Ge-ge-ge no nyobou 8/18
a.k.a. here's what really happened...
Shigeru handed Fumie the old manga. She looked at the page he had been studying. "A war story by Shigeru Mizuki?" He nodded. "Is this the one that Matsukawa was talking about? She wants you to write a sequel?" He leaned back. "Yes. But it's not just a war story. This was what really happened to me." He looked up at her, and said, "Here, sit down." She pulled a chair over and sat down.
Meanwhile, Shuhei came into their living room. He had a copy of the same manga in his hand. "I found it. This is the one that Matsukawa was talking about." Kinuyo said, "Matsukawa again?" Shuhei shook his head. "That's not important. This one bothers Shigeru."
Fumie looked at the manga while Shigeru talked. In his mind, he saw the war again. "We were in Java. It was beautiful, nice jungle. And then one morning, bombs fell. Everyone ran like crazy, with boom, boom, boom all around us. I saw a man blown into the trees by a bomb." He shook his head. "I jumped in the river. I dropped my rifle, and lost everything. Then I swam, as far and long as I could."
Fumie looked at the drawings. The next panel showed two soldiers climbing a cliff. "I crawled out of the river, and there was another soldier. We climbed a cliff in the dark, pulling ourselves up bit by bit. But when we reached the top, there were torches in the jungle. And angry voices." Shigeru shivered. "So we held onto the edge of the cliff, hiding ourselves in the shadows, while people who were looking for us tramped around just above us."
Shuhei looked at the manga with Kinuyo. "This is what Shigeru went through. And here, this must be that night..." Kinuyo squinted at it. "You didn't believe me then." Shuhei looked at her. "Well, it was so strange. You woke me up in the middle of the night, yelling that Shigeru needed us. What was I supposed to think?" Kinuyo looked at him. "First you told me it must be a dream. But I insisted, and you said, okay, let's call him. And you sat beside me and yelled with me. We called him, Shigeru, Shigeru." Shuhei nodded. "I remember. You ordered him to live, to come back. And I told him not to die." Kinuyo smiled. "And he did. He said he heard us."
Shigeru smiled. "I was hanging on the edge of a cliff by my fingertips, and I thought I heard Kinuyo and Shuhei. I thought I heard them calling. So I hung on." Fumie said, "You heard them?" Shigeru shrugged. "I thought I did. They told me later that they had spent a night yelling, and I told them I heard them. Anyway, I held onto the cliff."
Shigeru shook his head. "Then I climbed up. And ran. I ran through the jungle, with natives chasing me. I don't know what happened to the other soldier. I jumped into the ocean, and swam again. I really have no idea how long I swam. Finally I crawled out on a beach." Fumie looked at the manga. It showed a soldier crawling out of the surf onto a beach, his uniform torn, head down.
"I stumbled into the jungle again. And I walked. I was so lost. But there were so many mosquitoes. They bit me and bit me. I kept falling down, and getting up and going on." Fumie gasped. "That must have been the worst time." Shigeru shook his head. "Not really. The worst was yet to come. I found the army again."
The manga showed the soldier in his rags in a hut with three other soldiers. Shigeru remembered, "I stood there, cuts, bruises, feverish, in the remnants of my uniform. And they yelled at me. Everyone else died, why was I still alive? Was I a traitor, or maybe a saboteur? Was I a spy?" Shigeru shivered again. "I fell to my knees, and then passed out. I had no idea why I was still alive. But I had malaria, so they put me in the medical hut."
Fumie flipped a page in the manga. "That's where the bomb fell, right?" Shigeru rubbed his chin. "Yes. I was laying on a cot, half out of my mind with fever from malaria, and a bomb blew me out of the cot on to the floor. My arm was in so much pain. I was screaming. The medic held me down, and the doctor..." Shigeru shook his head. He slapped his empty sleeve. "Well, he kept me alive."
Fumie closed the manga. She took a deep breath. Then she said, "Yoshiko asked me the other day why you didn't have an arm." Shigeru sat up. "Well, I suppose she's just curious." Fumie said, "I'm not sure if she's ready for this story, though." Shigeru nodded.
Then he dug in his desk, and pulled out some folded papers. "Here, these are some paintings I did right after the war. They're about what happened after this. They're just pictures though, and turning them into stories..." Fumie said, "Can I see them?" He handed them to her. "Sure. But... there's no dialogue, and I can't do these quickly. I think they're expecting heroic war stories. I'm not going to tell those. I'm going to tell stories about what war is really like, the hurts, the pain, the agony. But I can't do that quickly."
Another day, Fumie cleaned the front entry. Then she went into the kitchen. Aiko was eating. Fumie said, "Oh, are you just getting up? You should go on to school soon." Fumie started looking in the refrigerator. "Let's see. Beer cooling, and I'll make somen later..." Aiko said, "Is someone coming today?" Fumie said, "Yes. Mitsui." Aiko frowned, then smiled. "Oh, the man from Dad's army outfit?" Fumie nodded. "Yes. When Shigeru was visiting Takarazuka to arrange a Kitaro exhibit, Mitsui turned up. Shigeru said it was funny, he was sitting there, and someone said his name. He stood up and saluted before he realized what he was doing. Then he looked, and said, 'Captain Mitsui?' and the other man saluted him. It was 26 years, but they still remembered."
Then Fumie frowned at Aiko. "You know, after they talk about old times, your father is likely to want to move to the southern islands again?" Aiko said, "That's okay. Actually, that might be good. No school, no tests..."
Shigeru handed Fumie the old manga. She looked at the page he had been studying. "A war story by Shigeru Mizuki?" He nodded. "Is this the one that Matsukawa was talking about? She wants you to write a sequel?" He leaned back. "Yes. But it's not just a war story. This was what really happened to me." He looked up at her, and said, "Here, sit down." She pulled a chair over and sat down.
Meanwhile, Shuhei came into their living room. He had a copy of the same manga in his hand. "I found it. This is the one that Matsukawa was talking about." Kinuyo said, "Matsukawa again?" Shuhei shook his head. "That's not important. This one bothers Shigeru."
Fumie looked at the manga while Shigeru talked. In his mind, he saw the war again. "We were in Java. It was beautiful, nice jungle. And then one morning, bombs fell. Everyone ran like crazy, with boom, boom, boom all around us. I saw a man blown into the trees by a bomb." He shook his head. "I jumped in the river. I dropped my rifle, and lost everything. Then I swam, as far and long as I could."
Fumie looked at the drawings. The next panel showed two soldiers climbing a cliff. "I crawled out of the river, and there was another soldier. We climbed a cliff in the dark, pulling ourselves up bit by bit. But when we reached the top, there were torches in the jungle. And angry voices." Shigeru shivered. "So we held onto the edge of the cliff, hiding ourselves in the shadows, while people who were looking for us tramped around just above us."
Shuhei looked at the manga with Kinuyo. "This is what Shigeru went through. And here, this must be that night..." Kinuyo squinted at it. "You didn't believe me then." Shuhei looked at her. "Well, it was so strange. You woke me up in the middle of the night, yelling that Shigeru needed us. What was I supposed to think?" Kinuyo looked at him. "First you told me it must be a dream. But I insisted, and you said, okay, let's call him. And you sat beside me and yelled with me. We called him, Shigeru, Shigeru." Shuhei nodded. "I remember. You ordered him to live, to come back. And I told him not to die." Kinuyo smiled. "And he did. He said he heard us."
Shigeru smiled. "I was hanging on the edge of a cliff by my fingertips, and I thought I heard Kinuyo and Shuhei. I thought I heard them calling. So I hung on." Fumie said, "You heard them?" Shigeru shrugged. "I thought I did. They told me later that they had spent a night yelling, and I told them I heard them. Anyway, I held onto the cliff."
Shigeru shook his head. "Then I climbed up. And ran. I ran through the jungle, with natives chasing me. I don't know what happened to the other soldier. I jumped into the ocean, and swam again. I really have no idea how long I swam. Finally I crawled out on a beach." Fumie looked at the manga. It showed a soldier crawling out of the surf onto a beach, his uniform torn, head down.
"I stumbled into the jungle again. And I walked. I was so lost. But there were so many mosquitoes. They bit me and bit me. I kept falling down, and getting up and going on." Fumie gasped. "That must have been the worst time." Shigeru shook his head. "Not really. The worst was yet to come. I found the army again."
The manga showed the soldier in his rags in a hut with three other soldiers. Shigeru remembered, "I stood there, cuts, bruises, feverish, in the remnants of my uniform. And they yelled at me. Everyone else died, why was I still alive? Was I a traitor, or maybe a saboteur? Was I a spy?" Shigeru shivered again. "I fell to my knees, and then passed out. I had no idea why I was still alive. But I had malaria, so they put me in the medical hut."
Fumie flipped a page in the manga. "That's where the bomb fell, right?" Shigeru rubbed his chin. "Yes. I was laying on a cot, half out of my mind with fever from malaria, and a bomb blew me out of the cot on to the floor. My arm was in so much pain. I was screaming. The medic held me down, and the doctor..." Shigeru shook his head. He slapped his empty sleeve. "Well, he kept me alive."
Fumie closed the manga. She took a deep breath. Then she said, "Yoshiko asked me the other day why you didn't have an arm." Shigeru sat up. "Well, I suppose she's just curious." Fumie said, "I'm not sure if she's ready for this story, though." Shigeru nodded.
Then he dug in his desk, and pulled out some folded papers. "Here, these are some paintings I did right after the war. They're about what happened after this. They're just pictures though, and turning them into stories..." Fumie said, "Can I see them?" He handed them to her. "Sure. But... there's no dialogue, and I can't do these quickly. I think they're expecting heroic war stories. I'm not going to tell those. I'm going to tell stories about what war is really like, the hurts, the pain, the agony. But I can't do that quickly."
Another day, Fumie cleaned the front entry. Then she went into the kitchen. Aiko was eating. Fumie said, "Oh, are you just getting up? You should go on to school soon." Fumie started looking in the refrigerator. "Let's see. Beer cooling, and I'll make somen later..." Aiko said, "Is someone coming today?" Fumie said, "Yes. Mitsui." Aiko frowned, then smiled. "Oh, the man from Dad's army outfit?" Fumie nodded. "Yes. When Shigeru was visiting Takarazuka to arrange a Kitaro exhibit, Mitsui turned up. Shigeru said it was funny, he was sitting there, and someone said his name. He stood up and saluted before he realized what he was doing. Then he looked, and said, 'Captain Mitsui?' and the other man saluted him. It was 26 years, but they still remembered."
Then Fumie frowned at Aiko. "You know, after they talk about old times, your father is likely to want to move to the southern islands again?" Aiko said, "That's okay. Actually, that might be good. No school, no tests..."