The Harsh Cry of the Heron (19 page)

‘With great success,’
Zenko said, ‘Dr Ishida has saved Lord Otori from death on many occasions.’

‘My father always had
the highest regard for your skill,’ Kono said to Ishida.

‘You flatter me
unduly. My skill is negligible.’

Taku thought Ishida
would say no more on the matter, but after another deep draught of wine the
doctor went on, ‘Of course, Lord Otori’s case is quite fascinating, from the
point of view of a man like myself who is interested in the workings of the
human mind.’ He paused, drank deeply, then leaned forward and said
confidentially, ‘Lord Otori believes no one can kill him - he has made himself
immortal.’

‘Indeed?’ Kono
murmured. ‘That sounds a little grandiose. Is it some kind of a delusion?’

‘In a way, yes. A
very useful one. There was some prophecy made - Taku, you were there when your
poor uncle—’

‘I don’t remember,’
Taku said swiftly. ‘Chikara, how do you feel about a sea voyage with a kirin?’

Chikara gulped at
being addressed directly by his uncle, and before he could reply, Zenko
inquired, ‘What prophecy?’

‘That Lord Otori can
only die at the hands of his own son.’ Ishida drank again. ‘Why was I talking
about that? Oh yes, the effects of strong belief on the body. He believes he
cannot be killed, and his body responds by healing itself.’

‘Fascinating,’ Kono
said smoothly. ‘Lord Otori does seem to have survived many attacks on his life.
Have you known other similar cases?’

‘Well, yes,’ Ishida
said, ‘in my travels in Tenjiku, where there are holy men who can walk on flame
and not get burned, and lie on beds of nails with no harm to their skin.’

‘Did you know of
this, brother?’ Zenko demanded quietly, while Kono pressed Ishida for more
traveller’s tales.

‘It is no more than a
popular superstition,’ Taku said lightly, inwardly wishing all the torments of
Hell on the drunken doctor. ‘The Otori family are the target of endless gossip
and speculation.’

‘My sister was the
subject of such hearsay,’ Hana said. ‘She was supposed to bring death to any
man who desired her, but Lord Takeo has survived the danger quite well. Heaven
be thanked,’ she added, glancing at Taku.

The laughter that
followed was slightly uncomfortable, as more than one person present recalled
that Lord Fujiwara had married Kaede, against her will, and had not survived.

‘Yet everyone knows
of the Five Battles,’ Zenko went on. ‘And the earthquake - "Earth delivers
what Heaven desires."‘ He saw Kono’s quizzical look and explained, ‘A
prophecy was made by a holy woman, which was confirmed by Takeo’s victories in
the war. The earthquake was held to be a sign from Heaven, favouring him.’

‘Yes, so he told me,’
Kono said, mockery in his voice. ‘So convenient for the victor to have a useful
prophecy to hand.’ He drank and then said more seriously, ‘In the capital an
earthquake is usually seen as a punishment for evil conduct, not a reward.’

Taku did not know
whether to speak and reveal to Kono where his loyalties lay, or to say nothing
and seem to be in support of his brother. He was rescued by Ishida, who spoke
with great emotion. ‘The earthquake saved my life. And that of my wife. In my
opinion the evil were punished.’

Tears sprang into his
eyes, and he wiped them away on his sleeve. ‘Forgive me, I did not mean to
insult the memory of either of your fathers.’ He turned to Hana. T should
retire. I am very tired. I hope you will excuse an old man.’

‘Of course, Father,’
she said, addressing him with courtesy, for he was her husband’s stepfather. ‘Chikara,
take grandfather to his room and tell the maids to assist him.’

‘I’m afraid he had a
little too much to drink,’ she apologized to Kono after the boy had helped the
doctor to his feet and they had left.

‘He is a most
interesting man. I am sorry he is to go to Hagi. I hoped to have many conversations
with him. He knew my father better than anyone alive, I think.’

And was fortunate not
to die at bis hands, Taku thought.

‘The prophecy is
interesting, is it not?’ Kono said. ‘Lord Otori has no sons, I believe.’

‘He has three
daughters,’ Taku said.

Zenko laughed, a
short, conspiratorial burst. ‘Officially,’ he said. ‘There is more gossip about
Takeo . . . but I must not be indiscreet!’

Kono raised his
eyebrows. ‘Well, well!’ he said.

As Kenji would say,
that’s torn it, Taku thought. Uncle, what am I going to do without you?

Miyoshi Kahei
accompanied Takeo to Hagi with his eldest son, Katsunori. The city was his
hometown, and he was glad to have the chance to see his relatives. Takeo on the
other hand knew he would need Kahei’s advice on how best to counter the growing
threat from the capital, Miyako, from the Emperor and his general, how he
should spend the winter of preparation.

It was hard to think
of winter now, at the end of the plum rains, with all the heat of summer still
to come. Other concerns should take precedence over war: the harvest, the usual
anxieties about plague and other hot-weather illnesses and what measures could
be taken to prevent them, the conservation of water in case of late summer
drought. But all of these matters lost their urgency when he allowed himself to
think of seeing Kaede and his daughters.

They rode across the
stone bridge at the end of a day of sun and showers, like the fox’s wedding.
Takeo was aware of the clammy cling of his clothes: he had been soaked to the skin
so often on the journey he could hardly remember how it felt to be dry. Even
the lodging places had been humid, smelling of damp and mildew.

Over the sea, the sky
was a clear translucent blue, turning yellow in the west as the sun set. Behind
them, the mountains were covered in heavy clouds, and thunder rumbled, making
the horses startle despite their fatigue.

The animal he was
riding was nothing special; he missed his old horse Shun, and wondered if he
would ever find another like him. He would talk to Mori Hiroki about horses,
and also to Shigeko. If they were to go to war they would need more horses . .
. but he did not want to go to war.

Kahei and his son
left him at the gate. He dismounted in the main bailey: the horses were led
away, and, taking only Sunaomi, he walked through the gardens. Word had gone
ahead to the castle. Kaede waited for him on the long veranda that surrounded
the residence. The sound of the sea filled the air, and doves were calling from
the roofs. Her face was alight with joy.

‘We did not expect
you so soon! What weather to ride in! You must be exhausted. And you are
soaking wet.’

The pleasure her
affectionate scolding roused in him was so intense that for a moment he wanted
to stand there for ever. Then it was replaced by the desire to hold her, to
lose himself in her. But first the news must be broken, to Kaede, to Shizuka.

Shigeko came running
from the interior of the residence. ‘Father!’ she cried, and knelt herself to
remove his sandals. Then she noticed the boy, who was standing back in shyness.

‘Can this be our
cousin?’ she said.

‘Yes, Sunaomi is
going to live with us for a while.’

‘Sunaomi!’ Kaede
exclaimed. ‘But why? Is his mother all right? Has something happened to Hana?’

He saw her concern
for her sister and wondered how much he could tell her of his suspicions.

‘She is well,’ he
replied. ‘I will tell you the reasons for Sunaomi’s visit later.’

‘Of course. Come
inside. You must bathe at once, and put on dry clothes. Lord Takeo, do you
think you are still eighteen years old? You take no concern for your health!’

‘Is Shizuka here?’ he
inquired as Kaede led him along the veranda to the rear of the residence, where
a pool had been constructed around a hot spring.

‘Yes, what has
happened?’ Kaede glanced up at his face and said, ‘Shigeko, tell Shizuka to
come to us shortly. Ask the maids to bring clothes for your father.’

Shigeko’s face was
serious as she bowed and left them. He could hear her light tread on the
boards; he heard her speak to her sisters. ‘Yes, Father is home. But you are
not to go to him yet. Come with me. We are to find Shizuka.’

They were alone. The
light was leaching from flowers and shrubs. Around the pools and streams a late
iris or two gleamed. Sky and sea merged into each other in the mist of evening.
Around the bay fires and lamps began one by one to sprinkle the darkness. Kaede
said nothing as she helped him remove his clothes.

‘Muto Kenji is dead,’
he said.

She took water from
the pool in a bamboo bucket and began to wash him. He saw tears begin to form
in her eyes and spill down over her cheeks. Her touch was both soothing and
almost unbearable. Every part of his body seemed to hurt. He longed for her to
put her arms around him and hold him, but first he had to speak to Shizuka.

Kaede said, ‘It is a
terrible loss. How did it happen? Did he succumb to the sickness?’

He heard himself say,
‘It seems mostly likely. He was travelling beyond the borders. There are no
clear details. Taku came to tell me in Hofu.’

He did not linger as
long as he would have liked in the hot water, but emerged and dressed quickly. ‘I
must speak to Shizuka alone,’ he told Kaede.

‘Surely you have no
secrets from me?’

‘They are Tribe
matters,’ he said. ‘Kenji was the Master of the Muto family. Shizuka is going
to have to choose his successor. It is not to be discussed with outsiders.’

He saw that she was
not pleased, that she wanted to stay with him.

‘There are many other
things you and I need to talk about,’ he said to placate her. ‘We will be alone
later. I must tell you about Sunaomi. And I had a visit from Lord Fujiwara’s
son—’

‘Very well, Lord
Takeo. I will order a meal to be prepared for you,’ she said, and left him.

When he returned to
the main room of the residence, Shizuka was already there. He spoke without any
preliminary greeting. ‘No doubt you can guess why I am here. I have come to
bring you the news that your uncle is dead. Taku came to Hofu to tell me, and I
thought you should know at once.’

‘Such news is never
welcome,’ Shizuka replied formally, ‘but it is not unexpected. I thank you,
cousin, for your thoughtfulness, and for your honouring my uncle in this way.’

‘I think you know
what he has been to me. We have no corpse, but we will further honour him with
a ceremony here or in Yamagata, whichever you think is the most fitting.’

‘I thought he might
have died in Inuyama,’ she said slowly. ‘He was living there, was he not?’

No one had known of
Kenji’s mission save he himself and Taku. He regretted now that he had not told
Shizuka earlier. ‘Come closer,’ he said. ‘I must tell you all I know, because
it affects the Tribe.’

Before she could
move, a maid came with tea. Shizuka poured it for him. While Takeo drank she
rose, looked quickly around the room, opened the closet doors, then stepped
onto the veranda and peered beneath it.

She came back to
Takeo and sat before him, knee to knee. ‘Can you hear anyone breathing?’

He listened. ‘No, we
seem to be alone.’

‘Your daughters have
become adept eavesdroppers, and can hide themselves away in the narrowest of
spaces.’

‘Thank you. I do not
want my daughters or my wife to overhear us. I told Kaede Kenji died from the
lung illness; that he had gone to seek treatment beyond the Eastern borders.’

‘And the truth?’

‘He went to try to
negotiate with the Kikuta. After the episode at Inuyama we thought we might use
Gosaburo’s children to put pressure on them to make a truce.’ He sighed, and
went on. ‘Kenji wanted to see Yuki’s child, his grandson. Taku knows only that
he died in the Kikuta village where Akio and the boy have been hiding for some
years.’

‘Takeo, you should
tell Kaede all this . . .’

He did not allow her
to continue. T am telling you because it concerns the Muto family, of which you
are now the senior member. There is no need for Kaede, or anyone outside the
Tribe, to know.’

‘Better she should
hear it from you than from anyone else,’ Shizuka said.

‘I have kept it all
secret for too long to be able to speak of it to her now. It is all past: the
boy is Akio’s son; my daughter is my heir. In the meantime, there is the
question of the Muto family and the Tribe. Kenji and Taku worked closely
together: Kenji’s knowledge and skills were unparalleled. Taku has great
skills, but I think you will agree there is a certain unsteadiness about him: I
wonder if he is old enough to lead the Tribe. Zenko is your older son, and
Kenji’s direct heir, and I do not want to insult and annoy him, or give him any
pretext for—’ He broke off.

‘For what?’ Shizuka
prompted him.

‘Well, I think you
know how much your son resembles his father. I am worried about his intentions.
I do not intend to allow him to return us to civil war again.’ He spoke with
intensity, then smiled at Shizuka and went on more lightly, ‘So I have arranged
for his sons to spend some time with us. I thought you would like to see your
grandsons.’