The rage burning in the blonde's sharp, crystalline eyes was unmistakable. Racing, he tried to keep pace with his comrade; horribly failing in gaining any distance on the almost canine-like boy ahead of him. Why Kiba had turned and spontaneously wanted to get away from the group -only God knows.

Upon hearing the thump-thump of a steady jog behind him, the Uzumaki fell back remembering that they were indeed a trio -not a pair. His brillant blue eyes locked with his female companion's ash-grey ones, a smile of approval kissing his lips. And for a moment, he had forgotten about Kiba. Only for a moment.

"Did you say something to Kiba?" Naruto's dissatisfaction was impossible to hide; a scowl forming.

"No! Who do you think we are? PMS-ing middle-school girls?!" The words tumbled from his mouth without a single thought, lashing out, causing the young Hyuuga to wince. The boy immediately drew back, apologizing. Or at least, he attempted as much.

"Have some respect for the lady, Naruto." The Inuzuka had returned, his hand already taking possession of Hinata's; their fingers intertwined. Displeasure was clear on Naruto's face, and apology was resting on the lips of his girlfriend. Cursing beneath his breath, the blond broke Kiba's hold on her, ushering the two forward.

"We still have lots of work to do, believe it!" Lips curled up to a smile, Naruto took the lead as his former self returned. "We still have to find the NightCrawler!" His memory sparked, earning Kiba a dreadful glower. "Hand over what we got from Shikamaru!"

With a simple shrug, the Inuzuka did as he was told deciding for once to keep his mouth shut.

The articles brushed the Uzumaki's hand for a mere moment before being passed off to Hinata whom studied the objects with great interest.

"It says here," She began, leafing through the few pages, "the name of the victim and everything about them. As well, the condition of the body after death."

For a time, the three simply glared at the words; eyes absorbing the information, with the mind slowly understanding. It was difficult to decide exactly how the NightCrawler was choosing victims. He murdered each in a unique fashion, and the innocents had absolutely nothing in common. Except for the dreadful realization that one life had been claimed from every squad. Well, almost every squad.

For the Sand Siblings, it had been Temari. Choji and Shino had been two of the other genin whose lives had been taken. From his own team, Sakura was taken down. Even amongst the jounin a life had been taken. The only ones remaining safe as of now were the members of Team Gai.

"I knew it!" Naruto shot, a gleam in his eye. "Neji's the murderer!" Finally he processed what had just been said. Other than the fact that it was indeed loud for all to hear, he had called a Hyuuga unclean. Hinata's cousin. Ouch...-this wasn't going to end well for the knuckle-headed ninja.

A murderous glare sparked in the young female's eyes, and for a moment, it appeared to be a death sentence. "I believe that maybe we should take the rest of the day off." Without a reply, she turned. If the Uzumaki had been the slighest bit more observant, maybe he would have noticed the tears streaming down Hinata's face. Maybe he would know that he had sparked her rage, but she was more mourning for the death of her comrade. Too bad that wasn't anything like Naruto.

"Hinata-kun, wait!" A hand extended, he was stopped in his tracks.

"You're a horrible boyfriend." Kiba spat, somehow managing to make the term seem more poison than it should have been. "Let her be." In silence the two boys watched her part. In due time, they left themselves, no words exchanged. The case would simply have to resume the next day.

If night were an element that one could possess, it could easily be dubbed my own. Dark as my heart; silent as my footsteps; as merciful as I when it comes down to murder. It was late now, the sun had long passed set. My eyes were accustomed to such conditions as I strolled down the dimly lit Konoha streets. After being responsible for as many deaths as I, such a skill was expected much less needed.

Tonight's murder was unplanned. Such a sad thing if you ask me: so much for sticking to the plan. I guess I will have to give more time before I kill Hinata. Lucky girl. Though, the bastard I was to pay a visit to this evening would not have such chance.

The door creaked from my weight as it was sent flying ajar. Such an entrance was unlikely, but I had my reasons for using such a domestic way. In a chair by the hissing fire sat a dark-haired boy, his abnormally longer hair left down. His dark eyes were watching me, an almost content smile resting upon his lips. For a moment, I had thought that I had made a mistake -something that was soon proved wrong as I came accustomed to the unusual garb of the male.

"Shikamaru...-odd not to see you with a pineapple atop your head. Almost didn't recognize you there."

A ghost of a smile spread onto his mature features. "I was expecting you."

A sadistic grin played on my lips -I didn't even need a mirror to see how indimadating I must have seemed at the moment. "You're ready to die then? I might have to crack that warrior spirit of yours before tossing you to hell." In a heart-beat I was now placed next to my victim, pressing the cold metal of a kunai to his throat. A small cut formed; blood flowing freely from the wound.

"You can't hide yourself from the world forever. They'll find you soon enough."

Snarling, I cursed, dealing the final blow much sooner than intended.

Author's Note:
And this would be the end of my fifth and possible final chapter. You see, I'm not as dedicated to this story as I used to be. (Look at how often I've been posting chapters. XP) I mean to say that I'm thinking of discontinuing this fanfiction. If you'd like this piece to continue, share your opinion, whatever, please share your view by reviewing!

Disclaimer: All the characters in this piece belong to Masashi Kishimoto -lucky guy!