Epilogue 6 (II)

Jiraiya stared at the hospital bed with a sad expression on his face, his mind racing with nearly a hundred thoughts a second as Nagato laid in the bed.

Ever since his eyes had been taken during the war, he had been sent into some type of coma due to either the Spiritual imbalance that the loss of the Rinnegan or simply shock and trauma from his attack.

Tsunade had examined him and come to that conclusion when she returned to the Village, with her concluding that their was nothing physically wrong with Nagato, and that it was an issue related to his Yin.

Therefore, Jiraiya had set up a time for Inoka, the foremost expert in Yin Release that resided in the Village, to come and examine his son.

Both Yahiko and Konan blamed themselves as they were not home when the attack occurred, but Jiraiya assured them that it was no one's fault.c

But even if he said that, deep down, he blamed himself for this issue.

From the thought that Nagato would have been safe if he placed greater Fuinjutsu defenses on his home, to the thought that he should have allowed them to come to the battlefield since he would have been able to watch and protect them more closely, to even the thought that he should have known that the eyes belonged to someone else in the first place.

The guilt that a father possesses is something that most people are unable to rationalize or make sense of.

And that was the reason why even a week after the incident had first occurred, he still sat in the hospital room of his son, hoping that a miracle would occur and he would awaken.

The door to the room then opened, with it revealing not just Inoka, but also Tsunade, and Orochimaru.

"I spoke with Dan about a potential way that we can help Nagato, but we need you to agree for us to perform it. It is fully hypothetical and could include multiple risks for him." Tsunade spoke first, with her staring Jiraiya directly in the eyes.

He could see that she was speaking to him from the stance of the chief of the Konoha Hospital and not as his friend, and he appreciated that greatly.

Jiraiya simply looked over to his son, with him seeing that he had what looked like no chance of awakening on his own.

Scenes of his flashed through his mind, with that being the exact thing that solidified his decision.

"If you feel that it can help him, then please do it. If I didn't trust you guys with his life, then who could I trust." Jiraiya said as he stared at each of them, with all of them giving him a small smile.

Tsunade then lost hers, as she looked at each of them, with them all going to a certain position around Nagato.

Tsunade first began by drawing Kanji around the body of Nagato, with them being used to both calm his body and nerves while also allowing them to enter his mind more easily.

Inoka then looked over to the two and began using his Mind Intrusion Technique, with him also bringing Tsunade and Orochimaru in, with them finding themselves in a rainy environment that seemed to be consistently coming.

"This... This seems to be the Land of Rain." Orochimaru said as he felt the reminiscent state that the land was in, one where rain poured continuously for long stretches of time.

"It is. If this was the place where he was found alongside Yahiko and Konan, then it's likely that this is where his mind reverted back to due to it being a place of great importance to his spirit." Inoka informed them 

Tsunade then entered into the cave that was nearby, with her signaling for Orochimaru and Inoka to remain back while she went alone.

Not long after entering, the cave, she spotted the red-haired boy sitting in the corner by himself, with her walking over towards him and simply sitting down beside him.

"It's about time to come home, Nagato. Your dad is quite worried about you. And I'm sure that Konan and Yahiko are worried as well." Tsunade said softly as she rubbed the boy's back.

"But I'm not special anymore. I overheard Dad say that I could be the one who brings peace to the world. Can I still do that even without my eyes?" Nagato asked her as he looked at her with his hollow eyes.

"Of course. Your eyes aren't the reason you mastered the second steps of all five Elemental Chakra Natures. They aren't the reason you could achieve your rank at such a young age. And they aren't the reason that you can achieve the same thing that I or my Grandfather have." Tsunade said before she placed her palms onto the face of Nagato, with her channeling her Chakra through him so that he could see through the Mind's Eye of The Kagura.

"You can achieve anything you set you mind to. Don't let anyone tell you otherwise." Tsunade said to the boy with a smile, with Nagato then embracing her.

Tsunade began to feel themselves ejected from the boys mind, with her hearing his last words as he spoke

"Thanks, Mom."

~

Jiraiya hugged Nagato as if he would lose him if he let go, with Inoka, Tsunade, and Orochimaru leaving the room, letting the Father and Son share their moment.