Chapter 2.5

Hirosawa was surprised by the inexplicable build up in himself. Coming home from business he had in Mizobe, driving along the sparsely lit national highway, he realized that he was feeling melancholy.

His house was in the village. His wife and young daughter were likewise there. It was the village he was born and raised in, the village his wife was born and raised in, the place where his daughter was born and would continue to be raised. With such strong regional and blood bonds, it was where he belonged and yet he felt nervous in returning there. The obligation that he had to return was stronger than the sentiment of wanting to go home. That was a first.

Bit by bit the houses lessened, meaning there were no more street lights. Not only that, it seemed as if the darkness compounded. A mountain village cut off from civilization--from the outside world. Isolated in darkness, his hometown was surrounded by death.

The village is surrounded by death.

The phrase which once felt tranquil and pious now felt ominous. Hirosawa's own internal image of "death" had changed. It was not something which stood in quiet dignity. It was something more greedy and ravenous, and something that even slyly hid itself, sneaking up behind him. Like a starved beast it hid, surrounding the village.

Since summer, the deaths had continued and increased. Death was something that came in mysterious waves---it had already gone past something that could be spoken of with such a phrase. It was apparently abnormal. Whispers that it was a plague spread like disease themselves. Hasegawa from Creole had whispered to him that the doctor of the Ozakis had implicitly acknowledged as much. I see, so it was, he thought while on the other hand thinking is it really a plague? If asked what it were if not a disease he would be hard pressed to answer but he couldn't help the feeling that the word "plague" wasn't suited for what was surrounding the village.

The reason he thought that was

Because the number of his students was soundly dropping. In a school small enough that each grade had only one class group, even if you tried to ignore it it was clear that the students were decreasing. There were none who died. All of them had transferred, so it shouldn't have bore any relation to the plague. They transferred to schools in the city but all of them were sudden, and without filing the proper paperwork. Suddenly, they stopped coming to school. There would be a call from someone distant relative, or they'd send the papers in. Even if he were to try asking the surrounding circumstances, they families whereabouts would already be unknown, with no means of contact. For example, Koike Touko, with no regard for her grandfather left behind in the village, in fact the grandfather himself didn't know where his family had gone; there were cases like that. Suddenly, the students were gone. They weren't dead but it was similar to the impression of death spreading through the village. ---Too similar.

In such a somber mood, Hirosawa returned to the village. He turned the steering wheel just before the village entrance. His car pulled into the brightly lit gas station.

Kusunoki Gas Station was run by only the Kusunoki parents and children. There was Kusunoki Masaya and his wife, their eldest son and his wife, and their second son. When he stopped his car, it was Masaya who approached as if dragging his feet. Hirosawa opened his window and took the key from the ignition. Kusunoki seemed sullen as it accepted it. As their hands touched, his felt quite chilled by the night.

"Good evening. ---Regular, full tank, please."

Kusunoki nodded. The second son Shouji came along dragging himself in the same manner. Kusunoki passed the key to Shouji, taking the dust cloth.

"You don't appear to be doing well."

Hirosawa said as he got out of the car; Kusunoki only replied is that right. His speech sounded heavy. He seemed terribly labored. The hand wiping his windshield looked lifeless.

"It's become quite cold in the mornings and evenings, hasn't it? Have you been all right?"

"....Yes."

The conversation was continued spottily with lethargic responses. It was somehow off, he had the feeling. The station's lights were on and he couldn't see inside but he didn't see signs of anybody. It seemed that tonight only Kusunoki and Shouji were there.

Even when the point of naturally continuing the conversation had passed, Hirosawa asked about it somehow or another, to which Kusunoki nodded.

"We're quitting, so."

Eh, Hirosawa said looking back at Kusunoki. Kusunoki gave a ceremonial nod. "We are folding up the business and moving away."

But, Hirosawa murmured. There was only one gas station in the village, and they took care of all of the villagers in some way or another. On top of that, Kusunoki Gas station handled the village's propane too. You could even say every single person in the village were customers of the station. The Kusunoki closing up shop would cause great trouble to everyone, and Kusunoki should have had considerable business. He couldn't imagine a reason they would close.

"My nephew asked me to turn it over to him, so it's come to that."

"Ah... Is that right. But, still, so suddenly?"

Kusunoki limply dropped the cloth into the bucket. He murmured with a vast and wandering gaze.

"I'm scared of Sotoba..."

Hirosawa furrowed his brows, tried to ask what Kusunoki meant by that but Kusunoki turned his back and returned inside the building.