１． At His Parents' Home

The family of Wozumi’s parents in Miwasaki benefited from Kyozo's work in the Arafura Sea after seven or eight years.
It was enough for two sisters to dress up, and Tokumatsu, the youngest eighth child, was about to enter Shingu Middle School as the first in the family, which was emphatically requested by Kyozo in his letters.
Kyozo wrote to his brother, "You have to study. It is nothing if you only be wealthy by making money. You have to study to help the world even a little bit. If you don't want this, then come to the Arafura Sea."

Their house was also not shabby like before. They bought two two-story houses across the Central Street of the town. One was to be a main house, and another was for the parents. It was easy to hear each other’s voices.
The parents continued to plow the field and go fishing, but they did not need to worry about their livelihood. Matsuzo, the father, was able to see a doctor without worrying about payment and was ready to have a doctor's visit.

There was a casual house down near the seashore to the west, belonging to the Sanoh family. The couple, Mannosuke and Rin, had five boys and five girls. Among them, two boys were working in the Arafura Sea in the same boat with Kyozo.
Mannosuke, the father, was good at fishing, or at least above average, but in fact his family relied on income from the two sons. Thanks to the money sent by them, the family overcame poverty with many children. Until then, they had been living from hand to mouth, though rather less than the poverty of the Wozumi family. So, the children did not have enough time to learn their school lessons.

Kuma, the sixth child and the second daughter, just managed to finish elementary school, carrying her younger sister on her back from the fourth grade. But she was a bright girl, good-looking and with a kind heart, though skinny and a little tall. She was named 'Kuma" (meaning a bear) reflecting the hope for her to be healthy, just like her elder sister's name was "Kame" (a turtle).

After elementary school, she helped her father do miscellaneous chores and worked with her mother in the fields, as well as helping out at home and taking care of the younger children.
Her prospective marriage with Kyozo Wozumi was arranged by her and his parents while she was still a young girl. Before that time, Kyozo had been away in the Arafura Sea since the age of sixteen, and Kuma only eight years old. Both of them had no knowledge of these plans.

2. Marriage in Name Only

Kyozo made a quick round-trip to Miwasaki just once at the age of twenty-five, and stayed there for two weeks. His three younger brothers were also working in the Arafura Sea then.
His main purpose was surely to gather various information as one of the leaders of the boat Taihei-maru. In addition, he intended to hold a wedding ceremony with Kuma.

He went back and forth between Japan and the Arafura Sea on a steamship twice, including the last return trip. He did not encounter any big misfortune during the voyage for half a month each way; he must have been travelling under a lucky star.
During that time, it was quite common for various natural and man-made disasters to happen on the sea route of a small steam cargo boat going back and forth from Japan in the temperate zone of the northern hemisphere, and then over the equator to the Arafura Sea in the tropical zone of the southern hemisphere. It would not be newsworthy even if a boat had disappeared enroute.

- - - - -
Kyozo already knew what Kuma, his prospective wife, looked like, through a picture a new comer had brought from his hometown. Even if everything was left to his parents, he wondered:
"Isn't it too much for me to marry such a girl?"
Kuma's appearance filled him with happiness.
However, in all honestly, his heart on the boat to Japan was occupied by worries over how to carry out his main responsibilities, first to finish the wedding ceremony immediately, and then to return to his work in the Arafura Sea. So, it may not be strange that he did not feel strong sexual desires along the way.

Two weeks in his hometown of Miwasaki went by quickly, including the wedding ceremony.
Besides his duty here, most of his time was spent delivering messages from his boat colleagues to their families.
Since he had to go to towns such as Ugui, Koza, and Shionomisaki, in addition to his hometown, he was obliged to travel far and leave his new wife alone at home.
Meanwhile, Kuma became Kyozo's wife at the young age of seventeen, following her parents' direction.
The wedding ceremony at Hachiman Shrine was a grand occasion for her. The married couple of the fisheries-cooperative’s chief acted as the official go-between, and important people from the village were also present there.
The groom looked so dark and unsociable that she was filled with anxiety, and she thought of escaping somewhere.

The wedding night was irritating to Kyozo and fearful to Kuma, though Kuma's appearance was better than in her picture. Her good nature, her voice and behavior, and ... all of her belongings made Kyozo's heart soar high up into the heavens.

There was no time for the new couple to talk at ease before Kyozo returned quickly to the Arafura Sea. Kyozo was sorry, but he got home late every night.
The meetings concerning work was mostly complicated and dragged on. And additionally, with regard to colleagues' messages, every family naturally wanted to hear about their relatives working faraway. Most of the time he had to join them for dinner and stay too long.
Kuma accepted Kyozo's situation of working late into the night. The new bride's hardship only changed in the sense that she was in a different home.

After a couple of days the sisters-in-law and the brothers-in-law began nagging the bride in various ways. Their parents tried to stop them but they were naughty and willful. Though they were obedient like kittens with Kyozo, they directed their jealousy against her mercilessly while Kyozo was away.
As a young bride, she not only cooked and cleaned for the big family but was also the target of the naughty boys who peppered her with endless requests and expressed dissatisfaction.
It was only after a long time that she was said by acquaintances to be a good working lady.

However, Kuma felt happy somehow. In such circumstances where she totally lost any hope and any refuge, she realized her husband was treating her kindly. She thought he might be a respectable man. Despite talking with only a few words, she realized that he must really have a gentle heart.
Kyozo was never a beast of carnal desires, though in bed his dark palms like a pine cone of a seafarer were actually painful to her skin, and also his clumsy caress made frightened Kuma. He treated her tenderly without any force. He talked about life in the Arafura Sea, holding her gently in his arms.
Kuma was relaxed and listened to his talk comfortably, truly feeling that her husband believed in her.

The sea sparkling with coral reefs, schools of fishes, pearl oysters growing in colonies, joy when he found a pearl, .....
Kuma is the goddess of mercy to Kyozo. She is fair-skinned, beautiful and well-proportioned. Her sheepish grin made his heart melt. Though he did not have detailed talks with her, he honestly understood that he was given a precious gift from heaven
He had already decided to stay forever in the Arafura Sea. But, his feelings wavered when he met the warmth and consideration of his bride Kuma, who he accepted as his lifetime spouse.
On the day Kyozo left Kushimoto Port for the Arafura Sea, Kuma wore a ring of a pearl, giving out a slightly pale blue light on the third finger of her left hand. The pearl was surely picked up by Kyozo in the Arafura Sea.
Kuma was hesitantly seeing him off in the crowd along the wharf. But Kyozo gazed at her forever.
He swore in his heart, "I will make you happy. I will not fail to return to you."