When Strombo handed the flag to Yasue's younger brother, 89-year-old Tatsuya Yasue buried his face in the flag, then took it to his older sister, now 95 years old and in a wheelchair, who did the same. Supported by her family members, she wiped away the tears.
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The day before Yasue was deployed, the 25-year-old sat on the grass with his family.
"Our brother whispered to us: It seems that they are sending me off to a remote island in the south ocean," Tatsuya Yasue recalled during the ceremony. "He said: 'I will probably not come back alive so please take care of our parents well.' "
That was the last word they heard from their brother — until Strombo arrived here Tuesday.
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Tatsuya Yasue will now take the flag to his parents' grave and show them that the flag has been returned. Then it will be passed down through the Yasue family, a reminder of the tragedy of war.