Saiyuki Story
Sanzo's Party continued their journey to the West after they defeated Homura's Party. Hakkai, noticing their damp mood, said, "We're near a town. You can eat to your heart's content, Goku. There'll be a lot of cigarettes and wine for Sanzo and Gojyo."
"I'm not hungry," Goku said.
Hakkai looked at Gojyo and waited, expecting a sarcastic remark from him. But there was none.
"I'm too tired to insult the stupid monkey," Gojyo said, noticing the glance of Hakkai.
"We sure are lively today," Hakkai commented with a laugh, cutting short anything Goku was planning to say.
"Stop it, Hakkai," Sanzo said irritably.
"I know all of you are still sad about Homura, Zeon and Shien," Hakkai said, suddenly serious, "but we can't do anything about their deaths."
"But they died without a reason," Goku said miserably.
"No, they died fighting for what they thought was right," Hakkai replied. "Anyway, a town is right in front of us," Hakkai said, resuming being happy.
"That's good! I'm hungry!!! You're right Hakkai, I should get over it and I will," Goku said determinedly.
"That's the spirit," Hakkai said with a laugh.
As they reached the town, Hakkai said that he would be in charge of the accommodations like their rooms.
"Let's eat," Goku said and half-dragged Sanzo and Gojyo to a restaurant.
"Don't drag me, you stupid monkey!" shouted Sanzo, hitting Goku with his fan.
"Stop touching me," Gojyo exclaimed, "your stupidity will seep through my precious skin!"
"Great, we've arrived at a restaurant," Goku cheered ignoring Sanzo's and Gojyo's complaints.
Miraculously, they found a table in the bustling restaurant. A pretty waitress approached them and asked for their orders.
"I'll have a plate of pork buns and-," Goku said.
"Ignore him, he's a stomach-brain monkey," Gojyo said charmingly. He thought that this girl would fall head over heels over him, like almost every girl he met.
"Sorry, sir, but every customer has a right to order," she said with a super-sweet smile.
That smile's too sweet, thought Gojyo, surprised by the girl's reaction.
Let's see. This guy's probably a playboy and has dated more girls than you can count. Obviously, I'm his next target, thought the waitress.
Then, she turned back to Goku and asked him with a genuine smile, "What would you like to order?"
"You're pretty when you smile," commented Gojyo.
"Thanks," the waitress said with a tight smile.
Just then, Hakkai arrived. "Umm. Did I interrupt something?" he asked uncertainly.
"No, no." said Gojyo.
Goku smiled at the waitress and said, "I want this. And this." while pointing at the menu.
She also asked Hakkai and Sanzo what they wanted and pointedly didn't ask Gojyo. She turned to leave when Gojyo interrupted her. "You didn't ask me what I wanted yet."
"Oh, I didn't?!" she asked feigning surprise.
"No," Gojyo said, thinking that she was playing hard-to-get. "I want soba noodles," he said with an easy smile.
Throughout the meal, they ordered some more food. The waitress seemed to ignore Gojyo's order until Goku noticed it.
"Why do you always forget Gojyo's food?" Goku asked when she came to serve his dimsum.
"It's not polite to ask questions w/o introducing yourself first," Hakkai said.
"Oh. Sorry. I'm Son Goku," Goku said amiably.
"I'm Mei Lin," the waitress said with a smile.
"Why do you always forget Gojyo's food?" Goku asked again.
Mei Lin blushed, "I-I seem to be forgetful today," she stammered.
"No," Goku shook his head, "you never forget Sanzo's, Hakkai's or my food."
"Well," Mei Lin said but was interrupted by a shout, "Mei Lin, there are still some food to be served."
"I've got to go," Mei Lin said, relieved she didn't have to answer Goku's questions.
Another waitress attended to them for the rest of their meal and they didn't see Mei Lin for the rest of the night.
After they finished eating and paid their bill, they retreated to the motel Hakkai found.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
At the middle of the night, Gojyo woke up, thinking he heard a sound. He lay still and strained his ears. But he didn't hear the sound again. Thinking that he imagined the sound, he prepared to go back to sleep but he heard the sound again and this time, it woke Sanzo and Hakkai. Goku, on the other hand, lay asleep, muttering, "Blueberry cake, cheesecake."
"Sanzo, Gojyo and Hakkai silently went outside the motel, encountering a terrible scene looming before their eyes. There was a group of demons surrounding a half-naked woman. This woman was VERY beautiful but she was filled with wounds and bruises. Gojyo realized that the sound was probably the muffled moan of the girl.
The three prepared to fight. The demons were so engrossed in the woman that they didn't notice 2 demons and a monk preparing for their attack.
"Hey," Gojyo called out, "it's not nice to harm a pretty woman."
"Get out of here unless you want to die a painful death," one of the demons threatened.
"Hah!" sneered Sanzo, "I don't want to waste my time with these idiots." And with that, he went back to the motel.
"Shut up, you monk!" the demon shouted to the retreating back of Sanzo.
Sanzo turned around and shot his spirit-ascending gun. It hit the demon square on his head.
"I'll leave the rest to you," he said, addressing Hakkai and Gojyo.
In less than five minutes, Hakkai and Gojyo defeated all the demons.
Then, a sleepy Goku emerged from the motel, "Why are you so noisy? Is it breakfast already?"
"No, you can go back to sleep now," Hakkai assured Goku.
In a second, Gojyo was supporting the damsel in distress.
"I'm Kahrin," she managed to say before she became unconscious.
Hakkai was beside them in a moment. He immediately healed the girl's - Kahrin's - wounds. After he did the best he could do, Gojyo carefully carried her to a bed.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The next day, as they were having breakfast, Sanzo said, "We're leaving after breakfast."
"But--," Gojyo and Goku said at the same time, each with a different reason.
"Let's stay for a couple more days. I've got to buy some more supplies," Hakkai said.
"And it will take you a couple of day to buy those supplies?" Sanzo asked sarcastically.
"No, but I think we should rest more," Hakkai said thoughtfully.
"Yeah," Goku and Gojyo said and nodded vigorously.
Sanzo rolled his eyes in exasperation. He knew that they wouldn't budge. He left the table without saying a word.
"Great!" cheered Goku.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Goku spent his time roaming around the town, looking for exquisite delicacies. Hakkai, meanwhile, was looking at different books and buying some basic necessities. Sanzo was just lazing around with nothing to do or, in other words, he was being himself. Gojyo, however, did none of these. He spent his time beside Kahrin's bed, attracted by the beauty she beheld and hoping against hope that she would wake up.
On the third day, Gojyo's wait was rewarded because Kahrin finally woke up.
"You're awake already?" Gojyo said.
"What are you doing here?" she asked, then thoughts of what happened rushed into her mind.
"How many days did I sleep?" Kahrin asked.
"Three," Gojyo informed her.
"And you've been here all the time?" gasped the girl.
"What makes you say that?" demanded Gojyo, a tell-tale blush creeping up his cheeks.
Kahrin smiled silently.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"Hi," Goku said cheerfully at breakfast the next day.
Kahrin came in and Goku immediately introduced himself, "I'm Son Goku."
"I'm Kahrin," she said. "He must be Genjo Sanzo, and he must be Cho Hakkai," she said while pointing to each one in turn.
"Nice to meet you. Gojyo must've told you all about us," commented Hakkai with a smile, "please join our table."
"Thank you," Kahrin said and sat down beside Sanzo. Sanzo looked uninterested and continued reading his paper, ignoring the shiver that ran down his spine.
"Where's the red cockroach?" Goku asked, directing the question to Kahrin.
For a moment, Kahrin was startled, then she laughed, "You mean Gojyo? He's asleep. You're Sanzo right?" she asked Sanzo.
"Is it that obvious?" Sanzo asked with his trademark sarcasm.
"Oh," Kahrin said, her smile fading. For the rest of the day, she tried to engage Sanzo in a conversation, from food to sutras. But she failed miserably. Good thing Gojyo was too exhausted to wake up and slept for the rest of the day or else he would have been jealous.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Later that night, Hakkai went to Sanzo's room.
"What do you want?" Sanzo asked.
"I'm just surprised there haven't been any demon attacks."
"Don't worry, the excitement will begin tomorrow," Sanzo said.
Hakkai smiled and left the room.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The next day, as Sanzo foretold, demons attacked the town.
"Great," Goku cheered, "I'll finally have some exercise."
As Sanzo's Party was leaving, Kahrin called out, "Be careful! Especially you, Sanzo."
Sanzo stopped in his tracks, his heart pounding, and faced Kahrin. "I will," Sanzo said, almost inaudibly for fear of being overheard. Then, he went to catch up with Hakkai and the others.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
They followed the terrified screams of the villagers and they traced the source to the outskirts of town.
"Stop that," Hakkai said, "I still have to buy some souvenirs."
"I don't care about your stupid souvenirs, you idiot!" shouted a demon with black streaks across his cheeks.
"Let's not waste time, I'm itching for a fight," Goku said excitedly.
"Are you sure you're not itching because of your fleas?" Gojyo asked.
"Shut up! You're just stalling 'cause you're too chicken to fight us!" a demon taunted, "Chicken, chicken!" The rest of the demons laughed.
"What did you say?!" Sanzo asked. But before he gave the demon a chance to reply, he shot his gun and killed the demon. The shot was like a signal for the start of a fight and Hakkai used his energy ball, Gojyo used his weapon and Goku used the Almighty Staff. Together, they defeated the demons in a matter of minutes.
As they were walking back to the motel, Hakkai commented, "You're pretty energetic today. You killed about half the demons."
"Whatever," Sanzo said, not willing to reveal that he killed those demons for a special reason --- but more like, a special someone.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Sanzo was lying on his bed when Kahrin came in.
"Hi," she greeted him, "I heard from Goku that you killed half of the demons. He was really amazed because he said that you usually kill the least number of demons. I'm quite surprised myself.I mean, a monk." she trailed off.
"Are you saying I'm weak?" Sanzo asked, sitting up.
"No. You know, you look cute when you're angry," she commented.
"Flattery is no way to find anybody's heart," Sanzo commented wryly.
"Oh?"
Sanzo lay back down on the bed. Kahrin got up and sat beside him. Surprisingly, Sanzo did not object.
"Hey, Sanzo! You awake?!" asked a familiar voice. Gojyo opened the door and came in.
"What are you doing here?" he asked Kahrin, his voice in disbelief and jealousy.
Without waiting for an answer, he rushed out of Sanzo's room. Kahrin immediately followed.
"Gojyo! Gojyo!" called Kahrin. She found him in the garden.
"Why are you here? Aren't you supposed to be with Sanzo?" Gojyo asked sarcastically.
"You're not. jealous, are you?" she asked with a hint of a smile.
"Of course not," Gojyo said quickly.
"Oh. Too bad," she said quietly, obviously disappointed. "Can I sit with you?" she asked in a much louder voice.
"I don't see why not. Unless your boyfriend will mind," Gojyo said, emphasizing the key word, 'boyfriend.'
"I don't have a boyfriend," Kahrin objected.
"Like I didn't see you and Sanzo."
"But I just visited him."
"Right." Gojyo said and interrupted himself, "Why did you say that it was too bad that I wasn't jealous?"
"Because - because I like you and not Sanzo," she finished in a fast rush of breath.
Gojyo was speechless.
"Can you prove it?" Gojyo managed to ask.
"Yes. But how?"
"How about taking your clothes off and being butt-naked?" Gojyo asked jokingly.
As Kahrin stood and started taking her clothes off, Gojyo also stood up and stopped her.
"I was just kidding," he said softly. Then, he tilted up her head and they shared a passionate first kiss, in the garden, under the moonlight.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The next day, Gojyo came in the dining room grinning broadly.
"What are you so happy about?" Goku asked, chewing noisily.
"I'm in love." Gojyo said dreamily.
Goku snorted, "You say that most of the time," making Hakkai laugh. "Come to think of it, you say that all the time."
Gojyo snapped out of his reverie and shot back, "You? Thinking? That's a laugh!" and Gojyo laughed.
"What did you say, you horny water monster?!" Goku asked madly.
"I said that stupid monkeys don't think." Goku leaped from his seat to Gojyo's back. Instinct told Gojyo to retaliate, which is exactly what he did.
Misfortune struck Gojyo for Kahrin chose that exact moment to make her entrance. "Good morning!" she greeted the demons.
Goku's and Gojyo's holds immediately dropped.
"Good morning!" greeted Goku, "Would you like some bean curd?"
"Yes please," was Kahrin's answer.
"Good morning," Gojyo whispered in Kahrin's ear, which made her giggle. But her giggle wasn't those high-pitched ones of high school girls who have crushes on boys. Gojyo considered this as a giggle of true love and it made him smile more broadly.
Sanzo came in and sat on a chair with no greetings exchanged between them. The three demons were used to this behavior, of course. But Kahrin wasn't.
"Good morning, Mr. Monk," she said with a smile.
Sanzo didn't say anything but just started eating.
"When are we leaving?" Hakkai asked out of the blue.
Sanzo and Gojyo were startled and Gojyo asked hysterically, "We're going?! We're leaving?! When?! To where?! Why didn't anybody tell me about this?!"
Sanzo, on the other hand, kept his cool and replied calmly, "We're not leaving yet," with no signs of apprehension or whatsoever but nobody knew that inside, Sanzo was as perplexed with his answer as any of them.
Now it was Hakkai's turn to be startled, "We're not? I thought you were the one who was so eager to leave?" He turned to Goku and asked, "Aren't you puzzled with all these?"
Goku turned to Hakkai and asked innocently, "Of what? What were you talking about?" which made Hakkai sigh. Goku shrugged and continued to eat his food, no concern on his mind except maybe if there was food for lunch and dinner.
"Since Gojyo doesn't want to leave, we're not leaving," was Sanzo's reply to Hakkai's previous question. At this, Goku's confused head turned from Hakkai, to Sanzo, then to Gojyo, and back again.
"Since when did you follow Gojyo's tantrums?" Hakkai asked, curiosity from his voice impossible not to hear.
"I don't want to ride a jeep with a crybaby," Sanzo replied smoothly.
"Sounds reasonable," Goku answered. Gojyo murmured his agreement.
Hakkai let the subject drop and didn't answer but he still had a sinking feeling in the pit of his stomach. He realized that both Gojyo and Sanzo were in love with Kahrin. But he shook his head and reasoned that it couldn't be! It just couldn't!
As all this took place, Kahrin remained ignored and silently ate her meal with a sinister smile that no one noticed. It remained only for a second and it was immediately replaced by her calm face showing no emotions she had beneath her face.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
After breakfast, Sanzo wanted to stroll around and think. The town they were in was surrounded by dense woods. While they were on their way to the town, Sanzo noticed a trail leading to the woods. This same trail was what he decided to follow.
As Sanzo walked, thoughts of the past few days in the town rushed through his brain. But one vision stood above all others: Kahrin's.
"Kahrin," Sanzo murmured a little inaudibly.
That walk helped Sanzo to define his feelings. He realized, after a lot of denying, that he was in love at last. He finally found someone he could share his love with and would give it back. As this realization sunk in, another feeling rushed in: One of joy and triumph.
After that walk, Sanzo retreated to his room. Kahrin, seeing him, immediately followed.
"What are you doing here? Again?" Sanzo asked, irritated. But his irritation wasn't caused by the appearance of Kahrin. It was because the girl in front of him was the girl he loved. Despite all the things he mulled over in his brain, he wasn't absolutely sure that Kahrin would return the love he finally found at last.
"I guess you don't want to see me," Kahrin said sadly. As she was heading toward the door, Sanzo reached a hand, turned her around and brushed a strand of hair from her face. "How could I not want to see a beautiful face like yours?"
Kahrin looked up and met the eyes of Sanzo. "Flattery is no way to win a woman's heart," she said with a teasing smile.
Sanzo tipped her head back and they shared a kiss. It felt such a long time until Sanzo pulled away. "Does that answer your question?" he asked.
And Kahrin kissed Sanzo and replied, "Does that answer your question?"
They shared another kiss, longer than the first one and Kahrin finally went to her own room.
As Kahrin was leaving, she cast a fleeting glance at Sanzo. As Sanzo's door closed, his heart jumped in joy and he felt elated. He was finally certain that he had found his one true love.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The next day, Gojyo's happiness did not waver. He was so delighted that he had finally found his perfect woman that he went into a bar and drank and drank. By the time he went back to the motel, he was so drunk that he drifted off to sleep in a daze.
Kahrin followed Gojyo all over town until she was positive that Gojyo wouldn't wake up. Silently, she crept into Sanzo's room and opened the door gently so as not to wake Sanzo if he was sleeping.
But Sanzo's senses were alert and when the door was open enough so that Kahrin could slip in, Sanzo was sitting on the bed with his gun ready to fire. Kahrin's eyes widened and she had one thought, "I'm discovered." But relief washed through her as Sanzo lowered his gun and lay down on his bed. "You should've knocked," he said with a yawn. "Next time, I shall.
My dear Sanzo, My love and my pride, I shall never leave, Thy beloved side.
Thou shall not fear, For I will be near, Forever, I shall be faithful, To the love ever so baleful.
I mean, "staleful". Oh! I haven't found anything that rhymes with "faithful". Kahrin said with an exasperated sigh. Inwardly she thought, Considering that I made that lame poem just now.
"What was that supposed to be?" Sanzo asked in a bored tone.
"Hey, can't you recognize a lover's poem when you hear one?" Kahrin asked, pretending to be hurt.
"Say it again," Sanzo ordered and Kahrin obeyed, stopping after the phrase, "To the love ever so-".
"Playful," Sanzo said.
"Pardon me?" Kahrin said.
"To the love ever so playful."
"Playful?" Kahrin repeated. "Hardly."
"Oh?" Sanzo said, nearing Kahrin.
Sanzo's Party continued their journey to the West after they defeated Homura's Party. Hakkai, noticing their damp mood, said, "We're near a town. You can eat to your heart's content, Goku. There'll be a lot of cigarettes and wine for Sanzo and Gojyo."
"I'm not hungry," Goku said.
Hakkai looked at Gojyo and waited, expecting a sarcastic remark from him. But there was none.
"I'm too tired to insult the stupid monkey," Gojyo said, noticing the glance of Hakkai.
"We sure are lively today," Hakkai commented with a laugh, cutting short anything Goku was planning to say.
"Stop it, Hakkai," Sanzo said irritably.
"I know all of you are still sad about Homura, Zeon and Shien," Hakkai said, suddenly serious, "but we can't do anything about their deaths."
"But they died without a reason," Goku said miserably.
"No, they died fighting for what they thought was right," Hakkai replied. "Anyway, a town is right in front of us," Hakkai said, resuming being happy.
"That's good! I'm hungry!!! You're right Hakkai, I should get over it and I will," Goku said determinedly.
"That's the spirit," Hakkai said with a laugh.
As they reached the town, Hakkai said that he would be in charge of the accommodations like their rooms.
"Let's eat," Goku said and half-dragged Sanzo and Gojyo to a restaurant.
"Don't drag me, you stupid monkey!" shouted Sanzo, hitting Goku with his fan.
"Stop touching me," Gojyo exclaimed, "your stupidity will seep through my precious skin!"
"Great, we've arrived at a restaurant," Goku cheered ignoring Sanzo's and Gojyo's complaints.
Miraculously, they found a table in the bustling restaurant. A pretty waitress approached them and asked for their orders.
"I'll have a plate of pork buns and-," Goku said.
"Ignore him, he's a stomach-brain monkey," Gojyo said charmingly. He thought that this girl would fall head over heels over him, like almost every girl he met.
"Sorry, sir, but every customer has a right to order," she said with a super-sweet smile.
That smile's too sweet, thought Gojyo, surprised by the girl's reaction.
Let's see. This guy's probably a playboy and has dated more girls than you can count. Obviously, I'm his next target, thought the waitress.
Then, she turned back to Goku and asked him with a genuine smile, "What would you like to order?"
"You're pretty when you smile," commented Gojyo.
"Thanks," the waitress said with a tight smile.
Just then, Hakkai arrived. "Umm. Did I interrupt something?" he asked uncertainly.
"No, no." said Gojyo.
Goku smiled at the waitress and said, "I want this. And this." while pointing at the menu.
She also asked Hakkai and Sanzo what they wanted and pointedly didn't ask Gojyo. She turned to leave when Gojyo interrupted her. "You didn't ask me what I wanted yet."
"Oh, I didn't?!" she asked feigning surprise.
"No," Gojyo said, thinking that she was playing hard-to-get. "I want soba noodles," he said with an easy smile.
Throughout the meal, they ordered some more food. The waitress seemed to ignore Gojyo's order until Goku noticed it.
"Why do you always forget Gojyo's food?" Goku asked when she came to serve his dimsum.
"It's not polite to ask questions w/o introducing yourself first," Hakkai said.
"Oh. Sorry. I'm Son Goku," Goku said amiably.
"I'm Mei Lin," the waitress said with a smile.
"Why do you always forget Gojyo's food?" Goku asked again.
Mei Lin blushed, "I-I seem to be forgetful today," she stammered.
"No," Goku shook his head, "you never forget Sanzo's, Hakkai's or my food."
"Well," Mei Lin said but was interrupted by a shout, "Mei Lin, there are still some food to be served."
"I've got to go," Mei Lin said, relieved she didn't have to answer Goku's questions.
Another waitress attended to them for the rest of their meal and they didn't see Mei Lin for the rest of the night.
After they finished eating and paid their bill, they retreated to the motel Hakkai found.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
At the middle of the night, Gojyo woke up, thinking he heard a sound. He lay still and strained his ears. But he didn't hear the sound again. Thinking that he imagined the sound, he prepared to go back to sleep but he heard the sound again and this time, it woke Sanzo and Hakkai. Goku, on the other hand, lay asleep, muttering, "Blueberry cake, cheesecake."
"Sanzo, Gojyo and Hakkai silently went outside the motel, encountering a terrible scene looming before their eyes. There was a group of demons surrounding a half-naked woman. This woman was VERY beautiful but she was filled with wounds and bruises. Gojyo realized that the sound was probably the muffled moan of the girl.
The three prepared to fight. The demons were so engrossed in the woman that they didn't notice 2 demons and a monk preparing for their attack.
"Hey," Gojyo called out, "it's not nice to harm a pretty woman."
"Get out of here unless you want to die a painful death," one of the demons threatened.
"Hah!" sneered Sanzo, "I don't want to waste my time with these idiots." And with that, he went back to the motel.
"Shut up, you monk!" the demon shouted to the retreating back of Sanzo.
Sanzo turned around and shot his spirit-ascending gun. It hit the demon square on his head.
"I'll leave the rest to you," he said, addressing Hakkai and Gojyo.
In less than five minutes, Hakkai and Gojyo defeated all the demons.
Then, a sleepy Goku emerged from the motel, "Why are you so noisy? Is it breakfast already?"
"No, you can go back to sleep now," Hakkai assured Goku.
In a second, Gojyo was supporting the damsel in distress.
"I'm Kahrin," she managed to say before she became unconscious.
Hakkai was beside them in a moment. He immediately healed the girl's - Kahrin's - wounds. After he did the best he could do, Gojyo carefully carried her to a bed.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The next day, as they were having breakfast, Sanzo said, "We're leaving after breakfast."
"But--," Gojyo and Goku said at the same time, each with a different reason.
"Let's stay for a couple more days. I've got to buy some more supplies," Hakkai said.
"And it will take you a couple of day to buy those supplies?" Sanzo asked sarcastically.
"No, but I think we should rest more," Hakkai said thoughtfully.
"Yeah," Goku and Gojyo said and nodded vigorously.
Sanzo rolled his eyes in exasperation. He knew that they wouldn't budge. He left the table without saying a word.
"Great!" cheered Goku.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Goku spent his time roaming around the town, looking for exquisite delicacies. Hakkai, meanwhile, was looking at different books and buying some basic necessities. Sanzo was just lazing around with nothing to do or, in other words, he was being himself. Gojyo, however, did none of these. He spent his time beside Kahrin's bed, attracted by the beauty she beheld and hoping against hope that she would wake up.
On the third day, Gojyo's wait was rewarded because Kahrin finally woke up.
"You're awake already?" Gojyo said.
"What are you doing here?" she asked, then thoughts of what happened rushed into her mind.
"How many days did I sleep?" Kahrin asked.
"Three," Gojyo informed her.
"And you've been here all the time?" gasped the girl.
"What makes you say that?" demanded Gojyo, a tell-tale blush creeping up his cheeks.
Kahrin smiled silently.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"Hi," Goku said cheerfully at breakfast the next day.
Kahrin came in and Goku immediately introduced himself, "I'm Son Goku."
"I'm Kahrin," she said. "He must be Genjo Sanzo, and he must be Cho Hakkai," she said while pointing to each one in turn.
"Nice to meet you. Gojyo must've told you all about us," commented Hakkai with a smile, "please join our table."
"Thank you," Kahrin said and sat down beside Sanzo. Sanzo looked uninterested and continued reading his paper, ignoring the shiver that ran down his spine.
"Where's the red cockroach?" Goku asked, directing the question to Kahrin.
For a moment, Kahrin was startled, then she laughed, "You mean Gojyo? He's asleep. You're Sanzo right?" she asked Sanzo.
"Is it that obvious?" Sanzo asked with his trademark sarcasm.
"Oh," Kahrin said, her smile fading. For the rest of the day, she tried to engage Sanzo in a conversation, from food to sutras. But she failed miserably. Good thing Gojyo was too exhausted to wake up and slept for the rest of the day or else he would have been jealous.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Later that night, Hakkai went to Sanzo's room.
"What do you want?" Sanzo asked.
"I'm just surprised there haven't been any demon attacks."
"Don't worry, the excitement will begin tomorrow," Sanzo said.
Hakkai smiled and left the room.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The next day, as Sanzo foretold, demons attacked the town.
"Great," Goku cheered, "I'll finally have some exercise."
As Sanzo's Party was leaving, Kahrin called out, "Be careful! Especially you, Sanzo."
Sanzo stopped in his tracks, his heart pounding, and faced Kahrin. "I will," Sanzo said, almost inaudibly for fear of being overheard. Then, he went to catch up with Hakkai and the others.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
They followed the terrified screams of the villagers and they traced the source to the outskirts of town.
"Stop that," Hakkai said, "I still have to buy some souvenirs."
"I don't care about your stupid souvenirs, you idiot!" shouted a demon with black streaks across his cheeks.
"Let's not waste time, I'm itching for a fight," Goku said excitedly.
"Are you sure you're not itching because of your fleas?" Gojyo asked.
"Shut up! You're just stalling 'cause you're too chicken to fight us!" a demon taunted, "Chicken, chicken!" The rest of the demons laughed.
"What did you say?!" Sanzo asked. But before he gave the demon a chance to reply, he shot his gun and killed the demon. The shot was like a signal for the start of a fight and Hakkai used his energy ball, Gojyo used his weapon and Goku used the Almighty Staff. Together, they defeated the demons in a matter of minutes.
As they were walking back to the motel, Hakkai commented, "You're pretty energetic today. You killed about half the demons."
"Whatever," Sanzo said, not willing to reveal that he killed those demons for a special reason --- but more like, a special someone.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Sanzo was lying on his bed when Kahrin came in.
"Hi," she greeted him, "I heard from Goku that you killed half of the demons. He was really amazed because he said that you usually kill the least number of demons. I'm quite surprised myself.I mean, a monk." she trailed off.
"Are you saying I'm weak?" Sanzo asked, sitting up.
"No. You know, you look cute when you're angry," she commented.
"Flattery is no way to find anybody's heart," Sanzo commented wryly.
"Oh?"
Sanzo lay back down on the bed. Kahrin got up and sat beside him. Surprisingly, Sanzo did not object.
"Hey, Sanzo! You awake?!" asked a familiar voice. Gojyo opened the door and came in.
"What are you doing here?" he asked Kahrin, his voice in disbelief and jealousy.
Without waiting for an answer, he rushed out of Sanzo's room. Kahrin immediately followed.
"Gojyo! Gojyo!" called Kahrin. She found him in the garden.
"Why are you here? Aren't you supposed to be with Sanzo?" Gojyo asked sarcastically.
"You're not. jealous, are you?" she asked with a hint of a smile.
"Of course not," Gojyo said quickly.
"Oh. Too bad," she said quietly, obviously disappointed. "Can I sit with you?" she asked in a much louder voice.
"I don't see why not. Unless your boyfriend will mind," Gojyo said, emphasizing the key word, 'boyfriend.'
"I don't have a boyfriend," Kahrin objected.
"Like I didn't see you and Sanzo."
"But I just visited him."
"Right." Gojyo said and interrupted himself, "Why did you say that it was too bad that I wasn't jealous?"
"Because - because I like you and not Sanzo," she finished in a fast rush of breath.
Gojyo was speechless.
"Can you prove it?" Gojyo managed to ask.
"Yes. But how?"
"How about taking your clothes off and being butt-naked?" Gojyo asked jokingly.
As Kahrin stood and started taking her clothes off, Gojyo also stood up and stopped her.
"I was just kidding," he said softly. Then, he tilted up her head and they shared a passionate first kiss, in the garden, under the moonlight.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The next day, Gojyo came in the dining room grinning broadly.
"What are you so happy about?" Goku asked, chewing noisily.
"I'm in love." Gojyo said dreamily.
Goku snorted, "You say that most of the time," making Hakkai laugh. "Come to think of it, you say that all the time."
Gojyo snapped out of his reverie and shot back, "You? Thinking? That's a laugh!" and Gojyo laughed.
"What did you say, you horny water monster?!" Goku asked madly.
"I said that stupid monkeys don't think." Goku leaped from his seat to Gojyo's back. Instinct told Gojyo to retaliate, which is exactly what he did.
Misfortune struck Gojyo for Kahrin chose that exact moment to make her entrance. "Good morning!" she greeted the demons.
Goku's and Gojyo's holds immediately dropped.
"Good morning!" greeted Goku, "Would you like some bean curd?"
"Yes please," was Kahrin's answer.
"Good morning," Gojyo whispered in Kahrin's ear, which made her giggle. But her giggle wasn't those high-pitched ones of high school girls who have crushes on boys. Gojyo considered this as a giggle of true love and it made him smile more broadly.
Sanzo came in and sat on a chair with no greetings exchanged between them. The three demons were used to this behavior, of course. But Kahrin wasn't.
"Good morning, Mr. Monk," she said with a smile.
Sanzo didn't say anything but just started eating.
"When are we leaving?" Hakkai asked out of the blue.
Sanzo and Gojyo were startled and Gojyo asked hysterically, "We're going?! We're leaving?! When?! To where?! Why didn't anybody tell me about this?!"
Sanzo, on the other hand, kept his cool and replied calmly, "We're not leaving yet," with no signs of apprehension or whatsoever but nobody knew that inside, Sanzo was as perplexed with his answer as any of them.
Now it was Hakkai's turn to be startled, "We're not? I thought you were the one who was so eager to leave?" He turned to Goku and asked, "Aren't you puzzled with all these?"
Goku turned to Hakkai and asked innocently, "Of what? What were you talking about?" which made Hakkai sigh. Goku shrugged and continued to eat his food, no concern on his mind except maybe if there was food for lunch and dinner.
"Since Gojyo doesn't want to leave, we're not leaving," was Sanzo's reply to Hakkai's previous question. At this, Goku's confused head turned from Hakkai, to Sanzo, then to Gojyo, and back again.
"Since when did you follow Gojyo's tantrums?" Hakkai asked, curiosity from his voice impossible not to hear.
"I don't want to ride a jeep with a crybaby," Sanzo replied smoothly.
"Sounds reasonable," Goku answered. Gojyo murmured his agreement.
Hakkai let the subject drop and didn't answer but he still had a sinking feeling in the pit of his stomach. He realized that both Gojyo and Sanzo were in love with Kahrin. But he shook his head and reasoned that it couldn't be! It just couldn't!
As all this took place, Kahrin remained ignored and silently ate her meal with a sinister smile that no one noticed. It remained only for a second and it was immediately replaced by her calm face showing no emotions she had beneath her face.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
After breakfast, Sanzo wanted to stroll around and think. The town they were in was surrounded by dense woods. While they were on their way to the town, Sanzo noticed a trail leading to the woods. This same trail was what he decided to follow.
As Sanzo walked, thoughts of the past few days in the town rushed through his brain. But one vision stood above all others: Kahrin's.
"Kahrin," Sanzo murmured a little inaudibly.
That walk helped Sanzo to define his feelings. He realized, after a lot of denying, that he was in love at last. He finally found someone he could share his love with and would give it back. As this realization sunk in, another feeling rushed in: One of joy and triumph.
After that walk, Sanzo retreated to his room. Kahrin, seeing him, immediately followed.
"What are you doing here? Again?" Sanzo asked, irritated. But his irritation wasn't caused by the appearance of Kahrin. It was because the girl in front of him was the girl he loved. Despite all the things he mulled over in his brain, he wasn't absolutely sure that Kahrin would return the love he finally found at last.
"I guess you don't want to see me," Kahrin said sadly. As she was heading toward the door, Sanzo reached a hand, turned her around and brushed a strand of hair from her face. "How could I not want to see a beautiful face like yours?"
Kahrin looked up and met the eyes of Sanzo. "Flattery is no way to win a woman's heart," she said with a teasing smile.
Sanzo tipped her head back and they shared a kiss. It felt such a long time until Sanzo pulled away. "Does that answer your question?" he asked.
And Kahrin kissed Sanzo and replied, "Does that answer your question?"
They shared another kiss, longer than the first one and Kahrin finally went to her own room.
As Kahrin was leaving, she cast a fleeting glance at Sanzo. As Sanzo's door closed, his heart jumped in joy and he felt elated. He was finally certain that he had found his one true love.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The next day, Gojyo's happiness did not waver. He was so delighted that he had finally found his perfect woman that he went into a bar and drank and drank. By the time he went back to the motel, he was so drunk that he drifted off to sleep in a daze.
Kahrin followed Gojyo all over town until she was positive that Gojyo wouldn't wake up. Silently, she crept into Sanzo's room and opened the door gently so as not to wake Sanzo if he was sleeping.
But Sanzo's senses were alert and when the door was open enough so that Kahrin could slip in, Sanzo was sitting on the bed with his gun ready to fire. Kahrin's eyes widened and she had one thought, "I'm discovered." But relief washed through her as Sanzo lowered his gun and lay down on his bed. "You should've knocked," he said with a yawn. "Next time, I shall.
My dear Sanzo, My love and my pride, I shall never leave, Thy beloved side.
Thou shall not fear, For I will be near, Forever, I shall be faithful, To the love ever so baleful.
I mean, "staleful". Oh! I haven't found anything that rhymes with "faithful". Kahrin said with an exasperated sigh. Inwardly she thought, Considering that I made that lame poem just now.
"What was that supposed to be?" Sanzo asked in a bored tone.
"Hey, can't you recognize a lover's poem when you hear one?" Kahrin asked, pretending to be hurt.
"Say it again," Sanzo ordered and Kahrin obeyed, stopping after the phrase, "To the love ever so-".
"Playful," Sanzo said.
"Pardon me?" Kahrin said.
"To the love ever so playful."
"Playful?" Kahrin repeated. "Hardly."
"Oh?" Sanzo said, nearing Kahrin.