Standard Disclaimer: I do not own Glee or Naruto. So first of all I have two apologies to make, the first one is due to how long it's been since I've updated. I've basically posted all of my chapter that have been pre-written for this story and so now I'm stuck posting whenever I finish a chapter rather than the weekly update that I have been doing. I'll continue to try and write ahead, however, it might not happen and so there will more likely than not be longer waits between chapters now. I am going on vacation soon though, so I'm hoping to get some more writing done at that time.

My second apology is for what may be an inaccurate portrayal of Lightning Village. I've done a little bit of research on them, but I'm not too sure about the finer details and am quite unfamiliar with most of the characters and their personalities. I'll do my best but if they appear out of character from what you might be familiar with, I apologize. Anyway, with that all said, I hope you all enjoy this new chapter.

s

xXx-Chapter 29-xXx

s

"Still no response from them?" Chouza asks, as he moves to stand by his teammates, the three of them overlooking the surrounding area from the top of the tower.

"No." Inoichi says distractedly, his eyes gazing off into the distance and his brow slightly furrowed. It had been two days since Hizashi Hyūga's team had left to find Nami Yamata, and Inoichi had been tense and irritable ever since.

"Luckily for us they don't seem any more likely to attack today than they were yesterday." Shikaku clarifies. Chouza had missed a lot of the planning as he had taken charge of the troops along the wall and had been helping them prepare and organize for the likely upcoming battle.

"Then they must be waiting for something. If they were going to attack they missed the window of opportunity that assured them victory. Now we are too entrenched, any attack on their part will lead to huge losses." Chouza says.

"I don't know what they're planning, none of their actions make sense. Why build up your forces like this then wait to attack? And if they aren't going to attack why do they not negotiate? There is more at play here than meets the eye." Shikaku mutters quietly, almost thinking out loud more than talking to them.

"Still, in some ways, no news is good news." Chouza says with what he hopes is a comforting smile to Inoichi.

Shikaku nods his head in agreement. "Chouza is correct, we would have heard something by now if..." Shikaku trails off at the tired and defeated look that Inoichi gives him.

"If what, if they had captured or killed my daughter? I can't sense her, she's either too far or too concealed, or dead, and I have no way of knowing. I know the kind of life my children have chosen, it's the life I have chosen, but there has been no preparation for Rin, she has been thrust right into the middle of all of this…"

"We know better than most just how special your daughter is. You know me, I'm realistic about shinobi life, uncertainty, pain, and death are just a part of it that we have to accept. And yes, Rin is in grave danger right now, but," Shikaku places a hand on his best friend's shoulder and looks him straight in the eyes, "I have faith that she will succeed and that she will return to you safe and unharmed. I wouldn't say it if I didn't believe it."

"Shikaku is correct, Rin is a prodigy, not only that but she has worked hard and she has both Hizashi Hyūga and Yugao Uzuki to watch out for her. If we want to help her the best thing we can do is keep their forces focused on us and let her and her team do their job."

Inoichi nods his head with a sigh, "I know you are correct, and I know that the best thing I can do for her right now is to make sure that she has a place to come back to, but… It goes against every instinct I have as a father to not rush out there right now and find her. I should never have allowed her to go on this mission." Inoichi growls that last sentence, the anguish obvious to hear.

"It was the Hokage's orders. You couldn't have stopped this." Shikaku says.

"Which begs the question, what is his interest in her really?" Chouza asks. He held great respect for the third but his interest in Rin and his eagerness to push her along this path made him nervous. "I've never known the Third to be this reckless with one of his shinobi."

"Could it be due to her origins?" Shikaku muses.

"I don't see how. He knows less about it than we do and we still know nothing." Inoichi says with a scowl, he and the others had spent the last twelve years trying to figure out how Rin had come to them and none of them had had any luck in figuring out her origins. Rin's birth was as much a mystery today as it was all those years ago when that foreign chakra had surged through Megumi and given them Rin in the first place.

"He knows less as far as we know. He may have discovered something and decided not to share it." Shikaku corrects them, one underestimated Hiruzen Sarutobi at their own peril.

"Whatever his reasons I don't like it, as a father or a shinobi," Inoichi says. "It's too much too early, this is turning into Itachi all over again."

"You don't think Rin would ever do something like that do you?" Chouza says, shocked at the very idea. Though upon thinking about it he could see the parallels in their early careers quite easily.

Inoichi shakes his head, "No, no I'm not worried about Rin going rogue, what I meant was Itachi was thrust into this life too quickly as well and it broke him. I remember Itachi, he was a very gentle soul, but shinobi life and especially his time in ANBU tore at him and destroyed him. Rin is much the same way, she is so softhearted, so…" Inoichi pauses and sighs, before looking back out over the surrounding lands as if hoping to catch a glimpse of his daughter.

"It's ironic that so often the people most skilled in the shinobi arts are those who are least fit to handle its burdens. If Rin is pushed over the edge, if this proves too much for her, when she breaks she won't lash out like Itachi did. I know my daughter, it will be much more internal… and in its own way, just as devastating."

"Have faith my friend. If she's anything like her old man and if she has even a fraction of the skill that we think, I know Rin is going to make it out of this just fine." Chouza says.

Inoichi doesn't say anything in response, just nodding his head in gratitude at Chouza's efforts to ease his worry. But that just wasn't possible right now, the horrible sinking sensation in his stomach, the iron band that was wrapped around his heart, they would only dissipate when Rin was once again safely by his side.

s

xXx-Scene Break-xXx

s

Yugito Nii was anxious. They had been here for two days now, their forces surrounding East Castle, but not doing anything. It was pointless to attack at this point, with the reinforcements that had arrived and broken through their line, and with such ease, any attack they made would be a blood bath. They didn't even know how many Leaf shinobi had arrived it had happened all so fast. But Jonin Eiji was not responding to their signals for negotiation either. He had them just… waiting.

What was going through that man's head right now was beyond her. Was he waiting for the recovery of the spy? But if that was the case then why was he not sending more of their forces to search for her? He had certainly called forth enough of their forces from the surrounding area. It was currently the largest gathering of Kumo shinobi outside of the Hidden Cloud Village in the past decade.

Word had been sent to the Raikage about this incident of course, but no word had currently been sent back, and until they heard otherwise Jonin Eiji was the ranking shinobi of the area and thus in command. Though she couldn't figure out how he had managed it, especially considering the actions of his brother and the incident with the peace negotiations with the Leaf village after the last war. How had Eiji managed to attain his position?

Yugito had no problem fighting for her country and her village, and she would be the first to say that those Leaf pricks needed to be knocked down a peg or two, but something about this didn't set right with her. And worst of all, her little sister, a new genin not even a year into her a career was here at the front with them. Luckily she was in relatively little danger, her team was currently out mapping future supply routes should they become necessary, but still…

Someone as young and sweet as her sister had no business fighting in any kind of war, at least not yet. She had so much potential, but she needed the time to grow into it. And Yugito did feel a little bit of guilt as well, she was a Jinchūriki, and while she loved her job and career and she loved being a Kunoichi, she also had very little say in the matter. Her little sister could have become anything that she wanted, but Yoko looked up to her, she knew for a fact that she was the reason that her little sister had become a kunoichi in the first place.

She wanted to be just like her big sister. It was both flattering and humbling at the same time to have someone like Yoko look up to her. Really, she just wanted her little sister safe, something that was near impossible as a ninja. But she was also so very proud of her, she worked hard and had graduated as the top kunoichi of her class. Her little sis was well on her way to making a real name for herself.

She walks about the camp ignoring the looks she receives, used to the fear and the awe. Those most important to her knew who she was, what she was, and loved her anyway. Yoko, Bee, Samui, even Lord Raikage. Even he was very kind to her when he didn't need to be. After all, she wasn't the only jinchūriki in their village and he had the support of B, the eight tails, and yet he still treated her well, almost like family. She was lucky, she knew the fate of her kind was rarely pleasant.

Yugito is brought out of her musings when she hears a voice call out to her. "Lady Nii."

Yugito turns to face the messenger, a chūnin by the looks of him. "Yes?"

"Lady Nii, Lord Eiji requests your presence immediately."

"Oh, what does he want?"

The chūnin gulps nervously, obviously uncomfortable in her presence. "I do not know my lady, he didn't say. Only that he wished to speak with you immediately."

Yugito rolls her eyes, "Very well."

As Yugito heads towards the command tent, once again ignoring the looks and stares that she receives from her fellow Cloud Shinobi. The hypocrites, they feared her presence now, but once the fighting started they'd be glad she was here.

Yugito ducks into the command tent. "You wished to see me sir?" Yugito says, keeping her voice even.

Eiji as well as the other ranking jōnin turn to face her. "Yugito, please come in." Eiji says, motioning for her to take a spot near him, "We were just discussing what we know so far."

Eiji was a tall man, standing a little over six feet tall, but he was also quite thin. He had a bandage wrapped around his head that also covered his left eye. His hair was long and black, his skin was pale, and he sported a thin Fu Manchu mustache along with a neatly trimmed and pointed beard.

"Yeah, which is a whole lot of nothing." Growls an older man with a thick, scruffy beard, and darker skin. He only stood about five feet tall, but he was thick and well built.

"Gi-sensei." Yugito says with a polite nod of her head.

"How ya doing girl?"

"I am well." In her training to control the beast within her, Gi-sensei, a third cousin of the Raikage, had been one of her teachers. The training had been brutal, but it had turned her in to the powerful weapon that she was and so she had to be grateful.

"Any word yet on the spy?" Yugito asks, turning her attention to Eiji.

"No, no word yet." Another jōnin answers instead. "Though we could send more of our forces to look for her."

"No." Eiji responds. "I want our forces concentrated here, where the greatest threat is."

"Sir, there have been reports of possible Leaf shinobi in the area, searching as well." Another jōnin chimes in.

"Rumors, nothing more."

"You can't possibly believe that the Leaf Village hasn't sent people out to look for the spy?" The same jōnin gasps, almost scandalized by Eiji's apparent indifference.

"Of course they've sent out teams, but with their current limited forces, not enough to worry about."

"And the more we stall here the more likely it is that more Konoha forces will arrive." Gi growls, "We should either attack now and get this over with or answer their calls for negotiation, all this waiting around is foolish."

"I want them on edge, I plan to meet with them tomorrow. Yugito, I want you to join."

"Me sir?"

"Yes, I want to start off from a position of strength. Your presence there will ensure that."

Yugito nods her head, "Of course sir." She was used to being paraded around like a weapon and she couldn't argue with the logic of it. She was a jinchūriki, a living weapon. Since she was here, they may as well utilize her.

Plus they were going up against not only Takeko Nakano, a formidable woman who had commanded East Castle for the past six years, and had been a huge thorn in their side since the first day she took command, but also the infamous Ino-Shika-Chou Trio. Legendary strategists and considered one of the most powerful shinobi teams in the world to this day. It truly spoke to the potential devastation that a jinchūriki could wreak that her presence was considered an equalizer in this whole scenario.

"Good, that's settled then." Eiji says, "Now, let us discuss our strategy for tomorrow. With Shikaku Nara there it is best that we go in prepared."

Yugito observed quietly as the jōnin around her discussed strategy, all of them seemed agitated and frustrated, bringing up time and time again wasted opportunity and how the Leaf ninja had been given too much of an opportunity to entrench themselves. Any battle on their part, while likely ending in a victory for their side, was going to be extremely costly. Eiji however seemed to take it in stride, mentioning time and again that they needn't worry about that.

It was an exhausting two hours later before Eiji released them. As the five other jōnin left the command tent, Eiji calls for her. "Yugito, stay for a moment."

"Yes sir?" Yugito answers, turning to face him and fighting the urge to roll her eyes in frustration. She wanted nothing more than to get out of here and see if her sister's team had reported in yet. They were due back later tonight or early tomorrow and Yugito was eager for news.

"I know that our forces are confused and annoyed with how I have handled things so far. The jōnin commanders have made their frustrations and the frustrations of our forces abundantly clear, however, I am curious on your take on the matter?"

Yugito hesitates for a moment, unsure of how to proceed before saying, "It is not my place to question your decisions, Lord Eiji."

Eiji chuckles to himself, "A very diplomatic answer, but not what I wanted to hear. Please, tell me truthfully, what do you think of our current situation?"

Yugito sighs before fixing Eiji with a hard look, "Very well, it was a colossal mistake on your part to not press the advantage while we had it. You gathered our forces remarkably fast, faster than I thought was even possible, and we had taken out most of the leaf retrieval team and surrounded their main fortification before they had time to even catch their breath. The loss of the spy hurt our side, but it wasn't devastating and if we can find her it will be of no consequence. We should have pressed our advantage, taken East Castle before they could send out runners and martial their defenses. Taking prisoners where possible, we could have secured the largest fortification in the area for ourselves and once the Leaf reinforcements arrived, we could have dealt with them from a position of power, rather on this even playing field you've allowed them."

Here Yugito's hard look morphs into a full glare, "But you are aware of all of this, you know that you've weakened our position here and that every day we stall it gives the Leaf Village a chance to martial and prepare their forces. So, the only reason I can think of that you would allow the situation here to unfold the way it has is that you are aware of something the rest of us aren't."

Eiji nods his head as if pleased. "Very good Yugito, very good in deed. The Raikage is right about you, you are more clever than most."

"Sir?"

"What I am about to share with you does not leave this tent, understood?"

Yugito nods her head. "Yes sir."

"We have a spy on the inside of the castle. And they have been feeding us information about Konoha's forces in the area for months. It was through them that we learned of the existence of the spy in the first place and so since then, on the orders of the Raikage I have been slowly martialing our forces in the area and preparing for the moment when we would strike."

"How have I not heard about this?" Yugito asks, her mind racing.

"Because we could not risk this information leaking out, we have no real working knowledge of the coming and goings of the Leaf Village, their security is near impenetrable to our spy networks and if one of them hadn't turned traitor for our side, we would never have known that they managed to sneak one of their shinobi into our village. Just think about it, how difficult it would be for Konoha to pull that off, especially…"

"Especially if they didn't have help from the inside." Yugito finishes.

"Exactly, we couldn't be sure who if anyone hadn't helped the spy sneak into our village. We don't know where we were compromised, nor who we could trust."

"And did Lord Raikage suspect me?" Yugito asks, hurt by the very thought. Her loyalty to the Raikage was unwavering and absolute, he was more than just a leader to her, he was like family. He had to have trusted Bee with this information, so why had he not trusted her?

"Of course he didn't suspect you." Eiji assures her, "But he has kept this information very close the chest. Only myself, and a select few in the villages hierarchy were made aware of the spy's existence at all. But do you honestly think it an accident that you were assigned to do something so menial as border drills or that you were assigned to the very team that engaged the Konoha retrieval teams? It was no coincidence that you were there Yugito."

"But why not tell us what we were looking for once we started the drills? Leaf's presence took us all by surprise, things could have just as easily turned out worse for our side and the spy still escaped. If we had known what we were looking for, if we had been informed of what our real mission in the area was, we could have handled it differently and the spy would not have escaped. I understand the need for secrecy in all of this, but once we were sent out, why not inform myself or one of the jōnin in command of the situation?"

"You just answered your own question. You would have handled it differently, we do enough border drills that an extra one here or there wouldn't seem out of place to the Leaf Village shinobi, but if we sent out a large force of shinobi to the border and they were actively hunting and searching for something then that would have tipped the Leaf Village off that something was amiss."

Eiji lets out a tired sigh, "Honestly, I think this whole scenario with the spy was handled poorly. The simplest thing to do would have been to arrest the spy while she was still in the village, however, in order to draw out the entire ring Lord Raikage allowed the spy to set up her escape. We all have our orders."

"I guess…" Yugito concedes, although it still seemed strange to her that the Raikage wouldn't have informed her of what was happening, especially when the time came for her to apprehend the spy. He always made sure his shinobi had as much intel as possible on any given mission. That he would withhold information from her like this was troubling.

"I can see you are still troubled by all of this, unfortunately, while I can answer any questions you may have on what we did, only Lord Raikage can answer the why. I suggest you take it up with him when he arrives, if you still have concerns."

"The Raikage is coming here?"

"Yes."

s

xXx-Scene Break-xXx

s

It was all coming to a head, the years of shame, the death and dishonoring of his brother, soon it would all be corrected. After the death of his brother 12 years ago, murdered by that piece of trash Hiashi Hyuga, Eiji had been forced to keep his head down, impotent at the injustice of it all. During the last few months of the war the Leaf Village had somehow completely overwhelmed their forces and beaten their proud village into submission. His brother's attempt to kidnap the Hyuga child had been a last ditch attempt on his part to grab a small victory out of all of the defeat.

While he hated the Leaf Village for killing his brother, he could not fault them for it. His brother had committed a crime against them, they were at war. Leaf's response was the exact same that theirs would have been if their positions had been reversed. What he could not abide, what he absolutely despised was the weak response of the Raikage after the incident.

A was not the man that his father was, nor was he even half the Kage that his father had been. The Third Raikage would never have allowed the murder of his brother, a proud Kumo Jonin commander, to go unanswered. And it was Eiji's firm belief that if it had been the Third who had been in power during the war and not his weak son, the fourth, then Kumo would never have lost the war in the first place.

After the incident with the Hyuga, the Fourth Raikage had all but rolled over for the Leaf Village, and his brother's good and loyal name had been dragged through the mud. And he, Eiji, had been forced to keep his mouth shut and accept this for how it was. Rising through the ranks had been difficult, because of his brother he had been relegated to a small out of the way post along the border. But he had persevered and worked and schemed, and when necessary killed, his way to the top.

He had finally regained his family's honor. He was the highest ranking jōnin along the border region. He was in charge of Lightning's first line of defense against the Leaf Shinobi. Any other person would have been thrilled to reach such a position, especially after the dishonor he and his family had to endure, but it still wasn't enough. His brother's blood cried out in agony to him, demanding justice for his death.

And that's when it happened, one night along the border, a Leaf Shinobi had been captured and brought before him. But to his surprise it wasn't by accident, the ninja in question was looking to defect and in order to prove their sincerity offered him up a piece of information that was too good to pass up. The existence of a Konoha spy living within their village.

And from this information a plan took root and began to grow within his mind. A way to gain justice for his brother and glory for himself. Months of meticulous planning, slowly feeling his way through Kumo forces to see whom he could trust. Reporting just enough information to manipulate those around him, but not so much that he lost his advantage. And now everything was finally falling into place.

His brother would have justice, and he would rise even higher in glory than his brother had. And all of the enemies that he had, both foreign and domestic would pay. Eiji slips quietly into the night and to a secret tunnel that led into East Castle, shown to him by the spy. It was their meeting place, it had been two days since he had spoken to his spy and he was eager for information.

He waits quietly in the darkness and the shadows right outside the tunnel entrance. His spy steps out into the night and looks around, unable to locate him. Eiji loved this feeling, the sense of power and superiority as he remained hidden. To his spy's credit they don't jump when he makes himself known to them, but he can tell by the way their body stiffens that he had startled them.

"Lord Eiji."

"Report."

"Lord Eiji, only a single platoon reinforces the castle, seven teams lead by Shikaku Nara. However, I do have some troubling news. Inoichi Yamanaka has a daughter who is a powerful sensor type."

"I am well aware of the Yamanaka's propensity towards sensor types, why is this news?" A Yamanaka sensor, was kind of redundant thing to say, it was generally just assumed they were. But finding out that only a single platoon had been sent to reinforce East Castle was great news. Konoha had slipped past their ranks so quickly that they hadn't been able to determine how many enemy shinobi had actually arrived and until now they had been in the dark about just how powerful the defenses of the castle were.

His spy seems openly agitated by his response, "Sir, you don't understand, I have never seen nor heard anything like this before. She was able to determine the exact number of shinobi in the area, not only that but their exact locations, and how strong they were as well. It was… astonishing. They knew long before they arrived, about the presence of the Jinchuriki, as well as your troops positioning. How else do you think they were able to break through your line so easily? They knew exactly where your forces were and where your forces were at their weakest."

Eiji hums quietly as he contemplates this new information. "You are certain her ability is this strong, that you do not exaggerate." Secrecy was a shinobi's greatest weapon, if Konoha had a way to negate this advantage then it needed to be rectified. But he had a hard time believing any single shinobi could have such a powerful gift.

"No sir, while I interacted with her very little, I have spoken with the many of the shinobi who travelled here with her. She is just a genin but the Third Hokage apparently chose her specifically for this mission, not only that but apparently the Third Hokage has also been training her personally for years now. The girl is dangerous."

"That is troubling, Konoha cannot be allowed to have such a powerful weapon at their disposal."

"I agree, luckily she is no longer in the castle, she is part of a team being led by Hizashi Hyuga to locate the spy Nami Yamata."

Eiji gives no outward reaction when he hears that name, though internally he is filled with rage. Hizashi Hyuga was the twin brother of the man who had murdered his brother. "How many teams are currently searching for the spy?"

"Just them my lord. The team consists of Hizashi Hyuga, Yugao Uzuki, Hana Inuzuka, and Rin Yamanaka."

It was a bold move on Konoha's part to send only one team to recover their spy, but clever as well considering who was on it. One team could easily sneak around unnoticed as long as they were careful. The Hyuga and Inuzuka clans were both talented, though vastly different trackers, and Yugao Uzuki was a ghost among shinobi, a famed assassin of the Leaf and if the information on the Yamanaka girl was even partially accurate, then sending a single team was all that the Leaf Village needed to. Better one team that could move unnoticed and easily track down their target than sending multiple teams and risk open combat.

"Do you know which way they are heading?"

"They took the north tunnel to avoid the siege and sneak behind your lines. They'll be deep inside your territory at this point."

"They'll be hampered in their movement by our patrols, even with the Byakugan and the Inuzuka's nin-ken, they won't be able to move quickly through our territory, not if they want to avoid our patrols… the recovery of the spy while useful is not necessary for my plans, however if this girl's ability is as potent as you say it is, it will be a problem down the road."

"How do you want to deal with her?"