As Kano stood thinking thus, he heard Inouye ask the master of the junk how long it would be before they reached Yedo. The answer was that they must wait six hours before the tide turned, and that then it would take many hours unless the breeze freshened. “But,” he continued, “if your honor is in a hurry, I can call a sampan (row boat) and you may be set ashore at Kanagawa. Then you can follow the Tokaido, and reach Yedo to-night.”
Kano turned toward the master, and said briefly: “Do so!” A little while after a sampan passed within hailing distance, and soon the two rônin were speeding toward the shore.
Kano and his friend made their way to a quiet yadoya at Noge hill, where they could be sure not to be disturbed by the trains of daimiyo passing to and from the capital, and would be free from impertinent questions. After they had secured accommodations and refreshed themselves with a bath, they took their dinner. Neither spoke of the subject uppermost in his mind, their future plan of action. They were now in the Tokugawa country, and every man might be a spy. Besides, there was no privacy in a house where the walls consisted of sho ji, and even a whisper could be plainly heard in the next room. Therefore, when they had finished their dinner, Kano proposed a stroll. They set forth, and walked in the direction of Yedo. They were sure to be unobserved, since the Tokaido was crowded with travelers of all classes, and samurai were not likely to be questioned after they had passed the barrier.
When they had reached a part of the road where they could talk without danger of being overheard, Kano said:
“We have arrived at the first stage of our journey. Have you thought of any plan to attain our end?”
“I have been thinking, of course,” replied Inouye, “but I have no doubt that you have conceived an excellent scheme.”
“No, I have not. Every plan I thought of, when I came to work it out, offered some very serious obstacle. I feel as if I am running my head against a stone wall. We may go into Yokohama, and if we are asked who we are, we may answer that we are rônin. But if they ask what we are doing, and we reply that we are curious to see the barbarians, they will say: Very well, you have seen them now, so you had better go about your business. From that time we shall be beset with spies, or we must leave. This is a difficulty which I had not foreseen.”
“Your idea is to study the barbarians, is it not?” said Inouye thoughtfully.
“Yes. Our clan must not act blindly. We must know what is the purpose of those men in coming here; but that is not all. We must also know their strength and their weakness.”
“There is but one way in which that may be done,” muttered Inouye, as if speaking to himself.