Land of Fire.
Jiraiya and Nagato were speeding through the forest when, suddenly, Jiraiya's face paled. He stumbled, nearly falling off the tree branch.
"What's wrong, Jiraiya?" Nagato stopped and asked.
"Oh... nothing. Just an old ailment acting up..."
At that exact moment, the nano-bracelet on Nagato's wrist flashed. He narrowed his eyes and injected chakra into it.
Under Jiraiya's shocked gaze, Nagato processed the visual projection of the memories brought back by Jiraiya's shadow clone.
Those two... they are demons!
Jiraiya was reeling. Especially that parallel world Kakashi—his swordsmanship was identical to Sakumo Hatake... the White Fang of Konoha, driven to suicide by his teacher, by the Third Hokage, by the entire village!
No! His sword skills are several times more powerful than Sakumo's ever were!
Jiraiya knew his shadow clone was stronger than the average Jonin, yet in front of that Kakashi, it was beheaded before it could even react!
And their communication method? How was it so convenient?
A premonition of doom flashed through Jiraiya's heart. He now had a deeper understanding of this "Empire" they spoke of.
"Hey, Nagato. We're being followed. It was a shadow clone. I estimate the main body is likely near you. Be careful."
Kakashi's voice transmitted clearly from the nano-bracelet.
"Understood."
Nagato's peripheral vision swept over Jiraiya. Instantly, the Sannin's hair stood on end, his body tensing as if facing a mortal enemy.
Nagato looked at Jiraiya with a faint smile.
"Is there anything you want to explain?"
Master of all six chakra natures, Nagato had sensed Jiraiya the moment he used the Transformation Jutsu earlier. He simply hadn't exposed him immediately, hoping to avoid unnecessary killing.
Jiraiya, realizing the jig was up, acted with grace. He lowered his head, his voice raspy and deep.
"I apologize. I did not track you with malicious intent. You just happened to descend right next to me. As a ninja of Konoha, I couldn't remain indifferent."
"I heard everything you said about unification and the Empire. I cannot accept you bringing war to our world. We have finally achieved a brief peace. I do not want the disaster of displacement and loss of comrades to descend upon us again..."
Jiraiya spoke with utmost sincerity.
"I can clearly sense your kindness. I assume you wouldn't want to see war sweep through our world either! To be honest, I have a disciple who looks exactly like you, also named Nagato. Seeing you gives me a feeling of familiarity."
Jiraiya began his 'Talk-no-Jutsu,' trying to forge a bond to stabilize the situation.
"If you don't mind, I would like to show you more of our world. After that, you can decide whether to bring war here. Is that acceptable? Our world is already in a terrible state. I truly, truly cherish this hard-won peace!"
With that, Jiraiya solemnly performed a dogeza (prostration) before Nagato.
Nagato was notoriously weak against Talk-no-Jutsu. And this was coming from his parallel universe master!
If a few words from Naruto could make him sacrifice his life to revive an entire village, imagine the impact of his "Master" kneeling before him?
Nagato's heart clenched. He hurriedly reached out to help Jiraiya up.
I am technically an enemy and an invader, yet he bows so low just for peace?
Remembering his mission and the criteria for judging this world, Nagato sighed.
He helped Jiraiya up, his expression dim. "I apologize. Some things are not for me to decide. Continue to be my guide. If your world meets the standards, I will do my best to prevent war and strive for cooperation between the Emperor and your people..."
Nagato had wanted to say that if things came to a certain point, he might even stand on their side.
But remembering the scene with the refugees, he buried those words deep in his heart.
As for persuading the Emperor?
Every policy the Emperor implemented over the years was ostensibly "discussed," but in reality, even when the former Kage—now Provincial Governors—tried to stop him, the Emperor always executed his will with an iron fist.
Could he really persuade a tyrant who listened to no one?
Seeing Nagato fall silent again, Jiraiya tentatively asked, "Shall we continue to the Capital of the Land of Fire?"
Nagato nodded. "Let's go."
Land of Waves.
Kakashi and Obito finally left the desolate wilderness and arrived at a town.
Though small, the town had all the essentials. The sky was getting dark, so the two planned to gather intel on the shipping fleets and depart the next morning.
They strolled through the streets until they stopped in front of a bookstore.
Obito looked at Kakashi with a wicked grin. "If you want it, go get it! Don't hold back!"
Kakashi gave a repressed grunt and walked into the bookstore, throwing back a defensive explanation: "I am only here to gather intelligence!"
Obito watched the people coming and going, taking a deep breath. The sky was the same, the earth was the same. He wondered how his counterpart in this world was doing...
With my level of talent, I should be a resounding, famous name in Konoha, right?
Seeing that Kakashi still hadn't come out, an impatient Obito walked in.
"Oi, Kakashi. It's just buying a copy of Jin Ping Mei. Why is it taking so long?"
Kakashi was currently in the middle of a dispute with the shop owner.
The owner looked at Kakashi with a grim expression, answering seriously, "I'm sorry, customer! We don't have the... 'passionate women' you're asking for! This is a bookstore, not a brothel!"
Kakashi's face darkened.
"I'm not talking about women in a brothel! I'm talking about a book with women! Think again—Jin Ping Mei!"
The owner shook his head. "Sorry. No Gold, no Silver either."
"What about Ghost Father? If that fails, My Female Roommate works too..."
Kakashi was getting desperate. He had left in a hurry and forgotten to swap out the book he was currently reading. He had already memorized every word of it backwards. How could he accept this world without new reading material?!
"Sorry, we have none of those!"
Kakashi looked as if he had been struck by lightning, freezing in place.
For the first time, the calm and meticulous strategist entertained the thought of invading this world purely out of spite.
"You don't even have those? Are you kidding me... This truly is a flawed world that needs correcting!"
Kakashi couldn't imagine it. Forget about high-tech entertainment like Video Scrolls—they didn't even have good books! Entertainment is the foundation of a well-developed world. Seeing this one aspect was enough to know the whole place was hopeless!
Obito wandered around the bookshelves for a while. Knowing Kakashi's repressed pervert nature well, he soon found a book and handed it over.
"Look at this. This seems to be a specialty of this world."
Looking as depressed as a mourner at a funeral, Kakashi glanced at Obito. Seeing his friend's serious expression, he took the book.
"Icha Icha Paradise?"