Chapter 6 - A Heart With No Time

"So? How is she?"

"SAITO. THAT ISN'T FUNNY YOU SON OF A-"

"Watch yourself. Or you might be answering to my sword, midget."

"Zac. Not midget, Zac."

"Sure thing, midget. I'll call you Zac when the idea that you haven't slept with Grey Wolf becomes true."

"Jesus Saito, I really hope you're kidding. I'm only 13, you know."

"My god. 13, and you're still a virgin-"

"SAITO!!! QUIT IT!!! THAT'S WRONG!!!"

"My god. He did this with Vejiita too." Grey Wolf said as she walked in. "So. Where's breakfast?"

"What?"

"Breakfast? Normally you cook it at 7:00..."

"Oh. Well, Tokio isn't feeling too well, so I'm going to take her to the doctor."

"Ok, father. Wait..."

"What, now?"

"Who did you sleep with by the age of thirteen? Don't tell me Eiji was conceived earlier than I thought..."

"Ahondara(Ahondara is a strong form of 'dumbass' in Japanese)." Saito said angrily.

Saito sat alone in the waiting room. Grey Wolf had wanted to come, but Saito told her to convince Zac to make breakfast, knowing, as we all do, that Grey Wolf, in any attempt to cook, would burn the house down. Seconds turned into minutes, minutes turned into hours, and hours turned into the feeling of worry. Soon, Saito was pacing the room, cursing the doctors for taking so long. Finally, he charged up to the registration desk, muttering, "Would've been faster if I'd just brought her to that dojo doctor... Megumi..." He said to the desk clerk, "I'd like to know how my wife is this year, if you would."

"Sir, we're doing all we can to be as quick as possible-" The door to the doctor's offices burst open.

"Saito Hajime? Is there a-"

"I'm right here." He said gruffly, annoyance showing in voice. He followed the doctor to the room where Tokio had been checked. She was sitting in a chair, head bent toward the ground. The air was thick with tension. "What? What's going on?"

"The cancer... came back, worse than before. I don't think we can stop it this time, Saito."

"But... You swore this wouldn't happen. You swore it to me and Tokio."

"At the time, I really thought it wouldn't happen! The odds were astronomical against it happening!"

"Does it matter? There still was a chance, one we were unwary of." In silence, he walked to sit next to Tokio. "What are the chances that she'll live?" Saito whispered.

"Saito... I'm totally sure... there are no chances..." Saito ran at the man and slammed him against the wall.

"You son of a bitch! This is your fault!"

"I know, I know. But I cannot take this back now..."

Saito stared angrily at this man, all the hatred forming in his head faster than anything else. "How long..."

"At the most... two months."

"Two- You said it couldn't progress that quickly!"

"I was mistaken! These things change!"

Saito looked at this man, the hatred surfacing, fighting back everything else. He drew his sword, holding it up to the man's neck. "If she dies... you die."

"She can't live-"

"Then you can't-"

"Saito." Tokio spoke for the first time since Saito had entered the room. He looked at her, and sheaved his sword, walking to her.

"This... this can't happen. Not now. You can't-"

"Saito... Don't worry. I can beat this thing." Tokio spoke, knowing she wouldn't be able to keep that hopeless promise.

Tokio and Saito quietly walked into the house. They almost had reached the bedroom unnoticed until Grey Wolf asked Saito, "So?" He froze.

"Tokio... is dying." Grey Wolf's sword fell to the floor with a clatter, her eyes wide.

"But didn't the doctor, didn't he say she would be alright?"

"Yes. He hadn't been totally sure at the time however."

"And so, because of his idiocy, she's going to..."

"Yeah." Saito spoke, sobriety in his voice.

"Father, there must be something we can do! She can't just die like this!"

"I'm sorry, Grey Wolf... but fear I won't be able to stop the inevitable..."

"Mother, you can't just give up! You've got to fight this thing!"

"I'm not... like you. I can't fight as well as you and your father."

"But mother, just because you're not physically powerful doesn't mean you're not willfully powerful! You just have to put everything you can into fighting this thing!"

"I am, Grey Wolf. But it's not working."

Grey Wolf's fist bashed against the door of the Kamiya-Kasshin Dojo. Saito and Tokio stood behind her. "Battousai! Open up!"

"What is it?" He said as he opened the door.

"We need to speak with the resident doctor, and Miss Megumi."

"What-" He hadn't noticed Tokio until that point. His eyes went wide. "Dear god, Saito, don't tell me-"

"Yes."

"I'll get them both at once." He rushed away. "Go into the dojo area. I'll send them both there." He yelled back to them. Megumi and the resident doctor both walked in.

"What's her condition? How long do we have?" Megumi questioned.

"Two months at most. You must work quickly... please." Saito whispered. Never before had anyone seen the Miburo no Ookami this way, not even Grey Wolf. It was rather unnerving.

"We'll do our best to find a cure, I promise that."

"Alright... Listen, I'm going to take a quick breather outside."

"Good idea, you haven't had a chance to rest all morning, father."

"I'll be back soon."

"Megumi, could you fetch some water?"

"Yes, I'll get it." She stepped outside, walking to the well. She stopped. What was that? She turned, searching for the source of the sound. The sound was almost as unnerving as Saito's demeaner beforehand. She turned the corner, to see-

Saito was sitting against the wall, face in his hands, crying. Could that even be possible? The Saito Hajime, the one rumored to be the strongest of all Shinsengumi captains, the only match for the Battosai, the cold blooded Ishinshishi patriot killer, the master of §hadow, the soul reaper... was crying? Megumi walked to him.

"Saito..." She used her hand to lift his head, his face tear-stained. "It's ok. We'll do the best we can to save Tokio."

They stood there for a long moment, before... "I trust you will." He got up, wiping his face, and walked to the door, before a scream pierced the silence. He spun around. Megumi was out cold, a man in a cloak with a Kodachi carrying her. "Bastard! Let her go!" Saito drew steel, running at the man. The man countered the strike, then slashed Saito's arm. Then, he sent the sword through Saito's still recovering stomach, but Saito parried it well enough to force his opponent's sword not to strike any vital organs. The man pulled out his sword, letting Saito fall to the ground. He walked away, the kidnapping a success.