In Konoha, This Naruto Has Decided To Take It Easy

"Pain's Six Paths each have different abilities, and they share vision. In essence, they're puppets." Naruto was very satisfied with Jiraiya's attitude and said leisurely.

"One of them has a special ability, called the Preta Path, which can absorb chakra from Ninjutsu. In other words, pure Ninjutsu won't work against him."

"Preta Path?" Jiraiya glanced at Naruto again, his curiosity piqued, "Where did you get such specific intel?"

"Obviously from a life-risking investigation. Were you expecting me to wait for you, Pervy Sage?" Naruto lied effortlessly with calm expression.

"You've fought Pain?" Jiraiya was slightly shocked, and his eyes narrowed immediately. It was obvious that he was not easy to fool.

"When did that happen?"

"Why are you asking so many questions?" Naruto sounded annoyed, "Are you interrogating me? The Land of Rain's mission has been delayed for so long. If I don't go, who else will?"

"I didn't mean it that way, just curious." Jiraiya chuckled and instantly changed the subject, "If what you said is true, then things will be troublesome."

"If he's immune to Ninjutsu, what should we use against them?"

"Well, I'm out of ideas. Looks like it's up to you, Pervy Sage, to take action." Naruto said, heading toward the bathroom to brush his teeth. He glanced toward the door from the bathroom mirror.

"You're the only one who can use Natural Energy. Doesn't too much of it turn you into a stone frog? Just flood him with it."

"Is that reliable?" Jiraiya asked skeptically. He made tea early in the morning, and white mist rose up and covered half of his face.

"Don't question this great Naruto-sama. Give me enough time, I'll be as good as Shodaime reincarnated." Naruto mumbled through a mouth full of foam, "It's one hundred percent legit, trust me."

"Speaking of Natural Energy, after this mission is over, do you want to go back to Mount Myoboku and give it another try?" Jiraiya asked, still a bit concerned.

"Try what?"

"Continue training in Senjutsu, what do you think?"

"Forget it. Forced things don't turn out well. I've tried enough times and failed." Naruto gargled and said dismissively.

"And besides, I don't want to eat any more bugs."

When Jiraiya thought of the bug feast at Mount Myoboku, his face suddenly turned pale. Although bugs are essentially just a ball of protein and they can eat them even if they twist off their heads, but their greenish, squishy appearance was downright nauseating.

Not to mention, when they were boiled into a soup that was greener than anything else, even courage wouldn't be enough to keep from gagging.

It's like Bear Grylls' paradise… a hunting ground for real men.

After freshening up, Naruto and Jiraiya headed downstairs to check out of the inn. With the sun hanging high in the sky, Jiraiya took Naruto to a random spot in town for lunch.

They found shade under a canopy and had a good meal.

"You mentioned the Preta Path earlier, but what about the other five?" Jiraiya pretended to wipe his mouth elegantly with paper. He then wiped his shoes halfway through.

"I'll tell you on the way." Naruto said, gobbling down his food. Since he wasn't paying, he made sure to order the most expensive dishes… from a street vendor.

Jiraiya waited patiently, wiping his shoes three times until Naruto finally finished eating. He put down the napkin, stood up, and quickly walked over to the owner to pay the bill.

On the way.

Naruto, his stomach round and full, strolled leisurely ahead, looking like he might vomit at any moment. Jiraiya's face was full of black lines, and he looked at his wallet again and again, which was almost empty.

"How much did you eat?"

"Burp! I barely ate enough, the taste is average." Naruto replied, "Next time, I'll introduce you to someone, Pervy Sage. I think you'll be interested."

"Who?" Jiraiya asked, "That girl from last time?"

"No, someone else. From the Hyuga Clan."

Jiraiya: "… You little brat, you've moved on so quickly, tsk."

"What are you talking about? I mean, I have to bring her to see you eventually. But eating anything else is too expensive, so how about you treat us to some ramen next time? That will fill us up."

"Ramen?" Jiraiya thought for a moment, "How much does a bowl of ramen cost?"

"The top-tier bowl doesn't go over two thousand ryo." Naruto replied.

"If it's only two thousand ryo, it's still pretty reasonable." Jiraiya murmured to himself, "We'll talk about it next time we meet. It would be nice to meet her."

"Oh, by the way, does Tsunade know about your escapades? She hates unfaithful people the most. You better keep it quiet, or you won't even know why you suddenly got beaten up."

"She… probably doesn't know." Naruto stroked his chin and thought for a while, then said, "Konoha will be under my control sooner or later anyway."

"You're talking nonsense again." Jiraiya dismissed him.

"Speaking of which, the most troublesome of Six Paths of Pain are Preta Path and Deva Path. One defends, the other attacks. Deva Path can manipulate gravity using Chakra."

Naruto resumed the conversation from earlier, starting to explain in detail about the Deva Path, though he didn't mention that the Deva Path was actually Yahiko.

"It's about pulling and pushing forces, repeating in cycles. It can repel Ninjutsu like Hyuga Clan's Revolving Heaven and also pull people in with great force."

"Another technique that can deflect Ninjutsu?" Jiraiya was surprised.

"Yes."

"Would Natural Energy work against it?" Jiraiya asked again.

"How would I know? I don't know any Senjutsu. You can just give it a try when the time comes." Naruto said, "Pervy Sage, I can't beat them, but you definitely can."

"If the intel is accurate, even if there are six opponents, it might be doable." Jiraiya frowned and said seriously, "Since we've got a good understanding of the Preta and Deva Paths…"

"What about the rest?"

"There are four more. I'll explain them one by one…" Naruto explained bit by bit, emphasizing, "In the battle, the Asura Path and Animal Path pose a greater threat."

"In the end, we're up against six people, or possibly more, with just the two of us."

"That tricky, huh?" Jiraiya's expression grew even more serious, "It wouldn't be a problem if I were alone. After all, even if I can't win, I can just run away."

"But if I have to look after you, I'm not so sure if I can run."

"You're worried about me? You should worry about yourself. You're getting old, Pervy Sage. Are you sure you can handle it, old man?"

Naruto nearly slipped up, stopping just short of calling Jiraiya an 'old geezer' as his speech slipped into a more brash tone, influenced by the rougher slang he'd been using recently.

"I've survived in the Shinobi World for many years. You think I don't have any life-saving tricks? That's how I've made it this far?" Jiraiya said proudly, "To be honest, I can't guarantee a 100% win."

"But when it comes to staying alive, out of everyone I've seen, only Orochimaru is better than me."

"Then, is there a possibility that Orochimaru is not dead?" Naruto suddenly interjected, turning to look at Jiraiya, who froze for a moment and his expression growing more solemn.