24Title: Chronicles of the Sun
Author: Baby Yaoi
Pairing: Gendou Sanzo x Son Goku, Shou Gojyo x Shou Hakkai
Rating: M (R)
Disclaimer: I do not own Gensoumaden Saiyuuki (series, Burial, Gaiden, Reload, Blast, Ibun, etc.), its characters, setting and the like. I bow down to Kazuya Minekura for bringing these wonderful anti-heroes into this world and semi-allowing me to play with them.
Chronicles of the Sun
by Baby Yaoi
Kanzeon Bosatsu stood before me in her magnificence. She tipped her head to one side and asked in a heavenly voice that shook the very ground I stood upon, "Tell me, Priest Genjyo Sanzo, the one teaching your master, Priest Koumyou Sanzo, passed down to you."
I narrowed my eyes to shield myself from the Goddess of Mercy's brightness, the image of my master coming to mind, and recited, "To hold nothing: If you meet Buddha, kill Buddha. If you meet your father, kill your father. Free of everything, bound by nothing...live your life just as it is."
(Excerpt from Saiyuuki: Chronicles of the Sun - Earth, Entry 29)
Prologue:
Gendou Sanzo held the portrait of his sensei, father and mentor, Sanzo Kou, up for all the world to see. He kept his head down, his golden blond hair covering his anger-filled violet eyes as he gritted his teeth to keep from saying something that would ruin the solemn ceremony as guest after guest after fucking guest came out of the pouring rain, went up to him, and mumbled how sorry they were for his loss, some even managing a tear here and there. One woman, the head of the Science Division, even broke down before him and clung to his black slacks tightly, her wails bursting out of the sensible-sized room and out to the streets.
Selfish, egocentric, fake bastards, he growled internally at everyone, watching how they bundled together and talked about how much more Sanzo Kou had to live for, how much they missed him, how much they would suffer and change now that he wasn't there...when none of them gave a damn about him while he was still alive. None of them knew the true Sanzo Kou, none of them bothered to look past his title in the school.
None of them knew how Kou took him, Gendou Sanzo, in when his parents left him behind one day and disappeared from the face of the earth. None of them knew how infinitely bright his essence was to Sanzo, nor did they know how patient he was with Sanzo. None of them knew the numbers of hours per day the two of them spent inside libraries or below the kaede tree, Sanzo sweeping away the dead leaves while Kou lit a cigarette and talked about the brilliance of the blue sky. None of them knew how Kou always read his beloved work of Chinese literature, "Journey to the West" by Wu Cheng'en, every night to Sanzo, changing his voice and adding actions to entertain them both.
Not one of them knew.
No one knew...but Sanzo.
A small smile curling over his lips, he looked up, met the eyes of the next griever approaching him, and watched the person stop short and become tense, the hand he had raised to place on Sanzo's shoulder wilting back to his side. Turning around, Sanzo placed the framed portrait in his hands down before the alter, closed his eyes for a moment, then turned and walked out of the room, not minding the weight of a hundred curious gazes as he mounted the steps up to his room and locked the door, the murmur of voices growing larger and larger as each second ticked by.
Looking down at the large, unopened box on top of his kotatsu, he tore his black necktie off, unbuttoned the first three buttons of his shirt, and took his black blazer off haphazardly. Strewing the items carelessly around him, he settled down, pulled the box towards him, and picked up the letter strapped to the top. Carefully opening it, he read:
My dearest Sanzo,
I do believe I have passed to the afterlife if you are reading this. While there can never be enough time for you and me to stay by each others' sides, time will not stop for our own selfish whims alone. I know you know this, Sanzo, for you hold this letter in your hands.
Inside the box are my most sacred treasures. Undoubtedly, the lawyer has shown you the other things I have left for you; trifle things that you may choose to dispose of whichever way you please. However, the contents of this box carry my life, my soul and my voice. They carry within themselves the many truths, hopes and mysteries of life. May they bring you the peace and happiness it had brought me over the years, Sanzo. And, most especially, as the contents have led you into my arms, may it lead that special person into your arms someday.
Remember this, dear child, for this will be my final lesson to you: Open yourself fully. It's a voice and not a voice, yet it will definitely reach you.
Be strong, Konzen Douji/Kouryuu/Priest Genjyo Sanzo.
- Priest Koumyou Sanzo
Sanzo stared at the latter part of the letter for the longest time, the names Konzen Douji, Kouryuu, Genjyo Sanzo and Koumyou Sanzo jumping up every time he passed over them. He recognized the name Genjyo Sanzo as the Japanese translation of Wu Cheng'en's Buddhist monk, Xuanzang, from "Journey to the West", but who were Konzen Douji, Kouryuu and Koumyou Sanzo? Were they characters in Wu Cheng'en's work as well? And why would Kou call him Genjyo Sanzo? And what did he mean by the voice? Confused, Sanzo placed the letter down and unwrapped the box, placed the cover to one side and stared in shock at what lay inside.
Kou's hardbound copy of Wu Cheng'en's "Journey to the West" stared up at him from one side, the well-preserved novel with actual gold inlay along the cover, spine and pages glittering like a precious gem under the harsh light of Sanzo's room. Seeing another note above the book, Sanzo picked it up and read the short message:
Sanzo,
Do take care of this. This is your beloved brother, after all.
Snorting in amusement, Sanzo placed the note down on top of the book and looked at the pieces of parchment inside a sealed glass box on the other side of the parcel, a fat manuscript settled above the glass box with another note from Kou attached to the front. Opening the letter, he read:
Dear Sanzo,
While I am a man of Wu Cheng'en, I failed to mention that I am also a man of Minekura Kazuya-sensei, a struggling artist who traveled around Japan and collected the pieces of parchment you see before your very eyes. Though I am certain these parchments should be shared with the readers of the world as they date back to the late 1500s and tell a tale that is most intriguing (it is a replica of Cheng'en's "Journey to the West", yet not), I confess that I am most unwilling to give this treasure away. Passed down from my father from his mother from his and so on... It is now yours.
There is but one tale written down on the pieces of parchment, but two lives. To preserve the main source of this great tale, I have encoded the tale unto the manuscript before you. Also, as I am a man who adores deviation, I have given the untitled tale a title.
"Saiyuuki: Chronicles of the Sun"
The first part consists of the 'Tenkai' entries, while the second part the 'Earth' entries. While you may not realize it yet, or believe in the red string of fate, I ask that you open yourself fully to any and all possibilities. As I have heard your voice, so will you hear someone else's. As I have found you, so will you find them. As I have been reborn, so have you...and they, as well.
Kouryuu, I was glad to have been a part of your life, and I hope that we meet again soon.
- Kou-myou
Kouryuu, the voice, Koumyou, Saiyuuki... It seemed that the answer to all the questions lay inside the pages of the thick manuscript that lay beside Wu Cheng'en's work. Someone was knocking outside his door, the low voice on the other side almost breaking the air of peace and determination that had surrounded Sanzo. Almost. Forcefully blocking out all external factors other than the box before him, he took the thick manuscript out, turned to the first page, and read Kou's handwriting:
13-09-72:
A creature born from the Earth was brought to Kanzeon Bosatsu today. Staring down at him from where I stood to my aunt's right, I found myself thinking that the chibi was indeed quite unruly and noisy, just like a monkey, as he demanded Egan for food. The chains he wore looked unnecessary and cruel on such a small boy. I crossed my arms, half-wanting to demand why they treated this creature in such a manner when the brown-haired boy looked up.
And I found myself staring into a pair of bright, gold eyes...
Son Goku gasped as three burly men dragged him out of the car he had been dragged into after his graduation ceremony. He struggled to match their strides as they pushed him into an empty warehouse, and threw him into the middle of a circle of men in suits, some of the men sporting long and gruesome scars over their faces, some with tattoos on the side of their faces and necks, the others holding guns, clubs and knives. Lifting himself up slowly from the ground, he looked around and paused when he saw his guardian, Emishi, kneeling at the foot of a young man with crimson hair and eyes.
Emishi looked as if he had been beaten to death and back as he forced his blackened eyes to open when the red-haired man nudged him on the side. Goku watched with growing dread as Emishi shuddered and whispered, "That's him. That's Goku. Take him, please, and let me go."
"This is the young man who will pay back your debt, Emishi?" the crimson-eyed man drawled dangerously, pushing Emishi away as if he were trash as he stalked towards Goku lazily.
Emishi wheezed as he gasped out, "Yes, yes, that's him. He's a virgin from head to toe, I can assure you that. No family, no background - no one who will look for him or come back for him, Gojyo. He was left in my care by -"
"I told you to call me Shou, Emishi," Shou Gojyo snarled loudly, raising his hand for the one nearest Emishi to hit the man hard on the back of his head with his weapon, drawing a broken cry from the man's bruised throat. From the darkness, Gojyo watched as his stepmother came forward with her personal guards, waiting for the conclusion to the show impatiently. Careful not to meet her eyes, he gazed down at the young man Emishi called Goku and felt drawn in by the large, golden orbs.
Goku dragged his stricken eyes away from his guardian, unable to believe what was happening and the implications of what Emishi had done, and met Gojyo's burning red gaze. In those eyes, he saw his guardian's death as clear as glass. In those eyes, he saw an image filled with blood - his, and three others'. Startled at the image and the sudden pain that burst forth from his head, he felt his knees buckle, his strength suddenly leaving him, and stared up at Death.
Gojyo watched the browned-hair youth fall to the floor, their eyes still glued to one another. After a few seconds, he took his gun out from beneath his jacket and walked back to Emishi's quivering form, noting his stepmother's presence to his immediate left. Pointing the gun to Emishi's temple, he murmured, "You know what I hate more than a crook, Emishi? A traitor."
"I-I never betrayed you!" Emishi shouted hysterically, attempting to make a run for it before Gojyo's men forced him still.
Gojyo's eyes glowed an angry red as he pressed the nozzle of his weapon deeper into the man's profusely sweating forehead and whispered, "Goku." He pulled the trigger...and killed his very first man. He watched the body of the man once called Emishi slump forward and land with a loud 'thud' against the concrete, the blood flowing out and around his head, creating a macabre image. Looking up with guarded eyes, he met his stepmother's gaze and waited.
Narrowing her gaze, she moved up to Gojyo, a look of displeasure marring her beautiful face, and slapped him hard. "You took too long to kill the roach. You're weak." Definitely the son of that WHORE, she screamed through her eyes before turning around and merging with the darkness once again, her attendants following her obediently.
Gojyo felt blood trail down the side of his cheek from where his stepmother's nail scratched him as he kept his eyes averted, listening to the sound of his stepmother's fading footsteps. When he heard a door close, he tucked his gun away, wiped the blood away from his face, turned to look at Goku, who continued to stare at his corpse of a guardian, and muttered angrily, "Take him away."
Goku looked up at the redhead's statement, held on to the red orbs that stared down at him, and gasped when he felt a sharp sting on his back, forcing him into darkness and into a nightmare - a nightmare where he lay underneath an old, fat man with scars and bruises all over his dark skin, intense pain radiating from all over his body with every move the man made, the sticky feeling of blood from between his legs claiming his body with a passion. Just when he thought that the nightmare was at its peak, the old man groaned loudly in his ear as he pulled his organ out and marked Goku's still body liberally with his essence, smirking down at the dazed 18-year-old as he leaned down with a renewed erection, "You're awake, eh, boy? Now be good and make Daddy Ren happy here."
And Goku felt his whole world fall apart.
Shou Hakkai kissed his fiancé's cheek as they waited for the pedestrian light to turn green. "You sure you don't want to stay over, Kanan? I can always drive you to Waseda University."
Kanan giggled and gave Hakkai a peck on the lips. "It's lovely of you to offer, darling, but my mom's been complaining that she and Dad haven't had enough time with me and that I should spend the last remaining days of my single life with them. Besides," she placed a hand on her stomach and sighed happily, "I want to tell them the big news tonight."
Hakkai smiled and placed his hand above his lover's. "Can I come along?"
Kanan laughed and wagged her finger before his face. "Sorry, but no. Dad specifically said they wanted me and only me to spend the next how many days with them. Actually, if ever he had been more frank, I bet he'd have just said 'Can you tell that fiancé of yours to stop hogging our daughter!?' or something like that."
He laughed at her horrible imitation of her stern father and gave her one last kiss once the pedestrian light changed to green. "Fine, fine. I'll see you next week then."
Kanan nodded and left his arms.
Hakkai watched and waved goodbye to his fiancé, smiling when she turned around in the middle of the road and gave him a flying kiss. He laughed as he pretended to have great difficulty catching her kiss when his ears picked up the sound of car gunning its engine. He turned to watch a red sports car weaving in and out of traffic at an unimaginable speed...and not stopping for anything.
He ran towards Kanan, but he felt as if the road was drenched with tar, pulling him down, slowing him down. Opening his mouth, he shouted out a warning to Kanan, heard the rowdy, drunk voices of the people in the sports car, and then, the heavy, sickening sound of metal hitting a live being consumed his world. He watched Kanan's body as it soared up the air before landing on the sidewalk, people scrambling around and screaming as the sports car drove away from the broken body.
Hakkai stared at the still figure on the ground, every sound and smell disappearing as he took a few unsteady steps forward. He didn't hear himself sob, didn't feel the tears running down his cheeks, didn't see the look of pure agony on his face... He didn't feel anything other than the warmth slowly leaving Kanan's beautiful body, her still, still heart, her sleeping face...and bloodied stomach.
He didn't remember going with her to the hospital once the ambulance and police had arrived, didn't hear his parents and Kanan's parents shouting at him, asking him what happened, crying for their loss, crying in pain of losing a part of themselves. Just a part, but still a part. They didn't lose their soul, their heart...their life. They'd live.
He didn't remember getting into his father's car, his clothes still bloody with Kanan's life. He didn't remember driving in the same direction he saw the red sports car go. He didn't remember listening for the sound of its loud engine. He didn't remember chasing the sound down to a cottage near the ocean a few kilometers from where Kanan was killed. He didn't remember grabbing a piece of broken glass from the garbage can outside the house, didn't remember kissing the bumper of the car where Kanan had taken her last breath, didn't remember kicking the door down, didn't remember killing the men who were laughing inside, didn't remember the feeling of their warm blood trickling down his face and hands.
He didn't remember anything...and he loved it.
Japanese Learning Time:
最游记 - read as "Saiyūki", meaning "Journey to the West" or "Journey to the Extreme" (pun intended by Minekura-sama)
峰倉かずや - read as "Minekura Kazuya", the creator of the Gensōmaden Saiyūki (幻想魔伝最遊記) series
原動三蔵 - the first two kanjis are read as "Gendō", meaning "motive/motive power", and the latter two "Sanzō"
孫悟空 - the first kanji is read as "Son", meaning "grandchild", the latter two "Gokū", meaning one who can perceive that which cannot be seen
頌悟淨 - the first kanji is read as "Shō", meaning "ode", and the latter two "Gojyō"
装八戒 - the first kanji is read as "Shō", meaning "instrument", and the latter two "Hakkai", meaning "eight commandments"
東京大学・東大 - read as "Tōkyō Daigaku/Tōdai", meaning "Tokyo University"
二丁目 - read as "Ni-chōme", it is an area in Shinjuku (新宿) that caters to same-sex interests; its counterpart is Kabukichō (歌舞伎町)
三造稿 - read as "Sanzo", meaning "three structures" and "Kou", meaning "manuscript"
西 游记 - read as "Xī Yóu Jì", meaning "Journey to the West", written by Wu Cheng-en during the late 1500s
炬燵 - read as "kotatsu" is a low, wooden table that is covered by a futon (or heavy blanket) with a heat source underneath
Baby Yaoi: Hello there! Well, what brought this tale about? See, I recently watched the entire Saiyuuki series and thought, "Hmmm... I wonder what would the situation be for these four lovely anti-heroes if they lived in modern-day Tokyo?" and this story was born. I find all characters exceptionally complex and beautifully crafted by Minekura-sama and I hope that I managed to portray them as close to the original as possible. If not, I'll try harder (it'll only get more difficult from this point onwards, I believe). Thanks for reading and see you in Chapter 1!