[Disciple Nagato's trust level increased, current trust level three]
As Mokgetsu had predicted, the trust level had increased.
Previously, when he revealed his identity to Nagato, it had already garnered some trust, and now fighting desperately to protect him, it was natural for the trust level to rise.
If Mokgetsu had spent two years instead of two months with Nagato, he thought he might have been able to reach trust level four in one go.
Ultimately, the time was too short, but Mokgetsu was quite satisfied with the current achievements.
Besides completing the disciple recruitment plan, Mokgetsu also did some things for the Ninja World within his capacity, as he had intended.
In the Land of Rain, he established the Ninja Sect to spread the ideology of peace. As long as the sect continued to develop with its current momentum, it wouldn't be a problem to change the chaotic situation in the Land of Rain, even if achieving world peace was far-fetched.
"Let me treat you first."
Mokgetsu created a Shadow Clone to tend to the Ninja of the Ninja Sect and also used Mystical Palm Jutsu to heal himself a bit.
Seeing that Mokgetsu seemed unharmed, Nagato, who had been mentally on edge, finally relaxed, panting heavily with a pale face.
Although he was fierce when enraged, it took a great toll on his Chakra and energy.
The other Ninja of the Ninja Sect also slumped to the ground in relief, even if not much time had passed, such a tense life-and-death battle was especially exhausting.
"We actually won..." Ike Masaya, who sat tiredly on the ground, was somewhat incredulous.
Originally, he believed the best outcome would have been for Mokgetsu to lead them to escape successfully since their opponent was Half-God Hanzo, the strongest in the Land of Rain and considered the pinnacle of ninjas in the Ninja World, and he brought so many elite Rain Ninja.
This time they could easily call it a great victory, with no deaths and only injuries.
Of course, Ike Masaya was very clear that although he was one of the participants, the victory had little to do with him. It was all because of Mokgetsu, Kakuzu, and Nagato's efforts.
The best on the field, without a doubt, was Mokgetsu, who stopped the strongest Hanzo and stepped in to save them in their toughest moments.
Kakuzu also contributed significantly. If not for Kakuzu holding back the numerous Rain Ninja, the weaker Ninja of the Ninja Sect would have been unable to withstand such pressure.
Before Nagato's outbreak, he acted as a ninjutsu cannon, and after the outbreak, he swiftly took out many enemies, dealing the final straw that broke the camel's back.
Even though they had achieved a rare victory, the atmosphere on the scene was very quiet, with not many people talking, not even Yahiko, who was usually the most talkative.
However, the reasons varied among everyone. Nagato and Ike Masaya were too tired to speak, while Yahiko was too shocked to say anything.
Even if Yahiko now despises Hanzo, his feelings for Hanzo were genuine before today; he truly admired and aspired to be like Hanzo.
Meeting Mokgetsu and becoming part of the Ninja Sect, he walked a distance on the path to pursuing peace.
Invited by his idol Hanzo, to join in maintaining peace in the Land of Rain.
For Yahiko, these were very joyful things and should have added up to a dreamlike happiness, yet the reality was that the cooperation was just bait, and Hanzo wanted to eradicate the Ninja Sect.
"Why did it become like this? Were those rumors all false, deliberately spread by Hanzo?" Yahiko couldn't figure it out.
The one who finally broke the silence was Kakuzu.
"Sosuke, you're a really strange person," Kakuzu said, looking at Mokgetsu as he stitched up his body.
Kakuzu didn't quite know how to evaluate Mokgetsu.
If he said Mokgetsu was naive, he felt the entire development of this event was under Mokgetsu's control; Mokgetsu deliberately walked into Hanzo's trap for the Ninja of the Ninja Sect to experience the harsh reality.
Can someone who acts that way and thinks of such things be called naive? Kakuzu felt that a naive person wouldn't do this, as slight missteps could result in deaths among the weaker Ninja of the Ninja Sect.
To say Mokgetsu wasn't naive, Mokgetsu's goals and ideals seemed, to Kakuzu, unrealizable naive fantasies.
The more time Kakuzu spent with Mokgetsu, the more puzzled he became about what kind of person Mokgetsu was, but he didn't come away empty-handed. He knew Mokgetsu was very strong, possessing a kind of unfathomable strength.
"Just strange? Well, that's alright." Mokgetsu smiled lightly, thinking Kakuzu might use more aggressive words.
Kakuzu's face darkened slightly; he had respect for the strong.
"You won, yet you're pulling a long face; people might think you lost the battle and a comrade," Kakuzu said, not so gently to Yahiko, and went on the offensive.
"I..." Yahiko wanted to say something but closed his mouth again.
He felt the Ninja Sect falling into Hanzo's trap had a lot to do with him, and being blamed was what he deserved.
"What, think everything is your fault? Don't think so highly of yourself," Kakuzu seemed to see through Yahiko's thoughts.
"Because..." Yahiko wanted to explain, but Kakuzu's words left him speechless.
Seeing Yahiko being harshly criticized, Konan wanted to say something in Yahiko's defense.
But Kakuzu didn't care about gender or age; he attacked both Konan and Yahiko.
However, under normal circumstances, Kakuzu wasn't one to target individuals, so he briefly attacked everyone else as well.
"Facing setbacks isn't scary; what's scary is being unable to recover because of setbacks. We need to learn from these lessons and make them the nutrients for our growth, to make ourselves stronger," Mokgetsu concluded the argument with this statement.
Kakuzu had to admit Mokgetsu had a knack for saying nice things; although he understood the reasoning, he couldn't articulate it as well.
"You didn't kill me, and I saved your subordinates, so the score between us is settled," Kakuzu suddenly said.