Naruto: I Traveled with a Max Level Account

The most frustrating part was that, even with Takuya off gallivanting around, there was no way to make him come back.

Issuing a direct order? Shikashige didn't have that authority.

Forcing him back? He didn't have the strength.

Even if Hatake Sakumo himself stepped in, there was no guarantee he could do it. Besides, Sakumo would probably just laugh and then walk away. There was no chance of relying on him.

As for politely asking him to come back? Yeah, that was even more impossible.

Takuya had made up his mind to bail; there was no way he'd come back that easily.

"Two damn bastards!" Shikashige cursed. In the Second Great Ninja War, Sakumo had dumped all the responsibilities onto him, but in the Third Great Ninja War, Takuya took it up a notch—he straight-up ran off.

He never wanted to get involved, but here he was, carrying the weight anyway.

Meanwhile, Takuya had no clue about Shikashige's frustrations. All he knew was that now he was away from the camp, he was in a great mood.

Finding a nice spot to relax, he hunted some game and was now casually grilling meat.

"Are you seriously bringing me onto the battlefield?" Pakura was, frankly, bewildered by Takuya's decision, even though she was technically his prisoner.

It was the first time she'd ever seen someone take a prisoner onto the battlefield—how reckless did he have to be?

Was he not worried she'd run away, or leave some signs to coordinate with their enemies and kill him?

Sprinkling some seasoning onto the meat, Takuya replied nonchalantly:

"Why wouldn't I? You think I'm worried you'll try to escape? Or leave signals for Sunagakure to kill me?"

He sniffed the roasting meat, smiling with satisfaction.

Gotta admit, I'm pretty damn good at this.

Placing the meat aside, Takuya turned to Pakura with a smirk in his eyes, his voice confident:

"To be honest, if I'm bringing you along, it's because I'm not scared of you running away. You're free to try if you want. And as for signaling others to kill me—go ahead."

He added casually, "But let me warn you, if you do decide to run, I'll be pissed. Even if you manage to hide back in Sunagakure, I'll still drag you out myself."

Yeah, right.

Pakura rolled her amber eyes, giving him the biggest eye roll imaginable.

Hide in Sunagakure and he'd drag her out? This guy—Yagami Takuya—really thought he was all that.

Takuya noticed her eye roll and figured she was doubting his capabilities.

"By the way, I've always been curious," Takuya started, "Why is your hair half green and half brown? Are the folks in your village really into edgy hairstyles or something?"

Some people get a patch of green hair by accident, but Pakura here had gone and gotten her entire head done in green.

Pakura: "????"

She didn't know what he meant by "edgy," but the way he said it, she knew it wasn't anything nice, so she chose to stay silent.

Pakura didn't respond, but Takuya didn't mind. He was already used to her silence after these past few days.

After finishing his meal and grabbing his gear, Takuya didn't hesitate; he took Pakura straight to the battlefield.

Bang!

The moment they got near, a flare went off in the sky. Takuya left Pakura behind and dashed towards the signal.

In an instant, he vanished from Pakura's sight, rushing to provide support.

Pakura narrowed her eyes. She was considering whether or not to escape.

Was Takuya actually going to provide support, or was this just a test to see what she'd do?

That was the question. Given the chance to escape, would Pakura take it?

The answer was yes.

Even if she suspected it was a test, Pakura would choose to escape rather than wait around for Takuya to come back.

And if it was a test? Well, she'd still leave some signals along the way—anything to aid her escape or give her comrades an edge against Takuya.

How she would explain her capture after getting back to her village—that was a problem for later, if she made it back at all.

Whether her actions would piss Takuya off wasn't her concern at the moment.

"What a hassle," Takuya muttered as he rushed towards the signal.

He glanced back towards where he had left Pakura.

He was curious to see if Pakura would take the opportunity he was giving her.

How many from Sunagakure would come for him?

The war with Sunagakure had only just begun, and yet even so, it had already tested Takuya's patience.

Hatake Sakumo and Nara Shikashige weren't the types to take risks, not unless they were absolutely certain of success.

That was why they had opposed Takuya's suggestion for an all-out offensive. They assumed he was desperate for glory, eager to prove himself to Tsunade.

They preferred a slow, steady pace. Both believed that as long as no major mistakes were made, Konoha would emerge victorious in the end.

According to their strategy, along with Sunagakure's preparations, this war might very well drag on for years, as Pakura had predicted.

But could Takuya really drag this out for three or five years, slowly grinding away against Sunagakure?

Obviously not.

In Takuya's mind, a year—at most—was all he needed to push Sunagakure back into the desert and force them to sign a peace treaty with Konoha.

With no support from Sakumo or Shikashige, Takuya had no choice but to take matters into his own hands to change the course of the war.

"Hold on, everyone! I've fired the signal flare; reinforcements will be here soon. We have to hold out no matter what!"

"No matter what, we can't give up!"

On the battlefield, a group of Konoha shinobi were putting up a fierce resistance, holding off the enemy as best they could.

The battlefield was littered with bodies—Konoha shinobi and Sunagakure shinobi alike.

Even though they were outmatched, Konoha's shinobi showed no signs of panic or retreat.

As much as Takuya found it a bit cheesy, he had to admit: under the influence of the Third Hokage's "Will of Fire" ideology, Konoha shinobi had incredible resolve.

"Kill them! Don't give them a chance to hold out for reinforcements!"

The enemy wasn't about to let Konoha stall for time and wait for help to arrive.

Lightning Flash!!!

A bolt of lightning shot straight through the battlefield like an arrow. Amid screams, more than half of the Sunagakure shinobi fell to the ground.

Some died instantly, while others were left with missing limbs, clutching their wounds in agony.

Everyone froze, not knowing what had just happened. No one had seen the lightning bolt clearly.

It was too fast—so fast that their eyes couldn't keep up.

Although it used a lot of chakra and took a toll on his body, one of the perks of using Lightning Release was that it didn't leave behind a bloody mess with body parts flying everywhere.

The lightning cauterized the blood vessels instantly.

Using some large-scale jutsu or ability wasn't practical for Takuya if he wanted to take down an entire group in one go—especially if they were spread out.

But cutting down a line of enemies? That was easy.

Flicking his Kusanagi sword, the intense lightning dissipated, and Takuya appeared before everyone.

"Is that…"

"Lord Takuya!!"

"Thank goodness, we're saved!!"

After a few seconds, the Konoha shinobi cheered, while the Sunagakure shinobi visibly deflated.

They couldn't believe their bad luck. The surrounded enemies fired a single flare, and not only did reinforcements arrive—they arrived fast.

And it wasn't just any reinforcement; it was one of Konoha's big guns.

They thought they could wrap up the battle in a few minutes, but now, this untouchable monster had shown up.

"Retreat!!!"

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Next Bonus: 200 -> 400 power stone

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(P)(S): If you're interested, you can read up to chapter 450+ at Patreon com/ Emik01. 

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