Shaken Reality: Chapter 16 - 1207

"...and that was when I woke up in the hospital." I finished. I told Hinata the memory that was, for lack of a better term, "unlocked" from my subconscious.

She looked very skeptical, "And that is how you got that?" She gestured to the mark on my forehead.

"Apparently."

She let out a long drawn breath, "I want to believe you, Naruto, but... doesn't that seem a little far-fetched?"

"I know it does, BELEIVE me. But still, that is what happened when I got near that door."

She eyed me curiously, "And you want to go back to the door that supposedly sent you to the hospital?"

"I know it sounds crazy-"

"Crazy?! Insane is more like it."

I reached over and grabbed her hand, "It's insane, but I can't help but remember what Ero-Sennin told me."

"Exactly! He told you to go back to that place!"

"Hinata," I looked down, "Look, I just want you to go with me this one time. If it turns out to be nothing, then what's the harm?"

"What if you get sent to the hospital again?"

"Hinata, please. I'm going whether you go with me or not, but I would really like to have you there with me."

"Naruto, it's not that I don't want to go, I just don't want you to get hurt!"

"That is a risk I'm willing to take! For some reason, I'm drawn to that door. Something important is behind that door, and I need to find out what."

"What is so important that you would risk possibly your life?"

I looked down at our hands, she had tightly gripped mine, as if willing me to not go, "I may just find out about my parents."

"Naruto-"

"Hinata, I told you I'm going regardless. I just want my wife there with me."

"And you would risk me getting hurt?"

"Hinata, you won't get hurt."

"And how do you know that?" She asked.

"The door only hurt me when I got close. You, on the other hand, were unharmed."

She looked down.

'I may actually win this argument.'

She sighed, "Okay, you can go Naruto," I smiled, "But, I am not going with you." The smile dropped.

She sighed wearily, "I can't bear to see you get hurt."

I looked at her with sympathy, "Nor I you." I reached over and pecked her cheek. "You take the car, I need some time to think, anyway."

As I walked out the door she called my name. I turned around. "I love you."

I smiled and looked at her with all the love I could muster, "I love you, too, Princess."
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I watched Naruto walk out of the restaurant. After paying for our meal with the money he left behind, I got into the car and headed home. The hospital has halfway between the house and the office, so it would be about half an hour before I reached home.

'Naruto, you are so stubborn sometimes.' I smiled. 'Of course, that's why I love you.'

I turned the story that Naruto told me over and over in my head. I couldn't seem to grasp the fact that Jiraiya put that thing on Naruto and caused Naruto to forget a memory. No technology could do that.

'Then again...'

My mind raced back to the many times my life was saved, but I could not remember how. I thought back to night my sister was killed. I beat Hizashi, but I didn't remember how. I remember being able to overcome him, but HOW I did it always seemed to be beyond my grasp.

'There have been a lot of times that I couldn't remember HOW my life was saved. Like when the Akatsuki attacked me at the office. I somehow managed to beat him back, but I can't remember how. In fact, every time I try to-'

"AGH!" I screamed.

'I get a headache...'

A few seconds later, as my attention shifted from the memories to the pain, the pain disappeared. I remembered back at the hospital, after the attack, Naruto experienced the same thing.

'Ugh. I better go help him...'

I turned the car around and headed toward the office building.
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I ran to the office building. If I were to walk slowly, my mind would dwell on my impending mission, and I would talk myself out of it. Fifteen minutes later, I found myself in the parking lot of my recently-lost job. I turned around at the sound of screeching tires, and an engine shutting off. I smiled as I saw my beloved walk up to me.

She put a finger to my lips before I could speak and said, "I'm doing this for you. I'm not happy about this one bit."

I nodded, grabbed her hand, and we headed inside.

The whole while, neither of us said a word. It wasn't from lack of topics to talk about, we were just... on edge. The building seemed eerie. In fact, everything was eerily quiet, eerily dark, eerily, everything. It took everything within me not to take off running. I squeezed my beloved's hand for reassurance. She squeezed back.

In no time, we made it to the door where we were just hours earlier. I looked down at the spot I had fallen over. I felt Hinata tense. I lowered myself and whispered in her ear, "If it happens again, neither of us will come back here." She looked up at me and nodded her head.

I cautiously took a step forward and stood in the spot where I had collapsed. Nothing happened.

'Okay, that's a good sign.'

I took slow steps, Hinata's hand still in mine, toward the door. In a matter of moments we reached the threshold. I looked up to where, in my memory, I remembered Ero-Sennin marking the post. Sure enough, above the door was the symbol that he so graciously carved onto my forehead. I subconsciously reached up and rubbed the spot on my head.

Looking around the door, I couldn't find a way to open it. There was no knob, no keyhole.

'Odd...'

I reached into my wallet and took out the card that bore my name. I continued my search for a card lock. There was nothing but bare wall.

"Okay, this is odd..."

"I know," Hinata continued, "How do you open the door..."

"I don't know. My dad opened it with a key, but there was a knob there..."

I attempted to insert the card in between the door post and the door, hoping to unlock the latch, but the card would not fit through.

I was getting frustrated, "Ero-Sennin, why tell me to go through this door if there is no way to get in!"

"Naruto..." Hinata said. As she said my first name, the symbol above the door glowed. Hinata and I jumped back as the symbol continued to glow a bright blue, until something came out of the wall, next to the door. As the mysterious object came out, the glowing diminished. Eventually, the light stopped, as well as the object's movement.

"Okay..." I said, walking toward the object. Hinata wasn't far behind.

Upon reaching said object, I realized what it was.

"It's a card lock."

Hinata simply nodded her head in affirmation. I slowly reached the card toward the lock, angling the magnet strip in the proper position. I firmly swiped down. After a satisfying click, the door opened slightly.

I looked back at Hinata, who returned my gaze. We both nodded our head and headed inside, mentally preparing ourselves for anything.

As soon as we stepped through, nothing we saw astounded us. The room was mostly filing cabinets which, upon opening, contained the only logical item, files. I read through them and saw financial records, employee records, and a plethora of other things that made up the history of the Uzumaki company.

I looked back at Hinata to shrugged, "So...this is it?"

"It seems so."

"But, why all the secrecy? Why that creepy lock system!?"

She walked over and put a hand on my shoulder, "I know you hoped that this revealed something about you parents."

I smiled, "I guess I did. I just..." My voice trailed off as I noticed something sitting on a lone desk in the corner of the room.

"What is that?"

Hinata turned around and look to where I was motioning.

"I don't know..."

I walked over to the desk and looked down to see a crystal necklace. Under the necklace was a note that looked to be hastily written. I picked it up and instantly recognized that handwriting.

"This is Ero-Sennin's handwriting..."

"What does it say?"

I read aloud, "Dear Naruto,
      If you are reading this, then that means you are closer to the truth than you realize. I am not much longer for this world, so I wish to relay to you one message, as well as a parting gift. The gift, is the necklace before you. It belongs to you. It has been passed down the generations as a family heirloom, previously belonging to leaders of the only Ninja-system. It is yours now. Now, as for my message. In the corner of this room, there is a small scroll on a lone pedestal. Take it home, and when you are alone with your wife - whom I am guessing will be that Hinata girl you talk so much about - do your best to open it. I love you, Naruto, more than you , take the last request of this old man to heart.

Love,
Ero-Sennin

I smiled at his using my nickname to sign the letter. I picked up the necklace and put it on. 'Did he know he was going to die?'

"You make that look good." Hinata teased.

"I make everything look good." I said, grinning.

She smiled back and kissed me before asking, "Now, where did he say that scroll was?"

"Says here that is on a pedestal in the corner of the room..." After searching for a few seconds, we found the aforementioned scroll. It sat on a black-wood pedestal. The closed scroll was white with red flames around the edges. I slowly reached down and picked it up. I tried to open it, but it wouldn't open.

"That's odd."

Hinata grabbed my hand, "Let's take it home. I don't like being here for too long. This room creeps me out."

I nodded, understanding what she meant. I picked up the scroll, and we both headed out the door. As we stepped out, the door shut itself and the card lock receded back into the wall.

I jumped, "Yeah, let's get out of here."

"Right behind you."

We ran for our car.
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Unlike our walk into the office, our drive home was full of conversation. As Naruto drove and talked, I attempted to open the scroll, but to no avail.

"This thing is made of PAPER. How can it be this hard to open!?" I yelled frustratingly.

"I'm as clueless as you. Let's not worry about it until we get home, though." Naruto suggested.

I simply nodded my head, trying to get the scroll to leave my mind. I couldn't, though. My mind kept racing back to the mysterious object.

"Hinata, it's okay."

"How can you NOT be curious?"

"I didn't say I'm curious, I just don't see the point in fretting over this until we get home." He stated matter-o-factly.

I looked at him, "Did my little Naru-ru finally give up on something?"

He laughed, "There's a difference between giving up and growing up."

I winked at him, "That's what I meant."

He smiled at me, returning his attention to the road.
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The ride home was quick, and we scrambled out of the car, into the house, and locked the door behind us. By now, it was nearly midnight, but neither of us were tired. Curiosity was getting to the cat.

'Let's just hope curiosity doesn't kill it...'

I cleaned off the table and sat the scroll down. While I did this, Hinata brought over two cans of soda. We both sat down from across each other and nodded as we attempted to open the scroll. And, as before, nothing happened. The scroll wouldn't budge. I even went as far as to try cutting it with scissors, but the scissors broke as soon as I clamped down.

"How in the world do I open this thing?!" I yelled out.

Hinata shushed me, warning me that our neighbors were sleeping. "Give me the letter, maybe there is something there that hints as to how to open it."