Episode Guide to Gensomaden Saiyuki

#19--Don't Go Alone/Maidens of Sorrow

(not in manga)

Sanzo and Co. are seen facing off against four armed female youkai--then, cut to flashback, and we see the SI rescuing a quartet of stranded girls who treat them to dinner in thanks. They say they're all sisters, traveling together, and they strike an interesting parallel to the SI: Shunhua, serious eldest one; Donghua, calm and modest one; Xiahua, stacked, flashy redhead; and Qiuhua, energetic youngest. They're all wearing matching drop earrings. Sanzo is very quiet during their meal and afterward warns the others against any further involvement with the girls; almost at once trouble starts to occur--knives flying out of nowhere, roofs collapsing-- but nothing will dissuade Goku or Gojyo.

We see the oldest sister, Shunhua, in her room, talking to someone we can't see; it's revealed as an eyeball embedded in her shoulder, a parasitic demon, which asks her if she no longer values her sisters' lives and reminds her that they will go free only when they kill the Sanzo party. She painfully agrees.

Each one makes an assassination attempt, but none can go through with it because (a) they aren't killers at heart and (b) the SI is just so damn charming. [Really, it's a complete waste of time sending female assassins after these guys. =)] Goku and Hakkai meet Donghua and Qiuhua out doing their shopping, and gallantly insist on carrying their groceries for them. Donghua and Hakkai have a quiet conversation while the younger two playfully chase and tease each other (Goku even seems to have a little crush on her =). They go out to eat together, and when little Qiuhua and Goku have fallen asleep at the table and Hakkai goes for more wine, Donghua draws a dagger and tries to stab Goku, but can't do it. Hakkai returns with the wine and pretends he didn't see anything. --Likewise, Xiuhua has a great time in the local gambling den with Gojyo, who wins everything in sight and dubs her his Goddess of Victory. Afterward, alone, he moves in to kiss her, but tears spill down her face; Gojyo draws away and tells her to go home, saying he's not so desperate that he'd force a girl who isn’t willing. [And this after a long night of drinking and flirting; what a sweet, decent guy. --Yeah, I know about his stepmother, but look at his overall actions: this isn't just a knee-jerk trauma response. He never uses violence or even coercion against women without extreme due cause.] --Xiuhua continues to cry, clutching the knife behind her back that she can't bring herself to use. And Shunhua brings a bottle of wine to Sanzo's room, but he sees straight through it and bluntly asks her what they’re up to, telling her to clear out and not come near them again. She's startled, but tells him they can take no other path. You may think so, he replies, but who decided that? Who says there's only one path? Taken aback by the Zen slap of this remark [No matter what you think of the man's character or methods, he is a genuine, chosen-of-the-gods, Enlightened Master], her eyes are opened; she thanks him and starts to leave, stopping to ask a favor. Master Sanzo, she says... if all paths should disappear...

The sisters talk together; they all feel the demon may not leave their sister even if they do kill the SI, but decide on a last-ditch desperate attack. Which brings us to the opening scene…the girls all remove their earrings, which are power limiters, and appear as armed youkai warriors. Goku is deeply hurt that they have to fight their new friends. In the course of the fight the parasite demon is revealed, and Hakkai senses it's assimilated her vital organs--there's no way it could be removed without killing her, he tells the others. Shunhua drives a dagger into the eyeball, sending her into spasms of pain, and the creature reveals that it's planted cancer-like seeds in the other sisters as well--you can't destroy me, it mocks, since you can't possibly kill all these beautiful faces. But Sanzo realizes the meaning of Shunhua's request and knows she was willing to pay the price of freedom for them all. He levels his gun. Goku throws himself at Sanzo and pleads for their lives, crying that they had only just become friends, but Sanzo resolutely uses his scripture to immobilize the demon girls and fires.

The sisters' souls appear and soar away, thanking him for setting them free, but poor Goku falls to his knees, sobbing bitterly. On the hill, a bell tolls.

Return to Episode Guide front page.
Go back to Gunning for the Buddha mainpage.