Chapter 3 - 3 Tears of Heaven

3 Tears of Heaven

The only thing that lit the sitting room was a small lamp, and everything was deathly quiet. Taro looked away when he heard the door slide open. Akio froze from beside him.

Mika stood, walking slowly into the room, her eyes frighteningly hopeful. "Is Father home? Will he make it in time for my birthday next week?"

No one answered. The other people in the room were silent, while Omasu started weeping.

Mika worriedly turned to her, "What's wrong, Omasu-chan? You shouldn't cry, you should be happy. I'll be turning eight years old on Wednesday, and Father is coming home! He promised."

She then noticed the new people in the room. "Who are they?"

"They are onmitsu ninjas from Edo, Mika." Juro calmly explained.

"What are they doing here? And why are they all lined up beside you? Is there anything you're hiding behind you? Is it a surprise?" Mika asked, turning to jump. Naoko shut his eyes, and Taro could barely make out a faint sparkle of tears welling from within.

"Mika," Juro began as he knelt before her, "Your Father's back."

"Really?" Mika squealed. "I can't wait to see him. I thought he would not reach my birthday! It has been a month already."

Juro took a deep sigh, "But Mika... he won't be here for your birthday."

Mika looked hurt. "Why? He's here, right? So why couldn't he..." she trailed off.

Juro couldn't answer.

Mika looked at the solemn faces before her. "What... what's wrong, Jiya?"

Juro choked. "Your father fought bravely two days ago, did you know that?"

Mika nodded slowly, growing anxious. "Father is always brave. He's the best father in the world," she said, repeating her most famous words.

From beside Juro, Omasu started to sob.

"What's wrong, Jiya?" Mika asked, her eyes widening with fear. "Why is everyone sad? Why isn't Father here?"

Then she looked behind Juro's shoulder.

From behind the line of fighters, there lay a man on the floor, his body carefully dressed, others parts wrapped in bandages. She then noticed the ruby ring on his hand. "Father?"

Juro trembled. "Yes."

Mika smiled. "Then why is he asleep? Is he tired from the big battle two days ago? Is he?"

Once again, nobody replied to her question.

Mika gasped worriedly, a thought wanting to spring on her mind. But she refused to accept it. She immediately ran to her father. "He must be tired from the journey. Quick, Jiya, let's take him to his room so that he could sleep well."

"Mika..."

She knelt before her father, and then she observed the large bandage on his lower-left abdomen. There was some blood in it. She shook her head, and tears started forming in her eyes. "Quick, Jiya, quick! We have to take care of his big wound so that he won't feel hurt. Right Father?"

When she did not get a reply, she slowly shook her father, "Right, Father?"

The body remained lifeless. She shook him harder, "Please, Father, answer Jiya so that we can help you. Please?"

There was still no answer.

She trembled, "Father, I know you're tired. But we have to heal you, Your clothes will get stained. Please? Please?"

Juro turned to place a hand on her shoulder. "Mika--"

"NO!" Mika screamed, pushing him away. "He promised, HE PROMISED! You have to believe in me, he never breaks his promises!" She smiled shakily, with wavering confidence, then placed her hands on his shoulders and pushed him, "Wake up, Father, open your eyes! We still have to prepare for my party!"

Juro sighed, and tears threatened his eyes. "Mika-chan, he won't be... able to --"

"PLEASE, Father?" Her voice raised a notch as she placed another smile on her face, "Please?"

Kazuo Renjiro did not move.

"Father, wake UP!" Mika shrieked as she held his face. "You can't leave me! Not when you promised. Please, Father... wake up."

The lamplight flickered.

"Wake up! Wake up..." she urged, her voice faltering. "Wake up for me Father, open your eyes."

And when nothing happened, her mouth fell open, and she slowly withdrew her hands as she stared at her father. She then turned hopeful eyes to them. "We must wait for him to wake up. We'll all watch here the whole night. Right?"

Juro watched helplessly. And Taro finally took it upon himself to tell her. "Mika-chan, your father couldn't stay. He'd been... hit on his side during the battle. We can't wake him up anymore. He has to go to heaven now."

He moved around the body and sat down with Mika. "We have to let--"

Mika shook her head as she faced him, her eyes pleading. "I thought he said heaven was in my eyes! He said that! That means he couldn't leave, not now, not ever. He's going to stay forever with me. He can't go, because I've got heaven in me, Taro-sama!"

She turned to her father, "You can't go, Father, please tell me you won't be leaving. See," she whispered uncontrollably, motioning to her face. "I've got heaven here, you don't have to leave..."

Someone from the ninjas announced, "It's time. We can't leave him here now, he'll fall apart." Juro knew they were mentioning Renjiro's body, so he nodded, hating every moment of it.

"No, you can't take him away!" Mika yelled as she grabbed on to her father, ignoring the faint smell that seeped to her nose. "He will stay! He will stay with me!"

The men looked on sympathetically, unaware of what they should do. Taro took a deep sigh as he slowly disentangled Mika from her father. "Mika, you have to let go, or your father's body will separate," he had to tell her when she wouldn't let go. She only shook her head and held on tighter.

"Taro," Juro said. He nodded, and quickly tore her grasp from her father. Mika yelped, kicked and screamed, but Taro held her to him and motioned to the others. They nodded dutifully and went to take him away.

"No! Where are they taking him?! Where! He's tired, can't they see?" Mika cried out while tears flowed in her eyes. "I have to be with him."

And they all watched with pained eyes when Mika grabbed on to her father's small finger, not wanting to release him. "No..."

Juro shook his head. "Mika, your father has to be buried to have proper death rites."

"Buried? They are going to put him underground? No, please don't make them do that, Jiya. Don't let them take my Father away from me, please Jiya! Please!" Mika pleaded as she frantically tried to free herself off Taro.

"I'm sorry, Mika."

But Mika kicked harder, "Taro-sama, please!"

Taro couldn't bring himself to look at her eyes.

"Then take me to him! He would get lonely underground! He'll be sad because it's so dark, just like the well. I have to be there to hug him and tell him that everything would be all right. Everybody, please! I'll sleep beside him too, anything -- just so he won't be alone down there!"

She saw the tears in their eyes. Even Akio had them. She released her breath. "Anyone, please... please... I beg of you, please bury me too, don't let him leave me. I can't just leave him underground -- he needs me a lot, you see? He said so. So that we can be together, forever."

But the men shook their heads to each other, and then they moved away. Mika had to hold on to her Father's small finger. "No..."

And then it was yanked from her hand. "NO! NO, NO, NO!" she screeched.

Taro then hugged her with crushing force, "You have to let him go, Mika-chan."

"I can't... I can't..." the girl chanted.

And the night was filled with a child's sobs, whispering about broken promises, begging a soul that had permanently left to come back again. Cries of disbelief and misunderstanding ensued, and all of them weren't surprised when the lamp's light flickered out.

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It was a Monday, and she was supposed to be sleeping already, but she kept asking Taro some questions.

"Will you protect me, Taro-sama?"

"Yes, Mika-chan, yes."

"Will you teach me how to do kenpo just like you?"

"Yes, Mika-chan, when you grow older."

"Will I be a good person when I grow older?"

A sigh. "Yes, you will. I'll make sure of that."

"When I have problems, will you help me?"

"Of course."

She urged. "When you have problems, will you come to me?"

A smile, "Yes, I will. You comfort me."

Later still, "Do you believe that I have heaven in my eyes, just like Father?"

A pause. "Yes, I do."

"Will you never forget that? Never ever?"

"I'll never forget, Mika-chan."

"One day, when you feel lost, will you look for heaven in me? It's very special, and I'm going to give it to you."

He hugged her, "Yes, yes, yes. Now Mika, go to sleep."

"But do you promise?"

He sighed, but gave a smile. "Promise."

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