Kanikōsen
 A crab fishing ship goes to the open sea off Kamchatka (now in Russia but then in the Soviet Union). The crew do not favour their prospects; one crewman declares "We're going to Hell!" The crew revolt against their sadistic captain and foreman, form a union and take over the ship. However the new order on board is suppressed by soldiers. The book expresses its pessimism from the beginning, not only in the opening remark but in the description of the harbour of Hakodate being filled with rubbish, and the smaller boats being compared to insects.