Kikuhiko is feeling better about himself after the success of the play, with the audience hanging on his every word and gesture. Sukeroku tells him that he had a similar experience during the war, and that ever since then, he decided that he would do rakugo for the people. He asks Kikuhiko what he's doing rakugo for, but Kikuhiko, who has always done rakugo to secure a place to live, has never even considered the question.
