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Natsume Yuujinchou: “Village of the Sleeping Vessel (Part 1)” Summary (Chapter 100)

To you, we send our gratefulness that cannot be conveyed even with a 100 “Thank Yous”———…

After so many years, we have finally arrived at the 100th chapter! What’s perhaps most interesting is that this will be a multi-part arc that will have 4 or more parts!

If you’re curious about why we know this: the chapter title was written with a “Part 1” rather than the “Front Part” pattern that Midorikawa-sensei usually utilises. The “Front Part” pattern will allow up to a maximum of 3 parts (“Front Part”, “Middle Part”, “Back Part”), so if that pattern isn’t being used here, it basically means that we will have more than 3 parts for this arc!

(There were some people who said that it might have 5 parts, but I haven’t found a reliable source for that yet, so please take it with a grain of salt.)

TL Note: The word that I translated as “Vessel” is actually “Yorishiro”, which are objects that attract Shinto gods and allow them to house themselves in it. This is usually used in the series to refer to vessels that youkai use, with Nyanko-sensei’s fortune cat form being an example (so in the context of the series, it does not necessarily need to be a god being housed in there).There’s no English equivalent so I went with something that seemed to fit.

Special thanks to Jessica for proofreading this as always~

- Niji

[Everything under the cut.]

Chapter 100: “Village of the Sleeping Vessel” (Part 1)

As paper seals flutter around him, Natori successfully exorcises a youkai. The client invites him into his house, commending his abilities.

Matsuzaki: My my… Well done, well done! As expected of you, Natori-kun. I really owe it to you this time. I’m sorry that my house is so cluttered. Please, take a seat. Natori: …… As always, you have a lot of interesting things, Matsuzaki-san. Matsuzaki: What, these are just junk. By the way—— We will certainly have many chances to hire you again in the future. I’ve heard that you’ve been frequenting the Yorishima house recently…… You should really stop relying on that suspicious retiree. With power such as yours, if you’d like, my family could provide you with support.

Natori: Haha, I’m grateful for your offer, but——…

Natori freezes, noticing something behind the man.

Matsuzaki: Well, don’t say that………… ——…… ———— Is something the matter? Natori: ——— No…

Leaving the house, Natori’s shiki surround him.

Sasago: ——Are you sure that’s fine, Master? Matsuzaki is a distinguished family that may be beneficial for many things. Urihime: That offer of his was unprecedented, so perhaps…

However, Natori pays little heed to their words.

Natori: Did you guys see that? Shiki: ———— Huh……?

Natori: That thing in his house——…… ———— I think…… I have seen that before, somewhere… ——… *shudder…* ———If I’m not wrong…… That was———……

Meanwhile, Natsume and Nyanko-sensei are on their way home. In Natsume’s hand is a bag of cookies he had just purchased.

Nyanko: Hah~~~ Those cookies were just like jewels! I’m looking forward to eating them, Natsume! Natsume: Yeah. It’s from a famous stall that you can only find in the city, and they were opening up the booth here for a limited time only, so I figured we might never have another chance to get it again……

It turns out that Nyanko-sensei had ambushed him on his way home to buy those cookies. Touko had showed Nyanko-sensei the flyer for them, and had remarked to him about how beautiful and delicious those cookies looked.

Nyanko: Be grateful, Natsume! I gave you information about something that can make Touko happy. Natsume: I hope you didn’t tell me that just because you wanted to eat them yourself, Sensei. Nyanko: WHAT!?

It was a normal, peaceful day, just like any other.

Halfway through the stroll, Nyanko-sensei notices something, and tells Natsume to head home by himself (but not before reminding him to save some cookies for him). Nyanko-sensei leaps out of his arms towards a fallen tree before Natsume could even say anything.

Natsume: Sensei, where are you going? …… Nyanko: *THUD* Natsume: Pft! Are you alright, Sensei? You slammed into the tree, huh? Well, I’m going to head home first, alright—?

Touko is extremely delighted by the cookies, thanking Natsume for getting them.

Natsume: ——That’s great. Nyanko-sen……… ……There was someone who told me that these cookies would make you happy……… Touko: My my, is that so? That makes me so happy! Let’s eat them right away!

Natsume had the cookies with his guardians that night. But Nyanko-sensei never returned.

The next day at school, Natsume wonders where Nyanko-sensei could have gone, and becomes curious of the broken tree he had seen the previous day. Right when he had parted ways with Nyanko-sensei, Natsume had felt something from the tree…

Tanuma: Natsume! Natsume: Tanuma! …What is it? You look like you’re in high spirits. Tanuma: Yeah! Actually, I picked up something interesting. Natsume: Something interesting?

Tanuma shows it to him.

Natsume: ——… A piece of a teacup? Tanuma: I might have been exaggerating a little when I said it was interesting, but doesn’t it remind you of something? Natsume: Huh? Hmm……… …… Tanuma: ——Yesterday, I was out walking with my father when I came across a bunch of birds pecking at something in the grass. I took a peek, and found this piece of pottery there. Natsume: In the grass?

Tanuma: Well, it’s just a broken piece of a teacup, but look. This gray color… Doesn’t it look like his? Even this tiny bit of orange here too. Somehow, it looks just like Nyanko-sensei’s appearance. Natsume: ——Huh……

The tree in that grassy plain. The sound of Nyanko-sensei knocking into it comes back to Natsume.

Natsume: UWAH!? Tanuma: Wah!? W-What’s wrong, Natsume………? Natsume: ——Er, nothing…… (——Huh…? Now that I think about it, isn’t the fortune cat that Sensei uses as his vessel a piece of pottery…?) ——No… (It can’t be. Something like that is…)

Natsume attempts to calm himself, and asks Tanuma where exactly he had found the fragment. Tanuma cheerfully responds that it was at the grass plains where the old tree, which had snapped during a typhoon, stood.

Tanuma: ——Hey, Natsume!? You’re turning pale!! Natsume: ———Tanuma…… Please don’t laugh when I say this…… Tanuma: Huh? Natsume: I don’t think it’s possible, but…… What should I do if this is a piece of Nyanko-sensei……? Tanuma: HUH!?

Natsume and Tanuma head to the plains with the broken tree, but Tanuma seems unconvinced that Nyanko-sensei might have smashed into pieces.

Tanuma: ——No, wait, Natsume. Sensei has met many different collisions until now. Natsume: … Tanuma: All he did was bump into the tree, right? (With a thud.) Natsume: Yeah…… And it’s also normal for him not to return home for a while. ——But this fragment… It gives me a strange feeling, but… That feeling is… just like Sensei…

[The fact that two of the three examples given are just Natsume punching him cracks me up so much lmao]

Natsume: (It has the same presence as Sensei——)

[Seeing Natsume freak out like this is not good for my heart ;-;]

Tanuma: ——I get it. First, you have to calm down, Natsume. If something did happen to Sensei, then we have to stay strong. Natsume: *breathe…* You’re right. Thank you, Tanuma.

[Yes, THANK YOU TANUMA. YOU ARE THE WORLD’S BEST BOYFRIEND.]

Natsume calmly looks over the fragment again, realizing how he got strangely agitated when he touched it. Meanwhile, how does this explain Nyanko-sensei’s reluctance to return home? Could he be injured to the point where he is unable to move? Or because it would be bad to be seen with a broken body, so he refuses to return?

Tanuma: I’m not sure if this is related, but there’s another reason why I said that fragment was interesting. Natsume: ? Tanuma: Since I was little, I would often visit exhibitions with my father, who loved pottery———

Tanuma: While I was looking at the many pottery that potters and craftsmen had brought, among them was a piece of pottery that looked like it was glowing when I stared at it for a while. It had a fiber-like design which looked like blood vessels or branches. I told my father and other people about it, but it seemed I was the only one who could see it. The only pottery that had that blood-vessel-like design were called “Hakka* Pottery”. Natsume: Hakka Pottery…? Tanuma: Yeah. It’s a product made in a certain pottery village and is no longer circulated on the market. Now, it’s even called a phantom item. That’s why I’ve never had the chance to set my eyes on that blood-vessel-like design until recently….. But, I can see it in this. This fragment might have been made in the Hakka Pottery village.

[I’m not sure if I should translate “Hakka” literally or keep it as Romaji, as “Hakka” could very well be the family name of the potters creating it. So until this is confirmed, I will keep it as “Hakka”. Anyways, “Hakka” is literally translated as “White Mist”, so it plays into the whole “phantom pottery” thing.]

[Also, Chibi-Tanuma is precious.]

Natsume continues to discuss it with Tanuma, and decides to wait until the following morning to see if Nyanko-sensei would return. But should he not do so…

That night, Natsume has a dream of a dark space. And within it… is Nyanko-sensei.

Natsume: (——… Nyanko-sen…… ……There’s a piece missing on his back……) Nyanko?: *lick lick lick…* Natsume: (A light…?) Nyanko?: *dash!* Natsume: (!! Wait, Sensei! Where are you going? Sensei!! ——Just what is that light…?)

The light is from a small opening, made of bricks. Nyanko-sensei (?) stands right at its entrance.

Natsume: (Is that——… ———a kiln———?)

Natsume wakes up. It is morning, but Nyanko-sensei is still nowhere to be seen. That dream he had last night… Was it something that the fragment had showed him?

Wishing to find anything out about Nyanko-sensei, Natsume makes a call to Tanuma to find out the exact location of the pottery village. After taking Touko’s lunch box, Natsume takes a train towards Homura* District, where the village is said to be. He holds the fragment in his grasp as the train chugs along. [“Homura” is literally “village of light”.]

Natsume: Sensei… (Is Sensei actually at the Hakka Pottery village? Or am I just thinking too much? Maybe we have just missed each other, and he would return all of a sudden and finish up his cookies——?)

After getting off at the station, Natsume has to take a bus into the mountains, then walk a significant amount, cross a bridge, before he finally arrives at Homura, where the village is.

But inside the wide forest, all Natsume could find are abandoned buildings among overgrown weeds. According to Tanuma, there’s only one Hakka kiln left in Homura, and even the potter himself is alone.

As Natsume continues walking, he notices something among the trees. Somehow… it feels like something is watching him.

Then… Between the trees, appears a familiar figure.

Natsume: !! (Just now!) Sensei!? Is that you, Nyanko-sensei!? Wait a minute, Sen-......... Nyanko: You’re being noisy.

Nyanko: What are you getting so noisy for? Natsume: …… Nya- Nyanko-sensei!?

Natsume: ——How the heck did you end up in my bag, Sensei!? Since when did you…… Just where did you go!? Nyanko: Hey, you’re noisy!! I was just dealing with some minor business! It’s normal for me not to come home in a while! Natsume: Ugh… Nyanko: Then, when I came back this morning, it turned out that you were getting ready to head out somewhere, hence I decided to come along like this. Natsume: ———…… …………… …I guess that means you didn’t break, Sensei? Nyanko: Break? I’m with my perfect body as usual.

Natsume heaves a sigh of relief. He shows the fragment to Nyanko-sensei, who reacts with a frown. Just then, they hear the sound of a door opening. They decide to follow it, and come across the Hakka workshop.

Inside sits a man.

Man: ——Oh? To think that such a young guest would come visit this rural kiln. Is there something you need? Nyanko: …… Natsume: Ah, I’m sorry for peeking. Erm…… (This man is… The phantom Hakka Pottery’s——…)

But since Nyanko-sensei has already returned, Natsume doesn’t really have anything to ask about. He figures that he could ask more about the broken fragment as a souvenir for Tanuma. But upon taking out that piece—

Man: Oh. What an interesting item you have there. That was something that was made here. Meanwhile…

Man: Is that cat… yours*? Natsume: ———Huh?

[You can also read this to mean “Who is that cat to you?”, or basically “What is your relationship with that cat?” But I’m keeping it more literal for now.]

Another man bursts through the door.

Potter: Hey! What are you doing here? I thought I told you to leave! Natsume: Huh!? Man: Ah, hello. Since I’ve already carried myself on foot to such a remote place, I figured I should at least take a look at one of them.

Natsume: (So this is the potter. Then who is the one standing next to me………?) Potter: We don’t have anything here besides pottery. There’s nothing here that a collector like you would be interested in. Natsume: ———A collector… Man: It’s true that there’s nothing special inside this warehouse. But it seems like there are interesting things outside of it. Besides…

Man: I also want that, which you have.

Gas begins leaking from the box in his hand. Natsume, relying on his instincts, dashes from the house while excusing himself.

Man: ———Haha. What a sharp boy.

The smoke surrounds the potter, and he collapses.

Natsume: ——I instinctively started running away… But is that alright? ——Those people… (Just what was that collector guy talking about……?) Nyanko: That man was pretty eerie. Natsume: Is he… an ayakashi? Nyanko: No, I suspect he’s a human. However… His presence was just like that of a doll’s…… ——Hm? Natsume? Natsume: *sway*

Nyanko: Natsume!? Man: (I also want that, which you have.)

The man walks into the woods with a giant human-shaped case upon his shoulder. Opening it… reveals several wooden dolls. They begin to move upon his command.

Man: Now then, all of you. Go on.

In the darkness, Natsume hears two voices conversing.

Nyanko: ——And so? Who was that man? Natsume: (——Ah, ……this is Sensei’s voice. Sensei is here…) ?: He is someone you shouldn’t get involved with. Natsume: (——Huh?) Nyanko: Hmph! Whatever it is, I’m tired of waiting. A spell like that, I could just blow it away without breaking a sweat! ?: Stop it. It’s disadvantageous for an ayakashi. Natsume: (This voice is……) ?: Besides, I’m sure Sasago has made it through them and passed the message. Natori will come over and help soon. Until then, we should stay quiet and remain here——— Natsume: (Huh? Natori-san is——…?)

Hiiragi: Are you awake, Natsume? Natsume: ! Hiiragi!? Hiiragi: Because you were quick to escape, it seems like you didn’t inhale too much of the smoke. Natsume: Smoke…? Just what is going on…? Why are you—— Besides, where is this………? Hiiragi: We are in a cavern outside the village. It’s been about an hour since we’ve carried you here after you’ve collapsed. We’ve managed to hold out until now, but… that started, so now we are surrounded and cannot move.