Kafka on the Shore

Chapter 48

Gimme a break," Hoshino repeated.

Nothing's about to break here, Mr. Hoshino," the black cat said wearily. The cat had a large face and looked old. "I figured you were bored all by yourself. Talking to a stone all day."

"But how can you speak human language?"

"I can't."

"I don't get it. How are we able to carry on a conversation like this? A human and a cat?"

"We're on the border of this world, speaking a common language. That's all."

Hoshino gave this some thought. "The border of the world? A common language?"

"It's all right if you don't understand. I could explain, but it's a long story," the cat said, giving a couple of short, dismissive flips of its tail.

"Wait a sec!" Hoshino said. "You're Colonel Sanders, aren't you?"

"Colonel who?" the cat said sullenly. "I don't know who you're talking about. I'm me, and nobody else. Just your friendly neighborhood cat."

"Do you have a name?"

"Sure I do."

"What is it?"

"Toro," the cat replied hesitantly.

"Toro?" Hoshino repeated. "Like the real expensive part of tuna, you mean?"

"Correct," the cat replied. "The local sushi chef owns me. They have a dog, too. They call him Tekka. Tuna Roll."

"Do you know my name, then?"

"You're pretty famous, Mr. Hoshino," Toro replied, and smiled.

Hoshino had never seen a cat smile before. The smile quickly faded, though, and the cat went back to its usual docile expression.

"Cats know everything," Toro said. "I know that Mr. Nakata died yesterday, and that there's a valuable stone over there. I've lived a long life and know everything that's happened around here."

"Hmm," Hoshino murmured, impressed. "Hey, instead of us just shooting the breeze out here, why don't you come inside, Toro?"

Lying on the railing, the cat shook its head. "No, I'm fine here. I wouldn't be able to relax inside. Besides, it's a nice day out, so why don't we just talk here?"

"Fine by me," Hoshino said. "Say, are you hungry? I'm sure we have something to eat."

Again the cat shook his head. "Thanks, but I'm all set for food. In fact, keeping my weight down's more of a problem. If your owner runs a sushi shop, you tend to have a bit of a cholesterol problem. Jumping up and down's not easy when you're carrying some excess pounds."

"Well, tell me then, Toro, is there some reason you're here?"

"There is," the black cat said. "I thought you might be having a hard time dealing with that stone all alone."

"You got that right. Definitely. I'm in kind of a bind here."

"I thought I'd lend you a hand."

"That would be great," Hoshino said. "Take a paws in your schedule, huh?"

"The stone's the problem," Toro said, shaking his head to get rid of a buzzing fly. "Once you get the stone back the way it belongs, your job's over. You can go wherever you want after that. Do I have that right?"

"Yup, you got it. Once I get the stone closed that's all she wrote. Like Mr. Nakata said, once you open something up you got to close it. That's the rule."

"That's why I thought I'd show you what to do."

"You know what I should do?" Hoshino asked, excited.

"Of course," the cat said. "What'd I tell you? Cats know everything. Not like dogs."

"So what should I do?"

"You have to kill it," the cat said soberly.

"Kill it?" Hoshino said.

"That's right. You've got to kill it."

"Who is this it you're talking about?"

"You'll know it when you see it," the black cat explained. "Until you actually see it, though, you won't understand what I mean. It doesn't have any real form to begin with. It changes shape, depending on the situation."

"Is this a person we're talking about?"

"No, it's no person. That's for certain."

"So what does it look like?"

"You got me," Toro said. "Didn't I just explain? That you'll know it when you see it, and if you don't you won't? What about that don't you understand?"

Hoshino sighed. "So what is this thing's real identity?"

"You don't need to know that," the cat said. "It's hard to explain. Or maybe I should say you're better off not knowing. Anyhow, right now it's biding its time. Lying in some dark place, breathing quietly, watching and waiting. But it's not going to wait forever. Sooner or later it'll make its move. I'm figuring today is the day. And it will most definitely pass in front of you. It's an opportune moment."

"Opportune?"

"A one-in-a-million chance," the black cat said. "All you have to do is wait and kill it. That will put an end to it. Then you're free to go wherever you like."

"Isn't that against the law?"

"I wouldn't know about the law," Toro said, "being a cat and all. Since it's not a person, though, I doubt the law has anything to do with it. Anyhow, it's got to be killed. Even your typical cat next door like me can see that."

"Okay, say I want to kill it-how am I supposed to do it? I don't have any idea how big it is or what it looks like. Hard to plan a murder when you don't know the basic facts about the victim."

"It's up to you. Smash it with a hammer if you like. Stab it with a carving knife. Strangle it. Burn it. Bite it to death. Whatever works for you-but the main thing is you've got to kill it. Liquidate it with extreme prejudice. You were in the Self-Defense Force, am I right? Used taxpayers' money to learn how to shoot a rifle? How to sharpen a bayonet? You're a soldier, so use your head and figure out the best way to kill it."

"What I learned in the SDF was what to do in a war," Hoshino protested weakly. "They never trained me to ambush and kill something whose size and shape I don't even know-with a hammer, no less."

"It'll be trying to get in through the entrance," Toro went on, ignoring Hoshino's protests. "But you can't let it-no matter what. You've got to make sure you kill it before it gets inside the entrance. Got it? Let it slip by you, and that's the end."

"A one-in-a-million chance."

"Exactly," Toro said. "Though that's just a figure of speech."

"But isn't this thing pretty dangerous?" Hoshino asked fearfully. "It might turn the tables on me."

"It's probably not all that dangerous when it's on the move," the cat said. "Once it stops moving, though, watch out. That's when it's dangerous. So when it's on the move, don't let it get away. That's when you've got to finish it off."

"Probably?" Hoshino said.

The black cat didn't reply to that. He narrowed his eyes, stretched on the guardrail, and slowly got to his feet. "I'll be seeing you, Mr. Hoshino. Remember to kill it. If you don't do that, Mr. Nakata will never rest in peace. You liked the old man, didn't you?"

"Yeah. He was a good man."

"So you've got to kill it. Liquidate it with extreme prejudice, as I said. Mr. Nakata would've wanted you to. So do it for him. You've taken on his role now. You've always been a happy-go-lucky type, never taking responsibility for anything, right? Now's the chance to make up for that. Don't blow it, okay? I'll be rooting for you."

"That's encouraging," Hoshino said. "Oh, hey-I just thought of something."

"What?"

"Maybe the entrance stone is still open to lure it in?"

"Could be," Toro said diffidently. "One more thing. It only makes a move very late at night. So you should sleep during the day to make sure you don't fall asleep late and let it get away. That would be a catastrophe."

The black cat leaped nimbly onto the roof next door, straightened his tail, and walked away. For such a huge cat he was light on his feet. Hoshino watched from the veranda as the cat disappeared. Toro didn't look back even once.

"Man alive," Hoshino said, then went back into the kitchen to scout around for potential weapons. He found an extremely sharp kitchen knife, plus another heavy knife shaped like a hatchet. The kitchen had only a rudimentary assortment of pots and pans, but quite a collection of knives. In addition he selected a large, hefty hammer and some nylon rope. An ice pick rounded out his arsenal.