Chapter 5

Summary

• The cries that disturbed the village at night have now ceased; the villagers are restless as the dawn approaches due to the pending unloading of weapons and supplies.
• Omi's mother and Yabu (the daimyo) are asleep; Kiku is awake though exhausted and reflects on her situation and her philosophy of positive thinking.
• Kiku considers her upcoming bath, her debts, her family, and her life in the pleasure district fondly despite being unable to shake the memory of the screams.
• She hopes to increase her value in the "Willow World" (pleasure district) following her service to Lord Yabu and imagines the exaggerated stories that will circulate about her.
• Kiku recounts the sexual encounter with Lord Yabu and a boy, focusing on the oddities and methodical aspects of Yabu's behaviors.
• Afterward, both the boy and Kiku reflect on the experience; Kiku manipulates the outcome to give the boy comfort.
• Thinking about life's ironies, Kiku prepares to leave without waking Yabu, attending carefully to her appearance.
• As she departs, Kiku manipulates the perceptions of the villagers, insinuating she has suffered greatly from the night's events, knowing the gossip will spread.
• The villagers, especially Mura and his mother, are eager to speculate about Kiku's night with Yabu, spreading rumors of intense and possibly damaging encounters.
• Mura fantasizes about being with Kiku himself, admiring her rumored expertise and imagining the satisfaction that might come from such an encounter.
• Meanwhile, at the funeral pyre, a respectful ceremony is held for a dead barbarian, attended by Omi, Zukimoto, and their guards.
• In the foul cellar, Blackthorne tends to his shipmates, musing on their dire situation and reflecting on the harrowing screams of Pieterzoon.
• A samurai who shares the cellar with Blackthorne's crew is in a terrible state; the crew denies him water but Blackthorne disagrees with this decision.
• The samurai, driven to despair, attempts suicide but cannot follow through, and Blackthorne, despite his refusal to assist in suicide, offers him water once more.
• The captives endure an agonizing wait for their fate to be clarified, as each crew member struggles with fear and the desire for release.
• Finally, the trapdoor opens and the priest commands Blackthorne to come out of the cellar alone.