Milton assumed that Hachirō and Sakura would appreciate a few moments alone and said that he would wait for her outside the entrance to the temple. He stood in the street and watched the pedestrians making their way into and out of the busy district. It was loud with the buzz of conversation, the calls of stallholders seeking to drum up trade, and the hum of distant traffic. The streets were lit up now in the neon glow of the signs that were fixed to the walls and the bulbs that were strung from one side of the road to the other.

Milton thought about what they had discussed. He had a better idea of the situation than he had had before and, with the benefit of that information, he could see the outline of a course of action coming together. He was not quite there yet, but he could trace the framework. The stolen tantō was the key, and, with that in mind, he knew that he would need to speak to Takashi. That would begin the slow escalation of risk, but it would not be the end of it. He was going to need to watch his back if he wanted to leave the city in one piece.

He kept an eye on the street and, as he did, he spotted something that gave him pause. One of the men who had passed the restaurant when he had arrived with Sakura was standing at the mouth of an alleyway twenty-five feet away. Milton glanced at him, careful not to warn him that he had been spotted, and then looked away. It didn’t take him long to find the other man: he was loitering near the gate that pedestrians used to exit the area around the temple. Neither man was particularly good at surveillance, and certainly not proficient enough to hide from someone with Milton’s experience.

He cursed under his breath. He didn’t know how, but the Nishimoto-kai had found them.

80

Hachirō said that he was going to get something to eat and invited them both to come with him. Sakura said that she was tired and would prefer to go back to the hotel. Hachirō smiled, kissed his daughter on the cheek, and, with a meaningful look at Milton, said his farewells and set off back into Monzen-Nakacho. Milton took Sakura by the hand and started in the opposite direction.

“If I tell you something,” he said, “you have to promise me that you won’t show any reaction. No panic, no fear, nothing like that. Is that okay?”

“Yes,” she said, although her voice was uncertain.

“We’re being followed. There are two men who were waiting for us outside the temple. I saw them earlier.”

“Whose? Takashi’s?”

“That would be my guess.”

“Couldn’t be a coincidence?”

“No,” Milton said. “I’m afraid not. They’ve managed to find us.”

“How?”