Chapter Summaries

Jiraiya was struck by Kisame’s Samehada while trying to convert natural energy, and the battle devastated Mount Myoboku. He emerged from the crater in Sage Mode with Fukasaku and Shima beside him, preparing to face the surviving enemies.

• Kisame attacked Jiraiya with Samehada, sending him crashing into a mountainside as Gamabunta fought off a swarm of sharks.
• Gamabunta immobilized the sharks with Water Release and went to check on Jiraiya, while Gamaken and Gamahiro fell in battle and the Iwayado Great Toad was destroyed by Susanoo.
• Kisame and Kakuzu regrouped on Gamahiro’s corpse, and Kisame said Samehada enjoyed the senjutsu chakra it had absorbed from Jiraiya.
• Hizashi watched the battle with his Byakugan, then took out a heavy sniper rifle and prepared to support the others against Jiraiya.
• Jiraiya emerged from the crater in Sage Mode with Sage Fukasaku and Sage Shima on his shoulders, ready to confront the enemies who had devastated Mount Myoboku.

Jiraiya entered Sage Mode and fought Kisame and Kakuzu amid Mount Myoboku’s destruction while Gamabunta battled Shisui’s Susanoo. As Jiraiya and the toad sages tried to use the fog for a sneak attack, Hizashi Hyuga shot Sage Fukasaku from two kilometers away, leaving Jiraiya stunned.

• Sage Fukasaku and Sage Shima returned to Mount Myoboku after sheltering young toads in a pocket dimension and found their homeland flooded and devastated.
• Jiraiya entered Sage Mode and joined Sage Fukasaku, Sage Shima, and Gamabunta in fighting Kisame, Kakuzu, and Shisui’s Susanoo.
• Jiraiya and the two sages used Sage Art: Goemon, but Kisame countered it with Water Style: Exploding Water Colliding Wave, filling the battlefield with steam.
• Sage Fukasaku proposed using the fog to approach an enemy and attack with genjutsu, but he was suddenly shot and killed.
• Hizashi Hyuga, concealed two kilometers away with a sniper rifle, chambered another round and said that times had changed, Lord Jiraiya.

Jiraiya fought Kisame and Kakuzu in the mist while Hizashi used long-range weapons to support them, but losing Sage Fukasaku left Jiraiya unable to sustain Sage Mode. Kisame defeated Jiraiya underwater, and Sage Shima died as Shisui prepared to finish Gamabunta.

• Jiraiya tried to close in on Kisame and Kakuzu after Sage Fukasaku was killed by a distant shot, but his Sage Mode began to fade without Fukasaku's support.
• Kakuzu's tentacle-linked arms attacked Jiraiya, and Kisame joined him at close range, draining Jiraiya's senjutsu chakra with Samehada.
• Jiraiya dove underwater to avoid Hizashi's shots, while Hizashi fired an explosive round that badly wounded Gamabunta during Shisui's assault.
• Kisame transformed into his Samehada Fusion Form underwater, pierced Jiraiya with bone spines, and drained his chakra.
• Kisame carried the helpless Jiraiya out of the water, while Sage Shima died and Gamabunta lay gravely wounded beneath Shisui's raised Spiral Sword.

Menma’s forces defeated Mount Myoboku, gathered its resources and toad corpses, and withdrew while Hizashi treated the wounded Jiraiya. Menma killed the Great Toad Sage with the Golden Wheel Reincarnation Explosion, and Mount Myoboku’s collapsing dimension began to break apart.

• Kisame Hoshigaki defeated Jiraiya with help from Kakuzu and Hizashi, but stopped Kakuzu from killing him because he was Minato’s teacher.
• Hizashi treated Jiraiya’s wounds as Shisui arrived with Menma’s order to withdraw and collect the toads as research materials.
• Hoshinin forces evacuated Mount Myoboku with captured toads and looted supplies while Jiraiya watched Menma battle the Great Toad Sage.
• Menma questioned the Great Toad Sage about Mount Myoboku’s interference in human affairs, then used the Golden Wheel Reincarnation Explosion to kill it.
• Menma’s attack split Mount Myoboku and its dimension, which began collapsing into a chaotic void.

After the battle at Mount Myoboku, Jiraiya recovered in a Hoshinin camp and planned to confront Minato about Menma's attack. While questioning three injured Genin, he heard how the Land of Stars addressed poverty and oppression, leaving him feeling that they had educated him instead.

• Hizashi carried the wounded Jiraiya and the Hoshinin Corps through a passage from Mount Myoboku to a temporary camp beneath a waterfall in the Land of Rivers.
• Jiraiya reflected on the camp's wounded and resolved to recover before demanding answers from Minato in Star City.
• Jiraiya befriended three injured Hoshinin and tried to learn their views, but one asked about the lives of ordinary people in other countries.
• The three Genin described how feudal lords and merchants trapped farmers in debt and explained the Land of Stars' land policies, lending laws, and interest-free agricultural loans.
• The Genin declared that they wanted to overthrow oppressive rulers and liberate suffering people, leaving Jiraiya stunned by their convictions.
• Murahashi Hazuki entered with two medical ninja to examine the wounded, and the three Genin fell silent.

Jiraiya recovered in the Land of Stars and learned that Kushina, Tsunade, and Katsuyu were there, while Menma led an operation that wiped out Mount Myoboku. As the other villages mobilized for war against the Land of Stars, Kakashi learned of Mount Myoboku’s destruction and the Land of Stars’ warning to the Summoned Beast clans.

• Murahashi Hazuki treated Jiraiya with medicine developed by the Medical Science Academy, and he learned that Kushina taught at the ninja academy and Tsunade taught at the Medical Department.
• Katsuyu greeted Jiraiya in the field hospital as Menma led an operation to wipe out Mount Myoboku.
• Raikage A ordered Killer B and Yugito to remain in Kumogakure and Dodai to defend the village, then sent more than ten thousand Kumogakure Ninja to war.
• Mei Terumi led nearly eight thousand Kirigakure ninja out of the village as Karatachi Yagura and the elders watched.
• Shimura Danzō’s mobilization order sent Konoha shinobi and retired ninja preparing for war, while Kakashi remained under Root surveillance.
• Pakkun told Kakashi that the Land of Stars had warned Summoned Beast clans not to aid its enemies and had wiped out Mount Myoboku, prompting Kakashi to conclude that Menma was getting serious.

Kakashi learned from Yakushi Kabuto that Obito was still alive, while Hinata heard that the Hyuga clan had been ordered to send two hundred shinobi to the allied forces. The chapter ended with Hiashi revealing that Shikaku had been asking about Minato.

• Kakashi watched Leaf ninja depart for the war and heard Rock Lee describe the Land of Stars as a place that protected and valued ordinary people.
• Guy and Rock Lee challenged each other to more handstand running, while Kakashi declined Guy’s invitation to duel.
• Yakushi Kabuto appeared in Kakashi’s apartment and said he had come on orders from Menma and Minato to share information about Obito.
• Kabuto confirmed that Obito was still alive, and Kakashi dropped his kunai in shock.
• Hiashi told Hinata that the acting Hokage had requested two hundred Hyuga shinobi for the allied forces and that Shikaku had been asking about Minato.

Mifune arrived at the Shinobi Allied Forces’ assembly camp and found that old grudges were already causing clashes among the gathered villages. After the Kage deadlocked over command, Mifune proposed dividing the forces into separate routes to Star City, and the leaders began weighing the plan.

• Mifune led more than a thousand samurai from the Land of Iron into the Allied Forces’ camp and saw shinobi from different villages fighting over old feuds.
• Mifune entered the headquarters and found A, Mei Terumi, Danzo, and Ōnoki arguing over who should command the Allied Forces.
• Raikage A described how Asura’s chakra-disrupting black weapon pierced his Lightning Release Armor and forced him to cut off his left hand.
• Mifune proposed a joint command of strategists and separate routes to Star City because the Allied Forces could not operate together safely.
• Mei Terumi argued that the Land of Stars could not field enough shinobi to stop the divided armies, and the leaders considered racing to capture Star City first.

The Kage argued over which major village should lead the smaller shinobi villages in the Allied Forces, until Mui proposed assigning them by lottery. The four divisions were organized to attack the Land of Stars from separate routes, while the Land of Iron samurai and other shinobi formed a mobile reserve.

• Ōnoki, A, Mei Terumi, and Danzo each argued that their village should lead groups of smaller shinobi villages.
• Mui proposed drawing lots and limiting each division to twenty thousand troops, and the leaders accepted his plan.
• Mifune oversaw the lottery, with Akatsuchi, Darui, Aburame Tatsuma, and Chojuro drawing assignments under supervision.
• Iwagakure led the First Division, the Hidden Leaf Village led the Second, Kumogakure led the Third, and Kirigakure led the Fourth in attacks on the Land of Stars.
• The Land of Iron samurai and several smaller shinobi villages formed a mobile force to support any division.

Akatsuki assessed the Shinobi Allied Forces and prepared to capture the Two-Tails and Three-Tails jinchuriki while the villages focused on the coming war. In Star City, Naruto rushed out to meet Menma after remembering the promised “cheat.”

• White Zetsu reported that the Shinobi Allied Forces had assembled more than eighty thousand ninja and that Hoshinin forces had recently returned from the Land of Rivers with wounded.
• Black Zetsu reported the jinchuriki’s locations, and Deva Path Pain ordered Sasori, Genchuka, and Tobi to capture Kumogakure’s Two-Tails Jinchuriki.
• Deva Path Pain sent Itachi Uchiha and Ringo Ameyuri to capture Kirigakure’s Three-Tails Jinchuriki after the Two-Tails was secured.
• Naruto woke late, remembered Menma’s promised “cheat,” and rushed out of the house without finishing breakfast.
• Kushina scolded Naruto as he left, while Minato quietly enjoyed their family life.

Naruto and Sasuke watched Hoshinin students take an early graduation assessment and learned that war was approaching. Sato Sayun then summoned them to the Gene Modification Surgery room, where Menma awaited them for a test that could greatly increase their strength.

• Naruto hurried to Sasuke's house, and Sasuke knocked him into the ground before they left for Training Ground Nine.
• Naruto and Sasuke found academy students taking an early graduation assessment, where Ajisai and three other teachers evaluated them.
• Sato Sayun arrived and explained that the students sought early graduation because war was near and they wanted to help change the Shinobi World.
• Sato Sayun told Naruto and Sasuke that Menma was waiting in the Gene Modification Surgery room and that passing the challenge could make them stronger than him.

Sato Sayun brought Naruto and Sasuke to the Land of Stars’ experimental district, where Menma and Orochimaru prepared them for Gene Modification Surgery. After choosing their convictions as anchor points, Naruto and Sasuke received the gene enhancement fluid and fell unconscious as the operation began.

• Sato Sayun led Naruto and Sasuke through the experimental district and explained how Gene Modification Surgery could awaken dormant bloodline potential.
• Sayun brought them to a laboratory on the eighteenth underground floor, where Orochimaru greeted them and Menma explained the planned procedures.
• Menma told Naruto that the surgery would help prepare his body to receive the Yin Nine-Tails so their parents could be revived from Impure World Reincarnation.
• Menma explained that the surgery could strengthen Sasuke’s body but could not guarantee that he would awaken the Mangekyō Sharingan.
• Naruto chose protecting his loved ones and building peace as his anchor point, while Sasuke chose to kill Itachi and secure a good life with Mikoto.
• Orochimaru injected Naruto and Sasuke with the Gene Modification Fluid, and both fell unconscious.

Naruto found himself in a mental world where he confronted a murderous version of himself, who claimed to embody his hatred of Konoha and demanded his body. The dark counterpart approached as the blood-red Nine-Tails aura grew stronger.

• Naruto woke in a dark place, then found himself in a version of Konoha where villagers could not see or touch him.
• Naruto saw another version of himself being insulted by villagers, while a nine-tailed aura gathered behind the boy.
• The other Naruto killed villagers, and Naruto tried to stop him but was knocked aside.
• The boy identified himself as Naruto's dark side and accused Naruto of denying his hatred and craving the villagers' acceptance.
• Dark Naruto declared himself most compatible with the Nine-Tails and demanded Naruto's body.

Sasuke confronted the memory of Itachi and fought him inside his mental world while undergoing genetic enhancement surgery. As Menma discussed the coming war and a mass wedding with Sazun, he learned that Deidara and Kurotsuchi had arrived with important intelligence.

• Sasuke steadied himself by recalling his mother and faced the scene of Itachi massacring the Uchiha clan.
• Sasuke and Itachi began a fierce battle in Sasuke's mental world.
• Menma reassured Sazun about Naruto and Sasuke's chances of surviving their genetic enhancement surgeries.
• Menma asked Sazun whether he would join the Star Ninja Army's mass wedding ceremony before the war, and Sazun admitted he needed to ask his partner.
• A researcher reported that Deidara and Kurotsuchi had arrived at the capital and claimed to have important intelligence for Menma.

Deidara and Kurotsuchi entered the Land of Stars, where fighters intercepted them and Deidara’s reckless flying ended in a crash. After Kurotsuchi explained that she had defected from Iwagakure to join the Will of the Star, Menma arrived to welcome them.

• Deidara climbed higher on his clay bird to challenge the two Peregrine Falcon Fighters, while Kurotsuchi urged him to descend.
• The fighters caught up and warned Deidara to land, but Kurotsuchi kicked him, causing the clay bird to lose control and plunge toward the ground.
• A search team found Deidara and Kurotsuchi and brought them under guard at a radar station, where Kurotsuchi explained that she had come to warn the Land of Stars and join its cause.
• The Hyuga squad captain told Kurotsuchi that people who wanted to change the Shinobi World could become companions, and Menma arrived to take charge of her and Deidara.
• Menma welcomed Deidara to the Land of Stars, and Deidara praised its fighter planes.

Menma welcomed Kurotsuchi and Deidara to the Land of Stars after they left Iwagakure. Deidara joined the Hoshinin, eager to test his explosions at the Land of Stars' weapons-testing grounds.

• Menma learned that Ōnoki had imprisoned Kurotsuchi and the other shinobi who had studied in the Land of Stars for opposing his war plans.
• Menma welcomed Kurotsuchi back, and she gratefully accepted his offer to join the Land of Stars.
• Deidara claimed he had rescued Kurotsuchi and asked to join the Hoshinin so he could see the Land of Stars' Scientific Ninja Tools.
• Menma accepted Deidara and warned him not to cause damage outside the designated testing grounds.
• Menma described the testing grounds' city models and experiments, and Deidara agreed to become his subordinate.

Naruto confronted and defeated his dark personality by explaining that he could forgive the villagers and work toward mutual understanding without hatred. Darkened Naruto accepted Naruto as family and began to disappear as the mental world cleared.

• Naruto realized Darkened Naruto's strength was limited by his own body and mind, and resolved to overcome his limits.
• Naruto told Darkened Naruto that the villagers had acted out of ignorance and deception, and that he chose to forgive them and help them understand their mistakes.
• Naruto remembered the friends who had cared for him and offered to be Darkened Naruto's first friend.
• Darkened Naruto's black Rasengan vanished when it touched Naruto, who embraced him and called him family.
• Darkened Naruto cried, embraced Naruto, and began dissolving into black fragments as sunlight cleared the mental world.

Sasuke awakened the Mangekyō Sharingan after confronting his grief and anger over Itachi in his mental world. He recovered from the gene modification surgery and challenged Sazun to a spar, intent on testing his newfound strength.

• Sasuke repeatedly lost to the Itachi phantom in his mental space until Itachi tapped his forehead and asked him to forgive him.
• Sasuke's rage and grief shattered the mental world, and his Three-Tomoe Sharingan transformed into the Mangekyō Sharingan.
• Sasuke woke in Orochimaru's laboratory, examined his new eyes in a mirror, and sensed an additional power within them.
• Sasuke learned that Naruto had awakened before him and had been waiting with Sato Sayun, while Orochimaru said their physical and chakra growth nearly matched Menma's.
• Sasuke asked Sazun to spar and declared that he would defeat Sazun, then Shisui, before challenging Lady Hikari.

After Sasuke lost a punishing training match with Sato Sayun, a wartime alarm interrupted the session and Namikaze Minato announced that the Land of Stars had been invaded by the Shinobi Allied Forces. Minato ordered total war mobilization, and the citizens rallied to defend the new nation as Jiraiya watched in silence.

• Sato Sayun defeated Sasuke in training, but Sasuke refused Naruto's help and demanded another fight until Sato Sayun stopped the sparring.
• A highest-level wartime alarm sounded at Training Ground 7, and Sato Sayun gave Sasuke Military Ration Pills to restore his strength.
• Namikaze Minato appeared on broadcasts across the Land of Stars and announced that Iwagakure, the Hidden Leaf Village, Kumogakure, Kirigakure, and other villages had invaded.
• Minato condemned the Shinobi Allied Forces and declared total war mobilization, ordering combat-capable citizens to register and production units to switch to wartime operations.
• Citizens across the Land of Stars cheered and headed to military offices, while Jiraiya watched the national flag and then lay back down in silence.

After announcing the coming war, Minato oversaw the Land of Stars’ total mobilization while Menma arrived with news of Naruto and Sasuke’s successful genetic surgeries. Menma revealed his plan to revive Minato and Kushina as part of his ambition to lead humanity through Genetic Ascension, and Minato agreed to be the first subject.

• The Land of Stars imposed wartime military control and mobilized its people, industries, and services after Minato’s broadcast.
• Kushina worried that telling citizens about the war would cause panic, but Minato said honesty would help mobilize them.
• Menma arrived at the government meeting and told Kushina that Naruto and Sasuke’s first genetic surgeries had gone smoothly.
• Menma announced that Naruto was ready and that he planned to revive Minato and Kushina, prompting the other officials to leave the room.
• Menma described his goal of giving humanity immortality through soul transfer and cloned bodies, and Minato agreed to begin with himself.