If I owned Naruto I wouldn't be living off of cafeteria food at my college, now would I? >. All other characters are original, and mine. But you can borrow them if you e-mail me and ask politely. .

This story is the sequel to my other Naruto fanfiction Changing Times. I suggest reading that one first, to save your mind from overwhelming confusion. .

This fic takes place twelve years after Changing Times, when Setsuko is seventeen and Akira is twenty.

Return of the Lost

Chapter Three: Tears of Joy and Sorrow

Hinata smiled, running up to her son and crushing him in a giant hug, a scattering of Akira's brothers laughing at him from behind her back. Akira blushed bright red, Setsuko snickering at him as Zatoichi sighed, sensing what was happening already.

"You're finally home, my baby boy is finally home," Hinata sighed, looking up into his white eyes, "You've grown up so big."

"Mother, I wish you wouldn't do that, you'll reopen his stitches," Zatoichi groaned, checking the boy deftly for any reopened wounds.

"I'm sorry, Zatoichi, but I'll have to add to his list of injuries," Hinata whispered, glaring up at her son, and slapping him.

"Mama!"

"Wow, go Mom!"

"Grandma!"

The residents of the Uchiha manor all clapped or groaned as Akira held onto his stinging cheek, looking down at his mother in shock. He had never seen her react so violently before to anything. Setsuko, on the other hand, was barely restrained by Kakashi and Musashi as she struggled with her anger at anyone attacking her friend, even if it was his mother.

"You bastard!" Hinata hissed, letting her anger flow freely, "While you were busy traveling the world like a spoiled little brat, I was busy here watching as two of your brothers died, and your sister was born! You have a niece and three nephews who have never heard of you except as a fairy tale told by their fathers over dinner on your birthday! How dare you, how dare you!"

"I'm, I'm sorry Mama," Akira whispered, his head hanging low, "But I was scared. We both were."

"Don't you sorry me, young man! I don't care if every ANBU squad in Konoha was after you, I would have protected you with my dying breath!" Hinata growled, tears streaming down her face, strands of graying hair sticking to her face, "Don't you ever leave like that again, or I swear on the graves of your brothers that I will hunt you down and kill you myself next time!"

"Mom!" Zatoichi gasped, glaring at her with his blind eyes.

"Don't you Mom me either, young man. I meant every word of it." Hinata snapped, hugging Akira even tighter, "Welcome home, Akira."

Tenchi grinned as he led the two down one of the many corridors in the mansion, looking back at Akira. Akira, on the other hand, was only staring at the floor, his eyes reflecting back up at him in the highly polished wood grain. Tears still stung in his eyes when he remembered the sorrow and grief that had passed through his mothers eyes, masked only by a light veil of anger at him for causing so much of that angst.

"Here's your room, Akira. Setsuko, you're across the hall," Tenchi smiled up at his brother, "I gotta hand it to you, bro, you really triggered something in Mama by coming back. I haven't seen her that pissed since Motoko and I covered the walls in the main foyer with crayon eight years ago."

Akira nodded, ignoring the younger brother he had never remember knowing, and wandered into his room. Setsuko glared at the thirteen year old, and he took the hint and left rather quickly, afraid of the raging red anger he saw reflected in her eyes.

"Akira, are you all right?" Setsuko asked, closing the room door behind her as she watched him slump onto the bed, tears streaming down his face.

"No, I'm not. All of these years, I never imagined that I'd actually hurt her. She always complained that we were too much of a handful for her, and she slapped me Setsuko!" Akira sobbed, burying his face in Setsuko's shirt as she hummed to him, rubbing calming circles on his back.

"At least she survived. My Papa became a drunkard," Setsuko sighed, trying, in vain, to block the vivid images she had been described of Kakashi's outlandish behavior, "He was too drunk to even kill himself."

"I still think coming back was a mistake," Akira hiccuped, pulling Setsuko back onto the bed, cradling her in his arms.

"We'll have a warm bed to sleep in and a safe roof to sleep under for a few days, at least. That can't be such a bad mistake, can it?" Setsuko smiled, nuzzling Akira's neck.

"You're right, it isn't that bad, is it?"

Neji sighed, wrapping his hands around Aoi's unmoving fingers, praying silently for whatever deity that would listen to let his daughter wake up with her mind in one piece. The doctors had told him it was merely a deep sleep brought on by the exhaustion of the Tsukiyomi, that it wasn't actually a coma, but even they couldn't be sure. The only person who had been able to help last time was dead now, and Neji could feel his daughter slipping from his grasp.

"Neji, go home and get some rest. I'll watch her now," Shino whispered, placing a hand on Neji's arm.

Neji shook his head, looking up at his husband with sad eyes. He refused to leave her side until she woke up. They had fought, again, right before she left for guard duty that morning. And now, a week later, he still couldn't apologize.

"I have to apologize to her. I caller her a spoiled brat. I didn't ask her to come home safe," Neji sobbed, tears running down his face, "I should have told her to come home safe, that I loved her."

"It's not your fault, Shinji, you couldn't have know," Shino whispered, sitting down next to Neji.

Neji stared at him, biting his tongue to keep from correcting him about using the wrong name on the wrong person. Shino had never fully recovered after the Akatsuki attacked so many years ago, his mind addled by the near deadly blow that had been landed on his head.

He could still remember the month he had spent sitting next to Shino's bedside in the ICU, sobbing his heart out, praying for his husband to wake up, Aoi sitting next to him, blaming herself for the entire thing. She had woken up screaming with nightmares about Shino's death for years after the incident, and even Shino had been unable to drive them completely from her mind at times.

"Daddy," Aoi whimpered, tears rolling down her face, "I'm sorry Daddy-I didn't mean to kill you-I'm sorry."

"Aoi, you didn't kill me, I'm right here, alive," Shino whispered back, pulling stray strands of crimson hair away from her face, tears in his eyes.

"Daddy?" Aoi questioned, her eyes flickering open, her gaze resting on the two men, "Papa?"

"Aoi, you had us so worried, we thought you weren't going to make it," Neji sobbed happily, ignoring the tears running down his face.

"It was horrible, he made me relive that day over and over again," Aoi sobbed, burying her face in Shino's chest, shocking the two by crying openly. She had always viewed tears as a sign of weakness before, never daring to even show them to either parent.

"It's okay, Aoi, he'll never hurt you again, I promise," Neji swore, unwilling to lose another child.

Shikamaru yawned as the TV continued to blare whatever show his two children were arguing over now. He had ceased to even care what was on, as long as it gave him time to nap. But, with a groan, he realized it was his turn to cook dinner that night.

"How about we just go out tonight, eh?" Shikamaru moaned, looking down at the two.

"Dad, you're just saying that because it's your turn to cook!" Kikyou pouted, Kenji taking the opening to swipe the remote from her hands.

"So? Where's Kyoko?" Shikamaru asked warily.

Before Ino had died five years previous she had 'forced' Shikamaru into taking in Kyoko, Sakura's last remaining child, Gai having died when he was fourteen during the Chuunin exams. But, for some odd reason, the girl had an evil prankster streak in her a mile wide, making her activities suspicious when she suddenly disappeared, as she seemed to have done.

"Don't you remember, Pops?" Kenji yawned, flipping to the weather channel, "The Uchiha's are having some big thing going on over at their place tonight. She's over there."

Shikamaru smiled, Kyoko had gotten engaged to Kenichi Uchiha the year previous. Leaving him with only two more children to kick out of his house, one way or another. He only regretted that he wouldn't have a lone house with only Ino to share it with anymore, his wife having died on a mission five years before.

"Well then, one less mouth to feed. So, who wants ramen?" Shikamaru asked, his children glaring at him.

"Motoko, where are Akira and Setsuko, I thought I sent you to fetch them for dinner," Hinata chirped at her young daughter.

Motoko flushed a bright red as she sat down, "They're currently... indisposed, Mama."

"They're what!?" Hinata shrieked, staring up at the young girl.

"Well, it's only to be expected. They have been living together for twelve years," Zatoichi mumbled, stuffing another portion of rice in his mouth.

"He had better not been doing what I think he is to my daughter! I swear I'll rip him limb from limb!" Kakashi roared, upsetting the table as he stood up suddenly, marching toward Akira's room.

"Musashi, keep him from killing your brother," Hinata, sighed, motioning at her eldest.

"Grandma, why is Kakashi-san going to kill Uncle Akira?" Kaiyou, Musashi's eldest, asked, tugging on the rice maker. The six year old was, unfortunately, blind.

"For adult reasons, Kaiyou. Would you like some more rice?" Hinata answered cheerfully, doting upon her granddaughter.

Tsuzuku (To be continued.)

Author's Note: Will Akira live to be in the rest of the series? Will Musashi break in on some indescribable hentai scene? Will half of the male readers suddenly die from blood loss via the nose?

Tune in next time, same Naruto fan fic, same Naruto time!

Actually, I can pretty much assure you that no, there won't be some huge hentai scene in this fic. Most of you have to remember that twelve years blush easily, and over react easily, especially if it can get older siblings in trouble. .

For those of you wondering about Hinata's sudden, but truly kickass, outburst earlier on: Trust me, Mom's are bizarre creatures. They'll be handing you extra scoops of ice cream one moment, grounding you the next, and then be cooking your favorite dinner than evening.

Something about proving how much they love their kids, and trying to keep them on a straight path at the same time, I think. Don't ask me, I don't have a Mom, and I don't plan on having kids. .;

And no, this isn't a self insertion fic for me adding a character named Kaiyou. I just happen to like the name a lot, and when I wrote this out originally on my notepad, I forgot that I use that nickname online. I don't actually use it anywhere else but on ff.net. .;

So, please review, and watch me go nuts like a headless chicken as I start to sew together my Temari costume, and realize that I have to hand sew the entire thing because I don't have a sewing machine. .