Gen Nakaoka was a spunky six-year-old living in poverty with his loving family in wartime Hiroshima in 1945, amidst the chaos of the second World War. His father Daikichi was a rare voice of dissent, speaking out against the emperor and the innocent civilians being crushed by the war. However, this made them outcasts in a society where unquestioning support for the nation was the norm. Little did they know, a horrific fate was about to befall the people of Hiroshima.
One peaceful morning, the US forces dropped an atomic bomb on the city, destroying everything in an instant and killing thousands while exposing many more to fatal radiation. Although Gen miraculously survived, his life was forever altered. He joined forces with his remaining family members to confront hunger, poverty, and a hostile public that viewed survivors as nothing but outcasts, ridden with disease and begging.
The anime series, Hadashi no Gen, based on Keiji Nakazawa's personal experiences, chronicles Gen and his companions' fight for survival in post-war Hiroshima. Gen pledged to keep his spirit unbroken even while vowing never to forget the bomb's pain, never to forgive those responsible for the atrocity, and never waver in his drive to succeed.
