In the mid-19th century, Okiku, a young woman, lives in a tenement row house among ordinary people in the sprawling city of Edo - known as Tokyo today. Okiku lives with her father Genbei, a former samurai now reduced to a penniless ronin, whom she supports by teaching children to read and write in a temple school. Two Manure Men, Yasuke and his newly recruited partner Chuji, regularly visit Okiku's tenement to collect the human manure from the outhouse the tenants share. Okiku, a young woman in her prime, seems to take a special interest in Chuji.