Hi there! Thanks a lot for all of the support. And thanks to Alice-hime of the moon, galactic fairy 9, and bestfriendsmusic, SakuHimee for following.
This chapter picks up a few minutes before the last chapter ends, this time describing Sakura's side of the turn of events. Hope you enjoy!
Really sorry but the chapter that was released previously was the wrong one. This is the right one. ..
Disclaimer: Really unfortunately, I do not own Naruto. But Arisa's mine. Not that she is mentioned that much anyway...
21st April, 2032, An obscene vent in the compound beneath the Sunset Reservoir, Time: 8.15 am
The vent that Sakura had climbed into was surprisingly spacious, which was quite welcoming, seeing as the last thing she wanted to do was crawl around in a cramped tight space with no lighting. The down side? It was chillingly cold. Like, cold enough to have her teeth chattering, which she had to clamp shut to avoid making noise. Chilly draughts of wind swept through.
She had climbed up to the vents which ran above the room which the two men whom she had been following had entered, and was able to catch the last few snippets of their conversation. Not the optimal result, but albeit, better than nothing.
The man whom she had recognised from the previous day as Naruto stood up and said, "The Uchiha corporation cannot afford to have any association with any organization aiding or abetting criminal activities. We are hereby withdrawing all funding of your projects. "
Well, that gave her good reason to believe that the Sahara group was involved in the crime she was investigating. But she hadn't been aware of the fact that the two companies had been in a financial alliance.
The other man stood up, aggravated, and shouted, "You can't do that!" Judging from his tone, whatever consequences that would arise from the Uchiha Corporation withdrawing their funding, it would arise in he, one of the people on the board of directors, going bankrupt along with his company. Quite evident from the sweat now glistening on his forehead, and the deeply troubled, desperate expression on his face.
Naruto smirked with superiority, saying, "Watch me..."
The other man's brow furrowed in worry, a slightly manic glint in his eyes. Something bad was about to happen.
The other man snarled, "If you don't return to the Corporation, you can't withdraw your support." He stood up and walked to the door, opening it. "You aren't getting out of here alive, Uchiha..." He walked out and slammed it shut before the other had a chance to react.
Now that was drastic. And confusing. Had he just called him 'Uchiha'? Maybe he was naming him in terms of the company he worked for...
Sakura realised that that was her cue to get out, and probably find a way to help out the poor man trapped in the room she had been spying. She was about to notify Ino of what she had found out as she crawled back to maintenance panel.
What she didn't expect was the alarming sound of gurgling water coming from in front of her. Suddenly, a strong current of water pushed her back the way she came. She barely managed to grab hold of and pry open one of the vents she had just been looking through, and she fell head first into the room below.
Of course. How could she have been so stupid? The white man had issued a death threat, and they were in a compound situated under the water reservoir. Easiest way to kill someone in a locked room down there? Especially when the place is practically empty? Flood the place with water from the above reservoir. And that too, through the vents. She should have smelt 'trouble' the second she felt the could draughts of air. More importantly, she should have made her escape the second she got the feeling that something bad was about to happen. Instead, she was now a soaking, disheveled mess before someone who wasn't even supposed to know that she was in the building. And he was staring at her, like a hapless idiot, might she add, again.
"What are you doing here?" he asked, his tone harsh and snappy.
Well, what was she expecting? Some incredibly chivalrous act of him helping her to her feet? Obviously not. She was seriously beginning to dislike Mr Hapless Idiot.
"I'm FBI. I don't need to explain myself or my whereabouts. The question would be, why are you here?" she asked, standing up and checking her electronic devices for. All were waterproof, so she didn't need to worry about any damage. But what did worry her was that her cell phone had no service. The underground building must have been blocking her connection.
"I am here on official business," he said, stoically.
"On behalf of Mr Uchiha himself, I suppose." she said skeptically.
"Yes, in fact."
In the time they had been talking, the level of water in the room had risen at an alarming rate- they were now ankle deep. They had to find a way out- oh yes, they -not just her. even if she disliked the man, he was a civilian, so by default, she had an obligation to save his sorry ass. Not that she would be needing any of his help to do so.
"So have you ever been to this compound before?" She asked, eyebrows raised.
"Hn." he said, while looking at the door which the white haired man had just slammed shut.
Annoying prick didn't even have the courtesy to give her a direct answer.
"And you are aware of the fact that this place isn't even on government records. This whole place exists illegally."
"I do not make it my business to go into the legal extents of a companies assets. Unless it may pose a direct threat to the Uchiha Corporation." he said, still not looking at her.
"And do you know the layout of this place? Or even, what the heck they do in here?" she said, trying to act as though this were a simple interrogation rather than a life or death situation.
He didn't reply, so she grabbed his arm and spun him to look at her. Meeting his eyes, she took note of his sculpted face, and deep, dark eyes, that could as well have pits staring into oblivion...he really was attractive, she supposed, which was probably the only thing he had going for him. He had also taken off his suit blazer, leaving behind a damp white shirt which clung to the muscles of his abdomen, and his broad chest. Definitely attractive.
"Answer the question." she demanded.
He didn't reply, instead taking hold of her arm roughly and wading through the water to the door on the far side of the room.
"What are you-"
Without further ado he kicked down the door. On the other side was a dimly lit corridor with flickering lights, most of which were no longer working. Several tables and cabinets had been upturned and partially blocked the path, and the floor was covered in water- water which was now calf deep.
His grip on her arm strong, he pulled her after him as he maneuvered around the obstacles to walk down the corridor. He still remained silent and aloof.
Fed up of being manhandled, she dug her heels and forced him to stop.
He turned around and glared at her. "Do you want to drown?" he asked morbidly.
"Do you have any idea what you're doing? Or where you're going? Do you even have a plan?" she asked, infuriated.
"There is another door leading out of this compound, one which connects to a manually operated elevator." he was clearly annoyed by her. Well, let him stay that way. Not as though she cared.
"And don't you think that whoever it was that came up with the brilliant plan to kill you would've thought of that by now? Don't you think they'd have blocked off that exit?"
"So are you suggesting that we just remained in that room until the water rose above our heads?"
"No." she crossed her arms. "I'm suggesting that you were more open with your information about this place. Especially because of the two of us here, I'm the higher ranking official.'
He glowered at her, while saying, "Then what do you suggest we do?"
She paused for a moment to consider his question, then sighed resignedly and said, "I guess you're plan is the best to ride on for now. Maybe there's a chance I can contact my team nearer this exit. But we keep a look out for alternatives."
He smirked smugly.
And so they moved down the corridor into a less metallic area with brick walls and wooden support beams in the ceiling above, all the while the water level steadily rising. They came to a stop when they found their entire path blocked. Evidently the vents here weren't water tight, as the ceiling seemed to have been thoroughly soaked, and had caved in on the corridor, almost peeling off leaving the electric and plumbing work dangerously exposed. A few wires seemed to have torn off completely, and some were hanging, sparking dangerously. If they were still in the building when the water reached that level, they would die of electrocution.
Sakura made a mental note not to let that happen. But the more pressing problem was that their path was now blocked. She looked at the man beside her, wondering what his oh so smartness would make of their situation. As for her, well judging from her mental map of the place so far, she figured that there was probably another way to reach the back exit. But the problem was that this alternate route was probably far longer, and, seeing how the water already touched her knees, that was probably not a good thing.
Naruto cursed loudly and turned around.
"How much time will this cost us?" She asked.
"At least a good quarter of an hour. Maybe even half hour." He said, frowning.
Now it was Sakura's turn to curse. "Then let's get moving."
Even on the move, Sakura was still trying to figure out what the purpose of this underground contingent was. But, the entire place seemed to be too messed up for that. Tables were overturned, doors snapped in half or crumpled, and all the while the water kept on rising. Soon, she guessed that she would be thigh deep. As for Naruto, well, he was annoyingly taller than her, but was still knee deep. But at the current level of water, several random objects had begun to float as well. And lots of obstacles were hidden.
They reached a locked wooden door, upon seeing which Naruto's first instinct was to kick down as he had done with the door from before, but when the door did not let down, she pushed him aside and said, "Get over yourself, you're not that strong. Stuff like this needs finesse." She pulled out a needle like tool and picked the lock within seconds.
The door burst open, and Sakura realized with widening eyes why it had been so hard to force open the door by breaking it down.
A large metal cabinet had been leaning against the door, and now careened towards her