Except during the hottest months of July and August, Mount Fuji's summit was covered in snow. Seen from afar, it resembled an inverted white jade fan, which was why poets and writers often called it White Fan or Jade Fan.
"Snow like plain silk, mist like a handle, a white fan hung inverted in the skies above the eastern sea."
Mount Fuji had four climbing routes. At the sixth station on the historic and busiest Yoshida Trail, a middle-aged man whose frivolous air could not conceal his nobility stood among the crowd, swaying his head as he recited poetry to Mount Fuji beneath the night sky.
A serious-looking young man followed half a step behind him, torn between wanting to stay close enough to protect him at every moment and not daring to overstep the bounds of rank by approaching too closely.
"Your High... the sun has already set. You should head back."
"This is my first ascent of the sacred Mount Fuji this year. Having you lot tagging along really spoils the fun!"
Prince Fumihito of Akishino glanced at the young man, and a look of distaste immediately appeared on his face.
The young man meekly acquiesced, not daring to say a word in reply.
"I hear the chief priest of Sengen Taisha is still practicing asceticism at Kusuga Shrine on the summit, even at his advanced age. Such devotion. I would really like to meet him." Prince Fumihito of Akishino looked toward Mount Fuji's summit with interest.
The young man immediately flushed with anxiety and firmly objected:
"Please don't make things difficult for us! Even if it costs us our lives, we won't let you take another step higher."
The Imperial Household Agency also found the willful, impulsive Prince Fumihito of Akishino a headache.
Today was a perfect