Recaps

Moriyue considered following Orochimaru’s message to Ryūchi Cave to learn Sage Mode and possibly discover a route to Shikkotsu Forest. He decided to go alone, leaving Ajisai behind, and granted her an intimate reward before his departure.

• A black snake delivered Orochimaru’s message about Ryūchi Cave Sage Mode and summoning coordinates to Moriyue.
• Moriyue weighed a trip to Ryūchi Cave against his interest in Shikkotsu Forest and decided the cave might provide useful information.
• Moriyue warned Ajisai about dangerous people at the Research Institute and told her he would travel to Ryūchi Cave without her.
• Ajisai reluctantly agreed to stay and asked Moriyue for a reward, and he responded with an intimate encounter.

Moriyue traveled to Ryūchi Cave to try to learn its Sage Mode, despite preferring Shikkotsu Forest’s. After arriving in the cavern, he met the Three Divine Princesses and asked whether they could send him somewhere else, provoking their displeasure.

• Moriyue signed a Summoning Contract with the black snake and used the Reverse Summoning Technique to travel to Ryūchi Cave.
• Moriyue arrived in a dark cavern filled with snakes and the petrified remains of failed Sage Mode trainees.
• Moriyue reached a massive stone gate marked Ryūchi Cave and heard three female voices discussing his arrival.
• Moriyue asked the Three Divine Princesses whether he could cultivate Sage Mode or be sent to Shikkotsu Forest.
• Moriyue’s request to learn a different Sage Mode angered the Three Divine Princesses, who prepared to teach him a lesson.

Moriyue entered a cheerful underground city that appeared to be a trial illusion and found that the exit door sent him back to the beginning. After testing the repeating world and its rules, he began to suspect the ramen uncle’s repeated invitation held a clue.

• Moriyue passed through the stone door into a brightly lit underground city filled with cheerful people and tempting food.
• Moriyue avoided eating the ramen and headed for a distant stone door, using a clone to test it before entering.
• Moriyue discovered that the door returned him to the city’s starting point and that the scene reset whenever he passed through it.
• Moriyue tested the illusion, finding that he could touch the people and that items carried between cycles remained unique.
• Moriyue noticed a trace of pain in the ramen uncle’s repeated invitation and stared into the man’s eyes, searching for a way to break the trial.

Moriyue deciphered the ramen shop owner’s garbled words as a clue to the celebration’s source, then learned that the villagers were honoring Lady Tagorihime. He resolved to find her and confront her directly, though she had not appeared.

• The ramen shop owner briefly broke from his repeated sales pitch and uttered a string of food-related words before reverting to his usual behavior.
• Moriyue questioned the food vendors, then realized the owner’s words could encode a message through their sounds.
• Moriyue rearranged the words into a clue pointing to the source of the celebration and joined the dancers to trigger a response.
• An elderly man told Moriyue that the people were celebrating Lady Tagorihime, who had given them food, water, and a peaceful life.
• Moriyue asked where Tagorihime was and decided to seek her out and confront her directly.

Moriyue challenged the old man’s claims that worshipping Tagorihime granted eternal life and realized the villagers were trapped in an illusion. He revealed that they were likely ninja who had come to Ryūchi Cave to train in Sage Mode, leaving the crowd shaken and beginning to question their supposed past.

• The old man told Moriyue that sincere faith in Tagorihime could grant eternal life, improved health, and freedom from illness.
• Moriyue recognized a flaw in the villagers’ story and asked who they were and where they had come from.
• The old man claimed their ancestors had settled in the village long ago and cut themselves off from the outside world.
• Moriyue pointed out that the villagers wore modern clothing and ninja village forehead protectors, exposing contradictions in their story.
• Moriyue told the crowd they were ninja trapped in a dream shaped by their wishes, and urged them to remember why they had come to Ryūchi Cave.

Moriyue escaped the dream city and discovered the petrified victims and snakes hidden beneath its illusion. He met Tagorihime in the cave and learned he had passed her trial, but he still wanted to fight her and obtain her Genjutsu techniques.

• Moriyue left the awakened dream residents behind and pushed through the stone door, hoping to end the cycle.
• He emerged in a cave filled with petrified people, giant snakes, and the remains of the ramen seller and the dream city's food and buildings.
• Tagorihime appeared and asked why he rejected the peaceful world of Genjutsu.
• Moriyue argued that falsehood could not replace reality and sensed the immense Chakra within Tagorihime.
• Tagorihime told Moriyue he had passed her trial, but he said he still wanted to beat her up.
• Tagorihime transformed into a frightening, scaled form with golden eyes and sharp fangs.

Naruto asked Jiraiya to help him grow strong enough to defeat Sasuke and bring him back, and Jiraiya proposed Sage Mode while warning that strength required a firm resolve. Sakura and Hinata also decided they needed to become stronger, and Hinata left determined to confess her feelings to Naruto someday.

• Naruto trained by striking a tree stump while Sakura treated his injured hands, and he asked Jiraiya for help becoming stronger.
• Jiraiya challenged Naruto to consider why Sasuke had left and explained that war and endless conflict caused such tragedies.
• Jiraiya offered to train Naruto in Sage Mode, warning that the path could kill him, and Naruto accepted.
• Sakura asked to become stronger too, so Jiraiya invited her to come along and said Tsunade might have a better plan for her.
• Hinata watched Naruto, Sakura, and Jiraiya leave, then resolved to grow stronger so she could someday tell Naruto how she felt.

Sasuke tracked down Itachi and lost their first encounter after escaping Tsukuyomi with help from a snake’s bite. Meanwhile, Konan recovered with some memory loss, and Ajisai prepared to experiment on three men who had caused trouble for Moriyue.

• Sasuke found Itachi and attacked him with Chidori, but Itachi evaded the strike with a crow illusion.
• Itachi trapped Sasuke in Tsukuyomi, but a little black snake bit Sasuke and helped him break free.
• Sasuke saw the snake retreat, then fled into the forest after conceding the encounter to Itachi.
• Nagato had rebuilt the Human Path and helped Konan awaken, though she had lost some memories.
• Ajisai captured three men who had caused trouble for Moriyue and prepared to experiment on them with Curse Marks.

Moriyue attempted to learn Sage Mode in Ryūchi Cave, but the Little Green Snake transformed him into a dragon-like creature as he absorbed Nature Energy. He tested his newfound Sage Chakra with an overpowered electromagnetic cannon aimed at the cave ceiling.

• Tagorihime explained how to absorb and balance Nature Energy with Chakra, expecting Moriyue to turn to stone.
• Moriyue developed white scales and snake-like features, but his body kept changing instead of petrifying.
• The other two goddesses arrived and found Moriyue transformed into a horned, whiskered, dragon-like creature.
• Moriyue realized the Little Green Snake had actively absorbed Chakra during his transformation and tested his Sage Chakra with an electromagnetic cannon.
• Moriyue fired Sage Art: Electromagnetic Cannon: Super: Tail Launch Style at the ceiling of Ryūchi Cave.

Moriyue blasted his way out of Ryūchi Cave after learning Sage Mode and was sent flying toward Mount Myōboku. He landed there by kicking Sage Fukasaku, then greeted Naruto, who was thrilled to see him.

• Moriyue unleashed a technique that destroyed part of Ryūchi Cave and left him drained of Chakra after learning Sage Mode.
• The White Snake Sage accepted that Moriyue had learned Sage Mode but closed Ryūchi Cave for repairs and watched him fly toward Mount Myōboku.
• Moriyue fell asleep while flying through the air and eventually crashed into Sage Fukasaku at Mount Myōboku.
• Fukasaku questioned Moriyue about his connection to Ryūchi Cave while rescuing Naruto from falling off a training peak.
• Moriyue recognized Naruto and greeted him after landing at Mount Myōboku.

Naruto, Jiraiya, and Sakura doubted Danzo’s accusations against Moriyue, while Sage Fukasaku questioned Moriyue about his connection to Ryūchi Cave. The Great Sage named a Child of Prophecy and a struggle between Twin Kings before falling asleep, leaving the prophecy unexplained.

• Naruto showed no fear of Moriyue, and Moriyue tested him about Konoha’s warrant.
• Sage Fukasaku confronted Moriyue over the scent of Ryūchi Cave and led him and Naruto to the Great Sage.
• The Great Sage prophesied that the Child of Prophecy would overturn the Ninja World and that the struggle of the Twin Kings would set the world ablaze.
• The Great Sage fell asleep, and Fukasaku concluded that Moriyue and Naruto might be the Twin Kings.
• Fukasaku offered to help Moriyue and mentioned that he was teaching Naruto Sage Mode.

Yugito Nii, Kazeki, Ajisai, and Ando escorted two wandering samurai toward Kirigakure, but the bandaged swordsman insisted on testing their strength. The white-clad samurai Haku began fighting them, and Ajisai launched the first attack.

• Yugito Nii led Kazeki, Ajisai, and Ando to meet two samurai who had hired them as guards on the journey to Kirigakure.
• The white-clad samurai explained that local thugs had harassed them, while the bandaged samurai questioned whether the Cloud Shinobi were strong enough to protect them.
• The bandaged samurai asked Haku to test the team's abilities, and Yugito Nii agreed to continue until they reached a suitable clearing.
• Kazeki and Ando sensed unusual cold around Haku as Ajisai placed Sealing Cards along the road.
• Haku challenged all three teammates at once, and Ajisai used the Body Flicker Technique to attack him with Sealing Cards and an energized Kunai.

Ando fought Haku and overcame his swordplay with a feint using the Body Flicker Technique, revealing Haku’s Ice Release Kekkei Genkai. Haku’s group warned Yugito Nii and the others that more warriors might attack along the way, and the travelers later camped in the forest with Ajisai on watch.

• Ando stepped in to fight Haku after Haku’s strike was blocked by steel puppets, then evaded Haku’s slash and countered with a feint and a second Body Flicker Technique.
• Ando struck Haku with the flat of his blade, cracking the ice Haku had formed, and Yugito Nii identified Haku’s ability as Ice Release.
• Haku stopped fighting when the bandaged warrior called him back, and the warrior told the group that they might encounter more ordinary warriors on the road.
• Haku asked the group not to kill those ordinary warriors, but the bandaged warrior argued that slaughter was the only way to eliminate future trouble.
• The group camped in the forest, where Ajisai took his turn keeping watch and eyed the masked Haku suspiciously.

Moriyue’s Sage Mode training was interrupted by a powerful summoning pull as Sasuke, newly empowered by absorbing Orochimaru, prepared to pursue Itachi. Sasuke feared Orochimaru was reshaping his personality, while Orochimaru secretly worked to take over his body.

• Moriyue tested Mount Myōboku’s Sage Mode by shifting between human and toad forms, then felt something forcibly summon him.
• After absorbing Orochimaru’s legacy, Sasuke grew overconfident and believed he was ready to face Itachi.
• Sasuke destroyed his research notes in a burst of anger and suspected Orochimaru’s consciousness was influencing his behavior.
• Sasuke vowed to find and kill Itachi before Orochimaru could fully assimilate him.
• Orochimaru hid within Sasuke and planned to seize his body without needing to tell Moriyue.

Sasuke fought Itachi while Orochimaru’s influence weakened his mind and body, but Itachi used Tsukuyomi and black flames to burn away the Curse Mark. The chapter ended with Sasuke unable to draw on its power and preparing a lightning technique as Itachi considered the dangers and awaited Orochimaru’s true body.

• Sasuke challenged Itachi with Genjutsu and Curse Mark Mode, but Itachi escaped his attack using crows.
• Itachi trapped Sasuke in Tsukuyomi and used black flames to burn away the Curse Mark and Orochimaru’s influence.
• Sasuke broke free from the Genjutsu and slashed at Itachi, but discovered that the Curse Mark’s power was sealed.
• Sasuke attacked with flaming kunai, and Itachi easily countered while holding back.
• Sasuke climbed among iron rods beneath gathering storm clouds to prepare a lightning technique as Itachi considered Orochimaru’s presence inside him.

Sasuke struck Itachi with the Falling Dragon, but Itachi survived behind Susanoo and sealed Orochimaru with the Totsuka Blade. As Itachi approached Sasuke, Moriyue appeared and stabbed him from behind, leaving Itachi gravely wounded.

• Sasuke redirected the Falling Dragon toward Itachi, then survived the blast by summoning Manda, who took most of the lightning and died.
• Itachi survived the strike with Half-Body Susanoo and attacked Sasuke with its sword.
• Orochimaru emerged from Sasuke as the Eight-Headed Serpent, but Itachi used the Totsuka Blade to seal him.
• Itachi approached Sasuke, but Moriyue stabbed him through the chest with the Kusanagi Sword while disguised as Sasuke.
• Itachi recognized that the figure was not Sasuke, but his hesitation prevented him from using Izanagi.

Moriyue used the Heavenly Transfer Technique to reach Orochimaru during Sasuke and Itachi’s battle, where Orochimaru merged with Sasuke after Itachi sealed part of his true body. As Orochimaru turned toward Itachi’s corpse, two figures seized it and escaped.

• Moriyue sensed Orochimaru’s message and used the Heavenly Transfer Technique to teleport from Mount Myōboku to the forest where Orochimaru was.
• Moriyue approached Sasuke and Itachi’s battle without being noticed as Itachi sealed part of Orochimaru’s true body.
• Moriyue helped Orochimaru complete his merger with Sasuke after Itachi was defeated.
• Orochimaru, now in Sasuke’s body, set his sights on Itachi’s Sharingan.
• A blue figure and a white figure grabbed Itachi’s corpse and fled before Orochimaru could stop them.

Yugito Nii and the others learned that the ronin who attacked them had been hired by Gato to steal Zabuza’s sword. When Yugito recognized Zabuza and Haku, she demanded answers, but Haku only asked them to provide cover and escort, leaving the group facing a possible fight.

• A dozen ronin attacked Zabuza, but Haku froze their weapons with Ice Release while Ajisai helped subdue one of them.
• Kazeki and the others learned that the ronin had targeted Zabuza’s Kubikiribōchō on Gato’s orders.
• Yugito identified the bandaged samurai as Momochi Zabuza and recognized Haku, noting that reports said they were dead.
• Yugito questioned Haku and Zabuza, while Ando and Kazeki prepared for a possible fight.
• Haku asked the group to cover and escort them for a while but refused to explain why; Zabuza began unwrapping his sword and challenged them to fight.

Yugito Nii and Zabuza agreed to continue traveling together, though both sides remained wary of each other. Near their destination, Zabuza and Haku used the mist to slip away with Itachi's corpse, leaving Yugito Nii's group to find Moriyue standing with Sasuke.

• Haku persuaded Yugito Nii and Zabuza to avoid fighting, and Yugito Nii agreed to continue the commission after consulting her companions.
• Ajisai secretly used a Curse Mark on Haku and saw a powerful golden-eyed phantom in his memories; the phantom seemed to notice her, and the mark vanished.
• Zabuza and Haku led the group swiftly toward their destination as Yugito Nii watched them and kept her companions at a distance.
• Haku and Zabuza unleashed mist and ice to create an opening, then fled through the forest without engaging Yugito Nii's group.
• Zabuza and Haku reached Itachi's corpse, carried it away, and escaped before Moriyue and the others could react.
• Yugito Nii and her companions arrived in pursuit and were stunned to see Moriyue standing with Sasuke.

Jiraiya fought Pain and recognized Nagato’s Rinnegan, while Akimoto Osamu led a revolt against Pain’s rule in Amegakure. Sakura confronted Konan as the rebels advanced toward the Tower of God, hoping to find Pain’s real body.

• Jiraiya restrained Konan, but Animal Path Pain freed her and attacked Jiraiya, who mistook him for Nagato.
• Konan left to hunt the other intruders while Jiraiya battled Animal Path Pain and the Mud Three-Headed Dog.
• Akimoto Osamu and the awakened rebels seized their chance during the battle and charged toward the western tower.
• Sakura confronted Konan and fought off her paper attacks as the uprising spread through Amegakure.
• Akimoto Osamu led the rebels close to the Tower of God, believing they might find Pain’s real body and restore peace.

Jiraiya discovered that Pain controlled corpses of people he had killed and deduced that Nagato was behind them, but he was cornered before he could escape. As Pain shifted his focus to Naruto, Naruto arrived in Sage Mode and struck the Deva Path, leaving Jiraiya alive but still in danger.

• Jiraiya recognized the black rods and corpses as clues that Nagato controlled the Pains, and he tried to tell Shima and Fukasaku what he had learned.
• The Pains revived and surrounded Jiraiya, who suspected another Pain was guarding Nagato’s real body and wondered whether it was Yahiko.
• Sakura broke away from Konan but encountered the Deva Path, who pulled her toward a black rod with Banshō Ten'in.
• Naruto arrived in Sage Mode and punched the Deva Path, rescuing Sakura while Nagato’s attention was focused on Jiraiya.
• Jiraiya noticed that the Pains attacking him had weakened, then watched them abandon him to pursue Naruto.

Moriyue reunited with Yugito Nii and the others after Orochimaru fled, then returned to Kumogakure to report Itachi Uchiha’s death and Orochimaru’s possession of Sasuke’s body. A revealed that Jiraiya and Naruto Uzumaki had survived an Akatsuki attack in Amegakure, where Pain had declared war on Konoha.

• Orochimaru escaped in a cloud of smoke when Yugito Nii and the others appeared, while Moriyue stayed to learn why they had come.
• Moriyue and Yugito Nii explained their situations to each other, and Yugito Nii learned that Itachi Uchiha was dead and Orochimaru had taken over Sasuke’s body.
• Moriyue and the others identified Haku and Zabuza as the people who had taken Itachi’s corpse, then decided to return to Kumogakure and inform the Raikage.
• Moriyue accompanied Yugito Nii to the Raikage’s office, where she reported Itachi’s death and Orochimaru’s possession of Sasuke to A.
• A told Moriyue and the others that Jiraiya and Naruto Uzumaki had survived an Akatsuki attack in Amegakure and that Pain had declared war on Konoha.

Moriyue absorbed some of Killer B’s Eight-Tails Chakra while worrying about the escalating war between Akatsuki and Konoha and his inability to find more Talismans. When he tested Orochimaru’s Yin-Yang Transformation Jutsu scroll with a clone, the trap triggered and something returned to Moriyue, changing his body.

• Moriyue absorbed Eight-Tails Chakra from Killer B and sent him away.
• Moriyue counted the Tailed Beast Chakra he had collected and noticed that his perception of the remaining Talismans had grown faint.
• Moriyue reflected on Akatsuki’s planned assault on Konoha and the other villages’ decision to stay out of the fight.
• Ajisai showed Moriyue Orochimaru’s Yin-Yang Transformation Jutsu scroll, and Moriyue tested it with a distant clone.
• The scroll trapped and destroyed the clone, but something returned to Moriyue with it and caused a change in his body.

Orochimaru’s technique transformed Moriyue into a woman, and Moriyue learned he could not reverse it for now. Yugito Nii then told him that the Raikage had nominated him as a possible successor.

• Moriyue discovered that Orochimaru’s technique had changed his body and appearance, and found a scroll asking whether he liked the gift.
• Ajisai reacted to Moriyue’s new appearance, and they spent the night together.
• Moriyue studied Orochimaru’s technique and realized its complex chakra and genetic components made it impossible for him to undo at present.
• Yugito Nii visited Moriyue, recognized him despite his changed appearance, and heard how the transformation happened.
• Yugito Nii told Moriyue that the Raikage was choosing a successor and had included him among the nominees.

A questioned Moriyue and Darui about Kumogakure’s future as potential successors to the Raikage. Darui recommended watching the conflict between Konoha and the Akatsuki Organization before acting, and A turned to Moriyue for his view.

• A considered Darui his preferred successor but had also named Moriyue as a candidate.
• Yugito Nii brought Moriyue to A’s office, where A gathered them to discuss the village’s future.
• Darui tried to withdraw from the successor competition, but A pressured him to stay.
• A asked how Kumogakure should handle the other ninja villages and Konoha.
• Darui argued that Kumogakure should remain still and observe as Konoha and the Akatsuki Organization faced off.
• A asked Moriyue to give his opinion.