Gekko Chizan had considered whether he should just find a chance to kill Nagato directly.
But very soon, he temporarily pushed down this thought in his heart.
He knew all too well the terror of those eyes, not to mention Nagato's own strength.
Uchiha Madara had gone to great lengths to ensure that his Rinnegan could be passed down so he could use the Rinne Rebirth Technique.
Nagato, as a descendant of the Uzumaki clan, was the perfect vessel he had found. After awakening the Rinnegan, Nagato had mastered six chakra nature transformations, including the Yang attribute, allowing him to use nearly all mainstream ninjutsu. His power was formidable.
And that wasn't even the most crucial thing.
What truly made Gekko Chizan feel troubled was the power of the Six Paths—the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path.
The Demonic Statue was, after all, the Ten-Tails' husk. Even though its strength had been greatly reduced without the chakra of the Nine Tailed Beasts, it was still not something easy to deal with.
Not to mention those chains capable of binding Tailed Beasts—once caught, it was certain death.
Of course, Gekko Chizan was confident he wouldn't get caught. After all, his Flying Thunder God wasn't just for show. But if he forced Nagato into a corner and the Demonic Statue got summoned, his chances of killing Nagato would drop to near zero.
Moreover, if he made a move, he wouldn't just be facing Nagato alone.
He wasn't stupid. He would never fight a battle without preparation.
The reward he had just received, the Hiding in Ash and Dust Technique, though not as powerful or awe-inspiring as Great Fire Annihilation or Majestic Vanishing Flame, was still a pretty good offensive technique. It converted flames into high-temperature ash that spread outward after falling to the ground, dealing continuous heat damage before exploding after a while.
At the same time, the ash could conceal the user's position, making it both offensive and defensive in one.
Paired with Gekko Chizan's fighting style, it was quite a perfect match.
Opening the panel, Gekko Chizan was stunned because he discovered that his panel had changed.
The original interface had disappeared, replaced by a brand-new one.
[Name: Gekko Chizan]
[Identity: Seven-Tails Jinchūriki, Konoha Jōnin, Head of the Gekko Clan.]
[Kekkei Genkai: Transparent Release, Crystal Release.]
[Ninjutsu Mastery: Fire Release, Water Release, Wind Release, Earth Release, Summoning Technique, Sealing Technique, Ninjutsu (Snake), Taijutsu, Forbidden Techniques.]
[Sage Arts: Ryūchi Cave Sage Arts.]
[Tailed Beast: Seven-Tails Chōmei, Affinity 100%, Tailed Beast Transformation Progress: 100%, Tailed Beast Bomb (Mastered, Optimization Progress 50%, Trigger Skills: Handheld Capability, Compressed Bomb), Tailed Beast Sync (Chakra Consumption Reduced by 10%).]
[Basic Attributes: Strength 77, Speed 80, Chakra 96, Physique 91, Taijutsu 71, Genjutsu 84, Hand Seals 84.]
[Resistance: Six Paths Resistance 20%.]
[Ninjutsu Amplification: 20, Enhances Ninjutsu Power and Nature Transformations.]
[Ding! Comprehensive Evaluation: Your physical strength has surpassed most ninjas, your ninjutsu power is also great, but your taijutsu is trash. Severely unbalanced.]
Looking at the much-simplified panel, Gekko Chizan couldn't help but feel a bit surprised.
Ninjutsu Mastery represented all the types of ninjutsu he had mastered.
Opening Fire Release, it listed: Great Fireball Technique, Phoenix Sage Fire Technique, Great Fire Annihilation, Majestic Vanishing Flame, Hiding in Ash and Dust Technique.
Opening Water Release, it only had one sentence: Whatever the Third Mizukage knows, you know too!
Wind Release had no changes, while Earth Release now had Added-Weight Rock Technique.
Taijutsu only had the One Thousand Years of Death, whereas Forbidden Techniques had many, such as: Multi-Shadow Clone, Flying Thunder God, and so on.
What really caught Gekko Chizan's attention was the system's comment—severely unbalanced.
Was his taijutsu really that bad?
How was this unbalanced? He was someone who wanted to promote the art of survival to the fullest—why should he charge in and fight taijutsu battles with others?
Was he crazy?
Closing the interface, Gekko Chizan looked at the overly excited crowd in front of him and began thinking about how to subtly influence Yahiko and Konan—especially Yahiko. As long as he could bring Yahiko to his side, the Akatsuki would be settled.
"Alright, calm down."
"Even though the organization is established, look at us now—this is just a makeshift team. We still have a long way to go."
That bucket of cold water immediately drenched everyone's enthusiasm.
Indeed, what did they have now? Three small huts? Nine people?
Though the name Akatsuki made them happy, the road ahead was still long.
But Yahiko, being the determined person he was, quickly recovered.
"Hahaha, Chizan, you're right. We still have a long road ahead of us."
"From now on, we'll keep growing stronger. Although we've always believed in peace, I also know that only with enough strength can we have the right to pursue it."
"For that, we'll keep moving forward until our wish is fulfilled."
Looking at Yahiko's serious expression, Gekko Chizan shook his head. He really couldn't deal with people like this—too hot-blooded.
Even though he was in a hot-blooded series, he really didn't like this kind of passion, because passion always led to recklessness, and recklessness always came with pain.
...
Over the next few days, Gekko Chizan and Yugito moved around together with Yahiko's group.
Yahiko's group were ninjas from Amegakure. Though ostracized, they still desperately carried out missions to earn money.
Meanwhile, Gekko Chizan remained hidden within their team, following them into the village.
Looking at the heavily guarded Amegakure, Gekko Chizan smacked his lips and complained helplessly:
"I swear, Amegakure's defenses might just be the strongest among all the villages."
"So many guards?"
Yahiko, at his side, explained.
"Yeah. Hanzo-sama always says ninjas must be ready for battle at any moment. So every ninja in this village must stay on high alert in case war breaks out at any time."
"Hmph, wars can't just keep happening. Even the Second Great Ninja War ended, didn't it?"
"This Third Great Ninja War, I believe it will pass soon too."
Gekko Chizan glanced at him, thinking to himself: You're right—the Third Great Ninja War will pass. But if I don't interfere, this war will be your death, cousin.
Countless thoughts ran through his mind, but his eyes were soon drawn to something else.
A bathhouse!
A bathhouse in Amegakure—it reminded him of the scene in the original story when Jiraiya entered the village. Hot springs in the rain?
Hiss... It had been so long since his heart had been stirred like this.
"Yahiko! Let's go! We're hitting the hot springs!"
Those words completely confused Yahiko's group. Hot springs? At a time like this?
And besides, where would they even get the money for that?