Prologue

{Pekara Inn - Konoha City, Japan… 6 years earlier - 2005}

A little girl watched as three people - an older man with gray hair in a ponytail, a purple-haired Japanese woman, and a raven-haired American woman - bid their goodbyes to the owners of the Pekara Inn, Mebuki and Kizashi Haruno and Sakura's brother Naomi. The two women were both in their teens, around Sakura's brother's age. The little girl had grown especially attached to the raven-haired girl in the cowgirl outfit.

"Do you have to go?" the little girl asked shyly.

The American girl crouched down. "I have to go. I have to train to become the strongest fighter in the world." She noticed the frown on the girl's face. "I'll tell you what, let's make a promise. If you ever get into trouble, or if you need help, you find me, okay?"

The little girl nodded. "Okay." She then raised her small hand. "Promise?"

The taller woman clasped her hand into the little girl's. "I promise." She then took her worn duffel bag and slung it over her shoulder. "See you around, Sakura."

{On the other side of the Okayama Prefecture, Present day - 2018}

"Hello? Hey,Tifa, I think she's coming to."

Sakura Haruno found herself lying flat on her back. Her jaw was sore, as well as the rest of her from landing who-knows-where. As her vision cleared, she saw that she was inside a massive training hall of some sort. There was a teenage boy around her age looking over her, waving his hands over her face, occasionally snapping his fingers.

"It's a miracle that she didn't die from taking such a fall," another male voice said.

"I've seen her before," a female voice said. "It was six years ago. Alice, Master Zangan, and I were guests at the Pekara Inn."

Upon hearing those words, Sakura was completely alert. She assumed a sitting position as the boy moved back. The training hall was huge, and she found the source of the voices. One was female and American while the other was male and also American. The American woman has an athletic build, with a slender but toned physique, and visible abdominals, and is dressed in a white tank top and black tennis skirt with black shorts underneath with a belt and suspenders. She dons red and black gloves that extend to her elbows, red boots, black socks, and a metal guard on her left elbow. Her long black hair falls below her waist and is tied at the tips to form a dolphin-tail split, has red eyes and a white teardrop earring on her left ear. She was sitting beside her, in the lotus position.

The American man is a man with a lean and toned build, wearing a high collar sleeveless indigo shirt, black pants and boots, and black cloth covering his left leg and arm. He has a shoulder pauldron, and his chest is covered by two straps, held in place by a badge representing Fenrir, a wolf that has come to be associated with him, a pink ribbon around his left arm, though it usually stays hidden, spiky blonde hair and blue eyes. He also has a silver earring in his left ear. The teenage boy was simply dressed in a red-and-orange hoodie with the number 11, a black shirt worn under the hoodie, denim jeans, and a pair of sneakers.

"How do you know about the Pekara Inn?" Sakura asked. She looked at the woman closely. "Wait a minute. Do I know you from somewhere?"

"The last time we met, you were a cute little brat," the woman replied. "You have grown, Sakura."

Sakura blinked. "Tifa Senpai? Is that you?"

Tifa Lockhart nodded. "It's me." She gestured to the boy in the hoodie. "You caused a scare in my ward when you landed in the courtyard of our school."

"Hey!!" the boy objected. "It's not every day that a girl comes crashing into the courtyard of the school."

"Sakura Haruno, this is my young ward and apprentice in martial arts and Physical Education major, Denzel," Tifa introduced. "Denzel, this is Sakura Haruno." She then gestured to the handsome American man beside her. "My husband and co-owner of this school, Cloud Strife. Denzel is a freshman foreign exchange student at Okayama University."

Sakura blinked. "Okayama University?! You got into Okayama University?! I've been trying to get into Okayama University for the past two years!!"

Denzel shrugged. "Yeah. The entrance exams weren't that hard with my guardians tutoring me. You must be a ronin."

Sakura nodded. "I am."

"So how are Mebuki and Kizashi?" Tifa asked. "Are they still running the inn?"

"No. My parents are traveling the world. They turned the Pekara Inn into an all-boys dorm. I'm the landlord and owner."

"Lucky you," Tifa said. "The female landlord of an all-boys dormitory."

"Like hell it is!!" Sakura snapped, getting to her feet. "Every day for the past year, I've worked my ass off to keep the dorm running and what thanks do I get? I get tested upon, used as a means to an end, and punched and slashed to Hell! It's a miracle that I'm still alive!"

The Okayama University aspirant was now trembling. "I've put up with their shit long enough! All I get is an Uchiha-Punch and a Matsushiro ki attack for my troubles! I HAVE HAD it!!!

Tifa and Cloud were silent as they watched the female Haruno rant and rave. Denzel was appalled at the sight.

"This ends when I get back! I don't give a fuck about their personal lives! Those three bastards are OUTTA HERE!! THEY ARE EVICTED!!!"

Sakura took a moment to catch her breath. Cloud was speechless. After a tense minute, Tifa said, "Maybe we should talk about your little problem."

Inside the kitchen, over a pot of tea, Sakura opened herself up to the couple. She told them everything from her past failures on the Okayama University Entrance exams, being used as a scapegoat, and everything in between.

"I guess I really can't blame you for how you feel," Cloud noted. "You're the landlord. Why didn't you call the cops on them, or had them evicted a long time ago?"

"She sees the good in the bad," Tifa explained. "Young Haruno has always sacrificed so much and asked for nothing in return." She turned to Sakura. "It looks like you've reached your breaking point, Sakura. You need a vacation."

"But who am I going to get to look after the place?" Sakura asked.

"I remember making a promise to a six-year-old girl," Tifa replied matter-of-factly. "I was 18 at the time. That promise was that should you ever run into trouble, you find me and I'll help you out in any way I can."

"The idea sounds tempting," Sakura said. "But what do you know about management?"

"Look around you, Sakura," Cloud butted in. "We both run a dojo and a bar and grill together. We just haven't opened it yet," he added sheepishly.

Tifa was in deep thought. "Did you say Matsushiro? Have you ever heard of Jin Sanada? The Matsushiro Shihan?"

"Former Shihan of the Matsushiro Samurai School," Sakura said. "He's no longer the heir. His younger brother, Kyo is. Jin gave it up when he got married. Do you know the Sanada family?"

Tifa nodded. "I do. I fought Jin several years earlier." She turned to Sakura and grinned. "It was a draw. Aside from the Kyokugenryu Karate, I am also the current Shihan of the Shinden Tsushima-ryu Battōjutsu."

Sakura blinked. "Shinden Tsushima-ryu Battōjutsu?"

"A style of Kendo that is the diametric opposite of the Matsushiro style. The Matsushiro focuses on ki attacks, while the Shinden Tsushima focuses mostly on offensive techniques. One strike, one kill," Tifa explained. "But like Kyo's style, the Shiden Tsushima also uses ki attacks. Look, you need some time to rethink things. Let me and Cloud deal with the boys."

"Well, I got to warn you," Sakura rebutted. "The dorm is a circus."

Tifa and Cloud exchanged glances. "Trust us when we say that we've seen worse," Cloud replied, thinking about all of the fighters that Cloud, Tifa, and Denzel had faced over the years. "Comes with the territory. Do you have any files on the tenants, just so we know what we are dealing with?"

"I can tell you right off the bat," Sakura replied, taking a sip of her tea. "There are six boys living there. First up is Sasuke Uchiha."

"I've heard of him," Denzel butted in. "He was ranked number one on the mock entrance exams last year."

"And he is also a ronin," Sakura continued. "He is extremely violent and used his Uchiha-Punches on me for the slightest offense, which is how I got here. Next is Kyo Sanada, the heir to the Matsushiro Samurai School in Nagano, having been granted his black belt at 13 years old. He thinks that all women are perverts and only want their money and get into a man's pants. I've also been on the receiving end of his ki attacks. It's a miracle I'm not dead yet. He is also scared of monkeys."

She took another sip of her tea. "Next is Jiro Amano, one of the first of the Pekara Residents to live at the Pekara Inn. Everyone calls him 'Kitsune.' He claims to be a freelance writer, but all I ever see him do is drink rice wine and bet on boat races. He also wiped out my life savings when he and Kyo were looking for me last year. He is conniving and I have to bribe him with rice wine or deduct from his rent when I want him to do something. The next-to-youngest is Riku Hashimoto, the dorm's cook. I know he means well, but he is much too young for me."

"Next is Kurama Tomiya. He is the prince of the island of the Kingdom of Mobius. He is hyperactive and likes to kick me in the head. He is also a genius and uses me as a guinea pig to test his inventions on me. Why I'm not dead or missing something I'll never know. The last two boys who hang around the place are Kazuya Watanabe and Alex Wilson. Kazuya loves apples and is very friendly. However, he is prone to fainting spells and anemia. Alex is the adopted son of Hitomi Asamiya, an archaeologist. He has a tendency of smashing clay pots over my head."

"So that's it?" Tifa asked.

Sakura nodded. "That's it."

Tifa turned to Cloud. "Well? What do you say?"

Cloud smiled evilly. "I'm game. But first, we have to make this official." He turned to Sakura. "Can you draw up a contract, Sakura? The contract should be that you relinquish all responsibility as landlord for two months and hand them over to Tifa and me. That way, the boys don't have a legal standing to try and get us removed. As for the kendo boy…" He turned to Tifa. "I'll let you deal with him."

"Are you sure you want to do that?" Sakura asked. "He is extremely skilled with the sword."

"As am I," Tifa replied. "He may be the heir to the Matsushiro Samurai School, but he lacks experience. His ego will be his downfall."

Sakura looked around. "Can I use the phone? I need to call my brother."

{Pekara Cafe, later on}

[RING…RING…]

"Hello. Pekara Cafe."

"Ino-chan, is my brother there?"

"One moment," the Yamanaka heiress replied. "Naomi! Sakura's on the phone."

Moments later, the owner, Naomi Haruno, picked up the phone. "Sakura?"

"Naomi, I'm taking some time off from being the landlord," Sakura said, getting straight to the point. "I really need this break."

"You sound like you really need it," Naomi replied in his usual monotone voice.

"Either I do this or when I get back, I'm evicting Kyo, Sasuke, and Jiro and turning the dorm back into an inn." The tone in Sakura's voice showed that she was dead serious this time.

"This is quite unexpected, Sakura. Now we have to look for a temporary landlord."

"I found two. Remember Tifa Lockhart?"

"Tifa? Zangan's student? She's here in Konoha City?"

"She has a dojo and a bar and grill here with her husband. They have agreed to act as interim landlords. I told them what to expect and they accepted."

"How long will this break be?" Naomi asked.

"Two months. It's either I take a leave of absence, or I evict those three when I come back, or I call Jin and have him act as landlord. Tifa's husband will come to the teahouse first. Tifa and I will follow the next day."

"So what does he look like, just so I know?"

"Look for an American man with spiky blonde hair and blue eyes," Sakura instructed. "Maybe some tough love from Tifa and Cloud will make them appreciate me more and not treat me as a human doormat. They won't push them around. Trust me."

"How can you be sure?"

"Both Tifa and Cloud are well-trained martial artists. Cloud is a former Interpol Officer who knows his way around the law, and Tifa is an expert in sword fighting. She even fought Jin into a standoff years earlier. I've seen her use some of her Shiden Tsushima ki attacks earlier. They're more destructive than Kyo's."

"So when can I expect the husband?"

"In a couple of hours," Sakura replied. "He's packing as we speak. In the meantime, go and tell the boys that they will be expecting their new landlords soon."

"Will do."