I can bear anything for the sake of beauty
It was an age when men honored the noble virtue of
frivolity, when life was not such a harsh struggle as it
is today. It was a leisurely age, an age when professional wits could make an excellent livelihood by keeping rich or wellborn young gentlemen in a cloudless good humor and seeing to it that the laughter of Court ladies and geisha was never stilled.………………………
Even to insert a single drop of color was no easy task.
At every thrust of his needle Seikichi gave a heavy sigh
and felt as if he had stabbed his own heart. Little by little
the tattoo marks began to take on the form of a huge
black-widow spider; and by the time the night sky was
paling into dawn this weird, malevolent creature had
stretched its eight legs to embrace the whole of the girl’s
back.
In the full light of the spring dawn boats were being
rowed up and down the river, their oars creaking in
the morning quiet; roof tiles glistened in the sun, and the
haze began to thin out over white sails swelling in the
early breeze. Finally Seikichi put down his brush and
looked at the tattooed spider. This work of art had been
the supreme effort of his life. Now that he had finished
it his heart was drained of emotion.
The two figures remained still for some time. Then
Seikichi’s low, hoarse voice echoed quaveringly from the
walls of the room:
“To make you truly beautiful I have poured m soul
into this tattoo. Today there is not woman in Japan to
compare with you. Your old fears are gone. All men
will be your victims.”
As if in response to these words a faint moan came
from the girl’s lips. Slowly she began to recover her
senses. With each shuddering breath, the spider’s legs
stirred as if they were alive.”
“You must be suffering. The spider has you in its
clutches.”
At this she opened her eyes slightly, in a dull stare.
Her gaze steadily brightened, as the moon brightens in
the evening, until it shone dazzlingly into his face.
“Let me see the tattoo,” she said, speaking as if in a
dream but with an edge of authority to her voice. “Giv-
ing me your soul must have made me very beautiful.”
“First you must bathe to bring out the colors,”
whispered Seikichi compassionately. “I am afraid it will
hurt, but be brave a little longer.”
“I can bear anything for the sake of beauty.” Despite
the pain that was coursing through her body, she smiled.