That night, Kumiko does not return home. Toru wakes up without her and tries to prepare a breakfast. He calls Kumiko’s office a couple times, but the receptionist tells him Kumiko is not in. At 1:00 a.m., the phone rings. It is Malta Kano, calling Toru about the missing cat.

Malta tells Toru that he should forget about the cat because it will never be found. Toru begs Malta for more details and tells her he is worried something very bad will happen. She tells him to wait for a phone call from someone whose name begins with the letter O, and that a half-moon will last for several days. Malta says she will be in touch soon, and that the most important thing for Toru to do is to wait.

Toru searches his phone book for people he knows whose names begin with the letter O. Only four contacts show up, including that of his father. But Kumiko has never met his father, his college friend whose name begins with an O, or the dentist whose name begins with an O. The only other address with “O” is the Omura liquor store on their block.