Chapter Summaries

Moriyue agreed to help Orochimaru obtain Itachi Uchiha's eyes while pursuing clues about Hoshikage. After the group chose to face the dangerous organization, Orochimaru led them toward Kirigakure, where Moriyue and Yugito Nii suspected something was wrong.

• Orochimaru stopped after the group left Kumogakure's range and asked Moriyue about the eyes he had come to obtain.
• Moriyue agreed to help Orochimaru, hoping the operation would also reveal information about Hoshikage.
• Orochimaru questioned whether Yugito Nii, Ajisai, and Kazeki would join the mission, and Moriyue warned them that Hoshikage was an exceptionally dangerous enemy.
• Everyone chose to continue, and Moriyue promised to bring them back safely.
• Moriyue asked Orochimaru to lead them to any Hoshikage clues, and Orochimaru named Kirigakure as their first destination.
• Moriyue and Yugito Nii recalled signs that Kirigakure was an unusually unsettling village.

Obito and Kabuto searched the ruined Kirigakure for what had drawn them back, finding a painting that pulled Kabuto into a vision of a ninja team facing monsters in a mysterious valley. The vision ended as a gigantic monster emerged, leaving Kabuto shaken and the painting’s secrets unresolved.

• Obito killed the remaining Kirigakure ninja after they begged for mercy and blamed the god that had controlled them.
• Kabuto sensed a direction and led Obito to a warehouse filled with blood, maggots, and half-dead humanoid creatures, but said their target was not there.
• Obito found a disturbing painting in a tiny room and studied its image of a mist-covered mountain, a faceless figure, and a cloaked person.
• Kabuto was drawn into a vision of Kirigakure special operations ninja fighting mysterious monsters in a valley.
• The ninja’s weapons gained the power to cut the monsters, but a dark force arrived and a gigantic monster emerged before the vision abruptly ended.
• Kabuto returned to himself drenched in sweat after experiencing the vision as a helpless spectator.

Moriyue, Orochimaru, and the others investigated Kirigakure after Orochimaru revealed it might hold Hoshikage’s abandoned supplies and Itachi Uchiha’s corpse. They found signs of a battle involving Kabuto and Obito Uchiha, then prepared to enter the village, unaware of the danger awaiting them.

• Orochimaru explained that Kirigakure was connected to Hoshikage and might contain Itachi Uchiha’s corpse, though it was not the organization’s headquarters.
• Moriyue and the others traveled toward Kirigakure, where Kazeki and Ajisai noticed oppressive dampness and a strange seawater odor.
• Kazeki and Ajisai examined battle damage, slime, Fire Release traces, and unnaturally clean cuts near the village.
• Moriyue and Orochimaru identified Kabuto and Obito Uchiha as the fighters, and Moriyue suspected Obito had regained Kakashi’s Sharingan and Kamui.
• Orochimaru urged the group to enter Kirigakure and search for Hoshikage’s stored items and information.

Moriyue and his companions investigated Kirigakure and found eerie steles, signs of destruction, and traces of a massacre. They encountered Kabuto and Obito, who rushed toward Moriyue to settle their grudge.

• Moriyue pointed out a strange inscribed stele and asked Kazeki whether it had been there before.
• Kazeki said Kirigakure had seemed normal during their previous visit, while Yugito Nii detected the scent of blood and signs of a fight.
• Orochimaru sensed Kabuto nearby, and Moriyue sensed Obito Uchiha.
• Kabuto sensed the group watching him and put away the bizarre painting as Obito came out onto the street.
• Obito recognized Moriyue and charged at him, but Moriyue judged him too slow.

Moriyue fought Obito after Obito lost Intangibility but retained Kamui, and survived a spatial attack that shredded his heart by repairing it with tentacles. As Kabuto tried to escape, Moriyue pursued him with the Body Flicker Technique.

• Moriyue used Obito’s slower movements to attack, while Obito aimed Kamui at Moriyue’s heart.
• Moriyue punched Obito into the ground, breaking several ribs, but Obito’s Kamui shredded Moriyue’s heart.
• Obito mocked Moriyue, while Yugito Nii and Kabuto questioned how he could still use the Sharingan and whether he had survived.
• Orochimaru pointed out that Moriyue was pretending to be incapacitated, and Moriyue revealed that his heart had already been repaired by tentacles.
• Kabuto transformed into a half-snake man and tried to escape, but Moriyue used the Body Flicker Technique to catch up and block him.

Moriyue trapped Kabuto and Obito in a soul-space and used his Notebook and the Black-faced Sheep to create a terrifying experience meant to weaken their wills. He left them overwhelmed by the illusion, intending to investigate what they knew about Kirigakure.

• Kabuto and Obito realized Moriyue had trapped them, but their attempts to dispel the effect failed.
• Moriyue used the Black-faced Sheep to draw their souls into his space and decided to weaken their wills to obtain information.
• Moriyue wrote a frightening first-person account in his Notebook, making Kabuto and Obito experience a strange world filled with monstrous creatures and oppressive forces.
• The experience made Kabuto and Obito lose hope and become unable to struggle or seek an escape.

Moriyue used the Sheep Talisman to probe Kabuto and Obito’s minds, learning they sought a strange painting and that Kabuto had recovered Uchiha Madara’s body. After Kabuto broke the illusion, he summoned the Four-Tails and Five-Tails Jinchuriki with Impure World Reincarnation, leaving Moriyue eager to study the technique.

• Moriyue trapped Kabuto and Obito in a convincing illusion and learned they had come for a strange painting that Kabuto planned to use as a summoning medium.
• Moriyue discovered that Kabuto had collected several corpses, including Uchiha Madara’s body, while Obito had been forced to cooperate with him.
• Kabuto recognized the illusion as an attack on the soul, broke free, and woke Obito, realizing Moriyue had extracted information from them.
• Kabuto summoned the Four-Tails Jinchuriki Roshi and the Five-Tails Jinchuriki Han with Impure World Reincarnation, then left them to fight Moriyue’s group.
• Orochimaru recognized Kabuto’s improvements to Impure World Reincarnation, while Moriyue looked forward to studying the forbidden jutsu.

Ajisai and Kazeki fought Han and Roshi while Moriyue and Orochimaru went to search for Itachi's corpse. The battle grew more difficult as the two opponents coordinated their steam and lava attacks, leaving Yugito Nii suspicious that they were holding back.

• Ajisai and Kazeki convinced Moriyue to let them fight Han and Roshi, while he and Orochimaru went to look for Itachi's corpse and Yugito Nii stayed to help if needed.
• Ajisai restrained Han and Roshi with her black blade, but Han's steam absorbed Kazeki's Wind Blade and Roshi attacked with lava.
• Han used steam and mist while Roshi spread lava through the ground, forcing Ajisai and Kazeki to counter with wind and blade attacks.
• Han and Roshi coordinated increasingly well, using steam, lava, and the terrain to evade attacks and pressure the two women.
• As Kazeki began to fall behind, Yugito Nii frowned and wondered why their opponents' attacks seemed weak.

Moriyue and Orochimaru investigated the aftermath of the battle in Kirigakure while Kabuto tried to protect a mysterious painting. Gold and Utsu watched from the Mist Forest, revealing that Hoshikage had obtained the Rinnegan and controlled eight Talismans as they prepared Naruto to master the Nine-Tails.

• Kabuto realized Moriyue’s technique may have exposed part of his past and resolved to protect the painting.
• Moriyue told Orochimaru about the painting, and they suspected it was connected to Hoshikage while noting that Itachi Uchiha’s corpse was likely missing.
• Moriyue saw that Obito had survived and transplanted Kakashi’s Sharingan, and vowed to defeat him again.
• Gold and Utsu watched Kirigakure and confirmed that Hoshikage had obtained Nagato’s Rinnegan, though Nagato and Konan had escaped.
• Utsu reported that Naruto’s seal had been destroyed and that he had failed to defeat the Nine-Tails, so Gold ordered her to make him master it and find the last Talisman.
• Gold revealed that Hoshikage controlled eight Talismans and warned Utsu not to underestimate Moriyue or his immortality.

Kabuto and Orochimaru summoned Sasori and Deidara with Impure World Reincarnation, and the former partners began an endless battle. As their fight stalled both sides, Moriyue observed the technique while Kabuto continued his unknown preparations.

• Kabuto and Orochimaru each summoned a former Akatsuki member with Impure World Reincarnation: Kabuto summoned Deidara, and Orochimaru summoned Sasori.
• Sasori and Deidara recognized each other, then clashed with Chakra threads and bombs as Deidara boasted about his new explosives.
• Deidara and Sasori traded attacks that shattered their bodies and devastated the battlefield, but both kept regenerating.
• Obito urged Kabuto to finish his preparations and asked whether he had shaken off Moriyue's group, while Kabuto told him to wait.
• Orochimaru noted that battles between reincarnated fighters rarely had an outcome, and Moriyue closely watched the technique he had long wanted to understand.

Moriyue observed Sasori and Deidara fighting as Impure World Reincarnation bodies and used the Sheep Talisman to discover that their souls were being tainted and fading. He concluded that the Evil God might eventually harvest their souls, but the battle paused when Deidara began swelling for an ultimate explosion and Gold and Utsu arrived.

• Moriyue considered the limits of Impure World Reincarnation and used the Sheep Talisman to examine Sasori and Deidara's souls.
• Moriyue noticed black energy tainting their souls and concluded that the Evil God might harvest them once the corruption consumed them.
• Deidara declared that he would show Sasori his ultimate art and began swelling for an explosion.
• Gold and Utsu rushed in as Sasori tried to stop Deidara from expanding.

Gold and Utsu defeated Deidara and Sasori, then took the painting from Kabuto and escaped Hidden Mist. Orochimaru and Moriyue confronted Kabuto, while Obito’s connection to Hoshikage came to light.

• Gold struck Deidara with his staff and shattered his body into ashes.
• Utsu used her speed to take the painting from Kabuto before he could react.
• Orochimaru realized Hoshikage was interested in the painting and grew hostile toward Gold and Utsu.
• Gold defeated Sasori, while Utsu made Yugito Nii uncomfortable by openly admiring her.
• Gold and Utsu retreated from Hidden Mist, and Orochimaru and Moriyue approached Kabuto to talk.
• Obito was revealed to have discussed matters with Hoshikage.

Moriyue revealed that Obito had allied with Hoshikage, making Kabuto suspect he had been betrayed. Gold explained how the Monkey Talisman caused Kirigakure’s destruction, then claimed victory after recovering it, but grew suspicious when Moriyue remained strangely still.

• Moriyue told Kabuto that Obito had joined forces with Hoshikage, and Kabuto reconsidered his alliance with Obito.
• Gold and Utsu stayed focused on their mission while Kirigakure’s history was revealed: its ninja found monsters that killed or injured their investigators.
• The monsters were creations of Hoshikage transformed by the Monkey Talisman, which had contacted a powerful entity and driven its victims mad.
• Hoshikage sealed the Monkey Talisman in a painting after a disastrous battle, and Gold took possession of the painting.
• Gold declared that Hoshikage had won, then noticed Moriyue was not acting as someone who had been caught off guard.

Gold and Utsu believed they had outmaneuvered Moriyue, but Moriyue had been pretending to be slow and waiting to ambush them. He stole Utsu’s Rabbit Talisman power, struck Gold, and reclaimed the scroll.

• Gold realized Moriyue’s slow reactions were an act, while Utsu believed their plan with Orochimaru and Obito had gone exactly as intended.
• Utsu mocked Moriyue as Gold considered why he was pretending to be weak.
• An attacker struck Utsu from behind, and she tried to use the Rabbit Talisman’s power to escape.
• Moriyue intercepted and stole Utsu’s Rabbit Talisman power, then used it to attack Gold.
• Moriyue seized the scroll from Gold and absorbed the stolen power.

Moriyue stole the Rabbit Talisman’s power from Utsu, seized the painting, and led his allies in a retreat while Kabuto’s side realized they had been outmaneuvered. The chapter left Gold and Utsu facing a cloud of spores that reacted dangerously when Utsu attacked it with fire.

• Kabuto recalled the controlled Roshi, Han, and Sasori after realizing the battle had been manipulated, while Yugito Nii revealed Ajisai and Kazeki had been hiding nearby.
• Gold realized Moriyue had used a clone to mislead them, while Moriyue took the Rabbit Talisman’s power from Utsu and snatched the painting.
• Moriyue ordered a retreat, and Ajisai and Kazeki released a cloud of golden spores to cover the group’s escape.
• Moriyue used the Rabbit Talisman’s speed to escape Gold, while Yugito Nii and Orochimaru fled with the others.
• Utsu ignored Gold’s warning and launched a Great Fireball at the spores, which absorbed the flames and turned scarlet.

Moriyue deduced that Orochimaru had secretly made a deal with Hoshikage and was about to obtain what he wanted. While Gold and Utsu were caught in a trap, Orochimaru found the unconscious Naruto and kidnapped him.

• Ajisai mocked Orochimaru as the group escaped the exploding spores in Kirigakure.
• Moriyue questioned Orochimaru and inferred that he had made a deal with Hoshikage for something he wanted.
• Gold found Utsu unconscious after the explosion and realized Orochimaru might be going after Naruto.
• Orochimaru found Naruto unconscious in a tree and stuffed him into a sack before fleeing.

After Orochimaru abducted Naruto, Moriyue decided to strike first against the Hoshikage organization by declaring war. He revealed that the Daimyo of every nation had already taken the bait, leaving Ajisai to carry out the plan.

• Orochimaru took the unconscious Naruto, and Gold and Utsu found him missing when they returned to the giant tree.
• Gold and Utsu decided to pursue Moriyue to Kumogakure and recover what they had lost.
• Ajisai, Kazeki, and Yugito Nii warned that Gold and Utsu might threaten civilians in Kumogakure.
• Moriyue said they would strike first and wage war against the Hoshikage organization.
• Moriyue told Yugito Nii that the Daimyo, not the Kage, decided whether to wage war, then reminded Ajisai that the Daimyo of every nation had taken the bait.

Moriyue used the Daimyos’ control to unite the Five Great Nations against the Hoshikage, while Orochimaru manipulated Sasuke’s consciousness and set him against Danzo. Sasuke attacked Danzo during the Kage Summit, and the fight began with Sasuke easily breaking through Danzo’s defenses.

• Moriyue told Kazeki that Kumogakure could repel an attack with its hidden technology, while Gold and Utsu withdrew after learning the Five Great Nations had declared war on them.
• Moriyue gave the Hoshikage three days to surrender, prompting the nations to gather forces and hold a Kage Summit.
• Orochimaru revealed Konoha’s role in the Uchiha massacre to Sasuke’s consciousness and explained that Itachi’s eyes had been fused to grant him greater power.
• Sasuke accepted Orochimaru’s plan to kill Danzo, despite knowing Orochimaru intended to erase his consciousness afterward.
• Sasuke burst into Danzo’s office and attacked him, shattering Danzo’s Wood Release and Wind Release techniques with a few slashes.

Sasuke fought Danzo, who repeatedly used Izanagi to survive and then tried to control him with Kotoamatsukami. Orochimaru’s safeguard disrupted the genjutsu, and Sasuke unleashed his Eternal Mangekyō powers as Danzo prepared a sealing technique that might take them both down.

• Sasuke pierced Danzo with Susanoo, but Danzo used Izanagi and sacrificed a Sharingan to return alive.
• Danzo repeatedly spent Izanagi’s remaining uses trying to get close to Sasuke while Sasuke’s eyes recovered.
• Danzo used Kotoamatsukami to try to make Sasuke join Konoha, but Orochimaru’s preparation countered it through a crow carrying a copied eye technique.
• The crow and Danzo’s Sharingan shattered, and Sasuke’s Eternal Mangekyō Sharingan awakened with lightning armor and black flames.
• Sasuke attacked the exhausted Danzo, who tore off his shirt and revealed a sealing mark on his chest as Yugito Nii watched.

Danzo destroyed himself and the Root Organization while trying to kill Sasuke, and the surviving leaders gathered for a Kage Summit to plan for war against Hoshikage and the man claiming to be Uchiha Madara. The summit ended without a clear strategy, while Jiraiya suspected the silent Moriyue was plotting something.

• Danzo’s transformed arm spread black liquid through the Root Organization, and he and the entire underground base vanished into a spherical void.
• Yugito Nii watched Danzo’s death and felt relieved that Moriyue had one fewer enemy.
• Moriyue attended a hurried Kage Summit with Ajisai and the others after the Daimyos ordered the nations to unite against Hoshikage and Uchiha Madara.
• The leaders discussed plans to defend against Uchiha Madara, while Gaara urged them to account for his Genjutsu and Ōnoki questioned whether the man was truly Madara.
• The Hozuki Clan man redirected the discussion to Hoshikage, and Gaara proposed drawing the organization into range for a coordinated attack.
• Jiraiya watched Moriyue remain silent and wondered what he was plotting.