044 The Realm of Samsara

In the open space outside Amegakure's tower, thousands of Naruto's Shadow Clones sat quietly in the falling rain.

Konan stood beside the real Naruto, looking a bit apologetic.

"Sorry… there are too many of you. We had no choice but to do this outdoors."

Naruto smiled gently. "Konan-san, it's okay. You should go rest—you don't have to stay out in the rain with me."

But Konan shook her head. "No way. When you're trying this hard, how could I just sit back and relax?"

So, Naruto and his Shadow Clones closed their eyes and tried to fall asleep.

But the heavy rain, the chill of the night, and their tense minds made it hard to rest.

"A-choo!" one Shadow Clone sneezed from the cold—poof!—and vanished in a puff of white smoke.

Another Clone managed to fall asleep, but got sleep paralysis, twitched in discomfort, and also disappeared.

The feedback from each Clone returned to the original Naruto, making him frown. He was growing more and more uneasy.

Konan watched with concern. "This won't work..."

Swish...!

She suddenly stretched out her arms, and her body scattered into thousands of paper sheets that floated in the rain. The paper folded itself into elegant umbrellas, gently hovering over Naruto and his Shadow Clones.

Naruto looked up, surprised. "Konan-san...!"

A paper version of Konan appeared in front of him, holding an umbrella just for him.

With a gentle smile, she said,

"Now you can sleep a little easier."

Naruto glanced back and realized something: manipulating that much paper for so many Shadow Clones must have cost Konan a huge amount of chakra.

After all, those papers weren't just props, they were a part of Konan's body. 

It was like she had stretched herself thousands of times and exposed her whole body to the pouring rain. It was honestly incredible.

Naruto felt a pang of guilt. He began to regret being so stubborn.

But Konan said softly, "This is just a small way for me to atone… to help free our teacher from the sea, Naruto."

"…I see."

Naruto didn't argue anymore. Instead, he pushed aside his worries and focused on falling asleep. As he did, a thought came to him.

His mind had always been sharp at key moments—almost as if fate gave him clarity when it mattered most.

"Sage Mode meditation requires perfect calm… maybe that technique can help now too…"

So, Naruto and his Shadow Clones began to meditate like they would when entering Sage Mode, slowly calming their minds.

"Zzz... Zzz..."

It worked. One by one, they fell asleep peacefully, soft snores rising along with little bubbles from their noses.

Entering the Animal Path's realm required luck, but having thousands of people trying at once greatly improved the odds—though the risks were still unknown.

No one had ever tried something like this before.

Half an hour passed in the cold night rain.

Bang!

Suddenly, all Shadow Clones disappeared at the same time!

Konan's expression changed. "This is…"

She quickly realized what had happened. Just like with Nagato, entering the Realm of Samsara requires a high concentration of chakra. 

When a Shadow Clone disperses, it sends back chakra and any experiences to the original body.

"So that means… it worked!"

Yes—one of Naruto's Shadow Clones had successfully entered the Realm of Samsara. As Konan suspected, the feedback had been transferred to Naruto.

"The Realm of Samsara isn't a safe place," Konan said to herself. "It's full of danger. I need to stay by his side and assist him…"

Swish!

The thousands of paper umbrellas scattered into the air, and the soaked paper gathered back together.

Konan looked at Naruto with her calm, amber eyes. She sat down cross-legged in front of him, took out a special paper talisman, and gently placed it on his forehead. 

Then, forming a hand seal with two fingers, she whispered:

"Paper Art: Leap."

Konan slowly closed her eyes. Her chakra flowed into the talisman, and the character for "seal" in the center of the paper quietly split apart.

...

Whoosh!

Naruto found himself in a vast, unfamiliar land. Just as he was feeling lost, Konan appeared beside him.

"Konan-san!" Naruto called out in surprise.

Konan replied, "I used a secret technique to send my chakra here. I've helped Nagato like this before."

Naruto looked around and asked, confused, "Is this the Realm of Samsara? I don't see any Summoning Beasts…"

Konan explained, "The Realm of Samsara is huge. That's why perception is especially important. Nagato's perception was far beyond normal."

Naruto nodded, understanding. Right… When Kabuto use Edo Tensei, Nagato was able to sense me, Killer Bee, and even Kabuto himself…

Konan added, "Your Sage Mode perception isn't far behind his."

Naruto grinned. "Exactly what I was thinking!"

He sat down and entered Sage Mode, calming his breath.

Orange pigmentation appeared around his eyes both inside and outside the realm, his form reflected this change.

Sizzle!

Naruto suddenly opened his eyes and pointed behind him. "I can sense you. Don't think you can hide…!"

"There—"

Before he could finish, Konan raised her hand, and a wave of paper surged forward, wrapping around a hidden figure.

Naruto's eyes lit up. "A lizard!?"

Konan corrected him, "That's a chameleon. It used to be one of Nagato's Summoning Beasts. Now that Nagato is gone, it's returned to the wild. Its ability is invisibility."

Naruto frowned. "Its chakra doesn't seem that strong."

Konan explained, "The Rinnegan's Summoning Technique is a type of Amplified Summoning. Once a contract is signed, the summoned creature's power is greatly increased."

Naruto nodded in realization. 

"Got it. That explains why the beast Nagato summoned before had a black receiver like Pain… but this one doesn't."

Squeak!

The chameleon suddenly spat acid, melting Konan's paper, then turned and ran away with eerie movements.

Konan said calmly, "Spitting acid is one of its abilities. If you defeat it and drive a black chakra rod into it, you'll be able to form a Summoning Contract."

Naruto cracked his knuckles. "So I just need to focus a bit, huh?"

Konan smiled. "Don't be too cautious. In the Realm of Samsara, they don't really die. They'll just respawn somewhere else. But if they respawn too far away, it'll just be harder to chase them down."

"Got it!"

Boom!!

Naruto stepped forward. In Sage Mode, his speed and jumping power were incredible. He quickly caught up to the chameleon, charged his fist, and swung through the air.

—Frog Kumite!

Bang!

His punch, infused with natural energy, slammed the chameleon into the ground!

Thud! Thud! Thud!

Naruto threw several black chakra rods, piercing different parts of the chameleon's body.

Poof!

The chameleon vanished in a cloud of smoke.

Konan said, "It's now your Summoning Beast. Once you leave the Realm of Samsara, you can use the Animal Path to summon it in battle."

Naruto said, "That was easier than I expected…"

Konan warned him, "Don't let your guard down. The Realm of Samsara holds countless powerful Summoning Beasts from across the ages, even monsters that not even Nagato, at his peak, could form contracts with."

.

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TO BE CONTINUED

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