Akiko dried off and wrapped herself in the yukata, feeling rather self-conscious about wearing it without any underwear. She looked at herself in the mirror, confirming that the material was fully opaque, and that she could go to a summer festival dressed like this without anyone being the wiser.

“Revd Shiraishi?â€ Akiko stepped out of the shower area and looked around.

“In here.â€ Shiraishi stuck her head out of a door. “Come and have some tea; your clothes won’t be dry yet.â€

“Thank you.â€

The room was traditional in style, with tatami mats on the floor and sliding panels for the walls. A scroll hung in the alcove, and Shiraishi was sitting on the floor next to a low table. Akiko sank down, paying attention to the yukata and making sure she stayed decent. Shiraishi poured her a cup of green tea and offered her a Japanese sweet. Akiko thanked her, but then the silence lengthened, becoming awkward. The room looked out over the same garden as the bath, and rain was still falling heavily.

“So, which Buddha is this shrine to?â€ Akiko asked finally, desperate for something to say.

“This is a shrine, Ms Tanahata, not a temple. We don’t have a Buddha, we have a kami.â€ Akiko was puzzled.

“Aren’t they the same?â€ Shiraishi sighed, and poured Akiko some more tea.

“No, they aren’t. These days, they aren’t even really connected to each other. Buddhas are Buddhism, and kami are Shinto.â€

“Er, Shinto?â€ Akiko was starting to wish that she had chosen a different topic of conversation, acutely aware that she appeared to know even less than she had thought.

“The kami religion. The one you have at shrines. It goes back nearly two thousand years at least, to before Buddhism came to Japan.â€

“Oh, I see. I hadn’t heard the name.â€ Akiko was aware of the existence of shrines and temples, but she’d never been clear on the differences, beyond the fact that shrines had torii and temples didn’t. Shrines were Shinto, then. “So, which kami is this shrine to?â€

“Tamao Ohkami,â€ Shiraishi replied. “He’s a local kami, not one of the famous ones like Amaterasu or Hachiman.â€

“Oh, I’ve heard of them. Amaterasu is Ise, right?â€

“Yes, that’s right. As far as I know, Tamao is just here, however.â€

“I see.â€ The conversation trailed off again, as Akiko couldn’t think of anything sensible to say to continue it.

“So,â€ Shiraishi began, “why were you out in the storm?â€

“Oh, that. I left my commuter pass at home, so I was walking back. It wasn’t raining when I set off. Come to that, the forecast was only for clouds.â€ Shiraishi nodded, looking out at the torrential downpour.

“It was, wasn’t it. They seem to have got it a bit wrong.â€

“They do.â€ There was another lengthy pause. “Your bath room is very nice.â€

“Thank you,â€ Shiraishi replied, looking genuinely pleased. “My grandfather built it; according to family tradition there used to be a hot spring here, so there’s always been a large bath, apparently.â€

“Family tradition, then.â€

“Yes. Yes, it is. Well, let me go and check your clothes. They could be dry by now.â€