Home Coming

After a few years of silence, Yuu Narukami finally makes his appearance back in Inaba after a more than unlucky life. Having been reduced to nothing, Inaba is all he has left as he goes down Memory Lane to accomplish one last wish in his true home. Will the others find him in time, or will their chance to see their leader and friend slip through their fingers?

Chapter Three

He managed to avoid them just in time as he sped off, turning into Naganaki Shrine. After running up the stairs and catching his breath, he walked up to the offering table and whistled. He waited, his hope dwindling before he heard a soft yap, seeing a rather old looking fox appear from the bushes. He knelt down once the fox was by his side, petting him softly and laughing a bit when he licked his hand.

"Hello there...it's nice to see you all in one piece." The fox rolled his eyes before nudging his hand again. He sat down, relaxing a bit as he pet the fox that was now using his legs as a cushion. Yuu stayed there for a while, talking out loud as he recalled all the people he'd helped because of the fox's requests. It was about an hour before he finally ran out of things to say and instead sat in blissful silence.

The calm was shattered though as he heard the shouts of two children running into the yard of the shrine, the boy looking about six and the younger, a girl, looked about four years old. They were both arguing and didn't notice the gray-haired man until they were in front of the shrine, quickly shutting their mouths as they stared at him. "The fox…" "H-How is he doing that?! He never does that!" The two said in wonder as the fox merely snorted a bit as he laid there, before getting up, stretching a bit and walking back into the bushes, leaving behind a single leaf which Yuu put into one of the pockets in his trenchcoat for safe-keeping.

"He's just a little picky is all," he said, turning his attention back to the two children, their hair a light brown and their eyes a chocolate brown, both carrying a mischievous light within them. The older one though merely looked at him weirdly before saying, "Hey...who the heck are you?" The girl though kicked him in the shin with a growl before yelling, "What did Mama say?! That's no way to treat a stranger stupid bro!" "Ow! What the heck man?! I just asked who he-." The boy was quickly caught off guard once again as the younger threw herself at him, the two now engaged in an all out war. If it wasn't for the fact that they were trying to kill each other, it would've been cute, but the two's scuffle only served to bring a smile to his face. By the looks of it, he could already tell whose little ones they were. The thought of the Martial Arts Master, Chie Satonaka, and his partner made him laugh a little, the sound enough to make the two children pause in their battle to the death.

Putting themselves back in order and standing up, they walked up to him with a curious look on both of their faces. Never had they seen such a weird looking guy in town before...but he did seem pretty cool for some reason. At the young children's stares, he smiled softly before lighting another cigarette as he let the two examine him. "...He has old people hair." "That's so rude…! But...it's true," the younger said after punching her brother in the arm. Deciding to let that comment slide, he finally looked at both of them, causing them to stop in their tracks, unable to tear their eyes away from him. "It was nice meeting you two...don't get into too much trouble, alright?" He ruffled the two's hair before nonchalantly walking towards the stairs, out of the shrine. The two stood there dumbfounded before regaining their senses and running off to tell their parents about the weird old-haired guy.

His next destination was rather simple, but even he had to admit it was sort of risky. Because of that, he chose to wait until it was pretty late before standing in front of the home he shared with two people he held dear as well. The Dojima residence. The outside looked just as dull as ever but the years certainly hadn't been kind. There were no damages but obvious repairs here and there spoke volumes of the place's age. "...I'm home...welcome home Big Bro…" He quietly said to himself, closing his eyes and picturing all the times his little Nanako would welcome him back after absolute hell, especially when it involved the TV World, with open arms and an endless amount of love in those young eyes of hers.

Although it seemed to be a simple thing, that smile of hers would always pick him up, no matter what happened. After running through those memories, he frowned, remembering the time she had been stolen from, from his Uncle. Those days without her...and the days when Dojima was gone...he hadn't realized how much she meant to him until then. The first day he came back and was met with utter and complete silence made the loneliness he felt hit even harder.

The need to see her and save one of the most precious things in his life, but not knowing if she was okay had been agonizing…especially when they did get her back. That was a relief...but the events that followed tore his heart in two. But when she was given back to him and his Uncle...it had been one of the happiest days of his life. Truly it had been.

Shaking his head a bit to calm down a bit, he looked up at the house, wondering how she was doing...sixteen years old already. God, time really did go by quickly. Seeing a light suddenly turn on, he panicked internally, turning around and quickly back into the shadows and booking it, faintly hearing the sound of Dojima's voice in the distance.

To Be Continued

Merc: Oh my! It looks like Yuu's on the run again! Haha, anyway, thanks for all the people who've read and reviewed! I'm glad you like it. Also, sorry for the rather depressing-Nanako thing but you got to admit, she's a very important character...and I really just love her. Hehe. So, please review and all that jazz! Also...the update is a little late because I'm sick so yeah...anyway thanks! :D :D :D