Everybody likes Youkai fighting! HA! HOO HA!
Title: Only once. The Return of the Youkai Priest
Author/Artist: GuardianYugi/WhiteAsh
Warnings: Youkai Fighting! HA! HOO HA!
Pairing(s): 3/9 9/3
Notes: This is based a wee bit on Thinner.

Only once.
The Return of the Youkai Priest

"Sanzo, you bastard, I'm starving and you promised." Goku grumbled angrily, his stomach roaring in fury.

"Shut your hole or you'll be eating lead." Sanzo replied curtly.

"Hear that, chimp? At least you'll be eating something." Gojyo chuckled.

"Everyone, please…," Hakkai sighed, "It's been a very long day and if you continue this bickering I may be forced to drive off of a cliff."

"I'm guessing that translates to you being pissed off?" Gojyo asked. Hakkai laughed in reply.

They'd left a village two days prior to arriving at a mountain path which, luckily, Hakuryuu could traverse in Jeep form. This didn't mean, however, that the four men weren't hungry. Sanzo had forgotten to pick up provisions, as Hakkai had asked him to do, and the result was discomfort for all.

"I'm still starving." Goku muttered.

"THAT DOES IT. ONE MORE WORD AND I'LL KILL YOU." Sanzo shouted, standing in the Jeep and turning his gun on Goku.

"Sanzo! Stop it! Your robe is in my face and I can't see the road!" Hakkai cried in alarm.

"Hakkai! Watch it, there's someone on the-" Gojyo warned.

There was a loud bang, then a thump. Sanzo seated himself in shock. Hakkai gasped.

"I… I hit her!" Hakkai gasped in horror.

"Who in the hell would be up here?" Gojyo asked, getting out tentatively as if the ground might bite him.

"Hmph." Sanzo snorted incredulously. "It's the moron's own fault for getting in our way."

Even so, the monk exited the Jeep to investigate as well, following by Goku, who was now upset over being hungry AND for possibly causing the premature death of a stranger.

"It's… an old woman." Hakkai said sadly, kneeling beside the fallen figure.

"Why was she up here in the mountains?" Gojyo pressed.

"I don't know-" Hakkai started, but Sanzo cut him off.

"She's alive." He said simply.

"Uwah! Miss! Are you gonna live?" Goku shouted in shock upon seeing the old woman. He was by her side in a minute, his heart pounding. The old woman opened her eyes slowly and looked up at Goku.

"Such a nice young man…" she smiled, putting her hand to Goku's cheek. "You remind me of my nephew, Shin."

"We don't have time for this nonsense…" Sanzo snorted, but he felt immensely guilty at the same time. It was true that the wind was strong and his robes had been in Hakkai's line of vision… but he'd never expected this.

"You think my plight is nonsense, sir?" the old woman asked.

"Hmph." Sanzo turned away.

"You have nothing but hatred in your heart. You have no love or compassion for anything." The old woman narrowed her eyes, taking her hand from Goku's cheek and turning one old finger to point at Sanzo. Her dried lips twisted into a grin as she opened her mouth to speak one final word. "Youkai."

"You…kai?" Goku asked quizzically. The old woman's hand fell to the earth and she breathed her last, sighing contentedly as she passed away.

"We have to bury her." Hakkai said softly.

"Yeah… it's a shame the last thing she had to see was that jerk of a monk." Gojyo scoffed.

"You can say what you want; it wasn't our fault she waltzed in front of the Jeep." Sanzo snapped.

"Sanzo, why did she call you a youkai?" Goku asked.

"She was senile and delusional." Sanzo said without missing a beat. "We'll bury her and get on with our journey. I want to be in a town before nightfall."

"Yes, of course, Master Sanzo." Hakkai said bitterly. Gojyo put a hand on his shoulder.

"Listen, Hakkai," he spoke gently, "Her death wasn't your fault. Don't go blaming yourself for every little thing-"

"How is her death little, Gojyo?" Hakkai spoke in such soft tones that Gojyo felt as though his heart had been tread upon.

"Just bury her." Sanzo ordered. Hakkai and Gojyo both gave him equal looks of spite before lifting the old woman's body and carrying her over to the side of the path. Goku walked over to Sanzo's side and tugged on his robe. Sanzo looked down at him. "What do you want?"

"Was it my fault, Sanzo?" Goku's voice was quiet and trembling; Sanzo sighed, knowing the monkey was probably going to cry.

"It wasn't your fault Goku. Stop being an idiot." Sanzo sighed.

"It's just… I was complainin' about being hungry an' you wouldn't have gotten up to yell if I'd been quiet!" Goku shouted, his eyes beginning to shimmer with unshed tears.

"If you don't stop right now I'll kill you." Sanzo spoke firmly.

"But-" Goku persisted. Sanzo put his hand on the monkey's head, his fingers weaving effortlessly through the forest of brown hair to the scalp. Goku blinked. "Sanzo?"

"It wasn't your fault. None of us could have guessed there would have been someone out here. Don't blame yourself for an accident you couldn't predict. It's pointless." Sanzo said calmly, looking into Goku's eyes. Goku gave a deep, steadying breath and then sighed happily.

"Yeah. I guess so." Goku smiled. "Thank you, Sanzo."

"Right. Check on the others and let me know if they're close to being ready." Sanzo ordered.

"Okay!" Goku nodded and rushed over to Gojyo and Hakkai.

Sanzo looked to the Jeep, or rather, to the dragon which had now perched near the spot where the old woman had been lying only moments before. It had begun keening miserably. Sanzo sighed and walked over to it.

"Oi." He said simply. The dragon looked up at him, small tears flowing down its cheeks. Dragon tears must have been contagious, because seeing the innocent creature in such a pathetic state really did have an affect on the monk, although he didn't cry. He knelt beside the dragon and spoke softly. "Have you ever hit anyone before, dragon?"

"Kyuu…" Hakuryuu shook his head, no.

"Then why are you mourning? This wasn't your fault. You had no idea that someone would be up here and you've never done anything to hurt the innocent before." Sanzo explained.

"Kyu-Kyu…" Hakuryuu seemed to agree, but at the same time, he gestured to the ground.

"It was an accident. You couldn't possibly go through life thinking you'd never make one, could you?" Sanzo asked seriously. Hakuryuu blinked, thinking about this… then a smile lighted upon its features.

"Kyu!" the dragon's reply of gratitude was enough to satisfy Sanzo. He got to his feet and watched as Hakuryuu transformed once more into a Jeep.

Sanzo got into his seat and heard something tear. His fingernails had gotten stuck in his robe and they'd torn it slightly. He swore loudly, having cut them not long ago. Bringing his hands to his face to inspect the nails, Sanzo's blood turned to ice in his veins. His nails weren't simply long… they were curving sharply. Sanzo recognized the sight, having seen it all too often. They were claws.

It hit him like a sack of lead doorknobs. The old woman must have done something when she called him a youkai… but that was ridiculous. It couldn't have been a curse. Could it have been a curse?

"Fuck." Sanzo snarled, digging around in the Jeep for a nail clipper. The last thing he needed was for his servants to see his new additions and make any snide remarks or offer to help him.

Hakkai, Gojyo, and Goku returned shortly after Sanzo had trimmed his claws to a less noticeable length… but just to be sure, he kept them within the recesses of his sleeves.

"Are you ready to move on?" Sanzo asked Hakkai, concerned that if Hakkai was disgruntled it may be dangerous to continue.

"I'll be alright. I'm sorry." Hakkai smiled.

"Don't apologize." Sanzo snapped.

"Don't snap at him, you shitty priest. Incase you haven't realized, we're kind of upset at the moment." Gojyo pointed out.

"You can be upset in the next town. Do you honestly think mourning will bring the old woman back or change her views on what happened? I understand it's a loss and you feel guilty for her death, but the fact remains that none of us knew there would be people on this mountain and that's why we hit her." Sanzo said firmly. "So grow up and get over your grief. The innocent dead probably hate to see their deaths causing misery anyway."

"You know what the sad part about all of this is?" Gojyo asked with the ability to lace even the softest words with venom. "She called you a youkai, when in actuality, that's an insult to youkai everywhere."

"Just shut up and drive." Sanzo turned away, not in the mood to bicker any longer.

It wasn't much longer until the group had passed through the mountains. Luckily for Hakkai, a village rested right at the base of the mountain's path and thus he made it before nightfall, as Sanzo had wanted. However, Hakkai hadn't planned on reaching the town before nightfall; it had simply come about that way. If anything, he'd wanted to punish Sanzo for his remarks earlier by driving slower than usual.

Gojyo and Goku sat quietly in the back of the Jeep the entire time. Goku was wondering who Shin was and if he looked anything like him. Gojyo was concerned about Hakkai's mental state. Sure, it had been a combination of things that had contributed to the death of the old hag, but it had weighed almost entirely on Hakkai's conscience since they had buried her.

As they entered the town, they noticed a very odd sight. Goku was waiting for them… but it most definitely wasn't Goku, as he was sitting in the Jeep. Goku knew immediately who the boy was and leapt from his place instantly, racing to meet him.

After the others had gotten out of the Jeep, Hakuryuu transformed back into his usual self and perched on Hakkai's shoulder. Sanzo walked over to the pair of Goku to inspect them. It was a puzzling sight to be sure.

"My name is Goku." Goku smiled. "I bet your name is Shin."

"That's my name… how did you know?" Shin asked in confusion.

"Thank God they don't sound the same." Gojyo sighed.

"Let's go find an Inn, everyone. I'm sure we're all tired." Hakkai suggested, not wanting to have to break the news to Shin that his aunt was dead. Sanzo merely nodded in reply. He was exhausted and yet he hadn't done much as of late. The thought crossed his mind that perhaps he was out of shape.

"Come on, monkey. You can talk with your twin later." Gojyo smirked, giving Goku a smack to the head.

"Hey! That hurt!" Goku protested, but he followed along after Gojyo and the others regardless. Walking backwards, he called back to Shin, "I'll see you later, maybe?"

"Sure!" Shin smiled. "I live down the street from the Inn! It's right next to the gypsy's hut!"

"Gypsy?" Sanzo asked quietly. He began putting it together in his head. The old woman they'd killed on the mountain had told Goku he reminded her of her nephew Shin… she'd also called Sanzo a youkai and only moments afterward his nails had become claws… now they'd met Shin, and his residence was next to a gypsy's hut. Had the old woman been a gypsy! She'd seemed pretty old for an aunt!

"Sanzo you look like you've seen a ghost." Goku pointed out.

"I'm fine." Sanzo sighed, brushing his hair out of his eyes. The palm of his hand brushed against his ear… but that would mean… "Not now…"

"Not now what?" Gojyo asked.

"It's nothing." Sanzo tried to calm himself, but his even his voice sounded different, as if he was getting a sore throat.

"Are you feeling ill, Sanzo?" Hakkai asked. Despite his anger at Sanzo over the day's events, he couldn't help but fuss over everyone in the group. He really did feel like a mother hen at times.

"You could say that." Sanzo muttered. "I'm going to use the bathroom. You can get the rooms for us. I'll leave the Anex Card on the front desk."

"Sanzo's different." Goku stated bluntly.

"He is." Gojyo agreed. Sanzo, on the other hand, was growing more and more flustered with every passing moment. His body was changing right before his servants eyes and they either noticed and didn't care, or they were blissfully ignorant of everything that was happening to him!

Knowing his ears were quite visible poking through his hair, Sanzo quickened his pace, heading right into the Inn and demanding to know where the bathroom was. The startled innkeeper explained it was only for those staying with them. Snarling at the annoyance, Sanzo fumbled with his robes and eventually produced the Anex Card. The innkeeper accepted this and pointed out the bathroom's location to the distressed monk, who quickly disappeared behind its doors.

"Do you think he ate some of the mushrooms that were growing on the side of the path when we stopped?" Gojyo chuckled.

"Whatever it was that he did, it's probably best to let him deal with it." Hakkai smiled politely.

"He hates it when we help him." Goku grinned.

"So we'll just let him suffer alone." Gojyo laughed.

Gojyo, Goku and Hakkai headed into the Inn to find the innkeeper looking as if he'd just seen an unappealing nudist. Hakkai asked him if they could have rooms for the night and only then noticed the Anex Card lying on the table as Sanzo had said it would be. After a brief explanation as to who they were and who Sanzo was and that they were traveling with him, the innkeeper agreed that it would be alright to charge two first class rooms to the card.

Gojyo was ecstatic, having had to put up with cheap rooms even if Sanzo had the money to afford better. If the money was provided by the Sanbutsushin, then why not blow it all on whatever their hearts desired? Sanzo was obviously a tightwad when it came to money and hated spending anything more than what was necessary… but in Gojyo's mind, Sanzo was an eighty year old man trapped in a twenty-five year old man's body.

Hakkai was happy as well, knowing his room would be on the other side of the Inn from both Sanzo and Goku, meaning he would be able to get a good night's rest and quite possibly play a few games of cards with Gojyo. It would be much better than spending the night sharing a room with everyone, as Sanzo seemed to enjoy forcing this upon them often. Hakkai wondered if perhaps it meant Sanzo was insecure.

Hakuryuu was overjoyed to be able to finally rest his weary body. Being a Jeep was hard work and it was nice to be able to sleep in his cat bed and not outside on the dirt road.

Goku was simply happy that he'd get to spend the night with someone other than the perverted kappa. The fact that he'd be spending the night with Sanzo was a definite plus. Even if Sanzo scolded him for snoring, or for complaining, or for eating in bed, or for chewing on his pillow in his sleep, it was a lot better than waking up to find out his body had been written on with markers by Gojyo, or that his pockets of neat things had been emptied by Hakkai. He still didn't see why keeping snails was wrong.

Sanzo was still in the bathroom by the time the others had gone to bed. He stood, aghast, before the mirror. He'd removed his robe to see why his chest hurt, only to discover his body had become completely different. Before him stood a creature which only moments ago had been human… his eyes had become an opaque white, his claws had grown once again, his hair had become much shaggier and had grown a good five inches, his canines had lengthened and sharpened as well. He felt immensely powerful and his strengthened muscles and the strain they put on his now extremely tight sleeveless top and gloves was proof. Even his height had shifted a good half of a foot.

Moving only an inch created small tears in his top, which accounted for the pain in his chest. He flexed experimentally both his chest and arms, making short work of the skintight sleeveless top and the straining gloves. He watched some of the material fall to the floor, catching sight of his feet in the process. Noting the claws on his toes had begun tearing his socks, Sanzo realized he had to remove both of his sandals to rid himself of the detriment to his clawed feet. Once he'd finished, he looked into the mirror again. He was left standing with only his jeans and the tattered remnants of his top and gloves, hanging from his skin in various strips.

Oddly enough, he felt his concern over this change beginning to fade away. He was powerful now. His body wasn't thin and scrawny as it had been before. Whatever muscles he'd been proud of once were nothing in comparison to the strength his new body contained in just his hands alone. Still, he was sane enough to realize that it would most likely be taken negatively by his servants.

"Then again, they aren't human either." He spoke aloud; a low, hoarse voice was what he heard. He looked again at his teeth, running his tongue over the smooth, sharpened canines. They would take some getting used to, but then, he had all the time in the world.

The only remaining problem that niggled at his brain was what to do with the Sutra. He picked it up and regarded it for a moment before rolling it up and setting it on the counter. He then picked up his robes and folded them, setting the sutra on top. It reminded him of how Hakkai placed the sutra on his robes after washing them. This gave him an idea.

Hakkai had been getting ready for some well deserved rest when he, Hakuryuu, and Gojyo snapped to full attention. They could sense youki, the powerful aura given off by all youkai. The aura belonged to a strong one to be sure. Sitting up, Hakkai reached over to the desk by his bed for the case holding his false eye. Hakuryuu fluttered from his cat bed and onto Hakkai's shoulder, chirping quietly. Gojyo, in the meantime, was already standing by the door. He sighed.

"It figures. The one time I decide to sleep in just my boxers and a youkai decides to attack us." He grumbled. Boxers only or not, he was ready for a fight and the same applied to Hakkai once he'd finally put his eye in.

"It's strong, Gojyo. Be careful." Hakkai warned, standing near the door in a defensive stance. Hakuryuu arched his back, readying himself incase any firepower was needed. They heard heavy footfalls in the hallway which only continued to get louder as they approached Gojyo and Hakkai's room. There was a pause as they stopped directly outside the door, Gojyo heard a soft 'fwump' of something being dropped, then the heavy steps continued back the way they came.

"What-" Gojyo started but Hakkai shushed him quickly, signaling for him to wait. Gojyo nodded obediently and the two waited for what felt like an eternity. Finally, Hakkai relaxed somewhat and asked Gojyo, politely, to carefully open to door. Gojyo gingerly grasped the doorknob and turned it slowly. As the door opened with a long, mournful creak which seemed to beg for oil, Gojyo was startled to find Sanzo's robe and Sutra at his feet. He picked them up and turned to face Hakkai, a look of bewilderment on his face.

"Just what the hell is going on, Hakkai?" he asked, as if Hakkai knew the answer.

"I'm not sure." Hakkai admitted.

"Whatever the hell's going on, I'll face it dressed." Gojyo decided on going to get changed. Hakkai waited for him, having been prepared to sleep in his clothing.

Suddenly, both he and Gojyo were struck by the same thought that whatever was wandering the Inn may have done something… which in turn led to both of them stating in unison, "Goku!"

Sound asleep and dreaming of happy nonsense, Goku didn't even feel the presence of youki, nor did he hear the sound of the doorknob grinding or the long, piercing wail for oil from the door as it was pushed open. He didn't hear the footsteps approach his bed. He didn't hear the sound of heavy breath, or the slightly saddened utterance of his name. He didn't even feel the clawed fingers which softly brushed his bangs out of his face. What he did hear was the sound of his door being slammed open by Gojyo and Hakkai as they demanded to know if he was alright.

"Huh? Is it breakfast?" Goku asked groggily as he sat up in bed. Gojyo walked over to him, hands on his hips, then pointed an accusatory finger at him.

"Just what were you doing a few minutes ago, huh? Where's the shit monk?" he demanded.

"Wha? Sanzo's right-" Goku started, then realized that Sanzo's bed hadn't even been slept in. He blinked in confusion. "Hweh?"

"Goku, Sanzo's robe and Sutra were placed outside of our door just moments ago by what we thought was a powerful youkai. We figured it must have come into your room in order to get Sanzo's belongings, but the fact that it left his Sutra behind is extremely curious." Hakkai explained. Hakuryuu was sniffing the air in confusion. Something smelled different, but he couldn't tell what.

"We figured you might know what had happened, but you were sleeping through the whole thing, weren't you?" Gojyo groaned.

"This isn't my fault!" Goku shouted in defense.

"We're not blaming you, Goku… we're just trying to make sense of this situation." Hakkai sighed.

"So then… where's Sanzo?" Goku asked.

"Thaaaaaaat's what we're trying to find out, stupid monkey!" Gojyo shouted.

"Don't call me a monkey!" Goku snapped right back.

"Then I'll call you stupid." Gojyo countered.

"Please calm down." Hakkai said tersely, not in the mood for more bickering. "We'll have to go look for him."

"I'd rather go look for him in the morning." Gojyo grumbled. "No, wait. I'd rather not look for him at all."

"Then why did you ask me where he was as soon as you woke me up?" Goku asked.

"I asked because I want to kick his ass for leaving something like the Sutra just lying around!" Gojyo shouted.

They searched the Inn for a long time, apologizing to everyone they either woke up or 'interrupted.' Goku complained that they wouldn't find him in anyone's room except his own, but Hakkai wanted to be certain. They checked the kitchen, the lobby, and finally the bathroom. The first thing they noticed upon entering the bathroom was the torn and discarded pieces of clothing that could have only belonged to Sanzo… or quite possibly someone else who wore black, knee-high socks and an abundance of other skintight materials. Goku picked up one of the socks, noting at once the toes were ruined.

"These are definitely Sanzo's socks." Goku said without any doubt in his mind. "It looks like someone wrecked them."

"Kyu-Kyuu!" Hakuryuu chirped as he fluttered to the floor, picking up some material and handing it to Hakkai.

"Thank you, Hakuryuu. This looks like the same material in Sanzo's sleeveless top." Hakkai realized upon taking some of the strips of clothing from his dragon.

"What does it mean, then?" Gojyo asked, finding the monk's discarded sandals off to the side of the garbage bucket near the door.

Hakkai thought about it. There wasn't any blood in the bathroom from a fight, nor was there any blood on Sanzo's destroyed clothing. It hadn't been torn apart in any sort of fight as there would have been more signs, such as broken mirrors or bullet holes in the walls. The only plausible explanation left was one which only puzzled Hakkai further.

"You don't think… Sanzo could have become a youkai, do you?" Hakkai asked, fully aware he would be bombarded with remarks of disbelief.

"What!" Gojyo yelped. "Where'd you get that idea from?"

"Kyuu?" Hakuryuu blinked in confusion.

"Sanzo's… a youkai?" Goku managed to stammer.

"Well, if we put everything we know together, then it's the best I can come up with. Unless, of course, it's a youkai plot to bait us with the sutra so we'll come looking for Sanzo and inevitably become trapped so they can kill us. Ahahahahaha…" Hakkai suggested, laughing lightly.

"Your second suggestion seems a lot more believable… but I'm surprised they'd want to lure us out there when they could have just taken the Sutra and left." Gojyo sighed. Goku, on the other hand, was sticking with Hakkai's first suggestion.

"He's gotta be a youkai." Goku said firmly.

"Come on, Goku, there's no way." Gojyo sighed. Goku felt as if he'd had the conversation before, but couldn't remember from when… still, he persisted to explain himself.

"Remember the lady up on the mountain?" Goku asked.

"Of course we do." Hakkai sounded almost offended by the suggestion that he'd forgotten. Hakuryuu nuzzled him slightly and Hakkai returned the dragon's affection with a chin scratch.

"Well, it's just… before she died, she called Sanzo a youkai, remember?" Goku explained.

"You think Sanzo's turned into a youkai because some old biddy called him one?" Gojyo looked thoroughly unimpressed.

"Well what if she knew magic!" Goku tried.

"Goku, I don't mean to be rude, but I think the old woman simply felt that all youkai are evil creatures incapable of love and compassion and thus likened Sanzo's attitude to a youkai's behaviour." Hakkai explained.

"But Hakkai!" Goku persisted.

"Even if the monk did become a youkai, what makes you think he wouldn't attack us, or anyone else in the Inn for that matter?" Gojyo sighed.

"No! Stay back! Help! Someone, help me!" came a sudden cry from outside of the bathroom. It was Goku's turn to look thoroughly unimpressed with Gojyo.

"Smart aleck." Gojyo muttered as he hurried to the door and opened it, rushing back into the main lobby. The innkeeper was huddled in the corner of the room, shaking violently in terror.

"What happened?" Hakkai asked upon reaching the distraught man.

"It was… horrible…" the innkeeper stammered.

"Please calm down and tell me exactly what you saw." Hakkai asked patiently.

"I saw a monster!" the innkeeper shuddered. "He just walked right into the Inn and looked around. I was terrified that he would attack, but as soon as I raised my voice the monster just ran away!"

"It was male?" Hakkai asked.

"Of course it was! I'm not blind, you know." the innkeeper was less frightened and more annoyed now.

"What did he look like?" Goku asked.

"Let's see…" the innkeeper bit his thumbnail in thought. "Long shaggy blond hair, white eyes, big claws…"

"Blond?" Gojyo asked, not wanting to believe that Goku was right to believe Hakkai's first explanation.

"That's right… and he was wearing some faded blue jeans." The innkeeper added.

"Did he have a red mark on his forehead by any chance?" Hakkai asked, wanting to be certain before jumping to conclusions.

"I can't remember. To be honest, I was more worried about his claws and teeth than his forehead." The innkeeper sighed. "Sorry. Is he someone you know?"

Goku, Gojyo, Hakkai and even Hakuryuu exchanged uncertain looks until finally, Hakkai answered.

"He might be."

Sanzo, meanwhile, was having the time of his life. With only the slightest effort he could throw himself right onto the roofs of buildings and land with barely a noise. He could move so quickly the world around him became a blur! Sights, smells, sounds, even the feel of the ground beneath his feet, all of it felt as if it had been released from the hold of an iron vise!

Perching on the ledge of one of the houses closest to the edge of town, Sanzo contemplated simply rushing off into the mountain forest. It was terribly tempting. He felt his claws gripping the roof of the house as he tensed, preparing to spring… but something held him back. Something prevented him from simply springing through the air and soaring into the trees to run among the sights and sounds of the wilderness.

He looked around, scenting the air. He was hungry. Perhaps that was why he'd stopped. Relaxing his grip and turning swiftly, Sanzo loped along the roof and flung himself easily to the next, the air rushing past his body, exciting his muscles, urging him to run and to leap even more. Still, he reminded himself, he needed to eat first… and from the scent he'd picked up, he would be eating very, very soon.

Goku was getting extremely worried now. If Sanzo had become a youkai then it would be extremely hard to get him to go west! Not only that, he might not even remember anyone… he might have turned vicious. Goku turned to Hakkai and was about to ask him something, but he thought better of it and stopped himself before barely uttering Hakkai's name.

"Goku? What's wrong?" Hakkai asked upon hearing the beginnings of what might have been a question.

"It's just… I'm really worried about Sanzo. What if he's afraid and he's hiding from us?" Goku worried.

"I'm sure Sanzo isn't hiding, Goku… if he has truly become a youkai, then he may simply be outside to avoid being seen by the people of the Inn." Hakkai suggested.

"Or he could be out to get something to eat." Gojyo suggested. Hearing this, Goku's stomach remembered its job and set to growling loudly for sustenance.

"I'm starving!" Goku shouted in desperation.

"You can yell all you want; it's not like food is just gonna magically fall from the sky!" Gojyo shouted angrily.

"I don't care! I'm still starving!" Goku countered.

"Goku! Gojyo!" Hakkai shouted, interrupting their bickering. "Please stop fighting. We'll focus on getting food once we've found Sanzo."

"I'm gonna kill him for this. Ruining our sleep AND getting us even hungrier by making us work on empty stomachs…" Gojyo grumbled.

"Kyuuu!" Hakuryuu added in complaint. He'd been looking forward to resting as well, considering he'd been driving for almost two days without stopping.

"What if he's turned into a youkai?" Goku asked.

"Then I'll really kill him for this!" Gojyo shouted.

"Now please, everyone just-" Hakkai stopped mid-sentence. The powerful youki he'd sensed earlier was back. Gojyo, Goku and Hakuryuu had gone silent, sensing it as well.

"Whatever it is, it's above us." Gojyo whispered.

"I'm gonna kick the crap out of it if it's not Sanzo." Goku muttered.

"And if it is?" Hakkai asked quietly.

"Then he'd better know how to fight, cuz I'm still beating him up." Goku grinned, summoning his nyoi-bo.

"Damn right." Gojyo added, summoning his shakujou.

"Haaa!" Hakkai shouted, launching a ki-blast into the sky as he heard something leap from the ledge.

He landed in their midst, clutching his shoulder where the ki-blast had grazed him. It had hurt quite a bit and he wasn't exactly in the best of moods now that he'd had his romp interrupted by pain. Standing at his full height, Sanzo turned his fierce gaze upon each of them, one by one. He felt a certain amount of pleasure at seeing the fear and disbelief in their eyes. Snarling, he leapt with lightning speed at the one garbed in green.

"Hakkai! Watch it!" Gojyo shouted, slicing his shakujou through the air towards the beast. It connected with empty air, arcing around once before Gojyo brought it back. He heard a terrible snarl to his right and turned to see Goku protecting him from an attack, his nyoi-bo jammed firmly in the creature's jaws.

"Gojyo! Hakkai! Don't just stand there!" Goku shouted, trying to hold the youkai back.

"Hold him there, Goku!" Hakkai shouted, powering another ki-blast.

He was getting angrier and angrier. This rage was something he'd never felt, or if he had, he'd been unable to express it until now. Having the small creature holding him back when he had so much power was unforgivable! Sanzo lashed out with a kick, hitting Goku so hard he was flung into the side of a nearby building.

"Gaaaahh!" Goku cried out as he flew through the air, his back hitting the wall so hard it left a body print. He coughed up blood as he fell to the ground. His mind was a whirl of thoughts. It was definitely Sanzo. That was obvious to him. What concerned him now was the strength he was facing. He wondered if they'd be able to defeat Sanzo in this new and terrible form… without resorting to measures which never ceased to terrify him. "S…Sanzo…"

Freed from being held back, Sanzo turned towards the one who glared at him through a pair of red eyes. The one with hair that looked like the blood he was soon going to spill. Crouching low, Sanzo snarled viciously as he sprang at Gojyo. Gojyo was ready for him and retaliated with a lightning fast swing of his shakujou. Sanzo was quick, and he'd leapt to the side at the last minute, saving himself from death, but not from being wounded.

"Damnit it, you stupid youkai! Hold still and let us see your forehead!" Gojyo shouted in frustration. He sent his shakujou after the beast again, only to see the youkai vanish. He turned at the last minute to see Hakkai's ki-blast collide with the youkai, the bright light showing that the holy charka belonging to Sanzo was indisputably present on the beast's forehead.

Sanzo felt as if every part of his body had been set on fire. Thrown backwards through the air, Sanzo first hit a wall, the collapsed to the ground, coughing violently and clutching his chest, trying to recover from the direct blast of energy. He groaned, wanting desperately to attack the one in green for his vile blasts of light… but it hurt to move and he needed time. He doubted he would get it.

"It's Sanzo." Gojyo said seriously.

"I know. I saw the chakra as well." Hakkai wiped sweat from his brow. Something was puzzling him, though. "If so much demonic aura is present in him then why isn't he attacking at full strength?"

"It's cuz he doesn't want to." Goku said weakly, walking up beside Gojyo and Hakkai.

"What are you babbling about now?" Gojyo asked.

"Sanzo wouldn't ever kill us. He's not like that. Unless we go crazy and try hurting other people who don't even deserve it… Sanzo won't kill us." Goku maintained.

"Goku, even if that's true… that creature… is no longer Sanzo." Hakkai said slowly.

"I don't care." Goku said seriously. Hakkai and Gojyo exchanged confused glances. "I won't kill him if he's not gonna kill us. I asked Sanzo what he would do if I lost my mind cuz of the Minus Waves… like Yakumo did. He said he would kill me almost right away… but I could tell he meant it different!"

"What are you saying?" Hakkai asked.

"I'm saying that Sanzo would only kill us if we were suffering from bein' alive! That's always been how he is! He's not a bad guy an' no one believes that an' you both wanna kill him but… but… he's just…" Goku trailed off, soft tears of frustration beginning to fall from his eyes. A firm hand squeezed his shoulder and Goku looked up, surprisingly, into the face of Sha Gojyo. "Gojyo?"

"Listen, Goku. We all know what Sanzo's really like. We've been stuck with him for a long time. We know he's not that much of a cold hearted bastard if you look really far down… but the fact is…" Gojyo said quietly.

"It doesn't look like we can do anything else to stop him." Hakkai finished Gojyo's statement.

Sanzo listened to them from where he lay, biding his time, recovering his strength. His wounds didn't hurt so much from the burns now… but the pain was still there, as if something was pushing on his ribs and tightening his chest. He heard the smaller one saying something to both the red-eyed creature and the one in green… and for some reason, he felt as if the pain of his wounds would be much more preferable than the unexplainable pain he now felt. He would end it one way or another. It was inexcusable to let the miserable creatures live now that they'd harmed him… harming something as majestic and as powerful as he was meant only one thing. Death.

"There has to be something we can d-" Goku started, but his eyes widened in terror as Sanzo lunged directly at Hakkai. He moved so quickly and struck with such force that Goku thought surely he must have killed him. Hakkai slammed into the ground and rolled a good distance before coming to a stop and flopping onto his side. In terror, Goku shouted at the beast, "Sanzo! Stop it!"

"Hakkai!" Gojyo cried, racing towards him. Sanzo turned, intent on killing now, and lunged after Gojyo, dodging a surprise kick and bringing his claws across the red-eyed creature's back. Gojyo howled in pain as he staggered away from Sanzo… but the youkai wasn't finished. He approached Gojyo slowly, lifted him up be his shirt, glared into the red eyes which showed nothing but terror… and let him go. He turned his attention towards a new foe, letting Gojyo kneel beside Hakkai.

Another creature stood further down the road. Long hair billowed out behind it in the wind. A grin spread across its face as its golden eyes locked with Sanzo's. Both the demonic priest and the freed Seitan Taisei snarled and growled before vanishing into charges towards each other at top speed.

"Hakkai… Come on… snap out of it." Gojyo shook Hakkai by the shoulders gently. Hakkai groaned and opened his eyes. Hakuryuu fluttered to his side, having fled to safety earlier on. He licked Hakkai's cheek in relief that his master was okay.

"Gojyo… Hakuryuu… I'm sorry I didn't dodge fast enough." Hakkai grunted weakly as he sat up.

"We have much bigger things to worry about… such as how to get Goku's limiter back on… and how to stop him from killing Sanzo." Gojyo winced, putting a hand to his back then quickly pulling it away in shock.

"You're hurt, Gojyo!" Hakkai gasped, noticing the blood on Gojyo's hands from where he'd touched his back.

"It's just a scratch… a very, very deep scratch." Gojyo smiled bravely. Hakkai brought his hands to the wound and focused his healing onto it. He'd been thrown and bounced, but other than severe bruises to his bones, he'd been extremely fortunate. As the wounds on Gojyo's back healed up, the two men and the dragon turned to watch the fight between Sanzo and Seitan Taisei… and wondered how in the hell they could do much of anything to stop it.

Sanzo dodged another blow by only a hair. It was impossibly hard to fight the smaller creature. Sanzo managed to land one or two blows, only to have them returned in double by his opponent. There was no questioning who was stronger in this scenario, and Sanzo didn't know how long he would be able to fight on, having already sustained heavy wounds from earlier. Struck heavily, he landed a good distance away from Seitan Taisei and crumpled to his knees, panting deeply, sweat dripping from his strained body. What could he possible do against such power?

Seitan Taisei stopped for a moment to give his opponent time to breathe. It was always so much fun to wreak havoc he'd often forget how to limit himself so his fun would last! But oh, to simply tear apart his victim wouldn't be painful enough… he'd have to think of something else this time. The thought made him grin even more. The idea of plunging his hands deep into the blond youkai's chest and simply crushing his heart like a grape sounded exceedingly fun! Before that… he'd have to break his arms and legs. Maybe break his back too… that would work. Break him so much he would have no means of moving. It made him cackle with glee as he redoubled his efforts to bring his victim to the ground.

"Kyuu…" Hakuryuu crooned in worry.

"Gojyo… if Sanzo dies… then…" Hakkai started.

"Hakkai, don't. Look, we'll think of something. If we try to stop those two there's a chance they could both turn on us… and I don't want you to try going youkai too. Regardless as to whether or not you could stop them… could you stop yourself?" Gojyo asked seriously. Hakkai looked at his hands, then looked to the fight only to see Sanzo being flung right towards them! Diving out of the way, Gojyo and Hakkai watched as Sanzo hit the ground and slid across the dirt until he slammed into a building.

"Sanzo!" Hakkai shouted.

"Fuck." Gojyo whispered. He turned, only to see the demonic Seitan Taisei standing right behind him. "G… Goku…"

"Gojyo!" Hakkai screamed in terror. He was frozen. If Seitan Taisei wanted to, he could kill Gojyo right then and there… but instead, he walked by him, heading towards Sanzo's unmoving form.

Everything was blurry. Everything was pain. Where was he? Sanzo tried moving, but only one of his arms would respond… his legs hurt and wouldn't move either. What was going on?

The time was drawing closer. Soon enough it would be time to crush his heart, Seitan Taisei thought with glee. It looked like both of his legs were broken… and one of his arms definitely was… but what was this? His right arm still moved? He'd end that easily enough.

"GHAAAAAAAAAAAA!" Sanzo's scream pierced the night as strong hands snapped his arm like a twig. He closed his eyes tightly, knowing the end had come and that anything was better than this horribly agony… but… nothing happened. He opened his eyes slightly to look up at Seitan Taisei. The creature had stopped mid-strike and was regarding him with a fierce need to understand. Sanzo's mind tried to focus on those innocent golden eyes which were set in a frame far more menacing than they should have been. He tried to move his arm, to reach out, but his arm refused to move.

Why couldn't he attack? Why had he stopped? The blond hair looked so shiny to him in the moonlight… it was mesmerizing… but why did it appeal to him so strongly? Why did a part of him want to protect this ray of light? The scream of pain he'd heard had made his blood run cold. He'd heard plenty of screams in his lifetime… but this one was different… this one… was…

"GOTCHA!" Gojyo threw the limiter to Hakkai, who slammed it down onto Seitan Taisei's head. The maneuver they'd failed once in the desert was finally completed with stunning accuracy. The change happened immediately as the form of the terrible lord of chaos reverted back to the form of Son Goku. He fell forward onto the ground beside the wounded youkai Sanzo, unconscious.

"Sanzo, hold still, I can help you." Hakkai urged the fallen beast, hoping against hope that Sanzo had some fragment of sanity in his mind left. The youkai's eyes were focused solely on the fallen form of Goku. He felt his throat tightening, his eyes burning… the pain in his chest was too much to bear any longer.

"…hhnnnrrr…" Sanzo groaned.

"Shut the hell up you stupid monk and let Hakkai heal you before you keel over and expire." Gojyo snapped in fury. His nerves were so jangled that if a pin had landed nearby he would have screamed and run a mile. Hakkai brought his healing hands over the youkai's legs and arms after setting them in place. It was tiring work as it required a great deal of his own strength… but all he planned to do was mend the broken bones. The other injuries would heal in time, and this would leave Hakkai with enough energy to prevent himself from keeling over as well.

Sanzo regarded Hakkai in silence. He'd hated him so entirely moments ago… yet now… he felt new life and strength in his weakened limbs. The pain in his heart still ached to burst free, but it was beginning to subside with every passing moment. Instead of fighting to remain awake any longer, Sanzo turned his head to look at Goku, and fell into blissful unconsciousness.

"You're certain he won't hurt anyone?" the innkeeper asked, looking quite uncertain at the sight of Gojyo hauling both Goku and an unconscious youkai into the inn, Hakkai limping along beside him.

"I'm fucking sure, damnit; let me put him into a bed already!" Gojyo shouted, his strength wavering.

"Alright, alright!" the innkeeper agreed, showing them quickly to their rooms wherein Gojyo dumped Sanzo and Goku unceremoniously onto Sanzo's bed, then left to head to his own room where he proceeded to collapse into sleep almost immediately. Hakkai did the same.

They all slept well into the evening of the following day and awoke at around the same time, save Sanzo, who remained asleep. When Goku awoke next to the youkai he yelped and leapt to his feet. Everything came back to him, save the last moments… and he wondered how it was that his limiter had managed to find its way back to his head… but he no longer cared. Seeing Sanzo so hurt brought upon the boy's heart so much guilt he thought he would faint.

"Did… Did I do this to Sanzo?" Goku whimpered, looking at his hands. He saw that there was dried blood under his nails… and bits of skin as well. It was most likely Sanzo's skin. He turned to his sleeping companion and began to weep. "Sanzo… Sanzo… I'm really sorry. Please, Sanzo… get up… I want to tell you I'm sorry, Sanzo… Please…"

The youkai twitched ever so slightly upon hearing the voice. Fear began filling his veins as the need to escape overpowered his need to recover. Eye snapping open, Sanzo was on his feet in an instant, then he was on the ground, exhausted and in too much pain to walk. He struggled, dragging himself away from the creature which had hurt him so much…

"Sanzo! Stop! Stop it, you're gonna hurt yourself!" Goku reached for Sanzo's hand. Sanzo froze up, bracing for the attack, closing his eyes tightly and letting out a very small, very pathetic sounding whimper. It broke Goku's heart. As Sanzo tried getting up again, collapsing onto his knees unsuccessfully, Goku hugged him tightly, feeling the youkai's heart beating a mile a minute, hearing the laboured breaths as Sanzo's head leaned on Goku's shoulder, but most of all, he felt as Sanzo tried to break free. He'd done this to Sanzo. He'd brought out this complete and utter terror… and he only wanted to be forgiven. "Sanzo I'm so sorry!"

"Nnghhh…!" Sanzo struggled. He didn't want to hear anymore. He would be killed, he was certain. The creature was already holding him in place. He tried again, but was unable to escape. Finally he gave up, collapsing in the arms of his attacker. He would die there… and there was nothing he could do.

"Sanzo… please forgive me. I'm really, really sorry…" Goku sobbed, tears falling from his eyes onto Sanzo's shoulder. The youkai blinked. This wasn't what he'd been expecting. He smelled nothing but sadness and guilt from the creature holding him so tightly. It didn't even feel like an attack anymore. Was the creature seeking solace? Why? Did it actually feel regret? Did it… care about him? These and other thoughts whirled in Sanzo's mind… and as this happened, Goku gently, and ever so softly, brought his lips to Sanzo's forehead.

It happened in an instant. All of Sanzo's senses went dead. He couldn't smell anything, he heard nothing, his vision blurred horribly… as this happened he felt his body changing. Thoughts of wilderness and freedom began to become replaced by thoughts of identity and of his whereabouts. Thoughts of nameless faces and attackers suddenly became people he knew by the names of Son Goku, Cho Hakkai, and Sha Gojyo. Claws were replaced by soft nails. Rough skin replaced by much a much softer, paler layer. The claws on his feet slowly became toenails. His muscles and extra height melted away, leaving behind a scrawny and much thinner body. His hair shortened somewhat, as did his ears. His eyes closed, opening to display his purple irises and black pupils once more. Finally, with his teeth retracting and his throat loosening, Genjo Sanzo returned to the world he'd left behind only ten hours ago.

"Gh-haaaa!" he cried out in terror, unaware of where he was, only aware that he was in pain and that he'd seen so many things that his mind was jumbled and he was panicked.

"Sanzo, easy! Calm down! It's okay!" Goku hugged him tightly. Sanzo began to calm himself, his breath returning to normal. He slid down onto the floor from Goku's arms, his head resting on Goku's lap.

"I feel like I just… woke up from a nightmare." Sanzo panted, sweat rolling down his face.

"It's alright… you're awake now. That's all that matters." Goku leaned over him, smiling kindly. Sanzo felt like he'd been hit by a truck, but looking up into Goku's smiling face was a definite comfort to him.

"What happened to me?" Sanzo asked. Goku began to explain, his hand subconsciously moving to Sanzo's head, weaving easily through the forest of blond hair to his scalp. Sanzo looked at the wall as Goku's hand rubbed his head gently. He wanted to protest, to complain… but at the moment, he felt tired and still more than a little panicked as to why he was in agony and almost naked save for some thoroughly beaten up jeans.

"That's what happened." Goku finished.

"You took off your limiter… again." Sanzo stated almost sadly.

"I had to stop you somehow." Goku pressed. "Hakkai and Gojyo were hurt and you probably would have…"

"Killed them?" Sanzo asked, looking up into the boy's eyes.

"I wanted to keep you safe by keeping them safe." Goku explained seriously. "I know you would only kill us if we were suffering… otherwise you wouldn't be the Sanzo that I know… so I thought-"

"And just what is it about me that you know, Goku?" Sanzo asked bitterly, looking away. Embarrassment on top of embarrassment was what his current situation was.

"I know that you need to be protected… cuz sometimes you can't protect yourself… and I know you need to have people who care about you close by, cuz I don't think you care about yourself very much either." Goku stated softly.

"Hmph." Sanzo closed his eyes.

"Am I right, Sanzo?" Goku asked. "Sanzo? Ne? Ne?"

"Shut up. I don't understand monkey language." Sanzo sighed.

"Sanzo…" Goku grumbled… but then he smiled. "Still… I'm really glad you're back to normal."

"How did I change back?" Sanzo asked curiously.

"Well…" Goku started, blushing slightly. "I was really worried that you would hate me forever for attacking you so I kissed your forehead to make you feel better and-"

"You kissed me?" Sanzo asked, completely stunned.

"Well, of course! How else was I going to prove that I wasn't going to hurt you?" Goku stated emphatically.

"Goku…" Sanzo sighed, putting his palm to his face.

"Was I wrong?" Goku asked.

"No, but you should at least know what kissing is before doing it." Sanzo groaned.

"I do know what kissing it, Sanzo." Goku said quietly. "It means you love someone."

"But in what way?" Sanzo asked in frustration.

"I don't know, okay? In the way that someone who climbs a huge mountain to let me out of a cage when he doesn't even know my name would want to be loved!" Goku shouted. Sanzo blinked. "Cuz I do, Sanzo. I really, really, most definitely do love you."

"Pff." Sanzo scoffed.

"I don't see why it's such a big deal. I just want you to be not alone." Goku sighed, rubbing Sanzo's head a bit more.

"That was the reason I took you out of Mount Gogyo. Even before I met you I could never be alone because I was constantly bombarded by your annoying voice calling out to me." Sanzo sighed.

"But that was… I mean… I don't even remember calling…" Goku sighed.

"You told me once that even though you weren't calling, you knew your heart was." Sanzo looked up at Goku again. "Do you know how impossibly stupid that concept would sound to anyone but us?"

"Yeah… really stupid." Goku grinned. "But we both know it happened, right?

"I suppose." Sanzo said.

"Sanzo?" Goku asked, looking down into the monk's eyes again.

"Mm?" Sanzo replied.

"Do you love me too?" Goku asked.

Sanzo regarded the stupid look in his eyes. The dopey kind of loyal love you would get from a dog didn't even compare to the fierce and undying loyalty Sanzo saw within Goku's eyes. He looked away, unable to answer, and the pain in his heart flared up anew. He winced.

"Sanzo?" Goku asked. "Are you okay?

"I'm fine." Sanzo said through gritted teeth. Goku put his hand on Sanzo's chest.

"Your heart's still beating really fast. Come on… you need to lie down in your bed." Goku began to get up, but Sanzo pulled at his arm, forcing him to stay.

"Goku, listen to me as I'll say this only once." Sanzo warned.

In the end, no amount of poems, songs, gifts, or acts of passion would ever mean as much to Son Goku as the three words he heard in that moment… and no person in existence would ever mean as much to him as the person who spoke them.

"I promise, Sanzo. I'll always be here to protect you, alright?" Goku reassured him, happily.

"Just help me get to my bed before I kill you." Sanzo snapped.

"Okay… Oh no!" Goku cried in distress.

"What? What is it?" Sanzo asked in alarm.

"I forgot all about Shin!" Goku sighed.

The events which had transpired no longer mattered to either the monkey or the monk… and Hakkai and Gojyo would never know of what had happened, for when they carefully opened the door to Sanzo's room to check on them, they would find both a very human Genjo Sanzo and a very loudly snoring Son Goku fast asleep on the same bed, exactly as before… and chalk it up to the curse not being permanent.

Owari