The Tengu's Game of Go (9 page)

“Can I ask a question?” Ima said, smiling at Take's expression.

“You most certainly may.” Tadashii clapped Ima on the back.

“What do you plan to show me?”

“Someone has to take control here. You can't let this place just wind down and dwindle away. Everything Shisoku collected is still here. You have to learn how to use it and become the protector of the forest he was.”

“Mu could do that,” Ima replied. “Or Kiku or even Kuro. I think you'll find I have no aptitude. I can hunt; I can cook; I can forge. That's enough for me.”

“I'm not giving you a choice,” Tadashii said, irritated. “I'm telling you how it's going to be. I expect the human to be argumentative, but you should know better!”

 

7

TAMA

“You were received by the Emperor?” Lady Tama's eyes were narrowed and the tone of her voice was skeptical. She was trying to hide her annoyance with her husband. Masachika had returned to Matsutani, after weeks away, and had immediately thrown the household into a frenzy of activity with arrangements for the great hunt. Lord Aritomo himself was to attend. Tama did not mind this so much; she was used to entertaining lords and warriors of the highest rank, and the twin estates were prosperous and well managed, their fields overflowing with fresh produce, their storerooms packed with soy bean paste, rice, barley, and casks of wine. There were deep cellars where ice was preserved throughout the hot summers, and, even in the years of drought, the streams that flowed from the Darkwood never dried up. Farther into the mountains, at Kuromori, there were many natural hot springs, renowned for their healing properties.

Tama loved her land and was proud of the way she had improved it. She was excited at the prospect of displaying its riches to Lord Aritomo. But she was less thrilled by the young woman Masachika had brought with him and installed in one of the pavilions on the lake, which Tama had had rebuilt, never dreaming who would occupy it.

She was aware he must have had girls before. They were separated for long periods and men, of course, had their needs. But this was the first time he had brought one to Matsutani, wounding and insulting his wife. It aroused painful memories of Kiyoyori and the woman who had bewitched him, who she believed had burned to death in the former pavilion.

“She is just an entertainer,” Masachika told her airily. “She'll supervise the musicians and she knows some acrobats whom I am arranging to have brought here for the amusement of Lord Aritomo. She has her lute with her—you must have heard her playing.”

“It sounds like a stubborn instrument and often out of tune,” Tama said. “Or maybe she doesn't have much talent.”

She had longed for Masachika's return. Her body still ached for him, but when they were finally alone on the first night of his visit, his lovemaking had been perfunctory and had left her unsatisfied. Since then he had not come to her room, making one excuse after another: fears for her health, his own exhaustion, a fever.

Fever indeed!
she thought.
Girl fever.

Now he had come to her telling her they must speak in absolute privacy. She had sent her women away and they were alone together in her room, she kneeling, he cross-legged. She had had the shutters closed; the light was dim. It was the ninth month but still very hot with the lingering heat that was the hardest to bear.

At first she found it hard to believe him and then she was alarmed. Was Masachika really thinking of betraying Aritomo, of taking his place? It seemed impossible that the Emperor and his mother would have such a scheme in mind and would suggest it to him. She felt he must have misunderstood, was endangering himself and her.

“Lady Natsue herself sent for me,” Masachika said.

“What was …
he
 … like?” she said, hardly daring even to speak of him.

“I did not set eyes on him. He remained behind the blinds. It seems he wanted to see me, to see for himself what kind of man I am.”

“Who else was there?” Tama asked. “I imagine he would be surrounded by attendants, and some of them, at least, must keep Aritomo informed of everything the Imperial Household says and does. I hope you were discreet.”

“Well, you know I am often beset by complaints from the Household. I was simply investigating one of them. My conversation with Lady Natsue was so veiled as to be barely comprehensible. To the Emperor, I said little beyond platitudes, to which he responded with a few lines of verse. He is quite a good poet, they say. His mother intimated that I might correspond with them in this way. Both of them are known to love poetry.”

“But you know nothing about poetry,” she exclaimed. “Have you ever written a poem?”

“One or two, in my youth. I thought you could do it for me.”

“You still need me for some things, then?” she replied, both pleased and angered.

“I need you for everything,” he said. “You know I am nothing without you.”

“Then send the girl away.”

“Is that what's bothering you? You can't think she is a rival in my affection for you?”

“You seem overfond of her,” Tama said, embarrassed to admit her jealousy.

“I don't care for her at all. I will send her away, immediately after the hunt is over. She and the acrobats can go back to where they came from. We will give Lord Aritomo the finest days of his life, and if they turn out to be his last ones … everyone knows how sick he is even though no one admits it.”

She stared at him coolly.

“Look what you have achieved here,” he said. “Imagine what you could do with an entire country.”

He knew exactly how to tempt her. “If we are to undertake this endeavor we must trust each other completely,” Tama said. “No secrets, no lies must ever be between us.”

“I hide nothing from you,” he said, moving closer to embrace her.

“I love you, Masachika,” she said. “I always have, even when I was married to your brother. But I will never forgive you if you lie to me. Let's go and swear by Sesshin's eyes that we will always be true to each other.”

“We will,” Masachika promised. “But first I must tell you another secret.”

She pulled away from him a little, staring into his eyes. “A good secret or a bad one?”

“I don't know yet. I believe Kiyoyori's daughter is alive.”

“Hina? It can't be true! You yourself told me she drowned.”

“I am sure she is the woman I was sent to investigate in Aomizu—the one who was accused of poisoning Lady Fuji.”

“I always feared that girl would end up poisoning someone, with all the potions and ointments she used to concoct,” Tama said. The news that Hina might have been alive all these years disturbed her. Memories of her stepdaughter returned suddenly, assailing her with their clarity: the girl's pale, serious face; the eyes that lit up only for her father; the manuscripts she was always trying to decipher; her undeniable beauty.

“It is another reason Asagao has come with me. She and Hina, whom she knew as Yayoi, were close friends. I am hoping I can track Hina down through her. If it is true that Yoshimori is still alive, Hina must know where he is. She poisoned Fuji to silence her and has gone to warn Yoshimori. I am going to find her once the hunt is over and bring them both either to Lord Aritomo or to the Empress, whoever offers the greater reward.”

Asagao!
Now that she knew the girl musician's name, Tama disliked her even more. But if she was only a pawn in this greater plan she could tolerate her.

*   *   *

The eyes lay in their carved recess in the west gate, as bright as the day when they had been torn from Sesshin's head. For years they had watched over Matsutani as their owner had promised. The guardian spirits that had occupied the house and caused chaos and destruction after the earthquake had remained in the gateposts all that time. Tama visited them daily, bringing offerings of flowers, fruit, and rice cakes. In the summer she brought ice to cool them and in the winter lit fires in braziers and wrapped the posts in straw to keep them warm. On this hot afternoon, in early autumn, she brought the first persimmons of the season, their orange waxy skin smooth beneath her fingers, and branches of purple bush clover. Masachika carried a flask of rice wine and two bowls, for the spirits liked to share a drink with whoever visited them. No one ever saw them, but the bowls emptied mysteriously, between one moment and the next.

She thought Masachika looked uneasy and it troubled her further. They both knew the power of the eyes. They had wept together before them on more than one occasion. The spirits had not misbehaved for years, but then they had had no cause. She was under no illusion that they would not recognize falsehood.

Tama's attendant had brought a mat, which she spread in the gateway. The entrance was paved with flat river stones, powdered with the dust that blew everywhere in the hot, dry wind. It covered their clothes and stung their eyes and throats.

Husband and wife knelt side by side. Tama divided her offerings and placed them equally before each gatepost. Masachika filled the wine bowls and they both drank. Then he refilled them and offered them to the spirits. Tama watched him carefully. He performed all his actions flawlessly, but he kept his head lowered as though he did not want to meet the gaze of the eyes.

She said in a low voice, “Master Sesshin, I mistreated you badly. I shall never cease to regret my rash action. I ask you to forgive me.” Her face, which was turned upward, was streaked with tears.

“Hidarisama, Migisama,” she went on. “I thank you for your diligence and devotion in protecting our home. Please always continue to do so. In your presence, I swear that I will always be true to my husband and I will support him in everything he does.”

Masachika was silent for a few moments, making her fear he was going to refuse to speak, but eventually he said quietly but firmly, “I thank you for the protection you have given this place for years. I hope we will see no disturbances from you while Lord Aritomo is here. I think you know my devotion to my wife and I swear I will never betray her.”

Yet despite his steady voice Tama was aware of his inner conflict. His fists were clenched, sweat formed on his brow. She could do nothing but pray with all her heart that he was sincere. She was about to stand when a voice came from the left gatepost.

“Is it Matsutani lady?”

“Yes, with our offerings. Let's drink,” the other spirit responded.

“Wait a moment. Who is with her?”

“Matsutani lord, so-called.”

Tama whispered, “It's years since they have been heard. What can it mean?”

“It must be a special day,” Masachika replied with forced light-heartedness. “It's a good omen. They are not saying anything bad, they are just recognizing us.”

There was a faint burst of mocking laughter.

“But what if they misbehave while Lord Aritomo is here?” Tama stood, and led him away from the gateway. She stopped and studied his face with her intense gaze.

“They will behave themselves,” Masachika replied. “What reason can they have not to? The eyes are in place. We are their masters now. They must obey us.”

Tama had been whispering, but Masachika spoke more loudly. A bee came buzzing between them, making him flinch. It must have been attracted by the clover blossoms, Tama thought, and watched as it settled on one of them. It was an ordinary bee, nothing supernatural. Yet she feared it might be a sign.

“I am just going to speak to the musician for a moment,” Masachika said as they walked toward the house.

Tama stopped and stared at him. Before she could speak he said hurriedly, “Don't misunderstand me. I need to send for the acrobats; she will know where they are.”

Tama watched with fury as he strode swiftly to the pavilion on the lake. When she turned back to the gate, the wine bowls were still full. She went back to check once or twice during the rest of the day, but the spirits would not drink.

 

8

MU

“Before you set out to find Shikanoko,” Kiku said to Mu. “I have something to show you. I'm going to give you a little demonstration of how I've used the powers you and I have, to build our empire.”

“And me,” Kuro put in. “I have powers, too!”

“You do, my dear brother, ones of your own that are very useful.” He looked from one brother to the other and smiled. “Kuro's children have inherited his talents and so have mine.”

It was early evening, a few days after Mu had arrived in Kitakami. He was already preparing to leave again and had expected to have an early night to be on the road by dawn. Now it seemed Kiku had other plans. Mu was curious to see what he had in mind, but Kiku seemed content to sit and talk.

“Kinpoge, your daughter, is very skilled, too. I've already seen proof of that. Of course, her mother was a fox woman and had magic powers of her own. I'm sorry, I don't want to wound you by bringing up the past, but I feel it has given her something special, superior even to my eldest son, Juntaro. I propose they marry and we will see how their offspring turn out.”

“Kinpoge is too young to marry,” Mu said.

“She will soon be old enough,” Kiku replied. “We are five brothers, not like anyone else. We must establish our five families, and arrange our children's marriages carefully, to preserve what we have been given. After the first generation, we will not mingle our blood with that of outsiders, unless there are sound reasons of policy. We must maintain our tribe.”

Mu had noticed how often Kiku used this word,
tribe
. It amused him, but he liked it, too. He liked the feeling of belonging to a family and had no compunction in leaving Kinpoge here. He felt her future would be secure among people like her. Far better for her to marry Juntaro, when they were old enough, than to yearn for Take.