Above is my rough sketch of the new character I'll be adding in this chapter!

Sakura stared at the black object in her hands in disbelief. How was this possible? For the police to have missed such an important piece of evidence when they investigated the scene! It had been extremely well hidden though, and from the looks of it, it was very old.

She held it up to her face to read the model. Sure enough, it was a model that had been developed thirty years ago that practically no one ever used anymore. However, it was in decent shape, even though it no longer worked. It may have only just gone out of commission a few years ago.

Which meant--she caught her breath--there may have been possible traces of footage of the fight four years ago.

Sakura poked around the parts of the camera, checking the memory card, which was missing, the batteries, which were dead, and the lens, which were cracked. She sighed. So much for getting any footage from this.

"Well, it won't hurt to do some research on the building," she muttered to herself, standing up and glancing back towards Naruto. He was still standing there, his eyes downcast and arms folded.

Sakura quickly stowed the camera in her brown bag. Approaching the building, she forced open the rusted door, breaking the old lock with ease. Stepping inside the dim room, she took in her surroundings.

It appeared to be a warehouse of some sort, but the shelves had long been emptied and were thick with dust. Sakura couldn't imagine what it had possibly been used for, but she was curious. Finding the camera had excited her, and she wasn't about to let that spark of discovery die just yet.

A sudden cough from the shadows scared her out of her wits. Sakura jumped, yanking her sword out of her belt and getting into a fighting stance. "Who's there!?"

The cough came again, much quieter. "Don't slice me up, little miss. I was just catching a few hours of sleep."

"Show yourself," Sakura threatened.

A slight rustling came from one of the dusty corners, and an old man shuffled into view. He was obviously homeless, and smelled like he hadn't bathed in weeks. His long white beard fell to his chest, and the clothes he wore were in rags. "Please don't kill me, miss police woman. I wasn't doing anything wrong." He smiled, showing two of his rotten teeth.

Sakura frowned. "Who are you? Why are you here?"

The old man shrugged. "I'm just a poor homeless man, miss. I sleep in a lot of abandoned buildings at night, since it takes some of the chill away."

Sakura relaxed a bit. He didn't seem as though he were lying, and besides, he didn't look like he could do very much even if he tried. "Ahh, I see. Well, would you mind if I asked you a few questions?"

"I'll answer them if I can," the man replied, still looking warily at the sword in her hand.

Sakura took a hint and sheathed it. "Do you know what this place formerly was?"

The man scratched his bearded chin. "If my memory serves, it was an old shoe warehouse. Went out of business not quite four years ago, because too many people stole. Wasn't in the best location. I heard someone got killed here a while back."

Sakura nodded stiffly. "Yes, I am aware of that. Do you know any further details about that incident?"

"Hmm...well, apparently it was a policewoman. I think her son was with her. She was killed by an older kid. It looked like a boy maybe 16 or 17 on the tapes."

Sakura froze. "The tapes?"

The old man continued, oblivious to her sudden excitement. "Yes," he chucked. "I wasn't supposed to see 'em, but I was sleeping in here when the manager played them, and I caught sight of what was going on. He chased me out when he saw me though."

A thousand questions and thoughts were swirling through Sakura's mind. This was it! This was what she'd been looking for! "What happened to the tapes? Where is the manager of the store now?"

"The manager moved away a couple days after. Didn't take much with him but all his savings and the clothes on his back. I suspect those tapes might still be in here. If you can manage to find 'em. Although, they may have just been destroyed." The old man grinned at her. "Did I give you enough info, little miss?"

"Yes," Sakura murmured, distracted. "Yes, that's perfect. I appreciate your cooperation."

"Well, I'll be outta here," the man chuckled. "Don't wanna get in the way of your search." He stood shakily, and began teetering towards the door. Just as he reached for the knob, he stopped. "Oh, and miss police lady?"

Sakura looked up at him. "Yes?"

"Not everything is as it seems."

**********************************

"Hey! Look at me! Look at me!"

"I can't! If I open them, something bad's gonna happen! I already said, I can't handle these things just yet!"

"Well, if that's the case then you gotta learn to control them! Seriously, I don't wanna die because of your stupid eyes!"

"Easy for you to say. You're not the one who has to deal with them!"

"Man, you're annoying!"

"Say that one more time, Kei!"

"Man, you're annoying!"

"I will throw you off the top of this building."

"Hah! I'd like to see you tr--woah, I was kidding! I was kidding! Sasuke, put me down before you drop me!"

"Can you two knuckleheads shut up?" A new voice growled in irritation.

The two boys whirled around to face the intruder.

"Oh, hey Kaidi," Kei said weakly, dangling from his collar off of the ten story building they were on.

"Sasuke!" The girl frowned. "This is the third time this past week that I've found the two of you in this same situation. Get a hold of yourself!"

Sasuke sighed, yanking Kei back onto the roof. "He deserves it though."

Kaidi glared. "For trying to help you?"

Sasuke looked away, pouting a bit. "You're just as annoying as he is."

"Baby," Kaidi muttered under her breath.

Kei rubbed his neck. "Thanks Kaidi. And Sasuke, you need some anger management classes!"

Sasuke glared. "I do not. I'm just irritable from the pain."

"Geez," Kei muttered. "Such a woman."

"What's that supposed to mean?!" Kaidi snapped.

"Nothing!"

Sasuke and Kei had met Kaidi the night they escaped from Orochimaru. She'd helped them with their escape, and had decided to stick with them ever since.

*Seven days earlier*

The black and brown haired duo raced through the night, the sound of screeching car tires following them with every twist and turn they made.

"They're really persistent, aren't they?" Kei complained.

"Mm-hm," Sasuke muttered, gritting his teeth as his eyes throbbed. Suddenly, his sensitive retinas let out a warning flare, and as he glanced up, his body reacted.

As the weighted net fell from above, Sasuke grabbed Kei and leapt out of the way. The heavy rope and rocks crashed down inches from their faces.

Kei stared cross-eyed at the tangled mass centimeters from his nose. "That was close. Good reflexes!"

"Get up!" Sasuke hissed. "We need to find out who's up there!"

"Wow!" A voice from the rooftop smirked softly. "That was amazing. You managed to avoid the net!"

"Show yourself," Sasuke growled.

A shadow emerged from the roof and silently jumped down. The figure began approaching, but Sasuke and Kei held up their weapons. "Don't come any closer," Sasuke warned. "Are you with the police?"

The figure laughed. They took a tiny step forward, allowing a sliver of light from a crack in the rock ceiling shine on their face. "I look like a police woman to you?"

Sasuke's eyes widened in surprise. It was a girl, maybe sixteen or seventeen. She wore a high necked black shirt, ripped at the elbows and tan cargo pants that were secured above the waist with a thick brown belt. The ends were baggy and frayed and brown combat boots peeked out from underneath.

The girl's hair was pitch black, shorter on one side than the other, and longer in the front than in the back. Her eyes were onyx, like his own, and very bright. A clever smirk tilted the corners of her mouth upwards. "Actually, I'm just your average thief. That's my method of stealing. So far, it's been successful ten times out of ten. You two are the very first!"

"Hmph," Kei muttered. "Of course we are. We wouldn't fall for a lame trick like that."

The girl snickered. "Yeah, sure. Seemed to me you were just saved by your buddy. So what are you two doing out so late? And are those police sirens I hear? Are they for you?"

Sasuke and Kei exchanged a look, but neither answered.

The girl rolled her eyes. "Don't worry, I'm not gonna turn you in. If I did, I'd have a whole bunch of trouble on my hands with my record and all. You guys need a little help?"

"We just need a place to crash tonight," Kei answered, glancing back nervously at the police sirens, which were quickly growing louder.

"I can do that," the girl grinned. "But you gotta pay." She held out her hand.

"Take us to the place first," Sasuke said shortly. "Can't have you conning us out of our money."

The girl made a pouting face. "You don't trust me?" Then she laughed. "Well, come on. I don't have all day. And it seems neither do you." She turned and disappeared like a shadow into the darkness, scooping up her net on the way.

Sasuke and Kei glanced at each other before racing after her.

The girl led them through back alleys and sewer plants, making so many turns, Sasuke wasn't sure how she'd managed to remember them all. But they finally arrived at a small, crumbling staircase that led partially underground.

The girl opened the door to the room and the trio walked inside. It wasn't very spacious, Sasuke thought. But there were two sofas and a small bed tucked away in the corners. A small rectangular table sat in the middle. The girl looked smug. "This is one of my houses out of several that I travel to. I sometimes rent them out to people if they need a place to stay. So pay up."

Sasuke reached into his pouch, and pulled out a handful of coins. "This enough?"

The girl studied the small pile. "Add another handful."

Grumbling, Sasuke extracted another palmful and dumped them on the table. "Here."

The black haired girl snatched up the money, counting it carefully, before looking up and smiling. "You boys will take the sofas. The bed is mine."

"Alright," Kei agreed. "But you seem completely ready to trust us, even though you tried to rob us earlier."

The girl burst out laughing. "Yeah, well, you're just lucky I recognized your pretty little faces. You're Kei Hamasaki, and the handsome one is the Uchiha who's been causing the police so much grief. It's an honor to house such renowned criminals!"

"So you're aware of the bounty on my head?" Sasuke asked, a bit wary now.

The girl snorted. "I'm not turning you in. Like I already told you, I'd get arrested too if I even dared to speak to the police."

"Ah." Even so, Sasuke made a mental note to assign he and Kei night shifts.

"So, what's your name?" Kei asked.

"Kaidi," the girl answered breezily. "Nice to meet you."

Sasuke felt a pang in his chest. She had the same name as the little girl who'd died, Sasuke's tiny companion, who had been almost like a sister. It seemed so long ago, when in reality, it hadn't been more than a couple months.

Kaidi noticed. "Something wrong?"

"Huh...? Oh no, everything's fine."

Kaidi sighed. "Well then, I'm turning in for the night. I'm beat." She flopped down on her bed, kicking off her boots, and was snoring within minutes.

Sasuke and Kei sat in silence for a few minutes. Kei shook his head. "She's a funny girl. Bit odd. Bit too trusting. Kinda cute. I like her!"

Sasuke sighed. "Yeah, well we're doing shifts. I'd rather not be murdered in my sleep."

"Fine," Kei agreed. "But Rock Paper Scissors on who gets to have first shift."

Sasuke won, which made Kei complain and ask for best two out of three. Sasuke ignored him and told him he'd wake him up an hour earlier for second shift if he kept whining.

That seemed to convince the boy, and he lay down without another peep. He was asleep the second his head hit the pillow.

Sasuke sat back, thinking. That wasn't something he had much time for lately, and he appreciated the time he had now. Kei's breathing could be heard softly in the background, in and out, in a soothing, rhythmic sort of way.

In the complete silence, Sasuke felt himself drawn to it in a way. There wasn't anything between them, just the comforting reminder that there was another human in the same room. That he wasn't alone. That he actually had someone to care about--

Sasuke bolt upright.

What was he doing?

All those familiar feelings; panic, fear, sadness, they all rose up in him again.

He was breaking his number one rule. He was crushing it. Trampling it and tossing aside without a second glance.

And that usually resulted in someone getting hurt.

Sasuke buried his face in his hands, glad no one was awake to see him. He couldn't bear the thought of losing anyone close to him. Not again. And he was only opening the door to that opportunity by allowing him to care about his companions.

But what could he do? Abandon Kei?

Sasuke sat there for hours, a sense of despair blowing through him. He knew something would happen. Perhaps it wouldn't be for a while, or maybe it would happen tomorrow. He'd allowed Kei to get too close, when he'd only intended him to be a temporary partner.

"Guess I'm just too soft, huh Itachi?" He whispered. "Oh well. Things can't get worse anyway."

But they did. Because the next morning, Kaidi announced she would be traveling with them.

"Why?" Sasuke asked, a bit irritated.

"Because, I'm bored of being by myself!" Kaidi exclaimed. "And to get to be a part of your group--that's awesome!"

Sasuke opened his mouth, about to tell her no, when Kei spoke. "Why not! She'd be a valuable asset!"

Sasuke had argued, but Kei and Kaidi finally got their way. And so, after much disagreement and fighting, Kaidi became his third ally.

Kaidi's name is pronounced (Kay-dee)

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