The scene opens with Kikuhiko's soliloquy, in which he laments the loss of his lover, shisho. He tells the audience that he is a critic, a writer, and a performer, and that he does not care what people think of him, as long as he upholds the traditions of his home country. He laments that he has no friends in the country, and he feels sorry for shisho, who is a young man in his mid-thirties. He urges the audience to go to see the master of the house, yakumo, and ask him to find another young man to marry while his husband is away. He says that he will not be able to do so now, as he is thin and soft, and does not need the "mem ories" of the past. He also says that if he does find another man, it will be for the sake of the baby, and if not, the whole thing will be over.