043 Animal Path

Naruto, Konan, and Kisame walked through a dark tunnel.

It had been three days since the Kumo shinobi returned from his mission.

Orochimaru had gone to the old experimental lab to retrieve useful equipment.

Konan asked, "Aren't you worried he might just leave?"

Naruto shook his head.

"No. His thirst for truth is stronger than anything. Being with me brings him closer to that truth."

Konan asked again, "Are you happy with the food?"

Naruto smiled, "It's very good."

Konan said, "I personally chose the village chefs. If you don't like it, I can find cooks from outside the village."

Naruto laughed, "That would be too expensive, Konan-san."

Konan replied, "Amegakure still has some savings left."

Clatter!

At the end of the tunnel, the vast ocean stretched under the open sky.

Naruto looked at the sea and said quietly, "Pervy Sage... he was buried in these waters..."

Konan's eyes showed deep regret.

"To be honest, Jiraiya-sensei once had a broken arm. That arm was later taken away by Akatsuki's White Zetsu..."

Naruto nodded, "Yes, they use Zetsu to dispose of bodies both friends and enemies to keep secrets safe."

Konan lowered her eyes.

"This sea is so vast... searching here will be very hard."

She added, "The deep sea pressure is a no-go for most ninjas. Even the Third Raikage's powerful body can't handle the breathing challenge."

Naruto thought for a moment.

"Of course, a ninja who can swim freely and breathe underwater, like a shark, would be different..."

Naruto said, "Kisame, please."

"Leave it to me!" Kisame stepped forward and merged with his great sword, Samehada, transforming into a half-human, half-shark form.

Marine creatures have cells filled with fluid at the same pressure as the surrounding water, so they don't get crushed by the deep-sea pressure. They also breathe through gills, letting water flow in through their mouths and out through the gill openings, exchanging gases.

Naruto asked with concern, "Kisame, I heard the ocean has deep-sea fish and shallow-sea fish. If a deep-sea fish comes to shallow water, it might burst from the pressure change. If a shallow-sea fish goes deep, it gets crushed. Can you handle the deep sea in your current form?"

Kisame replied, "No problem. After fusing with Samehada, I can adjust the pressure inside my cells to match the ocean depth. I can also work with the 'Thousand Sharks' to search a wider area, but compared to the whole ocean, that's still not enough..."

Naruto nodded, "Then I really leave it to you, Kisame..."

Whoosh!

Kisame dashed into the sea and disappeared instantly, moving with incredible speed.

Naruto sat and waited.

Night fell.

Waves rolled on the sea's surface, and Kisame suddenly jumped out of the water!

Naruto quickly got up and ran to the shore.

Kisame separated from Samehada and revealed a skeleton tightly wrapped in seaweed

Naruto examined the skeleton carefully.

The skeleton still had both arms intact, which didn't match Jiraiya's known injuries.

Konan said, "This must be someone who died at sea. Back then, Hanzo's forces often sneaked in, and they just threw the bodies into the ocean..."

Naruto said quietly, "Yeah, maybe."

Konan didn't want to say it, but most bodies thrown into the sea ended up as food for fish. Jiraiya's fate was probably the same...

But Naruto had solid evidence. 

Later on, Amado, a scientist from the Kara Organization, created a clone of Jiraiya. 

He clearly said he used special equipment to search for Jiraiya's body in the sea!

Kisame took a deep breath and said, "Then I'll keep looking."

Naruto quickly stopped him. "Kisame, let's stop for today. You can't recharge your chakra in the ocean. Rest and recover first. This is a long mission and it won't be finished quickly."

Kisame nodded and went back to rest.

Naruto walked through the night rain, feeling heavy-hearted.

Konan sighed, "I'm sorry. If it weren't for us, Jiraiya-sensei might still be alive."

Naruto smiled faintly. "It's okay. That's all in the past. Actually, I've been thinking if we had a Summoning Beast like Pain's, we could achieve twice the result with half the effort."

Konan asked, "You mean... one of the Animal Path Summons?"

Naruto covered his left eye. "Yes, it's amphibious, fully functional, and incredibly strong in battle. And there seem to be endless numbers of them. If I could summon those crabs too, maybe I could speed up the search..."

Konan said, "If it's an Animal Path ability, I might be able to help."

Naruto stopped and listened closely.

Konan continued, "The Summoning Beasts of the Animal Path all come from the 'Realm of Samsara,' a place only reachable by the Rinnegan's owner."

This was the first time Naruto heard this secret! 

Even Sasuke hadn't unlocked the Animal Path abilities yet.

Naruto's eyes brightened. "So how do we get there?"

Konan shook her head. "It can't be entered on purpose. The Rinnegan owner has a chance to enter it only during sleep. Nagato entered the Realm of Samsara after he first summoned the Gedo Statue."

Naruto frowned. "I tried to summon Gedo Statue, but the technique is blocked by a huge barrier. I think Akatsuki tampered with Gedo Statue, like Obito sucking it into his eye..."

Konan said, "But maybe you don't need to summon Gedo Statue."

Naruto asked, "Why's that?"

Konan explained, "Nagato only mastered the Rinnegan abilities gradually after summoning Gedo Statue and using lots of chakra. But you mastered it before even summoning Gedo Statue. That means your talent with the Rinnegan is stronger than Nagato's. Maybe you already have what it takes to trigger the Realm of Samsara."

Naruto said, "But it can't be triggered on command, right?"

Konan nodded, "It depends on fate. It could happen tonight, in a month, or even years later."

Naruto sighed, "I can't wait that long..."

Ever since seeing the sea, Naruto couldn't stop thinking about Pervy Sage lying cold on the seabed. He couldn't sleep or eat well…

But for Konan's sake, he kept those feelings to himself.

Konan, watching him silently, already understood why Naruto was so desperate to succeed.

"..." She looked gloomy.

Suddenly, a spark of realization lit up in Naruto's eyes. "Maybe… I have a way."

Konan was surprised. "What way?"

Naruto brought his hands together and began forming seals.

"Back when I was training, I used this trick to build up experience. But I've never tried dreaming with thousands of Shadow Clones at the same time..."

—Ninjutsu: Multiple Shadow Clone Technique!!

Bang bang bang bang…!!

With bursts of white smoke, thousands of Shadow Clones appeared in the rain, surrounding Konan in awe.

Bang!

Naruto's real body clapped his hands together and shouted,

"I don't care what the Realm of Samsara is! Tonight, we're going to crash into it and make it appear!"

His clones echoed in high spirits 

"Okay~~!!"

"No problem!!"

"Leave it to me!!!"

"I want to catch that big foamy crab when it drops from the sky~~!!!"

Konan looked at this scene with mixed feelings: "This child is simply incredible..."

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TO BE CONTINUED

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