- When Naomi comes home from the hospital, Nomura-obasan is gone. She's moved back in with her family. Naomi takes advantage of the new space to read two children's books in bed all day long.
- The rest of the summer passes by in a blur. By fall Slocan is a thriving town. It even has its own public Japanese bath, where the whole town becomes one big family. It's a happy memory.
- Except for one night. Naomi and Obasan head to the public bath later than usual. When they get there, they meet Nomura-obasan and Naomi's classmates bathing in the lukewarm water. She tries to play with them, but a woman keeps telling them not to. She has no idea what's going on.
- Even though normally the bathhouse is full of noise and excitement, today it's dead silent. It isn't until later when Naomi, Obasan, and Nomura-obasan leave the bathhouse that she knows why. According to them, she has tuberculosis. Her whole family does. That's why they've been ignoring her this whole time.
- Naomi runs home. She asks Uncle about tuberculosis but he doesn't tell her. He only says that some people are ashamed of being sick, but for other people it's just something sad.