Finding the Base

"Shut up!"

Jiraiya's mention of Yahiko infuriated Nagato.

In Nagato's eyes, Yahiko's death was inextricably linked to Jiraiya's naive remarks.

It was Yahiko's death that made Nagato completely reject Jiraiya's ideas.

It is impossible for people to understand each other; no one can truly empathize with another person's experiences.

As Nagato's expression changed, Jiraiya, Konan, and the ninjas following behind Jiraiya all paled.

"Nagato!"

"Commander-in-Chief!"

Nagato, having fully unleashed the power of the Asura Path, unleashed a barrage of fire upon Jiraiya.

Konan couldn't bear to watch Jiraiya die before her eyes. Instead of attacking Nagato, she shot out countless sheets of paper, wrapping Jiraiya up layer upon layer.

The giant cocoon made of white paper was knocked away. The Konoha Ninja, who were ostensibly guarding but actually monitoring, could not simply stand by Jiraiya do nothing.

After embracing the giant cocoon with both hands, he left behind a harsh remark and slunk away.

"Amegakure, you just wait!"

In the command center, the medical-nin opened the paper cocoon, revealing Jiraiya inside.

He suffered extensive burns all over his body, with countless tiny cavities. Almost all his internal organs were damaged to varying degrees, and not a single bone was intact.

If Jiraiya hadn't sensed the danger and dodged the central area, and if Konan hadn't helped block some of the damage, Jiraiya would probably be dead.

The Asura Path is the most powerful of the Six Paths of Pain, second only to the Deva Path.

After retrieving Nagato's original body, Jiraiya was able to unleash his maximum power anytime, anywhere Nagato attacked in anger, and Jiraiya's survival was Jiraiya and tough flesh.

It's not that Jiraiya is really weak. If he were to enter Sage Mode, Jiraiya against Nagato in his current form. However, Six Paths of Pain abilities are almost all instantaneous.

Against Nagato, Jiraiya have time to enter Sage Mode; he'd be lucky to even be able to Hand Seals and unleash a Ninjutsu.

Hand seals are ultimately for the weak; the strong never Hand Seals in battles.

It's a contest of instantaneous attack capabilities and Taijutsu between the two sides.

Ren quickly learned of what had happened within the Allied Forces and was awaiting Ren's instructions on how to deal with Amegakure.

Ren is indeed no longer in Konoha, but that doesn't mean he's truly abandoned everything and stopped caring about anything.

Whether it was Konoha or the Allied Forces, Ren remained fully aware of everything.

"Heavenly Eye" is not only a spy satellite, but also has all the functions of a communication satellite.

Having learned what happened, Ren was indifferent to Jiraiya's usual reckless behavior, but for the sake of Konoha's reputation, he ultimately had to take action against Amegakure.

The resource points originally allocated to Amegakure were reduced by several percent, and were given to Konoha as compensation.

This kind of insignificant punishment didn't bother Nagato, nor did it bother Amegakure.

As the only Amegakure in the Shinobi World where ninjas control a nation, Amegakure was never particularly interested in these things. If it weren't for Nagato's desire to find his own path to peace within the Shinobi Alliance...

Amegakure might not participate in this operation.

After resolving a minor issue, Ren became more concerned about something else.

This information wasn't obtained through Konoha's channels, but rather from a message delivered by White Zetsu.

Ren wandered the Shinobi World, using only the Transformation Technique to transform into an ordinary-looking young man.

The White Zetsu, who are scattered throughout the Shinobi World, had already discovered Ren's whereabouts.

Not long ago, White Zetsu brought Ren a message: Obito had started causing trouble in the Land of Demons.

Black Zetsu informed Obito of his actions primarily to prevent Ren from misunderstanding.

This action is a precaution for Ren. If anything goes wrong later, it has nothing to do with me, Black Zetsu. Please don't blame me or go looking for trouble with the Tailed Beast.

Ren sent White Zetsu with a simple message: "Understood."

The important thing is not the matter itself, but Black Zetsu's attitude.

It seems that the threat Fugaku brought last time was quite effective; Black Zetsu is much more obedient now and understands who his "big brother" is.

Although Ren knew about Obito's scheme, he didn't take it too seriously and left it to the Shinobi Alliance to handle.

The Land of Demons borders the Land of Earth, so the Shinobi Alliance won't have to worry about having nothing to do in the future.

Ren, who had been making a near-complete sweep through the Shinobi World, had now reached the territory of the Land of Rice Paddies.

Ren slowed his pace slightly, intending to meet some acquaintances.

It wasn't Kakuzu and Sasori, after all, so much time has passed, Kakuzu has long since moved on to explore another market.

Having mastered core sales skills, Kakuzu had long since conquered the markets of one small country after another.

Kakuzu did indeed catch a good time; the Shinobi Alliance established by Ren made the difficulty of defeating Kakuzu much lower.

Many ninja villages have abandoned their original countries, and even those that remain in their homelands tend to ignore the nobles' pleas for help.

Following the information from Konoha, Ren quickly arrived at a flat area that appeared to be devoid of anything except for low vegetation.

Although there was nothing there, and even using the Sharingan couldn't detect anything amiss, Ren was certain that Orochimaru, or rather, Yun Chi's base, was nearby.

This is why Ren places such importance on research; often, technological breakthroughs bring a devastating impact to others.

The Shinobi World's inhabitants, unaware of the 'Orochimaru Heavenly Eye' hanging above their heads, did not Ren's past life.

Ninjas are human too; they can't live on dirt. Konoha had already figured out that Orochimaru's base was nearby.

And that was indeed the case; Ren simply wandered around the area for a while and soon met the person he was supposed to meet.

"Lord Hokage, Lord Orochimaru requests your presence at the base."