"Is it him, Morino Kiyoshi?"
"That's right! On this journey north, Morino Kiyoshi was the fleet's second-in-command. He wanted to draw a clean line between himself and me, and he made preparations in advance to come watch me make a fool of myself. But the situation now—the basket I've poked a hole in is far bigger than his worst imaginings. The sect's losses are so grievous, they're enough to send everyone tumbling into the sea! If I can't make it back now, he'll be the only one left to hold responsible. He won't be able to run..."
"In truth, if I'm gone, then this great Sanda defeat will no longer have anyone within the sect to cover it up. Not only that, this major affair is certain to be loudly spread and made into a great issue by the senior and junior brothers of my own line. They'll first push the blame for the crushing defeat onto me, the 'dead man,' then drag Morino Kiyoshi's line down into the water too, saddling them with who knows how much responsibility! And your gold trade will never be kept hidden either. It's bound to be stabbed all the way up to the main gate on Mount Hiei, and in the end, even the Shogunate will know!..."
"Amitabha! Causes and conditions depend upon one another, and fortune and disaster are always changing. Therefore, to protect himself, to share the responsibility this time, to maintain this gold trade... however much Morino Kiyoshi loathed me before, that is how much he will now hope to preserve me! And bringing about the golden bond of fate I proposed is the only Dharma gate for turning disaster into fortune!..."
The bonfire swayed, flickering with orange-yellow light, just like the changing hearts of men. And the true Buddhist