Daisuke and I spent a couple of hours together at Aeon mall where we grabbed lunch from the supermarket and some groceries to take back to New Zealand. After lunch, it was time for him to rest before the night flight home.
I wandered around Narita a little, taking shelter away from the rain in various places.
Late afternoon, I returned to the room and we made our way to the airport in the crew bus. I was introduced to the Captain who would (if necessary) grant me their crew-rest seat for take-off and landing.
But fourth time lucky, I got on the flight, departing at 1830, without any special intervention. I had a bad seat in between people but I was just pleased to have a seat, any seat to get home. The crew were nice enough to give me a spare bunk and I managed to get just under 5 hours sleep (assisted with a sleeping pill) after dinner.