Nakagawa is a district reached by tram in which Mrs. Fujiwara runs a noodle shop near Ogata-San’s former house and Shigeo Matsuda lives. Its importance lies less in an extended description of the neighborhood than in the way a visit there gathers several strands of the past into one afternoon: Ogata-San’s return to a familiar area, his intention to see Mrs. Fujiwara, and his unresolved concern about Matsuda. The journey ends not with the visit he first proposes, but with Matsuda unexpectedly appearing across the road.

District and setting

Nakagawa enters the narrative when Etsuko reminds Ogata-San of Mrs. Fujiwara, whom he knows by reputation. She now runs a noodle shop near his old house. Ogata-San regards this change in occupation as a matter for regret, while Etsuko corrects his assumption: Mrs. Fujiwara is not ashamed of the shop, takes pride in running a business, and would be pleased to see him. The exchange makes the district a point of contact between an older social judgment and a woman’s own account of what gives her work meaning. Ogata-San asks whether the shop is in Nakagawa. Once Etsuko confirms that it is quite near the old house, he decides they should go there. His suddenness surprises her; he has been considering a postcard, but the conversation turns into an immediate excursion. Nakagawa is thus introduced through remembered personal connections rather than an impersonal account of its history or boundaries. The old house and the shop give the place its meaning for the visitors, while the planned call gives their return a practical destination.

The journey to the tram terminus

Around noon, Etsuko and Ogata-San board a tram bound for Nakagawa. At first the carriage is stiflingly crowded, and the streets outside are full of people taking their lunch break. As the tram leaves the city centre, passengers gradually thin out. By the time it reaches the terminus, only a handful remain. This progression turns the journey into a movement away from the busier centre and toward the district where Ogata-San’s earlier connections are to be renewed. The terminus is a concrete yard surrounded by several empty tramcars, with black wires crossing overhead. Strong sunlight catches the painted surfaces of the cars; Ogata-San remarks on the heat and wipes his forehead before leading the way toward a row of houses beyond the yard. The arrival is specific and ordinary: public transport, an almost-empty carriage, a hot tram yard, then a short walk. These details set the scene without making Nakagawa a mere backdrop. The trip takes the visitors into a place where familiar names and old obligations can no longer remain at a distance.

From Mrs. Fujiwara’s shop to Matsuda’s house

Although the journey begins with Mrs. Fujiwara’s noodle shop as its destination, Ogata-San’s attention shifts to Shigeo Matsuda. He proposes that they try Matsuda first and then call on Mrs. Fujiwara. At Matsuda’s house, he considers asking Etsuko to wait while he rings the bell, partly because he does not want to keep her from finding the shop. His suggestion reflects a concern with the practical order of the visit, but the moment changes before he can act on it. Across the road, a gate slides open and a thin, youthful-looking man in spectacles steps into the sunlight. He wears shirt sleeves and carries a small briefcase, which he searches as he squints in the glare. Etsuko recognizes him as Matsuda, though he looks younger and thinner than she remembers from their few previous meetings. Matsuda buckles the briefcase and walks past them without recognizing them. The distance is only the width of the road, but the encounter remains, for a moment, unacknowledged: the visitors have returned to his neighborhood, while he passes them as strangers.

Narrative significance

Nakagawa concentrates the episode’s tension between planned and actual encounters. Ogata-San begins by deciding to visit Mrs. Fujiwara, whose independence Etsuko has defended against his condescension. He then redirects the outing toward Matsuda, the former friend whose article has unsettled him. The shift does not resolve either relationship; instead, it places both possible meetings within the same district and lets the appearance of Matsuda interrupt the planned sequence before Ogata-San can reach him. The tram’s gradual emptying also shapes the scene’s movement: the visitors leave the crowds behind, arrive at the terminus, and approach a private house, only for Matsuda to emerge into the open street. His briefcase, the sun in his eyes, and his failure to recognize the pair make their first renewed proximity visual rather than conversational. Nakagawa therefore functions as a setting for return and anticipated reckoning, not as a place whose own history is explained. Its significance comes from the people and unresolved matters that the journey brings together.