Chapter 5 Council

Jutsu,

Snarling,

I do not own Naruto what so ever or any of the characters or any of the OC that I used from other shows or games

Last time on Raikage

"Goodbye then" said The Raikage in which he and his bodyguards turned around and walk back to their landing boat

Where as The Raikage boarded his boat Kureani and the others turned inland and jumped into the tree tops and began to make their home to their families and report what happened.

As they travelled back to Konoha they could only wonder what the reaction of everyone in Konoha would be when they arrived at Konoha gates after being captured by Kiri. They also could not help but imagine the reaction of the council especially certain members like Koharu and Danzo when they learned about strength and power Kumo and the Heavenly Alliance had show in the past few days.

Altogether one thing was for certain Konoha was going to be in for a big surprise when they arrived there.

-A day and a half later on in The Hokage-

Currently Tsuande was sitting in her office looking over some reports she had gotten about the boarders on Kusa no Kuni (Grass Country) and Ta no Kuni (Rice Country). From the reports that she had gotten there had been no skirmishes, raids or attacks along those boarders, from either Kusa-nins or Oto-nins nor had there been any raids against their ports by Kiri Warships and raiding parties for the past two weeks.

Tsunade did not like this since Orochimaru and his Allies were not the type to stay quit for too long, and if they weren't making any kind of attack at their boarders right now, then that meant that they were planning something big, since there had yet to be any major battles between them and Orochimaru and his Allies.

As Tsunade was reading the reports an ANBU wearing a Wolf shaped mask suddenly appeared in front of her, when Tsuande looked up at him where he saluted and immediately began to speak.

"Hokage-sama I have some urgent news from one of our patrols outside the village"

"Well what is it?" demanded Tsuande

"It seems that Kureani-san, Lee-san, Sakura-san and Choji-san are all just outside the village and are heading here as we speak" answered the ANBU

"WHAT?" shouted Tsunade "That's impossible they're being held Prisoner in "The Hold" there is no way that they could have escaped from there by themselves, they must be imposters"

"I'm afraid not our patrol squad confronted them and checked them for henge's and any other type of disguises and have found none. They even asked each of them their individual coded word that is known only to each of them to confirm their identity, which they all answered correctly". answered the ANBU

"But how did they escaped?" thought Tsuande where she then looked back up at the ANBU

"Have Kurenai and her team come here to me immediately for debriefing"

"Hokage-sama! I'm afraid that you may have to wait since Kurenai-san has asked that we have a full Council meeting, with all Council members and senior Shinobi members, as well as yourself be present, since she says that they have vital information that is needed to be heard by everyone since it concerns Kumogakure and the Heavenly Alliance" spoke the ANBU

"Kumo and the Heavenly Alliance but what have they got to do with this?" answered Tsuande

"I'm afraid that she would not answer until you, the Council and all the senior Shinobi's were together in the Council room" answered the ANBU

"Very well inform all members of the Council and all senior Shinobi's that there is an emergency Council meeting being held, and that they're to attended the meeting in the Council room immediately and that goes double of Hatake is that clear" ordered Tsuande

"Hai" saluted the ANBU where he then Shunshin away

"Damn it Jiraiya where are you when I need you" muttered Tsunade.

As if answering her call Jairiya appeared behind her sitting on the windowsill of the open window behind the Tsuande and spoke.

"Right here hime did you miss me?" sneered the Toad Hermit.

At which she immediately turned around to face him.

"Damn it Jiraiya can't you use the door like a regular person".

"Nope! But that's not important right now, I got big news and its about Kurenai and those kids they-" spoke Jiraiya but before he could finish he was interrupted by Tsunade.

"We know they have escaped since they have just arrived at the village and have asked for a full Council meeting, with all senior Shinobi's there as well so to explain how they escaped, and saying that they have vital information concerning Kumo and the Heavenly Alliance" said Tsuande.

"Damn! they got here faster than I thought they would, those new Kumo ships move faster than I expected" muttered Jiraiya out loud.

"What are you talking about Jiraiya what doses Kumo have to do with this? and what new ships?" demanded Tsuande since she was getting angry in being kept in the dark about what was happening and she wanted answers now.

"Sorry hime I can't answer right now since I think it best that we wait till the meeting, where Kurenai and the others explain everything, since I don't even have the full story for what I saw back there" answered Jiraiya.

"Fine then lets go" said Tsuande as she got out of her seat and headed for the Council room with Jiraiya right behind her.

-Half and Hour later in The Council Room-

It did not take long for all the Council members, Clan heads and senior Shinobi's to arrive in the Council room since they had been informed that it was vitally important. As they arrived all the Council members and Clan heads sat in their designated seats. The senior Shinobi's sat in seats in front of the Council table that had been set for them for this meeting.

Once everyone had arrived Tsuande stood up and spoke

"Thank you all for coming so quickly and I'm sure that you're all wondering why I have called this meeting. The reason for this meeting is that less than thirty minutes ago a new development has arisen with the recent capture of Yuuhi Sarutobi Kurenai and her team".

"Baa-chan what do you mean what happen to Kurenai-obasan and the others" asked a worried Konohamaru.

"I believe that explication would be better told by them" answered Tsuande where she signalled the two ANBU at the double door to open it where when they did Kurenai, Lee, Sakura and Choji all entered the Council room shocking everyone, minus Tsuande, Jiraiya and the ANBU captain (who had been informed by his ANBU at the same time as Tsuande).

When everyone saw who had entered they were stunned to say the lest, since they were the last people many thought that they ever see again.

"Lee-kun" thought Yakumo as she had to restrain herself from jumping over the Council table and rushing over to her husband in joy that he was safe.

"Choji" thought Choza as pure joy and relief flooded him, in which he started to silently thank every deity in the heavens he could think of for his son safe return

"Kurenai-obasan" thought Konohamaru in shock before joy replace it, since his Aunt was alive and that his little cousin would still have his mother and not grows up an orphan.

When everyone had gotten over the shock at seeing Kurenai and her team in the Council room alive and unharmed, question imminently began to arise at how they escaped from "The Hold" at which Koharu stood up and spoke.

"Kurenai-san as much as myself and everyone else in this room is happy to see you and your teammates alive and well, (which caused Tsuande to scoff since Koharu was among those that were willing to write off Kurenai and the others, and leave them to rot in "The Hold") we would like to know how you all escape "The Hold" and got here.

"The answer is quite simple Koharu-san we did not escape we were rescued" answer Kurenai, which shocked the entire Council and everyone else there (minus Jiraiya). At which point many the Civilian Council member started to shout out questions that each wanting their questions answered first after a minute or so of this Tsuande had enough.

"SILENCE!" shouted Tsuande and leaking a large amount of Killer Intent at the fools to shut them up.

After which the Civilian Council members shut up and sat down where Tsuande then turned to Kurenai and her team.

"Kurenai who was it that rescued you and your team-mates from the "The Hold" ". asked Tsuande although she already had an idea who had rescued them.

"We were rescued by Shinobi's of Kumogakure (The Hidden Cloud)".

This caused a large amount of muttering to go around the room which soon died down when Homura stood up and asked the question that was on everyone mind

"Kumogakure? But why would they attack the "The Hold" and save you and your team-mates?"

"The reason why they attack "The Hold" was not to save us but to save Princess Sachi as well as help the Rebel Prisoner's, who were held there to escape. We just tagged along since they took pity on us and decided to save us" spoke Kurenai

"What? But why would they want to rescue the Princess Umi no Kuni (Sea Country) it is not Allied to the Heavenly Alliance nor is it a member". spoke Koharu who was confused like many in the room at the action of Kumo

"The reason was because although the Umi no Kuni is not Allied nor a member of the Heavenly Alliance Tsuki no Kuni and Getsugakure are Allied to the Heavenly Alliance, and since Princess Sachi is engaged to Prince Hikaru of Tsuki no Kuni, it then concerned them or that at lest their reasoning". answered Kurenai which cause more muttering around the room which ended when Inoichi stood up and asked another question

"But if that was the case why then did they help the Rebel Prisoners there escape?"

"The reason I believe is because Kumogakure and the Heavenly Alliance have made some sort of Alliance with The Rebel Factions of Mizu no Kuni" replied Kurenai shocking many members and senior Shinobi's.

"This could be troubling since if Kumo and the Heavenly Alliance are Allied with the Rebel Factions of Mizu no Kuni then it would make them more powerful. But then again it could be put to our advantage since if the Heavenly Alliance plans to wage War against Kirigakure (The Hidden Mist). Then Kiri forces would be too busy fighting with the Rebel Factions and the Heavenly Alliance, that they would be unable to help Orochimaru and the remainder of his Allies". spoke Danzo where many were muttering agreement to what Danzo had said

"We will leave that discussion for a later point since it too earlier to come to conclusions to what Kumo and the Heavenly Alliance are planning on doing". spoke Tsuande after which she then turned to Kurenai and her team.

"Kureani I believe many people here like myself would like to hear how Kumo was able to break out the Princess as well as all of you out".

This got murmurs of agreement from everyone in the room since they wanted to known as well. But before Kureani could even speak Jiraiya stood up in front of everyone.

"Before Kurenai gives her account on the events that happened at "The Hold" I would like to present my account on the event, since I was there to witness to some of what happened. Since as you all know I was order by Tsaunde to observe the Prison and gather Intel on it, during which I witness the attack on the "The Hold" and their rescue by Kumo. Also during the attack I was able to record it with my portable reel camera, that I had planned to use to record the patrol movements of the guards" said Jiraiya as he held up the reel.

Quickly enough the Council had a reel projector brought in and pulled down a large projector screen that was on one of the walls in the Council room, that was sometimes used for the Council to watch picture clips or film recordings (such as the one they were watching now).

For the next five minutes Tsuande, Kurenai and the others as well as the Council and the senior Shinobi's watched the attack. They watched Kumo Airship attack the Prison and watch it destroy the volley guns and then launch the STORM ANBU on their Gliders, where they in turn fired Jutsu down on the Kiri-nins. After which they then watched the Airship drop the Swordfish into the Water, where it created the giant wave that washed away the Kiri-nins in the open area and flooded it with Water. They then watched the Airship fire the smoke bombs into the open area of the Prison. After which they then preceded to watch the STORM ANBU land on the sea wall and jump into the smoke filled open area. They also watch for the remainder of the five minutes the different times the Swordfish would rise out of the Water and fire it volley guns. Soon enough they watched the Swordfish blowing open the gate for docking point two where it quickly left with Kurenai and the others on the Swordfish roof. They also saw the Rebel ships leaving the supply dock under the cliffs and sail away after which they then saw the bottom level of Prison itself blown up. Where the Prison then began to collapse in which they saw several Kiri-nins, who were near the collapsing building being crushed by the falling pieces. After which they then saw the Swordfish sink under the Water.

When the film had ended the entire Council room was so quite a person could hear a pin drop, since they were completely stun at what they had witness since in that short recording, they had witness Kumo and the Heavenly Alliance having crafts and weapons far beyond any other Nation. Even Kurenai and he team were shocked since they had not seen this part of the attack on the Prison, since they were in their cells at the time hence they did not know about the Airship or the weapons it had.

After the film ended Jiraiya then spoke

"As you saw the Attack lasted less than five minutes and in that time frame the entire Prison population of three hundred Prisoners escaped and Kiri lost over four hundred Shinobi's in that attack most being killed when the Prison collapsed".

After a few minutes everyone quickly got over their shock, in which the Council room quickly erupted in shouting and yelling, about what they had seen and what Konoha should do as well as other things such as.

"HOW COULD KUMO BECOME SO POWERFUL WITHOUT US KNOWING?"

"WE MUST SEND OUR SHINOBI'S IN TO STEAL THE PLANS TO THOSE WEAPONS IMMEDIATELY!"

"WE'VE TO ATTACK THEM NOW BEFORE THEY TURN ON US!"

After a few minutes of this Tsuande had enough.

"SILENCE!" she roared in which she then let loses a massive amount of Killing Intent and slammed her fist down onto the Council table which caused massive cracks to be seen on the table.

"Now before you all start screaming your head off, about what you have seen and what we should do I believe we should hear Kurenai and her team report, about the attack so that we can get the full picture of what happen". spoke Tsuande in a authoritative manner showing why she was The Hokage.

Soon enough everyone calm down after which Kurenai then began to explain the events of what happened during the escape. She also described the skills that she witness from the STORM-nins from their use of the Blind Assassin Art, their Jutsu combination skills and their team work skills. She even mentioned that in her own opinion from watching the STORM-nins that they were superior to their own ANBU division (which did not sit well with the Council or many others).

Lee also informed them of what he had seen the STORM-nins do when he fought along side Falcon and Hawk.

After Lee described what he had seen, Kurenai then went on to explain what Commander Sun Li had told them in why they were saved, and also told them of the battle that happened when they were in the Swordfish, and how the STORM-nins had defeated Kiri elite underwater fighting unit SHARK.

This also did not go well with Council since it further proved that Kumo STORM division was superior to their own ANBU division.

Kurenai then explained the battle with the Kiri Warships and told them of Kumo Fortress ships and described them. Which of course shock and stunned everyone including Jiraiya (who was surprised that Kumo and the Heavenly Alliance could keep something like them secret from his spy network). The stunned Council refused to believe it at first but once Lee. Sakura and Choji all backed up Kurenai on the existence of the Fortress ships and her description they had no choice but to believe them. This of course then caused pandemonium in the Council room, where people began to shout out again about what they should do about them. But thankfully Tsuande was able to order silence in the room

After which Kurenai then explained how the Fortress ships swallowed up the Swordfish and how they met The Rokudaime Raikage which surprised everyone.

"You actually met with The Rokudaime Raikage?" said a surprised Homura since Konoha had been trying to gather whatever they could about the man for several years now. Yet they hardly got anything other that the events that made him famous, like destroying the Kiri Armada. As well a few rumours about him that could not be true like that he was a god made into mortal form, and that he could control the heavens and could level entire mountains with a single strike it was as if he just appeared out of nowhere.

Kurenai just nodded to the question.

To which Homura then asked "Please describe him to us and what he is like as well as anything you can tell us about him".

"I'm afraid there is not much I can tell about him since we did not speak with him for very long nor can I give you much of a description of him. Since he wore the traditional attire of The Raikage and wore a mask similar to Kakashi's to hide his face. The only things I can be certain by his description is that he is tall about six foot two in height and that he has blue eyes" answered Kurenai

"What about the type of man he is?" asked Homura

"I'm afraid there not much I can help there either since as I said we did not talk much with him. Although I will say that he is a man with immense power since he had a kind of aura around him that spoke of immense power and authority". said Kurenai

This of course did not please the Council since it did not really answer any of the questions that they had about the man.

"Although there is one think of vital importance we did learn about The Raikage", said Kurenai.

This of course got everyone interest where Tsuande signalled her to continue.

"We were able to learn that The Raikage is also Sourai (Blue Lightning), the same man that killed the Akatsuki members Kakuzu and Hidan", spoke Kurenai.

This of course caused many gasps of surprise and looks on shock on many people faces in the room.

"Are you certain of this", asked Tsuande urgently.

"Yes we are since The Raikage admitted it himself when I asked to speak to Sourai, in which The Raikage told us that he was Sourai, and that he had wanted people to believe until recently that both he and Sourai were two different people". replied Kurenai

"But why would he want to do that?" asked Ashikaga Shin who was confused as to why The Raikage would go to all the trouble at hiding what he was capable of doing

"It's simple if you think about" spoke Jiraiya which caused everyone to turn and look at him.

"What do you mean by that Jiraiya-sama?" asked Hojo Akira.

"Like I said it simple if you think about it, during the time when the Civil War in Kumogakure and Kaminari no Kuni (Lightning Country) had ended, both the village and the Country were in no great shape. Their military forces, finances and economic structures were hit hard. Also if another Shinobi Nation or neighbouring Country had attacked both Kumogakure and Kaminari no Kuni, they would've been hard pressed to push them back. Hence The Raikage did the smart thing by keeping all their main strength hidden, as well as keeping his own powers and abilities unknown to everyone. So that other Nations would be wary to attack them without knowing what he could do or how strong their military forces were".

"But still why did he have everyone believe that he and Sourai were two separate people?" asked Asai Heita.

"Same reason as to why he kept his powers and abilities hidden from everyone, Kumogakure and Kaminari no Kuni were still recovering from the Civil War. The same was true during the events with the Jinchūriki of the Nibi no Bakeneko (Two-Tailed Monster Cat), which was when the name Sourai came to attention to other Shinobi Nations and organisations. The Raikage properly knew that once word got out that two wanted S-Class missing-nins were killed by a single Shinobi, people would want to know who was powerful enough to do it especially the Akatsuki. Hence he must have decided to leak the news out that it was his other persona Sourai, was the one who did it. Since no-one knew he was Sourai and the Akatsuki and other Shinobi's Nations, would believe that Kumo had another powerful Shinobi under its command. Since everyone knew that Kumo had two Jinchūriki's, the Nibi no Bakeneko and the Hachibi no Kyogyū (Eight-Tailed Giant Ox). Everyone had also heard the rumours of The Rokudaime Raikage, so if people believed that Kumo had another very powerful Shinobi who would be Kage level or close to it. Then they would be a lot more hesitant to make any kind of attack against Kumo and Kaminari no Kuni, not to mention the other rumours we've been hearing about other powerful Ninja's being in Kumo lately", said Jiraiya after which he took a breath and continued

"The other reason why he did this was because of the Akatsuki, since they're after all nine Jinchūriki's and Kumo has two of them, making Kumogakure a large target for them. Which was also why he had everyone believe they had a Shinobi powerful enough to fight and kill two of their member at once, both of whom were suppose to be immortal. Also if you combined the strength of the two Jinchūriki's with that of Kumo and The Raikage, from what little we know of his powers, as well as the strength of Sourai, whom we believed until now was a different person, you get a very powerful force that even the Akatsuki would be weary to attack. Hence why he kept everyone thinking that he and Sourai were two different people. It would also make the Akatsuki and other Shinobi Nations follow false leads and waste resources to try and get information on Sourai, which would most likely lead them to come up with false conclusions about Kumo and the Heavenly Alliance"

"I have to admit it was quite a clever of him to trick everyone into believing that he and Sourai were two different people, so to make people more hesitate into attacking Kumo. As well at the same time not paint a target on himself for the Akatsuki to attack, since if they knew at the time that he killed two of their members, they may have decided to attack Kumo just to eliminate him which is why we shouldn't underestimate him. Since he's clearly a person who could be a dangerous enemy for us should we ever provoke him, Kumo or the Heavenly Alliance" spoke Jiraiya, which caused the room to go quite, since everyone was thinking over at what Jairiya had said and could not find any fault at his answer since it made sense.

"But still even if that is true, why did he reveal the truth about him being Sourai now" asked Amako Taichi

"Isn't it obvious Kumo and and Kaminari no Kuni are back to full strength and have fully recovered from their Civil War. Thanks to the other members of the Heavenly Alliance who most likely helped them recover from their Civil War so quickly. Hence they're now more powerful than they were before, which they've clearly shown when they attacked "The Hold". Not to mention even if the Akatsuki attack them, I'm willing to bet that Kumo will be ready to handle them, that's why they're now openly showing the world how powerful they are". answered Jiraiya.

"This is troubling in terms of military and technology development Kumo and the Heavenly Alliance, has become much too powerful for my likely and they must be dealt with before they become a threat to us", said Danzo.

"That enough Danzo neither Kumo nor the Heavenly Alliance have made or shown any hostile action against us, they even rescued several of our best Shinobi's and brought them back safely. Hence I do not want such talk mentioned since we have more enemies than we can handle right now and we don't need more", spoke Tsuande.

"Very well Tsuande-san" said Danzo with a slight scowl "That foolish women she willing to ignore a clear threat to Konoha just because they saved her student and her team. But regardless of that we need more information on what else Kumo and the Heavenly Alliance have up their sleeves, hence if Tsuande won't take action I will, and perhaps I can even use what Kumo and the Heavenly Alliance has to my own advantage".

Tsuande then turned back to Kurenai and her team and asked them to continue with their report.

Which Kurenai did where she informed them of their stay on the Zennyo Ryūōa and told them that like on their stay in the Swordfish. They were kept away from many of the levels on the ship, such as the bridge of the ship and the Capulet launchers for the Sky-Hawk Ninja's, and other areas and how they were escorted wherever they went even to area's they were allowed in.

This of course caused many Council members like Danzo and Koharu to frown since they had hoped that they might get a more detail layout of the ship, but even so they weren't surprised by the action The Raikage took. Since Konoha was not an Ally or member of the Heavenly Alliance hence they would naturally keep many things from them even if they weren't enemies. Both Koharu and Danzo had to admit they themselves would have taken the same precautions as The Raikage did if they had been in his situation.

Kurenai even then went to explain how both the Prince's of Umi no Kuni (Sea Country) and Tsuki no Kuni (Moon Country), had expressed wishes to join the Heavenly Alliance and become members of it after they had met the escort fleets from those Countries.

When the Council heard this many members especially Ashikaga Shin and Amako Taichi where furious, since this made sure that any chance they may have had left of get a Trade Alliance with either Countries was gone. Which in turn they would also lose any of the possible missions they may have gotten from those Countries, and in getting some badly needed funds for their village.

After which Kurenai then told the Council how they were then brought back to the Fire Country shores where they made their way home from their.

"So he simply let you all go without even trying to get information on us from you, he could of even just took you all back to Kumo and held you Prisoner, to get information from you there and yet he didn't. Despite his reputation The famed Raiden no Kami (God of Thunder and Lightning) doesn't sound all that terrifying. He sounds more like some soft weak hearted fool of a Kage instead of a real Kage who wouldn't have saved you at the Prison in the first place or let you all go the way he did". scoffed Sasuke (who was also a member of the Council).

"If you think that "Uchiha-san" then you're a even bigger fool than I though, because The Raikage is a lot more powerful than you think, and I bet he wipe the floor with you if you fought him. Besides he also more honour in his one finger than you will ever have", sneered Choji.

Which caused Sasuke glare at him and would have retorted had Tsuande not interrupted him

"ENOUGH! There will be no arguing or fighting in here is that clear" order Tsunade

"Yes Hokage-sama" said Choji bowing his head

"Yes Hokage-san" sneered Sasuke where he use san instead of sama when he responded to Tsuande order.

Tsuande scowled at the young Uchiha blatant disrespect to her but decided to deal with that later.

"The Hokage is correct we have more important issue to deal with, such as the military strength that Kumo and the Heavenly Alliance have shown" spoke Homura.

"Agreed, those new Airships that Kumo has can cause a great deal of trouble in the future if we are not carful. Since with those Airships they could easily fire down on any base, village or fort they want and there wouldn't be a thing anyone could do about them", spoke Inoichi.

"True, but still we should have seen this coming since according to Hatake Kakashi and his old Genin team report on his mission to protect Lady Daimyo Koyuki, back when she was just an actress. Haru/Yuki no Kuni (Spring/Snow Country) had some Airships at their disposable. So it makes sense that they share the knowledge to build them with Kumo and the rest of the members of the Heavenly Alliance", answered Yakumo.

"Also the fact that Kumo has created ships that can travel underwater is troubling since they could easily sink any ship they want, with more like them there wouldn't be a navel force in the entire Elemental Continent that could stop them", spoke The ANBU captain.

"We can't forget those Fortress ships either, since with just one of those ships they could destroy an entire fleet of smaller ships, and according to Kurenai they have more than just the three that they saw. Hence if that is true Kumo and the Heavenly Alliance probably has the most powerful navel force in the entire Elemental Continent under its command. Where they could smash right through Kiri and Mizu no Kuni (Water Country) Armada's with little trouble, and invade them since just one of those Fortress ships could also probably carry a small invasion force". spoke Choza

"Don't forget that flying Ninja unit that Kumo calls the Sky-Hawk Ninja's, since like the Airships they could easily fire down on any Base or Fort they want. Not to mention down on other Shinobi's. They could even be used to scout out for other Shinobi's forces and radio back to their own force and inform them of any enemy location, and the other uses they may have for infiltration enemy villages". spoke Hana (Kiba's sister).

The fact that they also have the Haru/Yuki no Kuni volley guns and have loaded them onto their Airships cannot be missed either", spoke Homaru.

"Yes, but also they seem to have a weapon that can fire electricity in a concentrated blast and be powerful enough to destroy a small building loaded onto the Airships, which is cause for great concern". spoke Danzo and thinking at the same time how useful a weapon like that would be to him if he had it.

"Although that is cause for great concern Danzo-san I believe the fact Kumo's current Shinobi's level is a much greater concern than that weapon is. It would be illogical for us to forget such an important fact about them. Since Kumo new ANBU division STORM has shown that their Shinobi's are of a higher calibre than our own elite ANBU division. The STORM division were able to accomplish an extremely dangerous mission with little difficulty, and in that mission they killed four hundred Kiri Shinobi's. Something that our own ANBU forces would have trouble doing, also as well they were able to accomplish the mission without any lose of life on their own side. Not forgetting as well, according to Kurenai-san the STORM ANBU training and teamwork skills are far superior to our own, which is troubling since teamwork is the bases of our Shinobi forces". spoke Shibi

This caused the ANBU captain to reluctantly agree with the Aburame Clan head since he doubted his own ANBU squads could accomplish the mission so perfectly like the STORM-nins did.

"Also as troublesome as this is, we can't forget that Kumo was able to attack and destroy Kiri strongest Prison the infamous "Hold" with just one Airship, one underwater craft and three squads of Shinobi's. They were also able to rescue Princess Sachi of Umi no Kuni and Kurenai-sna and her team, as well as help in the releasing of all the Rebel Prisoners held in there, where according to Kurenai none of whom were lost in the escape. All in which happened in less than five minutes, an attack like that usual takes months in planning not to mention sound Intel on the place like "The Hold". That means that Kumo has an excellent information network that is as good if not better than Jairiya-sama information network. Since its the only way possible that they were able to learn about the kidnapping of the Princess so quickly and launch a rescue attempt", spoke Shikaku gaining everyone attention after which he then continued.

"Also it explains how they were able to take out all the volley guns at the Prison at once in the way they did and know where the storage building for the portable volley guns hat the Kiri-nins had there, and know what cells Kurenai, her team and the Princess where in the Prison. This leads me to believe that Kumo has a strong Alliance with the Rebel Factions of Mizu no Kuni for them to give Kumo that information. Also from the way the Kumo force attack "The Hold" it shows that The Raikage is extremely talented strategist. Since as Kurenai mention it was he who planned the attack and he was able to come up with a bold and daring plan to rescue the Princess. That combined speed, teamwork, timing and finesse and he did it in under a week, where he thought of practically everything. The Raikage took into account the response time for the Kiri Warships to arrive, and how long it would take for the Kiri-nins stationed in the Prison, to get out into the open area after the main entrance out to it was destroyed, which would altogether take about five minutes or so".

"The Raikage also probably planned for the underwater craft to cause that massive tidal wave when it was dropped into the Water, so to wash away the Kiri-nins in the open area causing confusion. This was why the Kumo force did not just simply attack with just the underwater craft. The Raikage also probably planned to use the smoke screen not only to cover the STORM-nins as they attacked, but to cause more confusion. Since with the radio tower gone the Kiri-nins could not communicate properly with their command station, and they could not see or find where the STORM-nins were. This allowed the STORM-nins to take apart the remaining Kiri-nins without trouble. Also when they released the Rebel Prisoners, they caused more confusion with the remaining Kiri-nin guards in the Prison itself, so that they couldn't try and stop or delay the STORM-nins. After which once they were away they got to their meeting point before the Kiri re-enforcements could stop them, and when the Rebel Prisoners were safe, they destroyed the Prison, killing most of the Kiri-nins re-enforcements inside and around it", spoke Shikaku shocking everyone in the Council room.

"Nara-san surely you can't possible believe that the whole attack was planned out the way you said it?" spoke Koharu in disbelief.

"I do, since everything that happen in that attack happen too well and too perfectly for it not to be planned out that way, not to mention the plan had another side to it" replied Shikaku.

"You mean that The Raikage plan had more to it than just the attack on "The Hold"" asked Tsuande.

"Yes since the way the attack happened was flashy, since it showed Kumo and the Heavenly Alliance military strength to the world. In which details will soon leak out in how the Princess was rescued and the Heavenly Alliance strength. This will result in us as well as other Shinobi villages to lose more business to Kumo and the other Shinobi villages of the Heavenly Alliance, especially to Kumo. We be especially hurt, since we were the ones that were suppose to protect the Princess in the beginning, and before we could even try and rescue her as well as our own Ninja's. Kumo did it with a small force and inflicted a humiliating loss on Kiri. Also at the same time they showed their technological power and superiority", said Shikaku after which he continued.

"It be especially humiliating to us, since like I said not only did Kumo rescue the Princess that we were supposed to protect. But they also rescued our own Shinobi's and practically handed them back to us. Where we now look like complete fools to everyone, which was probably one of the reasons why he saved Kurenai and the others. Now more Nations will probably take their business to Kumo weakening us more. The Raikage also probably planned or at least hoped that in the way he rescued the Princess, it would get Umi no Kuni and Tsuki no Kuni to join the Heavenly Alliance. This would then give the Heavenly Alliance complete and utter control of Trade over the southern Elemental Ocean. Also when he helped in the rescue of the Rebel Prisoners in "The Hold", he probably solidified or strengthens whatever Alliance that Kumo and the Heavenly Alliance have with the Rebel Factions of Mizu no Kuni. Which I'm sure will come in handy should the Heavenly Alliance go to War against Kiri".

"Altogether this shows that The Raikage would be an extremely troublesome man for us should he ever become our enemy, since at the very least he is a master strategist and tactician since like in a shogi game he checked both Kiri and us in one move". said Shikaku

"Also he probably be an interesting person to play shogi against" thought Shikaku as he finish speaking.

This caused a great deal shouting in the room where people began to argue what they should do about Kumo and the Heavenly Alliance. Since what Shikaku had said made sense and if it was true, then it made The Raikage and the rest of the Heavenly Alliance all the more dangerous enemy to have.

Thankfully silence returned to the room when Tsuande shouted "silence" after which Jiraiya then spoke.

"I've to agree with Shikau there especially with what he said about their information network, but we can't miss probably the most important issue, which is both Kumo and the Heavenly Alliance Counter Intelligence network".

"What do mean by that Jiraiya-sama?" asked Choza

"I mean the fact that Kumo was able to keep its real strength, like those Fortress ships and Airships hidden from the world without anyone having a clue about them. Especially from my network, since my network never even hinted them having things like that. Hell they've been keeping almost everything that has happened in Kaminari no Kuni and Kumo hidden, ever since the Civil War ended. Since not even my network can find out what's really happing there, and to be able to keep those things secret from everyone without so much as a hint about them, is noting short of amazing. I also willing to bet that we're only seeing the tip of what Kumo and the Heavenly Alliance is really capable of, since something tells me they have more tricks up their selves", spoke Jiraiya with a hint of respect for Kumo and the Heavenly Alliance Intelligence divisions.

"This proves all the more that Kumo and the Heavenly Alliance itself is a danger that we have to deal with" spoke Koharu

"I believe I told Danzo that I want no such talk happening in here Koharu so I suggest you hold your tongue" threatened Tsuande

This caused the Elder women to scowl slightly which seem to highlight her wrinkles more.

"Hokage-sama should we try and negotiate an Alliance with Kumo and the Heavenly Alliance, they clearly have the strength to help us in our fight against Orochimaru and his Allies, as we share a common enemy with them in the terms of Kiri. Also if we've an Alliance with the Heavenly Alliance, Orochimaru and his Allies would be more hesitant in fighting us", spoke Hinata.

This of course caused a great deal of surprise among everyone in the room, since it was no secret that the Hyuga Clan had a strong dislike of Kumo, due to their past history with the village. This was especially true for Hinata since the incident involved her and it was also no secret that she did not hold Kumo to a high regard.

"That is still an option and we could greatly use their strength to help us in the War, but I do not what us into walking into any kind of Alliance with the Heavenly Alliance, without us knowing more about them", spoke Tsunade in which she then turned to Jairiya.

"Jiraiya! I want you to go out again and this time I want you to gather Intel on everything you can on Kumo and the Heavenly Alliance in the past ten years. I don't care what you have to do just get it done" order Tsuande.

"Right Hime" replied Jiraiya in which he then Shunshin away.

After which Tsunade dismissed everyone by stating that the meeting was over. Where when she did everyone began to leave while several people went to greet their love one back home. Such as Konohamaru welcoming his Aunt back along with Hinata, Kiba and Shino as well as Akamaru (who nearly crushed Kurenai when he jumped on top of her and started to lick her).

While Lee was greeted by Yakumo who quickly bonked him on the held for scaring her like he did, after which she quickly kissed and hugged him tightly. After which Lee was then greeted by TenTen and Neji who were equally happy to see that their teammate was safe, Lee was then greeted by a tearful Gai who started to shout about Lee flames of youth still burning brightly. Which in turn got Lee starting to shout about the Flames of youth too, but thankfully both were stopped by TenTen and Yakumo who quickly bonked both men to shut them up.

Choji was also greeted by both his father (who nearly killed Choji by hugging him so tightly that he nearly crushed Choji spine) and his teammates. Shikamaru actually shed a few tears of relief at his friend being alive and told him how troublesome he was, Ino was equally happy that her childhood friend and teammate was alive and safe, in which she bonked him and told him not to get capture again or she beat him up.

Tsuande and Shizune also went over to Sakura and told her that they were both happy that she was ok which pleased Sakura knowing that her Sensei was at lest worried about her.

-Two weeks later in a Hidden Location-

Currently five men were sitting together in a large underground room around a large table standing behind each man were two of their Shinobi's from their respected villages or organisation. These men were the leaders of the Alliance of Shinobi Nations that were currently fighting against Konoha and Suna, one of the men was Orochimaru the Snake sannin aka The White Snake formerly of Konoha and probably the most wanted missing-nin from the village. Behind him was his right hand man Kabuto and the other was Guren a young blue haired women who was able to do Shōton (Crystal Style) ability that was believed to be a new rising bloodline.

Guren was highly valued by Orochimaru due to her unique power and her high skill in combat. The only reason why she had not yet become a host to him yet was because he had need of her skills to help lead his forces against Konoha and Suna. Guren was one of Orochimaru's most powerful and loyal subordinates much like Kimimaro once was, and like him, she would have gladly given her body up to act as a vessel for Orochimaru. The reason for this was because Orochimaru had destroyed the village she was from who had shunned her all her life due to her powers. He also gave her shelter training and a purpose to live for, Guren showed herself to be a remorseless and sadistic person as well as being a bit vain, she was also a very proud person since she did not like to depend on the help of others. Although what most people did not know was that she had a caring side as well as a sense or remorse for her past actions. She even cared deeply for the few friends she had, she also had a strong dislike of Kabuto finding him to manipulator and smart ass bastard, where the two argue often traded scathing remarks with one another.

Also sitting at the table was The Yondaime Tsuchikage Ryoku he was a large muscular build man, who wore the traditional Kage cloak and hat on a regular basis, without a shirt underneath which further displays his hulky physique. He had a gold belt on his waist with a Bear's face engraved in the centre. He had black shoulder length hair with a few slight gray hairs on the side of his head with a few wrinkles on his face and a short beard.

Ryoku was the type of man whobelieved that the weak should and would be crushed while the strong would rule and survive. He was also a blunt tactician, where he preferred to eliminate threats and ordering them to be executed instead of negotiating. He was also a firm believer that might and power was everything and without them you were noting. He was a very powerful man and was a bit arrogant, during The Third Great Shinobi War he had been known as the Ishi no Kyojin (Stone Giant) and was named to the become the next Tsuchikage. But that had changed after the end of the Third Great Shinobi World War, where his forces suffered several humiliating defeats against Konoha no Kiiroi Senkō (Konoha Yellow Flash) and future Yondaime Hokage, Namikaze Minato. In which with those defeats not to mention his own personal defeats by the hands of the man himself, along with Iwa loss in the Third Great Shinobi World War he was disgraced and his name was removed from the list to be named the next Tsuchikage. This of course was the cause for his undying hatred of Konoha and especially anything associated with Kiiroi Senkō.

It was not until a few years later that with the help of Shinobi's who were loyal to him through years of fighting side by side with one another, he organised a coup d'état and his forces quickly took over key positions and area's over the village. After which he then gave The Sandaime Tsuchikage Ōnoki, also known as Ryōtenbin no Ōnoki (Ōnoki of Both Scales) an ultimatum, either he retire and name Ryoku the new Yondaime Tsuchikage or he take the title by force. The Sandaime Tsuchikage reluctantly agreed to retire since he knew that if he refused Ryoku and his forces would fight, and it would cause Civil War in the village and Iwa would most likely be destroyed in the result, since they had yet to recovered from the loses they suffered in Third Great Shinobi World War.

Not long after Ōnoki gave up his position as Tsuchikage, Ryoku had Ōnoki Assassinated by a few squads of his ROCK division, so to make sure that the old Kage would not try and retake power with any Shinobi's that were still loyal to him. After which for nearly twenty years he ruled Iwa with an Iron fist and had increased it military power, strength and forces and waited for the right time to attack and destroy Konoha as revenge for his humiliation at their hands.

After the failed attack on Konoha by Oto and Suna he had planned to attack Konoha when it was weakened but before he could fully assembled his forces, he had learned that Konoha had re-established it Alliance with Suna. Since it was learned that Orochimaru had killed the Yondaime Kazekage and tricked Suna into attacking Konoha. He had also learned that Konoha had made Tsuande their Godaime Hokage and her old teammate Jiraiya had returned to the village to help her. When he learned this he cancelled all plans to attack Konoha since he knew that alone Iwa would stand no chance against two of the five major Shinobi Nations. Even if they had been weakened slightly he also knew that he stood no chance against two of the three Sannin (both being Kage level) by himself. Hence when Orochimaru sent him a message offering him the chance to destroy Konoha he took it, since although he did not like or trust the Snake Sannin, he knew that if he wanted to destroy Konoha he need the man's help as well as the help of others to do it.

Behind Ryoku were two of his best Shinobi's one of them was a young women named Kurotsuchi who was one of Iwa's top Kunoichi. While the other was Ryoku sonBerugu who was very much like his father in terms of beliefs and attitude. He was also quite cunning and very ambitious and desired to prove Iwa as the strongest of the Shinobi Nations. He was bulky and well built and had shoulder length black hair much like his father and wore the standard uniform of a Iwa Jonin he also carried a massive Zanbato on his back.

Sitting next to The Tsuchikage was The Godaime Mizukage Shio he was a middle age man with long brown hair and wore a blue samurai like armour with a black cape. He was a fanatic about war and got sadistic pleasure to see his enemies crushed or being tortured. He was also well known to treat his underlings as noting but tools and did not care how many he lost as long as he won. He was especially well known for being unforgiving when any of his Commanders or underlings failed him and would kill them and the entire families if they failed him.

Shiro was also a powerful and well known Shinobi of Kiri before he became Mizukage his skill and mastery in Suiton Jutsu and was know as the Suiton Specialist. It was said that his Suiton skills rivalled that of theNidaime Hokage making him the strongest Suiton Jutsu user in Kiri. The only person that could actually rival his skill in with Suiton skill wasHoshigaki Kisame.

Shio was not a well like man in Kiri due to he took power over Kirigakure after Yondaime Mizukage and Jinchūriki of Sanbi no Kyodaigame (Three-Tailed Giant Turtle) Yagura died (about two years after the attempted coup by Zabuza). When a group of elder Shinobi's who wanted to end the bloody reign of The Yondaime Mizukage used a special Jutsu to separate the Sanbi no Kyodaigame from Yagura which resulted in his death.

After Yagura death, Shio quickly used his position as commander of Kiri HYDRA (Kiri version of ANBU) division to place himself as The Godaime Mizukage, with his HYDRA division backing him hence no-one could stop him. After he took over he began to raise Kiri military power, strength and forces as well as hunting down all political enemies, and continued to try and exterminate all Bloodline users (since he believed that they all should be purge from the world).

He also started to cut funds from almost everything in the village and devoted all their funds and resources to the military. This of course resulted in life in Kiri to be very hard where many people had either to choices, they either become a Ninja or work in a factory making weapons or they and their families would starve with no food or money. It was because of this reason why a small Civil War had started in Kiri, where Rebel Shinobi and non Shinobi Factions rose against him. But could do little to him other that make raids and do guerrilla tactics against both him and the Mizu Daimyo, (who supported whatever The Mizukage did as long as The Mizukage supported him in turn and get rid of his enemies and help him stay in power and become more powerful as well). This was because the Rebel Factions did not fight as an organise force and had limited numbers as well as limited supplies and weapons to fight with.

Behind Shio were two Shinobi's one of them was Isurugi Raijūta the last remaining loyal member of the current Kiri no Shinobigatana Nananin Shū (Seven Swordsmen of the Mist), who was also his most loyal and most trusted Shinobi under his command. The other person was another man called Udo Jinne who commanded the HYDRA division after Shio became The Godaime Mizukage. Jinne otherwise know as Kurogasa (Black Hat due to the fact that he always seen wearing a black hat and cloak), was a feared and well know Assassin he was especially well know for his mastery of the Assassin sword style Nikaidō Heihō.

Udo Jinne was a tall tin man with and narrow face he was also a sadistic man through and through since he loved killing, he was only truly happy when slitting the necks of people he was sent to kill. He did not have any moral issues with what he had done and did not care who it was he had to kill whether it be men, women or children as long as he just got to kill. He especially enjoyed fighting strong an opponents since he believed that the stronger the opponent the better the fight and the better the fight the more enjoyable the kill.

Sitting next to Orochimaru was the Leader of Kusagakure Doku, he was a tall man with brown hair, he wore black Shinobi pants and black Shinobi undershirt with a yellow jacket. Doku was the most powerful Shinobi in theKusagakure where he could even go toe to toe with the likes of Hatake Kakashi. He was also highly skilled in poisons which were what Kusagakure was well known for. He was also a cunning man as well as ambitious which was well known, since he had all his political enemies who stood in his way as leader of Kusa Assassinated with out any way to trace it back to him. He also wanted to make Kusa one of the five great Shinobi Nations so that he could one take the title as Kage. Which meant he was willing to work with his village old enemy Iwa, who had invaded their lands during the Third Great Shinobi World War to accomplish that goal or for now at lest. Behind him were his two Jonin bodyguards

Also there at the table was the leader of the Hannya Clan Shinrin he was a middle age man with short dark brown hair and wore an outfit similar to an ANBU with a long Katana on his back. During the Second Great Shionbi World War the Hannya Clan had fought against Konoha along with several other smaller Shinobi villages such asKagerō no Sato (Heat Haze Village) and Sora no Kuni (Sky Country). The Hannya Clan had hoped that when they destroyed Konoha they could create their own village when Konoha was destroyed, which would leave a power vacuum for them to take over and create their own village.

Unfortunately when they lost the War The Hannya Clan was nearly wiped out by Danzo and his Root division. Shinrin own father was killed by Danzo himself, after which Shunrin sworn a blood oath to see Konoha burn to the ground and have Danzo head mantled on his wall. Personality wise Shinrin cared little of others he was harsh and cruel at times and was not afraid to do what ever was necessary to ensure his Clan survival and destroy all his enemies. He was also the type of man who would think things through and would only strike if an opportunity presented itself. Where he would often try and strike his enemies from the shadows so that they would not know who had attack them. Behind Shinrin was two of his Clans men both wore similar outfits to Shinrin own including a Katana on each of their backs, also both men wore demon face masks so to hid their identities.

"Well now since we're all here I believe we can start this little meeting of ours" spoke Orochimaru with is trademarked smirk on his face

"Agreed so how our are preparations for operation Burning Leaf" spoke Shinrin

"Well about fifty percent of our main forces are in position in a few more months we can have are all our forces in position and ready. We would be ready sooner but supplies and transporting the men into position is slow. Since he have to be careful not to tip Konoha or Suna off, with what are our intentions are or else they will they be ready for us when we do attack or worse, they will make a preventive attack before our forces are ready" said Ryoku

"Ku ku ku ku ku ku…. Do not worry Ryoku-kun I have made certain that my old idiot of a teammate Jiraiya will not find out about our plan until it too late. Since Kabuto and I have setup a series of false leads for him to follow that will keep him occupied for a while. Besides he is busy right now looking up information on something else for the my other old teammate Tsunade". said Orochimaru which Ryoku just responded with a grunt

"How are thing progressing with the poisons?" asked Shinrin

"Well, they should be ready according to schedule". answered Doku

"What about your end Shio? Have you been able to disrupt the leaf shipping line and supplies?" asked Ryoku

"We been able to virtually cut off all Konoha supplies from the sea by either intercepting most of their supply ships or attacking and raiding their small supply ports, on the coast of the of Hi no Kunai (Fir Country). I also hired some local pirates to make raids against any of the remaining sea fairing Countries that are still willing to Trade with Konoha, and made sure that it can't be linked to us". answered Shio

"That good within a month or two Konoha will been running low and funds and supplies by which time when operation Burning Leaf begins, they will been too weak to do much against us" spoke Doku

"How is the operation for Nami no Kuni (Wave Country) going?" asked Shinrin

"They are going well by next month my vanguard should be ready after which when they have taken the Country. I send in a larger force to secure the Country and my forces can then use the Country as a base point for all attacks against Konoha". spoke Shio

"Not only will that divert much of Konoha forces to counter this new front, but it cause them to tin their lines making it easier when we attack" added Doku

"Let's hope that your Shinobi's can handle taking over that speck of a Country". sneered Ryoku

"Are you insinuating that my forces are weak". growled Shio

" I'm not insinuating anything I stating a fact since we all heard about that incident almost three weeks ago back at "The Hold", that Prison you use to love to brag about and how no-one could break in or out of. Yet Kumo broke in and rescued the Princess of Umi no Kuni and those Konoha Prisoner your men took. Not to mention they helped all the other Prisoners in there escape after which they then destroyed the Prison. But that not the best part is?" said Ryoku who was smirking as he saw the Mizukage growling in anger even his two body guards were gripping there swords on there sides in anger

"They did all that with just twelve Shinobi's and you had over six hundred men station there and by the end of the attack, four hundred of them were dead and you lost six of your Warships later on. Which just shows what I was saying you and your force and incompetent and weak". sneered Ryoku

"YOU DARE INSULT MY VILLAGE AND MY OWN STRENGHT". roared Shio as he stood up in fury letting lose a massive amount of Killing Intent at which his Bodyguards unsheathed their Katana's

At the same moment Ryoku stood up ready to fight with his son and his other Bodyguard ready to fight as well.

But before either side could move to attack first another massive Killing Intent was felt in the room which caused the two Kages to turn away from one another to look at who had released the Killing Intent.

When they did they saw it was Orochimaru who had released the Killing Intent, and when they turned to look at him, they saw that he was still sitting casually down in his seat smirking as if he was watching an amusing play. But both men saw that his eyes told a different story, for when they looked at them they saw anger, displeasure and annoyance at their fighting.

"Gentlemen please we are all Allies here so there is no need to fight since we all share common enemies which are Konoha and Suna, hence it would not serve us to start fighting amongst ourselves when we are so close to ending Konoha. Also I do not believe that The Mizukage is at fault since Kumo and the Heavenly Alliance caught us all by surprise, with their attack and advance technology. In terms of that Submarine craft, Airship as well as those Fortress ships, beam like cannon and their Wing Gilders. Besides the Heavenly Alliance has in away helped us since although Kiri suffer a loss so has Konoha, which will effect them more since Kumo were the ones to rescue the Princess and even rescue Konoha own Shinobi's, making them look like incompetent fools which will result in Konoha losing more clients hence they will lose funds to support their village and forces. So please gentlemen sit back down and lets us talk like civilise men before "something unpleasant happens to you both" spoke Orochimaru still holding the smirk he had earlier

After a minute or two of just standing the two Kages had their Bodyguards stand down and reluctantly sat back down. They had both gotten the underline threat that Orochimaru had made just as he was finishing speaking. Besides what Orochimaru said was true, Konoha and Suna were their enemies for now at lest. Although neither Kage was afraid of Orochimaru they were wary of him and weren't willing to fight the Snake Sannin in a place like this, since what he was really capable of was unknown to most people since he knew so many different Kinjutsu's (Forbidden Technique's), and created so many of his own Kinjutsu's it made him a dangerous enemy to have. Not to mention both Kages knew that if either one of them attacked Orochimaru or each other, then the one who attacked would most likely have to fight with the rest of the people in the room.

As The Mizukage sat down he growled in anger at the remainder of his humiliation at the hands of Kumo and The Rokudaime Raikage (otherwise know as The Raiden no Kami (The God of Thunder and Lightning), and also known to his people as Arashi no Oni (The Demon of Storms) yet again. When he first heard what had happened he refused to believe it but when it was confirmed he went into a fury, he immediately then called the Commander of "The Hold" for a detail report on what happen. When the Commander arrived and told him exactly what happen he was beyond furious and he killed the Commander himself.

"Blast Kumo I burn that village to the ground for this humiliation and I will make The Rokudaime Raikage suffer for everything he put me through, and by the time I done with him he will be begging for me to end his life" thought the Mizukage angrily

As the Shio plotted his revenge on Kumo and The Rokudaime Raikage, Orochimaru was also thinking about Kumo and The Rokudaime Raikage, although not in the same way as Shio was.

When he first heard of the attack he was indeed surprised he then quickly ordered his spies to find everything they could about the attack. Since he believed at first that Kumo and the Heavenly Alliance had somehow secretly Allied themselves with Konoha and Suna. This would have then ruined his plans in attacking Konoha. But later on his spies in Konoha informed him they weren't and what had happen at "The Hold". When he read the report he was impressed with how Kumo had attacked "The Hold", he had also been impressed with the different types of crafts they had show in the attack as well. Not only that he was interested finding out more about this mysterious Kage of Kumo, especially when he learned that he was also the famed Sourai (Blue Lightning). The one responsible for killing two of his old associates Kakuzu and Hidan from the Akatsuki, not to mention he was interested if some of the rumours were true about The Rokudaime Raikage.

"Clearly the Heavenly Alliance is much stronger than they appeared to be. I have to say The Raikage was quite clever to be able to hide those machines and crafts from everyone, especially from Jiraiya spy network. Perhaps I should try and have them join us since clearly with their power added to our own Konoha destruction would only be a matter of time. Although Shio-kun would never agree to it and leave our Alliance since he hates Kumo and The Raikage too much to willing to work with him for a short while. Then again I could always replace Shio-kun with one of my subordinates like I did with the Kazekage and still have Kiri with us. But even if we lost Shio-kun and his forces, the Alliance between us and he Heavenly Alliance would more than make for that lost. Especially with those new weapons and crafts of theirs added to our forces. Not to mention the power of the three Jinchūriki that they have would almost guarantee our victory over Konoha and Suna. Also I could use the Alliance to find out if Kumo really has found "it", since if they have it would make sense at how the Heavenly Alliance became so powerful so quickly and at how Kumo's Shinobi's become so powerful as well". thought Orochimaru after which he then turned to the Mizukage

"So tell me Shio-kun who will be leading your advance invasion force". asked Orochimaru deciding to change the subject so to get back to the meeting.

"My most trusted man Isurugi Raijūta will be leading the invasion". answered Shio in which Raijūta held himself up high and smirked at The Mizukage praise

"Hmmmm, very good then we will look forward to the news of your successful invasion of Wave". After which Orochimaru turned to the other leaders and spoke about several other issues.

After and hour or so of speaking Orochimaru decided to end the meeting

"Gentleman, I believe that we have discuss all that we need to discuss for now and we should return to our respective village, to help make sure everything goes according to plan for operation Burning Leaf. I will contact you all through the usual sources and inform you all when we met next and where". spoke Orochimaru

After Orochimaru finish speaking both he and the other leaders left the room to return to their villages.

After the room had emptied a dark figure that had been hiding in the dark corner of the room moved and disappeared in the shadows of the room.

-One Month later in The Konoha Council Room-

Over a month since the rescue of Kurenai her team and the Princess of Umi no Kuni were rescued, the Council as well as all of the Senior Jonin's were called again for a meeting by Tsuande.

When everyone had arrived Tsuande had began the meeting.

"I'm afraid I have to skip all the pleasantries today since I have urgent news that must be informed that I just received from Jairiya a little while ago". spoke Tsuande

"What exactly did Jiraiya report that is so important?" asked Homura

"Is it about Kumo and the Heavenly Alliance". asked Hana

"No unfortunately Jiraiya has gotten little to noting about either Kumo or the Heavenly Alliance to report since they seem to be keeping things fairly secret. He has informed me that he going to try and sneak into Kaminari no Kuni (Lightning Country) and then into Kumo itself" said Tsuande which shocked many people in the room.

"Is that wise Hokage-sama considering the facts that the last time we sent agents in there to gather information on them the agents were found as soon as they crossed the boarders. If Jairiya-sama is caught the Heavenly Alliance or Kumo may not be as generous as they were last time". said Shikaku

"True but Jiraiya is skilled enough in infiltration and gathering Intel that he should be ok". said Tsuande although as she said this she still could not help but worry about the old pervert.

"Hokage-sama if I may, I believe there was something you wish to inform us about since I do not believe that you called us all here so to inform us of Jairiya-sama plans to infiltrate the Kumo" spoke Shibi

"You're correct Shibi-san". said Tsuande since she realised that they were being sidetrack from what she really wanted to discuss.

"The reason I called this meeting is because when Jiraiya was trying to gather information on The Heavenly Alliance, one of his informants informed him that Kiri is launching and invasion on Nami no Kuni (Wave Country)".

This cause most of the member of Konoha twelve and the old sensei's to gasp in shock, as well as cause several members of the Council to become concern.

"So why dose that matter to us Nami no Kuni is not an Ally to us and they broke all relationship with us as well, so why should we care that Kiri invading it". stated Asai Heita rather arrogantly

"Because you baka if Kiri successfully takes over the Country they can use the Country and the bridge that links it, with Hi no Kuni as a foothold and staging point for attacking us. In which they could easily supply their forces when they attack us. Not to mention if they control Nami no Kuni they can open up a new front against us, in which we would have to setup our own front to hold back their forces. This will result in our forces being spread even more, weakling our other lines and the defences of the village". said Tsuande glaring at the stupidly of the man who was cowed by the glare that Tsuande gave him, and the fact that he had made a fool of himself.

"Then we should just destroy the Bridge linking Hi no Kuni and Nami no Kuni so to eliminate the threat" spoke Danzo

"That would only delay them since all they would need to do would be to rebuild it and the problem would just come back. Our best bet is to defend Nami no Kuni even if it is just a buffer Country between us and Kiri we need to defend it. If we are able to fight off the attack then Kiri may give up believing that it too much trouble to take over". said Tsuande

"That is risky Hokage-sama since we may lose vital man power to do so and weaken us further". spoke Homura

"Do we know what kind of force Kiri is sending to invade Nami no Kuni?" asked Inoichi

"According to Jiraiya, Kiri is sending a force of about twenty ships and a force of eight hundred Shinobi's the ships will be loaded with volley guns as well". said Tsuande

"If that the case it would take at lest a four divisions of our Shinobi's to fight off that attack,we can't afford to send that many of our Shinobi's to fight for that Country. I believe that the correct option is to follow Danzo-san suggestion and destroy the bridge, we can always send in a demolition team to destroy the bridge again should they rebuild it". said Koharu

"That won't work either, since if we do destroy the bridge Kiri will rebuild it, then they would probably place a heavy guard on the bridge to prevent it being destroyed. Hell they don't even need to rebuild the bridge since they could still use Nami no Kuni as a staging point for attacking Konoha and have their ships just transport their Shinobi's across and attack us anyhow. No I think the Baa-chan option is the best one to do". spoke Konohamaru

"But we can't afford to send a force large enough to defend Nami no Kuni, since Orochimaru and his allies could use the opportunity to attack our main line and with our limited numbers, we wouldn't be able to stop them which could be exactly what he hopping for". spoke Koharu trying to reason with the others that Nami no Kuni was not worth saving

"That is why I believe that we should only send of a few teams made up of our best Shinobi's to help defend Nami no Kuni, since if we do the quality of the Shinobi's that we send will make up for the lack of numbers that we are unable to send. This way we will not weaken our main lines and at the same time stand a chance of fending off Kiri attack". said Tsuande

"But that will still weaken us if we send our best Shinobi's to defend that Country. Not only that but we be risking losing our best Shinobi's just to defend one Country, one that not even our Ally and who turned their back on us years ago. I believe that your letting your emotions rule you in this decision due to the connection that Country had with the Kyuubi container, and the fact that it is where his empty grave is". spoke Danzo since he believed that this was a foolish mistake that Tsuande was making and she was allowing her emotions to rule her again

When Danzo had finish speaking the room became very tense, since Danzo had mention Naruto which of course was a very touching subject to say around certain people. Especially Tsuande since the last person to mention Naruto was a young Chunin who had muttered something bad about Naruto in front of Tsuande.

The poor fool was still unable to walk or move correctly since Tsuande had practically broken every bone in his body.

Within a few moments after Danzo had finish speaking a massive Killing Intent was felt in the room which was coming from Tsuande which cause everyone to freeze at how thick it was.

"Are you questioning my leadership skills and ability to rule this village Danzo, because I would be well in my rights to call you out by right combat, since what you said borderlines on treason" snarled Tsuande

This was an old law which stated that if someone was to question the leadership of the Hokage and his/her ability to rule Konoha. Then the person or The Hokage had the right to challenge the other to right by combat, this was only used once when Uchiha Madara challenged Senju Hashirama, The Shodaime Hokage for the title of Hokage.

"No Hokage-san, I apologise for my comment". said Danzo after which he frowned since he knew that as strong as he was Tsuande was stronger. Especially since she was younger than he was and he could not move as well as he use to in his prime. Not to mention he could not afford to fight Tsuande for the title, since if he did it would reveal that he had transplanted Uchiha Shisui arm and eye to his own body. As well as force him to use his secret weapon which in turn would not go well with many people in the village, if they found out about either the arm or the eye in which he could be very well be accused for treason for doing that.

Tsunade just frowned knowing full well that he was not sorry for what he said

"Hokage-sama do we know when the fleet is to arrive at Nami no Kuni". asked the ANBU captain who was trying to change the subject, so that noting violent would happen since he knew that The Hokage was one step away from killing Danzo.

"According to Jairiya the fleet is said to be leaving in about ten day's time, and it take another five to get from Mizu no Kuni to Nami no Kuni". said Tsunade turning away from Danzo.

"Who exactly are you going to send to help defend Nami no Kuni?" asked Hana

"Before I say who I be sending there, I would like to give them and anyone else who wish's to go on the mission a chance to volunteer". said Tsuande after which as soon as she finish speaking a number of people stood up to volunteer for the mission.

"Hokage-sama I would like to volunteer for the mission to defend Nami no Kuni Yosh!" said Lee as he stood up

"Hogkage-sama I too would like to volunteer for the mission" said Neji who stood up, Neji traditional white and black Hyūga robes and still had the same long brown hair

"You can count me in as well as well as my team" said TenTen as she stood by her old teammates; Tenten wore brown Shinobi pants, along with iron guard fingerless gloves and elbow guards (that were standard wear for ANBU) as well as fishnet shirt with a midrift tank over it and a sleeveless leather jacket and a scroll around her lower back, she also kept her her in her traditional bun hair style (1).

"Yosh! The Flames of Youth and truly burning brightly today in my adorable precious former students, I too while join them for if not my own Flames of Youth will diminish". shouted Gai as he stood next to his old students.

"There no way you be able to keep me out of this fight, Ain't that right boy!" said Kiba and then turned to his partner Akamaru,

"Woof!" barked the large dog

Kiba wore a black pair of jeans as well as a fishnet shirt with a sleeveless jacket with a high collar. He also had a chain sash around his shoulders. The chain held the Katana he carried in place on his back. Kiba also had several red fang shapes marking tattoo's on both his arms. Akamaru also had several of those red fang markings on his front legs and one under each eye. (2)

"If it is possible Hokage-sama would also like to participate in the mission as well" said Shino as he stood up, Shino wore the tradition Aburame style high collar dark green trench coat with black Shinobi pants and wore dark goggle like sun glasses. As well as I high collar dark shirt under the trench coat and carried a satchel on left side. He also wore two finger gloves (3).

"As troublesome as this mission is going to be I like to be in it was well" said Shikamaru, Shikamaru wore standard Shinobi outfit for a Jonin (4)

"Hokage-sama if you allow it I would like to join the mission" spoke Yamato (aka Tenzo) as he joined the others as they stood up

"Well if Shikamaru is going you can count me in as well, besides I have a score to setting with those Kiri guys". said Choji as he stood next to Shikamaru

"Well if you two idiots are going then I going as well since someone has to make sure that you return to your wives". stated Ino as she stood up as well, Ino wore a similar two piece purple outfit that she wore when she was younger, with the only difference being she wore a sky blue scarf around her neck, and wore a standard Jonin flak jacket that she let open to show her figure (5).

"If Ino-chan is going then so I'm I" said Sai as he stood next to his wife, Sai hang change very slightly were he wore a similar outfit that he wore when he was younger the only real difference was that his hair was slight longer that it was and he carried to short Tanto's on his back (6).

"Hokage-sama with your permission I too would like to go on this mission". said Kurenai as she join the other who had stood up.

"Hokage-sama I would also like to volunteer for this mission as well since I believe if this mission is to succeed that I should join it, since I know the country and he people there from my mission there". spoke Kakashi as he stood up

"Also perhaps if I can help defend the Nami no Kuni, I can in some small way atone for my sins against Naruto although I probably never truly will, but maybe I can at lest pay my respects at Naruto's grave". thought Kakashi sadly

"Hokage-sama if I may I would also like to join in the mission to defend Nami no Kuni, since like Kakashi-sensei I have knowledge of the terrain and the people there, which may be useful in the battle". said Sakura as she stood up

"I'm in too" stated Konohamaru in which both Udon and Moegi stood up and stated that they wanted to do the mission as well. Udon grew up to be a tall enough young and wore a standard Jonin outfit, and his hair had grown longer where he had tie it into a short ponytail. While Moegi wore a tight fitting Chinese tunic with pink Shinobi pants, and had her hair in to pig tails that went either side of her and went do to her lower back.

"Hokage-sama with your permission I like to also join the teams for the mission to defend Nami no Kuni".said Hinata as she stood up from her seat on the council table.

This of course got many shock gasps since not only was the leader of the Sarutobi Clan joining this mission, but now the leader of the Hyuga Clan as well as three other Clan heirs.

"Hinata-sama surely you can't mean to go on this mission since your skills could be put to better use to the defence of the village". said Ashikaga Shin

"I mean what I said and if The Hokage will allow it I will go on this mission and this Council has no say in the matter, since it is my choice and I'm still an active Shinobi's hence it is up to The Hokage to allow me to do or not". spoke Hinata with conviction

Tsuande had stayed quite as she watched the whole event with an unreadable face but secretly she was smirking. Since each of the people she wanted to send were volunteering, she knew that if she ordered them Koharu, Danzo and the Civilian Council, would be up in arms stating that they couldn't send most of there best Shinobi's on this mission. Where there would be endless debates and arguing which would go nowhere. But if they volunteered then they couldn't do anything about it.

"Very well I will allow you all to go on the mission and you will leave tomorrow morning, but I what to make something clear, should the situation turn against you or it seems hopeless then you are to leave and head back to the village. I don't want to lose any of you, since Konoha needs all it Shinobi's if we are to survive this War". said Tsuande in which the all nodded in understanding.

"If that is all then this meeting is over" stated Tsuande in which everyone began to leave and began to discuss the mission.

N/A

Author Note: Go to Profile Adult TenTen image link

Author Note: Go to Profile Adult Kiba image link

Author Note: Go to Profile Adult Shino image link

Author Note: Go to Profile Adult Shikamaru image link

Author Note: Go to Profile Adult Ino image link

Author Note: Go to Profile Adult Sai image link

Ninja Unit: BOLT ANBU

Purpose:To Assassinate any and all threats to Kumogakure and the Heavenly Alliance, as well as infiltrate enemy bases and strongholds to either gather Intel or Assassinate a target

Uniform:A Red Porcelain animal masks with Black marking and shapes to hide their identities and to distinguish themselves from normal Shinobi's. Black and gray armour, arm guards, and a signature Red Lightning bolt on their right arm (when women) or left arm (when men).

Weapons: Standard weapons of any Ninja and all carry Katana's on their back as well as crossbows and Longbows

Missions: Take B, A and S rank missions only

Abilities: All BOLT members are highly trained in the Art of Assassination, like the STORM ANBU they are trained in the art of the Blind Assassin Art of fighting. They are even trained to use the Wing Gliders of Sky-Hawk Ninja's although they are not trained as well as the Sky-Hawk Ninja's and the STORM division are in fighting or flying. Like all ANBU divisions they are also trained to be broad in all areas of fighting and Jutsu such as Genjutsu, Taijutsu, Ninjutsu, Kenjutsu and Fūinjutsu and to be skilled in them. They are also highly trained in tracking, surveillance and Assassinations and have detail knowledge of the human body so that they will know how to kill a target the most effective. The BOLT division are not only experts in Assassination but are experts in Infiltration as well and like STORM members are also highly trained to fight as a team, where they would practice daily and hours on end with one another so to ensure that their teamwork skill was extremely high.

History: The BOLT division was formed by The Raikage as an division that dealt exclusively with Assassination as well as Infiltration. They were created so to root out any and all remaining corrupt lords and corrupted high ranked political members in both Kumogakure and Kaminari no Kuni, they would also do the same for any member or ally of the Heavenly Alliance and client Country. The BOLT division was build upon the former Assassination division that Kumo had, where most of the members of the BOLT division were former members of Kumo's Assassination division. This division was also designed to work in conjunction with Kumo's CIND division where the CIND division would find and give any information on a BOLT member target, while the BOLT division would gather Intel from enemy strongholds for the CIND division. The BOLT division also has an excellent success rate in Assassination where they have a 95% success rate and which rivals Konoha's Assassination divisions' success rate where they have a 98% success rate thanks to their Chief CommanderOkami ken no Konoha (Konoha Blade Mistress) Mikumo TenTen. The BOLT division also has an excellent reputation on never leaving a job until it's done and never giving up until they get their target or they are dead, and even if their agent fails to get their target they will always keep sending more until they get their target no matter what.

Training: The BOLT ANBU division has a hard training programme where their training consists of enduring the great mental and psychological stresses and physical fatigue of combat and missions. The purpose of the course is for the BOLT trainees to learn to execute daily patrolling, perform reconnaissance, Infiltrations, ambushes, and raids against dispersed targets, followed by stealthy movement to a new patrol base to plan the next mission regardless of what kind of situation they come under. BOLT trainees conduct about 20 hours of training per day, while consuming two or fewer meals daily totalling about 2,200 Calories (9,200 kJ), with an average of 3.5 hours of sleep a day. BOLT trainees typically wear and carry some 65-90 pounds (29-41 kg) of weight from the start of training while running more than 200 miles (320 km) throughout the course and as they continue their training their weights are increased. This is to help to improve their stamina, strength and speed. ." BOLT trainees are also trained in various ways of marksmanship, Infiltration and knowledge in the human anatomy and poisons. BOLT members training also consist of training in Genjutsu, Taijutsu, Ninjutsu, Kenjutsu and Fūinjutsu. Teamwork is also essential in BOLT division where when squads are first formed at the beginning of the training course evaluation of each member of the team happens. This means that when the evaluation is issued at the end of a phase, the squad members all agree to rate one another in such a manner that no one is "singled out." However, the Instructors can detect most attempts, and if discovered of using any such method, all BOLT trainees of said team could be dropped from the course on grounds of being a "honor violation". At the end of training programme all BOLT are give a final challenge were they would have to do a live-fire Field Training Exercise much like the STORM division. In the Exercise the graduates are give a task where they would have to infiltrate a castle or base, and steal or Assassinate a target and get in and out without being caught. Failure to due this will result in the team failing where they would either repeat the course or simple drop out depending on how well then done