When Hiroshi wakes up in his boat, he is met with ash falling from the sky. Minutes after the ash hits his skin and his crew’s, everyone starts feeling sick. Despite Hiroshi’s adamance that it’s nothing serious, one crew member starts vomiting blood in the middle of the night. A few days later, that same crew member dies. Back in his village, Hiroshi visits doctors, who don’t have a cure but suggest that he try vigorous bathing. His skin has become patchy and flaky. His wife is avoiding him.

At yet another doctor, Hiroshi and Yoshi (Hiroshi’s best friend, also one of the crew members who got sick after the ash rain) are met with a reporter from _Yomiuri Shimbun. _He tells them that the illness may have been caused by an American atomic bomb. The reporter accompanies them during their examination, and publicizes the incident. Letters addressed to him start coming in, along with small sums of money from sympathetic people.

A few days later, Hiroshi’s father comes forward to publicly expose his son’s former status as a prisoner of war. This causes public opinion to change; people now see Hiroshi as a coward and a traitor, who should have rather died in war than return after being captured. By now, Hiroshi and Yoshi both have thick bumps covering every inch of their bodies. Their hands have become talons, and the illness has caused even their teeth to fall out. Unable to continue living in that state, Yoshi commits suicide. Hiroshi finds his body and takes it to the ocean and never returns.