𝐑𝐄𝐒𝐄𝐍𝐓𝐌𝐄𝐍𝐓 | gaara/sasuke uchiha

Chapter Fifteen - Don't Judge a Book by Its Cover

[Sasuke's P.O.V]

"... I still don't understand what the point of us coming was." 

After a long and boring meeting that consisted of Itachi and I accompanying our father to meet with the rest of the Konoha Military Police Force, we're booted from the room alongside a couple of the other younger members as the elders begin talks about how to deal with the sudden uprise in gang activity in Konoha. 

A couple of them walking behind us, Naka and Naori, both chuckle at my remark, and I turn to face them. They're both in their mid-twenties, only a couple of years older than Itachi. Unlike most of the others in our clan, Naka has chin-length grey hair, while Naori has long, wavy purple hair with short-cropped bangs that hang on both sides of her forehead.

"Because you two are the future of the force, of course," said Naori with a small grin. I roll my eyes at her; quite frankly, since Itachi's a part of an illegal gang and I don't have any interest in the law enforcement of our town, the future of the force doesn't look very promising. No one knows about Itachi's involvement with the Akatsuki, and no one gives a damn that I don't want to be a part of it, so everything looks rosy and right to them. Idiots. 

I wear a sour look on my face as Itachi remains silent, resulting in Naka patting my shoulder.

"Look on the bright side, kiddo. You'll meet interesting people every day," he offers unhelpfully, making me shrug him off with a scowl. Naori rubs his arm in sympathy, and I openly show my discontent.

"What, like drunks and gang members?" I snap, speeding up ahead of them. Suddenly, a hand grips around my wrist and sends me flying back, and I look up to see Itachi shaking his head. Naka and Naori are smirking now, and I feel my cheeks heat up in embarrassment as I tear my wrist from Itachi's grasp.

"Actually, yes," says Naka, pointing a finger upwards. "This other day I met this peculiar drunk. It was sometime after midnight and she was carrying some briefcase- I thought she might've been homeless- and it was like... one second she was drunk, and the next, she was high-tailing it like a gazelle. Poor girl must've been a runaway; I looked her up on the records and found her profile. There seemed to be nothing fishy about her- she was a top student, happy as can be. But she lived with a single mum, so I'm guessing they might've had a falling out."

"Or she could've been doing something suspicious," argues Itachi. "You must never underestimate people and their motives, Naka. For all you know, that girl could've been smuggling illegal things, and you let her slip right under your nose." Said man laughs and scratches the back of his head, grinning.

"Nah, she looked too innocent," he chuckles. I roll my eyes.

"Right," I say sarcastically, crossing my arms. "What an interesting story." 

It's then that a smile creeps onto his face, and I raise an eyebrow.

"She goes to your school," he muses. I roll my eyes yet again, mind instantly jumping to the losers who hang around behind the gear shed smoking weed between classes. "Her name's [Name] [Surname]. Ring any bells?"

Itachi places a hand on my back as I freeze up. A drunk [Name]?

"Like I said, never judge a book by its cover," he says in a soft voice, almost as if trying to tell me something. I raise an eyebrow.

"I doubt [Name]'s capable of doing something as stupid as smuggling illegal stuff," I sneer. "You probably got the wrong [Name]."

Naka shrugs, and Itachi sighs.

"Probably."

A drunk [Name]? No way. Okay, so what if it was my [Name]- why would she be drunk and out past midnight? With a briefcase? Were there really issues between her and her mum?! Had she slipped into that phase again?! Why else would she be out at that time- what was wrong with her?! Is she okay now?! Did she really run away?! What happened?!

"... your school. Hello, Sasuke? You paying attention?" I grimace, ignoring Naka's little anecdote about another schoolmate of mine he'd run into, all thoughts leaping straight to [Name].

I hope she's okay. I should check on her.