Tuesday of the Dead...
What the heck is that all about?
Well, nothing much happened today. I still haven't figured out my Java errors. I studied the Web Design Fundamentals stuff today. Yippee. Now I just have to make the drive to Omaha to take that test.
Since nothing exciting happened today, I decided to post another part of the story. If you don't wanna read it, that's cool. Just scroll down to the bottom of the post and look at the interesting stuff there!
“This much is known, Yonaha-san,” Ashida said, “there is a boy named Hikaru living at the Nakamura dojo and he is the son of Yoshihiro. The boy is almost 15 years old and has been ill since an injury occurred during lessons about two weeks ago.”
Yonaha sipped his tea. He had returned to Kamakura with the person physician of Nakamura. “I see,” he said. “Any word of the manner of illness or of the boy’s mother?”
“Nothing on the illness and nothing on the mother. I have asked around town, but no one seems to know the answers to my questions.”
Yonaha sighed. “Things like that require one to be discreet. A delicate touch is needed.”
Ashida laughed, “You’re right, of course, Yonaha-san. I probably have made them more aware than what Nakamura-sama would like.”
“Yes, and if we’re lucky, you won’t have frightened them into closing the gate against us.”
Yonaha was not happy with his comrade. “This is important to Nakamura-san. He is most anxious to meet his grandson.”
“I know,” Ashida said. He was distracted briefly by the arrival of the man from the dojo. The one Yonaha had identified as Takeda, a close friend of the late Nakamura Yoshihiro. “Yonaha-san, there. It’s the man from the dojo.”
Yonaha had already noticed Takeda. “Yes, I wonder what he is doing here when his young master is ill.”
The two men watched as Takeda went to meet a man at another table. They could not hear the conversation, but watched as some papers were produced and signed by both parties.
Ashida broke the silence and said, “I wonder what that was all about. It looked like a business deal.”
“You’re right. It did.” Yonaha took another sip of his tea and watched as the large, clumsy youth that worked at the inn went to Takeda and whispered something to him. Takeda nodded in reply and he left the inn.
“They’re up to something,” Ashida said.
“I agree,” Yonaha replied. “Shall I find out?”
“No, leave this to me. I have my ways of finding things. You go and watch the dojo. Do not approach. Just watch. I will return here at sundown. Meet me then and let me know if anything has happened.” Ashida left the table and disappeared into the marketplace.
Yonaha made his way to the dojo and found an out of the way place to watch.
***
The sun had gone down some time ago, and Yonaha was still watching the Nakamura dojo. He had been there much of the afternoon and nothing much had happened for most of the time he watched. Nothing much until the large youth from the inn went into the dojo. That was why he was still watching a while after the time he had agreed to meet with Ashida.
“There you are, Yonaha-san,” Ashida said as he approached. “You stayed too long. Why weren’t you at the inn?”
“The large boy from the inn went in before sunset,” Yonaha said. “He has not come out.”
Ashida looked at the dojo with narrowed eyes. “I see. I have heard the boys are friends, so he may just be visiting a sick friend. However, I think there is more to it. Have you noticed how the boy seems to be watching us when we’re at the inn?”
“Now that you mention it, he does seem to be watching us. He’s spying on us, isn’t he?”
“More than likely. But let us not worry about that now. Let’s return to the inn and I will tell you what I learned today.”
The two men returned to the inn and met in the room of Ashida instead of talking in the open eatery.
“What have you learned, Ashida-san?” Yonaha asked as soon as the door was closed.
Ashida went to the window and closed it. He turned to his comrade and said, “The Nakamura dojo is running in the red. It seems Master Yoshihiro left many debts with local merchants when he went off to battle, leaving a boy of barely fifteen years to run the dojo.”
“But there’s that servant.”
“Yes, but he’s just a servant. He can’t make any decisions about the dojo. Those must be the responsibility of the boy. He may be acting as a go-between right now.”
“Go-between… for the boy and the man we saw earlier.” Yonaha stopped to think. “What are they doing? You don’t think… you do, don’t you?”
Ashida looked up with a smile. “You figured it out? I think they’re selling the dojo to cover the debts. A boy of fifteen can’t run the place even if there’s a servant to help him.”
“But he surely would want to keep the dojo and let someone else run it, wouldn’t he? He’s probably been training in sword art since he could walk.”
“That’s what I thought, but I found out something interesting. The Nakamura boy is not sick. He was injured during a practice session.”
“I know that already. Perhaps his injury was serious.”
“I thought that as well, but I found out that the large boy from this inn is the one that injured him. He knocked him out with a bokken. Nakamura-kun was unconscious for days. A priest was even called in.”
“A priest? Was the injury really that serious? How did you find all this out?”
Ashida smiled again. “I spoke to the local doctor. Ply him with enough sake and he’ll tell everything. The doctor is the one that suggested the priest see the boy. The truly interesting thing was why the priest was called in.”
Yonaha was beginning to have his doubts about what Ashida was saying, but he was curious about why the priest was summoned. “Why did the doctor ask for a priest? Was the boy dying?”
“No, not even close. The doctor said young Nakamura woke once and his eyes were glowing an unnatural green color. The priest was called to exorcise the demons plaguing the boy.”
“Demons,” Yonaha said with a snort. “The boy was possessed by demons. Forgive me, but that is too much to believe. You said the doctor could be plied with sake. It sounds like the ramblings of a drunk.”
“It’s what the doctor said.”
Yonaha rubbed his eyes. “Well, I am hungry and am going to get something to eat. Tomorrow I am sending a cable to Nakamura-san. He asked me to keep him updated on things here.” He stood up to leave.
Ashida stopped him before he could leave. “Don’t send the cable until afternoon,” he said. “Let’s see what else we can learn about the dojo first. Those are the instructions I received.”
“All right. We’ll see what else there is to see. Now, I’m going to go eat.” Yonaha left the room and went to the dining area. He did not like the way Ashida was handling the issue of the dojo and Nakamura’s grandson. Instead of stopping to eat, he decided to go to the dojo himself and try to speak with the man called Takeda and the boy, if possible.
Okay... time to spark up my social life by dating anime guys again!
Well. Now that I've either bored you all or confused you all, I will shuffle off in search of true excitement... or sleep.
And, SunfallE, the current location of the Edge of Sanity is northwestern Iowa. One would have to be insane or damn close to live here in the cultural backwaters of the Universe!
Laters!
Remember: Kitty Heaven is Mousie Hell!!!
