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Chapter 4 - Chapter three.

"Have you been watching me all this time?"

"I was worried when it would move. Hey."

The woman then showed the child her rice balls, which were apparently her spoils of war.

"I'm hungry."

Shikishima felt relieved when he was able to get the child back and walked away.

"Hey, why didn't you leave the kid alone?"

The woman was dejected when Shikishima ignored her.

"Hey, hey"

"We can't leave him there like this."

The woman seemed to be very pleased with this answer and happily strolled around Shikishima.

"Hee hee. I couldn't leave her. Hee."

The woman said this in a good mood, as if she had dug up some treasure.

"You are such a good-natured brother, aren't you?"

Shikishima ignored her and left, and the woman followed him with a smile on her face. He hadn't noticed it when he saw her at the black market, but upon closer inspection, he realized she didn't look pregnant; she was still young and looked like she attended an all-girls' school.

"Please don't follow me."

"If I leave this child alone in such a place, both I and this child will die."

Even though Shikishima shouted at her loudly, the girl paid him no mind and simply followed him. In this world of black markets and burnt-out ruins, her daughter seemed to be better than Shikishima in one or two areas.

Shikishima realized that if he became attached to her in a strange way, he would bring trouble upon himself later, so he raised his voice: "You know?"

She tried to cook it in the hut but never got around to using it, so her daughter used the pot she borrowed from Shikishima to break up the rice balls and make hot soup.

"Once you eat this, you'll be gone."

His "daughter" ignored these words and spoke to her child.

"This is scary. This guy is a criminal."

Shikishima, a little annoyed at being called a criminal, asked his "daughter" some frank questions.

"What happened to your husband? Did the soldiers take him away?"

"Me? Looks like I have a husband?"

She certainly doesn't look that old. So what?

"Then what about that child?"

The girl turned away as if she had just been asked something boring.

"It doesn't matter, right?"

"This is not good."

There was silence for a moment. She muttered something, wondering if her daughter couldn't stand this atmosphere any longer.

"During an air raid: I was asked to do this by the mother of a child who was on the verge of death."

"Do you have any connection with this girl?"

"And then what?"

A sudden, unreasonable anger flared up inside Shikishima.

"Are you an idiot? You can't take such a small child with you."

"Even your brother couldn't leave you alone."

This, of course, was true. Even in our day, Shikishima's actions today were too lenient to challenge his daughter's strange behavior. As if seeing her meekness, her daughter entered the barracks and took her in. Shikishima panicked at her insolence.

"Hey, you."

The daughter began bathing the child thoroughly, pretending Shikishima's feelings were completely unrelated to her. The baby must have been hungry, as she gulped down the thick water.

"What's your name?"

My daughter silently showed me the embroidery on the diaper. It said "Akiko."

"That's her name."

"Me? And here's Noriko."

"Why are you acting like this? Even if you act like a vagabond, you're probably just too poor."

Noriko looked at Shikishima intently and said.

"So, you want to become a prostitute [serving soldiers of the occupation forces in Japan after World War II]?"

"Even if you make that face... in this day and age, if you have nowhere to turn, you can't help yourself.

Noriko was stunned by these words, which could have been called a compelling argument, and swirled the water in the bucket. Noriko silently shook her head and looked at the badge on the wooden box in the Shikishima barracks.

"Who are your parents, brothers and sisters?"

"Is this a royal plaque?"

"Oh, God"

"Parents?"

"Yes. It looks like they died in an air raid."

Noriko was surprised by these words and muttered:

"You are the same as me."

Noriko's parents were likely also injured in the air raid. As Shikishima pondered this, he glanced at a photograph wrapped in oiled paper, lying next to the memorial plaque. The photograph lay next to the plaque, and as usual, something similar was written on it, as if causing Shikishima to feel deep regret. When Shikishima could no longer bear to look at the photograph, he turned his attention back to Noriko and the child, only to find them curled up in a corner of the barracks, asleep.

"Oh, it's you already!"

Shikishima got up to wake Noriko, but froze when he saw her sleeping, childishly calm face. He had no choice but to cover her with the only blanket he had. Several days passed. Noriko was still in Shikishima's barracks. It seemed he had no intention of leaving. On the contrary, they looked proud, finding materials for the barracks and preparing meals from ingredients purchased elsewhere... They worked diligently, as if they had chosen to live here.

One day, Shikishima lowered his bucket and headed for the watering hole when he noticed Sumiko eyeing the barracks suspiciously. Shikishima was about to quickly pass her without making eye contact, but Sumiko stopped him.

"What is this?"

"What is this?"

"This isn't just stupidity. This is a parent and child you picked up. What are you thinking when you pick up something like that?"

He didn't pick up the phone.

"They just stayed there."

"If you don't kick them out, it's the same as picking them up. You're being a hypocrite... No, no, no. I don't want to bother you."

Sumiko, who was about to enter the barracks complaining with all her might, suddenly stopped.

"Is this mother producing milk normally?"

"No, this is not mother."

"What do you mean?"

Sumiko forces Akiko to drink the heavy water. It was as if her mother were communicating with her own child. Sumiko, who always attacked Shikishima, looked completely different. Taking a large gulp of the hot water, Sumiko turned to Shikishima and Noriko, who were sitting upright.

"If we continue like this, we'll die of malnutrition. What do you mean you're taking away a child who can't even be raised?"

"Sorry"

Noriko had no choice but to apologize. He knew it was a reckless act. However, at that moment, in the midst of the approaching flames, Noriko couldn't abandon Akiko. She may have thought she was helping her, but if Akiko died without being able to resurrect her, it would be no different from abandoning her. With these words, Sumiko pressed a packet of white rice into Noriko's hand.

"You don't have to eat this. Adults can survive on anything they eat. This rice is for this child."

Having said this, Sumiko smiled broadly at Akiko and walked out of the barracks. Leaving behind Shikishima and Noriko, who hurried after her and bowed deeply, Sumiko entered the barracks. A voice cursing obscenities could be heard from her friend Sumiko's barracks.

Ah, this white rice. It's so annoying.

***

March 1946

It was raining heavily. Among them was Shikishima, who crawled into the barracks.

Compared to when Noriko had first arrived, the barracks had become a perfectly decent place to live, but even now they couldn't withstand such a heavy downpour, and the rain was loud. A bucket, a chipped bowl, and a charred, empty can—all the materials that made up such vessels—were used to collect rainwater. Noriko, now dressed a little more decently, deftly dodged the rain and came out from behind to give Shikishima a towel.

"Did you have a job?"

"Although there was something."

Noriko looked at Shikishima suspiciously, as if he was hiding something.

"What's happened?"

She showed Shikishima an application form with the job requirements outlined in it.

Please take a look. And the money isn't bad either. Look, it looks like the preparation fee alone is 3,000 yen!

"Isn't it amazing!"

For a moment, Noriko's face lit up with a smile, but then a look of concern appeared on his face.

"This is definitely a scam. They took all the rice I brought the other day."

"The reason is different."

"What's the difference?"

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