Chapter 8. Hope you enjoy.

DISCLAIMER: Not mine

WARNING: AU

PAIRINGS: Thinking about it, maybe some SasuSaku

Song 8- Attack New Single Written for Former Vocalist

Reports show from an overheard conversation between Uchiha Sasuke and former Asahi vocalist, Haruno Sakura, indicate that Mangetsu's first single was actually written for Haruno Sakura!
Reliable sources say that the single was most likely supposed to be Asahi's next single, but the departure of Haruno Sakura halted the release.

Will Momochi Haku step out of Haruno Sakura's shadow?

What was Uchiha Sasuke's motive in using an old single?

Details within!

Sasuke frowned as he read the morning paper. How did the press get a hold of this? His conversation with Sakura was right in his office, one of the most private areas in the building. There was no way the media could get a hold of this!

At that moment, the phone rang. Sasuke picked up and checked the caller ID. It was Neji.

"Hai?"

"I heard about the media getting a hold of the truth," Neji said, "Any idea how they found out?"

"Someone must have overheard us while passing by," Sasuke replied. "The door was open a little."

"Does Haku know about this?" Neji asked.

"He does," was all Sasuke said before hanging up the phone.

That ended the conversation.

-X-

Neji decided to go look for Tenten and Naruto to see if they had heard about the media uproar, too. He didn't bother going to look for Haku only because he had decided that the poor boy was still trying to get it through his head that he had sung an old single. Neji had heard from Tenten who heard from Naruto that Haku had come home silently crying and when Naruto came to check on him, he could hear muffled sobbing behind the door.

He had turned a corner towards the music building when someone roughly grabbed his throat and pressed a knife next to his throat. He was scared stiff for a second before his defensive side kicked in. Without a second thought, the bassist elbowed his attacker in the chest. As the offending arm pulled back, the knife cut Neji's fingers. Neji hissed in pain before grabbing the attacker's right arm and performing a judo flip. He got into a fighting stance ready for his attacker to come and get him again not caring about his fingers. Instead, the mysterious attacker got up and ran down the street.

The bassist was aware of a small crowd gathering, including the security guards. He stared at his own hand, which was now bleeding freely from the knife. He licked the wounds, but the blood came back again. He had to get those clean quickly.

"Daijoubu ka?" someone asked.

"Hai," was all Neji said before he quickened his pace to the studio. He didn't want any more ambushes from masked attackers today.

-X-

"Someone attacked you?" Tenten asked with concern as she applied some medicine to Neji's bleeding fingers.

"Yeah, it was so sudden that it stalled my reaction," Neji replied trying his best to keep his fingers still. "After I flipped him, he got up and ran like a coward."

"Well, at least you're okay."

"Hn."

At that moment, Naruto and Sasuke came in both with concerned faces.

"What's going on? We heard someone was attacked," Naruto asked in a un-Naruto way.

"Apparently our mysterious attacker is back," Neji said as he tested his fingers wrapped in bandages. "He jumped me on my way here. I managed to get away, but I got cut."

"That explains it," Sasuke muttered under his breath. The three band members stared at him. He cleared his throat, and said, "This morning, I got a bunch of threats in my inbox. All of them looked as though they were written by a lunatic, but I knew the person meant it since this time, it was handwritten."

The room suddenly became deafly quiet. All four were pondering over why this anonymous person kept torturing them with sudden attacks and mysterious letters. However, the biggest question was in all four of their minds. Why did the anonymous person attack Neji?

It was Sasuke who broke the silence. "Hyuuga, how dark was it outside?"

"Close to sunrise," the bassist replied recalling the event in his head.

"That would mean that the sky was pretty dark, right?"

"Hai. Naze?"

Sasuke thought this out for a moment before replying. "I think that attack was meant for Momochi-san."

The three band members stared at their music producer in surprise.

"But Sasuke, it's obvious that the attacker meant what he did!" Naruto retorted.

"True, but the fact that Hyuuga was a black belt in judo was a well-known fact from the beginning. The attacker would have figure that out after the first attack. However, take note that the sky was dark and the streetlights were the only things lighting up the street. The attacker must have mistaken Hyuuga for Momochi-san, so he attacked without warning. A careless mistake."

"But Neji was carrying his bass-" Tenten began.

"- which can be easily mistaken for the guitar Momochi-san carries to practice every day."

As the other three began to digest the theory, Haku came in his guitar slung over his shoulder. He seemed better than how Naruto described he was last night.

"Sumimasen, osoku narimashita," the vocalist said quietly as he set his guitar down onto the couch. Then he caught sight of Neji's bandaged fingers and said, "Doushita no?"

"Someone jumped me on my way here," Neji replied.

"Who?"

"We don't know, but we suspect the person was after you."

Haku turned to see Sasuke. He only gave the music producer a small look before turning his attention back to Neji. Sasuke felt a tug on his heartstrings at the thought of him losing Haku's trust. Then he shook it off and continued.

"I think you should stay with one of the band members until this anonymous person is caught."

This caught Mangetsu off guard. It seems that the return of Sakura had brought out a new side to Sasuke that none of them knew. Haku was surprised the most. After their argument last night, Sasuke was actually helping him?

It was Naruto who broke the silence. "Well, I wish I could let you stay over, but as you know, my apartment's kind of messy, and…"

"It's okay, Naruto," Haku said with a smile.

"My place is too far away," Tenten said.

"I'm not going to be home tonight," Neji added.

That left Haku with…

"You can stay at my apartment tonight, Momochi-san," Sasuke said.

Haku didn't want to stay with Sasuke for the night, especially after their argument, but there was no way to get out of this situation without hurting someone, so he nodded his head silently.

TBC… Hoped you enjoyed it. Review kudasai! Vocabulary

Sumimasen. Osoku narimashita- Excuse me, I'm sorry I'm late

Naze- Why

Preview: Haku learns the truth behind everything he's been missing out on