木村：君、あの事件のことだけど。
佐藤：どの事件のこと、僕は何も知らされていなくて。
木村：どうも君はかやの外におかれているようだね。
Kaya no soto
Kimura: Kimi, anojiken no koto da kedo.
Sato: Donojiken no koto, boku wa nani mo shirasarete inakute.
Kimura: Domo kimi wa kaya no soto ni okarete iru yoo da ne.
Kimura: Can I talk to you about that business, you know.
Sato: What business? No one's told me anything.
Kimura: They mustVe kept you completely hi die dark.
Kaya no soto is used to describe a person or people, who, although part of the same group and having a right to know what is going on, are kept in the dark-as if they are not considered worth being kept abreast of things by those who hold the information.
In today's so-called information society we are inundated with more information than we really need by television and radio. However, Kaya no soto no jootai ni okarete shimau koto ga ant (There are occasions when we are kept in the dark), and not informed of the really important things we do need to know. When this happens, whether deliberate or not, it is extremely upsetting.
In a different context, let's imagine that you completely forgot to tell one of your acquaintances something you should have let them know. She gets really angry. You apologize by saying, Gomennasai, kaya no soto ni shite oku tsumori wa nakatta n'desu.
(I'm sorry. I didn't mean to carry on without telling you). She might then reply by saying something like, Kaya no soto ni okarete ita nan te, ham ga tatte shikata ga arimasen (I can't help getting angry, being kept in the dark like that. )
In the recent incident involving the Aum religious cult there seem to have been many cases of the group's "executives" being in the know, while lower ranking followers Kaya no soto ni ite nani mo shiranakatta (Were kept in the dark as to what was going on, and hence knew nothing). When I imagine how they must have felt when they realized that Kaya no soto ni okaretsuzukete ita (They had been continuously kept in the dark) by the one they believed in, I can't help feeling sorry for them.