“I can’t help thinking about it,” Sano said. “I keep wondering whom I’d have chosen. Could I put Bushido and loyalty to my lord ahead of Masahiro’s life? Or would I have made the same choice as Kajikawa, who put his feelings for his son above all other concerns?” Sano glanced toward the temple. “When I looked at Oishi’s grave, I felt inferior.”
Reiko was silent for a long moment. Sano could tell that she thought he should have saved their son and the shogun be damned. She was Masahiro’s mother. Her maternal instinct outweighed Bushido.
When she spoke, she picked her words carefully, as if trying to assuage Sano’s doubt about his worth as a samurai while stifling her urge to impose her own opinion on him. “In the end, I think actions matter more than motives. The forty-seven
Her praise lifted Sano’s spirits. “I suppose I have to believe you, because you’re always right,” he said.
It felt good to be out of disgrace and officially back at the helm of the regime. Sano decided to stop dwelling on what he might have done under different circumstances. Instead, he would renew his commitment to Bushido and do his loyal best to serve the shogun. He would turn his attention to the future.
The war between him and Yanagisawa wasn’t over. Yanagisawa blamed him for Yoritomo’s death. It was the one offense that Yanagisawa would never forgive. When Yanagisawa emerged from mourning, there would be hell for Sano to pay.
