"This place has seen better days..." Naruto quips.
Getting lost in the twisting alleys of Konohagakure, Naruto and Sakura finally arrive at the old police station at the far side of the village. Nestled within a mainly isolated area in the village was a multitude of tightly bound together buildings fenced off from the rest of the village. The old worn buildings had almost melted against the backdrop of the vibrant colorful village as vines and plant overgrowth had overtaken much of the concrete surfaces.
Mostly abandoned, it was the first time Naruto had actually visited this side of town. He was always accustomed to the streets full of playing children, the sounds of street vendors and shops selling various goods, and adults gossiping in the alcoves of the streets.
'Man, I didn't know Sasuke lived in such a lonesome place.'
As they approached the largest structure, The words "Uchiha Police Force" slowly came into focus above the largest building, in large blue letters.
He was well aware all judicial duties were now carried out by the village's Chunin and Jonin, but seeing the police station was the first time Naruto had noticed Uchiha crests had actually adjourned all the buildings nearby.
"Was this an all Uchiha neighborhood or something?" Naruto asked aloud.
"I don't know," Sakura replied, "The neighborhood kids were always told to stay away from the place. Whenever anyone had any questions about it, the adults would mostly stay silent. Sasuke has never really talked about it either."
"Maybe something worth asking old man Hokage about." Naruto thought to himself as they began to walk forward.
The area seemed to be wholly unmaintained in any way, as the large police facility in the center was crumbling. the surroundings remained eerily quiet, aside from the occasional chirping of birds in the distance. The air seemed to have a complete stillness of the place and it didn't sit well with him.
"There's really is no one around" Naruto ponders.
"Yeah, it seems pretty abandoned since the first time I-" Sakura caught herself before she revealed to Naruto that she had been loitering around the area looking for Sasuke's house before. "Uh hey! L-let's go find his house! M-maybe the police station can give us some clues!" she stammered.
"Oh, good idea!" Naruto nodded happily.
'It's a good thing he's kind of dense' Sakura sighed deeply.
The duo approached the police building and stepped inside.
Paint had long flaked off the blue striped walls, and thick dust and rubbish piled in all the corners of the dirty rooms. Desks and tables had remained scattered, almost as if people left in a hurry. Naruto couldn't help but let the unsettling feeling inside him grow.
"Maybe there's some kind of map or directory around here that could point us in the right direction?" Sakura heads toward the nearby desk and begins to rummage around while Naruto let's his eyes wander.
"Looks like signs of a battle in here or somethin' " Naruto runs his fingers over the deep indentations in the walls.
'Must've been Kunai or Shuriken marks...'
Naruto pauses, as he sees a dried crimson smudge against one of the walls. He begins to feel a small chill run up his back.
"Is that blood-"
"Found it!" Sakura exclaims, making Naruto jump.
Sakura calls Naruto over, finding a binder filled with housing records.
"It says here...he lives just around the bend adjacent to the next street, c'mon let's go Naruto!"
Unable to contain her eagerness to tell Sasuke they will be in a team together (and to see his house) Sakura forcibly pushes Naruto out of the building, eager to get to Sasuke.
"Agh, Wait..Sakuraaa!"
Sakura practically tugs at him by the scruff of his shirt as she leads him down the alleyways once more.
'Man, Women are so pushy!'
Naruto patted himself on the back for that lame joke in his head, then decided to press on.
Naruto and Sakura finally arrived at the indicated building. It was a modest clan house made of dark wood furnishings, lanterns hung from the outer rafters with the same paper fan crest Naruto had seen on the buildings earlier. A sprawling unkempt garden with high grass overgrowth almost obscured the main path to the house.
'This must be marshmallow boys house' Naruto ponders.
"Sasuke!" Sakura breaks the silence, "We are here to fetch you for class!"
They stood in place, a brief moment of silence passes.
"Sasuke you big idiot! get out here!" Naruto yells with a hint of annoyance.
Naruto's penchant for provocative insults usually illicit a response, but instead they get more silence.
After fruitlessly calling out to him, Sakura and Naruto decide to step inside the house and drag him out instead.
what they had stumbled upon had only served to haunt their dreams for the next few months.