Cho Hakkai

Cho Hakkai (豬八戒) is the mild, polite and level-headed member of the Sanzo Ikkou. He is always looking out for their day to day well being. He takes on the more feminine roles: cooking, cleaning up after everyone, making sure their supplies are in order, and solving (or at least calming down) the arguments and yelling matches that happen frequently. He is also their healer, his kikou jutsu (chi manipulation/Qigong) comes in handy in battle in the form of ki blasts and protective barriers.

Appearance
Hakkai is a tall, lanky young man with a warm smile, messy brown hair, and green eyes. The truly observant may be able to tell that his right eye is actually a fake--a magitech prosthetic that functions well enough to give him depth perception, but is otherwise nearly blind. He wears glasses to further improve his vision. In addition, he sports a large ugly scar across his abdomen, which is usually hidden by his clothing. Hakkai tends to favor clothes that, while in good repair, range on the slightly baggy side of the spectrum, giving him the look of the absent-minded scholar he used to be. The white cloth he always wears is for Hakuryuu to sit on and prevent his clothes from being torn by its claws. On his left ear, he wears three silver cuffs. These cuffs are actually magitech limiters which regulate his demihuman abilities and allow him to retain his human appearance. When the limiters are removed, Hakkai is transformed, fingernails becoming claws, ears becoming pointed, and his left eye becoming yellow and slitted like a cat's. Furthermore, his skin becomes swirled with black vine 'tattoos' (see abilities for details). Hakkai prefers to retain his human appearance whenever possible.

In Saiyuki Reload and Saiyuki Reload Gunlock, Cho Hakkai's primary attire has minor changes. His green qipao becomes short sleeves with black outlines in each sides and it is shown to be loose while it was tucked with a black sash. He also gains a black long sleeve undershirt beneath his outfit and his pants are charcoal gray.

Personality
Hakkai comes across as an intelligent, well-mannered young man with a soft-spoken demeanor and a quick smile. He can be somewhat absent-minded, and what one might term a 'home-body,' in that he enjoys cleaning, cooking, and other activities more usually suited to house-wives. Hakkai is well read and enjoys learning (he used to work as a school teacher, in fact) and is full of strange, possibly useless information. He also possesses a good memory, and is fairly capable when it comes to 'reading' people (which makes him killer when it comes to poker).

His sense of humor is quirky, and due to the fact that he nearly never shows anger, it can be difficult to tell if his cheerfully delivered barbs are honest or in jest, which some people find rather off-putting. He puts forth an optimistic attitude even in the face of severe adversity, though he is perfectly capable of treating a given situation with the seriousness it is due. He's not a clown, so much as someone who seeks to keep everyone around him in good spirits even when the going gets rough.

This affable, if odd, exterior hides a much darker side which--thankfully--is rarely seen. It's a part of him that only emerges fueled by a deep feeling of hurt and rage, a need for vengeance that can take a horrifying toll on those unfortunate enough to provoke it. It's a part of himself that Hakkai has tried to put away, something he hopes very dearly will remain in his past. Due to the circumstances of his life, there is also a lingering sense of melancholy about him that emerges from time to time, a result of feelings of guilt and self-depreciation in regards to the crimes he committed in the past.

When his limiters are removed to release his full demihuman power, there is always the risk that Hakkai will lose his sense of self and be unable to control his actions unless someone acts to stop him. It is for this reason, along with a certain distaste for what he has become, that causes him to wear power-limiting devices on a daily basis.

He has also never been known to get drunk.

Weapons/Abilities
Hakkai practices kikou jutsu, or better known as Qigong (chi manipulation), which allows him to manipulate his chi into blasts and force shields, suitable for defending against a small number of armed individuals or shielding himself and others in his immediate vicinity from attacks. He can also use this ability to heal others, though how well he can do this depends on the nature of the injury. He can heal wounds, for example, but cannot replenish the blood a person may have lost as a result of the wound. Though it is not often showed, he is also very skilled in hand in hand combat and martial arts. He is much stronger than he looks, as he is able to wipe out a whole races of demon with just a dagger when he was still human. When Hakkai removes his limiters and takes his full demonic form, he can unleash his full demonic abilities such as enhanced strength, speed, and agility. His chi manipulation also increases in magnitude. In addition, he can control the vine 'tattoos' or demonic marks in his skin that cover his entire body, sending them out across any surface he touches to ensnare others. In Saiyuki Reload during his fight with the Seiten Taisei, he uses Gat, a human that has been revived multiple times, as a sort of lightning rod along with his vines to electrocute Goku in his demonic form.

Youkai form
In the Saiyuki manga, Hakkai has taken off his limiters three times - once in the Burial Arc to save Gojyo from a group of youkai who held him hostage, another time in the Kami-sama Arc before Goku while they were trapped in Kinkaku's gourd, and a third time in the "Even a Worm" Arc in the Reload manga, where he had to stop a berserk Goku as Seiten Taisei. As mentioned previously, he also took his limiters off in the Homura Arc in the anime. Until recently in the "Even a Worm" Arc, Hakkai's transformations revealed only a back view and a blurry profile of his youkai self. Very limited information is given regarding his conditions as a youkai. The "Even a Worm" Arc clarifies a lot of things. In the story, Goku is attacked on the streets by an unknown foe and badly injured, to the point where Hakkai declares that the only option is to take off his diadem and hope that his Seiten Taisei life-force can save him. In the meanwhile Sanzo has gone off alone to find and kill Goku's attacker. As Goku recovers and turns berserk, even Gato's bullets cannot stop him - he catches them all. Deciding that there is one available option to take, Hakkai takes off his limiters, asking Gojyo to stop him if he goes berserk. At this point a bit of background information is provided, in the form of a flashback conversation between Sanzo and Hakkai. Sanzo had warned him that Hakkai should not take his limiters off - that he, unlike Goku, would be affected by the minus wave, and possibly lose his senses for good. This is also the first time where the audience can see Hakkai's face as a youkai: he has the typical pointed ears, and his hair gets longer - Gonou's hairstyle, basically. His vine markings wind around the whole of his body, even his face (in the manga, the vines are green; in the Reload anime they are dark red). And as the solution for the much-debated topic of his eye in the manga, here Hakkai's right eye is clearly shown to be prosthetic; his left eye becomes golden with a slit-pupil, marking his way of becoming a youkai, while his right remains green with a round pupil as it is a prosthetic eye. As Hakkai takes on Son Goku, he is shown to be much faster than his human self, and much more durable. However, as he is subject to the minus wave, he is shown to be more aggressive, repeatedly punching Goku in the face whilst holding him down. As Gojyo holds him back, Hakkai's fist almost lands in Sha's face before he restrains himself and regains some human senses. He himself is shocked by his own brutality under the effects of the minus wave. Another exciting feature of Hakkai in youkai form is his markings. They are much more extravagant and dynamic than those of normal youkai, and for a good reason - one of youkai Hakkai's abilities is materializing his vine markings into actual vines, controlling them and having them travel across the surface of any solids in order to bind. He uses this power to grab hold of Goku as he lands on the ground, grabs his arm from having them travel out from his ankles, and conducts electricity through Gato's gun, Gato, Hakkai himself, the ground and Goku, all bound by his vine markings. This skill in its own nature seems to startle and even shock Son Goku. However powerful Hakkai is shown in this battle, it is also made clear that he is no match for Son Goku. Goku is a lot more agile, faster, more brutal, stronger and recovers at an unbelievable rate, and he can also utilize the energies of the earth. Hakkai only manages to restore Goku's diadem through manipulating the natural power of lightning, and he almost kills himself in the process.

Saiyuki Gaiden

 *  Main article: Tenpou

Background
Hakkai is very fond of sake, but never gets drunk no matter how much he consumes. He is extremely good at poker as well. His pet dragon, named Hakuryuu, turns into a green jeep and serves as their mode of transportation. Hakkai usually drives with Genjo Sanzo in the passenger seat, and Son Goku and Sha Gojyo in the back. He wears a monocle over his prosthetic right eye, and on his left ear he wears three metal clips which are youkai (yo-kai) limiters, keeping his power and form in check. Unlike Goku, Hakkai has more control over his transformation, and has been able to remove and replace his limiters under his own power on three separate occasions.

Before joining Sanzo Party
Hakkai was born human as Cho Gonou (猪悟能). He was an orphan and was raised by Catholic nuns. Through out his childhood he was not a very sociable child, and frightened the other children. He also said that he did not believe in God. He fell in love with a woman who he later found out was of the Kakita Clan (and his twin sister), Kanan, who he'd been separated from since they were three (the anime does not mention that she is his sister). He lived with her in a town where he had a job as a school teacher. One day he came home to find that the villagers had given her over to the centipede youkai Hyakugan Maoh (translated as 'Centipede King' or 'King of the Centipedes'), who loved to devour beautiful women. Hyakugan had demanded the tribute of a woman, and the villagers, to save their own daughters, volunteered Kanan, rationalizing it by saying she was an orphan who had no family or friends in their town. Gonou went on a killing rampage, slaughtering first the villagers and then all the youkai in Hyakugan Maou's clan and castle to get her back. Gonou finally reached Kanan's dungeon cell only to discover that she had been raped and was carrying Hyakugan Maou's child. Unwilling to give birth to "the child of that monster", Kanan bade Gonou farewell and killed herself with Gonou’s ownknife, rendering his promise to save her a failure.

Chin Yisou, the son of Hyakugan Maou, angered at the slaughter of his tribe, attacks Gonou, giving him a deep stomach wound. Yisou then decides to test the legend that "a human who bathes in the blood of a thousand youkai can become a youkai himself." He cuts his own wrist and spills his blood onto Gonou. It turns out that Chin Yisou really is the thousandth youkai, and after he transforms into a youkai, Gonou kills him. Chin Yisou however, right before his death, shoves a Mahjong tile into one of his wounds and turns himself into a shikigami, then makes an appearance later in the story.

Gonou acquired power limiters at this time that allow him to retain a human appearance, although the details of this are unknown at this time. Severely injured and near death, Gonou leaves the castle and stumbles about in the rain before collapsing from blood loss. While on his way home from gambling, Sha Gojyo runs into him, takes one look into his eyes and decides to save him, apparently to spite Gonou's obvious desire for death. Gojyo shoves Gonou's guts back into him and gets a doctor to stitch him up. Upon waking, Gonou finds himself in a stranger's room, learns that he has been in a coma for a week, and that he should be stuck in bed for another month. Meanwhile, Gojyo makes introductions by complaining about not being able to smoke while he was unconscious, lighting up, and then stating ''"this is the first and last time I bring a guy to my bed." ''Strangely enough, this was the start to a beautiful friendship.

Meanwhile Genjo Sanzo and his companion Son Goku are ordered by the three Aspects to "apprehend this felon... Cho Gonou... a young man who was once human." While living together Gojyo and Gonou learn more about each other and Gonou shows off his card-playing skills much to Gojyo's annoyance. Gonou talks about his love for Kanan, while Gojyo wishes that he could love someone someday. Gojyo never once asks about Gonou's affairs or his name. After he heals enough to walk, Gonou decides that it is time for him to take one last action. But before leaving he has one last talk with Gojyo, in which he tells him that his hair and eyes strike him as the color of blood. "That red that stained my hands... kept me grounded when I tried to escape the weight of my crimes. Your hair and eyes remind me of that. They're like a warning I suppose." What Gonou says strikes Gojyo deeply, as Gonou is the only one who has ever seen his red hair and eyes (the mark of his half-youkai parentage) the way he does. Before Gonou leaves the house Gojyo asks him his name. He is about to answer when there is a knock on the door. Enter Genjo Sanzo and Son Goku.

They ask for Gonou, and Gojyo tries to keep Gonou hidden, but Sanzo has already gathered information from the town and is sure Gojyo is hiding the fugitive. A fight ensues in which Gonou steals Sanzo's gun, and, begging for more time, runs off into the woods. As they think about how to find Gonou, Sanzo shares some of his wisdom and Goku muses about how Gonou didn't seem like a bad man. Gojyo makes a comment about how, once he has done what he intended to do, Gonou will probably die; "he seems the type." This disturbs Sanzo, who reveals that he never intended to kill Gonou, only capture him. Gojyo decides to join up with the two, stating that "if letting him die is the kind thing to do... then I... must be one selfish bastard."

Gonou wished to return to Hyakugan Maou's castle to retrieve Kanan’s body and to die beside it, but ends up encountering a survivor of the youkai clan. The youkai shows him his dead brothers eyes, which were ripped out by Gonou, and vows revenge upon him. Gonou responds with "We took away each other's families. We're almost even. Will giving you my eyes be enough? Be my guest. It's not as if I need them." He then proceeds to completely rip out his right eye and throw it at the youkai. Before he can fully rip out the left one, Goku tackles him and convinces him not to do it. Gonou then kills the youkai using Sanzo's gun, and together the four of them continue on to Hyakugan Maou's castle only to find it burnt to the ground, Kanan's corpse lost forever. "I couldn't save her again." Gonou falls to his knees, and at Gojyo's insistence Genjo Sanzo recites a sutra, though before he does he states that "when I read a sutra... It's not for the dead." Which really introduces the theme of Saiyuki, to live. The light of the sun comes up, showing Gonou that he still has a chance to continue his life.

Discovering Hakkai
Sanzo and Goku take Gonou back to The Temple of the Setting Sun where he stands trial for murder. Sanzo, speaking on his behalf, pleads Gonou's case before The Three Aspects. Shortly thereafter, Sanzo tells Gojyo that Cho Gonou is dead. Stricken with grief at the loss of his companion, Gojyo returns home and cuts his hair. Then one day, while Gojyo is buying apples, Gonou appears at his side. They return to Sanzo and Goku, at the Palace of the Setting Sun, where Gonou announces that his name is now Cho Hakkai. Accused of lying, Sanzo explains that Gojyo jumped to his own conclusions and that Buddhism forbids killing; "surely you didn't think we'd execute a prisoner?".

With a second chance at life and a new name, Cho Hakkai asks Gojyo to let him move in with him. The two parties (Gojyo/Hakkai and Sanzo/Goku) go their separate ways only to rejoin once the minus wave spreads over Shangri-La, and form the Sanzo Party (or the Sanzo-Ikkou), although they do see each other occasionally during the intervening time, with Gojyo and Hakkai often taking on side jobs for Sanzo.

Hakkai hides his sadness and guilt over his past with his ever smiling face. There are numerous occasions when his mask slips and he lets 'Gonou' out though. This side of Hakkai usually scares his colleagues because he is such an impassioned being. It is shocking to see such hostility in place of his usually placid temper. There are also times when he gets angry at his colleagues, but keeps smiling, which creeps them out a bit, and seems to actually increase the threat.

Hakkai is the only one of the Sanzo Party who can talk to Sanzo without his life being threatened. He is also able to calm Sanzo's temper and reason with him when he's being stubborn, a feat none of the other ikkou members can accomplish. They share some aspects of their past (including a failure to protect a loved one, the fact that they've both taken many lives, and a dislike of rain) and seem to enjoy quiet, contemplative moments. Hakkai also shares a close, personal relationship with Gojyo. Hakkai has known Gojyo longer than any of the other ikkou members, and although their relationship was rocky at first (due to personal differences), they gradually became best friends while living together. Gojyo opens up to Hakkai, and even though Hakkai is not keen on talking about his past, he and Gojyo seem to share a mutual understanding that transcends words. Hakkai has somewhat of a mentor/student relationship with Goku and values his optimism (Hakkai being a pessimistic person himself). Goku can sometimes get Hakkai to look at things in a more positive light. In return, Hakkai reassures Goku in times of trouble (usually when Sanzo is gone/injured) and tries to act as a guide and guardian for him.

Hakkai is very protective of the entire group, and more obvious about it than the others, eagerly preferring to put himself in the way of danger rather than let the others get harmed. He once used up all his power and fainted from shielding the group. It seems that his failure to save Kanan has led him to try to redeem himself through present action.

Saiyuki
to be updated

Saiyuki Reload
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Saiyuki Reload Blast
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Anime and Manga Difference
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Other Appearance
to be updated

Relationships
Sha Gojyo - Gojyo is Hakkai's closest friend. Years ago, Gojyo found him and saved his life. He took Hakkai in and they lived together while Hakkai's wounds healed. Gojyo never asked about Hakkai, his name or his past, and Hakkai in his own way was very appreciative of that. They connected easily claiming they were both a "jack of all Trades". Later, Hakkai told Gojyo that he found the bright red color of Gojyo's eyes and hair were an admonishment him. After their meeting with Sanzo and Goku the two continue to live with each other. It's was rough at first because they had such different personalities, but they have seemed to grow on each other. In Saiyuki Burial Hakkai calls himself a busy body when he comes to rescue Gojyo after he'd left Hakkai in the doorway claiming that whatever was going on what none of his business. The two of them are close and it's hard not to pick on the bromance going on between the two of them with them passing jokes back and forth such as "This is the first and last time I take a man to bed".

Genjo Sanzo - Hakkai, the cook, pack-mule, driver, shopper, etc., also manged to play the role of Sanzo's therapist. He and Sanzo are close in the sense that the two of them seem to be able to talk about some pretty "heavy shit" that Sanzo would never talk about otherwise. Hakkai is also able to calm the hard headed monk where the other two members of the group only rile his anger further. Hakkai seems to have at least a vague understanding of Sanzo's past and sympathizes with his hatred of the rain as it also brings his emotional grief as well. When Hakkai was first apprehended and taken before the Three Aspects, Sanzo claimed responsibility for supervising Hakkai. For this Hakkai feels that he is forever in Sanzo's debt (in a good way, of course).

Son Goku - Hakkai is like Goku's teacher, as befittingly Hakkai was a teacher himself in the past. Hakkai is often giving Goku advice, calming him down when he upset, or simply pacifying him. Goku looks up to Hakkai and probably thinks of him pretty fondly because he's the only one that doesn't hit him. Hakkai finds Goku simplicity and childlike way of looking at situations to be very refreshing compared to the rest of the dark pasts that he and the other members of the Sanzo party share. Hakkai also looks out for Goku in a more obvious way then the others. Cho Kanan - Kanan was Gonou's older twin sister and lover. Their parents separated, each taking one child with them. It is unknown how her childhood went, only that she was raised by her father. She met up against with Gonou when they were teenagers. It isn't revealed when they figured out they were siblings, but they continued their relationship regardless. While they were together, Gonou was most likely in charge of the feminine chores, such as cooking. In several flashbacks, it's also been shown that Kanan liked Gonou's hands, calling them pretty.

Hakuryuu - Hakkai found the injured little dragon in the woods one day, took him home, and nursed him back to health. Since then, he's essentially been Hakkai's loyal pet and method of transportation. For his part, Hakkai has treated Hakuryuu with proper respect.

Quotes
to be updated

Gallery

 *  Main article: Cho Hakkai gallery

Trivia

 * Ironically, Hakkai's personality is loosely based on the original Sha Wujing/Sha Gojyo from Journey to the West in terms of being one of the more reasonable faces of the group. Likewise, his former incarnation's position as Field Marshal originates from Marshal Tian Peng, whose personality closer resembles Gojyo's. However, both Hakkai and Tenpou share a certain trait with Zhu Bajie, Tian Peng's reincarnated state: having been seen at some point with exposed entrails.
 * It is likely that Kanan is very loosely based on Second Sister Luan, who allowed Tian Peng to reside in her home as her husband until she died.
 * Hakkai was accepted into a research college on a scholarship at the age of 15, and there he studied physics and theology. That was also when he was reunited with Kanan.
 * He studied lock-picking by correspondence.
 * Hakkai's role as the "mother" figure is not exclusive to the Sanzo Party; according to the novel based upon Hakkai's life Kanan was very masculine - she was a tough woman who would challenge a cockroach's advance before she would grab a book and smash it - Hakkai having to clean up after her. She was tough on the outside and soft inside; whereas Hakkai at the time was not a very kind-hearted person.
 * Hakkai and Kanan lived together until they were three, when their parents divorced. Kanan was in custody of her father and Hakkai remained with his mother. When Hakkai was five his mother went missing and he was then sent to the orphanage.
 * One of Kougaiji's attendants, Yaone, sparks a small interest on Hakkai. This is mostly because she somewhat reminded him of Kanan (Especially the way she attempted to commit suicide during their first fight, which is parallel to Kanan's suicide). They are also both healers. Due to this, they often help each other rather than fighting. There was one occasion where the Sanzo Party learned that Yaone was kidnapped by humans and suddenly Hakkai decided to rescue her, and the whole group followed him, as well as Kougaiji's group (though Kougaiji is not motivated by Hakkai's decision). This relationship is interpreted by the fans that Hakkai may have romantic feelings on Yaone and vice versa.
 * Both Cho hakkai and Yaone also have 8 (Ha and Ya) on their names.
 * According to Sanzo, Hakkai sleeps with his eyes open, and sometimes giggles in his sleep.
 * Hakkai has a striking resemblance to Canas from Fire Emblem: Rekka no Ken. The monocle, the calm and passionate nature, and supernatural abilities (Canas can use dark sorcery, Hakkai uses Qigong) support this.
 * In the Japanese original, Akira Ishida has been the only voice actor for Hakkai since Saiyuki was first animated. In English he has been dubbed first by Braden Hunt, then (in Reload and Reload Gunlock) by Steve Staley (under the alias Steve Cannon).
 * Originally on one of Hakkai's bios, reports say that Minekura jokingly wrote "voiced by Akira Ishida" on one section of it, which resulted in the studio directing the anime to simply go along with it, despite it being a mere joke of a "Dream Cast".
 * Hakkai is the only member of the Sanzo Party who has never been represented on a vocal album or other musical work from the series. The story is that Akira Ishida's first singing audition tape was harshly reviewed, and he was so humiliated that he vowed he would never be recorded singing again.
 * Hakkai is the only person in the whole ikkou who is the most handy on the broom. He is the only one who can cook too. Goku is especially fond of his cooking.
 * Hakkai tells the most scariest stories in the Sanzo Party; at the same time he is the only one who can scare Goku and Gojyo with his "smiles".
 * Hakkai's aforementioned seiyuu, and Goku's first English voice actor, Greg Ayres, have shared some roles; two being Chrono in Chrono Crusade and Kawora Nagisa in Neon Genesis Evangelion.
 * According to Saiyuki Reload Vol 6, act. xx Summer Scenary, Hakkai says that his ideals of summer encompass night--He thinks of wearing yukata, fans and fireworks; chasing fireflies and listening to the sound of a distant festival. To sum up, a very traditional Japanese summer.
 * Both Goku and Gojyo oddly share two different traits of the original Hakkai/Bajie from the original Journey to the West legend; Goku shares his appetite, while Gojyo shares his tastes for women.