Konoha, reported by the Fourth Hokage at the start.

Chapter 377 Naruto Arrives

"They're here!"

Inside the tree hollow, Li Yao sensed that Naruto had arrived at the foot of the mountain and smiled slightly to himself.

Although there were unexpected events during the process, the result was the same as in the original story.

With the support of his parents, Naruto had little difficulty dealing with Pain, who was holding back.

Similarly, this was because Kushina revealed the truth about the Nine-Tails' rampage and that there was another mastermind behind Pain.

Naruto already believed that Pain was deceived by the masked man and misinterpreted Jiraiya's peace ideals, which led to everything that happened today.

In short, the hatred won't disappear, but some of it has shifted from Payne to the masked man, the mastermind behind it all.

This is why Naruto stopped the others and wanted to go see Pain's main body alone, wanting to confirm an answer for himself.

Jiraiya followed Naruto all the way through the interlayered space.

Jiraiya had a rough idea of ​​what was going on in Naruto's mind, and even he admired the change in Naruto's mindset at this moment.

But... that's not Nagato anymore!

Jiraiya then realized that Nagato on the mountaintop was most likely under the control of that bastard with powerful genjutsu abilities.

If Naruto lets Nagato escape on his way, then we're doomed.

Jiraiya hoped that Naruto could kill Nagato, or at least destroy Nagato's Rinnegan, and absolutely not let the Rinnegan fall into that bastard's hands.

Unfortunately, Jiraiya was just an impure reanimated ninja summoned by Li Yao, and he was under Li Yao's control. He was trapped in the interlayered space and could do nothing.

Naruto quickly reached the mountaintop, tore apart the giant tree that Konan had conjured with her paper jutsu, and entered the tree hole, where he met his senior brother for the first time.

"This is the senior brother who's been manipulating Pain behind the scenes...?"

Upon seeing the transformation of Nagato, Naruto's eyes flashed with surprise. He hadn't expected that someone as strong as Nagato would be so weakened in his physical form.

With a gaunt face and body, he sat in a wheelchair with more than a dozen black sticks stuck in his back, looking like he was about to die.

This is a completely different image from the image of his senior brother that Naruto had in mind.

However, it was this image that resonated with Naruto.

Without much thought, the moment he saw this senior brother, he knew that this senior brother must have also experienced unimaginable pain.

But... that's not why he could kill Jiraiya-sensei and turn Konoha into this mess.

Naruto's eyes still held killing intent as he looked at Nagato.

Some hatred cannot be erased even with understanding.

call out!

Konan instantly stood in front of Nagato, staring intently at Naruto.

Li Yao said coldly, "Naruto Uzumaki, you actually came so close to me, you really overestimate yourself."

After saying that, Li Yao raised his hand and shot out a black rod. Naruto did not dodge and was hit directly in the stomach. Fortunately, he caught the black rod with his hand, preventing it from piercing his body.

However, Konan was shocked that Naruto was able to pull the black rod out of his body by himself, even though he was so close to Nagato.

Li Yao wasn't shocked, because he had let the opponent off the hook.

Furthermore, Naruto is currently in Sage Mode, so it's normal for him to withstand the weakened black rods, not to mention the Nine-Tails' chakra causing trouble.

Huh... where's that bastard?

Jiraiya searched everywhere in the spatial interlayer but couldn't find Li Yao, which puzzled him greatly.

Could it be that he lost control of Nagato after Pain was defeated?

Jiraiya stared intently at Nagato, trying to find any signs that Nagato was being controlled.

Unfortunately, Nagato has no weaknesses now.

Nagato and Naruto had a conversation between fellow disciples. Following the original storyline, Li Yao told Naruto the story of Nagato, Yahiko, and Konan.

From the murder of his parents by Konoha ninjas, to meeting Yahiko and Konan, to becoming Jiraiya's apprentice, and finally to Yahiko dying at Nagato's hands due to Danzo's schemes.

These scenes, one after another, compared to Naruto's suffering from being ostracized since childhood, it's hard to say which is more painful; it varies from person to person.

After all, there is no such thing as true empathy in this world.

However, there is no doubt that from Nagato's perspective, there is absolutely no problem with him taking revenge on Konoha.

However, Nagato acted for the ideal of peace from beginning to end, rather than simply seeking revenge against Konoha.

Otherwise, long ago when Nagato possessed the strength to kill Hanzo of the Salamander, he could have come to Konoha and unleashed a Super Shinra Tensei, letting Konoha experience the pain of their home being destroyed.

Nagato did not do that; he always put the realization of the peace that Jiraiya and Yahiko desired for him to achieve first.

Naruto said he killed his master, Jiraiya.

Even online sources say that Nagato killing Jiraiya is undeniable.

In Li Yao's opinion, Nagato didn't need to be washed at all, nor did he need to wash anything.

As the leader of the Akatsuki organization, the relationship between Jiraiya and Jiraiya was not only that of master and disciple, but also that of hostile relations between two countries and two forces when Jiraiya stormed into Amegakure.

He let Jiraiya escape, allowing Jiraiya to gather information about him, find his weaknesses, and ultimately be killed by Jiraiya in the future battle for the Nine-Tails.

Konan's fate wasn't much better, because she couldn't just stand by and watch Nagato be killed without doing anything. She would inevitably fight desperately to protect Nagato, and then die in Nagato's footsteps.

This is the consequence that Nagato and Konan will face if Nagato doesn't kill Jiraiya.

Some might argue that, given Jiraiya's personality, he wouldn't have killed Nagato and Konan.

and then?

Because Jiraiya didn't kill Nagato and Konan, Nagato and Konan gave up everything, converted to Buddhism, and became saints who understood each other.

It's like someone killed your parents, but didn't kill you because you were young. So you have to thank them for their mercy and for not killing you, abandon your hatred for your parents, and be grateful to the enemy who killed your parents in order to be a good person.

Otherwise, you're an indefensible bad person.

Li Yao gets very annoyed whenever someone says that there's no way to deny that Nagato killed Jiraiya.

Jiraiya has already stormed into Nagato's stronghold, threatening Nagato and Konan's lives and hindering his nuclear peace plan. He still can't kill Jiraiya.

Just because Jiraiya was a teacher?

If Nagato's ability to achieve peace is so easily shaken, he might as well just commit suicide sooner rather than later.

In short, Li Yao believed that Nagato's actions were not problematic.

Of course, this is just Li Yao's opinion.

Nagato's guiding principle has always been to achieve peace. Whether it was killing Jiraiya or capturing the Nine-Tails, it was all for the sake of achieving what he considered peace.

There's nothing anyone can say about that.

Even Naruto, after hearing Nagato's experiences and inner thoughts, could only remain silent, unable to utter a word of rebuttal.

However, it is unknown whether it was a coincidence or fate.

Nagato's actions of not letting hatred influence his personal behavior in order to achieve peace were seen by Naruto as a form of mutual understanding that involved letting go of hatred.

After all, given what Nagato went through, his thoughts and actions were all about achieving peace, not about unleashing a frenzied revenge against Konoha once he gained power.

Jiraiya was killed because he threatened the peace plan.

This operation in Konoha is also aimed at achieving the vision of capturing the Nine-Tails and realizing peace, rather than simply seeking revenge for the sake of revenge.

Nagato harbored hatred, yet he refrained from spreading and perpetuating that hatred for the sake of peace. This had a profound impact on Naruto's mind, even though he still couldn't forgive Nagato for killing Jiraiya.

(End of this chapter)