After the quake blind willow, sleeping woman dance dance dance

3:56 p.m., Tengo Kawana 
back home from trip
. 

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702
At the same moment that Tengo appeared at the entrance, a door somewhere 
opened wide and Ushikawa felt reality returning. Like air rushing into a vacuum, his 
nerves were instantly sharp, his body filled with a fresh vitality. He was again a useful 
part of the outside world. There was a satisfying click as things fell into place. His 
circulation sped up, and just the right amount of adrenaline surged through his body. 
Good, this is how it should be. This is the way I’m supposed to be, the way the world 
is supposed to be
. 
It was after seven p.m. when Tengo appeared at the entrance again. The wind had 
picked up after sunset, and the temperature had dropped. Tengo wore a sweater under 
a windbreaker with faded jeans. He stepped outside and stood there, looking around, 
but he didn’t see anything. He glanced at where Ushikawa was hiding, but didn’t pick 
out the observer. 
He’s different from Eriko Fukada
, Ushikawa thought. 
She’s
special. 
She can see what others can’t. But you, Tengo—for better or worse you’re an 
ordinary person. You can’t see me sitting here
. 
Seeing that nothing had changed outside, Tengo zipped his jacket up to his neck, 
stuck his hands in his pockets, and walked out onto the main road. Ushikawa 
hurriedly put on his knit cap, wrapped the muffler around his neck, slipped on his 
shoes, and went out to follow Tengo. 
Tengo strolled slowly down the street and turned around to look behind him a few 
times, but Ushikawa was careful and Tengo didn’t see him. Tengo seemed to have 
something on his mind. Perhaps he was thinking about Fuka-Eri being gone. He was 
apparently heading toward the station. Maybe he was going to take a train 
somewhere? That would make tailing him difficult. The station was well lit, and on a 
Saturday night there wouldn’t be many passengers. Ushikawa would be extremely 
conspicuous. In that case, it would be smarter to give up. 
But Tengo wasn’t heading toward the station. He walked for a while and then 
turned down a nearly deserted street and came to a halt in front of a bar named 
Mugiatama. It was a bar for young people, by the look of it. Tengo glanced at his 
watch to check the time, stood there pondering for a few seconds, then went inside. 
Mugiatama
, Ushikawa thought. He shook his head. 
What a stupid name for a bar
. 
Ushikawa hid in the shadow of a telephone pole and checked out his surroundings. 
Tengo was probably going to have a couple of drinks there and a bite to eat, so it 
would take at least a half hour. Worst-case scenario, Ushikawa would have to stay put 
for an hour. He looked around for a good place nearby to kill time while he watched 
the people going in and out of the bar. Unfortunately, though, there was just a milk 
distributor, a small Tenrikyo meeting hall, and a rice wholesaler, and all of them were 
closed. 
Man, I never get a break
, he thought. The strong northwest wind blew the 
clouds swiftly by. The warmth of the daytime seemed like a dream now. Ushikawa 
wasn’t relishing the idea of standing in the freezing cold for thirty minutes to an hour, 
doing nothing. 
Maybe I should give it up. Tengo’s just having a meal here. There is no need to go 
to all the trouble of shadowing him
. Ushikawa considered popping in to some place 
himself, having a hot meal, then going home. Tengo would come back home before 
long. That was a very attractive choice. Ushikawa pictured himself in a cozy little 

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703
restaurant, enjoying a piping hot bowl of