Pain // Nagato

Nagato (長門) was a shinobi from Amegakure, descended from the Uzumaki clan. Orphaned by the conflicts of the Second Shinobi World War, Nagato joined forces with his fellow war orphans, Yahiko and Konan, to form Akatsuki, an organization whose goal was to end the endless cycles of hatred and death. Nagato dreamed of bringing peace to the violent world of shinobi. The three were students of Jiraiya for three years, during which the Sannin taught them ninjutsu to support their goals, protect each other, and allow Nagato to control his powers, as he possessed the Rinnegan, the eyes of the Rikudou Sennin. After his best friend and leader, Yahiko, was betrayed and killed for preaching peace, Nagato became convinced that the world would never voluntarily stop fighting unless it knew true pain. Because of this, he adopted the pseudonym Pain (ペイン, Pein) and became the new leader of Akatsuki, attempting to bring the world to a state of peace through the fear of destruction at the hands of Akatsuki. Towards the end of his life, Nagato clashes with Naruto Uzumaki, his "master's brother," who convinces him to bet on a future where people are able to understand each other without pain, passing on his desire for peace to Naruto.

Nagato was sensitive, gentle, prone to tears, and traumatized by the thought of killing others, even to save his friend Yahiko. Frightened and unsure of his place in the world, he wanted to help those he cared about, but didn't know how. He was always respectful and kind to Konan, whom he called his "angel" in Amegakure. He was shown protecting her without request or hesitation before his battle with his former teacher. Apparently, Konan was the only Akatsuki member who addressed him by his true name.

When controlling Pain, his personality was very different, possessing a calm, distant, serious, and detached nature. Apparently believing the traumas he experienced in his youth had illuminated the true meaning of pain and suffering, he considered himself a god and believed he had evolved beyond a mere human being. He sought to show the world the meaning of pain by using an ultimate weapon to stop future wars, using means similar to "mutually assured destruction," and showed no moral qualms about his actions. He was willing to kill Jiraiya to ensure the completion of his plans. He even proclaimed himself a "god of peace," who had to guide the world to maturity through pain. Ultimately, he felt that no one could understand true peace without understanding "true" pain, something his childhood friend, Yahiko, believed. Minato Namikaze believed that Tobi used this philosophy to his advantage in order to manipulate Nagato.

In the anime, Nagato is shown to be sensitive when it comes to talking about "pain." When Ibiki Morino used a special summoning jutsu that "bound through pain," Nagato became enraged (through the Animal Path) and shouted that he "had no idea what true pain was," breaking free from the jutsu and violently attacking Ibiki.

However, he was shown to be quite respectful, especially toward the weak and the dead. Given the frequent insignificance of Akatsuki members, he often calmed them down and encouraged better relations between them. After his battle with Jiraiya, he held a moment of silence for his former teacher out of respect for his power.

Nagato was a fair-skinned man with chin-length red hair (a trademark color of the Uzumaki clan), his most notable feature being his Rinnegan eyes. As a child, his hair covered his face, blocking his vision, making his normal eyes invisible. Nagato grew to a tall man, but after undergoing the Summoning: Demonic Statue of the Outer Path, Nagato was reduced to a stunted, emaciated form with chakra receivers implanted in his back, one in each shoulder joint, and smaller ones in his forearm. Nagato uses a mechanical walker for mobility, which can fire chakra rods for self-defense. He was the only member of Akatsuki never seen wearing the organization's uniform. However, the Six Paths of Pain wore the Akatsuki uniform instead.

Nagato lived with his parents: Fusō and Ise on the outskirts of Amegakure. When he was very young, Madara Uchiha secretly transplanted his Rinnegan into Nagato without his or his parents' knowledge. Sometime later, during the Second Shinobi World War, Nagato and his parents took shelter in their home to avoid the fighting going on around them. One day, two Konoha shinobi broke into their home looking for food and Nagato and his parents tried to sneak out unnoticed. When they were discovered, his parents attacked the shinobi so that Nagato could escape. The Konoha ninja killed his parents in self-defence and, upon realising they were only civilians, tried apologising to Nagato. Overcome with grief, Nagato used Madara's Rinnegan for the first time to kill them and avenge his parents.

After burying his parents, Nagato, now an orphan, was forced to leave home and begin wandering in search of food and shelter. With resources scarce due to the ongoing war, no one he met would help him until Nagato, who had collapsed from hunger, was found by Konan and Yahiko, fellow orphans. They banded together, acquired food to survive through any means, and shared dreams of a future where they were in charge and could use their power to eliminate war. Yahiko was particularly passionate about this point, which inspired Nagato to adopt the same goal. In order to accomplish this, the three would need to become ninja. With few options to choose from, they approached Konoha's Legendary Sannin and asked to be taught ninjutsu. Orochimaru offered to kill them in order to end their suffering, but Jiraiya, guilty over his participation in the war, offered to teach them how to look out for themselves.

Jiraiya found a place for them to live and taught them how to fish, but he would not teach them ninjutsu. While the orphans were out one day, they were found and assaulted by an Iwagakure chūnin. Fearing for his friends' lives, Nagato used his Rinnegan to kill the Iwa-nin. When Jiraiya arrived on the scene to help them, he noticed Nagato's eyes for the first time and was reminded of the legends of the Sage of the Six Paths, the original possessor of the Rinnegan. Because of this, Jiraiya changed his mind and began teaching them ninjutsu. Nagato was remorseful for killing the Iwa-nin, but Jiraiya convinced him that sometimes violence and personal pain was necessary to protect others. In time he even shared his belief that Nagato was the Sage of Six Paths' reincarnation and that, like the original Sage, Nagato would use his Rinnegan to usher in a world of peace.

Jiraiya trained the orphans for three years. Because of his Rinnegan, Nagato easily mastered everything he was taught. Once they were able to defeat one of his shadow clones in a fight, Jiraiya decided they were ready to forge out on their own and he returned to Konoha, confident they would bring reform to the country. The three formed an organisation they called Akatsuki, with Yahiko as its leader, and began advocating an end to war. Their message proved popular and they gathered many followers; even Jiraiya would sometimes hear news of their exploits. During the Third Shinobi World War, they were approached by a disguised Obito Uchiha. Introducing himself as Madara Uchiha, he offered to help them in their pursuits and show Nagato how to unlock the full potential of his Rinnegan. Yahiko refused the offer, suspecting Tobi only meant to use them.

Throughout their quest for peace, Akatsuki's ranks swelled and became known throughout Amegakure, so much so that Hanzō of the Salamander, the village's leader, began to feel Akatsuki threatened his rule. He approached Akatsuki, offering to work together with them to help negotiate with the other warring villages. The next day, at a meeting to finalise the arrangement, Yahiko and Nagato were ambushed by Hanzō and his men, with support from Konoha's Danzō Shimura. Using Konan as a hostage, Hanzō threatened to kill her if Nagato did not kill Yahiko. Unwilling to let Nagato have that on his conscience, Yahiko impaled himself on Nagato's kunai, using his dying breath to state his faith that Nagato would change the world. Enraged by Yahiko's death, Nagato took Konan back from Hanzō, though his legs were badly damaged in the process. He then summoned the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path and, upon linking with it, used it to slaughter Hanzō's men, though Hanzō himself escaped. Afterwards, Nagato severed his ties with Amegakure by slashing the village's symbol on his forehead protector, no longer wishing to be affiliated with Hanzō's village.

Yahiko's death ultimately convinced Nagato that his philosophies about achieving peace were foolish; the world would never willingly end the cycle of death and hatred it had operated on for so long. Only through direct experience of war and all the losses and agonies it brought could anyone truly desire peace. Intending to personally bring that level of despair to the world, Nagato took on the name of "Pain". As the damage he'd received from Hanzō's attack and the link with the Demonic Statue left him frail and immobile, Nagato created the Six Paths of Pain out of corpses that he controlled remotely. For the Deva Path he used Yahiko's body — still wanting him to lead the organisation in spirit — and for the other five he used the corpses of other miscellaneous shinobi that, without his knowing it, had met Jiraiya when they were alive. Pain began leading Akatsuki in a new direction, secretly accepting Obito's earlier offer of support. Akatsuki composed itself with S-rank missing-nin and started offering its services as a mercenary group to ninja villages, earning the money necessary to fund its long-term plans.

Years later and still loyal to his own version of Amegakure, Pain and Konan began a civil war in the village to overthrow Hanzō. Much of the village rallied behind Pain, believing him to be a god because of his immense power. The Six Paths of Pain eventually cornered and killed Hanzō, earning control of the village, but not before expressing his disgust with how Hanzō had fallen from the man he admired and the fact he cannot even understand how, in his self-preservation, his skill and conviction have diminished. In order to prevent anyone from challenging him, Pain proceeded to eliminate everyone even remotely connected to Hanzō, from members of his family to distant acquaintances. Because of Amegakure's already secretive nature, news of Hanzō's death never made it outside of Amegakure and the village was believed to still be divided by the civil war. Pain embraced the villagers' idea of his being God and single-handedly crushing remnants loyal to Hanzō whenever they surfaced. Every Sunday, Pain would make it rain within Amegakure or if he had to be away.

Pain gathers the Akatsuki members to discuss Sasuke Uchiha's recent alliance with Orochimaru, as well as the anticipated completion of his plans three years from now.

In the anime, two years after the Akatsuki's reunion, Amegakure is invited to participate in the Chuunin Exams held jointly by Konohagakure and Sunagakure. Not yet ready to make Akatsuki public, Pain—as if Hanzō still ruled the village—accepts the invitation and sends several genin teams to keep up appearances. The messenger, Kakashi Hatake, later returns to the village to investigate the rumors about it. Pain immediately detects Kakashi and sends guards to capture him, forcing him to retreat.

After Gaara is captured by Deidara and Sasori, Pain summons the Akatsuki to begin extracting Shukaku from Gaara's body. Konoha ninja begin closing in on his location during the three-day process, so Pain uses the Shape Transfer Technique to send copies of Kisame Hoshigaki and Itachi Uchiha to slow them down. The copies are defeated, but they buy the necessary time, and Shukaku is sealed. While the rest of the Akatsuki disperses, Pain instructs Deidara and Sasori to deal with the Konoha ninja who have arrived at his lair.

After the Two-Tails and Three-Tails are captured, Pain assembles the Akatsuki to seal them. Because Pain's summons interrupted a fight with Hidan, the second-youngest member, Pain demands an explanation of the Akatsuki's ultimate goal. Pain comments on the state of the world and how the Akatsuki plans to capitalize on it to take control.

Before the Akatsuki prepares to seal the Four-Tails, Pain informs his members of the deaths of Hidan and Kakuzu, as well as the news that Sasuke Uchiha killed Orochimaru. Shortly after the Four-Tails is sealed, Zetsu also reports the deaths of Deidara and Tobi after a battle with Sasuke. Pain doesn't express Tobi's loss, but encourages the remaining Akatsuki members to mourn Deidara. Once they're finished, Pain and Konan meet with Tobi in Amegakure. Tobi instructs him to go after Naruto Uzumaki, the Nine-Tails' jinchūriki.

Before he can set out in search of Naruto, Pain senses an intruder entering Amegakure. He can't identify who it is, but from their chakra signature, he can tell they're strong. He sends Konan to track whoever it is while he activates the Animal Path. Shortly thereafter, Konan reports that the intruder is Jiraiya. Surprised, Pain orders her to kill him if she can while he deploys the Animal Path to intercept him. In the midst of the fight between Jiraiya and Konan, the Animal Path arrives, freeing Konan from Jiraiya's technique and ordering her to leave. Although Jiraiya doesn't recognize the appearance, Jiraiya assumes Pain is Nagato because of the Rinnegan. Jiraiya expresses his disappointment that Nagato has strayed from his righteous path to peace, leading a criminal organization like the Akatsuki. Pain states that, as a god, his plan to free the world through destruction is the definition of justice. In response to all the Animal Path's summons, Jiraiya summons Gamaken to hold them off while he prepares. Protected within his chameleon, Pain sends a multi-headed dog, a drill-beaked bird, and a giant bison after them, but Jiraiya successfully enters Sage Mode with the help of Shima and Fukasaku. Shima locates and neutralizes the chameleon, forcing Pain to summon the Preta Path and the Human Path to the fight. Jiraiya quickly blinds the Human Path and then attacks with the Hermit Art: Goemon, which the Preta Path absorbs. He makes separate attempts to attack the Human Path and the Animal Path from behind, but both block him. Suspecting a shared vision between them, Jiraiya escapes to devise a strategy.

The three Paths pursue Jiraiya. They hear the sound of Shima and Fukasaku's signature chant. The Paths track them and attempt to stop them, but Jiraiya is ready for them. After confirming that they indeed share the vision, Jiraiya distracts the Preta Path and immobilizes the Human Path, allowing it to fight the Animal Path one-on-one long enough for Shima and Fukasaku to cast their genjutsu: Demonic Illusion: Toad Chant Clash. While the Paths are captured, Jiraiya stabs them with Stone Swords and believes them, and by extension Nagato, to be dead. As he leaves, he momentarily lets his guard down, allowing the Asura Path to attack him from behind, severing his arm. The complete Six Paths of Pain—with the three he defeated restored by the Naraka Path—confront Jiraiya. He recognizes the Deva Path as Yahiko, causing him to question his assumption that Pain is Nagato. After a prolonged battle, Jiraiya escapes to his Barrier: Batrachian Prison Gourd. The Animal Path follows him but is eventually captured; as its final act, it stabs Jiraiya with a straight staff. Jiraiya considers returning to Konoha with what he has learned, but decides this is his only chance to uncover Pain's secret. He returns to the battlefield with Fukasaku and draws the attention of the remaining Paths, and in doing so, discovers it. The Asura Path crushes his throat before he can tell Fukasaku what he has learned, and the other Paths stab him in the back. Believing him dead, they begin to leave, but Jiraiya uses the last of his energy to carve a coded message into Fukasaku's back. The Paths attempt to stop him, but Fukasaku escapes, and Jiraiya's body sinks into the sea. Pain observes a moment of silence for his passing.

In the anime, after obtaining a replacement for the Animal Path, Pain is assigned to capture the Rokubi, which was sealed inside Utakata, a Rogue Ninja from Kirigakure.
During their search, the Animal Path summoned a Dog that found and killed a group of Kirigakure Hunter-nin led by Tsurugi. Later, Utakata encountered Pain in the forest and was attacked by the Asura Path, being defeated and captured for the extraction of his Tailed Beast.

With only the Nine-Tails and Eight-Tails remaining among the nine Bijuu, Pain and Konan headed for Konoha. After eliminating the border guards upon their arrival, they infiltrated the village and split up, each with a specific task in the invasion. While exploring and devastating the village and its inhabitants, the Deva Path was confronted by Kakashi Hatake. The Asura Path came to its aid and together they fought Kakashi and his allies, but the Asura Path was destroyed, though they managed to kill Kakashi.
Across the village, Pain's remaining bodies continued their duties, fighting any Konoha ninja they encountered. The Deva Path met with Tsunade, the Fifth Hokage, who refused to reveal Naruto's location. Elsewhere, the Human Path used its signature interrogation technique on Shizune, discovering that Naruto was at Mount Myouboku. Declaring that he would teach Tsunade the pain Konoha should feel, Nagato instructed the Deva Path to use Shinra Tensei on a massive scale to destroy the entire village, while Konan and the other Paths retreated.

When the smoke cleared, the Deva Path discovered that Naruto had returned with his toad allies. In retaliation for the village's destruction, Naruto quickly crushed the newly restored Asura Path and began his fight with the remaining Pain Paths. The Animal Path summoned creatures to attack Naruto, but the toads dealt with these summons, while Naruto defeated the Preta Path. Soon after, Naruto eliminated the Human Path with his Rasenshuriken, and then teamed up with Gamabunta to defeat the Animal Path.

With four Pain Paths remaining, the temporarily powerless Deva Path protected the Naraka Path, which restored the Preta Path. The Preta Path absorbed a second Rasenshuriken, but it had merely been a diversion for Naruto to give him an opportunity to finish off the Naraka Path. The Deva Path held Naruto back so the Preta Path could capture him and absorb his chakra to immobilize him. The Preta Path eventually absorbed Naruto's senjutsu chakra, transforming Pain into a stone frog statue. Naruto escaped its clutches but was trapped by the Deva Path, which pinned him to the ground with its chakra-disrupting blades. The Deva Path gave Naruto a speech about the chain of hatred, pain, suffering, and war that the ninja system had brought to the world, and how it planned to use the power of the tailed beasts to achieve peace and a final conflict. It asked if Naruto could think of a better solution, but Naruto didn't respond.

Before the Deva Path took Naruto, Hinata Hyuuga appeared to defend Naruto. When she was seemingly killed after fighting Pain, Naruto became enraged and manifested the sixth tail of the Nine-Tails. The Deva Path retreated to a location closer to Nagato, who was isolated nearby. This allowed the Deva Path to use Chibaku Tensei, trapping Naruto in a massive sphere of earth and rubble. This victory was short-lived, until Naruto soon evolved into the eighth tail and broke free of the Chibaku Tensei. Realizing he would have to make the sphere larger, it suddenly began to shatter, and Naruto, reverting to his normal form, emerged from the ruins.

Reflecting on the previous lecture, Naruto demanded an opportunity to speak with Nagato, but was denied and attacked by the Deva Path. After failing to use Wind Release: Rasenshuriken twice, Naruto took advantage of the five-second delay in the Deva Path's Shinra Tensei to attack him with a Rasengan right on target. He removed one of his chakra receivers and inserted it into his skin to track the signal back to Nagato. Naruto then managed to see him, but when he arrived, Nagato used other receivers to try to control him. Naruto resisted, despite his proximity to Nagato. Although angered by Nagato's death and the destruction of Konoha, Naruto questioned how a student of Jiraiya could have strayed so far from his master's teachings. Hoping that Naruto would agree with his solution for peace, Nagato told him about his past, his two greatest sorrows, and how he came to believe that pain would save the world.

Although Naruto agreed with Nagato's final conclusion, he rejected it due to his differences with Jiraiya's ideas. In doing so, he answered Nagato's earlier question about how to achieve peace: "breaking the cycle of hatred." He decided not to kill Nagato, as that would only perpetuate the cycle of revenge. Impressed by Naruto's ideals and remembering Jiraiya's teachings, Nagato decided to place his faith in Naruto's answer. Nagato used the Outer Path: Rinne Reincarnation Technique to revive all the citizens of Konohagakure who had been killed during the invasion, causing his red hair to turn pure white due to the overexertion of his chakra. The strain of the technique cost Nagato his life. With his dying breath, he wished for Naruto's dream of peace to come true and said that regarding Jiraiya's book, he felt as if it were "the work of a true god." Like his teacher, Nagato died with a smile.

Soon after, his body is taken by Konan, who makes an alliance with Naruto, to Amegakure and placed in a shrine, next to the body of his friend, Yahiko.

In the anime, Nagato is summoned by Kabuto to battle Team Kakashi, who are investigating the massacre that occurred in the pit. Shortly after being summoned, Nagato's coffin returns, leaving Kabuto wondering if the Summoning: Impure Lands Reincarnation was incomplete.

Nagato is later revived again by Kabuto in an attempt to convince Tobi to accept an alliance. His hair was noticeably gray, as it was after his death, as opposed to the bright red he had sported in life, and his body was equally emaciated. Despite this, he lacked the chakra transmitters that were once embedded in his back, and could stand without the support machine he had once used to move.

He is later summoned again by Kabuto. He and Tobi march off to war. While heading to war with Itachi and Kakuzu, he is carried by the latter due to his inability to walk.
When the fighting ceased for the night, he was seen alone with Itachi, who supported him as he walked. While discussing Akatsuki, Nagato observed how the two were being used due to their powerful doujutsu, just as Itachi was truly a shinobi shrouded in darkness. After stopping at a shrine, they continued discussing Tobi's plan and his strategy. Nagato and Itachi continued walking through the forest, approaching some mountains. Nagato felt nostalgic when they encountered Naruto Uzumaki and Killer B, and Nagato lamented the fact that he would have to fight Naruto again.

Pleased to see Naruto again, Nagato asked about his form and congratulated Naruto on controlling the Nine-Tails Chakra and overcoming his hatred. They were forced to attack, and he was later shocked to learn the truth about the Uchiha clan massacre. When Nagato attacked using Banshou Ten'in, Naruto managed to dodge it. He then tells Itachi Uchiha to separate from Nagato. He couldn't walk, so he summoned the Dog and the Bird, and jokingly said he could fly. Nagato clashes with Naruto, and he reminds Naruto that the dog couldn't be defeated by brute force, and tells Naruto to attack him instead.

Nagato apparently senses a change in Itachi and warns Naruto that Itachi was about to use Amaterasu. However, when he sees Itachi attack his summon, he asks what the crow is. As Itachi turns to him and surprisingly attacks him with Amaterasu, he claims he realizes what has happened, and he falls to the ground engulfed in flames. Then Kabuto seemingly removes Nagato's personality and uses Shinra Tensei to push back the flames. However, he regenerates, summons the chameleon, and hides in its mouth. Surprising his opponent with a large scale of Shinra Tensei, he moves into Assault B, but is attacked by Killer B in Version 2 with the Lariat. Nagato uses his abilities to absorb B's chakra, and he exits the form. This chakra apparently revitalizes Nagato's body, returning him to his youthful form, before being emaciated by the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path. He then uses his invisible chameleon to hold Naruto and proceeds to remove Naruto's soul.

Nagato summons the Outer Path to take their bodies and souls back to Kabuto. B then tries to cut Nagato to save Naruto, but Nagato stops him with two extra arms that appear after using the Asura Path's powers. He continues to take Naruto's soul, until Itachi saves Naruto with his Susanoo. Nagato then uses Chibaku Tensei to trap the three, but is stopped by Itachi's Yasaka no Magatama, B's Tailed Beast Bomb, and Naruto's Wind Release: Rasenshuriken, which destroys the sphere created by the technique. Nagato is then pierced by Itachi's Totsuka Sword before the dust settles, and he apologizes as his personality returns. Taking the opportunity to say his last words, Nagato tells Naruto that he was going to meet his master to see how Naruto's story would end. He says that he was the third part of the trilogy, with Jiraiya being the first and him being the second, which was a failure that not even their master would accept for the book. He tells Naruto to be so incredible that he makes everyone forget how bad the second part was. Then, his body begins to disintegrate. Saying goodbye as the sword begins to seal him, he says goodbye and says that he is now going to meet Jiraiya again in the afterlife.

Nagato held the position of leader of Akatsuki, and even after being revived by Kabuto Yakushi, after restoring and reinvigorating his body using the tailed beast chakra he absorbed from B, he simultaneously overpowered and immobilized both the Eight-Tails and Nine-Tails jinchūriki with ease, though his legs remained weakened—despite Naruto being in his Nine-Tails Chakra Mode and Killer B having perfect synchronization with Gyūki. He would have killed them both had it not been for Itachi Uchiha's intervention. Although his effectiveness was reduced due to Kabuto's direct control over him, it still required a combined effort from Naruto, Killer B, and Itachi to defeat and seal him.

Like Pain, he was referred to as "unbeatable" on more than one occasion, most notably with Konan, another Akatsuki member, emphasizing the fact that Pain had never lost a battle. Even Fukasaku stated that without understanding Pain's powers, no one could defeat him. His strength allowed him to defeat and kill Hanzō, though Hanzō's abilities were diminished at the time. Tobi even mentioned Nagato's invincibility, while praising Jiraiya for being able to challenge him, even momentarily. Still, Nagato easily defeated Jiraiya after summoning all Six Paths of Pain. However, Nagato attributes his advantage in defeating Jiraiya to the secret behind his Six Paths of Pain, stating that he could not have won if Jiraiya had known the secret to his techniques.

Furthermore, he was able to face several Konohagakure shinobi simultaneously and destroy the entire Konohagakure single-handedly, losing only one of his Six Paths of Pain in the various battles. Before facing Naruto, Nagato had never lost a single battle, which pushed Naruto to the limit of his most powerful abilities at his disposal. It's important to note that Naruto had prior knowledge of some of Nagato's techniques. Zetsu expressed his disbelief that Naruto could defeat Nagato, even in a weakened state.

Nagato was an extremely powerful shinobi. As a descendant of the Uzumaki clan, his chakra was naturally resilient. His actual chakra reserves were extraordinarily vast, enough that he could perform several extremely strenuous techniques in a single day. When exerting his chakra in the form of a shockwave, one of the Fifth Hokage's Anbu bodyguards describes it as monstrous chakra. Nagato also had remarkable control over his chakra and could constantly alter its frequency, negating the possibility of a sensor pinpointing his location while he controlled the Six Paths of Pain. However, this was not absolute, as Naruto located Nagato by plunging one of the black rods from Pain's body into himself while using Sage Mode.

After his first fight with Hanzō, Nagato's legs were permanently damaged, and his body became even more fragile after using the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path. This limited his mobility for the rest of his life and rendered his original body largely defenseless. To compensate for this, while alive, Nagato used the Six Paths of Pain to fight for him while he remained in a mechanical walker. He regained some of his former mobility after being revived and reinvigorated with some of the Eight-Tails' chakra. When not weakened, Nagato can move quickly across a battlefield, closing the distance between himself and his opponents quickly enough to force them to retreat.

During his training with Jiraiya, Nagato mastered every technique he was taught, encompassing several different styles and all five Basic Nature Changes, achievements extremely rare even for adults, let alone ten-year-olds. He was also capable of using the Yang Style.

Later, Nagato displayed a wide range of techniques, including being the leader of Akatsuki meetings, using a technique that allowed him to capture his own thought waves and those of other members and transmit them as an astral projection to a specific location. While a Bijuu was being extracted from its jinchūriki, Nagato employed several methods to prevent and delay potential invaders from arriving in time to stop the extraction. Among these techniques was the Five Seals Barrier, which prevented the destruction of anything within its boundaries without simultaneously removing the five seals—an effective method for dividing enemy forces. Nagato also added another failsafe, which activated once the seals were removed, creating copies that perfectly resembled the unsealed ones in appearance and abilities. Another technique Nagato used to slow down and prevent the pursuers from interrupting the extraction was the Form Transfer Technique, which allowed Nagato to allocate a portion of an individual's chakra and transfer it to a living human sacrifice, allowing the original to fight through a "copy." This allowed the sacrifices to use the possessed's kekkei genkai, techniques, and weapons. However, once the allocated chakra was depleted, the technique would be canceled and the copy killed.

Nagato could install mental barriers and traps in the minds of his subordinates to prevent others from accessing classified information, and was adept at using the Shadow Clone Technique, even cloning his summoned ccreatures.

Nagato was also a sensor, capable of pinpointing the location of others from great distances, even penetrating beyond barriers erected for the purpose of blocking detection. One of his most notable techniques was the Tiger at Will in the Rain Technique, which allowed him to create perpetual rain to monitor all who moved within Amegakure.

The versatility of Nagato's abilities in so many types of ninjutsu was largely due to his Rinnegan. Although he was not the original owner of the eyes, being an Uzumaki allowed Nagato to use both eyes without such disadvantages, while Obito could barely manage with a single eye, despite his various modifications and in-depth knowledge of dōjutsu. Ultimately, Nagato's skill was great enough to earn him recognition as the "Third Six Paths" (三人目の六道, Sanninme no Rikudou) and established himself as a "God" (神, Kami) in Amegakure.

As stated by Konan, Nagato was capable of using all the abilities of the Six Paths of Pain: the gravitational powers of the Deva Path; the collection of available summons unique to the Animal Path; the ability to absorb any form of chakra from the Preta Path; control over the souls of others with the Human Path; the different mechanization options for battle of the Asura Path; access to the King of Hell through the Naraka Path. Due to the limitations of his real body, Nagato had few opportunities to use any of these abilities directly. However, when the opportunity arose, he could switch between the different Paths seamlessly and instantly.

Of all the shinobi who possessed the Rinnegan, Nagato demonstrated the greatest mastery. While he had no instruction to teach him the secrets of the Rinnegan and the extent of its abilities, Nagato was able to utilize all Six Paths with aplomb, as well as the Outer Path. With the Outer Path, he was able to summon the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path and control it to annihilate armies like Hanzō's (allied with the Konoha Anbu forces), completely resurrect the dead, and create the black rods, which eventually allowed him to create his signature technique: the Six Paths of Pain.

Nagato's most powerful and versatile technique was his "Six Paths of Pain" (ペイン六道, Pein Rikudou). This technique allowed Nagato to control six separate bodies as if they were his own. Each of these bodies were reanimated from corpses that were kept mobile and made use of Nagato's own chakra. By using these six bodies for combat instead of himself, Nagato avoided the risk of being killed in battle by a stronger opponent and compensated for his lack of mobility. Because Nagato's vision was linked with the bodies, he essentially had six fields of vision, making it virtually impossible for his enemies to attack any of the bodies unseen. Nagato's vision was also associated with Yama and the various creatures he summons, which also possessed the Rinnegan. While controlling the Six Paths under the alias "Pain", Nagato still considers the bodies to be separate entities from himself. The Paths were incapable of feeling physical pain, as they were merely manipulated corpses, which Ibiki Morino discovered when he attempted to torture the second Animal PPath.

In using the technique, Nagato stood in a machine that moved with six relatively small mechanical legs and used several large chakra rods on his back to transmit chakra to the bodies. From his location, the chakra was picked up by numerous receivers, shaped like piercings on each body. To control them, Nagato had to be nearby, and ideally at the highest possible point, so he could have the best possible range. Certain techniques, such as Chibaku Tensei, could only be used through the Six Paths while they were within a certain range of Nagato. His technique's output was also increased while focusing on only one of the Six Paths, though this leaves the others vulnerable and, if overused, shortens Nagato's lifespan and requires the Deva Path's power to recharge for a longer period than usual. Nagato was also able to fire chakra receivers from his mechanical walker and, from a close enough range, control the bodies of those pierced by them with his chakra, though this effect can be resisted.

The only common feature shared by the Pains was their orange hair and Rinnegan. Each also had a large number of facial piercings of various shapes, sizes, and patterns. Each body seemed to serve a specific purpose on the battlefield and was positioned according to each Pain's skill. Nagato was considered the "Seventh Pain," with the "Outer Path," which rules over the forces of life and death. Fukasaku stated that the best way to fight Pain would be to deal with the Six Paths one at a time, as they were even more formidable when fighting together.

• His name means "long-lasting gate." • The name Pain, in English, means "pain," a reference to the suffering Nagato endured along with Konan and Yahiko in the past. • When he was young, Orochimaru offered to kill Nagato and his friends so they wouldn't have to suffer the horrors of war (at least more than they already had), but many years later, he allowed Orochimaru to join Akatsuki. It is unknown whether Orochimaru is aware that two of the three orphans he proposed to kill became his superiors. • The Six Paths of Pain were individuals Jiraiya knew in his past. Since Nagato's Six Paths of Pain were all deceased ninja, it can also be assumed that the Animal Path summons were reanimated corpses as well, as they also had multiple piercings and Rinnegan (possibly meaning Nagato could see through their eyes as well). • Nagato and Konan are the only Akatsuki members who are not Rogue Ninja from their village. • According to the databook(s): - Nagato's hobby is training in ninjutsu. - Nagato wants to fight no one in particular; he only wants to fight to protect his friends. - His favorite food was grilled fish and stew. - Nagato's favorite word is "ripen."