(Please excuse capitals again)
ONCE, WHILST I WAS STAYING IN MIHARA, HIROSHIMA I VISITED THE MASUTANI KOI FARM AND BOUGHT SOME KOI THERE. AFTER I HAD FINISHED BUYING I STROLLED OVER TO AN ADJOINING MUD POND AND STEPPPED ONTO A SMALL PONTOON WHICH OVERHUNG THE MUD POND AND SAW BELOW ME THE LARGEST ALBINO GRASS CARP (ALBINO SOUGHYO AS IT IS CALLED IN JAPAN) I HAD EVER SEEN – IT WAS THE BRIGHTEST YELLOW AND, ONCE AGAIN, IT WAS A GIANT.
I ASKED MR. MASUTANI THE PRICE OF THE SOUGHYO, EVENTUALLY, HE CAME BACK TO ME WITH HIS REPLY WHICH WAS ‘I AM GIVING YOU TWO PRICES – IF YOU WANT ME TO CATCH HER IT WILL COST YOU 100,000YEN (£600.00) BUT IF YOU CATCH HER SHE WILL ONLY COST YOU 50,000YEN (£300.00)! IT DID NOT TAKE ME LONG TO REALISE THE REASONS FOR THE TWO PRICES AS GRASS CARP DO NOT LIKE TO BE CAUGHT AT ALL AND THEY CAN JUMP OVER SIX FEET OUT OF THE WATER. I DECIDED TO PAY THE 100,000YEN PRICE FOR MR. MASUTANI TO CATCH THE MONSTER AND A LOOK OF GENUINE DISAPPOINTMENT CAME OVER HIS FACE. HE HAD TO EMPTY THE MUD WHICH TOOK ONE DAY, AFTER HE HAD PULLED OUT THE DRAIN STOP STANDPIPES WE RETURNED TO OUR HOTEL IN MIHARA.
THE NEXT DAY WE RETURNED TO THE POND ARMED WITH CAMERAS TO WITNESS THE SPECTACLE. IN THE CENTRE OF THE POND WAS A CONCRETE CHAMBER AROUND EIGHT FEET SQUARE AND A LITTLE OVER THREE FEET DEEP AND IN THIS CHAMBER WAS OUR GRASS CARP TEARING AROUND AT A RATE OF KNOTS!
MR. MASUTANI DONNED HIS CHEST WADERS (HE IS NOT VERY TALL!) AND THEN PICKED UP HIS NET AND GENTLY LOWERED HIMSELF INTO THE SUMP. AFTER SOME FIVE MINUTES, OR SO HE HAD TRAPPED HER IN A CORNER OF THE SUMP AND WAS PUSHING GIGANTIC KOI NET TOWARDS HER. AS SOON AS HE TOUCHED HER SHE JUMPED AND HIT MR. MASUTANI IN THE CENTRE OF HIS CHEST, THE FORCE OF THE LEAP THREW MR. MASUTANI BACKWARDS WHERE HE FELL COMPLETELY UNDER THE WATER.
THE NEXT MORNING, JUST BEFORE WE WERE LEAVING MIHARA, MR. MASUTANI CAME AND SHOWED US HIS CHEST WHERE AN ANGRY BRUISE COVERED THE ENTIRE CENTRE OF HIS BODY – PLEASE BE VERY CAREFUL WHEN HANDLING SOUGHYO!
