Sibei (Hiroyuki Sanada), is a widower raising two young daughters and caring for his senile mother, while working as a clerk in a castle storehouse. Sibei, who is of the Samurai class despite his decidedly unmartial employment, is failing to keep up appearances but he takes pleasure in raising his two daughters and his farm work, though he is forced to do piece work in the evenings to make ends meet. When Tomoe (Rie Miyazawa), Sibei's childhood sweetheart, divorces her abusive husband, things begin to look like they might improve for Sibei, but then he is given an unpleasant assignment of dealing with a dishonored fellow samurai who refuses to kill himself...![]()
