Masuno Kagawa, nicknamed "Ma-chan," is one of twelve students in Hisako Ōishi's first-grade class in 1928. As a child, she attends the village school on Shōdoshima island. By sixth grade in 1933, Masuno writes of her dream to attend a music conservatory, but her parents oppose this path, preventing her pursuit of further musical education. By 1941, she works at her parents' restaurant, having remained on the island and entered the family business. After World War II, Masuno attends a 1946 reunion for Ōishi hosted by classmates at her parents' restaurant. She participates alongside surviving former students Misako, Sanae, Kotsuru, Isokichi, and Kichiji.