Chapter I: Homecoming

The strange figure strolled casually from street to street; every sight and sound eradicating their senses - all new to them. It had been nearly fifteen years since they had been there. "Sir! Wait! Purchase some of my dango, you won't regr-" the stall vendor went silent as the slender figure pulled down their leather hood of their long, trench-like coat - revealing a straight mess of short, red hair that framed the young female's face and bangs that reached down past her eyes, parted messily to the right side.

Her piercing violet eyes glared daggers through the man, yet her voice was soft and gentle. "Do I look like I'm hungry to you?" she asked. Her brashness held the man frozen - his crinkled ebony eyes gawked in disbelief at her damaged face; she had a large scar across her left cheek and another across her forehead; her ivory skin had reddened from the fervent heat of the summer sun.

He had shaken his head violently from left to right in denial. His reaction caused an arrogant smirk to curl at the edge of her small lips. "That's exactly what I thought."

Picking her original pace back up, she walked back down the streets once more.

"How pathetic these new villagers are . . . they don't even acknowledge us anymore, father." she whispered to herself, tilting up her head, she groaned at the sky. "They're completely worthless now."

Finding the inn she had been looking for, she entered, pushing aside the thin papers dangling down. "Good day ma-" the receptionist paused, her mouth gaped from sheer shock of the young woman's appearance in her inn. "I t-thought yo-your clan was all gone?!" she stammered in an exasperated manner.

Rolling her eyes in annoyance, she scoffed. "Teh, typical, you really don't understand how resilient us Uzumaki's are." she paused. "I need a room for the night."

The receptionist nodded, causing the newcomer to sigh, as she raced a hand through her dirty, red tresses. "And a hot bath." she added.

"Oh! Uh, all right, sorry!" she apologized as she fumbled through her stacks of paperwork, looking for a sign-in sheet and the proper key; she found, then placed a pen on the sign-in sheet; the Uzumaki woman quickly signed her signature in kanji.

"S-so your name's 'Kasai'?" the receptionist asked with a raised brow as she picked up the paper and moved it to a shelf, beneath the top of the counter. "Yes and I'll be taking my key now." Kasai smoothly retorted, tilting her head to the side and pointing a slim finger to the object in the woman's hand.

"H-here you go!" She squawked, as she handed Kasai the room key. "Much appreciated, I don't have time to rummage through my pockets at the current moment, so you may send someone later to my room to get it." Kasai smiled gently, before heading down the hall to the given room.

It's been too long. Kasai internally sighed. Entering the room, she removed her coat and dropped it onto the floor beside the door. "These new towns people really are quite dense though, who knew my home would become paradise to them." she grumbled, as she brought her black sleeveless top-that stretched mid-neck to below her lower abdomen-over her head.

"Who knew that Uzushio would ever become home to new citizens after that horrendous night." she wondered, pulling down her useless over-skirt then her black capris to unravel her bandages lacing around each of her legs. Then heading straight to the bathing room.

~Meanwhile: Back at the Hotel Desk~

Four men bounded through the doorway of the inn, straight to the receptionist. "We heard that one of them, there, Uzumaki was staying here; what room are they in?!" demanded the broody, black-haired man, angrily slamming his gloved fist down on the desk.

"Shhh, you'll alarm her-here. She's in room A8, it's the twelfth room on the left." Holding up the master key, she pointed a slim finger down the hall to her right. "She should be in the bath by now." The men nodded, heading off into the direction in which the receptionist had gestured.

"Ah, this hot spring feels good," Kasai sighed as the hot spring's soothing, warm water engulfed her body, easing her tired limbs' pain. Kasai closed her eyes, propping her head against a folded towel lying on a large rock.

She lay in complete serenity while she listened to the sweet, incandescent melody of birds chirping around her while the calm breeze briskly brushed against her face. "Why can't everyday be like this?" she asked, lifting a hand to wipe at the scar on her left cheek.

Why me? she had thought, opening her eyes, she stared in deep thought at the clouds drifting by in the orange tinted sky, as she did so, she allowed vivid memories of the time at the original Land of Whirlpools to flit through her mind, causing a smirk to make its way onto her face as she remembered her beautiful mother's "always smiling" face and the handsome, yet stern one of her father's.

She was happy that she had inherited her father's agile attitude and mother's fiery hair, as well as her deep violet eyes, though her mother had always chosen to keep her hair long and in a braid, Kasai had allowed her own to fall freely, just an inch above her shoulders.

The door, separating her from the bathing area to the hot spring, bursted open-easily snapping her from her memory-revealing four well-built men with various shinobi weapons, yet Kasai retained her calm demeanour.

"Teh, can a girl never relax in peace around here? For at least an hour?" she asked, icily; not bothering to glance at the men, she stood, revealing her naked body.

"So, why have you all come here? To steal from me? Or to do something ridiculous like take advantage of my vulnerable, exposed form?" inquired Kasai, sarcastically.

The men each grinned, murderously, at the woman-clearly amused by her words. "You're such an arrogant little girl, coming here, thinking you can just spit all over us." spat the navy-haired man with pale green eyes, as he had brought his black-hilted nunchaku above him and spun them around, madly-as if they were a lasso. The man clearly held no skill with his weapon.

"Little girl, am I? Last I checked, I was twenty-eight years old, meaning I am a young lady, not some 'little girl'. Oh and one more thing, I don't take too kindly to men like you," she tapped her chin in annoyance. "I prefer when they are more romantic and speaking to me when I have my clothes on." Kasai monotonously retorted, her head bowed and eyes closed, in thought of what she was going to do.

"Die!" a silver-haired man of his late teens with dark red eyes shouted, running towards the bare woman.

"I see," she whispered, whipping her head back up, she glared her blazing violet eyes at the oncoming man. "If that's how it's going to be-then so be it!"

Not sure if this was good or not, but if you liked it, please review/comment to let me know. :3