Reviving the Sun: Golden-eyed Guardian
Author's note: As promised, Goku's appearance.
Warnings: shonen-ai, yaoi, language, violence, blood, murder, reincarnation and a few other things that will be brought up as they appear.
Disclaimer: Nope, don't own… nothing but the plot of this story at least.
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"Bon! Tsuzuki! You're back." The two shinigami had just returned from their trip to Nagasaki and were a bit taken aback by the sudden welcome from Meifu's resident mad scientist. Watari Yutaka beamed up at them with the kind of grin he got when he had either spiked the office's supply of coffee or blown his lab to pieces once again… or when he had found an incredibly amusing challenge, but more often then not it was the former of the two.
"Did you find something?" Tsuzuki asked him, hiding his mild worry behind a friendly grin of his own. Watari nodded in response.
"I found a bit of obscure information on that lost scripture you asked me to investigate," he replied.
"What is it?" Hisoka asked, mild impatience in his voice. He was interested though. They hadn't had a good break through in this case since it began and any information could be useful. Watari lifted a finger, winking at them.
"There is a connection between the Infernal Land Scripture and Japan after all… or at least a good hint towards one," he explained, beckoning his two coworkers towards his lab. The place was surprisingly intact, though stacks of papers, beakers and various other pieces of scientific equipment were scattered haphazardly around the counters.
Watari brushed a few papers off of his keyboard, settling down at the computer and going to work. From across the room on a small perch by the window, 003 fluttered over to rest curiously on her master's shoulder, giving a small hoot and nipping at the blonde's hair.
"Let's see…" he mumbled, opening a file near the bottom of the screen. "These are some photos of an old record that was found a few years ago in a small makeshift shrine in Mt. Aso. It's currently in the county museum in Kumamoto, but no one has been able to translate it completely due to the burns." With a hand, Watari gestured to the large dark burn marks all over the small script that nearly obscured the actual writing except for a few places. "Anyway, it mentions the former Sanzo priest who carried the lost scripture… Genjo Sanzo, right?" Tsuzuki nodded.
"Are you sure?" Hisoka asked.
"Not positive," Watari said with a shrug. "But the writing dates back to the right time period and it does mention the death of a Sanzo priest. According to record, this Genjo was the only one whose scripture was not recovered."
"What does that have to do with this script?" was Hisoka's next impatient question. Watari sighed dramatically.
"I'm getting there," he winked. "The script… or what can be read… also mentions a companion or someone who was entrusted with the scripture at the monk's death to hide it." Tsuzuki frowned.
"Are there any hints of who it might be?" he asked.
"He must have trusted that person a lot if he gave such an important scripture to them," Hisoka murmured. Watari sighed again, more sincerely this time. He spun in his chair, facing the two.
"No other names come up in what I can read of this script," he explained. "If it was in here then it probably has been burned out. I can't recover the paper from this kind of damage."
"Oh…" was Tsuzuki's somewhat disappointed reply.
"So," said Watari, changing the subject. "What did you two find?"
"Not much," Hisoka answered.
"There's a saying that has been apparently passed down within a lot of the major Buddhist temples," Tsuzuki explained. "The monk I spoke with refused to tell us what it said but…"
"While he was distracting the monk," Hisoka motioned to Tsuzuki, "I snuck into the deceased's cubicle. Apparently he kept a journal. I wasn't able to bring it with me, but I do remember the saying." The green-eyed boy looked a bit smug.
"So, what did it say?" Watari asked, humoring him.
"It was some kind of riddle," Hisoka explained. "The monkey hides in the veiled islands of the east, to the southern mountain summit seek the writings of infernal land."
"The problem is that Mt. Aso isn't the southern most peak in Japan by a long shot," Tsuzuki finished.
"But it does explain why they were in Japan." Watari stood up, from his turning chair.
"We should go back to Mt. Aso one more time," Tsuzuki said. "I'm sure we're missing something.
"Tsuzu…"
"Will this be before or after you set that report on my desk?" Tsuzuki jumped and spun around.
"Tat… Tatsumi!" The blue eyed Kagetsukai was leaning against the doorframe, file-folders tucked securely under one arm and a customary steel-eyed, tightlipped smile on his face.
"It seems you've actually made some progress," he noted. Tsuzuki ducked his head sheepishly.
"We've made more progress then we have in weeks," Hisoka said, drawing his attention away from the cowering brunette. Tatsumi raised an eyebrow.
"Watari?" he asked. The blonde shrugged, a warm devious smile on his face.
"It seems we've been looking in the wrong direction," he explained. "As soon as we stopped focusing on the who and started on the why information started jumping into our laps.!" The secretary smiled.
"I'll extend the deadline of your formal report to next week. The most important thing now is to close this case before you waste more of the division's budget," he said firmly. Tsuzuki's eyes brightened.
"Wha… Thank you Tatsumi!" The puppy tail wagged excitedly.
"I'll still expect an update tomorrow on your findings." Tsuzuki glanced at Hisoka, who gave him a dangerous glare. The violet-eyed man's shoulder's slumped.
"Hai…"
"Well then," Watari broke in. "Let's go check out Mt. Aso, shall we?" Hisoka stared incredulously at him.
"You're coming with?" he asked. Watari nodded, grinning in response.
"Nothing's happened in my district for weeks," the blonde huffed, an almost comically dejected look on his face. "Plus this is one of the biggest unsolved cases we've had since I became a shinigami! I'm not going to pass up the chance to solve it. Think of what will happen if we manage to close a 300 year old case!" Tatsumi rubbed his forhead.
"Make sure you don't neglect your duties here," he reminded the blonde. Watari rolled his eyes.
"As loved as you all make me feel, I think the lab can survive a day without me." Three coughs and a cheep from 003 that sounded almost like a bird's version of a snicker could be heard around the room.
"In fact the lab might survive a day without anything being destroyed," Tsuzuki muttered under his breath. Tatsumi was more than inclined to agree with the other brunette… less destruction meant less wasted money.
"Ahem…" Hisoka coughed once more, drawing the room's attention… something he wasn't commonly fond of unless it was necessary. "Can we get going?" he asked. Tsuzuki already had his worn black trench coat draped over one arm. Watari smiled brightly, bounding towards the door after snagging his own jacket. Tatsumi just watched the three head out with a slightly overwhelmed expression.
"Do you think they'll make it back without destroying anything?" he asked 003, certain that no one else was around. The tiny owl hooted softly, landing on his shoulder and nipping his cheek. Tatsumi shook his head. "Right…"
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Mt. Aso was as quiet as it had been when Tsuzuki and Hisoka had been there last. The sounds of a few small birds and the rustling wind were the only things to disturb the still fog. The three landed just outside of the clearing where the monk's body and spirit had been found. The mountain slope rose above dramatically, almost like a wall of solid rock. Tsuzuki surveyed the seen carefully, walking into the foggy clearing.
"Nothing's changed," he murmured softly. Hisoka raised an eyebrow.
"Should it have?" he asked. Tsuzuki shrugged, laughing shortly.
According to the preliminary reports done by those who had found the body, it had seemed at first glance that the monk had fallen from above, but it had turned out that the fall was not the cause of death. After questioning the monk's spirit, they had learned that the man could remember being inside of a cave higher up on the mountain. He could remember a stabbing pain in his chest and golden eyes… then falling. And he had been struck. His body proved that a blunt, thin object had punctured his heart completely, with far more force then an average human could manage. There was nothing more they could learn from the man, so they had sent him on and settled about solving this mysterious case that his body had dragged up.
"Should we go up?" Watari asked the other two, shielding his eyes from the dimmed sunlight as he looked up into the fog-covered cliff.
"That's probably our best bet," Tsuzuki answered.
"We should try higher this time," Hisoka remarked. "We've seen pretty much everything we can nearer to the ground. There may be a landing above." Tsuzuki nodded.
"Alright."
"How far up were you last time?" Watari asked curiously. Tsuzuki shrugged.
"I have no idea actually," he admitted. "It was too foggy to really tell."
"Come to think about it, it always seems to be foggy here," Hisoka noted. "Even today." Tsuzuki nodded with a frown. A sudden birdcall and a whirl of wings startled the three shinigami. "Did you feel that?" Hisoka asked, shivering. Tsuzuki placed his hands on his partner's shoulders, channeling a feeling of comfort, love and warmth through the boy's empathic senses.
"What is it?" he asked. Hisoka shrugged, unconsciously leaning into the warm feelings.
"Something," he answered. "It didn't feel hostile… defensive though… cautious and protective." Hisoka was feeling a little more than slightly dizzy. The emotions flowing between him and Tsuzuki, warm as they were, were enough to make him feel a little overwhelmed.
"That's the first time you've sensed something here," Tsuzuki murmured. Hisoka nodded, stepping away from Tsuzuki to break their contact and clear his head.
"Could you tell where it came from?" Watari asked. Hisoka nodded numbly.
"There," he said, pointing upward through the fog. "I couldn't tell exactly… but I felt it from up there." Tsuzuki glanced at Watari.
"Let's check it out," he said. "Hisoka… will you be able to trace it?" Hisoka nodded, but not before staling a bit. His head was feeling a bit clearer now that he had had a chance to reinforce his mental shields. Tsuzuki smiled in return, a big goofy grin. "Then let's go."
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Shinigami flying abilities aside, Hisoka had to admit that the search wasn't the easiest one they had done. The mist was cold and clingy and soaked through their clothes within minutes leaving all three wet and shivering. Hisoka was whole-heartedly grateful when they finally found the cave, located far above their former search area and well hidden by the lingering fog. They landed inside the mouth of the cave, ringing out their damp coats and, in Watari's case, hair.
"That was an experience," the blonde scientist mumbled. "Let's never do it again." Finished with shaking out his wet hair, he tied it back again and looked around.
"No wonder we never found anything," Tsuzuki huffed, folding his coat over his arm. It was a little to damp to wear comfortably. "Hisoka?" The green-eyed boy nodded.
"This cave is pretty deep, considering its size," he replied, stepping forward. The other two followed only a step behind. Suddenly Hisoka stopped, blinking as he listened closely. "Does that sound like…" Tsuzuki and Watari followed his lead, then looked at each other startled.
"Snoring?" they questioned simultaneously. What they found at the back of the cave was nothing the three had expected. A young man, apparently no older than Hisoka, lay curled on top of a large black stone snoring contently. Behind him on a small stone ledge rested what Buddhist monks throughout the world had been searching for for nearly a millennia: a small green-edged scroll carefully tied with a silver cord.
"Is this…" Tsuzuki was lost for words. Watari moved forward, curiosity getting the best of him. He leaned over the sleeping boy to gaze on the scripture behind him.
"Is this really what they've been looking for this whole time?" he muttered. He didn't notice the golden eyes beneath him blink open.
"Watari!" Before he knew what was happening the blonde was on the ground, chest burning from a hard blow. He grimaced, sure that without his shinigami healing powers he would have had a nasty bruise and maybe a broken rib or two. As he looked up his amber eyes widened in shock. The strange brunette boy was now… far from asleep. He was leaning over Watari, eyes blazing angrily and a long pink and gold staff held tightly in his grip.
"What the hell do you think you're doing?" the strange boy yelled, going for another swing. Instead of hitting the blonde, the blow glanced off a hastily made kekai and the scientist found Tsuzuki kneeling next to him.
"Are you alright?" Tsuzuki asked. Watari nodded, still a bit winded. The golden-eyed boy hit the shield again as if testing its strength, before standing back with a confused expression on his face.
"Who are you?" he asked, now more curious than angry. Sensing it was safe, Tsuzuki banished his kekai.
"Tsuzuki Asato desu," he answered, standing and smiling brightly at the boy. "This is my partner, Kurosaki Hisoka…" Hisoka nodded to the boy warily, "… and Watari Yutaka, a friend of ours." The young brunette tilted his head. "Who are you?" Tsuzuki asked him. The boy blinked in response.
"Goku… Son Goku desu," he answered. "What are you doing here?" Tsuzuki leaned down to give Watari a hand up. The blonde took it gratefully and pulled himself to his feet.
"Actually… I think…" Tsuzuki smiled sheepishly back at Goku. "I think we were looking for you." Goku's eyes widened.
"Me? But…"
"Are you the one who has been killing people near this mountain over the past 300 years?" Hisoka asked bluntly. Goku's eyes narrowed.
"We've been investigating the death of a monk from a near by city. He was found at the base of this mountain about a week ago, killed under unusual circumstances. I assume you know what I'm talking about…" Tsuzuki explained, his voice colder than usual.
"He tried to steal the scripture." Goku's eyes and voice were colder than ice. "Sanzo told me to protect it… and I won't let any one else have it." Dumb shock was the only emotion the three shinigami seemed to be able to get through their heads. Watari sputtered, amber eyes wide.
"But that means… Genjo Sanzo right, the former guardian of the Infernal Land Scripture? But that's impossible! You'd have to be over a millennia old!" Goku blinked in response.
"A millennia?" The boy rubbed his eyes. "It's been that long?"
"Give or take a few decades or so," Watari replied. Tsuzuki nudged Hisoka.
"He doesn't seem all that bad to me," he murmured. "We should take him back with us, at least to figure out what's going on." Hisoka frowned.
"He feels like you," he answered. "His emotions are all over the place, loud too… almost childish." Tsuzuki nodded, then frowned abruptly.
"Hey, I'm older than you!" Hisoka rolled his eyes.
"Baka," was his affectionate response. Goku's ears twitched.
"Take me? Take me where?" he asked. Hisoka stared at him.
"You heard that?" Goku nodded in response.
"We'd like to take you back with us… to our… home," Tsuzuki told the boy.
"Ah… Tsuzuki?" Watari was wincing. "I don't think Tatsumi or the chief…"
"They don't have to know. They'd probably want to take him into custody if they found out anyway considering the situation. We might be able to figure this out with his help…" Why did that sound like something bad in the making?
"Where would we put him?"
"Better question, how would we feed him?" was Hisoka's comment.
"Food?" Goku's innocent question stopped the argument in its tracks. Tsuzuki laughed nervously.
"Umm…" he glanced at Hisoka. The boy glared back.
"You and Watari are so far in debt you'll be working for the JuOhCho for eternity," he snapped. "I barely get paid as is…"
"Though technically you eat next to nothing anyway…" Tsuzuki noted.
"While Tsuzuki spends all he manages to scrape up on sweets…" Watari commented.
"I'm not paying for him!"
"Watari, you're mean!"
"It's not like we can leave him here… what if someone else comes along and we have another dead body?" Watari asked, quickly changing the subject.
"You're the one who thought this was a bad idea to begin with," Tsuzuki shot back.
"Goku… san," Hisoka broke in, focusing back on the confused golden-eyed boy in front of them. "What do you think?" he asked. Goku frowned.
"I don't know… Sanzo… the scripture…" Tsuzuki smiled.
"We're not after the scripture. We could help you even… help you find the person it belongs to," he suggested.
"Tsuzuki…" Hisoka warned. Goku's face fell.
"Sanso is dead," he stated. "He died a long time ago." There was an old hurt in his eyes. "He promised to come back but…"
"If it's been a full millennia he may have been reincarnated by now… he was a Buddhist monk after all," Watari thought for a moment before continuing. "We could ask the earl… Finding this 'Sanzo' might help us after all." Tsuzuki winced.
"You could find him?" Goku asked, his eyes full of hope. Watari frowned.
"Possibly," he answered. "I won't say for sure but…"
"But you could try?" The hope in Goku's eyes was almost sickeningly desperate. The blonde man sighed in defeat.
"We could try," he affirmed. Goku stepped up to them, the scroll now clenched tightly in his hand.
"I'll go with you. Sanzo told me to protect the scripture until he returned, but he never said I couldn't look for him."
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Across the district of Kyushu, in an old apartment in the heart of Kumamoto, Kiame started. That voice, the one he had been hearing for a good month or so… it had suddenly grown louder then quieted to a whisper. Kiame frowned, brushing hair out of his eyes. He could distinctly remember one word from the voice, one word… but it felt… nostalgic somehow. Maybe it was the voice, but he was certain he had heard that very same call once before.
"Sanzo…"
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Author's notes: Well, there's Goku. Hope you liked… Please review.