Hey Frat and compadre Dom.....all you need to do is enter Japan on a E/D card instead of a shore pass on your last flight and you can stay here for up to 3 months, no need to tell the office girls to organise a shore pass with white paper(7 day limit) etc.....been done a million times.
Blackbird, there have been a number of guys(both AJX/AJV) up here over the last 8 years who have brought their wives/partners to stay/live here for at times up to a year or more. The wife/partner just had to do at least one trip in and out of Japan(visa run) every 3 months, some wives/partners got their own Visa's(work visa's etc...) and didn't even require to do this. If you however choose to spend more than 7 days in Japan without flying you either need to ask the office staff to organise a shorepass with a white paper attached allowing you to do this or enter Japan on an E/D card(tourist visa) which allows you to stay in Japan for 90 days. The company doesn't care what you do with your 10 days off(11 days off AJV)(12 days off for the new merged company!?!?!
) or where you stay or don't stay or what country you have to leave or not have to leave....as long as you turn up to work as per your roster after your days off.