An injured veteran. A murdered neighbour. And the search for a stolen lacquer bowl.

The year is 1938. After two years of fighting in China, Lt. Oshima Kai is back in Tokyo and out of the army for good, injured in the line of duty. He thought he was settling into a quiet life, but when a neighbour is found dead, he is drawn into the hunt for the murderer, and a missing work of art.

As Oshima investigates he discovers the bowl holds a secret linked to the brilliant craftsman who made it – a man tainted by his connections to the Tokyo underworld. He realises too, that he is not the only one searching for it. A close call with the feared military police convinces him he must accept the offer of help from his old commander, and work for the army he hoped he had left for good as the dark shadow of war begins to reach into the city.