Chapter Summaries

Yakushi Nonō learned that Danzo had deceived her about Yakushi Kabuto and was reunited with her son in Star City. Kabuto agreed to join Menma’s organization, but insisted on staying near Konoha for now so he could protect Menma and avoid drawing Danzo’s suspicion.

• Yakushi Nonō recognized Yakushi Kabuto in the Starry Water Surface genjutsu and realized Danzo had tricked her into failing to recognize her son.
• Uchiha Hikari brought Yakushi Nonō out of detention and led her to Menma in a quiet courtyard.
• Menma told Yakushi Nonō that Kabuto had agreed to join the organization in exchange for her safety.
• Yakushi Kabuto arrived, and he and Yakushi Nonō embraced as they reunited.
• Yakushi Kabuto explained that faking their deaths too soon would alert Danzo and endanger the orphanage children.
• Yakushi Kabuto told Menma he would not let him face Konoha’s shadows alone, and Menma accepted his resolve.

At an Uchiha clan meeting, Fugaku rejected calls for a coup, while Itachi reported the clan’s unrest to Hiruzen. Danzō decided to act against Shisui, coveting his Mangekyō Sharingan and Kotoamatsukami.

• Tekka Uchiha, Inabi Uchiha, and other Uchiha jōnin urged Fugaku to overthrow Hiruzen and become the Fifth Hokage.
• Fugaku refused to lead a rebellion, warned that it would destroy the Uchiha, and dismissed the meeting.
• Itachi told Hiruzen that Fugaku had refused but that the clan’s jōnin were close to losing control.
• Danzō argued that Konoha should weaken the Uchiha before they rebelled, but Hiruzen ordered him to stop.
• Danzō returned to Root, summoned its members, and prepared to move against Shisui to seize his Mangekyō Sharingan.

Shisui met with Danzō to discuss stopping the Uchiha rebellion, but Danzō attacked him after questioning whether Shisui would use Kotoamatsukami on him. Shisui subdued Danzō with his Mangekyō Sharingan genjutsu, but Danzō used Izanagi to reappear behind him and take his right eye.

• Shisui told Danzō he would use Kotoamatsukami to stop the Uchiha rebellion if necessary and said Hiruzen had promised to support Uchiha integration.
• Danzō challenged Shisui over whether he would use Kotoamatsukami to change Danzō’s own will, then lunged for Shisui’s right eye.
• Shisui dodged the attack, restrained Danzō’s wrist, and trapped him in Mangekyō Sharingan genjutsu.
• Shisui released Danzō and turned to leave, believing the genjutsu would soon wear off.
• Danzō used Izanagi to appear in front of Shisui and stab out his right eye, leaving Shisui wounded and blinded on that side.

Danzo stole Shisui’s Mangekyō Sharingan, but Shisui escaped the Root ambush and was pursued through the forest. Asura captured him with chakra chains, and Shisui agreed to go with him rather than fall into Danzo’s hands.

• Danzo ordered Root to kill or capture Shisui after stealing his Mangekyō Sharingan, but Shisui escaped with a Fire Release technique.
• Menma’s Shadow Clone sensed the battle, realized Danzo had taken Shisui’s eye, and sent another clone to alert the main body.
• Shisui fled toward his secret training ground with Itachi, hoping to tell him about Danzo’s attack and the danger facing the Uchiha.
• Asura bound Shisui with chakra chains and offered to take him away from Konoha and Danzo’s reach.
• Shisui agreed to go with Asura so he would not fall into Danzo’s hands.

Asura brought the gravely wounded Shisui to a laboratory, where Uchiha Hikari and Menma prepared to transplant cloned Sharingan into him. Meanwhile, Root searched the forest but could find no trace of how Shisui had vanished.

• Asura transported Shisui from the forest to a laboratory and removed the chakra chains holding him.
• Uchiha Hikari examined Shisui as Menma explained that they would transplant cloned Single Tomoe Sharingan into him.
• Menma's Shadow Clone prepared the Sharingan for surgery while Shisui questioned where they had come from.
• Aburame Tatsuma, Yamanaka Fu, and Root ninja searched the forest and found that Shisui's scent, chakra, and mental traces stopped abruptly.
• Aburame Tatsuma ordered a wider search, but the Root team found no sign of Shisui.

After Shisui Uchiha vanished without a trace, Hiruzen Sarutobi questioned Danzō, who denied any involvement. Itachi Uchiha was accused by clan members of knowing about Shisui’s disappearance, and his anger erupted into a sudden attack.

• Hiruzen Sarutobi asked Danzō whether he or Root had anything to do with Shisui Uchiha’s disappearance, and Danzō denied it.
• Itachi Uchiha struggled with grief and confusion as the search for his missing friend turned up nothing.
• Yashiro Uchiha, Tekka Uchiha, and Inabi Uchiha confronted Itachi and accused him of concealing or helping arrange Shisui’s disappearance.
• Itachi insisted he knew nothing, then lost control when Inabi called him a traitor.
• Itachi vanished from the courtyard in a ghostlike charge, startling the three Uchiha jonin.

Itachi attacked Inabi, Tekka, and Yashiro after they accused him over Shisui’s disappearance, but Fugaku intervened before he could strike Yashiro. Itachi left the Uchiha manor, determined to investigate Shisui’s disappearance himself.

• Itachi struck Inabi and knocked Tekka back when Tekka tried to attack him.
• Itachi used his Mangekyō Sharingan to freeze Yashiro and prepared to hit him.
• Fugaku arrived and stopped the fight, then demanded to know why Itachi had attacked his clansmen.
• Itachi confronted Fugaku about the clan’s suspicions and declared that he would investigate Shisui’s disappearance himself.
• Itachi left the manor without looking back, as Fugaku and the injured clansmen watched.

Shisui was forced to witness an illusion of the Uchiha clan massacre, including Itachi killing his family and the village’s forces standing by. The horror and betrayal drove Shisui’s transplanted Sharingan toward awakening.

• Shisui recalled Danzo taking his right eye and wondered how Danzo had used Izanagi.
• A powerful force plunged Shisui into a vision of Itachi and a masked man slaughtering the Uchiha clan.
• Shisui watched Itachi kill Fugaku and Mikoto after Fugaku accepted his son’s choice.
• Shisui saw Konoha’s Anbu and Danzo’s Root observing the massacre without intervening.
• Shisui realized the village had tacitly approved the purge, and his grief and rage surged into his transplanted Sharingan.

Asura confronted Shisui after a genjutsu made him witness the Uchiha clan’s slaughter, and Shisui’s transplanted Sharingan evolved into a Three-Tomoe Sharingan. Asura revealed details meant to convince Shisui that Konoha’s leaders would destroy the clan, leaving Shisui’s faith in the Third Hokage and Itachi wavering.

• Shisui endured the agony of Asura’s genjutsu and awakened a Three-Tomoe Sharingan in his transplanted eye.
• Asura appeared in Shisui’s hospital room and praised his evolution, then claimed the vision showed the Uchiha clan’s future.
• Shisui rejected Asura’s claims and insisted that the Third Hokage and Itachi would never permit a massacre.
• Asura told Shisui that Danzo had taken his eye and identified a masked Uchiha as the culprit behind the Nine-Tails’ attack.
• Asura described Itachi joining Danzo’s plan to massacre the Uchiha and argued that Shisui’s hope for peace between the clan and village was an illusion.
• Shisui struggled to defend his faith in the Third Hokage and Itachi as he considered whether Danzo could act without the Hokage’s knowledge.

After Asura forced Shisui to awaken Three-Tomoe Sharingan through an illusion of the Uchiha Clan’s destruction, Shisui stayed in the Land of Stars to recover and gather intelligence. He discovered that Asura had brought together survivors and descendants of several rare bloodline clans, leaving Shisui wondering what Asura was building there.

• Asura told Shisui that Konoha would eventually destroy the Uchiha Clan and warned him not to flee the Land of Stars.
• Shisui endured the memories of the clan-extermination illusion and adapted to his new Three-Tomoe Sharingan the next day.
• Shisui chose to remain in the Land of Stars rather than risk worsening the conflict between Konoha and the Uchiha Clan.
• Shisui spotted an Uzumaki clan crest on a neighboring courtyard and saw Uzumaki Fuka training Kaguya Kimimaro alongside Yuki Haku and Iburi Yukimi.
• Fuka introduced Shisui to the young ninjas, and Shisui realized Asura had gathered descendants of multiple rare bloodline clans and transplanted Byakugan into Kimimaro.

Uzumaki Fuka challenged Shisui’s faith in Konoha and urged him to consider moving the Uchiha Clan to the Land of Stars. Shisui did not accept her proposal, but he asked for time to decide as he stood in Star City beneath its newly lit skies.

• Uzumaki Fuka explained that the Land of Stars had taken in Kekkei Genkai clans and used Hyuga Byakugan to help balance the Kaguya Clan’s Kekkei Genkai Disease, while Kimimaro credited Lord Asura with giving them strength and purpose.
• Fuka compared Konoha’s treatment of the Uchiha to the abandonment of the Uzumaki Clan and argued that the Third Hokage had never truly welcomed an Uchiha into the Hokage line as Tobirama Senju had accepted Kagami Uchiha.
• Shisui shattered his teacup as Fuka argued that Konoha treated the Uchiha as dangerous tools to control and use, then healed his injured hand with medical chakra.
• Fuka urged Shisui to consider moving the entire Uchiha Clan to the Land of Stars, warning that Danzo’s attempt to steal his eye signaled a coming purge and describing threats beyond the Five Great Nations.
• Fuka presented the Land of Stars as Lord Asura’s base for opposing the old order and greater threats, and said the Sharingan could help their cause.
• Shisui asked for a lot of time to consider Fuka’s proposal, and she left him alone in the courtyard as Star City’s lights came on.

Shisui reconsidered the Uchiha’s place in Konoha after Asura asked whether the clan had ever owed the village anything. As the first snow fell, Shisui was left alone with the impossible choice between protecting his clan and remaining loyal to Konoha.

• Shisui recalled the bonds Kagami Uchiha and Uchiha Obito had shared with Konoha’s leaders, then contrasted them with Hiruzen Sarutobi’s distance from the Uchiha.
• Asura visited Shisui and asked whether the Uchiha Clan had ever owed Konoha anything.
• Shisui insisted that the Uchiha had sacrificed and fought for Konoha throughout its history.
• Asura asked what Shisui would do if the village’s leaders turned against the Uchiha and ordered their extermination.
• Shisui considered seeking Hiruzen’s help, resisting with his clan, or stopping Itachi, but could find no way to protect everyone.
• The first snow of Konoha’s 56th year fell as Asura disappeared, leaving Shisui alone and uncertain.

Menma reunited with Naruto in the Hidden Leaf and joined him and Hinata for ramen after Naruto argued with Sasuke. At Ichiraku, Menma gave Naruto his char siu, quietly trying to bridge the distance between them.

• Menma returned from the Land of Stars and went to meet Naruto for their planned ramen outing.
• Naruto and Sasuke argued after bumping into each other at the park entrance, and Menma interrupted them.
• Hinata joined Menma and Naruto, and the three headed to Ichiraku while Sasuke watched them leave.
• At Ichiraku, Menma gave Naruto the char siu from his bowl, and Naruto thanked him before continuing to eat.

During Konoha’s Spring Festival, Menma hosted Naruto, Hinata, and baby Hanabi as the children celebrated and received a visit from Hiruzen Sarutobi. Hiruzen gave them New Year’s gifts and discussed their upcoming enrollment in the Ninja Academy, where Naruto eagerly hoped to make friends.

• Naruto practiced hand seals while Big Sister Hinata criticized his technique and played with Hanabi.
• Big Sister Hinata complained to Menma about the Hyuga Main House as Ko Hyuga guarded the house.
• Hiruzen Sarutobi arrived with gifts and New Year’s money for Naruto, Menma, and Hinata.
• Hiruzen Sarutobi told the children that the Ninja Academy would begin in spring, and Naruto eagerly anticipated making friends.
• Menma agreed to work hard at the academy, while Big Sister Hinata agreed to attend and warned that she would fight anyone who bullied her or Hanabi.

Menma accompanied Naruto on the first day of the Ninja Academy, where Naruto clashed with Sasuke and the class gave their introductions. Hinata abruptly declared that she would attack anyone who set their sights on Menma, and Shino Aburame introduced himself after Iruka realized he had been missed.

• Menma and Naruto arrived at the Ninja Academy and found their classmates, including Shikamaru, Choji, Ino, Sakura, and Kiba.
• Sasuke entered, and Naruto challenged him until Iruka intervened and began the class introductions.
• Naruto declared his dream of becoming Hokage and defeating Sasuke, while Menma gave only his name.
• Hinata transformed from shy to fierce and threatened anyone who set their sights on Menma, leaving the class stunned and Menma embarrassed.
• Iruka noticed Shino Aburame had been omitted from the attendance introductions, and Shino gave his name.

Menma attended the Academy with Naruto and Hinata while Shikamaru noticed Naruto’s rejection by villagers and Menma’s unusual composure. The chapter ended with Shikamaru encountering the trio at Wanxiang Sweet Drinks and growing more suspicious of Menma.

• Menma sat through Iruka’s chakra lesson while concealing that he was the real Menma rather than a Shadow Clone.
• Naruto befriended Choji, Kiba, and Shikamaru, while continuing to rival Sasuke and drawing Menma and Hinata close to him.
• Shikamaru asked Shikaku about Naruto’s background and Menma’s quiet behavior, but Shikaku gave only vague answers and called Menma an ordinary war orphan.
• Ino and Choji took Shikamaru to Konoha’s commercial street, where they found Naruto, Menma, and Hinata waiting at the newly opened Wanxiang Sweet Drinks.

Menma mastered Yin-Yang Release and created a stable Black Receiver before sensing two unfamiliar chakra signatures approaching Konoha from the direction of the moon. He suspected Toneri and his father were targeting Hinata and Hanabi, and sent a Shadow Clone to track them and locate the passage to the moon.

• Naruto, Menma, Hinata, Shikamaru, Choji, and Ino tried drinks at Menma's family's new shop, then walked through Konoha together as Choji shared food recommendations with Naruto and Ino teased Hinata about Menma.
• Menma escorted Hinata to the Hyuga compound, returned home, and gave Mini-Kurama a box of sweets.
• Menma trained in his room and used Yin-Yang Release to form a stable Black Receiver, realizing he had crossed a major threshold toward mastering the Power of All Creation.
• Menma sensed two powerful, unfamiliar chakra signatures outside Konoha's barrier rushing toward the Hyuga territory, recognized them as Toneri and his father, and suspected they were after Hinata and Hanabi.
• Menma created a Shadow Clone and ordered it to track Toneri and his father and find the passage to the moon.

Otsutsuki Sakuto and Toneri arrived near Konoha and plotted to use Hinata Hyuga and Hanabi Hyuga to awaken the Tenseigan. After Menma’s Shadow Clone found the passage to the moon, Menma prepared an expedition and summoned Hizashi Hyuga to meet their distant relatives.

• Otsutsuki Sakuto identified Hinata Hyuga and Hanabi Hyuga as valuable bloodline heirs, ordering Toneri to marry Hinata and take Hanabi’s eyes to awaken the Tenseigan.
• Menma’s Shadow Clone followed Sakuto and Toneri to a hidden cave near the Land of Fire and the Land of Grass, where it found the moon passage and planted a Flying Thunder God kunai.
• Menma learned what the Otsutsuki planned and chose Uchiha Hikari, Uzumaki Fuka, Uchiha Shisui, Kaguya Kimimaro, and Hizashi Hyuga to accompany him to the moon.
• Menma appeared before Hizashi Hyuga and told him to meet at the Valley of the End at midnight the next day to meet the Hyuga clan’s distant relatives.
• Hizashi realized that Menma meant the clan that had hunted Hyuga and collected their Byakugan, whose enormous eye might help undo the Caged Bird Cursed Seal.

Menma assembled Hikari, Fuka, Kimimaro, and Shisui to plan a raid on the Otsutsuki Clan inside the moon, then revealed that Hizashi Hyuga would join the Land of Stars. At the Valley of the End, Hizashi and Shisui recognized each other across the river, leaving Shisui shaken by the proof that Hizashi had defected.

• Menma summoned Hikari, Fuka, Kimimaro, and Shisui and explained the mission to investigate the moon's Otsutsuki Clan and its forces.
• Menma assigned Hikari to lead the defense if he was absent, told Fuka to prepare sealing scrolls, and warned Kimimaro that the Otsutsuki were his ancestors.
• Menma told the group that Hizashi Hyuga and the Hyuga Branch House would join the Land of Stars, shocking Shisui.
• Hizashi left Konoha with his wife and Neji under the pretense of visiting the Taketori Clan, then secretly traveled to the Valley of the End.
• Hizashi recognized Shisui among Menma's group, and Shisui confirmed that Hizashi had come to join the Land of Stars.

Menma led his team through a hidden passage into the interior of the moon, where they encountered genjutsu traps and a giant crab puppet. The team reached a vast inner world and identified the warm light at its center as their target.

• Hizashi Hyuga joined Menma's group at the Valley of the End, and they traveled to a cavern and submerged into a hidden passage.
• Shisui and Hizashi were caught in illusions that exploited their deepest fears, but Asura used the Book of Vermilion Moon to free them.
• Fuka bound a giant crab puppet with Adamantine Sealing Chains, and Kimimaro destroyed it with Ten-Finger Drilling Bullets.
• Menma led the team out of the crystal cavern and revealed they had reached the inside of the moon, pointing out their target in the dome's center.
• Menma formed the Nine Mask Svāhā and summoned the masked Azure Dragon and Vermilion Bird.