“Kaoru�Eand “Niou�Eare Japanese phonetic readings of kanji characters which both mean ‘smell'. There is, however, a slight difference of meaning between the two. Nioi (inflection of “Niou�E is the sense our olfactory organs catch. As a result, Nioi could be agreeable, and at the same time disturbing. Kaoru, on the other hand, represents only sweet smells. Kaori is usually modified by “good�Eor some positive adjective. Therefore, an expression such as “bad�EKaori is impossible.

Kaoru of this story, smells sweet by nature. People can tell Kaoru's appearance from his lingering essence even if he is absent and they don't actually see him. In contrast, Niounomiya, who is Kaoru's rival in love, does not have a natural odor. Therefore, Niounomiya does his best to obtain excellent perfumes to enhance himself. To weave his summer clothes, Niounomiya uses aromatic ingredients, not the usual dyestuff. Then, Niounomiya goes to his lover in these excellently tinged yarns.

As he walks through streets in Kyoto in summer, and his body temperature rises, sweet smells begin to emanate from his skin as perspiration dampens his clothing. The aromatic components hidden in the colors are released into the air. The aromatic ingredients and the colors thus mysteriously link. The aromatic dying of Niounomiya's garment is described as “dye to burn the essence of cloves�E The color emits the golden lights of infinite tenderness. When the cloth is dyed deeply, the color becomes grey with a tinge of raven black.

While Kaoru's natural odor, which allows people to recognize him, is innocent, Niounomiya must exert much effort to be recognized. Between the young nobles of two very contrasting personalities, there is a woman they both adore. Her heart trembles like a fragile leave on ruffled water. Her name is “Ukibune�E which means a boat floating on the water.

Murasaki-Shikibu, the talented writer, created the world-famous novel, The Tale of Genji, one thousand years ago. She was a woman who dearly loved Koh.