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Personality Nagato was a sensitive child, prone to crying over the sufferings of himself and others. When he met Yahiko he tried to break this habit by following Yahiko's philosophy that crying wouldn't change anything, but the attempt was unsuccessful. Jiraiya later pointed out to him that his sensitivity was actually a strength, as it allowed him to understand pain better and, in turn, be kinder to others. This view resonated with Nagato and caused him to realise that he wanted to take on all of his friends' pain so that they wouldn't have to. It also finally succeeded in ending his crying; when Jiraiya left their group it was Yahiko who cried to see him go, while Nagato only thanked him for all the guidance he'd provided.
In one form or another, Nagato spent his entire life placing the needs of others before his own: his main motivation for becoming a ninja in the first place was so that he could protect Yahiko and Konan; he viewed his role in the original Akatsuki as a powerful tool meant to help Yahiko bring peace to their country; as leader of his own version of Akatsuki, he felt it was his responsibility to save the world from itself, inflicting pains of such magnitude that nobody would ever harm anyone else ever again. While this indicates a growing self-importance Nagato regarded himself with, it was encouraged by the similarly growing esteem others regarded him with due to his Rinnegan: Jiraiya believed he was the reincarnation of the Sage of the Six Paths; Yahiko and the rest of Akatsuki believed he was the "Saviour of the World"; the villagers of Amegakure believed in him as if he were a "God".
As a child that grew up in the middle of other countries' wars, Nagato did not like killing and was horrified by his early acts of violence against those who had harmed his friends and family. He supported Yahiko's Akatsuki because it wanted to end the wars and deaths that he hated so much. After Yahiko's death, Nagato compromised his aversion to killing to a large extent, believing the deaths of specific individuals or even hundreds at a time could be justified if it served a greater and/or long-term purpose. But Nagato remains very clear in this distinction, as he shows mercy to those willing to cooperate with him and discourages others from defying him because it will only force him to strike them down. Minato Namikaze believes that, at some point along the way, Nagato's views were corrupted and subsequently manipulated by Tobi.
As leader of Akatsuki, Nagato projected a great charisma through his public mask of the Deva Path so that even Akatsuki held him in great awe. Despite his power and self-appointed divinity, Nagato was incredibly patient with defiance from the group, likening Hidan's open threats against him to those of a child who needed guidance. Utterly confident in his own abilities, Nagato showed no hesitation in fighting even the strongest opponents, nor in asserting himself against powerful Akatsuki members when need be. When speaking of Akatsuki's goals, Nagato demonstrated a contemplative side as to the nature of war and peace, matching his belief that war was the inevitable result of the nature of humanity. While he declared his godhood to his enemies, Nagato would privately admit that he was never anything more than an ordinary man who was seeking peace through the best means he knew how. When encountering enemies who disagreed with his philosophy, Nagato would often request their own solution to the problems of the world before almost inevitably being dissatisfied with the response due to his low opinion of human beings as a whole. Despite this, Nagato is stated to have gone as far as kill anyone from Amegakure who even questioned his ideals and even went as far as to kill infants of people who were even remotely associated to Hanzō, and in the anime, antagonised him even in death, preventing his remains from being given a proper burial.
When leading the Akatsuki, Nagato could also be possessed of a cold, wrathful side. He showed no hesitation in attempting to kill his former teacher Jiraiya, stating that all love for Jiraiya had long since died. When he attacked Konoha, Nagato demonstrated cold fury at Tsunade for defying his proclamations as to the justice of his attack on the Leaf. Believing that the only way humans could understand one another was through shared pain, Nagato showed no hesitation in obliterating the Leaf village or attempting to kill Hinata Hyūga when she came to Naruto's defence in order to demonstrate a lesson on pain and the inability of human beings to understand one another. Despite this, he had a high value in comrades as he chastised Kisame for speaking ill of Hidan and Kakuzu.
One further constant in Nagato's life was the esteem he placed in his childhood friends. Nagato viewed himself as having inherited Yahiko's will to change the world and kept Yahiko's corpse as his most treasured and powerful Path of Pain. Konan, his partner and childhood friend, remained his most ardent supporter. Nagato likewise demonstrated equal esteem and concern for her, with Konan as one of the few who could sway or influence his decisions to the extent that Tobi confided in Zetsu a fear of what Nagato might do without Konan's calming influence on him.[24]
Despite the number of personal changes Nagato went through during his life, he always remained fundamentally kind and respectful. With his fellow members of Akatsuki, he mourns those who die in the pursuit of Akatsuki's goals and disapproves of name-calling amongst peers. He extends similar courtesies to his opponents, being honoured to meet one so strong as Kakashi Hatake, despite also being determined to kill Kakashi because that very same strength would inevitably interfere with Akatsuki's plans. For all his kindness, Nagato has a certain prejudice against Konoha because its ninja have played a role in a number of his life's tragedies. He tried to change this opinion because of Jiraiya's positive influence, but ultimately decided that Konoha's successes were predicated on the misfortunes of others.
Despite his conviction in Akatsuki's goals, Nagato is re-convinced of his former pacifism by Naruto Uzumaki, who believes the struggle for peace is worth any personal cost to the point of sacrificing his life to atone for his actions. Recognising the person he once was, Nagato decides to believe in Naruto's answer for peace, also regaining his faith in Jiraiya. Upon his revival, Nagato demonstrates a far friendlier side, joking with and praising Naruto. Before he is sealed away, Nagato reveals that he has gone from viewing himself as a god to viewing himself as the failed middle volume of a trilogy started by Jiraiya and ended with Naruto. He also regains his high regard for Jiraiya as he referred to Jiraiya was the "perfect first volume".