Chapter 247 : Truth Revealed!!

"Konan, Jiraiya-sensei and Yahiko are here. Go out and greet them."

"Okay."

In the Hidden Rain Village, Jiraiya and Yahiko somehow managed to get two umbrellas and were strolling down the street proudly.

"Jiraiya-sensei, is this really okay?"

"Don't worry, it's been so many years, and the Hidden Rain Village has long been shaped by Nagato. It won't be long before he sends someone to meet us."

Since entering the Hidden Rain Village, Jiraiya had noticed that someone was watching them from the shadows.

But he didn't bring it up. He walked proudly on the streets with Yahiko, as if making sure that no one could miss him.

It couldn't be helped.

He didn't know where Nagato and Konan were, so he had to expose himself to let them know that he and Yahiko had arrived and that they should hurry up and send someone to pick them up.

Sure enough, Jiraiya and Yahiko didn't wander around the streets for long. Konan, wearing an Akatsuki uniform and a white paper rose on her head, appeared in front of them.

"Yo, Konan, it's been years. You've grown into quite a fine woman."

Having lived with Jiraiya for three years, Konan knew exactly what kind of person he was.

Hearing Jiraiya's somewhat teasing words, she didn't show any extra expression. Instead, she suppressed her excitement and looked at Yahiko, saying, "Follow me. Nagato is waiting for you."

Yahiko, initially happy to see Konan, felt a bit strange due to her expressionless face. For a moment, he was lost in thought.

"Don't think too much. Let's go see Nagato."

After Jiraiya-sensei patted his shoulder, Yahiko snapped back to his senses.

"It's been so many years... I wonder what Nagato is like now."

Hearing this, Jiraiya sighed and said, "I hope you won't be scared by what he looks like now."

Through the light screen video, Jiraiya had already learned about Nagato's current situation.

Maintaining the image of a skeleton, Jiraiya could hardly imagine the kind of pain Nagato was enduring.

The feeling of his own chakra being constantly drained by the demonic statue behind him, just thinking about it could send chills down anyone's spine.

Yet, Nagato had endured for so many years.

One could not help but say, in order to fulfill Yahiko's dream, both Nagato and Konan had sacrificed so much.

With Konan guiding them, Jiraiya and Yahiko quickly arrived at the Akatsuki base, and in a certain room deep inside, they met Nagato.

"This..."

As soon as Yahiko saw Nagato, he was, as expected, stunned by Nagato's emaciated figure.

He had imagined many scenarios for their reunion, but never did he expect their meeting would be like this.

"Welcome back, Yahiko."

Seeing Yahiko, Nagato finally showed a rare smile.

"Nagato, what's happened to you?"

"As you can see, this is the price I have to pay for summoning the 'Gedo Statue.'"

Gedo Statue?

Upon hearing Nagato refer to the God Tree as the Gedo Statue, Jiraiya instantly furrowed his brows.

The light screen video had clearly stated that this thing was called the God Tree, so why did Nagato call it the Gedo Statue?

Was Nagato tricked by Tobi and the others, or was the God Tree actually also called the Gedo Statue?

Lacking enough information, Jiraiya couldn't figure out the key to it all.

However, these were minor details. Jiraiya gave it a brief thought and decided not to focus on it, instead directly speaking to Nagato.

"Nagato, do you know that your Rinnegan isn't actually your own?"

At these words, Nagato, Konan, and Yahiko all stared at Jiraiya in shock, not understanding why he would say that.

Especially Nagato. He had had these eyes since he was very young and had always believed the Rinnegan was something he awakened on his own.

Now, hearing someone say that these eyes weren't his own, if this person wasn't Jiraiya, Nagato would have shown him what happens when you anger him.

"Jiraiya-sensei, why would you say that? Do you have any proof?"

Jiraiya has always been unreliable in small matters, but when it comes to big things, he's never dropped the ball.

Since he dared to say that, it must mean he has some evidence that the three of them didn't know about.

"The source of the intel is a bit complicated, so it's hard for me to explain. All you need to know is that this pair of Rinnegan eyes does not belong to Nagato, but to Uchiha Madara."

"Uchiha Madara? The masked man?"

As soon as she heard the name, Konan thought of the mysterious masked man.

"No, the masked man you're talking about should be Uchiha Obito."

"Huh? Uchiha Obito? Didn't he die?"

With the help of the Fourth Hokage, Minato Namikaze, and Leaf Village technician Kakashi Hatake, Uchiha Obito had quite a reputation.

Plus, with Uchiha Itachi joining the organization, both Nagato and Konan had learned a bit about the Uchiha clan.

So when they heard that the masked man was actually Uchiha Obito, who had died many years ago, Konan couldn't help but express disbelief.

"He didn't die. He was saved by Uchiha Madara, who was hidden in the shadows of the ninja world. Obito became Madara's successor."

"Wait, my head is a bit fuzzy."

The usually calm Konan wasn't calm now.

Jiraiya's words contained so much information that she didn't know how to process it all.

"So what you're saying is, Uchiha Madara didn't die in his battle with the First Hokage? He stayed hidden in the ninja world, and many years later, he saved Uchiha Obito, making him... Madara's successor?"

"That's right."

"Then, is Uchiha Madara dead now?"

"He should be dead. If he wasn't, Obito wouldn't be involved in all this."

When they heard that Madara was indeed dead, for some reason, Konan and Yahiko both secretly let out a sigh of relief.

They still had a deep sense of awe for this legendary ninja.

At the time, Obito used the name Uchiha Madara to approach the first generation of the Akatsuki, and Yahiko had already confronted him, saying that if he was using that name, he was either a criminal or an idiot.

Clearly, at that time, Yahiko already suspected that the man behind the mask wasn't Uchiha Madara.

Obito's portrayal of Madara was simply too awkward. Anyone who was even slightly familiar with Madara could easily tell that the masked man was a different person.

Of course, Yahiko and the others weren't familiar with Madara.

However, there was one thing they did know. If the masked man really was Uchiha Madara, his style of doing things would definitely not be as "gentle" as the masked man's.

How did the title of "Asura" come about?

Wasn't it earned through killing?

It was because of this suspicion that, in the original story, Konan and Nagato didn't see the masked man as the real Madara. They only viewed him as an ambitious man.

"So, what do Uchiha Madara and Uchiha Obito really want? Why did Madara give the Rinnegan to Nagato?"

"I don't know much about their objectives, but I do know that their plan is called 'The Eye of the Moon.'"

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