Weeks after Kaiji lost on gambling night, Kaiji receives advance pay for the money he owes. He is in a group of 6 men called the "Forty-fivers", who are all in debt to Ōtsuki from gambling and receive only 45,000 of their 91,000 perica salaries. When Kaiji helps take a sick inmate to the clinic where they have to pay for their own medication, he realizes that he will never last 15 years...