Tsugami, the ambitious editor-in-chief of a small
Osaka evening newspaper, is talked by event manager Tashiro into presenting a
bull fighting event in the sports stadium of the war-scarred city. At the same time, young widow Sakiko, with whom Tsugami has an extramarital affair, threatens to end their relationship because of his emotional coldness. Tashiro introduces Tsugami to factory owner Okabe, who helps with his various connections to authorities and other businesses, while using the venture for his own black market trades. Businessman Miura, who wants to promote his company's pharmacy products, offers to buy all available tickets with a 20 percent discount, which would secure the financing, but is rejected by Tsugami and his boss Otome. An unexpected rain brings the start of the event to a halt, and only on the third and last day, a modest number of spectators attends the bull fights. For a short moment, Sakiko imagines she can reach out to the temporarily defeated Tsugami, but once he regains his self-confidence, he falls back into his usual detachment. ==Background==