Sennin BAR: Narimasa (Toyama Prefecture)

Tonight, the moonlight casts dull, silver shadows across the rock face. Nagasawa, 46, pushed open the stone door of the "Sennin BAR" with slumped shoulders and a gait that suggested his soul had left his body. He had been running on the front lines as a sales manager for a major corporation, but an unexpected problem occurred in a large-scale project on which the company's fate rested. Bearing the brunt of the responsibility, he had just been told he was being transferred to a remote area in Kyushu—a de facto demotion—far from the Tokyo he had grown accustomed to.

"...Wako-san. It's over. Everything I've built up in my life has turned to ash because of a single mistake."

Behind the counter, the hermit Wako set down the sake bottle he had been quietly polishing and offered a deep, compassionate bow.

The "Tenacity" to Cross Snowy Mountains and an Indomitable Soul

"Nagasawa-san. I have prepared a drink suitable for the departure on your long journey."

What Wako quietly brought out was "Narimasa," a famous sake from Nanto City, Toyama Prefecture.

"Narimasa... That's the sake named after Sassa Narimasa, who was a subordinate of Oda Nobunaga."

"Indeed. It is a sake that conveys the harsh nature of Toyama and the indomitable spirit of the great commander Sassa Narimasa to this day."

Wako poured the golden, shimmering drops into a heavy tin cup.

"Sassa Narimasa... Isn't he the ill-fated warlord who met a tragic end? That bad omen really hits home for me right now."

As Nagasawa spat this out with self-deprecating sarcasm, Wako shook his head quietly.

"No. Regardless of how history judges him, the anecdote of Narimasa's 'Sarasara-goe' (crossing the snowy mountains) is the very embodiment of pride for a man standing in adversity. While Hideyoshi was seizing power, Narimasa crossed the severe winter Northern Alps, the Tateyama mountain range, with a handful of retainers to uphold his convictions. He crossed mountains of death where no one else would tread. Even in the most desperate of situations, he refused to believe it was 'over' and sought to carve out his own destiny with his own two feet."

Nagasawa took the cup and let the powerful, rich flavor of the rice flow down his throat. "...Wow. It's profound. But strangely, it's not a heavy feeling I dislike. It's a taste that settles something deep in the pit of my stomach."

"That is the true essence of Narimasa. Nagasawa-san, you said your demotion was the 'end.' But just as the mountain crossing was for Narimasa, doesn't leaving the center mean heading toward a 'new battlefield' where no one can bind you?"

A Gift for the Soul: Words Chosen by the Hermit

Nagasawa stared at his cup, his voice trembling. "A battlefield... What could I possibly do in that place in Kyushu? It's as if I'm being told to just sit by the window and quietly rot away."

Wako took out a thick, snow-white sheet of Japanese paper from under the counter. On it were written words like a fire that would never be extinguished, even in a raging blizzard.

"A throne...? That small sales office in Kyushu?"

"Yes. It is not your status or your location that makes you a king. It is your 'pride in your work' that transforms that place into a sanctuary. When Sassa Narimasa was transferred to the land of Higo (Kyushu), he attempted to govern his territory with that same clumsy, unwavering honesty. No matter where he was, he never stopped being 'Sassa Narimasa'."

Wako served Narimasa to Nagasawa as a hot sake. By applying heat, the hidden spiciness was vividly brought to the fore, stirring Nagasawa's frozen heart.

"Nagasawa-san, the company has given you a 'place,' but they cannot take away your 'soul.' What will you accomplish in Kyushu? Will you wither away there, or will you, like Narimasa, gather your strength to make a 'counter-move' that surprises everyone? Everything depends on your resolve in this very moment."

The 'Sarasara-goe' of a Comeback

Nagasawa drank the hot Narimasa down to the very last drop. He felt a hot lump rise from the bottom of his stomach, and his stalled thoughts began to spin violently once again.

"…Wako-san. Like Narimasa, I will cross the snowy mountains. Whether Kyushu becomes a 'place of exile' or a 'base for a counterattack'—that was for me to decide, wasn't it?"

"That's the spirit. Just as Narimasa's sake reveals its true worth the more you drink it, your true value will be proven precisely after this adversity."

Nagasawa stood up and bowed deeply. His back was no longer hunched as it had been when he entered; he had regained the sharpness of a fierce general.

"Thank you very much, Wako-san. In a few years, I will return here with the fruits of my labor in Kyushu as a souvenir."

"Yes. When that time comes, I will open an even more mature, aged 'Narimasa' to celebrate your triumphant return."

Nagasawa's footsteps as he left the cave made a firm sound, as if he were powerfully treading upon frozen snow. His gaze, directed toward the west, was already fixed on his own 'throne' in the distant land of Kyushu.

#ChallengeForTheFuture
#CreativeAward2026
#EntertainmentOriginalWorkCategory