10.(0-2) Slim Novel 10 The Start - Meet the Leader

Slim Novel 10 - http://adventuresofkimi.blogspot.com - See Homepage

Losing War – Tojo Resigns
A

Slim Novel #10 - Meet the Leaders

Other Slim Novels

#1 Kimi // #2 Ali & Kimura – World’s Fair 1939

#3 Educating Kimi // #4 Olga & Boris – Honeymoon in Siberia

#5 New Decade – 1941 Tokyo // #6 Midway

#7 Tokyo at War – 1942/43 // #8 Guadalcanal

#9 Kimi Heads North // #11 New Future
#12 On the Ground Running // #13 Back in the Bronx // # 14 Eddie in Occupied Japan // #15 Edduie in Medical School // #16 Eddie Around the World // #17 The Wisdom of a Very Old Man

Introduction in the Slim Novel Cycle

Kimi is a Fisherman’s Daughter from Japan’s North Island who served as Comfort Woman for Japan’s Imperial Army in Manchukuo in the late 1930's and got to Tokyo as top tart at a nightclub where the Eurasian, Olga, who becomes Kimi’s best friend, sings American jazz nightly. In Tokyo Kimi also meets the communist young woman Harumi and by Slim Novel 5, the Three share Little Blue House.

   Another acquaintance is Kimura, top foreign correspondent and from his letters Kimi learns of Japan’s defeats at Midway (Slim Novel 6) and Guadalcanal (Slim Novel 8). In Slim Novel 9 Kimi has an interlude back in the North Island Village of her origin and chooses to become pregnant by a village lad Jun who is in training for and later dies as a Kamikaze pilot in the Battle over Saipan Island. In Slim Novel 10 at start, it is July 1944 and Kimi is returning to her friends in Tokyo.

1.  Changed Inside

Pinched-faced, drably dressed commuters are typical of wartime. At Tokyo Station, newsboys – actually wrinkled old men since all boys over 14 are in military training – are hawking headline extras EMPEROR ACCEPTS PRIME MINISTER TOJO’S RESIGNATION – NEW CABINET!

   Kimi stands at door of Little Blue House feeling like lost lamb. Nothing changed except she – changed inside. Then, she was one; now, two. She puts key in door.

   Inside is same as before. No one home, midday, and Kimi, world-weary, drops onto armless, backless, 2-meter long lavender slip-covered divan which Olga alternately calls Sigmund’s Sofa or Freud’s Furniture. In a minute she is asleep.

2.  Invitation

Kimi awakes to sounds and smell of frying eggplant and the lilting strains of La Paloma. Rolling over she opens eyes to domestic scene of Harumi over stove, right hand moving long wood chopsticks to stir spaghetti in pot and at intervals drawing out a spaghetti strand between chopsticks to taste while left hand grasps skillet turning piece of sizzling breaded eggplant over and intermittently shifting to third burner to stir and taste a pot of tomato sauce. And a naked, glistening black-coiffed Olga is lying flat belly down on the sea-green, deep-pile rug, poised over open newspaper. Harumi glances and gives shriek “She’s awake!” and Olga looks up through black horn-rim eyeglasses – her shades - that no one but her pals are allowed to see her in and says “Hello, lost and found, where you been?”

Later the housemates sit around table, at whose center is a big bowl of spaghetti with plates of fried eggplant and sauce; and also exquisite vichyssoise thick, white chicken & vegetable puree soup; and they lift foam-topped steins of Bavarian beer to lips. Kimi is told the food, the drink and also Olga’s Chanel lilac lip color comes from the Italian, the German and the Vichy-France ambassadors each in return for some trick Olga has gotten in habit of turning to keep pantry, icebox and boudoir makeup-table well stocked with favored European goodies.

   “Darling, I didn’t know how easy it is or I should have jumped into it long ago and not far away,” says Olga between chopstick spaghetti-mouthful as she does a naked supper. “Signor Lombardo gets it off having his balls gently kissed while bending over to whisper sweet nothing in my ear. And General von Shtein! Wow, wow-wow, wow-wow! He’s something else! He requires me to don a blonde wig and step into black pirate hip boots and nothing else, so’s I can give him a good whipping to get it up.”
   Olga pauses to please her palate with pasta. “But once it’s up, umm good!”
   Kimi isn’t sure whether this last exclamation of ecstasy is over the pasta or the von Shtein.
   “Oh yeah,” Olga adds. “The vichyssoise of Vichy France Monsieur La Val! Ooh la-la! Does that Frenchie know his tricks or don't he? Now I really understand what it is to be French kissed. Yummy!”

   Olga puts more pasta into her mouth with chopsticks and after swallowing she leans to kiss Harumi on her lips. “Darling you make spaghetti almost as well as you make love. Oops!” She claps her right hand over her mouth and Harumi appears embarrassed.
   Olga turns to Kimi “Well, now you know; we are like that.” She holds up right hand and daintily touches tips of right thumb and second finger. “I guess I’m bisexual.”

   Kimi is busy with the exquisitely excellent egg plant. Her taste for piquant food has increased. She is nauseated mornings but by by night her appetite makes her crave exotics. Olga's exotic word stimulates her critical sense.

   “‘Bisexual’ It’s a stupid-sounding word,” Kimi says. "Why do people put themselves into categories every time they try something new?”

   “Well listen to her!” says Olga, disappointed Kimi is not responding to her True Confession with the expected-and-hoped-for, shocked surprise. “Sounds like a real intellectual! You must have been at school somewhere these last months. Tell us.”

   Harumi interrupts “Oh stop badgering her, you bitch. Bisexual, trisexual, what does it matter? Our Kimi is back where she belongs. Let us think to that.”

   “Don’t you mean drink, or are you punning?” Olga asks

   “Drink too,” she says, and they do.

   Kimi tells what she wishes to about her Village life but leaving out Jun.
   They stay up talking. Harumi still works at the Mitsubishi factory, is now forewoman of her work gang, and indoctrinates Marxism into fellow workers. Most of them had been bar girl or streetwalker before the music stopped and they got conscripted into labor service.

   “Apres La Guerre” she says, explaining “It means ‘After the war’, they will help build the New Society, they will be part of The New People.”

   Olga reaches out and touches her face saying with uncharacteristic seriousness
   “Please, darling, be careful.” Then, reverting to her usual, she turns to Kimi with impish grin “You have an admirer in high place – at least he was in high place till yesterday.” She runs to a desk and comes back with letter envelopes. “Five requests in four months.” Kimi looks in amazement at the return address: Office of the Prime Minister.

   “This last arrived two days ago” says Olga pulling out a small memo inscribed in formal print along its top

FROM THE DESK OF GENERAL TOJO, HIDEKI,

Written neatly below in light blue ink in a flowing woman’s hand the message:

  Dear Miss Kimi:

  I hope by now you have returned from your vacation refreshed and rested. The General has been trying to reach you these past months ever since he heard of your wonderful performance at the Soviet Embassy reception. As soon as you read this please give a call.

 

 Yours sincerely,

 Katsu Tojo (Mrs.)
   “Mrs. Tojo!” Kimi almost shrieks.

  “Yes, darling, the lady who says, ‘Having babies is fun.’ ”

   Harumi who has knowledge of Japanese politics comments “It might be interesting to hear how Tojo feels about things now he is out of power. Of course he still has access to Big Man at the Palace. Like all former Prime Ministers he is on the Council of Elders and can have audience with the Emperor on major policy. Also he has much influence with the Political Police so I do not think his request can be refused or ignored now you are back.”

Next morning at ten she picks up telephone and dials the Tojo home number. On second ring an efficient sounding friendly female voice answers “Tojo residence. Who is calling?” She identifies herself, and the woman, who, she guesses, – it turns out correct – is Mrs T. expresses delight.
  An appointment is set.
   To read on, now, click 10.3 The Folks Who Live on the Hill