Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or Harry Potter.

For the next month Hermione, Ron, and Harry spent their free time in the library trying to find anything that would tell them about ninjas and hidden places. They didn't have much success and Harry was beginning to think that they were just going on a wild goose chase. Hermione was still convinced, however, and so Harry and Ron were forced to keep looking. As a result there were many late nights staying up doing homework. Despite the upcoming event, school had been progressing normally and the professors were not going easy on the assigned work. It wasn't too bad though. Many students were able to find relief and entertainment in watching the daily antics of the Akatsuki (mostly Tobi). After a month in Hogwarts, the Akatsuki were finally able to get comfortable and learn enough about the wizarding world that they weren't constantly getting startled by something in the castle, although there are always new surprises. From what they have observed about the wizards and their magic, the Akatsuki didn't think the wizards and their wands (or sticks as Hidan was adamant in calling them) would pose as any possible threat to them in the future. With this reassurance, the Akatsuki interacted with the Hogwarts inhabitants will less caution.

Harry was feeling optimistic. Even though for the past few weeks their routine had been going to classes, researching in the library, and jotting answers on parchment sluggishly in the late evenings, he was content. There were no murderers on the loose, no crazy teacher with Voldemort on the back of their head, and no monsters lurking in the shadows and picking off students. Every day it seemed more and more like it was going to be a normal year, well as normal as it could get with the tournament going on. Nevertheless, it seemed like a year where Harry could finally just enjoy being at Hogwarts without worrying about the health of his friends or himself. Nothing could change the easygoing feeling Harry felt—except for the all too familiar pain in his scar when he woke up one rainy October morning. He gasped and pressed a hand to the scar. It felt hot under his touch. It was a Saturday so everyone in the dorm was still asleep. Quietly, Harry went into the bathroom and splashed water in his face. He didn't know why he was shaking so much. He returned to his room and changed out of his pajamas. There was no way he was going to be able to go back to sleep.

No one else was awake when Harry stepped into the common room. The rain seemed to be pouring down harder and he was grateful that the house-elves kept the fire burning. With nothing else to do, Harry decided to go to the Great Hall and see if there was any food. To his surprise, someone else got there before he did.

"G-good morning," said Harry.

"Hn."

An awkward silence came soon afterwards. Not knowing what else to say to Itachi, Harry took a seat and began to eat breakfast. Itachi watched Harry briefly before turning his attention back to his own food. They both ate in silence until Deidara barged into the hall.

"Tch, it's you," Deidara said when he saw Itachi sitting there. He didn't even spare Harry a glance as he sat down as far away from Itachi as he could. After maybe twenty minutes of eating in uncomfortable (for Harry at least) silence, Kisame came in followed by Hibiki and Sasori.

"Maaaaaaan you sure look rested, Itachi," yawned Hibiki as she stretched. "I don't know how you could've slept- I could hear Kisame snoring from all the way down the hall." Hibiki sent Kisame a reproachful look, to which he replied with an unapologetic grin.

"Enough chit-chat. Pein is calling us for a meeting so hurry up," said Sasori.

"Whafthflor, hm?" garbled Deidara through a mouthful of bacon and sausages.

"We'll know when we get to the meeting," snapped Sasori, "now hurry up."

Not wanting to suffer at the wrath of a cranky Sasori, Deidara complied and grabbed a few pieces of toast on his way out.

"If you don't want to be late, I suggest you be quick," Sasori said while exiting.

"Yes, mother," sighed Hibiki. With Itachi's help, Hibiki and Kisame set out to accomplish what they came here to do.

"I think this is enough food, Kisame," commented Itachi.

"You sure? I think we'll run out once Hidan wakes up."

"Why are you worried about Hidan? You should worry about Tobi- And Zetsu's a whole different story."

Kisame paused in thought. "You're right, Hibiki. I don't like the look on Zetsu's face lately."

"He's just really hungry. You should probably watch your back or else he'll turn you into shark fin soup."

"Hmph." There was the slightest semblance of a pout on Kisame's fearsome features.

"Hahaha, let's go. Pein must be calling a meeting because of what Zetsu said yesterday. We should hurry or else Sasori's going to throw a hissy fit."

"What did Zetsu tell him?"

"I dunno, something about noticing some strange activities in the area."

"Oh?"

"Yup. I'm guessing someone was lurking near the school."

"Interesting…"

The three members, all balancing plates of food, left the Great Hall. Before Itachi went through the doors, he looked at the eavesdropping Harry. Having been found out, Harry quickly diverted his eyes back to his plate which he had subconsciously piled with more food to prolong his stay. Harry couldn't help his curiosity.

Pein waited patiently for all the members to gather. Sasori had already returned from retrieving his partner and hopefully Itachi would see to it that Kisame and Hibiki came back in a timely manner as well. Since Deidara was back, Pein left the task of waking Tobi and Hidan to him. The bomber had a lot of experience in that area anyway.

After ten minutes, Pein's (and Sasori's) patience was waning. From down the hall Pein could hear Tobi shouting nonsensical things. Deidara was having trouble pulling the blankets off of Tobi who kept slinking under it and out of Deidara's grasp. How disappointing, Pein thought. Fortunately, Hidan awoke on his own accord and sauntered into the room just as Itachi, Kisame, and Hibiki entered carrying food.

"About time," scoffed Sasori.

"We had a little trouble with Peeves," Kisame replied.

"FOOD. I'm fuckin' starving."

"Oooh no you don't. We have to split it evenly," said Hibiki while wagging her finger.

"Whatever," Hidan said and took a more than generous amount of bacon for himself.

Hibiki sighed and turned towards Pein, "Is the meeting starting yet?—Huh? Where'd he go?"

"To get Tobi," said Konan as she sat down, "Deidara is taking too long."

Sasori snorted and muttered something that sounded like a snide "Ya think?"

"What's the meeting about?" asked Kakuzu in his gruff voice.

"We have an uninvited guest. We're going to welcome them."

At that moment Tobi burst into the room and scrambled into his seat followed by a flustered Deidara and Pein who carried with him a dark aura.

"Good. Everyone's here." Purple eyes stared the members down and dared them to interrupt as he said, "The meeting will begin."

"As you all might know, yesterday Zetsu reported that there have been strange movements around the castle. I performed the Ukojizai no Jutsu and have confirmed that there is indeed an intruder. Right now he is at the edge of the Forbidden Forest."

"What are we going to do about it?" inquired Hibiki.

"How else? We intercept him," Kisame said, a look of excitement in his eyes at the prospect of a good fight.

"I like the sound of that!" exclaimed Hidan. If he had his scythe with him he'd probably be brandishing it wildly.

"Before you go and do something reckless, you should remember that we have to interrogate the target," said Pein.

"How long have you been aware of his presence, Zetsu?" asked Sasori.

"Since a week ago. He's been appearing off and on, usually near another member."

"Whoa whoa whoa—there's been a suspicious person near us and you never thought to mention it until now, yeah?"

"I thought you guys would have noticed. You've been slacking off."

"That's another issue I want to discuss," said Pein with a harsh look at the members. "You've all gone soft." At that remark some looked offended. Hidan was about to open his mouth to retort, but before he got anything out Pein continued. "Starting today, I expect every one of you to be on guard and take the mission seriously seeing as the other schools arrive in two more weeks." Pein paused and the other members took it as a cue to respond in affirmative. Satisfied, Pein carried on. "It's still a bit early, but we need to capture him before the students start to move about—"

"Oohh~ Oooh~ Tobi will go!"

"What! Hell no, it's been fuckin' months since I gave Jashin a sacrifice. A dipshit like you ain't fuckin' taking it!"

"Calm down, there's a perfectly fair way to decide this… Rock, paper, scissors!" Hibiki clapped.

"Hey I want in," Kisame said and joined Tobi and Hidan.

"Me too, yeah!"

"I'm surrounded by idiots," said Sasori blankly.

Pein sighed; He lost their attention. Konan just looked at him in amusement.

"YAHOOO!" Tobi was bouncing around the room in victory.

"You fucking cheated!"

"Oh boohoo, suck it up Hidan. Looks like Tobi and I will be going to intercept the enemy, right boss?"

"Fine." What was the use in arguing? It was only going to cause him a migraine. "The intruder has started to make his way towards the Owlery."

Tobi and Hibiki saluted before disappearing.

"While they are heading towards the intruder, we will split up and be stationed at different areas of Hogwarts. Be ready to detain the enemy if Tobi and Hibiki fail to do so."

With nothing else to be said, the Akatsuki moved out.

"Alright Tobi, it's time to get our ninja on," whispered Hibiki from behind a large rock.

"Yes, now follow senpai's lead," Tobi whispered back.

It didn't take long for the two to reach the area. They had completely hidden their presence and were now waiting for the intruder to make a move. Although it was very faint, they could sense him somewhere at the top of the Owlery. As quiet as a mouse Tobi started to crawl forwards.

He can't be serious… Hibiki sweatdropped. Not liking Tobi's bold move, Hibiki crept the other way and made sure to stay hidden. She waited a moment more, wondering what the intruder could be doing in there. Suddenly Hibiki caught sight of an owl flying out of the tower with a letter despite the drizzle caused by Pein's technique. The intruder must have sent that, she thought, there's no one else in there. Hibiki looked back down at Tobi to see him still crawling along. He'll be fine. And with that she went after the bird.

"Hibiki-kohai, are you following?" Tobi whispered. He turned around just in time to see her leave. "E-eh?" Panicking, he stood up and flailed, "Hibiki-kohai! Don't leave!"

With the ruckus outside, the intruder heard Tobi's shout and attempted to flee. The sudden movement from the Owlery, however, alerted Tobi of his plans. Tobi glanced at the direction Hibiki went off to, but then shook his head and chased after the disappearing figure.

The intruder was fast, but as many would tell you (hell you could ask Deidara), it's very hard to lose Tobi when he puts his mind to it. Despite the twists and turns the intruder did once they entered the Forbidden Forest, he still couldn't shake Tobi off his trail.

"Persistent roach!" the intruder shouted and sent a volley of kunais at Tobi.

Tobi yelped and jumped to another branch, tossing back a few kunais of his own. This continued on for a few more minutes until the intruder had had enough and abruptly stopped in a clearing. Tobi landed a few paces away and they faced one another, both sizing each other up. In front of Tobi stood a male probably in his twenties. There wasn't anything unusually about him: brown hair, brown eyes, and a standard build. The only thing that stood out was his forehead protector which had the symbol of Kusagakure.

The silence was broken when the masked goofball spoke, "I'm Tobi!"

Unsure of how to react, the man kept his guard up and responded, "Hajime."

"Great! It's always nice to know the name of the person you're going to crush." Tobi did a thumbs up.

"…"

"Hmmm… Now how should I defeat you? Maybe I should be flashy like Deidara? Or maybe I should be cool and silent like Itachi?" Totally ignoring his opponent now, Tobi put his hand on his chin and thought.

"Are you mocking me?" Hajime said in a low voice. He slowly began to put on chakra blades. While Tobi was still pondering his decision, Hajime struck. Tobi shrieked when he finally noticed the flying male heading towards him. Diving to the ground, Tobi scrambled to his feet and dashed to the right, Hajime close behind.

"UWAAH!" Hajime just narrowly missed cutting Tobi's throat.

"Get back here."

"Nope!" Jumping to the side, Tobi sank into the earth and popped up a bit away from the enemy. He gave a little battle cry and started chucking shuriken and kunai haphazardly. This didn't do much though, since Hajime was able to deflect them with his blades and charge at Tobi again, only to miss when he suddenly dropped into the earth and appear in a different spot.

Frustrated, Hajime ran forward, kicking up mud and rocks at Tobi, and twisting his body for a round house kick at the blinded Akatsuki member. For once Hajime finally landed a hit and sent Tobi crashing into a tree. Disoriented, Tobi shakily got up seeing stars. Not missing a beat, Hajime came at him again with chakra gathered in his blades. Tobi seemed to have regained his senses long enough to duck, but was knocked aside again by another kick, this time Hajime's leg was encrusted with earth.

"For an Akatsuki member you're not very strong, are you?"

"…A-ahh… don't underestimate Tobi."

"Tch, I wasn't supposed to engage in a fight with any one of you, but I'm sure they won't mind if I take out one bug."

"Ara? Who's they?"

"That's confidential."

Harry was still in the Great Hall when Ron and Hermione joined him.

"Mornin' Harry… You're up early."

"Yeah, my scar was hurting again."

"Again? You should tell Dumbledore, Harry," said Hermione, eyes wide in alarm.

"It was probably nothing," Harry said briskly.

"I dunno, it hurts when Voldemort is near right? But that can't be possible… Maybe cursed scars always act up?" said Ron.

"Either way, Dumbledore has to know about this. It could be serious," stated Hermione with more force.

"I told you I'm fine."

"But—"

"Just drop it Hermione, Harry already said he was okay. Besides, Dumbledore has guards protecting the school."

"Makes me wonder why he hired them in the first place. It can't just be for the tournament."

"Hmm... where are they anyways? They're usually at breakfast."

Hermione looked over to the table and saw that none of them were there. Of course, occasionally there would be a few members missing from the table during mealtimes, but she couldn't recall a day where there wasn't at least someone there. Harry wasn't as surprised as Ron and Hermione were though. After Sasori, Hibiki, and Kisame came in, none of the other members showed up.

"They're probably still at the meeting," said Harry.

"Meeting? What meeting?" said Ron in confusion.

Harry proceeded to tell his friends of his morning encounter.

"Wicked."

"That just proves it!"

"Proves what?"

"That Harry should tell Dumbledore about his scar—what are the chances of it hurting on the same day they find someone lurking around Hogwarts?"

"That's hogwash, Hermione. It's just a coincidence."

"Don't be stubborn, Harry."

"Just forget I ever mentioned it. I'm not going to cause Dumbledore any trouble just because I can't handle a bit of pain."

Hermione huffed in a mix of frustration and exasperation, but didn't say anything more on that subject.

Breakfast was now over and the trio were leaving the Great Hall just as they heard a loud crack.

"Rats—I hope that wasn't thunder," Fred muttered as he walked passed them with George. During breakfast they had made plans to play some quidditch with the Gryffindor team. Even though there wasn't going to be a Quidditch Cup this year, it still didn't hurt to put in some practice for next year.

"It doesn't matter, we'll practice in any weather," said Angelina Johnson, the look in her eyes showed she meant business.

"Well, I'll see you guys later," said Harry. Ron hesitated, but was eventually pulled along by Hermione towards the library.

It wasn't raining very hard when Harry stepped out with the others. Angelina had them flying laps around the school and on his third lap Harry thought he saw the trees in the Forbidden Forest shaking. But knowing more than he'd like about the creatures that dwell in the forest, Harry didn't pay much attention to it and focused on his practice instead.

Tobi was kissing dirt again.

Unrelentingly, Hajime sent rock after well aimed rock at Tobi; trees were knocked over causing great amounts of mud to splash and splintered wood flying everywhere. All was quiet and Hajime crept towards the destruction and saw Tobi's still form. He smirked, as he had expected, it wasn't that hard to take down that specific member. He had been skulking around the castle long enough to determine that Tobi wouldn't be an issue. The rest of the Akatsuki on the other hand, he wasn't so sure about. Reaching his hand out, Hajime was about to grab Tobi when he was swiftly stopped by a chain whip wrapping around his wrist and pulling him away from the body. He was dragged along a couple of feet until Hajime managed to get out of its grasp.

"Jeez, I really thought he could have taken care of this without my help."

The ground began to shake and out busted Tobi, wielding a large mallet in which he used to smash down on Hajime's head, knocking him out instantly.

"Oh—I spoke too soon."

"I call that my Opossum-Whack-A-Mole Technique!"

"C'mon, let's lug this guy back to the boss." As she tied up the unconscious ninja, Hibiki got a good look at his face. He looks familiar… However she didn't have very long to ponder when Tobi hoisted the intruder and took off.

"Damn it—WAIT!"

Thanks to everyone who reviewed, it was really encouraging. :)
Whoop there was some action in this chapter! ...Even though I failed at the fighting... But that's okay, it wasn't meant to be a very serious fight anyway.