Ryuudou Temple stood atop Enzo Mountain on the eastern edge of Miyama Town. It was not particularly close to the Matou Residence; walking there took about an hour.
So Shinji chose to ride his motorcycle.
By coincidence, on the way to Ryuudou Temple, Shinji happened to run into Isshin, who had just gotten out of school and was walking home alone at an unhurried pace.
"Hey, Isshin, want a ride?"
Shinji stopped his bike and called out to Isshin.
"Matou!" Isshin stopped, bag in hand, and looked at Shinji by the roadside in surprise. "Didn't you take sick leave today because of a cold? Was that a lie?!"
"No, no, it was real. I'm much better now. I just wanted to use the time before dinner to see how things were progressing at the temple."
Only then did Isshin's expression soften somewhat. "I see. As for the progress, the craftsmen arrived this morning. My brother said that once they settled on a plan, they would begin work before noon. Still, this really is unexpected, Matou. I never thought you would suggest gilding the Buddha statue."
"No, not at all. After all, gold clothes the Buddha, clothes adorn the man—cover the Tathagata, cover oneself. That's tremendous merit. Besides, Brother Reikan helped a lot with Grandfather's rushed funeral."
At the foot of Enzo Mountain, Shinji parked his motorcycle and looked up at the long flight of stairs, unable to stop himself from shaking his head with a sigh.
"Every time I see this, I think it'll be exhausting. It would be nice if there were something like a cable car."
"Matou! Has your heart truly grown this lazy?!" Isshin sternly rebuked him from beside him. "When you trained under my father, you carried water up ten times every day to fill