Understanding Nii Jieni is something that probably is best served with a question posed by that most wise of men, Mango.

"Can you ever know the mighty ocean?"

He is, in my opinion, the main antagonist of Saiyuki, and understanding him is something I don't think I have managed to achieve yet. His motivations are multi layered, and he is contradictory in nature.

He is first introduced as a scientist working for Gyokumen and aiding her in the resurrection of Gyuumao-ou. He is responsible for the minus wave that has reduced the demon population to animals. He is crass, filthy, and quite crude. He cracks sexual jokes, never appears to actually work besides fucking Gyokumen, and constantly carries with him a stuffed bunny doll. Later, we see that a razor sharp mind lurks behind the lazy smile. Nii has his own reasons for doing what he does. But what are they? Kami-sama appears and terrorizes Genjo Sanzo and crew, powerful and insane and bent on killing Sanzo-tachi. He's also a very fragile and a broken child underneath the crazy, serving with utmost devotion his master. You guessed it. Nii. And even more of a brain breaker, the man known as Nii Jieni is in fact Ukoku Sanzo, one of the highest of holy men. I know I went "sproink!" when I saw it, and was also greatly intrigued.

So, in lieu of a write up I am not up to writing at the moment, I give you the chapters of Saiyuki Reload where glimpses into Nii's past are revealed. I love them, and this is some of my favourite writing in the series.

Burial arc