Saiyuki Reload, Volume 9 by Kazuya Minekura

Temporarily separated from the Youkai members of his party at two villages bordering a lake, Sanzo is teamed up with Hazel, a Christian Priest with the power to bring people back to life with the souls of monsters.

Hazel is dreaming of when he was young and staying with his mentor. His mentor, was, like Hazel, a monster-hunter. But once he returned from a trip with a new companion, an eastern priest named Ukoku Sanzo. In thanks for his help, Hazel's mentor let him stay at the church with Hazel and himself. Hazel was an orphan whose parents had been killed by monsters, but he viewed his mentor as a surrogate father figure. However, his talks with Ukoku Sanzo made him feel helpless and drained his faith.

For Ukoku Sanzo lived the emptiness of Buddhism. Everything was worth nothing. There was no meaning to life or love or existence. All is emptiness. He was able to live that whole heartedly, and something about his talks hurt Hazel's faith in God and himself.

Then, Ukoku Sanzo shows up with his Sutra, the Muten Sutra, and tells Sanzo, Hazel and Hazel's servant Gat all about themselves. He reveals Sanzo's true parentage, why Gat remains with Hazel and how they met, and basically reveals all the secrets they didn't know they had. Sanzo tries to fight him, but he alone isn't any match for Ukoku Sanzo, and Ukoku is also more than a match for Genjyo Sanzo, Hazel and Gat together. Ukoku reveals the power of the Muten Sutra- to unmake everything. It's a black hole that can strip things and beings into unbeing. But when he threatens to turn it on Sanzo, can he unmake the grumpy priest?

In the backstory, the four of the Sanzo party enter a town where there is a "Greatest Fighter in the World" Contest going on. The people of the town seem to prefer their fighters muscular and ripped, but when the champion mistakes Sanzo for a girl wanting his autograph, the others barely prevent Sanzo from killing him. In order to show him a thing or two, they enter the contest. But when it comes down to a fight between the four of them, who will win the title?

From darkness to comedy, this book has it all. The darkness and hopelessness of the main story is balanced quite nicely by the side story at the end, making what could have been a total bummer of a book into something that leaves you with a style.

Ukoku Sanzo is not just himself though, a horrible bastard though he may be. He has been hiding among the researchers trying to bring back Gyumaoh as Nii Jenyi, and here he lets his sadism have full sway. Goodness only knows what he gets out of acting like nihilistic rat bastard, or how such a man became a Sanzo priest, but its easy to see why Genjyo Sanzo, bad as he is, was confirmed by the three while Ukoku Sanzo was not- he lacks the sign of a Sanzo on his forehead.

He may be telling the truth when it comes to Sanzo's background, but who would know if he were lying? The whole encounter leaves a helpless, hopeless taste in your mouth, and knowing there is more to come next issue, well... I'm only sort of looking forward to it, and hoping Sanzo and his friends take the little bastard out. Recommended.