Chapter Summaries

Tengen Uzui fought the Third Raikage to a standstill while claiming to be a Root ninja, then warned him that Sand Village forces were approaching. Rasa led three thousand Sand ninja toward the battle, intending to drive the Third Raikage out of the Land of Wind.

• The Third Raikage pursued Tengen Uzui, who evaded his attacks and claimed his Sound Release and sword skills came from Root training under Danzo.
• Tengen Uzui proposed ending their fight in a draw, but the Third Raikage refused and threatened to wipe out the black-clad fighters with his three thousand ninja.
• Tengen Uzui warned the Third Raikage that Sand Village ninja would soon arrive, using their approach to pressure him to stop fighting.
• Sand Village ninja observed the battle from behind a dune while a force of three thousand led by Rasa hurried toward Loulan to drive the Third Raikage away.

After withdrawing from Loulan, the Third Raikage ordered the Cloud-Hidden ninjas to destroy the city with a massive combined ninjutsu. Tengen Uzui and the others realized they could not stop the attack and began evacuating as a windstorm ignited into a sea of flames.

• The Third Raikage left Loulan after his fight with Tengen Uzui, who angrily shouted after him for insulting the name Sound Hashira.
• The Cloud-Hidden ninjas withdrew from the city, leaving hundreds dead among their own forces, Sea Ninja, and CIPHER POL members.
• The Third Raikage ordered Jonin Dodai to have the Second Division annihilate Loulan with a combined ninjutsu once everyone had evacuated.
• Tengen Uzui and the others saw the Cloud-Hidden ninjas surround Loulan and decided to evacuate because they could not stop the attack.
• The Cloud-Hidden ninjas combined Wind Release: Great Breakthrough with Fire Release, sending a vast sea of flames toward Loulan.

Crocodile appeared in Loulan and used his sand to shield the city from the Cloud Village’s combined fire attack. As the Third Raikage ordered a retreat, Crocodile began manipulating the sand beneath the withdrawing forces.

• The Cloud Village’s combined fire and wind attack struck a sand dome that rose around Loulan, but the dome held.
• The sand dome collapsed back into deep banks beside the walls, and Crocodile appeared atop a sand tower.
• The Third Raikage recognized Crocodile was not the Third Wind Shadow and ordered Dodai to prepare a retreat.
• Tengen Uzui and the others recognized Crocodile as Admiral Sand Crocodile and relaxed, believing Loulan’s mission was secure.
• Crocodile taunted the retreating Cloud Village forces, then struck the sand tower and made the ground beneath them tremble.

Crocodile trapped thousands of Cloud-Hidden shinobi in quicksand, and the Third Raikage rescued some before charging him. Crocodile wounded the Third Raikage and sent him crashing into a distant dune, while Rasa and the Sand Village Jonin watched in shock.

• Crocodile’s sand trapped most of the Cloud-Hidden shinobi, burying them up to their shoulders and hardening around them.
• The Third Raikage used black lightning to free a few hundred shinobi, then charged Crocodile while Jonin Dodai and the others fled toward the sea.
• Crocodile deflected the Third Raikage’s attack with a flicked cigar and closed in with his sand-transformed arm.
• Crocodile anticipated the Third Raikage’s dodge and slashed through his Lightning Release Armor, drawing blood and hurling him into a distant sand dune.
• Rasa and the Sand Village Jonin watched from a kilometer away, astonished by Crocodile’s power.

Crocodile tested the Third Raikage’s attacks and confirmed that chakra could not harm his elementalized sand body. After Crocodile’s three-minute limit expired, the Third Raikage unleashed his strongest one-finger strike, leaving their confrontation poised to escalate.

• The Third Raikage emerged from the dunes wounded and challenged Crocodile to face his all-out attack.
• Crocodile gave the Third Raikage three minutes, but the Raikage’s first Hell Stab passed through Crocodile without striking him.
• The Third Raikage repeatedly attacked Crocodile, piercing his sand hook and blasting his body into sand, while Crocodile confirmed that chakra could not hurt his elementalized body.
• Crocodile declared the fight boring and announced that the three minutes had passed.
• The Third Raikage gathered black lightning in his index finger and unleashed Hell Stab: Extreme: Black lightning: One-Finger Nukite.

Crocodile defeated the Third Raikage in a devastating clash, then captured him and vanished into the sand. Rasa ordered the Sand Village forces to return and investigate the strangers in Roran City.

• Crocodile's vibrating Sand Blade collided with the Third Raikage's One-Finger Nukite, creating a massive sand tornado and killing many Cloud Village ninja.
• Crocodile emerged uninjured while the Third Raikage had lost his Lightning Release Armor and suffered severe wounds.
• Crocodile lifted the defeated Third Raikage by the throat, taunted him, and refused to answer his questions.
• Crocodile and the Third Raikage dispersed into yellow sand and disappeared.
• Rasa ordered the Sand Village forces to return to the village and send a team to inquire about the strangers near Roran City.

Imu planned to use captured Cloud Village ninja to give King Enma access to the Shinobi World's Underworld, while deciding to give Aramaki a future chance to prove himself. In the Shinobi World, Rasa warned the Sand Village elders about Crocodile's overwhelming power, leaving them unsure whether to approach him as an ally or fear him as a threat.

• Stussy reported that CIPHER POL-No.1 was escorting four captured Cloud Village ninja to Wano Island, and that Aramaki's request to join the war had been refused for now.
• Imu considered how King Enma could use the captured ninja's souls to locate the Shinobi World's Underworld and confront the Sage of Six Paths.
• Rasa returned to the Sand Village with three thousand troops and told the elders that Crocodile had defeated the Cloud Village army and captured the Third Raikage.
• The Sand Village elders debated whether Crocodile might be a Land of Wind legend and whether they should contact him, while Rasa warned that he could be hostile.
• The elders realized that Crocodile's hostility could spell catastrophe for the Sand Village, which lacked a strong leader capable of opposing him.

Danzo learned that an unknown sand-controlling fighter had captured the Third Raikage and that the attackers had impersonated Konoha’s Root, while reports spread across the Shinobi World. Onoki and Kitsuchi examined the strange intelligence in Iwagakure, with Kitsuchi wanting to see the unusually tall fighter for himself.

• Yamanaka Chao Yi gave Danzo the memories gathered from captured Cloud-Hidden ninja, including their account of the Third Raikage’s defeat.
• Danzo learned that the attackers had falsely claimed to be Konoha Root and worried that the rumors would make Konoha a target, though he also wanted the powerful sand-controlling fighter under his control.
• Danzo considered how to counter the fighter, ordered that the three captured Cloud-Hidden ninja be kept alive for Orochimaru’s experiments, and left thinking about Wood Release.
• Reports of the defeat spread to the Hidden Mist Village and Iwagakure, where interrogators learned that the attackers had claimed to be Root ninja and used unusual weapons and fighting techniques.
• Onoki and Kitsuchi reviewed the intelligence in Iwagakure, and Kitsuchi said he wanted to see the three-meter-tall fighter while Onoki dismissed the advantage of being tall.

After returning to the Cloud-Hidden Village, A planned diplomatic and military pressure against the Land of Wind while ordering Killer B to protect the village. In Konoha, Sarutobi Hiruzen argued that the villages should proceed cautiously because the force that captured the Third Raikage might be beyond their ability to challenge.

• Jonin Dodai led nearly a thousand exhausted ninja back to the Cloud-Hidden Village and reported that the Third Raikage had been captured.
• A rejected the idea of personally going to the Land of Wind and planned to station five thousand troops near the Land of Fire border while contacting Iwagakure and the Hidden Mist Village.
• A ordered Killer B to practice the Tailed Beast Bomb and remain in the village to defend it, and Killer B left for the Valley of Clouds and Lightning.
• In Konoha, Danzo urged Sarutobi Hiruzen to form a four-nation alliance to pressure the Land of Wind and obtain its weapons and intelligence.
• Sarutobi Hiruzen reminded Danzo that the unknown force had crushed over three thousand Cloud Village ninja and captured the Third Raikage, and advised caution.

The Sand Village debated how to handle Loulan and the threat of other nations, while Rasa argued they needed to recruit the sand-controlling expert. A massive sandstorm then engulfed the village, and Crocodile appeared before Rasa and the elders.

• Chiyo warned the elders that the Cloud-Hidden Village might ally with other villages against the Sand Village, while Ebizo questioned whether anyone would believe their claims about the sand-controlling expert.
• Rasa proposed doing everything possible to make the expert join the Sand Village, even if that meant giving up his chance to become Wind Shadow.
• A vast, rotating sandstorm formed over the Sand Village, prompting its ninja to search for whoever was using the technique.
• Rasa recognized the storm as Crocodile's work and unleashed the gold dust he had secretly buried throughout the village.
• Crocodile's voice sounded through the storm as yellow sand gathered in the air before Rasa, Chiyo, and the elders.

Crocodile introduced himself to Sand Village’s elders as an ancient king of the deserts who planned to conquer the Shinobi World, using his immense stature and strength to support the fabricated story. Chiyo saw him as a possible ally against Konoha, while his display of Conqueror’s Haki left Sand Village’s weaker residents unconscious.

• Crocodile appeared above the Wind Shadow’s office, and Chiyo identified herself and asked who he was.
• Crocodile claimed he had slept beneath Loulan since the era of the Sage of Six Paths, defeated the Third Raikage, and intended to conquer the world.
• Crocodile told the elders he would lead Sand Village and the Land of Wind to conquer the Shinobi World, prompting Chiyo to hope she could avenge her family through him.
• Rasa asked whether Crocodile wanted to become Wind Shadow, and Crocodile demanded that they address him as “Your Majesty.”
• Crocodile unleashed Conqueror’s Haki across Sand Village, overwhelming the elders with pressure and knocking residents below Jonin level unconscious.

Crocodile demanded that the Sand Village submit and prepare for a war of conquest, then agreed to prove his strength by fighting Rasa and Chiyo. Rasa chose a desert battlefield outside the village, where Crocodile arrived and began the duel.

• Crocodile revealed that he intended to replace the Land of Wind’s daimyo and ordered the Sand Village to prepare for a war of conquest.
• Rasa said the Sand Village would submit if Crocodile defeated him, and Chiyo volunteered to fight alongside him.
• Crocodile rejected Chiyo’s puppet skills as insufficient and told Rasa he could become the next Wind Shadow if he performed well.
• Rasa used golden sand and the Body Flicker Technique to leave the village, while Crocodile followed by transforming into sand.
• Rasa stopped in a desert less than two kilometers from the village, and Crocodile appeared nearby and challenged him to begin.

Crocodile fought Rasa, overwhelming the Sand Village leader’s Magnet Release techniques with his control of sand. After Crocodile’s enormous Sand Tornado shattered Rasa’s golden defense, Rasa knelt before him.

• Rasa attacked Crocodile with Gold Dust, but Crocodile countered with a massive wave of yellow sand.
• Rasa used Gold Dust Iron Rain and Gold Dust Boundary, but Crocodile’s sand shield and Logia body made the attacks ineffective.
• Chiyo, Ebizo, Pakura, and other Sand Village ninjas arrived and watched the battle.
• After the three-minute limit expired, Crocodile unleashed Sables, creating a towering Sand Tornado that swept up gold dust and trapped Rasa inside a golden sphere.
• Crocodile cut the golden sphere apart and ordered Rasa to kneel, and Rasa knelt before him.

The Five Elders discussed Crocodile’s takeover of the Land of Wind and the World Government’s plans for the Shinobi World, while Imu learned more about King Enma’s coming expedition and the limits of his Underworld forces. Imu ended the chapter considering how King Enma might be challenged and noting that the dead lost their Devil Fruit powers.

• Saint Shepherd Ju Peter praised Crocodile’s plan to control the Land of Wind, but Saint Ethanbaron V. Nusjuro objected to his unauthorized actions and warned that a small deployment would deny lower-ranking troops chances to earn merit.
• Saint Topman Warcury agreed to support Crocodile for now, while the Five Elders confirmed they would wait to upgrade the Star Gate until King Enma had restrained Ōtsutsuki Hagoromo.
• Saint Ethanbaron V. Nusjuro revealed that Shiki had been sent to the moon, while Borsalino had asked to switch assignments and go there instead.
• Little Enma told Imu that King Enma was gathering souls from the Kabane World and Demon Slayer World before sailing through the Styx to attack the Underworld of the Shinobi World.
• Imu questioned whether Little Enma could take over Sea Star’s Yellow Springs if King Enma fell, and she explained that he could revive in his own Underworld even after his main body was scattered.
• Little Enma identified Byndi Wald as her strongest Underworld general and told Imu that he had lost his Devil Fruit power after death, prompting Imu to consider the composition and weaknesses of King Enma’s forces.

After learning that Crocodile had seized control of the Land of Wind and killed its daimyo, Hiruzen Sarutobi ordered Konoha to join the other great villages in a punitive campaign. He and Danzo also began preparing Konoha’s defenses against Crocodile’s undetectable, sand-based abilities.

• Hiruzen Sarutobi sent Shibi Aburame and three thousand shinobi to confront Cloud Village’s force near the Land of Hot Water.
• Hiruzen Sarutobi read Danzo’s report about Crocodile defeating Rasa, killing the Land of Wind’s daimyo, and taking control of the country.
• The daimyos of the Land of Fire, Land of Earth, Land of lightning, and Land of Water ordered their Ninja Villages to launch punitive campaigns against Crocodile.
• Hiruzen Sarutobi ordered ANBU to notify Konoha’s clans and told Danzo to prepare the barrier unit to activate the Four Violet Flames Formation.
• Hiruzen Sarutobi ordered Jiraiya and Tsunade to return to Konoha as he and Danzo worried about Crocodile’s ability to evade detection and attack from the air.

After Crocodile took control of the Land of Wind, the World Government sent officials and Sea Ninja to feed the people, secure the capital, and support Sand Village. As the war against the Land of Wind loomed, a burly man stepped through the Star Gate in Loulan, eager to earn merit and claim an admiral’s position.

• The Four Daimyo declared war on the Land of Wind after Rasa and Chiyo backed Crocodile, while small countries braced for the conflict to spread.
• Crocodile asked the World Government to send administrative experts and Sea Ninja to help govern the Land of Wind.
• The experts audited the capital and distributed food and water, while Tengen Uzui's Sea Ninja imprisoned local officials and defeated samurai who resisted.
• The capital's people welcomed the steady supplies and began praising Crocodile, while the World Government also sent provisions to Sand Village.
• A burly man in a black Coat of Justice emerged from the Star Gate in Loulan, declaring that he intended to earn merit and become an Army Headquarters admiral.

The Third Raikage woke in a hospital after being defeated by General Sand Crocodile and learned that he had been taken to a branch of the World Hospital in the Giant World. After watching an introduction to the World Government and its military, he struggled to absorb the scale of the organization, while Marco waited patiently as his guide.

• The Third Raikage woke in a hospital room, saw that his chest wound had healed, and realized he had been taken somewhere other than Loulan.
• Marco introduced himself as the World Hospital’s director and explained that the Third Raikage had been sent there after Sand Crocodile defeated him.
• Marco played an introductory video that showed the World Government, its conquered worlds, and its Star Gates.
• The Third Raikage learned that Crocodile was one of many generals and that the World Government’s military had admirals, marshals, and a High Command Minister above them.
• Marco waited as the stunned Third Raikage tried to process the information, confident that he could handle him if necessary.

The Third Raikage accepted that the World Government could overwhelm the Shinobi World and agreed to meet its Otherworld Strategy Committee. After seeing the immense military camp from the air, he was awed and lamented that he was already too old to take part in what came next.

• The Third Raikage watched Fish-Men, Minks, and Giants outside the hospital and realized how vast the world beyond the Shinobi World was.
• He concluded that the Shinobi World could not resist the World Government and decided that shinobi could adapt to its rule.
• Three agents of the Otherworld Strategy Committee arrived and invited the Third Raikage to their local branch for a discussion.
• The Third Raikage descended through the crowded World Hospital lobby and saw its many different peoples up close.
• The agents escorted the Third Raikage by aircraft over an enormous military camp, leaving him astonished by its scale and bitter that his age was catching up with him.

Minato Namikaze led a Konoha squad on an Ultra S-rank mission to investigate Loulan, where the World Government had established a guarded presence. After testing the watchtower guards' ability to detect stealth, the squad prepared to infiltrate the city.

• Hiashi Hyuga used the Byakugan to report the soldiers, weapons, and defensive layout around Loulan's watchtowers.
• Minato Namikaze sent Shadow Clones disguised as a lizard and concealed by an invisibility technique toward a watchtower.
• The guards failed to detect either Shadow Clone, leading Minato and his teammates to conclude that the outer sentries likely lacked advanced sensory abilities.
• Minato Namikaze assigned Choza Akimichi to accompany him at the front while Hiashi Hyuga and Inuzuka Ago followed behind, and the squad used experimental radio earpieces to communicate.
• Minato Namikaze ordered the squad to move out and infiltrate Loulan.

Minato Namikaze and his team infiltrated Roran City, discovered its civilians were confined in the central tower, and prepared to investigate the Dragon Vein and rescue Queen Sara. Their stealth was exposed when a silver-haired samurai attacked Minato and Choza Akimichi.

• Minato Namikaze led the team past the watchtowers and over Roran City's eastern wall, where they saw armed soldiers patrolling throughout the city.
• Hiashi Hyuga used the Byakugan to find civilians imprisoned in the central tower and spotted Queen Sara on its top floor.
• Minato Namikaze sent Hiashi Hyuga and Inuzuka E to investigate underground while he and Choza Akimichi climbed toward the tower's summit.
• A purple-haired woman in a black dress detected the infiltrators, and a blade strike forced Minato Namikaze to reveal himself.
• A silver-haired samurai appeared at the top of the tower and charged at Minato Namikaze and Choza Akimichi.