Chapter Summaries

Nara Kaikei told Nara Shikaku that Might Duy could open seven of the Eight Inner Gates and might be able to open all eight, prompting plans to form an Eight Inner Gates Squad. After discussing Duy’s rank, Kaikei revealed he had received intelligence about the Rinnegan and might leave the village on another solo operation.

• Nara Shikaku realized Nara Kaikei was forming the Eight Inner Gates Squad because Might Duy had mastered the ability to open seven gates and could perhaps open the eighth.
• Nara Shikaku agreed to arrange the squad and asked whether Might Duy’s rank would be raised, but Nara Kaikei said promotion would depend on Duy’s future abilities.
• Nara Kaikei said he planned to rest after returning from the Temple of Fire, then might travel abroad again on a solo operation.
• Nara Kaikei told Nara Shikaku that he had received special intelligence about the Sage of Six Paths’ eyes: the Rinnegan.

Nara Kaikei revealed that he planned to travel to the Land of Rain, prompting Nara Shikaku to wonder whether he was seeking a descendant of the Sage of Six Paths. Kaikei asked Shikaku to get a message to Jiraiya, who was away from the village.

• Nara Shikaku reacted with disbelief to the Rinnegan and listed shinobi clans rumored to be connected to the Sage of Six Paths.
• Nara Shikaku asked whether Nara Kaikei planned to visit Kirigakure, Kumogakure, or the Land of Whirlpools, but Kaikei said he was going to the Land of Rain.
• Nara Shikaku warned Kaikei that Hanzo of the Salamander remained alive and could pose a danger in Amegakure.
• Nara Kaikei asked Shikaku to contact Jiraiya through a toad or Minato Namikaze and tell him that Kaikei was going to the Land of Rain.

Jiraiya learned that Nara Kaikei planned to visit the Land of Rain and realized he was targeting Nagato. Kaikei revealed that he wanted Nagato’s Rinnegan and asked Jiraiya to help negotiate for it.

• Jiraiya received Nara Kaikei’s message in a pleasure house and hurried back to Konoha after realizing Kaikei was headed for the Land of Rain.
• Kaikei told Jiraiya about Akatsuki and named Yahiko, Nagato, and Konan as its leaders.
• Jiraiya admitted that the three Akatsuki leaders were his former disciples from the Land of Rain.
• Kaikei asked Jiraiya what he knew about Nagato’s Rinnegan, confirming that he had identified Nagato’s eyes.
• Kaikei asked Jiraiya to find out how much Nagato would charge for his Rinnegan.

Nara Kaikei wanted to secure the Rinnegan so he could prevent the future world-destruction war by keeping Black Zetsu from using it. Jiraiya left to warn the Akatsuki and help Nagato hide from Konoha.

• Nara Kaikei explained that the Rinnegan was essential to summoning the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path and enabling Black Zetsu's plan to revive Kaguya Ōtsutsuki.
• Nara Kaikei decided he wanted the Rinnegan as a safeguard against the future war, not to transplant it into himself.
• Jiraiya recognized that Konoha would pursue the Rinnegan if its location became known, and worried that Nagato could not remain hidden forever.
• Jiraiya returned to the brothel and set out for the Land of Rain to find the Akatsuki and deliver the Fourth Hokage's will.

Nara Kaikei gave Tsunade Hashirama Senju’s [Sage Mode] cultivation scroll, which had been entrusted to the Temple of Fire, and offered to help her learn it. After Sage Katsuyu volunteered to absorb excess Natural Energy as a safeguard, Kaikei proposed testing his own [Wood Style Sage Mode] in Shikkotsu Forest.

• Nara Kaikei told Tsunade that Master Chūkaku from the Temple of Fire had given him Hashirama Senju’s [Sage Mode] scroll.
• Tsunade read the scroll and said she wanted to cultivate [Sage Mode], since she now had [Wood Release] and met its requirements.
• Nara Kaikei offered to help Tsunade cultivate by using his [Shadow Manipulation Technique] to create Sage Chakra inside her body.
• Sage Katsuyu said she could monitor Tsunade’s Natural Energy and absorb any excess during cultivation.
• Nara Kaikei invited Tsunade and Sage Katsuyu to Shikkotsu Forest to test his [Wood Style Sage Mode].

Nara Kaikei tested his Hashirama Senju Sage Mode against Sage Katsuyu in Shikkotsu Forest. He protected himself from Katsuyu’s acid and unleashed True Several Thousand Hands, leaving Tsunade to call for them to stop before the sacred land was destroyed.

• Sage Katsuyu summoned Nara Kaikei and Tsunade to Shikkotsu Forest in its complete form.
• Nara Kaikei activated Sage Mode: Hashirama Senju as Tsunade retreated to safety.
• Sage Katsuyu attacked with Tongue Tooth Acid, but Nara Kaikei’s Sage Art: Wood Release: Bansho Technique withstood the corrosive rain.
• Nara Kaikei poured his remaining Sage Chakra into the ground and summoned Sage Art: Wood Release: True Several Thousand Hands, which towered over Katsuyu.
• Tsunade shouted for Nara Kaikei and Katsuyu to stop fighting before they destroyed Shikkotsu Forest.

Nara Kaikei tested the limits of Hashirama Senju’s Sage Mode and planned ways to extend its duration. With Sage Katsuyu’s help, he successfully taught Tsunade to enter Wood Style Sage Mode, and she immediately challenged him to spar.

• After exhausting his Sage Chakra while using [True Several Thousand Hands], Nara Kaikei reviewed the cooldown problem and listed several ways to keep Sage Mode active longer.
• Nara Kaikei returned to Tsunade and Sage Katsuyu, who praised [True Several Thousand Hands] and noted that his Chakra supply had limited its full power.
• Nara Kaikei tested Sage Katsuyu’s clone and confirmed that it could absorb excess Natural Energy from his body.
• Nara Kaikei used [Shadow Manipulation Technique] to control Tsunade as she combined Natural Energy with her Wood Release Chakra, entering [Wood Style Sage Mode].
• After Nara Kaikei withdrew from her body, Tsunade felt her new power and challenged him to spar.

Nara Kaikei fought Tsunade after she entered Sage Mode, using his shadow techniques to overcome her enhanced strength. He restrained Tsunade after exhausting her Sage Chakra and received an S-Rank Ninja Scroll for defeating her.

• Tsunade attacked Nara Kaikei, who escaped with the Flying Thunder God Technique and challenged her to rest before sparring.
• Tsunade used Sage Art: Chakra Enhanced Strength to crack and shatter Nara Kaikei's Shadow Armor Technique.
• Tsunade broke the first-stage Black Warrior's arm with Sage Art: Heavenly Pain Kick and smashed the ground beneath her.
• Nara Kaikei used Shadow Gathering Technique to trap Tsunade, then drained her Sage Chakra with Shadow Binding Technique.
• Nara Kaikei defeated Tsunade and received an S-Rank Ninja Scroll from the mission system.

After Tsunade’s Wood Style Sage Mode ran out and she lost to Nara Kaikei, he explained how Sage Chakra limits its duration and discussed ways to improve or work around the problem. Tsunade eagerly tested his suggested methods while Kaikei opened an S-rank scroll and found the Hundred Healings Technique.

• Tsunade left Wood Style Sage Mode after exhausting her Sage Chakra and insisted she had lost only because the mode did not last long enough.
• Nara Kaikei explained that Sage Mode duration depended on the user’s Chakra reserves, and Sage Katsuyu agreed that Tsunade and Kaikei had low Chakra amounts.
• Tsunade asked whether Kaikei could modify Wood Style Sage Mode, and he said improving Sage Mode was a long-term project.
• Kaikei described two temporary ways to address the duration problem, and Tsunade immediately practiced them with Sage Katsuyu.
• Nara Kaikei opened the S-rank scroll and discovered the Hundred Healings Technique.

Tsunade mastered Wood Style Sage Mode with Nara Kaikei and Sage Katsuyu’s help, while Kaikei decided not to teach Sage Mode to his friends because their Chakra reserves were too limited. In the Land of Rain, Jiraiya found Akatsuki’s leaders and told them that the Fourth Hokage wanted Nagato’s Rinnegan.

• Tsunade learned Wood Style Sage Mode in a few days with Nara Kaikei and Sage Katsuyu guiding her.
• Nara Kaikei considered teaching Sage Mode to Yakushi Nonō and other allies, but rejected the idea because they lacked the Chakra to use it effectively.
• Jiraiya traveled to the Land of Rain and avoided contacting Konoha’s intelligence network so the Fourth Hokage would not intervene before he could speak with Akatsuki.
• Jiraiya found Akatsuki’s core base and reunited with Yahiko, Nagato, and Konan.
• Jiraiya told the three leaders that the Fourth Hokage of Konoha wanted Nagato’s Rinnegan.

Jiraiya told Yahiko, Nagato, and Konan that Konoha's Fourth Hokage knew Nagato possessed the Rinnegan and wanted to negotiate for them. Nagato asked to speak with the Hokage himself, while his companions feared he planned to sacrifice himself for Akatsuki.

• Yahiko, Nagato, and Konan were shocked that Nara Kaikei knew about Nagato's Rinnegan, and Yahiko wondered whether Jiraiya had revealed the secret.
• Jiraiya described Nara Kaikei and said the Fourth Hokage placed great importance on Nagato's eyes.
• Yahiko struggled to choose between refusing the demand and agreeing to give up his closest friend's eyes.
• Jiraiya said the Hokage would offer a price for the Rinnegan and promised to protect the three disciples if they refused.
• Nagato asked Jiraiya to arrange a personal conversation with the Fourth Hokage, and Yahiko and Konan feared he meant to sacrifice himself.

Nara Kaikei traveled to the Akatsuki's headquarters to reclaim Nagato's Rinnegan and challenged Yahiko's group to state their conditions. He argued that the eyes did not belong to Nagato by birth and began explaining their connection to Senju Ise and Uzumaki Fusang.

• Kosuke the Toad reported that Jiraiya had reached the Land of Rain and that an Akatsuki member wanted to speak with Nara Kaikei.
• Nara Kaikei gave Kosuke a chakra-sealed Shadow Stream Blade, then used it as a Flying Thunder God marker to travel to the Akatsuki's headquarters.
• Nara Kaikei interrupted Jiraiya as he briefed Yahiko's group and announced that he had come to take back the Rinnegan.
• Jiraiya questioned whether Nara Kaikei could call the Rinnegan something he was taking back, since Nagato was a ninja of the Land of Rain.
• Nara Kaikei claimed Nagato was not the eyes' true owner and cited Senju Ise and Uzumaki Fusang as clues to Nagato's parentage.

Nara Kaikei revealed that Nagato’s parents were Senju Ise and Uzumaki Fusang, triggering Nagato’s distress as he recalled their deaths at Konoha’s hands. While Kaikei watched for hidden threats, Black Zetsu secretly observed Nagato, whose Rinnegan remained essential to its plan to revive Kaguya Ōtsutsuki.

• Nara Kaikei named Senju Ise and Uzumaki Fusang and explained that their bloodlines could not produce a pair of Sage Eyes.
• Nagato realized that Ise and Fusang were his parents and struggled with the revelation that they had been connected to Konoha.
• Konan and Yahiko noticed Nagato’s distress and tried to calm him while Nara Kaikei assessed everyone’s chakra.
• Nara Kaikei focused his senses on detecting Black Zetsu, suspecting it was hiding near Akatsuki’s base and targeting Nagato’s Rinnegan.
• Black Zetsu secretly retreated underground, knowing Nagato’s Rinnegan was its only remaining hope of reviving Kaguya Ōtsutsuki.

Black Zetsu fled underground while reconsidering its plan to use Nagato and Akatsuki to revive the Ten-Tails and rescue Kaguya Ōtsutsuki. Fearing Nara Kaikei might kill Nagato as he had Uchiha Madara, Black Zetsu decided to act against Akatsuki's plans ahead of schedule.

• Black Zetsu and White Zetsu used the Mayfly Technique to travel underground through the Land of Rain, while Black Zetsu avoided using its sensory ability in case Dark Shadow detected it.
• Black Zetsu reviewed its plan to make Nagato its pawn, summon the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path, collect the tailed beasts, and launch the Infinite Tsukuyomi to rescue Kaguya Ōtsutsuki.
• Black Zetsu planned to kill Yahiko so Nagato could take control of Akatsuki and develop the Rinnegan's power, but it worried Yahiko's ideals of peace would undermine its goals.
• After Uchiha Madara was killed by Nara Kaikei, Black Zetsu feared that Nara Kaikei might kill Nagato too and decided to move against Akatsuki's plans ahead of schedule.

Nara Kaikei warned Nagato that the deaths of his parents might have been orchestrated and revealed that Uchiha Madara was the original owner of Nagato’s Rinnegan. Jiraiya recognized the revelation as a significant lead in his covert search for Madara.

• Nara Kaikei searched Akatsuki’s base with the Mind’s Eye of the Kagura but detected no trace of Black Zetsu.
• Nagato demanded to know how Nara Kaikei knew his parents’ names, and Nara Kaikei suggested that the story of their deaths might not be true.
• Nagato accused Nara Kaikei of defending Konoha, but Nara Kaikei said the Rinnegan’s original owner had also been a Konoha ninja.
• Jiraiya asked who had owned the Rinnegan, and Nara Kaikei named Uchiha Madara.
• Jiraiya realized the revelation connected Nagato’s Rinnegan to the subject of his covert mission to find Uchiha Madara.

Jiraiya explained that Uchiha Madara had survived and might have given Nagato the Rinnegan. When Nara Kaikei threatened the Akatsuki leaders, Nagato offered his eyes in exchange for peace, leaving Kaikei to ask what kind of peace he meant.

• Jiraiya told Yahiko and Nagato that Uchiha Madara had faked his death and continued acting in secret.
• Yahiko and Konan considered how the Rinnegan burdened Nagato and how a transplant might explain its unusual nature.
• Yahiko vowed that he would not let anyone take Nagato’s eyes, and Nara Kaikei released a terrifying aura.
• Jiraiya stepped between Nara Kaikei and the Akatsuki leaders, urging him to discuss the deal before fighting.
• Nagato offered to give up his Rinnegan if Nara Kaikei would promise peace.
• Nara Kaikei asked Nagato what kind of peace he wanted and whether he meant world peace.

Nara Kaikei mocked Nagato’s ideal of world peace with a terrifying plan to bombard the other ninja villages, rejecting the Akatsuki’s offer. Nagato then asked whether Konoha could bring peace to the Land of Rain, and Nara Kaikei challenged him to explain what he meant.

• Nagato told Nara Kaikei that the Akatsuki sought world peace without extreme military force and said Konoha could achieve it.
• Nara Kaikei proposed using Tailed Beast Bomb-like attacks to kill hundreds of millions and force the world into peace, shocking Nagato, Yahiko, and Konan.
• Jiraiya warned Nara Kaikei not to joke about the plan because his techniques could make it possible, and Nara Kaikei criticized Nagato’s naive proposal.
• Nagato realized Yahiko could not answer for him and asked Nara Kaikei whether Konoha could make the Land of Rain peaceful.
• Nara Kaikei accepted the new condition as more reasonable and asked whether Nagato meant killing everyone in the Land of Rain except the Akatsuki.

Nara Kaikei rejected Akatsuki’s request for Konoha to guarantee peace in the Land of Rain and proposed that Akatsuki take the country by destroying Amegakure and killing Hanzo. As he urged them to decide quickly, Amegakure forces arrived at the base.

• Nagato asked Nara Kaikei to help secure peace for the Land of Rain, and Yahiko insisted Konoha guarantee the negotiations’ results with written promises from the great nations.
• Nara Kaikei refused to negotiate with Akatsuki, saying Amegakure and Hanzo held authority in the Land of Rain.
• Nara Kaikei proposed destroying Amegakure so Akatsuki could take over, and said they would need to kill Hanzo first.
• Nara Kaikei sensed a group approaching and warned that they might otherwise take the Rinnegan from Nagato’s corpse.
• Jiraiya went outside, then returned soaked by the rain and reported that people from Amegakure had arrived.

Hanzo of the Salamander led an elite Amegakure force to Akatsuki's base, where Yahiko, Nagato, Konan, Jiraiya, and Nara Kaikei prepared to face them. Nara Kaikei promised to protect Nagato's eyes, and Hanzo opened the attack by summoning a giant salamander that sprayed poison mist.

• Yahiko and his fellow Akatsuki members rushed to the base's highest point after Jiraiya reported the approaching Amegakure shinobi.
• Nara Kaikei sensed that the invading force was led by Hanzo of the Salamander and wondered whether Black Zetsu had exposed their arrival.
• Jiraiya identified Hanzo and warned Yahiko, Nagato, and Konan to be careful.
• Nara Kaikei offered to help Akatsuki defeat Amegakure's elite unit and told Nagato he would protect his eyes.
• Hanzo halted his force, summoned an enormous salamander, and ordered it to spray poison mist at Akatsuki.

Hanzo of the Salamander attacked Akatsuki with Ibuse’s poison mist, but Jiraiya’s powerful Wind Release blew the mist back before it could reach them. Hanzo’s forces remained protected, and the battle was still to come.

• Hanzo of the Salamander summoned Ibuse and unleashed poison mist against Akatsuki’s base.
• Yahiko ordered Nagato and the others to combine their Wind Release to repel the mist.
• Akatsuki’s Wind Release unexpectedly drove the poison mist back, but Hanzo’s forces weathered it in protective gear.
• Nara Kaikei recognized that Jiraiya had supplied the strongest Wind Release and teased him about taking on more burdens.
• Jiraiya admitted he would not let his disciples be harmed, while Nara Kaikei stayed ready to take Nagato’s eyes if Akatsuki fell.