Chapter Summaries

Sunagakure’s leaders agreed to seek a ceasefire with Konoha because the village could no longer afford to fight or rebuild. As villagers faced their losses, Chiyo comforted Sasori, who asked where his parents were.

• Ebizo silenced the elders’ calls for another battle and explained that Sunagakure lacked the money and supplies to keep fighting.
• Ebizo urged the Third Kazekage to end the war, citing Konoha’s strength and the need to rebuild and train the next generation.
• The Third Kazekage ordered Ebizo to negotiate a ceasefire with Konoha while minimizing Sunagakure’s losses.
• The Third Kazekage watched Sand Ninja calm villagers who had returned to find their homes destroyed.
• Sasori ran to Chiyo and asked where his parents were, and Chiyo wept as she held him.
• The battle’s casualties left nearly four hundred families bereaved and grief hanging over Sunagakure.

After Konoha and Sunagakure signed an alliance, Katsuki struggled with his new Natural Disaster nickname and agreed to join Kushina and Otome on an escort mission to the Land of Hot Springs. He also asked them what gift he should bring to visit Sakumo’s pregnant wife.

• Konoha and Sunagakure ended their war, signed an alliance, and the Third Kazekage’s Natural Disaster nickname for Katsuki spread through the ninja world.
• Kushina and Otome recruited Katsuki to join Otome’s escort mission to the Land of Hot Springs, since the Hokage required another teammate for Kushina’s safety.
• Katsuki agreed to leave with them at noon the day after tomorrow.
• Katsuki asked Kushina and Otome for ideas for a gift for Sakumo’s pregnant wife, and Kushina began thinking of one.

Katsuki carried a fruit basket through Konoha’s newly crowded streets and caught up with Minato, who was rushing to another Hokage-assigned mission. They parted after discussing their work and upcoming plans, and Katsuki continued toward his visit.

• Katsuki escaped the packed streets with the Body Flicker Technique and laughed at the crowds leaping across the rooftops.
• Minato joined Katsuki, and they teased each other about Kushina while Minato guessed Katsuki was visiting Sakumo’s pregnant wife.
• Minato explained that he was taking frequent missions to build his reputation and save money, while the Hokage was also keeping him and Nawaki busy.
• Katsuki said Kushina had taken a mission and was bringing him along the next day because she had been unable to find Minato.
• Minato hurried off using the Body Flicker Technique, and Katsuki continued on his way with the fruit basket.

Katsuki visited Sakumo and his wife, discussed his stalled training, and prepared to report to the Hokage Building before departing the next day. In the Land of Rain, Nagato reconsidered the circumstances of his parents’ deaths, while Yahiko told him that Katsuki had gained the name Natural Disaster in the Land of Wind.

• Katsuki used shadow clones to help Sakumo’s pregnant wife and left one behind to keep her company.
• Katsuki asked Sakumo why he could not learn spiritual training, and Sakumo said it depended on experience and time.
• Katsuki described a bottleneck in his training and told Sakumo he was leaving the next day after reporting to the Hokage Building.
• Nagato questioned whether a Konoha chunin could have mistaken his parents for hidden civilians and killed them by accident.
• Yahiko and the girl comforted Nagato, and Yahiko told him Katsuki had been called the Natural Disaster in the Land of Wind.

Yahiko, Nagato, and Konan decided to save money and travel to Konoha to search for Katsuki, though they had no way to learn whether he was there. Meanwhile, Katsuki, Kushina, and Uchiha Otome began escorting a nobleman's family and wealth from the Land of Fire to the Land of Hot Springs.

• Yahiko and Nagato concluded that Katsuki might know secrets about the natural disaster and decided to find him.
• Konan pointed out that entering the Land of Fire required money and paperwork, and the group agreed to save up and go to Konoha.
• Kushina and Uchiha Otome met Katsuki before dawn at the inn where the nobleman's party was preparing to leave.
• Katsuki assured the nobleman that he and the other Konoha ninja would protect his family on the journey.
• The thirteen-carriage convoy departed Konoha with Katsuki at the front, Uchiha Otome in the middle, and Kushina at the rear.
• Katsuki studied a Medical Ninjutsu scroll as the convoy traveled away from Konoha.

Katsuki’s convoy entered the Land of Hot Springs, where he drove off a bandit ambush with a Lightning Spear. He then encountered Nagato in the wilderness and learned that Nagato, Yahiko, and Konan were in a town ahead, where they would talk.

• Katsuki’s convoy entered the Land of Hot Springs and prepared for an ambush in the tall grass.
• More than a hundred bandits blocked the road and demanded the convoy’s goods.
• Katsuki killed the lead bandit with a Lightning Spear, scattering the rest.
• Katsuki sensed a powerful chakra presence and sent a Shadow Clone to investigate.
• The clone recognized Nagato, who said his original body, Yahiko, and Konan were in the town ahead and would meet Katsuki there.

Katsuki met secretly with Nagato, Yahiko, and Konan at the inn and explained what he knew about Nagato’s Rinnegan. He revealed that the eyes had been transplanted into Nagato and left him confronting the possibility that his memories of the procedure had been erased.

• After Kushina and Otome went shopping, Katsuki sensed Yahiko, Konan, and Nagato arriving at the inn and let them into his room.
• Katsuki set up an Uzumaki barrier to prevent eavesdropping and warned Nagato not to reveal his eyes before he grew stronger.
• Katsuki explained that the Rinnegan was not inherited by the Uzumaki Clan and that Nagato could not deactivate the eyes.
• Katsuki told Nagato that his Rinnegan had been transplanted into him, shocking Yahiko and leaving Nagato insisting that he had no memory of it.
• Katsuki suggested that a powerful genjutsu expert had concealed the transplant from Nagato when he was an ordinary person.

Katsuki revealed that Madara Uchiha had arranged for Nagato’s parents to be killed and the Rinnegan transplanted into Nagato, hoping to awaken the eyes through his Uzumaki bloodline. Yahiko and Konan questioned Katsuki’s claims, and the chapter ended with them struggling to believe that Madara had survived his battle with the First Hokage.

• Katsuki told Nagato that a hidden mastermind had arranged his parents’ deaths and manipulated him into awakening the transplanted Rinnegan.
• Katsuki explained that Nagato’s Uzumaki bloodline made him a suitable vessel for the Rinnegan and identified the mastermind as an Uchiha.
• Katsuki searched the town with the Mind’s Eye of the Kagura before revealing that Madara Uchiha was behind everything.
• Yahiko and Konan questioned the revelation because they believed the First Hokage had killed Madara long ago.
• Katsuki insisted that Madara had survived the battle, suffered severe injuries, and died only later, while the others remained skeptical.

Katsuki used the mark Nagato left on him to join Nagato, Yahiko, and Konan through the Illusionary Body Technique. He warned Nagato that Madara Uchiha was still alive and might endanger the people closest to him, leaving Nagato shaken and Yahiko chastened by Konan.

• Kushina invited Katsuki to a hot spring with Otome, but he stayed behind and scared her off by pretending to read a horror story.
• Katsuki infused Nagato’s mark with chakra and sent his Thought Wave to a candlelit basement in Kaiten Town.
• Nagato explained that the Illusionary Body Technique enabled long-distance communication through marked coordinates, while bright light could disrupt Thought Waves.
• Katsuki told Nagato, Yahiko, and Konan that Madara Uchiha was alive, hiding, and had planted the Rinnegan in Nagato as part of a plan.
• Katsuki warned Nagato that Madara might harm his loved ones to ensure Nagato played his role, and Nagato was shaken by the possibility.
• Yahiko objected to being treated as a liability, and Konan rebuked him for implying that being a girl made her less capable.

Katsuki warned Yahiko, Konan, and Nagato about the overwhelming power of Hashirama Senju and Madara Uchiha, while trying to keep them from losing hope. After the trio returned to the Land of Rain, Katsuki worried that White Zetsu had overheard his conversation with Nagato and then went to sleep under a shadow clone’s protection.

• Katsuki described the legendary battle between Hashirama Senju and Madara Uchiha, leaving Yahiko and Konan stunned.
• Katsuki reassured Yahiko that Madara’s injuries likely limited his movements and urged the trio to keep training.
• Konan explained that they had come to ask questions, and Katsuki warned them that Madara might still return from death.
• Yahiko, Konan, and Nagato left Kaitian Town for the Land of Rain after Nagato left a mark for remote communication.
• Katsuki worried that White Zetsu had monitored his talk with Nagato, then fell asleep while a shadow clone guarded the inn.

After a week enjoying the hot springs in the Land of Hot Springs, Katsuki, Kushina, and Otome traveled by ox cart toward Mount Baiyue. Katsuki sensed a hostile observer, while two Frost shinobi mistook the vacationing group for a possible invasion force and decided to alert the Raikage.

• Katsuki, Kushina, and Otome left Hot Water Village after spending a week in the Land of Hot Springs.
• Kushina insisted that they travel leisurely by ox cart to Mount Baiyue instead of running there.
• Katsuki sensed a malicious gaze from the pine forest but chose not to interrupt Kushina and Otome's excitement at seeing the snow-covered mountain.
• Two Frost shinobi identified Katsuki and Kushina and worried that they might be planning to attack the Land of Frost.
• The older Frost shinobi ordered his partner to send an urgent, highly encrypted report to Lord Raikage.

As Katsuki and Kushina were snowed in at Baiyue Town, Kumogakure received intelligence that they had reached the Land of Hot Springs’ northern border. The Third Raikage and Kuroe weighed the threat and prepared to stop Katsuki if he crossed into their territory.

• Kushina dragged Katsuki into a card game at the inn while a blizzard kept them indoors.
• Two young Kumogakure workers whispered that Konoha’s calamity had reached Mount Baiyue and feared Konoha might attack.
• The Third Raikage asked Kuroe to assess the report that Katsuki and Kushina were in Baiyue Town.
• Kuroe said Kumogakure should strengthen its defenses and identified Katsuki, rather than the inexperienced Nine-Tails Jinchuriki, as the main danger.
• The Third Raikage said they had to stop Katsuki outside their borders and reopened his dossier.

The Third Raikage used Kuroe’s Heavenly Transfer Technique to travel alone to Mount Baiyue. As the blizzard began to ease, Katsuki spotted an unidentified figure racing down the mountain and sensed danger.

• The Third Raikage decided to go to Mount Baiyue himself despite Kuroe’s warning, and Kuroe sent him there with the Heavenly Transfer Technique.
• Kuroe ordered a mason to repair the wall and planned to arrange support for the Third Raikage.
• At the inn, Kushina complained about being trapped indoors while Otome revised her notes.
• Katsuki trained in the snowy forest and noticed a black figure racing down the mountainside toward him.
• Katsuki sensed the approaching figure was dangerous and activated the Mind's Eye of the Kagura.

Katsuki encountered the Third Raikage at Mount Baiyue, where the Raikage questioned his presence near the Land of Lightning. The Raikage dismissed Katsuki’s explanation that he had come for the hot springs and challenged him to fight.

• Katsuki sensed the Third Raikage’s immense chakra and revealed himself by bringing down trees in the pine forest.
• The Third Raikage recognized Katsuki and asked why he had come to Mount Baiyue.
• Katsuki guessed that Kumogakure feared he planned to attack the Land of Lightning and said he had come to soak in hot springs.
• The Third Raikage abandoned questioning Katsuki and challenged him to a match.
• Katsuki repeated that he had only come for the hot springs as their killing intent collided.

Katsuki fought the Third Raikage in close combat, enduring severe injuries to study the Raikage’s powerful physique and fighting technique. After his elbow strike barely moved the Third Raikage, Katsuki was sent flying into a snowbank.

• Katsuki blocked the Third Raikage’s test kick and discovered that his White Lightning Strike could not pierce the Raikage’s body.
• Katsuki healed his injured fingers and continued exchanging blows with the Third Raikage, despite the pain and damage to his hands.
• Katsuki chose to keep fighting with Taijutsu so he could observe the Third Raikage’s physical training and learn from his example.
• Katsuki broke a pine tree to launch himself at the Third Raikage and drove his elbow into the Raikage’s chest.
• The Third Raikage barely swayed from the strike, while Katsuki flew backward into a snowbank and carved a trench through it.

Katsuki fought the Third Raikage in the Land of Frost, relying on Taijutsu until the Raikage unleashed Hell Stab. As the Raikage wounded him with increasingly powerful thrusts, Katsuki used shadow clones to study the technique.

• Katsuki recovered from being thrown by the Third Raikage and traded remarks with him as the Raikage considered whether to kill him.
• The Third Raikage attacked Katsuki with Hell Stab, Four Fingers Thrust, cutting open his left ribs without a direct hit.
• Katsuki dodged the Raikage’s charges through the pine forest but suffered multiple cuts and puncture wounds.
• Katsuki summoned shadow clones to observe and analyze Hell Stab as the Third Raikage reduced the technique from four fingers to one.
• The Third Raikage tore flesh from Katsuki’s left shoulder, and Katsuki kept moving at high speed through the forest.

Katsuki fought the Third Raikage on Mount Baiyue, suffered a penetrating lung wound, and used shadow clones and traps to keep the Raikage at bay. The two eventually agreed to stop fighting, with Katsuki assuring him that Konoha did not intend to start a war for now.

• The Third Raikage pierced Katsuki's lung with One-Finger Nukite, and Katsuki used a shadow clone's Mystical Palm Technique to heal his wound.
• Katsuki's shadow clones trapped the charging Third Raikage in a Yellow Spring Swamp and attacked him with Lightning Release techniques, but they could not harm him.
• The Third Raikage released lightning through the swamp, destroying many clones, then pulled free and proposed a truce.
• Katsuki revealed he had been studying the Third Raikage and dismissed his remaining clones after they agreed to end the fight.
• Katsuki said he was only accompanying someone to the hot springs and that Konoha had no current plans for war, and the Third Raikage laughed about Konoha's dirty tricks.

Katsuki's battle with the Third Raikage ended, and the Raikage ordered heightened surveillance of the young Uzumaki before Katsuki and his companions left the Land of Hot Springs. Elsewhere, Nagato trained with Yahiko and Konan, Madara created Black Zetsu and sent him to watch Nagato, and the Third Hokage celebrated Konoha's promising younger generation.

• The Third Raikage left Mount Baiyue after warning Katsuki to depart, and Katsuki hurried back to Baiyue Town without clothes, worrying about what to tell Kushina.
• Katsuki, Kushina, and their companion left the Land of Hot Springs after two more days, relieving the Cloud Ninja spies watching them.
• The Third Raikage ordered Kuroe to prioritize intelligence on Uzumaki Katsuki, while reflecting on the boy's potential and the future balance of power.
• Nagato defeated Yahiko and Konan in training, and Yahiko declared that they would first set their sights on overthrowing Hanzō.
• Madara named a black humanoid Black Zetsu and ordered him to watch Nagato alongside the White Zetsus.
• The Third Hokage learned of Katsuki's clash with the Third Raikage and took pleasure in Konoha's growing number of capable young shinobi.

In Konoha in Year 42, Kakashi stood up for Guy when three children mocked him, then brought him to weekend extra lessons with their classmates. The students endured horse-stance training while Teacher Katsuki stayed inside helping with Otome’s new book.

• Three children teased Guy and mocked his father, but Kakashi drove them away.
• Kakashi told Guy that Teacher Katsuki had summoned him for extra lessons, and Guy followed him to the training ground.
• Kakashi listed the other classmates called in, including Shiranui Genma, Ebisu, Obito, Asuma, and Kurenai.
• Guy and Kakashi found their classmates holding horse stances while Teacher Katsuki helped proofread Otome’s new book.
• Obito noticed Guy and Kakashi arriving and greeted them, pleased to have more classmates share his misery.

Katsuki left his pupils in Kakashi’s care after the Hokage summoned him and Kushina. He went with Otome toward the publishing house, while the children resumed their chaotic training.

• Katsuki finished reviewing Otome’s manuscripts and complained that she kept treating him as cheap labor.
• Katsuki ended the children’s horse-stance training and let them rest beneath a tree.
• An ANBU told Katsuki that the Hokage wanted to see him and had also summoned Kushina.
• Katsuki put Kakashi in charge of the children’s training and left with Otome.
• Obito insisted the extra lessons continue, Might Guy returned to practicing, and Kakashi sighed at the disorder.