Chapter Summaries

Uchiha Nobuhiko tested the power he had gained from Taki Chiba, using his speed and ability to read expressions to strike Minato Namikaze and Kushina. Minato realized they had lost their speed advantage and feared he was holding Kushina back, but she took his hand and promised they would face whatever came together.

• Uchiha Nobuhiko tested his new black Chakra form and concluded that his speed could keep pace with Minato Namikaze's Body Flicker Technique.
• Uchiha Nobuhiko recognized that Taki Chiba's ability to read expressions and behavior had helped him catch Minato Namikaze and Kushina off guard.
• Kushina emerged with seven Chakra tails and checked on Minato Namikaze, who said Uchiha Nobuhiko's punches had not seriously injured him.
• Minato Namikaze realized that Uchiha Nobuhiko's speed and defenses had put them at a disadvantage and feared he was holding Kushina back.
• Kushina took Minato Namikaze's hand and told him they would face whatever happened together.

Kushina stood beside Minato Namikaze and shared the Nine-Tails Chakra with him, healing his injuries and restoring his strength. Reunited in their resolve, they faced Uchiha Nobuhiko, who launched another, faster attack from behind.

• Kushina took Minato Namikaze's hand and silently promised to face the danger together as his wife.
• A fox-shaped Nine-Tails Chakra cloak enveloped Minato Namikaze, healing his injuries and replenishing his strength through Kushina's touch.
• Minato Namikaze thanked Kushina, and the two stood side by side with renewed fighting spirit.
• Uchiha Nobuhiko recognized that Minato Namikaze was recovering and decided to test his power with a faster, stronger strike.
• Minato Namikaze and Kushina sensed Uchiha Nobuhiko attacking from behind and turned toward his incoming fist.

Minato Namikaze and Kushina Uzumaki used their enhanced Nine-Tails Chakra to outmaneuver Uchiha Nobuhiko and set up a Rasengan strike. As Minato attacked Nobuhiko’s restrained body, Nobuhiko’s eyes began to turn red, leaving the outcome uncertain.

• Minato Namikaze caught Uchiha Nobuhiko’s faster punch with the strength and speed granted by the Nine-Tails Chakra cloak.
• Minato and Kushina released Nobuhiko’s fist together, then struck his chest as his momentum carried him forward.
• Kushina sent four Nine-Tails Chakra tails after the flying Nobuhiko and clamped them around his limbs.
• Minato appeared behind the restrained Nobuhiko and drove a Nine-Tails Chakra-enhanced Rasengan toward his cheek.
• Uchiha Nobuhiko saw Minato’s attack coming, clenched his teeth, and developed a faint red tinge in his azure eyes.

Minato Namikaze struck Uchiha Nobuhiko with a pale purple Rasengan infused with Nine-Tails Chakra, but Nobuhiko dodged it and counterattacked. Realizing that Taki Chiba’s power had condensed Susanoo into his body, Nobuhiko seized the Rasengan and used it against the charging Kushina Uzumaki.

• Uchiha Nobuhiko realized Minato Namikaze and Kushina Uzumaki had used their time in the consciousness space to master a Nine-Tails Chakra-infused Rasengan.
• Minato Namikaze’s Rasengan cracked the black Chakra covering Nobuhiko’s face, but Nobuhiko tilted his head back and evaded the attack.
• Nobuhiko struck Minato Namikaze in the chest and abdomen with a black Chakra arm, sending him flying and vomiting blood.
• Nobuhiko understood that Taki Chiba’s power had condensed Susanoo into his body, granting him enhanced strength and speed.
• Nobuhiko seized the pale purple Rasengan with another black arm and thrust it toward the charging Kushina Uzumaki.

Kushina recognized that Uchiha Nobuhiko had absorbed his defensive dojutsu into a form resembling Chiba’s Eight Gates Mode, and his Rasengan struck her Tailed Beast Cloak. Nobuhiko realized too late that Minato and Kushina had set a trap, leaving him exposed to their combined attack.

• Kushina recognized that Nobuhiko’s chakra manifestation used the same principle as Chiba’s Eight Gates Mode and concluded that her punch could not break his absolute defense.
• Nobuhiko’s Rasengan struck Kushina’s Tailed Beast Cloak, and he restrained its force to avoid killing the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki.
• Nobuhiko noticed that Minato and Kushina had reacted suspiciously little, then heard a kunai land behind him.
• Minato and Kushina appeared together behind Nobuhiko and thrust a dense violet Rasengan toward his lower back, cracking Susanoo’s protection.
• The combined Rasengan struck Nobuhiko before he could react.

Minato Namikaze and Kushina Uzumaki used a carefully timed Flying Thunder God strategy to strike Uchiha Nobuhiko with a combined Rasengan and send him crashing into the crater wall. As the dust lingered, Yukina cried out that the attack had succeeded, though Minato and Kushina still needed to confirm Nobuhiko’s condition.

• Minato Namikaze and Kushina Uzumaki’s final Rasengan stripped away Uchiha Nobuhiko’s Susanoo-like Chakra and sent him spinning into the crater wall.
• Minato Namikaze and Kushina Uzumaki landed exhausted and watched the dust cloud, hoping their all-or-nothing attack had stopped Nobuhiko.
• Minato Namikaze and Kushina Uzumaki had planned the attack to exploit Nobuhiko’s difficulty controlling his new power and strike him from behind twice using Flying Thunder God.
• Minato Namikaze and Kushina Uzumaki believed Nobuhiko was badly wounded but alive, since Chiba remained safe.
• Yukina cried out that Minato Namikaze and Kushina Uzumaki had succeeded before the dust had cleared.

Yukina confirmed that Uchiha Nobuhiko had been defeated and would survive long enough for Minato Namikaze to treat him. As Kushina leaned exhausted against Minato, Nobuhiko stared at his defeat in disbelief before losing consciousness.

• Yukina used her Byakugan to confirm that Uchiha Nobuhiko had suffered a broken spine and could no longer fight.
• Kushina put away the kunai she had prepared to use if they failed, then leaned against Minato Namikaze as her strength gave out.
• Minato Namikaze asked about Nobuhiko's condition, and Yukina said his injuries were serious but he could endure if they prevented excessive blood loss.
• Minato Namikaze supported Kushina as they prepared to approach Nobuhiko.
• Uchiha Nobuhiko murmured that the balance had not been broken, then closed his eyes and lost consciousness.

Yukina confirmed that Kushina had only exhausted her Chakra and carefully checked that Uchiha Nobuhiko could no longer fight. With Minato Namikaze resting so he could recover his Chakra, the group finally believed the battle was over and Chiba had been saved.

• Yukina examined Kushina and assured Minato Namikaze that her teacher had no serious injuries.
• Minato Namikaze prepared to check Uchiha Nobuhiko, but Yukina insisted that he rest and recover his Chakra instead.
• Kushina backed Yukina's decision, and Minato Namikaze sat down to eat while watching her approach Uchiha Nobuhiko.
• Yukina cautiously examined Uchiha Nobuhiko, confirmed he was too badly injured to get up, and said she would bandage him.
• Minato Namikaze, Kushina, and Yukina relaxed, believing they had won and Chiba had been saved.

Yukina and the others stabilized Uchiha Nobuhiko after defeating him, while Minato Namikaze and Kushina worried about the mental toll the battle had taken on Hirohiko. Hirohiko began to wake, leaving Kushina anxious about how he would react.

• Yukina checked Uchiha Nobuhiko's wounds, confirmed his bleeding had stopped, and returned to Minato Namikaze.
• Minato realized Nobuhiko had sealed the Flying Thunder God mark on the Masked Man, forcing the group into a perilous fight.
• Kushina worried that Hirohiko's hatred of Nobuhiko and the strain of choosing to flee might push him toward darkness.
• Minato recognized the danger to Hirohiko and grew tense about the consequences for their plans.
• Hirohiko's Tailed Beast Mode faded as he began to wake, and Kushina anxiously asked Minato what they should do.

Hirohiko woke beside Kushina, Minato, and Yukina, astonished to find his injuries healed and his Chakra nearly restored. Yukina told him the battle was over and Uchiha Nobuhiko had been defeated, leaving Hirohiko stunned.

• Hirohiko woke beneath the night sky as Kushina and Minato checked whether he was hurt.
• Hirohiko discovered that his injuries had healed and his Chakra had recovered to nearly full strength.
• Hirohiko realized they were still at the battlefield instead of having returned to the village.
• Yukina reassured Hirohiko that she was safe and said they would return once Minato recovered his Chakra.
• Yukina pointed out Uchiha Nobuhiko on a distant crater wall, and Hirohiko saw that he had been defeated.

Hirohiko struggled with the emptiness and sorrow he felt after Uchiha Nobuhiko’s defeat, but Yukina helped him recognize that his friends’ safety mattered more to him than revenge. He reassured Kushina, Minato Namikaze, and Yukina that he was all right, while Yukina sensed Nao’s comforting presence beside him.

• Kushina and Minato Namikaze worried that Hirohiko’s blank reaction to Uchiha Nobuhiko’s defeat meant he had lost control of himself.
• Yukina reminded them that Hirohiko was not like other members of the Uchiha Clan, and Hirohiko said he was glad Chiba had been saved.
• Yukina asked Hirohiko whether he felt unwilling that Kushina and Minato Namikaze had taken the glory, and he admitted that he did.
• Hirohiko reflected that protecting Chiba, Yukina, Kushina, and Minato Namikaze had mattered more than revenge, and that defeating Uchiha Nobuhiko had left him feeling sorrow rather than happiness.
• Hirohiko assured everyone that he was all right, and Yukina saw Nao’s warm presence embracing him through her Byakugan.

The rescue teams located Minato Namikaze, Kushina, and the others after sensing that the battle had ended. Hirohiko learned the plan to free Chiba from Uchiha Nobuhiko’s seal and began using his Mangekyō Sharingan to eliminate the Amaterasu flames.

• Yamanaka Inoichi sensed five people ahead, including two with weak Chakra who appeared seriously injured, and shared his perceptions with Nara Shikaku and Akimichi Choza.
• Nara Shikaku concluded that the battle was over and led the three men toward Minato Namikaze, Kushina, and the others while Yamanaka Inoichi alerted the other rescue teams.
• Hirohiko confirmed that he would remove the Amaterasu flames and capture the Masked Man so Uchiha Nobuhiko would release the seal on Chiba’s heart.
• Hirohiko activated his Mangekyō Sharingan, and the black flames on the wall began to twist and spread as he tried to make the Amaterasu disappear.

Hirohiko absorbed Uchiha Nobuhiko’s powerful Black Flames and reflected on how Chiba, Yukina, and his village mattered more to him than revenge. He set aside his hatred and walked toward the fallen Masked Man to clean up the battlefield.

• Hirohiko absorbed all of Uchiha Nobuhiko’s Black Flames with his right eye, leaving the clearing clear of fire.
• Hirohiko realized that Chiba had saved him by urging him to gather information, and that revenge mattered less than the safety of Chiba, Yukina, his teachers, and the village.
• Hirohiko decided he would rather flee than let hatred endanger the people he loved.
• Hirohiko reassured Minato Namikaze that he was fine, then told Yukina to care for Chiba while he went to clean up the battlefield.
• Minato Namikaze let Hirohiko go and watched him with a gratified smile.

After defeating Uchiha Nobuhiko, Hirohiko noticed that the treatment he had received seemed to suppress the Mangekyō Sharingan’s usual side effects, then discovered he had awakened Susanoo. As he checked whether the Masked Man was unconscious, an unknown person approached, drawing the attention of Hirohiko, Yukina, Minato Namikaze, and Kushina.

• Hirohiko approached the fallen Masked Man and wondered why using Amaterasu had not caused his usual pain, blurred vision, or Chakra sluggishness.
• Hirohiko concluded that the treatment from Kushina, Minato, and Yukina had likely left temporary residual effects, and resolved to protect Nao’s eyes rather than abuse their power.
• Hirohiko received information about Susanoo and realized he had awakened the technique, whose forms could provide immense offense and defense.
• Hirohiko considered whether Uchiha Nobuhiko had also used Susanoo, then focused on checking whether the Masked Man was unconscious.
• Black flames ignited on the Masked Man’s severed right arm as an unknown person’s footsteps sounded nearby.
• Hirohiko, Yukina, Minato Namikaze, and Kushina turned toward the sound and reacted with alarm.

Konan reported that Minato Namikaze and Kushina Uzumaki had defeated Seiryu, and she judged that the Akatsuki could no longer capture the Nine-Tails. Nagato refused to rescue Madara Uchiha, leaving Konan to recognize how much he had changed since Yahiko’s death.

• Konan returned from observing the battlefield and told Nagato that Minato Namikaze and Kushina Uzumaki had defeated Seiryu.
• Konan judged that she and one Pain could not capture the Nine-Tails because Konoha reinforcements were approaching and powerful fighters remained.
• Nagato asked about Seiryu, and Konan said his severe injuries made survival unlikely.
• Konan asked whether they should rescue Madara Uchiha, but Nagato refused and insisted Madara had chosen to be defeated for a reason.
• Konan wondered whether Nagato no longer valued Madara and mourned how he had changed since Yahiko’s death.

Konan and Nagato decided not to interfere in Madara Uchiha’s battle and grew wary of him after learning that Taki Chiba had uncovered the Nine-Tails capture plan. They ordered an investigation of the organization, delayed the tailed-beast operation, and retreated.

• Konan agreed with Nagato that they should avoid risking the organization to help Madara Uchiha, whose motives and identity they distrusted.
• Konan explained that Taki Chiba had discovered their intelligence and helped Konoha defeat Seiryu and Madara Uchiha, shocking Nagato.
• Konan warned that Chiba might have unknown intelligence channels or a spy inside their organization.
• Nagato ordered a thorough search for spies, recruitment of missing-nin and wanted criminals, and a delay to the tailed-beast capture plan until the organization had enough capable members.
• Nagato retreated, and Konan turned into sheets of paper and fled the forest.

Nara Shikaku, Yamanaka Inoichi, and Akimichi Choza arrived with news that the Third Hokage had sent reinforcements, but Yukina warned that their identities needed verification. Minato Namikaze began testing them with a question about his past missions with them.

• Nara Shikaku said the Third Hokage had sent the Ino-Shika-Cho trio to rescue Chiba and that more reinforcements were on the way.
• Yamanaka Inoichi and Akimichi Choza surveyed the damaged clearing and were shocked by the battle's effects on the terrain.
• Yukina asked Minato Namikaze to verify the trio's identities because their arrival seemed suspiciously well timed.
• Nara Shikaku, Yamanaka Inoichi, and Akimichi Choza agreed to the verification.
• Minato Namikaze asked how many missions he and the trio had completed together before the Third Great Ninja War.

Minato Namikaze confirmed that Shikaku, Inoichi, and Choza were genuine Konoha reinforcements, and they supplied him and Kushina with Chiba's Chakra-restoring Ration Balls. As Minato prepared to evacuate everyone, Hirohiko noticed the Black Flames on the Masked Man's severed arm growing stronger.

• Shikaku, Inoichi, and Choza correctly recalled how many missions each had completed with Minato, confirming their identities.
• Yukina spotted the Konoha reinforcements with her Byakugan and asked the three men for Chiba's Ration Balls.
• Shikaku, Inoichi, and Choza gave the Ration Balls to Minato and Kushina, then prepared to stand guard.
• Minato said Chiba was fine and planned to use Flying Thunder God to evacuate the group.
• Hirohiko noticed the Black Flames burning on the Masked Man's severed arm had grown larger.

Hirohiko wondered whether his eyes had changed after Susanoo awakened, while Minato Namikaze felt that the scene was strangely incomplete. Nara Shikaku questioned whether a Sealing Fire Jutsu Scroll could be sealed inside Chiba’s body, and Yukina began to realize what that might mean.

• Hirohiko observed the Black Flames vanish from the Masked Man’s severed arm and suspected his Amaterasu had grown stronger after the treatment from Minato and Kushina.
• Hirohiko attributed his sense of discord to another change in Nao’s transplanted eyes, then bound the unconscious Masked Man.
• Minato Namikaze restored his Chakra under Yamanaka Inoichi and Akimichi Choza’s guard but privately felt that something was missing from the scene.
• Yukina told Nara Shikaku that a Sealing Fire Jutsu Scroll had been placed inside Chiba’s body, leaving Chiba’s life in Uchiha Nobuhiko’s hands.
• Nara Shikaku questioned how such a sealing jutsu could be inside the body, and Yukina froze as she realized something about the scroll.

Yukina concluded that real Uchiha Nobuhiko ocular power was sealed inside Chiba, leaving the prisoners’ standoff difficult to resolve. When Hirohiko sensed that power with his Mangekyō Sharingan, Yukina realized he might be able to undo it.

• Yukina ruled out a genjutsu and determined that the seals and the threat to Chiba’s life were real.
• Nara Shikaku explained that the leverage over Chiba, Uchiha Nobuhiko, and the Masked Man made negotiations dangerous and complicated.
• Yukina agreed that they could only consider their options carefully while holding both enemies.
• Hirohiko arrived with the bound Masked Man and confirmed he posed no threat.
• Hirohiko sensed Uchiha Nobuhiko’s ocular power inside Chiba and searched for it with his Mangekyō Sharingan.
• Yukina realized another Mangekyō Sharingan might be able to counter the technique.