Gag Novel: Tales of a Haiku Master | Episode 1

Synopsis

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Gag Novel: Tales of a Haiku Master
~The Soul's Pilgrimage of Haiku Girl Komachi~

Episode 1: The Absence of the Thousand-Armed Kannon

'Ugh, it's Senju, but there's no Senju Kannon (Thousand-Armed Kannon)? Isn't that a scam!'

Komachi, having just crossed the Senju Ohashi Bridge at the entrance to Edo, had already let her dissatisfaction with the journey explode. On her back was a single tattered wrapping cloth. Inside were a change of clothes and, for some reason, several heavy stones. She was using a small branch she had picked up along the way as a walking stick. For 16-year-old Komachi, who had left home on a whim without going to high school, the world was full of unreasonable things.

She had thought it would be a stylish journey to follow the same path as Basho's 'The Narrow Road to the Deep North', but once she arrived, she was too busy making snarky comments about the scenery in front of her to be impressed by the poems Basho had written.

As Komachi was grumbling, an old woman selling dumplings at the foot of the bridge spoke to her with a sigh.

'Oh my, young lady. Shouting so loudly. There is no Senju Kannon in Senju. This is a post town, a place where travelers come to rest.'

The old woman smiled with a wrinkled face. Komachi snorted.

'I know that! But since it's named Senju, you should at least have a statue of the Thousand-Armed Kannon! You'd expect that, wouldn't you!'

'Huh? What are you talking about, this child...'

The old woman tilted her head in bewilderment. At that moment, a spark of electricity struck Komachi's head.

'...You just tilted your head, didn't you?'

Komachi leaned in close to the old woman's face. The old woman recoiled in surprise.

'Y-yes, I did, but what of it?'

'Very well. That 'head-tilting' of yours just now was magnificent. I shall refute that exasperated face of yours with a 5-7-5!'

Komachi thrust her right hand forward and posed as if pinching something between her thumb and forefinger. Then, she declared with a smug look.

'You there, listen closely to my 5-7-5!'

The old woman blinked her eyes. The surrounding travelers and merchants also watched Komachi with curiosity, wondering what was going on.
Komachi cleared her throat and recited loudly.

In Senju there is / No Thousand-Armed Kannon / So you tilt your head

Komachi

As soon as she finished reciting, Komachi crossed her arms with satisfaction and grinned.

'Old lady, how's that! How does it feel to be refuted!'

However, the old woman remained blank. Eventually, coming to her senses, the old woman looked at Komachi with a troubled expression.

'Look here, young lady. So what?'

Komachi was stunned. She had refuted her, yet there was no reaction at all. She didn't seem damaged in the slightest. Instead, a new question appeared on the old woman's face.

'W-wait a minute! That 5-7-5 I just said perfectly describes your situation!! It perfectly expresses my anger that there's no Senju Kannon in Senju, and your exasperation at that!'

'No, I mean, so what? It's natural that there's no Senju Kannon in Senju, and I tilted my head because you were complaining. It doesn't mean anything more than that.'

The old woman sighed deeply again. Komachi's 'refutation' was like trying to drive a nail into bran.
But Komachi would not give up. Her journey of 'refutation' had only just begun.

...to be continued

Episode 2

Episode 3

Episode 4

Episode 5

Episode 6

Episode 7

Episode 8

Episode 9

Episode 10

Episode 11

Episode 12

Episode 13

Episode 14 (Final Episode)

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