"With respect, my lord, he did not seem to be human, but an incarnation of the G.o.d of war."

"Nevertheless, we all did well together, didn't we? You're in the archers' regiment, but that day you were among the spearmen, weren't you?"

"That's correct, my lord."

"Were you in the attack on the Imagawa headquarters?"

"When we finally rushed the hill, the action was so confused that we could hardly tell friend from foe. But in the midst of it I heard Mori Shinsuke announce that he had taken the lord of Suruga's head."

"Was a man by the name of Kinos.h.i.ta Tokichiro in your regiment?"

"He was indeed, my lord."

"What about Maeda Inuchiyo?"

"He had received His Lordship's displeasure, but was given permission to join the battle. I haven't seen him since we returned from Okehazama, but hasn't he returned to his former post?"

"He has. You probably still don't know about this, but he just recently accompanied his Lordship to Kyoto. They have returned to the castle, and Inuchiyo is in service there now."

"Kyoto! Why did His Lordship go there?"

"There's no harm in talking about it now. He went with only thirty or forty men, and he himself was disguised as a country samurai on a pilgrimage. They were gone about forty days. His retainers acted as though he were here during that time. Shall we have a look at the chrysanthemum garden?"

Mataemon followed his host into the garden as though he were a servant. Nagoya spoke of the finer points of growing chrysanthemums, and how one had to use the same care and love as in raising a child.

"I've heard you have a daughter. She's called Nene, isn't she? I would like to help you find a son-in-law."

"My lord?" Mataemon bowed almost in half. Yet he hesitated momentarily. The subject recalled to him his own confusion. Nagoya ignored his vacillation, however, and went on, "I know someone who would make an excellent son-in-law. Leave it to me. I'll handle this."

"My family is really unworthy of this honor, my lord."

"You should talk it over with your wife. The man I have in mind for your son-in-law is Kinos.h.i.ta Tokichiro. You know him well, I believe."

"Yes, my lord," Mataemon answered without thinking. He reproached himself for being so ill-bred as to sound surprised, but he was unable to stop himself.

"I'll wait for your answer."

"Yes... indeed..." With that, Mataemon took his leave.

He had wanted to ask more than a few questions about the reason for this interview, but could not be so openly inquisitive with a member of Lord n.o.bunaga's family. When he arrived home, Mataemon related what happened, and his wife seemed troubled that he had come home without giving a prompt reply.

"You should accept his request," she said. "I think this is really good news. Relationships are always a matter of timing, and the fact that Tokichiro has spoken with Nene so many times shows they had strong connections in a previous life. Tokichiro must have some merit for a relative of His Lordship to act as his go-between. Please go tomorrow and give Lord Nagoya your answer."

"But don't you think I should ask Nene how she feels?"

"Hasn't she already spoken out about that?" Okoi asked.

"Well, I wonder if she still feels the same way."

"Nene is not very talkative, but once she's made up her mind, she doesn't often change it."

Alone, Mataemon wrestled with his worries for the future, and felt the awkwardness of being tossed aside. So at a time when they thought that Tokichiro might have been forgotten, having not shown his face there at all, he once again featured largely in the thoughts of Mataemon, his wife, and Nene.

The next day Mataemon quickly went off to deliver an answer to Lord Nagoya. As soon as he returned, he spoke to his wife. "Well, there was rather unexpected news." His wife immediately saw from his expression that this was something exceptional. As her husband told her about his meeting with Nagoya, the bright light that now shone on Nene's situation was manifest in both of their smiles.

"I had made up my mind today to ask Lord Nagoya why he had offered to be a go-between, but to ask this of a member of His Lordship's family was really difficult. Just as I was trying my best to be polite, he mentioned that Inuchiyo had asked him."

"Inuchiyo asked Lord Nagoya?" exclaimed his wife. "Are you saying that he suggested that Nene and Tokichiro get married?"

"It seems as though there was some talk on the road when His Lordship made his secret trip to Kyoto. Well, I suppose His Lordship overheard it."

"My! His Lordship himself?"

"Yes, this is really quite extraordinary. It seems that during the long hours of the trip Inuchiyo and Tokichiro were talking about Nene quite openly, right in front of His Lordship."

"Has Master Inuchiyo given his consent?"

"Inuchiyo went to Lord Nagoya and made the same request, so we won't have to worry about him anymore."

"Well then, did you give a clear answer to Lord Nagoya today?"

"Yes, I told him that I placed the matter entirely in his hands." With that, Mataermon straightened up as though his worries had been completely cleared away.

The year pa.s.sed, and on an auspicious day in the fall, the wedding was celebrated at the Asano home.

Tokichiro felt restless and fidgety. His household was in confusion, with Gonzo, the servant girl, and the others who had come to help, and he had been able to do nothing more than ramble in and out of the house since early morning. Today is the third day of the Eighth Month, isn't it? He kept confirming the obvious over and over in his mind. From time to time he would open up his clothes chest or try to relax on a cushion, but he just couldn't settle down. I'm marrying Nene and becoming a member of her family, he reminded himself. It's finally happening tonight, but now I somehow feel ill at ease.

After the wedding had been announced, Tokichiro became uncharacteristically shy. When his neighbors and colleagues heard the news, they came with gifts, but he would turn red and speak as though he were trying to save his reputation. "Well, no, it's really just a family celebration. I had thought it was still a little early for me to get married, but the family wants the wedding to take place as soon as possible."

n.o.body knew that his desire had been turned into reality by his friend, Maeda Inichiyo. Not only had Inuchiyo given up Nene, but he had also swayed Lord Nagoya into action.

"I heard that Lord Nagoya made a recommendation in his favor. On top of that, Asano Mataemon's given him his consent, so they must see some promise in Monkey somewhere." So, first with his colleagues, and then with people of both high and low estate, Tokichiro's reputation was enhanced by this marriage, and malicious gossip was held in check.

Tokichiro, however, was unconcerned with gossip, good or bad. To him, informing his mother in Nakamura was most important. Most a.s.suredly, he had wanted to rush there himself and tell his mother about Nene, her lineage and character, along with all the other talk. But she had told him to serve his lord with diligence, and to let her stay Nakamura, and not to be distracted by her until he became a person of consequence.

He suppressed his desire to see her right away, and informed her of new developments by letter. And she often wrote in reply. What especially pleased Tokichiro was that the news of his gradual promotion and of his marriage to the daughter of a samurai, through the good offices of one of n.o.bunaga's cousins, was known in Nakamura. And a result, he knew, his mother and sister were looked upon quite differently now by the villagers.

"Let me do your hair, sir?" Gonzo appeared with a box of combs and knelt beside him.

"What? I have to tie up my hair, too?"

"You're the bridegroom tonight, and you should have your hair done up properly."

When Gonzo had arranged his hair, Tokichiro went out into the garden.

White stars began to appear through the branches of the paulownia trees. The bridegroom was feeling sentimental tonight. Tokichiro was surrounded by great joy. Yet every time he encountered some happiness, he thought of his mother. Thus, there was a little sadness in his happiness. There's no end to our desires. After all, he consoled himself, there are people in the world without mothers.

Tokichiro immersed himself in the bathtub. Tonight he would be especially diligent washing the nape of his neck. When he had finished bathing, put on a light cotton kimono, and gone back into the house, he found it so full of people that it was difficult to tell whether it was his house or someone else's. Wondering why everyone was so busy, he looked once around the living room and the kitchen, and was finally reduced to sharing a corner of a room with the mosquitoes, and looking on as others worked.

Shrill voices gave out orders, and shrill voices responded.

"Arrange all of the bridegroom's personal accessories on top of his wardrobe."

"I've done that. His fan and pillbox are there, too."

There were all sorts of people running about. Whose wife was that? Whose husband over there? These people were not close relatives, but they all worked together harmoniously.

The bridegroom, who was still all alone in the corner, recalled the faces of these people and felt joy in the very depths of his heart. In one room, a boisterous old man was holding forth on the ancient customs and manners of adopting a son-in-law and taking a wife. "Are the groom's sandals worn out? Old sandals just won't do. He has to wear new ones to the bride's house. Then, tonight, the bride's father will sleep holding the sandals, and the bridegroom's feet will never leave the house."

An old lady piped up, "People have to have paper lanterns. You can't just walk to the bride's house carrying torches. Then the lanterns are handed over to the bride's family, and they put them in front of the house altar for three days and three nights." She spoke a kindly way, as though the bridegroom were her own son.

About then, a messenger came to the house, carrying the ceremonial first letter from the bride to the groom. One of the wives stepped timidly through the crowd, carrying a laquered letter box.

Tokichiro spoke from the veranda. "I'm over here."

"This is the first letter from the bride," the woman said. "And it's the custom thatthe bridegroom write something in return."

"What should I write?"

The woman giggled but gave him no instructions. Paper and a writing case were set down in front of him.

Perplexed, Tokichiro picked up the brush. He had never exactly exerted himself in literary matters. He had learned to write at the Komyo Temple, and when he had worked in the pottery shop, his calligraphy had at least been average, so he felt no humiliation about writing something in front of others. He was simply troubled about what to say. Finally he wrote: On this pleasant night, the bridegroom, too, should come to talk.

He showed it to the housewife who had brought him the writing case.

"Is this all right?"

"It will do."

"You received a letter from your husband at your wedding, didn't you? Don't you remember what he wrote?"

"No," she replied.

He laughed. "When you yourself forget, it must not have been very important."

After that, the bridegroom was outfitted in a ceremonial kimono and given a fan.

The moon shone clearly in the early autumn evening sky, and torches burned brightly at the entrance gates. At the head of the procession was a riderless horse and two spearmen. Following these were three torchbearers, then the bridegroom himself, in new sandals.

There was no gorgeous wedding furniture such as inlaid chests, folding screens, or Chinese furniture, but there was one armor chest and a wardrobe box. For a samurai of that time who commanded thirty foot soldiers, he had nothing to be ashamed of. On the contrary, Tokichiro probably felt some secret pride. For if none of the people who had helped him this evening and who accompanied him now were relatives, neither had they been employed to do so. They had come and rejoiced in this wedding as though it were their own affair.

Bright lights danced at every gate of the tenements of the archers' neighborhood that evening, and all the gates were open. Bonfires burned here and there, and there were people carrying paper lanterns, waiting with the bride's household for the arrival of the groom. Holding their children, mothers waved, and good cheer shone on their faces, brightened by the lights and fires.

Just then, some children came running from the crossroads across the way.

"He's coming! He's coming!"

"The bridegroom is coming!"

The mother of the children called them over, gently reproaching them and calling them to her side. The moon bathed the road in a pale light. The children's announcement had acted as a herald, and from that point no one crossed the hushed street.

Two torchbearers turned the corner. Behind them walked the bridegroom. Bells had been attached to the tr.i.m.m.i.n.gs on the horse, and as they swayed back and forth, the bellsmade little sounds like the chirping of crickets. The chest of armor and the two spears were borne by five attendants. It was not such a bad show for the neighborhood.

The bridegroom, Tokichiro, looked particularly admirable. He was a man of small stature, but his appearance would have been appropriate even without fine clothes. He wasn't so ugly as to cause gossip, nor did he appear to be a man whose intelligence had gone to his head. If one had asked the people who stood by their fences and gates what kind of man he was, they would all probably have said that he was an ordinary fellow, and a fitting husband for Nene.

"Welcome, welcome."

"Let the bridegroom in!"

"Congratulations!"

The relatives and family waiting near the gate of Mataemon's house greeted Tokichiro, their features momentarily brightening in the flickering light.

"Please come in." The bridegroom was led by himself to a separate room. Tokichiro sat down alone. It was a small house, with no more than six or seven rooms. The helpers were just on the other side of the sliding door. The kitchen was just across the narrow garden, and he could hear the sounds of dishes being washed, and the smell of cooking wafted toward him.

Tokichiro hadn't noticed it so much as he was walking through the streets, but now that he was sitting down, he could hear the beating of his own heart, and his mouth felt dry. He sat alone in the room, almost as though he had been forgotten. Still, it would not be proper for him to breach decorum, so he resolved to sit there in a dignified manner whether anyone saw him or not.

Happily, Tokichiro was rarely bored. Certainly, as a bridegroom who was soon to meet his bride, there was no reason to be bored at all. But even so, at some point he forgot all about the wedding and diverted himself with an unrelated reverie for the while. His mind flew off to an absurd direction for the present: Okazaki Castle. What developments were going on there? Recently this had occupied his thoughts more than anything else. Rather than wondering about how his new bride would speak to him on the following morning and how she would appear when she greeted him, his mind was caught up by these things.

Would Okazaki Castle side with the Imagawa? Would it ally itself with the Oda clan? Once again, the forked road of fate. Last year, following the Imagawa clan's terrible defeat at Okehazama, the Tokugawa clan looked at three different possibilities. Should they continue to support the Imagawa? Should they remain unaligned with both the Imagawa and the Oda, and boldly affirm their independence at this time? Or should they take the path of alliance with the Oda? They would have to choose one of these three alternatives sooner or later. For many years the Tokugawa clan had been a sort of parasitic plant whose existence depended on the great tree of the Imagawa.

The very root and trunk of that relationship, however, had fallen at Okehazama. Their own strength was still insufficient, but after the death of Imagawa Yoshimoto, the Tokugawa could hardly rely on Yoshimoto's heir, Ujizane. This was all information that came either from rumors or from distantly overheard discussions among the senior retainers, but Tokichiro was very interested and concerned.

Now we're going to see what Tokugawa Ieyasu is made of, he thought. He was more interested than others in this lord of Okazaki Castle. Tokichiro considered that even though Ieyasu had been born the lord of a castle and a province, here was a man who had suffered even more misfortune in the world than himself. The more he heard about Ieyasu's life, the more his heart went out to him. Nevertheless, Ieyasu was still just a young man, nineteen years old this year. At the time of the battle of Okehazama, he had commanded Yoshimoto's vanguard, and his performance in the capture of Washizu and Marune had been admirable. His decision to retreat to Mikawa when he heard that Yoshimoto had been killed was also admirable. Ieyasu's reputation was good, both within the Oda camp and, later, at Kiyosu. Thus, he had become the subject of much talk. Tokichiro, too, was now absorbed in his own thoughts as to what position Ieyasu and Okazaki Castle would finally take.

"Master Bridegroom. Are you in here?"

The sliding door opened. Tokichiro returned to himself. Or rather, he returned to himself as a bridegroom.

Niwa Hyozo, a retainer to Lord Nagoya, entered with his wife. They would be the go-betweens. "We're going to perform the tokoroarawashi ceremony," Hyozo said, "so please wait here just a little while longer."

Tokichiro was confused. " Tokoroara -what?"

"It's an ancient ceremony in which the bride's mother and father and their relatives come to see the bridegroom for the first time."

At which point Niwa's wife told Tokichiro, "Please sit down," and, opening the sliding door, beckoned the people who had been waiting in the next room. The very first to come in and extend their greetings were the parents-in-law, Asano Mataemon and his wife. Even though they all knew each other well, they followed the form of ceremony. Upon seeing these two well-known faces, Tokichiro felt much more relaxed, and his hand fumbled as though he wanted to scratch his head.

Following Nene's parents was a lovely girl of fifteen or sixteen, who bowed and said bashfully, "I'm Nene's sister. My name is Oyaya."

Tokichiro was puzzled. This young girl was even more beautiful than Nene. More than that, until now he hadn't even known that Nene had a younger sister. In what deep part of a warrior's narrow house could this lovely flower have been kept?

"Well, ah, thank you. I am Kinos.h.i.ta Tokichiro, come here by fate. I'm pleased to meet you." Wondering if this was the bridegroom that she would be calling "elder brother," Oyaya peeked back at him as a young girl might, but another relative quickly came up from behind. One by one they came in and spoke with him. Meeting them all at once, Tokichiro could hardly remember who was whose paternal uncle or niece or first cousin, and wondered how many relatives Nene had.

He thought that this might be annoying later on, but the sudden appearance of a cute sister-in-law and kindly relatives improved his mood. He had few relatives of his own, but he loved large crowds, and a boisterous, lively, laughing family was ideal.

"Master Bridegroom, please take your seat." The go-betweens invited him to a small room hardly big enough to contain them all, and, ushered to the seat provided him, the bridegroom sat down in their midst.