Hello everyone and welcome to the epilogue! It's been a long journey for me, typing this thing, but I'm glad to see it over at last. This is it, and hopefully it will make everyone happy again! So let's finish this! Scribble?

Scribble: We still don't own Saiyuki, so my goal of owning Saiyuki before she finished this stupid story will not be met.

Me: Don't call my stories stupid! Now let's do it!

What2callmyself? is also happy to see this is over and will express her happiness by ERASING ALL MY COMMAS! This is also dedicated to her, for reading and fixing my story from start to finish! ^_^ [^.^]

Sun Succession

Epilogue

Five years had passed.

Goku had never realized being a Sanzo was so much work. No wonder Sanzo was so cranky all the time! Sometimes it made Goku want to go crazy and light all the paperwork on fire.

Goku was no longer in the temple at Chang'an anymore. The reason for this was two-fold. The first was that he couldn't stand the monks. Before, when he was the annoying kid Sanzo kept, the monks were very rude and nasty to him and often talked about him and wondered aloud why Sanzo kept him. He didn't let it bother him, the fact was Sanzo didn't mind him, so he was staying, maybe even a bit spitefully, knowing how much it annoyed them. Maybe even Sanzo himself was spiting them…and knowing Sanzo, it was probably true. But as soon as he became Sanzo, the monks were all too polite and too nice to him. Not only did it make Goku uncomfortable, but it angered him to see them acting this way. He understood why Sanzo didn't think much of the monks, why he once called them all hypocrites; they were showing it to Goku. It made Goku feel a little sick to his stomach and he declined to stay there for long.

But it was also because it was the place he stayed in with Sanzo. In every room he could see him. Every part of the temple had a memory. But without Sanzo there, it was just too sad. So he couldn't bring himself to stay.

For the first year after Sanzo died, he dreamed of Sanzo…almost every night. The two would be sitting in the temple in Chang'an, in the same room where Sanzo gave him lessons. The two would talk all the night, and Goku would try desperately to hold on to sleep, even to spend an extra few minutes with Sanzo…and woe be to any monk who happened to wake Goku from these dreams, as they were promptly treated with a Goku Sanzo death stare (which was actually pretty scary). Over the course of these nights, Goku learned about how he should've died, and how Sanzo traded his life for him. He was upset that Sanzo didn't tell him, but understood why he didn't…Goku had to admit he DID feel a little guilty. But Sanzo's constant insistence and knowing how Sanzo always did things his way, whether it was right or wrong, regardless of what anyone would say, dissolved the guilt pretty quickly. They spoke more about the Sutra. Sanzo told him stories about his early days as a monk…and the first time he heard Goku's voice. "Did you really think I was that annoying?" Goku asked him once.

"Yes," Sanzo answered without hesitation. "But…hearing someone's voice, talking to me, was the only thing that kept me sane at the time."

This continued for a year after Sanzo died, and Goku remembered the last night all too well. "So how do you like it?"

"Being a Sanzo, you mean? Well, aside from the fact I'm not used to being seen as something other than a nuisance, I think it's been pretty good. I even went on my first mission, and I did well!" He paused. "I still miss you though…a lot. But I remember the things you taught me and it helps me feel a little better."

"You know Buddhists believe in reincarnation, right?"

"Yeah, it was one of the things you taught me."

Sanzo smiled. "Good, remember that. And remember, it's annoying listening to your voice all the time, so don't wait too long, alright?" And with that, Sanzo was gone. And Goku never dreamed of him again after that.

Another thing that helped was the robes. There were a few extra robes that Goku inherited, but he never wore them. He kept them, and sometimes would hold them close to his body and inhale, smelling Sanzo still on them. Having Sanzo there in that way also helped him feel a bit better.

He went to visit Gojyo and Hakkai when he could. Whatever issues the two of them had, they had worked it out, and both were pretty much back to normal. However, there was something Goku hadn't really paid attention to that Hakkai brought to his attention. "You no longer have your diadem, Goku."

"Huh?" Goku raised a hand to his head, and really thought about how it wasn't there. "Hey, look at that. It really is gone."

"I noticed that it broke off when Sanzo was putting the chakra on your forehead."

Goku smiled as his hand touched the little red burn. "Yeah. I didn't turn into the Sage, either. I stayed me. I think…I think that was the last gift Sanzo gave to me…control over myself again."

So time went on and Goku did his best, but didn't change his habits much. He ate a ton still, regardless of what it was…after all, Sanzo had told him to follow what he believed in and do what he thought was right, and he saw nothing wrong with the way his life was, and no reason to change.

And now, in his fifth year as a Sanzo priest, Goku had another dream, but not of Sanzo.

He dreamed of the Merciful Goddess Kanzeon Bosatsu.

"Hello, Goku Sanzo! Wow, I never would've imagined you'd turn out like this!"

"You mean as a Sanzo? Yeah, I guess I never thought about it much myself. Life is funny, huh?"

Kanzeon smiled. "You want to hear something funnier?"

"Sure, what is it?"

"Well, in a small town in the mountains, there's this little boy living with an old woman who took him in. He's four years old, and he has bright blonde hair, and deep purple eyes. His name in Ravi, it's an Indian name, and it means sun. I think that's definitely worth checking out, don't you?"

Goku woke with a start and wide eyes. It made sense to him now. Sanzo's disappearance from his dreams, coinciding with the age of the boy. His question about reincarnation. And lastly, Sanzo's words to him as well. Sanzo had known all along he was coming back, and he had wanted Goku to know too.

Goku set out the next day, travelling to the mountain side town…he knew instinctively which it was. It was the town beside the same mountain where Goku had spent five hundred years. He looked everywhere, all around, but he saw no trace of the boy Kanzeon had mentioned.

After almost a whole afternoon of running around, he finally stopped, falling to his knees at a cottage a bit farther away up the mountain. He felt tears in his eyes. Was his dream wrong? Was his hope to see Sanzo again in vain?

He almost didn't register hearing a woman's voice calling, "Hurry Ravi, get inside before it starts to rain!"

'Ravi?' Goku thought. Who this woman was calling…was it really….

"Oh, it's you."

A voice spoke to him and Goku turned. To his left stood a small boy, blonde haired and purple eyed, holding a basket of vegetables and looking evenly at him. And Goku knew immediately. He saw it in the boy's eyes. It was the exact same look. It was Ravi…it was Sanzo…it was both.

Sanzo had come back, and was now this boy named Ravi.

The boy shifted the basket in his hand and continued to look at Goku. "I know you. You're the voice that calls to me in my dreams."

Goku smiled and tears of joy came to his eyes. For the first time ever, Sanzo was so small…Goku was the one who towered over him, and not the other way around. Sanzo had always raised him, as Konzen and as Sanzo, but now the tables had turned, and Sanzo was the small one, the one who needed someone to raise him. And Goku was not going to turn away the chance, the chance to repay Konzen and Sanzo for all they'd done for him.

Then Ravi smiled a big happy expectant smile. "Hey, does this mean you've finally come to take me home with you?"

And Goku nodded at the small boy. "That's right. I've come for you at last, and we'll go home together."

And this time the tables had turned, and Goku was ready. 'You've done so much for me, Konzen…Sanzo…so this time it's my turn. This time…I'm going to be the one to raise you. This time…Ravi…I'll be the one to take care of you.'

Ravi has a lifetime (minus four years) left to live.

Scribble: That's a weird little note at the end.

Me: Yeah, but I wanted to end them all the same. Well, here it is guys! I hope you all enjoyed this story! Next I will be working on both a Reborn! story and a Gintama story, but if the mood ever strikes, I will return to Saiyuki again someday! Yay! So let me know what you think! Worthless flames will be publicly mocked. Con crit is appreciated and Good reviews are loved! Long Live the Sanzo-ikkou!

-titangirl161

[What2callmyself? =)]