After the quake blind willow, sleeping woman dance dance dance

CHAPTER 9 
Tengo 
BEFORE THE EXIT IS BLOCKED 
The four of them had 
yakiniku
, then went to another place where they sang karaoke 
and polished off a bottle of whiskey. It was nearly ten p.m. when their cozy but 
boisterous little party broke up. After they left the bar, Tengo took Nurse Adachi back 
to her apartment. The other two women could catch a bus near the station, and they 
casually let things work out that way. Tengo and the young nurse walked down the 
deserted streets, side by side, for a quarter of an hour. 
“Tengo, Tengo, Tengo,” she sang out. “Such a nice name. 
Tengo
. It’s so easy to 
say.” 
Nurse Adachi had drunk a lot, but her cheeks were normally rosy so it was hard to 
tell, just by looking at her face, how drunk she really was. Her words weren’t slurred 
and her footsteps were solid. She didn’t seem drunk. Though people had their own 
ways of being drunk. 
“I always thought it was a weird name,” Tengo said. 
“It isn’t at all. 
Tengo
. It has a nice ring to it and it’s easy to remember. It’s a 
wonderful name.” 
“Speaking of which, I don’t know your first name. Everybody calls you Ku.” 
“That’s my nickname. My real name is Kumi. Kind of a nothing name.” 
“Kumi Adachi,”
Tengo said aloud. “Not bad. Compact and simple.” 
“Thank you,” Kumi Adachi said. “But putting it like that makes me feel like a 
Honda Civic or something.” 
“I meant it as a compliment.” 
“I know. I get good mileage, too,” she said, and took Tengo’s hand. “Do you mind 
if I hold your hand? It makes it more fun to walk together, and more relaxed.” 
“I don’t mind,” Tengo replied. Holding hands like this with Kumi Adachi, he 
remembered Aomame and the classroom in elementary school. It felt different now, 
but there was something in common. 
“I must be a little drunk,” Kumi said. 
“You think so?” 
“Yup.” 
Tengo looked at the young nurse’s face again. “You don’t look drunk.” 
“I don’t show it on the outside. That’s just the way I am. But I’m wasted.” 
“Well, you were knocking them back pretty steadily.” 
“I know. I haven’t drunk this much in a long time.” 
“You just have to get out like this sometimes,” Tengo said, quoting Mrs. Tamura. 

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“Of course,” Kumi said, nodding vigorously. “People have to get out sometimes—
have something good to eat, have some drinks, belt out some songs, talk about 
nothing in particular. But I wonder if you ever have times like that. Where you just 
get it out of your system, to clear your head? You always seem so cool and composed, 
Tengo.” 
Tengo thought about it. Had he done anything lately to unwind? He couldn’t recall. 
If he couldn’t recall, that probably meant he hadn’t. The whole concept of 
getting 
something out of his system
was something he might be lacking. 
“Not so much, I guess,” Tengo admitted. 
“Everybody’s different.” 
“There are all sorts of ways of thinking and feeling.” 
“Just like there are lots of ways of being drunk,” the nurse said, and giggled. “But 
it’s important, Tengo.” 
“You may be right,” he said. 
They walked on in silence for a while, hand in hand. Tengo felt uneasy about the 
change in the way she spoke. When she had on her nurse’s uniform, Kumi was 
invariably polite. But now in civilian clothes, she was more outspoken, probably