Plot

Two historical incidents that deepened the friendship between Japan and Turkey are connected: The sinking of the Turkish frigate Ertugrul off the Japanese coast in 1890 and the evacuation of Japanese nationals from Iran in 1985.

In the night of 16 September 1890 the Turkish frigate Ertugrul is caught up in a typhoon and sinks off the coast of Kushimoto, Japan. Risking their own lives, local villagers are able to rescue 69 Turkish sailors. Although being very poor and having hardly to eat, the villagers share what little they have with strangers from a country 9,000 kilometers away. 95 years later, during the Iran-Iraq War, Iraq announces an indiscriminate attack on Iran. More than 300 Japanese are stranded in Tehran. In the morning of 19 March 1985 a Turkish Airlines aircraft takes off for Tehran to evacuate the Japanese. Not only is Tehran already under heavy rocket fire. But the remaining Turks at Tehran Mehrabad Airport still need to be convinced that they won't be able to board their own country's rescue flight.

Two historical incidents that deepened the friendship between Japan and Turkey are connected in this story of friendship and compassion: The sinking of the Turkish frigate Ertugrul off the Japanese coast in 1890, and the evacuation of Japanese nationals from Iran in 1985. Wikipedia.

In the night of 16 September 1890 the Turkish frigate Ertugrul is caught up in a typhoon and sinks off the coast of Kushimoto, Japan. Risking their own lives, local villagers are able to rescue 69 Turkish sailors. Tamura (Seiyô Uchino), a doctor living in Kushimoto, and his assistant Haru (Shioli Kutsuna) treat the injured. Although being very poor and having hardly to eat, the villagers share what little they have with strangers from a country 9,000 kilometers away. 95 years later, in 1985 during the Iran-Iraq War, Iraq announces an indiscriminate attack. More than 300 Japanese are stranded in Tehran. Harumi (Shioli Kutsuna), a teacher at a Japanese school, prevails upon the Japanese ambassador Nomura (Toshiyuki Nagashima) to ask the Turkish embassy for help. In the morning of 19 March a Turkish Airlines aircraft takes off for Tehran to evacuate the Japanese. Not only is Tehran already under heavy rocket fire. But the remaining Turks at Tehran Mehrabad Airport still need to be convinced that they won't be able to board their own country's rescue flight.

In 1890, Dr. Tamura (Seiyô Uchino)'s kindness in caring for his patients is winning him the trust of Kashino, a poor village on Kushimoto's Kii Oshima island in Wakayama prefecture. Assisting him is Haru (Shioli Kutsuna), who the shock of losing her fiance to drowning has left mute. In the night of 16 September of that year the Turkish frigate Ertugrul is driven aground in a typhoon and wrecked in the Pacific Ocean off Cape Kashino. Hearing the alarm bell that warns of a vessel in distress, the villagers rush to the shore. They are confronted with the grisly spectacle of vast numbers of dead and dying. With more than 500 crew members dead, it is the largest sea accident in history at that time. Risking their own lives, the villagers rescue who they can, while Tamura and Haru go to work treating the injured. The next morning there are 69 survivors. In the wake of her life rescuing efforts Haru builds a special bond with Mustafa (Kenan Ece), 2nd engineering officer on the Ertugrul. Although being very poor and having hardly to eat, the villagers share what little they have with strangers from a country 9,000 kilometers away.

In 1985, during the Iran-Iraq war, Turkish embassy official Murat (Kenan Ece) encounters Harumi (Shioli Kutsuna), a teacher at a Japanese school, during a bombing raid in Tehran. Iraq announces that in 48 hours it will start an indiscriminate attack and shoot down any aircraft over Iranian air space. Japanese ambassador Nomura (Toshiyuki Nagashima) requests rescue flights from Japan, but is told that a quick response is not possible. Meanwhile rescue flights from other nations are arriving, leaving only the Japanese stranded. Harumi wants to save her students and prevails upon Nomura to ask the Turkish ambassador for help. Out of gratitude for the rescue of Turkish sailors in 1890, Turkish prime minister Özal (Deniz Oral) decides to evacuate the over 300 Japanese. In the morning of 19 March a Turkish Airlines aircraft takes off for Tehran. But not only is Tehran already under heavy rocket fire. By now Tehran Mehrabad Airport is full of Turks trying to find a flight to safety. They still need to be convinced that they won't be able to board their own country's evacuation flight. Kimura (Takayuki Takuma), an automotive engineer posted to Tehran, and the other Japanese have all but given up hope of getting onto the last flight. That's when Murat starts speaking out to his fellow citizens about the compassion and sacrifice Japanese villagers had shown to Turkish sailors shipwrecked far away a long time ago.