Chapter 348: An Eye for an Eye

Chapter 348: An Eye for an Eye

As Nagato used his Rinnegan to modify Raikage's body, he sensed the man's emotions and said flatly, "Revenge? What I'm doing now is revenge."

"Before you, a young man with great ideals was buried here forever—because of you!"

This was the place where Yahiko had been laid to rest. He had wished to be buried in the Land of Rain, so Nagato and Konan had chosen this tranquil spot for him.

Bringing Raikage here had been Nagato's idea.

For years, he had refrained from settling old scores, but that didn't mean he had forgotten.

After awakening the Rinnegan, his mind had gradually ascended beyond human emotions, and his obsession with peace had taken precedence over personal grievances. Revenge had been pushed aside.

But if an enemy stood in the way of his ideals, he had no problem crushing them.

Jiraiya-sensei and the Fourth Hokage were still alive, and he had already severed ties with them. Naturally, he wouldn't seek revenge on their behalf.

But Yahiko was different.

Even now, he still remembered the helplessness of watching Yahiko die before his eyes.

And Yahiko's death had been caused by the Land of Lightning.

If they hadn't sealed Jiraiya-sensei away, he would have obtained the second half of the antidote, and Yahiko might have survived.

If not for the Eight-Tails' Jinchūriki interfering last time, he would have brought the Fourth Raikage here as a sacrifice the moment he obtained the Tailed Beast.

Now that Bayakushi's plan required the Raikage's identity, turning him into one of the Six Paths of Pain and avenging Yahiko was simply a natural course of action.

"An enemy?"

Raikage, wracked with pain, forced his thoughts to clear and gradually recalled the events from two years ago.

That's right—Nagato, Konan, and their fellow disciple had suffered because of him…

Back then, he hadn't seen Nagato's group as a threat and had treated them as mere pawns.

And now, he was paying the price.

Nagato lost Yahiko because of him. He lost his own brother because of Nagato.

And now, he himself had fallen into their hands.

Was this an eye for an eye?

Raikage's vision blurred as darkness swallowed his consciousness. The last thing he saw was Bayakushi knocking out his subordinates.

When he next opened his eyes, he found himself inside a vast underground cavern.

"…What's going on?"

His mind was in turmoil. He tried to move, but his body felt unbearably heavy—like it was filled with lead. Every muscle resisted his commands.

Then, he heard Nagato's deep voice beside him.

"From this moment on, you are the Path of Hell—one of the Six Paths of Pain."

Raikage's pupils contracted sharply. His fragmented memories reconnected, and he finally remembered what had happened.

Bayakushi had lured him to the Land of Rain.

Nagato had transformed him into one of the Six Paths of Pain.

He had become a tool for Nagato's ideals!

Raikage turned his gaze toward the source of the voice and saw Nagato and Bayakushi standing on a high platform, looking down at him.

"You bastard, Bayakushi!" Raikage snarled through clenched teeth. "The Land of Lightning never treated Jigen unfairly! Why are you doing this?! You and Jigen even fought against the Akatsuki in the Land of Earth! Aren't you afraid they'll come after you?"

Nagato and he had their grudges—that was fair.

But what did Bayakushi stand to gain from all this?

"What's wrong with working with the Akatsuki?"

Bayakushi glanced at Nagato, as if expecting him to be curious about his response. Then, he said indifferently, "Lord Nagato possesses unparalleled strength. He is the only one in this world who might be able to stand against Hyuga Fuji."

"If you want to blame someone, blame the Land of Lightning for being too weak. You couldn't help me avenge Lord Jigen."

"You—!"

Raikage trembled with rage and tried to lash out, but his body was no longer his own.

"No! This is impossible!"

His furious roar echoed through the cavern.

"I will never be your puppet!"

Nagato let out a cold laugh, his Rinnegan gleaming with an icy light.

"You don't have a choice."

As his words fell, a powerful surge of ocular energy erupted from within Raikage's body. His consciousness wavered, as if an immense force was suppressing his very soul.

"No!"

Raikage screamed in his mind.

But his body refused to obey him.

He walked forward against his will, stopping silently in front of the two men.

His once fiery eyes had turned vacant and lifeless, devoid of any trace of his former self.

"…So this is the power of the Rinnegan?"

Shirosiki, who had witnessed the entire process, muttered in awe.

"To control someone as strong as the Raikage so effortlessly… Truly incredible."

Nagato, having subdued Raikage with ease, spoke dispassionately.

"If I hadn't become the Ten-Tails' Jinchūriki, even I wouldn't have been able to achieve this."

"The previous Paths of Pain were just corpses. Their strength depended entirely on my chakra."

"But now, with my enhanced understanding of the Rinnegan, I can override the will of the living. These new Paths of Pain can retain their original power, allowing them to wield the Six Paths' abilities at their full potential."

Bayakushi nodded thoughtfully, then smiled.

"In that case, would you like to upgrade all of your Paths of Pain?"

"I've got some artificial beings under my command who are quite strong. They could be useful replacements."

Nagato cast him a brief glance.

"That's unnecessary. I only did this because your plan required it. The Six Paths of Pain are strong, but compared to my own power, they're insignificant. There's no need to go out of my way."

Bayakushi showed no reaction to the rejection.

He merely nodded and continued inspecting Raikage's body, making occasional adjustments.

Nagato didn't mind.

Creating the Paths of Pain required chakra receivers embedded in the body as control nodes. However, since Bayakushi needed Raikage to return to the Land of Lightning, those black rods couldn't be left visible.

Using his own abilities, Bayakushi embedded the rods deep within Raikage's body, making them completely undetectable from the outside.

Only someone with the Byakugan could see through it.

Once the final adjustments were made, Bayakushi nodded in satisfaction.

"All set. In two days, we'll send him back to the Land of Lightning."

Nagato turned to him. "And the other Lightning ninja?"

"I've already erased their memories. They can return alongside Raikage."

"The Land of Lightning's Mabui could be a problem," Nagato said. "She may not be powerful, but she's sharp and capable. Are you sure you can deceive her?"

"She may be skilled, but she's not the ruler of the Land of Lightning," Bayakushi replied with a smile, his gaze shifting toward Raikage—or rather, the Path of Hell.

"Raikage's authority far surpasses hers. All we need to do is create an opportunity for her to 'make a mistake' or reassign her elsewhere. With you controlling him, that shouldn't be difficult, right?"

"It'll only buy us time," Nagato remarked.

"That's all we need. It won't take long anyway."

Raikage stood silently before them, listening to their conversation—unable to do anything.

He could hear. He could perceive everything.

But he couldn't control his own body.

It was as if his soul had been imprisoned within his own flesh, trapped under Nagato's command.

Mabui… please…

You have to realize something is wrong!

(End of Chapter)