Chapter 12: What Defines a Great Man

A/N. Couple of things I want to clear up, concerning a few of the reviews I got last time. First one I'll address is ???. It's true that Luffy is an idiot and such, but a majority of his lines and actions (about 85 percent of them) are directly from the manga, with the last 15 percent added ones, or ones that I've improvised. Same can be said for the rest of the One Piece characters thus far.

Grumpywriter also says that he feels Naruto should mature some. To that, I'm going to say that right now, that isn't in Naruto's character, not only because of how this story has gone, but also because in the beginning of the manga, Naruto was stupid and immature. He'll start growing up a little when a certain someone makes his appearance.

Lastly is a potential problem with the story, pointed out by both Ozy and Shang, is that by adding the Rookie Nine to the Straw Hats, the core cast of characters could grow too large, making it difficult to give each one a fair amount of screen time and character growth. While I see this as a valid concern, that is the point of this fanfic (which I'm sure is apparent by now). I'm hoping that I can give all these characters an equal amount in this story and shall do my best to do so. At least, that's my intentions, since I like to believe I've been doing a good job of that so far…

XXXXXXX – East Blue, Syrup Village, Nara Restaurant

The group at the table, consisting of Luffy, Nami, Zoro, Usopp, Shino, Sakura, Shikamaru and Sasuke, all turned their heads towards the woman that Shikamaru had just described as his mother. "Your mom?" Sakura asked the other boy, looking at the older woman, who wore a light green shirt, brown pants, casual sandals and an apron. Her facial features didn't seem as...laid back, as her son's. They were focused and business like.

Shikamaru sighed. "Yeah...a real slave driver. She has my dad whipped."

"You watch your tongue, young man," Nara Yoshino explained. She bent down and grabbed his ear. "Where have you been all morning? You didn't clean your breakfast mess, you didn't make your bed, your grandmother is still looking for you..."

Sakura giggled as Shikamaru's reply of 'ow, ow, ow' was heard. "Uh...he came with the big nose guy to greet us when we docked."

Luffy inched back from her. "Creepy..." He muttered, pushing his hat over his eyes as if that would help hid him. Zoro looked at funny, then shrugged and took another drink.

Yoshino then looked up at Usopp. "What were you doing hanging around with that liar?"

"Hey! There's nothing wrong with a little fib every now and then!" Usopp protested immediately. "It's just a little fun to liven up this boring little town."

Sakura looked at him. "So you've never heard the story: The Boy who cried Wolf?" Usopp gave her a confused look, while Shino held up a glass in Sakura's direction. "Well said, Sakura-san." Yoshino's ears perked at the honorific.

"San..." She repeated. She looked at Shino, specifically his forehead. "You..." She said, her eyes growing wide. She then looked at the others and saw Sakura's holding her hair. "You're...shinobi..." She asked, pointing at Sakura and Shino.

"Yes, we are," Shino replied and then looked at Sasuke. "As is he."

Usopp looked at him, trying to get the spotlight back on himself. "The Boy Who Cried Wolf? What's that?"

Sakura sighed. "It's a moral story about what happens to liars."

Nami explained. "Little boy sent to guard sheep. Gets bored so he goes out and cries wolf. The villagers believe him and they come running, only to find that the boy was lying. The boy laughs and the villagers are mad."

"So he gets away with a few jokes? What's wrong with that?" Usopp asked, never hearing the story before. He casually laid back on his chair, getting comfortable to hear the rest.

Shikamaru yawned as Yoshino had let go of his ear. "The story goes that the boy continued to cry wolf day, after day, and the villagers kept believing him. One day, a wolf really did come and the boy panicked..."

"Which taste better: wolves or sheep?" Luffy interrupted.

Everyone ignored him as Nami finished up. "Boy tried to get the townspeople, they didn't listen. Both sheep and boy got eaten by wolf." At that statement, Usopp fell out of his chair and hit the floor.

"So that's what happens to liars, Usopp. They keep telling lies until the real thing comes and no one believes them," Sakura said, and Usopp gulped, shaking slightly.

"But...they're no wolves...or sheep...here..." Usopp stated, visibly shaking. He then looked at his bare wrist. "Oh! Look at the time! I've got to go and do things!" With that, Usopp fled out the door at a surprisingly fast pace.

Yoshino then sat down at his former seat and looked at the others. "So...you're all shinobi? Konoha shinobi?" She amended.

"Nah! We're pirates," Luffy said proudly, causing Yoshino to look slightly appalled.

Shino spoke up, using a higher tone than normal to make sure he was heard. "While Luffy's statement is true, do not assume that we are abandoning our shinobi heritage." Shino said. "We are all allied with Konoha, and we have an additional companion, Uzumaki Naruto, who has abruptly left us.

Sakura pointed at Luffy, Zoro and Nami. "None of them are shinobi, Konoha or otherwise," She said. "But we all had some common interests and we kind of just fell together. Isn't that right, Sasuke?"

Sasuke shrugged. "I'll be leaving as soon as I get some new clothes and a hair cut. I have someone to hunt."

Sakura merely slumped down in response. Yoshino then looked at Sasuke, but didn't see a hitai-ite. "You're a leaf ninja too?" She asked. "I don't see your headband."

Everyone looked at Sasuke for his answer, which was. "I have one." He replied plainly. When they continued looking at him, he sighed. "Yes, it's a leaf one."

Everyone seemed satisfied with that, so they turned their gazes from him. Yoshino laid back a little. "Still...hard to believe that I'm actually seeing other Konoha ninja...we haven't seen any since we got to this island."

"Since you got to this island? Other Konoha ninja? You're ninja too?" Zoro asked. A woman in an apron didn't fit the standard description of shinobi in his mind.

Yoshino nodded and reached into her pocket and pulled out a Konoha headband. She sat it on the table. "I haven't worn that since the shinobi lands fell..." She said. "When I was still a Chunin..."

"You were a Chunin?" Sasuke asked and Yoshino nodded. "My husband was a Jonin."

"What the hell is a Chunin?" Zoro said, putting his feet on the table. "And a Jonin for that matter."

"Currently, Naruto, Sakura-san, Sasuke-san, and myself would rank as Genin, or newly graduated students from an Shinobi Academy. Chunin is the rank above Genin, those who are Chunin can command other Shinobi. Jonin is the highest rank under Kage, they are elite Shinobi."

Nami laughed. "I'm surprised you didn't know about, Mr. Pirate Hunter. I thought you also bragged that you've caught a fair amount of shinobi during your bounty hunter days." Yoshino's eyes darken at that statement. While it wasn't uncommon to hear that some shinobi were now no better than mere thugs and bandits, actually meeting someone who once captured them was…unsettling to say the least. Fortunately, she decided not to comment on it.

"I don't bother to learn their personal lives," Zoro countered, oblivious to Yoshino's darker look. "And that goes for all my former bounties."

"He doesn't bother to learn at all!" Luffy exclaimed, getting several laughs, while Zoro had a look that said Like-you're-one-to-talk.

Yoshino looked at Shikamaru. "He would be classified as a Genin too...if he actually trained the few times when my husband isn't busy."

"Busy being drunk, which is what he does more than his actual job," Shikamaru retorted. He then shrugged. "Really don't want to be a ninja."

Yoshino grabbed his ear again. "So you want to return to your chores then? Is that what I'm hearing?" Shikamaru groaned outloud and muttered 'how troublesome…'

Nami giggled. "He's always like this?"

"You have no idea," Yoshino said, letting him go, as he rubbed his ear. She looked at Shino. "Are there any others?"

"In addition to my own clan and Sakura-san's family, we have encountered three other Shinobi of a new affiliation. They were hostile. They are from a village called Sound." The bug user replied.

"One of them, anyway," Sakura corrected. "My mom's a banker."

Yoshino nodded as she processed the information. "Sound huh? Never heard of them. They weren't part of the original 24 villages."

"So...uh...how did you get to the island?" Nami asked.

Yoshino put her hands together. "Not much to tell. When the attack came...me and my husband were put of the defense." She looked at Shikamaru. "He was just a few months old...and he was sleeping through the beginning of it. All the alarms, all the noise and he just slept through it..."

Shikamaru shrugged. "What can I say, I can sleep threw almost anything."

"After the Hokage decided to for everyone to flee, we - we being me, my husband Shikaku, his mother and Shikamaru – all fled like everyone else. Spent two years just drifting from island to island. We finally came to this place, a small remote village that had never encountered shinobi before. They let us stay and Shikaku as made the sheriff of the town, while I opened up this restaurant."

Nami nodded. "Quite a tale."

"Not really," Shikamaru yawned. Everyone ignored him. Yoshino said. "So...what begins you all here? It's good to see some other survivors around."

"We need a new ship to travel the Grand Line." Luffy said. He then pointed to Shino. "And they say that they're looking to 'reunite' the shinobi."

Yoshino then looked at Shino and began talking with him in the shinobi language and seemed to be going into deep and serious conversation. Sakura looked eagerly at Sasuke. "Well…shall we go shopping then?"

"Are you offering to pay then?" He asked.

"Um…" Sakura said. Nami then thrust something into Sakura's hands. She looked down into her hands and saw Naruto's frog wallet. "When did you…"

"Never mind that!" Nami said dismissively, laughing while she did. "Just take it and…" She bent close to Sakura and whispered. "Good luck with him."

Sakura beamed at the thought and instantly forgot all the moral, ethical and honorable decisions in 'accepting' Naruto's money. She grabbed Sasuke's hand, enthusiastically yelled 'let's go' and dragged to the main entrance of the restaurant, where three small boys with wooden swords bumped into them.

"Excuse us!" The trio said, completely oblivious to the fact that they had just ran into two of the 'ogres' that they had just been plotting against.

The two shinobi walked out as Carrot, Pepper and Onion ran to the table and yelled. "USOPP'S PIRATES ARE HERE!!!"

Shikamaru rubbed his ear. "You don't have to be so loud about it."

"Who are they?" Nami asked outloud.

"Beats me," Luffy said, taking a drink from his cup.

"Hey! Where's the Captain?" Carrot asked puzzled. Moments later, all three paled.

"Could they have finished him already?" Onion suggested, shaking slightly.

Carrot took a deep breath, steady his nerves and said. "Hey, you pirates!"

"What'd you do with our Captain?" Pepper added.

"Give him back!" Onion finished.

"Ah!" Luffy said, patting his stomach. "That meat was delicious!"

"M-meat…!?" Pepper choked out, Carrot visibly gasped and Onion stuttered. "T-the…C-captain…he couldn't have…!"

"If you're looking for your Captain," Zoro said, getting the three boys attention. He put on a 'devil's smiles' and said. "We ate him!"

"GYAAAAAAA!! ORGESSS!!!" All three exclaimed, looking strait at Nami.

"Why are you looking at me!?" She yelled back.

"Because you said that the little boys would be next," Shino offered in a dark tone as he looked strait at them. With the dark tone of his voice, the heavy gaze and the boys overacting at everything, Shino's statement just offered more fuel to the pandemonium in the room, which ended in each of the three boys fainting and foaming at the mouths.

Nami slammed a fist on the table. "Shino! It's not funny!"

"Yes is it," Zoro said, chuckling.

It took about another thirty minutes to bring everything back to order. Everything from waking up the boys, to Yoshino taking her leave (and dragging her son off to do the chores), to quickly explaining what really happened to the three children during that time and now the three boys were sitting quietly at the table as Nami finished talking.

"He really said 'I've got to go and do things!'" Onion quoted.

"That's what he said when he left," Zoro confirmed. "Probably just wanted to run before the truth kicked him in the butt."

"Nah," Pepper said indifferently. "It was probably time for him to go to the mansion."

"The mansion where the sick girl lives?" Nami inquired.

"Yeah," Carrot replied.

"Why would he go there?" Luffy asked.

The three boys grinned and all said proudly. "To tell lies!"

"That's not very nice," Luffy said.

"Yes it is!" Carrot corrected immediately.

"It's very nice," Pepper said. He looked at Onion. "Right?"

"Yeah, it's great!" Onion agreed happily.

The Straw Hats just looked at the boys, trying to figure out if they were serious or not.

XXXXXXX – Syrup Village, Main Street

Sakura was dragging Sasuke around by the hand. "Let's see, where to go first?" She asked outloud. She casually tossed Naruto's frog wallet that Nami 'lent' to them. She giggled silently. Naruto was nice and all, but he was annoying. Probably if he thought she took his wallet, he'd stop obsessing over her.

"I don't need a lot. Just a new shirt and pants," Sasuke said with annoyance in his voice.

"So you're fine with your feet being five centimeters too big for your shoes?" Sakura asked teasingly. "And you like your long hair?" Boys never liked their hair long. At least the boys she had met, which honestly, was quite few.

Sasuke shrugged. "And a haircut and new shoes..." He amended. He then gave a frustrated sighed. "Would you stop dragging me though?"

"Oh sorry..." Sakura said, letting go of his hand while Inner Sakura: 'Shannaro! I liked holding hands! It was like we were on a date!' She quickly composed herself and pointed off to the right. "Oh look! There's one! Let's try that one!"

Sasuke shrugged and followed her into a clothing store. It wasn't a very big place, just a small white store with various flower and animal decorations. Once inside, they saw that the selection was fairly large, all different styles of clothing with various hues and shades on them. Sakura instantly liked the place and zipped off, looking through all the aisles. She dashed through the men's section, looking at the various shirts, shorts and pants.

"Let's see..." She said, looking at a pair of blue jeans. "You'll need this...and this (green shirt)...maybe this (purple shirt)..." She instantly thought how Sasuke would look in these outfits and she giggled at the various images. She was so caught up in daydreaming that she didn't notice that Sasuke had already left her and was walking towards a clerk. He pointed to a plain blue shirt. "How much?"

"Thirty Berries," The man said immediately, not even bothering to look at the price tag.

Sasuke turned around. "Can you put this symbol on it?" He asked, pointing to the back of his shirt, the Uchiha fan.

"Yes, I can sir," the salesman replied.

"Do it," He said firmly. He could still remember the pride he felt when his father told him that he could proudly where the Uchiha symbol on his back after Sasuke had properly performed the Grand Fireball. He then looked through the remaining clothes and picked up a simply white pair of shorts. "I'll take these as well."

The man nodded, and he led Sasuke to the changing room while the salesman took the shirt into the backroom and started working on it. Sakura was absorbed in choosing outfits for Sasuke that she didn't even notice.

Ten minutes later - it took that long to sown the Uchiha symbol on - Sasuke walked out in a new blue shirt and white shirts. He walked past Sakura, who was holding a large amount of clothes. "And, of course, a few of these will..." Sasuke cut her off. "I'm done." He looked at the clerk. "Give her the bill."

The clerk nodded and Sakura frowned as she grudgingly put the clothes back. She paid for his new outfit. "Well let's get you some new shoes and a haircut, Sasuke-kun!"

"Whatever..." He said. "Just as long as you're paying..."

Sakura sweatdropped and followed him, this wasn't as fun as she had been hoping for. They reached a barber shop, and Sasuke ordered a trim, just to get the hair out of his eyes. "...sir, I recommend to you getting your hair washed as well."

"What difference does it make?" Sasuke retorted as he sat down.

"...well...it's sticky..." the barber started, gently grabbing some hair, which stuck to his hand from the naturally produced grease. "And salty...when was the last time you washed it?"

"Five months ago..." He replied. He bathed often, but washing his hair was always a hassle. That happens when you're struck on an island with very little to use. He had avoided washing his hair…and cutting it for that matter…until it became absolutely necessary.

"No wonder. It'll take three washes for it to get properly ready to be cut," the barber said and Sasuke sighed and nodded.

"Just do what you have to do," Sasuke said as he laid back on the chair.

And so, Sasuke's hair was washed, rinsed, and dried three times. It was then revealed that his hair had a blue shine to it, and Sakura's heart fluttered. 'And here I thought he was handsome with plain black hair...'

The barber then proceeded to cut, first trimming in the front of his eyes and then working on the back, cutting most of the hair that went past his skull line down to his shoulders. Pretty soon, the floor was covered in Sasuke's hair.

The barber then looked like he was forming a picture. And then snipped more of the hair away. "There, done.'

"Great," Sasuke said, looking at himself in the mirror. There were two bangs framing his face, and it seemed like gel was used to make the hair stick up in back, which went into a tasteful spiky pattern. "And sir, I assure you, I used no gel to create that."

"It's fine..." He said. He got down and stepped in the hair. He looked down and muttered several choice words followed by "Perfect." He stepped over and shook his shoes off. "Give her the bill." He said, pointing at Sakura.

"As you wish, sir." Sakura paid for his haircut, with a deep blush on her face.

"What is it?" Sasuke asked her. He looked down at himself. "Is there hair on me or something?"

"Y-You just look dreamy."

"Don't care. Dreamy doesn't make you stronger." Sasuke replied, he then looked at the shoes in his hands, then his bare feet. "Where's that damned shoe store then?"

Sakura shrugged. "I saw one down the street."

They both walked over to it and walked inside. A woman greeted them and was about to ask what they wanted when she saw Sasuke's shoes in his hand. "Looking for anything in particular?" She asked him.

"Just some sandals to replace these," He replied, tossing them into a nearby trash can.

"And you miss?" she turned to Sakura.

"Oh, I'm just the person who pays for him," Sakura said cheerfully, holding out Naruto's frog wallet as proof.

"Oh," the woman said. "Well...this way." She led them to the sandal section, which was surprising large. Sandals of all different shapes, sizes, styles filled up two full aisles. "Just pick out whatever you like." The clerk said, turning around and facing them.

Sasuke shrugged and found some blue sandals in the same style of his old ones that were the current size of his feet. "These will do."

"Ok..." The woman said slowly, as if disapproving of something. She laid them to the front counter.

"Is there something wrong?" Sasuke asked, detecting her mood. The woman didn't answer. She just stared at him, as if waiting for him to do something.

Sakura started to pay for his shoes, but the woman held out a hand. "Aren't you going to thank her?" She demanded.

Sasuke looked at her. "If your not...then get out. Go buy some shoes at another store."

"Is there another store?" Sakura asked, genuinely curious.

"Not on this island."

Sasuke remained silent and appeared to be thinking the situation over. Finally he looked at Sakura. "Thank...you..." He forced out slowly. He looked at the woman again. "Happy now?"

"That's a little better. Now say it like you mean it." The woman said, crossing her arms.

Sasuke sighed. "Thank you..." He said to Sakura, who was blushing now, was too…bashful to respond with the common 'your welcome', merely nodded in response.

"Thats better. Afterall, it's her money that she's using on you." That innocent phrase gave Sakura an involuntarily jerk, though neither Sasuke nor the woman seem to notice. "Here's your new sandals sir."

Sasuke nodded and took them, putting them on immediately. He walked to the door, opened it and actually stopped. "Coming?" He asked Sakura, who was lost in thought.

"Coming?" He asked a little louder, this time getting her attention. She quickly nodded and they walked out. As they did, Sakura absentmindedly staring at the wallet in her hand, and what the clerk had said.

"Afterall, it's her money that she's using on you." This wasn't her money. It was Naruto's. That small, yet very significant fact that she had pushed out of her mind at the beginning of shopping had now wormed its way back into her head. A sign that her conscience was returning.

She…felt guilty. Nami was a thief, while she may not have a problem stealing over peoples things – even if it was only for play – Sakura now realized that she did. That wasn't like her. It went against her own beliefs and character. She reached into one of her pockets and pulled out what money she actually had. Looking at the small amount in her hand, she quickly determined that all she had was only about half of what she had spent on Sasuke using Naruto's own money.

Sakura found a pen on the ground and quickly picked it up. She quickly wrote I.O.U. on one of the bills before she put all of her money into Naruto's wallet. She smiled at herself, wondering just how Naruto would collect on that. Maybe…just one small…not date, but something like that…wouldn't kill her.

Assuming Naruto forgave her for spending his money that is.

XXXXXXX – Syrup Village, Kaya's Mansion

After the boys had told Luffy and the others the exact nature of Usopp's 'lies', which were various stories about supposed adventures that he went on, and hearing just how happy these stories made Kaya, Luffy instantly proclaimed that they would ask Kaya for a ship, much to Nami's protesting.

The four Straw Hats (Naruto was still training, and Sakura and Sasuke just missed them and didn't know they were headed to Kaya's mansion) and the three Usopp's Pirates walked up to the large wall and gate that surround Kaya's mansion.

Luffy announced them in the simplest fashion: he stood just outside the gates and shouted 'Hey you! Give us a ship!' at the top of his lungs for the owners and staff to hear, much to the embarrassment of the other six gathered around him.

Surprisingly, no one heard Luffy's loud declaration, so Luffy 'let himself in' by climbing over the gates (and getting four points on Nami's idiot competition), with the others reluctantly following his example. It didn't take long to find Kaya, because you could hear her laughing as Usopp was saying, "I chopped it up and took it to a land of little people. They're still eating it to this day."

The group walked closer and they got a good view of Usopp and Kaya. Kaya was leaning on a window ledge in her nightgown, eagerly listening and happily laughing, while Usopp was sitting out side on the grass, and leaning back against the truck of a tree, chuckling and saying. "And after such a glorious feat, the people called out to me – "

"CAPTAIN!" The three boys yelled.

" – That's right!" Usopp said without pause, not realizing someone else had spoke up. "They call me…" He then gasped outloud and looked at the source of the voices. "What are you guys doing here?!" He demanded.

All three boys pointed at Luffy. "We brought these guys with us!" Onion said.

"Who are they?" Kaya asked, looking out the window.

Luffy smiled brightly. "You must be the mistress of this place!"

Usopp instantly ran towards Luffy and put his arm around the Straw Hat. "Oh, they heard of my reputation from afar and came to seek me out." Usopp said proudly, nodding his head several times as he did. "They're the newest members of my crew!"

"Yeah!" Luffy agreed enthusiastically. His face then dropped slightly as he amended. "Hey! That's not right!"

"Why are we following that fool?" Zoro asked outloud.

"Who is the more foolish?" Shino interjected. "The fool or the ones that follow him?"

"I like you better when you don't talk."

"We need a big favor!" Luffy said, pulling Usopp off and now talking to Kaya.

"A favor?" Kaya repeated. "What kind of favor?"

"We want a big sturdy ship!" Luffy said, spreading his arms out to help emphasize his requirement, like how a fisherman would describe a big catch he had caught.

"WHAT IS THE MEANING OF THIS!?" cried a loud and angry voice from the distance. Everyone turned to see a tall man, wearing butler clothes, with designs on them that resembled poop of all things, and wearing glasses. "Don't you realize your trespassing!?

"Dresspressing?" Luffy repeated. "I'm dressed wrong? I like these shorts, shirt and – "

"No, you imbecile," The butler interrupted. "It means that you are here without permission and must leave at once."

"What's his problem?" Luffy wondered. Nami hit him on the head. "What?"

Nami didn't answer verbally, but she added two points for Luffy anyway.

"Klahadore…" Kaya said outloud, causing her servant to look at her strait in the eyes. "You see, these people, they're…"

Klahadore waved her off. "You can save the excuses for later." He then turned back to the others. "You all must go immediately, or do you have some business here?"

"I want a big, sturdy ship!" Luffy replied grinning.

"I can't help you!" Klahadore answered immediately. He then began surveying the remaining group until his sight landed on Usopp. "You. You're Usopp, aren't you?"

There was a small silence as Klahadore continued. He talked how Usopp was the talk of the village, and how he had a gift for deceit. He then criticized Usopp's heritage, talking how he was the filthy son of a pirate and how he was merely taking advantage of Mistress Kaya. Kaya herself was horrified at these claims, but Klahadore continued on regardless. He continued until Usopp finally snapped and punched Klahadore right in the face, sending him crashing into the ground. Klahadore, however, merely used Usopp's act to his to prove his point: that Usopp was filth and that his first actions were violent ones.

Usopp retorted by admitting that he did tell lies, but the one thing he would never lie about is his pirate heritage and how proud he was that his father was a brave warrior of the sea. Klahadore continued to twist Usopp's words and mock him. Usopp nearly punched Klahadore yet again except Kaya pleaded with him to stop. With that, Usopp stormed out of the grounds, shouting that he would never return. After Luffy, Pepper, Carrot and Onion called Klahadore 'Butt-ler', 'Fool', 'Dumbell' and 'Knucklehead,' as they left as well (though Luffy had to be dragged out by Zoro).

The group separated, with most going back into town (who ran into Sakura and Sasuke, the two had been looking all over the village for them), while Luffy ran off to do who knew what.

XXXXXXX – Syrup Village, South Beach

Usopp walked towards the south beach and sat down. As he did, an orange figure fell from the sky and landed on top of him.

"Ouch!" Usopp cried, more in shock than actual pain. "Who the hell are you!? And what's the big deal falling on my head!"

"I'm Naruto, damnit! And your head was where I need to land!"

They traded insults for several minutes before they both calmed down. "So…what are you doing out here anyway?" Usopp asked, curiosity replacing his anger.

"Climbing trees!" Naruto replied proudly.

"What's so special about that?" Usopp asked. "Anyone can do that."

Naruto grinned. "Can you do it without your hands?"

Usopp gave him a skeptical look. "Just because I like telling lies, doesn't mean I'm gullible!"

Naruto's grin broke out into a fierce small. "Watch and learn." He did the sign of the ram again and focused the charka in his feet. He then started walking up the tree, he got about halfway and looked down and the very surprised Usopp. "Believe me now?" Naruto asked, loving the fact that he finally showed someone up on this drill.

That brief moment of superiority didn't last long. With that gloat, Naruto last all focus on the tree…and plummeted to the ground, which just resulted in Usopp laughing his head off.

"Damnit…" Naruto growled into the dirt, as he slammed his fist into the ground. "I'm not giving up!"

Usopp was trying to stop himself from laughing at this point. "Yes…keep going…I need a few good laughs!"

"Why?" Naruto asked, sitting up into Indian style and facing the liar.

Usopp stopped laughing, Klahadore, and thus the anger that he caused, quickly returned. "Just some bastard of a butler that thinks he knows everything," Usopp said, laying back on the grass and putting his hands behind his head. "Including me…"

"What's that supposed to mean?" Naruto asked puzzled.

"It means that he thinks that he can diss me and my father," Usopp replied coldly. "He knows nothing about me or him, yet he thinks he can go and tarnish my father's name. I'm proud that he's a pirate and a great man!"

"Your dad's a pirate?" Naruto asked.

"Yep, his name's Yasopp." Luffy said.

"Oh, that's nice…WAHHH!!!!" Both Usopp and Naruto screamed. Luffy was hanging upsidedown from a tree branch, using his feet to hold him. "What?" He asked.

"DON'T SNEAK UP ON US!!!" Usopp and Naruto cried.

Luffy ignored them. He merely let go of the tree branch and landed on his hands. As he walked on them, he repeated. "Yasopp. He's your father, right?"

Usopp was shocked. "How…how do you know my father's name?"

"Simple!" Luffy said, continuing to walk on his hands. "I met him."

"You met him?!?" Naruto asked. "But…isn't he a pirate?"

"Yep!" Luffy confirmed happily, finally getting off of his hands and standing on his feet once more. "And you look just like him," Luffy continued, pointing at Usopp. "I thought you look familiar when I first saw you, and I just figured out why."

"Do you know where my father is now?!" Usopp asked eagerly.

"Nope!" Luffy replied cheerfully, sitting down now. "But I'm sure he's still with Captain 'Red Haired' Shanks! Yasopp is a crewman on my favorite pirate ship!"

"Huh!? Really!?" Usopp was then overcome with awe, his mind wandering about how brave and gallant his father would have to be, especially if he was with Red Haired Sha…"HE'S WITH SHANKS!?" Usopp cried out, the impact of who his father was serving hitting him hard.

Naruto however, looked at Luffy and Usopp with a complete blank look on his face. "Who's Hed Raired Shanks?" 'I've heard that name before…haven't I?'

"Red Haired! Red Haired!" The other two shouted at him loudly.

"Sorry…" Naruto replied dragging out the word. "So…who is he?"

"A great pirate," Luffy said, taking off his hat. "This was once his. I promised to return it to him when I become a great pirate." He smiled and put the hat back on. He looked at Usopp. "Speaking of great, I recall Yasopp being a great shot. I never saw him miss. He used to shoot apples with his back turned on them and always hit them dead center. He bragged that he could shoot the whiskers of an ant at fifty meters." He thought back. "Now that I think about it…he did mention his son quite a lot. Told me about him…him being you…a thousand times. Said that he was sad to be parted with his son, but the call of the pirate flag was too strong to ignore."

"Wow…" Usopp said in complete awe, his mood brightening up considering. He had always wondered what his father thought about him. To actually hear that it had been hard to live him and still thought about him, it was much, much more than he could had hoped for. He laid back on the grass and kept muttering. "A great pirate…my father…I always knew he was, you know! Never doubted it for a minute!"

He then jumped up to his feet, looking at the endless sea. "Yessir! He sailed off into the boundless sea. My father's out there risking life and limb and I'm proud of him! That butler said some obnoxious things about him! He'll ruin my father's good name. I'll prove him wrong! My father is a great man, no matter what anyone says!"

"Yeah!" Luffy and Naruto cheered. "You go show that stupid butler!" Naruto said, not having a clue who they were talking about. "Who is that guy anyway?"

"The one down there," Luffy answered, pointing down by the shoreline.

"Yep, that's him…" Usopp agreed. Reality then kicked in. "HEY! What the hell is that butler doing here?!" Klahadore was meeting some weird man at the shoreline.

"Talking to someone, obviously," Naruto said, rolling his eyes. "What's so wrong about that?"

"Django. I instructed you to keep a low profile. What were you doing sleeping in the middle of the village?" Klahadore asked, his voice and tone wasn't anything like what he had used when trashing Usopp. It was just as…unpleasant as it had been before, but it was much more…sinister. He spoke in a voice that carried a much more commanding than he had previously. Was this really the same guy?

"Don't be stupid," the man Klahadore addressed as Django replied. "I'm not standing out and I'm not strange. Besides…it was worth it to see the raven haired kid with the attitude fall for it too. Calling me con artist and wannabe of all things…"

"Silence," Klahadore ordered. "I didn't meet you hear to listen to your rambling." He pushed up his glasses with his palm again. "Have you prepared everything necessary to carry out my plan?"

"Of course I have," Django responded. "Operation 'Murder Miss Kaya' is ready to go at any time."

MURDER MISS KAYA!?

End of Chapter 12

Special thanks to Son Kenshin once again for all the help, specifically with the Sakura and Sasuke scene. My original plan for it was to make it more…disastrous is the best word that comes to mind. But after two days of bragging my head trying to come up with ideas and coming up with nothing, I asked for help and Son Kenshin agreed to help immediately. Now that I look at it, I think that what was put worked out better, both Sakura and Sasuke grew up a tad bit.

Make sure to check out his fic: Bending the Jutsu, an excellent Avatar/Naruto crossover. Also be sure to check out Shang's stories – Love, Demons and Bloodlines and Shinobi Showdown are just two of the magnificent stories he has written.

Nami's Ultimate Idiot Competition – Luffy: 21, Naruto: 19

Disclaimer: I do not own One Piece or Naruto. They belong to their respective owners: Eiichiro Oda and Masashi Kishimoto.