Chapter 9

Summary

• Blackthorne and Yabu go ashore with six samurai, and Blackthorne assesses the bay for navigation purposes.
• They traverse a dangerous cliffside path in rough weather and Blackthorne critiques the samurai’s motives, mistaking their vigilance for suspicion.
• Blackthorne, who is chilled, observes the Japanese’s apparent indifference to the cold, reflecting on cultural differences.
• The landscape around them is inhospitable, with no room for settlements, just rocky shores and mountains.
• Blackthorne considers his obligations to find and bury his fellow pilot, Rodrigues, who was lost at sea.
• After rounding a headland, Yabu sends two samurai to check a nearby village for Rodrigues' body.
• Yabu halts the search, concluding that Rodrigues must have been claimed by the sea if his body isn’t nearby.
• On their way back, Rodrigues' body is spotted trapped in a cleft with an oar, leading to a discussion on how to retrieve it.
• The group's safety concerns prevent Blackthorne from attempting a risky climb down the cliff.
• Realizations around their desire to protect and use Blackthorne’s knowledge lead him to consider his potential leverage.
• Yabu, motivated by personal ambition, contemplates his future, the strategic use of ships, and potentially allying with the foreign pilots.
• Yabu accepts the risky challenge of retrieving the body, revealing his climbing prowess and renewing considerations of dominance and strategy.
• Yabu's fall from the cliff leaves him injured but determined, as he scrambles to secure Rodrigues.
• Yabu contemplates the strategic value of Rodrigues being alive and debates inwardly on his next moves.
• The group on the cliff realize the danger of the rising tide and scramble to find a means of escape for Yabu and Rodrigues.
• A samurai’s sacrificial act jolts Yabu into action, finding a precarious ledge to place Rodrigues.
• Improvised ropes from the samurai’s clothing provide a lifeline, allowing for a thrilling rescue of Yabu and Rodrigues.
• Upon return to the surface, a doctor tends to Rodrigues while Yabu rebuffs assistance, revealing cross-cultural respect through a mutual acknowledgment between him and Blackthorne.