Chapter Summaries

Kabuto Yakushi revealed more of his past manipulation of Orochimaru, then joined him in approaching Tsunade with a plan to use Katsuyu to revive the dead at full strength. Jiraiya urged Tsunade to become Fifth Hokage to prevent Akihara Kagura from starting another war, but she remained wary of the office and focused on Orochimaru’s resurrection offer.

• Kabuto Yakushi confessed that he had delayed Orochimaru’s recovery and helped Sasori corner him, while Orochimaru demanded to hear what else Akihara Kagura had done.
• Kabuto Yakushi said he would remain beside Orochimaru to monitor his experiments, and Orochimaru went to ask Tsunade to lend him Katsuyu for a stronger Impure World Reincarnation.
• Orochimaru tempted Tsunade with the chance to see her loved ones again, but admitted he wanted Katsuyu’s life force to revive the dead at their peak and defeat Akihara Kagura.
• Jiraiya warned Tsunade that Orochimaru might use Katsuyu to control a revived First Hokage, then told her the village needed her to become Fifth Hokage.
• Tsunade rejected the Hokage position and disparaged the past Hokage, prompting Naruto Uzumaki to challenge her; she defeated him effortlessly.
• Jiraiya told Tsunade that Akihara Kagura might start wars against Kirigakure and Sunagakure, and argued that only the Fifth Hokage could order the Hokage Assistant to stop military operations.

Jiraiya urged Tsunade to become Hokage to prevent Akihara Kagura from driving Konoha into war, while Naruto Uzumaki accepted Tsunade’s challenge to learn the Rasengan. After learning that Kagura had mastered Impure World Reincarnation, Tsunade decided to take the Hokage position and focus first on killing Orochimaru.

• Jiraiya warned Tsunade that Akihara Kagura might start a war and urged her to become Hokage, but Naruto Uzumaki defended Kagura and declared he would protect Konoha.
• Tsunade gave Naruto Uzumaki her necklace and bet that he could not learn the Rasengan within a week; Shizune told him that the necklace had belonged to Nawaki and Dan Katō, who both died in war.
• Jiraiya told Shizune that Akihara Kagura had learned Impure World Reincarnation, and Shizune passed the news to Tsunade.
• Tsunade dismissed the possibility of cooperating with Orochimaru and resolved to become Hokage, thinking she could kill Orochimaru to prevent Kagura from using the forbidden jutsu.

Tsunade overcame her hemophobia after Orochimaru used Dan Katō’s revived body to manipulate her into summoning Katsuyu. She ordered Katsuyu to kill the controlled Dan and regained her resolve to fight Orochimaru, while Jiraiya battled him nearby.

• Tsunade met Orochimaru outside town, but he triggered her hemophobia with blood and left her unable to move.
• Jiraiya arrived and fought Orochimaru, while Shizune and Naruto Uzumaki carried Tsunade away from the battlefield.
• A shinobi controlling Dan Katō’s revived body appeared and persuaded Tsunade to summon Katsuyu by pretending to be Dan.
• Tsunade ordered Katsuyu to kill Dan Katō, refusing to let Orochimaru use his will against Konoha.
• Tsunade overcame her fear of blood and asked the disguised controller who he was.

Tsunade agreed to become the Fifth Hokage after Orochimaru escaped, but Akihara Kagura tried to protect her reputation by having Root kill her creditors and casino workers. The resulting massacre angered the Land of Fire’s nobles and ministers, leaving Tsunade facing a political crisis before she had even taken office.

• Tsunade and Jiraiya fought Orochimaru after she destroyed Dan Katō's body, and Orochimaru escaped by burrowing into a crack in the ground.
• Tsunade agreed to return to Konoha and become the Fifth Hokage, while Akihara Kagura ordered Root to eliminate her creditors and the casinos tied to her debts.
• Karin led Root ninja in killing casino workers in a town, and Tsunade stopped her from killing the casino owner before Karin used her Adamantine Sealing Chains to kill the others.
• Tsunade decided Karin was better suited to medical work than Root and planned to bring her onto her own side.
• The casino purge angered the Land of Fire’s nobles and ministers, who opposed Tsunade becoming Hokage, while Akihara Kagura proposed killing anyone who resisted her.

Akihara Kagura confronted Tsunade over her creditors and pushed her toward becoming Fifth Hokage while proposing increasingly extreme measures to protect Konoha's image. Tsunade accepted the appointment but asserted her authority, and Kagura ended by requesting permission to resurrect every previous Hokage to help govern and guard against Orochimaru.

• Tsunade confronted Akihara Kagura about killing her creditors, and he showed her documents detailing their crimes.
• Akihara Kagura argued that Tsunade's ties to the creditors threatened Konoha's reputation, then proposed paying their debts before killing them; Tsunade refused to involve the village in her private affairs.
• Tsunade tried to quit the succession, but Akihara Kagura and the Hokage Advisors persuaded her to accept, while Kagura proposed eliminating nobles who opposed her.
• Tsunade rejected Kagura's plans for dealing with the nobles and gambling-related rumors, then sat at the Hokage's desk and declared that she was Hokage.
• Akihara Kagura requested permission to use the Impure World Reincarnation Jutsu to resurrect all previous Hokage, both to prepare for Orochimaru and to help prevent Tsunade from misgoverning.

Akihara Kagura persuaded Konoha’s leaders to let him revive the four Hokage before Orochimaru could exploit them, then challenged the revived Hokage to a fight. The battle began in the Land of Wind desert, where Kagura used rain and hidden water needles to locate and attack them.

• Utatane Koharu, Mitokado Homura, and Tsunade agreed that Akihara Kagura should revive the previous Hokage to prevent Orochimaru from doing so, while Tsunade objected to concealing her responsibility.
• Akihara Kagura left Tsunade behind and told her to wait until she officially became Fifth Hokage before trying to change Konoha.
• At the Root base, Akihara Kagura told Hashirama Senju, Tobirama Senju, Hiruzen Sarutobi, and Minato Namikaze that he would spar with all four of them.
• Akihara Kagura and the four Hokage traveled to an uninhabited desert in the Land of Wind, where Kagura arrived first despite departing last.
• Akihara Kagura opened the fight with Fire Style: Great Fire Annihilation, and Hiruzen Sarutobi and Tobirama Senju countered with Water Style: Water Wall.
• Akihara Kagura used Rain Tiger Hunter Jutsu to sense the four Hokage, then attacked them with Water Release: Heavenly Weep; Tobirama Senju recognized the technique after a water needle struck his shoulder.

Akihara Kagura fought the four Hokage, countering their techniques with powerful ninjutsu and Flying Thunder God before facing Hashirama Senju in a contest of Wood Style. Kagura defeated Hashirama’s strongest attack, and Hashirama concluded that Kagura had surpassed all the Hokage in their areas of expertise.

• Hiruzen Sarutobi and Akihara Kagura traded combined ninjutsu, while Hashirama Senju and Kagura battled for control of a forest with Wood Style.
• Kagura erased Hashirama’s forest with a Dust Release and Fire Style combination, then used his speed to attack Minato Namikaze, Tobirama Senju, and Hiruzen Sarutobi; Minato and Tobirama exchanged Flying Thunder God marks with him.
• Kagura and Minato used Flying Thunder God to flash across the battlefield until Kagura struck Minato and Tobirama with Dust Release: Giant Rasengan.
• Kagura and Hashirama fought with Wood Golems, and Kagura used Flying Thunder God to strike from behind and cut down Hashirama’s Wood Golem and Wood Dragons.
• Kagura and Hashirama entered Sage Mode and summoned True Several Thousand Hands, but Kagura’s Dust Release attack dispersed Hashirama’s statue and defeated him.
• Hashirama admitted that Kagura had surpassed him in Wood Style and, based on the battle, had surpassed all four Hokage in their areas of expertise.

Akihara Kagura intimidated the Land of Fire’s nobles into approving Tsunade as the Fifth Hokage, then pushed them toward supporting war against Sunagakure and Kirigakure. Tsunade postponed the decision, and Kagura said he would revive more Hokage so the deceased Third Hokage could speak about his own murder.

• Akihara Kagura told the revived Hokage he would keep seeking their support in Konoha and described Tsunade as a superior who had cooperated with him.
• At the Daimyo’s Mansion, Akihara Kagura threatened ministers who criticized Konoha, leaving them too frightened to oppose Tsunade’s appointment as Fifth Hokage.
• Tsunade invited the nobles and ministers to raise concerns, but a drawn blade made one minister ask only when her succession ceremony would take place.
• After the meeting appeared to end, Akihara Kagura demanded charges against the ministers and argued that Konoha should punish Sunagakure and Kirigakure for colluding with Orochimaru to kill Hiruzen Sarutobi.
• Tsunade stopped the ministers’ war debate and ordered that the matter be discussed after they returned to Konoha.
• Akihara Kagura agreed to wait, saying Root was preparing sacrifices so he could revive more Hokage through Impure World Reincarnation and let the deceased Third Hokage speak.

Karin and the Root ninja killed ministers accused of crimes, and Akihara Kagura revived the four previous Hokage before Tsunade’s succession ceremony. The revived Hokage debated whether Konoha should go to war against Kirigakure and Sunagakure, and Tsunade’s opposition left the decision in her hands.

• Karin ordered Root ninja to kill ministers and presented evidence of their crimes, frightening the Daimyo and the nobles of the Land of Fire.
• Akihara Kagura told Tsunade and the advisors that Root would deal with ministers who might obstruct Konoha’s plans.
• Akihara Kagura summoned Hashirama Senju, Tobirama Senju, Hiruzen Sarutobi, and Minato Namikaze to the Hokage Building before Tsunade’s succession ceremony.
• Mitokado Homura explained that Konoha was weighing war against Kirigakure and Sunagakure, while Hashirama Senju initially favored peace and Tobirama Senju argued for an attack.
• Tsunade opposed the war, and Akihara Kagura first backed Tobirama Senju before arguing that the daimyo and nobles should be eliminated to secure Konoha’s rear.
• Utatane Koharu, Mitokado Homura, Hiruzen Sarutobi, Minato Namikaze, Hashirama Senju, and Akihara Kagura stated their positions, leaving Tsunade to decide.

Tsunade became Konoha’s Fifth Hokage, but the resurrected former Hokage pressured her to declare war on Sunagakure and Kirigakure. She announced the war as her first order at her inauguration, leaving the villagers to absorb the shocking news.

• Tobirama Senju and the other resurrected Hokage overruled Tsunade’s opposition to war, while Akihara Kagura urged her to do what she thought was right.
• Tsunade reluctantly agreed to announce war on Sunagakure and Kirigakure at her inauguration ceremony.
• Konoha villagers gathered for Tsunade’s inauguration as Naruto Uzumaki resented someone else becoming Hokage and Hyuga Hiashi worried about his clan’s position.
• Jiraiya reunited with Hiruzen Sarutobi and Minato Namikaze, and Minato welcomed Jiraiya’s offer to train Naruto.
• Tsunade announced that she would avenge the fallen Third Hokage by declaring war on Kirigakure and Sunagakure.

After Tsunade declared war on Sunagakure and Kirigakure, Akihara Kagura went alone to Kirigakure to demand its unconditional surrender. He attacked the village after Ao and Mei Terumi refused, leaving Kirigakure under threat from his Wood Release.

• Tsunade declared war on Sunagakure and Kirigakure, alarming Konoha's villagers and ninjas.
• Hiruzen Sarutobi explained that war would ease Konoha's conflict with the Land of Fire's nobles, while Tobirama Senju urged Akihara Kagura to end the war alone.
• Akihara Kagura vanished from Konoha and arrived outside Kirigakure, where he told Ao that Tsunade had declared war and demanded unconditional surrender.
• Mei Terumi rejected Ao's attempt to negotiate, and Akihara Kagura warned that he had come to bring Kirigakure's surrender back to Konoha.
• Akihara Kagura struck Mei Terumi and sent Ao flying, then unleashed Wood Release: Deep Forest Emergence toward Kirigakure.

Akihara Kagura subdued Kirigakure with Wood Release and brought Mei Terumi to Konoha to announce the village’s unconditional surrender. As Konoha’s leaders struggled to process the abrupt end of one war, Tsunade prepared to accompany Kagura to Sunagakure.

• Akihara Kagura’s Wood Release bound every Mist Ninja in Kirigakure to trees and drained their chakra, forcing Mei Terumi to surrender unconditionally to Konoha.
• Ao tried to take Mei Terumi’s place, but Akihara Kagura insisted that she represent Kirigakure in surrendering to the Fifth Hokage.
• Tsunade ordered Konoha to prepare for war against Kirigakure, Iwagakure, and Kumogakure while Shikaku Nara began planning a strategy.
• Akihara Kagura returned to Konoha with the injured Mei Terumi and announced that Kirigakure had surrendered, stunning the meeting attendees.
• Mei Terumi pleaded for Kirigakure’s people to be spared, and Akihara Kagura revealed that he had not killed them; Tsunade stopped him from doing so.
• Akihara Kagura offered to go to Sunagakure, and Tsunade decided to accompany him.

Akihara Kagura and Tsunade broke through Sunagakure’s defenses and forced Grandma Chiyo to surrender. They returned to Konoha with Chiyo, where Tsunade declared the war against Sunagakure and Kirigakure over less than twelve hours after announcing it.

• Grandma Chiyo gathered Sunagakure’s Jonin and ordered the village to prepare for war and seek an alliance with Kirigakure.
• Akihara Kagura and Tsunade entered Sunagakure atop a wooden giant, while Kagura’s Wood Style bound the village’s ninja and drained their chakra.
• Akihara Kagura demanded unconditional surrender, and Grandma Chiyo agreed to announce Sunagakure’s surrender and accompany them to Konoha.
• Tsunade told Chiyo that Kirigakure had already surrendered and that its representative was in Konoha.
• Akihara Kagura used the Flying Thunder God to bring Tsunade and Chiyo back to Konoha, where Tsunade announced that both villages had surrendered and the war was over.

After Akihara Kagura’s effortless victory over Sunagakure and Kirigakure, Konoha’s leaders debated how to control the surrendered villages and drafted harsh armistice terms. Kagura then proposed making Tsunade serve as Mizukage and Kazekage as well as Hokage.

• Kakashi Hatake and the other jonin questioned the point of a war that Kagura had ended within twelve hours, and Tsunade credited him with Konoha’s victory.
• Konoha’s residents learned that Sunagakure and Kirigakure had surrendered, while the Fourth Raikage A and Third Tsuchikage Ōnoki reacted to the news and Ōnoki canceled Iwagakure’s Akatsuki commission.
• Black Zetsu, Obito Uchiha, and Nagato discussed Kagura’s power, his usefulness to Akatsuki, and the timing of their tailed-beast plan.
• Hashirama Senju, Tobirama Senju, Hiruzen Sarutobi, Minato Namikaze, Tsunade, and Kagura debated how Konoha should handle the two surrendered villages.
• Konoha’s leaders agreed on terms demanding the villages’ jutsu, obedience to Konoha, access to their lands, and war reparations.
• Kagura suggested revising the agreement so Tsunade would also become the Fifth Mizukage and Fifth Kazekage.

Tsunade negotiated an armistice with Sunagakure and Kirigakure while Akihara Kagura used Hozuki Mangetsu’s impending death to recruit Hozuki Suigetsu for an undercover mission with Orochimaru. After the villages departed, Tsunade confronted Kagura about the Impure World Reincarnation Jutsu and her plan to transfer Karin from Root, leaving Kagura resentful of her interference.

• Tsunade softened Grandma Chiyo and Mei Terumi’s anger by saying Konoha would choose the next Kazekage and Mizukage, while Akihara Kagura insisted future Hokage would eventually hold both positions.
• Akihara Kagura took Hozuki Mangetsu and Hozuki Suigetsu to Root, offered to preserve Mangetsu’s soul in a Human Puppet, and enlisted Suigetsu to infiltrate Orochimaru’s group.
• Sunagakure and Kirigakure delivered reparations and technique scrolls, and Grandma Chiyo and Mei Terumi collected their villages’ prisoners; Mei Terumi learned Mangetsu was missing and presumed dead.
• Tsunade suspected Kagura had used the Impure World Reincarnation Jutsu on Mangetsu and challenged Kagura about his use of forbidden techniques.
• Tsunade announced she planned to transfer Karin from Root to her side, and Kagura reacted with anger and compared her actions to Hiruzen Sarutobi’s treatment of Shimura Danzō.

Akihara Kagura turned Tsunade’s attempt to transfer Karin out of Root into a public conflict, leading Konoha to fear that he might defect. As the four previous Hokage confronted him at Root, Kagura challenged them to settle the dispute and protect his subordinates.

• Tsunade tried to transfer Karin from Root to become her disciple, but Akihara Kagura refused and warned that their struggle had begun.
• Karin offered to monitor Tsunade, and Kagura told her to gather Root as rumors spread that Tsunade meant to strip him of his positions.
• Kakashi Hatake questioned Kagura about the rumors, while Tsunade’s advisors warned her that forcing him out could destabilize Konoha.
• Tsunade sent an Anbu ninja to summon Kagura, but Kagura refused to see her and invoked Lord Danzō as a warning.
• Jiraiya tried to reconcile them, but Kagura argued that the conflict with Tsunade was inevitable and should be faced early.
• The four previous Hokage appeared at Root, where Tobirama Senju explained Kagura’s political advantage and Kagura challenged them to settle the dispute over his subordinates.

Akihara Kagura and Tsunade resolved their political conflict by making Utatane Koharu and Mitokado Homura take the blame and resign, leaving Tsunade and Kagura with fewer restraints. The four Hokage's completed missions rewarded Kagura with powerful chakra and combat experience, and he turned his attention to extracting Madara Uchiha's inheritance from Obito.

• The four Hokage urged Akihara Kagura to end his conflict with Tsunade, triggering system missions to preserve Konoha's stability.
• Akihara Kagura proposed that Utatane Koharu and Mitokado Homura take responsibility for the dispute and resign as Hokage Advisors.
• Karin refused Tsunade's offer to become her disciple, and Tsunade gave Karin a scroll and agreed not to transfer her from Root.
• The four Hokage presented Tsunade with the plan, and Utatane Koharu and Mitokado Homura resigned after being blamed for issuing incorrect orders.
• Akihara Kagura completed the missions and received Asura Chakra, Tobirama Senju's combat experience, and Yin Kurama Chakra, which advanced the Ten-Tails' Husk's recovery beyond sixty percent.
• Akihara Kagura concluded that the Hokage's rewards were nearly exhausted and planned to obtain Madara Uchiha's inheritance from Obito.

Akihara Kagura and White Zetsu Awei briefed the four Hokage on how Madara Uchiha survived the Valley of the End and manipulated Obito Uchiha, then planned a pursuit that would conceal their betrayal. The chapter ended with Kagura explaining that the Hokage might need to pause their attacks whenever Obito ordered him to help.

• Akihara Kagura introduced Awei, who explained that Madara Uchiha used Izanagi to survive the Valley of the End and later awakened the Rinnegan with Hashirama Senju's cells.
• Awei revealed that Madara chose Obito Uchiha as his successor and arranged Rin Nohara's death to push Obito into despair, though Obito continued to blame the world rather than Madara.
• Tobirama Senju proposed killing Obito and destroying the Rinnegan, while Kagura refused to join the attack and offered to provide intelligence instead.
• Kagura suggested they might eventually need to revive Madara, and Awei began devising a cover story to keep Obito from suspecting their betrayal.
• Minato Namikaze confirmed the Hokage would pursue Obito until he ordered Kagura to revive Madara, and Kagura warned that the pursuit might need to pause whenever Obito demanded his help.

Akihara Kagura planned to use the four Hokage to corner Obito Uchiha and draw Madara Uchiha out, then visited Naka Shrine with them. After learning more about the Uchiha stone tablet, he began forging a matching Senju relic to manipulate Hashirama Senju and attract Black Zetsu’s attention.

• Akihara Kagura arranged for Awei to tell Obito Uchiha that Tobirama Senju had broken the Impure World Reincarnation Jutsu and was the true mastermind, while Tobirama agreed to force Obito into a confrontation with Madara Uchiha.
• Hashirama Senju asked to visit Naka Shrine, hoping to understand why Madara Uchiha had chosen his path, and Akihara Kagura led the four Hokage to the stone tablet.
• Akihara Kagura explained that the tablet required a Mangekyō Sharingan or more advanced eyes to read, then wondered whether the Senju Clan had a corresponding relic.
• Akihara Kagura decided to forge a piece of tree bark for the Senju Clan, using a mixture of truth and lies modeled on the Uchiha stone tablet.
• Akihara Kagura drafted a history linking the Sage of Six Paths, his children, the Divine Tree, Kaguya Otsutsuki, the Ten-Tails, and Black Zetsu.

Akihara Kagura fabricated a history portraying Black Zetsu as the dark will of Hagoromo Otsutsuki and planned to use it to turn Madara Uchiha against Black Zetsu. At the Akatsuki base, Obito Uchiha and Black Zetsu learned that the four resurrected Hokage had escaped control and intended to hunt Obito.

• Akihara Kagura wrote a false history claiming Black Zetsu was Hagoromo Otsutsuki’s immortal dark will, had altered the Sage’s stone tablet, and had provoked the conflict between Indra and Asura.
• Akihara Kagura planned to reveal the history to Hashirama Senju and Madara Uchiha, isolate Black Zetsu, and make it depend on him.
• White Zetsu Awei reported to Obito Uchiha and Black Zetsu that Tobirama Senju had broken free from Impure World Reincarnation and the four resurrected Hokage could no longer be controlled.
• White Zetsu Awei explained that Tobirama Senju had created the jutsu and prepared contingencies to thwart Madara Uchiha’s plans.
• Obito Uchiha complained about Akihara Kagura, while Black Zetsu said the four Hokage would threaten their plans and agreed that Madara needed to be resurrected.
• White Zetsu Awei reported that the four Hokage were discussing a hunt for Obito Uchiha, leaving him unable to act openly.