Title: Sapphire Eyes and Amethyst Ones

Author: Sapphire-Amethyst

S.A.: Gomenasai, minna-san...

Sanzo: About time! We can't be released from your evil hands until you finish!

Ron: Yeah! Come on, S.A.! Let me go!

S.A.: I thought I already let you go in the last chapter...

Shurei: You...took him back, S.A.

S.A.: Did I? ponders

Hakkai: Ahahahaha...S.A. doesn't own me or my companions or anyone else from GS.

OoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOo

Chapter 7: Kougaiji-tachi Gets into the Picture

Naoru was running full speed to her home from training deeper in the forest. Her training, which should have lasted three days with her being all alone as she was told, was shortened to only two when she sensed fire in the direction of her only home.

It had already been fifteen minutes since she first smelled the burning scent and she didn't know when the fire even started before she found out about it. Naturally, it would take long for her to realize something's wrong.

Too far… she thought to herself, panting, while avoiding the branches and bushes obstructing her way. The path was dark, and the moonlight was her only source of light. Not long, though, did she have to wait to gain sight of a burning mansion in the middle of the forest, the smoke rising ominously to the sky, being blacker than night itself.

Naoru stopped to catch her breath for a short while before continuing on with her dashing. She never took off her eyes from the burning mansion's upper part, until she arrived and froze.

The whole mansion was engulfed in flames with heat almost as high as the sun's. Figures were flashing here and there and sounds of metal clashing with metal could be heard even with the large distance. Naoru could see her whole family fighting with hooded creatures, all of which were doing a good job weakening her clan. She could see relatives too weak to move and are protected by other relatives, who, in turn, were also slowly weakening.

She couldn't move. She couldn't blink. All the air was removed from her lungs. She didn't notice she wasn't breathing. How…? she thought, tears starting to flow freely from her eyes.

Then it all happened in a quick flash. Someone called her name, she turned around, saw Reiko, her sister, then heard a maniacal laugh coming from her home's roof. She turned around again to see a man laughing at the top of her home.

Naoru was immediately woken from her sleep by the slamming of a door. She turned her head to see Hakkai scratching his cheek and smiling at her. "Gomen about Sanzo's behavior. Did we wake you up?" he asked kindly.

The beige-haired girl heard the unceremonious hitting of the fan and the usual shout of the bad-tempered monk from the other room before she shook her head. "Actually, I was pretty glad you woke me up," she replied while sitting up on her bed.

This time, it was Gojyo's and Goku's yelps and shouts that they heard before Hakkai said, "That's good to hear. Now, why don't we pacify them before going down for breakfast?"

Naoru swore she heard the firing of a gun before nodding cheerfully.

OoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoO

Kougaiji could feel his nails digging into his palm since he had balled his hands into tight fists. He surveyed his surroundings, the Ryuu territory. Seeing the place in ruins boiled his blood and he swore he'd find the culprit who did this.

"Kougaiji-sama?" Yaone quietly called.

The nails dug deeper. "They'll pay," he murmured. "They won't get away!"

"Kou, calm down," Dokugakuji pacified his leader and friend. "We still have to go after the Sanzo-ikkou, you know."

"O-nii-chan?" a timid murmur came from behind them. The trio turned to see a not-so-Lirin looking up at them with teary eyes. "Where…are they?"

"Lirin…" Kougaiji half-kneeled in front of his sister and sighed. "We have to tell you now…"

The youkai prince narrated the report to his sister, every sentence giving him a pang as Lirin got more teary-eyed by the second. From the discovery of the tragedy, to the problem of finding out who the killer was. He told her everything.

OoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoO

Sanzo stared at Naoru's blank eyes over his newspaper during breakfast. He had been observing the ice youkai since she had woken up this morning, and it hasn't been a nice observation. Naoru kept twirling her noodles with her chopsticks; she obviously didn't have the appetite for that morning. It must have had something to do with her sleep.

"Sanzo?" Hakkai asked alarmingly as the two watched Naoru grimace in her sleep. "Shouldn't we wake her up?"

"Of course we should!" Sanzo answered, gritting his teeth. Why didn't this youkai no inu just tell them what happened?! Then they won't have any problem with this d woman anymore!

Hakkai went over to Naoru and tried to shake her, calling her name. But she wouldn't budge and kept on having an expression of trouble. Hakkai gave up even trying anything and sighed, looking up at his companion.

Then they heard a small continuous sound at the other room. The sound started at minimum level then grew louder and louder until they were certain Goku and Gojyo were bickering again.

"Those two bakas!" Sanzo scowled. He took one glance at Naoru and opened the door, slamming it shut behind him and walking to the two bakas' room to "pacify" them both.

"Sanzo?" Hakkai called, bringing the blond monk back to his senses. He raised his head to see Naoru giving her plate of food to Goku who accepted it gratefully.

"Nanda?" Sanzo didn't take his eyes off of the female youkai.

"I think we should get going," Hakkai replied. "I think we've stayed long enough."

Sanzo nodded and stood up. The other three people in the group, a laid-back, smoking Gojyo, an eating Goku, and a sighing Naoru, all looked up at him. "So, are we going now?" Gojyo lazily asked, taking in another gulp of smoke and releasing it. "Had enough of the serene scene?"

Sanzo merely grunted in reply and turned around, but a vein popped in his head when the usual whining emerged: "But I'm not finished eating yet!"

"You're not yet full? Oh my, Goku… Seriously?" was Naoru's reply. "Why am I even surprised?" Naoru said this more to herself, clapping a hand on her forehead.

"You've been with us for a week and still you're not yet used to this saru?" Gojyo thumbed at Goku, who was at his right.

"I am not a saru, kono ero kappa!" Goku retorted, releasing his grip on his plate.

Before the bickering had started, however, Naoru had taken the chance of Goku's low guard and before anyone knew it, she was dragging the boy off outside. "Coming or not?" she asked over her shoulder as she closed the door behind her and an arguing Goku.

Sanzo, Gojyo, and Hakkai stared, as they heard continuous scuffles outside. Just then, Hakkai jerked back to reality as he realized that Hakuryu was still sitting on his shoulder. He faced the other two and smiled, "Shall we?"

As they started out of the restaurant, a little smile played in Sanzo's lips. Amusing, he thought, She can change her mood in an instant. He found it very hard to believe that Naoru was miserable at the moment; she had suddenly become cheerful the instant Goku had whined. She was more complicated than he thought. I may have to watch her more closely…then I'd know when to ask her. (S.A.: Okay, guys, what he means is asking Naoru about the tragedy, get it?)

They had just closed the door behind them when a familiar voice demanded, "What are you doing with them?"

OoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOo

S.A.: Okay, people, I accept criticisms, but don't criticize me in such a way that it hurts me to read them. And I know fully well that Sanzo is a bit OoC here…

Innocence: Thanks for the encouragement and the corrections (I also saw others). I always forget that Goku is the oldest of the four. His mind is that of an eleven-year-old kid!

Kurama13: Arigatou gozaimasu!

curiouzkatt: That's all right. I'm sure you'll catch up.

Risika Tziporah: Gomenasai…for updating so long for like…a year…

Animefanatic19: Okie. I'll try. I think I once read that. I'll go back to the start.

S.A.: So, minna, if you see some errors in my writing, review properly. I know a lot of readers out there hate Mary-Sues. But, I'm sorry if this is just what my mind can think up of right now. I also want to make a humor fic, but of course I need some inspirations. And…umm…I changed an itsy bitsy phrase in chapter 7. Remember "the event three nights ago"? It should be "the event more than a week ago."