Keishin extended his arm over the water. The hansha twisted and swirled, mimicking the exact shape of his arm and hand. Then they dimmed, changing from a shimmering reflection to a solid form that looked as though it were made from flesh. Keishin wriggled his fingers. The hansha wriggled too.
“Incredible…” Keishin said, pulling his hand back.
“They are quite remarkable,” Hana said, her voice tired.
“I can row by myself the rest of the way,” Keishin said from behind her.
“I am not tired.” Hana kept her eyes in front of the boat.“We will get to the waterfall faster if we both row. The lake is just through it.”
“Why didn’t you want to tell Haruto where we were going?” Keishin asked.
“Because he would have only tried to stop us.”
“Why?”
“Because the Lotus Lake is exactly where he told the Shiikuin we would be.”
“What? Then why are we going there?”
“They broke Haruto’s hands to get him to tell the truth. Imagine what they would do to him if they found out that he lied. We need to go to the lake so that the Shiikuin will not think that he misled them.”
“Am I missing the part of the plan where you explain how exactly we’re supposed to avoid getting caught by the Shiikuin when we get there?” Keishin stopped rowing.
Hana twisted around, rocking the boat. “Why did you stop?”
“I understand that you want to protect Haruto, but walking into a trap isn’t going to help anyone.”
“We will not walk into any trap.”
“How can you be so sure?”
“Because we will be swimming into it.”
—
Fog and darkness hid the top of the waterfall cascading down the steep rock face. The thunderous way it crashed into the river made Keishin believe that it was falling from the sky. He gripped his oars, struggling to keep their little boat steady as they approached it.
Hana groaned as she rowed, fighting for every inch between them and the waterfall. “Just…a…little…more.”
The waterfall parted like a curtain, revealing the gaping mouth of a large cavern. Keishin felt the boat grow steady, gently steering itself without the need for oars. The waterfall closed behind them and fell silent, leaving them with nothing but the sound of their boat drifting over the water. Hansha teemed in the pool and made the entire cavern glow with a soft, warm light. Four caves branched out from the cavern, the light of the hansha fading into their dark mouths. Their boat stopped in the middle of the pool as though allowing Keishin and Hana to decide which way they wanted to go.
Hana pointed to the leftmost cave. “That one leads to the Mourning Mountains. The one next to it brings you to the Singing Forest. The cave beside it leads to where we need to go.”
“The Lotus Lake.”
“Yes.”
“And the last cave? Where does it lead?”
“Tokyo Station.”
“That’s…er…convenient.”
“So, are you clear with the plan?” Hana said.
Keishin nodded.
“And remember, try not to scare them. Do not make any sudden movements when you are in the water.” Hana turned her back to Keishin and began to undress.
