Chapter Summaries

Aozora and Team 7 encountered Momochi Zabuza after entering the Land of Waves, and Zabuza attacked them with mist and Water Clones. Naruto, Sasuke, and Hinata fought off the clones while Aozora and Zabuza traded attacks, each repeatedly revealing the other to be a clone.

• Aozora led the group ashore in the Land of Waves and masked his face to avoid being recognized by Zabuza.
• Zabuza attacked with Nuibari, and Aozora identified him before ordering Naruto, Sasuke, and Hinata to protect Gai.
• Zabuza spread thick mist and used Water Clones, while Hinata located his movements with Byakugan and Aozora charged toward him.
• Hinata parried a clone's attack, Naruto destroyed another with a Rasengan, and Sasuke used a Great Fireball to clear the mist and defeat the remaining clones.
• Aozora and Zabuza repeatedly struck each other, only for each apparent victim to turn out to be a Water Clone.

Aozora pretended to be defeated by Zabuza, leaving Naruto, Sasuke, and Hinata to fight the Mist ninja. Zabuza overpowered the three Genin and reached for Sasuke’s Sharingan, convinced he could profit from their bloodline limits.

• Aozora deliberately let Zabuza kick him away, then lost a Water Dragon Jutsu clash and was hurled into a tree.
• Naruto, Sasuke, and Hinata dismissed Aozora’s apparent defeat and noticed Zabuza had spent much of his Chakra, while he coveted Sasuke’s Sharingan and Hinata’s Byakugan.
• Naruto used Multiple Shadow Clones, Sasuke attacked along Nuibari’s wire with Dragon Fire, and Naruto’s clones struck Zabuza with Rasengan, but Zabuza defended himself with a Water Wall.
• Zabuza pulled Sasuke through the mist, grabbed him by the throat, and trapped Naruto in Nuibari’s wire as Hinata watched.
• Zabuza reached for Sasuke’s eyes and declared that taking the two bloodline limits would speed up his plans.

Zabuza nearly killed Sasuke, but Naruto’s Nine-Tails Chakra erupted and Hinata attacked to protect them. Sasuke escaped Zabuza’s grasp and helped Naruto send the swordsman flying, while Sasuke prepared another Lightning Release attack.

• Zabuza choked Sasuke and raised his hand to attack him, causing Sasuke’s Sharingan to stir with a new power.
• Naruto’s fury unleashed a dark crimson Tailed Beast Cloak, and Zabuza recognized him as the Nine-Tails Jinchūriki.
• Hinata struck Zabuza with Vacuum Palm and fought him, but Zabuza cut her wrist tendons and kicked her away.
• Naruto broke Nuibari’s wire and repeatedly charged Zabuza, enduring his attacks under the protection of the Tailed Beast Cloak.
• Sasuke flooded Zabuza with Lightning Release Chakra, then Naruto punched Zabuza and sent him flying, freeing Sasuke.
• Sasuke gathered a large amount of Lightning Release Chakra in his right hand despite his injuries.

Naruto and Sasuke killed Zabuza, while Haku collected his corpse and left after Aozora allowed it. Aozora reinforced Naruto’s seal, then asked the injured team whether they would continue protecting Gai; they agreed, and he promised them special training.

• Sasuke broke Nuibari with Chidori, and Naruto struck Zabuza with an oversized Rasengan that tore his body apart.
• Haku pierced Zabuza’s head with Senbon, confirmed his death, and sealed his corpse in a scroll.
• Aozora reinforced Naruto’s seal as the Nine-Tails’ breach closed, and Naruto regained his senses.
• Aozora let Haku take Zabuza’s corpse, then privately arranged for Taiyi to contact Kisame about saving Haku.
• After Aozora warned Naruto, Sasuke, and Hinata that they had to accept the risks of their mission, all three chose to continue protecting Gai.
• Aozora promised the injured team special training, and Gai thanked them emotionally.

Kisame found Haku at Zabuza’s grave and forced her to become his subordinate. Meanwhile, Aozora began combat training for Naruto, Sasuke, and Hinata in the Land of Waves, then killed a hidden watcher.

• Haku prepared a grave beside Zabuza’s and Kisame arrived, saying he had come for her.
• Kisame threatened to disturb Zabuza’s remains and used his overwhelming presence to make Haku submit as his subordinate.
• Team 7 reached the Land of Waves, where Gai organized the civilians to build the bridge and Aozora took the children to train.
• Aozora created three Shadow Clones to spar with Naruto, Sasuke, and Hinata, who accepted the training.
• Aozora detected a scar-faced ninja spying on him, seized him, and caused his soul to dissipate.

Aozora attacked Gato’s castle in the Land of Waves and killed Gato after uncovering the full extent of his crimes. He left the remaining cleanup and control of Gato’s forces to Kisame, whom he also tasked with testing whether temples could gather faith.

• Aozora approached Gato’s castle alone, killed its sentries, and fought his way inside.
• Gato ordered his men to stop the attacker and tried to escape through a hidden passage, but Aozora reached his bedroom first.
• Shoji and Ichiro charged Aozora and were killed by the Immortal-Slaying Flying Dagger and the Immortal Slaying Sword.
• Aozora seized Gato with Banshō Ten'in, searched his memories, and killed him, burning his body and soul.
• Aozora gained more Golden Droplets from Gato than from Zabuza and sent Kisame a secret letter assigning him the remaining cleanup and an experiment with temples and followers.

Aozora trained Naruto, Sasuke, and Hinata in the Land of Waves until their combat skills improved, while Gato’s interference never materialized. After learning that the Akatsuki had captured Utakata, Aozora prepared to take Team 7 back to Konoha for an urgent mission.

• Aozora repeatedly defeated Naruto and taught him to control his attacks, coordinate his Shadow Clones, and recognize openings.
• Aozora pushed Sasuke through close-quarters combat, exposing his lack of experience and forcing him to fight with greater intent.
• Aozora had Hinata observe Naruto and Sasuke’s battles with her Byakugan and trained her to support the team and protect herself.
• After days of training, Aozora ended the session when Naruto and Sasuke had learned to use their abilities more fully.
• Taiyi told Aozora that the Akatsuki had captured the Six-Tails Jinchūriki Utakata and that Kirigakure was assembling a joint capture force.
• Aozora revealed that he had dealt with Gato, then told Naruto, Sasuke, and Hinata they would return to Konoha because of the urgent mission.

Aozora traveled to Kirigakure after the Akatsuki Organization captured the Six-Tails Jinchūriki, Utakata. He joined Mei Terumī and Cloud representatives on a mission to pursue the Akatsuki Organization, intending to target White Zetsu and the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path.

• Aozora reasoned that Nagato's attacks on the other villages would weaken them and keep attention away from Konoha.
• Aozora arrived in Kirigakure, where Ao explained that Akatsuki spies had opened the village barrier and helped capture Utakata.
• Ao told Aozora that Kirigakure had prepared for Utakata's capture and was tracking the Akatsuki Organization.
• Mei Terumī, Aozora, Shi, and Darui gathered at the Mizukage Building and agreed to support Kirigakure's pursuit.
• Mei Terumī led the group out to search for the Akatsuki Organization while Aozora planned to target White Zetsu and the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path.

Aozora detected and captured a White Zetsu spying on Kirigakure’s pursuit of the Akatsuki Organization, but Mei Terumī ordered the force to press on. As the group closed in, Nagato learned they were less than two days away and prepared to use a special sacrifice to fight Aozora while the Six-Tails sealing continued.

• Aozora sensed a White Zetsu ahead, seized it from a tree, and revealed that Akatsuki had been monitoring the pursuit.
• Mei Terumī dismissed Ao’s concerns about an ambush and ordered Aozora to scout ahead as the pursuit accelerated.
• Zetsu alerted Nagato and Konan that Kirigakure, Cloud, and Konoha forces were closing in, with Aozora among the notable pursuers.
• Nagato learned that the Six-Tails sealing needed about two more days and that stopping it would kill Utakata, who would later revive elsewhere.
• Zetsu proposed using a rare White Zetsu as a sacrifice for Nagato’s Cloning Jutsu, and Konan volunteered to go too.

Nagato ambushed the Kirigakure pursuit squad at sea with a long-range Shinra Tensei, inflicting heavy casualties before confronting the survivors. Mei Terumī asked Aozora to hold Nagato off while Kirigakure’s forces went to rescue Utakata, and Aozora agreed.

• Aozora, Ao, and Shi struggled to sense the enemy as they tracked Utakata through the stormy sea.
• Nagato struck the pursuit squad with a concealed Shinra Tensei, scattering the ninjas and killing or injuring many beasts and pursuers.
• Aozora survived the blast and regrouped with Mei Terumī and the remaining ninjas.
• Ao spotted Nagato approaching on Satori, and the squad learned that Nagato’s Chakra had fallen significantly while Utakata’s position remained unchanged.
• Mei Terumī asked Aozora to hold off Nagato while Kirigakure’s forces rescued Utakata, and Aozora agreed.

Aozora confronted Nagato over the stormy sea while Kirigakure and Cloud shinobi detoured toward Utakata. After Aozora repelled Nagato’s attacks and showed he had mastered the Deva Path’s ability, Nagato remained cautious as his clone tried to keep Aozora occupied.

• Mei Terumī ordered the surviving Kirigakure and Cloud shinobi to detour around Aozora and Nagato and continue toward Utakata.
• Aozora and Nagato exchanged taunts, and Aozora declared that he would take Nagato’s Rinnegan.
• Nagato used the Asura Path to evade Aozora’s attacks and fired missiles at him.
• Aozora used Shinra Tensei to withstand the missile barrage, then recovered the Immortal Slaying Sword and Immortal-Slaying Flying Dagger.
• Nagato recognized that Aozora had mastered the Deva Path’s ability and suppressed his urge to kill him so his clone could keep sealing the Six-Tails.
• Aozora sensed Nagato’s hesitation and taunted him for fearing a direct fight.

Aozora fought Nagato’s clone above the sea, revealed his Rinnegan and trump-card Body Flicker Technique, and beheaded the clone. When the corpse became a special White Zetsu and Nagato’s soul emerged from it, Aozora hurriedly used the Hell Path to collect the soul.

• Aozora realized Nagato had sent a Cloning Technique: Elephant and challenged the clone with an enhanced Shinra Tensei.
• Nagato and Aozora’s repulsive forces collided, splitting the sea and carving a ravine in the seafloor as Zetsu recognized that Aozora had awakened the Rinnegan.
• Nagato exhausted the clone’s power in a final burst of Shinra Tensei, but Aozora used the Body Flicker Technique to pass through the attack unharmed.
• Aozora used the Asura Path and Earth Release: Light-Weight Rock Technique to rush Nagato, cut through the clone’s mechanical arm, and behead him with the Immortal Slaying Sword.
• Zetsu fled after Aozora noticed him, and the corpse transformed into a special White Zetsu.
• Aozora recognized Nagato’s soul emerging from the corpse and used the Hell Path to collect it.

Mei Terumī led Kirigakure forces toward the island where Utakata was being sealed, while the battle between Aozora and Nagato raged behind them. Konan blocked their route and revealed that she possessed six hundred billion Explosive Tags.

• Mei Terumī sent another squad to help Ghost Dragon hold off Satori and urged the remaining Kirigakure forces to hurry toward the island.
• Ao and Shi sensed enemies ahead, and Mei Terumī identified the flying Konan as the Akatsuki's White Tiger.
• Mei Terumī melted Konan's Paper Clone with Boil Release, then told Ao and Shi to lead the battalion onward while she fought Konan.
• Konan used her Paper Person of God Technique to send Explosive Tags concealed in the seawater toward the Kirigakure forces.
• Mei Terumī swept the tags away with Great Exploding Water Colliding Wave, but Konan detonated ten million of them and then revealed countless more.
• Konan declared that she possessed six hundred billion Explosive Tags.

Konan used her 600 billion Explosive Tags to stall Mei Terumī’s forces while Kirigakure’s shinobi fought back with Water Release. As Mei’s giant Water Dragon charged toward the island, Konan gathered the tags around herself and detonated them all.

• Konan unleashed waves of paper shuriken bearing Explosive Tag formulas against Mei Terumī and her shinobi.
• Mei Terumī ordered her forces to raise Water Walls and sweep away tags hidden beneath the sea.
• Ao and Shi determined that Konan was controlling only nearby tags, and Mei realized she was buying time.
• Mei and the Kirigakure shinobi gathered the rainwater into a giant Water Dragon and sent it toward Konan and the island.
• Konan flew toward the island, wrapped herself in hundreds of billions of Explosive Tags, and detonated them with her remaining Chakra.

Mei Terumī’s pursuit force survived Konan’s explosive escape attempt and rushed to rescue Utakata, while Nagato, Konan, and Zetsu accelerated the Six-Tails’ sealing despite Nagato admitting that Aozora had surpassed him. The Demonic Statue of the Outer Path completed its extraction of Utakata’s Chakra, leaving Nagato weakened but the Six-Tails sealed.

• Konan detonated hundreds of billions of Explosive Tags, destroying the water dragon and devastating the island and the pursuing Mist Ninja.
• Mei Terumī, Ao, Shi, Darui, and the surviving Mist Ninja emerged from the sea, and Mei ordered the injured to stay behind while the others followed her to rescue Utakata.
• Konan urged Nagato to abandon the sealing, but Zetsu and Nagato insisted they could not let the opportunity pass; Nagato acknowledged that Aozora was stronger and that losing part of his soul had weakened him.
• Nagato poured his remaining Chakra into the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path, and Konan and Zetsu joined him to speed up the Six-Tails’ sealing.
• The statue absorbed all of Utakata’s Chakra and gained another black-pupiled eye, while Nagato’s hair turned whiter and he smiled faintly.

Mei Terumī reached the cave too late to rescue Utakata, while Nagato and Konan headed toward the mainland after sealing the Six-Tails. Aozora and Kisame confronted Nagato, who agreed to meet Aozora as the groups approached one another.

• Mei Terumī found Utakata dead in the cave and blamed herself for arriving too late.
• Shi reported that the Akatsuki remnants had left, and Ao explained they had been tracking Utakata rather than the Akatsuki.
• Mei Terumī ordered Ao to search for clues, then led her forces back to support Aozora.
• Nagato, Konan, and Zetsu saw Aozora waiting at the shore, and Nagato agreed to talk despite their warnings that he was weakened.
• Kisame emerged from the sea and revealed that he now served Aozora, then followed Nagato toward the pier.

Aozora met Nagato at an abandoned pier and revealed that the Rinnegan was an evolved form of the Sharingan, then claimed Nagato’s eyes had been transplanted by Uchiha Madara. He identified Tobi as Uchiha Obito, Madara’s successor, leaving Nagato and Konan suspicious of Zetsu.

• Aozora met Nagato, Konan, Zetsu, and Kisame at an abandoned pier and displayed Obito’s Space Ninjutsu.
• Aozora explained that the Sharingan could evolve into the Rinnegan and demonstrated the transformation before Nagato.
• Aozora claimed Nagato had not awakened the Rinnegan himself and that someone had transplanted the eyes into him.
• When Zetsu reacted defensively, Aozora identified Uchiha Madara as the original owner of Nagato’s Rinnegan.
• Aozora revealed that the person posing as Madara was Uchiha Obito, whom Madara had chosen to monitor and guide Nagato.
• Nagato and Konan suspected Zetsu’s identity after realizing Tobi was not the real Uchiha Madara.

Aozora exposed Zetsu’s role in Yahiko’s death and the slaughter of the Akatsuki members who had gone to help Nagato. Nagato and Konan attacked Zetsu, but Black Zetsu escaped into the sea after Aozora burned part of his body, leaving Kisame unable to find him.

• Zetsu denied working against the Akatsuki and accused Aozora of sowing discord, but Aozora told Nagato that Zetsu and Uchiha Obito had stopped the Akatsuki members from rescuing him and Yahiko.
• Nagato summoned the King of Hell and questioned Zetsu, who admitted that he and Obito had slaughtered the rescuers because Yahiko would have kept Nagato from following their path.
• Konan stabbed Zetsu as Nagato and Aozora used their powers to tear apart his plant-like body, revealing a lump of black slime.
• Nagato’s Banshō Ten'in failed to pull in the black slime, so Aozora ignited it with Crimson Lotus Karma Fire, but Black Zetsu abandoned part of his body and escaped into the sea.
• Kisame searched the sea with Water Release but returned without finding Black Zetsu.

Jiraiya questioned the Great Toad Sage’s prophecy after Nagato became a threat and Aozora opposed him, but the Sage’s vision of the three men shattered in golden light. On the beach, Aozora told Nagato and Konan that he also sought world peace and challenged their belief that only those who suffered most could understand it.

• Jiraiya told the Great Toad Sage that Nagato had become a disaster while Aozora was resisting him, and the Sage used a glass orb to look for the two men.
• The orb showed Aozora, Nagato, and Konan before golden light shattered it, prompting the Great Toad Sage to remark that the light had appeared again.
• Aozora told Kisame that Black Zetsu might require Sage Jutsu to capture, then invited Kisame, Nagato, and Konan to sit and talk.
• Nagato mourned Yahiko and thanked Aozora for revealing the truth about his death, but said they were destined to follow different paths.
• Aozora declared that he also dreamed of world peace, and Nagato and Konan challenged his understanding of the suffering endured by people from small nations.
• Aozora acknowledged that he had been more fortunate than Nagato and Konan, then asked whether suffering more made someone right.

Aozora challenged Nagato’s belief that he was a god and exposed how others had shaped his life, then dismantled the Akatsuki leader’s plan to impose peace through mass death. Nagato and Konan were left questioning their ideals after Aozora insisted that lives could not be compared.

• Kisame described the betrayals and suffering he had endured, explaining how Aozora’s knowledge helped him understand the world and trust a path toward peace.
• Aozora told Nagato that Uchiha Madara had transplanted his Rinnegan and that the prophecy of him as a savior came from a toad, causing Nagato’s belief in his divine status to collapse.
• Konan defended Nagato, who explained his plan to use Tailed Beast Weapons to cause mass deaths and make fear prevent future wars.
• Aozora challenged the plan as childish, asking how later generations would retain the fear and whether Nagato would kill more people whenever that fear faded.
• Aozora questioned Nagato and Konan’s willingness to sacrifice innocent lives for peace and asked why small nations should not be sacrificed for the great nations.
• Aozora recalled teaching Itachi that lives could not be compared, and Nagato silently contemplated the principle.