Murata, a gruff, eccentric, but very successful novelist, returned from Tokyo to his native island ten years ago. A young editor named Orimi visits periodically to collect his manuscripts. Disdainful at first, Murata gradually warms to her.　When Murata orders Orimi to use his pet goldfish to make a print for his book cover, she refuses at first, but he insists. She creates a beautiful print that glows like fire, but never returns to the island. Worried, Murata calls the publisher and learns that Orimi has cancer. He feels compelled to break his self-imposed exile and visit her in a Tokyo hospital.
This tale of life and compassion depicts the bond that forms between two people who are deeply alone: an old man who has lost life's meaning and a young woman who lives in the shadow of death.