Yokkakan no kiseki

Dvorak's Symphony No. 9, "From the New World" wafts through a hospice recreation room. Sitting at the grand piano is a young girl, Chiori, with a prodigious ability to play any piece of music after one hearing. Kisaragi Keisuke whose career was abruptly cut short when he jumped in front of a bullet fired by a crazed gunman. The nerves in one hand were severed but he saved the life of Chiori. The tragic incident takes the lives of Chiori's parents, however, and Keisuke becomes her guardian. Not long after their return to Japan, Keisuke discovers Chiori's musical gift. Keisuke finds an extension of his dreams through Chiori as the two set about traveling the countryside, providing piano concerts for patients and residents of convalescent and nursing homes. Keisuke and Chiori are invited to play at a hospice for stroke victims located on a picturesque island in the Sea of Japan. They come at the invitation of Iwamura Mariko, a social worker who enjoys the consummate respect and adoration of all the patients and staff for her selfless compassion and tireless dedication to her work. After Chiori gives a moving performance in a beautifully rustic, cliff side chapel, she and Mariko run off to frolic outdoors. But a sudden electrical storm sends a bolt of lightning tearing through a windmill, which crashes to the ground. Mariko dives on top of Chiori to protect her, and is struck with debris. Mariko lies unconscious in a hospital bed, her lungs pierced. Amid a tremendous outpouring of sympathy and concern for Mariko, something incredible happens to Chiori. For the next four days, as Mariko's life flickers, Chiori, Keisuke and others experience a miracle that offers salvation to them all.