How to spend your afterlife (HTSYAL)

Prologue

My last memory was of two pale limbs reaching from both sides of a centre light, blocking it out. They came to reach around my body and encase me in what could only be described as a protective embrace. My mind barely had enough time to register the tightening of the arms around me as I was pushed into a cushioned chest. With what I now know was my final breath, I could smell the person's - no doubt expensive - perfume. Still, it did nothing to hide her familiar scent; like freshly laundered sheets and vanilla. The thought was short-lived however, and was replaced with instinctual panic at my inevitable suffocation. My worries proved useless when the moment was shattered by an impossibly loud screech.

I wasn't visited by a corpse in a black robe nor a beautiful face to comfort me in my journey of acceptance. There wasn't an ethereal light to lead me to paradise or even a haunting crimson to pull me down. There was only a deafening silence that you couldn't escape from. You had no legs to run with, no eyes to open, no hands to cradle your ears, no mouth nor tongue to scream with. Just a terrifying blankness that neither black nor white could describe. Though it was painfully unnoticeable, this place seemed governed by the laws of time as eventually, after what seemed an eternity, it came to an end.

The first thing that told me something was different was the colour. No longer was I surrounded by that horrific nothingness, but pitch black. I was paralysed, and my eyes refused to open, but just knowing that I even had limbs relieved me more than anything else. Nevertheless, holding onto a thought was like trying to catch water from a faucet over a furnace. Pointless and frustrating, if one could even form a thought long enough to feel the emotion. Still, my blinking consciousness and the black balloon I was enveloped in was oddly comforting and helped dull my flustered instincts that begged me to remember. But no matter how I struggled to reach the thin threads of my memories, I couldn't remember anything – all my memories up until the arms reaching towards me were empty. All I knew was that this strange cocoon of warmth was safe and I wasn't about to abandon it for anything.
If there was an omnipotent being that ruled us, they must have had something against me because before long I was subjected to the long forgotten feeling of suffocation. The warmth I relaxed in rapidly poured out like someone had taken a big pin and popped my personal bubble. Just as quickly it was replaced with bitterly cold air and the walls of my bubble crashed into me, forcing me out. My brain was deciding which of my recallable memories I hated more when my eyelids burned and I felt the atmosphere change.
Everything was so horribly different from my lovely cocoon, I screamed and wailed. What shocked me even more than my vocal cords working was that I could hear the sounds around me. That brief surprise didn't deter my wailing however, even as I was held and delicately wiped and wrapped. I felt myself passed carefully to weak but eagerly groping hands, just able to hear incoherent murmurs over my own crying. I heard a laugh of adoration strangled by exhaustion as gentle arms cuddled me close to a soft chest. I couldn't open my eyes, the voice and scent were unfamiliar, and yet something ignited in my bones. A single word swept over my stormy mind, clearing it and taking root. No matter the world, form or time, it was the embrace of someone that you should never take for granted. It was a mother. My mother.

During what must have been at least a day or so of sleeping, memories began to slowly trickle back into my mind. Though fragmented and hazy, I grew aware of my, ahem, "unique" situation. It seemed there really was something after death but it did little to comfort me. I rejected the idea of opening my eyes, for fear it would bring me back to the silent tomb of death. It was simple logic, opening my eyes would wake me from this dream and I wasn't sure if I wanted that.

Despite my earlier stubbornness, boredom won out. There was literally nothing to do after I realised I was a baby again. My brain was no doubt swiftly producing neurons, but my motor functions were undeveloped and synaptic connections had not yet been made for me to move my limbs. So all I could really do was sleep, and though my constant tiredness helped me, the idleness soon got to me.

With reluctance that admittedly accompanied curiosity, I slowly opened my eyes. It took a few tries really, as I had to keep shutting them from the annoyingly bright light that filled the room. Slowly but surely, I was able to lift my eyelids open and gaze at the cream ceiling above me. With a shift of my adjusting eyes, I was able to make out distant cracks in the corners of the roof and the walls of a yellow crib surrounding me. I saw the outline of a teddy bear on a side table to my right and even the room's doorway. The door was left open but unable to even move my head, I could not see what lay outside. From my position there wasn't much to look at and I felt the feeling of boredom creep back in.

Right. Well only one thing to do then. Summon the parents.

With the only weapon at my disposal, I scrunched my eyes and began Operation: Cry until mystery parents hear me and have to come in. As my wailing filled the silence of the house, I also silently noted to come up with better names for future operations. I mean really, who did I think I was?

It was uncreative and elementary, like a child's. A babies in fact!

…Huh, funny about that. Still, I should rename it to something brighter, snazzier, and cooler! Like lure the mysterious-

My plans, very important plans I might add, were interrupted by the hasty patter of feet rushing towards my room. Realising my closed eyes would naturally block the view of the people about to enter, I managed to rein in my tears but continued my attention seeking whine.

Only seconds after I had put my plan into motion my bedroom door swung open and a couple all but sprinted in. I sure as hell had not expected such an immediate reaction and my crying was cut short with a surprised gurgle. My reaction didn't slow them down however and the two figures ran to my side without hesitation.

With a close view, albeit unclear from my underdeveloped vision, I saw my parent's faces in detail. My mother and father were in no way tall, though they still towered over my tiny form. My mother had a soft face like a doll, dark eyes, and creamy skin that said she didn't see the sun much. Her hair was the colour of coal; unkempt but as graceful as a waterfall, cascading over her shoulders and reaching down well past her waist. My father's colours were a stark contrast, he sported long bleached hair tied back into a ponytail and caring artic blue eyes that seemed to unlock your secrets just by looking into them.

Holy mongrel my mother has the face of an angel and my father has a face prettier than I probably do.

…and I'm not sure how I feel about that.

"What's wrong hone-?" My mother began to pose what I guessed was a question but didn't finish when her eyes centred on my face. Her eyes bulged and her hands flew to cover her mouth stifling a laugh. My face contorted from bafflement to confusion.

What is she laughing about?

Apparently my father also found the same thing humorous as he let out the manliest giggle I had ever heard. How does one even manage to sound manly as they giggle?!

Yet here stands the proof of it. And I'm related to it. I thought perplexed. My expression must have grown more confused because both began laughing openly and I finally caught on that they were laughing about my face.

Wow rude.

My mum reached down to lightly poke my cheek in delight and remarked with unconcealed amusement, "Her cheeks are soft like dough and almost as big as an Akimichi's!" I made a sound as close as I could to a dignified snort as my dad agreed heartily.

Hey, you gave birth to me lady. I thought with no real bitterness to it as they cooed over me. Still, something about her comment made me stop. I mean, I could live with having chubby cheeks, I was a newborn for God's sake, but what had she compared them too?

An.. Akimi..Aki….Akimichi? Why does that sound so familiar? Like, I remember heari- Oh mY GOD.

My parent's attention turned to concern when I made a sound akin to choking as I reminisced on my mother's words. I tried to reach to my mother but I only managed to twitch my fingers frantically while looking expectantly at her. My actions simply rendered her face into blank confusion and I felt frustration seep into my body as my eyes welled up with tears. Before my mother could decipher my frenzied movements, my father scooped me up and held me close to his chest.

My distress melted away as quickly as it had appeared and I heard my mother sigh with relief. Feeling secure in his arms, a warm memory from my past life bubble just below my conscious. Deep enough that I could not reach it, but shallow enough that I could understand its core significance. With a satisfied giggle I hooked my small and weak fingers on his lavender shirt and tugged as hard as I could for him to lower his head. Though it probably had the strength of a grasshopper, my father's eye twinkled knowingly and he gently lifted me higher while bringing his face closer.
This man knows his stuff! I thought impressed and excited as the details of his kind face became completely clear. My mother stood to his side, an affectionate expression adorning her features as she watched our interaction.

With a determined huff I set about studying every inch of his face, clenching tighter with every confirmation. That hair colour, that hairstyle and those icy blue eyes that seemed to read your mind. There was no escaping it. We have a Yamanaka in the house.

I practically exploded into a fit of barely formed giggles and twitching fingers. It must have been quite an extraordinary and no doubt weird sight to witness but my parents just laughed along with me endearingly. I didn't care though, even if I looked the possibly mad while I laughed hysterically, It was worth it.
I was alive.
AGAIN.
And it was bloody fantastic.

Authors Note:
First of all, THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR READING THIS! It means so much to have someone bother to read my writing!
If it wasn't clear, this is my first time writing fanfiction. Though I'm no stranger to reading it haha. Still, I had a lot of issues with getting this out because of formatting and me just having no idea how to publish stuff on FF.
I'm counting this as an AU because my character will have an effect on events and there will be interactions with cannon characters as well. Still, I don't plan anything drastic. ALSO, This is not an INO INSERT FIC! So far, I have no pairings planned either, but there will be eventually.

Again, Thanks for reading!

Word count- 1861