Naruto: I Traveled with a Max Level Account

Chiyo wasn't one to easily get rattled by mere rumors.

She herself had spread plenty of false information against Konoha in the past. You couldn't put too much stock into rumors like that!

But the fact that Sasori was missing from camp—that was a real problem.

Sasori had recently been reprimanded by the Third Kazekage due to some self-inflicted injuries. Whether it was caused by the enemy or done deliberately, injuries required proper rest.

Sasori should have been in camp recovering. There was no reason for him to leave, especially without authorization.

"Find him immediately! Also, notify Ebizō and Rasa, and have them come here at once!"

Chiyo still held onto a sliver of hope, believing that Sasori wouldn't do something reckless. She was convinced all of this was just Konoha exploiting public opinion for psychological warfare.

The ANBU moved swiftly. With Chiyo's orders, it wasn't just a small squad that mobilized—the entire Sunagakure ANBU force that was on the battlefield was activated.

Despite their efforts, they couldn't find any trace of Sasori in the entire camp. His tent was empty, devoid of even the smallest personal belonging.

"Nonsense! There's no way the Kazekage could be dead!"

Rasa's face was flushed with anger.

To him, the Third Kazekage was invincible. Even someone as powerful as Takuya couldn't possibly kill his teacher.

As for Pakura, if she had turned traitor, so be it. Sunagakure could survive without her.

In truth, Rasa had never really liked Pakura.

Compared to Rasa's loud outrage, Ebizō was silent, his expression hard to read.

Soon enough, the ANBU returned with their report.

"Did you find him?" Chiyo asked, her voice trembling.

"Lady Chiyo, we could not locate Sasori within the camp. All of his personal belongings are gone. We also went to the Puppet Brigade, and they confirmed that Sasori had collected everything he had stored there as well."

Disaster.

Chiyo's heart sank.

"When did he collect his belongings?" she asked, taking a deep breath.

She clung to a shred of hope—maybe Sasori was merely repairing his puppets. It couldn't be true that he had joined forces with Takuya to assassinate the Third Kazekage.

If the Third Kazekage had been killed, Takuya would be hailed as a hero in Konoha. But Sasori would be branded a traitor—reviled across the shinobi world.

"He collected everything right after the Kazekage left."

"No one has seen him since."

"Sister!"

Chiyo nearly fainted, her knees giving way. Ebizō rushed to her side, helping her stay upright.

Leaning heavily on Ebizō, Chiyo managed to shout, her voice shaky but resolute, "Search! Send out teams immediately to find Lord Kazekage!"

"Yes, Lady Chiyo."

The ANBU quickly departed to carry out her orders.

"I will help with the search," Rasa said, standing up, but Chiyo shouted at him.

"And just what do you think you're doing?! The village needs you here! Sit down!"

With the Third Kazekage missing, and Sasori nowhere to be found, Pakura captured—Rasa was the last pillar of strength for Sunagakure.

If something happened to him as well, Chiyo would lose her mind.

The moment Rasa tried to leave, Chiyo's sharp tone stopped him in his tracks, forcing him to stay put.

With Rasa present, even if the worst had happened to the Third Kazekage, and even if Sasori had betrayed them, Sunagakure would survive. The foundation would still be intact, even if weakened.

But if Rasa fell too, the village would have no suitable candidate for Kazekage—a devastating predicament.

In this situation, both Chiyo and Ebizō would never allow Rasa to leave the camp.

While Rasa reluctantly sat down, clenching his fists in frustration, Chiyo herself took up watch over the camp, forbidding Rasa from stepping out. She wanted to prevent any unforeseen disaster.

Under her command, Sunagakure sent squads to scour the area, searching for any sign of the Third Kazekage.

They paid particular attention to the location where Pakura had left her markings. They deployed every possible method to investigate.

The battleground bore signs of intense combat, the forest heavily scarred. From the damage, it was clear that those who fought here were exceptionally powerful.

Iron sand and blood stains still remained on the ground. Upon receiving these reports, both Chiyo and Rasa felt their hearts sink.

At first, they refused to believe Konoha's rumors. Now, though, they had to face the grim possibility that there was some truth to them.

Sasori was still missing, and no matter how hard they searched, he and the Third Kazekage had both vanished without a trace.

Sasori's disappearance only lent more credence to the reports being spread by Konoha.

The Third Kazekage was dead.

The Sunagakure camp descended into chaos, but Takuya had no time to pay attention to it—Kushina had arrived.

"Takuya!!"

The moment she arrived, Kushina came rushing into the camp, leaping from a distance and landing directly in Takuya's embrace, like a swallow returning to its nest.

Whoa!

Takuya caught Kushina, nearly stumbling backward from the impact.

"I'm right here, why are you so excited?" he asked, smiling.

"I can't help it, I'm just so happy," Kushina replied, giggling as she clung to him tightly, her head resting on his shoulder. Her face was flushed with excitement, looking absolutely adorable.

With a grin, Takuya teased her, "You sure you want to keep hugging me like this, right here?"

"Uh..."

Kushina blinked, suddenly aware of their surroundings. They were in the middle of the front-line camp, with several shinobi watching them with amused expressions.

"Eek!"

Letting out a small squeal, Kushina quickly jumped out of Takuya's arms, hastily fixing her clothes, her cheeks growing even redder.

"Come on, let's head to the command center," Takuya said, taking her hand and leading her away, sparing her further embarrassment.

Once inside the command center, Kushina offered a shy greeting to the senior shinobi.

"Good to see you, Lady Kushina," said Shikashige, shaking his head with a sigh. This 'little princess' was going to be quite the handful.

"Hello," Sakumo smiled warmly, not reprimanding her for running off on her own.

Although Kushina had sneaked away from the village, neither Shikashige nor Sakumo knew that, and Takuya had kept the encrypted scroll from them as well.

"Alright, she's here now, and that's that. Let's not dwell on it," Takuya said, noticing Kushina's nervousness. He squeezed her hand reassuringly, giving her an encouraging look.

Now you're officially part of the reinforcements, not just someone who snuck away, so relax and don't worry.

Kushina smiled brightly, her fears melting away.

But then she remembered—Pakura. She wasn't here for the war, after all. She had other priorities.

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Next Bonus: 200 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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