the gore of sight
...tever bug's crawled up Sanzo's ass had better not be another bunch of damned weirdoes sent by Kougaiji's whackjob step-mom. That damned bitch hasn't got the sense of justice my bro's 'liege' has and I really don't want to muck around with more crap like those freaky faux-mini-monks." His expression turned dark for a moment as he recalled the incident involving the ninjinka tree, but it didn't last long and with a shrug he set that worry aside entirely. After all, they had defeated the pathetic Goku and Lirin clones almost too easily and the only thing he truly regretted about the incident was that the youkai princess' elder half-brother and his own half-brother hadn't come to reclaim her as they usually did. "I would've liked getting to see Jie--um, no, I mean 'Dokugakuji' again," Gojyo said with a nod. Before taking in another lungful of smoke, he added unhappily, "He and I *really* need to sit down and have a good heart-to-heart sometime soon. Get caught up on shit and all that good stuff." As the acrid smoke burned its way down his throat, he pondered yet again what type of relationship his brother and Kougaiji really shared. During their brief time together during the first encounter with Chin Iisou, it had been completely clear to Gojyo if to no one else that there was more going on than the usual relationship between a sworn protector and the one he was guarding. Then again, it was entirely possible that his own soul-deep connection with Hakkai caused him to unfairly assume such things. After finishing his cigarette with a final, hard draw before flicking the butt away uncaringly, Gojyo ran both hands through lengthy, sanguine hair that was held back by his blue headband as always. Encountering a small snarl that he had failed to eliminate with his hurried brushing that morning, he considered asking Hakkai to help him with it wherever they ended up for the night. He remembered how damned good it always felt when he brushed it for him and it was a valid excuse for closeness even if they were stuck camping out in the open. Not even Sanzo could take exception to something so seemingly innocent, or at least, that was what he hoped. Thoughts of the blond priest brought to mind the human's constant companion and this in turn, gave Gojyo another reason to laugh to himself as he remarked, "I wonder if the monkey is behaving while Sanzo tries to find something that'll work for his gun? I doubt it." His nose had already detected the wonderful aromas wafting from what he assumed was a nearby marketplace and he just shook his head. "Nope, not a chance in hell the kid's not whining and begging to be fed even though 'Kai went to get us all lunch, but that shouldn't be a sur--" Gojyo's words were interrupted by a sudden explosion that erupted from the direction that the fragrance of cooking food had come. His long-lashed eyes went impossibly wide as a greasy ball of smoke shot straight up and then mushroomed out hugely, shading the people below who were unfortunate enough to be nearby. "Holy fuck!" Gojyo exclaimed inelegantly as he automatically sprang into a battle-ready posture and then was momentarily paralyzed like a life-sized version of a child's toy. Within seconds, the agonized screams of those beneath the cloud reached his ears. This brought to mind a realization that if the marketplace was the best place to pick up items for a picnic, then that was exactly where a very important green-eyed youkai would most likely have been and this launched him into action. "Hakkai!" Gojyo shouted uselessly even as he raced away from the already forgotten supplies. No matter how much he wished it was otherwise, the half-breed's booted feet simply didn't traverse the distance fast enough. Deep inside himself, the voice of a long dead warrior was raised in a similar cry, but as always Gojyo could not hear Kenren or even grant him control when an experienced military man might have handled things better than he himself did. There were too many squatting, crowded buildings and too-narrow twisting walkways between them for him to make good time. All he knew for a few horrific minutes was that somewhere ahead of him, the sounds of men and women screaming in pain were growing louder and louder, yet none of them matched the pained shouts that he would never forget from the day of Chin Iisou's horrors. The absence of Hakkai's cries gave him false hope, something he discovered the moment he broke past the last of the hovels blocking his path. Once more frozen by the shocking tableau before him, Gojyo felt the heat of the remains of a burning food stall from quite a distance and shielding his face with a hand, he scanned the many bodies strewn in front of the conflagration. Those farthest from the fiery site were struggling to their feet intending to help the others who were less fortunate, whereas those closest were ominously motionless even as wisps of smoke rose from their lifeless bodies. In between these disparate groups were those whose fates were less certain and it was in this third group that he found the person he had feared finding there, face down and clearly unmoving. "HAKKAI!!" Gojyo shouted at the top of his lungs even as he pushed past the few stunned onlookers and survivors that separated them. Totally disregarding the increasing heat as he struggled to get closer to his fallen lover, the half-breed failed to note a somewhat soot-darkened white form that clumsily winged its way towards him. "Kyu!!" Hakuryu keened in a voice roughened by smoke and agony of its own. Barely able to tear his gaze from Hakkai long enough to confirm what his ears told him, Gojyo shouted, "Dragon! Is he alive?! Is Hakkai okay?!" Fear filled garnet-hued eyes told him nothing, but the uncertainty in the responding kyu was all he needed to move more forcefully past the last obstacles and then drop to his knees onto the ground beside someone more important to him than life itself. There was no way that only a glance would tell him if Hakkai was living or dead, however. The fabric of every garment the converted youkai wore had been torn to shreds in various places leaving paths for blood to run freely from him to lay in an expanding crimson pool around his body. [1] Even the silken lavender sash now fluttered in the heated air from the fire in thin ribbons like a sad flag on a battlefield. Nearby, shattered beyond use, lay a familiar monocle which would never again grace a simple leather pouch lovingly given as a birthday gift less than two months prior. Thankfully, there was not an additional trio of metal earclips laying there, too. If Hakkai had lost his power limiters as well as his monocle, things could have gone from terrible to catastrophic in a hurry. Also nearby yet unnoted were several packages of steaming carry-out containers that had been filled at the same stand that was now ablaze. Through what seemed like random chance yet was actually divine intervention, Hakkai had completed his purchases and had turned to walk away mere seconds before the blast erupted. If he had remained there when the container of highly flammable cooking fuel h...