Hi everyone. it's me Ayamegurl and here's a new story from yours truly. Enjoy.
xxxxx
Life. In philosophy, it is defined as the essence of the manifestation and the foundation of the being. In phenomenology, it is the subjective and inner manifestation of an individual. In general, it is one's existence. It is vivacious but at the same time, transitory. It is a game, a battle. I never took my time to know life, to know how valuable it is. Life is all about time. It is a test of survival, a very long test that few people know of and fewer people pass. I never valued it, that was until it slapped me hard in the face. A real reality wake-up.
I always had whatever I wanted whenever I wanted it. I never wanted to leave my comfort zone, never made real decisions for myself on my own, never saw that life was a gift until that time; that very day. All these changed from one single day. Not knowing had changed to utmost curiosity. Experience is the best teacher, they say.
Life had thought me a lot, punished me so hard and experience had whipped me with its all-knowing hands. I had to learn the hard and painful way. Loss, the end product of life's harsh lesson. The very punishment I had to bear. That along with death. But what is the difference? They are both the same only that death held more authority and vulgarity than loss. They both reared their ugly and unwanted heads in every corner I turned, in every step I took.
At the end of it all, if life had taught me something, it taught me that living was all about giving and receiving, it was all about valuing. I got to learn the phrase 'you don't know what you've got till it's gone' by force not by choice, I had to learn the real importance of the many chances that life gives. As humans, we tend to misuse and overlook a lot of things; time, money, love, chances, we don't know we have them at our disposal until it's too late and so therefore, regret sets in.
This would be the story of my life. Not necessarily all of it but the parts that mattered, the parts that changed my life. This is a story of a summer vacation that went wrong.
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CRIMSON SUMMER
"So get this, my dad still can't choose between the University of Konoha and Hashirama Senju University. He says he wants me to go study at a prestigious university and yet all he does is go to work and show up late at night." The frustrated voice of my best friend, Ino, reverberated in my ears. Here I was, lying on my bed in my room and listening to my best friend as she ranted endlessly on the phone. I listened intently while taking a little fascination with my ceiling.
"Uh huh. I know what that's like." I replied with little to no enthusiasm.
"And whenever I asked if he had made up his mind on one of them, he'd tell me that his 'working on it and I shouldn't worry'. I swear, all this delay is gonna give me a serious migraine!"
"Chill. What's the rush?" I questioned, feeling thirsty because of my dried up saliva due to too much talking. This girl did not go on a single break and she was the one that talked the most, yet I was the one that was parched.
"What's the rush!? Ami, the most dullest girl in our class, has been admitted into the Hidden Leaves College, she along with that lazy bum Shikamaru. Can you believe that? The most dullest girl and laziest boy I have known my entire life have both gained admission into the university while I, Yamanaka Ino, who had to study hard to make a nice A-level result as well as ace all my freaking exams, gets to sit at home while others finally gain their independence from their parents." I could practically feel her pain and anger through the phone.
"It's money speaking. You know how rich Ami's Dad is. All she needed was a strong connection and money. Also, Shikamaru is a really smart guy but I heard he was going to study at Suna." I explained, changing my position on the bed in the process. I checked the digital clock that sat on the stool beside my bed. The time was 11:56am, meaning Ino and I have on the phone for half an hour.
"Whatever. My point is, I don't want people to think I am a beautiful dullard who only likes gossip. I don't want the expression 'beauty without brains' to be associated with me, you get it?" She cried childishly and I could only roll my eyes. Ino the drama queen and daddy's little girl. She was lucky she still had a say in making any decision for herself unlike me that had a distant father and strict mother who didn't seem to care about what I want. I'm not complaining though, although there were times my mum and I fought over the matter, but all in all, I preferred not caring. I was just used to people controlling me because I grew up like that. I wasn't given the leisure and pleasure of choosing things that did or did not concern my life. If I was asked anything, I would reply straight up that I didn't know. Thinking about things that concerned me was never part of my agenda and that sole fact was not in the least bit bothering, why? Because I didn't and still don't know. Ino covered my social life for me; friends, dressing, dating and gossip. My mum, being my mum, covered my entire life from accepting Ino to catering for my well being. Dad sent the money and visited once in a while from his workplace at Ame. I was spoilt with excessive money, got good grades in school and was now looking forward to becoming a business woman. Life couldn't have been more fun and easier.
"What about you? Any school in mind?" Ino asked exquisitely.
"Well, I haven't decided yet. Sorry, let me rephrase that, my mum hasn't told me the school that she wants me to study."
"You're still gonna let her choose for you?" She asked with incredulity, "Girl you are impossible."
"What? I don't really have anything in mind, so I'll let her decide." I argued. Ino along with some of my friends, had always known me as a lazy person who did not want to handle responsibility. Well, Ino did not say that per se since she is also one that runs away from responsibility. However, the only thing that she knew about me concerning my lackadaisical and nonchalant attitude was the fact that I was one that thinks critically if given the chance to make or contribute to decisions already made. Even as irrational and indecisive as I seem to be, finessing was one of my strong attribute.
"Can you at least try to get something out of her?"
"Hmmm..."
"Hey! Why don't we do this instead- you ask your mum or maybe, by some miracle, you tell her you want to school at maybe Unikon for example. Whatever uni she decides on fixing you in, I'll tell my dad about it so we can both attend. See? We can both go to the same uni together and it would be so much fun!" She exclaimed happily, forgetting that she had been ranting few minutes ago. Ino and I have been friends since kindergarten. We were separated in middle school when she had to move to Kumo city to stay with her mother. Her parents are divorced and her father had custody over her while her mum remained in Kumo. Notwithstanding, she had been my longest friend regardless of the distance. We eventually met in highschool and that was when I knew about the divorce. There really was no such thing as a perfect family. Everyone had a story to tell and I didn't know if I had mine. My parents never fought, not that I can remember but other than that, I wasn't sure the long distance between them was strengthening their relationship. Communication was and still is the main factor that makes a strong and long lasting marriage. "Hello, did you hear what I said?" Ino asked, pulling me out of my short reverie.
"Yeah, we can try that in Neversville. You know my mum and the last thing I need right now is to get in a fight with her. If she knows that you are planning on getting me distracted from having a first class degree, she would be against it." I said.
"Hey! What do you mean by that? I will do not such thing!" Ino whined, "And you don't have to tell her about the plan, you dummy. Just where are you thinking from, your armpit?"
"Oh, I wasn't really paying attention to what you were saying. But you know my mum, she won't breathe a word of what she is up to until she feels like it. For all you know, she might end up telling me to school in Ame since dad is there and I don't think I remember you saying anything about wanting to leave Konoha." I yawned afterwards. All this talking was making me hungry. My mum is preparing something downstairs and from the aroma that's floating in the air, I can tell it is really good and mouthwatering.
"Yh, you're right. Awww. This is so tiring. I should have used this time to work and get me some money instead of sitting my ass down waiting for my hair to turn gray just because dad is still 'working on it'!" She shouted so hard that I had to keep the phone at a distance from my ear before I get partially deaf. Her mood swings are super amazing. One minute she would be calm and the next, she would explode like a volcano.
I laughed and rolled on the bed. The world must be coming to an end if Ino Yamanaka is talking about work. "You? Work?" I belly laughed. Putting the word, 'work' together with Ino was like mixing water with oil. They weren't related in any way and couldn't blend. "And why oh why would you like to work?"
"Hey! What's that supposed to mean? I'm a natural at doing my jobs perfectly fine." She huffed on the other line.
"Oh really now? Remember how good you were at minding the pizzas that were baking at KJK's fast food-"
"Hey, someone was offering free Yuhi phone cases and-" She countered pathetically.
"Or how great you were at Samui's diner, when you 'accidentally' spilled a plate of hot chicken soup on your customer..."
"The customer who happened to be that sly cheating ex of mine!"
"What about the work at the mall? When you completely forgot to man the crates and carts that you were told to, just because you were introducing yourself to some college guys that you said were whatchamacallit, 'the hot dogs'. Or how you offered good customer service to girls that wanted a pedicure and manicure when you worked at the beauty salon."
"... But those girls had awful fingernails and a bad taste in style. They had to be taught by someone!"
"How about the 'jobs' at various hotels and five-star restaurants. Remember how good you were at tripping on your own foot whenever you worked in a kitchen. Oh how you disgraced yourself in front of those big rich men when you served as a waitress. You know, my list could go on."
"They were all irrelevant accidents."
"Yeah, irrelevant accidents that cost you your jobs."
"That is so not true."
"Alright then. Name one job that you kept for a whole week."
"..." No response
"Hello, are you there?" I asked smiling with mischief. If only I could see the look on her face. Ino was a fun tease when it came to guys, but on other cases, she was easy to decide and poke fun at.
"Leave me alone, forehead. At least I was free to work unlike somebody I know." My eyes narrowed a bit. I could imagine the sly smirk on her face, thinking that she had achieved something with the petty comeback.
"I have worked before. Do you think Haruno Mebuki would let her daughter lack working experience? I did some work when you were in Ame and I also worked during the holidays which is something you would have remembered if you hadn't attended summer school and busied yourself with wishy-washy guys."
"You win this one forehead. I don't have time to argue with you." She ceded easily but I could still smell payback on the way but it was for another day. I laughed and sat up. The cool February breeze whooshed past my navy blue curtains and circulated round my room. I really loved the cold, it was bone-stiffening but still calming. "Did you hear that Karin is studying at the Hidden Leaves College too?" I groaned audibly with frustration. Just when I thought her rambling was over, she had to open her mouth again.
"Ino, why are you tormenting yourself? Just let it go already, you'll soon be in school so give it a rest." I literally begged the girl.
"At least, Sasuke's off her leash. He must feel so free now." She said, completely ignoring my plea.
"Please, can we not talk about him. I was beginning to enjoy my day, don't ruin it for me." I grumbled, not in the mood to think about people who thus far, has not acknowledged my existence.
"Ok princess. Wow!" It could have been an exclamation of surprise or of Ino's delicacy but I was used to it already.
"What's wow?" I asked, getting down from my bed to look at the view beyond my barricading windows. My room was situated at the first floor of my Dad's ginormous mansion. From this point, I could see the compound of my house below, as well as the other houses that were in the neighborhood. One of the guest room at the far end of the hall leading to my room, offered a clear view of the Rama lake. My mother wanted me to have the room but being constantly greeted by the view of a lake every morning was scary and I did not in the least bit find it beautiful or calming. "Can you believe it? I have spent close to an hour worrying about going to school!"
I couldn't help but smile, so it turned out I was not the only one that noticed it. "Congrats pig, I'm so proud of you." I heard her laugh a little and it made me all the more happier.
"I must be either sick or dying."
"You keep this up, and you might actually graduate the same time I do."
"Ha ha, very funny forehead. Anyway, I have to go, Dad said he's gonna take me someplace and sadly, I hope the name of the place has a university in it."
"Aww, you go girl!" I squealed snidely. It was rare to see a bookworm Ino and a ready-to-study Ino.
"I hate you."
"Love you too. Bye!" Then she hung up. I released a tired sigh, I was finally free to go ahead and quench my thirst. There was no activity at the compound and the breeze was giving me second thoughts about my love for it, so I went downstairs. The cold tiles could still permeate through the grey indoor winter boots that I had on. I scurried down the long stairs, very eager to put some of my mum's delicacies in my stomach.
"...when is it taking place?... now?" I could hear my mother's voice in the dining room as I descended from the stairs. Every word spoken between us literally echoed because of the vastness and emptiness of the house, that is, except cases where a lot of people were in the mansion. "Ok, I'll be there. Bye." She dropped her phone and turned to look at me with a little smile etched in her face. "Hey, brunch is ready."
"Thanks mum. You have no idea how hungry I am." I said as I brushed past her and entered the kitchen while rummaging through the pots in the kitchen.
My mum followed me and took a bottle of water out of fridge. "Why won't you be hungry, when you always skip breakfast." I didn't answer because my stomach was my number one priority. "I'm serious though. Keep this up, and you'll enter school when you're a legal adult so you can be free to do whatever it is that you want to do."
"Mum, please don't start." I grumbled. Having to deal with her before my day has barely begun was not on my to-do list.
She put the bottle water back in the fridge and walked up to me. "I'm just saying that you need to stop skipping meals. You can develop ulcer and other sicknesses while in school and do you want that? I don't think so."
I took my food to the dining room and sat down at my favorite spot by the side of the table. "I know that already and it's not like I skip them on purpose. I wasn't hungry on those occasions and I can't force myself to eat." I explained while munching down on my spaghetti.
"But look how skinny you are. You need more flesh!" She said with an undertone of authority that used to give me goosebumps when I was little. As usual, I grumbled again, "Mum!" She chuckled and went to the living room. The house had various rooms interlinked together. The front door was about twenty-five feet away from the first living room. The second living room, also known as Mummy's lounge, was up the first floor. The open space that divided the door from the ground parlor was big enough to make a restroom. By the left hand side from the entrance, just five feet after the door, was a small closet where our shoes and coats are kept. The kitchen and dining room were on the left hand side of the living room when standing at the vantage point of the entrance door. On the right hand side was a vast space that had a long bookshelf towering by the wall, a piano placed almost at the middle and a table at the other end of the wall. The wall that also faces the living room directly from the left and connects the bookshelf with the table, had a sliding glass door that parts from the middle. The door led out to a small porch and the swimming pool out back.
Beside the front door was the staircase that parts into two portions after the first fifteen steps. The left side led to my room, two guestrooms and my mum's room. They were on the right side of the house when you enter through the front door.
"Sakura, before I forget," I looked up from my food at the sound of my mum's voice. "Moegi's coming over. You are babysitting." I almost choked on what I was eating.
"What! What about her mum?"
"She is going out."
"Oh no no." I cried.
"What's wrong with Moegi? She's an angel."
"Um no, she's not. That girl breathes on people. She doesn't know that people enjoys personal space, she asks a lot of stupid questions, doesn't know how to speak without making a blunder, lies a lot and she's too stubborn. She is just too...too.. boring for my liking. Oh and she's spoilt too."
"Come on Sakura, she's just nine years old. All kids are like that."
"Not all. Konohamaru and Haku are not like that. And Udon too." I whined.
"Stop complaining. Her mother will soon be here to drop her off. You better be nice to her or else, I will have you sign a babysitting contract when you're in school." My mother said threateningly.
"Really mum! Again with the threat? Do you really want to spoil your daughter's school life?" I said in mock derision and pain and it only made her laugh. She walked up to me with her bag in hand.
"Sorry dear. I'll buy you and Moegi a bucket of ice cream. How's that?" She said playfully with pity glinted on her green iris. I nodded and laughed before choking and coughing. "Watch it Sakura!" She gave me my water and patted my bag till I cooled down.
"Are you okay now?" She asked and I nodded in return. "Good," she sighed and stopped patting my back. "It's 12:24 and I-"
"Mum," I called out.
"Yes?" she answered expectantly.
"About my school, have you decided on it yet?" I asked while wiping the little saliva and water that was on my mouth.
"I can't talk about this now Sakura. I need to go out now. We'll talk when I get back okay?"
"Okay mum." The remnants of the little choked up spaghetti remained in my mouth, so I went to the kitchen. I could hear her mutter some words as she arranged a few things in her bag. "I was supposed to be out of here about five minutes ago. Mei and Ibiki will be so pissed." That's Haruno Mebuki, Konoha's South District Attorney and her coterie, Morino Ibiki and Terumi Mei. Ibiki was her best interrogator and Mei, her finest detective. All of them put together made a sandwich of hardcore law defenders. Having a state prosecutor as a mother, a distant father plus a huge mansion equals staying home alone during various busy nights. I walked back to the diner and all I could hear was my mum uttering strings of curses and nonsensical words about her long chain of ADA's and their incompetence.
"I'll be home before dinner. There's cake in the fridge in case Moegi gets too jumpy and the spaghetti will be enough for you two." She spoke as she wore her shoes.
"Okay mum."
"Call me if you need anything. Take care." She walked up to me and planted a short kiss on my forehead. "Love you. Bye!" That was said and she was out the door.
"Bye!" I shouted, not really sure I was heard but not caring in the least bit. I went to my food and continued eating while praying for something to turn up to stop that little mutt from knocking on my door.
xxxxx
The sound of heels clicking continuously on the tiled floor in momental succession, echoed in the halls. It sounded authoritative, commanding and in every bit, graceful. The path was cleared for the owner to pass by. The owner too had the same countenance as her gait. Her harden face commanded respect, the lone bang of her neck-length blonde hair maintained its position at the side of her face and her mint green eyes ever remained focused. She had on, a business casual outfit which consisted of a cream turtleneck shirt, black trousers and a grey peacoat.
She walked down the floor until she stopped by a desk. "Guren, where are the files that I asked for?" The said woman wasted no time in handling her the stack as requested.
"These are what you asked for ma'am. The rest of the files dates back to the year two thousand and fifteen and you told me not to include them." Guren explained.
"No, these are just fine and will do. Carry on with your work." The woman said and walked straight to the elevator. The door to the fifth floor opened with a ding sound signaling to the woman to step out.
"Good morning ma'am. I didn't think you'd come till Friday." Someone said from behind a desk, a few feet from the elevator.
"Good afternoon Hagane." The woman replied.
"It's noon already? Men! these freaking air-con and blinds fools people." Hagane replied.
"You have been sitting in front of a digital clock and computer all day, both of which tells the time and you are telling me that you didn't know when noon clocked?"
"Well what can I say? This place makes you feel like living here. Makes you wish the day was longer, you know what I mean?" He attested as he wiggled his eyebrows teasingly.
"And here I was thinking you were consumed by the love for your job. You probably had too much to drink last night."
"Ouch! That hurt." He said while clutching his chest in mock pain.
A set of approaching heavy footfalls pounded on the cool tiled floor and stopped in front of the woman. "For someone who is late, you sure have enough time for a little chitchat." The third party spoke up making Hagane instinctively get back to work. "I'm glad you didn't wait for me to tell you, Hagane." The deep baritone voice said.
"Morino, you are still as nice as ever." The woman crossed her arms over her chest. The man did not say a word but simply raised an eyebrow. "Okay, I'm sorry for being late. Had to take care of a grown-up baby before leaving the house." She said and walked passed him but he followed suit. "And Mei?"
"Oh she's pissed alright. Said you blew her might-have date." He snickered.
"What might-have date?" She asked eyeing the huge man that walked beside her.
"Don't ask me." Morino sighed and after crossing half of the floor, they stopped in front of a door. A sign which read, 'THE PROSECUTOR'S OFFICE' was boldly written on the it and Morino did the honor of opening it.
"It's called a 12 o'clock meeting for a reason! And here you are by twenty minutes to one."
"You didn't tell me about the meeting until ten minutes after and you know the distance between my house and this building isn't exactly the same as a ten-minutes walk in the park." She replied hotly as she took a seat near the aggravated brunette. "So what's so urgent that I had to leave my warm house to enter the freezing cold?"
Morino chuckled and crossed his arms. "Still as grumpy as ever, Haruno." The huge husky man stood up once again, went somewhere in the room and came back with two steaming cups of hot coffee, which he dropped on the table in front of the two ladies. "We might be here longer than necessary. Mei?" He concluded and went back to his stance of crossing his arms.
"We have a lot on our plates. So let's start with the Kimimaro case. We have a lot of work to do. We've got to dig into all these files. Medical reports, birth certificate, prison records, school leaving certificates and so on. So we better get-"
"You're just making us do your work, detective." Haruno said amusingly and Ibiki chuckled too.
"We're in this together. Thanks to the police for letting him out of their grasp again, my team now has a bucket load of work to do." She muttered angrily. "Wait, you mean he escaped again after he was detained on Monday?" Mebuki asked and Ibiki confirmed it with a nod of his head. Mei removed her black coat and started shuffling the papers on the table in a lax manner.
"I will find that ass, arrest him myself and lock him up in a place the sun doesn't shine." Mei grumbled which made her partners laugh.
"Okay so what do we have here?" The blonde woman skimmed through the files. "He used to have a safe haven around The Suma division in Konoha, a lady friend or girlfriend in the West division and he frequently went to visit his psychotherapist, Orochimaru. These are all leads, so why are you so restless."
Mei relaxed on her recliner and sipped from her hot coffee. "Yeah, they are leads but those were the places that several arrests were made, so it's unlikely for him to go there. He hardly went to his therapist after he was arrested there the second time. Also, he and his lady friend aren't on friendly terms since she snitched on him. Officers are stationed in every nook and cranny of his been-to places but there's been no news."
"So you think we might know his hideout through these files?"
"Mm hmm." She hummed, answering Ibiki's question.
"So let's get to work!"
They sat together, brainstorming on how to find and catch the fugitive and after three hours of not yielding anything fruitful, they gave up but not without deciding on the next step to take. They were going to make an announcement and ask the various Konoha immigration officers to cooperate in the search. All workers at the airport, bus stations, motor parks, terminal and wherever that led out of Konoha were given statutory responsibility on catching the deadly nomad. With that in place,they went on a short break and had lunch. Mebuki used the time to call her daughter to know the situation at home and from the newsshe got, all was well.
Mebuki stretched her body. She was hopeful that they had made progress and any sighting they get of the criminal in question would be their next lead. Morino brought fresh cups of steaming coffee and settled them on the table. "Okay, with that settled, we can move on to the next case. Kimimaro's case was more urgent than this one, so I had to start with that. This is about what you told me months ago and you have to look into it Mebu." Mei said and all at once, the busy atmosphere resurfaced.
The woman sighed and took a sip from the coffee. "Three bodies were found two days ago. Here are the pictures." She passed the papers to the two people and continued as they looked at the imprint with scrutiny. "They were more like buried but one was deposited at Konoha's teaching Hospital-"
"- what for?" Morino asked when he was through with his examination.
She shrugged, "Maybe to be used as a dummy for experiments and practicals during classes or to perform necropsy. The reasons are yet unknown." she rested on her recliner and crossed her arms.
"And the other two, you said they were buried?" Mebuki asked frowning and still maintained her scrutiny.
"Yeah. In the woods not far from the institution."
"And you know this how?" Morino questioned and looked like he wanted to take it back when he saw the dark gaze Mei threw his way. "I don't know, maybe because 'I'm a detective' and it's my job, you big oa-"
"Mei, be serious." Mebuki interjected as she pinched the bridge of her nose. "She had some people go undercover in the institution." She explained to Ibiki there by diffusing the situation. "I'm guessing the bodies were dug out by your agents yes?"
The woman with the curly brown hair nodded. "Yeah. Had to dig 'em at night. They were transferred to Greensage hospital yesterday morning for a postmortem exam and I have the results." She explained and her two partners looked at her expectantly. "It wasn't really ascertained but one thing's for sure- they were poisoned. Traces of substances called ethylene glycol and ricin were found in their bloodstreams."
Her mouth was opened to continue her explanation when she was stopped by Ibiki's raised palm. "Wait, did you say ethylene glycol?"
Mei nodded with her brows raised.
"Do you know what it is?" Mebuki asked, feeling out of the loop.
"Yeah. It an antifreeze. I remember a time, I interrogated a woman who was accused of killing a young lady that she presumed was her husband's mistress. She confessed to have spiked the juice of the deceased lady at a birthday ceremony." He said. "I heard it has a sweet taste, so you wouldn't notice it even though you put it in your Jell-O or tea or any other food."
The hardened face of Mebuki suddenly became lax. "But it's still deadly?" She asked and got a nod from the man.
"Sweet or not, it still contributed to the deaths of these two people, Akira and Zaku. Both seventeen years old. The ricin deadened the cells and the antifreeze damaged their kidneys." Mei concluded.
Mebuki shook her head in disgust and pity. They were taken so young. However, she had a job to do and sympathy as well as pity, were not part of it. "So they were experimented on?" She hated the way her voice sounded hoarse, so she blamed it on the cold weather.
"It's more like it. Those two poisons were what they could identify during the diagnosis from the visible symptoms they could analyse. The compound was strong and contained other elements but further research is still ongoing." Mei attested.
The atmosphere became chilly and the silence ensued afterwards was unnerving. It didn't last long however, as Mebuki broke the silence.
"But if two were buried, why was one moved? Was there a witness that moved the body, so it could be autopsied on or was it the crook that did it?"
The brunette woman sat out from her reclining position and rested on the table. "There was no witness and the shipping was done deliberately by the perpetrators."
Puzzlement played on Ibiki's face. "Then who gets the report for the body at KOTH?"
"Luckily, Mabui is in charge and ready to assist, so we are getting it."
"No." Mebuki said. "If the body was deliberately dropped off at KOTH, then it means our John Does are getting some information too." She analysed.
"So that means, someone would work as a double agent there-" Ibiki added.
"Or not. If there was a double agent, then it means that Mabui works for them." Mei cut in. "But if the person happens to be working under Mabui, then we've got ourselves a fish and a hell of a problem." She gave an aggravated sigh.
"And why is that? It doesn't take more than three coroners to get the job done, so it's not that big of an issue." Mebuki asked while taking another look at the pictures in her hands. Mei stood up, probably feeling a bit overwhelmed and tired. "I don't know."
"Five people went missing, three are found dead and the whereabouts of the other two are still unknown." Mebuki recited. "There must be some sort of connection. Maybe the victims had a specific relationship with a particular lecturer or a group of lecturers or they had the same chain of friends."
"They don't. Didn't. We've checked and double checked and there's nothing that binds them together. No connection at all." Mei replied.
"So what you're saying is that we've got a psycho killer on the move that picks random students to kill?"
"It's plausible." Mei huffed in frustration.
The District attorney in their midst, closed her eyes to relieve her head of the little headache it had developed. "A similar case happened two years ago." Mebuki thought and brought out the file that she had collected earlier.
"At the same university?" Morino asked.
"Yes. The only thing is that no bodies were found. The missing students weren't reported as missing by the administrative body of the school. They only said that they had rusticated some students and matters concerning them were not the university's problem again ." Ibiki and Mei skimmed through the file that Mebuki had brought out. "I was going to do an assignment on them but thankfully, Mei already beat me to it." She murmured.
"What about their parents and guardians? Were the victims not accounted for?" Ibiki asked.
"I don't know, however, there were some speculations-"
"But nothing could have been done since the head was corrupt." Mei added as she took her seat again. The temperature in the room had heated up a little, courtesy of the heater and the tension.
"Including the senate?" Ibiki asked.
Mebuki leaned into her chair after taking a sip from her warm coffee. "Yes, the dean, senate.. all of them were corrupt. The case was never taken up and if it was, it didn't last long before it was shut down."
"If that's so, then how were you able to get this info?" Ibiki inquired. Dealing with two women that were as tough as stones was not easy. He had left the warm comfort of one of Konoha's finest pub to attend a meeting that didn't seem to need his presence. These two women could handle both themselves and the situation perfectly without his help but pointing out that little fact would spark a little war between them. Normal women would have blushed at a man's words of commendation; yes normal women but not Haruno Mebuki and Terumi Mei. Tell them that they could fend for themselves perfectly well without assistance and they would take it as an insult and would probably spite the male domination for their irresponsibility and cowardice.
"I had Guren dig up some things from our archive. Some records were deleted to cover up some tracks but the hacking team still pulled through." Mebuki explained.
Ibiki smiled surprisingly, "You have a hacking team?"
"Yes. Is it illegal?" Mebuki smirked.
A loud grumble resounded in the room and both of them turned to look at the source of the noise. "Why is this happening? I graduated from that university you know. The Great Hashirama Senju University! And now, it's a place full of bull." She grumbled yet again. "The number of students has diminished; a great contrast to the overflowing kids that were eager to learn from there."
Mebuki looked at her with sympathy and admiration. The woman before her was ever so caring, loyal and selfless. "At least, our girl isn't going to go there, right?" Mebuki blinked for a moment before she finally got the implication of what Mei had just said.
"No. I really wanted her to school there but I can't, not with all these crisis." She thought of the only teenage girl she knew that had a long roseate hair and bright set of emerald eyes. The imagery caused a smile to form in her face despite the gloomy situation she was trying to solve.
"But you don't think this administration is the same as the one of twenty-sixteen, do you?" Mei asked, breaking Mebuki from her thoughts. The woman sighed and shook her head. "I don't know Mei. The circumstances are different. Back then, both students and lecturers were missing and were not found, the news never got to the press for reasons unknown but this case was leaked out by a concerned undergrad and there's a high chance we'll get to the bottom of it."
"Why don't we just go to the university with a warrant? Search the entire school and dig up some dirt because three dead bodies are more than enough evidences to make some arrests." Ibiki said monotonously.
"I support."
Mei stroked the disturbing strands of curly hair out of her face and turned to the DA to hear what she had to say. "You're right but we still don't know what or who we're up against." The D.A argued.
"Yeah, maybe it's a secret circle or a vampire squad of Jane Does-" Mei said mockingly but was cut short by the other woman in the room.
"Or a team of crazed people or scientists who would do more harm than good to the students if we blow this up!" Mebuki shouted and hit the table a little harder than necessary. "We have solid proof but we don't know the culprits yet, so don't rush into things. Slow and steady wins the race and if we have to do this at a snail's pace, we will if it means justice will be prevailed at the end of it all!" She closed her eyes and leaned back on the chair with her arms and legs crossed. She released a long sigh.
"Tell your sources to be careful. I know it may sound cruel but our best bet is to wait. I'll take this home to run through it. You guys do what you can."
Mei sighed and nodded in understanding. "Yeah will do. Let's just adjourn this meeting."
"Yeah. I think we've tried for the day even though we didn't do much like we used to." Ibiki agreed. "We'll see when we see." He said and bid farewell them with a little wave of his hand.
The two women laughed stiffly and Mei stood up to wear her black coat over her navy long sleeved shirt. She dusted her black pencil skirt and checked her pop sock for dirt. "Do you have a date that you're checking yourself out constantly?" Mebuki strolled to the blinds after asking.
"No, not anymore. I just want to go home and drink my hot chicken soup." She explained as she finished working on the buttons of her coat. "Dang heels! My feet feels like they've been locked in a deep freezer and run over by a bus. So numb." She cried.
"Sorry. Been there, done that. I know how it feels but you just have to wear it when you have to wear it." Mebuki said reassuringly.
"Yeah. I have to go, my bowl of chicken soup and bed calls me. Greet my girly girl for me." Mei winked. Mebuki laughed, "I will, bye."
"Bye Mebu." She called out and was out the door.
Alone in the office, her office, she brought her phone out and dialled the number of the person she had thought of before the end of her meeting. The person that was in the same situation as she was and she didn't want that person to make a mistake. The number rang twice before the owner picked it up. "Hello?"
"Hello Inoichi." She greeted. "I have something to tell you concerning your choice of university for Ino."
xxxxx
"Eeeeeeeeeeeeepppppppp no freaking waaaay!" The loud shriek of my deranged best friend had me wincing and wondering if I could ever hear again. Early this evening, mum came home and as promised, brought the ice cream she talked about for Moegi and I. Surprisingly, the little brat wasn't bratty the whole day and I was tempted to take her for a check-up. She left an hour after mum came back.
Over dinner, mum finally told me the University I would attend and that was also the news that I relayed to Ino that almost cost me my eardrums. "Dad told me he wanted UniKon too. Can you believe that? It must be fate!"
"I hear ya." I replied.
"We are so living together. Should we stay on campus or rent an apartment outside the campus? I think staying on campus is better cos we will totally have more friends and parties and friends. No but off campus sounds fun too. No curfews, no backbiting friends, no disturbance at all, no restrictions, don't you think..."
I listened on to Ino's incessant rambling. I had started the day with this girl and now I'm going to end with her too. I did not care though. There's an adventure ahead of us and I'm more than ready to get started with my best person beside me.
xoxo
That was how it all started. The get-go of that faithful day. We had hopes for the future. Everything was perfect but that was what we thought, that was what I thought. I couldn't eat my cake and have it. Things happened; funny, happy and sad things thanks to this first step.
Author's Note
So...what do you guys think? I hope it sounds interesting. I'm thinking of putting my other story, The Haunt, on hold because I feel like I've lost my mojo for that story.
I have a lot of stories in mind and I'll like to give you guys an insight of the next one that I'm constructing. I don't have a name for it yet but it'll come around.
In the story, Sasuke is a loyal messenger of the lord that he pledged his allegiance to Lord Hiruzen/Danzo ( haven't decided yet) On his way to a province, he meets a fair maiden and her sister and saves her life. Later on, due to various circumstances, they meet again and fall in love but Karin, the daughter of the man Sasuke serves, would not allow them to be. Something happens, they get separated and Sakura, not knowing she was pregnant, gives birth to her daughter, Sarada. However, Karin finds out and orders that the baby be killed.
Distraught and angry because of losing Sarada, Sakura changes. The fair maiden who was once weak and innocent, becomes cold, ruthless and strong and swears her allegiance to one of the strongest guild in the whole of Gakure, that might turn out to be Konoha's enemy. Find out what happens when she meets the man she loves after so many years of being apart.
Sounds interesting? Well then, tell me how you feel about it through your reviews. It's my first attempt at writing a love story. Be hearing from you guys.