Love Hina - Volume 1 - Chapter 2.3

 
CHAPTER 3* CUSTOMERS, RUNNING AWAY! 
 
“Thank you for coming! Welcome to the Hinata Inn!” 
Our customers were elated. No wonder—the Hinata girls in their cute little kimonos, lined up at the tidy front entrance, were nothing short of a vision. 
Naru looked so elegant in her outfit. Shinobu had put her hair up like she was undergoing her shichi-gosan, the celebration for third, fifth, and seventh year students. Motoko was tall and regal; her feminine frame accentuated by the kimono. Suus tanned skin matched her kimono—she looked healthy and happy. And, of course, Kitsune looked really sexy. Even Sara had somehow slipped into the lineup . .  
 
 
Wow. Everyone looked so grown up. I got a little choked up, like a father on his daughter’s wedding day, or something. I was just brimming over with pride. 
Show time! 
I took the lead, and guided the customers to their rooms. 
From that point on, the peace and quiet ended. Looking back, the customers were all elderly couples, besides one group of old fellas. These people had traveled a lot; they were practically professional critics. 
As the Hinata Inn supervisor, I received all sorts of complaints. 
“Son, I want to change my room,” one said. “The window is facing northeast.” 
“Can I take a bath now?” an older male customer asked. 
I smiled and explained that the bath was femalesonly until seven o’ clock, and then it was open to males-only. 
“Females as in grannies, right? I won’t do anything to them,” he said, “so come on, now.” 
“I’m sorry, sir.” 
 
“We can do mixed bathing, can’t we fellas?” he called out to his bachelor friends. They came over and tried to gang up on me, insisting they had no problems with co-ed bathing. (As if the ladies desperately wanted to bask in the glory of their wrinkly old butts.) 
And that was just the beginning. 
They asked us to adjust mealtimes. They asked the teashop to lower its prices. People barged into our private rooms and took pictures. Generally, the guests treated us like slaves. 
Everyone kept saying how nostalgic everything was. I had to bite my tongue about a million times. They complained about the food, the hot springs temperature, the size of the rooms, the dust on the windows, and the lack of luster on the hallway floor. 

I almost passed out. 

Every time I climbed the stairs, I made a mental list of things to do, like retrieve extra towels, wake Mister Shibata in Room 3, take out the trash, then go buy cigarettes . . . 
 
Suddenly, someone kicked me down the stairs. Both of us tumbled down the steps. I blinked and struggled to get my bearings. 
“Narusegawa!” 
“Watch where you’re going!” She looked peeved. She covered me, facing away, her thighs on either side of my face. I got a nice view of her rear. Ordinarily, finding myself in this position with Naru would be a dream come true, but at the moment, I was just plain cranky. I gently pushed her off. 
“You’re so heavy, I can’t breathe!” 
“What did you say about my weight?” She tried to stand up, but fell back down on me. “Ouch!” 
“Ow!” I raised my head, and accidentally peered right into the bottom opening of Naru’s kimono. 
Oh gosh, I need to get out of here pronto. She'll kill me! 
 
 
 
I tried not to look, but I ended up seeing—well, there wasn’t the normal flash of white cotton panty that I normally saw, so that meant . . . 
I jerked back. Naru stood up swiftly, dusting off her kimono, and blushed. 
“Narusegawa . . .” 
“Did you see?” 
“No,” I said quickly. “It was dark.” 
“So, your eyes were open?” 
“I couldn’t see anything!” I insisted. “Like, usually I glimpse your panties, but. . .” 
Naru’s lips quivered. She covered her face with her hands. “You saw!” 
“No!” 
She sniffled. “Kitsune told me I had to wear the uniform in a formal manner, so . . .” 
So that meant no underwear. “Narusegawa . . .” 
“So, so, so, y-y-you . . .” she blabbered. 
“I didn’t!” 
She sobbed and punched me so hard I saw stars. It hurt, but maybe it was worth it, because an embarrassed Naru is definitely a cute Naru. 
 
 
I went to the cafeteria, deep in thought. There, I saw Shinobu in tears. Her apron was about to fall off, and her kimono was wrinkled. Suu stood next to her, trying to cheer her up by making funny faces, but it wasn’t working. Kitsune stood there, patting Shinobu’s back. 
“Shinobu?” I asked. “Why are you crying?” 
She quickly wiped the tears off her cheeks, but new ones spilled down. 
“What happened?” I pressed, worried. 
“She was bullied,” Suu replied. 
“Bullied?” 
“No,” Shinobu said. “They got mad because I couldn’t answer their questions.” 
 
Shinobu had gone to serve Room 2—a group of four bachelors. When she went to retrieve the dishes and trays, they were fighting. 
“They kept asking why Grandmother Hinata wasn’t here. I told them she was traveling around the world. I also mentioned what you said, Keitaro, about her not wanting to ruin their image of the past by greeting them as she looks now.” 
I sighed. 
“When I said that, they started taunting each other, saying, ‘Oh, Hinata was in love with me,’ and ‘No, she wanted me, not you,’ and so on.” 
When Shinobu had tried to stop their quarrel, they demanded she tell them which one she liked best. When she couldn’t answer, they accused her of making fun of them, and caused a ruckus. 
I understood Shinobu’s predicament. Those four guys had a crush on Grandma Hinata; she must have been their goddess. Even now, they were still fighting over whom she liked the most. 
Shinobu finally quieted down. “They asked me who was the most attractive. What could I say?” 
 
“The richest guy is always the most handsome,” Kitsune quipped. 
Everyone laughed, except Shinobu. 
 
I figured I’d better say something to those guys, so I headed toward the north building. On the way, I saw two men running away from Room 3. They rushed past me and made for the front entrance. 
“Urn, gentleman?” I asked. 
From the hallway, I heard a voice thunder, “DIE!” 
Motoko’s energy wave (the blast of spiritual power that surrounds the blade of her sword) came right at me. 
Why was she attacking customers? 
WHOOM! WHOOSH! WHIZZZZ! 
 
I didn’t have time to react. The energy force struck me so hard that I slammed into the wall. Motoko dashed in front of me, her eyes burning a bright red. 
“Um, what—?” But she ignored me, chasing after those two men. 
I pulled myself together and rushed toward the front entrance, but the guys from Room 3 were long gone. The four guys from Room 2 and the elderly couple from Room 1 had packed up and were waiting to check out as well. 
Naru and Shinobu, both near tears, bowed in apology, but the customers were adamant about leaving. 
“Please stay?” Shinobu pleaded. 
“Everything is under control now,” Naru promised regretfully. She looked up at me and said, “Everyone says they’re leaving early.” 
“But it’s almost midnight!” I exclaimed. I approached one of the bachelors. “Sir, what happened? Is something the matter?” 
“Definitely. I heard one of your staff swung a sword at a customer,” he complained. “And the hot springs is full of weird fish!” 
 
 
I was taken aback. I looked down at Suit, but she just scratched her head and laughed. 
One lady complained, “The food trays flipped over. And also, one of your employees came on to my husband—right in front of me! Then she asked for fees for extra services!” She looked livid. 
I glanced at Kitsune and sighed. I walked over to the front entrance, got down on my knees and said, “I’m really very sorry. I understand your frustrations. Please give us another chance. We will do our absolute best!” 
It was embarrassing, but it seemed to convince them. They calmed down a little, at least. 
“Keitaro,” Shinobu said, smiling softly. 
Naru placed her hand on my shoulder. 
An old man with a white beard (the husband whom Kitsune had hit on) said, “Its our fault, too.” 

I tried to assure him that wasn’t the case, but he wasn’t paying any attention to me. Instead, he stared off at something far away. “We ended up comparing everything to the old Hinata Inn, he explained. “Hinatas strong leadership, the very pretty Miss Yoko, the well-trained staff.” His eyes became misty. “There was something very special about the Hinata Inn.”
 
The four bachelors nodded. 

“This was a strange place. Every time we came here, something good would happen. To tell you the truth, I met my wife at this inn. He gestured to the elderly lady. “We were staying in separate rooms, but somehow, we were drawn to each other. Here, I was able to say and do things I’d normally be too nervous for. At Hinata Inn, I could open up to a total stranger. 

The elderly woman glanced down, her face softening. 

“But maybe that’s just my imagination,” the old man concluded. “People tend to embellish the past. 

“No,” one of the bachelors said. “When I came to the inn, my main reason was just to see Hinata once again. But to tell you the truth, whenever I stayed here, one of my fallen war buddies would come visit me in my dreams. Or the person I shared rooms with had success with their business soon after . . 

“Whenever our marriage was on the rocks, we’d come here to make up,” the elderly lady said. 

“Any business idea I came up with while here became an instant hit!” another said. 

“I was able to reunite with someone I hadn’t seen in a long, long time,” offered yet another. 

Someone else said, “No matter how bad things got, we could forget our troubles here.” 

Everyone nodded. 

“Well, that’s true for any vacation,” Naru said softly. “Isn’t it?” 
 
“Yes,” the old man conceded. “But we consider the Hinata Inn to be more than just an ordinary hot springs lodge. It was our mistake to expect this place to be as special as it was back in the day. I think it’s best if we left.” 
 
“No one is to blame,” I said. “Thank you for everything.” 

The customers paid their bills and headed off for the train station. We couldn’t keep them there any longer; we had no right to try and stop them. 

What they’d said about the Hinata Inn stuck out in my mind. 

To me, the Hinata House was my home. Just a very noisy girls’ dorm. An everyday reality. Suu’s inventions were fascinating, Motoko’s sword skills were amazing, and Tama was just slightly odd. But we were a family, in a way. I’d never seen anything strange about this place. 

I never sensed any special energy here. I couldn’t understand what had attracted all those people to the Hinata Inn, and I doubted I’d figure it out any time soon. 

Suddenly, I heard Kitsune scream, “Help, everyone! Come quickly!” 

We dashed up the stairs to Motoko’s room. Motoko was clad in pure white. Kitsune and Suu had pinned her down, but she was writhing on the floor. 

At first glance, it was pretty obvious that Motoko was trying to commit seppuku (ritualized suicide). The tatami mats were flipped upside down and Shisui was wrapped in white paper. I knew she practiced bushido (the samurai code of chivalry) but this was ridiculous. 

“I have no excuse to offer you, Urashima,” she said sadly. “I, Mo toko Aoyama, have disgraced the Hinata Inn. I must pay for it with my life!” 

“Don’t even joke about it!” I told her. 

“I’m not joking!” she insisted. 

“Motoko feels responsible for the guests leaving,” Shinobu said. 

Well, she did instigate the mass panic, but honestly, after everything the old man had told me, I don’t think it made that much of a difference. 

“It’s not your fault, Motoko.” I sighed. “It’s not good to swing your sword at people, but the customers left for their own reasons. It had nothing to do with how inexperienced we all were.” 
 
Motoko looked at me with teary eyes. It grabbed my heart. She looked so feminine and vulnerable right then. I was drawn to her . . . 

“What the hell are you gazing at?” Naru asked. 

“Nothing!” I said quickly. 

Naru folded her arms. “Why did you chase after those guys anyway, Motoko?” 

“Well,” she began, “it was because they started talking about the treasure.” 

“Treasure? There’s treasure?” Kitsune said, perking up. Her eyes sparkled. 

“The Hinata House treasure, I mean,” Motoko replied. “They said it had to be here.” 

“Didn’t we just put that rumor to rest?” Shinobu asked. 

Everyone looked at me. Or rather, tried to look at my back. The heat rash had long since disappeared. 

“They knew the story about Urashima having a treasure map on his back,” Motoko said. “I tried to laugh it off, explain that it was all a mistake, but they were really persistent. They swore they’d find the treasure.” 
“Did they have any proof?” Kitsune asked. 
 
Motoko wrinkled her nose. “No. But, I mean, these customers had been coming here for twenty years. Back then, the old tower and the annex were off-limits. Still, they mentioned the treasure was supposed to be there.” 

At that time, I was barely a year old. Grandma Hinata warned me about the annex and tower when I was four, but she warned everybody about it long before then. 

“They didn’t state their source,” Motoko said. 

“That’s not a lot to go on,” Kitsune replied, losing interest. 

“Why did you get so upset, Motoko?” Naru asked. 

“It was such a ridiculous story. They were drunk, and kept bragging about how they were going to solve the riddle. I told them it was too dangerous to go there, especially since I sensed eerie energy. I tried to tell them there’s nothing hidden in the annex, and that we’d already looked.” 
 
 
“The real treasure was Keitaro’s crappy test scores!” Naru blurted out. 

I was so embarrassed. 

Naru shrugged, looking a little regretful. “So, then what?” she asked Motoko. 

“They refused to believe me. They accused me of having found the treasure and said that I’d hidden it.” She clenched her fists. 

“We went back and forth about it, and then one of them reached out and grabbed my . . . my . . . my breast!” 

Well. No wonder Motoko lost it! At this point, there was nothing we could do to bring the customers back, but I was starting to think that might not have been a bad thing. 

What do we do now? I wondered. Everyone looked to me. 

“WTiat shall we do?” Naru asked me. 

I shook my head. 

Just then, the phone rang. I ran to the front entrance to answer it. It was Aunt Haruka. I had to wonder why she didn’t just come on over from the teashop. 
 
I figured she’d be angry about the guests leaving, so I said, “I’m sorry for letting you down. We really can’t run an inn.” 

“What are you talking about?” she asked. 

“Um ... I thought you were calling because all the customers left.” 
“Oh, I noticed that. But never mind. Fresh start tomorrow! We still have other reservations.” 
I liked her tenacity, but I had to wonder what was up. 
“So, I was wondering,” she said. “Could you check out the front of my store?” 
“You mean the teashop?” 
“Yep. Since this afternoon, there’s been a weird man lurking around. He sometimes stares into the shop window. I just want you to check it out for me.” 
“Are you sure it isn’t an old acquaintance or something, Auntie?” 
Aunt Haruka gritted her teeth and said, “Don’t call me that. It’s a much older guy. I’ve never seen him before. He looks a little familiar but—look, just in case, will you check it out?” 
 
I decided to tease her a little bit. “Are you scared, Aunt Haruka?” 
“Me? Of course not. But you’ve got a lot of pretty, young girls in the Hinata House. I worry about them.” 
She hung up the phone. I instantly felt guilty and decided I’d go take a look.