Author's Note: Thanks again to Adune23 for the tech ideas that occur in this chapter and future chapters.

Chapter 22: Plots and Countermeasures

Ino found Tenten sitting on the catwalks high above the floor of her robotics bays. She was holding her invention that she had made to prevent enemies from burrowing underneath them.

"Stupid useless piece of -," Tenten was muttering angrily under her breath. With a huff of frustration she tossed the small box aside.

"What happened?" Ino called up to her, "Why didn't those things work? I thought they were supposed to stop things from burrowing under our defenses."

"They were meant to stop roaches and infestors, not giant ugly alien-puking worms!" Tenten snapped angrily, "Blasted things drained all the chakra the dumb machines had almost instantly. It took a full 3 of them to stop one of the things, and in the end with all of them combined they only managed to stop four, maybe five."

Ino stepped back as her friend jumped from the catwalk and landed in front of her.

"I hate these things! Every time I make something, every time I invent a way for us to even the odds, they pull something new out of their ugly carapaces that destroys it! Why won't the damned things just die?!" Tenten smacked some kind of tool off a table as hard as she could in anger.

Ino watched the tool bounce across the ground before turning back to her friend, "Hey, it's okay you know. You're giving it your all, and you've yet to disappoint. That's all we could ever ask for."

"Well it's not good enough!" Tenten snapped back, "If it were, you wouldn't have to come in here asking questions about why it didn't work."

Ino put a hand on her friend's shoulder, "Hey, calm down. It's not your fault. You're doing the best you can, and you're doing a magnificent job too. No one could pull off the feats you've created; you're a miracle worker already. You'll come up with something, I know you will, and when you do, the Zerg won't know what hit them."

Tenten leaned forward with her hands on a blueprint table, sighing, "Assuming I can come up with something that good. But even if I do, the Zerg will just come back with something stronger and better. Then we'll be having the same conversation again, just with even less people."

"Don't talk like that," Ino chided her friend sharply, "We haven't lost yet, and really it's thanks to you. Don't give up on yourself; none of us have."

Tenten sighed even deeper, running her hands through her hair, "Look, thanks for checking up on me and everything. I appreciate it; I do… but I need to get back to work."

Ino nodded, "Okay. I'll check on you later then?"

Tenten merely grunted in response, already picking up several tools and carrying them away to a workbench.

Ino walked into the HQ's conference room to find the three Kages and Shikamaru sitting there talking.

"The main bulk of our forces had all our tanks, all our allies. The concentration of firepower kept casualties low there, but the rest were not so lucky," Shikamaru was saying, "Those who were separated from the main group were largely massacred. I estimated that around 85% of those that were caught on the outskirts of the base were either killed or critically injured."

"Damn it," Naruto was leaning his head in his hand, "So many lost. Hundreds dead or injured, my second in command among them. We can't keep this up."

"My medics are doing the best they can," Sakura reported, "They'll make sure as many of the injured survive as possible, and with Tsunade and Lady Katsuyu's help, it looks like most of them will make it."

"Well, at least we have one thing to smile about," Ino remarked ruefully, "But what about the rest of our situation?"

"The Executor wished to meet with the leader of these Dark Templar alone first. They wished to discuss matters of their own race before we all convened," Gaara told her, "We'll be taking a raven up to the Gantrithor when we're done here."

"Okay. I'm going to review the status of our standing forces in the meantime. I'll meet you at the air fields."

Going outside, she found Sai standing on top of a building, easel in front of him and brush in hand. Yet, he wasn't moving. Ino jumped up and walked over to him.

"Hey," she greeted him, "What are you painting?"

Sai took a while before answering, "I am not sure. I've been sitting here ready to start something, but I have yet to be struck with an idea."

"Is everything okay? That's not like you at all."

"I'm not sure. Really, I'm at a bit of a loss at the moment. I keep trying to concentrate long enough to begin painting something, but my mind just can't seem to focus long enough for the image to fully form."

Ino stood next to him, "Why? You've never been so distracted that it affects your artistry. What's distracting you so much?"

Sai lowered the paintbrush, "I… am not entirely sure."

Ino put her head on his shoulder, "Want to talk about it?"

"Sure."

Aboard the Gantrithor, the Executor and the Prelate were having a tense conversation in the war room.

"You can't expect me to actually agree with me, do you Mohandar?" Selendis asked, shocked.

"I understand your position, and your mindset, but we must look towards our own."

"At too high a cost!"

"My mission here is to bring you and your warriors home to Shakuras as swiftly as we can. You refuse to just leave, which is understandable, but why waste further resources?"

"These Terrans have proven to be just as capable as any of our Templars, and some even more so. I refuse to allow you or myself to dictate their fate without their knowledge. You must take it up with them."

Mohandar sighed mentally, "You are right. I shall give them a say. But if all else fails, I will give the order regardless."

"But until that is necessary, let us consider our other options. Are you aware of any further reinforcements?"

"I believe I can give you truly good news on that topic. If we do not return within a week, Hierarch Artanis himself assured me he will personally go through the rift after us. If we cannot win within this next week, the Shield of Aiur will be in the skies alongside us."

"What of the Terrans? Most have proven to be less than reliable, but there are groups that we know would be willing to aid in this fight. It would benefit these Terrans, the shinobi, to see less… alien faces beside them I think."

"Unfortunately, the likelihood of Terran support is very slim. With the Dominion brought to its knees, leaderless, Raynor and his allies along with any other reliable Terran groups are busy keeping their worlds in order. We must assume the Hierarch will be the only reinforcements from our world we will be receiving."

Selendis shook her head, "It matters little I suppose. We brought this mess to this world, and we are more than capable of putting a stop to it. If there is nothing else, we should summon the shinobi; there is much that needs to be discussed."

"Agreed."

A little while later, the two Protoss were joined by the three Kages and their trusted lieutenants.

"Dark Prelate Mohandar, these are the Terran leaders in command of all shinobi forces here: Hokage Naruto, Kazekage Gaara, and Mizukage Mei," Selendis introduced them, "All of you, this is Dark Prelate Mohandar, the leader of the other half of my species, the Dark Templar."

"Adun Toridas humans," Mohandar greeted them, "I'm told you are all formidable warriors, and look forward to seeing your combat capabilities upon the battlefield. Now, I am afraid I am not very well informed. What is the current condition and status of your standing forces?"

"Our forces have started to become depleted unfortunately," Gaara told him, "Losses have been higher than we had hoped they would be. Our infantry are decently equipped, but still not truly well equipped to fight the Zerg. Our air forces and mechanized infantry however have proven to be very effective against the enemy so far, so we're putting a large portion of our resources to creating more of those."

"Are there ways to improve your equipment for future confrontations?"

"I have my best engineer working alongside the Executor's in the robotics bays," Naruto reported, "She's been working night and day improving our technology and equipment. If anyone can devise something to give us an edge, it's her."

"Very good. With my warriors added to yours, we are strong enough to take the fight back to the hive. If the ground forces can halt any counter attacks, and our fighters can keep the skies clear, my Void Rays and the Gantrithor will be able to burn the entire hive with little trouble."

"Before we do that, there is something we need to know," Naruto stopped them, "During the last battle, we were caught off guard by a new strain of Zerg that use our own abilities against us. I want to know what they are and how they did this before we rush in blindly."

"Agreed. We've already gotten a research team studying one of the bodies we recovered. We figure that out first."

Down in the research labs, Hinata was working alongside the medical team examining the dead Zerg. She looked up and deactivated her Byakugan as she saw the approach of the Kages and allies.

"Naruto, we've examined the Zerg as you instructed," she told her fiancé, "It's not an infested shinobi like we assumed."

"What?" Naruto asked perplexed, "They do resemble shinobi, if only slightly. Are you saying these are new?"

"Yes, that's exactly what they are," one of the scientists told him, "They have the DNA of multiple shinobi in them as well as other strands we haven't identified yet."

"I've used my Byakugan during my examination," Hinata added, "They do have fully formed chakra networks, but they are very rudimentary and basic, making them inefficient. The mixing of two different forms of energy has also made their bodies unstable, just as Tenten predicted they would. We've estimated that each one can only use a few jutsus, maybe three at the least or at most seven, before their chakra networks destabilize their entire internal structure. After that, the network breaks down, resulting in the body being torn apart by volatile energies."

"So, physically they are incredibly tough and strong, but when we bring them to our level, they are a serious disadvantage," Mei summed up, "Good. So all we have to do is force them to fight on our terms, and they'll kill themselves trying."

"For now," Gaara warned, "The Zerg will eventually find ways to deal with that, and when they do we'll have a serious battle on our hands no matter how we go about it."

"Then we must destroy them before they have a chance to grow more," Naruto ordered, "Have we even come up with a name for these things?"

"Several, though the best sounding one was the tengu by far."

"Well, then we need to locate where the tengu are grown and destroy them before the Zerg have a chance to improve them."

"It should be obvious where they'll be," Shikamaru said, "They'll be being grown in the newly grown central hive. Destroy the hive, and the tengu will be destroyed with it."

"Last time we tried that tactic, it ended in almost complete failure. If these things have the potential to become as dangerous as you say, we need to be sure the job is done," Iruka spoke up, "I'll personally lead the teams that destroy the Hive."

"I volunteer to go as well. This is something that cannot fail," Baki stepped forward.

Everyone looked at each other.

"A brave offer. If this is acceptable to you two, it is acceptable to us," Selendis nodded at them.

Gaara and Naruto looked at each other, "It works for us."

"Very good. When will your forces be ready for departure; the sooner we strike, the less time the Zerg have to rebuild their forces."

"We should be ready to move out soon. The last of our wounded should be good to go soon. Once they're up and moving again, we'll be ready."

"I'd prefer it if we were better equipped before we rushed out again," Gaara put in.

"Well, I think I've got that covered then," Tenten walked up to the table, "I was lucky; I caught a break with the anti-burrowing devices. I managed to bolster the energy levels and strength of the jutsu, so not even those blasted worms will be able to burrow underneath us again no matter where we are. This time when we go into battle, we'll have a lot more in our arsenal."

"Excellent! Care to share?"

"My pleasure. Sakura, I have a gift for you actually," Tenten tossed a round object which Sakura snatched out of the air.

"What is it?" she asked.

"That looks suspiciously like a Terran grenade, in which case it's highly explosive," Mohandar observed.

"You are correct, and you are incorrect. This may be based on the Terran reaper's grenades, but they have a very different function. These grenades are cornucopias of anti-venoms and neutralizing agents kept under very high pressure, all charged with healing chakra. When these are activated, they'll create a cloud out of the contents, and whoever's in there will not only be healed, but they will find that the Zerg's acid and poison will be neutralized and rendered completely harmless upon entering the cloud. A roach or a baneling could spew acid all over you, but with this grenade active it will be entirely useless."

"Are you saying you can make entire strains useless against us with just that device?" Shikamaru was fascinated by the object.

"If deployed properly, yes. Banelings and roaches especially will be unable to touch us. But the cloud it releases dissipates after about maybe 10 or 15 seconds, so using it requires proper timing if we're going to use it for anything besides healing."

"Wow. That is incredible. And I'm assuming that that's not all you've come up with?" Naruto was wowed by the grenade.

"Of course not. Using science and engineering I've created a multitude of upgrades to existing weapons and tools."

Mohandar turned to the others before continuing, "The level of innovation displayed by your people is staggering, but if we are to be underway in a timely manner, we must prepare to leave as soon as possible. I shall prepare my fleet for battle while your engineer finishes explaining her creations to you."

They watched as the Prelate left the room before Tenten continued.

Onboard the Burning Shadow, Mohandar stood at the bridge, looking out the main viewing port.

"I want all ships prepared for a lengthy battle as swiftly as possible," he ordered, "Check all weapons, make sure they are all fully charged, run diagnostics on all systems; every single ship must be at her best before we leave."

"As you command, Dark One."

"All crew members be advised; we are likely to be a high priority target the entire battle, so ensure you are at your finest."

As everyone began to move in compliance to his orders, Mohandar spoke privately to the captains of the vessels, "The Zerg cannot be allowed to survive; every single one of them must be destroyed if we are to ensure victory. All ships prepare heavy weapons; after the battle, glass everything that the creep has touched, then extend past another 20 miles. We cannot risk failure. The Purity of Form and the Clairvoyant Thought will stay at the rear of the fleet with their escorts, maintain altitude well above range of any spore crawlers or other anti-air. In case of failure, ascend into low orbit and incinerate the entire region. Leave nothing untouched. Understood?"

"Understood Prelate."