Title: Worth Searching For

Genre: Romance/Adventure

Language: English

Rating: M

Pairing: Trafalgar Law & Sakura Haruno

Summary: She had lost her shinobi status with a deadly poison. With a dying body and injured pride, she traveled the world to find him for more than one reason, but would he accept her after seven years of searching?

Disclaimer: I do not own One Piece or Naruto nor do I make any money from my writings.

Full Summary: She had lost her shinobi status with a deadly poison. With a dying body and injured pride, she traveled the world to find him for more than one reason, but would he accept her after seven years of searching? Her body was far from what it used to be and even if he refused to help her or cure her, she had already been saved by him. This was her journey toward her goal. To him.

Prologue:

Crimson trails that held a metallic scent rolled down paled and bruised skin. Jade eyes were glazed over as they skimmed over fuzzy features that loomed over the petite form, pupils dilated as wide as saucers. Voices were muffled and distorted as figures in white outfits shouted out distant instructions, all of which were lost on the kunoichi. Her body was numb and somewhere in the back of her mind as some sort of instinct that she had developed in her years of shinobi work, she knew she should be in pain. Disoriented images and thoughts ran through her mind, none of which made much sense to her, though a constant question rang through her mind like an alarm, causing her currently sensitive head to ache.

'Am I dying?'

She could barely stay awake, the shouting of the medics running around doing little to help her slipping consciousness, save for their loud noises echoing throughout her ears and banging against her skull. Pink hair plastered to her face and neck, the sweat aiding in it sticking to her features and adding a darker shade to it's usually bright color. Her head turned to the side and a soft moan left her lips, unaware of her shirt being torn open to expose her chest.

If she were able to produce any rational thought or focus on anything for more than a split second, she might have seen the discolored skin of her abdomen. She might have noticed the purplish-black bruise that was formed around an obvious puncture wound on the left side of her navel. She might have realized that poison was spreading rapidly through her body, might have noticed that her breaths were getting heavier, her heart beat increasing with each passing moment.

However, Sakura noticed none of these things. Not the way that her body would spasm uncontrollably every few moments or the way that foam slipped out of the side of her lips. Not the pain that shot through her body, rippling through every nerve ending and cell that her being had to offer. Especially not the way someone shouted for Tsunade and for someone to bring her there. The female wasn't able to process anything at all and that in itself was enough for one of the most primal emotions to hit her, even in such a state. Fear.

Where was she? What happened? Why was she like this? Who were these people? How did she end up here? When did this happen?

Many moments passed by. Seconds. Minutes. Hours. She didn't know, but she was able to understand the fact that her head had finally settled on facing one direction, her eyes landing on an unexciting corner of whatever bland room she was in. Her body had stopped it's incisive squirming, her movement coming to almost a complete stop. The only indication that life still pumped through her veins was the short and soft rising and falling of her chest and the occasional blinking of her eyes.

"How is she doing?" someone asked. A woman and the sound had a soothing effect on the female for an odd reason. Did she know her?

"The worst part is over with, ma'am and she seems to be stabilized, though her condition is far from being improved. It is an advanced form of poison. None of our medics are able to isolate it in order for it to be analyzed. None of us know what to do, Lady Tsunade."

"I see. ANBU was able to catch the man that did this. Hopefully they'll be able to get something out of him. Until then, I'll look after her."

"Yes ma'am."

That was right. Tsunade-shishou. What was she doing back in Konoha? Did she even leave in the first place?

"There's one more thing Lady Tsunade."

"What is it?"

There was a long pause before the medic continued, as if mentally preparing themselves for some catastrophic event to be unfolded.

"If we aren't able to cure this poison, I'm afraid to say that she won't last the year."

~Scene Change~

"The man that we are looking for has the power to cure any illness." a member of the Yamanaka clan stated, a glimmer of relief in his blue eyes as he gazed down at the former medic.

Sakura stared ahead of her at the man strapped into a chair. His dark hair fell in front of him as his face was lowered downward. Sweat ran from his body and over olive colored skin. Chiseled muscle could be seen under loose clothing along with a defined tattoo on his left shoulder of a skull and crossbones. His skin was clear of any scars or any evidence of previous harsh battles. It was clear that he wasn't a shinobi, but was he?

What else was obvious was the fact that he was dangerous. The poison that he had injected into the kunoichi on her previous mission was nothing to mess with. It had practically destroyed her. With three months of rehabilitation, she was able to gain back conscious thought and she had immediately realized that something drastic had happened to her body, in more ways than one.

Her pride as a shinobi was lost. Her body had shrunk down to the size of a child. That she could live with. The loss of her strength and chakra, she could not. The realization had hit her hard. Everything that she had worked for for the past fifteen years, gone within a few hours as the effects of the poison had settled into her body right after it entered her blood stream. She couldn't even remember how it happened, but the fact that it had was a blow to her pride nonetheless. She didn't even realize how important those two attributes of her everyday life was to her until it was gone.

She had taken over the title as one of the Legendary Sannin from her Shishou two years prior during the Fourth Great Shinobi War. She had held that title with honor and pride and now it was reduced to nothing but a mediocrity. She was ashamed of herself and without her powers, she felt exposed and vulnerable. Even with the fact that she had recently been wed to the man of her dreams and the newly etched tattoo of ANBU on her right shoulder, she couldn't find anything to lift her spirits.

Her expression was solemn and her cheeks were uncharacteristically chubbier than what used to be seen from her. Her eyebrows were furrowed and tears threatened to fall from her jade eyes. She forced them at bay, struggling to keep what little dignity she had left. She could no longer be a shinobi like this. How was she supposed to live like this? What was she supposed to do? Being a shinobi was all she knew. It was her job, her life, her pride. Sure, she had her husband, she had her friends, her family, her village, but she had lost something that was so much more important to her than she ever could have imagined and she wanted it back at any cost.

That was when she was told about the man's memories. About a barrier surrounding their continent, about a small crack in it near the Land of Wind. This man had come from outside the barrier with only a curious mind and had apparently attacked her on a whim, for no apparent reason. Something which that had filled the pinkette with rage.

Her hands clenched at her sides and her flat chest heaved an infuriated and distressed sigh. Everything had changed so quickly, she needed a bit of reassurance that the entire world hadn't flipped upside-down and turned on her. Though she knew that that wasn't the case, she couldn't help but feel defeated by the universe in some sort of sick, demented way. One of Sasuke's shirts fell loosely over her shoulders and down to her knees. His scent wafted upward into her nostrils occasionally when she moved around and it was able to sooth her nerves, even for the slightest of moments. It seemed as if it was the anchor that kept her temper and overflowing emotions held down.

Of course, Sakura wasn't one to be defeated so easily and she hated losing more than anything. If she let something like this break her then she wouldn't be worthy of regaining her status as one of Konoha's Legendary Sannin, or even a shinobi period. They endured, that was what made them shinobi and she would endure. She refused to let this overcome her. She didn't give a damn how long she had left to live, she would get through this.

"The man you are looking for is a monster." the man spoke, catching the attention of Sakura, the Yamanaka, Shizune, and the other three ANBU members that were currently standing in the darkened room surrounding the man tied to the chair.

"What do you mean?" the Yamanaka asked, his blonde eyebrows furrowing in observation and contemplation.

The prisoner looked up at Sakura, his dark brown eyes showing contempt and another dark emotion as they settled on her eyes. A smirk grazed his dry and thin lips, raising the skin of his cheek and scrunching up the side of his small nose. "The man you are looking for is a cold-hearted freak. He feels nothing of compassion and his very goal was to destroy everything and everyone in sight. He's a monster and you will die before the year is up."

Sakura felt something stir inside of her gut and a twinge of pain entered her heart at the way this man was talking about the other. Did he know him personally? They knew he didn't. Even so, something didn't sit right with her. Perhaps it was the way he held complete disdain in his eyes when talking about him. Maybe it was the way his words were laced with venom. Or could have been that word that he used? Monster? There was something about that disgusting word that made her stomach churn. She hated it.

"Perhaps if you can get out of your safe little box and visit my world, you'll be able to find a doctor to cure you."

Shizune immediately replied, hope filling her at last since this whole charade began, though she did well to hide it from the man before her as she stood beside the young girl that she viewed as a younger sister. "It can be cured by any doctor outside of that wall?"

The man tilted his head to the side, feeling empowered by the situation even when his arms and legs were completely bound to the chair behind and beneath him. "Naturally, the materials I used for the poison were from there. Any brilliant doctor there would be able to neutralize the poison and possibly reverse the effects. It may not revert you back to normal though, its a high possibility that its impossible, but it will keep you from dying."

The Yamanaka had doubt and suspicion in his voice when he asked, "You've been quiet for three months, why tell us this now?"

The man chuckled darkly, amusement flowing over his features and it laced his voice when he said, "Because it doesn't matter anymore, this girl will be dead long before she even finds a doctor that is capable of helping her."

Sakura furrowed her eyebrows and looked down at the ground. She was set to die in six months, that would mark the end of the year. She had no strength, no chakra, no knowledge of what laid outside of that barrier, and no way of knowing if she would be able to find a doctor for the poison that had turned her life upside-down. Yet, one thing that she did know, she wasn't going to stop or give up. She wasn't going to lose and she wasn't going to let someone else fight her battles for her, even if she had no way to fight back.

With that thought in mind, she decided with a hardened resolve that she would be the one to search for a doctor. It was her body, her life. Despite her appearance, she was an adult and a full-fledged shinobi, or was. The tattoo on her shoulder proved the fact that she was capable of defending herself. She still had her knowledge and experience, she could avoid any real threats and make weapons to fight with. She wasn't completely defenseless.

She would find a doctor and live. She would survive and come back to Konoha as the warrior she once was and in order to do that, she needed to find someone that was exceptional. Someone that could cure any disease or injury. She needed the best and one person came to mind. However, there was another reason. She not only wanted to be cured by the best, she wanted to be cured by this so called 'monster'. Although there was a chance that he wouldn't be willing to help her like that man had said.

The pinkette let that thought swim around in her cluttered mind for a few moments while the others discussed on what they should do. What would she do if the man refused her? Her chances of survival were nil to begin with, there was a high possibility that she wouldn't be able to find him or any doctor for that matter. Rejection she could live with. Going without her powers, she could not. She knew somewhere in the back of her mind that it would take more than six months to find this miracle doctor. It depended solely on her willpower to keep her moving forward.

Her chest contracted greatly while she thought over what she was going to do. She figured that she could make it easier on herself by going to the first hospital that she could find, but there was something nagging at her conscious.

"The man you are looking for is a monster."

She knew the effect that that word had on Naruto and Gaara, two of her closest friends. She knew of the way that they had isolated themselves from everyone else, either because they didn't have a choice or because it gave them comfort. They had both been shunned by their own people, forced into a corner of their subconscious, and began to question their very existence. She had never had to deal with something like that and her being picked on and shoved aside as a young child by her peers couldn't possibly compare with theirs. She supposed there was guilt in her heart for not having been there for Naruto when they were younger. She had her own problems then, but she could have still opened her eyes toward him back then.

Vaguely, she wondered if this man was the same way as Naruto was back then. If this prisoner thought of him as such and didn't even know him, then it was possible that the doctor had a reputation. She knew well that reputations could get out of hand and leave the actual person being misunderstood. Was he actually as cold-hearted as this man described him or was he just being labeled and called a monster? There was something about the whole thing that compelled her to find out. She wanted to know and be healed by this man and she knew deep down that no other doctor would be able to satisfy her.

"Tell me about this man." the kunoichi spoke up since entering the room, her voice confident and smooth even with a higher pitch than what many were used to. Many in the room were surprised by her statement, including the prisoner himself.

"Sakura." Shizune whispered, taken aback by the look in the younger girl's jade eyes. They were so full of life at the moment, so full of determination. It was like having the old Sakura back, the one that was trained by Tsunade, the one that fought alongside the strongest in the war.

The man let a smirk slowly form on his lips, regaining himself after his moment of surprise. Who'd have thought that the little girl that barely came up to the waist of the woman beside her, the one that had hardly made a noise until now, would have grown so confident all of a sudden. "His name is. . ." He let a moment of suspense fill the air, knowing that they were waiting for his reply. There was no way in hell that that man would cure this girl. She was just wasting her time even trying to convince herself that she could find him.

"Trafalgar Law."

Thank you for reading. Please review, I would greatly appreciate it.

As for a few pointers about my fic to clear any possible confusion. Sakura is married to Sasuke, she is nineteen years old, her body has shrunk to the size of a ten year old approximately. I have done this on purpose so that it can fit into the view of the relationship I have in mind for her with the Straw Hat pirates. I do plan on this being a SakuraxLaw fic, but it will be awhile before it gets to that point so please bear with me.