Recaps

Lucy and Neji joined Fairy Tail, but Neji soon left the guild to confront Ultear at the Magic Council. He trapped Ultear in a changed space after identifying Zikrain as a thought projection, and she demanded to know who he was.

• Lucy received a Fairy Tail mark, and Neji joined the guild after Makarov confirmed he would not harm it.
• Neji teased Lucy into paying for his cocktail, then left the guild while Natsu set off to take a job.
• Neji traveled to the Magic Council to meet Zikrain and his assistant, Ultear.
• Neji called Zikrain a thought projection, then changed the surroundings around Ultear into a dim, stone-strewn space.
• Ultear raised her crystal ball and threatened Neji with the Council's authority.

Neji confronted Ultear and took her magic after revealing details about her past and warning her about the Tower of Paradise and Galuna Island. Ultear returned to the office confused and planned to investigate the truth about Lyon, Deliora, and the Rime Under the Moon ritual.

• Neji summoned seats for Ultear and said he wanted her magic, then questioned her hatred of her mother, Ur.
• Neji revealed Ultear's hidden past and urged her to stop the Tower of Paradise plan, free Jellal from his control, and tell Fairy Tail's Second Guild Master the truth about Grimoire Heart.
• Neji used his power to take Ultear's memories of learning magic and obtain her Lost Magic Tempo Arc and Ice-Make.
• Neji told Ultear that Lyon was trying to kill his master with the Rime Under the Moon ritual on Galuna Island, then sent her back to the office.
• Ultear declined to answer Jellal's questions and decided to investigate Galuna Island, Deliora, Lyon, and the ritual.

Neji entered the world of K after drawing Fairy Tail, arriving amid a standoff between the Red and Blue Clans. He landed between their kings and asked them to wait, leaving both sides watching him.

• Neji experimented with Ultear’s Tempo Arc magic and learned to reverse the movement of two stones.
• Neji returned to his tavern, used a Sands of Time draw, and entered the world of K.
• Neji recognized the Fiery Sword of Damocles and spotted the Golden King near the Slate.
• Neji fell into the street between Suoh Mikoto and Munakata Reisi, interrupting their impending confrontation.
• Munakata Reisi asked Neji who he was, but Neji told him to wait.

Neji demonstrated his power to the Red and Blue Kings and persuaded them to accompany him to meet Kunikida Dōjaku, the Second Royal Authority. The Gold Clan welcomed them at the tower where Dōjaku and the slate were waiting.

• Neji used Tempo Arc to restore the rubble around the pit, then asked Suoh Mikoto and Munakata Reisi to take him to Kunikida Dōjaku.
• Suoh Mikoto challenged Neji, but Neji erased his flames with Tempo Arc and warned him to pay attention to his companions.
• Munakata Reisi agreed to accompany Neji, and Suoh Mikoto decided to join them as well.
• Neji, Suoh Mikoto, and Munakata Reisi traveled to the Gold Clan's tower, where a masked Gold Clan member said Kunikida Dōjaku was ready to receive them.

Neji met Lu Dajue, learned that the Dresden Stone Slab had created the Royal Authorities and Espers, and agreed to remove it from their world. He took the slab through the Gate of Time and Space, leaving the clans and Royal Authorities losing their powers.

• Lu Dajue welcomed Neji, Munakata Reisi, and Suoh Mikoto and led them to the sealed Dresden Stone Slab.
• Lu Dajue explained that the slab had produced the world’s powers and that he feared its influence would unleash chaos after his death.
• Neji spoke to the slab’s consciousness and told Lu Dajue and the others that removing it would cause them to lose their powers.
• Lu Dajue agreed that Neji should take the slab, citing the catastrophe caused by Kagutsu Genji.
• Neji broke the seal, lifted the Dresden Stone Slab, and gained seven Sands of Time as its power flowed into him.
• Neji carried the Dresden Stone Slab through the Gate of Time and Space, and the powers of the clans and Royal Authorities began to fade.

Neji returned to Konoha, resumed work as Hokage through a clone, and visited Tenten at her family’s shop. He took her to their usual training spot and hinted that he had something to show her.

• Neji returned to Konoha through the Gate of Time and Space and left a new clone to handle Hokage duties.
• Neji walked through the renovated village, praised a new dango flavor, and drew customers to the shop.
• Neji surprised Tenten at her family’s weapons shop and joked about buying her as a humanoid weapon.
• Neji reassured Tenten that his clone was handling work and brought her to their usual training spot.
• Neji gave Tenten the new-flavored dango, then said he would show her something nice.

Neji gave Tenten a pendant that transformed her into a striking qipao outfit, then used his Chakra to replace her tattoo seal with one tailored to her body. After half an hour of adjustments, Tenten adapted to the new seal and felt its power.

• Neji gave Tenten a pendant and told her to channel Chakra into it, transforming her hair and clothes into a qipao outfit with black-and-gold details.
• Tenten examined her appearance in a summoned mirror, admired the outfit, and accidentally shattered the mirror while testing her movements.
• Neji explained that the outfit worked with a new tattoo, then pressed his Chakra into Tenten and transformed her Chakra pathways and acupoints to replace her previous seal.
• Neji guided Tenten through fine adjustments as she moved her own Chakra to regain control of her body.
• After about half an hour, Tenten adapted to the seal and recognized that Neji had designed its new power specifically for her.

Tenten confessed her feelings to Neji, and they agreed to face the dispute over his marriage together. After Hanabi revealed that the advisers demanded Neji marry a woman from outside the Hyuga Clan if he married Hinata, Neji summoned everyone involved to the Hokage Office.

• Tenten asked Neji if she still had a chance with him, and Neji told her he liked her.
• Tenten declared that Neji was her man and said she would not accept him marrying Hinata just because of the Hyuga Clan.
• Hanabi told Neji that Utatane Koharu and Mitokado Homura would oppose his marriage to Hinata unless he also married a woman from outside the clan.
• Hinata admitted she did not mind sharing Neji, and Tenten said she did not mind either.
• Neji summoned Utatane Koharu, Mitokado Homura, Hyuga Hiashi, Hinata Hyuga, and Hanabi Hyuga to the Hokage Office, where they noticed Tenten's changed appearance.

Neji discussed his engagement to Hinata and Tenten with them in the Hokage's office, where Hinata revealed she had suggested the arrangement so Neji would not have to choose between them. The three agreed to move forward together, but Hanabi overheard only part of their conversation and demanded to be included.

• Neji sent Hanabi aside and set up a soundproof barrier so he could speak privately with Hinata and Tenten.
• Hinata told Neji and Tenten that she had suggested Neji marry someone outside the clan because she knew he and Tenten cared for each other.
• Hinata explained that she had agreed to the arrangement to spare Neji from having to choose between her and Tenten.
• Tenten thanked Hinata, embraced her, and showed her support.
• Neji embraced Hinata and Tenten, promised not to let them down, and held their hands as they agreed to move forward together.
• Hanabi leapt onto Neji's back after discovering the barrier had kept her from hearing their conversation, and demanded to be included.

Neji finalized Konoha’s reconstruction plan after negotiating with Sazuko over the Uchiha Clan’s land. As he turned to preparations for the first joint Chunin Exams among the five great ninja villages, he realized Naruto was still a genin.

• After Hinata, Tenten, and Hanabi left, Neji summoned Uchiha Sasuke to discuss the reconstruction plan.
• Neji showed Sazuko the proposed redevelopment of the Uchiha Clan’s territory, and she asked him to leave the core clan grounds untouched.
• Neji marked out the Uchiha core grounds and allocated the remaining land to Sasuke without monetary compensation, on terms matching the Hyuga Clan’s.
• Sazuko asked Neji if he had anything to say to her, but he failed to understand what she meant, and she left.
• Neji turned to planning the upcoming joint Chunin Exams and discovered Naruto’s Chunin Examination Application Form, realizing Naruto was still a genin.

Neji rejected Naruto’s Chunin Exam application and told him that he and Sasuke would receive other arrangements later. Neji then went to his base in the Land of Waves, where he reunited with Karin and reviewed the modernized city his organization had developed.

• Naruto confronted Neji at the Hokage Office after his Chunin Exam application was rejected, but Neji told him to wait for other arrangements with Sasuke.
• Naruto left the office, and Neji began preparing for the joint Chunin Exam before departing with a clone behind.
• Neji found Karin relaxing in the base, stopped her from lunging at him, and ordered her to change clothes and summon Kimimaro, Zabuza, and Haku.
• Neji looked over the modernized Land of Waves, which Izumi, Zabuza, and Haku had helped transform into a hub for entertainment, trade, and new products.

Neji reviewed the progress of his organization, ordered targets to be killed or placed under bounty, and visited Orochimaru, Kabuto, and Sasori as they tested a giant snake against a Gundam. He recruited Sasori and Orochimaru to create trouble in the ninja world with their inventions.

• Karin reported that everyone had arrived, and Neji asked Zabuza about the underground exchange; Zabuza said the infiltration was complete, and Neji ordered it shut down in three days.
• Haku told Neji that Amegakure had become a trade hub and that the redirected rivers were helping transform the Land of Wind's deserts.
• Neji gave the group lists of targets, ordering them to kill those marked in red and post high bounties for those marked in yellow.
• Neji visited the underground testing grounds, where Orochimaru, Kabuto, and Sasori recorded a battle between a giant snake and a Gundam.
• Neji asked Orochimaru and Sasori to play villains again, and they agreed to create new inventions for the ninja world to witness.

Neji left the Land of Waves after sending Orochimaru and Sasori to establish control over the underworld, then returned to Punk Hazard in the Pirate World. After reuniting with Izumi, he learned the island’s renovation was progressing slowly and decided to seek Devil Fruit powers and visit the upcoming World Conference.

• Neji sent Orochimaru and Sasori to operate freely in the smaller countries and govern the underworld.
• Neji opened a Gate of Time and Space and traveled to Punk Hazard in the Pirate World.
• Neji reunited with Izumi at the base and embraced her after learning the puppets and facilities had been improved.
• Izumi told Neji that the Ice-Snow Peninsula base was complete, while work on the Flame Peninsula was only one-third finished.
• Neji decided to seek Devil Fruit users to accelerate construction and planned to visit the World Conference, where Wapol had likely arrived.

Neji reviewed reports and learned that the Straw Hat Pirates had not yet caused trouble in Whole Cake, while the Vinsmoke Family's alliance with Germa remained a rumor. He took Izumi aboard a custom aircraft and set course for Cake Island, intending to enjoy a vacation while pursuing the Road Poneglyph and Vinsmoke science.

• Neji asked Xiao Ai for reports on the World Conference, the Straw Hat Pirates, Whole Cake, and Charlotte Linlin.
• Xiao Ai reported no news of the Straw Hats in Whole Cake but noted a rumor about an alliance between Germa and the Vinsmoke Family.
• Neji told Izumi he would take her to Whole Cake and planned to wait until Sanji's wedding was over before approaching the Vinsmoke Family.
• Neji and Izumi boarded a modified Cloud Iron aircraft at the base's landing pad.
• Neji ordered Xiao Ai to plot a route to Cake Island, and the aircraft launched from the snowy mountain.

Neji and Izumi arrived at Cake Island and watched Luffy fight Cracker before exploring the island and heading into Cake Castle. Inside the Mirror World, Chopper and Carrot struggled to escape until a phone-like object fell from Chopper’s clothes.

• Neji and Izumi watched Luffy battle Cracker in the Forest of Temptation while Nami was chased by the King of the Forest.
• Neji and Izumi wandered through Cake Island, sampling candy and overhearing preparations for the Tea Party and the Vinsmoke Family’s arrival.
• Neji explained the Mirror World’s travel abilities to Izumi, and they entered Cake Castle unseen.
• Chopper and Carrot dragged their iron balls through the Mirror World as they searched for an exit.
• Chopper dropped a phone-like object from his clothes, and Carrot picked it up.

Chopper and Carrot used Neji’s Distress Beacon to escape Brulee’s mirror world, and Neji and Izumi arrived to rescue them. The group found Brulee’s house, where Izumi subdued her and the creatures guarding it.

• Chopper and Carrot failed to figure out the Distress Beacon until Carrot pressed its buttons at random.
• Neji and Izumi appeared, freed Chopper’s shackles, and Neji sensed Brulee’s location inside the mirror world.
• Neji led the group to Brulee’s house while Chopper and Carrot followed after smelling her cooking.
• Brulee sent the creatures in her house to catch the visitors, but they were driven back through the door.
• Neji told Izumi to control Brulee, and Izumi used her Three Tomoe eyes to make Brulee lose consciousness.

Neji and Izumi left Chopper and Carrot to help Brook and Pedro while they explored Cake Castle. They entered the guarded Treasure Room, where Smoothie discussed the Poneglyphs and the Road Poneglyphs held by the BIG MOM Pirates.

• Neji ordered Brulee to follow the Straw Hat Pirates and reminded Chopper that he had three chances to call for help.
• Neji and Izumi vanished, and Chopper and Carrot began searching the mirrors for Brook and Pedro so they could help if the pair were in danger.
• Neji and Izumi walked unseen through Cake Castle while Brook and Pedro rested in a wine cellar near the treasure vault.
• Neji told Izumi he would take Brulee's Devil Fruit ability after the Straw Hat Pirates no longer needed it.
• Neji and Izumi reached the Treasure Room, where Smoothie squeezed juice from a captive woman as Baron Tamago explained the Poneglyphs.
• Smoothie said the BIG MOM Pirates possessed three Poneglyphs, including one Road Poneglyph.

Pedro and Brook launched a desperate plan to steal the Road Poneglyphs, with Pedro drawing the guards away while Brook entered the Treasure Room. Pedro fought through Cake Castle as Baron Tamago tracked him, and Smoothie called just as Tamago ordered the guards to drive Pedro into the garden.

• Baron Tamago told Smoothie that Pedro, a Mink Tribe thief who had escaped five years earlier, had infiltrated the island again and that the Road Poneglyphs had to be protected.
• Brook returned from scouting and told Pedro that Sweet Commander Smoothie was guarding the Treasure Room, leaving them little chance to steal the Poneglyphs.
• Pedro and Brook agreed that Pedro would act as bait while Brook attempted to reach the Treasure Room.
• Pedro’s attack drew Baron Tamago and most of the guards away, while Brook prepared to begin his special concert inside the castle.
• Pedro fought through the guards with his weapon and bombs as Baron Tamago tracked his movements and ordered them to drive him into the garden.
• Smoothie contacted Baron Tamago just after he gave the order.

Neji and Izumi entered Big Mom’s Treasure Room while Brook fought its guards and made a rubbing of the Road Poneglyph. Big Mom arrived and attacked Brook, intending to capture him as a rare creature.

• Smoothie learned that Pedro’s decoy had concealed another intruder, and Baron Tamago warned her that the intruder was probably Bones and should be captured alive.
• Neji and Izumi flashed to the Treasure Room’s second floor while Brook fought the guards below, using his soul powers to defeat Big Mom’s chess piece soldiers.
• Neji touched the Road Poneglyph as Brook defeated the remaining pirates, took a guard’s keys, and began making a rubbing.
• Big Mom arrived, destroyed the Treasure Room door with Haki, and found Brook beside the Road Poneglyph.
• Big Mom ordered Zeus to capture Brook, and the thundercloud spread over him as he dodged its lightning.

Brook fought Big Mom to obtain a rubbing of the Poneglyph, but she defeated him and found nothing on him. Big Mom revealed her plans to reach Laugh Tale with a new Trump Card, while Pudding arrived and Brook worried she might reveal their acquaintance.

• Brook explained that he trusted Sanji to return and attacked Big Mom, but her Steel Balloon defense repelled his sword strike and Prometheus knocked him down.
• Big Mom had the Chess Soldiers search Brook and his belongings, then stroked and mocked him after they found nothing stolen.
• Big Mom said she would not repeat her mistake from Roger’s time and claimed she had a Trump Card that could grant the power to read Poneglyphs.
• Pudding arrived, and Big Mom asked whether her third eye had opened; Pudding complained about being pressured over her mixed blood.
• Pudding asked Big Mom to speak in her room, and the group left the vault while two figures appeared before the Poneglyph.

Neji and Izumi observed Sanji’s despair after Pudding revealed her true nature, then withdrew to wait for the Tea Party. On Cake Island, the Straw Hat Pirates and Gang Vito prepared to assassinate Big Mom while Big Mom anticipated gaining Germa 66’s military force.

• Neji told Izumi that Brook would survive, collected energy from two Poneglyphs, and left the Treasure Room with her.
• Neji and Izumi watched Sanji break down in the rain after he learned of Pudding’s betrayal and saw Reiju injured.
• Neji told Izumi that events would truly begin with the Tea Party, and they left through the Gate of Time and Space.
• The Straw Hat Pirates and Gang Vito agreed to assassinate Big Mom during the Tea Party by destroying Mother Carmel’s photograph.
• Big Mom looked forward to taking Germa 66’s soldiers and planned to leave the Vinsmokes with nothing.

On the eve of Big Mom’s Tea Party, the Underworld Emperors arrived at Cake Castle as Perospero welcomed them and Katakuri guarded the entrance. Katakuri destroyed the candy stairway after glimpsing the future, then sent Vito to investigate a possible threat behind the guests.

• Stussy, Drug Peclo, Morgans, Gibson, and Umit arrived for Big Mom’s Tea Party, trading insults as they gathered.
• Perospero welcomed the Underworld Emperors and raised a candy stairway to carry them to the venue, unaware that two extra people had joined the guests.
• Katakuri shot Jigra, the Organ Merchant, with jelly beans after Jigra caused a disturbance at the gate, and ordered Vito to report his decision to Big Mom.
• Katakuri glimpsed the future and destroyed the candy stairway behind the arriving Underworld Emperors, who recognized his ability to foresee events.
• Katakuri ordered Vito to investigate behind the guests, and two subordinates returned safely without finding anyone.

Neji and Izumi entered Big Mom’s Tea Party while Katakuri investigated the spot where they had been hiding. Big Mom began the feast, and after she attacked a guest for asking about Mother Carmel, the underworld emperors presented her with gifts.

• Katakuri sensed Neji’s attempted attack, interrupted it with jelly beans, and searched the area while Bege kept his men quiet.
• Neji and Izumi discussed Katakuri’s Future Sight and entered the banquet, taking seats behind the Vinsmoke Family.
• Big Mom arrived and welcomed her guests as the Tea Party began.
• Chess-piece soldiers placed Mother Carmel’s photograph before Big Mom, and she struck down a guest who asked about Carmel’s relationship with her.
• God of Fortune Du Feld and the other underworld emperors presented gifts, cheering Big Mom and easing the atmosphere.

Big Mom showed the underworld emperors the Tamatebako and announced she would open it after Pudding's wedding, while Neji told Izumi it contained a powerful bomb. As the wedding began, Luffy and his allies prepared to attack Big Mom's Tea Party.

• Big Mom presented the Tamatebako to the underworld emperors and said she would open it at the banquet after Pudding's wedding.
• Neji whispered to Izumi that the Tamatebako contained a powerful bomb, and they imagined the explosion it would cause.
• Vito found Luffy and the others sleeping inside his body, while Jinbe said he would wake them shortly before the wedding and handle the battle preparations.
• Neji waited at the Tea Party as Sanji went to prepare for the wedding, expecting the calm to give way to a battle.
• The host announced Charlotte Pudding and Vinsmoke Sanji's wedding, and Sanji and Pudding entered together on Zeus.

At Big Mom's wedding, Pudding prepared to kill Sanji, but his praise of her third eye overwhelmed her and she broke down in tears. As the ceremony's planned attack approached, Luffy and the others raced to reach the wedding.

• Neji took Izumi's hand and promised to give her a grand wedding, and she said being with him was enough.
• Big Mom's crew prepared to attack Germa 66 at Pudding's signal, while Reiju suspected the danger and hoped Sanji could escape with Luffy's help.
• Luffy ran toward the wedding with his friends, urging them to hurry as the vows neared their end.
• Katakuri sensed that Pudding had fallen, and Vito recognized that Katakuri had seen the future.
• Pudding raised her veil and reached for her hidden pistol, but Sanji called her third eye beautiful, so she dropped the gun and wept.