The Ghost In The Tokaido Inn

Seikei rides in a kago, a passenger box carried by two men, though he’d rather walk because riding embarrasses him, and he’d like to see the countryside. Seikei’s father, a tea merchant, will not allow this; he and Seikei travel together so Seikei can learn about the family business. However, Seikei prefers poetry to math. Though he has won awards for his writing, this talent is beneficial only to samurai, and Seikei is not from a samurai family. When he sees a girl rubbing her feet on the side of the road, he is embarrassed to look like a lazy merchant.

Seikei and his father reach a checkpoint. He spots a group of samurai and their daimyo, or lord, noting the man’s “harsh eyes” and cruel scowl. A beggar holds out his bowl to the daimyo, who nearly crushes the man beneath his horse. The beggar flips nimbly backward, eyeing the lord with hatred. Seikei notes the beggar’s face, marked with a long scar on his right cheek. Seikei’s father comments on the variety of people on the road, including Kirishitans, who practice an outlawed and mysterious religion. He claims he and Seikei are fortunate to travel in cargo, but Seikei wishes they were samurai instead of merchants.

Seikei and his father arrive in Kameyama and approach the inn where they intend to sleep. They learn that the inn is hosting the daimyo they saw on the road, Lord Hakuseki. The innkeeper shows them to a room, and they bathe and eat. Later, the innkeeper returns, asking Seikei’s father to assist him because Hakuseki desires some fine tea. Seikei’s father demurs, knowing the daimyo might expect the tea for free. They approach Hakuseki on their knees, and he threatens to cut out Seikei’s father’s tongue when the merchant explains the teas. Hakuseki asks Seikei how much he should pay for the tea he chooses, and Seikei says he should pay what he thinks is fair. The daimyo likes this answer and sends Seikei’s father away.

A girl arrives, carrying a box, and Seikei recognizes her from the road. She is beautiful and graceful, the daughter of a paper maker. Hakuseki desires paper fine enough on which to write a message to the shogun, and the girl offers him a selection. When he writes on a sheet, Seikei sees that his writing is crude and clumsy, a reflection of the man’s character. Hakuseki shows the girl a large and brilliant ruby that he plans to give to the shogun. He purchases her paper and then drinks his tea. Hakuseki pays Seikei, dismissing him.

Seikei isn’t tired, so he goes to sit on the inn’s terrace. He realizes he was afraid to be in the daimyo’s presence. Suddenly, the girl arrives on the terrace, and they talk. Seikei reveals his longing to be a samurai and to devote himself to poetry, but the girl, Michiko, says one doesn’t have to be a samurai to write poems. She points out that Hakuseki is a samurai even though he writes terribly and lacks the samurai sense of honor.

Michiko tells Seikei a ghost story in which a corrupt monk becomes a horrible creature called a jikininki, who eats the flesh of dead men. Only a holy man can release the man’s spirit from its monstrous prison. When Michiko returns to her room, Seikei feels somewhat fearful of what could be lurking beyond the terrace in the night.

Seikei returns to his room and hears Hakuseki beating a servant for failing to bring his wine quickly enough. He reminds himself of a samurai’s essential qualities, “loyalty, right conduct, and bravery” (31), noting that the daimyo does not set a good example for others.

Seikei lies awake, hearing the clock strike 11, initiating the Hour of the Rat. He sees a horrible shadow open the door to their room. Believing it to be a jikininki, he tells the monster he is not dead, taking in its big horns, white face, and a red object in its hand. The monster retreats, and Seikei hears it open another door down the hall.

Although he is scared, Seikei knows he must be brave and alert the other sleepers. In the hallway, the sight of the creature robs him of his voice, so he stomps his foot at it. At this noise, the creature seems to shrink from sight, dissolving into the floor. Confused, but relieved, Seikei returns to bed.

Early the next morning, the innkeeper knocks on the door. Hakuseki reported something stolen from his room, and a judge arrives to investigate the theft. Judge Ooka questions the guests, and none confess, so he orders his men to search the rooms. He implores anyone who witnessed something strange in the night to speak. One of the judge’s men returns with a box of paper from Michiko’s room, and the ruby is inside.