A rather quick update, I know.

I apologize if the grammar isn't up to scraps and if everything seems rushed.

Enjoy.

)()()(

A few days had passed since the unnamed man had visited me and in those few days, I would like to mention, I made a few shocking discoveries.

First of, I spent a good few hours each day bawling into my pillow, occasionally giving it a punch for good measure—though I couldn't do much with a needle sticking in my arm. The information fed to me during the small visit from the long haired man had sunk in rather fast, so fast that my small mind almost shut down on me.

I don't know how long I just sat there, staring at the wall, but after awhile, I broke down into small sobs and had to eventually muffle my own face into my pillow to stop myself making too much noise. My gut clenched and for some time, I was positive everything in my body was going to burst from the strain. It was like a snake had decided it would be fun to squeeze me to death—or, that's what it felt like.

The tightness in my chest and stomach didn't lessen, it continued to constrict almost painfully. It was only when I finally gave into sleep did I feel slightly more relaxed. But even then, I could barely sleep for an hour before waking up just to continue crying.

I wanted to crawl into a ball and disappear. I was confused and lonely and in desperate need of a hug from my mother.

It wasn't like I could see my sister. Like the man said, I couldn't see her for a few months and even then it wasn't set in stone. The thought of my sister was the starting point before the dam broke, and also the reason I was even crying in the first place. Though, it quickly shifted around the third day when I eventually calmed down.

On the third day, after not eating since the visit, I had wolfed down the breakfast I was given. Rice and water, just like before. I didn't even have to glance twice before it was all gone and the slight hunger pain and growls stopped.

It was enough for me to decide I wanted to be near the window, on the opposite side of the room, for some fresh air. I needed it, badly.

I couldn't quite see outside from the bed, seeing as the window was quite high up. But I did eventually manage to pull myself out of bed and waddle my way over to the window, with the IV in tow, to pull back the almost transparent white curtains.

I had to steady myself a few times, since I hadn't used my legs for just over a week but I quickly regained balance and managed to set myself up onto the tips of my toes to peer over the sill. I blinked a few times, inspecting the clear blue morning sky and pulled back when I accidentally looked directly at the sun. I shook it off a second later, only to discover something more stressful on my behalf.

I had seen it before, that was for certain and I had to double take to make sure I wasn't seeing things.

Far off into the distance I spotted a familiar mountain with carvings scattered across it. I choked in shock, my jaw falling slack in disbelief. Ether it was all a set up or someone was really into that damn mange. Damn it, why cant I remember the name of it?

However, I did remember the name of the mountain. Lara had mentioned it all too often that I couldn't exactly forget it.

It was the Hokage monument. Clear as day, crafted perfectly into the faces of the previous Hokage's. Though, I couldn't name any of them to save my life. I just recognized it immediately.

At that point, I had staggered back to my bed, flopping down onto it in frozen surprise.

My mouth felt suddenly very dry.

What if Lara was right? I had thought, blinking back the familiar stinging feeling as I clenched my hand around a fistful of my blanket. Fuck, oh fuck. This cannot be happening.

My eyes became blurry and I blinked back the tears that were forming, clouding my vision.

No. I'm just dreaming. It's all just a dream. A stupid, fucking dream.

I wasn't that lucky.

)()()(

A few days after my discovery, and after I had come to terms with the situation, I came to the conclusion that if I didn't look at it, then it wasn't there. It was foolish, considering now that I saw it, I couldn't exactly unsee it, as much as I wished I could.

Because there was no way I was in a fictional world. It had to be some mistake. But I kept picturing Lara, I kept picturing her excitement before and after landing in this hell-hole. She was adamant that she was actually in her 'dream world' and refused to believe otherwise.

I, on the other hand, couldn't understand what was going on. I was so sure of myself, I believed it to be impossible to suddenly jump worlds, and to a certain extent, I still do. But now there were doubts. It could still be just one big huge misunderstanding, or it could even be a prank to fool me. After all, Lara did have a vivid and wild imagination, so what's stopping her from building props just to scare me?

If it was true, am I the damsel in distress or the villain? Which one this time?

I swallowed. But then again, what if she actually did manage to ship us both off into a world that shouldn't even exist?

I blinked.

How would she even manage that in the first place? Did she know magic or-

My eyes widened.

Father. His book. She said she had his book.

Did that have something to do with this?

I wildly shook my head.

No. This still cannot be real.

But what if it is?

I bit my lip, peeking up at the window. If this is real, what the hell do I do? As far as I knew about the manga that Lara love to read, is that is was full of death and Konoha—more times than not—received a lot of bad luck. Well, at least I think it does. Who would want to live around ninjas anyway? Let alone create a whole village full of them.

I wrinkled my nose. The whole notion of a ninja village sounded all wrong. But seriously, ninjas? Just why?

I sighed heavily and scratched my head.

What would mother say if she was here right now?

I snorted. She would probably roll her eyes at me and tell me it's all just a fantasy and not to worry. That, or she would smack me upside the head and drag me to see a psychologist. I could easily imagine her doing both.

The sound of something tapping against the door dragged me out of my musings and I bolted up straight into a sitting position. No one had ever knocked before, usually they would just walk in. But this time, there was a knock and only then did whoever knocked, entered.

It was two people.

One of which I recognized. It was the woman from before who had taken a sample of my blood. She didn't look too pleased to be seeing me. I offered her a crooked and nervous smile.

I really hope she hasn't come just to steal more blood.

The other person I didn't recognize, but I did recognize what they wore. It was like before in the interrogation room, a man wearing a mask. But what could he be back here for? Is it even the same person? A brown paper bag was tucked neatly under his arm too, but I didn't focus too much on that.

"The Hokage has requested your presence." states the masked person, sidestepping to let the not so happy woman through. I grimaced at her approach.

I didn't really have a reply. I was still in the middle of trying to figure the situation out. It didn't really help when the person mentioned this supposed Hokage, all I could do was frown at the masked stranger. My doubts only worsened.

The woman quickly made it to the bed and continued to unhook me from the IV. I tried not to watch her as she pulled the needle from my arm, replacing it with a piece of cotton wool and a plaster to keep it in place. I carefully manoeuvred my arm around and cradled it close to my chest. It was nice to be free from restrictions and finally have my arm back.

She didn't say anything to me and instead carted the IV out of the room and shut the door behind her. I don't think she liked me very much, but the feeling was mutual. I don't trust people with needles, not one bit.

The masked stranger took this opportunity to step into the centre of the room, motioning me to get out of bed. I gingerly swung my legs over the edge and stood up, my bare feet coming into quick contact with the ground with a small slap. I scowled and scrunched up my toes.

I hadn't noticed until a few days ago that I wasn't in my school uniform any more and instead I was dressed in a small blue hospital gown. I was just relieved that nothing was exposed at the back.

I looked back up at the stranger, unsure or not if I should approach.

He took the first step and grabbed the paper bag from under his arm before holding it out to me, expecting me to take it. I swallowed and nodded my head, reaching over gently and took it quietly from his outstretched hand.

"Get changed first," he waved in the direction of the bag before moving to stand on the opposite side of the room, close to the window, and turned his head away from me. His body was still facing me.

I flushed scarlet and turned around, examining the items in the bag. I dumped them onto the bed before inspecting closer.

There were three clothing articles. The first was a simple faded, navy coloured jumper. The second was a pair of dark brown shorts and thirdly, there was a set of blue sandals. It wasn't anything flashy with bright colours, which I silently thanked. However, the clothing itself looked like it was more suited for a boy than a girl. It disappointed me slightly, mainly because I didn't want to be mistaken for a boy. But I guess I didn't have a choice in the matter.

At least I had something instead of nothing. Though, at the same time, I wondered why I haven't received my uniform back. I never voiced my question and instead threw the thought to the back of my head before peeping over my shoulder to make sure the person wasn't watching me.

With a small nod, pleased to know he hadn't turned to watch me, I quickly slipped off the hospital gown and just as quickly, shoved the jumper and shorts on as fast as I could. I don't think I could live it down if someone caught me changing, it was even worse knowing it was a strange that was indeed in the same room as me, but worst of all, it was a male.

My blush deepened and I frowned as I inspected the blue sandals.

I had never seen anything like it. I rubbed the fabric of the sandals between my fingers and was surprised to find it was rather soft to the touch, but held its place without bending. Perhaps it had some sort of elastic infused with the fabric? I blinked, running my hand down the bottom of the sandal and just as I suspected, the bottom of it was made of rubber for protection.

I didn't like how it was open toed though. But I guess it would have to do.

I sat on the edge of the bed and slipped the sandals on before standing up. I was surprised once again when I discovered the sandals offered some comfort. I wiggled my toes and rocked back and forth on my heels, noticing a small spring in the sandals.

It's so weird...

The masked man cleared his throat and my head snapped in his direction. I blinked at him.

He strode quickly over to me and lifted up his arm when he was a foot away. "Grab on," he calmly said "It will be easier this way."

Hesitantly, I reached up and grabbed a fistful of the fabric around his arm. He jerked his arm back, dragging me along with it and placed his free hand on the small of my back.

Before I could say anything or protest, the room suddenly swirled around us. I attempted to gasp in fright but found my lungs being squeezed along with the rest of my body. My stomach knotted uncomfortably and I clenched my eyes shut. It was like I was being forced through a hoop the size of a grape.

It was tight and my skin felt like it was rubbing against sandpaper. My head began to pound and I momentarily thought it would explode at any moment.

It was all over in a matter of seconds when I found air rushing back down into my lungs and I hungrily gulped down the air before my knees gave out on me and I tumbled to the ground in a heavy heap. My hands caught my fall and I began to cough and splutter, my head suddenly feeling very light and dizzy. My stomach churned and if it lasted more than a moment, I was sure that I would have emptied the contents of my stomach across the floor there and then.

I heaved and gasped for air, my vision blurry and watery.

It was kind of like being stuck at the bottom of the ocean or a pool, tied down by a bunch of rocks until you finally broke from the hold and made it to the surface, panting for oxygen with a pounding heart.

I shakily looked back up at the masked man, only to find he had vanished. I huffed, red faced, before flopping back onto my bottom, blinking away the blurriness in my eyes.

"Ah, so you are the one named Emily Taylor, correct?"

I froze on the spot. The new voice seeming oddly familiar. I swallowed back the thickness in my throat and finally looked up, searching for where the sound had come from.

The first thing I noticed was that I wasn't in the hospital room. Instead, I was in another, more spacious room. It was brightly lit, a row of windows lined across the back of the room, where a large wooden desk was placed.

I stiffened further when I noticed a figure sat behind the desk, hands clasped together, obscuring the lower part of their face. It didn't help that the sun that came through the windows casted a large shadow over the rest of his face. The only thing I could properly make out was a rather large hat sat atop his head, which held a white veil down the sides. Everything was cloaked, excluding his face which I couldn't see.

I would be lying if I said I wasn't intimidated.

I slowly nodded my head toward the man sat at the desk. Was this the Hokage?

"You are probably wondering why I sent for you." he added and I nodded again, carefully rising into a standing position. "You and your sister have caused quite a stir," I gulped, the long haired man had said almost the same thing. "And unfortunately, drastic measures have to be taken to ensure there isn't any information leaks due to the severity of the situation. Do you understand what I mean, Emily?"

I flinched. What exactly did he plan on doing with me?

"I-I'm not sure I follow," I squeaked, flushing crimson and let my gaze drop to the floor.

The man—Hokage?-chuckled and I bit my lip. Even when laughing he sounded scary.

Damn it Emily, get it together.

"Do not fret, you are in no trouble. Though, I can't exactly say the same for your sister, unfortunately."

My head shot up and I bristled at the comment. "She didn't do anything wrong," I snapped. I immediately regretted my outburst and backed down a second later, shuffling back slightly. "Sorry," I muttered, looking away again. If it was even possible, I'm sure my blush darkened. I could almost see the heat coming off my body.

He grunted. "It's a security risk, Emily, action has to be taken but do know your sister is in no danger." then why keep her from me? "If the information we have gathered were to somehow find its way into the hands of another, it can cause devastating results. Results of which I refuse to let happen, especially when it involves the life of a fellow citizen of Konoha." I bit down harder on my lip "Your sister knows too much, which is why she is still being detained. However, if everything goes according to plan, then you will be able to reunite with your sister in exactly three months."

I scowled, holding myself back from commenting again.

"You, on the other hand," I looked back up at him "Don't hold any threat toward my village or have any information regarding Konoha, which is why you were taken from the holding cell and placed into capable hands at the hospital."

I really wanted to snort at that. Capable hands? Everyone treated me like crap, if you ignore the long haired man, he was more impassive, like he really didn't give a damn.

"However, regarding your home," I listened more closely "I don't think it possible for you to return any time soon."

My heart sunk at that and my shoulders slumped down, my stomach knotting tightly and I held in the urge to vomit. This has to be some sick joke.

"But, we are doing everything we possibly can to send you back. It's just a matter of time and patience." I didn't feel reassured "In the meantime, I must ask you something rather important."

I swallowed and whispered out quietly. "What?"

"You must promise me not to utter a word of what has transpired between us, and how you have ended up here."

Does this mean I'm getting let out? I nodded hesitantly. Who in the right mind would believe me in the first place anyway? There was still the chance that this was one big prank anyway.

"Good, now, I have a proposition for you and do think carefully before you answer." my brow narrowed a little but I nodded once again, silently wondering what he wanted. "Since you currently have no home, you have two options. Option number one is to place yourself into the orphanage," I choked at the thought, I wasn't even an orphan-I had a home and mother waiting for me. He continued on. "Option number two is to enroll yourself into the academy, that will allow you to gain a small apartment with monthly allowance. However, if you were to decide with the latter, then you will have to begin at the starting year amongst students one year younger than yourself."

My brows rose and I blinked.

Academy. Isn't that what Lara had been rambling on about? She wanted to go there to train and...

Become a ninja.

I jerked back. There was no way I was doing that. I couldn't. I didn't want to be a stupid ninja—why would they even offer that to me? Aren't I still under suspicion or something? Just why? The academy meant going through physical strain and to be taught how to kill. I didn't have the aptitude for it.

But on the other hand, the option of becoming an orphan was still there, however, I didn't want to be placed into an orphanage. I can't.

I bit the inside of my cheek.

What the hell do I do?

"What is your decision?" the man—Hokage—asked.

My eyes widened and I gazed over at him. "Can't I think it over?" I shakily asked.

I watched as he shook his head. "Unfortunately, we're short on time. A decision has to be made now."

I sighed heavily, nervously scuffing my foot against the floor. A plan. I need a plan. I clenched and unclenched my hands, looking around desperately—not that it did me any good.

The academy. I could go and then fail out if I get a steady job. But what are the chances of a seven year old getting a full time job?

I frowned deeply. It was possible, very possible. How long did the academy last anyway?

"The academy, how long will it take me to complete?" I hastily asked.

"Depending on development and how long it takes you to master certain skill sets, it can range from six years to one year. But since you have no ninja background or any training, it is possible you can graduate within four to six years if you bring yourself up to speed. Is the academy your choice?"

I pursed my lips, fidgeting on the spot.

Should I really go through with this?

I don't expect to be here in the next four or six years. I'm sure they will figure out how to get me home in less time than that, right? Damn it, I'm actually starting to believe all this. But if I somehow end up staying that long, I'll be ether eleven or thirteen. I don't want to wait that long to go home.

I licked my lips. "I-I'll go to the academy." I forced out.

There was a pregnant pause.

I heard the Hokage sigh. "So be it," he said "I'll send out the papers. You will begin in two weeks time. Right now I'll send for someone to show you around the village before helping you pick up some necessary school supplies. You will also be given a few textbooks on this years work, I recommend giving it a read before the two week time is up. After you have been shown around, you will be escorted to a spare apartment. I should also mention you will gain weekly visits," I nodded quietly "You will also be called in from time to time, but we will go over that when the time comes."

"Alright..." I muttered.

"And Emily," I blinked at him "Welcome to Konoha."