Hey guys, so sorry for the long wait. I've been really busy, so I apologize again for the delay.
Anywho, hope you enjoy this chapter!
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Her emerald eyes scanned the screen in front of her, with her pink eyebrows furrowed. Researching was something she got lost in. It was as if everything and everyone else around her was taken out of the picture, and instead it was just her looking through numerous photos and reading large amounts of text and paragraphs. To Sakura, researching during an investigation is something that takes large amounts of time, and it's hard to stop. When she finds something relevant and intriguing to the case at hand, she feels the need to research further, which in turn makes her mind cloudy and her eyes sore.
Her partner in this case used his spinney chair to move towards her, and he glanced at her for a moment before speaking, "Take a break, Haruno. Your eyes will be too sore tomorrow if you keep this up."
Sakura's attention was taken off the screen, and towards the lazy Nara, "I know, but we're so close. I can feel it."
He sighed, "How about you tell me what you know about the Akatsuki."
The pinkette tilted her head, "Like what?"
"Everything. Background information, crimes committed, what happened during the previous case. . . That type of stuff."
She turned her chair towards him and nodded, "Alright, first I'll tell you about what we know as far as their background goes."
Shikamaru leaned back in his chair, and ushered her to continue, "First is Sasori. He was a genius craftsman, and owned a store that soled wooden antiques. It was a family business and they were mostly known for their delicately detailed puppets. Sasori grew a fascination with making puppets, and soon this obsession grew to something serial-like. . ." She paused for a moment, "He began turning corpses into puppets."
His dark eyes widened a bit, but Sakura continued, "Yeah, it disgusts me too. He kills his victims in many different ways, but mostly quietly. He also studied medicine as a teenager and taught himself to create an indistinguishable poison. Sasori covers different melee weapons with his own concoction of poison, then he strikes his victims and uses their corpses as puppets."
The male detective whistled, taking in this information.
"We believe the death of his mother and father were what led to these criminal actions. When he was fifteen, he ran away from his home and there were theories of him being abducted, but no one was for sure. That is, until we discovered he joined the Akatsuki. There is no information on how old he was when he joined."
"So how about Deidara?" Shikamaru asked.
"Deidara is known as a terrorist bomber. We don't know much about him for background, but we do know that he uses clay as bombs."
The Nara lifted an eyebrow in confusion, "Clay?"
Sakura nodded, "You heard correctly. Deidara forms clay very quickly into animal-like shapes, which when thrown can cause an explosion. He has damaged many tourist attractions and military bases, causing hundreds of lives."
"I see," Shikamaru started, "Itachi?"
"Right, well Itachi Uchiha is a very intelligent man. He was top in his class at school and excelled in nearly everything, according to his school records. Itachi was also skilled in knife-throwing, and archery, which he always placed first in competitions. The Uchiha clan were also well-known in terms of law enforcement. Itachi Uchiha's skills in combat and weapons made him the pride of the Uchiha clan. At just thirteen years old, he murdered his whole clan, including his mother and father, leaving only his brother. . ."
Shikamaru sighed, "Sasuke Uchiha."
The pinkette nodded sadly, "Yes."
"So what happened during the previous Akatsuki case?" He asked.
"Their hideout was located in South Avenue, and they stayed inside of an abandoned building where they laid traps and blocked off entrances, exits, and windows. We were able to corner most of the members, but the other three got away."
"So where do you think they are now?"
Sakura turned to her computer, and stared at it, "The members are very skilled in combat and strategy. They couldn't possibly have just one hideout. The Akatsuki have to have a backup for everything, considering their main motive is world peace, which would lead them to criminal acts and a higher risk of getting caught constantly."
The pineapple-haired detective smirked, "I knew you'd say that."
A confused expression crossed her features, "What?"
He rolled back to his computer and stared at the screen, "The fact that they need a backup plan for everything is exactly what I would expect from an organization like that."
"Exactly," Sakura started, "That's why you're perfect for this case. You can think like the Akatsuki, because of your strategic skills."
"Tsk," Shikamaru started, "It'll be troublesome work, but I'll try my best."
The pinkette put her index finger to her chin, a sign of deep thought, "Well, the last sighting was in South Avenue around four months ago. Although, it wouldn't make any sense if they stayed in the same area as before."
He put his hands on the back of his head and closed his eyes, "That's where you're wrong."
"Huh?"
His eyes opened, "They want to outsmart us."
Her green eyes averted to him, "How so?"
"If I were the Akatsuki, I would want my backup hideout to be where they least suspect it. They want you to think they would be as far away from South Avenue as possible, but in reality. . ."
Sakura's eyes widened in understanding, "Reverse phycology. Are you telling me they could possibly be in South Avenue?"
A smirk formed on the Nara's lips, "Correct. I can't be for sure, but we need to take as many risks as we can, if we want to solve both the Akatsuki and the Uchiha case."
Between a yawn, Sakura said, "I see. We'd better report this to the Chief."
Shikamaru nodded, "I'll do it. You can go home."
She rose her eyebrows at him, "The lazy-ass wants me to go home before him? The world must be ending."
Giving the emerald-eyed detective a smug look, he scratched the back of his head, "Tch, don't think too much of it. Keep it up, and I'll go home and leave this to you."
"On second thought," Sakura stood up and gave him a smile, "I'll be going home now. Thanks for handling this."
As she was leaving the room, Sakura heard her partner mumble, "Troublesome woman. . ."
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"So, when are we gonna get this chick?" The blonde asked.
Sasori nodded, "Yeah, she could be a good asset to my puppet collection."
"Enough of that," Itachi snapped harshly, "This woman is not a toy."
"Oh, Itachi," Deidara draped his arm across the Uchiha's shoulders, "You've always been too soft."
He took Deidara's arm off him and responded, "I'm just not as cold-hearted as you two."
"But wait, didn't you hear . . .?" The blue-eyed man whispered, "My man Sasori doesn't have a heart."
The crimson-haired man scoffed, "I heard that, you imbecile. Anyway Itachi, you can't blame us for itching to capture the girl. We've been down here for a while now, with nothing to do."
He closed his onyx eyes, "None of this would've happened if the rest weren't caught. This backup is our best bet."
"Yeah. . ." Deidara trailed off, "But at least at the old hideout there was a bit of sunlight. Down here it's basically a dark abyss."
The Uchiha scoffed, "Take your complaining somewhere else. I'm tired of hearing it."
His footsteps echoed across the wall, as he was about to leave the room, until a voice stopped him.
"But wait, Itachi," Sasori began, "You haven't told us why you want this girl."
Pausing for a moment, he responded, "That's none of your concern."
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"Oh gosh-" She exhaled, as she closed the door and entered her home, "I'm beat."
Throwing her keys on the counter, the pinkette took off her jacket and threw it across the room. After slumping down on the couch, she arched her head back and looked up at the ceiling, her thoughts drowning her.
If the Akatsuki are in South Avenue, where would they keep their hideout?
A quiet sound interrupted her thoughts, and she looked at the window to her side. The detective sighed when she saw his familiar face.
"Good," the Uchiha said, "You're here."
"Yeah," Sakura watched as he walked towards her, "Why wouldn't I be?"
Ignoring her comment, a flashback crossed Sasuke's mind, remembering the silhouette of an unknown person. He has always been a cautious man, but this made the younger Uchiha curious. Although he shouldn't expect the worst, an uneasy feeling was still caught in the pit of his stomach. It just made him wonder. . .
Who was that guy?
"Hey," Her soft voice snapped him out of his thoughts, "You okay?"
Sakura stood up and placed herself in front of him, staring at his face with worry, "You look uncomfortable."
Sasuke let out an exhausted sigh and put a hand on her shoulder, "I'm fine."
She smiled, "Good. Listen, it's a nice night, and I'm going to go on a walk. I would invite you, but I know you can't go on busy streets."
As she turned to walk towards the door, he grabbed her wrist, "Wait."
"What is it?" Sakura's eyebrows rose in confusion.
His face grew cautious, "I don't want you going alone."
"What . . .? Why?"
Sasuke's tone grew strict, "It's late as it is, and a pretty girl walking the streets when it's dark, doesn't settle right with me."
For a moment, Sakura's emerald eyes drifted to the side, going over what the Uchiha told her, but her eyes darted back to him, "But, Sasuk-"
"Just please," He closed his eyes, "I couldn't live with myself if something happened to you."
"O-Oh. . ." She trailed off and scanned his features. It struck a heartstring when she saw how worried he was, "Alright, I'll stay."
The onyx-eyed man exhaled in relief, "Thank you."
Just then, the most unexpected gesture the Uchiha could ever give happened. He pulled the pinkette in for a hug. But it wasn't a meaningless hug. His embrace showed how protective he was of her. Sakura's lips tilted upward when she realized. . .
He actually was worried.
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A/N
Okay, this chapter was not that good and it was short. Excuse my sloppy writing XD
I just wanted to let you guys know that I was planning on finishing this story before school starts, but I don't see that happening. So when the time comes that I do need to go to school, I probably won't be updating as much, considering I'm starting high school and I'm taking college-leveled classes, so that's going to be a lot of hard work.
Besides that, the last bit of this story has been planned out, and I can't wait to write it!
Anyway, criticism is accepted, so tell me what you thought of this chapter!
Bye~
~Kit_Katzzz