Chapter 3

"I think you lost all interest in this world. You were disappointed and discouraged, and lost interest in everything. So you abandoned your physical body. You went to a world apart and you're living a different kind of life there. In a world inside you."

Last night was a living hell.

It was already past midnight when things took a totally unexpected turn, destroying in the blink of an eye the impenetrable calm in which we all immerse ourselves.

A seemingly trivial call to the dispatcher was enough to trigger the disaster - a young lady announced in a voice of sorrow, the strange death of her sister.

Shortly after the detonation of this abominable bomb, the hustle and bustle of the organized crime department grew progressively, becoming unbearable. The fast pace at which things started to move gave me a headache and the large mass of people wandering back and forth on my office door drove me crazy. During one miserable hour, some of the most influential people in the state, in charge of civilian safety, sat in the chair in front of me one by one. They sprayed their venom all around, reading in their eyes the same contempt masked by a disguised affection and a benevolent smile, while shamelessly trying to impose their supremacy, dominance. "Solve that, Uchiha!" it was the phrase with which each of them ended these meetings apathetically, waiting for me to make the impossible possible again.

Everyone wanted me to solve this situation as soon as possible, as if I were an artificial soul programmed from the beginning of my existence to dedicate myself without appeal to the noble goal that I no longer wanted to serve.

Itachi here, Itachi over there. I've heard my name so many times in such a short time that I wish I could forget it - to forget about myself and go somewhere far away, where I get lost and become a simple anonymous in this world full of disappointments. Fuck them all. Just fuck them. Everyone wanted to see the future head of the Uchiha clan in action, the prodigy that the whole family had so proudly displayed in society for years and years, in their desperate attempt to disguise their own failures.

But let me tell you a secret. The truth is, I couldn't. No matter how hard I tried to focus on this mess, it was in vain. In my mind there was room only for her - her and her overwhelming beauty, her and the nakedness of her body, her and only her, again and again. Before my eyes were images of the two of us in bed - I could see her as if in a dream approaching me like a hot lioness, rushing at me, hungry and passionate. My flesh burned under the clothes I wore and burned me, and I longed more and more after touching my face with my hair like a cherry blossom.

I was so lost, and the situation was far too serious to give me the freedom to dream of the beauty I used to make mine night after night. It was unethical to think about sex, especially now that another woman was found breathless and the case file lay untouched on my desk but, oh god, how could I concentrate when my little cherry blossom was ideal distraction. Sex with her was like a life and death struggle and when I didn't see her, I felt like I was losing another battle. Fortunately, I, Uchiha Itachi, am not a loser.

"Captain, we have contacted the Institute of Forensic Medicine - we are expected as soon as possible." Obito woke me from my dreams, as brutal as ever, and then continued, "The car is ready and waiting for us in front of the main building."

"Let's go then!"

The weather outside was quite cold and everything around us seemed to have frozen. It was quiet, such a comfortable quiet welcome, especially now, after this crazy night at work, when the only thing that kept us afloat was the impressive amount of coffee we drank.

It was barely dawn. The first rays of sunshine rose above the horizon, illuminating the purple clouds behind the Great Mountain, as the thick morning mist began to dissipate. The locals were also starting to come out of their houses one by one, and the city was slowly starting to wake up, to hum. They all walked calmly, full of life and ready for a new day, not knowing how many secrets their beloved city hides in the shadows.

"What happened, Obito-sama?" You look at me, do I have something on my face? "

"You know, Captain ..." he began, a little too shy about how he used to be. He was one of the few people I felt close to and trusted blindly.

"Feel free to speak without the honorary title, we are part of the same family!"

"Something has changed in you, Itachi-sama. It's been far too long since I last saw you so relaxed ... well, how relaxed you can be in such a situation. " he resumed his idea, this time more relaxed, with the same enthusiasm with which I was accustomed "A few days before I even saw you smiling. Looks like you're finally ready to take your life back after ... after she ... "

"After she died." I continued the sentence, which was very difficult for him to finish, in a definite tone. The healing process he was talking about has recently begun, but it is far too early to say that I am ready to rebuild my life. I still loved her and only her. She was the woman I wanted so much to start a family with.

I still love her, I still want her and the death of her and our unborn child is something that will haunt me all my life. All these stupid things I do now: lost nights full of alcohol and tobacco, through bars with a blurred mind, sex with that prostitute was just my sick way of coping with suffering. They were meant only to fill the void in my heart.

"It simply came to our notice then. Let's focus on the case. "

"Speaking of cases, we have another woman dead in circumstances as strange as the other nine, found in the last month. Too many things that connect and far too many similarities ... "

"I am thinking of the same thing. It is very possible that we are dealing with a serial killer. "

Then came a moment of awkward silence, during which the two of us hurriedly approached the imposing entrance of the Institute. The massive building that rested on the metal frame with a glass envelope rose in front of us, overwhelmingly. As imposing as the building itself was the voluptuous-looking blonde with the sharp gaze nervously waiting for us at the entrance. She paced with her right foot on the impeccable marble leading down the monumental stairs.

"We're late, gentlemen!" she snapped at us, glistening with her honey like "Follow me!"

"My name is Senju Tsunade, the director of the institute. I'll take you to the morgue, where the body is. Dr. Orochimaru's apprentice will explain to you everything that emerged from the expertise. "

"Apprentice ... forgive me Senju-sama, the head of the department came personally to talk to this doctor, and he sent a poor apprentice?" I heard Obito beside me, literally on fire.

"The doctor was here a few minutes ago, but an unexpected situation arose and he had to leave. However, you have my word that Miss Haruno is extraordinary, and the doctor is investing a lot of valuable time in her training process. "

"The autopsy, who did it? Dr. Orochimaru or the apprentice? " I intervened, interrupting her plea a little rudely, before Obito opened his mouth.

"Miss Haruno is constantly assisting the doctor. Just assist - he did the autopsy. "

"Then, Obito-sama, let's meet the young lady. I am sure that Haruno-sama is a very capable woman if Dr. Orochimaru took her under his protective wing. "

"But…"

"No, no, quiet!"

I passed, feeling my heart break in my chest, reliving the same heartbreaking pain again and again. I felt a bitter taste in my throat and a feeling of guilt pressed hard on my shoulders. It was a strange feeling snaking through my tense body as I walked through this empty hallway, far too empty.

I hated this place, the smell of formalin and the dirty gray of the walls that seemed to gather around me.

...

Hello everyone, I finally managed to bring the third chapter. I had an extremely busy period and an intertester vacation much too short for all the stress accumulated along the way. Initially the chapter was much, much longer, but I decided that it should be easier to watch.

I hope you enjoyed this chapter and thank you for reading.