Sakura was captured, Naruto was losing, and Shikamaru was absent.
The situation was passive.
"Damn it!"
Naruto was about to fight back when he saw Sakura, hands bound, lifted up by a large soldier.
He immediately became furious.
With a hostage, he couldn't act recklessly.
"Let me go! You bastard!"
All sorts of curses she would never utter in front of Takumi poured out, highlighting her inner violent personality.
But no matter how she struggled, she couldn't break free from the soldier's grip.
Naruto gritted his teeth but couldn't find a way.
"Phew, looks like I'm not too late."
Shikamaru arrived quietly, observing the situation and breathing a sigh of relief.
Although they were at a disadvantage, at least there were no casualties.
With him helping from the shadows, things could still turn around.
He formed hand seals, about to use the Shadow Imitation Technique, when a hand landed on his shoulder.
"Who is it?!"
Startled, he turned back and saw a familiar face.
"Relax, we're here to support you."
Takumi put his finger to his lips, signaling Shikamaru to lower his voice.
"We?"
Shikamaru was taken aback, then saw Kurenai's team in the distance, along with several familiar-looking people and some complete strangers.
"How did you guys get here?"
Seeing Takumi, he immediately relaxed, staring with his deadpan eyes as he asked.
"The situation has changed. Those armored guys attacked the Land of Wind. They came to us for reinforcements."
Takumi said.
"But you shouldn't be here. This isn't the way to the Land of Wind."
Shikamaru was even more puzzled.
"But we found the right place, didn't we?"
Takumi smiled slightly, not explaining in detail.
Now wasn't the time.
"I guess so."
Shikamaru didn't get the answer he wanted, but he wasn't one to pry.
Takumi was his comrade, not his enemy. He could trust Takumi with his back.
If Takumi was hiding something, he must have his reasons. Now that Takumi was here, he didn't need to worry about Naruto and Sakura's safety.
"I'll handle this."
Takumi smiled slightly, then jumped down from the tree and dashed quickly towards the armored soldier holding Sakura.
A heavy punch landed squarely on the soldier's chest, the entire armor caving in.
If it were a normal person, they would definitely not survive.
And Takumi's force was so fierce that even though the soldier was semi-immortal, he couldn't withstand it.
He flew far away, deeply embedded in a wall.
"Takumi-kun?!"
Sakura was overjoyed.
The scene she had dreamed of on countless nights had actually appeared in reality.
At the moment of her crisis, Takumi, like a prince charming, suddenly appeared and saved her.
This movie-like scene made her feel as happy as the heroine.
Especially now, with Takumi holding her in his arms, his gaze fixed on the distant silver knight, but his hand unconsciously protecting her.
This posture made Sakura even more enchanted.
She gazed at Takumi dreamily, her small hand pressed against his chest, feeling his heartbeat.
"Great!"
Seeing Sakura saved, Naruto immediately shouted happily, then looked at the silver knight, his eyes full of fighting spirit. "Now I have no restraints!"
"Naruto, be careful."
Takumi reminded him calmly. He wasn't worried about Naruto losing.
The silver knight's strength wasn't weak, but it depended on the opponent.
Against an average Chunin, he might win.
But in Takumi's view, any experienced Jonin wouldn't find it particularly difficult to deal with the silver knight.
"Hmph!"
The silver knight snorted coldly, uninterested in the defeated Naruto.
Instead, he looked at Takumi with interest, curious about the strength that allowed him to defeat a soldier with one punch.
He didn't sense any Gelel Stone power.
"Multiple Shadow Clone Technique!"
Naruto used a human-wave tactic.
Dozens of Naruto surrounded the silver knight.
But the silver knight was not alarmed. He drew his short sword and brandished it before his chest.
The power of the Gelel Stone immediately attached itself to the blade.
Energy like wind wrapped around the sword.
"Go!"
With Naruto's shout, countless clones charged together.
In response, the silver knight merely waved his hand, creating a huge whirlwind around him.
The Naruto caught in it dispersed into smoke.
The sheer number of clones destroyed at once filled the sky with smoke.
Just then,
Naruto suddenly leaped out from the air, a Rasengan already formed in his hand.
Seeing this, Takumi set Sakura down and rushed forward.
Slap.
He grabbed Naruto's wrist and, with his caught off guard expression, tossed him back.
He then stood before the silver knight.
"Changing opponents?"
The silver knight said coldly. "It doesn't matter. No matter how many come, it's useless."
"Is that so?"
Takumi raised an eyebrow.
"Hey! What are you doing!!"
Naruto, having landed face-first, immediately got up and shouted at Takumi. "I was about to take him out!"
"You were too careless, Naruto."
Takumi turned back. "You rushed in without even understanding the enemy's power. Though that's your specialty, it's time to change."
"Wha, what?"
Naruto flushed with anger, waving his fists as if to charge over.
"It's true, Naruto-kun."
Hinata, with her Byakugan active, said softly. "That person has a strange Chakra lodged in his heart. It's very strong."
"Even Hinata says so..."
Naruto was a bit depressed. He was just upset that Takumi had ruined his chance to shine in front of Sakura.
Seeing no one supported him, he simply sat on the ground and sulked.
"More and more people."
The silver knight said. "I suggest you all come at once."
"Don't be so arrogant."
As soon as Takumi finished speaking, he had already closed the distance from far away, appearing right in front of the silver knight.
"What...?!"
The silver knight's eyes widened. He hadn't even seen how Takumi approached.
He immediately retreated, swinging his wrist. The sword, imbued with Gelel Stone energy, slashed diagonally.
But Takumi was faster.
A simple, unadorned punch landed directly on his chest, shattering his armor.
Bang!
The silver armor broke apart, and a blonde boy was sent flying.
Takumi had controlled his strength well, only destroying the armor, not harming the boy.
If the boy was wise, Takumi could hold back.
"Damn it!"
The blonde boy immediately got up. His uninjured body gave him an illusion.
He thought Takumi's strength was only enough to break his armor, not hurt his body.
So, he charged straight at Takumi, not slowly.
But in Takumi's eyes, this speed was almost no different from a turtle's crawl.
Bang!
Another simple, unadorned punch.
This time, the blonde boy flew back, spitting blood, his eyes full of disbelief.
He had always been confident in his strength.
Yet he couldn't withstand a single punch.
This was a huge blow to his confidence.
Hiding in the forest, secretly filming everything with his camera, the director trembled with excitement.
"First, the surprise attack to save his comrade, then the overwhelming victory over a formidable opponent. This is the protagonist I chose!"
The director muttered excitedly. "Looks like I'll be able to capture some great footage this time too. I just hope the enemy shows enough strength."
"Otherwise, without some grand scenes, the movie's impact will be weakened."
He was caught in a happy dilemma.
And the crew members around him also showed excited expressions.
They could already envision the movie becoming a huge hit again.
"Takumi-kun has gotten stronger."
Koyuki gazed dreamily at Takumi in the distance, her heart pounding, her heartbeat continuously accelerating.
Having been apart for so long, she already missed him terribly.
Being able to film another movie with Takumi now was very meaningful to her.
Although Takumi had just held another girl in his arms, she was just an insignificant character.
Koyuki was a very magnanimous person.
Letting another girl enjoy the warmth of Takumi's chest in a movie – she wouldn't be jealous.
After all, it was just a movie.
If she really couldn't stand it, she could have all of that girl's scenes cut out later.
As an investor and one of the lead actresses, she had that right.
Lying miserably on the ground, the blonde boy's eyes were full of unwillingness.
He looked at the numerically superior Takumi and his group, then showed a vicious expression.
And then, he suddenly jumped off the cliff behind him.