Escape [Sasuke Uchiha]

Chapter 55: The Aftermath

[The next day...]

Third Person's P.O.V

"Eeehh?! What do you mean Naruto Uzumaki is not in his bed?! He's not in a good condition to move around yet!"

"Shizune-san, it seems Ayuda Makino has disappeared as well!"

"Haaah?! This is bad! Everyone, let's split up and search all over the village! They better not do something stupid!"

Three figures were standing just outside the hospital, witnessing a fair amount of medical ninjas rushing out of the building and betaking themselves to different directions. Shizune, the Fifth Hokage's assistant, was seen following behind a group of them with great immediacy. Panic was written all over her face and they could understand why.

Kankuro snickered, "Don't tell me those two are planning to retrieve Sasuke Uchiha again."

Temari spoke up, "If they do, I'm not surprised. Those two are the closest to that guy after all. It's no wonder why they are so persistent about it."

The youngest among the three, Gaara, remained tight-lipped, which was undeniably a normal thing. His arms crossed over his chest and his features were cold and hard as steel, emanating the vibe of an unapproachable person. He heard his older brother ask, "So? When do we get back to the Sand Village?"

"Baki-sensei mentioned that we ought to return when everything is alright," replied Temari, "I guess we will depart tomorrow then."

"Ah! You three!" a recognizable female voice came in, pulling their eyes in the direction of the voice. It was Shizune who appeared out of nowhere. Beads of sweat rolled down her face slowly but surely. She sent them a tired smile and said, "Could you lend us a help? As you can see, Naruto and Ayuda have vanished from the hospital and I have just received a report from the guards at the gate that they haven't seen them yet, so they must be somewhere in the village. It would be very much appreciated if you three help us once again."

Temari and Kankuro exchanged glances while Gaara kept gazing at Shizune with a blank stare. Since the three of them had nothing else to do, they accepted the unexpected mission.

Gaara strolled around the village at a leisure pace until he reached a secluded, hidden place. His aimless journey had sent him there by coincidence. However, it seemed the luck was on his side for he detected an identifiable chakra not far from him. He thought nonchalantly, 'It's that girl's chakra...'

The redhead scoured the hushed area. Everyone, including children, could tell that this place was long abandoned. Although the place was blessed with a calm serenity, Gaara could faintly feel an eerie vibe radiating around it. It's as if that place had a very disturbing past that the harrowing aura still remained there to this day. Since he had murdered a great number of people before, he had learned that this ambiance was only found in places that were once filled with screams of terror a long time ago.

A bright color caught his eyes. It was the color of red and white in the shape of a paper fan. He recognized it right away as the crest behind Sasuke Uchiha's shirt. In other words, it was the Uchiha Clan's symbol which means this area was unmistakably the Uchiha compound, the place where the Uchiha Clan lived.

But what was Ayuda doing there?

***

Ayuda's P.O.V

There is no mistaking it. This is the place where he took me on a date - the place where we had our picnic together, surrounded by dark purple tulips called Queen of the Night.

A calming breeze swept past me, inviting and dancing along with my dark hair, as I took in the beauteous scenery before me. Green, fresh trees, a wide clear field filled with dark tulips that shook from left to right along with the wind as though they also desired to dance as well, the blue and white sky. It's a shame that not many people could discover such magnificent view, though it was better this way so no one could pollute this land.