Hoichi with Ears [Episode 3] White Hand (3)

Blind Hoichi and Miyo, who cannot speak, challenge the white hand

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Episode 3, Chapter 3: "Oyone"

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Amidst the morning mist, the tide was slowly coming in.
The sand on the beach of Kehi was still cold, soaking up the night dew, and it sank without a sound when stepped upon.
Oyone trotted along the water's edge, searching for the shadow of a small boat floating in the distance.

The boat had returned.
However, there was no sign of Ajikichi anywhere.

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"He must have been swallowed by the waves. I told him to stop night fishing, didn't I?"
"If the boat is still here, he must have just fallen in. Should we head out to the open sea to look for him?"

The village men spoke to each other without much concern.
The boat that had washed up on the beach still contained a fishing rod, a bait box, and one straw sandal.
The bait had not been touched, and the fishing line was just as it had been left.

Oyone climbed into the boat and picked up the remaining items one by one.
Then, her eyes caught something that had fallen and was stuck near the bow of the boat.

—A piece of cloth.
It was the light green striped pattern she had sewn onto the frayed sleeve of Ajikichi's garment.
But it was strange. It was odd for it to be in a place like this if it had just torn off his sleeve.
Moreover, there were faint burn marks on the edge of the cloth. As if it had been scorched by the flame of a torch.

Oyone unconsciously gripped it tightly in her fingertips.

"…I saw it, the fire… he was…"
"On the boat… holding a fire… looking at something…"

Her murmur, not meant for anyone in particular, was carried away by the wind.

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That night, Oyone did not sleep.
She sat in front of the hearth where the charcoal was glowing, without lighting a lamp, just staring at the lingering scent of the fire.
Something was wrong. She thought this because she remembered the back of Ajikichi as he left.

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—A long time ago.
Before they were married, they had once borrowed a boat and gone around the beach.
Oyone was not good with the sea, but Ajikichi had sat on the edge of the boat and said,

"You know, the waves become quietest when they are angry. A night without sound is the most dangerous."
"Then, you should just not go out on nights like that."
"Haha. It's fine. As long as I'm at the edge of the boat, the waves won't come."

The wrinkles from sun-bleached salt were etched into the corners of Ajikichi's eyes as he laughed while saying that.
She loved that face.
He was a person as unstable as the waves, someone who seemed like he might go far away at any moment, but she believed he would always return only to her.
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In the middle of the night, Oyone stood up.

She opened the door and headed for the beach.
Ajikichi's boat was still there.
One torch and one set of prayer beads.

The white wood prayer beads that Ajikichi had bought on the day of the festival.
Oyone put them in her pocket and climbed into the boat.
"…Wait for me. I'll come to get you soon."

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The sea was quiet.

Under a sky without stars, the torch fire was her only guide.
The Boat-Hiding Rock was drawing near.

Floating blackly in the darkness, the giant rock looked like a beast holding its breath.
She brought the boat into the hollow, tied the rope to the rock, and stepped onto it while holding the torch aloft.
The scent of the tide was thick.

Even though there was no wind, her hair fluttered.
Suddenly, something white peeked out from a gap in the rock.
…A fingertip.

Oyone instinctively moved closer.

The white finger was slender and looked like a woman's.
It was extended as if inserted into the gap in the rock, and it remained motionless.
At that moment.

"…Oyone…"

A voice called out.

There was no mistake. It was Ajikichi's voice.
"Ajikichi…!"

Oyone turned around, screaming.

A man's shadow stood on the rock.
A garment with a torn hem, hair stiffened by salt.
—But his back looked somehow strange.
It was distorted like layered skin, reflecting light with a slimy sheen.

It slowly turned toward her.
Ajikichi's face.
…But there was nothing in those eyes.

The next moment, a cold sensation crawled up from her feet.

Something slimy had wrapped around Oyone's ankles.
When she looked down, something like a long, extended tongue was crawling out from the gap in the rock.
At the end of it was that white, beautiful hand—.
"…No… I don't want this…"

She could not make a sound.

The torch fire went out even though there was no wind, and the Boat-Hiding Rock sank into darkness.
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