Kosaburou

Kosaburou’s bucket hat holds the dust of every major city, but the scent of cherry blossoms from The Great Panda City clings to it the most. They arrived there a poet, a cheerful wanderer hoping to compose a ballad worthy of Shijin's own flute songs. For weeks, they filled scrolls with verses about the purple sky and bamboo-lined streets. One evening, seeking a quiet spot, they stumbled upon a conversation not meant for them—a whisper of betrayal that chilled the high-altitude air. They slipped away unseen, but the weight of that accidental discovery changed them. The cheerful poet vanished. These days, the hat is pulled low, hiding their eyes, and their face is a placid mask. The last scroll they started remains unfinished, its final line waiting for a truth they can never speak aloud.