Daikichi Nakaoka heads the Nakaoka family as a staunch pacifist, vocally opposing Japan’s wartime leadership and denouncing the conflict as a manipulative tool of oppression. His refusal to endorse nationalist rhetoric brands his family traitors, subjecting them to ostracization and persecution by neighbors and authorities.

He champions resilience through his metaphor “live like wheat,” urging his children to endure adversity with quiet strength—a philosophy guiding them through poverty and societal hostility. Though conflicted by his eldest son Koji’s enlistment in the Imperial Navy to reclaim the family’s honor, Daikichi bridges their ideological rift by publicly supporting Koji during an emotionally charged farewell.

During the Hiroshima atomic bombing, Daikichi’s resolve is tested when trapped beneath their collapsing home with daughter Eiko and youngest son Shinji. With his final breaths, he implores surviving son Gen to prioritize rescuing his pregnant wife Kimie and their unborn child, cementing his unwavering commitment to family above all.

His death leaves an enduring void, yet his teachings anchor the surviving Nakaokas as they confront radiation sickness, societal stigma, and post-war hardships. Gen inherits his father’s mantle, upholding resilience and hope amid *hibakusha* discrimination, American occupation, and pervasive poverty.

Though physically absent after the bombing, Daikichi’s ideological legacy permeates the family’s struggles, his critiques of militarism and emphasis on ethical fortitude echoing through their resistance to ongoing adversity, reinforcing the narrative’s core anti-war themes.