Welcome to chapter two; many apologies for keeping you waiting. What's gone down? Where is Naruto? Is there any hope for getting out of this messed up situation?
Warning; contains a bit of a familiar, foul-mouthed perv with no one to censor his bad language.
The constant sound of water dripping slowly woke Naruto from an incredibly uncomfortable sleep. He shivered; his eyes desperately trying to flicker open but struggling with such a simple task. His brain felt like it had been cracked and scrambled. He let out a low moan; his head lolling backwards loosely. Unfortunately, it connected with something hard.
Something hard that also let out a muffled groan.
Slowly, things began to become a little clearer to Naruto. As his eyes adjusted to the gloom, it became apparent that he was shut in a small room; a small room with thick metal walls; water dripping from the outside. The ground that he was haphazardly sprawled on was cold; and there was rope around his waist; locking his arms behind his back.
"Nnn…." came the groggy groan from behind him once more. Naruto wriggled a little; trying to look over his shoulder, but accomplishing nothing but getting a small amount of rope burn. He made an annoyed, complaining noise and fidgeted again.
"…Oi; quit that," Sasuke Uchiha's annoyed voice commented and he made an exasperated sound. Did the universe really hate him this much?
"Shut up, you bastard, and help me get out of these ropes," Naruto growled crossly; twisting again and realising that all that happened was that he ended up rubbing up against Sasuke's back; their hands linking together. "Don't touch me!"
"You're the one fidgeting; moron," Sasuke snapped back irritably, "Stop it! We're tied together! Even an idiot like you should be able to grasp that!"
"Well, at least I'm trying to do something!" Naruto complained; his head throbbing uncomfortably and causing him to let out a groan.
"You're just making it worse!" Sasuke growled as the blonde fidgeted even more and caused the pair of them to topple sideways onto the cold floor. They both let out a groan as their aching heads connected with the hard ground. Naruto went limp in exasperation.
"…Where are we?" he asked in a small voice; just lying there with his cheek pressed to the floor. There was silence for a moment; probably while Sasuke was listening to something that would give away their location.
"I don't know…" he eventually muttered out; sounding annoyed with himself for having tarnished his all-knowing image. They both sighed heavily, and then Sasuke added suspiciously, "What are you doing here?"
"W-What am I doing here?" Naruto stammered, "I um…I was just…what are you doing here? You don't sound surprised about this…"
"You didn't answer my question," he retorted flatly.
"Well, I uh…" the blonde stuttered, "…I…I don't have to explain myself to you!"
"Why were you following me?" Sasuke instead inquired directly, and Naruto made a shocked, sheepish noise before being instantly annoyed that the raven had known the entire time that he was following him. He made a grumbling sound under his breath and tried to roll back into a sitting position; only ending up toppling back down again.
"…I heard you on the phone and thought you might be meeting up with Sakura for a secret date," he finally muttered in embarrassment. Sasuke made a scoffing noise.
"Like I'd ever date her," he snorted condescendingly.
"Why wouldn't you?" Naruto snapped irritably, "She's beautiful, smart, funny, kind…"
"Not my type," Sasuke retorted flatly, but refused to elaborate further on the matter. "…You followed me because you thought Sakura was meeting me? What a stalker."
"Shut up!" Naruto growled, "I was curious! And it's not fair that she likes you!" If his arms hadn't been bound, he would've childishly folded his arms. "…And anyway…what were you doing out in that part of town when those people got you?"
"…Meeting someone," he replied vaguely.
"Who?" Naruto demanded, "Oh come on, Sasuke! I tried to help you; the least you can do is tell me what's going on…"
"Why didn't you go for help, idiot?" Sasuke grumbled.
"I…I just acted, okay?" Naruto complained, "Jeez; give a guy some credit for trying, why don't you?"
"Tch," the raven scoffed; not going to point out that had Naruto ran for it, he might've been able to escape and actually save Sasuke…as opposed to ending up in the same situation as him. "Fine. I was meeting Itachi."
"Itachi…your brother?" Naruto inquired.
"…How many Itachi's do you think I know?"
"Hey; no need to be a dick about it," he complained flatly, "Oh…so that was what I heard. What were you meeting him in a place like that for? Isn't he a cop?"
"Was a cop," Sasuke corrected, "He's left the force because he thinks something shady is going on." He sighed, "…Since I've been working as an intern there, I'm keeping an eye on things for him."
"Cool! So you're like an informant?" Naruto inquired; interested but annoyed that Sasuke-bloody-Uchiha had something that made him even cooler than before.
"I guess so," the raven shrugged, "…I suppose this means that Itachi will come looking for me since I didn't show."
"…But do you know why you were abducted?" the blonde asked, "It'd have something to do with the cops, yeah?" He felt Sasuke nod. "Do you know who it is?"
"Not completely sure," Sasuke frowned, "I just know that there is something going on…" There was a sudden clanging from somewhere in the distance; the sound of a door being open. Naruto squirmed and Sasuke's eyebrow twitched in annoyance at the motion. There was cackling laughter, followed by an annoyed growl.
"Let go of me, you asshole, yeah!" someone was snapping angrily.
" –Aw, little blondie's getting feisty," a gruff voice drawled, before lowering into a husky growl, "I like that."
"Get your hands away from me!" the first voice shouted; voice indicating that he was struggling.
" –Hidan; you promised you wouldn't harm him," a thick voice growled warningly and Sasuke recognised that voice with a jolt of shock.
"Yeah, yeah; fuck off Kisame; a little shoving isn't going to damage his fucking pretty little face," the man, who was apparently Hidan, snorted back. There was another slam from somewhere incredibly close; followed by the sound of something human-sized being flung roughly to the floor.
"Fuck you, Hidan, yeah!" the apparently 'pretty-boy' snarled as a door was slammed shut on him.
"Shut your whore mouth," Hidan snapped, "Nice catch with the Uchiha kid, by the way, 'Same."
" –Don't call me that," Kisame growled darkly. Hidan gave a sharp cackle.
"Oh why not, buddy?" he smirked, " –For old time's sake? Anyway; what the fuck was with grabbing that fucking blonde kid? He's worthless."
"He hit me," the other man retorted, "And he might've gone for help. I thought it best to apprehend him as well."
"Ahh well," Hidan yawned, "Y'know, you'd make a fucking good henchman. Position's always fucking open for you."
"I am here to ensure the safe release of Deidara; not to help you," Kisame reminded him in a dark growl. "I got the Uchiha like you wanted; you have to hold up your end of the bargain."
" –Oh, did I not mention that the brat's capture wasn't the only thing I wanted?" Hidan smirked, "Silly me." Footsteps were heard walking away, followed by a loud thud as it appeared that Kisame had made a lunge forwards.
"Don't fucking think of betraying me, Kisame," Hidan warned in a growl as Kisame made a muffled choking noise, "I've still got all your little fucking secrets to destroy the rest of you motherfuckers with. Remember that. Kakuzu; let him go. Hit him if he starts fucking talking back."
Another slam echoed through the area; indicating that whoever those people were, they were gone; and had left someone in a prison much like their own. There was a hacking cough from the other side of the room and Naruto's head shot up in interest.
"Hey?" he called out, "Hey? You there? Are they gone?"
"Probably; what do you care, yeah?" a bitter voice replied; tone tinged with pain.
"I was just trying to be nice, jeez!" Naruto snapped, before realising that he should probably treat the situation more delicately. "…Sorry…" There was a long pause.
"…Sorry," came the response.
" –My name's Naruto Uzumaki," Naruto commented, "I'm trapped in here; tied to Sasuke Uchiha."
"Uchiha?" the stranger's ears pricked up at the name, "So you know Itachi, yeah?"
"How do you know Itachi?" Sasuke scowled.
" –Oh…so you're the one they kidnapped, yeah," the voice muttered in understanding, "So you must be the cop's intern?"
"…How did you know that?" Sasuke asked darkly.
"You should be more careful," he chuckled in response, "They were onto you; that's why you're stuck here."
"Onto me?" Sasuke muttered.
"…Then why are you here?" Naruto asked curiously. The other person sighed in exasperation.
"I might possibly supply the police force with information on criminals, yeah," he commented flatly.
"What, like a snitch?" the blonde remarked.
"I'm not a fucking snitch, yeah!" he exploded, "…I'm just trying to save my ass, okay?"
" –So what's been going down with the police force?" Sasuke scowled darkly, "There's something wrong, right? That's why Itachi quit? Cops turning dirty?"
"Sure there's something wrong, yeah," the other man snorted, "And well…as for cops turning dirty…Yeah, I suppose that has something to do with it. Hidan was a cop too. Got himself fired for tampering with evidence."
"So why kidnap us and hold you hostage?" Sasuke frowned.
" –Grudge?" he guessed, "I don't know; the man's a lunatic, yeah." There was another long pause. "I'm Deidara, by the way."
" –Kisame…" Sasuke frowned to himself, "…Kisame Hoshigaki?"
"Yeah," Deidara sounded a little surprised that he recognised the name.
"…He was my brother's partner before he quit the force," Sasuke frowned, "Why would he be working with that guy –"
"To protect Deidara, obviously," Naruto scoffed, "I thought you were meant to be a genius, Sasuke. That Hidan guy would probably know other snitches –"
" –I'm not a fucking snitch, yeah."
" –Since he knows Deidara and since he used to be a cop. He could be threatening to expose them or something; so Kisame's working for him to make sure that doesn't happen," he finished; rather proud of his deductive abilities.
"Shut it," Sasuke snapped, "Deidara; could Hidan be blackmailing other members of the police force?"
"Likely, yeah." Sasuke cursed and began muttering to himself phrases that Naruto only caught brief snatches of; things like: 'that would explain the money' and 'he could be manipulating arrests' and 'Itachi was right to be suspicious…'
"Oi, bastard; would you quit whispering like a creep?" Naruto complained, "This is all your fault we ended up like this…"
"My fault?" Sasuke growled, "You didn't have to go and follow me! You should've gone –"
"Well what if I hadn't followed you; you would just be stranded here…"
"Itachi was expecting me. He'll come looking."
"What if he can't find you?"
"…I take it you guys aren't friends, yeah?" Deidara chuckled dryly. The pair of them stopped squabbling for a moment; shoving each other immaturely and realising that they'd both been trying to jam each other's face into the floor. Feeling a little embarrassed that he was acting so childishly in such a terrible situation, Naruto sighed heavily and tried to calm down. Deidara suddenly let out a loud cough; followed by a moan of pain and something that sounded suspiciously like spitting out blood.
"So what are they going to do with us?" Naruto asked in a small voice; the gravity of the situation actually beginning to hit him. He was trapped in what was possibly a small shipping container; another prisoner in the crate over. He didn't know where they were, or if he was even going to get rescued.
"I don't know, yeah," Deidara shrugged; coughing again, "Hidan likes to get a bit rough; but if he thinks he can use you guys as bargaining chips, he won't kill you." Naruto's blood ran cold.
" –But what if he can't?" he asked quietly, and he felt Sasuke stiffen. He lowered his voice; talking only to the raven, "…He needs you…I'm just a nobody…I don't even have a family that would pay a ransom…"
"We'll figure that out later," Sasuke muttered.
"He'll just kill you," Deidara shrugged, in response to the blonde's question. Naruto gulped and suddenly found that his body was beginning to shake nervously. Panic started to well up in his gut again and he could swear he could hear his own heart racing. That Hidan guy needed Sasuke; he needed to know information, and the Uchiha's were filthy rich. But as for him; he was just in the wrong place at the wrong time. He was disposable.
"Calm down, Naruto," Sasuke whispered; in a voice that strangely lacked the usual Uchiha bite. Naruto felt something grip his wrists tightly; a kind of unusual form of comfort. "Itachi will come looking. You will be fine." There was something in the calm reassurance of the voice of his rival that actually made Naruto believe him, despite the fact that Sasuke's own hands were shaking.
"Shikamaru Nara?"
There was a loud snort as Shikamaru woke up from his sleep with a start. He sat up sleepily; rubbing his eyes as the rest of his tutorial class stared at him. He blinked several times; a blank look on his face as the tutor repeated his name.
" –There's someone here to see you," the tutor informed him. He yawned and staggered to his feet; slouching his way down towards the door. As soon as it closed, he realised that there was someone standing in the hallway; someone with long dark hair pulled back into a low ponytail and a very familiar face.
"Shikamaru?" the man inquired in a deep voice.
"That's me?" he replied lazily.
"Itachi Uchiha," he introduced quietly.
"Oh…you're the guy who worked with my dad," Shikamaru remarked curiously as Itachi nodded, "…What's up?"
"I believe you know my little brother, Sasuke?"
"Yeah; haven't seen him for a day or two though," he replied, "He doesn't usually miss classes."
"That's what I'm here about," Itachi frowned; making a note in a small notebook whilst nodding to himself, "I have reason to believe that he has gone missing. He was supposed to meet with me two nights ago but didn't show; and he would not have missed the meeting."
"…Actually, I haven't seen him since then," Shikamaru admitted, "I couldn't tell you where he might be; you'd have to ask Naruto about that."
"Naruto…Uzumaki?" Itachi queried.
"Yeah," he replied, "He kind of goes out of his way to inconvenience Sasuke; which means that he usually knows where the guy is." Itachi chuckled to himself.
"Sasuke talks about a boy of that name quite often," he admitted, "He seems to find him quite a nuisance."
"That'd be Naruto…"
" –But it was also the reason I sought him out first; I thought he might be able to tell me where my little brother is…" Itachi frowned, "I found his apartment, but no one had been back in two nights." Shikamaru frowned to himself. That wasn't like Naruto. Come to think of it, he hadn't seen the blonde in a few days as well.
"I have reason to suspect that Sasuke is in trouble," Itachi informed him, "Would it perhaps be possible that Naruto followed him into it?"
"I wouldn't be surprised," Shikamaru admitted with a short laugh, but then saw the serious face that the older man was wearing, "Why? What might have happened?" Itachi paused a moment before replying.
"A few months ago, I quit the force and became a private detective because I suspected that some of the force had turned crooked," he replied softly, "Sasuke was already working as an intern at the station so he became my eyes. He never showed up to meet me." Shikamaru frowned to himself; mulling over this possibility.
" –Why are you telling me?" he inquired flatly.
"I worked with your father a little; a good man, so I trust his son," Itachi replied, "I am also aware that you are friends with both Sasuke and Naruto and so therefore I can rely on you to be concerned for them." He paused again and scrawled down a phone number.
"I am going to try and find them," he assured Shikamaru, "I cannot let anything happen to them. I needed to inform someone of this; in case I fail. If a day goes by without you hearing from me, then assume that I have failed and inform your father."
"…But if I involve him, I can't let the police get involved; since you suspect them to be responsible for Sasuke's disappearance, right?" Shikamaru commented flatly. Itachi nodded approvingly. "Right. No cops. What do I get my dad to do?"
"Not act too quickly; I wouldn't want to put too much pressure on anyone; should they be involved," Itachi replied, "…And with minimal involvement of others. I've heard very good things about you; Shikamaru Nara, and I believe that I can trust you."
"This is so troublesome," Shikamaru muttered, "Is it possible that they've just had a fight and run off or something?"
"There is a possibility that I am worrying over nothing," Itachi admitted sternly, as he began to walk away, "But I must explore the possibility of foul play involved. There are dangerous men out there, and I can't be sure that my old comrades on the force will be on my side." Shikamaru just stared after the elder man as he headed off down the corridor again; kind of unable to believe exactly what had just happened.
What had he just become a part of? Had he just agreed to help a mysterious man he barely knew? Were Sasuke and Naruto genuinely in trouble, or was this some kind of trick? And in any case; what was he; a second year university student to do about this sort of thing? But knowing Naruto, this could be the real thing. Trust that blonde to wind up in over his head.
"What have you gotten yourself into this time?" he grumbled, scratching his head, "…Troublesome."
Trust Naruto to not take such a situation seriously; his rivalry with Sasuke really is all-consuming, isn't it? Or will he actually start taking this threat seriously?
As for Shikamaru suddenly finding himself involved in a secret investigation... well, as he said, it's all rather troublesome; but Itachi's going to take care of it for sure, right?
Feel free to review; hope you've been enjoying; what exactly is going on in the situation? And how on earth are they going to get out of it?
See you next chapter
xx K