MUSHI-SHI 07.
Raindrops and Rainbows 雨が来る虹がたつ(あめがくるにじがたつ)
Ginko: Mind if I join you?
Man: Be my guest.
Ginko: Some weather, huh?
Man: You're telling me.
Ginko: I could barely see what was in front of me.
Man: I wonder when it's going to let up...
Koro: It will be like this for another hour.
Ginko: Huh? You a merchant? If you have any food, I'd love to buy some. The long rain ruined every last bit I had.
Koro: Sorry, it's empty... and I'm not a merchant.
Ginko: ... What're you planning to put in there? That thing's huge.
Man: Heh heh... He's going to put a corpse in it. Right?
Koro: No... You're not even close. It's for a rainbow... I'm out here on a quest to find a rainbow, put it in this jar and take it home.
Ginko: Hmmm?
Man: (chuckles) Yeah, sure, right. But now you've got me curious. Just why would you do something like that? Come on, tell me. It'll pass the time.
Koro: You wanna know? All right... It all started when I was a boy.
Koro's Mother: Honey!? Kenro! Stop him!
Kenro: Please, Dad! Don't go! Not again!
Koro's Father: The rain is coming... the rain is coming...! A rainbow!
Kenro: Argh!
Koro's Mother: Honey!? Please, come back!
Koro: As far back as I can remember, whenever my father would sense even the slightest hint of a coming rain, he would become a completely different person. He'd happily run around mountains, fields and valleys, and not come back for days. He was a very strange man. After several days passed, we'd find him stuck in the mud, or asleep in a field. Sometimes he would manage to wander back to our doorstep on his own. On the days when it didn't rain, he would drink enough water to fill a bath.
Koro's Mother: You have no idea how embarrassing this is for me...! Sometimes I wish you'd never come back!
Koro's Father: I'm sorry... I have no idea what's happening to me. I can't control myself. It all started when I saw that rainbow...
Koro's Mother: There's no such rainbow!! You've just gone mad, that's all!
Young Koro: Hey, Dad... Is it fun for you to run around in the rain like that?
Koro's Father: Uhh, of course. It's more fun than you could possibly imagine.
Young Koro: Well, then I want to do it, too!
Koro's Father: No, you mustn't. Your mother will yell at you if you do.
Young Koro: Then tell me the story of the rainbow again.
Koro's Father: Well, I... As long as you promise not to tell your mother.
Young Koro: Mmm!
Koro's Father: It was on the day before you were born... The day the high waters from the flood finally receded.
Bridge Builder: Damn... after all the work we put in to build it...
Koro's Father: There's nothing we could have done... We just need to find ways to improve the design.
Bridge Builder: And build a bridge stronger than that one? I'm not sure if that's possible.
Koro's Father: A rainbow... So vivid. When I took a closer look, I noticed that the rainbow was coming out of the riverbank not too far away. They say that there's treasure at the end of a rainbow... Ahh! I-It's gone...
Koro: From that moment on, every single time it rained, that rainbow would appear. It would be in different places and in different forms. It entertained my father, but no one else could see it. The only one who showed any reaction to it at all was me, who was only an infant. But then one day, the rainbow seemed so far away...
Koro's Father: Since then, it never returned... And now, no matter how much I drink, I'm always thirsty. When I feel the rain's coming, my body gets so excited, I can't control it. Before I know it, I'm outside running. And in these brief moments of sanity... I find myself... longing for that rainbow... I miss it so... Where did it go... I wonder. Someday, I'm going to go out and find it.
Koro: Eventually, my father became sick and bedridden. Even then, he'd struggle to go outside before every rainfall. In the end, he became too weak to even stand.
Koro: Hey Dad, water...
Koro's Father: I just want to see that rainbow...
Koro: So here I am, on a quest to find that rainbow -- find a way to bring it home and show it to my father.
Man: (laughs) So, you plan on catching it with your bare hands?
Koro: I'll have to find it before I can figure that part out.
Man: Ohh, right, right. Ahh, it's finally letting up. I guess I'll be on my way... If I were you, I'd work on the ending of that story -- it's a little weak. Take care.
Koro: Guess I should be going, too.
Ginko: Hey, wait. If you're looking for that rainbow, I suggest you head that way.
Koro: Huh?
Ginko: That wasn't just some kind of fairy tale, was it? There's a name for what your father saw. It's called a Kouda.
Koro: ......!
Ginko: I've only seen a mushi like that once before. But I never got to see where its base rooted with the ground. So I'd like to help you find it if that's all right with you. As compensation, you can buy my food. Oh, and get rid of that big jar. It was an interesting idea, but it won't be of any use to us. Come on, let's get going.
Ginko: All right. First of all, the only way you can see a normal rainbow is when your back is facing the sun. A Kouda will appear with no regard to the sun's position. Second, the order of the colors is reversed. If you don't get used to seeing these differences, you'll be chasing rainbows forever.
Koro: Ginko, that is your name, isn't it?
Ginko: Hmm?
Koro: You must've had a particular reason to be out traveling in the first place. So why would you... why would you stop to help a stranger?
Ginko: Like I said before, I want to see it as well. Besides, I didn't really have any special destination I was heading to. Even so, I can't search for the Kouda forever. I'll keep looking until next autumn. If we don't find it by then, I'll quit. Sound good? It seems to behave like a rainbow, in that it often appears after it rains. We'll move by reading the weather.
Koro: I've had a lot of experience doing just that. There won't be any rain around here for quite some time. Look... that mountain has a cloud over it. It should be raining there by sometime tomorrow.
Ginko: Hmm?
Koro: I'm serious. It's not like I've been walking around aimlessly, you know.
Koro: Over there!
Ginko: Nope, that's just a regular rainbow.
Ginko: And that's not it, either.
Ginko: I should've known... If you go out looking for something like this, you'll never find it. How long has it been been since you started this journey?
Koro: It's been five years...
Ginko: Wow... Five years, huh? So then, that story about your father being sick is a lie, isn't it? No one would travel around for five years with sick family at home.
Koro: Wanting to show it to my father isn't a lie. But that's not the reason I started this quest. Did I ever tell you my name?
Ginko: Hmm? No.
Koro: It's Koro. It means "rainbow man." It carries my father's will to forever search for the rainbow. Because of that name, I was the laughingstock of my village. In a western province, there's a famous river that often overflows. My family has put a bridge over that river for generations. No matter how many times it was built, the bridge would wash away with every flood. Everyone hoped that my father would solve this problem. My brother had a talent for designing the bridge. Every time it was destroyed, he'd think of a better way to build it. I, on the other hand, didn't have an ounce of his talent. After tearing a tendon, I lost most of the mobility in my left hand. As a builder, I was worse than second-rate... Before I knew it, the only place for me in the whole village was at my father's side. I couldn't stand living like that. I decided to run away.
Ginko: Would you mind explaining something to me? Why are you still searching for the rainbow?
Koro: Each time I see one, I can't keep myself from chasing after it.
Koro: Don't fade! Don't fade away!
Koro: Maybe I wanted to confirm what my father had told me. Maybe I wanted to show all the people that laughed at us that this was the reason. Even after I ran away from the village, I was still nothing but a joke. I had nothing, no purpose. No one should live just for the sake of living.
Ginko: A purpose, huh?
Koro: When we met, you said you had no special destination... Well, I suppose you have your reasons. But roaming around is not an easy life. You can't just go on traveling about without a purpose.
Ginko: Sometimes I just wanna take a break, y'know? So when I get like that, I set a goal like this one. And that, in turn, creates a little leisure time. The people who "live just for the sake of living" have no leisure time.
Koro: Heh... I'm taking this search seriously and for you it's just leisure time?
Ginko: I'm taking this seriously, too.
Koro: It's an issue of attitude.
Ginko: What's that mean? To live it's important to get some rest and relaxation. Besides, it's a better reason than yours for doing this. You're only searching for the rainbow to ease the guilt you've been carrying around. Such a waste... You should've just let all that go, settled down somewhere and forgotten about the past.
Koro: You're probably right... But I just couldn't... that's why I'm here. Who knows? Maybe it's time to put an end to all this. I think I'll stick with your plan and give up the search by fall.
Ginko: Eh... Hey, Koro! Wait up!
Ginko: Ah, you have a good eye, sir. Those are mermaid's nails. When crushed and consumed as tea, it makes a love potion.
Man: Hmm...
Ginko: I'll give you a good deal.
Man: That's not exactly what I was looking for. Got something that can make it rain?
Ginko: Sorry, there's no such thing...
Man: If this drought continues, the fields and crops will dry up...
Ginko: If I had something like that, I would've used it by now. Hey... Keep a close eye on the sky. It's gotta rain sometime, doesn't it?
Koro: (groans) My throat's dry... I can't even sweat anymore...
Koro's Father: The rain is coming...
Koro: .....!
Koro's Father: The rain is coming... It's coming... it's coming! A rainbow will appear...
Koro: Ginko! Look, there!
Ginko: Ah! It's a rainbow... And the sun...
Man: Hey, the love potion!
Ginko: Sorry, the shop's closed now. Hey! Don't run like that! You'll never last!
Both: (panting)
Koro: Damn it! Where did it go!?
Ginko: We're close... It's gotta be here somewhere... It looks like this area will still get some rain. I don't think it could've gone too far. Let's wait here for the day.
Koro: I knew where the rain would be without seeing it. Was it like this for my father, too?
Koro's Father: Koro... Now that you've grown up, I'm sure that... I'm sure that you've slowly grown to detest the name that I gave you. I'm sorry, son... I just wanted to name you after something precious to me... the most beautiful thing I ever saw... Please, forgive me. Even your friends tease you because of your name, don't they? Ungh. Here, I came up with a new one. A name, a much better name. Use it starting tomorrow.
Koro: No, Father... I don't want it... Don't say such things... I'll never give up... I'll keep trying until I'm the best bridge builder there is... Even better than you... You'll see...
Ginko: Hey, Koro, wake up... It's raining.
Koro: (moans) (gasps)
Ginko: (moans) Huh?
Koro: (gasps) There!
Ginko: C'mon, hurry!
Both: (panting)
Ginko: Incredible...
Koro's Father: I just wanted to name you after something precious to me... the most beautiful thing I ever saw...
Koro: Beautiful...
Ginko: Koro!
Koro: What my father told was true... This is something I simply must take home...
Ginko: That was stupid... Are you all right?
Koro: Huh? Yeah...
Ginko: I wasn't sure until I saw it up-close... But I felt a shock when I touched it. This is one of the nagaremono.
Koro: Nagaremono?
Ginko: It's a being that possesses life, but looks like a form of natural phenomena... Other than the fact that it's alive, it's identical to the rainbows made by the rain and sun. This one was most likely created by the light... and rain, infused with Kouki.
Koro: Kouki?
Ginko: The basis of mushi life. Nagaremono are similar to floods and typhoons. They happen for a reason, but they have no purpose. They exist only to travel and flow... They have an effect on others, but nothing can affect them. If you touch this type of mushi, it will attach to you.
Koro: For a moment, I felt like I was inside of it... I wonder if my father was drawn in by that same rise and flow? It didn't feel like my opponent, but it... it feels like part of me is gone... But it's good... refreshing even.
Ginko: So what're you going to do now?
Koro: Who knows? I'll have to think about it... And you? Heh, I think I know... You're just going to flow again, aren't you? Just like that rainbow...
Ginko: After that, I'm not sure what happened to that man. But I did hear that in a province to the west, an indestructible bridge had been built across a raging river. Whenever it would start to overflow, he'd remove the binding pieces, allowing the water to flow between. When the waters receded, he'd put them back. The Nagare-bashi, as the bridge was called, was built from the ideas of one man.
MUSHI-SHI 07.
Raindrops and Rainbows 雨が来る虹がたつ(あめがくるにじがたつ)
Ginko: Mind if I join you?
Man: Be my guest.
Ginko: Some weather, huh?
Man: You're telling me.
Ginko: I could barely see what was in front of me.
Man: I wonder when it's going to let up...
Koro: It will be like this for another hour.
Ginko: Huh? You a merchant? If you have any food, I'd love to buy some. The long rain ruined every last bit I had.
Koro: Sorry, it's empty... and I'm not a merchant.
Ginko: ... What're you planning to put in there? That thing's huge.
Man: Heh heh... He's going to put a corpse in it. Right?
Koro: No... You're not even close. It's for a rainbow... I'm out here on a quest to find a rainbow, put it in this jar and take it home.
Ginko: Hmmm?
Man: (chuckles) Yeah, sure, right. But now you've got me curious. Just why would you do something like that? Come on, tell me. It'll pass the time.
Koro: You wanna know? All right... It all started when I was a boy.
Koro's Mother: Honey!? Kenro! Stop him!
Kenro: Please, Dad! Don't go! Not again!
Koro's Father: The rain is coming... the rain is coming...! A rainbow!
Kenro: Argh!
Koro's Mother: Honey!? Please, come back!
Koro: As far back as I can remember, whenever my father would sense even the slightest hint of a coming rain, he would become a completely different person. He'd happily run around mountains, fields and valleys, and not come back for days. He was a very strange man. After several days passed, we'd find him stuck in the mud, or asleep in a field. Sometimes he would manage to wander back to our doorstep on his own. On the days when it didn't rain, he would drink enough water to fill a bath.
Koro's Mother: You have no idea how embarrassing this is for me...! Sometimes I wish you'd never come back!
Koro's Father: I'm sorry... I have no idea what's happening to me. I can't control myself. It all started when I saw that rainbow...
Koro's Mother: There's no such rainbow!! You've just gone mad, that's all!
Young Koro: Hey, Dad... Is it fun for you to run around in the rain like that?
Koro's Father: Uhh, of course. It's more fun than you could possibly imagine.
Young Koro: Well, then I want to do it, too!
Koro's Father: No, you mustn't. Your mother will yell at you if you do.
Young Koro: Then tell me the story of the rainbow again.
Koro's Father: Well, I... As long as you promise not to tell your mother.
Young Koro: Mmm!
Koro's Father: It was on the day before you were born... The day the high waters from the flood finally receded.
Bridge Builder: Damn... after all the work we put in to build it...
Koro's Father: There's nothing we could have done... We just need to find ways to improve the design.
Bridge Builder: And build a bridge stronger than that one? I'm not sure if that's possible.
Koro's Father: A rainbow... So vivid. When I took a closer look, I noticed that the rainbow was coming out of the riverbank not too far away. They say that there's treasure at the end of a rainbow... Ahh! I-It's gone...
Koro: From that moment on, every single time it rained, that rainbow would appear. It would be in different places and in different forms. It entertained my father, but no one else could see it. The only one who showed any reaction to it at all was me, who was only an infant. But then one day, the rainbow seemed so far away...
Koro's Father: Since then, it never returned... And now, no matter how much I drink, I'm always thirsty. When I feel the rain's coming, my body gets so excited, I can't control it. Before I know it, I'm outside running. And in these brief moments of sanity... I find myself... longing for that rainbow... I miss it so... Where did it go... I wonder. Someday, I'm going to go out and find it.
Koro: Eventually, my father became sick and bedridden. Even then, he'd struggle to go outside before every rainfall. In the end, he became too weak to even stand.
Koro: Hey Dad, water...
Koro's Father: I just want to see that rainbow...
Koro: So here I am, on a quest to find that rainbow -- find a way to bring it home and show it to my father.
Man: (laughs) So, you plan on catching it with your bare hands?
Koro: I'll have to find it before I can figure that part out.
Man: Ohh, right, right. Ahh, it's finally letting up. I guess I'll be on my way... If I were you, I'd work on the ending of that story -- it's a little weak. Take care.
Koro: Guess I should be going, too.
Ginko: Hey, wait. If you're looking for that rainbow, I suggest you head that way.
Koro: Huh?
Ginko: That wasn't just some kind of fairy tale, was it? There's a name for what your father saw. It's called a Kouda.
Koro: ......!
Ginko: I've only seen a mushi like that once before. But I never got to see where its base rooted with the ground. So I'd like to help you find it if that's all right with you. As compensation, you can buy my food. Oh, and get rid of that big jar. It was an interesting idea, but it won't be of any use to us. Come on, let's get going.
Ginko: All right. First of all, the only way you can see a normal rainbow is when your back is facing the sun. A Kouda will appear with no regard to the sun's position. Second, the order of the colors is reversed. If you don't get used to seeing these differences, you'll be chasing rainbows forever.
Koro: Ginko, that is your name, isn't it?
Ginko: Hmm?
Koro: You must've had a particular reason to be out traveling in the first place. So why would you... why would you stop to help a stranger?
Ginko: Like I said before, I want to see it as well. Besides, I didn't really have any special destination I was heading to. Even so, I can't search for the Kouda forever. I'll keep looking until next autumn. If we don't find it by then, I'll quit. Sound good? It seems to behave like a rainbow, in that it often appears after it rains. We'll move by reading the weather.
Koro: I've had a lot of experience doing just that. There won't be any rain around here for quite some time. Look... that mountain has a cloud over it. It should be raining there by sometime tomorrow.
Ginko: Hmm?
Koro: I'm serious. It's not like I've been walking around aimlessly, you know.
Koro: Over there!
Ginko: Nope, that's just a regular rainbow.
Ginko: And that's not it, either.
Ginko: I should've known... If you go out looking for something like this, you'll never find it. How long has it been been since you started this journey?
Koro: It's been five years...
Ginko: Wow... Five years, huh? So then, that story about your father being sick is a lie, isn't it? No one would travel around for five years with sick family at home.
Koro: Wanting to show it to my father isn't a lie. But that's not the reason I started this quest. Did I ever tell you my name?
Ginko: Hmm? No.
Koro: It's Koro. It means "rainbow man." It carries my father's will to forever search for the rainbow. Because of that name, I was the laughingstock of my village. In a western province, there's a famous river that often overflows. My family has put a bridge over that river for generations. No matter how many times it was built, the bridge would wash away with every flood. Everyone hoped that my father would solve this problem. My brother had a talent for designing the bridge. Every time it was destroyed, he'd think of a better way to build it. I, on the other hand, didn't have an ounce of his talent. After tearing a tendon, I lost most of the mobility in my left hand. As a builder, I was worse than second-rate... Before I knew it, the only place for me in the whole village was at my father's side. I couldn't stand living like that. I decided to run away.
Ginko: Would you mind explaining something to me? Why are you still searching for the rainbow?
Koro: Each time I see one, I can't keep myself from chasing after it.
Koro: Don't fade! Don't fade away!
Koro: Maybe I wanted to confirm what my father had told me. Maybe I wanted to show all the people that laughed at us that this was the reason. Even after I ran away from the village, I was still nothing but a joke. I had nothing, no purpose. No one should live just for the sake of living.
Ginko: A purpose, huh?
Koro: When we met, you said you had no special destination... Well, I suppose you have your reasons. But roaming around is not an easy life. You can't just go on traveling about without a purpose.
Ginko: Sometimes I just wanna take a break, y'know? So when I get like that, I set a goal like this one. And that, in turn, creates a little leisure time. The people who "live just for the sake of living" have no leisure time.
Koro: Heh... I'm taking this search seriously and for you it's just leisure time?
Ginko: I'm taking this seriously, too.
Koro: It's an issue of attitude.
Ginko: What's that mean? To live it's important to get some rest and relaxation. Besides, it's a better reason than yours for doing this. You're only searching for the rainbow to ease the guilt you've been carrying around. Such a waste... You should've just let all that go, settled down somewhere and forgotten about the past.
Koro: You're probably right... But I just couldn't... that's why I'm here. Who knows? Maybe it's time to put an end to all this. I think I'll stick with your plan and give up the search by fall.
Ginko: Eh... Hey, Koro! Wait up!
Ginko: Ah, you have a good eye, sir. Those are mermaid's nails. When crushed and consumed as tea, it makes a love potion.
Man: Hmm...
Ginko: I'll give you a good deal.
Man: That's not exactly what I was looking for. Got something that can make it rain?
Ginko: Sorry, there's no such thing...
Man: If this drought continues, the fields and crops will dry up...
Ginko: If I had something like that, I would've used it by now. Hey... Keep a close eye on the sky. It's gotta rain sometime, doesn't it?
Koro: (groans) My throat's dry... I can't even sweat anymore...
Koro's Father: The rain is coming...
Koro: .....!
Koro's Father: The rain is coming... It's coming... it's coming! A rainbow will appear...
Koro: Ginko! Look, there!
Ginko: Ah! It's a rainbow... And the sun...
Man: Hey, the love potion!
Ginko: Sorry, the shop's closed now. Hey! Don't run like that! You'll never last!
Both: (panting)
Koro: Damn it! Where did it go!?
Ginko: We're close... It's gotta be here somewhere... It looks like this area will still get some rain. I don't think it could've gone too far. Let's wait here for the day.
Koro: I knew where the rain would be without seeing it. Was it like this for my father, too?
Koro's Father: Koro... Now that you've grown up, I'm sure that... I'm sure that you've slowly grown to detest the name that I gave you. I'm sorry, son... I just wanted to name you after something precious to me... the most beautiful thing I ever saw... Please, forgive me. Even your friends tease you because of your name, don't they? Ungh. Here, I came up with a new one. A name, a much better name. Use it starting tomorrow.
Koro: No, Father... I don't want it... Don't say such things... I'll never give up... I'll keep trying until I'm the best bridge builder there is... Even better than you... You'll see...
Ginko: Hey, Koro, wake up... It's raining.
Koro: (moans) (gasps)
Ginko: (moans) Huh?
Koro: (gasps) There!
Ginko: C'mon, hurry!
Both: (panting)
Ginko: Incredible...
Koro's Father: I just wanted to name you after something precious to me... the most beautiful thing I ever saw...
Koro: Beautiful...
Ginko: Koro!
Koro: What my father told was true... This is something I simply must take home...
Ginko: That was stupid... Are you all right?
Koro: Huh? Yeah...
Ginko: I wasn't sure until I saw it up-close... But I felt a shock when I touched it. This is one of the nagaremono.
Koro: Nagaremono?
Ginko: It's a being that possesses life, but looks like a form of natural phenomena... Other than the fact that it's alive, it's identical to the rainbows made by the rain and sun. This one was most likely created by the light... and rain, infused with Kouki.
Koro: Kouki?
Ginko: The basis of mushi life. Nagaremono are similar to floods and typhoons. They happen for a reason, but they have no purpose. They exist only to travel and flow... They have an effect on others, but nothing can affect them. If you touch this type of mushi, it will attach to you.
Koro: For a moment, I felt like I was inside of it... I wonder if my father was drawn in by that same rise and flow? It didn't feel like my opponent, but it... it feels like part of me is gone... But it's good... refreshing even.
Ginko: So what're you going to do now?
Koro: Who knows? I'll have to think about it... And you? Heh, I think I know... You're just going to flow again, aren't you? Just like that rainbow...
Ginko: After that, I'm not sure what happened to that man. But I did hear that in a province to the west, an indestructible bridge had been built across a raging river. Whenever it would start to overflow, he'd remove the binding pieces, allowing the water to flow between. When the waters receded, he'd put them back. The Nagare-bashi, as the bridge was called, was built from the ideas of one man.