From her siblings, Kiyoko is closest to her sister Mitsuko, who runs a clothing store with her husband Rohei.

Mitsuko eventually decides to use the money partly for Ritsu's demands and for opening up her own coffee shop.

During a visit to Mitsuko's new café, Kiyoko is repelled to see that Tsunakichi is now involved in her sister's business as well and possibly her lover, and has to fight off his obtrusive advances.

Film historian Donald Richie called Lightning an "almost perfect realization of Fumiko Hayashi's novel" and "a balanced union of literature and cinema".

[4] Lightning was screened at the Museum of Modern Art in 1985[5] and at the Harvard Film Archive in 2005[6] as part of their retrospectives on Mikio Naruse.