Shortly before they leave the United States, Anne begins to lose sensation in her body. Her doctor dismisses it as anxiety, suggesting it will resolve itself after the move. On Tobias’s 18th birthday, Anne writes him about their move. The Kangs leave for Japan on January 1, 1978.

One month into their stay, Anne receives a letter from Tobias in Japanese; it turns out that he is living in a town not too far from the Kangs. He asks to visit. Anne writes back yes. She has a difficult time physically reaching the mailbox to mail the letter, and she spends the rest of the day in recovery.

Tobias arrives on the same day that Serk and Louisa take their day trip. He has boundless sincere enthusiasm about everything—a byproduct of his tumor extraction, which transformed his personality. Affectionately, he wishes he could have held onto his tumor. Tobias now goes from temple to temple in Japan, offering his services in exchange for board and lodging.

Tobias visits Anne every Thursday when she is alone. Out of concern for his well-being, Anne gives Tobias toiletries and other supplies. Tobias offers to help Anne improve her Japanese proficiency, but she just wants to know more about his life. Tobias invites Anne to walk around town with him, but Anne worries that she and Tobias will draw too much attention and expose their meetings to her family. Nevertheless, emotionally dependent on his presence, she invites him to go for a walk the next time he visits.

During their walk, Anne is surprised to see that Tobias is beloved by the townspeople, to whom he introduces Anne as his mother. Tobias left for Japan as soon as he received her birthday letter and spent time in the town before the Kangs arrived. He will only stay in Japan for as long as he feels he is meant to, after which he will proceed to wherever he is meant to go next. Tobias takes Anne to the local temple, which was established by a mother-prophet. Tobias loves visiting the temple and regularly participates in its worship dances. Anne realizes how much she has sequestered herself from the life of the town and momentarily feels a sense of belonging.

That night, Anne shares what she has learned about the town’s religious practices with Serk, pretending that Louisa criticized them. Serk complains that Anne insisted on sending Louisa to the local school rather than the international school in Osaka. The next morning, they decide to take Louisa to Osaka under the pretense of sightseeing. When they reach the train station, Anne lets slip that she is transferring to the international school, which turns Louisa belligerent. She refuses to leave her current school.

On the train, a commuter experiences an injury that causes her to bleed out on her seat. Serk tries to avert Louisa’s gaze during the hour-long ride. When they reach Osaka, the three collectively agree to return home. Louisa wonders what happened to the commuter. Anne explains that people sometimes experience involuntary health issues.

Before they moved to Japan, Serk and Louisa started going to the movies together. This broke Serk’s tradition of keeping cinema visits a solitary activity; he felt Louisa had finally become old enough to enjoy movies with him.

In Japan, when Louisa tells Serk that a new film called Close Encounters of the Third Kind will be opening soon, Serk agrees to take her to see it. He is glad that the film can distract her from all of the shortcomings of their time in Japan thus far, including his own failure to kindle a relationship between Louisa and Soonja. To Soonja, Serk defended his decision to introduce her as his friend rather than his sister by citing the precarity of his residency in the United States. When Serk pointed out that their parents’ promise to return to Japan proved empty, Soonja was upset at his implied criticism.

Louisa gets anxious about seeing Close Encounters of the Third Kind, scared of seeing the alien spaceship. Afterwards, when Serk asks if she enjoyed it, she lies that she did so that she can continue going to the movies with her father.

Sometime later, Louisa arrives home from school early and is surprised to find her mother with a young stranger. The stranger greets her as his sister, prompting Anne to remind Louisa that she has met Tobias before. Louisa insists that she doesn’t remember him. After Tobias leaves, Louisa asserts her uninterest in Tobias, but Anne explains what her life was like when she was 19. While Anne is now a different person, Tobias remains important to her. Louisa accuses Anne of keeping Tobias’s visits a secret from her father, which Anne denies.

The following Thursday, Louisa finds Tobias working in the kitchen while Anne rests. Tobias, now 19, reveals to Louisa that they are half-siblings, which shocks Louisa. Anne intervenes; she meant to ease Louisa into the truth.

Louisa’s alienation from her classmates fades as they come to accept her and she makes friends. She continues to think about Tobias, resenting his offer to teach her the temple worship dance because of their sibling relationship. She considers exposing Tobias’s visits to Serk, but is also convinced that Serk would want her to tackle the issue without his help. Louisa resolves to continue the process of assimilation. She associates Anne’s failure to engage with her new environment to her disability.

Serk continues to take Louisa with him to see Soonja—still known to Louisa as Mrs. Ishida. Thanks to her developing Japanese proficiency, Louisa can eavesdrop on the adults’ conversation, in which they discuss their frustration over the suffering of an unspecified third party. This mysterious person is interested in meeting Anne and Louisa and wants to learn more about Serk’s life in the United States. During one visit, Mrs. Ishida takes Serk and Louisa to the pier to look at a docked ferryboat. Its schedule is unpredictable, even when people come with permits to travel. Mrs. Ishida has applied for a permit to board the ferry, asking a friend from the Organization for help, which Serk protests.

Louisa asks Serk about Anne’s illness. Serk doesn’t know what it is, but hopes that her health will improve. Louisa resents her mother because it hurts Louisa to feel sympathy for Anne. When Louisa asks if Serk would prefer Mrs. Ishida as his wife, Serk weeps and laughs at her.