Author's Rant: Time for the real fun to begin. I wonder what Naruto and the others will encounter during these hours of total darkness. Will they all be okay on their own? I was super eager to write this. The recent reviews inspired me to get this one up and running as soon as possible, so I'm sorry for my lateness.

Lights Out!

The team spent the next few hours being shown around. Rather than eating so soon, Neji insisted that Sakura show them the manor, so he could get a feel of the place and Sakura happily obliged. Though it was also her home, there were only minimal places they could cover. Many of the rooms required a key, and despite Sakura permitting the team full access to the manor, Sakura said she needed to wait for Sasuke to come home, all to retrieve it from him. That made everyone a little uneasy. If Sakura was Sasuke's fiancé, why would she need a key to explore her own home? It was a little suspicious, and it made Neji, as well as the others, wary of their present situation.

During the wait for Sakura's fiancé to return home, Sakura, making sure that the teams stay was a comfortable one, had food brought up to each of their rooms. While everyone communicated via their handhelds, raving about the delectable food they were given, Naruto and Neji were the only ones who seemed dissatisfied with their gourmet meals. Whereas Neji openly criticized the Uchiha family for their lack of seasoning—to which he promised that the Hyuga family would have never forgotten such a trivial thing—Naruto was turned off by the food for a different reason entirely.

Not that the fancy dishes, like the Mediterranean pasta and moist strawberry cheesecake, were not delicious; but Naruto enjoyed the simpler things in life. Like ramen. So while Naruto's mouth regretfully devoured, his heart answered to a higher calling. And that calling was Ramen.

His tongue yearned for the cheap, one dollar goodness that he could buy by the dozens at his local grocery store, and oh how Naruto could feel the salty liquid run down his throat from where he sat. Why did he forget to eat that last beef packet this morning?

This craving was killing him.

Soon the time came for their investigation to begin. After a few hours passed, Shikamaru spoke first just as the sound of the front entrance closing echoed throughout the manor.

"Uchiha's in the building." Shikamaru said in hushed tones.

Everyone, from that point on, remained deathly silent, and boy was the wait agonizingly painful. Kiba was biting his fingernails, so on edge he almost broke skin, and Neji was urging the rest of them not to make a sound as Sasuke transcended up the steps, taking in mind that two out of the six were, as Neji would put it, "incapable of shutting their mouths." Naruto, in all his good intentions, found it hard to sit still, considering now Sakura had to be with Sasuke, and that knowledge alone churned his stomach. They remained quiet for about another thirty minutes, Shikamaru watched Sasuke through the monitors placed in his room, tracking his every movement disinterestedly.

Earlier, Naruto had promised Sakura that throughout this investigation they wouldn't make a peep, so to stop Sasuke from becoming suspicious, Sakura told Sasuke that there was supposed to be a power outage around Midnight. Shikamaru watched as Sasuke gave a noncommittal grunt of acknowledgement to his fiancée, before he slipped off his shoes, and slid under the sheets with a tired sigh. He'd had a long day it seemed. Sakura, sensing Sasuke was even less vocal than usual, shook him lightly with a gentle smile.

"Do you want to talk?" Sakura ventured, hoping that for once, Sasuke just might surprise her. However, Sasuke shrugged his shoulders, Sakura's gentle hand falling to her side as she stared at him sadly.

"There's nothing to talk about. Go to sleep." He replied coldly, and then Sasuke faced away from her, turning the light off, and leaving her to her silence.

Shikamaru whistled, as he relayed what was happening. "She sure wasn't kidding when she said she annoyed him."

Naruto glared.

He didn't get it. Sure, Sasuke was inclined to be gloomy about what happened to his folks, but that was years ago, and Sasuke didn't have to stay in this house! So, what gives? Why did he take it out on Sakura when she could be with someone much better? Someone, say, like Naruto. How he wanted to stomp in there and give Sasuke a piece of his mind. But Naruto managed to restrain himself.

After all, it wouldn't do to strangle the client's partner.

Despite the man being an insufferable butt-face.

Besides, Naruto was a man of his word, and he had promised Sakura the team would be quiet as possible. Although, considering how many of them there were and the circumstances, the question was, 'could they really mask their presence until the sun came up?'

Shikamaru leaned back in his chair, and speaking into the walkie talkie, he announced, "They're both falling asleep."

"That's good." Kiba responded from his end, seemingly distracted by something. "So…uh, who's gonna venture out into darkness first? I know I ain't."

"I never predicted a dog could be so incredibly spineless." Neji commented snidely from his room, but then he paused. He and the rest of Private Paranormal's listened silently, and somewhat disgustedly, as the sound of a gentle trickle of liquid could be heard coming from their speakers.

"…Are you..." Neji started.

"Taking a piss? Duh. S'there a problem with talking and pissing? I can do two things at once, yanno." Kiba remarked with obvious pride. "But I'm kind of freaked out. There's this statue by the toilet, and it's makin' me uncomfortable as hell. I don't like that it's staring at me."

"Are you upset because there's not much to look at?" Sai remarked with that trademark nonchalance, causing Kiba to grit his teeth, and have half a mind to slam open the door to Sai's room and give the guy a piece of his mind. Naruto snickered. As much as he hated Sai, and he hated to admit it.

It was a pretty good burn. Naruto would give Sai that.

"Naruto?" Kiba called, deciding to ignore Sai entirely. "Are you heading out first?"

There was silence from Naruto's receiver.

"Naruto man? Yo, you there?" Kiba tried again, only to hear a quiet, desperate moaning on the other end of the receiver, where Naruto had thrown himself against the Satan sheets of the king-sized guest bed: and proceeded to wail helplessly. Naruto pounded the quilts like a child throwing a temper tantrum. "They're going to bed together." Naruto whined. "Do I even stand a chance anymore?!"

Shikamaru sighed.

"I said they were sleeping." Shikamaru hissed through the device, rolling his eyes. "How you take sleeping and turn that into something more is your fault to begin with. Lights out starts in fifteen. Focus Naruto."

"But-" Naruto started, but quickly cut off by Neji's stern tone.

"Uzumaki, I swear, if you screw this up because of your infatuation with that woman, I will turn you into a ghost." Neji warned, which quickly shut Naruto up. Kiba had to admit that Neji was right. If Naruto messed this up for any of them, hell, if this turned out to be another prank, everyone, including Kiba, would be on his ass faster than white on rice.

All of them waited a few more minutes with bated breath until the lights shut off, and the entire house became bathed in darkness. Hinata was the first to break the silence.

"I'll go..." She said with a small smile, rolling off the bed in her room as it creaked softly. After flattening her black skirt, Hinata fixed the top part of her cashmere sweater, before grabbing her things. She stuffed a peculiar amount of mysterious papers inside her bra—no one else had to know, it was embarrassing enough that she forgot her purse—and began to walk into the hallway, a full spectrum camcorder in hand.

These camcorders were designed to capture both video and still photos, and they were specially equipped with UV and IR sensitivity to view the full spectrum of any light that happens to float by. This being said, Private Paranormal's carried these camcorders around at all times in hopes of capturing images on both ends of the light spectrum, images that might provide photographic evidence that spirits exist. Being small in size and easy to carry were just some of the perks of having it. Neji's grossly large inheritance allowed the entire team to have the best of the best. That's why Naruto put up with his attitude. Neji wasn't only a member, but their main benefactor as well.

"I'll let you know if anything happens. W...wish me luck." Hinata whispered, and the males gave an affirmative grunt.

"Good luck Hinata." Naruto sweetly called through the device, and Hinata almost fumbled the walkie-talkie at hearing his voice, flushing pathetically. "T-thank you..." she stutters, before placing it inside the pocket of her skirt. She then stumbled down the dark hall and to her designated area.

"Now, who's next?" Kiba said.

"I suppose I'll follow my cousin's example and begin. I'm not a coward, like some people." Neji replied haughtily. "And after all, Lady Hinata and I are real professionals. It's only natural everyone follow our lead."

Naruto scoffed.

"You can pull your head outta your ass now, Neji. I know it's a warm and cozy place up there, but society's waiting for you."

"Just speaking the truth, Uzumaki."

Naruto could hear the creak of Neji's door open, and he was gone.

The sound of another door abruptly slamming open almost caused Naruto to fall off the bed. The blonde could hear Kiba murmuring, rather loudly, how he wasn't a coward, before stampeding down the stairs ahead of Neji. Neji only smirked.

"Jeez, Kiba's going to wake them up, if he doesn't shut that trap of his." Shikamaru groaned. "Well, I guess that leaves you and Sai, Naruto."

At the mention of Sai's name, Naruto made an appropriate gagging sound. Great, Naruto thought, Aren't I the lucky one? It was bad enough that he had to see Sai's face, but what was even worse was that Sai was stationed right outside Sakura's door! Why did he have to guard her? She was already stuck with one asshole, why did they have to place her with two?

Sai and Naruto wordlessly went outside their rooms, and Sai took his position outside Sasuke and Sakura's door. He smiled—that irritatingly fake smile of his—and gave a small wave. Naruto returned it with his middle finger raised. He'd bet any amount of money Sai was just eating this up right now.

Standing in front of the camera in the hall, Naruto gave Shikamaru an energetic display of excitement in the form of awkward dance movements. Shikamaru slapped a hand to his forehead.

"Why do you do that every time I'm on monitoring duty?" Shikamaru called.

"Because I bet I look sexy as hell on that screen right now." Naruto replied impishly, wiggling his hips with an expression of mock femininity. Sai made a sound Naruto could only guess was a snort.

"So Naruto's true form finally reveals itself. No wonder he doesn't have a penis." Sai murmurred.

"I think your obsession with penises is really creepy and needs to stop." Naruto returned flatly. He wanted to say something more scathing, but Naruto tried to hold his tongue for the sake of their mission. Besides, he was used to it by now.

"Anyways, even if nothing happens, at least we'll have video of me and my awesome moves," Naruto chirped. "I'm off, Shikamaru!" the blond cried in his quietest voice, which in Naruto-standards, wasn't very quiet.

Shikamaru smiled.

"Alright," he said. "Let's make this one count guys."

"Right!" Everyone replied in unison. Then Naruto began his trek down the stairs, flipping the 'On' switch on the camcorder, as the small light on it paved the way down the red, carpeted steps.

With Naruto making his way to the kitchen, Kiba outside, and Neji and Hinata walking to their respective posts, Shikamaru leaned back in his chair and put his hands leisurely behind his head. Waiting for the first signs of...

Well, nothing to pop out.

Let's face it. The likelihood of encountering a ghost was less than one percent, but before they worried about finding a ghost, Shikamaru thought the others should be more worried about the environment. How could they trust this Sakura girl so easily? If there was one thing Shikamaru hated, that was when people wasted his time. And he feared this would be just that. A waste of valuable energy.

Shikamaru weighed the odds. They were in the mansion of a millionaire, who lost his marbles years ago, and said millionaire's wife-to-be was an estranged attention-seeker with an unhealthy infatuation for Sasuke. On top of all that, if Shikamaru took a look at their crew, it was just as bad, if not worse. Their club was comprised of a self-proclaimed exorcist, two self-proclaimed priests, an equipment manager who pisses himself at the first sign of trouble, and the idiot founder with about as much common sense as a monkey.

This definitely had not been what Shikamaru expected.

He first joined this crazy club to kill some time. Shikamaru had needed extracurricular's anyways, and he presumed that a paranormal investigation group would be a bunch of lazy misfits, who sat around and talked about their fake, supernatural experiences. But it'd been far from it. Once Shikamaru stepped foot through the clubroom doors, Naruto made damn sure he couldn't leave. From then on, he had been roped into doing work, subjected to Naruto's crazy schemes, and unfortunately enough, in the same year, thrown together as his roommate.

The grandfather clock from the manor's foyer dinged. Resounding all around them. Echoing against the empty walls. On the monitors, everyone stopped to listen to their eerie chimes, signaling that midnight was upon them, and from that point on, their only friend would be darkness. Shikamaru didn't know why, but he found himself glued to Naruto's screen, where the man was moving his fingers and making ghastly expressions in front of the camera, much like a ghost. Shikamaru supposed, as troublesome as the situation was, he didn't completely hate his involvement in this little club.

Naruto gave a thumbs up at the camera. He shook his ass one last time, starting to make his way into the mansion's kitchen.

Shikamaru lightly sniggered.

No, he supposed, it wasn't that bad at all.

Shikmaru yawned and spun once in his chair. He'd prepared himself for this. The boredom of the next few hours. Shikamaru pulled out his PSP. He slipped his favorite game in and hunched forward, determined to make it to that next level before the sun came up. Shikamaru made it to the loading screen when a sudden noise caused him to still. The monitors, that were once glowing with perfect resolution began to blink out.

One.

By.

One.

"SHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!" Shikamaru watched them scream, each one blaring with loud and deafening static. His PSP also shut off, making a sizzling noise that took him by surprise before he dropped it to the floor. A small puff of smoke flew out of it. Taking a step back, Shikamaru watched the monitors warily. He hadn't foreseen this. Shikamaru made sure that everything was plugged in correctly, and while he could understand if one shut off—maybe a malfunction, faulty merchandise, some bad wiring—the others following in succession didn't make a lick of sense. He felt his shoulders stiffen, as the room he was caged in began to fill with a cool, goose-bump-worthy chill. Shikamaru swallowed and tried to still his beating heart.

Not to worry, he told himself, no sense getting worked up and letting your imagination get the best of you, calm down.

But what happened next took those thoughts and trashed them, as Shikamaru noticed a fog roll in, and each light that illuminated the small monitoring room was abruptly, and violently, taken out. The shattering of light bulbs one by one caused the brunet to take a defensive stance.

The agonizing wail of an unknown figure filled his ears, and Shikamaru bit his lip, eyes darting to the door and back again.

As wild pounding sounded amongst the walls, Shikamaru took back what he'd thought earlier.

This was bad.

In fact, it was much worse than he thought.

The wailing ceased.

The fog stopped - and Shikamaru's only way out?

It locked itself shut...

Naruto hadn't wanted to check the kitchen out for personal reasons.

First of all, it was the closest entrance by the staircase, so he found himself wandering into it. Not at all wanting to check if there was a certain brand of packaged noodles in the vicinity. Nope. No ulterior motives whatsoever, Naruto convinced himself. This was 100%, mature and adult-like business. The light from Naruto's camera illuminated the accident-inducing darkness, as well as his guilty expression. Setting his camera on the kitchen counter, Naruto surveyed the surrounding area, noticing that the kitchen was twice as big as his dorm, but he wasn't complaining. With big kitchens, came big prizes. Naruto licked his lips. Sue him for being curious. His eyes locked on the cabinets.

If anyone asked, Naruto Uzumaki did not steal ramen from other people's kitchens.

He would deny, deny it into the dirt of his grave, because Naruto Uzumaki was not a thief - just a collector.

A collector of unused, unappreciated goods.

Opening the cabinets swiftly, Naruto used the small light he had to navigate. Rummage. Search with all his might for the packaged goodies that were surely hiding somewhere, desperately waiting for Naruto to find them. This was still business. Yes, he was a professional, but he was also a concerned citizen. A wise man once said that a person's kitchen said a lot about the person. So if Sasuke didn't have any ramen, he was obviously a psychopathic prude with no taste, and it'd be more of a reason for Naruto to save Sakura from her terrible fate.

Her fate of being hitched to a tasteless, peacock–headed-ass-hat.

Naruto was so preoccupied with his search, and his inappropriate thoughts, that he hadn't noticed the quiet steps behind him. Or how the hot breath of someone was fanning against his ear, growing profoundly louder and hotter with each second.

Naruto ignored it, thinking it was just a strangely warm gust of wind before bending forward, the length of his arm reaching for that place, that one place in the back, where people kept all of their good food. But he came up short. Disappointment sank in. Seeing as all he pulled out was a package of green tea and a coupon for half-priced milk, his findings weren't very memorable. Naruto sighed. He made a motion to turn around, but the blond froze, feeling hesitant.

Cautious, for some reason.

Something was telling Naruto that he was in danger, and Naruto didn't usually ignore his instincts.

Maybe he wasn't taking this investigation too seriously. For starters, instead of paying attention to his surroundings, he let hunger take control - and now he would face the awful repercussions of his actions, seeing as something hard was pressing against his neck. Trailing up and down. Up and down. Nudging itself into the flesh of Naruto's back. His breath hitched.

Naruto didn't want to move.

That presence made itself known again with another rough push, and Naruto felt the base of something long and cold trail the expanse of his back. He was tempted to scream. Naruto couldn't stop his thoughts from roaming free.

Was it a ghost?

Was he experiencing a supernatural event, right at this moment?

The object pushed.

"Who are you?" A rich voice, smoother than the finest silks, asked quickly and dangerously. "I'll give you five seconds to state your case, before I bash that obnoxiously colored head of yours into the ground." It warned, and Naruto got his answer.

This wasn't anything paranormal.

It wasn't a demon, but the person's voice, in all it's cruelty, could most certainly be mistaken as coming from the depths of hell.

The deep, fine baritone of an icy male belonged to someone very human, and very angry; and Naruto would soon come to find that the weapon pressed into his back, as well as the non-subtle threat, belonged to none other than the lord of the manor, and the bane of Naruto's romantic endeavors:

Sasuke Uchiha.

Author's closing notes: Sooooooooooooooooooooooooo...what do you think?
This chapter took longer than I thought for multiple reasons.

One, being I had final exams.

Two, being that I just didn't have time since I have a friend staying with me. But regardless, I got it finished, and I'm so happy with how it turned out! I'd like to thank my Beta and most awesome editor in the world, Peteromyni, for making this chapter as flawless as it could possibly be. You're really the best! Thank you for looking this over so late. You're super awesome!

A few people were wondering about this, and it worked with what I initially planned, so let me confirm: Yes, Neji and Kiba will be a second pairing. Though the main focus is Sasuke and Naruto, Neji and Kiba are also a side pairing I hope to work into this fic. I hope you guys enjoy it.

Thanking my reviewers: StrikeLightning, KeepCalmAndWatchAnime, hananotsuki hime, Sungoddess64, JollyCooperation, ColorlessXrainboW, Feyri, Morana Whiskey, and KitsuneLuvr88

I'll try to have the next chapter in MUCH, MUCH SOONER!

Till then!