Konoha, reported by the Fourth Hokage at the start.

Chapter 171 Rinnegan Surveillance Mission

Jiraiya isn't scary, but Black Zetsu is afraid that Mount Myōboku might have designs on the Rinnegan.

Jiraiya's strength is now renowned throughout the ninja world, and Black Zetsu can't do anything to him unless Madara intervenes.

Once Jiraiya had his own ideas, he couldn't stop Jiraiya from taking Nagato's Rinnegan, nor did he dare to stop him.

Madara frowned slightly as he listened. Jiraiya was actually alright, but having seen the Uchiha clan's stone tablet, he knew about the trouble caused by the old toad of Mount Myōboku.

If he appears before Jiraiya, he might be sensed by the old toad of Mount Myōboku.

He could not have foreseen the various situations that would arise from this.

After thinking for a moment, Ban suddenly smiled.

"Let Li Yao keep an eye on things. As long as that brat Jiraiya doesn't have any designs on the Rinnegan, don't worry about anything else," Madara said.

What does Li Yao do?

Isn't it just for when something happens?

What is he hesitating about? Why not use Li Yao as a pawn?

"Understood, I'll go inform Li Yao right away." After saying that, Bai Jue sank into the ground to go find Li Yao.

With Li Yao watching over him, no one in the ninja world currently has the strength to snatch the Rinnegan from him.

In this way, the Rinnegan will be safe.

……

valley.

Li Yao was very diligent in his cultivation. As soon as it was light, he began his day of illusionary magic training with the sexy young woman.

Xiao Yezi was also very diligent, subjecting Fanmarenzha to various forms of physical torture on the other side of the valley, which completely twisted and perverted the little guy's mind.

Li Yao didn't care; he didn't care what anyone did.

"Hmm... Why is White Zetsu here?"

Li Yao suddenly frowned. Three kilometers away, he sensed Bai Jue emerging from the ground, which must have come looking for him.

Thinking of this, Li Yao patted the sexy young woman, signaling her to move aside.

After the sexy young woman left, Li Yao got up, used a water escape technique to remove the fishy smell from his body, and then ran towards White Zetsu.

A short while later, the two met in a small grove of trees.

"Lord Madara has a mission for you..."

White Zetsu told Li Yao about protecting Nagato's Rinnegan, and then said, "Your mission is to prevent Jiraiya from taking Nagato's Rinnegan away."

"Okay." Li Yao nodded, unable to refuse anyway. He asked, "Shall we leave now?"

"Okay." Bai Jue nodded, the sooner he went, the sooner he could feel at ease.

"Okay, I understand." Li Yao nodded, then turned back and called Xiao Yezi over, along with Fan Marenzha's family.

"Are we leaving here, Uncle?" Little Leaf asked curiously.

"Okay." Li Yao nodded, then looked at Fan Marenzha's family and said to Xiao Yezi, "I have something to do next, you can handle these people."

Since Jiraiya will definitely be unable to train with the sexy young woman during this period of surveillance, there's no need to keep these people around.

Even though she was a woman I had matched with, so what?

Li Yao had no desire to stay.

"Hehe, then leave it to me."

Xiao Yezi chuckled and approached the trembling Fanmarenzha and his family with a ferocious expression.

"Ah...no...please, please kill me..."

"No...ah..."

Soon, screams rang out. At this moment, Li Yao had already turned around and left to wait for Xiao Yezi outside.

"Hmm... what's this?"

After a while, Li Yao turned around suddenly, activating his soul perception to its maximum, but still couldn't find Fanmarenzha's soul.

"Where did you go?"

Li Yao frowned in confusion.

Just now, when Xiao Yezi killed Fanmarenzha and his family, Li Yao was able to sense that the souls of Fanmarenzha's sister and mother were gradually dissipating.

However, Vanmarendha's soul did not dissipate; instead, it seemed to be taken away by something and disappeared in an instant.

"Where to go... is the Pure Land!"

Li Yao's expression changed slightly. He suddenly realized where Fan Marenzha's soul had gone. It must have been taken to the Pure Land by the Six Great Immortals.

"But...why weren't the souls of Fanmarenza's mother and sister taken away?"

Li Yao was puzzled; the only difference between the two was whether or not they possessed chakra.

Does this mean that the Sage of Six Paths' Pure Land can only collect the souls of ninjas, and not the souls of ordinary people?

Or perhaps... the Sage of Six Paths only accepts the souls of ninjas, and doesn't care about the souls of ordinary people?

Just then, Xiao Yezi returned, her face stained with a few drops of bright red blood. She wiped it off casually, making her face look as if it had been painted with a vibrant color, giving her a twisted beauty reminiscent of the Scarlet Queen.

"Let's go."

Li Yao pulled himself out of his thoughts; now was not the time to think about these things.

He conjured a large clay bird and jumped onto it, with Little Leaf following behind. The two flew towards the Land of Rain, with White Doom occasionally popping up ahead to guide Li Yao's direction.

A day later, the two passed through the Land of Fields.

Li Yao stopped, created a shadow clone, and condensed it into a large clay bird, which the shadow clone then jumped over to.

"I have something to do next and can't take you with me. You and my shadow clone will go to the Land of Fields, and he will protect you," Li Yao said to Xiao Yezi beside him.

Madara didn't want too many people to know about the Rinnegan, so Li Yao couldn't take Xiao Yezi with him.

It would be most suitable to place him in the Land of Fields.

The Land of Rice Fields has no ninja villages and no remarkable resources. Its geographical location is also conveniently located away from the areas where major powers are fighting, and it is close to the Land of Fire. Major powers cannot attack this place, and smaller countries are afraid of the Land of Fire and dare not invade it.

This resulted in the Land of Rice Fields, which had no ninja villages, being one of the few countries that did not experience war during the height of the Ninja World War.

It's much safer for Xiao Yezi to stay here, and with his shadow clone protecting him, there's definitely no problem with his safety.

"Uncle...don't you want me anymore?"

Upon hearing that she would be separated from Li Yao, Xiao Yezi didn't go over. She pursed her lips, her big eyes filled with tears, and nervously looked at Li Yao.

She was terrified that Li Yao would abandon her. That feeling of despair and helplessness, of not knowing what would happen to her, enveloped her once again, making her body tremble with fear.

Looking at the trembling little Yezi, Li Yao frowned slightly. He hated disobedient people, but this was, after all, the daughter of Gui Mo who had saved his life, so he could still speak to her properly.

But some things need to be made clear. Girls will eventually grow up, and there are some realities they have to face on their own.

Actually, there's something I've been keeping quiet about.

Li Yao looked at Xiao Yezi seriously and said, "I'm actually not a member of the Uzumaki clan."

"Ah..." Xiao Yezi was clearly stunned. Her pupils contracted slightly as she looked at Li Yao, as if she couldn't believe what he said was true. But she quickly recovered and hugged Li Yao tightly, like a puppy being abandoned grabbing its owner's hand, wagging its tail and pleading, "I only have you left, Uncle. Don't leave me, okay?"

For Xiao Yezi, whether Li Yao was a member of the Whirlpool Clan or not was no longer important.

Li Yao, who stepped forward to save her twice in her moments of despair, had long transcended the status of a clansman; she had long regarded Li Yao as her own family member, her own uncle.

"Ugh!"

Li Yao sighed, reached out and gently hugged the girl, patted her back softly, and whispered, "I don't mean to leave you, it's just that I can't take you with me to what I'm about to do. My shadow clone will protect you, and I'll come to your aid if you encounter any danger."

After saying that, Li Yao pushed Xiao Yezi away, put his hands on her shoulders, and said seriously, "So, listen to me, stay in the Land of Fields with my shadow clone and wait for me to come back."

According to the original story, Jiraiya won't stay by Nagato's side for too long; he'll leave in a year or two at most, at which point he'll be free to move around.

But before that, he certainly couldn't have Xiao Yezi by his side.

"I..." Xiao Yezi wanted to say she wanted to go with Li Yao, but under Li Yao's serious gaze, she became afraid, afraid of making Li Yao angry and really leaving. She could only nod sadly and say, "I understand."

After saying that, she looked up at Li Yao with a nervous expression and said, "Uncle, you must come back!"

She was still afraid that Li Yao would never return.

Li Yao nodded and smiled, "I know, I promise you."

"Then...then I'll go."

"Okay, go ahead."

With a mix of trepidation and excitement, Xiao Yezi jumped onto the clay bird beneath the shadow clone's feet, and together with Li Yao's shadow clone, they flew towards the Land of Fields below.

Li Yao continued his journey to the Land of Rain, guided by White Zetsu.

(End of this chapter)