Chapter Summaries

Kazuna consolidated control over the Barrier Team while Itachi fed Hiruzen Sarutobi and Shimura Danzō a mix of useful and misleading intelligence. Meanwhile, Ōnoki searched for the abducted Roshi and Deidara, leaving Iwagakure’s succession problem unresolved.

• Torifu Akimichi rejected Kazuna’s demands for more Uchiha troops and threw a chair at him when he asked for Shimura Danzō as his deputy.
• Kazuna used his Mangekyo to make the Barrier Team loyal to him and ordered Shiraha to install a second Barrier in the Uchiha Clan Grounds.
• Kazuna learned Uzuki Yugao could not serve as his spy because of the Cursed Tongue Eradication Seal, then returned to the Forest of Death to draw his enemies into action.
• Itachi told Hiruzen Sarutobi and Shimura Danzō that the Forest of Death might hold Kazuna’s secret, then continued supplying them with mostly true but partly false intelligence.
• Ōnoki ordered Iwagakure to increase its bounty and guard its borders after learning Roshi had been taken, while Kurotsuchi mocked him over Deidara’s disappearance.

Uchiha Kazuna joined Akatsuki and met its members, turning the gathering into a series of awkward jokes and provocations. After Pain assigned him to team with Orochimaru, Kazuna decided to pursue Akatsuki’s goal of capturing Tailed Beasts.

• Obito invited Uchiha Kazuna to join Akatsuki, and Kazuna accepted immediately before entering the group’s gathering through his Ring.
• Kazuna greeted Akatsuki’s members as “A Feng,” called Obito his cousin, and joked that Pain’s Rinnegan made him dizzy.
• Pain announced that Akatsuki awaited one final member, assigned Kazuna to team with Orochimaru, and paired Sasori with Deidara.
• After the meeting, Konan defended Kazuna to Pain and Obito, while Pain warned her that Kazuna’s behavior around women was troublesome.
• Kazuna spoke with Orochimaru’s projection, then decided to start capturing Tailed Beasts.

Kazuna joined Akatsuki’s plans to gather intelligence and pursue Tailed Beast power, while Konan agreed to work with him and learned that the Four-Tails Jinchuriki had disappeared. He later approached young Naruto at a ramen shop, where Teuchi revealed an unexpectedly sharp aura and confronted him.

• Kazuna offered to capture Tailed Beasts as a gift to Pain, but Pain refused to let him disrupt Akatsuki’s plans.
• Konan agreed to team up with Kazuna through their Rings, and Pain warned her to be careful around the Masked Man.
• Kazuna learned that Iwagakure’s Four-Tails Jinchuriki, Roshi, had vanished, and he sent the news to Konan after confirming Akatsuki was not responsible.
• Kazuna planned to collect portions of the Tailed Beasts’ power and contacted Konan, who relayed the intelligence to Pain.
• Kazuna sat beside young Naruto at a ramen shop, and Teuchi confronted him with an unusually sharp aura.

Kazuna ate ramen with Naruto and Jiraiya while refusing to answer the Hokage’s summons, leaving Torifu Akimichi overwhelmed by the political fallout. Hiruzen Sarutobi and Shimura Danzō decided to move their plan against Kazuna forward, but argued over who would act.

• Kazuna joked and argued with Teuchi at Ichiraku Ramen before masked Anbu arrived to summon him to the Hokage.
• Jiraiya joined Kazuna and Naruto, and Kazuna criticized Jiraiya for neglecting Naruto before the three ate several bowls of ramen.
• Kazuna mocked the Anbu and left without going to the Hokage’s office, while Naruto grew eager to get closer to him.
• Torifu Akimichi panicked after hearing Kazuna had eaten with Naruto and demanded that Tsunade return to take over as Hokage.
• Hiruzen Sarutobi and Shimura Danzō agreed to advance their plan against Kazuna, then quarreled over who would carry it out.

Kakashi struggled to command Konohagakure’s front while Kazuna remained away, as Iwagakure launched a surprise assault. Just as Ōnoki threatened to turn the battle in Iwagakure’s favor, the Fourth Raikage arrived with Kumogakure forces to trap Iwagakure alongside Konohagakure.

• Kakashi learned Iwagakure was preparing to attack and gathered the Jonin, who agreed to hold their positions despite Kazuna’s absence.
• News that Kazuna was not at the front spread through Konohagakure’s forces, and Kakashi ordered the shinobi to obey their orders and keep fighting.
• Ōnoki launched attacks against Konohagakure and Kumogakure, hoping to destroy both villages’ vanguard forces before Kazuna arrived.
• Konohagakure’s Uchiha shinobi used a combined Great Fireball Technique to devastate Iwagakure’s front line, while Ōnoki took to the air and forced Kakashi to fear defeat.
• The Fourth Raikage struck Ōnoki with a Thunder Dragon and arrived with Kumogakure forces, cutting off Iwagakure’s retreat and joining Konohagakure in the battle.
• The Fourth Raikage revealed that Uchiha Kazuna had offered him a suitable price to attack Ōnoki, then demanded vengeance for his father.

Ōnoki’s Iwagakure forces were caught between Konohagakure and Kumogakure, and Kazuna’s plans helped drive them into a disastrous retreat. As Ōnoki retaliated by raiding Kumogakure, the villages prepared for another war, but the Raikage and Ōnoki unexpectedly held back.

• The Fourth Raikage joined forces with Konohagakure to fight Ōnoki and his Iwagakure forces, while Kakashi ordered Konoha’s ninja to counterattack.
• Ōnoki broke through the encirclement with only a few hundred survivors after Iwagakure lost over four thousand ninja, then led his remaining forces into Kumogakure to raid it.
• Kazuna’s clone met the Fourth Raikage, who chose to withdraw rather than attack Konohagakure, and Kazuna urged Kakashi to seek revenge against Iwagakure.
• Torifu Akimichi and Shikaku Nara learned of Ōnoki’s raid and prepared Konohagakure for a possible Fourth Shinobi World War as villages mobilized at their borders.
• The Fourth Raikage and Ōnoki both refrained from further action, baffling Kazuna, who wrote the Raikage to urge him to retaliate and received the reply, “Get lost!”

Kazuna learned that the other great villages were holding back because Konohagakure had benefited from the recent battles, then joined Akatsuki’s gathering and met its new member, Hiruko. He arranged to keep exchanging information and hinted that he might someday hire Akatsuki’s strength.

• Kakashi relayed Shikaku’s theory that Kumogakure and Iwagakure avoided war because Konohagakure had replenished its forces while its enemies suffered heavy losses.
• Kazuna nearly sent Hiruzen Sarutobi a sarcastic thank-you letter, but Kakashi stopped it, and the Shinobi World remained tense as Kumogakure and Iwagakure assembled troops.
• Bored at the front, Kazuna entered Akatsuki’s gathering and found that Pain had assembled all ten members, including the newcomer Hiruko.
• Kazuna teased Obito by wearing a mask resembling the one Obito planned to use, then reminded Hiruko that he had beaten him years earlier.
• Pain asked Kazuna for more intelligence, and Kazuna agreed to continue sharing information while expressing interest in hiring Akatsuki’s power in the future.

Kazuna provoked the Akatsuki members and considered whom to target next, while Konan and Nagato discussed his knowledge and Konan’s interest in joining him. In Konoha, Obito and Shimura Danzō agreed to cooperate against Kazuna and began planning their attack.

• Kazuna left the Akatsuki gathered atop the Ten-Tails husk, and Pain ordered everyone to disperse.
• Konan told Nagato she wanted to go to Uchiha Kazuna, but Nagato warned that Kazuna was dangerous and Konan deferred the decision until he arrived.
• Kazuna returned to his body, recalled humiliating Hiruko, and considered provoking Kisame Hoshigaki, Juzo Biwa, and Black Zetsu.
• Shimura Danzō brooded over his faction’s losses and concluded that Uchiha Kazuna had to die.
• Obito confronted Shimura Danzō and persuaded him to cooperate in killing Kazuna.
• Obito and Danzō discussed Kazuna’s Mangekyo and began whispering about how they would work together.

Kazuna’s letter led Torifu Akimichi to accuse Shimura Danzō of plotting to assassinate Kazuna with a Tiger-Masked Man. Hiruzen Sarutobi shielded Danzō by agreeing to lead the Western Front, while Utatane Koharu and Mitokado Homura considered how to restore Hiruzen to power.

• Rasa and Pakura helped Sunagakure grow richer and stronger, while Kakuzu hired Rogue Ninja to pressure Konohagakure along the border.
• Kazuna sent Torifu Akimichi a letter claiming that Danzō had colluded with the Tiger-Masked Man to assassinate him.
• Torifu summoned Danzō and accused him, but Hiruzen intervened and offered to take Danzō with him to the Western Front.
• Hiruzen agreed to pay Torifu 100 million ryo and send two thousand Sarutobi shinobi to confront Sunagakure, persuading Torifu to relent.
• Hiruzen rebuked Danzō at home and warned him not to move against Kazuna without discussing it first, while Danzō continued to deny the accusation.
• Koharu and Homura discussed finding a way to return Hiruzen to power, then went to his residence after he summoned them.

Kazuna traveled to Amegakure for Akatsuki’s internal match, while Danzo and Obito renewed their plan to kill him after realizing Kazuna had exposed their scheme. The match began with Hiruko revealing unexpected abilities against Juzo Biwa, leaving the outcome of their fight unresolved.

• Kazuna’s forged letter convinced Torifu Akimichi and Hiruzen Sarutobi that Danzo had plotted with Obito, prompting Danzo to face public condemnation and major consequences.
• Obito confronted Danzo, and the two argued before deciding to continue their assassination plan against Kazuna.
• Kazuna entered Amegakure, evaded Konan’s paper shuriken attack, and followed her to Akatsuki’s gathering place.
• All ten Akatsuki members assembled for an internal match, and Juzo Biwa volunteered to fight first against Hiruko.
• Juzo Biwa attacked with a Water Dragon Bullet, but Hiruko absorbed it with Dark Release and then used Magnet Release to bury Juzo beneath a mass of kunai.

Hiruko and Juzo Biwa fought in an Akatsuki sparring match, revealing Hiruko’s multiple Kekkei Genkai and the Executioner’s Blade’s ability to repair itself with blood. Pain welcomed them into Akatsuki, then Kisame Hoshigaki and Orochimaru began another match as Kazuna distracted Konan with food and banter.

• Hiruko used Magnet Release against Juzo Biwa, who tracked and attacked him through the Hidden Mist Technique with the Executioner’s Blade.
• Hiruko broke the Executioner’s Blade with Explosion Release, but Juzo Biwa kicked him and restored the sword by feeding it his blood.
• Pain stopped the match and welcomed Hiruko and Juzo Biwa into Akatsuki, whose members were intrigued by Hiruko’s Dark Release, Magnet Release, and Explosion Release.
• Kisame Hoshigaki challenged Orochimaru, and Kazuna set up food beside Konan while teasing her and threatening to fight Pain if she sent him away.
• Kisame flooded the area and summoned sharks against Orochimaru’s snakes, then fused with Samehada and charged at Orochimaru underwater.

Akatsuki members tested one another in sparring matches, and Kazuna easily outplayed Deidara with genjutsu before watching Pain beat Obito. Pain assigned the group their next tasks, while Kazuna asked Konan on a date and left her flustered by his flowers and good looks.

• Kisame and Orochimaru fought to a draw, with Kazuna explaining Samehada's chakra-absorbing ability to the watching Akatsuki members.
• Kazuna defeated Deidara by trapping him in genjutsu, leaving Deidara holding the explosive clay centipede he had believed was wrapped around Kazuna.
• Sasori and Konan fought to a draw, each revealing more of their abilities while holding back their full strength.
• Pain viciously attacked Obito, who escaped with Kamui and Izanagi before Pain assigned tasks to the Akatsuki members.
• Kazuna offered Konan flowers and asked her on a date, leaving her momentarily captivated before she recovered herself.

Uchiha Kazuna and Pain fought a brief, inconclusive battle that escalated until Konan intervened. The two sides withdrew without deciding a victor, while Konan recognized that Kazuna still had hidden power and felt uneasy about viewing him as an enemy.

• Konan left after telling Kazuna to contact her through the Ring, and Kazuna challenged Pain for warning him to stay away from her.
• Pain and Kazuna battled in the forest as Pain summoned several Paths and Kazuna used genjutsu, fire techniques, and Susanoo to fight them.
• Kazuna shattered the Preta Path and revealed his powerful Susanoo, while Pain assembled all six Paths and prepared to use the Chibaku Tensei technique.
• Konan interrupted the impending clash with her paper cranes and urged Pain and Kazuna to stop fighting.
• Kazuna and Pain ended their first battle without a victor, and Konan warned Pain that Kazuna still had hidden power.

Kazuna pressured Konan into agreeing to a meal, prompting her and Nagato to suspect he might be the Masked Man or have obtained his intelligence from him. Back at the Konoha camp, Kazuna staged a concert that ended with Killer B joining him onstage, leaving the gathered shinobi unsure whether the spectacle was a peace gesture or a threat.

• Kazuna threatened Konan by implying Nagato could come to harm, and she agreed to have a meal with him.
• Konan told Nagato about Kazuna's knowledge of his injuries, and they decided she should gather intelligence from Kazuna while investigating the Masked Man.
• Kazuna returned to camp and resumed lounging until Kurenai's arrival stopped the kunoichi from gathering around him.
• Kazuna put on a concert for the Konoha shinobi, with Kakashi and Might Guy among the audience.
• Killer B appeared in the camp, joined Kazuna onstage, and sang a song about friendship and meeting across villages.

Kazuna’s concert with Killer B stirred political turmoil, leading Konohagakure to debate punishing Kazuna while Sunagakure prepared to attack. Rasa rallied Sunagakure’s elders for an operation against Konohagakure, though his real target was Hiruzen Sarutobi.

• Kazuna and Killer B performed for the Konoha Ninja until Kakashi interrupted the concert and returned Killer B to the Fourth Raikage, who beat him.
• Hiruzen Sarutobi and Shimura Danzō pressured Torifu Akimichi to punish Kazuna, but Torifu sent them to face Sunagakure’s mobilized forces first.
• Torifu decided Kazuna would have to pay a price and told Shikaku Nara to have the Anbu follow Tsunade, who refused to return.
• The Raikage questioned Killer B about Kazuna’s motives, while Ōnoki grew alarmed by the concert and redeployed Iwagakure’s forces.
• Kazuna revealed to Kurenai that he had spared Killer B to complicate Akatsuki’s hunt for the Tailed Beasts, then looked toward the Sunagakure border as Hiruzen and Danzō departed.
• Rasa persuaded Sunagakure’s elders to launch an operation against Konohagakure, privately intending to target Hiruzen Sarutobi.

Hiruzen Sarutobi and Pakura met to negotiate the conflict between Konohagakure and Sunagakure, but their talks collapsed when Pakura demanded 500 million ryo. As Pakura left, a flare signaled that Konohagakure's headquarters had been attacked.

• Kakuzu hired Rogue Ninjas to undermine Hiruzen Sarutobi and help expand the Uchiha Clan's influence in Konohagakure.
• Torifu Akimichi sent four thousand Konohagakure ninjas to the border, where Hiruzen Sarutobi and Shimura Danzō prepared for talks with Sunagakure.
• Pakura agreed to meet Hiruzen Sarutobi at Stone Peak, and both sides cautiously checked the area before negotiations began.
• Hiruzen Sarutobi offered Sunagakure money but refused to transfer Konohagakure's missions, while Pakura demanded 500 million ryo and threatened war.
• Pakura walked away from the negotiations, and a flare announced that Konohagakure's headquarters was under attack.

Hiruzen Sarutobi rushed back to Konoha’s main camp after hearing it was under attack, only to be ambushed by Rasa, Pakura, and Rogue Ninja. He drove them off with a powerful combined technique but suffered heavy losses, then returned to find the camp unharmed and demanded an explanation from Danzo.

• Hiruzen Sarutobi hurried toward the main camp with several hundred ninja after learning Sunagakure had attacked it and Danzo had sent a distress signal.
• Rasa and Pakura ambushed Hiruzen Sarutobi at Stone Peak with Gold Dust and Scorch Release while Rogue Ninja engaged his forces and tried to delay them.
• Hiruzen Sarutobi summoned Enma and fought Rasa and Pakura, but they wore him down and used a Gold Dust Tsunami to threaten the battlefield.
• Hiruzen Sarutobi used Shadow Clones to combine five elemental techniques, injuring Rasa and Pakura and forcing them and the Rogue Ninja to retreat.
• Hiruzen Sarutobi returned to the main camp and found no casualties there, then angrily demanded an explanation from Danzo.

Hiruzen Sarutobi and Danzo discussed the losses from Sunagakure’s trap and resolved to retaliate, while Sunagakure publicly denied the ambush and mocked Hiruzen. At an emergency meeting, Torifu Akimichi threatened war, but Kazuna challenged the accusations and pointed out that Konohagakure had no evidence against Sunagakure.

• Danzo told Hiruzen that more than two hundred of his men had died, and Hiruzen reported over sixty deaths on his side, including the Hyuga ninja; both suspected Kazuna had influenced Sunagakure’s trap.
• Hiruzen rejected Danzo’s proposal to eliminate Kazuna, destroy the Uchiha Clan, and kill Torifu, then devised a plan and learned that Sunagakure’s clones had triggered Danzo’s distress signal.
• Sunagakure denied attacking Hiruzen and mocked his age and reputation, leaving Hiruzen furious and Konohagakure embarrassed.
• Torifu ordered Sunagakure to provide an explanation or face war, while Kazuna’s clone warned that the Uchiha would not join a fight against multiple villages.
• Hiruzen accused Kazuna of conspiring with Sunagakure, but Kazuna denied it and demanded evidence; Torifu recognized that Sunagakure had left no proof behind.

Kazuna maneuvered against Hiruzen and Danzo while Konoha’s leaders debated the war, then sent a secret letter to Tsunade. Tsunade refused to receive it, but Shizune secretly retrieved it after pretending to throw it away.

• Kazuna and Jiraiya reported standoffs with Kumogakure and Iwagakure, and Torifu Akimichi ordered negotiations followed by an attack on Sunagakure.
• Shikaku Nara told Torifu that Kazuna was behind the crisis and had made contact with Sunagakure, leaving Torifu reluctant to remain Acting Hokage.
• Kazuna wrote a secret letter and sent it to Tsunade through Torifu Akimichi.
• Tsunade refused to accept the letter from the Anbu, so Shizune took it and tossed it into a trash can.
• After Tsunade and Shizune left, another Shizune retrieved the secret letter.

Shizune decided to remain with Tsunade while Danzo prepared to act against the Uchiha and Shikaku negotiated over Kazuna’s plan to resolve the threats from Iwagakure and Kumogakure. Shikaku judged the risky plan worth pursuing, secured the Acting Hokage’s approval, and went to present it to Hiruzen Sarutobi.

• Shizune read Kazuna’s letter, considered returning to Konohagakure, and chose to stay beside Tsunade for now.
• Danzo blamed Hiruzen for yielding to the Uchiha and sent his loyal ninja to carry out his orders for Konohagakure.
• Torifu Akimichi and Shikaku Nara discussed Kazuna’s demand for troops and concluded that the worsening situation made negotiations necessary.
• Shikaku met Kazuna’s clone, learned his plan, and agreed to persuade Hiruzen Sarutobi and the others to spread out their shinobi forces.
• Hezi supported accepting Kazuna’s plan, while Shikaku explained that he was balancing the Nara Clan’s relationships with Hiruzen and Kazuna.
• Shikaku gained Torifu’s approval and went to present the plan to Hiruzen Sarutobi.