Chapter Summaries

Sasuke’s team fought Killer B, and Sasuke used his Mangekyō Sharingan to burn the Eight-Tails with Amaterasu before escaping with what seemed to be Killer B. Li Yao’s Obito clone revealed that Sasuke had taken only a clone made from a severed tail, while the real Killer B had survived.

• Suigetsu created a giant water monster to distract the Eight-Tails, while Karin let Sasuke bite her to restore his Chakra.
• The Eight-Tails destroyed Suigetsu’s water monster with a Tailed Beast Bomb, leaving Suigetsu near death and drawing Kumogakure ninja toward the fight.
• Sasuke used Amaterasu on the Eight-Tails, then used his right Mangekyō ability to extinguish the flames on Karin and the beast.
• Sasuke summoned a hawk and escaped with Karin, Suigetsu, and what appeared to be Killer B as Kumogakure ninja watched.
• Li Yao’s Obito clone told Black Zetsu that Sasuke had taken only a clone made from a section of the Eight-Tails’ tail, and that Killer B had been playing around.

Li Yao failed to control Nature Energy or create Sage Art Chakra, so he planned to learn its precise balance by absorbing Sage Art Chakra from Naruto. He expected Naruto to return to Konoha when Nagato and Konan attacked, while Obito prepared to pursue Killer B.

• Obito decided to follow Killer B and capture the Eight-Tails once Killer B had gone farther from the village.
• Li Yao repeatedly tested absorbing Nature Energy with Shadow Clones transformed into Jugo, but the energy disrupted their ninjutsu and made them explode.
• Li Yao concluded that he needed to absorb existing Sage Art Chakra to discover the quantities required to create it, and he planned to wait for Naruto to return.
• Li Yao mocked Jiraiya for needing the toads' help to enter Sage Mode, and Jiraiya suspected Li Yao was targeting Naruto and the Nine-Tails.
• Li Yao sensed Nagato and Konan nearing Konoha and expected their attack to bring Naruto back by the next day.

Obito's clone confronted Killer B in the Land of Lightning and challenged him to a close-range fight. After injuring Killer B with an extended Lightning Release blade, he left the battle unresolved.

• Obito's clone revealed that he had taken back his left Sharingan, while Black Zetsu worried about the change and went to scout for Kumogakure reinforcements.
• Obito's clone approached Killer B and Teacher Kogane, who recognized him as an Akatsuki member and warned B to be careful.
• The Raccoon attacked Obito's clone, but he dodged and kicked it into unconsciousness, prompting Teacher Kogane to rush to its side.
• Killer B charged Obito's clone with Lightning Release-coated weapons, and the two clashed at close range.
• Obito's clone sensed Killer B's hidden strike and cut him with a longer Lightning Release blade, forcing Killer B to backflip away.

Li Yao's Obito clone fought Killer B in close combat, surprising both Killer B and Black Zetsu with his strength and speed. Black Zetsu suspected Obito had been hiding his abilities, but remained troubled by how suddenly and dramatically they had improved.

• Killer B narrowly avoided being decapitated by Li Yao's Obito clone and refused to use his full Tailed Beast form while Teacher Kogane was nearby.
• Killer B activated his Tailed Beast Cloak Mode, and he and Li Yao's Obito clone clashed with lightning-charged twin blades.
• Li Yao's Obito clone held his own against Killer B's expert swordsmanship by relying on superior speed and strength, while relishing the battle.
• Killer B realized that the Masked Man's taijutsu was unpolished despite his overwhelming physical abilities.
• Black Zetsu questioned how Obito had become so strong and suspected his recent training was meant to counter the man who manipulated black matter.
• Black Zetsu concluded that Obito must have been hiding his abilities, but found the scale of his improvement suspicious.

Black Zetsu suspected Obito was hiding his true abilities and ordered White Zetsu to protect Nagato and the Rinnegan. During the battle, Li Yao's Obito clone revealed his Dual Kamui Mangekyō Sharingan and split Killer B's Tailed Beast Bomb with a spatial slash, leaving Killer B and Gyūki stunned.

• Black Zetsu suspected Obito might abandon the Moon Eye Plan and told White Zetsu to keep watch over Nagato and report anything unusual.
• Killer B revealed that he had been hiding nearby, but Li Yao's Obito clone anticipated his attack and exposed his strong sensory abilities.
• Killer B transformed into the Eight-Tails after Gyūki urged him to stop probing the clone, and he sent Teacher Kogane and the clone away.
• Li Yao's Obito clone revealed his Kamui Mangekyō Sharingan as Killer B fired a Tailed Beast Bomb at him.
• Li Yao's Obito clone opened a spatial rift with his blade and split the Tailed Beast Bomb, then stood unharmed in the crater as Killer B and Gyūki stared in disbelief.

Li Yao's Obito clone used Dual Kamui to defeat Killer B and capture the Eight-Tails, then watched with Jiraiya as Pain and the Akatsuki arrived at Konoha. The chapter ended with Pain demanding to know where the Nine-Tails was.

• Li Yao's Obito clone used Kamui to inflict sixteen massive wounds on the Eight-Tails, forcing Killer B out of his transformation and leaving him badly injured.
• Black Zetsu feared that Obito's Dual Kamui could surpass Madara's power, unaware that Madara's Forbidden Curse no longer controlled Li Yao's Obito clone.
• Li Yao's Obito clone brought Killer B to the White Zetsu base to seal the Eight-Tails.
• The next morning, Li Yao told Jiraiya that the first Child of Prophecy had arrived near Konoha, while Jiraiya realized he could not stop the impending attack.
• Pain and five Akatsuki members appeared at a Konoha eastern sentry post, and Pain asked where the Nine-Tails was.

The Six Paths of Pain and Konan attacked Konoha, but Tsunade and the village’s shinobi held them back. Li Yao left the space between layers to confront Nagato, who discovered him at his mountain hideout.

• Deva Path Pain and the other Paths killed the shinobi at an outpost while searching for Naruto.
• The Six Paths of Pain and Konan launched a destructive assault on Konoha, killing civilians and shinobi as the village organized its defense.
• Tsunade treated the wounded while Konoha’s shinobi and Root held back the Paths of Pain and guided civilians to shelters.
• Li Yao told Jiraiya that unity could not overcome absolute power, then left to act personally.
• Nagato spotted Li Yao inside the tree hollow outside Konoha and demanded to know who he was.

Li Yao killed Nagato, took Madara's Rinnegan, and sent six Shadow Clones to take over the Six Paths of Pain in Konoha. The revived Deva Path Pain blasted Kakashi into a crater as the attack on Konoha resumed.

• Li Yao trapped Nagato in genjutsu, removed his Rinnegan, implanted Madara's eyes, and erased Nagato and his soul with Black Hole Space.
• Li Yao transformed into Nagato, created six Shadow Clones, and sent them toward Konoha using the Spirit Transformation Technique.
• In Konoha, the Six Paths of Pain collapsed, and Ibiki Morino recognized that they were corpses animated by Chakra.
• Konan flew toward Nagato while Aburame Clan ninja pursued her.
• Li Yao's Shadow Clone spirits entered the Six Paths of Pain, revived Deva Path Pain, and restored the hole in its chest.
• Kakashi attacked Deva Path Pain with Lightning Blade, but Shinra Tensei blasted him through three walls and left him injured in a crater.

Li Yao's Deva Path Pain revived with greatly amplified abilities and slaughtered Choza and hundreds of Konoha residents with an invisible blade. Tsunade learned that Konoha had suffered catastrophic casualties, while Jiraiya regretted agreeing to Li Yao's replacement plan.

• Kakashi warned Choza and Choji that Deva Path Pain had revived stronger than before as the other Six Paths Clone bodies also returned.
• Deva Path Pain immobilized Choza with a black receiver and killed him by piercing his head, despite Kakashi's attempt to stop the attack.
• Choji charged at Deva Path Pain, while Jiraiya realized too late that Li Yao's replacement could control the Six Paths Pain bodies and use their abilities.
• Deva Path Pain unleashed an invisible blade that split everyone and everything on the same plane across Konoha, killing or gravely injuring at least a thousand people.
• Tsunade heard Katsuyu's report of the devastation and realized that many of the wounded could not be saved.

Li Yao’s Deva Path Pain killed Kakashi with unfamiliar attraction and repulsion attacks, driving Tsunade to lead a counterattack. As Pain prepared a large-scale strike on Konoha, the Animal Path diverted Konan to keep Nagato’s location concealed.

• Li Yao’s Deva Path Pain used a sharpened Banshō Ten'in to cut Kakashi in half, then killed him with a repulsive slash despite Katsuyu’s efforts to save him.
• Katsuyu relayed Kakashi’s death and Pain’s new abilities to Tsunade, who doubted Jiraiya’s intelligence but rallied the Anbu to join her in battle.
• Li Yao’s Deva Path Pain flew into the sky and began preparing a large-scale attack, muttering, "A bag of rice carries how many floors!"
• The Animal Path summoned the other Six Paths Clones and Konan away from Konoha’s outskirts.
• Animal Path Pain told Konan to approach Nagato from another direction so the Aburame Clan member following her would not discover his location.

Li Yao's Deva Path Pain unleashed an Almighty Push that devastated Konoha, leaving fewer than seventy thousand survivors. Naruto returned to the ruined village, and Li Yao prepared to confront him in the interstitial space.

• Animal Path Pain warned Konan that her earlier choice could expose Nagato's location, then drained the chakra from the Six Paths of Pain and told her to leave.
• Li Yao's Deva Path Pain compressed repulsive force and struck Konoha with an Almighty Push, destroying its walls and killing most of its population despite Katsuyu's efforts to protect survivors.
• Might Guy, Neji, and Tenten heard the blast and rushed back toward Konoha.
• Tsunade and Sakura awoke to the devastation, and Sakura cried out for Naruto to return.
• Naruto appeared at the eastern side of the crater, while Li Yao revealed that he had arranged for Naruto to hear Sakura's cries.
• Li Yao controlled Konan with genjutsu, left a Shadow Clone with his true body, and used the Spirit Transformation Technique to fly toward Naruto.

Naruto arrived in the destroyed Konoha and confronted Li Yao’s Six Paths of Pain, while Li Yao secretly studied the Sage Art Chakra within him. As the fight began, Naruto swiftly destroyed the Asura Path, and Li Yao prepared to let Naruto win.

• Naruto arrived atop Gamabunta and learned from Shima that the ruined landscape was Konoha, destroyed by Pain.
• Naruto sensed for Kakashi, Konohamaru, Choji, Ino, and Iruka but could not detect their Chakra, while the survivors learned that he had arrived in Sage Mode.
• Li Yao’s Deva Path clone faced Naruto, and Li Yao secretly sensed Naruto’s Sage Art Chakra from the interstitial space.
• The other Six Paths gathered behind Deva Path Pain, and Tsunade confronted Pain before Naruto could begin the fight.
• The Asura Path attacked Tsunade, and Naruto shattered its body with a single punch.

Naruto fought the Six Paths of Pain in Sage Mode after learning that Kakashi and others had died, while Li Yao left Konoha to study and condense his own Sage Art Chakra. Naruto’s battle remained unresolved as Li Yao’s repeated attempts to absorb the precise amount of Nature Energy ended in failure.

• Naruto displayed the strength of Sage Mode, giving the people of Konoha hope and making Tsunade feel he was as dependable as Minato Namikaze and Jiraiya.
• Naruto sensed that Kakashi, Iruka, and others had died, then sent Gamajiro to carry Tsunade away and prepared to face Pain.
• Naruto battled the Six Paths of Pain, while Li Yao kept the Deva Path from fighting and had it try to persuade Naruto to accept its ideal of peace.
• Li Yao left Konoha and traveled to a desert in the Land of Wind to attempt to condense Sage Art Chakra using a Shadow Clone.
• Li Yao repeatedly created Shadow Clones to absorb Nature Energy, but each clone exploded because it absorbed too much or too little.

Li Yao successfully condensed Sage Art Chakra while Naruto fought Pain, then used the experience to enter Sage Mode himself. As Naruto’s battle reached its climax, Li Yao prepared to take advantage of his newly gained power.

• Li Yao used rapidly exploding Shadow Clones to practice absorbing Nature Energy in the desert while Naruto defeated four Pains in Konoha.
• Pain impaled Fukasaku and restrained Naruto with Black Receivers, prompting Hinata to rush to Naruto’s side.
• After Pain spoke with Naruto about peace, Hinata risked her life, and Naruto’s rage triggered the Nine-Tails’ rampage against the Deva Path Pain.
• Li Yao’s Shadow Clone condensed Sage Art Chakra in only three minutes and entered a Sage Mode with limited animal traits.
• Li Yao’s main body used the clone’s experience to condense Sage Art Chakra and enter Sage Mode, finding that the first strand made further chakra much easier to produce.

Li Yao achieved Perfect Sage Mode, gaining limitless Sage Art Chakra, enhanced perception, and tremendous strength without any beast-like features. As Naruto was trapped in Chibaku Tensei, Li Yao realized that the destroyed spiritual remnant of Minato Namikaze could no longer help Naruto resist Kurama, putting Naruto’s life at risk.

• Li Yao maintained Sage Mode while moving, tested Sage Art: Water Mirror Technique, and discovered that flowing Nature Energy could reveal nearby bodies hidden in the air.
• Li Yao found that Sage Mode expanded his Chakra sensing range to two hundred kilometers and boosted his physical strength to a level comparable to opening five of the Eight Gates.
• Li Yao confirmed that his Sage Mode had no beast-like features, then returned to the tree hollow disguised as Nagato and waited for Naruto.
• Deva Path Pain drove Nine-Tails Naruto outside Konoha and trapped him in Chibaku Tensei as events followed the original story.
• When a Nine-Tails head emerged from Chibaku Tensei, Li Yao remembered that Minato Namikaze’s spiritual remnant had been destroyed, leaving Naruto unable to break free from Kurama’s control.

Kushina stopped the Nine-Tails’ rampage and reunited with Naruto in his mental space. After restoring Naruto’s sealed memories, she learned that Minato’s spiritual body had been destroyed by Li Yao, while Li Yao watched and waited for Naruto to arrive.

• Li Yao decided to continue the game after Minato’s spiritual body disappeared.
• Kushina’s Adamantine Sealing Technique dragged the Nine-Tails back into Naruto and sealed him behind the gate again.
• Kushina shifted herself and Naruto into his mental space, where they embraced and recognized each other as mother and son.
• Kushina discovered that Naruto’s memories had been sealed and undid Li Yao’s Memory Seal Jutsu.
• Naruto regained his memories and told Kushina that Minato’s spiritual body had been destroyed by a terrifying enemy.
• Li Yao sensed Kushina’s actions and waited for Naruto to arrive.

Naruto met Nagato at the mountaintop and heard the story of his suffering and pursuit of peace. Naruto understood Nagato’s motives but still could not forgive him for killing Jiraiya.

• Naruto reached the mountaintop, tore through Konan’s Paper Release tree, and entered the hollow to confront Nagato.
• Konan protected Nagato as he fired a weakened Black Receiver at Naruto, who caught and pulled it out while in Sage Mode.
• Nagato told Naruto about his parents’ deaths, his bond with Yahiko and Konan, and Yahiko’s death in Danzo’s scheme.
• Naruto listened to Nagato explain how his actions, including killing Jiraiya, served his pursuit of peace rather than revenge.
• Naruto recognized Nagato’s restraint in pursuing peace despite his hatred, but remained unable to forgive him for killing Jiraiya.

Naruto refused to kill Nagato and Konan, choosing to trust Jiraiya’s belief in peace, while Li Yao challenged him to explain how that peace could be achieved. As Naruto traced his words to Jiraiya’s novel and their shared bonds, Li Yao understood how Naruto had reached Nagato in the original story, but remained convinced that such mutual understanding could not work between them.

• Naruto admitted Nagato’s plan seemed more realistic but said he could not forgive him, then declared he would trust Jiraiya’s beliefs and spare Nagato and Konan.
• Li Yao, transformed into Nagato, challenged Naruto’s faith in peace as empty promises without a concrete plan.
• Naruto revealed that his words came from Jiraiya’s first novel, and Li Yao realized the novel’s ideals had originally come from Nagato.
• Naruto spoke about his own suffering and bonds, helping Li Yao understand how shared pain and trust had persuaded Nagato in the original story.
• Li Yao concluded that Naruto’s method depended on rare shared bonds and decided to end the act and watch what happened.

Li Yao and Konan left with Yahiko’s body after Naruto persuaded Nagato to abandon his hostility, but Naruto could not undo the hatred caused by Konoha’s losses. Back in the village, Shikaku and Inoichi helped Naruto avoid being blamed for letting Pain go, and the Anbu ninja abandoned his pursuit.

• Li Yao summoned Yahiko’s corpse, and he and Konan departed with Nagato while Naruto watched without stopping them.
• At Mount Myōboku, Gamamaru realized Nagato had not revived Konoha’s dead as he had in his dream and went to sleep in search of a new vision.
• Shikaku, Inoichi, and an Anbu ninja found Naruto unharmed, and Naruto said he had not killed Nagato and that Nagato would no longer be Konoha’s enemy.
• The Anbu ninja tried to pursue Pain, but Naruto blocked him and pleaded for him to believe in peace.
• Shikaku and Inoichi told the Anbu ninja to say Pain had escaped after Naruto defeated him, and the ninja gave up the pursuit.
• Naruto relaxed, believing he had persuaded the Anbu ninja to accept his decision.

Jiraiya questioned whether Naruto’s reconciliation with Nagato could bring peace after Konoha’s devastating losses, while Li Yao argued that hatred could only end by killing every enemy. Shikaku showed Naruto the scale of the destruction, leaving Naruto to question whether true peace was possible.

• Jiraiya blamed Li Yao for Konoha’s losses, and Li Yao said hatred could be ended by killing everyone who harbored it.
• Naruto returned to Konoha, where survivors asked whether he had killed Pain, and Shikaku claimed Pain had escaped after Naruto defeated him.
• Shikaku led Naruto through the ruined village and warned him not to reveal that he had deliberately let Nagato go.
• Shikaku told Naruto that Konoha had lost most of its population, and Naruto understood that the dead included many civilians and familiar faces.
• Naruto accepted that the survivors could not learn the truth about Nagato’s escape and wondered whether he could truly find peace.