Toshiko Ei is a young girl living in Tokyo with her parents, her older brothers, and her two younger sisters. Her father, a skilled and respected glass craftsman, owns a successful factory that provides the family a comfortable life. The factory initially creates heirlooms and art, including a glass rabbit cherished by Toshiko, but as World War II escalates, its production shifts to support the war effort, such as manufacturing glass vials.

With the war's intensification, Toshiko's life changes drastically. Her brothers join the military, and hardships mount with food and resources growing scarce. Toshiko and her sisters are evacuated to the countryside for safety, but her younger sisters, discontented, choose to return to Tokyo alone—a decision that ends in tragedy.

On March 10, 1945, during the Great Tokyo Air Raid, Toshiko loses her mother and two younger sisters in the bombing. Amid the devastation, she finds the melted remains of the glass rabbit, a stark remnant of all that has been destroyed. Later, while evacuating to the suburbs, she witnesses her father killed by American forces at Ninomiya Station, leaving her completely alone.

Struggling with profound loneliness and despair, Toshiko searches for meaning in her survival. She finds a reason to live in the thought that if she dies, no one will remain to visit and care for her family's graves. This determination allows her to endure the sorrow and isolation.

Along her journey, Toshiko receives support from friends and encounters, such as befriending a goat, which offer moments of relief. Her story traces a path from a childhood sheltered from the war's realities to that of a survivor shaped by immense loss, who resolves to persevere in honor of her family.