Jiraiya was completely stunned.
He had absolutely no idea what Naruto's true ambition was.
Because Naruto had never told him.
Now Nagato had suddenly launched into a long speech about unification, and Jiraiya's brain practically short-circuited.
"Senior Brother Nagato, Pervy Sage still doesn't know about my plan," Naruto tugged at Nagato's sleeve and whispered in his ear.
Nagato blinked and looked at him, clearly surprised. What is going on, kid. Such a massive plan and you never even told Master Jiraiya?
"Granny Tsunade said that before I officially start carrying out the plan, I shouldn't tell too many people," Naruto said, scratching the back of his head.
Nagato laughed helplessly. "Your secrecy work is really thorough."
"Haha…" Naruto laughed awkwardly.
Jiraiya slowly came back to his senses.
He swallowed and looked at Tsunade. "Tsunade, you already knew about Naruto's plan?"
Tsunade nodded slightly. "He told me about it before I returned to the village."
"And you agreed?" Jiraiya asked with widened eyes.
Tsunade closed her eyes. After a moment, she opened them and looked straight at him. "This is the fastest and most hopeful path to peace that I can think of."
"And Naruto has the strength to carry it out."
"But do you have any idea how much bloodshed this kind of plan could cause?" Jiraiya said anxiously.
"Jiraiya, do you really think your ideal of everyone understanding each other can bring true peace?" Tsunade stared into his eyes and shot back.
Jiraiya fell silent.
He knew the answer.
That idea was far too naive.
He had lived through war himself.
The Great Toad Sage's prophecy echoed in his mind again.
He once said that Jiraiya would have a disciple who would become the Child of Prophecy, someone who would bring either unprecedented peace or total destruction to the shinobi world.
Jiraiya had once believed that person was Nagato. After Nagato's supposed death, he thought it was Minato.
But Minato had died as well.
Now, it was clear.
Naruto was the Child of Prophecy.
If this plan truly succeeded, then maybe, just maybe, the shinobi world could finally achieve lasting peace.
Jiraiya looked at Naruto, who was chatting with Nagato nearby.
A wave of emotion surged in his heart. The story of Jiraiya the Gallant had already reached its final chapter.
The next volume should be called The Tale of Uzumaki Naruto.
When Naruto offered to heal him, Jiraiya refused.
He winked at Naruto. "Let Tsunade handle it. I might as well stay in the hospital and get some proper rest."
"Do whatever you want," Naruto replied, clearly unimpressed with the old pervert's hidden intentions.
He then took Nagato and Konan back home.
"If that masked man finds out you've broken free from his control, he will definitely come after you. For now, stay in Konoha," Naruto said to them.
Nagato and Konan exchanged a glance and nodded together. "Alright."
"I'll arrange two houses for you. Settle in first. When that masked man shows up, we will try to keep him here," Naruto said calmly.
Previously, when Tsunade called for a Five Kage Summit, only the Land of Wind responded. The other three great nations ignored it.
But now, the Land of Lightning had initiated another summit, this time with the goal of wiping out the Akatsuki.
This time, Tsunade was the one who did not really want to attend.
After all, the leader of the Akatsuki was now living in Konoha.
It would be incredibly awkward.
It could even make the other nations suspect that the Akatsuki was Konoha's dirty work.
But there was no way Tsunade would push Nagato out to take the blame.
A top-tier powerhouse with the Rinnegan was someone Konoha should protect, not sacrifice.
So once again, the Five Kage Summit failed to take place.
The Fourth Raikage was furious. He could only order his intelligence division to work even harder to gather information on the Akatsuki and the masked man.
Even if the other four great nations refused to act, the Hidden Cloud would wipe out the Akatsuki themselves and rescue B, C, and Darui.
In the Hidden Rain Village, Obito stood atop a high tower, letting the rain fall freely onto his body.
Zetsu emerged halfway from the ground beside him.
"Have you figured out what happened? Where did Nagato and Konan go?" Obito asked.
"All we know is that Jiraiya from Konoha infiltrated the Rain Village and fought Konan and Pain," Zetsu replied.
"As for the outcome, no one knows. Both sides were too powerful. Even the aftershocks of their battle could kill bystanders, so no one dared approach."
"So Nagato and Konan might have been taken back to Konoha by Jiraiya?" Obito frowned beneath his mask.
"Does Jiraiya really have that kind of strength?" he questioned.
Jiraiya was not weak, but Nagato possessed the Rinnegan.
Without knowing the Rinnegan's abilities, there was no way Jiraiya alone could defeat both Nagato and Konan.
Even with knowledge, raw power alone would not be enough.
"This is impossible," Obito muttered.
"We can only go to Konoha and investigate," Zetsu said.
"Make sure you find out Nagato's condition. His Rinnegan is the key to controlling the Ten-Tails. Without it, everything we have done is meaningless," Obito said gravely.
The plan had reached a critical stage, yet the most important pawn, Nagato, had vanished.
That was unacceptable.
Especially for Black Zetsu.
He had schemed for over a thousand years. This was the closest he had ever come to success.
Failure was not an option.
"I understand," Zetsu replied darkly and sank back into the structure, disappearing.
Obito raised his head to the gloomy, weeping sky.
"Wait for me, Rin. I will create a world where you exist."
Naruto and Nagato stood facing each other. Konan, Sasuke, and Hinata watched from the side.
Sunlight filtered through the trees and spilled across the training ground, which was already scarred by countless jutsu.
Nagato wore simple clothes, the Rinnegan in his eyes gleaming with long-lost sharpness. Naruto was wrapped in golden chakra, Sage Mode and the Nine-Tails' power resonating within him.
"Let's begin, Senior Brother Nagato," Naruto said with a grin as he formed the confrontation seal. "Let me see the Rinnegan at full health."
"Do not get overconfident, Naruto," Nagato replied with a faint smile, raising his hand in the same seal.
In an instant, Nagato surged forward like a red bolt of lightning, his fist empowered by the Asura Path smashing straight toward Naruto's face.
Naruto caught the punch steadily, the ground beneath his feet cracking. Feeling the immense force, admiration flashed in his eyes. "That is some power, Senior Brother. So this is your true strength."
"Do not get distracted," Nagato warned. The Rinnegan flared as he shouted, "Asura Path."
Chakra surged across his body. Four additional metal-armored arms grew from his shoulders and ribs.
Six arms struck like a storm, tearing through the air from every angle.
Boom. Boom. Boom.
Heavy impacts rang out like a great bell.
Naruto's eyes lit up with excitement as golden chakra blazed around him like fire. He moved with blinding speed, golden chakra arms extending from his back to block and counter every strike.
Two terrifying forces collided. Shockwaves rippled outward, stripping layers of earth from the ground. The air wailed under the pressure.
Yet even with six arms attacking at once, Nagato could not push Naruto back even a step.
Every blow was perfectly absorbed by Naruto's condensed golden chakra.