Disclaimer: NCIS was created by Donald Bellisario and Inglourious Basterds is by Quentin Tarantino. In terms of continuity, these events take place a few days after JAG, Season 8 Episode "Meltdown" and prior to the NCIS, Pilot Episode "Yankee White".

The Basterds of NCIS

Chapter One:

The SEAL

"Director."

Morrow glanced sidewise and gave Gibbs a nod of acknowledgment and gestured to the seat beside him before returning his gaze to the large scale real-time video displays. Gibbs seated himself and took a sip of his coffee before Morrow spoke casually. "So … I understand that Agent Blackadder didn't work out."

Gibbs had another slow sip of his coffee before a laconic, "Nope."

Morrow graced him with a chuckle. "Getting answers out of you Jethro is like pulling teeth."

Gibbs gave a single shoulder shrug. "She's likes doing things by the book a bit too much."

"That's not always a bad thing you know."

Gibbs nodded. "Except when you can't do things precisely by the book, you don't know what to do."

Morrow pursed his lips thoughtfully as he absorbed that. "A bit too inflexible," he said at last. He fell silent. Morrow appeared to be intently watching the action of the video display of several NCIS agents taking part in a tactical operation. Then Morrow remarked, "We do have an opening for an Agent Afloat. Could give her a little seasoning."

Gibbs made a dismissive shoulder shrug. "Oh I doubt she's going to last. A month at the most, before she hands in her resignation and then she'll head back to the FBI."

"Oh?"

"Her motivation was revenge pure and simple. Finding her brother's killer. And now that he's dead, she won't last. She doesn't really want to be here."

Morrow nodded. He accepted Gibbs' pronouncement as fact. They sat in companionable silence as the arrest operation being conducted by NCIS completed itself on the video monitors. Morrow straightened and pushed himself off his chair. "Walk with me Jethro," he ordered as they strolled out of MTAC.

It was a fairly short walk to Morrow's office. To Gibbs' surprise, there was someone already seated and waiting. He rose in his crisp white uniform and nodded at them.

Gibbs didn't even blink. "Admiral."

The Judge Advocate General of the United States Navy, Admiral A.J. Chegwidden gave a rare smile. "Special Agent Gibbs. I'd like to extend my thanks for clearing Commander Rabb's name."

Jethro looked confused. "I had nothing to do with it Admiral, that was all Special Agent DiNozzo."

Chegwidden shook his head. "I disagree. You demonstrated remarkable insight, exceptional ability, and rare talent. As you always have … Gunny."

Jethro's look sharpened fractionally as he absorbed that last bit. That meant that the Admiral had read his file. Probably the classified parts as well, he realized as he relaxed. "Thank you sir," he said meaningfully.

Chegwidden glanced at Morrow and cocked an inquisitive eyebrow. Morrow gave a brief negative headshake. Chegwidden folded his arms across his chest, "I understand that Special Agent Blackadder will be leaving your team Agent Gibbs."

"You understand correctly," Gibbs said as he glanced at Morrow curiously, wondering why Chegwidden was so interested.

Morrow sat down in behind his desk and interlaced his fingers together. "The Admiral came to ask a favor of you Agent Gibbs."

Uh oh. They're tag teaming me. It was a tactic that Gibbs had used in the past to unbalance his suspects. He didn't care for it when it was happening to him. "What sort of favor?" Gibbs asked warily.

Chegwidden continued, "There's a former SEAL, a Navy Lieutenant who could use a job. And you have an open slot."

Gibbs frowned. SEALS were combat troops. "Does he have any sort of experience in criminal investigation or law enforcement training?" he asked at last.

Chegwidden smirked slightly. "Nope. You'll be giving him on the job training."

Gibbs scowled as he glanced at Morrow. "Sir, I don't have time to nursemaid someone until he becomes a half-decent investigator."

Chegwidden continued, "He's young, bright, and he learns fast."

Morrow added in, "And I guarantee Jethro, that Raine is anything but inflexible."

There was a buzz on the intercom. Morrow touched a button and his secretary's voice came over, "Agent DiNozzo is here, sir with Lt. Raine's service jacket."

"Send him in," Morrow said.

Gibbs flicked his eyes back and forth. "What's so special about this kid that the Director of NCIS and the Judge Advocate General himself is backing him?"

"Because Raine is one of the best. And he needs to learn from the best Agent Gibbs. And that's you," Chegwidden said.

Gibbs was genuinely puzzled. "There are other Agents who could—"

"But none with your combat record and military background. I doubt Raine will respect anyone else."

"Why?"

Chegwidden paused and then, "Because I think it's wrong what the Navy is doing to him. Because he wants to serve his country Agent Gibbs … and I think it'll kill him if he can't."

"What kind of SEAL is he?"

Morrow answered with a smirk. "Tough. Hardheaded. Stubborn. Loyal. And fiercely dedicated. Just like you Jethro."

The office doors opened and Gibbs saw DiNozzo stride inside, a large manila folder tucked under his arm. He kept glancing over at Gibbs, a bit nervously.

Gibbs barred his teeth. He couldn't snarl at his superior nor the Judge Advocate General so he was left to vent his displeasure on his subordinate. What the Hell, DiNozzo was used to it. "Talk to me DiNozzo!"

Tony inserted a flash card into a terminal and a picture flashed onto the plasma screen of a handsome looking young man.

"Navy Lieutenant Aldo Raine III," Tony recited immediately. "Currently on Medical Leave, he is due to receive a General Discharge once he completes his Final Psych Evaluations."

Not a good sign. It didn't sound like they weren't sure or still appraising him. They knew. They were going to throw him out and were just waiting to finish dotting the final i's and carefully crossing the t's on the paperwork properly before kicking him out.

General Discharge wasn't quite like being Dishonorably Discharged, but it like barely one step up from Other Than Honorable or Bad Conduct Discharge. Meaning that the Navy wanted his ass out but they either lacked or didn't want to use a legitimate crime to hang him with.

DiNozzo continued, reading from the file. "Graduated from Basic and his scores were so good that he went straight to BUD/S which is unusual. After graduating from BUD/S, he was part of the SEAL team that was sent into Iraq. Intelligence, sabotage, and reconnaissance. They were part of the team that prepped the way for Desert Storm."

Tony looked up at Gibbs with a pained expression. "Which is when they walked into one nasty ambush. Over half of his team was killed and Raine and five other SEALS were captured. At least one SEAL died from lack of medical attention. But at least two others expired from … 'overly enthusiastic' interrogation."

Gibbs' expression hardened. "They were tortured."

"Yeah. Raine apparently escaped from his bonds and killed their captors. The other SEALS were in such bad shape that they couldn't walk so he carried them nearly 5 miles before they were picked up."

Gibbs blinked. Raine was definitely somebody not to fool around with. "Raine sounds like a candidate for the Medal of Honor. Why are they kicking him out?"

"Well, aside from the fact that the SEALS were declared illegal combatants by Iraq as they moved in before the President officially declared war; Raine was a … little too enthusiastic in dispatching his captors. He used a knife to well …" DiNozzo grimaced as he broke off, "OK, Raine's grandfather had a nickname as 'Aldo the Apache' back in World War II for his habit of scalping Nazis. Aldo followed in his grandfather's footsteps when he carved up his enemies and ritually disfigured them," DiNozzo pressed a key and a new series of grisly photographs popped up.

Gibbs raised an eyebrow at the next photos. Yeah, he could see how the Navy wouldn't want to have the PR scandal hanging over them. Politically, he was a liability that the Navy didn't want or need at this time. The last thing the Navy wanted was for this sort of thing out in the public eye's and if they went to a Full Court Martial, it would most definitely leak. Not to mention that Gibbs suspected that a few of the officers serving as the jury might not come down as harsh as the Navy needed. Worse, he might get acquitted which was even more unacceptable to the Navy. They needed Raine out and they needed it done quietly.

But Gibbs also could understand the absolute rage that the man had to have been feeling when he did it. He shrugged. Hell, he might have even helped. "Why hasn't the CIA picked him up? Sounds like they'd be salivating over a prime candidate," he asked, genuinely curious. The CIA wouldn't even blink at this little spot on his record. Hell, they might even award him bonus points for it.

Chegwidden answered. "Because Raine hates the CIA. And the CIA isn't too wild about him either. The intelligence briefing that led his team into that ambush? It was provided by the spooks at the CIA."

Gibbs pursed his lips. "Whoops."

"When he got back, the first thing he tried to do was eviscerate the CIA agent who gave the briefing in question. Damn near succeeded too. Took four men to pull him off," Chegwidden said blandly, although Gibbs saw a tiny hint of a smirk tugging at the corner of his mouth. "Suffice it to say, Raine would rather cut his own throat than work with the CIA."

Gibbs sighed inwardly.

But he knew what he had to do.

He stuck his hand out to DiNozzo who immediately presented the manila folder. "I'll take him on as a probationary agent and give him a shot. If he fails, he's gone," he tossed over his shoulder as he marched out, DiNozzo shadowing right behind him.

The office doors shut and Chegwidden glanced at Morrow with an amused look. "That was actually easier than I thought it would be."

A/N: I got this wild idea after watching Inglourious Basterds on DVD and then a few days later, I saw this NCIS episode where Gibbs proclaims that the "second B (in his last name) is for bastard". And I thought it would be funny to combine to the two. To join them, I had to create Aldo Raine III, who is the grandson of the infamous Aldo Raine of World War II since they couldn't fit otherwise as NCIS takes place in the current day and Inglourious Basterds was back in WWII. The events that my version of Raine went through in Iraq is not based on any real world events but for dramatic license.