Told partially in flashback we learn of a married Japanese man, Kengo, who is sent to manage forests in Indochina, during WW2. Here he meets a young typist, Yukiko, who falls hopelessly in love with him. Despite his promises when he returns to Tokyo it is to his wife that does so and he continues having heartless affairs, while Yukiko is forced to become the mistress of a GI and then a rich businessman, anything to survive.