A/N: Yes, I know it's bad of me to start a new fic when I just started A Life For A Life, but I couldn't resist! Forgive me? I really, really wanted to write a GaaSaku!

STANDARD DISCLAIMERS APPLY


RED RUM

Gaara frowned as he examined the body in front of him. Like most other cases, this one was clearly a homicide, done in a very clumsy way. The victim, a young man with dark hair and eyes, had been beaten to death with a blunt object. It looked like he had put up a bit of a fight, judging from the bruising on the knuckles. Unfortunately, he might have been caught off guard from the blows to the back of the head. It had caused his skull to split, leaving a bit of a mess.

Gaara never understood why he was the one who was always assigned these kinds of cases. It seemed that all the homicides happened exactly when he was on duty. It had been a long and tiring day in court when he got the call. Sighing, he pushed his red bangs away from his forehead. He decided to look for some clues.

He signalled to the paramedics that they could take the body. Shino would go get the man's belongings and confirm his identity. Walking around the dark street, he noticed that the ground was still damp from the afternoon storm. The earthy smell mixed with the scent of blood, creating an intoxicating combination. Gaara had to force his monster down as he tried not to breathe too deeply.

He noticed that there was blood on the pavement here. Funny, he thought to himself, it seemed that there had been more than one injury. The victim had not been bleeding profusely, yet there was a large puddle of blood about twenty metres from the body. He waved Kiba and Akamaru over to sniff the blood. They would take samples and start tracking. He only hoped that this was enough of a lead to identify the perpetrators.

Perpetrators. Gaara figured the victim had been ambushed by a second man when being chased by a heavily bleeding man. Maybe the victim had even injured his chaser…but there was no blood on the victim. This was strange.

The radio crackled to life, signalling that someone at the station had found something. He waited for Shikamaru to confirm the victim's identity. "Uchiha Sasuke. Age 25. But there's something funny about this whole thing…" Shikamaru's voice faded, leaving Gaara even more confused. There really was something strange going on.

Gaara frowned even deeper. It looked like a simple robbery, except for the presence of the mysterious blood. Kiba turned back, sheepishly rubbing the back of his head. "It's not blood. I don't know what it is, but I don't think it is blood." Turning back, the man scraped some liquid off the ground into a sample bottle. "We'll send it back for analysis."

Gaara figured he was over thinking the liquid. There was enough to place this as a simple robbing. They'd find the killer and slap him with a third degree. It was a simple case, but it didn't sit well with him. It was time to go visit the body.

x-x-x

Though Shino was respected for his work, he had never liked touching cadavers. There was something otherworldly about dead things. Especially ones that were murdered; they always had the most terrible expressions of shock on their faces. But this one looked slightly different. Sai didn't looked surprised per se. His facial muscles had relaxed when he had been knocked unconscious. Therefore, the man looked like he was sleeping. Except for the giant hole in the back of the head. That detracted from the peaceful image.

Shino pulled on some sterile gloves and got to work. The bullet had been fired from a close range, and had impacted the back of the skull. The force was enough to cause the body to jerk, accounting for the funny angles. Shino frowned. The killer had been merciful at least; the victim had been unconscious during the final blow, so he hadn't felt any pain or fear.

Disposing of his gloves, Shino turned around, accidentally hitting the table. This caused the body's head to tilt to the side just a little, but it was enough to give Shino a glimpse of a pale scar on the side of the neck. Getting excited, Shino snapped on a new pair of gloves and checked the other side. Yes, there was its twin, gleaming in the bright light of the morgue. The scars might have looked innocent, but Shino wasn't fooled. The body lying on the table was not Sasuke Uchiha.

x-x-x

"What?!" Gaara roared as he slammed the table with his fist.

Shino didn't even flinch. "Sir, it's just as I have written in the report. The body is not Sasuke Uchiha. The man is a close resemblance to him, but there is clear evidence of plastic surgery." Here, Shino pulled out some photos of the scars. "Therefore, it's safe to assume that this man's appearance has been altered to fit the Uchiha's."

"We can't be sure of that. For all we know, the real Sasuke could have gotten plastic surgery. He's rich enough, that's for sure." Gaara was ready to kill someone in frustration.

"Not a chance. All the Uchihas have a genetic defect that causes red eyes. It's what marks them as unique. Plastic surgery can't change eye colour. The body was wearing contacts." Shino motioned to another packet of evidence on the table. Gaara tried to think coherently.

"Ok, we have to identify this man. NOW! Get all the intelligence teams on this. It seems as if the press hasn't got word of the 'Uchiha murder' yet, so we should be good for a couple more days. I want a name in two days." Gaara could already smell trouble on the horizon. This case was going to be tricky to handle.

Last night, he had been too tired to realize the implications of a dead Uchiha heir. Maybe even the last Uchiha heir. The family was beyond rich, but they were very secretive. It was suspicious to say the least; many people had speculated that the Uchiha were backers of Konoha's crime scene. Whatever the case, the Uchihas were a dying power. A few years ago, many of them had been mysteriously killed, and no autopsy had revealed anything of use. Gaara himself suspected poison, but nobody had been able to prove anything.

There were two survivors to the whole ordeal. One was Uchiha Itachi, who had been serving with the military at the time. The fifteen year old boy had been at the boarding school at the time of the 'massacre', so he had escaped. The other survivor was seven year old Sasuke, who had been vacationing with some family friends in Suna. Luckily both boys had been relatively unharmed and had been taken in by Hatake Kakashi, an illegitimate child of the Uchihas. The man had been disowned by the family at a young age, so he remained the boy's closest living relative.

Sighing, Gaara put down the report that Shino had written. He was going to get some rest. He walked out of the station, not bothering to reply to his coworkers goodbyes. He had a long day ahead of him tomorrow.

x-x-x

When Gaara woke up the next morning, he felt a little better. Noticing that he had five voicemail messages, he sat down beside his phone with a cup of coffee. Pushing the little buttons impatiently, he waited for the first message to play.

Hey Gaara. We've sent pictures of the body to Konoha Private Hospitals. We figure it's the place that did the surgery, so you better start there. You have a 1:30 appointment. Don't blow it.

--Beep--

Sir, the body has been prepared for burial. We have called Mr.Hatake to pick it up. He should be here in the evening.

--Beep--

GAARA! I can't make it to ramen night today. I'm sorry! Something's come up! JA NE!

--Beep--

Dear customer. This is a courtesy call to confirm your arrival at Konoha Private Hospital at 1:30 pm today. One of our talented professionals will be happy to answer any questions you have. Please call back if you cannot attend the meeting. There is a base service charge for any cancellations. Have a nice day!

--Beep--

Gaara, the lab called. They say its red paint. Sold at any common hardware store. I'm thinking that this lead is a total bust. Call me if you need anything; Akamaru and I are taking a day off today. See ya.

--Beep--

Even though murders were bad for the city, they made Gaara excited. He could smell a real challenge here. Getting dressed quickly, he left for the station. It was time to start the real investigation.


A/N: Yeah, it's me. I started this oneshot last week and thought I'd post it. Obviously, it's becoming a multichapter fic. I think Gaara has to be a bit OOC here, but just a little bit. Hopefully the first chapter is interesting enough that people will read it…and keep reading. It'll only getter better from here…hopefully. So tell me what you think? REVIEW!!