Chapter Summaries

Kushina reunited with Menma and Naruto, sensing the gulf between her and Menma while trying to understand his choices as a mother. Menma promised not to kill Naruto but intended to imprison him, and Kushina asked Menma to tell her what he truly thought.

• Kushina sensed Menma's distance and sorrowfully approached him after reuniting with Naruto.
• Menma told Kushina he would not kill Naruto but would imprison him until he succeeded or was defeated.
• Menma rejected Naruto's pleas for reconciliation and said he had spared Naruto only for their parents' sake.
• Kushina told Menma and Naruto that each had the right to choose their own future and urged them not to regret their choices.
• Kushina touched Menma's cheek and asked him to tell her what he truly thought.

Menma and Naruto spoke with Kushina through the chakra she had left behind, and she chose to support Menma while urging Naruto to understand his brother before deciding what to do. After Kushina’s chakra disappeared, Menma treated Naruto’s wounds, leaving the brothers together in the real world.

• Menma told Kushina that he would follow his chosen path to seek justice and create a peaceful world, and she promised to support him.
• Kushina asked Naruto to stay with Menma and take time to understand his brother’s goals before choosing whether to oppose him.
• Kushina explained that her chakra had been left to meet her sons and help with the Nine-Tails, then asked Menma to care for Naruto.
• Before disappearing, Kushina asked Menma to call her Mom, embraced both brothers, and told them she would always love them.
• Menma and Naruto returned to the real world, where Menma used the Mystical Palm Technique to stop Naruto’s wounds from bleeding.

Menma defeated Naruto, bound him, and used the Flying Thunder God Technique to take him back to Takigakure's base. Jiraiya and Kakashi arrived too late to find them, and Jiraiya resolved to eliminate Menma for the village as the conflict escalated.

• Menma restrained the weakened Naruto and successfully used the Flying Thunder God Technique to teleport them both to his base.
• Jiraiya, Kakashi, Fukasaku, and Shima reached the battle site and found blood and wreckage but no sign of Naruto or Menma.
• Jiraiya decided to return to base and commit fully to resolving the threat Menma posed, while Kakashi worried for Naruto.
• Menma arrived at the Takigakure base with Naruto still bound, and the Waterfall Ninja recognized and saluted him.
• Menma ordered the Waterfall Ninja to summon Muku and Doran, then led Naruto toward his private room.

Menma secured Naruto with a chakra-restraining chain and assigned Muku to watch him while Takigakure prepared for the approaching Konoha and Kirigakure forces. Naruto remained a prisoner at the base, and Menma kept him alive partly because he suspected Naruto was the reincarnation of Asura’s Chakra.

• Menma warned Naruto not to challenge him, then bound him with a heavy chain that sealed his Chakra.
• Menma explained that Takigakure had acquired sealing chains and Chakra Armor, though only a small portion of its forces had the costly armor.
• Doran reported that Konoha and Kirigakure had made camp within ten minutes of one another, and Menma ordered him to maintain the defenses and logistics.
• Menma assigned Muku to supervise Naruto and authorized him to use any means necessary to prevent Naruto from escaping, as long as he survived.
• Menma reflected that Naruto was likely the reincarnation of Asura’s Chakra and considered that possibility one reason he had not killed him.

Menma reflected on his reasons for sparing Naruto before leading Takigakure into battle against the Konoha and Mist forces. Takigakure’s prepared traps inflicted heavy casualties on Konoha’s advancing army, and Menma ordered the bombardment to continue.

• Menma considered that Naruto and Sasuke might still save the world if he failed, and reaffirmed his resolve to follow his chosen path.
• Jiraiya and Tsunade committed themselves to securing victory for Konohagakure as the allied forces prepared to move at dawn.
• Mei Terumi and Ao led the Mist Ninja in a flanking maneuver while Jiraiya advanced with Konoha’s main force toward Takigakure’s stronghold.
• Menma signaled Doran, and Takigakure launched a barrage of Ninja Tools at the approaching Konoha army.
• Menma detonated concealed Explosive Tags, killing or wounding about a thousand Konoha Ninja and alarming Jiraiya and Shikaku.
• Menma ordered another attack with Ninja Tools and cannons, continuing to exploit Takigakure’s defensive preparations.

Menma’s Takigakure forces met Jiraiya’s Konoha raid, breaking the attackers’ momentum with heavy casualties, Chakra Armor elites, and Satori. Menma and Jiraiya began fighting at close range, but Fukasaku and Shima’s sound technique disrupted Menma’s chakra control and gave Jiraiya an opening to knock him back.

• Jiraiya led Konoha’s assault, and coordinated attacks broke Menma’s defensive Barrier after Waterfall Ninja inflicted hundreds of casualties.
• Menma ordered Doran to mobilize Takigakure’s forces as more than a thousand Waterfall Ninja charged out to defend the base.
• Muku transformed into Satori and attacked the Konoha army, shrugging off their jutsu and incapacitating more than ten ninja.
• Menma summoned Lizard Shitsu while Jiraiya summoned Gama Bunta, and the two beasts prepared to fight.
• Menma activated Nine-Tails Chakra Mode and clashed with Jiraiya, but Fukasaku and Shima’s frog cries disrupted Menma’s chakra control, allowing Jiraiya to kick him away.

Menma fought Jiraiya in Sage Mode, using Wind Style, Adamantine Sealing Chains, and the Flying Thunder God Technique to pressure him. Jiraiya countered each attack, and the chapter ended with Menma barely blocking Jiraiya’s Wild Lion Dance Hair Technique with the Sword of the Thunder God.

• Menma recognized Jiraiya’s superior strength and stayed wary of the Frog Song genjutsu.
• Menma attacked with Wind Style: Vacuum Great Sphere Technique, then sent Adamantine Sealing Chains toward Jiraiya.
• Jiraiya used Needle Jizo Technique to knock the chains aside and followed with Sage Art: Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique.
• Menma escaped the encircling fireballs with the Flying Thunder God Technique and reappeared near Jiraiya.
• Jiraiya attacked with Wild Lion Dance Hair Technique, and Menma barely blocked it with the Sword of the Thunder God.

Menma and Jiraiya tested each other’s abilities before launching into a close-quarters duel, while their Summoning Beasts fought to a stalemate. Elsewhere, Muku transformed into Satori and devastated Konoha’s forces, prompting Shikaku to send reinforcements to Kakashi.

• Menma escaped Jiraiya’s Senjutsu-enhanced white hair but abandoned the Sword of the Thunder God, and Jiraiya judged that Menma had not yet mastered the Flying Thunder God Technique.
• Jiraiya asked Fukasaku and Shima to help limit Menma, then closed in and fought him in a fierce Taijutsu exchange.
• Gama Bunta overpowered Shitsu, though Shitsu managed to hold him off without being defeated.
• Muku transformed into Satori and killed more than a hundred Konoha Ninja while Kakashi’s attacks failed to stop him.
• Shikaku saw Kakashi being overwhelmed and ordered Inoichi Yamanaka to send available forces to support him.

Might Guy and Choza Akimichi reinforced Kakashi and drove Satori back, stabilizing Konoha’s battle line. As Menma continued fighting Jiraiya, Fū arrived from the flank and transformed into the Seven-Tails to join the battle.

• Might Guy and Choza Akimichi attacked Satori together and pulled him away from Kakashi.
• Kakashi warned Might Guy that Satori was exceptionally durable, and Guy struck him with Morning Peacock while Choza followed up with a heavy blow.
• Konoha’s morale recovered as Shikaku judged that the reinforcements had prevented Satori from breaking through the line.
• Menma continued battling Jiraiya and anticipated that Kirigakure’s forces would attack the left flank.
• Fū arrived near the battlefield and unleashed her Tailed Beast Transformation, revealing the Seven-Tails.

Fū and Chōmei devastated Konoha’s rear with a Tailed Beast Bomb, leaving Shikaku gravely wounded and prompting Jiraiya to order a retreat. Menma and the Waterfall Ninja pursued Konoha beyond the border and forced them to abandon their newly established base, ending the first phase of the battle.

• Fū transformed into the Seven-Tails and fired a Tailed Beast Bomb at Konoha’s rear, killing hundreds and wounding Shikaku severely.
• Inoichi treated Shikaku as he urged Jiraiya to retreat, while Jiraiya judged that Konoha could not continue fighting.
• Jiraiya used the Toad Sages’ sound attack and a fire-and-oil technique to cover Konoha’s withdrawal.
• Menma ordered his forces not to pursue too deeply and to target Konoha’s rearguard.
• Menma led Muku, Fū, and the Waterfall Ninja in driving Konoha beyond the border and forcing them to abandon their base.

Menma stopped the pursuit of Konoha’s retreating forces and went alone to reinforce Utakata, prioritizing the Waterfall Ninja’s survival and Takigakure’s future. At the left flank, Mei Terumi tried to persuade Utakata to return to Kirigakure, but he refused and said he had other reasons for staying.

• Menma returned to the base, left Muku and Fū to guard it, and used the Flying Thunder God Technique to support Utakata alone.
• Shibuki reinforced Utakata with three or four hundred Waterfall Ninja as they fought the Mist Ninja, who held the advantage.
• Mei Terumi dodged Utakata’s Bubble Attack and urged him to return to Kirigakure, promising that the village had changed since the Fourth Mizukage’s rule.
• Utakata calmly rejected Mei Terumi’s appeal and said he had chosen to stay for reasons unrelated to the past.

Utakata refused Mei Terumi’s demand to return to Kirigakure and fought her as she tried to capture him and reclaim the Six-Tails. Mei Terumi forced him to use Half Tailed Beast Transformation, while Shibuki watched in disbelief at her strength.

• Utakata rejected Mei Terumi’s warning and chose to remain loyal to Menma and the path he had accepted.
• Mei Terumi launched a Lava Style: Acidic Ooze Technique, and Utakata countered with his Water Style: Bubble Technique.
• Mei Terumi used the steam as cover to close in and strike Utakata, whose block revealed her speed and power.
• Mei Terumi released her Boil Release: Artful Mist Technique, and Utakata unleashed the Six-Tails’ Chakra to enter Half Tailed Beast Transformation.
• The acidic mist injured Utakata through his Chakra Cloak, and Shibuki watched in shock as Mei Terumi forced him to transform.

Menma arrived after the battle at the base had temporarily ended and took over the fight against Mei Terumi, allowing Utakata to aid Shibuki. Menma and Mei Terumi exchanged powerful attacks, and the chapter ended as Menma’s Golden Chains shattered Mei Terumi’s hardened lava restraint.

• Shibuki drank more Hero’s Water and charged the Mist Ninja surrounding him while the Waterfall forces continued to suffer heavy losses.
• Mei Terumi urged Utakata to surrender, but Utakata prepared to unleash a complete Tailed Beast Transformation away from the other Waterfall Ninja.
• Menma appeared and attacked Mei Terumi with a Shuriken Shadow Clone Jutsu, then told Utakata to go support Shibuki.
• Utakata left to fight the Mist Ninja, while Mei Terumi launched an attack on Menma and he entered Nine-Tails Chakra Mode.
• Menma and Mei Terumi traded close-range attacks, and Mei Terumi used her Lava Release and Water Release to counter him.
• Menma released four Golden Chains, which pierced Mei Terumi’s Water Dragon and broke through the hardened lava she used to restrain them.

Menma overwhelmed Mei Terumi with his Golden Chains, Flying Thunder God Technique, and Spiral Gale Technique, then killed her with the Sword of the Thunder God. Mei Terumi died before she could become the Fifth Mizukage.

• Mei Terumi tried to intercept Menma's Golden Chains with the Great Waterfall Technique and charged at him.
• Menma used the Flying Thunder God Technique to appear beside Mei Terumi and struck her with the Spiral Gale Technique.
• Menma's attack badly wounded Mei Terumi, and the Golden Chains bound her.
• Menma stabbed Mei Terumi through the heart with the Sword of the Thunder God, and she died.

Menma killed Mei Terumi and helped turn the battle into a rout for the Mist Ninja. He targeted Ao for the Byakugan, closing in on him as the retreat collapsed.

• Menma killed Mei Terumi and sealed her corpse for research.
• Utakata and Shibuki overwhelmed the Mist Ninja, forcing Ao to order a retreat.
• Ao saw Menma kill Mei Terumi and realized the retreat could no longer be organized.
• Menma sensed Ao, rushed toward him, and cut down nearby Mist Ninja as Ao watched in terror.

Menma killed Ao and led the Waterfall Ninja in a decisive pursuit that devastated Kirigakure, while Takigakure suffered heavy losses of its own. After reviewing the casualty reports, Menma chose to consolidate the victory and asked his advisers what the village should do next.

• Menma stopped Ao from destroying the Byakugan, broke the seal over it, removed the eye, and killed Ao.
• With Kirigakure's command structure broken, Menma ordered the Waterfall Ninja to pursue the fleeing Mist Ninja while his forces avoided escalating the fight with Konoha.
• The Waterfall Ninja halted their pursuit when Konohagakure's reinforcements arrived, after Kirigakure had suffered a devastating defeat.
• Doran reported that Takigakure had lost more than 1,300 shinobi, while the combined casualties of Konoha and Kirigakure were at least three times greater.
• Shibuki and Fū mourned their fallen comrades but recognized that Takigakure's victory had secured the village's standing.
• Menma rejected the idea of a further counteroffensive, said Takigakure should consolidate its gains, and asked the others for their opinions.

Menma consulted his allies about whether to pursue Konoha after Takigakure’s victories, weighing the danger of renewed fighting and Iwagakure’s hidden motives. He decided to hold their positions, monitor Iwagakure closely, and the battle’s outcome spread across the Shinobi World.

• Doran urged Menma to pursue Konoha and strike it as hard as Takigakure had struck Kumogakure and Kirigakure.
• Muku also supported pressuring Konoha, while Shibuki worried that further fighting would bring more casualties among the Waterfall Ninja.
• Menma agreed with Shibuki that pursuing Konoha was too risky and noted that Sunagakure remained a threat.
• Menma ordered everyone to hold their assigned positions and told Ajun to closely track the conflict between Kumogakure and Iwagakure.
• Menma ended the high-level meeting, and news of the battle’s outcome spread throughout the Shinobi World.

After Menma’s victory devastated Kirigakure and forced Konoha to retreat, Jiraiya chose to hold the border while the Mist Ninja withdrew in distrust. News of the defeat prompted Baki to pull Sunagakure’s army back to Futan Valley Stronghold, leaving Takigakure and Kusagakure with the advantage.

• The surviving Mist Ninja blamed Konoha for their losses and left the front, while Jiraiya acknowledged the failed coordination and ordered Konoha to strengthen its defenses and inform Sunagakure.
• Jiraiya kept Konoha on the defensive as Menma halted the Waterfall Ninja’s pursuit, reducing border clashes to small reconnaissance skirmishes.
• After receiving Jiraiya’s report, Baki ordered the Sand Ninja to withdraw to Futan Valley Stronghold instead of continuing their offensive.
• Mui and Karin learned that Sunagakure was retreating and ordered continued reconnaissance in case the withdrawal was a deception.
• Mui spread news of Menma’s victory among the Grass Ninja, strengthening their confidence in him.

Menma’s Taki-Kusa Alliance defeated the forces of Kumogakure and Kirigakure and drove back Konohagakure, breaking the Five Great Nations’ dominance and raising a new sixth power. Lord Genshi ordered Kirigakure into isolation despite internal fury, while news of the defeat spread across the Shinobi World and reached the Third Tsuchikage.

• Menma’s victories over Kumogakure, Kirigakure, and Jiraiya’s Konohagakure troops established the Taki-Kusa Alliance as a new power in the Shinobi World.
• Lord Genshi learned that Kirigakure had lost roughly half its forces, including Mei Terumi and Ao, and ordered Gonbei to forbid Mist Ninja from leaving the Land of Water without special permission.
• Lord Genshi suppressed Mist Ninja demanding a full-scale war against Takigakure and returned Kirigakure to isolation.
• The defeat of the Four Great Ninja Villages caused widespread turmoil and disbelief across the Shinobi World.
• The Third Tsuchikage received the report in the Land of Earth and could not believe it.

Ōnoki abandoned his plan to exploit Menma’s defeat and ordered an assault on Kumogakure’s Mine-dori Stronghold while preparing to counter the Taki-Kusa Alliance. Tsunade learned that Konoha’s forces had lost and that Orochimaru was likely behind an attack in which Hyuga Clan members, including a main-family member, disappeared.

• Ōnoki reassessed Menma after the Taki-Kusa Alliance’s victory and decided his rise could no longer be stopped.
• Ōnoki ordered Kaede to tell Kitsuchi to capture Kumogakure’s Mine-dori Stronghold within fifteen days and to send Han and Roshi into action regardless of the cost.
• Ōnoki resolved to seize gains from Kumogakure and strengthen Iwagakure while preparing for future conflict with Menma and Konoha.
• Tsunade received news that Konoha and Kirigakure’s forces had lost despite deploying more than eight thousand ninja.
• Tsunade learned that an unknown force had killed dozens of Konoha ninja and abducted the Hyuga Clan members assigned to rear security.
• Tsunade suspected Orochimaru was responsible after Anbu found the scent of snakes, but she could not tell whether he was also working with Menma.