Chapter 37 Summary

H is assigned by his instructor to deliver a letter to Mitsubishi Electric and accompany a group of students transporting food from there back to the school. H is instructed not to divulge the purpose of this assignment and to use his bayonet and rifle to intimidate any offenders and protect the students and the food at all costs. H wonders why he is being given this assignment and decides that an armed guard protecting a cart of food might be a way to discourage looting. Whatever the reason, H realizes that this is a responsibility he does not really want.

The next day as H is waiting at Mitsubishi Electric to deliver the letter, the air raid warning sounds. People are running in all directions, and H dives into a dugout. While in the dugout, H hears that an enemy plane has...