Disclaimer: Gensomaden Saiyuki belongs to Kazuya Minekura. Because if it didn't, Genjo Sanzo would always be wearing a synthetic mer- man's fishtail and pink clam tops instead of his priestly robes! (A huge boulder crashes through Nikoru Sanzo' s window and nearly smashes her PC. Tied to the boulder is a note that says: "Don't bother dodging my bullets!" How ominous can you get?)

The Little Mer- Bishounen

By: Nikoru Sanzo

Chapter 4- First Date! >THWACK! < Iteee, Sanzo! I meant… First Day!

It wasn't long before they reached Prince Goku' s castle. A great steel gate adorned with bronze arrowheads and brass cherubs unbolted before them as a line of uniformed guards stood in attention at either side of the pathway. The citadels in the Togenkyo Sea World Kingdom were certainly magnificent, but Genjo Sanzo, Cho Hakkai, and Sha Gojyo had never before laid eyes upon such stately structures as the one they are entering now. The palace grounds were a tapestry of manicured lawns with marble statues and fountains. They passed by orchards, gardens, and vineyards that rivaled the anemones and coral reefs in color and brilliance. The turrets seem to touch the sky in their dizzying heights, and innumerable windows dotted the walls of the palace. They finally reached the castle itself and a massive oak wood door carved with spirals and pomegranates opened before them. Sanzo was ushered into a vast, carpeted hallway dotted with crystal chandeliers and oversized porcelain vases. He was led into a large room with a four- poster bed, walls hung with the finest embroideries, the ceiling painted with Bocelli- type decadent cherubs, ornate dresser in one side, an obscenely spacious walk- in closet in the other, and a balcony that opens to a breathtaking view of the ocean.

>>Nikoru Sanzo: (eyes glazed) "Neat pad! Why can't my quarters at Kohii Temple be like this? How can those stuffy old monks be so… so… OPPRESSIVE?!"<<

>>Kaiten Kyoumon: (raises a squiggle): "I don't blame them. You were asking for a jacuzzi, a private theater, an olympic-sized swimming pool even though you can't WALK past five feet deep, and an entire building to house your harem of bishounens! <<

>>Nikoru Sanzo: "You forgot one thing. I requested for a four poster bed with velvet spreads for YOU."<<

>>Kaiten Kyoumon: (squiggles popping in fury) "Why didn't you say so?! How come we're here instead of MARCHING up to that TYRANNICAL abbot's office?!"<<

>>Nikoru Sanzo: Baka! Because we have a fic to finish and stolen shots to capture! <<

"You can stay here for the meantime, even overnight if you need to. This is the best room I can find in my castle. What with so many of them I can hardly remember where mine is, so I sleep in any of them every night! Hahaha!" Goku throws his head back and laughs, pleased at his little joke.

Sanzo recoils at the thought of the bakasaru knocking on his door at night and begging for directions to his room. He went around and placed his hands on the dresser and the other furniture. He sat on the bed, amazed that the mattress is softer than his oyster recliners back at home. Hakkai and Gojyo crawled out from the sutra and sneaked under the bed.

"Kyuu!"

Goku tickled the white dragon's chin, "Well, if you say so, Hakuryuu. I guess you can play in the garden while I talk with our guest."

Hakuryuu flapped his willowy wings and flew out the balcony.

Sanzo could feel the eyes of the boy piercing his back. Annoyed, he returned the gaze with a death glare. Goku merely blinked.

** "Sheesh! Doesn't anything faze this bakasaru?" **

"I'm Prince Goku, by the way. You can call me Goku for short!"

** "I'd like to call you a lot of things, bakasaru!" **

"How come you never say anything? Are you shy?"

Gojyo nearly burst into laughter. Sanzo? Shy? The thought was too hilarious. As if on cue, Sanzo thumped the kappa's face with his heel.

"Ouch! Lemme clip off his stupid feet!" Gojyo struggled and snapped his claws as Hakkai restrained him.

"Calm yourself. What do you think will happen if Sanzo is discovered for who he really is?"

Gojyo settles down for a moment and has a mental picture of Sanzo with x' s for eyes and tongue sticking out, stewing in a large iron pot while Goku dances around it slicing carrots and parsnips.

He chuckles, "No, wait, I have another one!"

Gojyo has another mental picture of Sanzo with x' s for eyes and an apple stuffed in his mouth, being served on a large silver plate garnished with veggies. Giant sweat drops appear on Hakkai' s head.

But then he frowns, "On the other hand."

Gojyo has another mental picture of Sanzo, this time, sitting on a couch, arm- in- arm with Goku. They're being interviewed by Jerry Springer and Oprah, while waving at cheering and adoring crowds. Tons of calls for photo shoots, and endorsements for soft drinks and swimwear poured at Sanzo' s fishtail. Not to mention the piles of money and hordes of gorgeous babes throwing themselves at him. Gojyo groaned and yanked his hair. Bad idea to think of such things indeed.

Goku moved towards Sanzo, his eyes filled with earnestness, the kind of look that would have sent the callous priest drawing his pistol. Fortunately for Goku, all Sanzo had on him was the Maten Kyoumon, which he FORTUNATELY (or rather UNFORTUNATELY for our hentai pals out there) chose not to use lest he find himself duly unwrapped before a stranger.

Goku sat on the bed next to Sanzo and put his hand on the latter's lap. "I was wondering if you could… if you could… "

The blond monk stiffened and pursed his lips, expecting the worst to come flying out of the saru' s mouth.

From under the bed, Hakkai and Gojyo strained their necks to hear the magic words that would send them flapping straight for home and Sanzo back to his old self.

>From the background, a throng of crazed SanzoXGoku fan girls nearly destroyed every single chandelier in the palace with their decibel defying screams. <

>Kaiten Kyoumon: (nearly jumps off of Nikoru Sanzo' s shoulder) "What the heck are they doing here? (glares at a female monk flipping pancakes and selling lemonade)" <

>Nikoru Sanzo: (grins) "Never argue with a cornered market." <

Goku inhaled deeply," I was wondering if you could… stay with me for as long as you like."

Were it not for the cursed conditions Homura put on him, Sanzo would have stormed out of the room right then and there. Gojyo let out a sigh of disappointment, but Hakkai remained cheerful.

"It means there's hope for Sanzo. We have three days, don't we?" Hakkai reminded his friend.

>The Sanzo X Goku fan girls felt let down over how the situation is turning out. Nikoru Sanzo ushers them out of the scene with promises that a DVD of The Little Mer- Bishounen will be out in the market soon, though she didn't say which version. Kaiten Kyoumon gleefully counts the piles of money made from the pancakes and lemonade. <

Sanzo closed his eyes and thought for a moment. What did he need from this boy anyway? A simple acknowledgement of what Goku truly thought of Sanzo is all that is required to keep him from turning into sea foam within three days. Didn't that fruitcake of a fighting sea god say so? But what did he really want Goku to think of him? And how will he know if the curse has been lifted? Sanzo mentally thumped his head. How abstract can things get? He turned to face Goku and nodded. The saru' s golden eyes widened with joy and he bounced all over the room.

"Sugoi! Sugoi!" He cheered, but then paused abruptly.

"Wait, you haven't given me your name. Looks like you can't talk at all, so I'm gonna give you one myself."

Sanzo looked as if he was ready to faint at any moment.

"I know! I'll call you… SUNSHINE! From now on, your name will be SUNSHINE!" Goku beamed, evidently delighted with himself.

Gojyo snickered, "Hmfff! S- SUNSHINE!"

Against his wishes, Hakkai nearly had to strangle Gojyo to keep the kappa from guffawing and blowing their cover. But it doesn't mean that Hakkai himself could suppress a few giggles.

>Nikoru Sanzo and the Kaiten Kyoumon collapsed on the floor, rolling with hysterical laughter. <

>Kaiten Kyoumon: (shakes uncontrollably) "Hoo! Boy! That is sooo rich! My sides hurt! SUNSHINE! Bwahahahahahahaha! " <

>Nikoru Sanzo: (wipes her teary eyes) "Hmfff!! *snicker!* Sunshine- Sanzo can make the world end right now, but it's just too worth it!" <

But everyone stopped and blinked," SUNSHINE?"

Sanzo' s eyes were blazing with fire and brimstone. If he had the voice, he'd roar, "To hell with decency!" before following with his "Purify Evil!" and unleashing the Maten Sutra. But the horde of Sanzo X Goku fan girls have already left, haven't they?

"I guess you're wondering why I called you Sunshine."

We all thanked Tenkai for Sanzo' s unbelievable restraint at this point.

Goku inched his face closer to Sanzo' s, "It's because you remind me of someone. Someone I knew who shone like the sun!"

"That's it! The bakasaru must be talking about Sanzo! Everyone under the sea gushes about that bouzou having hair the color of the sun. They must've met sometime, though the kid might have had amnesia or something!" Gojyo whispers excitedly, then frowns, "Or he may be too stupid to remember! Aren't those the magic words we need?"

Hakkai frowned," Not good enough. Right now, Sanzo merely REMINDS him without making Goku acknowledge that it is Sanzo he's been looking for."

Goku walked out into the balcony and rested his hands upon the marble cordon. The blond priest himself got up from the bed and followed the boy. Sanzo found a wicker chair next to Goku and sat down. The prince breathed deeply and closed his eyes.

"It wasn't long ago. I sneaked out of the palace and I strolled along the cliffs the other day. Then I accidentally dropped my lunchbox over the edge of the crag. I was pretty far from the royal kitchen to get another batch of pork buns so I climbed down the sea cliff to try and get my lunchbox back. Then I heard a noise and I got out my nyoibou, but I slipped and somehow I was knocked out cold."

Sanzo didn't look bothered.

"Then next thing you know, I'm already lying at the beach. I opened my eyes but my sight was really blurry and I couldn't see clearly. But I heard this mind-blowing voice talking to me, and I could only make out a profile of a man who shone like the sun. He was so brilliant! I can't believe I'm such an idiot for not recognizing his face! But I passed out again and when the villagers and the guards found me, the man was gone. I think he saved me from drowning by the rocks under the cliffs."

Now Sanzo did look bothered. He was gripping the armrests. But he managed to look away when Goku turned to face him.

"I know, you think I'm an idiot for telling you this. I just have this feeling that I've met you somewhere before. I don't know, maybe it's the way you look, or rather, GLARE at me."

Anou, even if Sanzo had the voice, he's not the type to burst out in tears and cry, "Oh, my fair Goku. It is I, your…" Okay, let's not even get there.

Goku smiled," Ne, Sunshine, you should get dressed now. It's now early afternoon so we'll be having supper in a few hours. But before that, I'd like to show you around the place, that is, after you get dressed."

Sanzo could only nod in agreement. Anything, just to get away from the boy's unnerving looks and his calling him Sunshine!

The prince showed Sanzo all the opulent clothes hanging in the closet, along with the shoes and jackets to go with them. As our monk ran his hands on the rich fabrics, he couldn't help but wonder at the strange and new sights he had to take in all in just one day.

Goku politely coughed, "Maybe I should leave you alone. I'll be downstairs, okay? Hurry up, please, Sunshine? You'll hurry up, won't you, Sunshine? Okay, bye now, Sunshine! I'll see you later, Sunshine!" And with that, he left the room. A soon as he heard the door closed, Sanzo exhaled and just about collapsed with relief and partly from an overdose of "Sunshine's". Gojyo and Hakkai gratefully crawled out from under the bed and hopped on to the mattress.

"Oi, bouzou! We've only got three days to get that saru to recognize you or else, it's sea foam city for you." Gojyo crossed his claws.

Sanzo merely snorted at his friend's warning. He began to unwrap the sutra around his body. Just as he was already down to his waist (for he had the sutra wound about him up to his chest), Sanzo went into the walk-in closet and shut the door behind him. Gojyo and Hakkai sighed.

>Nikoru Sanzo: (glowers at the Kaiten Sutra while clutching a useless digital camera) "Whose BRILLIANT idea was it to hide behind this tall potted plant instead of the WALK-IN CLOSET?!" <

AT THE PRIVATE ROYAL DINING ROOM…

"Mou, Sunshine! Harahetta!" Prince Goku whispered as he rubbed his growling stomach. He sat by the table in his private royal dining room. The servants had already begun to bring out the silver trays and the flagons. It's been hours since he last left his Sunshine to get dressed, and now they're already serving supper. So much for the pre- dinner tour of the palace. Oh well, one can't give after- dinner tours either if he starves to death, ne?

"Itadakimasu!" Goku waved his silverware and proceeded to dig into the roasted goose before him. But just as he was gorging himself, there was a rather loud thumping on the door. The butler appeared embarrassed and he opened the door.

"Announcing the presence of Master Sunshine!"

Sanzo could have sworn the butler was stifling a quiet chuckle after calling out his horrible new name. Where the hell are his paper fan and shoureijou? And is it a good idea to let Hakkai and the kappa run amok in the palace? He pushed these thoughts at the back of his mind and approached the dining table.

Oh, and did I mention that sweet little Prince Goku nearly choked at the sight of his Sunshine? And who wouldn't at such a vision of a dish like Sanzo? The blond priest was garbed in a fine and fitting white tuxedo that showed off his slender form. His flaxen hair was pulled back in a ponytail and he glided across the room in a manner that rendered all who beheld him breathless.

>Kaiten Kyoumon: (sarcastically) "You mean the fifty- year old butler aside from Prince Goku? (turns to a certain female monk who's turning deathly blue and purple) Nikoru Sanzo? Nikoru Sanzo! Breathe, man! Use your vestigial lungs!" <

>Nikoru Sanzo (struggles for breath): "*gasp! * *wheeze! * I can't help it! Sanzo just glided across the room in a manner that rendered all who beheld him breathless!" <

>Kaiten Kyoumon: ^_^* Remember that Fra Lippo Lippi song- 'Angel'? <

Sanzo took the seat at the farthest end of the dining table, directly across Goku. Unable to take a hint, the latter picked up his heaping plate and sat nearer to his Sunshine. If Sanzo' s tuxedo had been transparent, one could actually see his body shiver and cringe as Goku approached him. Unfortunately for the Kaiten Kyoumon, his tuxedo was very much OPAQUE.

>Kaiten Kyoumon: "Hey! What's with the last statement?!" <

"Ne, Sunshine, I never thought you'd come down and have dinner with me. Wanna try the goose, Sunshine?" Goku cheerfully thrusts the savagely mangled goose drumstick at Sanzo. Mercifully, the dripping gravy splattered on Sanzo' s pale cheeks instead of his immaculately white tux.

* "Somebody please serve me some poisoned clams!" *

TBC

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Kaiten Kyoumon: Breathin' normally now?

Nikoru Sanzo: Yes, thank the Five Bodhisattvas for that.

Kaiten Kyoumon: You up for a bet?

Nikoru Sanzo: (nods) ^_^

Kaiten Kyoumon: I say Sanzo cracks up in two days!

Nikoru Sanzo: No way! I've got faith in all things yellow- headed! Two days and several hours, tragically right before the end of his deadline with Homura!

Kaiten Kyoumon: Loser gets to treat the winner to a foot spa!

Nikoru Sanzo: You're on!