The scene opens with a flashback to the beginning of the novel, in which Hirokazu's mother, who is also Hiro's teacher, tells her son that he is not welcome in the school because he is Japanese. She also tells him that he must leave immediately if he does not return by the following day. The flashback is interrupted by the sound of a bugle call. The bugle announces that it is time to go to the school, and the boy asks to be excused.