Chapter Summaries

Afei left after arranging a plan with Hozuki Masamune, who sent Hozuki Mangetsu to secretly secure leverage for the Hozuki Clan. Meanwhile, Qi Shuang earned the snake clan’s summoning contract and learned that the three snake princesses would help with noncombat tasks for a price.

• Afei vanished through his Void Vortex, and Hozuki Masamune summoned Hozuki Mangetsu to reveal his plan to seize control of Kirigakure.
• Hozuki Mangetsu warned his father that cooperating with Afei was dangerous, but Hozuki Masamune insisted and ordered him to find and secretly move a person named in a note.
• Qi Shuang returned Garaga’s Inverse Scale to White Snake Sage and signed the snake clan’s Summoning Contract in blood.
• Qi Shuang asked whether he could summon the three snake princesses to fight, and White Snake Sage said they would not interfere in human conflicts.
• Tagitsuhime said the snake princesses could help Qi Shuang with noncombat tasks if he paid a sufficient price.

Qi Shuang negotiated the terms for summoning the three snake maidens and discussed learning Ryūchi Cave Senjutsu from them. He chose Floating Technique and a trigger-type sealing art, while leaving his final choice undecided.

• Tagitsuhime demanded ten human sacrifices per person for each time Qi Shuang summoned the three snake maidens, and he reluctantly agreed.
• After Qi Shuang left the main hall with them, Tagitsuhime explained that Ryūchi Cave Senjutsu was divided into Taijutsu, Genjutsu, and energy techniques, and that he could choose only three arts.
• Qi Shuang chose energy techniques and asked to learn Floating Technique, which the snake maidens said would be difficult without Wind Release; he confirmed that he knew it.
• After learning that Qi Shuang knew Water Release and Wind Release, Tagitsuhime offered to teach him two more Senjutsu from those attributes, but he asked instead about sealing techniques.
• Qi Shuang chose a Ryūchi Cave sealing Senjutsu resembling Transcription Seal, then asked to decide his third art later, and the snake maidens agreed.

Tagitsuhime taught Qi Shuang the Floating Technique while Mei Terumi continued struggling to fuse three chakra natures. Mei Terumi learned that the Hozuki Clan had staged a coup with Yagura’s help, and discovered that the guards—including her father—had been slaughtered.

• Tagitsuhime explained how to use Natural Energy to sustain the Floating Technique and began instructing Qi Shuang.
• Several Terumi Clan ninjas told Mei Terumi that the Hozuki Clan had detained Kirigakure’s senior officials and clan heads during a meeting.
• A messenger explained that the Hozuki Clan had drugged the meeting’s food and tea, and that Yagura had cooperated with the coup from within.
• Mei Terumi hurried back to the Terumi Clan compound to take charge after learning that the clan head had been detained.
• Mei Terumi learned that all the guards at the meeting, including her father, had been slaughtered.

After learning of the coup and her clan head's detention, Mei Terumi returned to stabilize the Terumi Clan while Tobi left Kirigakure's fate in the Hozuki Clan's hands. By interrogating Ao, Tobi discovered that Mei Terumi might know where Rin Nohara's corpse was hidden, and he left his Pocket Dimension to find her.

• Mei Terumi pushed away the clansmen supporting her and set out to return to the Terumi Clan and manage the crisis.
• Tobi and the Hozuki Clan imprisoned Kirigakure's higher-ups and placed the prison under guard by forces acting on Yagura's orders.
• Tobi interrogated Ao, who revealed that Qi Shuang had recovered Rin Nohara's corpse after it was discarded in the Blood Valley.
• Ao told Tobi that Mei Terumi had helped Qi Shuang recover Rin's corpse and might know where he hid it.
• Tobi strengthened his Genjutsu over Ao, learned that Mei Terumi was the Terumi Clan's heir, and left his Pocket Dimension to find her.

Mei Terumi prepared the Terumi Clan for war and agreed to form an alliance with the Hoshigaki Clan against the Hozuki Clan. The Hozuki Clan remained quiet while using its hostages and Tobi’s control of the Mizukage’s authority to pressure Kirigakure’s factions and consolidate power.

• Mei Terumi ordered most Terumi Clan members back to base, told her people to watch the village entrance, and prepared for both battle and retreat.
• Mei Terumi summoned her subordinate clans and the Hoshigaki Clan to discuss the crisis.
• A Hoshigaki envoy proposed an offensive and defensive alliance, and Mei Terumi agreed while asking the Hoshigaki Clan to join her in pressuring the Mizukage and Hozuki Clan the next day.
• Mei Terumi resumed organizing her clan as the Hozuki Clan made no further moves after detaining Kirigakure’s leaders.
• The Hozuki Clan used the hostages and Tobi’s control of the Mizukage to plan negotiations that would weaken rival factions and strengthen its own grip on Kirigakure.

Tobi infiltrated Mei Terumi’s room to find Rin Nohara’s remains, but Mei caught him and attacked with her corrosive Boiling Release. Recognizing his phasing ability, Mei identified him as the opponent from the Three-Tails mission, and Tobi demanded to know where Qi Shuang had hidden Rin.

• Mei Terumi mourned her father and struggled to sleep after a long day of clan affairs.
• Tobi used his Mangekyō Sharingan’s spatial power to enter the Terumi Clan base and locate Mei’s room.
• Mei pretended to sleep, then sprayed Tobi with corrosive mist when he tried to absorb her into his Pocket Dimension.
• Mei attacked with a kunai and filled the room with Boiling Release, but Tobi avoided the acid mist by phasing.
• Mei recognized Tobi’s ability and asked if he was the opponent from the Three-Tails mission.
• Tobi asked Mei where Qi Shuang had hidden Rin.

Tobi confronted Mei Terumi about Rin’s remains and escaped her acid-mist trap using his space-warping ability, prompting her to tighten security. At Ryūchi Cave, Qi Shuang mastered the Floating Technique and began learning the Dragon Heart Seal to broaden his capabilities and cover his weaknesses.

• Mei Terumi confirmed that Qi Shuang had found Rin’s remains, and Tobi wondered why Qi Shuang had gone to such lengths to find them.
• Mei Terumi filled the room with Boiling Release Acid Mist and ordered her guards to surround the house, but Tobi opened a Void Vortex and escaped.
• Mei Terumi found no trace of Tobi and ordered increased security, while fear spread through the Terumi Clan.
• At Ryūchi Cave, Qi Shuang mastered the Floating Technique, which let him draw on surrounding Natural Energy without entering Sage Mode.
• Tagorihime and the other snake princesses began teaching Qi Shuang the Dragon Heart Seal, and he explained that he wanted techniques to cover weaknesses and handle special situations.

Qi Shuang learned that the Dragon Heart Seal could replenish itself with Natural Energy and asked Tagorihime to teach it to him. Meanwhile, Mei Terumi and Kaki Keiichi led thousands of shinobi to confront the Hozuki Clan, where Hozuki Mangetsu appeared as their representative.

• Qi Shuang asked Tagorihime about the Dragon Heart Seal, and she explained that it could absorb Natural Energy to restore itself unless it was destroyed or undone.
• Mei Terumi gathered more than three thousand shinobi, while Kaki Keiichi assembled over two thousand from the Hoshigaki Clan's forces.
• Mei Terumi and Kaki Keiichi led their forces toward the Mizukage Building, where they joined before facing the Hozuki Clan and Hidden Mist Direct Command's defensive formation.
• Kaki Keiichi challenged the Hozuki Clan's leaders, and Hozuki Mangetsu stepped forward to represent his clan.
• Mei Terumi demanded that Hozuki Mangetsu release the imprisoned leaders and threatened that no Hozuki would leave if he refused.

Hozuki Masamune and Karatachi Yagura justified the arrests of the Terumi and Hoshigaki leadership as punishment for rebellion, while Mei Terumi tried to prevent the dispute from becoming a war. The chapter left Mei Terumi and Hoshigaki Keiichi holding papers that were presented as indictments but were actually agreements demanding the division of benefits.

• Hozuki Mangetsu warned Mei Terumi and Hoshigaki Keiichi that the Mizukage's forces would defend Kirigakure as the crowd demanded an explanation.
• Karatachi Yagura claimed the Hozuki Clan had helped him capture conspirators who planned to rebel, though the crowd and Kirigakure Direct Command doubted the accusation.
• Mei Terumi asked Yagura to release the detained leaders and urged restraint to avoid devastating Kirigakure and the clans.
• Hozuki Masamune appeared beside Yagura, declared the Terumi and Hoshigaki patriarchs would remain imprisoned, and presented their supposed crimes as signed indictments.
• Mei Terumi and Hoshigaki Keiichi examined the papers and discovered they were agreements dividing up benefits, written by the Hozuki Clan.

Mei Terumi and Kaki Keiichi realized the Hozuki Clan was using the captured clan heads to force their factions into surrendering resources. They accepted that they had little choice but to comply, only to learn that the captives would remain imprisoned for three to five years.

• Hozuki Masamune claimed the Terumi Family Head had signed a confession and demanded that Mei Terumi accept the Hozuki Clan’s terms.
• Mei Terumi told Kaki Keiichi the charges were a pretext to weaken their clans, while Kaki Keiichi wondered whether the captives’ deaths would end the demands.
• Mei Terumi confirmed the Terumi Family Head’s signature and explained that the leaders had likely accepted terms designed to weaken their clans without provoking an immediate fight.
• Mei Terumi warned Kaki Keiichi that refusing the family head’s orders could turn the Kaki Clan against him, and Kaki Keiichi asked when the captives would be released.
• Hozuki Masamune said the captives would repent in prison for three to five years, and Kaki Keiichi privately welcomed the time to consolidate control of the Kaki Clan.

After the Hozuki Clan crushed the coup, Mei Terumi and the Hoshigaki Clan recovered their dead and withdrew, while the Hozuki Clan consolidated its control over Kirigakure. Mei’s clan accepted the Hozuki Clan’s terms as a temporary measure and began secretly evacuating its children to prepare for a future war.

• Hozuki Masamune announced that the Hozuki Clan would deliver charges against the other families and keep their leaders safe, prompting Mei Terumi and Hoshigaki Keiichi’s forces to withdraw.
• Mei Terumi demanded the bodies of the dead, and Hozuki Masamune had a scroll summoned with the corpses, including Mei’s father, for the clans to reclaim.
• Mei Terumi warned Hozuki Masamune that the Terumi Clan would settle the matter someday, then led her people away as the Hoshigaki Clan also withdrew.
• Mei Terumi and the Terumi Clan elders agreed to the Hozuki Clan’s demands as a temporary tactic while preparing to resist later, and some subordinate forces instead switched allegiance to the Hozuki Clan.
• Mei Terumi ordered the Terumi Clan to secretly send its children and some adults out of Kirigakure in small groups, while leaving the elderly behind.

Mei Terumi struggled to prepare for war against the Hozuki Clan while Kirigakure descended into violence and disorder. Hozuki Masamune urged Tobi to curb the village’s population flight, and Tobi set his sights on recruiting Suikazan Fuguki for his organization.

• Mei Terumi learned that her clan was still short on supplies and had not uncovered the prison guards’ deployment or the hostages’ location.
• Friction and revenge among the Hozuki, Terumi, and Kaki clans spread casualties through Kirigakure, while civilians suffered and began fleeing.
• Hozuki Masamune warned Tobi that Kirigakure risked becoming a ruined village and ordered him to restrict population movement.
• Tobi mobilized Kirigakure’s forces to slow the exodus, then told Yagura they would visit the Anbu.
• Tobi decided to recruit Suikazan Fuguki, the wielder of Samehada, to replace the deceased Juzo Biwa as a high-end fighter in his organization.

Tobi targeted Suikazan Fuguki’s frustration and moved to recruit him, but Fuguki was confronted by Kisame Hoshigaki, who had survived an ambush he believed Fuguki had arranged. Fuguki revealed his betrayal through his actions and tried to kill Kisame, ending the chapter with Samehada tearing through Kisame’s chest armor.

• Tobi decided to recruit Suikazan Fuguki after judging that Fuguki had begun to waver under the Hozuki Clan’s growing control of Kirigakure.
• Kisame Hoshigaki ambushed Fuguki in an underground Anbu passage, and Fuguki cut apart Kisame’s Water Clone before the real Kisame attacked from the channel.
• Kisame accused Fuguki of leaking the details of his escort mission to Konoha, while Fuguki recognized that Kisame had survived the ambush.
• Fuguki admitted through his actions that he had used Kisame as a disposable pawn in an effort to eliminate Hozuki Clan operatives and strengthen his Anbu faction.
• Fuguki exposed Samehada, snapped Kisame’s sword, and slashed through Kisame’s chest armor as Kisame retreated.

Kisame Hoshigaki ambushed and killed Fuguki, then claimed Samehada and rejected his former life in Kirigakure. As two figures approached through the passage, Kisame turned to face them.

• Kisame used Explosive Kunai and Iron Chains rigged with Explosive Tags to disable Fuguki, then stabbed him and crippled his legs.
• Kisame told Fuguki he had killed the Anbu Mist ninja on guard and explained that he had returned to abandon Kirigakure and the beliefs that made him kill his comrades.
• Kisame took Samehada, won its approval with his chakra, and smashed Fuguki's head with the blade.
• Kisame heard footsteps and saw a tall figure and a short figure emerge from the shadows.

In Ryūchi Cave, Qi Shuang sensed that a disaster was approaching but put aside his concerns to practice the Dragon Heart Seal. In Kirigakure, Ao secretly gave Mei Terumi a map of the prison, giving the Terumi and Kaki families a way to plan the hostages’ rescue as war drew closer.

• Ichikishimahime suggested that Qi Shuang’s ominous premonition was a warning from the World Will, and Qi Shuang suspected Obito had begun moving against Kirigakure.
• Qi Shuang decided to finish learning the Dragon Heart Seal before investigating the danger, then began practicing it on himself.
• Ao visited Mei Terumi in private and told her he had mapped the prison’s guards, traps, mechanisms, and captive high-ranking figures.
• Mei Terumi welcomed Ao’s map as a crucial aid to rescuing the hostages before war broke out.

Mei Terumi joined Ao’s plan to enter Kirigakure’s prison and rescue the elders, despite her concerns for the Terumi Clan. After they reached the Terumi Clan Head, he spotted danger behind her and warned her to watch her back.

• Ao claimed Kirigakure’s worsening state had pushed him and other aides to rescue the imprisoned elders and restore order.
• Mei Terumi agreed to join the mission after Ao argued that her Boiling Release would help them escape if things went wrong.
• Mei Terumi gathered ten elite warriors, and Ao led them past guards who allowed the group to enter the prison.
• Mei Terumi sent her warriors to guard the passageways and followed the map with Ao to the deepest part of the prison.
• Mei Terumi found the Terumi Clan Head chained to a cross and prepared to break his lock with acidic mist, but he saw a cruel smile behind her and warned her to watch her back.

Tobi ambushed Mei Terumi in the underground prison, revealing that he had disguised himself as Ao and lured her there to isolate her. With her shoulder shattered and the clan leader held captive, Mei refused to reveal Qi Shuang’s whereabouts and continued fighting as Tobi attacked her.

• Tobi struck Mei Terumi from behind, then shed his Ao disguise and revealed himself as the man in the orange mask.
• Mei Terumi realized Tobi had manipulated her into entering the prison alone, while Tobi explained that the confined space and the hostages limited her options.
• Tobi told Mei Terumi that his blow had shattered her shoulder and urged her to reveal where Qi Shuang had gone.
• Mei Terumi attacked Tobi with Lava Style: Lava Monster Technique, but he phased through the mucus.
• Tobi demanded Qi Shuang’s whereabouts, and Mei Terumi refused to tell him even if she knew.
• Tobi rushed Mei Terumi, phased through her Acid Mist, and swung an elbow at her from behind.

Tobi overpowered Mei Terumi and destroyed the snow lotus Qi Shuang had given her, but its fragments formed a message announcing Qi Shuang’s return. Far away in Ryūchi Cave, Qi Shuang learned of Mei’s attack through the snow lotus’s recorded information.

• Tobi struck Mei Terumi and rendered her too weak to fight, then used Sharingan genjutsu to silence the Terumi Clan Head.
• Tobi recognized the fallen snow lotus as an Ice Release creation and guessed Qi Shuang had given it to Mei Terumi.
• Tobi mocked Mei Terumi by pretending to return the snow lotus, then crushed it with his vines as she watched helplessly.
• The ice fragments gathered into the words “Return at Once,” which Tobi understood as a sign that Qi Shuang was returning.
• In Ryūchi Cave, Qi Shuang learned through the shattered snow lotus that Mei Terumi had been attacked.

Tobi captured Mei Terumi and used her disappearance to push the Terumi Clan and Hoshigaki Clan toward war with the Hozuki Clan. As the clans weighed the risks of striking first, Kirigakure's civil war remained poised to begin.

• Tobi used Sharingan genjutsu to incapacitate Mei Terumi after Shark Face reported killing nine Terumi Clan ninjas.
• Tobi placed Mei Terumi in the cell with Ao, gave her chakra-sealing medicine, and chained her up.
• Terumi Clan ninjas waiting outside the prison reported that Mei Terumi had not returned, and the clan's elders feared something had happened to her.
• The Terumi Clan began discussing battle preparations with the Hoshigaki Clan after its clan head and Young Clan Head suffered repeated incidents.
• The Hoshigaki Clan hesitated to start a civil war because the first side to attack would lose public support and risk driving scattered Mist ninjas toward its rivals.

Qi Shuang absorbed years of intelligence from the Snow Lotus Clone, learned that Mei Terumi had been captured, and left Ryūchi Cave to return to Kirigakure. In the dungeon, Mei broke free of Genjutsu and learned from Ao that the Fourth Mizukage had long been controlled by the man in the One-Eyed Mask.

• Qi Shuang received years of the Snow Lotus Clone’s memories, suffered a severe headache, and learned about Kirigakure’s upheaval and Mei’s capture.
• Qi Shuang told the White Snake Sage he had to leave Ryūchi Cave, and she sent snakes to investigate Kirigakure and record his actions.
• Qi Shuang flew from Ryūchi Cave toward Kirigakure, choosing an aerial route across the Land of Fire to avoid Konoha shinobi.
• Mei Terumi broke free of the Genjutsu in the dungeon and realized she and Ao were imprisoned in separate cells.
• Ao told Mei Terumi that the Fourth Mizukage had been controlled by the One-Eyed Mask for a long time and was now only a puppet.