Chiharu (Lol which is me the author): Joy! We got good reviews, guys! no flames im so happy lol.

Ha -smiles- Ha: well of course we did. We gave a splendid performance, Gojyo and I did.

Gy -shrugs- Gy: Whatever the hell you say. I had better be getting paid good for this; I'm not some damned homo...

Chi: Uh...-sweatdrops- Youre actually doing this for free. Yeah.

Gy: What? I'm gonna-

Chi-beaming-: On with the story!

still means thought lol. oh, and at the beginning its gojyo with that "man" XD i think we all know who he is...but yeah. its him

and the guy talking about the past, when they were heading west. just so you don't get confused.

Gojyo ran his fingers through the man's hair, his smile growing. "Remember the time we fought?" he questioned gently,

sliding his finger along the other man's cheekbone and falling down along his jawline. The man smiled, emerald eyes reflecting

the bright sun as he laughed. "Do I remember the time we fought? Gojyo, we fought all the time!"

Gojyo frowned, indignant. "Maybe we did, but we didn't fight nearly as much as I did with the other idiots from that rag-

tag bunch of ass-scratchers. I'm actually glad this whole thing's done and over with so I don't have to see their ugly monkey

faces anymore!" The man sat up, pulling away from Gojyo with a teasing grin on his face.

"Really? Bunch of 'monkey faces'? And I bet I was the ugliest one of the bunch."

Gojyo shook his head, exhaling a cloud of smoke from one of his trademark, ever present cigarettes. "I don't think I go

for that kind of thing. I'm not that desperate for love!" he watched, dismayed, as the man reached up and put his cigarette out

on the ground, offering only his smile as an apology.

"HEY! What the hell are you doing! I was smoking that!"

"I know, but I'm not going to kiss you when you're smoking, Gojyo-san..."

This remark brought a grin to the water kappa's face, and he leaned down slightly to receive the other demon's gentle lips

and warm embrace, heart thudding in excitement.

Goku watched Gojyo as he pretended to sleep, confused. /What's he doing back in here? I could have sworn he would

have rather roomed with Hakkai, but all he did was throw his bag at me, then hit me on toppa the head when I asked what

the hell he was doing.../ Goku frowned at this thought, still watching the sleeping water kappa, who was tossing and turning

and mumbling in his sleep. /Stupid Sanzo forced me to sleep with him and took the room with Hakkai...just because those

two want to fight doesn't mean they get ta drag me in with them/ Goku growled slightly, then turned to face the wall to get

awayfrom looking at Gojyo, eyes slowly sliding shut as he fell asleep.

The atmosphere in Jeep the next day was far from pleasant. Hakkai clutched the wheel tightly, biting his lip as he stared

straight ahead, smile flitting across his faceonce or twice at most. Goku had a large bump on his head from Gojyo's hard

knuckles, and all he had done was tell him to scoot over! Sanzo seemed to be the calmest out of the bunch, and that was

saying something. Goku had even noticed this and leaned forward between the seat until his mouth was right next to Sanzo's

ear, but out of the way so that Hakkai and Gojyo didn't hear him. "Um...Sanzo? Have ya noticed that something doesn't

seem...I dunno...right, ya know?"

Sanzo sighed loudly, glaring at Goku for a moment before turning back around. "Shut up and don't let them hear you

talking. It's none of your business, so keep your nose out of it."

"That's not fair!" he whispered loudly, growing agitated. "You guys have done this before!"

"Done what?" Sanzo asked, barely paying any attention to the Monkey King anymore.

"Kept secrets! That's not fair! I tell ya everything, and ya know it!"

Sanzo sighed once more, purple eyes tilted towards the heavens. "Goku...sometimes you can't tell everyone everything

about you. Sometimes you need a thing such as privacy. Besides, I know nothing on the matter." he lied calmly, blinking

once. Goku smiled, naively believing the priest. "Really?" he questioned, smiling slightly. "Ok then." Goku settled back down

in the backseat next to Gojyo, who was scowling and watching the landscape change with every mile they chugged along.

"What're you grinning about, monkey?" Gojyo asked, irritated, and Hakkai glanced back at the redhead before slowly

shaking his head once and returning his attention to the path they were driving on.

"Hey, shut up! I am NOT a monkey!"

"Only a monkey would say that!"

"I- I mean- SHUT UP!"

"Make me, asshole!"

"Fine. I will, jackass! I'll take you out right here, right now!"

"I'd like ta see you try, monkey!"

"That's it!"

Gojyo and Goku began scrabbling in the back, punching and kicking each other as they yelled out insults at the top of

their lungs, some of them quite creative.

Sanzo took the fighting as long as he could before leaning back over the seat and doling out punishment-fan style. "Shut up

or I'll kill you right now!"

Hakkai gripped the wheel tighter, trying to tune everyone out and go to his own happy place, his smile on his face once

more. To anyone who didn't know him well, he looked perfectly content, but there was something about his eyes that

expressed deep sadness over something...hell, over many things; and he stared ahead when Sanzo plopped back down,

putting his fan away deep in his robes. "What's your problem?" Sanzo asked, trying to look (and sound) the part of a

disinterested priest who cared about nothing more than peace, quiet, and maybe a smoke or two. "You're not still mad at

Gojyo, are you?" he asked quieter, so as not to attract the attention of Goku, who was giving (and receiving) the death glare

to (and from) Gojyo.

"Oh?" Hakkai turned to the priest, and after a brief moment his smile came back. "That...incident last night. It meant

nothing to me." he looked away for a moment, and Sanzo frowned slightly.

"Yeah. And you're a bullshitter, too. You never have been able to lie well. At all." Sanzo smirked slightly, putting a

cigarette to his lips and exhaling, shutting his eyes.

"I suppose you're right." Hakkai murmured, smile disappearing as his serious expression returned.

Goku frowned from the back, deep in thought (which quite rarely happens). /Wait a minute...everytime Sanzo lights up,

Hakkai doesn't really say anything. But everytime GOJYO takes a puff, he says somethin' like, "it'll kill you" or "put that

out, it's bad for you". So that means...Sanzo's cigarettes must be tha cheap kind/ Satisfied with this explanation for a thought

that had come out of nowhere, he settled once more into the seat, next to a silent and sullen Gojyo.

/Stupid freakin' Hakkai. Why'd he have ta go and tell that damn, high-and-mighty prick of a priest my secret? Why

couldn't he have just kept it all to himself? It's bad enough I'm turning into a homo, but I don't need everyone to know it! I

have a reputation to uphold/

If looks could kill, the gaze Gojyo gave Hakkai would have burnt through the seat and seared a hole through the back of

his skull. /Moron! Stupid baka! I thought you would have more self-control! Instead you were like some damn schoolgirl

with her new boyfriend...Guess that's what I get for playing on the other team.../

Gojyo folded his arms behind his head and leaned back, pulling out a cigarette and glancing at Hakkai to see his reaction.

He lit it and inhaled as much as possible before exhaling loudly, blowing out a smoke cloud the size of Goku's head.

Unfortunately, doing that caused him to choke on the smoke, and he coughed, sitting forward as he hacked loudly, pounding

on his chest.

"Damn, Gojyo! Some of us don't want to eat smoke all the time!" Goku glared at him, not even caring the kappa was

having a hard time catching his breath.

"Gojyo! Are you alright?"

Upset, Hakkai turned around from the front, the only member of the Sanzo party seemingly worried for the pervert's

health and well-being. Gojyo, eyes watering, answered Hakkai's question with a scowl.

"Why dontcha just turn around and focus on driving, huh? Some of us can take care of ourselves...or would you rather

like to tell everyone I smoke so much I probably have cancer? Why don't we just spread that ALL around like certain other

things, huh?"

Hakkai looked as though he had been slapped across the face, and he turned his attention back to driving, looking like a

sad, whipped puppy dog that was starved for attention. "Ok, Gojyo. Sorry I asked..." he murmured, hurt expression

crossing his face.

"Damn, what's your problem!" Goku peered at Gojyo, curious. "He was just makin' sure you were ok!"

"Yeah, well, he can screw off as far as I'm concerned."

Gojyo enjoyed seeing Hakkai flinch slightly, but for some reason...it made his heart hurt. /Maybe I should just stop while

I'm ahead.../

"Ok then..." Goku raised his eyebrows but didn't comment anymore, not wanting to be caught at the end of the redheaded

demon's odd rage.

"Sonuva-!"

Jeep suddenly spun out of control, and the whole gang was flung to the earth as it transformed back to Hakuryu, cheeping

and screeching, beating its wings frantically.

"What the hell just happened?" Goku wandered aloud, looking around. They were in a clearing, and a large, jumbled

shape loomed slightly ahead, roaring loudly.

"Looks like we have company." Gojyo smirked, whipping out his weapon. "This oughta be fun..."

"I'll say!" a strange voice called out, and the Sanzo party looked up to see three demons standing in front of them, each

armed with a weapon.

"Kougaiji's assasins, I wonder?" Hakkai looked to Sanzo, who only shrugged.

"Kougaiji? Who the hell is that?" One demon asked, sticking a finger into his ear. "We just want yer stuff."

"Guess that answers my question." Hakkai smiled thinly, and the demons clashed.

Each had an opponent to fight excluding Hakkai, who felt odd standing and watching his companions duke it out. Goku

darted and did handstands, merely playing with his adversary as he grinned broadly, teasing and laughing all the while.

Gojyo dipped and weaved away from his attacker, dodging each attack and dealing out blows that weren't fatal, smirking in

superiority. Sanzo was far less accomadating than his fellow fighters, and his expression was of pure annoyance at being

brought out by some minor demon who thought himself to be far more important than what he truly was.

"Hell. That wasn't that bad. Wish they were all like that!" Gojyo exclaimed, finally slaying the demon and wiping his

bloody blade on the grass.

Hakkai's eyes widened in horror as the looming shape that had slipped his mind now came into view, directly behind

Gojyo. It had the form of an enormous lion with razor sharp claws and a hungry, vicious expression in its eyes, craving the

blood of the kappa.

"NO! GOJYO!"

Gojyo turned, looking at Hakkai in surprise. "What the hell is your problem? Didn't like the way I killed that idiot? Well,

too bad!"

"Gojyo!"

The lion-demon announced its presence by emitting an ear-splitting roar, and Gojyo paled, turning as if it took everything

he had just to move a muscle.

/Sonuva...I'm gonna die here. What a way to go.../

"I won't let you die!"

And in the blink of an eye Hakkai was in front of Gojyo, no time to move, to think. To do much of anything, really. Gojyo

watched, as though everything had changed to slow-motion. The claws gleamed in the sunlight...Hakkai stood in front of

him, arms wide and expression determined. And...just like that, it was over.

Gojyo's mouth was opened, but no words could come out as he was powerless to watch the demon cut down Hakkai as

though he were a child, and he could only watch as Hakkai crumpled to the ground, facefirst. The lion laughed like that was

the funniest thing in the world.

"No...NO!"

Screaming in rage, Gojyo whirled his chain and hurled it with all his strength blindly at the large demon, slicing straight

through its neck. The lion was still laughing when his head was seperated from his body, and Gojyo was covered by a spray

of blood when it fell limply to the ground, body collapsing seconds later with a dull boom.

"Die! Die! DIE!"

Gojyo hacked furiously at the lion, chopping it and mincing it as he continued to yell out, stabbing and slicing.

"G-Gojyo!" Goku watched, wide-eyed from a few feet away, amazed. "Gojyo-" he started to go forward, but stopped

when Sanzo put his hand on his shoulder and shook his head.

"Let him be, Goku."

"But-"

"Let him be. How did you feel when I was attacked?"

Goku looked down at his feet. "Like...I dunno. Kinda like my world was crashin' in on me, ya know? Like nothing would

ever feel right..." he blushed, embarassed at having said that.

"Well then. You know how Gojyo feels."

Gojyo dropped to his knees, throwing his spear to the side as he flipped Hakkai over. "Hakkai, why'd ya DO that?

Why'd you have to go and be such a moron! WHY?"

Deep slash marks decorated Hakkai's chest, and his clothes were drenched with his blood, and Gojyo pulled him closer

to him, hugging Hakkai's limp body to him as he buried his face in Hakkai's hair. "Why did you have to go and do it!" Gojyo

muttered, hair in his mouth. His eyes were burning, as though he'd cry.

Cry?

/Why do we always get attached to one person/ His heart ached, and he felt like it was going to burst at any moment.

"Damn you, Hakkai! DAMN YOU!"

Chi: Wow. That kinda went...different than what I had expected. Sad, huh? grins evilly but dun worry, i have a few tricks

up my sleeve and I warn you now, expect sanzoxgoku, because its coming lol. I made up my mind. Share the love!

Gy: That was a pretty stupid thing to write.

Chi: -slaps Gojyo with a fan- Was not! Its called, uh...um...help me out here, Hakkai.

Ha: I'm dead. The dead don't give advice.

Chi: Hey! Expect the unexpected with me ok? uh...its...kinda a cliffhanger really. but seriously, dont go anywhere because

this is going to be an all out love fest. 'tis gonna be a grand ould time XD. See ya then!

Gy:-not thrilled- Oh yeah. See ya then.

chi: oh...and if my paragraphs are messed up, sorry but my comp is haywire right now.