A/N: This particular chapter gave me loads of trouble, but I think I've ironed out the worst of the kinks in it.
Ni cocked his head to the side, amused, as Koushu shook the lifeless doll dangling limply in her iron grip. The vivid splashes of red against the starched white backdrop of the lab coat were entrancing, and the raw rage on Koushu's face was definitely a turn on.
"I think it's broken," he commented idly, falling gracefully into the empty lab chair. Its wheels squeaked as it rolled backward.
Koushu dropped her prey and spun around to focus on him instead. Ni smirked. Beautiful. This was the sort of rush that made it worth getting out of bed.
"How could you not have known!?" the seething youkai demanded, blood staining her hand and robe.
Ni shrugged, slouching in the chair, his knees parted suggestively. "How does anyone know anything?" he asked, cocking his head to the side, his eyes half-lidded. Philosophy tended to unnerve people or irritate them, and, really, either way it was rewarding. He rolled the chair casually to the side, smirking at her contorted features.
"I am displeased," Koushu declared, her voice dripping icy daggers as she crossed her arms over her chest and glared down at him. Exquisite.
"Ohhhh, don't say that, M'lady." He took a long drag on his cigarette and scooped up the bunny sitting in his lap. "After all, we still have Kou-chan," he pointed out, exhaling and waving his hand casually toward the bank of monitors, "and he's bound to know where his mommy went, isn't he?" He tipped Bunny-chan's head forward with his other hand so it nodded in agreement.
Koushu's stiff posture relaxed somewhat. "Yes," she agreed slowly, her eyes turning distant, "And the brat's still here, too, so it won't slow down the revival process." She paused, her lips quirking into a cruel smile. "I think I'm rather looking forward to punishing our errant Kou-chan, after all. Even if he doesn't tell us where his dear mother is, we can still have our fun, can't we? And then we can watch her break when she finds out what we've done to her precious son."
"Of course, M'lady," Ni answered solemnly. Reaching back into a filing cabinet behind him, he drew out a graying hand towel and launched his chair languidly toward Koushu.
Koushu looked down at the offering and then at her hands. Her smirk faded into an expression of disgust. "I'm going to freshen up," she announced, striding toward the door. Just as she passed through into the corridor, she spun around to face him, her eyes narrowed dangerously once again. "See that you don't lose any more of them." Ni waved cheerfully back at her as the heavy metal lab door slid shut between them with a hiss.
Chair creaking as he slouched back in it, Ni watched a wispy column of smoke rise, then glanced down at the tangled heap of limbs. "Looks like it's just us now, Hwan-chan." He tilted his head consideringly, propping his chin on his hand. "I imagine you'll be rather boring, though." A wry smirk twitched at the corners of his mouth. "Too bad, so sad." Scooting his chair closer, he leaned down so he could ruffle her hair. "That's what happens when you forget your place in the world." It was a shame, really. She'd been entertaining while she'd lasted. Shrugging, he turned and propelled his chair back to his terminal, tossing his tie over his shoulder and reaching for his game controller.
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Nu bent over to check on Rin. She'd taken a blow to the head when the debris had started falling. He grabbed her wrist to check for a pulse, then carefully rolled her over to check for excessive bleeding. Concussion, he told himself. She'll be fine as long as she doesn't get trampled. Flagging down the first available soldier, he seized the man's collar, dragging him down so he could yell in his ear. Throwing in a couple of hand gestures just to be sure, Nu paused long enough to watch the soldier lift Rin and start dragging her toward the nearest tent. Then he moved on, crouching low as he made his way between piles of sandbags.
The sudden outbreak of mayhem had been an unwelcome addition to the endless parade of rain, but at least now he was wide awake, even if his stiff limbs were still responding sluggishly. On autopilot, he trotted up and down the line, checking on his own soldiers and bellowing orders to the confused waves of bodies darting back and forth.
When vise-like fingers seized his shoulder from behind, he swiveled around, rifle raised to use as a club, if necessary, but it was only Shin, stuttering and shuddering. "What the hell are you doing here!?" Nu shouted hoarsely, leaning in so Shin could hear him. "You're supposed to be on the western perimeter!"
"B-but we heard explosions, and—"
Nu grabbed Shin's shoulder with his free hand and shook it, hard. "I don't care what you heard. Get back to your post, soldier! Make sure the others get back to their posts, too, dammit! I want you to get over there NOW, and I want you to stay PUT. Understand!?"
He could feel Shin's whole body stiffen. "Yes sir!" He waited another couple of seconds to be sure Shin had understood, then shoved him in the proper direction. The explosions were more than likely a ruse, and he had no intention of leaving one entire side of the camp unprotected.
Collaring the next soldier he ran into, he ordered the man to round up his squad and find Captain Tenjo. As he was turning back around, a body dropped from the tree overhead and landed on his back, long, wickedly sharp nails digging into his shoulders. Training kicked in, and he managed to tuck his body into a roll, landing an elbow to the gut before clubbing his assailant. "Incoming!" he roared, dashing forward to meet the line of feral eyes glaring back at him.
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At first, Hakkai had deferred to Yaone's prior claim, allowing her to deal with the growing youkai mob as she saw fit, but then they'd started to attack him, and he'd been forced to join in, his back pressed against hers as they beat off wave after wave of attackers. Hakuryu had kyuued uneasily in response and taken off, probably to get help.
He wasn't able to maintain a chi barrier large enough to cover both of them for more than a few seconds, and his chi blasts lacked their usual force and range, so it often came down to hand-to-hand combat, especially when some of the cleverer ones started dropping out of the trees overhead. He knew that a war of attrition would put him at a distinct disadvantage, but his options were limited and this was not a fight he could afford to lose.
Yaone's sharp reflexes allowed her to deflect blows easily, and her agility meant that she could outmaneuver most opponents long enough to get in a clean, precise hit. Being able to sense his ally's movements without having to watch her helped him stay focused, and he found, as he let his body's instincts take over, that he really did trust her.
Eventually, he returned once again to his default position and realized that, this time, there were no opponents within sight. Too tired to pursue those who had undoubtedly fled, Hakkai sank into a sitting position, his back pressed against a tree and his knees drawn up as he tried to catch his breath. Yaone slid down next to him, her chest heaving and her shoulder pressed against his.
It was amazingly comfortable, really, even with the knob in the tree digging into his spine and the stinging of his left leg, a reminder that he'd jumped too late to avoid the long, painful scratch. Glancing over at his companion, he noticed that Yaone's right arm was bleeding. Sighing, he dragged out his handkerchief and reached for the wounded arm. Yaone flinched, but didn't attempt to stop him. Her eyes fixed on his, intense and measuring.
After a moment, his eyes fell to focus on wrapping the cloth. "The explosions were yours?" he asked, his voice carefully neutral.
"Yes, a diversion." Her voice was soft.
"And Sanzo," he asked, hands fumbling slightly, "he's going to be okay?"
Yaone snorted softly beside him. "Yes. ... More or less."
Hakkai looked up when he was done. Her eyes were focused on the tree across from them. His hand reached out to hold hers, and she let him, her eyes dropping to stare at their entwined fingers. After a short silence, Hakkai leaned his head back against the tree and closed his eyes. "... It's Dr. Ni, isn't it?" Her fingers tightened convulsively around his. "He's the reason you didn't hold back this time, why you're so determined," Hakkai continued, squeezing her hand in return, a strong, steady presence. He needed her to trust him.
"H-how did you—?" Yaone started, scrambling to her knees and leaning over to place her free hand on his shoulder. He tensed, sensing how close she was, hyperaware of every point of contact, her warm forehead very nearly touching his.
Drawing a deep breath, Hakkai clung desperately to his focus. "It seems," he murmured, "you have an evil twin." His eyes flashed as they flew open to meet and hold hers. She stared back at him, her face flushing as understanding, then anger kindled in her eyes.
He nodded back at her. "Why don't you start at the beginning?" he asked gravely, reaching out slowly and gently to brush a stray lock of hair out of her face. Yaone's head dipped forward briefly, her hand squeezing his, hope and relief flickering across her features as her eyes lifted once again to meet his.
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"Nnn," Gojyo mumbled incoherently, his head throbbing. Damn, how much had he drunk, anyway?! An annoying voice in the background kept shouting. He really wished it would shut the hell up, 'cause it was making things worse. "Shut UP, dammit!" he groaned, rolling onto his side, away from the aggravation. Unfortunately, all this got him was a face full of cold-ass slimy mud. "Ugh!"
Shoving himself up into a sitting position with one hand, he clutched his exploding head with the other. "Shit!" The whole damn world was spinning now, and Gojyo wanted the hell off this demented merry-go-round, or at least a chance to puke his guts up in peace. What the hell? He never had hangovers this bad. Well, except maybe that once, but trying to drink Hakkai under the table had been even less successful than his attempts at beating the man at cards. "Ow, ow, ow, ow, OW!"
"Gojyo!" an unreasonably loud voice shouted, right in his ear, too, dammit! "Sanzo won't get up!" Now the stupid monkey was shaking him, and he was sure his watering eyes were gonna fall right out. "Make him get up, Gojyo! He's not moving!!"
Gojyo winced and reminded himself that he'd regret it later if he killed the chimp. Really. He would. He just couldn't, for the life of him, think of even one reason why. Reaching out to grab a handful of the idiot's spiky hair, he dragged Goku's face closer and whispered heavily, "Shut. The hell. Up."
He hadn't really held out much hope that the brat would actually listen, but he certainly hadn't expected the look of near-panic on the chimp's face. "Ohhhhh, don't do that," he groaned, letting go of the hair to clutch his forehead again. "Come on, man. He's just drunk. Let 'im sleep it off. He'll be fine," he wheedled, sure the monkey was overreacting, probably hungry or something. Gojyo tried to lie back down at that point, on his back this time, but the brat seemed to have other plans.
"No he's not!" Goku hissed, jostling Gojyo's shoulder determinedly. "He won't move, I tell ya! Get yer lazy perverted hide over here an' help me fix him!"
Struggling to his hands and knees, Gojyo thought very hard about "fixing" the monkey. For good. The very idea of the monkey procreating made his stomach clench. Damn, what a scary thought. As his eyes slowly focused and adjusted to the dimness, he stiffened. Prone bodies were scattered all around them, like puppets whose strings had been cut mid-performance. What the hell?
"Come on!" Goku tugged impatiently on a fistful of hair. Oh, the chimp was gonna die if he managed to pull any out! And why the hell was Hakuryu giving him the evil eye from monkey boy's shoulder? Great, now even the overgrown rat hated him.
"Just gimme a minute, will ya!?" Fighting another wave of nausea, Gojyo sat back on his heels and clutched his head. Wait a minute. He really hadn't drunk that much. After all, snogging sort of interfered with drinking, not that he minded. ... Oh, yeah. The explosions. Had he gotten caught up in one somehow!? Patting himself down cautiously, he was unable to discover any new injuries. Huh. Weird. But good. Definitely good.
Giving up on understanding for now, he stumbled to his feet, leaned heavily on the monkey's unoccupied shoulder, and allowed Goku to lead him the few feet over to where Sanzo was lying flat on his back, separate from the other bodies. Collapsing heavily onto his knees, he lurched forward to press his ear against Sanzo's chest. He'd never forgive the bastard if he'd gone and died on him now. After a couple of dizzy, disoriented seconds, Gojyo realized that the chest under him was rising and falling steadily. His body relaxed, the tension evaporating as he slid clumsily onto his side and slung a companionable arm across Sanzo's chest. Mmmm. Nice.
"Oi, Goku," Gojyo mumbled, snuggling closer to Sanzo and nuzzling his ear. "Grab us a blanket, wouldja?"
Goku kicked him. Hard. "What the hell are ya doin', ya filthy water sprite!?"
Gojyo glared, clutching his throbbing side and rolling over to stare up at large, round, indignant eyes. The monkey wanted a fight? Fine. Bring it on! Standing up might not be an option, but he could sure as hell drag the chimp down to his level.
The ensuing tussle woke Blondie up, of course, and he was NOT AMUSED. "Die! Just die!" were, in fact, his first words, as he proceeded to thump them soundly with his fan. Gojyo thought this was a bit unfair, really, 'cause they were boyfriends and all now, and, besides, the chimp'd started it, but he just rolled out of range and groaned. Explaining seemed like an awful lot of work just now, and he was pretty sure Baldie wasn't in the mood for it, anyway.
Hakuryu, the clever rat, had taken shelter on a handy tree branch and was perched there now, white tail swishing impatiently. Goku, of course, was overjoyed that the Holy Terror was up and about again. The little rascal was practically hopping up and down, trying to dance close enough to snag a hug without getting beaned. Gojyo snorted. So, the brat figured he was the only one allowed to touch Sanzo? Bullshit. Gojyo staggered to his feet and lurched over to claim the first hug. No way was Shrimpy gonna beat him to it.
Gojyo had managed to tackle the chimp and get one arm around Sanzo before Goku retaliated, toppling Gojyo, and, in the process, Sanzo, which meant, of course, that they were dodging bullets very shortly afterward. "Oi! Oi! Watch out for the bystanders, man! Take it easy!" Gojyo called as he tripped over yet another tangle of limbs. The adrenaline rush had certainly woken him up.
Sanzo froze, pistol aimed skyward, and spun slowly in place, finally taking in their surroundings. "What the hell happened here!?"
Goku peeked out from behind one of the larger piles of camouflage. "I thought you were in trouble, so I came lookin' for ya, and then ya wouldn't move! I thought you'd died, but Gojyo said you were drunk, and then he started climbin' all over ya!" The monkey glared over at him accusingly. Gojyo flipped Goku the bird, then ducked, just in case.
Sanzo's free hand was massaging his temple. "Not that! Why the hell are we—" Hand frozen in place, his face turned white as a sheet. "FUCK! Dammit, I knew that smell was familiar!!"
"Wait, what—ohhhhhhh," Gojyo breathed, understanding dawning at last. "She fucking drugged us! Again! Shit!!" He clutched his aching head. "Where's Hakkai, man!? I am so gonna give him a piece of my mind. His chick's out of control! That's fighting dirty, that's what that is. And now I have the headache from hell, too." Gojyo groaned and dragged twitching fingers through clumped strands of dripping wet hair. "She must've spiked that damn gas of hers with something extra strong this time."
Sanzo was ignoring him, hands flying as they started patting down his pockets, then his shoulders, then digging frantically in his pockets, chucking the contents on the ground haphazardly. Oh. ... Shit. Gojyo froze, a sick sense of realization sinking into the pit of his stomach. She wouldn't ... would she? She might. Suddenly, he felt like his stomach was crawling with millipedes.
Without warning, the frantic searching stopped and Sanzo's body became unnaturally still, his eyes shielded by the bedraggled fringe of muddy blond hair. "... How long have I been out?" he asked, his voice frighteningly calm, even, and steady.
"Uhhh, I dunno. A long time," the chimp answered, subdued, his head hanging. "An hour, maybe?" Gojyo's breath stuck in his throat, and he felt even sicker. If he hadn't talked Sanzo into having a drink, maybe ...
"She'll be long gone, then." Sanzo's voice was heavy, gravelly, resigned. He lifted piercing violet eyes and leveled them straight at Gojyo, who felt colder than he ever had before. "Where's Hakkai?"
While Gojyo was desperately trying to unstick his tongue enough to admit that he had no fucking idea where Hakkai was now, Hakuryu fluttered down off the tree branch and perched on his shoulder, snagging a mouthful of hair and tugging on it. He barely registered it, helplessly lost in the depths of sharp, vivid eyes.
"I ... believe we have something of yours, Sanzo-san," an exhausted Hakkai announced, appearing just behind the priest's left shoulder. Gojyo started, taking an involuntary step backward. Sanzo whirled in place, wobbling for the briefest of seconds as the mud slid treacherously under him, and aimed his pistol unerringly at the center of Yaone's forehead. She smiled weakly back at him, but otherwise seemed unperturbed. Hakkai was leaning heavily on her, one arm slung around her shoulders, but his eyes were calm and serious. Gojyo noticed the slim hand wrapped around Hakkai's waist moments before he registered the scroll held out, palm up, in her free hand.
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A curl of wood flaked away and fell past his ear. Gojyo rolled his head gently to the side to consider the effect. The curvature wasn't quite right, but it was passable, which was more than he could say for the impromptu bed he'd made out of a row of metal folding chairs. Shifting uncomfortably, he tried to redistribute the locations of the hard angles digging into his spine. The murmur of intense voices rose and fell in the background. With a sigh, Gojyo raised the sharp edge of his hunting knife and carved out another crooked curve. It was still uneven, but it wasn't as bad as the first 'G' had been.
"Yes, but how many scriptures did you see?" Sanzo's voice was low, impatient.
"Only three," Yaone admitted, her voice subdued.
"Was the Seiten sutra among them?" Gojyo paused, knife poised, at the coil of tension in Sanzo's voice.
"... Yes. We used it to free Lady Rasetsunyo." He could hear the rustle of ingredients being added to the concoction bubbling on the stove top.
In the long silence that followed, Gojyo managed to carve out another 'S.' Goku's head leaned over the edge of the table and blinked down at him curiously. "Whatcha doin'?"
Grinning up at the wide, brown eyes, Gojyo smirked and blew a puff of smoke in the monkey's face. "I'll tell you when you're older."
Goku scowled down at him, then rolled over on the tabletop, where he'd taken up residence. "Sanzoooo, Gojyo's doin' somethin' perverted again!"
Gojyo shrugged and glanced over at Sanzo hopefully. He was rewarded with a brief, suspicious scowl and the slight balling of one fist. Gojyo waved cheerfully, a lone hand appearing over the edge of the table. Well, that was something, at least. Anything was better than the cold, swirling, destructive calm from before.
"In any case, our first concern has to be eliminating the clones," Hakkai's patient, reasonable voice cut in, reclaiming Sanzo's attention. Gojyo sighed and resumed work on his masterpiece. It was good to finally be getting inside information relevant to their mission. He knew that. But he was restless, dammit! All this endless talking was driving him crazy. Ideally, he'd like some alone time with his blond bombshell, but, failing that, he'd like to at least crack a few skulls.
"Yes, the clones are an affront to Lord Kougaiji, and it is my responsibility to see that they're eliminated," Yaone added, the intensity in her voice rising. "If we hadn't let our guard down enough to get captured, this never would have happened." Man, why didn't people ever blame the real bastards, the ones who were actually orchestrating shit? Gojyo brushed a few stray hairs out of his face and stretched out his aching arm.
"Tell me more about this Ni," Sanzo pressed, his focus unshakable. "He's responsible for the clones, right?" Yaone's head dipped briefly before complying, her voice a low, focused murmur that Gojyo mostly tuned out. His head was still fuzzy and muddled, making it hard to concentrate. Sanzo and Hakkai were probably taking copious notes, anyway. He turned back to his carving.
It'd been a relief to hear that Jien was alive and well (and apparently babysitting Kougaiji's mum, of all things), but Gojyo hadn't really been all that worried about him. His brother was a tough cookie and could look after himself. Fidgeting again on his unstable platform, Gojyo turned on his side and added the final, finishing touch. It struck him as a bit unfair that so many curves were involved, 'cause they were hard to get right, but he figured his priest was worth it, really, and it fit somehow 'cause nothing was ever easy for either of them.
Gojyo sighed heavily and rearranged his long limbs so he was actually sitting in one of the chairs—well, slumped in one of them, really—his head resting on crossed arms. "How's that headache potion coming along there, Yaone?" Che, he sounded like a whiny brat. But his head hurt, dammit. Of course, Gojyo was pretty sure Sanzo's did too, but he'd never admit to it, the stubborn bastard.
"It should have cooled off enough by now—" Yaone started, but curt voices approaching from outside the tent cut her off. Ignoring everything but the promise of relief, Gojyo shuffled single-mindedly toward the counter.
"I've done two full perimeter checks, sir. It doesn't look like any of them managed to get through the western defenses, but I'm having teams of three go through the camp with a fine-tooth comb just to be sure."
"I see. What about the soldiers found sleeping on duty?"
Sanzo scowled and crossed his arms, glaring pointedly at Yaone. Meh, whatever. Blondie'd gotten his sutra back. No harm, no foul, right? ... Well, except for the killer headache, but she'd promised to help with that, so it was all good. Probably.
"We're still investigating that, sir. How're we doing on supplies?"
Goku perked up at that and clambered off his table; the bottomless pit was probably hoping to score a few of the cookies still lying out on the counter.
"Well, the kerosene fire ravaged them pretty thoroughly, but we did manage to put it out before it reached the dynamite." Yaone winced, her head drooping. Che. She should've been more careful with her toys if she didn't want people to get hurt.
"That's a relief," Nu muttered over his shoulder as he stepped into the light. His head and right arm were heavily bandaged, and he was walking with a bit of a limp, but his eyes were clear and sharp when his head swung back around. The shock on his face quickly morphed into wry irritation. "Don't you guys ever stop eating? This isn't a diner, you know."
"Hai, hai," Gojyo muttered, dishing himself a ladleful of slop that looked more like soggy oatmeal than anything. He stared at it doubtfully, then glanced back up at Nu. "You don't look so good, man. You gonna be okay?"
Nu shrugged, a small smile sliding into place. Tenjo stepped around his junior officer and surveyed the situation in the mess tent. His rifle rose sharply when he caught sight of Yaone. Gojyo frowned, and Hakuryu's beady red eyes flashed as the dragon landed, wings fully extended, on the end of the rifle and stared accusingly up at the military captain.
"Ah, Captain Tenjo, please allow me to introduce Yaone-san. The real Yaone-san." Hakkai's smile was apologetic, but his eyes were deadly serious.
A bemused-looking Tenjo lowered his rifle, his eyebrows rising as the indignant white dragon flapped over to perch on Hakkai's shoulder again. "The, uh, real Yaone is a youkai?" he asked, his eyes lingering on pointed ears.
"Yup," Gojyo replied cheerfully, squinting at the ladle distrustfully before licking the edge of it. The taste wasn't too awful, so, with a shrug, he tipped his head back and swallowed the entire serving. His eyes slid over to catch Sanzo staring at him. Grinning, he scooped up another ladleful and dangled it in front of the now-scowling priest. "Bottoms up!" he singsonged.
"So, what's she doing here, then?" Tenjo asked pointedly, ignoring Sanzo's irritated grab for the ladle handle and Gojyo's feral grin as he danced out of range.
Yaone's eyes lifted from the concoction bubbling on the stove. "I came to steal the Maten sutra," she answered simply.
Tenjo still looked confused, as well he might. "But we don't have—"
"She means Sanzo's holy scripture," Hakkai chimed in helpfully, handing Yaone another dried sprig. Nu had gone over to sit next to the monkey, who was perched once again on the tabletop. They were munching cookies companionably and taking turns feeding a purring Hakuryu.
Sanzo, the rat bastard, had finally seized control of the ladle and was downing its contents as quickly as possible, head thrown back and Adam's apple bobbing. Well, it could be worse, really. Leaning in, Gojyo whispered, "Indirect kiss," then smirked when Sanzo nearly choked, his eyes wide and flashing daggers.
"This isn't some damn holy war or something, is it?" Tenjo asked suspiciously, eyes narrowed.
"Well, sort of," Gojyo answered distractedly as he dodged behind the counter, "we are on a mission from the gods."
Nu snorted and spewed cookie crumbs. "You have got to be shitting me," he gasped, when he could catch his breath. "You guys? Must be some seriously deranged gods you've got there."
Sanzo was eyeing Gojyo's strategic retreat behind Hakkai as if he were trying to decide what constituted acceptable collateral damage. Yaone switched off the gas on the stove and set the mixture aside.
Goku was under the table now, frowning in concentration as he stared upward. "What kinda math is this, ya demented kappa? 'SG plus GS equals 69'!? ... Is that some kinda code?" The look Sanzo shot him made it perfectly clear that the 'code' was not hard to decipher.
"It's grown-up math!" Gojyo called over his shoulder as he lifted a sauce pan to protect his face. Of course, it'd probably be more effective if he weren't peeking around the edge to gauge Sanzo's reaction.
Hakkai stood up and slung an arm around Sanzo's shoulders. Traitor! "Feel free to aim low, Sanzo-san." Oh shit! Gojyo's eyes bugged out, and he quickly moved the frying pan to protect more important bits.
"Sir!" a breathless soldier shouted as he dashed into the mess tent. "Sir, the village is under attack! Lieutenant Li urgently requests assistance ASAP."
"Right! A lady in distress! That's my cue! See ya!" Gojyo shouted, dragging the soldier out behind him. He had a feeling he'd overdone things a bit back there. Sanzo was pretty edgy right now, and probably wanted to be left alone for awhile. Gojyo could handle that. And, in the meantime, he'd be able to work off some of his own frustration, assuming the attackers were good enough that he'd get a decent workout.
Goku caught up with him as he was passing the camp's perimeter guards. When Gojyo glanced down at him, the monkey grinned back. "I'm comin' too! We can't let Hakkai get all the action!"
Gojyo reached over to ruffle Goku's hair before letting go of the stumbling soldier and putting on an extra burst of speed. "Only if you can keep up, squirt." He could smell blood now, and he didn't need help finding that.
A/N: The filter for this site wouldn't let me use an actual equals sign. Gomen. The math is funnier when it's formatted properly.