Takasebune

"Takasebune" (高瀬舟, "The Boat on the Takase River") is a short story by the Japanese writer and illustrator Mori Ōgai, who is considered along with Natsume Sōseki to be one of the most important figures in modern Japanese literature.

[2] The plot concerns a boat that carried criminals from Kyoto to Osaka during the Edo period.

[3] One day, the police escort sent along to mind the prisoners as they journey along the Takase River is surprised to find that on this particular journey there will be only one prisoner, an unnervingly polite man named Kisuke who does not fit the stereotypical image of a criminal.

The police escort is rattled but curious and asks why Kisuke seems so cheerful when the boat's usual passengers are sad.

One day, he returned home to find that his brother had attempted to kill himself.