It rained again the next day. Old Man Yumoto had told me to come around noon, so I spent the morning checking the fields and around the house. Tama was staying home today too.
“Why don’t you come along?” I asked, trying to persuade her. I got pecked pretty hard. It was like she was saying, Don’t make me repeat myself!
Sorry.
Yesterday the chickens had patrolled in the rain. I wonder how far they usually go. They can run pretty fast, but I actually don’t know how much stamina they have.
Our visit was on very short notice, and I pondered whether to bring them a gift. Maybe something for everyone to eat together? I helped Pochi and Yuma onto the truck (the passenger seat was a bit tight for the two of them), and Tama saw us off. My chickens were in the habit of dutifully seeing me off whenever I went out. I had no idea what they got up to after that. I could try putting cameras on them, but I can already imagine Tama getting angry at me.
I arrived at the Yumotos’ after stopping by the store to buy some rice crackers. They were sold by the bag, but they were pretty big and filling. I always kept some at home too. When I arrived, I noticed there were no other cars, which meant the other two guests hadn’t arrived yet.
“Hello there,” I said.
“Hi, Sho-chan. Great timing! I’m picking mugwort—can you lend me a hand?”
“Sure thing.”
There was an area beyond the Yumotos’ fields that was rife with weeds. They took care to trim it regularly so it wouldn’t attract snakes and the like, but a large variety of plants still grew there. I enlisted Pochi and Yuma as bodyguards, just in case, and went over there to pick mugwort. I was wearing a wide-brimmed straw hat—it was no umbrella, but it did help with the rain, allowing me to focus on my task without worrying too much about the weather.
“Thanks! You’re a big help,” said Machiko-san. “I’m a bit on edge lately with all the talk of dangerous snakes.”
“That’s understandable.”
My chickens were extremely reliable during times like these—not only could they take care of snakes, but they also ate bugs harmful to crops. Were chickens actually the Swiss Army knife of animals all along? Note: Normal chickens can’t take on wild boars one-on-one.
After a while, I heard the sound of an engine—it was Aikawa-san’s car.
“Hello, thanks for having me over.”
“Hello. Aikawa-san, was it? Please make yourself at home. My, I see the rumors about you being a handsome young man were true!”
Uh, is it me, or is she giving him a bit of an odd look? I discreetly stepped between them and greeted Aikawa-san. “Hello, Aikawa-san.”
“Hello, Sano-san. Is that mugwort you’re picking? I didn’t know it was still in season.”
“That’s right,” the old lady said coquettishly. “I’m thinking of making it into tempura—what do you think?”
“That sounds great,” he replied.
I see he doesn’t feel uncomfortable around older women. Or so I thought, but upon closer inspection, I could see his mouth twitching. I quickly remarked that we were standing out in the rain.
“Oh my, how thoughtless of me. Please, come inside,” she urged Aikawa-san.
“Thank you. I need to get something from the truck.”
I put the mugwort I’d picked in the basket she was holding and went with Aikawa-san over to his truck. Rin-san was in the passenger seat, coiled up listlessly. It looked like he’d removed the seat itself so she could be more comfortable. She is pretty big, after all. Maybe I should also remove the seat from my truck.
“Hello, Rin-san.”
“Sano, hi.”
She was as pretty as ever. Her impassive expression gave the impression of a cold, unapproachable beauty, but even then, I could tell she had a favorable opinion of me. She was draped in a large cloth from the waist down so that you couldn’t see her snake half, even if you looked inside the truck.
She had an air of melancholy about her as she felt the breeze through the slightly open car window. Definitely hard to compete with these looks. If only she could speak more properly, she’d be perfect, though I guess there’s also a certain charm to her broken accent.
“Ow! Hey, Yuma, that hurts!”
It was uncommon for Yuma to peck me. What is it?
Machiko-san had already gone inside. The habu that Aikawa-san had brought was coiled up inside a big bottle, similar to the ones people use to make plum wine, with a few air holes poked near the top. It’s bigger than I expected. It did indeed match the characteristics of a habu—triangular head and yellowish skin with a blotchy dark pattern.
“That’s pretty big...”
“Probably over a meter, I think. Rin came to me holding it in her mouth. It was pretty clearly a habu, so I really had to think about how to store it.”
“Great job, Rin-san.”
When we went back to the house, the first thing Aikawa-san did was hand the old lady the present he’d brought them. I hurriedly followed.
“My, that’s very thoughtful of you!” she said with a smile.
“Hey, Shohei, you’re here,” greeted Yumoto-san. “So that’s the habu, huh? Pretty big. And you’re Aikawa-san, was it? Come in.”
“Sho-chan, will you go get us something to drink?”
“Okay.”
“I’ll help too,” Aikawa-san said.
Yumoto-san came from the living room and stared attentively at the snake in the bottle. I’d gone to the shed with Aikawa-san to get beverages for everyone when I heard the sound of a car stopping. And that must be Katsuragi-san.
“S-Sano-san...” murmured Aikawa-san.
“Don’t worry—it’s okay.”
Aikawa-san had already started to go pale. He’s pretty badly traumatized...
Katsuragi-san soon hopped out of the truck. “Sorry, I’m late... I was picking some mountain plants, and... Huh? Whaaaa?!” She seemed taken aback by Aikawa-san, who quickly hid behind my back. Um, you do realize I’m shorter than you, right? That’s not a very good hiding place.
“Katsuragi-san... This is Aikawa-san, from the mountain to the west. Aikawa-san, this is Katsuragi-san, from the mountain to the east.”
“I-It’s a p-p-pleasure to m-meet you!” Katsuragi-san stammered.
Aikawa-san paused for a long moment, then said, “Same here.”
Katsuragi-san, you’re getting way too flustered. Your face is all red and everything. Her dragon then came down from the tonneau and pushed her forward.
“Hello, Tatsuki-san.”
He nodded lightly; it sort of looked like he was apologizing to me. He went over to Aikawa-san’s truck nonchalantly and, catching sight of Rin-san, nodded to her as well. She’s got a terrifying look on her face.
The meter-tall chickens were nearby, poking at one thing or another. Probably bugs or something.
This is straight out of a kaiju crossover movie. Have I possibly made a big mistake? I felt a chill run down my spine as I led Katsuragi-san into the house.
Aikawa-san stayed glued to my back until Katsuragi-san went inside. Give me some space here.
We decided to get a better look at the habu later, so we set the bottle by the front door for now. I hope the Yumotos aren’t expecting any other visitors—those folks would be in for an unpleasant surprise.
Aikawa-san explained that Rin-san had to stay in the car because she was very shy around people.
“Is that so? But...” The old lady didn’t seem quite satisfied with this explanation.
“Don’t be a busybody. It’s none of our business,” Yumoto-san reprimanded her.
“I suppose,” she said reluctantly. I understand your curiosity, I really do, but it’s a much better idea to let her stay in the truck.
“I’m sorry to impose, but could I have a bite to eat?” Aikawa-san asked apologetically.
“Yes, yes, no problem! Hold on, I’ll make some onigiri too!” Machiko-san replied enthusiastically. She’s frying vegetables—does Rin-san eat those? I seemed to remember Aikawa-san mentioning she was a carnivore, so the veggies were probably for him to eat at home. Apparently, since his snakes swallow their prey whole and digest slowly, it was common for them to go several days without eating. There was plenty of food for them in the mountains too. Skipping lunch was no big deal for them.
We—Old Man Yumoto, Aikawa-san, me, Katsuragi-san, and Machiko-san, in that order—sat at the lunch table. The old lady was happy about the mountain plants and vegetables Katsuragi-san had brought, and she made them all into tempura.
Huh, I didn’t know you could still find bamboo shoots. Apparently, some sprouted out of season.
There was also a large plate of fried chicken, some boiled vegetables and pickles, and they’d even gone out of their way to buy sashimi. I really couldn’t thank them enough for the lavish meal.
And yet, I was feeling pretty uncomfortable in my seat. I could tell that Katsuragi-san kept stealing glances at Aikawa-san, who leaned closer to Yumoto-san and did his best to avoid looking at her. Katsuragi-san’s ex was an abusive scumbag, but she’s not afraid of men per se. Not the case for Aikawa-san, though. This is a pretty complicated situation... These thoughts kept running through my head, and I wasn’t really able to enjoy the meal. Ugh.
Pochi was patrolling nearby, and Yuma was in the earthen-floor room eating vegetable scraps. The dragon was lying down near the entrance.
After lunch, we had tea, and Katsuragi-san went over to help Machiko-san do the dishes. When it came to this sort of thing, there was a general expectation that women were supposed to take the initiative, especially in the countryside. It’s a form of role division, I guess, but I don’t think it’s fair that they can’t even sit down and take their time enjoying a meal. It was inaccurate to say all domestic work around here was left to women, though. For example, Yumoto-san had a friend who liked to make noodles.
“Aikawa-kun, that snake you caught is definitely a habu.” Yumoto-san opened the glass front door and had another look. The dragon also seemed to open his eyes narrowly to take a look.
“For crying out loud... What were they thinking? Their father got rid of pests, but they did the opposite. You mind if I keep this as evidence?”
“Of course not. Given how fat it is, I can’t imagine it was a wild snake.”
“Yeah, about that, I’m pretty sure you need a license to keep these as pets. Wonder if he used his work connections to get one. Either way, it’s all a big hassle for everyone,” Yumoto-san lamented.
“Definitely.”
The man might have had foreign species of venomous snakes too. In any case, the authorities had already been notified. The health department wasn’t of much help, apparently—they wouldn’t catch the snakes. The police would respond to reports, but there was only one policeman stationed at the village’s own police station, and as for the joint police station, it was shared with another village deeper into the mountains, and the policeman from that station was only around for half the week. In other words, the villagers were expected to deal with it by themselves. Well, other than actual criminal incidents, of course.