Katanagatari Volume 2

that Konayuki’s ship might sink before she makes it to Owari.”
“No need to worry. She’s on a man-of-war,5 the pride of the Owari Bakufu.

The Old Shogun never saw a ship the likes of this. It’s practically unsinkable. But
why bring up Konayuki again? Can’t we let her go? Don’t tell me that you really
had a change of heart… Hey, it’s been forever since you wrapped my hair
around your body. If you were so inclined…”

Togame seemed legitimately concerned.
But since the state of Shichika’s devotion was a matter of life and death, this
should not exactly come as a surprise.
“I could never have a change of heart, Togame. I’m your sword.”
“Good to know, but seriously…” The Schemer eyed Shichika suspiciously and
gave him a bitter smile. “If you absolutely have to settle things with Konayuki,
you can do it when we’re done with the whole Sword Hunt.”

“Okay.”
By this, Togame was not making any promises about what would happen
when the Sword Hunt was over─she was simply making conversation, no more
than a flight of fancy.
Reading into it would be an error.
In the end─Togame sought revenge against the Kyotoryu.

Shichika knew as much─but nevertheless.
It was enough to fill his heart with warmth.
“Sounds like a plan, Togame.”
Shichika Yasuri, a sword incarnate.

His humanity was growing steadily stronger as the Sword Hunt continued…

■　■

Next month─in the seventh month of the year, Shichika Yasuri, Seventh
Master of the Kyotoryu, would be snapped in half.

A broken sword, or a broken heart?
Or both equally broken?
The showdown would take place at the greatest of all holy sites for
swordsmen─Mt. Sayabashiri in Tosa, Seiryoin Gokenji Temple, home to the
Katana Buddha.
But this monster that had plowed through two Level One Disaster Areas like
they were nothing─was none other than Shichika’s big sister, Nanami Yasuri,
head of the house. Unbeknownst to him, the two would have their showdown
soon enough. So far, he had beaten two owners of a Possessed without them
dying, first Kanara Azekura, and now Konayuki Itezora─but in the coming
showdown, he would murder his own sister.

Soto the Twin: Check

End of Book Six

To Be Continued

1 暁には AKATSUKI NI WA “at daybreak” in the event
2 心残り KOKORO NOKORI “remaining in the heart” regrets
3 心変わり KOKORO GAWARI “change of heart” lose romantic interest
4 帰り待ち KAERI MACHI standing by until someone returns
5 大型軍艦 ŌGATA GUNKAN “large-sized military vessel”





AFTER(S)WORD

There’s this idea out there about how “Losing is Important,” how mistakes are
the mother of success, and the more you think it over, losing is really not so
bad. There isn’t always a reason for success, but there’s always a reason for
failure─or so the saying goes, but this suggests that if you really want to
succeed, it makes more sense to study how others have failed than how others
have succeeded, and in my opinion, this is not necessarily the worst advice. If
you know where others have tripped up, you can remain conscious of these
areas and possibly avoid them, and if you keep on avoiding failure, pretty soon
you’ll find yourself on the route to success─at least, theoretically. If this theory
has one failing, it’s that “not failing” is not strictly the same as “succeeding” (as
there are no small number of situations where a certain amount of “failure” is
the price we have to pay in order to “succeed”), but in most cases, for most
people, the desire to “succeed” is not nearly as strong as the desire “not to fail.”
We’re not obsessed with being above average, but horrified at the thought of
being below average. Know what I mean? If there’s anything I can say about all
that, it’s that there’s nothing wrong with losing, but that doesn’t mean it always
feels good. No one ever gets used to losing. Every time it happens, we get hurt
again. Of course, we also think that “Winning is Important”─but “winning,”
unlike “losing,” is something that we wind up getting used to, impudence and
complacency being two obvious examples. It’s a sad fact, enough to make you
feel like people are fundamentally negative creatures, but heading into things
assuming that you’re going to fail defeats the purpose of doing anything at all.
But then again, some monsters out there reach the highest heights of success

only to tell themselves “I haven’t made it yet” and keep on pushing higher.
People never cease to amaze me.

That’s about it for Book Six of KATANAGATARI. It’s the sixth volume of a
twelve-volume series, so we’re exactly at the midpoint of the story. But who
knows, maybe I won’t be done when I hit twelve books?! It might wind up as
twenty-four, and for all you know, the next book will be the last. Since this time
the stage was set in Hokkaido, I sent Togame the Schemer and Shichika Yasuri
of the Kyotoryu on a long hike up a snowy mountain. The snowy landscapes
drawn by take are so splendid it almost makes me want to set the rest of the
series in the snow, but the next book will take place in Shikoku. Now that we’re
entering the second half, things might get a little gnarly, but I hope those of you
who’ve read this far stick with me to the end.

Six more to go!

NISIOISIN

Palindromic NISIOISIN made his debut as a novelist when he
was twenty. Famously prolific, he is known to publish more than
a book per month at times and is a leading light among writers
who began their careers in the twenty-first century.

Beloved illustrator take is also known for adorning the
Zaregoto mystery cycle with striking visuals.

Sam Bett won Grand Prize in the 2016 JLPP International
Translation Competition. With David Boyd, he is cotranslating the
novels of Mieko Kawakami.