Chapter 09 - Charismatic

Charismatic is Saiyuki's ninth chapter.

Summary
Yaone attacks Hakkai with her spear, sending him crashing through the tavern door. Now outside, she charges at him again, only for him to leap over her and disarm her from behind. He asks her to stop the attack, but she responds by tossing explosives at him. Hakkai creates a chi force field to protect himself and again implores her to cease her attack.

Meanwhile, Goku, Sanzo, and Gojyo awaken inside the inn and are surprised to see Hakkai fighting outside.

Yaone says she has no choice now but to use her last resort, and explains that she had planted explosives inside the inn. She presses the button on her handheld remote detonation device, but nothing happens. Hakkai reveals that he had discovered the explosives inside the inn earlier and disarmed them for safety. Yaone falls to her knees in utter defeat. Hakkai approaches her and apologizes for fighting back so hard. He extends his hand to help Yaone up, but she smacks the offer aside. She says that since she failed her mission and her enemy is taking pity on her, she is useless to Kougaiji and her life is now worthless. She draws a dagger and is about to commit suicide. As Goku calls out for Yaone to stop, Hakkai has a flashback to his past. He flashes back to when he was still called Gonou and a pregnant Kanan committed suicide in front of him by stabbing herself in the belly.

Just as Yaone is about to stab herself in the throat, there is a sudden gust of wind or energy, and Kougaiji appears. Kougaiji scoops Yaone up in his arms and leaps with her up to the tavern's rooftop. Yaone calls out Kougaiji's name, and the Sanzo-ikkou are shocked by this sudden encounter with the mysterious yokai leader. Kougaiji informs them that he is only here to collect his subordinate and turns to depart. Goku takes this opportunity to attack and leaps towards the rooftop with Nyoi-bo. Kougaiji knocks him back with a powerful energy blast. Gojyo attacks using his shakujo blade and chain technique, but Kougaiji easily catches the blade between his fingers. Kougaiji fires off another blast of magical energy, which Hakkai blocks with a chi barrier.

Meanwhile, Sanzo has snuck up behind Kougaiji on the rooftop and holds his gun to Kougaiji's head. Kougaiji says that the gun won't kill him. Sanzo says he knows this, but he still has questions for Kougaiji. Kougaiji responds that his is not the time or place for conflict as the local humans may be injured. He warns Sanzo that he will eliminate the ikkou if they continue to interfere. He then vanishes, taking Yaone with him.

Goku and Gojyo express their desire for a chance to face off against Kougaiji again in the future, while Hakkai points out that they now know why the yokai are so loyal to him.

Meanwhile, Yaone apologizes to Kougaiji for failing her mission and states that the only way she can make amends is to take her own life. Kougaiji rebukes her, asking whether she intends to break her promise to follow him by choosing death instead. Yaone realizes that she can't kill herself after all and promises to stay by his side.

Later that evening at an inn, Sanzo tells Hakkai that he is free to go if he wants to seek closure for events that happened in his past. Hakkai says he understands, but that he is choosing to journey west of his own free will. Goku and Gojyo barge into the room bickering and complaining about each other's behavior, and Sanzo threatens them to shut up.

Elsewhere, the Sanbutsushin have received the credit card bill from the drinking contest and are shocked by the ikkou's expenditures.

Once the ikkou are back on the road, they wonder if they can make it to another inn before the rain hits. They detect a strange odor, and soon come across a pile of yokai corpses covered in paper talismans.