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Chapter 87 – Spring Bullet Tour? (9)

After that, the conversation with Shigeru Yoshida continued for a while, blossoming into a full discussion about tanks and heavy machinery.

(Why am I having a tank discussion with Shigeru Yoshida? Did I somehow slip into a strange timeline?)

Even as we talked, I felt myself wanting to mentally escape from reality.

A little girl who’s not even nine yet, having an in-depth tank discussion in the 1920s with a middle-aged Shigeru Yoshida—it’s absurd on so many levels. Not even in a rakugo three-topic story would you find a setup like this.

But regardless of my little moment of reality denial, Shigeru Yoshida seemed to be mulling over various things in his own way.
And he was the one who spoke up first.

“Well, I get the gist of the tank situation. And I understand why it has to be Komatsu. So then, what is it that the ‘Miko of Ootori’ sees beyond all this?”

“I haven’t seen it clearly yet, but for now, the goal is to raise Japan’s national power and production capacity to the point that even America wouldn’t dare intervene lightly. One of the things we need for that is heavy machinery.”

“That’s pretty vague. Sounds almost like a diplomatic objective. And how long do you think it’ll take to pull that off?”

“I’d like to make something happen within ten years. Of course, there’s no way we can do it on our own.”

“Even though people say you’ve got more dollars than Japan’s entire national budget?”

“Money is just a tool. And if money alone could solve everything, life would be easy. If anything, I’ve been painfully reminded just how little you can actually do with it.”

“That’s the kind of experience only you could have, young lady. I’d love to say something that extravagant just once in my life.”

“Shall we trade places, then? I think you’d do a better job than me, Yoshida-sama.”

“…Don’t be stupid. There’s no one in this world better than a gambler who can see ahead. Hey, young lady—aren’t you afraid?”

Shigeru Yoshida looked at me with a grown-up expression, though his tone didn’t change. When he finally said those classic words, they came out gently, as if trying to reason with me.

It was different from earlier—more like Yoshida’s personal side coming through in both expression and words.

But my answer was already decided.

“A gambler who feels no fear will eventually fall off a cliff. I’m scared—so I plan to step away from the first game soon.”

“I’ve heard the talk about how you’ve been selling off American stocks in a big way. So what’s your plan?”

“I plan to use those dollars to go on a big shopping spree and bring everything back to Japan. That’s why I’m planning to go to the U.S. this fall.”

“Heading to the U.S. at your age, huh? But you’ll be up against those cunning, hard-nosed American profiteers.”

“That’s true. But I don’t think I’ll have too much trouble.”

“Hmm? What’s going to happen? No, even if I asked, it’s probably one of those things that wouldn’t make any difference. Something that only has meaning for you, right?”

“Yes, I’m going to see history.”

At my words, Shigeru Yoshida’s expression went blank for a moment, then his mouth twisted—into a wry smile. The classic diplomat’s smirk.

It wasn’t because I was a little girl that a diplomat like Yoshida Shigeru was showing such a range of expressions. It was likely to get me to talk. But from that look just now, I could tell—I’d gone beyond what he expected.

Then Yoshida Shigeru concluded with this:

“History, huh. So this is also just one scene in history, and the next time I show myself before you, young lady, will be a moment when history moves again.”

(What is this old man even talking about…)

“If it were that simple, it wouldn’t be such a pain.”

I threw that comeback at him honestly, and even he couldn’t help but chuckle at that.

Well, the fact that he stayed composed even when a kid spoke to him so casually really shows he’s a man of diplomacy.

After that, I thought talking with Yoshida Shigeru at Komatsu Ltd. was the end of it, but I ended up coming to a hot spring town with him.

This region has many hot spring towns, with over 1,200 years of history. Among them, we came to one of the most iconic in the old Kaga province.

Right after arriving, I took a quick bath, rested a little, and then had dinner in the room.

But since not just us, but Yoshida Shigeru and his entourage were also present, they arranged a separate, larger room for a shared meal.

These kinds of inns still strongly retain the atmosphere of the Edo period, so each guest is served an individual tray—there are no tables. And following my insistence on “everyone together,” Shizu’s and my attendants were all seated side by side as well.

It was my idea, thinking it would be stifling with just Shigeru Yoshida and the still-silent Torasaburou, but with everyone lined up like this, it now looked like a company retreat from the Showa era.

Eating with trays in a line should have had an old-fashioned charm, but with the group mostly made up of old men, there was no elegance to speak of. At this point, only Shizu—fresh from the bath and looking stunning—was my sole source of peace.

“So, young lady, are you heading home after resting here?”

“This is a private trip.”

“Don’t use such modern words. No, I just thought—if you were free, I could’ve invited you to my villa in Oiso.”

(Whoa, that’s the very house that becomes a historic stage. I—I kind of want to go…)

I almost blurted that out on impulse, but just in time, a different response came from my mouth instead. Moments like this make me seriously grateful for this body’s specs.

“That’s a kind offer, but I have work in Aichi the day after tomorrow, and after that, I’m spending a night in Atami with the people from the Ootori household.”

“I see. Then next time, perhaps. Well, do come visit someday. Though, since I’m often overseas, it might have to wait until I retire from the Foreign Ministry.”

“Huh? You’re the Vice Minister for Foreign Affairs right now, aren’t you?”

This time, I couldn’t stop myself from saying what I was thinking. I gave up and decided to just roll with the conversation.

“Yeah. So what?”

“Isn’t the vice minister position considered a ‘final stop’?”

“Ah, that’s what you meant. Well, I suppose it is, in a way. But I’m only fifty. I’ve got to work until retirement.”

“Oh, right, that makes sense. But aren’t you thinking of switching to politics?”

“You really don’t hold back, do you?”

“I’m using the privilege of childhood while I still can.”

“I see. Well, fair enough… Yeah, I’ll admit, the position of Foreign Minister is appealing. And of course, anything beyond that as well. But it takes a lot of preparation, and there’s a lot of hassle involved. And then there’s the matter of timing too.”

“I see. Well, if you ever decide to make the switch, please let me know. The Ootori family would be happy to support you.”

“Hey now, is that really okay, Torasaburou-san?”

Since a child just casually offered something huge, even Shigeru Yoshida felt the need to confirm with an adult.

(Too bad for him. Torasaburou isn’t interested in anything but machines.)

“Don’t look at me. If you want a second opinion, ask someone at the Ootori main house. And if what she just said was thoughtless, she’s the one who’ll get scolded. But since it came from Ootori, we’ll keep the promise.”

As expected, Torasaburou doesn’t hold back with me.

But I’m also fairly confident that Great-Grandfather won’t scold me for this. So I straighten myself and look Shigeru Yoshida directly in the eye.

“Yoshida-sama, the Ootori family ended up switching from the Rikken Minseitou to the Rikken Seiyuukai around the time of the Suzuki affair, which has put us in a precarious position. I’ve heard that even your superior, Shidehara-sama, scolded my great-grandfather for it.”

“So you’re looking for a new politician. But wouldn’t someone with a military background be better suited for the Ootori?”

“I think you know this already, but my father is treated like a dull lamp within the military. On top of that, the Ootori family is widely disliked by the Choshu faction, and since we switched to the Seiyuukai, even Mitsui and others hate us more than ever.”

“Even so, politicians must still come flocking to you, right?”

“They do. The Seiyuukai of course, and even the Minseitou, despite having written us off. But it seems Hamaguchi-sama dislikes us too, so I don’t think we have a future with the Minseitou. Besides—”

“Besides?”

“There’s no room for fiscal austerity in the path I’m aiming for.”

“Ha! That would make enemies of most of the Bank of Japan and Ministry of Finance bureaucrats.”

“And yet, they’re all eagerly waiting for the Ootori family to bring back billions of dollars from America.”

I was starting to get annoyed, so I slipped back into a rougher tone, but Yoshida Shigeru didn’t seem to mind anymore.

“And when things don’t go the way they imagined, they start holding a grudge.”

“The Suzuki incident taught me that down to my bones.”

“Hahaha, learning something to your bones at your age isn’t something many people get to experience.”

“If possible, I’d prefer to go my whole life without ever experiencing it again.”

“But you’ll keep walking that kind of path, won’t you? So, let this old man give you one piece of good advice.”

“Yes, please do.”

“Yeah. The most important thing for people is to be honest.”

“That’s your good advice?”

“Nope. When you meet someone you don’t like, just think in the back of your mind: ‘What kind of eulogy should I read at this guy’s funeral?’ Try it. You’ll find yourself smiling before you know it.”

(Wow, that’s so Shigeru Yoshida.)

“Hey now, don’t go looking at adults like that, kid.”

“Ah, sorry. It just slipped out. But that really was good advice. I’ll do my best to put it into practice.”

Apparently, I had been giving him a dead-eyed stare. Well, for an old man, getting stared down by a little girl like that is probably a reward in itself.

That said, Yoshida Shigeru, for all his words, looked as composed as ever.

“It’s not the kind of thing you need to try hard at. Just keep piling up experiences until it comes naturally—like it did for me.”

And he finished off with a smug, self-satisfied grin.

One thing was clear: there really aren’t many people who can best this man.