Chapter 3: The Best Defense…
"How could you leave her behind?" Naruto yelled.
"We didn't have a choice!" Kiba defended, "The barrier jutsu was too strong to be broken in time, and there were more of them closing in on us. She told us to run."
"Naruto, calm down. It's not their fault," Sakura snapped at him, "We'll get her back, you know that."
"I know, I know. But no matter what, we're not leaving a comrade behind enemy lines. We need to get her out quickly, before something happens to her!"
"Well we can't just rush in there," Sasuke interjected, "From what Kiba and Shino said that would be suicide. We should assemble a small team that can stealthily get in there, find and rescue her, and get out without being caught."
"That might not be prudent either," Kakashi warned, "Perhaps a more diplomatic approach should be called for?"
Naruto nodded at his teacher.
"Agreed. We'll try diplomacy first, but if that doesn't work then we'll try doing this Sasuke's way. Sasuke, get shinobi teams ready to go in case this doesn't work. Shikamaru, start working on a battle strategy should things turn bad."
The pair of them nodded, and left the building. Naruto looked over at his teacher.
"Come on; let's see if your diplomatic approach is effective."
Onboard the Gantrithor II…..
"What was a group of those terrans doing sneaking around onboard my ship?!" Executor Selendis slammed her fist onto a table, "I thought we had the place locked down. How did they get onboard?!"
"From the video shot by the sentries, they got in through one of the big tears in the ship's frame that occurred during the battle. It would appear this strain of terran is capable of more, physically, than the terrans of the Koprulu Sector," the Praetor replied.
"Also, these terrans seem to have powers far beyond anything the terrans at home have," another added, "We recovered a recording of the battle from the destroyed sentries. They all appear to have unique abilities, and a curious affinity with this planet's native animals."
"These powers that they have, are they psionic-based?" the Executor asked.
"We're not sure; not enough data to draw any solid conclusions," the Praetor folded his arms, "However, we do have a tactical analysis of their combat capabilities now. They are nimble, and tough, as the female demonstrated when she dismantled another two sentries before being brought down. However, their powers do have a limit, which we can use to our advantage."
"Executor!" another alien called from the front of the bridge, "The observers show the terrans are mobilizing; they could be gathering for an attack."
Executor Selendis and her advisors strode over to the monitor. The observers were hovering over the terran village, giving them all a bird's eye view of the whole place. A male terran with black hair was directing a group of at least 40 of his brethren, all armed. At least, they looked armed; they had rather primitive metal weapons.
"What do you think, Praetor?" the Executor asked him, "There's enough for a moderate-sized attack on our position. What do you think they're planning?"
"Hmmmmm. From what I've seen of the terrans, they don't like to abandon their own kind. My guess is they're coming for the female; they'll want her back, whether she's alive or otherwise."
"Should we assume they're hostile?" the younger male asked.
"Not immediately, no. They'll probably sue for peace first; try a diplomatic approach to try and resolve this without bloodshed. However, we should prepare to defend the ship anyways, just to be safe."
"Agreed," the Executor nodded, "What's our situation on the ground?"
"The warp matrix is back online, so we've begun to fortify our position. We've begun placing a photon cannon grid around the ship, and the four guarding the way up the hill will be finished warping in by the time the terrans arrive."
"What do we have supporting them?"
"As of right now, we have 5 sentries, 13 zealots, and 7 stalkers on the ground ready to support the defensive matrix, with two of our high templar on the way. If they attack, we'll be prepared."
"Executor?" the younger one spoke up, "Permission to join the defense? I want to see these terrans for myself."
Selendis looked over at him, then looked over at the Praetor next to her.
"Permission granted," the Praetor nodded, "Do mind yourself though, won't you? You're my best disciple, Thanatos. I'm not keen on losing you because of some petty conflict."
Thanatos nodded, and left the bridge.
Naruto, Kakashi, and Sakura made their way through the forest, towards the crash site. They could see the great ship looming above them, even from the bottom of the hill. Up at the top, the 3 of them observed 4 golden platforms with a golden orb floating above them. Naruto and the others slowly ascended the hill, wary of the aliens onboard the ship that could attack them at any moment. However, nothing happened as they made it to the top of the hill, and passed the floating gold orbs unhindered. Before them stood 5 of the aliens themselves. They were just as Kiba and Shino described them; 8 or 9 feet tall, no nose or mouth, and dressed in gold armor with blue lines.
"We wish to speak with your leader," Naruto told them.
One of them, a younger one by the looks of him, motioned for them to follow him. The 3 shinobi obliged, and he led them to a small metal building with glass screens. Sakura wondered what that huge floating crystal with the ring around it nearby was, and did it do? As they approached, one of the glass screens flickered, and an image of a light purple, female alien appeared on it.
"En Taro Tassadar," her words echoed in their minds, "I am High Executor Selendis, Commander of the Gantrithor II. Who are you?"
"I am Naruto Uzumaki, Hokage and leader of the village of Konoha, and these are two of my top advisors, Kakashi Hatake, and Sakura Haruno."
"What is it that you want, Naruto Uzumaki, Hokage of Konoha?"
"You are holding one of us hostage. We want her released immediately."
"Is that a demand?" the Executor asked testily.
"No, it's not," Sakura quickly intervened, "We were only curious about what your ship was; we meant no harm. This is a friendly request, please."
The alien Executor looked at them hard, her eyes narrowed slightly.
"Your people were found sneaking around onboard the Gantrithor, and when discovered they attacked and destroyed 3 of our sentries trying to escape. If you were any other terran that would have been seen as a declaration of war and we would have responded immediately to your hostility with lethal force."
"Wait, what did you just call us?" Naruto asked.
"Terrans. Judging by your appearance I assume you are human, are you not?"
"Yes, we are human," Kakashi said in a calm, gentler manner, "but we call ourselves shinobi."
"I see. You are a different strain of terran then. Now, as for your request, I cannot simply give her back to you. She is responsible for the destruction of three of our military constructs, and must be held accountable for her actions."
"We understand," Naruto replied, "We are willing to try and compensate for the loss."
"And how would you do that? You do not have the materials or the technology to do so," she replied.
"Even so, there must be some way we can help you," Sakura pressed.
"Perhaps. We will consider your proposal," Selendis nodded at them.
Naruto was about to respond, but it didn't matter. Before he got the chance, an alarm sounded on the Executor's end.
"Executor, proximity alert! Several hostiles invading on deck 12."
The Executor swiftly turned back to Naruto, Kakashi, and Sakura; there was no mistaking the glaring anger in her eyes.
"I should have suspected some type of under-handed move like this! You terrans are all the same; honor is so scarce amongst your race!"
"Wait, what? I didn't order anything like this! I told everybody to stay put!" Naruto exclaimed frantically, "I told them to stand down!"
The Executor made a vehement mental sound.
"Be gone!" she said, "Thanatos, have your zealots escort these 3 out of our base. We will deal with them soon enough."
The 5 aliens, apparently these were called zealots, surrounded the 3 shinobi. Naruto, Sakura, and Kakashi had no choice but to allow themselves to be led out of the base. Naruto's mind was reeling; he had given specific orders not to antagonize these aliens. What had just happened? Who was attacking the Protoss against his direct orders?
Back in Konoha, Naruto rushed straight over to his second-in-command.
"SASUKE!" he yelled, "We were in the middle of negotiations; things were looking good! We could have ended this in a perfectly peaceful manner! WHAT THE HELL JUST HAPPENED?!"
Sasuke shook his head frantically; he looked just as shocked as Naruto did.
"I don't know!" he said, "I made sure everyone was just ready, nothing else! No one was allowed to leave; I didn't let anyone exit the village!"
"Well then, explain why, in the middle of talking with the leader of the aliens, their proximity alarm went off and they said they were under attack!"
"I don't know! I swear, I kept everyone inside!"
"It's too late for that now," Shikamaru came over, "Whoever it was who just did that doesn't matter; they've put us in a very dangerous position either way. We need to prepare to defend the village now, before things get even worse."
Sasuke nodded.
"I'll round up all the members of the Konoha 11, and as many others as I can find," he promised, and with that, he was running down the road.
High Executor Selendis looked down at the dead bodies of 2 of her zealots. Nearby lay the bodies of their killers; 7 of the treacherous terran shinobi. She let out a mental sigh of frustration. For a group of people who said they didn't want hostilities they were doing a very good job of instigating it. What would be their motive behind such an attack that couldn't possibly succeed?
"They took them by surprise," the Praetor walked up, "Caught them with their shields down. Though, it's odd; all 7 of these terrans have pure white eyes, just like the female. What would be their motivation for treachery, using such a small force?"
"They will pay for this!" she hissed, "No matter their reasons, this is a clear act of war. We will respond to this as we would any other foe."
"The terrans are gathering even more of their forces; they are likely to make a second attempt at our position."
"Then we need to stop them."
"How?"
"They can't attack us if we strike first. Prepare the warp prisms; we're going to return the favor to these … shinobi."