Lord of Owari Nagoya Castle—who had also recently inherited family headship—where they indulged in extreme extravagance that became the talk of all Edo.

Since the Tenna era when Tsunayoshi prohibited daimyō and direct shogunal retainers from entering pleasure quarters through his Fifteen-Article Code for the Military Houses, not only had fifty years passed since any daimyō were last seen in Yoshiwara, but the outlandish costumes of their entourage—from Harada Budayū down to Haraya no Kohatchi, Yuya no Gohei, and Nezu no Sanbu—became such spectacles that the incident grew all the more notorious.
At that time when the general fashion was to blend sideburns and bind hair tightly, they instead outrageously piled high their topknots, fashioned their forelocks in needle-straight styles secured with paper cords, let scarlet crepe underrobe collars protrude two sun from the sleeves of long kosode that nearly dragged on the ground, wore informal kimono with long wakizashi swords and single medicine cases—such bizarre appearances could hardly avoid attracting attention; yet both the Lord of Owari and Lord of Himeji paraded bare-faced without woven hats between the Chaya and Miura-ya establishments, displaying the utmost audacious nonchalance.

There was also this incident.
On the eleventh day of that same New Year, when they invited Lord Owari, Sakai Hyūga-no-kami, Sakai Daigaku-no-kami, Matsudaira Settsu-no-kami, and others to the lower villa at Ike-no-Hashi for the customary Armor Celebration, during the height of drunken revelry they carried out a massive Ōshima platform bearing an awe-inspiring replica of Mount Hōrai requiring sixteen bearers. As Lord Harima clapped his hands, the mountain split in two, revealing twelve or thirteen dancers wearing heavenly crowns and hunting robes with gaping sleeves who performed the Kōwaka dance to the verse: "Fifty years of human life—compared to the realm below heaven—are but a fleeting dream."

That might have sufficed, but to the inspector who had come for the investigation, Masamine declared he would treat them to something unusual that day: he hung a curtain in the upper alcove of the study, made his concubine Oito play the shamisen as he performed a section of Bungo narrative music, changed into informal attire and emerged,

“Whenever Your Gloominess may desire.”
“Next time I’ll treat you to some narrative music.”

he said mockingly.
Inspector Yamamura Jūrōemon finally lost his composure and left with a bitter expression.

Were it mere debauchery, he might yet be spared—but he deliberately persisted in conduct that provoked the shogunate's gravest displeasure.
It came to be speculated that he harbored discontent with the shogunate's governance, and the situation had reached a perilous state where it provided pretext for their policy of dismantling feudal lords.
Even the Lord of Echigo, a member of the Tokugawa clan itself, had his domain confiscated due to inadequate governance and was confined to the remotest parts of Iyo.
However much the Sakakibara clan might be hereditary vassals, when push came to shove, there was no leniency.

Around the time Dennai had settled himself on the edge of Yotsuya, Mondo made such a remark.

“A loyal samurai performs acts devoid of loyalty yet dies convinced of his devotion.”
“Good people vie at the cost of their lives, making the world increasingly difficult.”
“How pitiful.”

“Explain yourself.”

“If one clings solely to loyalty—no—if there are only good people, neither country nor household can be sustained.”
“Within the Sakakibara clan lies a dearth of wicked men—this humble one believes that very absence constitutes the wellspring of its misfortune.”

With that, he departed.

The implications ran too deep for Dennai to grasp immediately, but after some time, he came to understand.

Kuroda Uemon no Suke Tadayuki, successor to Kuroda Nagamasa, saw governance fall into disarray as his extravagant misconduct accumulated—with incidents provoking shogunate displeasure such as constructing the Phoenix ship and establishing new foot soldier units—compounded by having held confidential talks with Suruga Dainagon Tadachika, who harbored grievances against the shogunate, thereby drawing intense scrutiny. Kuriyama Daizen devised a desperate stratagem, accusing Tadayuki of treason by compiling fifty-six articles of indictment against his own lord and taking the case before the shogunate. Through this confrontation, he ultimately compelled the authorities to confirm Tadayuki's lack of rebellious intent, thereby narrowly preserving the Kuroda house. For a samurai, there is no greater sacrifice than bearing the infamy of disloyalty and treachery. It was Kuriyama Daizen—who endured lifelong ineradicable infamy while upholding scrutiny of the samurai code—that Ōishi Kuranosuke praised as the peerless loyal retainer; he surmised this was what Mondo had meant.

Mondo seemed to harbor some resolve within his heart.
This could be understood from how his daily conduct and manner of speech had somehow changed of late.
Mondo was already a father of two children and no longer resembled the youth whose beauty had flowed like water from the days when he wore his hair in a grand topknot.
His face retained its thin-skinned beauty that still drew eyes, but his shoulders had broadened and stature increased until his formal kamishimo now fit snugly.
The dark shadow of beard growth showed no slackness about his mouth; his deep voice seeped sparingly from tightly pressed lips—every aspect now appearing thoroughly composed.
Though naturally gentle and never abrasive, his recent manner had grown particularly mild—movements acquiring rounded softness until his bearing swayed tenderly as spring grasses bending in wind.

As for what resolve Mondo harbored, even Dennai could not plumb its depths; yet here was this inexperienced youth—when even the veteran retainers who had long sought favor found no mercy and all withdrew to scatter—displaying a glimmer of determination; it left him with a sensation akin to beholding something unfathomable. He didn't know what scheme Mondo was plotting, but it didn't seem likely to succeed in his hands. In both upper and lower residences, those of unknown pedigree who until yesterday had scraped by singing ballads or playing festival music now swelled in black double-layered silk kimonos, wielding undue authority with shoddy long and short swords thrust through their sashes with rustic mountings. Meanwhile deep within the inner chambers, that suspicious woman Oito—posing as Oshihara Uchū's daughter—had infiltrated the lord's bedchambers, tying back her thinning sidelocks asymmetrically while wearing grand-patterned court jackets like common laborers' hanten coats in outrageous imitation of a lady-in-waiting. She brought in former associates—teahouse madams from call-out establishments, Sakaichō dancers, Kido tea house daughters, Yoshiwara child prostitutes, female jesters, ballad-singing Kohatchi—creating commotion like Nakanochō teahouses or theater greenrooms. He hadn’t witnessed it firsthand, but he could well imagine. Moreover, the newly appointed close attendants were utterly beyond comprehension. As for how perverse our lord had become—he detested proper human-like countenances, scouring instead for over a dozen deformed individuals: the cross-eyed, hare-lipped, earless, and noseless. To rōnin-turned-brawlers like Tagaiko Jūjirō and Seizō Gorobei he gave outlandish nicknames like Red Demon and Black Demon, appointing them as overseers of his close attendants with outrageous stipends of two hundred koku—a preposterous state of affairs.

That the hereditary retainers who had long sought favor abruptly requested dismissal and withdrew was not without cause.
Through repeated precedents, they had come to know that once a house descended into disorder, no matter what measures one took, it would inevitably end in the family's dissolution.
Ultimately, this was the manifestation of a demonic realm where grievances and malice fueled Asura's raging inferno—a place devoid of reason or morality.
Needless to say, this was no domain where human sentiments could hold sway.
In the parable of plucking chestnuts from flames, should one act with half-hearted resolve, mere injury would prove insufficient recompense.
Whatever design Mondo might have nurtured, its success appeared far from assured.

Dennai observed the serene profile of Mondo gazing at clusters of bush clover flowers from beside him, but noticed that Mondo’s attire today bore a gaudy flair verging on frivolity.

The thin crested kimono and brown hakama trousers were his daily court garments, yet pale pink undergarments peeking out from the sleeves' edges struck him as incongruous.
Upon closer inspection, Mondo had shaved his forelock unusually wide like a theater actor’s and styled his topknot in a needle-straight narrow fashion, presenting a ridiculous sight.
As this had never occurred before, Dennai first wanted to inquire what shift in mindset had caused this.

“Tonight, I hear there is to be a later moon-viewing banquet.”

"That is correct."

"That was an unexpected piece of good fortune."

"What do you mean by 'good fortune'?"

"I hear that when Noro Kanbei stormed into Nichiun Pavilion to slay Oguri Mimasaka, it was also during a moon-viewing banquet."
"In mansion raids, there are orthodox and unorthodox methods."
"It goes without saying that one must act according to the occasion in either case, but limiting the targeted enemy to just one person is the established rule."
"It appears Noro fell short because he lacked understanding in that area."
"Now then—is it a man or a woman you intend to kill?"

“This is quite unexpected.”
“I have no desire to kill any man or woman.”

“The other day, when you visited Akira’s residence, I hear you remarked that the Thirteenth-Day Moon-Viewing would be a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.”
“What are you talking about?”

“It concerns the fact that I am to perform a group dance at tonight’s banquet.”

“A group dance.”
“Who?”

“This humble one.”

“Can you even perform a dance?”

“This humble one has been learning the dance from Kōwaka Hidehira of late.”
“This humble one shall have the honor of presenting it to you once.”

“What manner of resolve lies behind this?”

“When entering a village, follow its customs.
Were I not to do so, I could not discharge my duties.”

“Then—that mask and costume—they’re for performing this dance?”

“That is correct.”

Dennai stared fixedly at Mondo's face, then barked in a booming voice,

"You fool!"

With this rebuke, he violently rose from his seated position and stormed away.

The guests that night included Lord Muneharu of Owari; Sakai, Governor of Hyūga; Matsudaira, Governor of Izumi; Matsudaira, Assistant Captain of the Left Gate Guards; among the relatives were Nose, Governor of Inaba; Sakakibara Shichirōemon; and Sakakibara Daizen.

When the moon rose, they moved to the large hall on the second floor overlooking Shinobazu Pond, where a lively banquet commenced. As Lady Oito—the beloved concubine wearing a dawn-dyed kosode kimono with crimson bush clover patterns at its hem and fastened with a white brocade obi—danced the lunar spirit while reflecting moonlight on her golden fan, from the lower seats of the adjacent chamber where the attending retainers waited,

“You wench! Prancing about so brazenly, thinking none are wise to you!”

A voice cried out.

The first shout was drowned out by the shamisen and koto music, noticed only by those nearby, but when it continued—three more times in a deep voice—this time it reached everyone’s ears clearly.

The singing and music ceased abruptly, and from the upper seats of the hall - now as still as a windless sea - Harima-no-kami glared toward the adjacent chamber with a pallid face contorted in irritation,

“The one who just uttered something—step forward.”

he said in a voice like grinding teeth.

Mondo had been sitting behind his peers with his hands on his knees and head bowed, but when addressed thus, he could neither flee nor hide.
"Hah!" he exclaimed, crawling forward on his knees to the very threshold of the hall before prostrating himself there.

“Who are you? State your name.”

Harima-no-kami slapped his knee and rebuked sternly.
Mondo raised his face and answered.

“Honorable Firearms Thirty Commander, Suzuki Mondo, at your service.
I humbly beseech you to kindly remember this one’s name.”

“That’s too fine a face for a gun-bearer.
I distinctly heard you utter something about the dancing woman.
Repeat what you said there.”

“The foolish words this lowly one spoke in the heat of the moment—I humbly beseech you to disregard them.”

“I won’t accept ‘in the heat of the moment’.
You wouldn’t have said the same thing three times without some intention behind it.
I will hear it. Speak without concealment.”

Mondo pressed himself even lower to the ground and stated that he could not possibly speak of such matters in the presence of esteemed guests, humbly requesting leniency. At this, Lord Muneharu of Owari began smirking while casting meaningful glances toward Lady Oito.
The assembled company, taking this as nothing but an unexpected diversion, paused their drinking and assumed postures of attentive listening.
As this back-and-forth of demands and refusals continued, Masamine grew increasingly impatient. Clutching the sword at his side, he rose to one knee with an expression so desperate it seemed he might strike at any moment. Seeing this, Mondo appeared to steel himself. "I beg forgiveness for polluting your ears," he said, "but I shall speak." And thus he began his account.

The Lady-in-Waiting present there had been a fellow dancer with whom I had become acquainted when she lived among the townsfolk under the name Oito. There came a time when mutual affection blossomed between us, and we pledged our future together—yet in time our bond frayed until meetings grew impossible. That memory had always lingered in my breast, never forgotten—but that she should now become Lord Oshihara’s adopted daughter and receive His Lordship’s favor was utterly unexpected beyond measure. I had wished to speak sincerely and convey my feelings from that time, but with the Middle Gate tightly guarded and no way to slip through unnoticed, I fretted helplessly—until one night in early July during my guard duty, when by chance we met at the edge of His Lordship’s bench. There we shared our pent-up words and fulfilled our true intent. At that time, I entrusted her with a dance fan as keepsake until we might meet again—but it ended up becoming an autumn fan, and no word has come since on the wind. “This evening, having had the honor of attending the moon-viewing banquet and watching Lady Oito’s dance from the lower seats,” I continued prostrate, “I became so enraged by its utter falseness that I lost all composure and let slip vulgar words—such is the account I have given.”

Harima-no-kami’s complexion seemed to change, but immediately assuming a jesting expression, he turned toward Lady Oito.

“Did you hear? He says he received a fan from you as a keepsake until you meet again.”

“I heard.”

“When you walked among the townsfolk, it seems you were fellow dancers with this one.”

“He did state that.”

“Cast her into the courtyard! Her colors have dulled; she appears quite unhinged. Use that fan to strike the bastard’s head!”

“But—”

“Strike him! Beat him without restraint!”

Lady Oito had been looking down, but then slumped forward and placed both hands on the tatami.

“I most humbly beg forgiveness.”

Having said this, she pressed her face against the sleeve of her dawn-hued kosode and began to cry.
Harima-no-kami pushed aside the armrest and thrust his knees forward from the cushion, glaring with fierce eyes at the nape of Lady Oito’s neck—which resembled a wilted flower.

“Is what that bastard said true? Do you recall it?”
“I can’t understand you when you’re crying. Lift your face.”

Lady Oito raised her face, then lowered her tear-dampened long eyelashes and let her eyes fall to the area around her knees.

“Is it true that you secretly met at the edge of the bench?”

“Yes.”

“And this matter of sending a fan—”

“May Your Lordship indulge himself fully.”

From the lower seats burst forth a banquet jester named Jusen.
Slickly flicking the crown of his gleaming bald pate with his fan’s tip,

“Ah! A resolution!
“Yet another artistic contrivance.
“Ogino Mansuke, Sashichi, Bekkō—all barefooted.
“And now, a verse... We’ve transformed into autumn’s children at this moonlit banquet.”

He gave a quick bow of his head.

A sumo wrestler named Tatsutagawa Seihachi burst forth; the haiku poet Teisa burst forth.
Amidst their clamorous banter, they managed to divert attention.
Harima-no-kami held a sake cup with a wry smile, but in a drained voice said to Mondo:

"You there, gun-bearer! Come here. Step forward."

Mondo advanced with trepidation.

"Sit here beside this woman."

Mondo sat beside Lady Oito as commanded.

“You make such fitting comrades in appearance—perfectly matched! Since we’re here, take them along for the dance.”
“Show me your dance.”

Then he commanded Oshihara Uchū, who waited in attendance in the lower seats.

“Tie these wretches together and make them perform a linked dance. Haratomi shall play the shamisen; Shōgorō shall sing.”

“Hah,” said Oshihara Uchū as he stood up.

Mondo was disowned, left the tenement house in Yushima, and moved to a rented house in Aoyama Gondawara. Bamboo fences had wild chrysanthemums leaning against them, presenting a lonely appearance in the aftermath of the autumn storm. Yoyogi Forest took on a bright, faded hue, and mornings began to see frost settle.

He didn’t feel particularly dejected. He felt no sorrow either. There was no particular discomfort in his body, but since that night, his mind had lost its composure. Except when sleeping, he had never removed his hakama, but these days he went about in an informal kimono, his obi still wrapped as it was. His wife O-An was sewing at the edge of the veranda while letting Taro and O-Toku play. She must have known full well the circumstances that led to his disownment, but whether she had dismissed him as a foolish husband and given up on him, she did not broach the subject even once. She was by nature a woman of strong temperament.

Mondo was sitting in a sunlit spot on the veranda, hugging his knees and gazing at the sky, but appearing utterly listless,

“Hey.”

Mondo tried calling O-An.
O-An brushed the sewing off her lap and turned toward him.
Her gaze was composed and unperturbed.

“No, it’s nothing.”

O-An took up the sewing again.

O-An was thinking something, but what that something was, Mondo could not grasp.
He could not help but feel that every woman carried within their breast something like a deep abyss—something whose bottom remained unseen no matter how one peered into it.

"I don't understand women's hearts."

Mondo muttered under his breath.

At the later moon-viewing banquet, Mondo had intended to blend into the group dance and stab Lady Oito.
However, it wasn’t necessarily limited to Lady Oito.
Whether it was Oshihara Uchū, Tasuke, or Nezu no Sanbu—anyone would have sufficed—but if they were to deliver the same wake-up call, he thought a more dramatic target would be preferable.

Mondo found it regrettable that the hereditary senior vassals responsible for governing the entire domain were retreating furtively as if fleeing in such an abrupt manner.
When one attempted to unreasonably oppose the discord within the household, it only amplified the calamity—this he had learned through bitter experience from past precedents.
To quarrel only served to foolishly announce internal discord to outsiders.
Conflict must be avoided.
The disorder within the household must be kept concealed.
If one remained and observed, grievances would inevitably arise; yet if one did not observe, there could be no opinions—thus removing oneself became the very essence of loyalty.
The thread of reasoning flowed clearly.
It passed through so clearly it seemed almost absurd, yet there remained some single element that refused to blend.
The sincerity of caring for one’s household and domain did not appear to be such a shallow thing that could be settled simply by not looking.
But when it came to what should be done, no answer came forth from Mondo’s head—yet he could not uphold his samurai honor if he continued to overlook these worthless villains running rampant.
At the very least, he wanted to make them realize that in this world a distinction existed between right and wrong.
It was from such sentiments that he had thought to stab one of those villains and deliver a wake-up call.

Around this time, it had become customary for those skilled in dance to perform group dances amidst banquets to enliven the festivities.
All those he wished to stab were among the group dance participants.
Under normal circumstances they were kept apart by the middle gate and unable to approach—but with this opportunity—there was hope of achieving his objective.

That night, Mondo had been included among the group dance participants, his partner designated as Lady Oito, and he waited in the lower seats of the adjoining room for his moment to come.
This female form was nothing more than a tool of Oshihara Uchū, yet one of the wellsprings of the clan’s decadence undeniably lay there.
Before long, Lady Oito began to dance.
A poisonous flower she was—but beautiful nonetheless.
This was the first time he had looked at her properly, but nowhere could he sense the air of the wicked woman he had heard about.
She had an innocent, youthful face that could almost be called girlish.
The shape of her limbs too was unformed.
Her dancing did not seem particularly skillful.
The fact that she was straining herself to dance proved as much.
She did not look like she was enjoying herself.
During the gestures of her dance, she made an inconspicuous sorrowful face.

As Mondo watched Lady Oito's dance gestures, the act of stabbing this woman ceased to seem like something that held much significance.
It might have some effect in awakening those villains, but it would not sever the clan's root of calamity.
The act itself would be simple.
It would be a simple matter to stab her and flee the scene, but the sight of this woman recoiling with blood gushing from her chest was not something that should be witnessed.
No matter how he looked at it, it was too brutal.

As he pondered such things, he recalled that night at the beginning of July when he had picked up the dance fan on the bench in the O-machiai.

“I don’t understand women’s hearts.”

Mondo muttered those words once more.
The secret meeting at the O-machiai bench and the dance fan were nothing but spur-of-the-moment ideas.
Though fabricated from whole cloth, he couldn't fathom what state of mind had led that woman to acquiesce.
Even now it remained an insoluble riddle.

If only he could ask someone.
Were O-An a woman of slightly broader disposition, he might have recounted that night's events in full and inquired into the true nature of such feminine hearts.
That fleeting impulse to call out to her earlier had likely sprung from this desire—a hopeless fancy all along.

With children pulled close to both sides and her body stiffened stubbornly into stone-like rigidity, Mondo watched O-An's back with a sighing sentiment. Though stripped of their stipend, they wouldn't face immediate hardship tomorrow. Their circumstances weren't so dire as to require dependence on sewing wages. They had a seamstress on retainer.

O-An, who typically appeared ill-at-ease and would promptly rise to leave, now sat obstinately in the adjoining room since morning, clumsily tracing thread patterns. Her pointed demeanor left a bitter taste. He could only think she meant to make him comprehend her silent resentments through sheer presence. If she were told of being bound hand-in-hand with Lady Oito and made to perform that buffoonish dance before the full assembly—the utter foolishness of it all—she'd surely be unable to suppress her rage. Resentful, fleeting, pitiful it would prove. Not unreasonable, he supposed—but if so, she ought to confront him directly and either vent her anger or shed tears.

As Mondo was thinking such things, O-An sent the children to the back and came to sit beside him.

While paling the area around her slightly upturned almond-shaped eyes, in a blunt tone,

"There is something I wish to discuss."

she said.

Mondo sat formally in seiza and straightened his spine.

"What kind of matter is this?"

he deliberately pressed with force.
When facing each other, their interactions inevitably took this form—such was the nature of their marriage.
There were times Mondo felt they were performing some pantomime game.

"There had been an agreement not to speak of this matter. But being told to keep it sealed within my heart alone became such a burden that my spirits grew intolerably heavy—thus I resolved to speak of it."

"Hmm," Mondo nodded.

"The other night, Lady Oito came."

Mondo looked at Yasushi's face.

“I had heard the rumors, but she was truly beautiful.”

“For what purpose?”

“As thanks for picking up the dance fan,” she said.

“I don’t believe there’s any cause for gratitude.”

“Lady Oito placed the fan on the bench during your night watch solely because she wanted you to find it. From the time Lady Oito resided near Mikawa-dai, she has admired you and never once forgotten you. Her resolve to ascend to His Lordship’s side was made solely in the hope that she might perhaps meet you,” she said. “Even while by His Lordship’s side, her heart kept reaching out only to you, and she was in a state of utter despair.”

Mondo crossed his arms and closed his eyes.

“It seems Lady Oito had been confined in the Iikura tenements, but now it had been decided she would be demoted to servant duty in Yoshiwara, so she came to bid farewell beforehand.”
“From this year onward, I hear it had become the clan’s official decree that if one commits misconduct within the household, women are sent to Yoshiwara and made to perform brothel service without term or wages.”
“‘Unless I die, I cannot leave this fleeting existence in the pleasure quarter, and though we may never meet again in this world, catching even a glimpse of your face would only leave lingering regrets—so I shall depart without meeting you. Please keep this matter in your heart alone, and do not speak of it to that person,’ she said.”

On the night of September 27th, Mondo received an urgent summons from an unknown man named Matsunaga Hisauma at Ikenohata.
The matter for discussion was written as "on the occasion of an honorable official meeting."
Without further ado, he visited the address indicated on the letter, but its sender had gone out and not yet returned.

Because he was heading to Yushima, he climbed Otokozaka slope.
Still early in the evening, boisterous patrons were making their way to Ko-goshi - a brothel in Yushima's Daikonbatake district known for its small lattice windows.
When he approached near the Itakura residence, figures swarmed forth from behind the rainwater barrels of the corner rice cake shop and the single-guard watchhouse.
There stood Oshihara Uchū, there stood Tasuke Jūjirō - Matsunami Tenshin, Seo Shōbei, Haraya no Kohatchi, Seizō Gorōbei, Nezu no Sanbu - along with five or seven monstrous young attendants and even the sumo wrestler Tachigawa among them, all crowded so densely they seemed to menace the very shadows along the plank fence.

The urgent messenger’s whereabouts had now become clear.
The matter being framed as an honorable official meeting was indeed aptly phrased.
Indeed, there could be no other outcome.

That night, when he had been disowned and was withdrawing from the upper grand hall, Lord Masamine said: “You know the samurai code. Remember this well. For clan misconduct, both parties must be struck down—this has been decreed since ancient times.”

While I had thought it biased treatment that Lady Oito should be sent to Yoshiwara for servitude while I was cast aside through disownment, if matters arrived at such circumstances, one might well say this outcome proved ultimately fitting.

Nezu no Sanbu finally lunged to strike, but his blade work showed such haphazard ineptitude—utterly laughable.

Haraya no Kohatchi was brimming with fierce aggression,

“Skree-ta-ta-twang!”

He approached with a vocalized shamisen taunt.
This he cut down with a torso strike and discarded.

This punitive action lasted about an hour and ended when the vicinity of Otokozaka slope was covered in blood.
Oshihara Uchū leapt over Otokozaka and fled into Shinbamachi but was cut down there.
That night, Mondo slew over ten men.

In August of Genbun 1 (1736), a lovers' suicide occurred at Hashimoto-ya in Naito-Shinjuku.
The man was a rōnin named Suzuki Mondo, and his partner was a courtesan named Shiraito.
There was a suicide note.

This humble one, having for many years impersonated the name of the Lord of Harima to frequent pleasure districts, am profoundly ashamed.

it was written.

On September 15th of that year, an official document bearing the joint signatures of the Senior Councilors was delivered to the caretaker official of the Sakakibara clan. Because they immediately dispatched an express messenger to Himeji, the relatives—Nosé Inaba-no-kami, Sakakibara Shichirōemon, and Daiizen of the same clan—arrived in Edo on October 12th and appeared at the shogunal headquarters on the 13th. In the Kuroshoin audience chamber, with the Senior Councilors seated in attendance, the Great Inspector Inaba Shimotsuke-no-kami presented a written order: "Due to Lord Shikibu-no-taifu’s persistent misconduct, he has been ordered to retire and must henceforth conduct himself with utmost caution; furthermore, his Ōtesaki estate shall be confiscated, and he is to reside in the lower residence at Ikenohata."

Such was the edict that had been issued.

Taking into consideration the family lineage, it was officially communicated by Honda Nakatsukasa-no-taifu, the monthly duty senior councilor, that the family headship would without fail be passed down to the legitimate heir Kodaira (eight years old that year, later Masanaga). On November 1st, they were ordered to transfer to Takada, Kubiki District, Echigo Province, and entered the domain the following year. Retired Masamine died that year at the age of thirty-one in the lower residence at Ikenohata. It is unknown how much effect Suzuki Mondo’s suicide note had, but some say that because of this, half-land confiscation was permitted. The Yanrei-bushi style of Shiraito Kudoki became popular from around the end of Genbun 2 (1737).

(First published in the November 1951 issue of All Yomimono)