Beautiful work Navarchos. Seems that the have unusual confidence in their ferries - she doesn't appear to have lifesaving boats apart from a small number of inflatable rafts
. I'm guessing that the Nishiki Maru was a RO-RO ferry for trucks carrying only the crew and truck drivers?
Japanese domestic ferries are exempted from certain rules, including the obligation to carry lifeboats. Once these vessels are sold abroad, one of the first changes made is the installation of lifeboats.
If you want to learn more about the strange world of Japanese ferries, have a look at this blog by the maritime author and professor Bruce Peter, who just made a big ferry-spotting trip all over Japan:
http://brucepeter.blogspot.com/