A/N: This is the first re-write I shall be doing for one of my Naruto/One Piece stories. I wonder who will get it right as to which one? Do read and review, would you kindly?

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{Play: "Cherry Blossom Storm" by Rei Kondoh}

[Konohagakure no Sato—6:50 PM…]

A spot of reddish orange against a darkening violet backdrop with sparkling silver had made the scenery of the village of Konohagakure no Sato beautiful as stores began to accommodate for nighttime customers. Restaurants were booming with activity, markets were selling their wares, and all this was being done while lanterns had been strung up to emit a festive mood about the place for more business—after all, tonight was the Yozakura Hanami festival. Things had been quieter as of late without Naruto around to cause havoc as he usually would have…ever since his untimely death at the Valley of the End, things have been going badly for the village, and this festival was the only time so far that the tensions in the village were lowered.

The reason these tensions had cropped up was based upon what happened after Uzumaki Naruto was presumed dead in his battle with Uchiha Setsuka at the Valley of the End. After Hatake Kakashi returned with the would-be Uchiha defector in his arms, things haven't been the same; Setsuka was interrogated before the council, with Yamanaka Inoichi called in beforehand to make sure there were no embellishments upon the story—surprisingly for everyone else present, the girl was not lying in any way about her confrontation at the Valley of the End. She had no reason to lie, as everything she said back then was dead-accurate: when Naruto caught up with her, the two of them battled it out in the valley, practically destroying the monuments. If it weren't for his pathetic spamming of the Kage Bunshin no Jutsu, she would've killed him within seconds regardless of the amount of training he had under his belt from Jiraiya. To think that he was the first person to even come close to beating her was a bit impressive, but still not what she was looking for—she attempted to kill Naruto in hopes that his death would unlock her Mangekyo Sharingan, and what better way to do so than to kill the one she cared for most as a friend?

When the final stages of the battle occurred, Setsuka had her hand ready for a Chidori to pierce through Naruto, and he had his Rasengan. The two of them charged and drove their hands forward…only for Setsuka to feel the unimaginable pain from the Rasengan utterly destroying one of her hand-wings while her hand had smashed through his chest. She caught his body as it limped and crumpled in her arms; it was at that moment she noted that he was not dead yet—and within her raged the inner turmoil. Should she finish the job and gain the Mangekyo Sharingan like Itachi-nii? Was it worth it to kill the only true friend she made? Before she could think any further on the decision, someone had managed to deliver a chop to the back of her neck, causing her to drop Naruto's unconscious body into the river as she too drifted into the realm of unconsciousness.

In any case, after Setsuka's debriefing, it was decided that with Uzumaki's death, the Anti-Naruto half of the village council (behind the Hokage's back mind you) would reveal his status as the Jinchūriki of the Kyūbi no Yoko while bringing out her report to light—obviously with the intent of discrediting Naruto and putting Setsuka in a heroic light so they could get into the spotlight. The reaction they got however was not what anyone expected; the younger generation confronted the older about why they were treating Naruto badly…about how it could've been any of them that were chosen to seal the Kyūbi no Yoko away, and many mourned the death of the boy in their own way. Setsuka however, was seen by many as a traitor, except for the bastards that continued to kiss her ass—and in all respects, she agreed with the former. She was a killer and a traitor, and she deserved to rot for her betrayal not to the village, but to Naruto.

Now fifteen years of age, and having changed since then, Setsuka walked down the streets of Konoha towards the Uchiha District. She now wore an off-white kimono with tied indigo slacks and a chokuto holstered at the small of her back over her tool pouch. Her height had increased by a margin; her curves became more defined now that she had filled out to a respectably modest size. It wasn't easy, earning back the trust of the other members of the Rookie Eleven (Sakura being relatively the easiest to convince of her desire for redemption), but that was based more on necessity than anything—even now they see her as a traitorous and power-hungry bitch, who should have been put down long ago with the rest of her clan…and in all honesty, for what she did to Naruto, she agreed…but upon hearing that Akatsuki was hunting for other Jinchūriki like Naruto, people who shared his fate, Setsuka felt that she had an obligation to ensure that the others were at least safe from those terrorists. Yes, that would be the start of her penance to the dobe.

'I really don't understand why I'm thinking of Naruto this way', she thought to herself, walking towards a bridge that led to the Uchiha district, 'by all reason, he was an idiot who should never have been a shinobi in the first place! Granted, his education was being sabotaged at the time but that was no excuse! Instead of taking his training seriously, he spent all his free time pulling pranks just to get attention regardless of whether it was good or bad (good thing I kept my deadpan face when he painted the faces on the Hokage Monument, I'm not sure I'll be able to live with the humiliation). All in all, I don't see any shinobi-worthy qualities in the ramen-addicted dobe that would have made him a useful ally in the field. On the other hand, I have to give him credit where it's due: he was brave, reliable, kind, and steadfast—and he didn't kiss my ass. Perhaps that was the reason I was so willing to do nice things for him. Don't get me wrong, I was only doing it as a friend…not as his girlfriend or lover or anything, but a friend! But if that's the case, then why does the idea of being his lover sound so…right?'

{Play: "Wind" by Chiyako Fukuda from "Asura's Wrath"}

Setsuka's thoughts were interrupted with the rhythmic sound of *clock-clock* and the odd *ka-tack, ka-tack* getting closer before it transformed into *ga-tunk, ga-tunk* and then coming to a complete stop in front of her; she then eyed the foreigner as he turned to look at the sakura tree near the bridge…it was at this point that she began to study the stranger with an appraising eye. The sandogasa and the red scarf obscured the identity of the stranger, but she could eyeball quite a few details about him; he was a bit taller than her, but that could be due to the geta he wore, and the lithe and wiry muscles she saw under his black and red kimono were well-proportioned (which seemed to bring out a carnal part of her that she never thought ever existed). In addition to a gourd containing what was likely to be saké that was dangling on the right side of his hip, the katana he kept holstered at his left side had a lavender quartz inlay throughout its length on its sheath, and a flower-shaped guard—adding that to the way he carried himself, and Setsuka knew exactly what she was looking at. "Can I help you, sir?" she asked tersely, subtly readying her stance for battle.

"No need," said the samurai, not even bothering to face Setsuka, much to her indignation, "I just wanted to stop for a bit to watch the sakura petals blossoming. I find that it's usually around this hour that the blossoms during a Yozakura Hanami are the most beautiful."

This did not stop Setsuka from slowly inching her hand closer to the hilt of her chokuto…she needed to be ready should her target decide to attack. "What business does a samurai have here in Konoha?"

"Just a few errands, nothing for you to concern yourself over, miss."

"Excuse me if I don't believe you. Last I heard, all samurai of your caliber should be restricted to Tetsu no Kuni…and I know you're not a mercenary trying to make a name for himself; the way you carry yourself tells me you've spent time in at least one of the noble houses. So I'm going to ask you one more time; what the hell are you doing here?"

With his arms raised in surrender, the samurai gently turned to face Setsuka for the first time. "No need for the hostility, I'm mostly here to pay respects to someone I know from this village that just died. After that however, well let's just say I'm hunting at the moment."

"That's not all there is, and I can hear it in your voice!" snapped Setsuka, fingers gripping the hilt of her sword quietly, "Stop telling me half-truths, and tell me what you're really doing here!"

An exasperated sigh had escaped the samurai's scarf as he bent forward to put the gourd down before pulling the sword out of the obi, and drawing the black and red blade with his right hand while holding the sheath as an off-hand weapon. It was clear that he didn't want to do this, but she didn't care…she wanted answers, and she wanted them now! "There's no shaking you off is there? You're just as stubborn as I remember…but I wonder, are you any wiser?"

This samurai knew who she was? Just who the hell was he, and why did he know her? Setsuka made every attempt to remember all the samurai she'd ever run into; in an instant, she'd drawn a complete blank. "Last chance to back off," said the samurai, snapping her out of her thoughts as he shouldered the blade of his katana, "are you going to let me go peacefully? Or do I have to rough you up?"

"I'm afraid I'm going to have to take you in for questioning," began Setsuka, gripping the hilt tightly, "I'm pretty sure Anko and Ibiki would love to have a chat with you, since you're unwilling to talk to me."

[Play: "Marine Swordsman's Battlecry" from One Piece]

There was a dead silence between the two of them, as though the Shinigami had called for order in the area. Tensions had risen very quickly as the swordsman and the swordswoman practically stared each other down. Both were gauging their opponent, analyzing their movements to see what the other would do. Either way, it was clear between Setsuka and the samurai that this would be decided in one hit—the katana that her opponent was swinging around was longer than the standard weapon used by samurai of old (likely a meitō given the black blade with the red temper line), so it was likely that his strike would be slower but powerful. Her chokuto on the other hand was made to handle like a katana, however it was not as ergonomic for a quick-draw as her opponent's sword was…if she was going to strike, she'd have to make the first move before the samurai could counterattack.

After a few tense seconds, and the timing was perfect in her mind, Setsuka vanished in a blur, only to reappear at the other end of the bridge with her sword drawn and held in an underhanded grip, having apparently sliced through her target. However, if one were to look closely at the blade she held in her hand, they'd have noticed that the back of the blade was pointing forward. She stood up and saw that the samurai had seemingly crossed the bridge already. How the hell did he do that?!

"Hitting me with the back of your sword? You must really want to have me interrogated," said the samurai, as he took three steps away from the bridge before turning to face her, "but I'm afraid that the match has ended in my favor…"

Wondering what exactly he meant by that, Setsuka watched as her opponent placed the sword and the sheath in front of his eyes and began to sheathe the blade. "Hanauta Sanchō…YAHAZUGIRI!"

That final click was the death knell! Setsuka's eyes lolled to the back of her head as she fell to the ground onto her knees, before slipping into the world of unconsciousness. "Yep, she hasn't learned a thing. Ah well, might as well give her the penalty game before I leave…"

…

[Hokage's Office—next morning…]

It was a very bright morning. The day after the Yozakura Hanami had a very beautiful weather. The sun was shining very beautifully through the few clouds in the bright blue sky, there was a gentle breeze, all in all, a very good day. Well, a good day if you were not suffering from a hangover. Tsunade had been up all night, drowning her sorrows away. Ever since she'd heard Uchiha Setsuka's interrogation, she was never the same. She worked way harder, was a bit edgier, and drank far more alcohol than was acceptable. In other words, she was a mess.

In all honesty, she was very bummed-out by the words she'd heard from the genin's mouth. As a result, Tsunade sentenced Uchiha Setsuka to be stuck at genin level until she was 21 years of age, was to pay for the mission to bring her back out of her own pocket, and was evicted from her home in the Uchiha District to live in the same conditions as Naruto had. Speaking of which, Uchiha Fugaku's mansion was sold off as high-value real-estate (to which Setsuka suprisingly didn't protest against), and the proceeds used to bring businesses back from the brink due to their asskissing and handing of things to her on a silver platter, hoping for a big return in the future.

It brought a degree of satisfaction to her that the Uchiha brat was to be suffering like she'd heard Naruto had…that she'd be living a life of hell for what she did, and Tsunade had wrung every drop of satisfaction she could of this sentence. To hell with what the Civilian Council said! They spoiled her rotten, so it was their own fault that they were in the red; and it was their own damn fault that she ran away to seek more power from her asshole of a former teammate!

However, much to Tsunade's dismay, Setsuka seemed to be taking to her sentence with a genuine sort of feeling she'd seen in a lot of addicts; like she'd hit rock-bottom, and was sincerely sorry for what she'd done while addicted to power and revenge. Her actions showed that she was on a genuine quest for penance. She also saw a kind of look that she doubted that the Uchiha girl realized. In a way, she supposed that she sympathized with her to a degree…but she still had to make the girl suffer to make her remember the consequences of her actions.

Ah well, better get back to work. But before she could sign another paper, the door had slammed open! "Tsunade-sama! We've got word that there was an attack in the village!" cried the voice of Shizune, hurting her ears. She really did love Shizune, but sometimes she overreacted a little too often.

"Well, who was it?"

"It was Uchiha Setsuka."

Now this was interesting. "What happened?"

"According to her, she was out taking a walk in the Uchiha District when she ran into a samurai in black and red clothes," began Shizune, "she tried to bring him in for questioning, only to be taken down by the samurai in one hit. Next thing she knew, she was found in the Red Light District…"

Hearing Shizune trailing off like that told Tsunade that this was a bit uncomfortable to be talking about. "Well? She was found in the Red LIght District, and…?"

"Tsunade-sama, she was hogtied and bound in such a manner that the rope went between her breasts and her legs. It's obviously a bondage pose…and the place she was tied up in front of was a lesbian strip club."

Okay, now that took a lot of balls. Something that Tsunade knew that Jiraya would've had the guts to do, but she was certain that not even the pervert would have the audacity to pull even this. As much as she wanted to laugh at the girl's predicament, she had to get serious…she really didn't want to deal with the Council's shit this morning when they learned that their Uchiha was hurt by a samurai. "Put a notice to all teams in Konoha. They are to bring that samurai in for questioning."

"Hai, Tsunade-sama!" said Shizune, bowing down before her master.

As she reclined in her seat, Tsunade looked over at the village that she was working hard to make even better. She was slowly starting to gain power back, and her first move would be to cut out the cancer of corruption that was getting fat in the Civilian Council. She honestly didn't know why she was still here, when she'd lost a lot of people to this village; but she would be damned if she let it die without a fight. And as her thoughts went back to this samurai, she knew that her time as Hokage would only be more interesting because of him.

…

A/N: Well, here it is, the first chapter of this story.

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Vocabulary:

Yozakura Hanami—whereas a normal Hanami (flower-viewing festival) normally takes place in the daytime, Yozakura Hanami focuses on sakura petals blooming at night time.

Meitō—a named blade…this is a katana that breaks out of the norm in terms of both design and performance.

Chokutō—literally 'straight sword', this is the sword used in Japan long before the creation of the katana.