Pain

Just as Hyuga Homura finished speaking, a series of swish-swish sounds came, and paper shuriken flew in instantly.

Though woven from mere paper, the shuriken were no less sharp than steel. With a clatter of impacts, they scattered the five of them.

"Wait... these shuriken! Damn! Watch out—they're all Explosive Tags!"

Hyuga Homura shouted in alarm, and the next second, a rumbling explosion erupted. Amidst flashes of fire, the ground cracked with a grinding sound as a stone wall rose up, only to be blasted to pieces by the tags.

Uchiha Shūichi, who had been keeping a low profile, watched the exploding shuriken and felt a slight stir. These Explosive Tags seemed weaker than ordinary ones.

"To be precise, they look like they were hastily made with shoddy materials—probably produced directly by her secret technique."

The sound of flapping wings came from above. Wings made of white paper fluttered in the sky like an angel's, and a pale, cold-faced purple-haired beauty slowly descended.

"Konan... so it's you!"

Jiraiya, who had just used Earth Style Ninjutsu to block the explosion, looked at the girl before him with a mix of resignation and relief.

"Long time no see, Jiraiya-sensei! Have you brought these Konoha ninja for the Rinnegan and the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path as well?"

Konan's voice was crisp, her gaze cold as she looked at them. By now, the smoke had cleared, and Uchiha Shūichi and his squad had formed a combat formation.

The Konoha ninja squad was made up of elites—at least special Jonin. Even Yūhi Kurenai, though roughed up by the explosive shuriken, only suffered minor scratches and was still combat-ready.

"I just want to know what you're really after! Konan, where's Nagato? Why does Yahiko have the Rinnegan? What happened back then?"

"And the Akatsuki... why has it become such a terrorist organization now?!"

"It seems you've already learned quite a bit, sensei. We were too naive back then, and that brought disaster upon us!"

"As for the Akatsuki and the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path, they're just to strengthen our power. We only want the Land of Rain to have the right to say no to the other great villages!"

The Akatsuki's plan hadn't even started yet—members hadn't gathered, let alone begun collecting tailed beasts. So Konan naturally wouldn't spill all the details.

If she revealed that the Akatsuki aimed to collect all tailed beasts, combine them into the Ten-Tails, and use its terrifying power to end war, the Five Great Shinobi Villages would send a coalition force to the Land of Rain within a week.

Under these circumstances, Konan used some vague phrasing, but Jiraiya immediately frowned:

"No... impossible. I don't believe you'd gather so many dangerous ninja just for the Land of Rain's safety!"

"What exactly are you planning?"

Konan let out a long breath, her expression somewhat relieved:

"As expected, I can't hide anything from Jiraiya-sensei!"

"For just the Land of Rain, a single pair of Rinnegan would be enough! It's because I know my own students that I'm certain your goal isn't just the Land of Rain!"

Every ninja has what's called capacity—or rather, ambition or a goal.

Jiraiya knew his three students well. If they hadn't died, they were destined to make a mark on the entire ninja world stage.

Either bring peace to the world or bring destruction—either way, there was no option of quietly guarding the Land of Rain and living peacefully.

Because Jiraiya himself had chosen his students based on that standard!

The Sage of the Toads' prophecy of the Child of Prophecy had set Jiraiya's standards absurdly high. Likewise, anyone who became his student, if they didn't die young, would inevitably have a major impact on the world.

Konan, taken in as a side student, was an exception. But Nagato and Yahiko—as long as they lived, Jiraiya believed they wouldn't give up on influencing the world.

Yahiko's nature demanded it, and Nagato's Rinnegan destined him to never hide in the Land of Rain forever.

"Enough, Jiraiya-sensei!"

With a cold snort, a numb-faced ninja with orange hair and iron studs all over his face slowly walked down from above.

Behind him followed several other strange figures with the same appearance, same hair color, and same iron studs on their faces. All wore numb expressions, their most striking feature being their purple Rinnegan.

"Rinnegan... six of them!?"

"How is that possible!?"

The ninja under Uchiha Shūichi panicked, and Jiraiya's eyes showed confusion:

"What's going on? Why does Nagato's eye appear on you? And what about them? How are there so many Rinnegan?"

"You ask too many questions, Jiraiya-sensei. And do you think I'd reveal my own secrets?"

Pain said coldly. At that moment, Uchiha Shūichi spoke up:

"Jiraiya-sama, they're not alive! They're all human puppets!"

"My Sharingan can tell—there's no breath from their mouths or noses, no heartbeat in their chests. They move only because of the Chakra transmitted through those black rods!"

In an instant, Uchiha Shūichi relayed what he could to Jiraiya. Jiraiya's expression shifted as he looked at the Deva Path Pain:

"Human puppets?! So that means Yahiko is already dead? This is just his corpse... Are you the one controlling the puppets, Nagato?"

After a moment of silence, the Deva Path Pain spoke slowly:

"Yes, it's me, Jiraiya-sensei!"

"What happened to the Akatsuki? How did Yahiko die?!"

"You should ask your own Konoha Village, Jiraiya-sensei!!"

Even though the Deva Path Pain still wore that numb expression and his voice sounded unchanged, Jiraiya felt a chill run through him, sensing the deep hatred beneath the flat words.

"Konoha!? What does Konoha have to do with it? Did someone from Konoha kill Yahiko?"

"I heard it was Hanzo of the Salamander who wiped out the Akatsuki back then..."

"Not just Hanzo of the Salamander!"

Konan cut Jiraiya off, her gaze turning icy:

"Also the Root Organization from Konoha, including its leader, Shimura Danzō—they destroyed the Akatsuki together!"