Recaps

After Neji refused Sasuke’s request for advanced training, Sasuke challenged him to reveal his true strength. As Sasuke’s Curse Mark matured, Orochimaru sent the Sound Four to retrieve him.

• Neji and Tenten woke in the Hokage Building and left together at dusk.
• Sasuke confronted Neji and asked him to train and fight with him so he could grow strong enough to take revenge on Itachi.
• Neji said he could teach Sasuke only the basics, and Sasuke showed his disappointment.
• Sasuke’s Curse Mark spread as Orochimaru decided the time was right and ordered the Sound Four to meet him.
• Sasuke awakened his Two Tomoe Sharingan, attacked Neji with a kunai, and demanded to see Neji’s true strength.

Neji defeated Sasuke’s attack and understood that she intended to leave Konoha to seek strength from Orochimaru. After Sasuke walked off alone, Neji considered his own plans to gather the tailed beasts’ true bodies and prepare for Akatsuki.

• Sasuke attacked Neji with shuriken, a Great Fireball, and Chidori, but Neji stopped her and extinguished her fireball with Thunderclap Palm.
• Neji caught Sasuke’s Chidori-striking wrist, and she broke down, asking whether she was truly weak.
• Neji told Sasuke that she was weaker than Itachi but strong compared with everyone else, then checked that she had fully adapted to her Curse Mark.
• Sasuke explained that Neji’s hidden strength made her believe she could never catch up, and Neji left without stopping her from departing.
• Sasuke decided to heal her injuries and seek Orochimaru, while Neji resolved to gather the tailed beasts’ true bodies and grow strong enough to face Nagato before Akatsuki acted.

Neji joined Shikamaru’s team to pursue Sasuke, whom the Sound Four had placed in suspended death to awaken her Curse Mark. As the squad caught up with them, Neji revealed he understood Sasuke’s choice and had his own reasons for continuing the mission, and the chapter ended as the Sound Four confronted the pursuers.

• Shikamaru recruited Neji and gathered Naruto, Choji, Kiba, and others to bring Sasuke back, while Sakura tearfully asked Naruto to save her.
• Sakon explained that Orochimaru had sent the Sound Four to make Sasuke die temporarily, and Sasuke took an Awakening Pill before they sealed her in a coffin with their Barrier Ninjutsu.
• Shiranui Genma and another Konoha ninja encountered the Sound Four but were defeated, and Shizune’s group chose not to pursue them.
• As the team tracked Sasuke, Neji admitted to Shikamaru that he had known she would defect and said he respected her choice, while Shikamaru continued the pursuit to bring her back.
• Neji sensed the Sound Four’s location and identified Sasuke’s coffin; when Sakon threw an explosive-tagged kunai at the pursuers, Neji knocked it aside, and the two groups faced off.

Shikamaru and the others were trapped by Jirobo while the Sound Four carried Sasuke away, but Neji broke them out and assigned Choji to fight Jirobo. Neji, Naruto, Kiba, and Shikamaru left to catch up with Sasuke as Choji began battling Jirobo.

• Shikamaru immobilized Kidomaru with the Shadow Imitation Technique, but Jirobo broke the control and trapped the group in an Earth Style barrier.
• Neji decided that Choji would fight Jirobo while the others pursued Sasuke, then used Thunderclap Spiral Strike to break through the barrier and wound Jirobo.
• Jirobo attacked with Earth Mausoleum Ball, but Choji smashed the boulder with Human Boulder.
• Naruto, Neji, Kiba, and Shikamaru left to catch up with Sasuke, while Choji stayed behind to fight Jirobo.
• Choji and Jirobo charged at each other and began wrestling, with Choji at a disadvantage in strength but in better condition.

Neji stayed behind to fight Kidomaru while Shikamaru and the others continued after Sasuke. Neji overwhelmed Kidomaru’s attacks and answered his rain of hardened throwing knives with Eight Trigrams Palms Revolving Heaven.

• Shikamaru led the others onward after devising a plan to take Sasuke back, but the group was exposed and Kidomaru stayed behind to stop them.
• Neji told Shikamaru and the others to continue and faced Kidomaru alone.
• Neji devoured Kidomaru’s Spider Silk with Spirit Ball Bomb, then wounded him with a barrage of Finger Pistol: Dragon Fang.
• Kidomaru summoned a giant spider and sent small spiders and webs at Neji, who destroyed them with Lion’s Roar.
• Kidomaru attacked with hardened Spider Silk throwing knives, and Neji countered with Eight Trigrams Palms Revolving Heaven.

Neji defeated Kidomaru and Sakon, collected blood and tissue samples, and rescued Kiba from Ukon. He sensed Naruto and an unfamiliar chakra, then froze when he saw what was happening.

• Kidomaru transformed and fired his strongest arrow at Neji, but Neji caught it, broke it, and killed him with a fragment of the arrow.
• Orochimaru sent Kimimaro to retrieve Sasuke in the coffin while preparing to replace his own body.
• Kimimaro took Sasuke away, leaving Shikamaru and Tayuya fighting, Kiba facing Sakon and Ukon, and Naruto in pursuit.
• Ukon parasitized Kiba, but Kiba threatened to kill them both until Neji stopped him and treated his injuries.
• Kankuro arrived to help, and Neji killed Sakon with a lightning strike before collecting more blood and tissue.
• Neji sensed Naruto and an unfamiliar chakra, saw the scene in his mind, and froze.

Neji rushed to Kimimaro after realizing Orochimaru had cured his Bloodline Disease, and he killed Tayuya on the way. As Sasuke escaped from the coffin, Neji stopped Kimimaro from pursuing Naruto and began overpowering him in close combat.

• Neji recognized that Orochimaru had used Female Hormone and Healing Hormone on Kimimaro, curing his Bloodline Disease.
• Neji dropped into Tayuya's battle with Temari and Shikamaru and killed Tayuya with Eagle Stomp.
• The coffin opened, Sasuke emerged with his Curse Mark fading, and he ignored Naruto's pleas before running away.
• Kimimaro tried to attack Naruto, but Neji kicked him aside and told Naruto to pursue Sasuke.
• Neji and Kimimaro exchanged Taijutsu, and Neji used Kami-e to evade Kimimaro's bone blade before striking him with Gale Combo.

Neji and Kimimaro escalated their fight, with both using powerful techniques and transformations. Kimimaro appeared to pierce Neji with his strongest attack, but Gaara stopped Temari from intervening and told her to believe in him.

• Kimimaro used Ten Finger Nukes, but Neji’s Nen Barrier blocked the first barrage before Neji dodged the next and struck him from behind.
• Kimimaro transformed his body with Shikotsumyaku and clashed with Neji in a fierce melee while Gaara, Kankuro, Temari, Shikamaru, and Kiba watched.
• Neji deactivated the Eight Gates and activated Dragon Tiger Roar, while Kimimaro prepared Dance of the Clematis Vine.
• Kimimaro coiled Neji in his extended spine and thrust his hardened bone spear through him.
• Temari prepared to intervene, but Gaara stopped her and told her to believe in Neji.

Neji defeated Kimimaro and secretly took him away, then met Sasuke after Sasuke defeated Naruto and chose to leave Konoha. He gave Sasuke a mask pendant engraved with Thunder and left him to depart, while Neji waited with Kimimaro for someone expected to arrive.

• Neji overwhelmed Kimimaro with the Spiraling Nen Field, staged his disappearance, and had a clone carry him away after secretly treating him.
• Gaara, Temari, and Kankuro took the injured Shikamaru and Kiba toward Konoha after Neji asked them to.
• Sasuke spared the unconscious Naruto, left his forehead protector beside him, and walked away from the Valley of the End.
• Neji treated Sasuke's shoulder, gave him an umbrella and a Thunder-engraved pendant, and said he looked forward to seeing him in three years.
• Sasuke put on the pendant and disappeared into the forest, while Neji returned to Kimimaro and waited for someone to arrive.

Neji returned to Konoha after the mission, then used five marked beads to establish a teleportation link between his Laboratory and the Land of Waves base. He brought Kimimaro to the Laboratory and awakened her, hoping the altered hormones he had administered would make her feel loyal to him.

• Neji met Zabuza and Haku, gave them new pendants and five beads, and sent them back to the Land of Waves with the sealed Kimimaro.
• Neji reported to Tsunade that the injured squad members were out of danger, then told Shikamaru to visit him daily for a month to train.
• Neji and Izumi activated the modified Exchange Summoning Jutsu formations and traveled from the Laboratory to the Land of Waves base in five seconds.
• Neji brought Zabuza and the others back to the Laboratory and had them deliver the materials he had provided.
• Neji unsealed Kimimaro and used Chakra to wake her, intending to see whether his altered hormones would influence her feelings toward him.

Neji captured Kimimaro and recruited him into the D Organization, then studied his Shikotsumyaku to gather data for creating puppets. With the Land of Waves secured, Neji assigned Zabuza a mission to retrieve Hoshigakure’s meteorite after a new member joined the team.

• Kimimaro woke in Neji’s laboratory, recognized Neji’s Byakugan, and learned Neji had captured him because he belonged to the Taketori Clan.
• Neji asked Kimimaro to become his subordinate, and Kimimaro agreed, believing Orochimaru had abandoned him.
• Neji conducted experiments on Kimimaro, recording his blood and bodily data to develop puppets that could use Shikotsumyaku.
• Neji confirmed that Zan had secured control of the Land of Waves, including its daimyo.
• Neji ordered Zabuza to wait several days before traveling to Hoshigakure to retrieve its meteorite, when a new member would join him.

Neji met privately with Karin, confirmed his identity, and promised to train her in several ninja arts. He then spoke with the awakened Kimimaro, revealed that he knew how Orochimaru had treated him, and confirmed Kimimaro’s guess that he was Nian of D Organization.

• Neji dismissed the meeting and asked Karin to stay, then revealed his face and confirmed that he was the leader she knew as Neji.
• Karin said Zabuza and Haku’s training did not suit her, so Neji promised to teach her Taijutsu, Medical Ninjutsu, Sealing Jutsu, and sensory abilities.
• Neji told Karin to focus on Taijutsu and Chakra control, and she resolved to work hard in her new home.
• Neji returned to the Laboratory and talked with the awakened Kimimaro about Kabuto, Orochimaru, and the possibility of cooperation.
• Neji showed Kimimaro vials of Healing Hormone and Female Hormone, and Kimimaro identified him as Nian of D Organization.

Neji recruited Kimimaro into the D Organization and sent him with Zabuza and Haku to seize Hoshigakure’s star. Back in Konoha, Tsunade checked Neji’s healed eyes and assigned him to teach Sakura Medical Ninjutsu, so Neji suggested that Shikamaru help Tsunade with her paperwork.

• Neji gave Kimimaro a D Organization pendant and ordered him to join Zabuza and Haku on a mission to seize Hoshigakure’s star.
• Neji returned to Konoha after Kimimaro recovered and left Izumi in charge of the base.
• Tsunade demanded that Neji open his healed eyes, and he reluctantly showed them to her.
• Neji demonstrated that he had mastered Medical Ninjutsu and told Tsunade he had helped train Sakura.
• Tsunade assigned Neji to teach Sakura, and Neji suggested that Shikamaru help Tsunade with her official duties.

Tsunade summoned Shikamaru to discuss solutions for the Hokage’s workload, and Neji revealed that he had passed along ideas Shikamaru had once suggested. After Shikamaru agreed to explain them, Neji headed toward the Hyuga Clan to tell his uncle that his eyes would recover, but Temari stopped him.

• Tsunade summoned Shikamaru to the Hokage Office after hearing that he had a way to ease her workload.
• Neji greeted Shikamaru with his recovered Byakugan and reminded him of their Academy discussions about Hokage duties and ways to manage them.
• Shikamaru realized Neji had suggested those methods to Tsunade and agreed to explain his own approach to her.
• Tsunade sent Neji away and told him not to forget to teach Sakura Medical Ninjutsu; Neji sensed Anbu heading to the Nara Clan, likely to seek Shikaku’s help.
• Neji decided to tell his uncle about his coming eye recovery and set off for the Hyuga Clan, but Temari stopped him while Kankuro and Gaara ate dumplings nearby.

Neji apologized to Temari for their past encounter by treating Temari, Kankuro, and Gaara to a meal at his hot pot restaurant. The lunch reconciled Neji and Temari and ended with Gaara asking to spar with Neji again someday.

• Temari angrily confronted Neji about what had happened between them before, while Kankuro tried to mediate.
• Neji invited Temari, Kankuro, and Gaara to his hot pot restaurant, where Temari learned that he owned it.
• Neji ordered food the siblings liked and apologized to Temari, who accepted his apology and clinked cups with him.
• Kankuro enthusiastically ate the meal, while Gaara spoke with Neji and asked to spar with him again someday.
• Neji saw the three off and offered them free meals for life at his restaurant.

Neji discussed the coming political changes with Hiashi, who urged him to build a close relationship with Tsunade and saw him as a possible future Hokage. Neji reunited with Hinata and reflected on their shared past while considering the threats and plans that still lay ahead.

• Neji met Hiashi in the courtyard and discussed the political changes that might follow Tsunade’s decisions.
• Hiashi told Neji to strengthen his bond with Tsunade and promised the Hyuga Clan would support him.
• Neji wondered whether Hiashi hoped he would become Hokage, then left to find Hinata and Hanabi.
• Neji found Hinata training, and she fainted from embarrassment when she saw his recovered eyes.
• Neji cradled sleeping Hinata and recalled how he had protected and cared for her over the years.
• Hiashi sent out notices summoning a clan discussion while Neji contemplated future technology and the Otsutsuki threat.

Hanabi returned home and found Neji with Hinata, then panicked at the sight of his recovered eyes and burst into tears. After Neji comforted both sisters, he asked them to help with his tattoo research, and they agreed.

• Hanabi went to the training room to check on Hinata and found Neji giving her a lap pillow.
• Hanabi became flustered when she saw Neji's recovered eyes and cried, so Neji and Hinata comforted her.
• Neji apologized for surprising the sisters, and they teased him for breaking his promise to tell them when he recovered.
• Neji told Hinata and Hanabi about a tattoo he was researching and explained its three effects.
• Hinata and Hanabi agreed to help Neji with the tattoo research.

Neji researched a modified Caged Bird Seal for his planned puppets and gave Sasuke a mask that connected her to his D Organization, while she chose to train alone. Three days later, he inscribed Sealing Jutsu tattoos for Hinata and Hanabi, then completed his research half a month later.

• Neji asked Hinata and Hanabi to keep their tattoos secret from the clan and said he would prepare them within three days.
• Neji researched the Caged Bird Seal for use in puppets built around cloned Byakugan, while Shadow Clones handled his other work.
• Sasuke used Neji's pendant to reveal a mask, read its instructions and guidance, and decided not to contact him so she could focus on becoming stronger.
• Three days later, Neji gave Hinata a sunflower tattoo and Hanabi a fireworks tattoo, which inscribed Sealing Jutsu into their acupoints.
• Half a month later, Neji completed his research after traveling between the two locations.

Neji reviewed his research laboratories, assigning work on the star and advancing experiments in artificial bodies, hardware, bloodlines, and ninjutsu. With roughly two and a half years to prepare for Pain and the goal of creating the Tenseigan, he decided to strengthen Rock Lee and Tenten with new techniques and technology.

• Neji confirmed that the star had been secured, recognized the Ten-Tails' Chakra inside it, and ordered Izumi to study it alongside Shikotsumyaku cells.
• Neji inspected Laboratory Number Three's cultivated puppet components and noted that Ukon's bloodline could help combine them, while First Generation Cells still resisted fusion.
• Neji began assembling precision hardware in Laboratory Number Four and estimated that phones and satellites could be ready within two years.
• Neji assigned Shadow Clones to research bloodline limits, medical ninjutsu, ninjutsu, and sealing techniques as he toured the laboratories.
• Neji calculated that he needed to reach level fifty and create the Tenseigan before Pain's attack, then planned Taijutsu training for Rock Lee and a technology-based upgrade for Tenten.

Neji showed Tenten two experimental pistols that absorbed impacts and slashing attacks, then released the stored force as powerful shots. Tenten eagerly tried the guns and learned their limits and how to use them.

• Neji presented Tenten with two pistols he had developed using research on the Slash Shell and Impact Dial.
• Neji fired a shot through a tree, convincing Tenten that the guns were far more powerful than ordinary firearms.
• Tenten tested the pistol and accurately shot several trees before Neji stopped her.
• Neji explained that the guns stored impacts and slashes, released the absorbed force as attacks, and could not absorb ninjutsu.
• Neji demonstrated the guns' defense by having Tenten block a punch, then explained their limit and that she had to fire to release stored force.

Neji gave Tenten twin guns and taught her their techniques, helping her see how they could transform her fighting style. The chapter ended with Tenten beginning to practice while Neji watched and prepared to spar with her.

• Tenten embraced Neji and promised to bring out the full potential of the guns he had made for her.
• Neji described plans to develop stronger weapons with Chakra-based effects and decided to keep the guns from the Hyuga Clan for now.
• Neji demonstrated Wild Barrage, using the guns to fire accurately while spinning through the air.
• Neji showed Tenten how to attack with minimal movement, adjust the guns' power, recharge them discreetly, and switch between shooting and slashing modes.
• Neji handed the guns back to Tenten and watched her practice before their planned spar.

Tenten tested Neji’s twin guns, identified problems with using them, and gave him suggestions for improving them. Neji later introduced Laboratory Number Three’s newly cultivated autonomous puppets to his group, and their first battle began in the Land of Waves training ground.

• Tenten told Neji the guns were useful but interfered with her movement and hand seals, so he proposed engraving them with Summoning Arrays to address her concerns.
• Neji took Tenten’s guns for modification, then fought her in the forest before the two returned to Konoha.
• Neji left a Shadow Clone to handle the guns and traveled to the Land of Waves, where Izumi told him the preparations were complete.
• Neji revealed ten numbered puppets from Laboratory Number Three, and Kimimaro warned the others that they possessed his Bloodline Limit.
• The puppets attacked Zabuza, Haku, Karin, and Kimimaro; after Kimimaro judged their strength comparable to Chunin-level shuriken, Zabuza and Karin counterattacked.

Neji tested his new bone puppets against Zabuza, Haku, Kimimaro, and Karin, then assigned the group a mission to plant Signal Tower trees around dangerous locations in the ninja world. Zabuza, Haku, and Kimimaro set out while Karin continued training, and Neji and Izumi discussed their plans and her unresolved feelings about Itachi.

• Zabuza, Karin, Haku, and Kimimaro fought Neji's bone puppets, with Karin struggling while the others defeated or restrained their opponents.
• Neji stopped the test, reassured Karin, and promised to teach her Sealing Jutsu after she finished learning Sealing Runes.
• Zabuza and Haku assessed the puppets as limited and rigid, while Neji assigned the puppets to serve as subordinates and manage the base.
• Neji gave the group a map and ordered them to plant Signal Tower trees at marked locations, avoid village ninja, and destroy any tree that was discovered.
• Zabuza, Haku, and Kimimaro split into teams and departed, while Karin stayed behind to study.
• Neji and Izumi discussed spreading the trees across the ninja world, and Izumi said Neji could ask Itachi for the answer she once sought.

Tsunade pushed Sakura through Monster Strength training before testing Neji in a brutal sparring match. Neji survived her attacks and prepared to stop holding back as the fight continued.

• Tsunade drove Sakura through dangerous training to teach her to release Monster Strength with precision.
• Shizune told Neji that Tsunade was channeling her frustration at his quick progress into Sakura's training.
• Tsunade carried the exhausted Sakura away and challenged Neji to spar without using Gentle Fist.
• Neji used Backstep to evade Tsunade's attack, but she shattered the ground and blasted him into a mountainside.
• Neji emerged from the rubble injured, then removed his clothes and told Tsunade he would stop holding back.

Neji sparred with Tsunade, demonstrating his precise control and formidable physical strength, then was summoned to Root to meet Danzo. Danzo suspected Neji had helped drive Tsunade’s political reforms and concluded that the increasingly influential boy was a threat who must be eliminated.

• Neji and Tsunade clashed in a destructive taijutsu spar, and Tsunade recognized his strength and Monster Strength technique.
• Tsunade ended the spar and sent Neji away so she could teach Sakura.
• Root members surrounded Neji near the residential district and escorted him underground to meet Danzo.
• Danzo confronted Neji about helping Tsunade and Shikamaru design Konoha’s new power structure, and Neji did not deny it.
• Danzo reviewed Neji’s history and influence, deciding that Neji had become a dangerous threat who could not be allowed to live.