Hachirō opened the door of the car and saw that something had been left on the front seat. It was long and thin and wrapped in a cloth. He picked it up and unwrapped it; the metal object within sparkled brightly in the morning sun.

It was Yoshida Shōin’s tantō.

He let the cloth fall away and held the blade in his right fist, feeling the perfect balance and the economy of movement as he swiped it left and right. Takashi had lusted after the blade for years. Satoshi Furukawa had, too, and Miyasato had been corrupted by it.

Hachirō knew that the blade was valuable, but he wanted no part of it.

He turned away from the car and looked out at the still water of Lake Ashinoko. The road dropped away in a steep slope, with the placid water lapping against the rock below. Hachirō drew his arm back and then flung the tantō away, as hard as he could. The blade spun end over end, sparking in the light, before the tip sliced into the water and the blade sank quickly from view.

Hachirō felt blank, neither happy nor sad. He looked at the water for a moment and then went around to get into the car. He had a forty-minute drive to Odawara, and he wanted to be there in time to take his daughter and grandson to lunch.

* * *

Milton watched as the car reversed back into the road, turned around and drove away. The road looked to have been cut from the rock, and the terrain on either side of it was steeply sloped. The terrain above it was thick with vegetation, and Milton had not had to look far for a spot where he would be able to keep an eye on Hachirō while also being hidden from him.

He had watched as the old man had tossed the blade into the water. Milton didn’t blame him. It was the cause of his daughter’s misfortune, and it would have been a constant reminder of her travails every time they laid eyes upon it. They could have sold it, of course, and Milton had wondered whether that would be the decision Hachirō took, but, on the other hand, it was obvious that family meant more to him than money.

Milton wondered what they would do with the money that he had left in the house. He hoped that they would be pragmatic about that, at least. Sakura and Yamato would need funds, especially if she still intended to take the boy out of the country. That was her decision to make, but he hoped he had given her a little more flexibility in her options.