When Konan brought Natsuki here, she had imagined many possible outcomes, but the one thing she hadn't expected…
Was that Natsuki would be this strong, effortlessly taking out five of the Six Paths of Nagato.
If the battle continued, regardless of who won or lost, Nagato would definitely shorten his lifespan.
Natsuki shrugged indifferently. "Nagato, if you were willing to talk properly, I wouldn't even be interested in fighting you."
So it's true, power speaks louder than words. If Natsuki weren't strong enough, he'd have already been captured and had his soul extracted and memories read.
Pain's expression flickered, and his posture relaxed a little.
Pain had assumed he could easily take down Natsuki, then examine his memories.
He didn't expect Natsuki to be this strong.
From the moment they started fighting, Pain realized that Natsuki was completely familiar with his abilities.
Otherwise, he wouldn't have eliminated the Naraka Path first.
Pain frowned slightly. "Why do you know my intel?"
"I know far more than you imagine. That Rinnegan you take such pride in… to me, it's just a tool."
Natsuki stated this as a fact, but it angered Pain.
To him, awakening the Rinnegan was a divine gift. He firmly believed he would bring peace to the world!
Seeing Pain's rising anger, Natsuki pushed further. "You see this Rinnegan as a blessing from the heavens every day…"
"But have you ever considered, it appearing in you may have been a plot from the beginning?"
Pain had clung to his beliefs for so many years. Naturally, they wouldn't be overturned in a few sentences.
Still, for someone who had endured for years after Hanzo killed Yahiko, Pain wasn't stupid.
He knew Natsuki must have more to say.
Suppressing his anger, he gave a cold snort. "Foolishness."
Natsuki understood this reaction well. If someone's core belief could be shattered in two lines, they wouldn't have devoted their life to it.
"Done fighting?" Natsuki asked casually.
Taking down several of Nagato's Paths didn't seem to take much effort.
After all, he knew the Six Paths' abilities inside and out.
Besides, he had the Eternal Mangekyo and Uzumaki clan's physical constitution, not something a sickly Nagato could compare to.
He had just displayed overwhelming strength and clearly demonstrated his intel on Nagato.
In contrast, Nagato, though the Tendo Path's appearance was calm and unshaken, was simply a corpse. His real body had already expended significant chakra.
Nagato still had to maintain the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path. With Rinnegan that wasn't originally his, he lacked the chakra capacity. Only by burning his life force could he perform certain jutsu.
Seeing Natsuki not even out of breath, Pain felt uncertain.
And now, hearing Natsuki suggest stopping, it bruised his pride. The battlefield fell into awkward silence.
At that moment, Konan, who had been watching all along, stepped forward as mediator.
"Since Mr. Natsuki clearly anticipated we would come find him, there's no point in continuing this fight."
Natsuki nodded. Obito was a world-ending lunatic. Nagato was a war-hungry idealist. But the two had different goals,
One sought destruction.
The other, salvation.
For now, Obito still needed to play out his script. And to a certain degree, Natsuki actually agreed with parts of Nagato's ideology.
Natsuki glanced at Konan but didn't respond. Instead, he jogged over to inspect a pile of sand on the ground.
"My sand mat!"
Natsuki nearly wept. He'd been so hyped fighting Nagato, he totally forgot about it.
Naturally, he hadn't continued maintaining chakra to keep the sand mat together. Now it was just a scattered pile of sand.
"I didn't even fly for a full day…"
Konan stood there awkwardly. This Natsuki guy is insane. Can't he just use a jutsu to make a new one?
Natsuki sighed. "Forget it. Gone is gone."
Turning back, he saw Konan and Pain still waiting for him.
He smirked. "Let's talk, then."
Seeing Konan nod, Natsuki ignored Pain completely.
He walked over to the Naraka Path and pulled his Kusanagi Sword out.
Nagato's real body suddenly re-established a sensory link to the Naraka Path.
Pain's expression shifted. Clearly, Natsuki had been prepared to seal the Naraka Path from the start.
Pain didn't know just how much Natsuki understood, but he hadn't planned to use the Naraka Path's resurrection ability, until now.
Seeing the Naraka Path wasn't getting up, Natsuki asked curiously, "What's wrong? Use the Naraka Path to revive them!"
Pain froze. He knows.
Nagato re-linked with the Naraka Path. It stood up and began performing the Resurrection Jutsu.
Behind it appeared the King of Hell, who opened its massive mouth. A purple tongue with hands extended out, swallowing up the damaged corpses.
One by one, they reemerged fully restored.
Natsuki clicked his tongue in appreciation, clearly enjoying the show.
He pulled out a sealing scroll from his robes.
Poof! Natsuki summoned items Konan found all too familiar:
A parasol, a table, chairs, a large thermos, and teacups.
Natsuki gracefully sat down. Konan and Pain walked over, while the other five Paths spread out to keep watch.
There were only two chairs. Two cups.
After all, Pain didn't need to eat or rest. He could stand.
Konan understood Natsuki's intent and said nothing. She took a seat.
Pain stood behind her.
Natsuki poured two cups of iced tea, took a sip, and let out a contented sigh.
The weather in the Land of Fields was still sweltering. After a battle like that, he was a bit thirsty.
Seeing Konan and Yahiko staring at him, Natsuki remained completely calm. "No tea, no talk."
Before Pain could speak, Konan lifted the cup and downed it in one go.
"Konan?" Pain said.
Konan shook her head. "It's fine, Nagato. Mr. Natsuki's given me iced tea before."
Natsuki nodded. "Now this is how a conversation should go. Where should I start…"
"How much do you know about Nagato's abilities, Mr. Natsuki?"
Natsuki counted on his fingers: "The Six Paths, mechanical modification, memory reading, soul extraction, infinite summoning, sealing absorption, chakra devouring, King of Hell resurrection, Rinne Rebirth…"
Konan and Pain's faces instantly changed. "Mr. Natsuki, how do you know all that!?"
Natsuki shook his head. "And there's more. Tendo's Bansho Ten'in, Shinra Tensei… Oh, I don't know, have you learned Chibaku Tensei yet?"
Pain's mind was shaken. Chibaku Tensei, that technique had never been used publicly. Not even Konan knew of it.
How did Natsuki know!?
Pain could no longer hold it in. "Even Chibaku Tensei… you know that too?"
Natsuki chuckled. "I even know your Shinra Tensei has a five-second cooldown."
Seeing the shock on both their faces, Natsuki shook his head again. "There are still Rinnegan abilities you haven't unlocked."
Pain was still processing this when curiosity began to rise again.
"What other abilities does the Rinnegan have?"
Natsuki stroked his chin, thinking about the outrageous techniques Madara once used.
"Well, there's one called Tengai Shinsei, it lets you pull meteors out of the sky."
"And another called Limbo: Border Jail, it creates invisible 'shadows' of yourself that can defend or ambush enemies."
Pain furrowed his brow in deep thought. In terms of mastery over the Rinnegan, he was far less developed than future users. He couldn't tell if Natsuki was bluffing or not.
He could only ask again. "Why do you know all this?"
Natsuki summoned his Ultimate Bluff Technique. "The Rinnegan originally appeared in our Uchiha clan. As the vice clan leader, of course I know all the details."
"Impossible!"
Pain instantly rejected that. The Uchiha were the greatest clan in the shinobi world.
If someone that strong had appeared with the Rinnegan, it'd be impossible to hide.
Natsuki gave a sly grin. "I knew you wouldn't believe me. Since I'm in no rush, let me start from the very beginning."
"There was once a clan… called Otsutsuki..."