Hakuryu at last managed to find them after the battle had calmed down, and was surprised to see them all gathered around his master. He landed not far from them, and made his way on foot over to Hakkai, wondering why he was so still and why the others were crying. In his innocent faithfulness to Hakkai, he reasoned he was sleeping and, wanting him to wake up, began to nuzzle at his cheek. He cheeped in surprise when he found it to be surprisingly cool. His lips seemed so pale, too. When cheeping in his ear failed to work as well, the little dragon climbed up onto his chest and grabbed a mouthful of his shirt, tugging at it with vengeance. Still, his master failed to wake. Confusion in his little red eyes, Hakuryu looked to the other three travelers. Each one looked away. It was then that he understood that his master wasn't going to wake up ever again. With a soft, mournful cheep, he lay down on his master's chest and rested his head where he should have felt the steady beating of a heart. Small pearly tears rolled down his small, white snout.

"We've got go," Sanzo said at last, breaking the oppressive silence that had fallen with his strained voice.

"Where did you have in mind?" Gojyo asked, but what he really meant to say was what was the fucking point?

"Away. Just…away from here. They're going to come back, and I really don't feel with dealing with a bunch of mindless assassin assholes right now." Sanzo stood, trying to numb his sadness by forcing himself to maintain his normal angry façade. "Come on, dragon. Change."

Hakuryu didn't stir.

"Look we don't have time for this right now! Just change, damn it!"

This time he cheeped softly and flew off of Hakkai, landing about a foot away and changing into the familiar Jeep.

Goku looked up, his golden eyes dulled by a veil of tears. "Who's gonna drive…?"

Sanzo had the unreasonable urge to hit Goku, to just throttle the kid until he was too tired to feel anything anymore. Why did he always have to ask those stupid questions, especially now? It felt like the pain had doubled at Goku's words. It was almost as good a spitting the poisonous words 'Hakkai is dead' right in his face.

"I'll drive," Gojyo offered unexpectedly, his eyes gazing absently at Hakkai's impassive face. After that, no one said anything more. Gojyo lifted Hakkai into his arms and gently laid him in the back of Jeep where he normally sat. Much to Goku's surprise, Sanzo relinquished his shotgun seat to be behind with Hakkai, leaving him no other option than to sit next to Gojyo. They drove away from the field quickly. No one insulted Gojyo when he accelerated too much, or put his foot down on the break too hard. Indisputably, it was the quietest ride in the Jeep they'd ever known.

Before arriving at the sight of the fatal battle, the Sanzo party had camped out on the lush shores of an unnamed river some fifty or so miles back. Secluded by a grove of beautiful weeping willows, it seemed as if nature had created a small sanctuary for them to replenish themselves. The water of the river was cool and clean without a strong undercurrent, perfect for bathing. Some of the bushes scattered about in between the trees were dotted with color, their branches laden with ripe, sweet-tasting berries. Hakkai loved it there. Gojyo recalled him remarking more than once on its beauty, but Gojyo knew his love of the place went deeper than his words. He seemed truly at peace there. His smiles had been real, and his eyes free from the shadows of his past that continued to haunt him. And at night, he slept. Gojyo had noticed his change in him, and kept it to himself, watching in silent satisfaction as his friend seemed to breathe easier here than anywhere else he'd been on this trip. Hell, if he liked it so much here, Gojyo didn't see why after this whole mess with the minus wave had been cleared up, they couldn't build a house here for themselves. Gojyo didn't have any deep emotional connection with his small apartment or with that town. Really, he would have been glad to escape the bar scene. He'd spent enough of his nights gambling and picking up ditzy girls to last him for the rest of his life. Now, after the battle, Gojyo's plans would come true in part. Hakkai would remain here, but not in the small house Gojyo had envisioned. It was there on the bank of the river that they decided they would bury their friend, unable to think of a more suitable place than where he'd seemed the happiest.

When they arrived at the grove once more, they faced a new set of challenges that Gojyo was first to point out. "We don't even have a fucking shovel…"

Sanzo walked away from the jeep, a stream of curses powerful enough to make a mountain crumble at its very foundations streaming from his lips. His mindless steps brought him deeper into the grove, leaving the other two alone. Gojyo wanted to kick the jeep. He wanted to kick it so badly until either the metal gave in, or his foot broke or bled. The pain would erase the pain. However, it was no mere collection of metal and gears, but a living, breathing creature, so he was denied even that release. Instead, he did nothing but stare at the lake, letting it build inside.

Watching how they had dealt with their grief, Goku wondered what he should do. When he had been trapped in the mountain, he'd only seen death once before. One day, a small little bird had decided to come and explore the mountain face and stumbled upon the imprisoned boy. Goku had never seen a bird so close before, and he held his hand out to it completely naïve to the fact that he might inadvertently frighten it away. The little bird, however, was just as curious as Goku, and hopped to his outstretched hand, perching on his finger. A strange, foreign feeling welled up in Goku, and suddenly his laughter was echoing through the barren mountains like a bright light cutting through darkness. Goku spent the day talking to his newfound friend, no longer repulsed by the sound of his own voice now that he had someone to talk to. When he woke the next day, he discovered that his small friend was lying on his side outside the bars of his cage. Goku called to him, but he stayed very still. Comprehension came slowly to Goku, and when harsh reality made itself clear, he refused to accept it. He strained against the cold stone bars, desperate to reach his bird, to ruffle his feathers so he could wake up again and they could play some more. The little body remained stubbornly out of his grasp. He had gotten a fleeting taste at friendship, and now that it was gone, the loneliness returned, doubled. He'd never cried while imprisoned until that moment. Should he cry now that Hakkai was gone? He wanted to, but he couldn't. Hakkai had told him to become stronger, and he couldn't let him down.

Looking away from Gojyo, his gaze fell on Hakkai's pale face. He's still so dirty, he thought, touching his cool cheek with his fingers as he tried to wipe away some of the dirt that stained the white skin. Shovel or no shovel, they couldn't leave him like this. Leaving Hakkai's side, he walked slowly towards the sparkling lake, stopping a yard or so before the shore turned to smooth, rounded gravel. He went down onto his hands and knees, and forced his fingers into the earth, watching in satisfaction as they disappeared into the soil, however slow. He pulled out a large handful. The dirt smelled strangely good, like new life and fresh grass. He tossed it aside, and then grabbed another handful that soon joined its companion. After the third handful came up, Gojyo noticed and went to him.

"What are you doing?"

"I don't care if we don't have a shovel," Goku said, digging his hands in deeper. "We gotta burry him."

Gojyo stared. "You're going to dig a grave with your bare hands?"

Another handful was tossed aside. "Yup."

Gojyo thought to tell him it was a stupid idea, that it would take days to dig by hand because of how deep it had to be, but Gojyo's hot words cooled and died on his tongue. He just couldn't tell him. He watched for a moment longer before kneeling down besides him. Goku looked up in surprise, but Gojyo said nothing. He only dug in his hands hard and deep and pulled out as much dirt as he could. Working tirelessly, they comforted each other with unspoken words. Soon a commendable ditch had appeared, though it was no were near the size of a grave. The sound of approaching footsteps made themselves known, and gradually grew closer to where they were, but neither of them looked up. They had work to do.

Having cursed until he was disgusted that, despite his liberal use and creative joining of them, they had failed to truly express how he was feeling, or alleviate his pain, Sanzo neared the jeep once more. He hadn't expected to see that a pile of dirt had appeared since his retreat, though it didn't really surprise him. Gojyo and Goku were digging. He didn't need to ask what for. He just wasn't sure if he wanted to acknowledge what they were trying to create.

An animal like screech was heard in the distance. Looking skywards, the trio saw four dark shapes in the sky, growing larger and more distinct every moment as they continued to approach. None of them moved once they realized what the shapes were. They didn't have the will to do anything but gaze up in the sky in weary disbelief at Kougaiji-ikkou.