Operation Seduction

The opportunity for Sanzo to take lessons from Hakkai and Gojyo or for Goku to ask any more awkward questions or proposition anyone didn’t arise for quite some time. Almost immediately after leaving the inn, they were set upon by gang after gang of crazed demons. Rest breaks were as brief as they could be, just enough to keep them going. None of them had the energy or the inclination to indulge in any pleasure other than sleep. All of them forgot about the events that took place in the last in at which they'd stopped and even Goku temporarily forgot all about his curiosity and questions.



Finally the demon attacks grew less frequent and eventually halted altogether. The group knew it was only a temporary break but took their good fortune as a sign to relax and enjoy themselves. Unfortunately, they were miles from anywhere.



"You're sure there are no towns nearby?" Gojyo asked, desperately hoping that Hakkai had misread the map.



"I'm sure. There are no towns, no villages, no encampments, no outposts and no out-of-the-way luxury spas. The nearest anything is two and a half days away, I'm afraid. The only thing we're likely to encounter out here is barren land and a dried up lake, and that's only if we're very lucky. Sorry guys, looks like we're roughing it. Again."



By the time the group found a reasonable place to stop and set up their camp, they were all tired, achy and irritable. Supplies were running low, so stomachs were empty, nicotine cravings went unfulfilled and they didn't even have the luxury of having a few beers to relax them. Inevitably, tempers grew frayed.



"I'm hungry." Goku whined. "Is there anything to eat, Hakkai?"



"Very little. We need to ration rather strictly I'm afraid." Hakkai replied, eyeing their almost depleted food supplies.



"Aw, but I'm starving!" the whine was now a wail.



"Hey! We're all suffering here, monkey. I'm dying for a cigarette." Gojyo grumbled.



Sanzo pulled out his gun and levelled it at Gojyo's head.



"That could be arranged if you don't shut up."



Yes, despite the fact that the four men were free of trouble for the time being and actually had the opportunity to relax and unwind, each of them had his own reason why he couldn't. Goku was hungry, Gojyo suffered from nicotine withdrawal, Hakkai was anxious about everyone else's problems and Sanzo was just being characteristically like himself - grumpy, sullen and uncommunicative.



"I'm bored." again, Goku broke the silence which had descended upon the group.



"How can you be bored? This is the first real break we've had in ages." Hakkai was astonished at the youngster's comment.



"I know, but there's nothing to do." sounding more and more like a petulant child, Goku continued to complain.



"I can think of something..." Gojyo drawled, ignoring the warning glances shot his way by both Hakkai and Sanzo.



"Really?" Goku's attention turned to the smirking Gojyo.



"Oh yeah. A game that all four of us can play. All we need is a pack of playing cards – which we have – and something to bet with. Since we have no money to speak of or food, I suggest clothes and forfeits." Gojyo winked at Goku.



"Ew! You perverted..." Goku trailed off and looked thoughtful, much to the horror of the others. Goku's reaction reminded each of them that up until recently, Goku had displayed all the signs of a very hormonal teen and by the looks of things, Goku remembered too. Goku finished thinking and grinned broadly at the rest of the group.



"Why are you smiling like that?" Sanzo asked and shifted uneasily.



"Can we?" Goku asked excitedly. The other three peered at him, fearfully. "I mean, I really wanna. Please? I won't complain that I'm hungry."



No-one spoke. Goku beamed at Hakkai, Gojyo and Sanzo and they glared back at Goku. Goku waggled his eyebrows suggestively and each man felt a little more fear. When Goku took the silence as encouragement, stood up and started to rake through Gojyo’s pack for the playing cards, Hakkai, Gojyo and Sanzo simultaneously jumped to their feet and in unison shouted a very scared sounding, "No!"



"Goku, what exactly is it that you want?" Hakkai asked after they had persuaded Goku to leave Gojyo’s pack alone.



Goku sat down on a log the group had dragged into their campsite to sit on. He looked from Hakkai to Gojyo then from Gojyo to Sanzo where his gaze lingered. Eventually, he spoke.



"I want to...to..." Goku paused and looked as if he was struggling to find the right words. He coughed, cleared his throat and spoke clearly. "I want to have sex with someone. Anyone really. I don't mind who it is as long as they take the time to teach me what feels good for me and for them. At first, I thought Gojyo would be my best choice because everyone knows he's always horny and is a complete pervert. But he turned me down. So I tried Hakkai. I thought he'd do it because he likes teaching me other things, like manners and stuff, but he turned me down too. He told me to ask Sanzo, which I did. Sanzo, he didn't say no, but he didn't exactly say yes either." Goku's eyes were still trained on Sanzo, but Sanzo turned his face away, blushing. "He told me to wait, but I've been waiting forever and nothing has happened yet. I know we've had a lot on, but you could have said no, Sanzo instead of just leaving me hanging like this." deflated from his speech, Goku averted his gaze and hung his head. He hadn't meant to sound so emotional about it and he hadn't really thought about it much since they had been so busy, but it had always remained at the back of his mind. Festering away until it had a chance for escape. Like then, when he spoke from the heart without really meaning to.



Sanzo winced when Goku turned away.



"I didn't mean to leave you hanging, it's just..." Sanzo racked his brains for a decent excuse, but came up with nothing. It was true, he hadn't left Goku hanging deliberately but it was also true that their recent troubles had provided him with the ideal excuse to forget about Goku's needs for a while - not that he would admit to that.



"Aw, don't worry 'bout it, kid. It was nothing personal; he just doesn't have a clue what to do himself." Gojyo chucked. If looks could kill, Sanzo would never need to use his gun again. Even Hakkai glared daggers at Gojyo for his flippant disregard for Sanzo's feelings. Goku was the only one not to be staring at Gojyo. Instead, he looked at Sanzo in awe and surprise. Not once had Goku thought that Sanzo would be as ignorant as he about matters sexual, but judging from the thunderous look on Sanzo’s face, Gojyo’s statement was no lie. Goku was torn between continuing to look astonished or offering some support to Sanzo. He knew how much Sanzo hated to have anything personal revealed but Goku’s sense of protection over Sanzo kicked in nevertheless.



“Get off me you crazy bastard!” Gojyo screeched when Goku attached himself to the man, biting and kicking and punching indiscriminately.



“You watch what you’re saying about Sanzo you bastard!” Goku continued to beat Gojyo, ignoring Hakkai’s attempts to pull him off. Sanzo sat and watched, smoking a cigarette and once again wondering why he’d agreed to bring the other three on this journey. True, he wasn’t given much of an option but had he insisted…no, even then he’d probably have been forced to endure their company. There was only one way to put an end to the current fracas. He pulled out his gun and fired a few shots into the air, gaining the full attention of the other three.



“If you’re quite finished? Goku, Gojyo was right. I don’t have any experience. I suppose he said that to embarrass me but it didn’t work. I don’t really care about that sort of thing. Now, if you lot will shut up, I’m going to get some sleep.” and with that, Sanzo made his way over to Jeep and took up best sleeping position, stretched out in the back, with a few blankets under him and one loosely thrown over the top.



The three remaining travellers sat around the campfire, quietly eating some of their meagre rations and each lost in thought until Hakkai and Gojyo shared a look. Gojyo winked at Hakkai then gave a theatrical yawn.



"Ah, I'm tired. Time for bed, don't you think?" Gojyo asked Hakkai meaningfully.



"Hmm," Hakkai said and stretched. "I think you're right. And since it's a chilly night, we should try to keep each other warm."



"You guys don't have to pretend that you're not going to be having sex y'know." Gojyo and Hakkai shifted uncomfortably at Goku's statement. "Really. I don't mind." Despite Goku's reassurances, Gojyo and Hakkai looked doubtful. Goku flashed them a broad grin.



"We just didn't want to rub it in." Hakkai offered.



"It's okay. I think I might turn in myself. Nothing to eat so I might as well sleep." Goku shrugged and looked towards Jeep. He would far rather have slept in the small tent, but Gojyo had won the coin toss and elected to share with Hakkai, unsurprisingly. Since Sanzo had claimed the back of Jeep, so that meant Goku's place would be in the front passenger seat, trying to get comfortable in the upright seat.



Goku's reiteration that he didn't mind what they got up to did the trick and Gojyo and Hakkai retreated to the privacy and relative luxury of the tent. Goku stood, scuffed his feet around on the rough ground, glanced up at the clear sky and then made his way over to Jeep. Luckily, Sanzo had left a couple of blankets for him, so he grabbed one and clambered into the front seat.



"What are you doing?" Goku started when he heard Sanzo's voice.



"Tryin' to get comfy. Sorry if I woke you."



"You didn't wake me. I was waiting."



"For what?" Goku cocked his head and peered through the darkness at Sanzo.



"For you, idiot,” Sanzo sighed. "I'm sick of your whining, so I've decided to put a stop to it."



For a moment, Goku wondered if Sanzo intended to finally follow through on his repeated threats and would actually shoot him, but then he saw that Sanzo had pulled his blanket back.



"Huh?" Goku was confused.



"You don’t know what to do, neither do I. You keep moaning about it. I don't care about it but I am fed up of hearing you whine. So if you want to, get over here and we'll see if we can work it out between us."



Goku was no longer confused - he was stunned. It appeared that Sanzo was offering...what exactly was Sanzo offering? Goku dared not ask in case he ruined the moment, or Sanzo came to his senses and withdrew his offer, or whichever one of them suddenly woke up from this dream, or, or...Goku's mind reeled.



"Are you coming back here or what?" Sanzo's familiar impatient growl broke through Goku's thoughts and he immediately crawled between the seats and into the back. He dived under Sanzo's blanket and looked up at the Monk with an eager grin.



"Where do we start?"



Tbc...