An international flight from Tokyo to Honolulu, Hawaii. A new pilot boards as an assistant to a more experienced senior pilot, and a new cabin attendant joins the team of a purser who has a reputation for being strict. The ground staff are struggling with bookings, the staff in the control tower are on alert about the weather and birds, and the mechanics are pouring their hearts and souls into accomplishing speed and precision in their work. With the combined efforts of all the workers, the flight finally takes off but they are soon faced with trouble.

In minus 54℃ weather, where the environment is too harsh for even penguins to be living, eight men are co-living at an observation base in the Antartic. They must all spend over a year at the base, far away from their families. Their greatest pleasure is the three meals they eat together. Nishimura, who is in charge of the cooking, fills his teammates’ stomachs and hearts with all kinds of dishes, including Japanese, French, and Chinese cuisine. However, for the young members, long-distance relationships are difficult and the married members are worried about their families getting fed up with them. Everybody’s yearning feelings for Japan only keeps mounting.

Located in the northernmost part of Japan, is Hokkaido. A young couple has opened a new cafe in a place blessed with beautiful nature. The husband bakes bread, the wife brews coffee and prepares seasonal meals. The people who visit are all carrying emotional burdens—such as, a heartbroken young woman, a girl upset over her parents’ divorce and an elderly couple with their own problems. The couple warmly welcomes these people and quietly reaches out to them.

High-schooler Ayumi was orphaned and lives with his grandmother. His grandmother has inherited an ability called “Tsunagu,” which allows her to summon the dead and reunite them with the living for one time only. Ayumi helps his grandmother as an apprentice, and interacts with visitors who wish to be reunited with the dead. One day, he receives a request from a girl in his class who is devastated by the loss of her best friend to a rather unique situation.

Approximately 400 years ago in Japan, after continued battles amongst the samurai class, the overwhelmingly powerful Hideyoshi Toyotomi is on the verge of unifying the country. He orders his men to attack a small castle, the last remaining resistance. Surrender is debated in the castle but the young lord, who always seems to be in a daze, chooses to fight. Is the lord of the castle a reckless fool or a genius?

After the disappearance of her husband, Futaba takes a break from the family business of running a public bathhouse to work part-time and raise her daughter, Azumi. With her characteristic strength and cheerfulness, Futaba cheers on Azumi, who is having problems at school. However, Futaba is diagnosed with an illness with only a short time left to live. In the time that she has left, Futaba decides on what she must do and begins to make it happen. That is, to get rid of all of the secrets in her family.