Original subtitles

Two-Night Special The Miraculous Love of Husband and Wife

The Second Night

Two-Night Special The Miraculous Love of Husband and Wife

Thank you.

Books: The War in the Pacific Japanese-Russian Dictionary Encyclopedia of Russia

A mere two hours after leaving Niigata Airport.

Map: Khabarovsk

That you could reach Siberia in such a short time...

is something I would learn for the first time on this journey.

Only 61 years following the end of World War II.

Hamburgers in thirty seconds...

Shopping twenty-four hours a day.

People can easily buy airline tickets on the Internet...

and travel overseas as they wish.

But there are Japanese who couldn't return home for 50 years...

from a country we can now reach with one press of a button.

Hachiya Yasaburou...

This is the story of one man, tossed around like Fortune's puppet...

and his wife, Hisako...

...and...

one Russian woman's unbounded love.

A Distant Promise (Obeshanie) A Fated Love that Conquered Fifty Years

Spring 1940, Army Hospital

Yasaburou and Hisako met in spring...

when the footsteps of the War in the Pacific were drawing near.

Book Cover: "The Cherry Orchard," by Anton Chekhov

Did you hear about the operations in the South China Sea?

We'd like to earn success in the battlefield as well.

I know...

At the time, Yasaburou was a soldier...

but he was under medical treatment for pulmonary illness...

and passed the days discontented...

as a soldier who couldn't fulfill his duties on the battlefront.

Nurse?

What is that song called?

"Return to Sorrento"...

It's a canzone.

"Canzone"...?

They're Italian songs.

Italy?

You know foreign songs, nurse?

Well, songs don't have homelands.

This song...

is about someone yearning for their lover to come back home.

Wonderful, isn't it?

Did you forget because you were thinking about your own love?

Huh?

Oh... No, no.

I love singing.

With songs, everyone can enjoy together, even patients who can't see.

So, I often play the piano and sing just like that.

How embarassing, forgetting the lyrics!

Thank you so much for helping me out.

No...

I just felt like belting my voice out right then.

Hm?

I'm a soldier.

But in this condition...

The Japanese soldiers have begun their advance into Indochina.

My comrades fighting on the front lines... I've done them wrong.

I just wanted to release it all...

I believe your feelings will reach all the way to the battlefield.

Even us nurses never step foot on the front lines...

but we fight with the armor of this white uniform.

Oh, I know!

How about from now own you sing with me?

Huh?

You know, singing is good for strengthening your lungs!

...And songs can overcome even the most trying of times.

It sucks away all the pain and sadness!

Don't you think so?

Right?

I owe you my gratitude.

Maybe we'll meet--

Please, don't come back.

Huh?

I'm praying you won't need treatment and will never have to come here again.

Hisako!

Yes?

Will you go see the swans with me?

Swans?

You mean the birds?

Classical music.

Tchaikovsky's.

T-Tchaikov--?

You don't want to go?

I don't really know a lot about those things...

Teach me!

Then...?

Yes!

3rd Chuo Ballet Orchestral Performance Tchaikovsky's "Swan Lake"

Tchaikovsky's "Swan Lake" wasn't well-received...

and for ten years, it wasn't staged frequently.

Really...?

But as the two came closer to each other...

the state of the war intensified.

This feels so good!

Nothing beats the ocean back home!

Hakuto (White Hare) Beach

Did you know that Hakuto Beach...

is the beach in "The White Hare of Inaba"?

...Start of Combat

Yasaburou?

I guess the war is still on your mind...

Hisako.

The war is still far off, across the seas.

But...

Japan may someday be dragged into the battle.

Anything could happen to anyone at that point.

Will you be with me?

I'm not in any condition to fight for Japan.

But...

I have the confidence to protect you.

'Although I depart...'

'for where Mount Inaba stands, its peak covered with pines...'

'Should I hear that you too pine...'

'I am sure at once to return.'

It's a song from the Hyakunin Isshu.

No matter how far apart we are...

I only need to hear that you are waiting for me...

and I will return at once to your side.

That is the meaning of the song.

Whatever happens to me...

if you will wait for me, Hisako...

without a doubt, I will find my way back to you.

So...

can you accept this song?

Yes.

Yes!

And so, the two got married.

Yasaburou, 23 years old...

Hisako, 24 years old...

But that happiness would not last for long.

June 1946, Pyongyang

Three years after they married...

just as the War in the Pacific was growing more intense...

Yasaburou traveled overseas to Korea, now governed by the Japanese...

and worked as an inspection official at weapons plants.

Although he was unable to fight as a soldier...

he hoped to be of even the least assistance.

According to rumors, the Soviets are gonna declare war against Japan.

Heh.

And they'll head for Korea first.

Perhaps we should start withdrawing back to Japan.

Well...

didn't you just have a daughter?

Yeah.

Her name's Kumiko.

But she's not even a month old.

I see.

This must be a rough trip for you.

Hey...

There were air raids again today, right?

Is everything okay?

Lately, I've been hearing strange rumors.

Don't worry.

Don't worry, Japan's still advancing strong.

You're right...!

And besides... we have you with us.

Precisely.

No matter what happens...

I'll protect both of you.

Okay, Kumiko! Come to Papa!

Come to Papa!

When the war's over, let's return to the countryside.

Let's walk Hakuto Beach together.

Let's hold hands and walk together... the three of us!

Sure!

It's a promise!

But two months after that...

America dropped atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki...

August 14, 1945 Japan accepts the Potsdam Declaration

and Japan accepted the Potsdam Declaration and lost the war.

But right before the end of the war, the Soviet Union suddenly advanced into Korea...

and the Japanese living in Korea were forced to evacuate...

Wait!

Please wait!

Papa, where are we going?

She's still three months old!

She won't survive a refugee camp!

Korea's been captured by the Soviets.

We can't stay in Pyongyang any longer.

Where's the Japanese army?

Where are all the soldiers?

In any event, we're heading to Akiotsu with the others.

It seems there are still Japanese soldiers at Akiotsu.

The Japanese army had already withdrawn from Akiotsu as well.

Akiotsu, Japanese Refugee Camp

The Soviet troops detained the remaining Japanese as part prisoners-of-war...

and Yasaburou and his family were now unable to return to Japan.

What's going to happen to us...?

It'll be alright.

We're only civilians.

Hisako!

Hm?

Let's cut your hair.

What?

This isn't a safe place.

You need to keep a constant eye on the women.

I'm sorry, Hisako.

And I just got transferred to Korea...!

I'm sorry.

Wow!

It looks pretty good!

This is the "modern girl" look!

You could be a barber!

So then...

you're my first customer, huh?

Hisako!

Huh?

Hisako!

Papa!

What happened!?

The fighting was getting close, but he finally made it here.

He hasn't eaten for three days.

Can you give him something to eat?

But, we don't really have anything...

Here.

Hey!

Eat up!

And so the two of them would take care of this man by the name of Yasuoka.

Mr. Yasuoka?

You don't speak a word, do you...

He must have been through a lot.

When I ask him about his family, he doesn't say a thing...

In any event, help him out, as a fellow countryman.

You're just too kindhearted!

And then, one day several months after...

July 1946

What's going on!

Papa!

Where's Mr. Yasuoka!?

What's going on!?

Papa!

Stop!

What are you looking for!

Stop!

Papa!!

Let me--

Let me go!

You're under arrest for suspicion of espionage.

Papa!

Don't worry. This is clearly a misunderstanding.

I'll be back soon!

Kumiko...!

Take care of Kumiko for me!

Papa!

At the time, the two of them didn't know...

that this parting would be a long, long farewell that spanned half a century.

Yasaburou, 27 years old...

Hisako, 29 years old.

You're a spy! Hurry up and confess!

Spy!?

What are you talking about?

Where did you take the explosives!?

I don't know what you're talking about!

I'm just a civilian!

What's your mission?

Spit it out!

For five months, the meaningless interrogation and torture continued.

Half a year later

Come with me!

Mr. Yasuoka...?

You know this man, correct?

This man...

is a spy I drafted for the Japanese army.

What the hell...?

What are you talking about!

Mr. Yasuoka!

What are you talking about!?

Wait!

Hold it!

The sentence: Penal servitude and exile for ten years in Siberia.

Charge: Espionage

It was a trial that lasted but ten seconds.

Yasuoka was a member of the Japanese Secret Service...

but his reasons for involving the innocent Yasaburou...

remain unclear even today, as he was executed by gun.

According to one theory...

Yasuoka was deeply involved in a large espionage plot that threatened the Soviets...

and in order to protect the whereabouts of the information...

he framed the unknowing Yasaburou as a spy.

Hisako...!

Kumiko!

"A Living Hell"...

That's what Yasaburou called it.

Siberia, Urgal Concentration Camp

His long path of pain and suffering had now begun.

North Korea

Hisako, what are you doing?

You need to hurry!

But I have to wait for Yasaburou...

Have you lost your mind!

They're finally letting us go home!

If you don't go now, you'll be stuck here forever!

Shouldn't getting Kumi-chan safely home to Japan come first!?

I know... But...

It's the inspection guards! Hide your things!

I...

I'm going to go back!

Are you crazy!

Kumiko?

She's walking!

Kumiko's walking!

You can walk!

That's right...

Let's walk, Kumiko...

We made a promise with Papa, didn't we...

That we'd all walk Hakuto Beach together!

The damn thing's swollen!

I can't even put shoes on anymore!

Don't give up!

You know...

I have a daughter!

I promised my wife I would return...

I told her I'd make it out alive...

Get to work dammit!

Without a hat, he'll freeze to death!

Fugitive!

People who can't work can only end up like that.

I...

won't die!

I will...

make it home alive!

Hisako...

and Kumiko...

Wait for me!

Tottori (Inaba)

Hisako returned to her parents' home in Tottori.

But in the disorder following the war...

her parents, and her brother and his wife, were forced into a bitter lifestyle.

I wonder how Yasaburou is doing...

It seems there's tens of thousands of Japanese being detained in Siberia...

so there's no way to find out.

But Yasaburou will be fine!

After all, he liked Chekhov and Dostoevsky.

He's probably getting along well with the Russians!

Right, Kumiko?

He died...?

According to a soldier who returned from a concentration camp in Urgal...

Yasaburou died of malaria...

That's a lie.

He said he would be back right away!

Look!

Look at this!

See? This...

'Should I hear that you too pine'...

He said he would come back no matter what!

He's not someone who breaks his promises!

He said we would walk Hakuto Beach together!

You're lying!

It's a lie!

Hisako-chan!

It's a lie!

Why...?

You promised...!

Why?

The sand just gets washed over.

Kumiko...

Whatever happens to me...

if you will wait for me, Hisako...

without a doubt, I will find my way back to you.

Alright!

We made a promise with Papa, didn't we...

He's alive.

Just as Hisako believed...

Yasaburou was alive.

Concentration Camp, Debilitated Prisoners Group

I can't die.

I can't...

I have to make it back alive...

They have it so good...

Those Uzbekistanis...

they're prisoners just like us...!

If we only knew some skill, we wouldn't need to do forced labor!

It would give us hope to live...!

It's like the difference between heaven and earth!

It looks pretty good!

You could be a barber!

You're here again!?

Get the hell out! We don't need sick people here!

Shit!

These clippers ain't cuttin' again! You got a new blade?

It would be at least two weeks...

How the hell am I supposed to work then!?

Um...

A whetstone!

If you don't sharpen it on a whetstone, it won't cut!

You can sharpen it?

Yes...! I can!

I can!

Are you serious!?

Have you ever done that before!?

No...

No!?

If you can't do it, they'll kill you!

Why would they have a whetstone in a place like this!?

I'm going to get back home to my family!

To get there...

I'll do anything!

The glass!

If I add oil to this...!

Wonderful job! You're really something!

Thanks!

Alright, starting today you're a barber!

With this, he gained the hope to find his way back to Hisako.

In the face of such happiness, Yasaburou cried...

cried...

and cried.

Even if you want to go back to being a nurse...

you've got a small child...

You won't be able to work the night shift!

But at this rate...

I won't be able to afford a proper education for her.

I want to raise our daughter properly for when my husband comes back.

"When he comes back"...?

I thought he passed away already...?

I don't believe that!

It's just hearsay when they say he died.

There's no conclusive evidence he's alive, but there's also no proof he's dead.

And if that's the case, I'm going to believe he's still alive.

1951, Tottori

Hisako raised a child while working hard to study...

and became a certified public health nurse, a new position created after the war.

Mommy's going to work, okay?

I'll see you later!

Bye bye!

And while it was a six-tatami, one-room rented shack, with no gas or water...

she began to support herself in life.

Hisako?

Yes?

With Kumi-chan and all, so how about you consider remarriage?

I have a good candidate for you...

I have a husband, so why would I get married!?

But there's been no news of him for many years now!

Why do you feel so obligated to your husband...?

Well, that's because...

he's a good man!

Magadan Concentration Camp

Yasaburou had been sent to Magadan, the entrance to the Arctic Circle.

It was known as "The Camp of Death," because noone made it out alive.

...A harsh place where one mistake got you executed.

Shiatsu (pressure massage)?

The Japanese are handy, warden.

Yasaburou!

How did you learn this?

How...?

Books.

"Kniga."

There were a lot of books in the storehouse...

I look at the pictures...

and also study the needles.

Why?

Why...?

To survive.

Someday, you'll get your throat slit by a Japanese spy!

Hurry and clean it up!

Hurry, dammit!

Pick it up!

Kumiko Hisako

You're releasing me...?

You're an honest man.

Really...?

Really?

Cheers! Man from the Land of the Rising Sun!

Thus, seven years after being forced into a detainment camp...

1953

Yasaburou set foot on free soil.

Hisako!

Kumiko!

I'm coming home!

I'm coming home to Japan!

But even though he had just been released, a fate yet more cruel awaited Yasaburou.

Three months later

Even after being released, Yasaburou was not cleared of espionage...

and was not permitted to leave Magadan or send a letter to Japan.

And then three months after starting work at the job offered to him...

Magadan Central Barber Shop

With Stalin dead, it seems they started repatriating the Japanese prisoners.

Wait...

What about me?

Why!?

Why only me?

If I had stayed a prisoner...!

If you had restored my sentence, I'd be able to return to Japan!

Why should a spy be allowed to return home?

We've still got our eyes on you.

You...

You're with the secret police...!?

You always asked me to cut your hair so you could keep an eye on me!?

All those soldiers we've been caring for who couldn't be granted amnesty...

We're simply sending them back home through the kindness of the Soviet Union.

We need not show kindness to spies.

I'm not a spy!

I'm being detained on false charges!

You cannot escape.

To Mrs. Hachiya Hisako...

I am alive.

I'm alive.

I just wanted to tell you and Kimiko that.

And...

I will continue to live.

Customs Storehouse

Even if I spit blood...

Even if I have to eat the grass and chew sand...

"For disposal"

Just for the sake of being able to see you...

Please!

Please.

Please!

Are you okay, okaasan?

Of course!

Hisako!

Oh, hello!

Wait, you're doing carpenters' work!?

The roof's leaking!

Then why didn't you just ask us to do it for you?

Until Papa returns, I'm taking over for him as father!

I've gotta master a man's work!

Ouch!

See? I told you!

No big deal!

My goodness!

She's gotten so strong!

Hey...

How... How can you wait this long?

1485 days.

Hm?

I only spent that long with Papa...

but it was enough happiness for a lifetime.

So it doesn't matter how many years I have to wait!

Missus!

Look this way!

Please tell us how you feel!

Names of Soviet detainess released

Papa!

He really is alive!

They found Yasaburou's picture!

With a date on it.

Others who've returned have testified, so they've offcially recognized he's alive!

We understand he's a barber in someplace called Magadan.

Barber...?

You could be a barber!

Is that right!

Papa was good at cutting hair!

I hear he'll be returning on the last ship of repatriates coming up soon.

Missus, this is your reunion after 10 years!

Congratulations, Hisako!

Thank you!

Papa's coming home?

He's coming home!

Your Papa... He's coming home!

What are you doing Mommy?

Oh, did I wake you up...?

I was just sewing Papa's futon.

You know... Papa's so big, so...

I guess you wouldn't know...

I want him to be able to stretch all the way out when he sleeps...

so I made him a BIG futon.

When Papa returns...

let's all sleep side by side, even if we end up looking like the character for 'river'!

Good night.

Thus, in December of 1956...

the last ship of repatriates entered Maidzuru Harbor.

1956, Maidzuru Harbor

Honey...? Honey!!!

Honey!

Excuse me, his name is Hachiya... Have you seen him?

Sorry, I don't.

Excuse me, his name's Hachiya Yasaburou...

Where's Papa?

Papa!

Papa!

Why...?

These were the first tears Kumiko saw her mother cry...

After that, Hisako would write many a letter marked for Madagan...

but not once did a reply come back.

Three years later, Magadan

Are you sure this is for me!?

Wait--

You got the wrong address!

"IAponski"...

Japan?

"Hisako"...

"Hachiya"!

Why...?

"1956"...

Three years ago!?

Why would they do this...!?

Kumiko?

Kumiko...

You've grown this much...?

I want to meet you, Papa.

Hurry back home!

--Kumiko

Okay, Kumiko! Come to Papa!

Come to Papa!

Send me back!

Send me back to Japan now!

My daughter! She's waiting for me!

I'm not a criminal! I'm a father!!

I'm a father!

You're a spy.

A criminal like you is not allowed to leave the country.

Ever!

Hisako...

Do you remember that poem I sent you?

But at this rate...

it doesn't look like I will be able to fulfill my promise to you.

It looks like I will never be permitted to leave this place.

Forget about me.

Now, the only thing I can do for you...

is to say goodbye.

Stop waiting for someone who is little more than a ghost...

For Kumiko's sake, too... Marry another man.

Please.

Praying for you and Kumiko's happiness...

I hope you'll forgive me for not being there for you.

Goodbye.

...with infinite love.

Yasaburou's farewell letter, however, never reached Hisako.

Time for work!

I'm... not even allowed to die?

Sorry for saving you...

If you live, you might someday be able to see your family.

If you're willing to die, then become a Russian!

If you do that, we might stop treating you as a spy.

You can go wherever you want...

and you may find a way to return to your homeland.

And so Yasaburou, as if cutting away a piece of himself, applied for Russian citizenship.

He was left with no other options.

But even by taking citizenship, his name was not cleared...

and was merely granted an ordinary amount of compensation...

while surveillance by the KGB continued.

Yasaburou lost all hope, and lived merely as a ghost.

It's a resort village that only those who fulfill their quota can visit.

At least get some rest.

That's an order.

Resort Village

Beautiful bird...

My name's Klava...

Klavdiya Leonidovna.

Are you... a Chinese man?

Or...

Japanese!?

What are you doing here!?

Is your family here?

Wait!

Hey, that bird... What kind of bird is it?

You don't have family, right? I'm alone, too.

I'm an orphan... And a prisoner.

Do you know 'prisoner'?

Prisoner for what...?

I was accused of embezzlement by my superiors, and was in prison for ten years.

When I finally got out...

my husband had married another woman.

Oh, sorry... I got a little carried away...

Crane.

Huh?

'Crane.'

It's a paper crane.

'Crane'... Does it migrate?

I lost my family, too... on a false accusation.

Even now, the KGB is watching me, and I can't return back home.

Where is your family?

I have faith that both my wife and my daughter are doing well in Japan...

They've forgotten about me long ago...

Do you work?

I'm a barber in Magadan.

You?

A nurse... taking care of the sick and elderly.

A nurse?

My wife was a nurse, too...

Then, maybe your wife called me to you.

After that, every time the two of them met on break...

they shared their life stories to bury the loneliness.

Homeland... family...

and their love for that family...

sometimes into the middle of the night... or until sunrise...

for hours on end, they talked.

Two lonely souls who discovered each other at the farthest ends of the earth...

side-by-side, little-by-little...

they began to melt each other's frozen hearts.

Do you want to return to Japan? ...Crossing the ocean like the crane?

Cranes... are bearers of health and happiness.

For not being there to help my wife and daughter...

I want, at least, to pray for their happiness in life.

You still love them, don't you?

Would you mind if I prayed with you?

Until I met you...

I never imagined I would ever truly smile again.

You've given me back my smile.

I want to be by your side.

And I want to be your support.

Do you understand?

But... I'm still...

I want to reunite you with your family.

I promise.

...That you will be able to return home...

...someday.

I will help you with all my strength.

I promise.

1966

Are you sure you'll be okay if I go to college?

Don't be ridiculous!

You know...

I told everyone that you were going to college!

If it's about money...

If I go to Kanazawa, you'll be all alone, Mother.

The money, I'll pay back with the scholarship.

What I mean is...

Your father asked me...

to take good care of you.

If I put you through hardship, I'll get yelled at!

I'll come back.

Once I graduate, I'll come back, and take care of you!

Don't be ridiculous!

At last there's no one to give me all this trouble...!

Now, I really have some leisure time!

Folk dancing and singing classes...

and... flower dance classes sound good, too!

Okay...

I'll get going then.

Bye.

Kumiko!

Hm?

Make sure you separate the whites and colors in your laundry!

And when the weather's good, hang your futon out to dry!

I know!

Progress, Amur Oblast

Yasaburou and Klavdiya started life together in Progress in Amur Oblast...

a village with a warm climate.

Yasaburou, does eating carrots really make your eyes better?

Of course! You ever seen a rabbit with glasses before?

And then I told them about the hair curler I made from an empty can!

Spy, spy!

Don't let it get to you!

Do you believe me?

Why are you even asking!?

Of course I do!

Then, that's all I need.

Until that day I met you...

I was only living to continue breathing.

After losing my family, at the end of that pitch-black tunnel...

I could see the small light that was you.

As long as you're here with me, I'm happy, too.

1972

Nameplate: Hachiya

What a wonderful house!

Of course! I was the one built it!

The anniversary of your retirement, huh?

Wow, for a woman to do this by herself!

But you're so lucky to find a job at the middle school here!

Actually...

when I was small, I thought I just had to keep waiting for the father I only knew in pictures.

But after waiting and waiting and waiting for him...

I can take pride in a mother who worked hard to raise me...

and even built a house like this!

Mother?

Were you happy?

Well, I've been able to love one person for so long.

I was happy!

So he was that good of a man, huh?

Yeah, he was!

I got my pension!

Let's grow beets, and raise some sheep!

Or how about beekeeping! We'll make barrels of honey!

Bees are smart, you know...

Wow!

Look!

Excellent!

How about this?

Look, Claudia! Honey!

Try licking some. It's very sweet!

Mmm...

It's amazing...

Coming face-to-face with nature, all the hatred and suffering in the past...

just seems to disappear!

Yasaburou was on the brink of death.

The harsh environment of all those years began to eat away at Yasaburou.

Hisako!

Klavdiya's devoting care called back Yasaburou from the gates of Heaven.

The doctor proclaimed it a miracle.

But from this point on, Yasaburou began to contemplate on death.

He wished to bury at least his bones at home... on the Hakuto Coast.

Those feelings grew stronger day by day.

Note: The paper is scribbled repeatedly with "Hisako," "Kumiko," "Japan," and lyrics from the poem

Yasaburou, do you want to return to Japan?

Huh...?

I've forgotten that long ago!

Don't worry, I plan to lay my bones to rest here.

And even if I could return to Japan...

after all this time, I wouldn't have a home to go to.

But...

Let's make our caskets...!

Huh?

We'll be together forever.

They're finished!

Now we'll be together forever.

And thus, in 1991 (Heisei 3)...

with perestroika, the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics was dissolved...

1991, Dissolution of the Soviet Union

and the waves of freedom reached even the village of Progress where Yasaburou lived.

Your wish has been granted!

You've been asking all around for help...

so you might be able to contact Japan.

I'm back!

Mother?

The roast was a bargain!

And the milk was only 9--

Mother?

Mother!

Huh?

Hisako and Kumiko are alive!

They haven't changed their last names!

They waited for you!

...They waited all this time!

But...

They weren't supposed to...

I sent them a letter!

I asked her to divorce me!

It's been fifty years! They've been waiting half a century...!?

I don't believe this...

You can meet them, Yasaburou! Your family...!

Go home...?

to Japan?

What do you mean you're not going back!?

Even if I wanted to, the Russian government won't grant it...!

Why are you running away!

What is this then?

Don't worry about me.

Go home. Go home to your country!

"I will send you home... I stake my life on it!"

That's what I promised, remember?

What are you doing Mother?

...Bringing out that old futon!

I was just hanging Papa's futon out to dry.

It gets damp, locked away for so long!

Papa's futon...?

I want him to be able to stretch all the way out when he sleeps...

so I made him a BIG futon.

You still kept that futon!?

Great weather today!

The weather's so good!

Mother?

Mother!

I'm okay...

Until I meet Papa...

Somebody call an ambulance!

Mother!

Doctor?

How is my mother...?

She's in critical condition due to the heart attack.

We've done what we can.

The rest is up to her.

At the time, Klavdiya was herself sick...

but headed out on an 11-hour journey to the Japanese Consulate-General in Khabarovsk.

Permit to Return Home

Thank you, Klava...

Once I see for myself that Hisako and Kumiko are safe, I will return for sure.

So don't worry... Just wait for me.

Do you want me to bring you something back?

A Japanese doll maybe?

Manjuu are good too.

Well, letters will be enough.

Huh?

Once a month is fine, so just send me letters.

Don't be ridiculous! I said I'll come back...!

We're divorced.

Huh?

After sending in the divorce certificate to the Japanese consulate...

they granted you permission to go home.

Are you crazy? I can't just leave you alone!

I can still fell the warmth of the 30 years I spent here with you.

Now, give that warmth to your real family.

Mother...?

Thank God!

18,275 days.

Huh?

Day in, day out, I've been waiting for your father, counting the days on my hand.

How can I die?

I want to see your father again, no matter what.

I want to see him...

and walk Hakuto Beach.

I won't ask for anything more.

I won't...

Spring 1997

I'll get going then.

Take this with you.

This...???

They aren't needed here anymore.

Don't catch a cold!

I put some medicine in.

If you run out, I'll send you some more.

I'll send you beets, too.

and honey... and onions...

So you'll know that the vegetables you grew are going strong.

I'll send you them every time they're in season, so don't worry.

I really, truly--

Go on now.

You're really going, huh?

Leave Klava to us.

Please take care of Klava for me.

All aboard!

Stay healthy, okay? ...Stay healthy!

Every once in a while, remember...

Russia...

Progress village...

The two of us had an unexpected encounter in life.

A similar fate drew us together.

Although we never had a wedding inside a church...

we lived honest and sacred lives.

We shared our memories...

and, forgetting even to eat, we absorbed ourselves in work.

And as the many months and years passed...

now, you've grown old, but will at last go home.

I doubt we shall ever meet again.

This is also our fate.

I cannot create my own happiness upon the unhappiness of strangers.

I will stay in my homeland and continue with my life.

The happiness of spending 37 years of my life with you...

will keep me alive.

And lastly, please accept my heartfelt prayers...

for the unlimited happiness and long life of you and your family.

Hisako...

I'm home.

Just as I promised...

I've returned...

Tottori Station

Mother!

Don't push yourself too hard!

Your heart's still weak!

It can explode, if it means I can see your father!

Just over there...

he's waiting...!

I'm fine.

It'll be embarassing if I can't keep myself together!

A train is approaching Platform 4.

Please stay behind the yellow line.

I've put you through so much...

You've been through a lot, too...

No, it's you...

Summer 2006

Look! If you go like this, it looks like it's flying!

Papa showed me that!

When Yasaburou was in Russia, he folded them, remembering Japan.

...While praying that his family would be safe and sound.

Now, I fold them so that we can spend the rest of our lives together like this.

In reality, I want to send these to her...

...meet her and give her a hug.

In place of Yasaburou and Hisako, who were now quite old...

I wanted to give these cranes to Klavdiya.

As a journalist...

--No... As one person who knows little of the war.

And I wanted to see for myself.

...Whether this unbounded love still remained, without regrets...

Thank you for coming.

I wonder if those cranes reached her, all the way in Russia...

They did...

They did.

Screenwriter YOSHIDA Tomoko

HACHIYA Yasaburou ABE Hiroshi

Ever since that day of farewell and reunion...

HACHIYA Hisako KUROKI Hitomi

every week, without missing once...

Klavdiya LEONIDOVNA Elena STEJKO

Yasaburou continues to write letters to Klavdiya.

HACHIYA Kumiko KONNO Mahiru

KINO Hana

In order to bury the absence of half a century...

KUBOTA Maki

Yasaburou devotes himself to Hisako...

cooking her food, giving her massages, and preparing her medicine.

YASUOKA SASAKI Kuranosuke

Afterwards, Yasaburou's innocence was acknowledged...

and the Russian government restored his civil rights.

MAKISE Kyouko HIROSUE Ryouko

Adapted from "Klavdiya: A Miraculous Love" by Murako Yasuko, publ. by Kaitakusha

And with the cooperation of many, many people...

Klavdiya was even able to come to Japan.

Even now, these two families are bound together firmly...

like one family that overcomes borders.

Production Assistance by East

Producers OSABE Sousuke TSUNOI Hideyuki

Producers KOTAKE Michiyo FURUYA Kenji

Director MIZUTA Narihide

Written and Produced by Fuji TV

With the passage of fifty years, the love of one husband and wife was reborn.

But, when they recall the other love that supported their own, the war for them is not yet over.

This drama is a fictional work based on a true story.