Gensomaden Saiyuki Fan Fiction / Saiyuki Reload Fan Fiction / Saiyuki Reload Gunlock Fan Fiction ❯ Cho Hakkai: Murderer? ❯ Chapter 9

Cho Hakkai: Murderer?

 

Chapter 9

 

 

Gojyo did not know what was happening around him. He did not know if the people were cheering, whistling, booing, or whatever. He was vaguely aware of people moving near him, but everything seemed to be in slow motion. His eyes registered the judge picking up the book. His ears heard rustling noises from people rising and preparing to leave the hall, but he did not understand. He watched the sheriff, looking grim but satisfied, grab Hakkai's shirt by the neck and pull him up to stand. He saw Hakkai's eyes search out his own, and suddenly his brain caught up, and he finally understood what was happening.

 

“Hakkai!” he roared. Desperately he fought to reach his lover's side, but the space between them had quickly been filled with people cheering. He drew his arm back to get a good swing at the nearest man in his way, but the arm was caught before he punched.

 

“Trying to make things worse again, kappa?” Sanzo's cold voice was close to his ear. “If you get us involved in a fight here, we may not reach Hakkai in time to help him.”

 

Gojyo relaxed his arm and Sanzo let go of it. Helplessly Gojyo watched the sheriff drag Hakkai out the door, with the crowd following.

 

“Damn,” Sanzo swore. “Let's get out of here.”

 

No one hindered them from following the stream of people out through the door; on the contrary, it was quite impossible for them to move any other way. Not until they reached the outside were they able to move freely again. It was still crowded, but at least they could move in the direction of the platform where Hakkai was being taken. Gojyo looked for him over the heads of all the people, his height giving him an advantage.

 

“What's happening?” Goku asked, his view efficiently blocked by a bunch of men nearly as tall as Gojyo. He tried to push forward, but the crowd closed up on them again.

 

“He's on the platform and they've stripped him to the waist,” Sanzo informed him, watching between the heads as he pressed steadily forward.

 

“They're tying him to the whipping stand.” Gojyo choked on the words. Swearing to himself, he forced his way closer to the platform. The others followed him, and with their elbows and a lot of pushing they managed to reach a tree close to the platform. A few people had chosen to make way for them as they tried to get near Hakkai; others had stubbornly done the opposite, planting their feet in front of them and refusing to move. Each time that had happened, Sanzo had dragged Gojyo away to take another path.

 

At the tree, Gojyo held up his arms in front of Sanzo. “Take these off me,” he demanded, his voice tight. To Gojyo's surprise, Sanzo drew the key out from somewhere in his robes and unlocked the handcuffs. “Thanks,” he muttered, and Sanzo grunted something inaudible in response.

 

The ground around the tree was on a slightly higher level then the ground around it, so even Goku had a clear view of what was happening on the platform. Hakkai was standing tied to the whipping stand, his feet barely touching the ground, back towards them. A man dressed in black stood beside him, fingering the whip and smiling evilly. The judge ascended the platform, together with the man who had opened the doors to the court hall. She said something to him, and they both turned to face the people standing below them.

 

“The punishment of the convicted murderer, Cho Hakkai, will begin now!” the man announced and thereafter followed the judge down from the platform.

 

“Gods, no!” Gojyo cried out. He leaped out of the crowd to make his way the short distance that separated him from Hakkai. This time nothing would stop him. He had to get Hakkai away from there. In a second the man nearest him lay on the ground unconscious, rammed by Gojyo's left fist. The people surrounding him were torn between finding out what was happening beside them and the events at the whipping stand.

 

The man in black lifted the whip, and the first lash hit Hakkai's back. Hakkai choked back a scream, and a red welt appeared on his back, from which blood started to drip. The sound of the whip once again whistling through the air made Gojyo cringe. He saw Hakkai's body tense as the second strike hit his back, and he felt, more than heard, the muffled sound of his lover trying to hold back a scream. Shit, shit, shit. He quickened his pace to get to Hakkai faster. Damn, there were too many people in his way.

 

When the third strike hit Hakkai, the healer could no longer withhold the scream. It was so filled with pain that it sent Gojyo's already furious mind into the highest gear. He had absolutely no idea how it happened, but in a flash he stood on the platform with the whip in his hand. The executioner lay still in front of him, and before the platform he could see more men lying unconscious or bending over their stomachs, and others, with bleeding noses and bruised faces, marked the path he had taken.

 

The people had silenced. They all watched Gojyo as, infuriated, he broke the whip over his knee and threw the pieces away.

 

“You fucking sons of bitches!” he roared. “Hakkai's innocent! That fucking healer, Tomi, she's the real murderer! She set this all up to get him!” A low murmur arose from the crowd, and it was not a friendly one. Gojyo hardly knew what he was saying and did not care if he made things better or worse. Everything was as bad as it could get anyway, and fucking hell, he was not going to let anything more happen to Hakkai. He could see Sanzo and Goku rushing up to him.

 

“Gojyo, calm down,” Goku tried to soothe him.

 

“Hell, I will,” Gojyo snarled, not able to contain his frustration. He took a step closer to Hakkai, and as he did the audience woke up from its paralysis. The crowd roared and pressed closer to the platform.

 

Bang! A gunshot was heard over the crowd and the people fell still and silent again. “The first who enters this platform will have a hole in his head,” Sanzo threatened. Goku had taken out Nyoi-bou and stood with his back to Sanzo in a fighting position.

 

Relying on his companions to keep the people surrounding them in their places for a while longer, Gojyo started to free Hakkai from the ropes binding him. “You alright, Hakkai?” he asked worriedly.

 

Hakkai staggered a little as his legs took his weight again. “I'm fine, Gojyo,” he said, but his voice was trembling.

 

Gojyo picked up Hakkai's clothes and monocle and shoved them into his hands. “Hurry up. I don't know how much longer Sanzo's gun can hold them off.”

 

As Hakkai struggled into his shirt, wincing when the fabric touched his back, Gojyo pulled him toward the stairs, and they heard Sanzo swear. “Shit.” Someone had thrown a stone and hit his gun hand. Fortunately for those in front if him, the gun had not fired, but Sanzo lost his hold on the people. The tension suddenly burst, and in seconds the crowd had swarmed onto the platform. People screamed and yelled around them. Gojyo felt hands grabbing him, but he violently shook them off.

 

“Come on, Hakkai!” he called urgently. “You have to fight, so we can get out of here.”

 

Sanzo and Goku were already fighting beside them. “For once the kappa is right,” Sanzo said. “Let's go.”

 

With the monk and the boy fighting at the two despicables' side, there was a lot of angry shouting heard. “That fake monk!” “We'll get them all!” There were only humans to fight against, but at the moment those humans seemed to have lost the ability to think and act as individuals. A massive force of bodies crowded the four men of the Sanzo-ikkou.

 

Gojyo pushed Hakkai before him as he avoided two punches at the same time from two different men, kicking one of them in the stomach and punching the other one on his jaw. “Come on, man,” he yelled desperately at the still passive Hakkai. “You're innocent! You know what that means. Innocent! Listen to me! We know who did it. It's the truth.” He ducked for a fist aimed at his temple, at the same time blocking a punch meant for Hakkai's kidney. To his left he could see Goku, swinging Nyoi-bou, doing his best not to cause too much damage. Sanzo, to his right, had put away his gun and instead did like Gojyo and trusted his fists. They had reached the edge of the platform, but none of them were eager to jump down into that mass of agitated humans. Gojyo avoided another punch and managed to keep his balance so to not fall down, but someone got a hit on his wounded shoulder, and Gojyo growled in pain.

 

The sound woke Hakkai up. “Gojyo! You're alright?” he asked worriedly.

 

“I'm fine, just help us get out if here, will ya,” Gojyo begged. “These people are not good fighters, but there are many of them.”

 

Hakkai nodded. “Let's go,” he answered.

 

“Make sure you don't kill anyone,” Sanzo grunted, knocking yet another man down to lay before his feet.

 

“Course not, Sanzo,” Goku agreed, holding back his blows enough so that the people his staff impacted were only pushed aside or knocked out, without any serious damage.

 

“Ready to jump?” Gojyo asked, when a green blast suddenly shot out. Hakkai had used his ki, to totally clear the way to the jeep.

 

Hakkai looked around at the unconscious people. “I hope I didn't overdo it.”

 

“They'll be fine,” Gojyo assured him. “I've never seen you not able to control the force of your ki.” He could see breathing and small movements from several of the men lying on the ground, and he was sure none had gotten seriously wounded. A few were already beginning to struggle to their feet. “Hurry up!”

 

They all jumped down from the platform and rushed to the jeep, who `kyuued' happily when he saw his master. Goku jumped in, and they all were about to follow him, when a loud `bam' was heard, and Hakkai fell forward, hitting his head on the jeep's side.

 

Gojyo rushed over to him and caught him before he hit the ground. “Hakkai! Hakkai!” he cried. Blood started to slowly spread on Hakkai's shirt, just below the shoulder. “What the hell happened?” Gojyo asked, infuriated and frightened, as he cautiously lifted Hakkai. He could see he was still breathing, and that, at least, was some comfort.

 

“There's a man standing outside the court hall with a gun,” informed Goku, helping Gojyo lift Hakkai into the jeep.

 

“Hurry up,” snorted Sanzo. “Drive, Gojyo.”

 

With no time for arguing, Gojyo made sure Hakkai lay as comfortably as possible in the back seat, with his head in Goku's lap, then quickly seated himself behind the steering wheel and drove away. “Is he okay?” he asked anxiously while they rapidly increased the distance between themselves and the town.

 

“I don't know, Gojyo,” Goku said. “His breathing is steady, but there's a bump on his head and the bleeding hasn't stopped. It doesn't spurt out, so it's probably a vein that's been hit.” He looked worried. “We have to stop the bleeding.” Carefully he took Hakkai's shirt off.

 

“Put pressure on it, Goku,” Gojyo demanded anxiously.

 

“I'm doing it,” Goku answered.

 

Sanzo watched the two in the back. “Can you see if he's bleeding on his backside?”

 

“I've already checked that,” Goku told him, “and he's not bleeding there.”

 

“So the bullet's still in there,” Sanzo commented.

 

“Um,” Goku agreed.

 

“Dammit,” grunted Gojyo. Finally they had gotten Hakkai away from that hell of a town, but he still had to worry for his life. Man, was he glad there weren't too many of these damned guns around. He turned to watch Hakkai over his shoulder.

 

“Keep your eyes on the road, kappa,” Sanzo reminded him. “Hakkai can manage without you goggling over him.”

 

“Bastard,” Gojyo muttered. He wanted so much to be in the back seat himself, with Hakkai's head in his lap. “We need to check on him.” He slowed the jeep down.

 

“Not yet, idiot,” growled Sanzo. “He's alright. We have to drive further before it's safe to stop.”

 

A few minutes later, Gojyo stopped the jeep. “I'm not driving another meter before we tend to Hakkai.”

 

“Fine,” Sanzo growled, “do as you want.”

 

Knowing that to be the closest thing Sanzo ever came to saying, “I agree with you,” Gojyo jumped over to the backseat and gently took Hakkai out of Goku's arms.

 

Hakkai hung limp when Gojyo carefully lifted him from the jeep and laid him on a blanket that Goku had spread on the ground. “Goku, start a fire,” he demanded without taking his eyes from Hakkai.

 

“Sure.” Goku immediately gathered what dry wood he could find and built up a fire.

 

Gojyo tenderly examined Hakkai's wounds. Fortunately Goku's pressure seemed to have stopped the bleeding, but Hakkai was still unconscious.

 

The half-youkai heard a thump beside him and turned his head to see what had caused the sound. The first aid kit lay beside him, and Sanzo looked down at him from where he stood beside the jeep. “You might need that,” he said, “and these.” From the jeep he picked up clean cloths, water bottles, a small pot, and a shallow bowl.

 

“Thanks,” Gojyo murmured.

 

Sanzo did not bother to answer. Instead he poured water into the pot. “We better boil this.”

 

Goku approached. “The fire is ready,” he told Gojyo.

 

“Fine, boil this water, will ya?” He nodded at the small pot Sanzo still was holding.

 

Goku did what he was asked, and Gojyo laid Hakkai's head in his lap to make him comfortable while he waited for the water to boil. He watched Hakkai's chest move as he breathed, and was thankful the motion was steady. Sanzo sat down beside him. The monk took one of the water bottles and poured some of the water on a clean cloth. Without a word he gave it to Gojyo, who started to clean off the blood that had begun to dry on Hakkai's upper body.

 

Goku came with the boiled water. Putting it down in front of Gojyo, he knelt beside them and asked, “Will he be okay?”

 

“Of course, he will,” Gojyo insisted.

 

“Is there anything else I can do?”

 

“Yeah, could you keep watch? I don't want to move Hakkai right now, but I don't want to have a fight here, with him lying unconscious, if anyone from the town are following us.”

 

“I'll do that,” Goku agreed and went to find a good place to watch over the road.

 

Gojyo poured the boiled water into the shallow bowl and waited a moment to let the water cool a little. He then carefully cleaned the wound on Hakkai's chest. When Gojyo tried to turn Hakkai to clean his back, Sanzo took the unconscious man in his arms and held him while Gojyo did the cleaning. Hakkai's back had three long slashes on it. The cuts were swollen, and the whip's knots and spikes had penetrated the skin, tearing the flesh. Three more scars on Hakkai's body, Gojyo sighed. Those welts would probably cause Hakkai a great deal of pain, too. He took a clean towel and laid it under Hakkai before Sanzo lowered his body to the ground again. With Sanzo's assistance he bandaged the injuries.

 

“Sanzo, can you bring a clean shirt?” Gojyo's voice was still worried, and not until Sanzo handed him one of Hakkai's black undershirts did it occur to him that he usually did not ask Sanzo to run errands for him. “Thanks,” Gojyo said. He seemed to have said that to the monk quite often these last few days. Together they helped put the shirt on Hakkai, then Sanzo went back to the jeep and lit a cigarette.

 

Gojyo sat still with Hakkai's head in his lap. Tenderly he stroked the healer's hair. It wasn't too long since all this had started, but to him it felt like years. If only Hakkai would regain consciousness. He did not feel worry anymore. Somehow he knew Hakkai's wounds were not life threatening; he could feel it deep inside. Gojyo stroked the bruises on Hakkai's face. Maybe it was a good thing Hakkai was unconscious. He would probably be in a lot of pain, if he was awake. Gojyo leaned forward and kissed the biggest bruise on Hakkai's right cheek.

 

“Enough of this,” came Sanzo's irritated voice. “The bleeding has stopped, let's get him back in the jeep and - .”

 

He was interrupted by Goku.

 

“Someone's coming!” Goku called.

 

Gojyo looked up, and Sanzo went to stand beside Goku.

 

“How many?” asked the monk.

 

“The whole town has probably come out to lynch us,” Gojyo muttered.

 

“This quick?” Goku wondered. “No. Besides, it's a wagon. One wagon, drawn by two horses.” He studied the approaching wagon as it came closer. “There are three people in it,” he told them, “so I think we can just stay here and see what they want or if they have anything to do with us.”

 

Gojyo cautiously laid Hakkai's head on the ground, then he rose. If the people in the wagon were out to fight them, he did not want to be sitting helpless. Two fast horses could have reached them from the town by now. He joined the other two standing watching the wagon. When it came closer, the driver slowed the horses down and stopped them beside the three young men. Gojyo immediately tensed when he recognized two of the people in the wagon. He did not expect any of them to fight, but still… It was the old man who had testified at the trial, and the judge. The third person was a very old woman who, buy the looks of it, suffered from severe gout.

 

The old man, Heng, looked worriedly at Gojyo, and without any introductions he asked, “How is your friend, Cho Hakkai?”

 

They all stared at him for a moment until Gojyo answered. “Still alive. Why?”

 

“Is he badly wounded?” Heng asked hurriedly.

 

“He's not conscious yet. Why?” Gojyo repeated.

 

Not answering Gojyo's question, Heng got down from the wagon and helped the old woman down. He then turned to Gojyo and his companions again. “This is my mother, Jiang. She was a healer before the gout stopped her. Let her have a look at your friend.”

 

Jiang took a staggering step forward and grabbed Gojyo's arm. “Come, my boy, let's see what we can do,” she said in a strict `old lady voice' and glanced up at Gojyo. She was very small, hardly reaching Gojyo's chest, but she held his arm in a firm grip as she slowly limped beside him to Hakkai, and Gojyo could see that no one ever said `no' to this woman. All the others followed. “Help me sit down, and remove his clothes,” she demanded, and Gojyo and Goku swiftly obeyed.

 

“He was hit on his head, too,” Gojyo told her.

 

“I'll see to that, too, my boy,” Jiang said, and continued. “You'd better take off the bandages, too.”

 

When the bandages were off, she stiffly bent over to examine his head and the gunshot wound. “Well, it's probably the hit on the head that made him pass out, but I don't think it will cause him any trouble. A small concussion that will give him a headache when he wakes up, but nothing worse.” She studied the wound. “Looks like you did a good job cleaning this,” she said approvingly. “But the bullet is still in there, and the wound needs to be sewn.” Jiang looked at Gojyo, Sanzo, and Goku. “Unfortunately I can't do such things any more,” she lifted her crooked hands to show what she meant, “so I'll guide one of you, while you do it.”

 

“I'll do it,” Gojyo said immediately.

 

Jiang chuckled. “I thought you would. Now, my boy, go get my bag from the wagon.”

 

Gojyo went to get the bag, and Jiang turned to Goku. “You'll assist him, and you,” this time it was Sanzo she addressed, “make sure there is enough clean water, and by that I mean boiled water. And all of you, wash your hands.” Sanzo scowled, but no one argued.

 

Gojyo and Goku sat down beside the little woman who started to give directions about what was to be done. “You, young man. What's your name?” she asked Goku.

 

“Goku.”

 

“So, Goku, take this instrument,” she pointed it out for him, “clean it, and use it to keep the sides of the wound apart, while you… Gojyo, is it? You clean that instrument, try to find the bullet, grip it, and pull it out.”

 

While Sanzo provided the water, the other two started to do what Jiang asked them to do. It sounded easy, but it was not, thought Gojyo. The bleeding started again as he prodded for the bullet, and Goku had to stop the blood flow with sponges to let Gojyo continue the search. In spite of how used he was to seeing blood and wounds, Gojyo still thought it unpleasant to dig with the forceps in Hakkai's body. Dammit, where is that bullet?… There! Leaning closer to see better, he fought to get a good grip on the bullet to draw it out. Easier said than done. Not until the fourth try did he succeed. Triumphant, he held up the bullet in the air.

 

“Got it!”

 

Once again Jiang chuckled. “Very good, my boy. Now you have to sew the wound together. This is how you do it.” To Gojyo that did not sound difficult either; stick in the needle, draw the thread through, pull the sides together and tie it with a knot. Piece of cake. But… Shit. This is so picky. Finally he managed to make three stitches that more or less held Hakkai's wound together. Jiang examined his work. “It will leave a little scar, but it will do,” she approved. “How is his back? He was flogged wasn't he?”

 

They turned Hakkai on his side so Jiang could see. She shook her head. “Poor, boy. Well, in my bag there is a small brown jug with a lid. Inside is a salve that should alleviate the pain.”

 

Gojyo smeared the salve on the welts, then he and Goku once again bandaged Hakkai and put the shirt back on. Hakkai moved and grunted something, but then lay still again.

 

“So,” Sanzo demanded when they had finished all the work with Hakkai, “can you tell us why you're here, now?”

 

“We will,” the judge spoke up for the first time. “Sit down, and we'll explain.”

 

They all gathered close to Hakkai, to hear what the visitors had to say.

 

 

TBC