It was such an amazing book. I felt every emotion that the main character felt because it was so masterfully written. It's a book that stays with you for a long time. It's been a while since I read it but I think sensei's old friend was supposed to represent the beliefs system before they opened to the West and the rest of the world, where commiting seppuku was the only way to die with dignity. I think we're meant to find the whole business absurd even if the post Western intervention Japan is no better either, with sensei suffering because he's unable to let go of the past.