An overnight stay
Revealing the truth
Sakura was still sitting under the window sill while listening to the girl. She was curious as to what happened to the kid. She wanted to know why this girl wanted to help her... wanted her to runaway from here.
"Why are you telling me to runaway? I have to find my friends." She would say.
You must runaway. That man won't hurt your friends.
"Who's man?"
He... the one who...killed my father and my mother.
"Killed your parents? But why?" There was a trace of worry in her eyes and in her voice.
Please... just go... I know that they will be okay.
"But... just what happened? Tell me! Why am I being told to go faraway?"
The girl looked away. She wasn't prepared to tell Sakura what happened but then, maybe, without uttering words, she could tell her what happened.
The girl extended her hands to Sakura. Just what is this kid trying to do?
"What?"
Hold my hand... I'll show you what happened.
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After Shikamaru took out the notebook, everyone looked at him with obviously questioning eyes.
Naruto spoke, "What're you gonna do with the notebook?"
Shikamaru ignored his idiot comrade as he was searching for the page where he was going to show as an evidence.
"Don't let us hanging Shikamaru, what's in that--" Tenten was cut off by Shikamaru himself.
"This is a journal. I found this in one of the rooms I've been to."
"So what can that thing do to help us?" Sasuke mocked, annoyed and worried for Sakura's disappearance.
Shikamaru lazily looked at Sasuke and countered his words, "After listening to me, Sasuke, you'll find yourself more and more worried for her. You just don't know what this journal contains."
"Damn it! Why can't we just look for her!?" Sasuke demanded.
"Because we have to know what's going on here first! We have to have a strategy before heading on!" Shikamaru contradicted, with his hands clutching the journal.
"Stop it will ya!! I'm sick of your quarrels!" Naruto rebutted as he was examining Sasuke's fiery eyes over the lazy eyes of Shikamaru.
After halting them down, there was silence everywhere. However, as Sakura's best friend, Ino wanted this thing over now that she insisted Shikamaru to tell them what's in the journal.
"Shikamaru... tell us... what's in that journal?"
Shikamaru locked gazes with Ino then back to the journal. "According to this journal, this mansion was owned by a well-known family. They were rich and famous. Both the mother and the father were big shots in the business. They only have one child, though, and it was a girl..."
Among them, Neji visualized the portrait he saw back then when he was examining the designated area. So they were the owner of this house.
Shikamaru continued, "The girl grew up in this place wherein she was discovered by a well-known manager, making her one of the best child actresses in her time. Years after, the family received a threat. It was something about the shares and stocks from the business... And so, the girl's parents hired a bodyguard for their kid's protection."
Frustrated as he was, Sasuke rebutted, "Just what are you getting at?"
"I'm not yet through." Shikamaru looked again in the journal, "The parents decided to go somewhere else to seek help, leaving their only child to the bodyguard's care. What they didn't know is..." Shikamaru looked at everyone with serious eyes, "The bodyguard was a psycho. A wanted-murderer and a hired assassin."
They heard the girls' gasps after listening to what Shikamaru just said to them. But, what's the psycho's relation to their situation?
"He was going to assassinate the family so that the one who hired him will take over the family's riches. Since, the parents were gone, he took the advantage of doing his job for the kid. However, he didn't kill the kid yet... but... he..."
"He 'what', Shikamaru?" Hinata asked, though there was a trace of tremble in her voice.
"He raped the girl."
"Oh shit..." They heard Naruto's reaction while the other girls' grabbed themselves to restrain from shaking.
"Not just once... it says here. Anyway, when the parents went home, they were instantly killed. Their bodies were disposed afterwards, burying behind the mansion."
"Behind this mansion?" Neji asked.
"Yeah. Another thing, it says here, they were killed to the left most part of the house. I think that's where we assigned Sasuke and Naruto to observe."
"What happened to the girl now?" Ino asked, finally.
Shikamaru looked at her for a while then back to the journal, "She was repeatedly raped and killed right after."
"This is bullshit. I'll find Sakura." Sasuke said out of nowhere and is about to leave when Neji interrupted him.
When he heard what Neji said, he couldn't help but to remain in his position.
"The girl Shikamaru was talking about has the exact image of Sakura."
"What?!" Ino bursted out and grabbed Shikamaru's shirt. "But what does it have to do with Sakura?!"
"Neji told us that the caretaker was stealing glances to Sakura right after we went in. Combining the story with our present situation... That caretaker was the psycho and he might have thought that Sakura was the girl that he already killed..."
After a full seconds of silence, Tenten broke the chilly atmosphere, "so what're we going to do then?"
"We have to stop the caretaker, find Sakura and leave this place."
Angry as ever, Sasuke immediately took his and Sakura's bag and dashed outside the room.
"Sasuke!!" Naruto shouted, trying to stop his comrade.
"No choice." Shikamaru sighed and took his own bag, "Naruto, Hinata. Go with Sasuke. Be sure to give us a call if something happened. The rest of us will find the caretaker. I think he haven't found her yet."
The gang nodded and went out of the room, dragging their things, in search for Sakura and the caretaker.
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'Oh my God...'
Withdrawing her shaky hands from the touch of the kid, her eyes shot fiercely to the girl. She couldn't believe what she just saw.
Now you see what that 'man' can do to you. The girl would say and a bitter smile on her face proved that all she wanted to do was to help Sakura not to experience the same thing.
However, Sakura contradicted the girl's thoughts, "What made you think he'll do that to me?" She asked with angry-face masked concealing the fear she was feeling.
He may have thought that you're me. That I'm still alive due to your sudden appearance.
"Only a psycho would think that way!" She shouted in disbelief.
I know... For he, himself was a psycho.
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Sasuke increased his speed while searching for Sakura. He had known and felt Naruto and Hinata's presence behind, following his tracks.
"Oi! Bastard! Do you know where to find her?"
The raven-haired kid didn't answer, instead, he swerved to the side and ran again as if he could feel Sakura's presence.
"Naruto-kun, we have to open each doors to find her!" Hinata suggested while running behind Sasuke.
Hearing what the female comrade suggested, Sasuke immediately kicked the door on his right and thrust his flashlight inside the room.
"Sakura!!" He shouted her name for him to find her. But when he found no one, he immediately walked out of the room and kicked the next door.
Naruto did the same as he was accompanied by Hinata.
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Even in darkness, Shikamaru, Ino, Neji and Tenten, were running full force to find the psychotic murderer. After being separated from Sasuke's group, they are on their own to stop the caretaker's malicious actions. Problems arise when they couldn't find where the caretaker would be. They were already in the dining hall where they were told to go to after they've prepared for their rooms.
All were panting heavily due to almost-loss of stamina while running.
"Fuck! He's not here!" Ino yelled in an exasperated tone.
Shikamaru and Neji wheeled their heads while holding their flashlights, being thrusted to where they were looking at. Still they have no clue to where to find the caretaker.
"Where should we go from here?" Tenten asked out loud while gasping for air. "C'mon let's go find them."
Hastily, Shikamaru searched for Naruto's number and called him.
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RING. RING. RING.
Figuring out that it was his phone ringing, Naruto immediately grabbed his phone to one of his pockets and answered the call.
The person on the other line asked him, "We can't find Wakku. Where're you?"
"Downstairs. But we can't find Sakura!" Naruto frustratingly screamed while clutching his phone on his right hand and the flashlight on his left.
"Ok, we'll be on our way there. We have to go in one group now." Shikamaru suggested.
Naruto can hear Shikamaru's heavy breathing, indication that the person is running.
"Alright."
To be continued
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SDA
A/N: alright there you go, another updated chappie. Right now I'm listening to Naruto OSTs, they're just the ones I've downloaded. Btw, FYI, I cosplayed last night as Princess Garnet (FF9) with her final weapon, Tiger Racket.. well, what can I say, I only have few pics in my hand, I have to find someone who took pictures of me.
The next chapter will be... uhhh... I won't spill a thing just sit back and relax and wait for the next update. I hope you enjoy this chapter. (I'm working with Unpredictable, too.. but in slow progress...)