Okoi, Mataemon's wife
Maeda Inuchiyo, Oda Nobunaga's page
Yamabuchi Ukon, Oda retainer
Tokugawa Ieyasu, lord of Mikawa
Sessai, Zen Monk and military
adviser to the Imagawa clan
Imagawa Yoshimoto, lord of Suruga
Imagawa Ujizane, Yoshimoto's eldest son
Yoshiteru, thirteenth Ashikaga shogun
Lord Nagoya, Nobunaga's cousin
Ikeda Shonyu, Oda retainer
and friend of Tokichiro
Takigawa Kazumasu, senior Oda retainer
Sumpu, capital of Suruga
Okazaki, capital of Mikawa
Kyoto, imperial capital of Japan
"Okoi!" Mataemon called out as soon as he got home. His wife hurried out to greet him. "Prepare some sake. I've brought home a guest," he said abruptly.
"Well, who is it?"
"A friend of our daughter's."
Tokichiro came in behind him.
"Master Kinoshita?"
"Okoi, you've kept me in the dark until today. This is inexcusable behavior for the wife of a samurai. It seems that Master Kinoshita and Nene have known each other for some time. You knew, so why didn't you tell me?"
"I deserve to be scolded. I'm very sorry."
"That's all well and good, but what kind of father does Tokichiro think I am now?"
"She got letters, but she never hid them from me."
"I should hope not."
"Besides, Nene's a bright girl. As her mother, I believe she's never done wrong. So I didn't think it was worth bothering you with each and every letter she received from the men in this town."
"There you're overestimating our daughter. I really don't understand young people nowadays—young men or young women!" He turned to Tokichiro, who stood scratching his head in embarrassment, blocked from coming in, and he burst out laughing.
Tokichiro was overjoyed to have been invited to his sweetheart's home by her father and his heart was racing.
"Well, don't just stand there!" Mataemon led the way to the guest parlor, which though it was the best room in the house, was nonetheless rather small.
The archers' tenement houses were no more comfortable than Tokichiro's own home.
All the retainers of the Oda, regardless of rank, lived plainly. And in this house, too, the only thing that caught the eye was a suit of armor.
"Where did Nene go?"
"She's in her room." His wife offered Tokichiro some water.
"Why doesn't she come out and greet our guest? When I'm here, she always runs away and hides."
"She's probably changing and combing her hair."
"That won't be necessary. Tell her to come and help with the sake. It'll be just fine to put some plain home cooking in front of Tokichiro."
"Goodness! Don't say such things."
Tokichiro stiffened in embarrassment. With the crusty retainers in the castle he was audacious and pushy, but here he was nothing more than a shy young man.
Nene finally came out to greet him formally. She had put on some light makeup. "We haven't much but please make yourself at home." She then brought out a tray of food and a flask of sake.
Tokichiro answered Mataemon's questions as though in a trance, all the while admiring Nene's figure and demeanor. She has a lovely profile, he thought. He was particularly taken by her unaffected grace, as plain as cotton cloth. She had none of the coquettishness of other women, who were either unpleasantly coy or put on airs. Some might have found her a little on the skinny side, but wrapped within her was the fragrance of wild-flowers on a moonlit night. Tokichiro's keen senses were overcome; he was in ecstasy.
"How about another cup?" Mataemon offered.
"Thanks."
"You did say you liked sake"
"I did."
"Are you all right? You haven't drunk too much, have you?"
"I'll have it bit by bit, thank you." On the edge of his seat, with the lacquered sake flask in front of him, Tokichiro stared fixedly at Nene's face, so white in the flickering lamplight. When her eyes moved suddenly in his direction, he passed his hand over his face and said, confused, "Well, I've had quite a bit this evening." He blushed when he realized that he himself was far more aware of his behavior than Nene was.
Once again he thought that, when the time came, even he would have to get married. And if he had to take a wife, she would have to be beautiful. He wondered whether Nene could stand poverty and hardship and bear him healthy children. In his present circumstances, he was bound to have money problems after setting up a home. And he knew that in the future he would not be satisfied with mere wealth, and that there would be a mountain of troubles waiting for him.
Looking at a woman from the point of view of taking her as a wife, there were naturally considerations such as her virtue and appearance. But it was more important to find a woman who could love his mother, an almost illiterate farmer, and one who could also cheerfully encourage her husband's work from behind the scenes. Besides possessing these two qualities, she must be a woman with the kind of spirit that could endure their poverty. If Nene were such a woman… he thought again and again.