Naruto and Gold Utsu quickly set out to search for Nagato. Their first stop was naturally the Cloud Shinobi. That old man had told Naruto to treat the Cloud Shinobi the same way Pain had treated Konoha, but Naruto knew he did not seem to have that kind of strength yet.
He had to obtain the Rinnegan to gain power, but obtaining the Rinnegan required tremendous strength.
"That guy... I probably can't beat him..."
Although Naruto had already released his true self, he had not forgotten how Moriyue had pinned him down and beaten him in the dream space.
He had not had any opportunity to improve his strength during this time. Going to the Cloud Shinobi with these two was practically a death sentence.
Having figured this out, Naruto quickly made a decision. Those two might well be planning to use him as bait, then sell him out while they went off to find clues themselves.
Just as the thought of finding a chance to escape arose in Naruto's mind, Gold seemed to know what he was thinking and said directly, "Do you think you'll survive if you run away now?"
Hearing Gold's question, Naruto fell silent for a moment before finally saying, "How would I know without trying?"
Gold said nothing in response. He merely said, "Foolish," in a mocking tone, then fell silent.
At that moment, Naruto finally made up his mind as well. Looks like I can't escape! But if I die, won't their plan be impossible to carry out too?
Naruto knew from the old man's earlier words that they needed him—or rather, they needed him to become a Sage.
If that was the case, they should not let him die so easily.
With that thought, Naruto's gaze became resolute. Dark Naruto had always borne