"Hey, has anyone in the camp seen Lord Jiraiya?"
"Lord Jiraiya? He probably went to meet those people calling themselves Akatsuki again today, right?"
"He went again? Seriously, even if Akatsuki's three main leaders were once his disciples, isn't Lord Jiraiya taking them a little too seriously? What if those Iwagakure guys secretly circle around again…"
"You think our sensory-nin and the rain created by Akatsuki are just decorations? Relax and wait for Lord Jiraiya to come back."
Inside Konoha's camp, the Konoha shinobi who could not find Jiraiya chatted in small groups about this topic.
Meanwhile, in Akatsuki's temporary camp, Jiraiya faced his three disciples, but his expression was not as relaxed as the Konoha shinobi imagined.
"I see… Nagato, while searching for an answer, you met someone like that?"
"Exactly. When Nagato had just returned from the Land of Whirlpools, the way he suddenly buried himself in developing the abilities of the Rinnegan really scared us."
Yahiko glared sideways at his friend and said angrily, "I thought Nagato had run into something strange in the Land of Whirlpools, or that someone had placed him under genjutsu. In the end, it turned out that he had only been talked dizzy by someone's words."
"Yahiko, the person who tried to persuade Nagato, only to be persuaded by him in return, was not me, you know?"
Konan put down the flower she had just folded halfway and lightly bumped Yahiko's shoulder with hers in amusement.
"If Nagato's state back then was being talked dizzy, then wouldn't you be even worse than dizzy?"
"S-Shut up. I was just… I was just happy that Nagato had cleared the confusion in his heart, so I deliberately played along with him a little. That was all."
Watching Yahiko stubbornly argue with Konan, Nagato smiled with deep relief.
Then he looked at Jiraiya, who had an expression of deep thought, and asked calmly.
"Jiraiya-sensei, do you not agree with the answer I found?"
"No, it is not to the point of disagreement."
Jiraiya shook his head and sighed with some distress.
"I just cannot help thinking that if you truly reach the point where you use your own strength to stop all wars from breaking out, then every hawk faction in every country will probably list Akatsuki as the first target they need to eliminate, right?"
"Wouldn't that be too hard?"
"How could people who want to change the world possibly have an easy time, Jiraiya-sensei?"
Nagato pointed at his Rinnegan and clenched his fist firmly.
"If the string called war remains taut forever, people will not turn their attention to fields outside war. Even if it is only surface-level peace, as long as it lasts long enough, it can allow flowers that bloom only in times of peace to grow within each village."
"If war continues forever, then even if there are people within every country who yearn for peace, long years of war will steal their imagination and creativity toward peace. It will turn them into people accustomed to war."
"People bound and assimilated by war cannot create brand-new policies and systems completely aimed at ruling during peaceful times the way those who grew up in peace can."
"Well, simply put, even for people like us who grew up together with Konan, when we see her folding paper, our first reaction is not that she is simply making a decoration. We immediately think she must be preparing a hidden weapon shaped like a paper flower."
Yahiko folded his arms over his chest and said with some emotion.
"After Nagato told me that, I realized I had also been assimilated by war quite badly."
"So that more people can be freed from the shadow of war as soon as possible, so that they can grow up tasting the sweetness of peace from the very beginning, I am willing to compromise a little on my ideals."
"Maybe we and Akatsuki can only become one section of the bridge leading toward peace. But as long as the fruit called peace can be picked sooner because of our efforts, then everything we pay will have enough meaning."
While the two boys passionately described their ideals, Konan silently finished folding the paper flower with her nimble hands.
Then she handed it to Jiraiya, who was filled with emotion because of his disciples' words.
"I do not have ideals as grand as Nagato and Yahiko. But I will always stay by their side and look after those two reckless guys."
Jiraiya accepted Konan's paper flower.
Looking at the clear fold marks on it, then at his three disciples who had grown enough for him to believe in them, he helplessly tucked the paper flower into the chest pocket of his clothes and shook his head self-mockingly.
"What is this? Now the only one who does not understand how to work hard for peace is me, the teacher?"
"Sensei can consider becoming Hokage."
Konan pointed at Jiraiya's forehead protector and said seriously.
"If Jiraiya-sensei becomes Hokage, then there will be another Kage willing to stand behind us and support our cause."
"Haha, Konan, do not make things difficult for me. I am already this old. How could I still shamelessly steal Minato's position as Hokage?"
Jiraiya laughed it off.
He had been planning to naturally introduce his other proud disciple, Minato Namikaze, to Nagato and the others.
But just before the words left his mouth, he suddenly frowned and asked with some uncertainty.
"Wait, Konan… Did you just say, 'there will be another Kage willing to support your cause'?"
"Yes. Konan did say that."
Nagato nodded and looked at Jiraiya sincerely.
"Although at this moment, whether it is us, Jiraiya-sensei, or that person, none of us has truly reached the position where we should be, that day should not be too far away."
"Will you join us, Jiraiya-sensei? If you, or that disciple of yours, Minato Namikaze, are willing to support us after becoming Hokage, then we can begin implementing the peace plan even faster."
An ominous and icy premonition seized Jiraiya's heart.
His body involuntarily tensed, like a toad that had, without any preparation, bumped straight into a starving venomous snake and been frightened almost stiff.
"Can you tell me the name of the other person who is about to become a Kage, Nagato?"
Looking at the three disciples before him, whose gazes were firm and whose expressions were sincere, Jiraiya took a deep breath and worked hard to suppress the unease that had made his emotions somewhat stiff.
He slowly asked his question.
"That… I can only give you a clear answer after Jiraiya-sensei agrees to join us."
Nagato spread his hands helplessly.
"After all, that guy caused a world-shaking commotion and then vanished without a sound. Although I do not think he would die in such an inexplicable way, still…"
Before his words finished, Nagato suddenly stood up from his seat.
He first closed his eyes and used the Rain Tiger at Will Technique to sense the target who had intruded.
Then, as if he had discovered something, his expression immediately relaxed again.
He turned to Jiraiya, who had also taken a guarded stance but did not know who exactly he was guarding against, and smiled.
"Jiraiya-sensei? Did you not just ask me who the other Kage supporting us is?"
"That guy seems to have arrived nearby. Why not let him come over himself and meet you for a chat?"
"Really?"
The one who asked was not Jiraiya, but Yahiko, whose face also showed surprise.
"Hey, hey, Nagato. That guy you mentioned, Rei Kaguya, why would he suddenly come here? Considering the troublesome situation Kirigakure is facing right now, after escaping from who knows where, shouldn't he first go back to Kirigakure and take a look?"
"If I go straight back, then I'll have to lay everything bare with the Third Mizukage. When that happens, the troublesome matters I'll need to deal with will probably pile up higher than the sky. How would I still have the energy to care about all of you in the distant Land of Rain?"
A figure wearing a loose white robe, with waist-length black hair and a tall, slender build, stepped lightly through the drizzling rain outside the camp and walked into the room where Nagato and the others were.
"Long time no see, Rei Kaguya."
"Mm. Long time no see, Nagato."
Rei stretched out his hand and shook hands with Nagato as he walked forward.
Then he tilted his head and looked at Jiraiya, who had already bitten his finger and was using the Summoning Technique to summon the toads of Mount Myoboku.
Rei grinned.
"This should be our first meeting, right? Sage entrusted with a prophecy by the Great Toad Sage, one of the Sannin, Jiraiya…"
Within Rei Kaguya's purple eyes, his snake-like vertical pupils stared tightly at Jiraiya.
And at the two toads that had suddenly appeared on his shoulders.