The three samurai turned to the man with thewalking stick. "You know them, Master?" one asked.
"Yes, of course," the man said. "This boy and girlare Baku and Koto, my best students.""Hi, Master!" said Annie, pretending she knew whothe man was. "We couldn't find the bridge, so we-uhwe-""We came here to look for you," said Jack.
"And now you have found me," said the man. "I amsorry you were frightened by my friends."34The samurai put away his sword. "Forgive me," hesaid, bowing before Jack and Annie.
35"Sure, no problem," said Annie.
The samurai turned to the small man. "We willleave you with your students now," he said. "Thankyou, Most Honored Master, for your visit with ustoday." All three warriors bowed deeply before theman. Then they walked away.
Why did the samurai call the small man "MostHonored Master"?
Jack wondered.
When the samurai were gone, the man turned toJack and Annie. His eyes twinkled. "I believe you aresafe now," he said.
"Thanks," said Annie. "But I'm afraid we're notBaku and Koto.""No, you are not," said the man. "But you are notspies, either, are you?""No," said Jack.
"I did not think so," said the man. "That is why Ithought you needed my help.""Thank you," said Jack.
"You are most welcome," said the man. "Nowperhaps you will tell me who you really are,36and how you came to be here in the ImperialGarden.""Our names are Jack and Annie," said Jack. "Andwe-" He paused. It seemed impossible to explain:
Teddy and Kathleen's visit, Merlin's sorrow, Morgan'sresearch book.
"We came here to search for a secret of happiness,"said Annie.
The man smiled. "I believe that is something we allseek," he said. "But you must be very careful, Jack andAnnie. The shogun does not allow foreigners into ourcountry. If you do not have passports, you could becaught and punished.""We know," said Annie. "What should we do?""Perhaps you should travel with me today," said theman. "You can continue to be my students, Baku andKoto.""Good plan!" said Jack.
"You must remember, seek harmony with yoursurroundings," said the man. "Observe the37people of Edo and do as they do. If you do not standout, you will not be noticed by the samurai." "Got it,"said Annie.
Seek harmony with your surroundings.
Observe the people of Edo and do as they do, Jackrepeated to himself.
"Come," said the man. He started walking brisklythrough the garden.
Jack and Annie hurried after him. "Excuse me, butwhat's your name?" Annie said.
"My friends call me Basho," the man answered.
"Basho? That's a cute name!" said Annie.
"And why did the samurai call you `Most HonoredMaster'?" asked Jack.
"Because I am their teacher," said Basho.
"What do you teach them?" asked Jack.
Basho smiled. "Today they learned how to listen toa cricket in a woodpile," he said, "and how to thinklike a frog."38"Cool," said Jack.
Those must be warrior skills,he thought,special ways to listen for an enemy or jump aroundwith a sword.
He remembered how ninjas used secrets of natureto fight their enemies.
Basho led Jack and Annie through a wooden gate ina high wall. They walked over a wide stone bridgethat crossed a moat. When they came to the otherside of the bridge, they followed a path that led to asmall boat dock on a river.
Three fishermen were loading wicker baskets into along flat-bottomed boat. Hundreds of shiny little fishwere inside each basket.
Basho walked over to the fishermen. "Goodmorning," he said.
"Good morning, Master Basho," the fishermen said.
All of them bowed.
Everyone seems to know Basho,Jack thought.
"May my students and I ride with you down theriver?" asked Basho.
39"Oh, yes, of course, Master Basho!" one of the mensaid. "We would be most honored to carry you in ourhumble boat!""Thank you," said Basho.
Jack and Annie followed Basho onto the deck of theboat and sat next to the wicker baskets.
40One of the fishermen untied the boat, and theothers used long poles to push it away from the dock.
The men began poling down the river.
The fishing boat floated under a series of bridges,moving in and out of shadows and glittering light. Asit passed under one of the41bridges, it scraped the bottom of the river. Basho,Jack, and Annie were thrown forward.
"Forgive us, Master!" one of the fishermen called toBasho. "The river is very shallow.""There has been no rain for a long time," saidanother fisherman. "It is very worrisome to us.""Yes, it worries me, too," said Basho.
"What's everyone so worried about?" Annie askedBasho.
"When the weather is very dry, the people of Edoworry about fire," said Basho. "Twenty-five yearsago, during a dry spell, half our city was destroyed bya terrible fire. Thousands died.""Oh, that's awful!" said Annie.
"Yes. Since then, everyone has worked hard torebuild the capital," said Basho. "Edo is now evenmore beautiful than before. In fact, along thisriverbank are many new castles of the samurai. See?
There one hides now."Basho pointed at a steep rocky cliff above theriverbank. Jack shaded his eyes as he looked at3042the curved roof and high stone walls of a samuraicastle. "Its largest room is called the Thousand-MatHall," said Basho.
"What does that mean?" asked Jack.
"It means the room can hold a thousand floor mats,"said Basho.
"Cool," said Annie. "Basho, where doyoulive?"Basho smiled. "My castle is on the other side of theGreat Bridge," he said.
Jack wondered how many mats Basho's castle couldhold.
Beyond the steep cliffs, the boat traffic grewheavier. Now there were many boats floating on thewide river: big sailboats, barges loaded with lumber,and ferries filled with passengers holding parasols.
The fishing boat glided toward a crowded docknext to a market. In the market, thousands ofgleaming fish were laid out on tables. Men andwomen also sold fish and other sea creatures frombaskets that hung from poles across their43shoulders. "Shrimp!" "Tuna!" "Octopus!" "Eel!" theyshouted.
"Wait for us while we deliver the fish," Basho saidto Jack and Annie. "Then we will travel further on theriver."The fishermen tied up the boat. Jack and Anniewaited on the landing as Basho helped the crewunload the wicker baskets. Then each man put abasket on his head and started up the stone steps thatled to the fish market.
"Oh, no!" said Annie. "Look!" She pointed towardthe other end of the dock.
Jack looked. He saw several samurai getting off aboat. "Quick! Grab a basket!" he said.
Jack and Annie each picked up a basket of fish. AsJack tried to lift the basket to his head, he tilted it. Acouple of fish hit him on the nose as they fell to thedock.
"Leave them! Come on!" whispered Annie.
Carrying the baskets on their heads, Jack and Anniefollowed Basho and the fishermen up the3244steps and delivered their fish to a young woman atone of the tables. Jack glanced back at the river. Thesamurai were standing on the landing, checkingsomeone's passport.
Jack looked at Basho. Basho was watching thesamurai, too. He turned to the fishermen. "Thank youfor the ride," he said calmly, bowing to the men. "Wewill walk from here."The fishermen nodded and smiled.
Good plan,Jack thought, relieved.
"Come," said Basho. He led Jack and Annie awayfrom the market. Soon they came to a busy roadcrowded with pedestrians and travelers on horseback.
As they walked along with the crowd, Jackremembered Basho's words: "Seek harmony with yoursurroundings." He tried to blend in by walking at asteady pace. Keeping his eyes down, he worried abouttheir mission.
How will we ever find the secret of happiness,he wondered,if we have to keep dodging the samurai?
45"Look at that bridge!" said Annie.
Jack glanced up. A high, arched bridge spanned theriver. Hundreds of people were walking across it.
"That is the Great Bridge," said Basho. "It will leadus away from the heart of Edo to the bank of theSumida River, where I live.""Great," said Jack. He hoped they would be saferaway from the heart of Edo. Then maybe they couldfocus on their search for the secret.
Jack, Annie, and Basho joined the crowd crossingthe bridge. They walked single file, close to thewooden railing. Jack stared straight ahead, careful notto look anyone in the eye. He saw people havingpicnics on the other side of the bridge. Kids wereflying red kites.
"What's that mountain?" said Annie. She pointed toa snowcapped mountain looming in the distance. Thewhite cone of the gray mountain rose above fleecy,rose-tinted clouds.
"That is a volcanic mountain called Mount Fuji,"said Basho.
46"Oh, I've heard of Mount Fuji!" said Jack. "That'sthe highest mountain in Japan, right?""Yes, and the most beautiful," said Basho.
"Itisbeautiful," said Annie.
Jack looked around. Actually, he thoughteverything seemed beautiful at that moment: thegreen and yellow parasols of the ferryboat passengersbelow, the pink cherry trees shimmering at the river'sedge, the red kites and white seagulls gliding throughthe sky.
"I love Japan," Jack said softly.
"I do, too," said Basho. "We call our world `thefloating world,' for it seems to float on beauty.""It really does," murmured Jack. Walking across theGreat Bridge, he felt as if he himself were floatingthrough the floating world. |