To continue with the topic of tofu, aiming to trouble Mr. Anzai Mizumaru with the simplicity of the illustrations, I must confess that I am passionately fond of tofu. With beer, tofu, tomatoes, edamame, and bonito sashimi (if I'm in Kansai, I'd add hamo), a summer evening becomes sheer paradise. In winter, there's yudofu (hot tofu), agedashi tofu, and yaki tofu in oden. In short, I eat tofu every day, two blocks a day, regardless of the season. Since we don't eat rice at home, tofu is essentially our staple food. When friends come over for dinner, they're left speechless, exclaiming, "Is this the meal?" It consists of beer, salad, tofu, white fish, and miso soup. However, when it comes to dietary habits, it all boils down to familiarity. When you get used to eating like this, it starts to feel natural, and eating a regular meal leaves you with a heavy stomach.

There is a small homemade tofu shop near my neighborhood that I found very convenient. It was part of my daily routine to leave the house in the late morning, visit a bookstore, a record rental store, or an arcade, have lunch at a soba or spaghetti shop, do some grocery shopping for dinner, and finally, buy tofu before heading home. There are three tips for enjoying delicious tofu. Firstly, buy tofu from a proper tofu shop (supermarkets won't do). Secondly, as soon as you get home, transfer the tofu to a bowl filled with water and store it in the refrigerator. And lastly, consume the tofu you bought on the same day. That's why having a tofu shop nearby is absolutely necessary. It's inconvenient to go too far just to buy tofu regularly.

However, one day when I happened to stop by the tofu shop during my usual walk, I found the shutter down and a sign saying "For Rent" posted on it. The cheerful tofu shop family, who always greeted me warmly, had suddenly closed the shop and disappeared somewhere. I wonder what will happen to my tofu-eating life from now on?