悲報！100年以上前の講談本がエアコンの水漏れでびしょ濡れ〜三番弟子・若之丞の大食い日記２

AI Tonami and a Week of Triple Trouble

Special Week arrived with complications. Nine-year veteran director Tonami was out sick and joined the studio remotely via LINE video call—a setup Hakuzan immediately christened "AI Tonami." He reasoned that nine years of production meetings had given him a thorough read on Tonami's sensibilities: "Don't cut the dirty jokes, don't cut the trash-talk about a certain person." Feed all that data to an actual AI, he joked, and the show could keep going even after Tonami dies.

A separate piece of misinformation had also taken hold: a rumor spread that the show's resident laugher, Shigeto-kun, had gone to Egypt, when in fact he had simply attended a different performance at Kyoto's Shunjuza. Hakuzan gleefully mocked the fans who erupted on X—describing one as "an auntie in a rose-print one-piece absolutely losing her mind"—for falling for such a non-story.

On a warmer note, manga artist Man☆Gataro (漫☆画太郎), known for *Chin Yuki-ki* (珍遊記) in Shonen Jump, turned out to be an ardent Hakuzan fan, and a collaboration now looks possible. Hakuzan offered a dry self-analysis: "Creators who use a certain body part as a recurring motif tend to gravitate toward me."

Air Conditioner Floods the Study

The main story of this episode is a painful confession. An air conditioner in Hakuzan's home study had been leaking undetected for about a month, pooling water directly below its vent. Sitting in that puddle: roughly eight kodan sokki (講談速記本, lecture-transcription books) from the Meiji and Taisho eras, published by houses including Hakubunkan—now waterlogged and mold-covered.

His wife discovered them first, sending a photo with the message: "Something terrible has happened to your books." Hakuzan had been on his way to a kabuki performance; he turned around without watching a single second of the show. When his wife pointed out that storing precious books directly under an air conditioner was an obvious mistake, he had nothing to say for himself.

Omae Eigoro, Dead by Drowning

The loss that hurt most was two transcription books on Omae Eigoro (大前田英五郎, 1792–1874), the legendary gambling boss of the late Edo period—material Hakuzan had been quietly saving for a future kodan performance. "Japan's greatest gambler has died by drowning," he lamented. Books on Kato Kiyomasa, the Kaga Disturbance, and the wanderings of Mito Komon suffered the same fate.

Volumes that had escaped mold—covering Miyamoto Musashi, Tokugawa Tenichibo, and Murai Choan—were sealed in zip-lock bags, frozen, thawed, and pressed flat with weights, with reasonable hopes of recovery. The mold-afflicted Omae Eigoro books were set outside to dry in the sun, but ants and sparrows swarmed them, making conditions worse. His wife told him to throw them out; he couldn't bring himself to do it. "The National Diet Library has the same text. But it doesn't have this object." He described old books as being kept alive by a relay of owners across time, and said he felt like apologizing directly to the books for what happened on his watch. He closed with a public appeal: anyone who knows a specialist capable of restoring damaged antique books is asked to contact TBS Radio.

Wakanojo Conquers Master Gontaro Through Sheer Eating

The second half is considerably cheerier. Hakuzan brought his third apprentice, Wakanojo (22, from Iwate Prefecture), along as bag-carrier to the 22nd Hokugin Yose (北銀寄席), a 2,000-capacity rakugo event in Morioka sponsored by North Japan Bank. Headliners were rakugo master Yanagiya Gontaro and former sumo wrestler-turned-rakugo performer Uta Musashi (歌武蔵). Hakuzan distinguished the Rakugo Association from his own Rakugo Art Association by calling one "a safari" and the other "a safari park," noting the difference in atmosphere kept him on his toes.

The post-show banquet brought the group face-to-face with North Japan Bank executives. Uta Musashi provided unintentional comedy by repeatedly declining sake on account of diabetes, then accepting each pour with a cheerful "I'll take you up on that." Meanwhile Wakanojo was quietly working through everything on the table—tempura, soba, Chinese noodles, Hakuzan's leftovers—and reportedly finished seven kamome-no-tamago, a regional specialty. When Wakanojo began talking about his Iwate roots, the bank executives leaned forward, and he gradually became the star of the table. Master Gontaro watched with evident pleasure and remarked, "He can really eat."

The next morning a call came from Gontaro's wife: her husband had had a wonderful time and wanted to invite them again. Hakuzan's conclusion: "He might generate new bookings just by eating. That kid has a genuine skill."