An overnight stay
Sasuke's feelingsSearching for courage, Sakura crawled her way towards the door. She had passed through the hazy image of a girl which she thought was her younger self, but she could hear the ghost's encourage words to uplift her. She could also hear how her heart thumped loudly in her ears and thought that she was really, really scared of what was happening to her. Who wouldn't be? In her state where someone is chasing for her to be killed? And that she was separated from her friends? That she was actually talking to a ghost who was giving her a premonition? Is this what they call as...
Bad luck?
'I have to find Sasuke-kun and the others... maybe if I scream they will hear me...'
When her trembled hands reached the door knob, she mandated to turn it and push the door and make her way to find the others.
But...
...it opened by itself.
She gasped in surprised when she heard the creaking sound of the door when it was slowly opening, pulling away from her. At first she couldn't see anything in darkness.
However...
When the light lend her what she needed...
She wished she had locked the door instead.
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It was the very last room that they could find out of the rest of the rooms that they couldn't barge in. While running however, Sasuke could feel that there's something wrong going on around the place. He wished his instinct was wrong but he must face whatever he must face. But then again, he had wished the worst would never come. It won't happen.
'Never.'
Upon succeedingly opening the door, Sasuke, Neji and Naruto immediately ran inside to investigate. It was rather the biggest room they've ever been to. With the help of their flashlights, the trio immediately spread out to search for any clue of where the two would be.
They cannot recognize what room they were in to. But it seems like they are having a little idea of the occupant of the room.
...the caretaker.
Why? There are lots of cut out articles and pictures posted on the walls. And by looking at it, all of the articles are about the family that he had massacred. There were splattered dried blood all over the newspaper articles. Then there's the document across the wall. It was a total mess but as Neji crouched down and scrutinize things, all of the documents are about the mansion, the family business, the kid's contract and other important document matters.
'What's this person wants anyway? For a psycho like him, he didn't need any of this.'
Sasuke was angrily kicking all the boxes that had been blocking his way. He opened the cabinet and rummaged all the things that he could take outside. He was breathing heavily but he never screamed out of exhaustion because his priority should be done already. Suddenly he went to a small cabinet near the bed of the occupant. As he pulled the first drawer, he couldn't believe what he just saw.
In that certain drawer he just pulled contained a picture of a young girl.
With an exact image of Sakura when she was seven...
His eyes were wide and shaking as he was slowly picking up the small picture out of the drawer. Naruto and Neji noticed that there were no sounds of kicking and tossing things. And as they walked to him, they both understood what Sasuke had felt.
"Neji," Sasuke finally spoke, getting the attention of the boys, "I think I should believe on what you guys were saying before."
The Hyuuga boy looked straight to Sasuke, even though Sasuke's head had bent down, looking at the pink haired girl. For all this time, Sasuke was stubborn to accept the fact about the girl, the caretaker, this house and Sakura. Sasuke, who had his eyes still glued on the picture, reminisced something in his past.
(Flashback)
It was fall and the leaves on the trees had the darker shades of brown. When the wind blew their way to them, they effortlessly go with it and fall down after several swirls. Some trees doesn't have leaves nor flowers. It was gloomy. Gloomy and cold. An image of little Sasuke was seen under the tree with all its leaves continue falling down like rain. He was seven and he was wearing his sweater and a long blue scarf that wrapped around his neck. He was standing there for about an hour and his eyes only set to one person.
She was sitting on the field of yellow and white flowers which she had assumed will be gone when the winter comes. There was sadness in her eyes. Girls really loved flowers and they don't like it when it's fall because it's the time where flowers have to leave with an ugly transformation. Gently, she stroked her white and smooth finger on the yellow flower. Then she smiled... a sad smile. As if he knows what she was thinking, he proceeded to that field and stopped when their just inches a part. The girl with pink hair looked up to him with a questioning face. Out of the blue, little Sasuke spoke.
"Don't worry, they'll come back in spring." And he smiled.
The little pink haired girl, looked down on the flower again and then stood up to face little Sasuke. She smiled at him and he offered his hand to her, walking her home.
"Thank you... Sasuke-kun..."
(End of Flashback)
Naruto, the closest friend Sasuke could have, noticed the sad smile on his face. Maybe he was reminiscing something. Reaching Sasuke's shoulders, he tapped it and encouraged him.
"We'll find her. And you've got to tell her what you really wanted to tell her from the start."
Neji and Sasuke looked at him. Sasuke's eyes widened in surprise.
'Naruto knew? How in the..?'
"We'll back you up in whatever might happen, Uchiha." Neji added and then smirked at him when Sasuke looked him at his eyes.
Sasuke looked back at the picture on his hand. The young girl with an exact image of Sakura was smiling back at him. And they all know, that her smile was a sign of Hope.
However, at the moment of their temporary rest they heard a feminine scream.
"AAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!"
That voice was Sakura's.
Immediately, Sasuke, Naruto and Neji dashed out of the room and followed the origin of the voice. Sasuke unconsciously dropped the picture of the young girl on the dried blood floor.
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"NO!!! Don't come near me!!" She screamed when she had plopped back down on the ground and shakily pushing herself away from the man.
Instead of stopping, the man slowly and creepingly walking towards her. Sakura could hear his footsteps coming closer. She moved again with her hands supporting her to back away. She could feel her body trembling while moving. Where are her friends when she needed them? Right now, she is face to face to certain man who had murdered a family who had once lived in this huge mansion. He had raped the young girl who, if was still alive, would be at her age. And what's worst is that the man is a psycho.
'No... go away... leave me alone... leave me alone...' Her eyes had produced tears and is flowing down her cheeks.
Hopeless.
She's not strong enough to face him. Even if she tried to resist he'll outdone her. She knows it, she could feel it.
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Even though it was still raining outside, Shikamaru and the rest of the girls continuously investigating the mansion through windows. They ignored their wet clothes and heavy paraphernalia. Shikamaru was leading the way and everytime he sees window, he looks through it, checking if there would be any sign of Sakura or of the others.
Ino was still crying but she continued running to find her best friend. Her forearm was slightly bleeding but she ignored the pain. She wasn't crying for the pain, she was crying because she was desperately searching for Sakura and hoped that nothing had happened to her.
Hinata and Tenten were just behind them, double checking the windows that Ino and Shikamaru had passed by.
After a moment, Shikamaru stopped. He was looking to his right, through the window. Ino followed him and looked at the same window.
Her eyes slowly widened in horror.
And the continues flow of her tears won't stop.
Tenten and Hinata suddenly sped up and stopped when they saw through the window.
...there was Sakura, trembling backwards...
with the caretaker slowly making his way to her...
and he was holding a scythe on his right hand.
Scared of what will happen and to know that they're behind her, she screamed.
"SAKURA!!!!"
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Right now, they didn't just hear Sakura's scream, but also Ino's scream although there's the hint that it came from outside. They, too, followed the same origin of the scream. The trio sped up as they hastily brought themselves to the place where they assume the voices originated.
'I'll kill you...I will certainly kill you if something happened to Sakura...'
Neji had sped up a little and is now at Sasuke's side. Then he noticed something ahead of them.
Half of a human body was slowly making its way inside and Neji knew what's in that room.
'That psycho and Sakura were in that room.'
He looked at Sasuke then at Naruto behind him, "I know where they are. Let's go!"
(To be continued)
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(SDA)
A/N: Shocks, sorry guys/girls if I'm slacking. I'm updating my site/blog then there's the pRO. Hehehe, ok so here goes the update. I hope you liked it. Next chapter - expect to have the most awaited scene - Sasuke, Neji and Naruto versus Wakku (the psycho caretaker) and the final chapter! Please review It's very important to me...