Part 1

It was during the end of the war in Hiroshima. People in Japan were facing food shortages, and air bombing day and night. But, the government and its military powers, still continued the hopeless situation, and called young people to send them to battlefields. However, people were received letters that those young people had been lost. At that time in Japan, "Daikichi" was working as a picture drawer of Japanese footwear Geta. With his wife "Kimie", "Daikichi" worked hard to raise their four little children. "Koji", the eldest brother, was nice and kind to his family. "Eiko", the eldest sister, was weak in health, but doing daily chores to help her family. "Gen", the naughty but cheerful kid and also nice to his family. And the youngest boy "Shinji" was a pampered child. And "Kimie" was pregnant, so they were going to have a new family member. When it is time to harvest the wheat from the fields outside of town, the children look forward to making bread and noodles to eat. "Daikichi" always said to his children, "Grow up as strong as the wheat".