Traveling through Nagato, from conquering Konan to dominating the ninja world

"The Third Hokage, Hiruzen, your teacher!"

As Nagato finished speaking, Orochimaru's vertical eyes trembled slightly.

"Is that so?" He then slowly stood up and said, "Can you walk with me outside, Nagato-kun?"

"Okay." Nagato followed Orochimaru's footsteps and came to the outside of the base.

Under the eaves of the attic, Orochimaru held the railing, looking at the rainy street below, holding an umbrella in the rain, and the bustling crowd. He vaguely remembered the time when the once-young and handsome teacher Sarutobi took the young him, Jiraiya, and Tsunade to play and relax after the mission was completed.

It was also a rainy day, a rainy day in Konoha.

"Since Nagato-kun asked me what I think, you must be certain that deep down in my heart, I still have feelings for Konoha and my former teacher, right?"

"Do you want to hear my true feelings?" Nagato walked up to Orochimaru and stood side by side with him.

Orochimaru glanced sideways and said, "Go ahead."

Nagato stretched out his hand to catch the raindrops falling from the eaves, and said calmly with a thoughtful look in his eyes: "I used force and half-coercion to win you over to my side."

"Even if you get the truth from me, but... the ultimate beneficiary of your truth is still me."

"No matter how high-sounding your words are, you still look like a tool, right?"

Orochimaru showed a smile that was completely different from his usual one: "Nagato-kun, you're really straightforward... Well, it's not bad, please continue."

Nagato said: "But I don't want this. I want to treat the people around me sincerely. So, I want to understand your true thoughts and your most urgent needs, so that in this relationship, you can also get what you really want, not just empty truths."

Nagato withdrew his hand.

"So, please tell me, at this moment, what do you think about Konoha and your teacher, the Third Hokage."

Orochimaru lowered his eyes.

Politeness and intelligence are his masks, especially when dealing with overwhelmingly powerful people.

He had never thought that there would come a day when he would take off the mask and tell Nagato his true feelings.

Nagato-kun...you really are a very special person.

"Well, now that it's come to this, I'll let you know my true thoughts, Nagato-kun."

The sound of rain gradually faded away in his mind.

"I have mixed feelings towards Konoha. It's the hometown where I spent my youth and has irreplaceable memories. But at the same time, Konoha is also a cage that binds me."

"During this journey, I have seen death and separation, which made me deeply feel how fragile life is. Those precious things that I once wanted to keep have all decayed and disappeared under the ravages of time."

"I want to change something, but I find that my power is too small. Even if I am called the legendary Sannin, I cannot escape the sorrow of being a ninja with flesh and blood. This body will tremble and wail due to injury and bleeding, and will become useless due to illness and aging."

"This reality made me feel empty and desperate. I couldn't let my life end like this. One day, I finally made up my mind. I want to uncover the truth of everything in the world. I want to get closer to the sun called truth!"

"I want to gain eternal life and understand all the truths in the world! Then, with the fruits of truth, I will completely change the realities that once made me powerless!"

"I know very well that I am an outlier. No one around me can understand my thoughts, including my companions and mentor. In other words, the bond between companions and Konoha's Will of Fire, the things that I used to regard as my guiding principles, will become stumbling blocks on my future path."

"So, I decided to defect from Konoha."

Having said that, Orochimaru revealed a helpless smile.

"Speaking of which, Nagato-kun, your teacher, Jiraiya, always seemed to think that I betrayed the village out of hatred because Konoha took my parents' lives."

"It's not such a superficial reason."

“Because no one is wrong.”

"It is not wrong for the countries and villages that started the war to fight for the interests of survival."

"My parents did nothing wrong in volunteering to fight and die in order to protect their homeland."

"And the enemy ninjas who killed my parents in order to protect their homeland were also not wrong."

"It is precisely because I realize that no one is wrong that I am not controlled by hatred."

"But I have to admit that I have never been able to completely let go of the village, Hiruzen-sensei, and my former companions from the bottom of my heart... Even though I defected from Konoha, Konoha is still a cage that restricts my progress."

"So, Nagato-kun, let me tell you the truth. I plan to destroy Konoha one day, and I even have a blueprint for the plan."

"If you hadn't found me at the Tiandi Bridge with the help of Scorpion, I would have planned to establish a ninja village in the Land of Rice. I would have trained a group of warriors who could assist me in completing this mission. When the time is right, I would have destroyed Konoha in one fell swoop and cut off all the ties that bound me. In this way, I would have no scruples and would have walked on a lonely road that belongs only to me!"

"This thought, even now that Nagato-kun and I are getting along quite well, is still surging strongly in my heart."

"But at the same time, along with this goal, new questions are constantly entangled in my heart. If I really achieve my goal... can I really let go of my obsession with the past and move forward as I want?"

Orochimaru took his hands off the railing, turned to face Nagato, and spoke in a serious tone.

"So, Nagato-kun, let's get back to the original question. I can't simply say, go ahead and do it to Sarutobi-sensei. I don't care if he lives or dies! I can't persuade you to choose someone else and become the kind of person who is bound by shackles again."

"Humans are such limited creatures. If you don't experience it yourself, you can't see your true thoughts... Perhaps, only when you really kill the teacher, I can make a decision."

Orochimaru laughed at himself: "When that time comes, I won't be qualified to choose."

"Not necessarily." Nagato looked Orochimaru in the face. "To perfect the Earth Grudge Technique, one does not necessarily have to take the target's heart."

"I can only remove one of his Yin-Tsuku Chakra meridians, but the problem is the trade-offs. If I only remove one of his Chakra meridians, it means I will keep him alive, which will leave hidden dangers for me in the future."

"To me, this is not a pleasing option, so my original plan was to take the heart of the Third Hokage."

"But... Orochimaru, if it's for you, I'm willing to take the corresponding risks."

Under Orochimaru's complicated gaze, Nagato smiled as if in the spring breeze: "So, please try to confirm your heart at that time. The life of the Sandaime Hokage, Sarutobi Hiruzen, will depend on your thoughts."