Shinji is the leader of a touring dance troupe, but he feels lost spiritually. He elects to stay behind on a remote island when the troupe moves on, and moves in with an old man and his granddaughter. The old man is building a boat in the traditional way, a wooden craft that will never be commercially useful but which gives him focus within the modern world. Soon, Shinji becomes his apprentice, learning patience and craftsmanship.