A/N: As I promised, here is the sequel. Yes, this part will revolve around Sanzo and Naoru, since the first one revolved more on Naoru's story. It might be a bit random for the first few chapters, but I think they'll be needed for the pairing itself to develop.
Chapter 1: A Flea
"Hyaaa!"
Goku slammed down on the ground feet-first, using a demon as his cushion from the ground, as he used his nyoibou to drive a hole into the head of another demon. A smirk on his face, he lifted himself to kick the face of a third oncoming enemy, sending it flying into oblivion. Then he punched one more demon in the guts, directing his staff to his back and into the chest of a sneaking enemy. More demons came in from all sides, but he only laughed in enjoyment as he took them all at once, the situation more like him assaulting them than they him.
"Oi, saru!" Gojyo called from his place, an arrogant grin pasted on his face, as his shakujou blade cut through several demons at the same time. "Stop laughing! You're making me get goosebumps!"
"Shut up, kappa, or I'll come there and kick your butt!" Goku snapped, shoving five demons into the air to who knew where.
Gojyo drove his shakujou into the gut of yet another demon and made it into a kind of an extension to his weapon, hitting its allies with it as he waved the long iron around. "See if you can do that, blackhole stomach!"
"Messed-up pervert!" A punch here…
"Brain-dead hollow!" A kick there…
"Cockroach head!" A demon's scream…
"If you don't stop that pathetic excuse of an argument, I will personally make sure your heads lose their positions on your shoulders!" This statement's source was pausing for a minute, despite all the demons around him, to threaten his companions with an early death, before he continued to gun the life away from his assailants with a single Smith & Wesson. Sanzo had gotten no injuries at all during his sudden outburst, most probably because the said enemies were caught off-guard too much to even move the moment the monk had taken a break from defending himself.
"Mou, Sanzo…" Goku meekly whined while kicking a demon onto its own allies.
"Evil monk…" Gojyo commented, blocking an attack from a sword and countering it with several slices from his own weapon.
"Sanzo, your blood pressure…" This fourth person made the enemies in front of him explode into dust with his Chi Gong as he spoke, his smile never wavering from his face. Then he spun and landed a very high kick on a demon's face, sending the said target off to land on his own allies, before getting their taste of Hakkai's energy.
"Ch…" Another bull's eye on a demon's head…
"They enjoy this so much," Naoru whispered to herself in amusement after that short bout of conflict within the party, firing an arrow that hit a demon and went straight through to the other demons directly behind the first one. She jumped out of the way of a sneaking demon, somersaulting in the air and landing on the branch of a tree. There, she stared gravely down upon the glowing eyes of the demons, simultaneously firing several arrows at them as they either jumped for her or waited at the bottom, the projectiles flying through the air and, if they did not plant into any airborne targets, exploding at the ground as the stored energies were released. "And I have to agree with their enthusiasm."
She giggled in pleasure as she ran past Sanzo's back, the monk hearing her and turning to her with a raised eyebrow, making her insides burn at having his amethysts land on her sapphires. She could only smile apologetically, shooting an arrow into the head of a demon who took advantage of Sanzo's momentary distraction.
"Oi, oi, Sanzo-sama," came Gojyo's snide remark. "Why don't you stay focused? Stop letting your eyes stray off, will you? Fight now, women later, eh?"
Naoru almost faltered at that statement, tripping over a rocky bump on the ground. Her bow disappearing without her will, she extended her right hand to the ground and pushed herself off into the air. She took out her weapon again and fired three arrows on the ground, triggering another loud explosion on the attacking demons, before her momentum caused her to somersault in the air and land behind Hakkai. "Gojyo…!" she gasped in shock, her face feeling warm while a low chuckle emitted behind her from Hakkai. "What are you saying?!" It would have been great if Sanzo did like her but…
She shook her head. What was she thinking, anyway? Why would she want Sanzo to like her? Whatever… she dropped, rolling her eyes. No sense in thinking about it… It was enough to be at his good side…
"What are you talking about, loudmouth?" Sanzo asked, evidently seething, as his enemies fell down more quickly, a hint that he was becoming furious with one of his own party members. "Don't push your lovesick fantasies onto me or you'll find your lovesick self full of bullet holes!"
"Aiya!" Gojyo drawled, smirking wildly, taking a pause from his fight. "What has ticked our great leader now?" He was answered by a bullet narrowly missing his head but hitting a demon on the head behind him. It did not fail him to freeze, though. "O-oi! You could have hit me instead, dammit!"
"Hmph. Like I care," Sanzo replied nonchalantly, reloading his gun and continuing on with his shooting.
"A-re? What happened?" Goku popped in with his own round of demons, his big round eyes full of innocence and wonder at what had just transpired. "What did Gojyo mean about Sanzo and women?"
Hakkai laughed calmly, avoiding a punch meant for him and returning it with twice the strength, just as Naoru jumped back into her throng of assassins. "Don't mind it, Goku. Gojyo's just been drunk in his own world. Ne, Gojyo?"
"Whatever you say, Hakkai…" the redhead huffed, before the gang continued on with their "extermination," which did not take very long after the conflict; they had already wiped out nearly eighty percent of the current demon population when Goku and Gojyo had started their bickering session.
When finally the last demon had fallen, courtesy of Goku's staff and raised fist, Hakkai straightened up to dust himself off and clapped his hands. "Now, wasn't that a very nice work out?"
Gojyo stabbed the ground with his shakujou, smoothing his hair and taking out a cigarette stick, his weapon disappearing beside him. "Smoking is better after this kind of exercise. Ne, Sanzo-sama?" He turned to the monk, who was lighting up his own cigarette.
Sanzo merely grunted as he tucked his hands into his sleeves, crossing his arms within. Goku, on the other hand, crouched on the ground and lay his hands on his stomach, his forgotten nyoibou disappearing, too. "Mou, Hakkai, I'm hungry!" This earned him a chuckle from the emerald-eyed man.
"Don't worry, Goku," Hakkai replied with good nature. "We'll reach the next town by noon. You can still bear your hunger until then, can't you?" Simply chuckling at the monkey's retorts which were luckily drowned by the whacking of a fan and the insane laughing of a certain kappa, Hakkai turned to Naoru, who was by now back in her canine form, a Collie with a beige coat and sapphire-blue eyes. She stared back up at him and he smiled. "Really, Naoru," he said, letting Hakuryu turn into the green jeep and getting into the dragon himself. "You should share some thoughts with us."
If she was in human form, Naoru would have giggled herself for getting that comment from Hakkai. The four of them all knew about her lack of humor, but still the emerald-eyed man never let a chance pass to ask her about at least one remark of what was happening. It was quite a repetitive emphasis on her belonging to the group. And she loved it.
The Collie jumped into Hakuryu, laying on the jeep's floor at the passenger area. She watched Goku and Gojyo climb in after her, and then turned to Sanzo who had already sat; she wagged her tail once before taking a nap. Or so she tried.
A growl. "Mou, Hakkai, I'm hungry!"
A chuckle. "Just a little more, Goku…"
Another growl. "But I'm really hungry!"
A frustrated sigh. "Shut up, stupid monkey. You're too noisy."
"At least I don't have perverted thoughts like yours, erotic kappa!"
"Ah? You wanna pick a fight with me?!"
"Bring it on!"
A short scuffle, before the sound of a fan hitting twice.
"SHUT UP OR I'LL KILL YOU!"
A nervous laugh. "That's a nice way of stopping them, Sanzo…"
Naoru could only sigh, her ears drooped. She would not be able to sleep, after all.
Goku's eyes widened as his mouth formed an "O" at the euphoric atmosphere of the town. Jolly music was playing, the notes swaying in the air, creating a sort of attraction for the people who heard it. It was coming from the center of the town, where a band was playing excitedly, surrounded by an audience. Colorful paroles hung at the windows and doors of every house. Bright lights were already installed, ready to light up later that night. Decors were set up all over the town.
The group scanned the village. Out of all the people in the village, only the five of them seemed to not have the festive spirit the whole place was in. Which would not be the fact any further.
"Oh! Oh! Sanzo! Sanzo! They're having a festival!" the boy exclaimed to his guardian as he jumped up and down happily, pointing at the various stalls that were waiting to be visited by those intent on wasting the money in their wallets to the last penny. "Let's stay here, Sanzo! Come on! Please?"
He was answered by the harisen.
"Itte!" Goku exclaimed, jumping away and crouching on the floor, rubbing his head. "What did I do?!"
"Hmph," was the monk's simple answer, earning a glare and a pout from the monkey, a repressed laughter from the kappa, and a comforting pat for the monkey by the canine. It was such an uncommon scene that the foursome act had made the people around them stop whatever they were doing and watch. Even the man who was about to pick a pocket froze, which lost him the chance to steal the wallet and instead gave him a punch on the face, which started a brawl. Almost immediately, the spectators shifted their attention from the gang of five and to the two men. Sanzo's group sweatdropped before Hakkai moved.
"Maa, maa," the former teacher calmly cut in so that no more damage was done. "We'll be staying for the night whether we like it or not. The map says the next town will be two weeks at best." Now this earned him four incredulous looks.
"Eh?" Naoru gasped.
"You're kidding!" Goku cried.
"Give me a break!" Gojyo exclaimed.
"Don't kid with me, Hakkai," Sanzo growled.
"Now, now, don't give me those replies. It's not my fault we have a long way to go," Hakkai laughed, though he slightly sounded reprimanding. "I don't have the power to shorten distances. So we should utilize the offers this town can give before we get back on the rough road, ne?"
Goku just hung his head in defeat, while Gojyo scratched his head furiously.
"This is ridiculous," the redhead muttered vehemently. "This town was one fucking week from the last one! Why are the villages getting so far apart from each other?"
Hakkai laughed. "That, I don't know." At the sidelines, Sanzo was furiously smoking a cigarette.
Naoru let out a large sigh. It was one thing to be alone in the woods for days; it was another to be isolated from the rest of the world with four men who bickered day and night with unending energy supplies except for rainy days. Don't forget the hordes of demons after their heads, but who also failed to reach their goals and instead ended up as dusts on their targets' weapons. And hey, let's admit it: these four guys had serious emotional problems.
Like I don't have one, Naoru scolded herself when a pang in her heart throbbed after making the wrong move of remembering the tiniest bit of her lost life. The memory was still fresh, as if it was just yesterday. And yet at the same time it felt like a long time ago, now that she was starting a new life.
If this was what could be called a life. The ice demon stifled a laugh. She was really not complaining; she just didn't think that this was what most average humans or demons (if they were still sane) would normally do for a life. Then again, ever since Gyokumen Koushuu (the name sent shivers of loathe through her spine) with the balance, nothing was normal anymore.
Naoru made a mental note of taking out Gyokumen Koushuu's last breath when the time comes. She was sure no one in Kougaiji's group would complain, especially once Rasetsu-nyo was revived.
"Oi, Naoru!"
The sapphire-eyed woman jerked and looked up to see Gojyo hollering at her with Goku, Sanzo and Hakkai watching her. They were just ahead, in front of a nicely-polished inn, obviously furnished for the upcoming festival. She blinked away her reveries and ran up to them, smiling apologetically. "Ah! Sorry…" she muttered, laughing weakly.
But jumped when she felt something brush against her legs. Looking down, she smiled at a dog that was looking innocently up at her.
But her genuine smile turned uncertain when she absorbed the impression that it was a dirty-looking canine that seemed to have missed out on a good long bath for some time now.
Which meant that it was probably jumping with fleas right now.
A shiver ran up Naoru's skin. Sure enough, her sharp eyes caught sight of a flea crawling to the nose of the dog.
And seemed to stare at her.
The part against which the dog rubbed tingled, and Naoru's blood ran cold. Her mind went blank. And her lips moved by themselves, together with her whole body.
"Sa…Sa…" the woman breathed. "SANZO!"
The next second a trembling beige-haired woman was all over a blond monk on the ground for all the public to see.
"What the—?!" Sanzo practically roared, Naoru in his arms, her arms around his neck. "What is wrong with you, woman?! Stop acting so childish and get your ass off me!"
Naoru shook her head, all the more scooting closer to the man's body. "But…b-but…the dog…" she stammered. "It…i-it…has…f…FLEAS!"
Silence followed that declaration. Only broken by the sound of padded feet on the ground as the dog shuffled closer to the two people.
"AH! NO!" Naoru exclaimed, basically forcing the monk on the ground. "Get it away from me! Get it away! Get it away!"
"SHUT UP!" Sanzo roared once more. "Goku! Gojyo! Get that dog away before I kill someone!"
Only, the two aforementioned people were grinning ear-to-ear at the sight. And Hakkai was simply sweatdropping at the background, unable to do anymore since they were attracting too much attention already.
"What's this I see, Sanzo?" Gojyo drawled, his goofy face adding more heat to Sanzo's already increasing temper.
This made a vein pop.
Sanzo whipped out his gun and aimed it at the two clowns. "If you don't move right now you won't ever move again," he breathed menacingly. The stupid grins were wiped off Goku's and Gojyo's faces as they hastened to carry the dirty dog off, mainly for their own sakes.
"O-oi! Wait for me, Gojyo!" Goku shouted while running after Gojyo, who was holding the dog an arm's length away from him.
Once they were gone, Hakkai laughed and came up to Sanzo, who was struggling with an overly unstable Naoru.
"Naoru-san?" the man with the monocle called comfortingly, shaking the woman gently. "The dog is gone now. You don't have to worry about the fleas. But, I suggest you release Sanzo now before you attract more attention. Or before Sanzo kills someone."
Naoru heard, and realized what she was doing. She blinked. And felt that she was just a little bit too close for comfort with Sanzo. It felt good, in all honesty. And she would have liked to be in that position for a little longer if only it…if only…Well, she didn't know how to finish that thought anymore, and so switched to devoting her energy to thinking up of a proper apology for her sudden change in behavior.
Unfortunately, when she looked up at Sanzo's face, her tongue forgot how to function. "Uh…uh…" the woman stuttered, not knowing what to say and feeling her face heat up. She was quite sure she was as red as a tomato now.
"Just get off!"
Naoru jumped up to a standing position, Hakkai straightening up after her, looking amused. A moment after, Sanzo was also standing, dusting himself off, but surprisingly not in a worse mood, as if nothing happened. Although, he did look embarrassed.
Or maybe Naoru was just imagining it, as she was just trying to avoid eye contact with the said monk, or with anyone else for that matter (people were still staring at them). Why, of all people, did she cling on to SANZO?! Of…of all people…she could have clung on to Hakkai! It wasn't that she disliked Sanzo; it was just that she just didn't want to jump onto his bad side. And everybody knew that one way to get oneself killed by the said monk was to be physically in contact with him TOO closely.
Once again, Naoru sighed deeply but silently, her head bowed. But still…WHY?
Sanzo just lit a cigarette stick, looking like he was trying hard not to show any emotion.
Hakkai, the man in between, merely smiled brightly.
A/N: Yes, the first chapter is simply random. And no, it's not a oneshot. It's seriously a sequel. I wrote the last parts when I was hyper, so please forgive if it's quite… I don't know… scrambled? Anyway, please R&R.
