Back again! I've been rather out of touch this past year, but I found this on my computer and decided to upload it. It started out as a request from Mongose, who wanted to know why Goku was stupid. It started me thinking, but I changed the title a little.

Question: Is Goku stupid?

Goku sits beside the fire and watches Hakkai stir the stew. On the other side of the fire, he knows Sanzo and Gojyo are having an argument about who the lighter they are fighting over belongs to. He also knows that soon Gojyo will say something he shouldn't, and Sanzo will become angry enough to draw his fan and beat the kappa senseless, or worse, draw his gun and shoot him.

So he speaks up. "Hey Sanzo, how come the stars only shine at night?"

As expected, Sanzo's anger is redirected, and Goku tilts his head so the blow of the fan is mostly cushioned by his hair. "Ow! I just wanted to ask a question!" he says, making a show of rubbing his head.

"Ask Hakkai, stupid monkey," Sanzo grumbles, pulling the newspaper from this morning out from somewhere within his robes.

Goku turns to Hakkai, knowing that involving him in the conversation will draw Gojyo's attention away from Sanzo. "Hakkai? How come they only shine at night?"

"Stars shine all the time, Goku," Hakkai explains with a smile Goku knows is false. He remembers a time when he broke Hakkai's monocle, and how the cracks that ran across the glass reminded him of the man that wore it. "You only see them at night because the sun is too bright during the day."

"Even a monkey should know that," Gojyo teased.

"I'm not a monkey!" Goku answers, because he knows it is expected of him. At least Gojyo has stopped arguing with Sanzo, who is now ignoring everyone. As Gojyo insults him again and he pretends to get angry, Goku feels satisfied that disaster has been avoided for another night, and the team will remain whole.

After all, you can't play mahjong with only three.

I think I'll leave you to answer the question yourself. The idea of Goku subtly manipulating them appealed to me, though I'm not sure if everyone would agree.