Inbred

Finally, after so many days I completed this. It was really challenging I'll tell you that. I hope it was worth the wait and it's not too much a disappointment.

No NC-17 stuff, seeing as how it's impossible with Neji recovering and Hinata staying at Kurenai's.

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Chapter 44

Sasuke didn't drink coffee. He didn't like the caffeine and the temporary bursts of energy that resulted in the crashing low and the addiction for more. To him, it wasn't natural but right now he had just finished his second cup and was already brewing a third. He didn't want to sleep, he was too anxious and too afraid, but he didn't want to admit that to anyone, not even Naruto who had been unable to sleep as well after he heard the news.

He had told him about the accident, and how the police wrote it off as him driving under the influence. He told him about the boy that saved their lives and about the car and driver that mysteriously vanished from the scene and he also told him about the baby and the anonymous text-message.

It was that message that frightened him most of all.

He hadn't been sure what to make of it at first but it worried him that someone knew he was there and his conscience advised him to heed the warning. He had dressed quickly and immediately went for Neji, against the doctor's counsel, and hitched a ride back to campus in a taxi.

He didn't even get to put his key in the lock properly before the door swung open and he was met with a very frantic and very irate Naruto, but when he saw the unconscious Hyuga in his arms he became worried. Sasuke laid the boy to rest on his bed before joining his friend at the kitchen table to explain everything that had happened.

But Naruto had problems of his own.

Apparently, while he was out, Mizuki and Kakashi-sensei had searched his apartment looking for proof there had been a girl in his dorm but Kurenai-sensei superseded them and snuck Hinata to her house and Sasuke was glad that whatever it was the doctor gave Neji had him out cold because he did not need to hear anymore bad news.

"Sasuke it was awful," the blond sighed as he recalled the maniacal teacher rummaging through the apartment, going through everything with a fine-toothed-comb and the rigorous interrogation that he had been put through. Naruto remained staunch throughout the entire ordeal but the raving lunatic was quickly getting on his last nerve and if Kakashi-sensei hadn't been there to keep the other teacher in check then Naruto would have punched his face in.

"I mean the guy was everywhere and in everything and I couldn't even tell him to 'fuck off' because Kakashi-sensei said that they were given orders from the head."

Sasuke remained silent, hunched over his empty mug and staring forlorn at the dregs settled at the bottom.
"I'm really sorry, Sasuke," was Naruto's muttered apology. He was suffering from a terrible guilt about the whole thing and if he hadn't asked them to allow Hinata to stay then this wouldn't have happened to his best friend. However, he never regretted his decision, not even for one minute, because just like Kurenai-sensei had said, he did what he knew in his heart was right.

Sasuke too had to deal with a guilty conscience and even now as he bore a hole through the bottom of his ceramic cup he found it hard to forgive himself for dragging Neji along with him.

If only he hadn't forced the other boy to come along...

"Sasuke?"

He was so caught up in his self-loathing that he didn't hear his best friend call him by name.

"Hel-lo, Earth to Sasuke?" and his eyes automatically locked on to the tanned hand that waved back and forth in front of him.

He acknowledged the boy with a despondent 'Hm?' and Naruto's shoulders sagged and he frowned at the unfamiliarly somber aura he was emitting. He was used to Sasuke moping but he'd never seen him this depressed.

"You're really bummed aren't you?"

"Hai!" he whispered softly.

The kettle whistled, inconsiderately disturbing their moment of silence. It was Naruto that got up to rescue it from it's bed of hot coils and prepared another cup of coffee for the Uchiha. He placed it on the table, right in front of the brunette who thanked him and just hovered his face over the steam and inhaled the rich aroma of cocoa.

"Umm, does Neji know about the baby being...you know?"

Sasuke nodded and bit his lip in an attempt to hold back his tears as the image of his lover screaming and thrashing on the hospital bed after he told him reappeared in his head.

Naruto gave a low whistle and leaned back against the chair. "He didn't take it well did he?"

The other man sobbed when his mind echoed Neji's cries that would forever haunt him as he called out for his child. Naruto got up from his seat and threw a comforting arm around his friend's shoulders and cradled him against his chest as he let it all out.

Naruto wasn't there, he only heard about what they'd been through and he could never say he knew exactly how they felt, but it hurt him too and his heart ached and went out to the two men and although he couldn't grieve like they could he had a hard time fighting back his tears.

Naruto brushed away the trails of water with the back of his hand and rubbed the Uchiha's arm with the other, rocking him gently and offering his comfort and shoulder to cry on. He'd hold Sasuke all day if he had to because even though he was a pain in the ass sometimes, even if he always rode on the guy's very last nerve and even when he was being a nuisance he was first and foremost his best friend and the only person who'd stick by his side because no matter how grim things got and no matter what problems they faced they'd confront them together.

Sasuke soon stopped shaking and Naruto didn't release him even then.

"You okay?" the blond teen asked with a strained and quiet voice. Sasuke nodded, he couldn't speak through the lump in his throat.

"Sasuke, man this is..." Naruto paused and sighed deeply, still overwrought with the series of unfortunate events. "It's the kind of thing you'd hear about but never expect to happen to you. I'm sorry man, this...you don't deserve this."

He knew the boy was only trying to offer support but his words did nothing to make him feel any better, but it was nice to listen to his voice, to know that someone really cared about what he was going through and, at least this time, he didn't have to undergo this tragedy alone.

There was a knock at the front door but Naruto made no move to answer it. Another followed shortly after and Sasuke sat up to get it but the younger boy got up first and instructed him to remain seated. When he went to greet their visitor he was very surprised to find Shino and Shikamaru at the door, he'd half expected Mizuki to pass back for another surprise check.

"Umm, can you guys come back later? Now's not a good time." He didn't want to turn the other boys away but he figured Sasuke would like to be alone right now.

"We understand," said Shino. "Just tell Uchiha he has our support?"

Naruto stiffened visibly and stole a glance back towards Sasuke. "What do you mean 'your support'?" he whispered quietly so the brunette at the table couldn't hear.

Shikamaru sighed and removed the folded newspaper he had cradled in the crook of his arm and held it out to the blonde boy. "We read about the accident in this morning's paper," he droned matter-of-factly. "And Sasuke is a friend of ours so we came to see how he was doing."

"And what about, Neji?" he muttered angrily as he took the paper from the outstretched hand and when the two young men exchanged a glance Naruto felt his blood pressure rise.

The other boy raised a puzzled eyebrow. "What about Neji?"

"What the hell do you mean 'What about Neji'!" he exploded. "I know you and Hyuga don't get along but that's no reason for you to be so cold, Shikamaru."

The other boy balked, perplexed by the blonde's sudden outrage.

While what he said was true about him and Hyuga not being on the best of terms he wondered what any of it had to do with Sasuke's accident last night. "I'm sure Neji is going to be just as relieved as I am when he hears that Sasuke is alright so there's no reason for you to go flying off the handle, Naruto."

He paused for a long moment and just stared at the slightly shorter boy as if he were an escaped mental patient. "What the hell are you talking about?"

Shikamaru became very annoyed at his ramblings and shot him a glare just as petulant as his own. "What the hell are you talking about?" he echoed.

"Good morning Shino, Shikamaru," Sasuke welcomed them in a soft voice and nodded his head in greeting as he acknowledged each boy and they greeted him in like manner. Naruto hadn't even noticed the Uchiha had moved from his place at the table and was now standing right beside him until he spoke and the sound of his deep voice startled him slightly.

"How are you feeling?" asked the quiet Aburame and Sasuke nodded and ran haggard fingers through his hair.

"I'm fine," he replied on a sigh.

"You don't look fine," noted the observant Nara and Sasuke shrugged a despondent shoulder. "But you also don't look like you're hung-over."

"I wasn't drunk," he ground out in a flat voice.

Shikamaru and Shino both believed him, they knew he was a social drinker but he was not the type to allow himself to get plastered, they also knew he was responsible enough to not drink and drive.

"The papers said you were," the young genius pointed out. It was more of an observation out of curiosity and not an accusation out of arrogance so Sasuke didn't become defensive.

"The papers say whatever the cops told them to say," he countered before inviting the two boys in so he could close and lock the door and continue their discussion in the privacy of his apartment. The guests made themselves comfortable in the living-room sofa and Naruto handed the newspaper to the Uchiha when he asked for it. He flipped through its pages, looking for the article Shikamaru had referred to while the blond teen sat on the couch opposite the two visitors and affixed them with a stormy glare.

He still hadn't forgotten their callous disregard of the Hyuga.

Both boys defiantly met his gaze and Shikamaru tilted his head to one side but it was Shino that asked the question on the genius Nara's mind.

"A penny for your thoughts, Naruto?"

The boy bristled. "How can you just sit there like that and not show one ounce of concern for Neji?" he huffed. "Do you guys hate him that much?"

Shino was slightly offended by the remark but he remained silent. The Aburame had nothing personal against the Hyuga, he just found him to be a bit too pompous and arrogant to his liking. The only reason he even knew Neji was because he knew Sasuke and attended the same classes he did and throughout the few short years they knew one another they'd said no more than two words to each other. He wouldn't say he hated Neji but he hadn't formed a close enough relationship with the Hyuga prodigy to say he liked him either.

Shikamaru, on the other hand, knew Neji fairly well and was the only other person alive that knew he and the Uchiha were an item and he could understand why Neji was wary about him knowing because if any of the teachers found out they were romantically involved then they'd be split up into separate dorms...or worse. Shikamaru was not the kind of person to gossip or spread rumours so Sasuke knew their little tryst would remain a secret but Neji didn't seem to trust him and it was his misgivings that acted as a wedge between them and like Shino, Shikamaru only tolerated him because the Uchiha did. But, he didn't hate him.

"We don't hate him, Naruto," sighed the lazy punk, voicing his thoughts and when Naruto scoffed and folded his arms over his chest Shikamaru sighed again. "What does it matter anyway? Sasuke's fine and, as I said earlier, Neji will be relieved when he hears that."

Naruto blinked twice and replayed his words over and over again in his mind. Something was telling him that they had their wires crossed. "Eh?"

Shikamaru also deduced that they weren't on the same page and asked the boy to clarify himself but Sasuke spoke up before the blonde could even open his mouth.

"Neji was in the accident with me."

Shino and Shikamaru were silent for a moment before offering their sympathies.

"You mean, you didn't know?" the youngest boy asked and he wagged a pointed, index finger from one visitor to the next, feeling remorseful for accusing them of being heartless bastards. They both shook their heads and Naruto furrowed his eyebrows. "But, but, you knew about Sasuke, how come you didn't know about Neji?"

"We only know what we read in the paper," Shikamaru stated simply, indicating to the object of their discussion that Sasuke had occupied himself with. "It only mentioned one person, and that was Sasuke."

Naruto was baffled by what he said and would have accused him of lying but the dark-haired Uchiha nodded his head and confirmed what the Nara boy just said after reading the paragraph long article for the second time. "It's true," he sighed with an odd mixture of relief and exasperation. "Neji's not in here."

He handed the paper to his friend, and pointed out the tiny article at the bottom of the page before translating for the benefit of the other boy.

Naruto recognized a few of the characters and he picked out Sasuke's name easily but after he scanned the meager four lines of text over and over and then again for a third time he realized that the other men were telling the truth. Neji's name was not mentioned or the fact that there had been a second person involved in the accident at all, according to what Sasuke read. There wasn't even a picture and it was tucked away near the back of the paper like some insignificant piece of tripe that Naruto was surprised that they even noticed it. But then again, as lazy as the Nara boy was, he was probably the kind of person that would read the paper cover to cover.

"And while we're on the topic," Shikamaru cut in. "I don't remember them mentioning anything about it on the news last night, either."

"Nothing at all?" queried the blond and both Shino and his dorm partner shook their heads.

Suspicion had taken hold of Sasuke the second he had that conversation with the doctor and after the mysterious text message and now this he was convinced that something peculiar was going on...and he was going to get to the bottom of it.

"Where're you going Sasuke?" Naruto asked when the boy rose from his seat and headed over to the side-table where his cordless phone sat.

"Just making a call," he muttered as he punched in the numbers he had memorized to Detective Danzo. Sasuke made his way into the kitchen nook for a little privacy and left the other three men in the living-room. He heard the television turn on just as a recording cut in to inform him that number was no longer in service so he tried the cell-phone and was greeted by the gruff, familiar voice after two rings.

"Danzo, hey!"

There was a brief pause on the other line. "Who's this?"

"It's me, Uchiha," reminded the young man.

"Oh yeah," he laughed in embarrassment at having forgotten one of his more regular clients and Sasuke heard him snap his fingers. "It's been a while," reminisced the older man. "I haven't heard you in, what is this? About a year and...two months now?"

"Yeah. Did you relocate or something?" he asked. The usually quiet background was now animated with the monotonous sounds of people conversing and telephones ringing and he wondered if the man had finally managed to expand.

"No, worse. I'm back on the force," he admitted with a disdainful snort. "The wife surprised me with twins a couple of weeks ago and since then it's been one thing after another so I had to shut down and find a job that offered a little more security."

"Sorry to hear that," the boy muttered. He knew how much the other man hated working for the government. The bribes, cover-ups and crooked cops were the reasons he quit the force in the first place and started up a private practice of his own, but like any self-employed venture he had to rely heavily on the business of his clients and while he dealt mainly with tracking adulterers and investigating false insurance claims the real revenue came from tracing the whereabouts and activities of one, Uchiha Itachi.

He didn't blame Sasuke for giving up on the case though because, quite honestly, he had lost all hope of ever catching the elusive Uchiha himself. He had enjoyed working for the boy and it was one of his most interesting yet challenging cases he'd taken and it was the only case that remained open to date.

He was going to miss those days, where he was his own boss and worked according to his own procedures but now, having to work the old beat again made him feel like a dog returning to it's own vomit.

"But congratulations are in order," the young boy added and the older man grunted his gratitude.

Sasuke suddenly envied him. He was fortunate to have been blessed with not one but two children. Sasuke had never liked kids, they were aggravating, annoying and noisy and he already had to put up with Naruto so he sure as hell didn't want or need any around him, but after last night his outlook had changed dramatically and he found he desperately wanted to be a father, but not of just any baby. The baby's mother had to be Neji.

And only Neji.

"So, you interested in re-opening that old file of yours?" Danzo asked, getting right down to business and putting a halt to the boy's fantasy.

"No, I just wanted you to find a car and track some kid."

"Oh, is that all?" he almost sounded disappointed and Sasuke imagined that for an investigator of his caliber the assignment didn't sound very challenging.

"Well, it's got to do with the accident last night," and he peeked over his shoulder and lowered his voice so the others in the adjacent room couldn't hear him.

"Yeah, I heard about that. DUI eh? I never pegged you as the type, Sasuke," and the older man laughed before sighing 'Ah young people' under his breath.

"I wasn't drunk," Sasuke ground out. He was starting to feel like a parrot or a broken, old record.

"Hmm, I believe you."

"Too bad your buddies didn't," he muttered sarcastically.

The detective scoffed at the term of endearment the boy used to describe his work-mates. "Yeah, well one of the guys that showed up on the scene was some little greenhorn, still wet behind the ears. Figured he was some big shot, jumped to the wrong conclusion and made a bad call," he explained with distaste dripping from his voice. He hated it when other officers felt that just because they wore a badge it made them the authority on everything. "Feel free to sue for defamation of character if you want," and he wasn't joking, he was dead serious.

Sasuke declined the tempting offer, there was something else he was more concerned with, but at least that little mystery was cleared up.

"So, what caused the accident?" His voice was suddenly a few bars lower and the sounds in the background had diminished and Sasuke presumed he escaped to a more secluded area where no one could eavesdrop on his conversation.

"That's what I want you to find out."

"Hmm, you mentioned a car earlier, was that it?" There was a soft 'click' and the sound of a pen scribbling against paper.

"Yeah, but according to the press and the police report there was no car."

"Mmm hmm! I know. Any descriptions come to mind? Like the colour or model?" and the boy replied in the negative. The only thing he remembered about the vehicle before he was temporarily blinded was that it had its bright lights on but if he had to make a guess, he'd say the vehicle was of a dark colour, but it was night at the time and he couldn't be sure and he didn't want to guess and send the man on a wild goose chase.

"Not much to go on here," and Sasuke heard him stretch. It was something he always did whenever he was hyped up about a new case. "I'll take a look around the area, if it was a collision I'm sure that proof of another vehicle may be scattered somewhere. I'd also like to get a look at your car."

"I don't know where it is," he admitted with a shake of his head.

"Don't worry about it. I'm sure we have the name of the tow company on file."

A thought suddenly came to him. "Do you think the same company towed the other car too if they were in the area?"

The man on the other end paused for a long moment and Sasuke heard him tapping something against the desk-top. "It's highly unlikely but I'd like to explore that possibility as well," and he scratched another note against the sheet of paper. "You also mentioned a boy?"

"Yeah, Momochi Haku, attends Kuni Private School for Boys and from what I gathered he's a witness."

Danzo's voice brightened with excitement. "Now we're getting somewhere."

"Hn."

"He shouldn't be too hard to find, in fact I even have a- Shit! hold on a second." There was commotion in the background and Sasuke heard the detective deny knowing the whereabouts of another officer before swearing again and reminding his co-worker that he was a detective and he had him confused with a damned negotiator and to find someone else. When he returned to the receiver in his hand he was miffed and his voice was alot more gruff than usual.

"Sorry about that," he growled and Sasuke had a hard time hearing him over the crescendo of shouting in the background.

"Something wrong?" the boy asked, just a tad bit curious.

"Hostage situation. We've been trying to keep it under wraps since word first got out this morning. We believe it's terrorist activity but nothing's proven yet." The older man sighed deeply before continuing. "But it leaked to the press anyway and now the media's formed a circus around the whole thing and these useless mother-fuckers are running around like frightened little school-girls trying to get everything resolved before it causes a panic."

Sasuke was sure Danzo just breached some kind of police confidentiality procedure by telling him that but Sasuke knew from first-hand experiences how the press worked and if they were already swarming around this story then it was going to be all over the news and it didn't matter if he knew a few minutes before everyone else did.

"Hn, I guess now's a bad time, huh?"

"Not at all. I'll check our records for the tow company and go look at your car today and see if I can locate the other one, and I'll have the information for you on this 'Haku' character by this evening."

"You sure your superiors won't have a problem with you moonlighting?" Sasuke was grateful that the man placed precedence on his case above all others and he knew that when Danzo said he was going to do something it was going to be done, but he didn't want a situation to arise where he could stand to lose his job, especially now that he had a family to support.

"What they don't know won't hurt them besides, a few of my old clientele still keep in touch with me and you're not the first to call and I know you won't be the last."

Sasuke heard the smugness in his voice and he knew the man was feeling haughty about playing his employers for saps. "Stick it to the man, huh?" the Uchiha teased and he had to pull the headset away to avoid suffering massive damage to his hearing from the loud laughter but he wasn't prepared for the migrane-inducing yell that came from Naruto in the other room.

"SASUKE, COME QUICK!"

The dark-haired boy cursed and hurriedly said a farewell to the detective before ending the call and rushing into the living-room. He didn't even get a chance to open his mouth properly and ask what the problem was because his eyes had already traveled from the panicked expression on the blond's face and along his tanned arm to stop at the television screen which he was indicating with a pointed finger.

It was an updated news report on the hostage situation Danzo was telling him about earlier and the female reporter in the middle of the screen claimed, just as the man had said, that 'according to sources' it could be an act of terrorism.

He'd wanted to ask the boy why he felt the need to burst his eardrums over this but his dark eyes focused in and locked onto the building in the background behind the sea of reporters and barricade of police officers trying to keep them at a safe distance.

"Isn't that the hospital you and Neji were staying at?" Naruto's voice was now soft and shaky and his wide, blue eyes never left his friend's face and he watched as all colour drained from his skin and those stark, onyx eyes grew as wide as his.

Naruto was right. It was the very same hospital.

"Oh...my...God!" Sasuke whispered almost inaudibly. His heart skipped a beat and his breathing paused as he watched more armed policemen slip into the building just as others removed what was the third body-bag, but he suddenly broke into a cold-sweat when the reporter confirmed that the body count was now over one hundred and eighty-seven; staff and patients included.

"Looks like you got out in time," commented Shikamaru on his good luck.

"When did this happen?" Uchiha rasped and raised the volume from the remote a few more bars before slipping into an available space next to Nara.

"No one knows exactly," droned the lazy brunette. "It's been going on since four in the morning but they belive it started long before then."

"They haven't caught anyone either and so far there don't appear to be any survivors," added Shino.

Shikamaru stifled a yawn with one hand and leaned forward to rest his elbows on his knees. "I don't think they're in there anymore," he stated simply and when everyone turned their eyes to him he elaborated on his theory. "If this was supposed to be a hostage situation then the culprits would need to keep at least one person alive to secure their escape but if they already had an alternate means of escape then I understand why they wouldn't leave any witnesses or survivors. But I don't think it's an act of terrorism either."

Naruto furrowed his brows together. "What makes you say that?"

"Well," he sighed. "Terrorism usually results from a group of individuals or an organization making a protest through violent means, usually to intimidate the leaders of a country to acquiescence to their demands, but so far, no demands have been made and if all hostages have already been terminated then they no longer have that as a trump card."

"So is this just some kind of random act of violence?" probed the blond and Shikamaru shrugged one shoulder. "But what kind of sick person would kill a hospital full of doctors and sick people?" and Shikamaru shot an annoyed glance at the boy that seemed to think he was some kind of oracle or psychic.

"I assure you I don't know," came the flat reply and Naruto bristled at his dry response.

"Maybe someone wanted to make a point," theorized the Aburame.

"Yeah, security's been pretty lax at the public buildings lately," his room-mate agreed with a nod of his head.

"Something like that happened in the States once but the guy didn't have to kill anyone to prove his point," the blond raged as he recalled the daring stunt performed by one young man at an airport. True, what he did was illegal but he took that risk to show that if an average joe like himself could get away with sneaking foreign substances aboard a plane then anyone could, but if these guys wanted to make the public aware that the security at their hospitals was poor then Naruto was sure they could have addressed the issue in a more diplomatic manner.

Both visitors agreed but with little to go on and the police refusing to make a comment regarding the situation that scenario seemed to be the most probable although everyone was reluctant to believe it was true.

Sasuke's suspicions grew along with his ever increasing fear and he wanted, so desperately, to shake the paranoia that kept telling him someone was out to get him. He nearly jumped out of his skin when the phone rang and he cursed himself for being so skittish.

He angrily pounded the 'TALK' button on the cordless receiver and acknowledged the caller with a very aggravated tone but when the person on the other line spoke Sasuke's spine hardened and every muscle in his body contracted as he was greeted by that smooth, familiar voice. The voice he hadn't heard ever since he was nine years old but remembered as the voice that haunted him in his nightmares. The voice of the man he hated, loathed and despised, the voice of the man he swore to kill with his bare hands and avenge for the death of his family and loved ones.

The voice of Uchiha Itachi.

-----

So sorry for the delay but this chapter was really hard to do. First, I wasn't sure if to continue immediately after Sasuke received that message but nothing interesting would have happened on the way home so I skipped it and, instead, summarized how they left the hospital.

Secondly, I wasn't sure whether I should have an article in the paper or not especially when I didn't want it to be on the news but some news are put in the paper and not on TV so I left it like that. I also wasn't sure if I wanted Shikamaru and Shino to find out about the accident but in the end I decided I needed them and the rest of the school to know about it for specific reasons. And finally, I wanted this to be as believable as possible since I don't know much about the police or the media.

Danzo makes another appearance and the conversation between he and Sasuke was really difficult to script. Oh and just in case anyone gets confused: Yes! Sasuke did call Danzo the day after Naruto and Neji trashed Orochimaru's place but they never did get a chance to talk because Sasuke drops the phone before he even opens his mouth, so the detective didn't know who was on the other line. (Sighs with relief after avoiding that plot-hole)

Itachi finally contacts his brother after all these years. YAY! But what is his motive, especially since he went to such great efforts to avoid Sasuke in the first place.