And in this world, although Jiraiya had seen the Six Paths of Pain before, he knew absolutely nothing about their abilities!
Still, with his wealth of experience and the help of the two toads from Mount Myōboku, Fukasaku and Shima, he managed to destroy four of Pain's bodies in succession.
Having four of the Six Paths of Pain destroyed in a row by Jiraiya made Nagato feel humiliated, and he lost all restraint!
Nagato's overall strength already surpassed Jiraiya's. On top of that, Jiraiya knew little about Nagato's abilities, while Nagato knew his former teacher's abilities quite well!
With that gap in strength and information, the one who already held the advantage launched an all-out attack first, pushing the losing side into an increasingly desperate position.
Under those circumstances, Nagato utterly thrashed Jiraiya. That fine student of his drove several large iron rods into his back! He nearly died on the spot!
But as for the final finishing blow, had Nagato softened at the last moment, or had he wanted Jiraiya to slowly feel his life ebb away?
Nagato kicked Jiraiya off the tower and into the deep sea below. Swept away by the waves, Jiraiya vanished into the vast ocean! Whether he was alive or dead, no one knew!
Just before losing consciousness, Jiraiya sent out the intelligence he had gathered on the Six Paths of Pain, along with his suspicion that another body existed beyond those six-or rather, that all six were merely puppets, with a real body hidden in the shadows controlling them. That person was Nagato, the shyest and kindest of his three students!
Jiraiya also reported that Nagato, known to them as the Six Paths of Pain, had never let up in his pursuit of the tailed beasts, not even for a moment.
Moreover, according