Chapter 39Ryo Shibata, Michiko’s photographer accomplice, came down the outside stairwell of his concrete and glass studio and stopped to light a cigarette, cupping it with his head down. He reset his two camera bags like crisscross bandoliers, pulled on his gray ponytail, and looked both ways, up and down the lane of shops.
He headed uphill on a small side street of Harajuku. The area was crowded with young fashionistas and intense hipsters loaded with subculture brands and outlandish accessories, prowling the latest, coolest shops for more. The side streets offered a calmer, slower pace, with studios—like Shibata’s—and coffee shops, upscale boutiques and private homes.
Sakaguchi stood at the corner of the tree-lined Omotesando Dori and the small lane up to Shibata’s studio. Hiroshi wai
