After hearing the entire story, Naruto questioned Nagato, "According to your definition of peace, by creating powerful weapons, can you guarantee that the world will truly fear them? What if it ignites more greed and sparks more wars, then what? Even if wars can be ended with weapons, how much bloodshed must occur to completely master these weapons?"
Naruto's words undoubtedly struck a chord with Nagato, who froze for a moment, clearly having not considered this question.
"You're twisting words. If they can be made, they can certainly be controlled. In this cursed world, true peace will never exist! Teacher Jiraiya's ideal peace is all fiction!"
Then, Naruto took out a book from his pocket, Jiraiya's first novel, "The Tale of the Utterly Unprincipled Ninja."
"Then I will break that curse. If peace truly exists, I will grasp it tightly. I will never give up!"
Hearing Naruto speak these words, Nagato was startled. These were lines from the novel, and also words he had once said to Jiraiya.
Naruto held the book and touched its cover. "This is the first novel written by the Perverted Sage. At the end of the novel, the Perverted Sage wrote the name of the disciple who inspired him. It's you, Nagato!"
Nagato's heart began to waver. He then retorted, "What makes you so sure you won't change? Even if more pain comes in the future, will you still be able to hold onto yourself?"
Naruto recalled his past: being hated by everyone, being alone, finally finding companions only to lose them, now losing his master, and his village destroyed.
"I've experienced much pain, but I've still come this far. Along the way, I gained recognition from Teacher Iruka, Teacher Kakashi, Sasuke, Sakura, and the Perverted Sage. I will strive to become Hokage and bring peace to the world."
"Even if unknown pain strikes in the future, I will never change, because the title of this novel is 'Naruto'!"
"Naruto is the legacy the Perverted Sage left me. I will inherit my master's will and continue the sequel. If I cease to believe in myself because of this, it becomes another book. If the protagonist changes, then it's no longer Naruto!"
"I don't have the talent for writing. The sequel is my path to survival. No matter how great the pain ahead, I will walk it firmly. This is Naruto!"
Naruto's "talk no jutsu" concluded. Nagato was still struggling internally, and it seemed like being persuaded by Naruto was only a matter of time.
"You are truly an incredible fellow. You remind me of my past self. I couldn't believe in myself, but I have a premonition that you will walk a different path from mine. Therefore, I will believe in you! Naruto Uzumaki!"
"However, before that, I have one more thing to do. Konan, bring Ryoichi here."
Hearing the name Ryoichi, Naruto was startled, not knowing what Nagato intended.
Ryoichi was also curious why he was suddenly summoned. But since he was called, there must be something to be instructed.
"I'm here. What do you need me for?"
Ryoichi emerged directly from space and appeared before the three. All three were surprised, realizing Ryoichi had been eavesdropping all along.
"Ryoichi, I know you have connections with Leaf Village ninjas. The Hokage is your master. I want to know why you joined the Akatsuki," Nagato asked Ryoichi, panting. This was also a question Naruto wanted to know.
"Didn't I tell you? This is my journey. My journey needs to be painted with brilliant colors, which is why I joined the Akatsuki. Why are you asking this? It doesn't seem relevant to our conversation, does it?"
Upon hearing this, Nagato slowly raised his hands, formed hand seals, and then clasped them together.
"Chibaku Tensei!"
After Nagato finished, Ryoichi's body uncontrollably flew into the sky, and then countless debris enveloped him.
"So that's it. What Nagato is doing is the same as what Itachi wanted to do. One for Sasuke, one for Naruto. Because I can individually extract tailed beasts, they want to seal me. And for good measure, they're using my body as the gravitational center. A bit troublesome!"
Within Nagato's Chibaku Tensei, Ryoichi understood the reason. They were afraid he would obey Obito's orders and capture Naruto.
"Nagato! What are you doing? Ryoichi is Grandma Tsunade's disciple!" Naruto wanted to save Ryoichi but was powerless.
After Nagato completely sealed Ryoichi, he lowered his head to look at Naruto. "This person is different from you. Without a clear purpose, acting purely for amusement, he will eventually affect the ninja world."
Then Nagato continued to form hand seals. "Gedo: Rinne Tensei no Jutsu!"
In the center of the Chasm of Konoha, a Yama-like figure emerged from the ground, opened its mouth, and countless green chakra spread to those killed by Pain. Gradually, the corpses came back to life.
Nagato, his chakra and life force depleted, his red hair turned white, and he grew old. Due to the use of Chibaku Tensei, Nagato passed away without even leaving a dying word.
Konan's paper-made large tree also dispersed in the wind at this time. Konan wrapped Nagato's body in paper, then went to the body of the Deva Path Pain, which was Yahiko's body, intending to take them back to the Hidden Rain Village.
As a farewell, Konan folded a bundle of paper flowers and handed them to Naruto. "I hope you become a flower of hope that never withers!"
...
Meanwhile, Ryoichi, sealed within the Chibaku Tensei, was at the center, unable to move even an inch, completely unable to break free from the seal.
"It seems Chibaku Tensei is not just a simple seal with rocks. Nagato, that guy really guessed right that I'm wary of sealing jutsu. But you underestimated me!"
"Deva Path! Data Conversion, Reincarnation!"
Immediately, Ryoichi's body began to transform into a rock. Then his soul reincarnated onto another rock, and he slowly began to escape the Chibaku Tensei this way.
Reaching the outermost layer, a small rock fell from the Chibaku Tensei. The moment it landed, Ryoichi transformed back into an infant and then slowly grew back to his original appearance.
"That was tiring! To reincarnate from the inside out, one wrong move and I could have ended up in another world."
Ryoichi shook his shoulders, hopped in place, stretching his body, then took out a haori and put it on.
Just as Ryoichi was about to release Yamato, Yamato also returned from outside. Ryoichi suddenly had an idea.
"Mind Transfer Jutsu!"
Ryoichi's consciousness suddenly transferred into Yamato's body, and he then controlled Yamato's body, arriving at the center of Konoha's giant pit.
"Earth Style! Villa Collection Jutsu!"
Trees sprouted from underground, forming numerous houses on the vast ground. Tsunade's house, Ino's house, and Naruto's house were all slightly modified by Ryoichi. The ruins left by Shinra Tensei were also buried underground by Ryoichi. In fact, there wasn't much left, as the two Chibaku Tensei had mostly cleared the area.
The houses of the three were large villas with backyards, and the interior decorations were the best available in this world. Naruto benefited the most, as his small room had been expanded into an entire mansion. To ensure Naruto wouldn't be confused, Ryoichi wrote Naruto's name on the front door of the house.
Before long, Konoha Village was perfectly replicated by Ryoichi, with only three houses being slightly more luxurious.
"I'll be living with my parents in the future. How can we not have a big house!"
Having finished all this, Ryoichi's consciousness returned to his main body, leaving Yamato unconscious in the center. As for how Yamato would explain it later, that was no longer Ryoichi's concern.
"Ryo Un, how was it? Did you feel like you could control my body just now?" Ryoichi asked Ryo Un about his experience.
Ryo Un shrugged helplessly in the sea of stars. "I went with you into that Yamato's body. Don't use this jutsu again. I don't want any contact with other bodies!"