Overview
The story is presented as a voiced-over narrative by Arita (Takahiro Tamura), speaking long after the events of the film. In a remote army base in Manchuria, near the Soviet border, long-serving corporal Arita hates the military and looks forward to the day he may leave. Although a university graduate, he has several times deliberately failed the exam for promotion and thus remains a corporal after four years' service.
| Actor | Age then | Age now | |
|---|---|---|---|
 | 40 | June 21, 1997 (65) | |
 | 43 | May 16, 2006 (77) | |
 | 38 | January 18, 2020 (86) | |
 | 26 | 79 | |
 | 34 | 87 | |
 | 46 | October 2, 2012 (87) | |
 | 35 | 88 | |
| 39 | 93 | |
| - | - | |
 | - | July 19, 2024 (null) |