 Hatsumomo had found a very clever way of putting into Dr. Crab's mind 
the idea that my "cave" had already been explored by someone else's "eel," so to speak. 

Mameha was even more upset to learn about Pumpkin's upcoming adoption. 

"My guess," she said, "is that we have a few months before the adoption occurs. Which 
means that the time has come for your mizuage, Sayuri, whether you're ready for it or not." 

Mameha went to a confectioner's shop that same week and ordered on my behalf a kind of 
sweet-rice cake we call ekubo, which is the Japanese word for dimple. We call them ekubo 
because they have a dimple in the top with a tiny red circle in the center; some people think 
they look very suggestive. I've always thought they looked like tiny pillows, softly dented, as if 
a woman has slept on them, and smudged red in the center from her lipstick, since she was 
perhaps too tired to take it off before she went to bed. In any case, when an apprentice 
geisha becomes available for mizuage, she presents boxes of these ekubo to the men who 
patronize her. Most apprentices give them out to at least a dozen men, perhaps many more; 
but for me there would be only Nobu and the Doctor-if we were lucky. I felt sad, in a way, that 
I wouldn't give them to the Chairman; but on the other hand, the whole thing seemed so 
distasteful, I wasn't entirely sorry he would be left out of it. 

Presenting ekubo to Nobu was easy. The mistress of the Ichiriki arranged for him to come a 
bit early one evening, and Mameha and I met him in a small room overlooking the entrance 
courtyard. I thanked him for all his thoughtfulness-for he'd been extremely kind to me over 
the past six months, not only summoning me frequently to entertain at parties even when the 
Chairman was absent, but giving me a variety of gifts besides the ornamental comb on the 
night Hatsumomo came. After thanking him, I picked up the box of ekubo, wrapped in 
unbleached paper and tied with coarse twine, then bowed to him and slid it across the table. 
He accepted it, and Mameha and I thanked him several more times for all his kindness, 


bowing again and again until I began to feel almost dizzy. The little ceremony was brief, and 
Nobu carried his box out of the room in his one hand. Later when I entertained at his party, 
he didn't refer to it. Actually, I think the encounter made him a bit uncomfortable. 

Dr. Crab, of course, was another matter. Mameha had to begin by going around to the 
principal teahouses in Gion and asking the mistresses to notify her if the Doctor should show 
up. We waited a few nights until word came that he'd turned up at a teahouse named 
Yashino, as the guest of another man. I rushed to Mameha's apartment to change my 
clothing and then set out for the Yashino with the box of ekubo wrapped up in a square of 
silk. 

The Yashino was a fairly new teahouse, built in a completely Western style. The rooms were 
elegant in their own way, with dark wooden beams and so on; but instead of tatami mats and 
tables surrounded by cushions, the room into which I was shown that evening had a floor of 
hardwood, with a dark Persian rug, a coffee table, and a few overstuffed chairs. I have to 
admit it never occurred to me to sit on one of the chairs. Instead I knelt on the rug to wait for 
Mameha, although the floor was terribly hard on my knees. I was still in that position a half 
hour later when she came in. 

"What are you doing?" she said to me. "This isn't a Japanese-style room. Sit in one of these 
chairs and try to look as if you belong." 

I did as Mameha said. But when she sat down opposite me, she looked every bit as 
uncomfortable as I probably did. 

The Doctor, it seemed, was attending a party in the next room. Mameha had been 
entertaining him for some time already. "I'm pouring him lots of beer so he'll have to go to the 
toilet," she told me. "When he does, I'll catch him in the hallway and ask that he step in here. 
You must give him the ekubo right away. I don't know how he'll react, but it will be our only 
chance to undo the damage Hatsumomo has done." 

Mameha left, and I waited in my chair a long while. I was hot and nervous, and I worried that 
my perspiration would cause my white makeup to turn into a crumpled-looking mess as bad 
as a futon after being slept in. I looked for something to distract myself; but the best I could 
do was stand from time to time to catch a glimpse of my face in a mirror hanging on the wall. 

Finally I heard voices, then a tapping at the door, and Mameha swung it open. 

"Just one moment, Doctor, if you please," she said. I could see Dr. Crab in the darkness of 
the hallway, looking as stern as those old portraits you see in the lobbies of banks. He was 
peering at me through his glasses. I wasn't sure what to do; normally I would have bowed on 
the mats, so I went ahead and knelt on the rug to bow in the same way, even though I was 
certain Mameha would be unhappy with me for doing it. I don't think the Doctor even looked 
at me. 

"I prefer to get back to the party," he said to Mameha. "Please excuse me." 

"Sayuri has brought something for you, Doctor," Mameha told him. "Just for a moment, if you 
please." 

She gestured for him to come into the room and saw that he was seated comfortably in one 
of the overstaffed chairs. After this, I think she must have forgotten what she'd told me 
earlier, because we both knelt on the rug, one of us at each of Dr. Crab's knees. I'm sure the 
Doctor felt grand to have two such ornately dressed women kneeling at his feet that way. 


"I'm sorry that I haven't seen you in several days," I said to him. "And already the weather is 
growing warm. It seems to me as if an entire season has passed!" 

The Doctor didn't respond, but just peered back at me. 
"Please accept these ekubo, Doctor," I said, and after bowing, placed the package on a side 
table near his hand. He put his hands in his lap as if to say he wouldn't dream of touching it. 


"Why are you giving me this?
"


Mameha interrupted. "I'm so sorry, Doctor. I led Sayuri to believe you might enjoy receiving 
ekubo from her. I hope I'm not mistaken?
"
"You are mistaken. Perhaps you don't know this girl as well as you think. I regard you highly,


Mameha-san, but it's a poor reflection on you to recommend her to me.
"


"I'm sorry, Doctor," she said. "I had no idea you felt that way. I've been under the impression 
you were fond of Sayuri.
"
"Very well. Now that everything is clear, I'll go back to the party.
"
"But may I ask? Did Sayuri offend you somehow? Things seem to have changed so


unexpectedly.
"
"She certainly did. As I told you, I'm offended by people who mislead me.
"
"Sayuri-san, how shameful of you to mislead the Doctor!" Mameha said to me. "You must


have told him something you knew was untrue. What was it?
"


"I don't know!" I said as innocently as I could. "Unless it was a few weeks ago when 
I
suggested that the weather was getting warmer, and it wasn't really ...
"
Mameha gave me a look when I said this; I don't think she liked it. 
"This is between the two of you," the Doctor said. "It is no concern of mine. Please excuse


me.
"
"But, Doctor, before you go," Mameha said, "could there be some misunderstanding?


Sayuri's an honest girl and would never knowingly mislead anyone. Particularly someone 
who's been so kind to her.
"
"I suggest you ask her about the boy in her neighborhood," the Doctor said. 
I was very relieved he'd brought up the subject at last. He was such a reserved man, 
I


wouldn't have been surprised if he'd refused to mention it at all.


"So that's the problem!" Mameha said to him. "You must have been talking with 
Hatsumomo.
"
"I don't see why that matters," he said. 
"She's been spreading this story all over Gion. It's completely untrue! Ever since Sayuri was


given an important role on the stage in Dances of the Old Capital, Hatsumomo has spent all 
her energy trying to disgrace her." 


Dances of the Old Capital was Gion's biggest annual event. Its opening was only six weeks 
away, at the beginning of April. All the dance roles had been assigned some months earlier, 
and I would have felt honored to take one. A teacher of mine had even suggested it, but as 
far as I knew, my only role would be in the orchestra and not on the stage at all. Mameha 
had insisted on this to avoid provoking Hatsumomo. 

When the Doctor glanced at me, I did my best to look like someone who would be dancing 
an important role and had known it for some time. 

"I'm afraid to say this, Doctor, but Hatsumomo is a known liar," Mameha went on. "It's risky to 
believe anything she says." 

"If Hatsumomo is a liar, this is the first I've heard of it." 

"No one would dream of telling you such a thing," Mameha said, speaking in a quiet voice as 
though she really were afraid of being overheard. "So many geisha are dishonest! No one 
wants to be the first to make accusations. But either I'm lying to you now or else Hatsu-momo 
was lying when she told you the story. It's a matter of deciding which of us you know better, 
Doctor, and which of us you trust more." 

"I don't see why Hatsumomo would make up stories just because Sayuri has a role on the 
stage." 

"Surely you've met Hatsumomo's younger sister, Pumpkin. Hatsumomo hoped Pumpkin 
would take a certain role, but it seems Sayuri has ended up with it instead. And I was given 
the role Hatsumomo wanted! But none of this matters, Doctor. If Sayuri's integrity is in doubt, 
I can well understand that you might prefer not to accept the ekubo she has presented to 
you." 

The Doctor sat a long while looking at me. Finally he said, "I'll ask one of my doctors from the 
hospital to examine her." 

"I'd like to be as cooperative as I can," Mameha