Ryou said to the members of the Akatsuki, "Even if the medical expert Tsunade were here, she would be helpless against this kind of injury."
Hearing these words, the members of the Akatsuki felt as if they had fallen into an abyss.
Ryou changed his tone: "But you are lucky to have met me. I can do what Tsunade cannot."
Ryou reached out, and the Chakra of the Mystical Palm Technique slowly covered Daibutsu's body.
Chimera Technique: Reverse Plunder Reincarnation activated.
An injury like Daibutsu's could only be healed by trading a life; Ryou had once traded his life for Madara's, allowing Madara to return to his peak.
But Daibutsu was not Ryou's parent, so why should Ryou give him his own life?
It was true that Daibutsu was a good person, but there were too many good people in this world.
It was impossible for Ryou to sacrifice a life for him.
Ryou was only trading his life to Daibutsu for the sake of Yahiko, Konan, and Nagato.
Ryou was currently under suspicion by Yahiko and the others; to gain their trust, he had to have an irreplaceable role.
His Medical Ninjutsu was undoubtedly the best irreplaceable asset.
Slowly, the gravel and debris inside Daibutsu's body were expelled, and his damaged internal organs were rapidly repaired under Ryou's powerful forbidden jutsu.
His liver, his lungs, and his stomach and intestines were all recovering at an astonishing rate of regeneration.
Daibutsu's complexion also grew better and better.
Even those who knew nothing about medicine felt that this was a Senjutsu! Only the methods of a Sage could bring Daibutsu back to life.
Everyone looked at Ryou with adoration, as if he were the Sage of Six Paths descended.
Nagato's Rinnegan watched everything in shock—not because Daibutsu's life was saved, but because of Ryou's life force.
Under the investigation of Nagato's Rinnegan, Ryou was transferring his own life force to Daibutsu.
Was this still the same hateful person who had been clamoring for Konan's first kiss earlier?
The others did not have the Rinnegan, but they noticed with their ordinary eyes that Ryou's pitch-black hair was turning gray, and his skin was becoming wrinkled at a visible rate... Konan covered her mouth, looking at Ryou's aging face in disbelief.
The members of the Akatsuki all showed expressions of shock.
Yahiko knelt down directly: "Ryou-sama—!"
The members of the Akatsuki knelt down one after another: "Ryou-sama!"
Sacrificing oneself for others—this was true self-sacrifice. What kind of heart of great love could possess such a spirit of self-devotion?
Yahiko and the others had been suspicious of Ryou's ulterior motives before, but now they were truly ashamed beyond words.
Ryou had given his own life to Daibutsu; could such a person be a spy? Could he be an undercover agent here to snatch Nagato's Rinnegan?
This is a true Ninja of Great Love!
After Ryou finished the technique, Daibutsu slowly woke up.
Daibutsu looked at his hands in confusion: "I... didn't die?!"
He now felt better than ever, and the hidden injuries in his body had completely vanished.
Ryou's body hunched over, and he took a heavy breath. He was about to absorb a life spore to recover his full strength when he suddenly saw the members of the Akatsuki kneeling on the ground, moved to tears.
It was clearly the look of people who had seen the sun, their eyes brimming with hot tears.
Even Konan's eyes were red with emotion.
"..."
Ryou was stunned, but then he realized that these people had seen him perform a forbidden jutsu at the cost of his life to save Daibutsu and were instantly moved by his great love.
Good, I, Ryou, am indeed a Ninja of Great Love!
Ryou slowly withdrew the life spore into his body, lowered his back even further, made his face look paler, and pretended to be unsteady, falling toward Konan.
Yahiko quickly caught Ryou, wiped the tears from his eyes, and said, "Ryou-sama, we misunderstood you. You are the truly selfless person, the Ninja of Great Love."
Ryou secretly pushed Yahiko away and let Konan support him. He lowered his voice and said weakly, "It's fine. It's just a life, isn't it? As long as it can help someone, that's what matters most."
Suddenly, the whole group couldn't help but burst into tears.
The Akatsuki constantly promoted the concept of peace to the people of the Land of Rain, but very few were willing to believe them.
Because the current state of the Land of Rain required strong power to protect its citizens, not unrealistic peace.
The members of the Akatsuki were all people of peace, all wanting to see the day of universal harmony.
Now, they saw the spirit of great love in Ryou, a top-tier Medical Ninja comparable to Princess Tsunade.
He was actually willing to give his life to save a nobody?
This was a person of true great love.
Daibutsu was somewhat confused, but after asking for clarification, he knelt directly in front of Ryou and wept bitterly.
"Ryou-sama, what have I done to deserve such a sacrifice from you?"
"Your life, your hands, and your Ninjutsu should be used to save even more people, not wasted on someone like me."
Daibutsu took out a Kunai, looking as if he were about to commit ritual suicide.
He was truly ashamed, especially after knowing that Ryou's Medical Ninjutsu surpassed Tsunade's.
How could the life of such a divine doctor be wasted because of him?
Ryou quickly grabbed Daibutsu's hand, preventing him from committing ritual suicide.
He patted Daibutsu's head: "Daibutsu, the value of a person cannot be compared; a person's life is inherently higher than any definition."
"My hands can save many people, but I cannot save a country or a nation. Studying medicine cannot save the Land of Rain."
"Seeing you people struggling for peace, I seem to see hope, because you... you are the ones who can save a country, a world."
Daibutsu was moved to tears, deciding in his heart to dedicate his life to Ryou from now on.
Yahiko knelt on one knee and said to Ryou: "Ryou-sama, only someone like you can lead the Akatsuki. Only a person of great love like you can bring hope to the Ninja World."
"Please take over our the Akatsuki and lead us to bring peace to the world!"
"Yes, Ryou-sama, please lead our the Akatsuki!"
"Ryou-sama, you are the true Sage of Six Paths."
"Ryou-sama, please lead us!"
"Cough, cough..."
Ryou quickly coughed twice. Madara, if you don't come soon, I'm going to end up as the leader of the Akatsuki while undercover?
Ryou quickly stopped Yahiko: "No, Yahiko, I am not suited to be a leader. You are the leader who can bring hope to the Ninja World."
"And my time is running out. I hope that in the final moments of my life, I can see the Dawn of the Akatsuki's peace illuminate the Land of Rain."
Yahiko was moved to a complete mess in his heart.
Seeing this, Nagato felt even more ashamed. He felt that only someone like Ryou deserved the Rinnegan.
He had no opinions of his own and even less talent. How could the Sage of Six Paths have entrusted the mission of peace to him?
He wanted to give his eyes to Ryou, but seeing that Ryou had even refused Yahiko, he dismissed that thought.
A great philanthropist like Ryou must have come to help the Akatsuki because he knew about the Rinnegan.
The group of people talked one after another, crying their eyes out.
To an outsider, it would have looked like Ryou was about to die.
Yahiko asked Daibutsu: "Daibutsu, what happened this time? You're usually very careful."
Daibutsu rubbed his head, somewhat puzzled: "I don't know what happened either. I was being very careful when I entered the combat zone."
"But suddenly, my foot felt like it was grabbed by something, and then I triggered the Exploding Tags trap."
"Cough, cough, cough—"
Ryou couldn't help but cough.