The old capital has a lot of bridges, that’s for sure.
Since the city thrives on canal transport, you have to cross a bridge no matter where you go. There are grand stone bridges and flimsy bridges that look like someone just threw a fallen tree across.
Shinobu enjoyed strolling through the old city, crossing various bridges.
Returning from her daily walk, she found a stranger standing in front of the sliding door of Izakaya Nobu. Though it’s not something to brag about, Shinobu never forgets a customer’s face. The man standing in front of the shop was undoubtedly a first-timer.
“Excuse me, we don’t open until the evening,” she said from behind.
The man turned around and snorted.
He was a small man, shorter than Shinobu, with a meager face and an ill-fitting mustache he seemed to be growing to try to project some kind of dignity.
“I know that. I have no intention of sipping on some cheap ale in a backwater tavern while the sun is still so high.”
From the very first words, he disparaged the shop, causing a vein to throb at Shinobu’s temple, but with incredible self-control, she suppressed it.
“Then, what is your business here? Unfortunately, the owner is currently out.”
“The owner is absent… well, that’s fine. Girl, I’m reserving this izakaya for tonight. Get it ready.”
“Eh? But sir, that’s rather sudden.”
While it wasn’t impossible to reserve the whole place, doing it on such short notice was too abrupt. Besides, Taisho, Nobuyuki opened the shop because he wanted to serve delicious food and sake to a variety of people. Reserving the entire place felt like it would go against that spirit.
“What, is it money? You’re a shrewd girl. How much do you want?”
“No, it’s not a matter of payment.”
“So, you want more than just the fee, huh? You’re quite cheeky for a mere izakaya.”
“That’s not it. Our shop is here so a wide variety of people in the town can enjoy a meal. We cannot accommodate a request for a sudden reservation like this.”
At Shinobu’s smooth reply, the man contorted his face and spat on the ground.
“You’re quite a grand speaker, girl. I am a messenger from a certain noble. For some reason, my master wishes to eat the food from this shop, and that is why I have come. You may have a way with words, but to waste the kindness of a high-ranking individual, I dare say you’re a bit lacking in business sense.”
“I apologize, I am an ignorant, shallow town girl. Please forgive my rudeness.”
Shinobu maintained a radiant smile as she spoke, not intimidated by the man’s sharp tongue, which seemed to momentarily fluster him. But perhaps he thought Shinobu had backed down. He cleared his throat and reiterated,
“If you understand, that’s good. The reservation for tonight, make it happen.”
But Shinobu was not one to back down.
“I refuse.”
“What did you say?”
The man’s eyebrows shot up in anger.
“I said, I refuse.”
“Did you not understand what I just said?”
“I understand, and I still refuse. Even if the person is a noble, we will not serve our food and sake to those who insult our establishment. Surely, there are more suitable places for such people. Please, take your leave.”
“Those words of yours, you cannot take them back. I will take it as an insult to both my master and myself. Don’t come crying later.”
Just as the man was leaving quickly, throwing his last words behind him, Eva, the regular dish washer arrived.
Eva curiously watched the man’s back as he walked away. Shinobu, without thinking, raised her voice to her, “Eva-chan, bring the salt! Bring the salt!”
The man’s parting threat manifested in a very specific way in front of Izakaya Nobu just before opening, as the sun began to set.
Men started to line up in front of the shop, a sight that would normally be unheard of. It was clear at a glance that these were men of ill repute.
They stood close to each other, preventing other customers from getting in, and shot sharp glares at any curious onlookers.
“I’m sorry, Taisho! I just lost my temper and responded back to him…”
“It’s okay, Shinobu-chan. I wouldn’t want to serve a customer like that either. You did well.”
Even as he said this, Nobuyuki’s gaze was already wandering over today’s prepared ingredients. If the men didn’t leave soon, a lot of it would go to waste.
Especially the boiled eggs left over from the Spring Equinox Festival yesterday, he wanted to use those up today if possible.
Eva seemed to be very fond of eating them with mayonnaise, and contributed to their consumption in her own small way. The way she took bites with both her small hands to keep it from falling was adorably reminiscent of a hamster.
Shinobu and Nobuyuki were pondering how to use everything when there was a knock on the glass sliding door. It wasn’t the way a normal customer would announce their arrival. It was a rather ostentatious way to enter.
As expected, the man who entered was the same small man from earlier in the day.
Behind him, a gloomy, skinny middle-aged man followed, who was probably the “certain noble.”
“I have come as promised, girl.”
“…Welcome to our establishment.”
Shinobu forced a smile onto her face, but it was just bravado.
She hadn’t expected him to go this far. She had been completely defeated.
The noble sat down at the innermost table, leaning back as he did so. He looked like a sinister man, twirling his thin mustache with his fingertips.
“Now, I came to a place like this for a very specific reason.”
The man’s voice was strangely high pitched and yet clinging, and not pleasant to the ear.
“I recently attended a wedding reception of a certain noble. As it was a wedding of one with a noble lineage, the food was exquisite. But, during the course of conversation, we got to the topic of what everyone had eaten that had been the most delicious.”
A topic that nobles would be fond of. No doubt, the names of dishes that only used the finest ingredients, ones that you wouldn’t see in an izakaya, were mentioned. But how did that lead to him coming to this place?
“As the head of the honorable Branton baronial family, I have eaten many dishes. Believe it or not, I was born in the imperial capital. I pride myself on having tasted the best delicacies from all three nations. However,”
“However?”
“As it turned out, I had not tasted a dish mentioned by a young bride. Of course, I wasn’t alone. All the nobles present hadn’t either.”
“Does that have something to do with our shop?”
The Baron suddenly stood up from his chair with theatrical flair.
“’Yudofu.”
He pointed to the wall, where yudofu (T/N: hot tofu) was written in kanji and the characters of Kyoto.
“The dish mentioned by the beautiful bride was called “Yudofu”. She said that it was not smelly, not spicy, not sour, not bitter, not hard and not bread, potatoes, porridge, eggs, or stew, but that it was delicious. With only that clue, my excellent subordinates managed to find the place that served it.”
“I see.”
“Therefore, serving girl. Bring me yudofu at once.”
Shinobu was pretty worn out by the man’s pretentious manner of speaking, but once they placed an order, they were a customer. She respectfully lowered her head as she would to any customer.
“I am terribly sorry. Yudofu is only a winter menu item.”
