Chapter 380: The Way to End Hatred
"Naruto…"
On the path down the mountain, in the interspatial layer, Jiraiya had been silently following behind Naruto. Though Naruto's face was lit with joy, Jiraiya's heart was filled with bitterness and complexity.
He was happy that Naruto and Nagato had reconciled—this proved Naruto truly was the Child of Prophecy.
But all of that depended on whether that Nagato was real.
And... remembering the anger and accusations from the ANBU ninja toward Naruto's decision earlier, Jiraiya knew all too well—hatred wasn't something that could be resolved so easily.
What would Naruto do when facing the hatred in the hearts of Konoha's survivors?
Jiraiya felt despair. So many years had passed, and he still couldn't see even a glimmer of hope for the era of mutual understanding he had always yearned for.
Even now, after Naruto and Nagato had reconciled, he still couldn't see any real hope for true peace.
"Pretty hopeless, isn't it?"
Suddenly, Li Yao's voice rang out. Jiraiya turned and saw that the bastard who had used genjutsu to control Tsunade and opposed her again and again had somehow appeared beside him.
"You damn bastard!"
"This is all your fault!"
Furious, Jiraiya threw a punch at Li Yao—yet it stopped just short of Li Yao's face. No matter how hard he tried, he couldn't land the blow. His body automatically restrained itself from attacking Li Yao.
Li Yao kept walking alongside Naruto, watching the happy look on Naruto's face. He was genuinely curious about what amusing developments might unfold next.
Jiraiya moved to Li Yao's left, glaring at him with fury.
"If it weren't for you, Konoha wouldn't have suffered so much!"
"Naruto wouldn't…"
If Li Yao hadn't used some unknown method to control the Six Paths of Pain, causing immense casualties to Konoha, then after Naruto and Nagato reconciled, Naruto surely would've gained the full trust of the village.
But now, because of Li Yao…
Konoha had suffered tremendous losses. The survivors' overwhelming hatred made it impossible for them to treat Naruto as a hero.
Because Nagato was still alive.
And if word got out that Naruto had intentionally let Nagato go, the hatred directed at Nagato might well be transferred onto Naruto.
The one responsible for all of this… was this bastard right in front of him.
Jiraiya glared at Li Yao with a gaze sharp enough to kill.
Heh… under Jiraiya's deathly stare, Li Yao casually put his hands behind his head, leaned back slightly, and glanced at Jiraiya with a relaxed smile.
"Do you know how to truly end hatred?"
Jiraiya was stunned. The hatred in his eyes softened for a moment. He studied Li Yao's expression—he looked like someone who truly understood. This kind of bastard... could he really long for peace too? Jiraiya couldn't help but wonder. Then, curious, he asked, "How would you end it?"
"Haha!" Li Yao let out a loud laugh, then said as if it were the most natural thing in the world, "Obviously, you kill every enemy who harbors hatred toward you. If no enemies are left to hate you, then the hatred ends naturally."
"Wipe them out at the root"—that idiom perfectly summarized the simplest way to stop hatred from spreading.
All that talk about "mutual understanding" was just nonsense. The only real way to end hatred was complete extermination.
Of course, Jiraiya didn't agree with him.
"You're a demon!"
Jiraiya abruptly stopped, staring at Li Yao's back with a heavy heart as the man continued walking ahead.
Heh.
Li Yao shook his head with a faint smile, neither agreeing nor denying.
Being a demon wasn't necessarily bad.
He was just a man—a selfish one.
He could be good to his friends, good to his family.
But clearly, in this world, there were no people he acknowledged as friends. And no one he recognized as family.
Even his so-called "good son" had now been taken over by him. The number of people dying in this world didn't matter to Li Yao in the slightest.
After enjoying this little show, he'd extract the Nine-Tails from Naruto and let Obito's clone become the Ten-Tails' jinchūriki. Once he gained the Rinne Sharingan, he could return to his original Naruto world and begin his revenge journey in earnest.
It had been so many years!
That Third Hokage bastard had lived peacefully for so long. If he kept living at ease, Li Yao's hatred would become unbearable.
…
"Naruto, you're back!"
"Thank goodness."
As soon as Naruto returned to the village, Sakura, Tenten, and the others ran to him, their worry finally easing.
"Where's Pain?"
"Did you kill him?"
Faced with the angry and expectant eyes of the crowd, Naruto fell silent. Shikaku quickly stepped in and said, "Naruto defeated Pain, but he wasn't able to keep his real body. They escaped by flying away—Naruto had no way to stop them."
Ah… hearing that, the people who had gathered around looked disappointed, but no one blamed Naruto. After all, everyone knew how powerful Pain was.
For Naruto to defeat them and force them to flee was already an incredible feat.
Still, the fact that Pain hadn't died remained a thorn in everyone's heart—a thorn constantly reminding them that their enemy still lived. Their hatred toward Pain only continued to grow.
Naruto felt pained watching this. He opened his mouth, wanting to say something.
"Naruto, come with me."
Shikaku, guessing what Naruto wanted to say, quickly pulled him away. "Don't say anything."
"Uncle Shikaku…"
"Quiet. Just watch."
Shikaku spoke in a low voice, leading Naruto through the ruins.
Along the way, in the rubble scattered outside Konoha's great walls—collapsed by Shinra Tensei—blood had already seeped to the edges. Bloodstained rocks and torn flesh littered the area.
Scene after scene, once again piercing Naruto's heart.
He fell silent, finally understanding why Shikaku didn't want him to speak.
This hatred was too deep—it couldn't be resolved with a few words.
"Naruto, do you know?"
Shikaku's voice suddenly rang out. Naruto looked at him. Shikaku coldly said, "Konoha's permanent population is around 220,000. You, in Sage Mode, can sense people's chakra. How many do you think are still alive compared to that number?"
Thump thump thump.
In that instant, Naruto's heart thundered like a drum. He stood frozen. Shikaku's simple math question shattered his composure.
He didn't really know what 220,000 meant.
But he did know—there definitely weren't more than 100,000 survivors left in Konoha. That meant at least half of the population had died at Nagato's hands.
Iruka.
Kakashi.
Ino.
Konohamaru.
Hinata. And even the ramen guy and his whole family… one by one, familiar faces flashed through Naruto's mind.
The rage and hatred he had barely held back now surged to the surface once more.
Shikaku said nothing, simply watching Naruto calmly.
So many had died. If Pain had fled after being defeated, they could barely explain it away. But if the villagers learned Naruto had deliberately let Pain go—there would be no explaining it.
The survivors' anger and hatred would instantly devour Naruto. He wouldn't be able to bear it—nor could Konoha afford the consequences.
That was why the truth that Naruto had intentionally let Pain go could never be revealed.
"I know what I have to do now, Uncle Shikaku."
After a moment of silence, Naruto looked up and spoke. Then he and Shikaku set out again, spending several hours walking the perimeter of the ruins.
He didn't need to be told. Naruto now fully understood how many people had died in Nagato's surprise attack on Konoha.
Most of them were civilians—people with only a little chakra, if any at all. Ordinary people of the village. Some had even helped Naruto in the past.
Thinking of all the lives lost, Naruto couldn't help but ask himself deep inside—
"Can I really find true peace?"
(END CHAPTER)
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