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"So here's a question for you, Sam," Callen said as he lowered his newspaper. "Who is quieter: a SEAL or a ninja?"

Sam chuckled. "That's not a question, G. SEAL, hands down."

"Are you sure? I mean, ninja's are pretty quiet," Callen answered back.

"No way. A Navy SEAL will win any contest, any time, against any one. SEALS can slip in and out undetected from any environment: sea, air or land. We are trained to specifically be quiet, especially at night," Sam defended his special ops brotherhood.

Callen wasn't convinced. "I think the ninja wins this one, Sam – they are the original definition of sneaky."

"Ninjas can have sneaky. SEALs are stealthy, like a predator on its prey. They never know what's coming at 'em til we're in their face," Sam continued. "You ever see a ninja sneak up on someone in the middle of the ocean with no boat, airplane or jet ski?"

"Sam, ninjas have been around a lot longer than SEALs, so maybe SEALs learned their tricks from the ninjas. That would make the ninjas quieter because they came first."

"G, we're not arguing the chicken and the egg here. SEALs are obviously superior to ninjas. Ninjas just sneak, maybe throw a little star or disc thingy and disappear again. We can slide in, shoot you dead, blow up the house and get back out without anyone seeing us," Sam said emphatically.

"Exactly my point. SEALs can get in and out, but shooting and explosions are not quiet. Ninjas are the original stealth mode operators, including their weapons. Look at how quiet Hetty is – she can sneak up on any one of us, anytime, anywhere. And you can never be sure what kind of weapon she might be wielding… Wait, she's right behind me, isn't she?" Callen suddenly became self-conscious.

"Indeed I am, Mr. Callen, but you only said that because you assumed I would show up at the very time you were speaking about me. Not because you could hear me behind you," Hetty said matter-of-factly. Callen and Sam exchanged a look.

Hetty continued. "I would have to agree with Mr. Callen that ninjas are indeed quieter than SEALs. That's not to say that SEALs do not have their place; I believe they are far more proficient in maritime environments and with firearms than a ninja warrior. However, Mr. Hanna, the art of stealth by which a ninja is trained is a skill you may want to brush up on. I believe you will find it especially useful when your children are teenagers."

Sam chuckled and grinned at his manager. "What do you know about raising teenagers, Hetty? I thought you didn't have any children."

Hetty's answer could be heard plainly as she walked back to her desk. "I work with the lot of you every day." Hetty grabbed her purse and file folder. "I'm off to an appointment for the rest of the morning. Be safe, don't spend all the money, and please be nice." The men watched as she walked out the door.

"Where does she go all the time?" Callen asked.

"I don't know, and I'm pretty sure I don't want to know," Sam answered as he picked up a file from the stack on his desk.

"Probably secret ninja stuff," Callen decided, returning his gaze to the newspaper.

Kensi walked in a short time later, and plopped her bag on her desk. She looked around the mission a few times before speaking. "Anyone seen Hetty this morning?"

"She just left. Said she had an appointment the rest of the morning," Sam answered.

"Ninja training," Callen added. Kensi looked at him a little confused as Sam shook his head. Jen entered the bullpen, wearing sweatpants and a t-shirt.

"Where have you been? I thought we were going to work out together this morning partner. I've been waiting for you." She looked at Kensi and gestured toward her clothing. "C'mon, you can't work out in jeans. Let's go before it gets any later!" She grabbed Kensi's hand and dragged her down the hall.

About an hour later, both women were back at their desks freshly showered and changed. Kensi kept looking over towards Hetty's desk nervously.

"Kensi, are you ok? You look worried about something," Callen noted.

"I'm fine. I just need to, uh, need to talk to Hetty about something," Kensi responded. Just then a shrill whistle pierced the air. They all looked up and saw Nell standing at the railing, waving at them.

"Come on up guys! New case on deck," she shouted down.

"Eric let you do whistle duty?" Sam questioned as he headed up the stairs.

"Um, sure. Well, not exactly let me as much as I beat him to it," Nell said smiling.

Callen dramatically whispered to his partner. "Nope, he's not whipped at all."

Nell took her place next to Eric at the front of the room and they began briefing the agents.

"A Navy lieutenant was found dead early this morning at Naval Base Ventura County, specifically Port Hueneme," Eric said as a picture appeared on the screen. "Lt. Yencha's body was found in his office by a petty officer who was arriving for work. One shot to the head. No one in the office saw or heard anything, and we haven't received the security footage yet."

"Why were we called for this? Shouldn't NCIS in San Diego be handling it?" Callen asked.

Nell swiped her finger across her tablet. "San Diego's field office called us for their assistance," she answered. "They have three other cases from Naval Bases San Diego and China Lake very similar to this latest one. They're thinking we might have a serial killer on our hands. Also, all the victims worked with weapons systems, so there is a possibility that naval weapons technology has been compromised or stolen."

"OK, Kensi, Jenny, I want you ladies to talk to the agents from San Diego and find out about their current cases. Get all the details you can. Sam and I will head up to Port Hueneme and check out the scene," Callen directed. "Eric, Nell, see how quickly you can get your hands on that base security footage and tell me what you see. Traffic cams in the city, base gates, building security, everything – I want to know who was going in and out of that office this morning. Also find out what kinds of weapons systems each of these now four victims were working with."

"On it," Eric responded as each pair of partners headed off to their assignment.

Later that afternoon, the agents had reconvened in the bullpen, sharing the information they had learned so far on the case.

"According to San Diego, all the victims have been active duty sailors, all killed by a single shot to the head, and all had a rate directly dealing with weapons systems," Jenny reported. "All the murders have taken place on a military base. They haven't found any specific project all the men were working on in common."

Kensi continued. "So far at the three scenes they've worked, only blood from the victim has been found, and no other DNA evidence, fingerprints or forensics left behind. This killer is careful not to leave a trace. There is also no footage of a killer on any security tapes - it's almost like the person knew where the blind spots were for the cameras. San Diego gave us a list of possible suspects, but it's pretty long. There are a lot of people who would have an interest in weapons and also have access to military bases. We're going to try to narrow it down the best we can, and hopefully you guys have found something to help us weed out some names."

Sam shared what they had found out during their trip to Port Hueneme. "Lt. Yencha was single with no children. Everyone we spoke with said he was well liked, and there were no disciplinary issues in his file. There was blood on the desk, chair and floor; the lab is running the samples for any matches. Other than the desk where he was killed, there were no signs of his office being searched or a struggle happening. Eric has the hard drive from the lieutenant's computer to see if it was accessed or modified in any way near the time of the murder," he concluded.

Kensi shook her head in agreement with Sam's report. "San Diego also noted that each of their scenes were undisturbed except for the actual spot of the murder. None of the locations showed signs of a struggle or frantic search, indicating…"

"Indicating that our victims knew the killer," Callen cut her off. "There wouldn't be a struggle if you knew the person and thought they were there for friendly reasons."

"And there wouldn't be the need for a search and upending things if you knew right where to look," Jenny added.

"Let's get the details from all four crime scenes laid out side-by-side and see if we can figure this puzzle out," Callen ordered. "There has to be some common thread in here somewhere."

"You three can get started on your puzzle, as you call it, but I need Ms. Blye to come with me for right now," Hetty announced, appearing from nowhere.

Kensi looked at her teammates questioningly before she nodded and followed the petite woman to her office. Hetty invited her to sit down and offered her some tea. Kensi politely took a sip. When she looked up again, she saw Assistant Director Granger standing next to Hetty.

"Hello Agent Blye." Granger greeted her.

"Hello sir." Kensi wasn't sure why she was there, but with both Hetty and Granger there together, it couldn't be good. Was it possible they found out her news already? "Um, can I ask why I'm here? Did I do something wrong?"

"Do you think you did something wrong, dear?" Hetty asked her.

"No."

"Then just relax and don't worry," Hetty answered.

Granger took a step forward. "Agent Blye, have you given any thought as to what you would like to do after your time here is up?"

"After? When my time is up? I, um, haven't really thought about it because I thought I would be here a long time." Kensi started to internally panic at Granger's question. "Wait, are you firing me? Hetty – is he firing me?"

"Ms. Blye, I have no plans for your dismissal or departure. And I can assure you, neither does Assistant Director Granger. Isn't that correct, Owen?"

"That's correct. What I meant was, have you given any thought to your career path? Being the junior agent on an élite team is not a lifetime position. There are more options that could be open to you in federal law enforcement."

"I'm not sure I'm following. Are you talking about transferring to another office or agency? Because honestly I am happy here, in case I've given the impression that I'm not. I love my job," Kensi argued.

"Agent Blye, I know we got off on the wrong foot when I first came to Los Angeles. Since that time, I have observed you frequently, both in and out of the field, and I am impressed by what I see. You are a top-notch agent with a very promising future ahead of you."

"Thank you." Kensi relaxed a bit.

Granger continued. "Have you ever considered having your own team of agents? I think you would be an excellent candidate for a team leader position."

"My own team - like Callen? Is he retiring or leaving? I don't want to take his job."

"There are always openings around the globe, dear. Once you complete the necessary training, you could have your pick of offices and bases on almost any continent," Hetty explained. "As far as I know, Mr. Callen isn't going anywhere."

Granger nodded in agreement. "So what do you think, Agent Blye?"

"Wow, um, that's a lot to think about. Do I have to give you an answer right now?" Kensi inquired.

"No, of course not. Take your time and think about it. There is no deadline for this, so let me know when you have made up your mind." Granger and Hetty assured her she could come to them with any questions she had, and then dismissed her back to her team and the current case.

As Kensi packed up her bag to head home that evening, she had a lot on her mind – the current case with a potential serial killer; the pregnancy (which she hadn't had the opportunity to tell Hetty about yet); the new team leader job opportunity, her future with Deeks. The one person she wanted to talk about it all with was currently unavailable due to some field training on the other side of the country. She sighed and patted her flat belly. "Guess it's just you, me and a medium pepperoni tonight."