I'm so sorry for the lack of update! I was on vacation all this week until today and wasn't able to update mid-week. I failed to realize this until it hit me(and sadly at the time I had no access to a computer.)
SO! Here's the update (a lil' late). But no worries, the next chappie will be posted on schedule. Sorry for the delay!
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It was strange. He was so used to coming in and seeing that tall, grinning plant sitting in the corner. After all, he was moved there when he became to big to sit on the table. But Naruto never minded, and he would sit there everyday, usually with the television on and watching some lame show from the eighties. Seeing that grinning face, it was like a wake-up call, and it always brightened his morning to see him being overly cheerful about nothing.
But there was no cheerful plant, or background noise of a television, or even a happy, "Good morning, Sasuke!". The silence was thick, and the room seemed so big. The only evidence that something had even been there was the outline in the dust where his pot sat. Not even a leaf was left behind.
He stared at it, quietly, as if unsure how to deal with this. Why...was he gone? He could have sworn they said they'd take him at ten. Why was Naruto already gone then? Perhaps...maybe that was too risky in broad daylight? They must have done it in the middle of the night, or early in the morning. They took him away before Sasuke could even say goodbye...
Falling to his knees, the raven stared at that spot, fists clenched, not sure what to do. He sat there, almost hoping he'd blink and everything would be back to normal. But it didn't. It wasn't fair. They had no right to take Naruto away from him...the plant was his, not theirs. Sai...He slammed his fist into the floor, not caring about the pain he instantly felt afterward. That bastard took him away.
After calming down and sitting there for a while, feeling nothing but misery in the pit of his stomach, the Uchiha slowly stood up, walking over to his desk and plopping himself down. He was already exhausted and yet here was work to be done. No matter what, he had to collect himself, and move on with his life. His glazed eyes stared blankly down at some papers left on his desk last night, trying to focus on the words. It was...too damn quiet. Sasuke never had to worry about noise before, but...he grew used to the sounds of Naruto living in here. Growling, he slammed his head down, not bothering to worry about papers. He just let his thoughts drift. Where was Naruto going to live now? Would they treat him nicely, or would they not care? He could imagine the tall plant, sitting there complaining about not getting fishcakes. A ghost of a smile flickered over Sasuke's face at the thought, and his mind decided that it was time to sleep.
...
A knock on the door pulled him hours later from a dreamless slumber.
Sasuke slowly opened his eyes to the light, blearily staring ahead at nothing as his brain tried to catch up. It was brighter than before. He must have fallen asleep...what time was it, anyways? With a sudden glance around the room, he decided that he didn't care what time it was anyways.
The knocks were heard again. Glancing over at the door, the raven pulled himself upright, grabbing a pen to at least to look like he was busy. He muttered loudly, "come in."
The door opened, and an unfamiliar person bowed his head and walked in. Adorned with a business suit, the man sported white hair and full circled glasses. He pushed said spectacles closer to his face as he spoke. "Hello there. Mr. Uchiha, I presume?"
"Yes." What was this pompous asshole doing in his office anyways? "How may I help you...?"
"My apologies...I'm Kabuto...I'm here representing the pick-up team. We're here for the plant now, so if you'd be so kind as to show us where it is."
...Wait, what? Sasuke frowned over the man's words, unsure of what he heard was correct. What time was it again, he suddenly wondered, glancing at his plain wall-clock. Five past ten...?
"Didn't you...pick him up earlier?" He started slowly, looking confused and glancing over at the empty space again. "He wasn't here when I arrived this morning, so I thought you came in and took him last night.."
By the look on the man's face, this clearly wasn't pleasing news. "Are you saying...that you don't have the plant?"
Was this man honestly serious? Sasuke spoke in clear annoyance. "No...I told you-"
"How can I be sure that you aren't hiding it?"
Shaking his head, the scientist tried to keep his thoughts from flying around too much as he spoke in a calm tone, "Listen...I have no clue where he is. I didn't move him or do anything. If you like, you can search the whole damn building. But I can't help you because I don't know where he went."
The words hung silently in the air, and it seemed the white haired man was unsure of what to make of this. Quietly, Kabuto set his jaw. "That...might be neccessary. Have a good day, Mr. Uchiha." And he left the office briskly with an air of irritation, leaving Sasuke to wonder what the hell was going on.
Naruto...wasn't picked up. But then where was he? Plants didn't just dissapear, especially five foot, three hundred pound plants. What the hell was going on then?!
"Naruto...where the hell are you?" He whispered to himself, staring dejectedly at his desk.
--
A week later, the clouds darkened over the sky.
Sasuke, as usual, sat at his desk, the television playing in the background as he wrote monotonously, his eyes never moving away from his work. The workers had gone through with a clean sweep throughout the building, and had even gone to his house, but nothing came up. It was quite the shock to other workers to see government officials raiding every room for reasons unknown to only three. And now Sasuke sat here, trying to get to a normal schedule. He didn't have anything to look at anymore, and if he tried to occupy himself, only for a second, it would only get him off his work. It was hard enough to get himself started, he didn't want to distract himself.
Though the bags under his eyes gave away the apparent uninterest shown on his face. He hardly slept a week, too worried and lost in thought at night to rest peacefully. He knew it was stupid to care so much for a plant, but...Naruto wasn't just a plant to the Uchiha. He was a companion and maybe even a friend.
The sound of dripping roused him from his thoughts. Glancing up, he suddenly noticed that he could hear rain outside, but that wasn't the problem. The problem was the damn roof was leaking, right where the sky light was.
Groaning in annoyance, he got up and went over to his lab table, glancing up at the window and angered to see droplets of water somehow leaking down. Well that's great...he had a missing plant and his window sprung a leak...
Sasuke would try not to get angry at all of this, but it was hard not to.
Frowning and rubbing his forehead in annoyance, he placed his hand on the desk, hoisting himself up and standing up to peer closer at the leak, ignoring the water dripping onto his face. With a closer look, he realized that the window wasn't completely closed, a small gap letting the rain in. He reached up to close it.
But, of course, it seemed to be jammed. With a growl, he pulled it open a bit more, then tried to slam it close.
No such luck. And his attempt to stay calm wasn't working.
Growling, he shoved it open, grabbing onto the sill and pulling himself up a bit, peering outside. The roof was barren, and he could see the city skyline through the haze and rain. It was quite a lovely view, even in the rain. But enough of the sightseeing, he had to fix this damn window first. Frowning, he turned to inspect the window's edges, curious to see if there was something stuck and preventing it from shutting. With a quick glance up though, the window was forgotten when he saw something huddled against the wall of the opposing building section. Something with a very familiar looking pot.
"N...Naruto...?"
--TBC--
R/R!
