A choice was laid before Jiraiya: Should he stop now, take the captive Konan, and return to the village? Or should he return to the Village Hidden in the Rain and try to contact Nagato again?
The former option meant entrusting hope to the Fourth Hokage, Minato Namikaze, counting on him to successfully negotiate with Nagato now that he held Konan as a captive. As for the outcome and direction, that was beyond Jiraiya's control or prediction.
The latter option, returning to the Village Hidden in the Rain, inevitably carried immense risk. Jiraiya didn't know if Nagato, the wielder of the Rinnegan, had used up all of his trump cards.
Even after defeating the Six Paths of Pain, Jiraiya had momentarily believed the enemy was no longer a threat. That careless judgment had nearly cost him his life; if not for Orochimaru's arriving in time, he would have perished right then.
And afterwards, Nagato summoned the terrifying Gedo Mazo (Heretical Demon Statue). Without the help of the Flying Thunder God Technique, he might not have been able to escape the Village Hidden in the Rain smoothly on his own.
Based on their judgment, Nagato was bound to be weakened after summoning that Demon Statue, but this was ultimately just their speculation. Furthermore, Jiraiya didn't know if Nagato had any other hidden reserves left.
Conversely, both Jiraiya's and Hyuga Shinichi's jutsu had been exposed to Nagato. Returning to the Village Hidden in the Rain a second time, the opponent would surely be wary of their techniques.
The "one-shot kill" attribute of the Flying Thunder God had already been significantly compromised in Nagato's presence.
From Shinichi's words, Jiraiya could tell that the young man didn't want to continue the fight, which meant Shinichi's judgment on the situation was to "call it quits."
But upon closer thought, Jiraiya felt a twinge of unwillingness. If they left now, they would give Nagato too much time to recuperate.
The next time they met, not only would Nagato himself have recovered, but the Six Paths of Pain could also be replaced. If Nagato could be brought to the negotiating table, it would be fine, but if he was determined to act against Konoha, the village would face enormous trouble.
The resulting casualties would be incalculable.
Jiraiya felt uncertain about Nagato's true nature.
However, Hyuga Shinichi's assessment of the situation was completely different from Jiraiya's. While he didn't know if Nagato's state of mind would change after today's events, there was one thing Shinichi was certain of:
Nagato's strength would not recover to its peak state as Jiraiya feared.
Ever since he began using the Gedo Mazo, Nagato's chakra and life force had been gradually dwindling.
Shinichi had already confirmed this with his Byakugan. Even without the Byakugan, Jiraiya could have realized this if he had calmed down and thought about it.
When they first met, Nagato himself had already lost the ability to move, and his emaciated, weak appearance was undeniable—it was the look of someone whose life force had been drained.
Ultimately, Nagato was not the original owner of the Rinnegan. Although his Uzumaki bloodline allowed him to control the Rinnegan to some extent, the price he had to pay was enormous.
Moreover, the Gedo Mazo was not easy to control; that thing was the Ten-Tails' husk. How could manipulating such a thing be simple?
In fact, Nagato's life had entered a countdown the day he awakened the Rinnegan's power.
With the tremendous toll taken by today's battle, Nagato had very little life force left to be squeezed out.
To Shinichi, such a person could hardly pose a significant threat to Konoha. His greatest role now was to guard the Rinnegan until his last breath.
Shinichi guessed that Obito Uchiha must not be dead. As long as he was alive, he would try to rope Nagato to his side. His plan required Nagato to use the Samsara of Heavenly Life Technique (Rinne Rebirth) on Madara Uchiha.
But all of this was predicated on the Masked Man truly being Madara Uchiha and the Eye of the Moon Plan still having a chance of success.
Now, the existence of the Akatsuki had been exposed, Konan had been captured by Konoha, and Nagato's life was also nearing its end.
What would be the greatest desire in Nagato's heart at this moment?
Suppose Konoha promised to release Konan and offered to support her in becoming the new leader of the Village Hidden in the Rain after Nagato's death. Could this soothe Nagato's restless heart?
In Hyuga Shinichi's estimation, all of this was negotiable.
Because he knew that Nagato had not completely "blackened."
However, Shinichi did not reveal his thoughts to Jiraiya.
Although he was the Hyuga clan's heir, at the end of the day, he was just the young heir of the Hyuga clan.
This seemingly contradictory statement was actually not contradictory at all.
This was a decision that could determine Konoha's future, and no matter the result, it was not a responsibility that the current Hyuga Shinichi could bear.
Jiraiya, as the Hokage's teacher, one of the Sannin, and also Nagato's teacher, was naturally the one qualified to make this choice.
"Swish, swish, swish—"
The rain gradually lessened, and a rustling sound came from the woods.
Jiraiya sat in front of the bonfire, staring blankly into the flames. Just as he felt somewhat lost, there was suddenly some movement inside the tent.
The unconscious Konan slowly woke up. Opening her eyes, she saw an unfamiliar tent ceiling.
Rising slowly, Konan softly coughed, then felt a wave of intense weakness wash over her. At the tent entrance, the people guarding the bonfire all heard the movement inside and turned to look at Konan.
Unfamiliar Konoha ninja...
And...
Konan's gaze swept over Kakashi, Shisui, and the others. After a brief pause on Hyuga Shinichi, it settled on Jiraiya.
By now, she understood her situation.
Konan's eyes instantly turned cold. The moment her hands crossed in front of her chest, she heard Shinichi's cool voice:
"Don't do anything unnecessary. My gentle fist has locked your chakra; you cannot perform jutsu."
"Extra actions will only make your situation more difficult."
With that, Hyuga Shinichi glanced at Jiraiya beside him, turned his head, and said no more.
The rest was up to Jiraiya...
If he couldn't even handle Konan, who had a relatively fragile psychological defense, then Jiraiya wouldn't need to struggle with whether or not to return to the Village Hidden in the Rain.
Hearing that Konan couldn't use jutsu, Kakashi and Gai's vigilance lessened somewhat. Shisui looked at the soaked Konan and quietly poured a cup of hot tea. He then slowly stood up, walked into the tent, and offered it to Konan.
"It's cold. Have some tea."
Without waiting for Konan to refuse, Shisui placed the tea on the small side table next to her and returned to the bonfire.
A chill wind blew into the tent, causing Konan to sneeze. Noticing Jiraiya's somewhat gentle gaze, she turned her head and stared blankly at the hot tea.
The rain outside the tent was pattering down. The white noise of the fine rain entering the forest, coupled with the soft crackling of the burning bonfire, calmed Konan's initially tense heart.
Gently picking up the teacup, feeling the warmth in her palms, Konan's eyes slowly lost focus, and her thoughts drifted back to the past.
The easiest time of her life was when she, Nagato, and Yahiko were learning from Jiraiya.
Before that, she was a war orphan wandering the streets of the Land of Rain, surviving by stealing and scavenging. Since they met Jiraiya, they had what they called a "home."
The wooden house Jiraiya built was the anchor for their hearts back then.
Although the Land of Rain was constantly rainy and the weather was always gloomy and cold, whenever they returned to that wooden house, they could always feel warmth—something Konan had never experienced in her childhood.
Even after Jiraiya left and Yahiko formed the Akatsuki, those kinds of days never returned.
At this moment, holding the warm tea in her palms, seeing Jiraiya's gentle gaze outside the tent, and hearing the rustling rain in the forest, Konan couldn't help but recall all the times she had lived with Jiraiya.
Perhaps only by completely losing her strength and being in this kind of environment could Konan's heart truly calm down. As past experiences churned in her mind, a strong sense of grievance welled up within her.
"Jiraiya-sensei...."
Konan murmured, her eyes already filled with tears.
"..."
Sensing Konan's emotions, Jiraiya sighed softly and spoke earnestly:
"I'm sorry... Konan."
"I wasn't there for you all when my students needed their teacher the most..."
"I'm sorry..."
Jiraiya felt indebted to Nagato, Yahiko, and Konan. This feeling of guilt intensified after learning about their various experiences.
Jiraiya was a genuine person. Facing Konan, he disregarded his pride and expressed the debt in his heart.
Konan's emotions were extremely internal. After waking up, she didn't speak much with Jiraiya, only sitting on the bed, somewhat lost in thought as she watched Shinichi, Shisui, Kakashi, and the others interact.
The group was preparing food, chatting, and laughing around the bonfire, perhaps because the mission had made some progress.
This scene reminded Konan of the past again.
Jiraiya did not disturb Konan; he simply took his dry clothes from his pack and placed them beside her, then lowered half of the tent flap for a small amount of privacy.
Inside the tent, Konan took off her soaked Akatsuki cloak and changed into Jiraiya's dry kimono.
As a ninja, Konan only wore a quick-drying mesh undershirt beneath her cloak. After changing, the icy chill of the rain-soaked clothes naturally disappeared, and an indescribable sense of warmth surged through her heart.
Konan did not leave the tent; she just sat quietly inside, reminiscing.
The people outside the tent had no intention of disturbing Konan. The person inside was lost in memory, and the people outside were resting on their own.
At this point, Jiraiya also seemed to have made up his mind not to return to the Village Hidden in the Rain. He felt that giving Nagato some time to calm down, think, and process the current situation was not a bad choice.
At the same time, Jiraiya wrote the investigation report for this incursion into the Village Hidden in the Rain on behalf of Hyuga Shinichi.
This investigation report had to be submitted to the Hokage, and Jiraiya felt he understood the members of the Akatsuki better than Shinichi.
In the report, Jiraiya did not hide the fact that the Akatsuki's leader was his former student. He provided an objective assessment of Nagato's personality, strength, and the Akatsuki organization's current combat capabilities.
He also included the existence of the captive in the report, fully informing Minato of the relationship between Konan and Nagato, as well as her relationship with himself.
Jiraiya wrote a very detailed report, telling Minato everything in great detail, hoping that Minato would make the most correct choice after seeing the report.
Yes, Jiraiya ultimately handed the decision to Minato.
He had great trust in this student, a trust that even surpassed his trust in himself.
After the report was written, it was sent back to Konoha through Mount Myoboku. At the same time, with Jiraiya's report being transmitted via Mount Myoboku, the two Sages, Shima and Fukasaku, understood that Jiraiya was now out of danger.
The investigation report transmitted through Mount Myoboku quickly reached Minato's hands.
The time it took was only a few minutes; although not as fast as the Flying Thunder God, it was fast enough.
Minato, who received the report, was working in the Hokage's office. Sunlight shone into the room through the window.
Unlike the climate of the Land of Rain, Konoha had distinct seasons and abundant sunshine.
Although Minato was busy with official duties, a communication from Mount Myoboku was naturally of paramount importance and needed to be reviewed immediately.
After opening the scroll and carefully reading it, Minato understood that the report was sent by Shinichi's investigation team.
Although the report was written by Jiraiya, Minato was not surprised.
Instead, he was quite surprised by the rapid progress Shinichi and his team made in investigating the secretive Akatsuki organization.
In his initial prediction, even with Jiraiya's help, the investigation wouldn't yield results so quickly. In Minato's mind, he had actually been mentally prepared to wait several years for a conclusion.
As Minato read through the report, his brow gradually furrowed.
The situation with this organization was somewhat beyond his imagination.
Was the leader of the Akatsuki his teacher's former student? The power of the Rinnegan had forced back two of the Sannin.
However, there was a lot of good news. The capabilities of the Akatsuki's leader were mostly figured out, and Shinichi had also captured an important figure in the Akatsuki—the person was Nagato's childhood friend, which Minato saw as a crucial bargaining chip.
Furthermore, in this battle, Shinichi had even defeated Obito Uchiha. Although his life or death could not be confirmed, in Minato's view, Obito's threat to Konoha was diminishing.
Shinichi, the Hyuga clan's super genius, was growing rapidly. Obito was already unable to pose a major threat to Konoha, and in a few more years, the threat would be even smaller.
Konoha's younger generation was growing strong, and the village's strength would only continue to increase!
By the end of the report, Minato already had a plan for handling the situation.
Without hesitation, Minato immediately used the Summoning Jutsu to summon a toad. After sending a message to Mount Myoboku, Minato was Reverse Summoned by the toads to Mount Myoboku.
He planned to personally go to the Village Hidden in the Rain and negotiate with the young man named Nagato.
He would use his sincerity to ease Nagato's hatred.
...
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