"Make the world feel pain…"
Nagato, who had been furious moments before, suddenly stopped mid-thought. A memory of young Yahiko's words flashed through his mind:
"If we want everyone to understand each other, then we should also make them feel the pain we have felt."
This statement, which even Yahiko himself once thought impossible to realize, now struck Nagato's heart like a heavy hammer.
In a world where people never understood one another, if you wanted war to stop and true peace to come, perhaps you must first make the other side feel pain. Give those who've never tasted suffering some of that pain so they can understand the hearts and the tearing agony of those who have — only then will people voluntarily recognize the value of peace. Only then would the peace Yahiko imagined truly arrive.
Nagato didn't notice that the Rinnegan in his eyes was emitting ripples; the source of that interference was none other than Madara, hidden deep underground. Through the connection to the Rinnegan, Madara was subtly corrupting Nagato's will, nudging him faster toward darkness.
At that moment Tobi spoke up in time:
"I am like you. I too have tasted the pain of losing comrades and I too long for peace, yet no one understood me — until I discovered you, awakened with the legendary Sage's eyes. I believe that if we work together, we can carry out this plan and bring true peace to this hopeless shinobi world."
Madara's influence and Tobi's words drove Nagato deeper into a feverish expression. He raised his head sharply; the eerie Rinnegan fixed on Tobi.
"Tell me your plan," he demanded.
Tobi smiled and began:
"You've no doubt heard how, when the Five Great Shinobi Villages were formed, the First Hokage Hashirama once distributed the nine tailed beasts among the villages — that established their power. My plan is exactly that: using the power of your Sage-eyed Rinnegan, we will gather the nine tailed beasts back together.
"When the power of all the tailed beasts belongs to Akatsuki, Akatsuki will possess the strength to rule the world. With the nine tailed beasts' might, we can make the Five Great Villages — the ones that have caused suffering — feel that suffering…"
Before Tobi could finish, Nagato, excited, cut in:
"Furthermore, from now on, whenever anyone anywhere in this shinobi world tries to start a war, Akatsuki will be the first to crush it and make those who would wage war feel pain. In that way, Yahiko's ideal can be realized!"
Tobi watched Nagato and said, "I've laid out the plan clearly. Now tell me — what is your answer?"
Nagato looked at Tobi. Though the man was wrapped in mysteries, Nagato's mind was filled with visions of gathering tailed beasts and achieving world peace; he had no time to care about the man's true identity. After a moment's hesitation he extended his hands with effort:
"May our cooperation be fruitful."
After they shook hands, Tobi said, "The reagent I injected should restore your strength quickly. Once your body recovers, work to build Akatsuki's power. Without sufficient strength, capturing tailed beasts won't be easy. When Akatsuki is capable of capturing them, I will come to you again."
With that, Tobi took Hiruko and left the medical room, leaving Nagato alone staring at Yahiko's corpse.
Yahiko, I have finally found a way to realize your dream. Wait for it — that day will not be far off.
…
Three days later, the door to the medical room was suddenly pushed open, startling Konan, who had been waiting anxiously outside.
Hearing the sound of the door opening, Konan instinctively looked up. But when she saw the person pushing the door open, she was shocked by the sight before her:
"Ya—Yahiko? You're alive?"
Although Yahiko's appearance was extremely strange, Konan didn't have time to examine it. She lunged at him, desperate to feel his warmth.
But to her surprise, Yahiko's body was completely cold, without a trace of warmth.
Just as Konan felt puzzled, this "Yahiko" suddenly spoke:
"I'm sorry, Konan. This is not the real Yahiko. Or rather, the Yahiko before you is not the original Yahiko anymore."
Konan looked up blankly, only now noticing that besides the many strange black rods covering Yahiko's body, his eyes had also taken the shape of the Rinnegan.
Konan covered her mouth in surprise:
"Yahiko, your eyes... No, you are... you are Nagato!?"
Realization hit her. She circled past the figure and looked deeper into the medical room. There, she finally saw Nagato, hunched and weak, giving her a faint smile.
"Nagato, what's going on…?"
Nagato smiled and explained:
"As you see, this is one of the Rinnegan's powers. This is what I accomplished when I awoke and studied the Rinnegan's abilities. I bestowed part of the Rinnegan's power onto Yahiko's corpse. That way, Yahiko can still lead Akatsuki toward peace as he did before. Whether in life or in death, Akatsuki will have only one leader—Yahiko!"
The news struck Konan like a blow; it took her a long moment to recover. She murmured, "So… Nagato, you want to make Yahiko's dream come true in this way?"
"Exactly. Yahiko's dream was to witness peace in the Land of Rain and throughout the shinobi world. Since he could not accomplish it in life, I will help him achieve it."
"But… what about you? What will you do then?"
Nagato forced a bitter smile. "As you can see, ever since I summoned the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path that day, these things have appeared on my back. That's both a blessing and a curse. The blessing is I can use those rods to control Yahiko and let him continue to lead Akatsuki. The curse is that I'll have great difficulty moving like a normal person. From now on, I am destined to remain behind the scenes."
Nagato told Konan, piece by piece, the plan he and Tobi had agreed on. At the end he said:
"This is the way I've come to see, the way to realize Yahiko's dream. What do you think? Besides this, I plan to make other puppets like Yahiko and distribute the Rinnegan's power among them. I intend to call them the Six Paths of Pain — Yahiko will be the Deva Path. With the Six Paths of Pain, Akatsuki will surely grow stronger. Once we've amassed enough strength, we can make Yahiko's dream come true."
...
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