Saiyuki

Standoff ~muzzle~ (3x9)

Air date: May 27, 2004

The guys are waiting on the top of a mountain for Sanzo, but there's no sign of him. We see that as it was too steep for Hakuryu, Sanzo decreed they'd climb it on foot, and Goku promptly suggested a bet on who'd reach the top first: loser to buy barbecue for the ikkou. He'd thought that would be Gojyo, but the hanyou comes in third; so where is Sanzo?... Below, the footsore monk has stopped for a break, and has just lit a smoke when Lirin careens out of nowhere. Sanzo gets off two shots [and realizes that's all he had; he wasted too much ammo shutting up a quarrel] before the demon princess lands such a blow to the rock he's on that the whole cliff-edge avalanches into the valley below. (Hakkai hears the noise, but Gojyo says he's just imagining things. Though it did seem that they all heard the gunfire...)==UH-oh; there's the Maten Sutra caught on a tree branch, lost in Sanzo's fall! Sanzo reaches the bottom a second before Lirin and instantly aims at her; she grins wryly and says she's failed. So shoot, baldy, she dares him. Brat, he retorts, aren't your guardians around? She begins to say she's tough enough alone, but her stomach growls so loudly that she halts in embarrassment. I'm all out of meat buns, he says with his dry evil grin; just go on home. But she snaps back that she can't give up and go home this time; and we see again the Kou-tachi rescuing her from Dr. Ni's experiment in ep. 6. Afterward, her brother had warned her to stay away from "all of them" from now on, even her mother, and promised to protect her no matter what. She said she would, and Dokugaku and Yaone looked on, smiling, as prince and princess sealed the promise with a pinky-swear. [Awwww. =)] --Now Lirin grits her teeth; big brother did his best for me, she thinks, so I have to do my best for his sake!--Baldy Sanzo, she yells, give me the scripture! Kyoumon?--he glances at his shoulder, registers that the priceless sutra is gone, and reacts with admirable composure. Stop calling