Title: The Simple Beauty of It
Author: Mosh
Pairing: Sanzo/Goku
Rating: NC-17
Summary: Sometimes, telling the truth is the only way to get what you want.
Disclaimer: These boys belong to Minekura Kazuya. No money being made, no copyright or trademark infringement intended.
Email: moshesque(at)gmail(dot)com
Website: http://mosh.snarky-slytherin.net/
A/N: Written for SpringKink, 2008. The prompts were: 'damsel in distress' and "my internal moron sensor is going off". I think it goes without saying how much fun I had with this one. :D With thanks to Akuni for the wonderful beta! 7600 words.

"Harder! Ohh…!" The headboard shook and shuddered as a tanned hand pushed and pulled it, one of the rungs in danger of breaking off under the assault. The knuckles of the hand had paled from clutching it so firmly, desperate for purchase and leverage. "Sanzo…! Oh-oh, fuck… there, there…"

"Will you shut up," growled Sanzo, lying forward and pressing the length of his body over Goku's back. Whispering harshly into Goku's ear, he pumped his hips without breaking rhythm. "You'll wake the whole fucking - uhh - town."

"Oh, ohh," Goku groaned, bucking back onto Sanzo's cock, harder and harder as he gave up every ounce of control, not that he had much to begin with. "Don't ever stop!" All his arm muscles strained, coated with droplets of sweat, the lamplight glittering off them and the others rolling down his back and buttocks. Biting Goku's shoulder, Sanzo flicked his tongue out. The droplets tasted salty and hot and alive like summertime rain.

If there was one thing Sanzo couldn't deny, it was that a hearty dose of Goku sex was the perfect way of winding down, especially after ending up in odd little towns like Yongan Lu. Spending four hours raiding a youkai lair on the outskirts that was rumoured to hold a stolen sutra was enough to grate on the nerves, particularly when they found sweet sod-all in the form of sutras, and too damn much in the form of rabid, stinking youkai.

Yongan Lu was scenic and quiet, but only quiet because of the fear rooted in its inhabitants. Room 3 of the local inn provided clean sheets and a rusting wash bowl; Sanzo didn't think many travellers would stay long enough to need more than that, and the innkeeper obviously knew it, too.

Straightening up on his knees, Sanzo ran his fingers down the length of Goku's spine, gripping Goku's hip with his other hand for balance. He bit his lip as he looked down, mesmerised by his cock sinking into and drawing back out of Goku's firm, grasping arse. The heat was exquisite. The tightness - sensational. Goku's enthusiasm was kind of annoying in its vocalism, though difficult not to get swept up in.

Sanzo just hoped the wood panel walls were thick.

Sturdy, too, judging by the thump-thump-thump of the bed against the nearest one. Then again, he supposed that was partly his fault.

Angling his hips upward, he gave Goku a hard shove, sinking in deep, before drawing back out almost all the way until just the flushed head of his cock held Goku open.

The resulting broken, desperate sound was barked out in Goku's tenor. "You're gonna kill me!"

"Maybe that'd shut you up for once," Sanzo muttered, slowing his pace right down. He inched back into Goku's body, bit by aching bit until he was settled to the root. First running his hand over one bronzed buttock, he then pinched the flesh between his fingers, kneading it lightly while he took time to catch his breath.

"Fuck, Sanzo … C'mon, move, please!" Goku rolled his hips backwards, trying to nudge Sanzo into picking up his pace again.

Always so impatient.

Sanzo lay a smack on the buttock, then curved his hand around Goku's shoulder in a tight grip, tugging at him. "Let go," he instructed.

His order was obeyed immediately and without thought. Panting heavily, Goku slowly uncurled his fists from the headboard rung he was attached to. Sanzo pulled him upright so that Goku was kneeling in front of him, spooning their bodies together on the mattress. Creating a rail with his arm to support Goku's chest, Sanzo started to jerk his hips again, pumping up into the incredible heat of him.

At that moment Goku lost the ability to form coherent words. Sanzo supposed he should be grateful about that, although he had to admit he got as much satisfaction from Goku's responsiveness as he did from his own pleasure, not that he'd ever tell the monkey. A stream of rich babble broke from Goku's mouth, the sound vibrating through his back and into Sanzo's body. From that angle, Sanzo could see the side of Goku's face; his eyes slid shut, head flopping back to rest on Sanzo's shoulder, the column of his neck pulling taut. His hair at the back was damp with fresh sweat, sticking to Sanzo's skin. His mouth was wet and open and the babble turned into a stream of pleased noises - a lot of thanks and agreements and some curses.

Sanzo huffed against his neck and bit down, slipping his other hand down the slim line of Goku's stomach to the coarse curls at the base of his cock, then along the throbbing shaft. He squeezed; Goku bucked ferociously, cried out, and came in a sputtering, hot fountain over himself and Sanzo's fingers.

"Gnuh, ohh fuck Sanzo, oh fuck I… I'm oh, Sanzo you… I lo-"

The clench as his inner muscles tightened drove Sanzo headlong into his orgasm, and then all he was able to hear was the pound of his pulse in his ears. He thrust hard into Goku one final, blissful time, balls drawn up tight. Somewhere, beneath the rush, Sanzo was aware that he himself was groaning incomprehensibly, but right then he didn't give a damn about the noise levels. Most of his attention was focused on crawling inside Goku's body. He rode his release with gritted teeth, breath ragged, beautiful bursts of light behind his eyelids.

With a shudder, Sanzo slowly exhaled against Goku's neck, absorbed in the last few winding strains of pleasure. He slowly became aware how tightly he was pressing Goku to him, holding him in a vice-like grip. Carefully releasing him and settling him on the mattress, Sanzo pulled out, spent cock flushed dark from the sex.

"Wow," Goku murmured, his body quite limp as he sank against the pillow.

Roughly tugging the top sheet out from beneath him, Sanzo tossed it over the side of the bed, the material now stained wet with Goku's release. Figuring the wash bowl was too damn far across the room, Sanzo settled next to Goku, his limbs pleasantly relaxed and steadily turning boneless. He stared at Goku, noting how his face was washed with sated pleasure, his eyes deep and unfocused. He was always useless in wake of their fucking, though it was pretty much the only time he wasn't bursting with energy, or agitated from hunger.

Sanzo frowned at him. "If the kappa makes one freaking joke tomorrow morning about the noise, I'll shoot you between those dopey eyes of yours."

"Mm, you were amazing," said Goku, mouth pulling up into a lazy grin.

"Che, shut up, idiot." Sanzo grabbed the remaining covers and drew them up around them both, then settled his arm over Goku's hip. Goku immediately snuggled in tightly, which would've been aggravating if Sanzo was more alert, more awake to care about getting smothered to death during the night.

Right then he wasn't though, and it didn't take long before his heartbeat steadied, his breathing evened, and the lingering scent of their sex accompanied him into unconsciousness.

* * *

The bed was cold, which was odd.

Odder still, Sanzo felt surprisingly light as he gradually woke to a mellow winter sun spilling through the window. It took a second to figure out the reason why - usually, Goku would be sprawled half across him, arms and legs everywhere, snoring soundly into Sanzo's ear.

Sanzo sat up and then looked down at the empty space beside him, the sheets crumpled from where Goku had been, but now wasn't. Picking up the edge of his pillow, Sanzo retrieved the Maten sutra and rose from the bed. He dressed swiftly, mildly curious as to where Goku had disappeared - his clothes were still scattered over the floorboards where he'd discarded them the previous night, right before they'd tumbled onto the bed.

Frowning, Sanzo picked up Goku's faded jeans and stared at them. Goku rarely woke first, let alone woke without doing more of that insufferable snuggling and waking Sanzo up, too.

Eh, it was always possible Goku had smelled cooking from downstairs and slipped out quietly. It wouldn't be the first time he'd been found sleepwalking to the scent of food.

Sanzo inwardly shrugged and tossed the jeans onto the bed, turning to head out, but then he paused as something small and circular rolled out of one of the back pockets, settling on the crumpled white sheet.

It was about the size of a coin, only much thicker, and a hole had been cut out of the middle, though the object appeared to be made of stone rather than metal. Sanzo was no mineral expert, but from the green colouring he would hazard a guess the ornament was made of jade. There were symbols carved into the outer edge, but they were too small and rough for Sanzo to see properly.

Bending to pick it up, he wondered what Goku would be doing with something like this. The moment Sanzo closed his fingers around the jade, the hairs on the back of his neck rose and a shiver snaked its way down his spine. He straightened, frowning at the object as he held it up to the light.

Goku was prone to picking up useless, pretty trinkets for the sake of it. Sanzo saw no point in selecting yet more things to weigh him down on an already arduous journey. The sutra was enough for him for a lifetime, and he didn't want to lug any excess baggage across China, no matter how small.

Another shudder passed through him and he idly wondered if a window had been left open somewhere. Tossing the weird jade ornament onto the bed again, he turned, heading out and down the stairs to the hotel restaurant bar.

When he reached the ground floor, Sanzo almost expected to see Goku sitting at one of the tables stuffing his face, but no dice. He quickly located Gojyo instead, who was propped up next to the beer pumps.

"Where's Goku?" Sanzo asked curtly, sliding onto a stool and ordering some strong black coffee from the innkeeper.

Gojyo looked up from his cup and raised a red eyebrow at him. "Dead, if the noises he was making last night are anything to go by." A smirk crept up on his face. Sanzo knew exactly what he was going to say next. "The hell were you doing to him, man? I was this close," he pinched his thumb and forefinger together, "to rescuing the poor damsel from your abusive clutches."

"Fuck off." Sanzo drew out his Marlboros and lighter, making fast work of his first cigarette of the morning.

Not long after he'd lit up, Hakkai joined them. He looked well rested, for which Sanzo was thankful - hopefully they'd make good headway today. "Hakuryuu's geared up and ready when you are." Hakkai paused and looked around. "Where's Goku?"

"I have no idea." Sanzo didn't bother masking his irritation. "He wasn't there this morning when I woke up."

"Oh, that's strange. Usually he's busy eating breakfast," said Hakkai, taking a seat. He checked his pocket watch. "Actually, he'd be on thirds by now."

"I know." Sanzo shook his head, drumming his fingertips on the scarred surface of the bar. "It's…" he trailed off, suddenly disinclined to say what he'd been about to.

That it was giving him a bad feeling. That was simply ridiculous - just the sort of thing Goku would say. Once some caffeine was in his system, Sanzo knew he would be able to function better. Hopefully by then the monkey would've reappeared and they could get a freaking move on.

Hakkai settled on his stool and drew a crisply folded handkerchief out of his pocket, then removed his monocle for a quick clean. "I suppose all we can do is wait," he said, rubbing at the fake lens.

"Typical," muttered Sanzo. When his coffee arrived just as strong as he liked it, he figured it was one small silver lining to an otherwise irritating cloud.

"Maybe the monkey found a cute girl and is otherwise engaged, eh?" Gojyo said pointedly, finishing up his own coffee and then ordering a beer.

Sanzo bristled, only just resisting the urge to go for his gun. Some actions spoke louder than words, and in this instance he was in no mood to use either - he wouldn't rise to the bait. He was aware of Hakkai's surreptitious glance, of the kappa grinning like the smug bastard he was. Sanzo clenched his teeth and ignored them, already resolved to pummel Goku with the harisen when he returned from whatever stupid enterprise he was currently wasting Sanzo's time on.

Hakkai cleared his throat after an awkward silence. "Do you suppose he went back to the youkai lair we visited yesterday? We left a few of the smaller ones alive - the ones that didn't attack us."

Sanzo shrugged. "Doubtful. There wasn't anything there of much interest." He remembered the small jade ornament and the earlier shiver made a reappearance. Sanzo bit the inside of his cheek as an unbidden feeling of paranoia flushed through him. He stirred his coffee fiercely to shake it off. "Give him another twenty minutes."

"After which…?" asked Hakkai, and Gojyo turned to stare at him as well.

Sanzo took a calming breath, which didn't really do any good, then said, "After which I'm going to hunt him down and kill him."

* * *

It was getting beyond ridiculous.

Three hours.

Three. Fucking. Hours, and no sign of Goku. Sanzo couldn't help but think they could have made a couple of hundred miles by now.

Ten minutes ago Hakkai had headed upstairs for a second look around, just in case he'd missed any rooms the first time he went to check. Even Gojyo was getting antsy, asking anyone and everyone who entered the bar whether they'd seen a 'small runt of a guy, kind of dopey-looking with spiky brown hair and a gold coronet'.

Every answer was the same: a shake of the head, a "no, ain't seen him."

When Hakkai reappeared he was still frowning. "I just don't understand it. He knew we were leaving this morning. He never goes off without telling someone, or at least without leaving a message." He eyed Sanzo warily. "He almost always tells you."

Sanzo didn't answer; he was, at this point, bearing towards murder.

"Did he say anything out of the ordinary last night?" Hakkai pressed on. "Did he seem himself, or like there was something bothering him?"

That was the thing that bugged Sanzo. Goku had seemed his perfectly abnormal, annoyingly vocal self. Nothing had been out of place.

"Did he have anything with him, any unusual-"

"Wait." Sanzo held up his hand, rising from his seat. The only strange thing about this so far, apart from Goku's elusive behaviour, was currently sitting up on the bed in his room. "Wait here." He swept out of the restaurant and ascended the stairs, figuring maybe Hakkai would be able to make sense of the jade ornament.

Back in his room, Sanzo snatched the hoop up and was immediately struck by the sense of paranoia again. Spinning on the spot, his free hand instantly went to his pocket where he kept his Smith and Wesson. Sanzo glanced around, waiting for the feeling to pass; only, it didn't.

"The hell?" he muttered to himself. Keeping watch, Sanzo edged out of the room and along the corridor, but nothing seemed untoward. As he headed back downstairs, the feeling started to change, honing into something else - something more familiar, like a tugging sensation, only it wasn't a physical one. It was similar to… but that was stupid. Impossible. The mountain had been completely different.

In the restaurant, Sanzo tossed the ornament to Hakkai. "This was in one of his pockets."

As soon as the jade left his palm, the weird sensation began to dissipate. Sanzo frowned, staring curiously at the thing as Hakkai held it up for a better look. He watched for any reaction in him, but Hakkai's countenance didn't appear to change at all.

Strange.

"It's handcrafted jade in the shape of a torus," Hakkai said after a moment.

"Torus," Gojyo repeated, stubbing out his cigarette. "Which means?"

"Nothing particularly special." Hakkai flipped the ornament over on to the other side. "They're mainly used as examples in geometry, or as trinkets - pendants or charms like this one."

"Charms…" Sanzo echoed. "I think he picked it up yesterday at the youkai lair. I remember seeing beads and money scattered over the floor."

"Yeah, those bastards have been mugging the townsfolk for months." Gojyo reached up and crossed his arms behind his head, blowing out a breath. "So, what now?"

"Well, it could be cursed," said Hakkai. "There are markings."

"Great. The monkey decides to start collecting cursed beads. Why does that not surprise me?" Gojyo looked at Sanzo. "Well monk, if this thing's the reason Goku's gone, what d'you plan to do about it?"

Sanzo huffed. "Why should I plan to do anything? It's not my fault he's so stupid."

"Um, technically Sanzo…" Hakkai smiled at him. "I did say years ago that it was probably best you put him through at least a couple of years of basic schooling. I tried my best, but being around his peers would have been a much better enviro-"

"What the hell does that have to do with anything?" Sanzo interrupted. He couldn't believe this - it was obvious what Hakkai was implying, and the kappa wasn't any help, nodding along as Hakkai spoke. This was mutiny. Sanzo glared at them both. "Fine, give me the fucking jade. I'll go back to the lair and see if he's there."

The moment Hakkai handed the jade back, the tugging sensation reformed, stronger than ever. It was growing in its persistency and becoming really fucking irritating. "What the heck is with this?" Sanzo muttered. The feeling reminded him of when Goku was winding him up, nagging at him and buzzing with energy like a fly Sanzo just couldn't swat away. But why the hell would a bit of stone radiate the same atmosphere as a person?

Hakkai and Gojyo were looking at him.

"Somethin' wrong, man?" Gojyo asked eventually.

Sanzo waved them off. "Nothing, it's just that my internal moron sensor is going off. I reckon the monkey's around here somewhere." He snatched up his cigarettes and lighter.

"Good luck," Hakkai offered, as Sanzo turned on his boot heels and headed out.

At this point, Sanzo was starting to think it wasn't just the Sanbutsushin that had it in for him, but fate as well.

* * *

Walking brusquely into the hills, Sanzo followed the roughly trodden path they'd taken the previous day that lead to the cave the youkai had been using as a base. The strange feeling was still present in his mind, stronger than ever now, growing with every step.

All he wanted to do was tell it to shut the fuck up, though he didn't think it would do much good.

The thing that had threatened to make itself clear was getting harder to ignore. Sanzo hated to think it, but the tugging feeling, the insistent nag inside his skull reminded him of when he was eighteen, still living at Keiun temple. Just before he'd answered the relentless calls - that voice, hopelessly crying out and yet unwilling to give up. Right before he'd climbed the mountain to tell the voice to be quiet. Before he'd found the stone cell at the top and the strange young boy sitting inside; a grubby little thing with massive, soulful brown eyes that were sad and expectant at the same time.

Ugh. Sanzo silently cursed Goku for the nth time that day. He had to be imagining things - there was no way Goku was stuck up a freaking mountain again.

There was no bloody way Sanzo was going to climb one, either, even if Goku was stuck. It'd serve him right for wandering off.

Yet, even as the fierce thoughts rattled around his mind, Sanzo knew he was being dishonest with himself. This wasn't quite like the incident years ago when they'd first met. The feeling of the voice's displacement was much stronger now, as if its speaker was far, far away - another country, maybe. Hell, another planet, for all Sanzo could tell.

One thing that was gradually becoming clear was that this was a voice he couldn't follow to its source, and although Sanzo tried not to let that fact get to him, it was cause for deep-down alarm.

As he reached the mouth of the youkai's cave, he drew out the jade trinket and glared at it. Even if it had nothing to do with Goku's disappearance, there was definitely something odd about the stone. However, the longer he kept it in his possession, the more convinced he became that the two things were inexplicably linked.

That voice…

"Insufferable monkey," he muttered, stepping into the dank, shadowed entrance. The cool darkness wrapped around him, swallowing Sanzo entirely, but he wasn't that bothered by it - he knew this place, knew to walk in a straight line until a faint crack of light appeared up ahead. The corridor lead into a rough and jagged chamber, a few lanterns still aglow, their candles dissolving slowly, the light deceptively warm. The flickering flames animated the blood that was splattered up the sides of the cave, dark brown against the grey stone. More blood spread across the floor, making up a network that connected the bodies of the youkai they had slain.

Sanzo wrinkled his nose at the faint smell of rusty iron and scanned around, at the spoils the youkai had gathered after their journeys into the town. It was an odd assortment - chairs and jewellery and a wheel from a cart, silk drapes and scattered money and-

Something moved to Sanzo's left and he turned, Smith and Wesson out in a heartbeat. He cocked his gun at his target on reflex, although he was half expecting to see Goku standing there, an excitable expression on his face and an enthusiastic 'Hey, Sanzo, what're you doing here? Wanna see what I found?'

But it wasn't Goku.

Hakkai had said a few of the smaller youkai were still alive when they left. The one currently hunched against a far wall was giving off faint strains of hostility, though it made no move to attack Sanzo. Sanzo didn't waste any time - he strode over, grabbed the guy by his collar and yanked him up, slamming him against the wall.

"Has anyone been in here before me?" Sanzo demanded. "A brown-haired guy of about twenty?"

The youkai struggled. "Hey, priest, get your paws off me, I-"

Sanzo shook him roughly. "I asked you a question, fuckwit. Answer it," he pushed his gun barrel against the youkai's throat, "or this'll do the talking for you."

The guy immediately ceased struggling. "I ain't seen anyone - I swear!"

Sanzo cursed under his breath, then remembered the stone. He drew the jade ornament out of his pocket, but before he had the chance to ask if the guy recognised it, the youkai's eyes widened.

"Hey, where'd you get that? It belonged to my master. Give that back!" He made a grab for the jade, but Sanzo snatched his hand back, pushing his gun harder into the youkai's neck.

"I don't think so. You obviously know what this thing is." Sanzo narrowed his eyes. "Do you know what it does?" The youkai didn't answer, but the slight change in his breathing indicated he did know. "Tell me, or soon you'll be just as dead as your master."

The guy pursed his mouth. Sanzo was about to shove his gun down the youkai's throat, when the guy suddenly let out a bark of a laugh.

"What the fuck is so funny?"

The youkai grinned toothily at him. "Did you lose someone?" he asked, his tone mocking. "Someone close to you, maybe? Yes, that's it, isn't it. Heh, my master was very good at toying with humans - it's the emotions, see. They work different to ours. Much easier to manipulate."

"You'd better start talking right now, motherfucker, or I'm going to give that wall behind you a fast paint job." Sanzo glowered, rotating the chamber of his gun with a slow, deliberate click to show he wasn't kidding.

"Okay, okay!" The youkai held up his hands. Fucking pansy. "I guess since you already killed him, my master won't care." Eyeing the jade Sanzo was still holding, another smug grin settled on the youkai's mouth. "See, that charm separates two souls from each other."

"Go on," Sanzo prompted curtly. "What's the point of it?"

The youkai blinked at him, his smirk not faltering. "Simple, really. Because it's fun to watch you humans running around like fools, searching for your loved ones, never to find them."

"Fucker," Sanzo gritted. "First of all, I don't have any 'loved ones', so I don't see why this piece of shit would work on me."

"Oh, haha, well technically it didn't work on you, did it? The other guy you're looking for though… oh yeah, he must have strong feelings for you. Tell me," the youkai paused, relishing the moment, "did he declare his undying love?"

Sanzo couldn't believe the crap this guy was coming out with. "Don't be ridiculous. The monkey's stupid, but he's not crazy."

"I beg to differ." From the sound of the youkai's tone, he wasn't lying. Slightly troubled by that, Sanzo stepped back a pace. The youkai straightened up and brushed himself off in a wholly smarmy-bastard way. "There's a trigger on the stone - a phrase. My master did have a wonderful sense of humour, after all."

Sanzo didn't like where this was heading, but he asked, "Phrase… what was it?"

"I just told you," said the youkai, chuckling suddenly.

No fucking way. Sanzo would've remembered if Goku had said something like that.

Surely.

He thought about the previous night, when they were…

Wait.

What had Goku been babbling right there at the end, just before Sanzo came? He wracked his brains trying to recall, but it was just a jumble of typical Goku nonsense, hushed out hurriedly at the point of orgasm.

"Gnuh, ohh fuck Sanzo, oh fuck I… I'm oh, Sanzo you… I lo-"

I love you.

"Fuck!" Sanzo spat, to which the youkai only laughed more. "This is a goddamned joke."

"Isn't it, though?" The youkai nodded. "Like I said, my master had a wicked mind for jokes."

"Tell me where he is." Sanzo was no longer in mind to mess around.

At the youkai's smirk, Sanzo fired off a round just past his right ear.

"Shit! Okay, man, hold your horses. You wanna lower that thing?" Hands up again in a sign of submission, the youkai stared searchingly at Sanzo.

"Sure." Sanzo obliged, lowering the barrel of his Smith and Wesson to point directly at the youkai's groin. Raising one eyebrow expectantly, he watched as the guy's expression transformed from searching to petrified. "Talk," Sanzo ordered.

"He-he's not exactly of this world right now, your… your friend," the youkai stuttered hurriedly. "The torus is a portal."

"To where?"

"… uh, that's the thing. He's in another dimension."

Sanzo closed his eyes. "I don't believe this." Well, actually, he did believe it - stranger things had happened to him, after all. But fuck, this was absurd! Just his luck, too. Of all the situations for Goku to get himself into… Sanzo was fast tiring and growing sorely tempted not to bother with a rescue, not after all the hassle Goku had put him through. He tried not to think too much about how Goku had managed to cause such a mess.

"How do I get him back?" he added.

"It's really as simple as how he went and that's the beauty of it. Most never figure it out." The youkai's dark eyes glittered in the flickering candle light. "All you have to do is call to him through the stone."

"That's it?" said Sanzo, eyebrows lowering. "Just call his name?"

"Not just his name, no. You have to call him back with the trigger phrase." A pause, punctuated with an air of smugness. "And you have to mean it."

Sanzo stared at him for some time, sure his life couldn't get any worse. He could almost picture the Sanbutsushin laughing at him right now. The image did nothing to mitigate his ire. "Get. Out. Before I waste you," he finally warned in a low tone.

The youkai looked surprised for a second, but apparently he wasn't stupid enough to take his chances. Edging past Sanzo, he darted across the floor once he was out of touching distance, skidding in a patch of blood before righting himself and making a beeline for the entrance.

Sanzo remained frozen in place for a long time, the jade stone clutched loosely in one hand, his gun still outstretched in the other.

So simple, that's the beauty of it, the youkai had said.

Yeah, right.

The presence in his mind was still there, so clear now it was undoubtedly Goku's voice. Faint, persistent, calling to him. Knowing Goku, he wouldn't let up, either.

"I can't believe this shit," Sanzo replied, aware that Goku couldn't hear him, but inclined to let it out anyway. He could always repeat it when Goku was back.

Sanzo slipped his Smith and Wesson into his robe and held up the small jade ornament. He frowned at it, staring through its centre, wondering if the youkai had been bullshitting him all along.

Somehow, he knew that wasn't the case.

Sanzo closed his eyes and licked his lips, mouth suddenly dry. He shook his head with exasperation, willing himself to calm down. It was just a few words. A few short words.

Nothing to it.

Really.

He took a deeply frustrated breath, and opened his mouth to speak.

* * *

"Ow, my head hurts," complained Goku, rubbing at the back of his skull. He was sitting on the floor, naked, shivering, and blinking blearily up at Sanzo. "Hey, what's going on? Where're my clothes?"

"You are the most irritating bastard in all of Shangri-la." Sanzo reached down and wrapped his hand around Goku's upper arm, pulling him unceremoniously to his feet. He ignored the spluttering noises Goku let out in complaint at the rough treatment, and headed to the nearest, least-bloodied youkai corpse. Sanzo stripped off the guy's jeans and shirt, tossing them to Goku. "Put these on."

"Where are we? How'd we get here?" Goku looked around the cave with wide-eyes as he pulled on the trousers. They were about two sizes too big for him and hung precariously on his hips. The shirt wasn't much better, sagging off his shoulders, the cuffs falling way past his hands. "Wait, this is the youkai cave from yesterday. Sanzo, what's going on?"

Sanzo brandished the jade stone. "See this?"

"… yeah," said Goku slowly. It was obvious he recognised the ornament, his expression that of a thief caught with his hand in the treasure chest.

"This fucking thing was a portal to some other fucking dimension," Sanzo grated. "And you had to pick it up, didn't you?"

Goku stared at him earnestly. "I'm sorry, I just thought it was kinda pretty."

"Do you have any idea what I've gone through with this thing to get you back?" Sanzo tossed the jade onto the floor, then pulled out his gun and took aim. He fired off two rounds for good measure, drawing an inordinate amount of satisfaction from the gesture. The ornament made a little poof, exploding into a cloud of green dust, then emitting a single red curl of smoke that rose and dissipated in the air.

Sanzo turned to stare at Goku. "Remind me why I brought you back. I'm having a hard time justifying it, with all the trouble you've caused me."

"Um, I'm really, really-"

"Save it." Sanzo sighed and rubbed the bridge of his nose between his thumb and forefinger. The tugging whine inside his head was now gone, though it was rapidly becoming replaced with a bitch of a headache.

Not only that, but his mind kept unhelpfully reminding him what he'd done to retrieve his lost monkey.

"I didn't know," Goku said defensively. "Quit yellin' at me."

Sanzo closed his eyes and growled in answer. A moment later he sensed Goku drawing closer, then felt hands on his arms, holding the material of his robes tightly.

"You know I wouldn't do anything like that on purpose." Goku had the cheek to press himself against Sanzo's body; he settled his head on Sanzo's shoulder and spoke against the material. "I didn't think I'd ever see you again and I couldn't reach you! I tried to get out, but there was nothin', not even a door or a wall I could break through with Nyoi-bou."

Sanzo let his hand drop to his side and opened his eyes, looking down at Goku's soft brown spikes, smelling Goku's familiar masculine scent, his effervescent aura washing over Sanzo's skin.

"An' it was so cold an' lonely an' white, just like…"

"Goku," Sanzo said quietly. "Shut up."

"Okay." Lifting his head and looking unblinkingly up into Sanzo's eyes, Goku was a picture of sincerity, saying what he had to say without saying anything at all.

Sanzo couldn't be bothered to glare at him, reminded of what Goku had said to trigger the jade stone in the first place. He realised that it didn't trouble him as much as it probably should; what bothered him more, in fact, was how easy it'd been bringing Goku back.

How the words had just rolled off his tongue like they'd always been there, lurking just beyond his perception, like they were a natural thing, a fundamental part of who Sanzo was.

He halted those thoughts right there.

Soon he didn't have mind to think on anything at all, as Goku rose up on his toes a little way, pressing his mouth to Sanzo's, making a contented noise in the back of his throat.

Idiot, thought Sanzo, though to whom it was directed he wasn't entirely sure. He kissed back, drinking Goku's moan, putting all the nonsense out of his head if only for a brief respite. Right then, he was reminded how closeness felt, reminded how Goku tasted, all thoughts flying apart to leave nothing but physicality, a slow burning need.

Sanzo slid his hands around the trim curve of Goku's waist, then down under his arse, clutching tightly. He pulled Goku roughly against him, a breath catching somewhere between them. Almost immediately, Goku started rubbing, shifting his hips left and right, then around and around in determined circles.

Although a dank cave with youkai and stolen goods littered across the floor wasn't the ideal place to be doing… well, anything - Sanzo responded to the pressure like he'd never been touched before, his cock hardening in his denims. Some of his earlier tension was starting to seep out, mellowing with every roll of Goku's body, almost like Goku was absorbing it, erasing the dark thoughts and even easing Sanzo's headache.

At that point, Sanzo wasn't about to stop it.

Goku pushed his hot tongue past Sanzo's teeth, a move that just begged for Sanzo to suck on it, draw the wet muscle into his mouth and fuck his own tongue against it. The smooth slide drew another groan from Goku, his movements speeding up a fraction, growing with intent. After a moment, Sanzo was forced to break away, biting back a gasp.

"I really missed you," Goku whispered against his wet mouth, arching against him. Sanzo looked into his deep brown eyes and pushed forward a little harder, squeezing Goku's arse tightly in his palms. "Uhnn… Sanzo." Goku slid his arms up around Sanzo's neck. "Is this your way of sayin' you forgive me?"

"Like hell," rasped Sanzo, grinding slowly against Goku.

"Ung, then I'm confused."

"What's new?"

"Sanzo!"

"Hush."

Sanzo didn't know what was with Goku's tendency to smother him, but he found he didn't particularly care right then as Goku groaned against his cheek, his hold around Sanzo's neck tightening suddenly.

With every firm roll of his hips, Sanzo could feel Goku's hard cock pushing insistent and hot into his groin, a familiar ridge at the front of Goku's borrowed clothes. It was time to do something about that, Sanzo realised, or he knew the walk back to the inn was going to be a hell of an uncomfortable one.

"Hang on." With one hand, he pushed Goku back, ignoring the groan of frustration. It took a moment for Goku to catch on, but after Sanzo discarded his robes, Goku quickly wriggled on the spot, the baggy jeans slipping from his waist and pooling at his ankles.

"Hah! That was pretty cool."

With a soft snort and a roll of his eyes, Sanzo set his gun down. Goku offered him a wide smile when he straightened, his cheeks suffused by a flush, a healthy darkening to his sun-browned skin. He looked much happier now than he did ten minutes ago. Sanzo supposed he should be glad - a happier Goku tended not to keep on so much.

As Goku reached out and pulled Sanzo's belt out of its buckle, Sanzo found himself brushing his fingers through the soft brown strands of Goku's hair. A hum of contentment rose in the quiet, Goku making fast work of his denims, tugging the buttons loose. They were half way down Sanzo's thighs by the time Goku lost patience, wrapping his arms around Sanzo's waist and urging him forward.

Sanzo freely went with it, his cock surging with pleasure on contact, his balls growing fully taut. Biting his lower lip, Sanzo slid his hands around Goku's naked backside and once again squeezed the flesh of his arse.

"Ah, feels so good," Goku muttered, turning his face up to lick along Sanzo's jaw. He worked his mouth up a little way, drawing Sanzo's earlobe between his teeth and worrying the skin back and forth. Once he'd nibbled there for a moment, he released it and groaned, "Touch us."

"Che, demanding sod."

"Please." Goku pulled back and looked at him, his eyes bright with want and a little mischief. Sanzo was used to that look - the one that spelled Goku was losing himself to his desires. He quickly laid a swift slap on Goku's rump, the sound sharp and reverberating in the quiet cave. Goku jumped and his heavy erection twitched against Sanzo's abdomen, dampening at the head.

"Ha! Sanzo…" He laughed breathlessly, running his fingers over the back of Sanzo's neck, threading them up through the longer strands of his hair. He had the cheek to tug on them, then offer Sanzo a mock-coy look.

It was all too tempting to smack him again, and again, and again, but Sanzo ached for more friction - he wanted to come, and come hard, and then preferably get the hell out of the chamber. He released Goku's arse and instead walked his fingers back around Goku's hip, finally wrapping them around both their lengths. He pressed their eager erections together, rubbing with his palm, squeezing, twisting lightly, spreading the dampness of perspiration and precome over the tight, sensitised skin.

The delighted noise that ripped from Goku's throat drowned out Sanzo's groan and, ever the impatient one, Goku released Sanzo's hair, to reach down and join in the stroking, adding more glorious pressure and heat. Starting to buck his hips, Goku slid himself within the circle of their combined fists, and oh there was the friction, the fucking incredible sensation Sanzo was chasing after.

"Faster… harder," Goku panted.

At this point, Sanzo wasn't about to object. He pumped his fist, aided by Goku, the confines wonderfully unbearable, the slide wet now, perfect. Sanzo didn't even bother holding back or biting off moans; they welled deep in his chest, unstoppable. Goku leaned up and kissed him desperately.

When the sharp point of a tooth scraped Sanzo's lip he hissed, then kissed Goku back harder, open-mouthed to accommodate the thrust of his tongue, the rush of curses he let out. Below, their erect cocks were slick within Sanzo's fingers and he knew Goku was close, in the way he canted his hips helplessly, the rising pitch of his voice indicating he was losing control.

At the first spurt of hot come, Goku ceased kissing and simply stood with his mouth open, eyelids fluttering wildly. The added lubrication gave a much smoother, hotter slide; it felt a little to Sanzo like he was fucking up into Goku's body, up into his utterly perfect, substantially lubed arse. He held on to Goku as the brunet shuddered through his release, clamping one arm around Goku's back to support him.

"Ahhh, I'll never get tired of that," Goku gasped between panting breaths, his dick moving through the last, mellower throws. He looked up into Sanzo's eyes, face soft and gaze cloudy with happiness. "I wanna taste you."

Before Sanzo could say anything, Goku pulled back, sinking down onto his knees at Sanzo's feet. He reached out quickly and stilled Sanzo's pumping fist, drawing it away. Goku stared at the darkly flushed head of Sanzo's cock, licking his lips before curling his fingers around the base of Sanzo's shaft. Then he inched forward slowly, the teasing bastard.

It was almost too much for Sanzo to bear - the sight of Goku's mouth opening wide to take him in, the sight of his own cock coated in Goku's come. Goku flicked his tongue out to collect some of the moisture, humming deeply in appreciation. It was one of the hottest things Sanzo had ever seen - Goku, eagerly tasting himself and Sanzo at the same time. Cursing loudly, Sanzo slid his dick between Goku's sinful lips, his length slipping into bliss, across Goku's wet tongue. He knew he wouldn't last much longer, not at this rate, not with Goku kneeling before him, sucking him off slow and hard like he wanted nothing else in the world.

Sanzo twined his fingers in Goku's thick spikes, clenching firmly as Goku worked his tongue over his shaft and made obscene swallowing motions. At that, Sanzo couldn't hold on any more - he let go in a breathtaking rush, the orgasm that crashed through him feeling like it was being pulled right out along with his spine, his soul. He stopped breathing momentarily and pumped hard, quick jets of come into Goku's eager throat, unable to do anything but stand there and give Goku everything he had.

"Fucking hell," he groaned, watching Goku's mouth work around his length. Sanzo blew out a long, grateful breath moments later, looking down as Goku licked the last from the tip of his still-twitching dick.

When Goku rose to his feet, it was unsteadily. He wrapped his arms around Sanzo's waist, cuddling into him. "You always taste so freaking great!" Dropping a kiss on Sanzo's collarbone, Goku then nibbled the rise, smiling around it.

Sanzo, having only just regained himself after his release, flicked the top of Goku's ear. "Quit that, I'm not a piece of meat." He sure felt fucking amazing, though.

The quiet of the cave descended rapidly and Sanzo was reminded of where they were, what they were supposed to be doing, and that Hakkai and the kappa were probably gearing up to come find him.

There were some things Hakkai and Gojyo just weren't meant to see.

"Time to go." Sanzo pushed Goku back, pretending not to notice the sigh. After bending and wiping his hand on one of the dead youkai's clothes, Sanzo quickly redressed in his leathers, before snatching his robe off the floor. Once they were ready, Sanzo lead them out, careful to avoid the dried blood, the scattered money, the stolen furniture. It all seemed inconsequential, why anyone would want all that shit - all that baggage - when there were more important things…

Sanzo frowned, blaming the orgasm for his random contemplation.

"So, how did ya get me back?" Goku asked as they exited the cave. The sun had dipped, indicating to Sanzo just how late they'd be getting back on the road. He wondered if it was worth travelling today at all.

"There was a trigger phrase on the ornament," he muttered, before he realised what he was saying. That it would probably lead to more questions. Questions he'd rather not answer.

"Oh. What was it?"

Sanzo pursed his mouth, annoyed at himself for speaking without thinking. He looked to his right, at the way Goku's hands were stuffed into the too-baggy jeans, the genuine, unguarded curiosity in his large eyes.

Sanzo huffed. "It was 'baka saru', of course," he finally said.

Goku grinned at him. "Liar! Fine, don't tell me." He hooked his arm in Sanzo's and settled his head against Sanzo's shoulder as they headed onto the road into town. "I'm just glad to be back."

Sanzo lit up a cigarette, not for the first time marvelling at Goku's absolute, unwavering faith in him. He glanced down at the younger man as they walked, not consciously slowing their pace to a stroll. By the time he realised, he figured it was too late, and anyway - it was a nice afternoon, quiet, fresh. Goku was pensive for a change, a warm, familiar presence at Sanzo's side.

All for the cost of three short words.

That really was the beauty of it.

~Fin~

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