A/N: Thanks for all the reviews, dudes! I was impatient, so here is the first chapter of the sequel to Without a Doubt! If you like, please review. They encourage me you know :)

The air was quiet and calm that warm summer night in Konoha. It had been two weeks since Kakashi and Ai Raiokachi had left for their training mission. The two somehow ended up seeing a lot more of each other, whether it was when they were on missions together, practicing with the team, or just plain ol' hanging out.

At the moment, Ai was asleep in her bed in the house she shared with Guy. Her window was open because the night was so warm, and she was dressed in a tank top and shorts. She hardly even needed a comforter. The chunin sighed contentedly and snuggled into her pillow. It was around midnight.

Suddenly, she bolted upright. A sharp, burning pain ran through her chest. She didn't dare to cough; she thought she might cough up blood if she did. In spite of herself, she cried out, wincing at the pain and effort it took scream.

Guy's eyes fluttered open in an instant. He heard Ai scream, and leapt out of bed and dashed to her bedroom. He ran inside and grabbed onto his foster daughter's shoulders. "Ai? What is it?!" he demanded, beginning to quiver with fear.

"M-my chest…" Ai choked out. "It's b-burning…"

Guy's pupils dilated. That couldn't be good. He picked her up in his arms. "We're going to the hospital," he told her swiftly, and bolted out the door, pajamas and all.

The door burst open to the hospital, which alarmed the night team greatly. Generally they didn't have any patients at midnight, when everybody was sleeping. Shizune, who happened to be part of the team tonight, flew out of her chair and ran to Guy. The jonin was quivering greatly.

"I don't know what's happening," he told her. "She said her chest was on fire…"

Shizune did a hand sign, and her hand started glowing. Guy held onto her tightly as the medic searched her chest with her hand. She gasped lightly at what she saw.

"OK, everyone listen up!" she announced, addressing the night team. "Two of you go prep for surgery, one of you get a bed, and someone else needs a vaccine of 27-A. Got it?"

The team nodded and got up in a hurrying haste to get their supplies.

Guy watched them go, then looked down at Ai's face. She quivered and clutched her chest. He looked up at Shizune, "Will she be OK?"

Shizune sighed and looked back in the direction her team had run off. "I don't know," she admitted.

***

Kakashi was peacefully calm that morning. He strode up a concrete road, his nose buried in his book. He hardly even noticed when a figure ran by him at top speed. Then the figure backtracked and yanked the book out of Kakashi's hands.

The figure was Natsu Morika, who was a member of Team 22, Ai's team. He had messy black hair, a long-sleeved black shirt, and a pair of tan shorts which were loosely pulled on in a rush. "Kakashi-sensei!" he exclaimed.

Kakashi raised an eyebrow as he took his book back. "What is it, Natsu?"

"Didn't you hear?" Natsu exclaimed. "Ai was admitted in the hospital last night, and they did some kind of surgery on her!" Kakashi's pupils dilated, and his book was all but forgotten. He shoved it in his weapon's roster and dashed towards the hospital, not waiting for Natsu.

The door burst open as Kakashi dashed in. Tsunade was leaning on the front desk. She sighed. "I thought you'd come," she said. Kakashi stood in front of his Hokage.

"Where's Ai?" he asked.

Natsu had come in the door by this time, and stood behind Kakashi. Tsunade sighed again and rubbed her forehead.

"Last night, according to Guy, Ai woke up with a start in the night. She said that her chest felt like it was on fire. Guy grabbed her and ran to the hospital. I was asleep at the time, but Shizune said that she at least got Ai stable and stopped the pain in her chest.

"Shizune discovered that Ai had a rare condition in her lungs. It's essentially a false heart attack; the heart stops beating momentarily and the lungs stop pumping oxygen. The person with the disorder finds it hard to breathe, because it is. They literally have to make the brain send signals to the heart to pump.

"It really doesn't help anything that she got over pneumonia recently, either. She wouldn't notice this disorder in the day, because she's constantly breathing. But in the night, when her brain shuts down, the disorder kicks in."

Kakashi sighed at the explanation and crossed his arms. "Is there anything you can do?" he asked. Tsunade nodded.

"There is a surgery," she replied. "But…it's essentially open heart surgery. The chance of failure is devastating…"

Natsu frowned. "Ai would never agree to that, then," he explained. Tsunade and Kakashi looked at the genin expectantly. "If Ai ever had the risk of not being a ninja, she wouldn't take it. Being a ninja is her whole life, and I doubt that she would throw it away on surgery that may or may not kill her."

The three sat in silence for a moment, deep in thought. It was only when Guy showed up that they started paying attention again. "Hey," the jonin greeted half-heartedly.

"You look terrible," Kakashi commented. He had on his regular jumpsuit and vest, but his eyes had bags under them from stress. His normally spic-n-span hair was mussed up in places, and his knuckles were white from being clenched.

Guy rolled his eyes. "Well, thanks," he said, then collapsed into a nearby chair. Natsu watched him for a moment.

"I'm guessing Lady Tsunade already told you everything?" he asked. Guy looked up at him.

"Yes, she's told me…everything." Kakashi watched his rival for a couple seconds to see if he was going to burst out in tears. He never did, though, just closed his eyes and rubbed his temple with two fingers.

***

Ai zipped up her orange cloth jacket, which matched her pants, and tied her lightning-blonde hair up in a ponytail. She tied her Konoha headband around her forehead snugly under her bangs. Her brilliant blue eyes flashed as she blinked from the sunlight reflecting off the window.

"All set," she muttered. Then, when she was sure no one was looking, he opened the window and leapt out of it. She landed neatly on a nearby rooftop.

"Ha ha! Freedom!" she cried. She turned back to the hospital and stuck out her tongue and pulled down her eye socket, then leapt away, laughing.