Lian Hearn - Heaven's Net Is Wide

“You must know that the Seishuu prefer to keep peace through diplomacy and alliances,” Arai said.

“I can hardly believe this is your own preference. Your family have never cared for the Tohan, so it is said.”

“Maybe not, but I am just one small part of the clan. My father is still alive and I have three brothers. Furthermore, Lady Maruyama’s marriage, and several others-my own wife will probably be chosen for me from a family sympathetic to Iida, if not actually related to him-have brought the whole of the West much closer to the Tohan.” He leaned forward and said quietly, “The Otori are a great clan, a historic family, possibly the greatest in the Three Countries-but what has happened to them? What were they doing while the Iida were negotiating these alliances? You know what people say-that while the Otori skulk in Hagi, the rest of the Middle Country will be stolen from them and they won’t even notice!”

“That’s an insult-”Takeshi began, but Shigeru silenced him, putting his hand on his brother’s shoulder.

“Many mistakes have been made,” he admitted, “but surely it is not too late to remedy some of them.”

“I will speak to my father,” Arai said. “But I can make no promises. We may not care much for the Tohan, but to be honest with you, we have little love for some of the Otori allies either, in particular our nearest neighbors, the Noguchi. It may be very imprudent for us to openly defy the Tohan at this time. We have nothing to gain from it. I came to meet you because I liked what I’d heard of you, and I don’t mind telling you I like what I see now. But my preferences can have very little influence on the policies of the West.”

“At least give us the assurance that you will not stab us in the back while we fight the Tohan in the East.”

“So it will come to war?”

“I believe Sadamu will attack the Otori next summer. We will defeat them but not if we have to fight on two fronts.”

“If Maruyama Naomi agrees to that, then there’s every possibility the Arai will too. And Lady Naomi will almost certainly choose the more peaceful solution, for that is the Maruyama way.”

The meat was ready, but despite its succulent gamy flavor, the day’s vigorous exercise, and the crisp night air, Shigeru ate with little appetite and his sleep was restless, not only because of the many flasks of wine and the hard ground. His earlier confidence of the wisdom and desirability of the alliance was replaced by a more realistic appreciation of its difficulties, the many obstacles and the need for months of careful diplomacy, months he could not spare.

“It was a mistake to come,” he said to Kiyoshige as they rode back to Yamagata.

“You never know. You have established a relationship-one that could become a friendship. And you know that you will meet Lady Maruyama before you return to Hagi.”

Shigeru made no reply, remaining unconvinced.

“Anyway,” Kiyoshige said, “it was worth it for the food alone!”

“And the hunting,” Takeshi agreed. “My only regret is I did not watch Lord Arai use the sword. If he fights in the same way as he rides, it would be something to see.”

“It doesn’t look as if you will ever have that opportunity,” Shigeru said. Their boyish cheerfulness irritated him. “Arai will never fight alongside us. The most we can hope for is not to make an enemy of him.”

The heaviness of his spirits was not dispelled when they returned to Yamagata and told Irie of the outcome of the meeting.

“I cannot remedy the neglect of years in a few short months,” Shigeru concluded his account. “We have wasted all of our opportunities while the Iida have been negotiating, making marriages and alliances. We are hemmed in on all sides. There is every sign that Sadamu is preparing an attack soon. I hoped to strengthen us against it, but I may simply be precipitating it. Will we ever be ready?”

“We must spend the winter preparing men and arms and planning strategy,” Irie replied. “The southern and eastern provinces are the most vulnerable. Rather than return to Hagi with you, I suggest I go to Noguchi and impress on him the need to stand firm and not give into Tohan intimidation.”

“And to start preparing men,” Shigeru said. “They must be in readiness to advance along the eastern border in spring.”

“Should I stay there for the winter to oversee it?”

“Send messages before the snow to let me know how the situation looks. I’ll decide then.”

Shigeru fell silent. “I am most concerned about spies,” he said finally. “I feel Sadamu watches us all the time and will know my every move. What can I do to escape his net?”

“Be very careful who you talk to and who else is there,” Irie replied. “Surround yourself only with warriors you know and trust. Choose servants only from Otori families.”

“Easier said than done,” Shigeru replied, thinking of Muto Shizuka.

The following day they left early in the morning to ride to Terayama. The beauty of the autumn weather and the prospect of seeing Matsuda Shingen raised Shigeru’s spirits a little, even though he had few hopes of the meeting with Maruyama Naomi. He knew her husband was from the Tohan; the husband’s daughter was married to a cousin of Iida Sadamu, Nariaki. Naomi was only a year or so older than Shigeru himself. Despite what everyone kept telling him about the Maruyama way of doing things, he doubted if she had any real power, if she would ever act against the wishes of her husband and his family-which would be those of Iida Sadamu.

In fact, the more he thought about it, the more reluctant he was to meet her. Mingled with his fears was a kind of anger at his own family, his father, his uncles, who had allowed this situation to develop. He couldn’t help wondering why they had not approached the Seishuu themselves, years before, when he and Naomi had been children; they were almost the same age; they could have been betrothed then. And why had the Seishuu not considered the Otori heir rather than a binding alliance with the Tohan? Did they, and most of the other clans in the Three Countries, consider the Otori an insignificant force, a declining clan destined now to be wiped out by the Tohan?

By the time they arrived at the foot of the mountain, he had decided he did not want to meet her and hoped she would not be there. The journey had unsettled him further, though he should have been delighted by the rapturous welcome he received along the way. The progress was slowed by so many people wanting to greet him, talk to him, offer presents to him and his men, and meet Takeshi.

“You will have to learn to be more standoffish,” Kiyoshige said, after the fourth or fifth halt to examine some innovative farming technique or be informed about a new taxation levy. “They will eat you alive. You cannot be available to all these people. It’s like being nibbled by a pool full of carp!”

“And we’ll never get to the temple,” Takeshi added.

Shigeru saw what he had become, a sort of symbol for these people who put all their trust and hope in him. If he failed them, they would fall under Tohan rule: he could not bear to see that happen. Yet was he ready to take the measures that would bring war on the whole fief? And he was saddened in some way by the adulation. It had little foundation and was like a fantasy, unrealistic and unsustainable. He wanted their lives to have a sounder base-justice because it was Heaven’s will, not on the whim of some idealized hero.

There were several retainers already at the inn at the foot of the mountain, wearing the Maruyama crest on their surcoats. They stared at Shigeru and Takeshi with undisguised curiosity as the brothers dismounted from the horses, leaving them in Kiyoshige’s care.