Chapter Summaries

Nagato awakened the Rinnegan during Hanzō and Danzo’s ambush, and Akatsuki’s four survivors fought back against their forces. As the battle turned against them, Yahiko and Kakuzu realized Satoru was secretly helping.

• Nagato used Planetary Devastation to trap Hanzō’s summon, Ibuse, in a sphere of rock and urged Kakuzu to escape with Yahiko and Konan.
• Yahiko and Konan refused to abandon Nagato, and Kakuzu joined them as Hanzō and Danzo ordered their forces to attack.
• Nagato, Kakuzu, Konan, and Yahiko fought the attackers, but Hanzō and Danzo entered the battle and began suppressing them.
• Konan protected the group from Ibuse’s poison, while Yahiko’s ice attacks froze Ibuse and devastated the enemy ranks.
• Yahiko realized Satoru was behind the unusually powerful ice blades, and Kakuzu told him to pretend not to know as they prepared to keep fighting.

Hanzō and Danzo retreated after Yahiko’s group overwhelmed them, but Satoru ambushed Hanzō’s surviving forces and confronted him. Hanzō recognized Satoru as the Archmage and realized only one of them would leave alive.

• Hanzō blamed Danzo for the failed attack and ordered Amegakure forces to retreat, while Danzo used Zetsu and its clones to cover Root’s withdrawal.
• Yahiko, Nagato, Konan, and Kakuzu watched the strange clones vanish with the enemy corpses and wondered where Satoru had gone.
• Satoru ambushed Hanzō and his fewer than ten remaining subordinates with a Ring of Frost and ice spikes, killing the subordinates as Hanzō escaped.
• Hanzō recognized the arriving Satoru as Mitokado Satoru, the Archmage, and drew his Chain Scythe for a final fight.

Satoru confronted Hanzō over Danzo's plan to assassinate the Third Hokage, then overwhelmed him in battle. After Satoru killed Ibuse and shattered Hanzō's resolve, he reduced Hanzō to ashes with Arcane Barrage.

• Hanzō explained that Danzo had allied with him to eliminate the Third Hokage's guard, the Konoha White Fang, and ultimately seize the Hokage position.
• Satoru revealed that he already knew Danzo's intentions and said he would kill him without hesitation.
• Satoru summoned Comet Storm and struck Hanzō and Ibuse with enormous ice spheres.
• Hanzō was gravely injured, and Ibuse died after its frozen hind legs left it unable to escape the impact.
• Hanzō crawled backward and offered Satoru the Land of Rain, but Satoru killed him with Arcane Barrage.

Satoru confronted Danzo in the jungle after learning from Hanzō that Danzo had conspired against Hiruzen. Danzo’s attempts to deny the betrayal failed, and the chapter ended as he attacked Satoru with Wood Release.

• Danzo led the surviving Root members through the forest and suspected that Satoru was connected to Akatsuki.
• Satoru’s Arcane Rings surrounded Danzo’s group and exploded, killing Root ninja and destroying half of Danzo’s Dream Eater.
• Satoru appeared and accused Danzo of betraying Konoha and plotting to assassinate Hiruzen.
• Danzo denied working with Hanzō and claimed Root had come to the Land of Rain to incite unrest.
• Satoru pointed out that Danzo had already exposed his lie, and Danzo attacked with Wood Release: Violent Spear Tree.

Satoru defeated Danzo after discovering his transplanted Hashirama Cells and other secrets, then rejected Danzo’s offer to make him Hokage and explained his pursuit of mysteries beyond the village. Danzo branded him a rebel and used the Reverse Four Symbols Seal, but Satoru escaped, leaving Danzo dead in a vast crater.

• Danzo used Wood Release to trap Satoru, but Satoru appeared behind him unharmed and recognized the Hashirama Cells in his body.
• Satoru detected something else inside Danzo and condemned his attempts to control Konoha before preparing to kill him.
• Danzo begged Satoru to stop and offered to support him as Hokage, but Satoru said the position had never been his goal.
• Satoru described the mysteries and threats beyond Konoha that he intended to investigate, rejecting Danzo’s claim that he had to follow the Will of Fire.
• Danzo called Satoru a dangerous rebel and activated the Reverse Four Symbols Seal, but Satoru escaped the expanding seal and found Danzo dead in its crater.

Noon and Hiruko realized Danzo was dead when the Cursed Tongue Eradication Seal disappeared, while Satoru ended his test of the War Machine against Ōnoki and Han. Zetsu left to report Danzo’s death, and Hiruko discovered that Danzo’s payment was the forbidden technique Impure World Reincarnation.

• Noon noticed that Danzo’s Cursed Tongue Eradication Seal had vanished, concluded Danzo was dead, and hurried to report it to the Third Hokage.
• Satoru returned to the battlefield and ended the War Machine’s test after Ōnoki and Han struggled against it.
• Ōnoki refused to withdraw, hoping to confirm Kumogakure’s movements and reinforce his forces against Satoru.
• Zetsu brought Hiruko a scroll that Danzo had provided as payment, and Hiruko deduced Danzo was dead because his cursed seal had disappeared.
• Zetsu left to report the news to his master, while Hiruko opened the scroll and found the forbidden technique Impure World Reincarnation.

Hiruko studied Impure World Reincarnation and began imagining how its soul and Chakra properties could advance his plan to fuse five Kekkei Genkai. Zetsu reported Danzo’s death to Madara, who ordered an investigation into Nagato and pressed ahead with the plan in Kirigakure.

• Hiruko received Impure World Reincarnation from Zetsu, his new ally, and eagerly analyzed its restrictions and effects.
• Hiruko connected the technique’s retained Kekkei Genkai and rapid Chakra recovery to his fusion research, then questioned whether he could control multiple fused souls.
• Zetsu told Madara that Danzo was dead and described finding a vast, cratered battlefield that bore traces of a powerful sealing technique.
• Madara speculated that Nagato or Danzo had triggered the sealing technique and judged Danzo’s death worthwhile because he had obtained Impure World Reincarnation.
• Madara ordered Zetsu to investigate Nagato and carry out their plan in Kirigakure, prioritizing the acquisition of at least one of their two target Kekkei Genkai.

The Third Mizukage met with Zetsu to discuss breaking Kirigakure’s stalemate with Konoha. Zetsu offered intelligence and help with logistics in exchange for locating a member of the Yuki Clan, and the Third Mizukage agreed while forbidding them from targeting the Kaguya Clan.

• Zetsu approached the Third Mizukage during a lull and proposed using intelligence to help Kirigakure break the deadlock on the eastern coast.
• The Third Mizukage questioned how Zetsu could help hold Orochimaru and Nawaki back, and Zetsu offered to quiet the Three-Tails and free the Kaguya Clan warriors guarding it.
• Zetsu asked the Third Mizukage to find a member of the Yuki Clan, but the Third Mizukage said the clan had vanished and warned Zetsu not to touch the Kaguya Clan.
• Zetsu promised intelligence and ships to ease Kirigakure’s logistical strain, and the Third Mizukage accepted the deal.
• Zetsu gave the Third Mizukage documents detailing Konoha’s defensive forces and said another version of himself would come to serve him.

After Danzo disappeared, Konoha’s leaders questioned Wu about Root’s secrets and learned that Danzo had colluded with Hanzō to ambush Hatake Sakumo and assassinate Sarutobi Hiruzen. Hiruzen accepted that Danzo would have gone that far, while the search for Danzo and the Root members continued.

• Hatake Sakumo reported that Root members had been detained, intelligence gathering was underway, and ANBU had searched for Danzo without finding him.
• Sarutobi Hiruzen reviewed war preparations and heard that Satoru’s portals had greatly improved medical care.
• Hiruzen asked Wu to reveal Root’s classified activities, and Wu described Danzo’s illegal experiments, plots, and secret dealings.
• Wu revealed that Danzo had colluded with Hanzō to ambush Sakumo and assassinate Hiruzen so he could take the Hokage position.
• Utatane Koharu and Mitokado Homura condemned Danzo’s actions, while Hiruzen said Danzo truly would have done such things.

Sarutobi Hiruzen and Konoha’s leadership learned that Danzo and Root’s elite forces had vanished on a secret mission, then received a report revealing Satoru’s devastating new War Machine. Suspecting Satoru or Hanzō might have been involved in Danzo’s death, Hiruzen ordered an investigation into the Land of Rain and Root.

• Noon told Sarutobi Hiruzen that Danzo and Root’s forces had been headed to the Land of Rain on a highly classified mission.
• Mitokado Homura showed the council a battle report and photograph of Satoru standing atop a powerful War Machine as he faced Ōnoki and Han.
• Sarutobi Hiruzen and the others learned that Satoru’s War Machine combined puppet technology, Robot Cat intelligence, and half a Dragon Vein.
• Sarutobi Hiruzen considered whether Satoru or Hanzō had killed Danzo and decided that Hanzō’s role needed investigation.
• Sarutobi Hiruzen ordered Hatake Sakumo to send Anbu into the Land of Rain and told Mitokado Homura to investigate Root with Noon, keeping Danzo’s death secret.

After Hanzō and Danzō’s attack left Akatsuki with only Yahiko, Nagato, Konan, and Kakuzu, the survivors regrouped and planned to gather intelligence. Kakuzu returned with an unexpected report: Hanzō had disappeared.

• Yahiko mourned Akatsuki’s fallen companions, and Konan encouraged him to carry on their hopes.
• Kakuzu revealed that he had used a special Arcane Crystal to notify Satoru, whose intervention helped them survive.
• Yahiko worried about Hanzō’s next move and the possibility of Konoha attacking the Land of Rain, while Nagato dismissed his exhaustion as a temporary effect of using the Rinnegan.
• Kakuzu left to gather intelligence and withdraw Akatsuki’s money from the bank.
• Less than two days later, Kakuzu returned with waterproof crates and told Yahiko, Nagato, and Konan that Hanzō had disappeared.

Kakuzu reported that Hanzō and his forces had vanished, and the group concluded Satoru had likely killed Hanzō and Danzo. With Amegakure vulnerable, Yahiko rejected seizing it by force and insisted Akatsuki should earn the people’s trust through peaceful reform.

• Kakuzu told Yahiko, Nagato, and Konan that Hanzō and his men were missing and that a new lake covered the former battle site.
• Kakuzu revealed that Konoha Anbu were searching for Hanzō and had reacted with shock at the possibility that Hanzō was dead too.
• Yahiko, Nagato, Konan, and Kakuzu inferred that Satoru had killed Hanzō and Danzo after uncovering Danzo’s plot against the Third Hokage.
• Kakuzu proposed taking over the weakened Amegakure, and Nagato said it could give Akatsuki a base for reform and peace negotiations.
• Yahiko refused to seize power by exploiting Amegakure’s weakness, insisting Akatsuki had to prove it could bring hope to the country.
• Konan took Yahiko’s hand as Nagato led Kakuzu away to prepare food, and Yahiko used Banshō Ten'in on Kakuzu.

Konoha reinforced its increasingly pressured eastern coastal front as newly promoted chunin joined the war. In the Land of Rivers, Hiruko prepared to test his Kekkei Genkai fusion technique on himself using Ice Release.

• Konoha sent Genma Shiranui, Might Guy, Ebisu, Sarutobi Asuma, Kurenai Yuhi, and Shizune to reinforce the eastern coast, while Uchiha Obito and Nohara Rin joined Minato Namikaze at the Land of Hot Water front.
• Orochimaru, Nawaki, and Konoha's defenders faced mounting pressure from Kirigakure, the Seven Ninja Swordsmen, and the Kaguya Clan.
• Konoha sent Might Duy to the eastern coastal defense line, helping restore a stalemate against Kirigakure.
• Zetsu delivered a Yuki Clan test subject with Ice Release to Hiruko in his underground laboratory.
• Hiruko told Zetsu that he was developing a technique to fuse five Kekkei Genkai, then decided to test it on himself, beginning with Ice Release.

Ōnoki reconsidered Iwagakure’s stalled offensive against Konoha, while Rasa and Sunagakure’s advisors discussed exploiting the Land of Rain as a route into Konoha. The chapter ended with Rasa receiving a significant letter from Ōnoki and the Four-Tails Jinchuriki, which Chiyo recognized as good news for Sunagakure.

• Ōnoki asked Han about Rōshi’s readiness, then told him to have Rōshi delay his arrival while they pursued another plan.
• Rasa, Chiyo, and Ebizo discussed Sunagakure’s war strategy and the strength of Konoha’s forces.
• Rasa suggested that Hanzō might be unable to appear and that Konoha’s weak defenses near the Land of Rain could make it a springboard for an attack.
• A guard delivered Rasa an urgent secret letter bearing the names of Third Tsuchikage Ōnoki and Iwagakure’s Four-Tails Jinchuriki.
• Chiyo said the letter’s news was good for Sunagakure because Iwagakure could no longer hold out.

Rasa and Chiyo met with Rōshi and agreed to discuss cooperation after learning that Hanzō and Amegakure had not resisted Iwagakure’s entry into the Land of Rain. Yahiko, now leading Amegakure through Akatsuki, suspected Iwagakure and Sunagakure were preparing to move against Konoha and sent Nagato to ask Satoru-shisong to help make the Land of Rain neutral.

• Rōshi told Rasa and Chiyo that Hanzō had not appeared and that Akatsuki had allowed Iwagakure’s forces to pass through the Land of Rain.
• Rasa and Chiyo considered that Hanzō might be gone, and Rasa agreed to discuss cooperation with Iwagakure as the Third Tsuchikage had proposed.
• Yahiko reflected on how Amegakure’s Ninja had invited Akatsuki to lead the village after Hanzō and many of his elites disappeared.
• Nagato suspected Iwagakure and Sunagakure were probing the Land of Rain because they wanted to target Konoha.
• Yahiko decided that Nagato should visit Satoru-shisong and ask for Konoha’s help in making the Land of Rain a neutral country.

Nagato met with Satoru as the Land of Rain’s special envoy and proposed making the country neutral, with Amegakure defending it from foreign forces and mediating conflicts. Satoru accepted the proposed limited cooperation, and the conversation ended with a warning about the Rinnegan’s connection to Nagato’s emotions.

• Nagato met Satoru at the Land of Grass defense line and explained Yahiko’s plan to establish the Land of Rain as a neutral country.
• Nagato argued that Amegakure needed to deter Iwagakure and Sunagakure while refusing to let any nation use the Land of Rain as a base for war.
• Satoru understood the proposal as limited cooperation: Konoha would keep its enemies outside the Land of Rain, while Amegakure would strike foreign forces there without treating Konoha as hostile.
• Nagato said the Land of Rain hoped to become a platform for communication among the great nations, though they had not yet chosen how to guide those discussions.
• Satoru praised Nagato for finding his own path to peace, asked about the Rinnegan’s abilities, and warned him not to use it while emotionally unstable.

Nagato accepted Satoru’s warning about the burden of the Rinnegan, while Sunagakure and Iwagakure launched a surprise attack on the Land of Rivers front. Uchiha Fugaku’s forces neared collapse, and Satoru learned of the crisis at the Land of Grass border as the chapter ended with him preparing to respond.

• Satoru warned Nagato not to let the Rinnegan’s power control him, gave him an Arcane Crystal, and agreed to discuss their cooperation later.
• Rasa, Chiyo, and Rōshi led Sunagakure and Iwagakure’s surprise attack against the Land of Rivers front, catching Uchiha Fugaku’s forces off guard.
• Uchiha Mikoto and Yakushi Nonō held back Chiyo, while Fugaku’s forces struggled against Rōshi and the attacking armies.
• Rasa wounded Fugaku’s position and killed Fugaku’s best friend, prompting Fugaku to challenge him in the name of the Uchiha Clan.
• Ōnoki taunted Satoru at the Land of Grass border, then Hizashi Hyuga reported that the Land of Rivers front was close to falling.
• Satoru realized the Uchiha leadership had not used the portal to ask for help and prepared to address the crisis.

Satoru used mass teleportation to leave a clone defending Hizashi Hyuga’s line while he transported Ōnoki and Han to the Uchiha battlefield. He then carried the enemy leaders away from the defenses, leaving Uchiha Fugaku to lead the cleanup.

• Satoru sent a Mirror Image Clone and the War Machine to help Hizashi Hyuga hold the line, then teleported himself away with Ōnoki and Han.
• Hizashi Hyuga led the Konoha ninja in attacking the disorganized Iwagakure forces under the clone’s command.
• Satoru, Ōnoki, and Han appeared on the battlefield where Uchiha Fugaku was fighting Rasa, while Rōshi threatened the defensive line.
• Satoru told Uchiha Fugaku to handle the aftermath and reassured Uchiha Mikoto and Yakushi Nonō before preparing to move the enemy leaders.
• Satoru teleported Rasa, Chiyo, Ōnoki, Rōshi, and Han away from the battlefield, and Uchiha Fugaku ordered the Uchiha Military Police Force to clear it.

Satoru brought the leaders of Iwagakure and Sunagakure to the Land of Rain, where Yahiko announced that Akatsuki had taken control of Amegakure and proposed mediating the war. The chapter ended with Satoru presenting the Third Hokage’s letter and affirming that he could represent Konoha in the talks.

• Yahiko, Nagato, and Konan discussed how Iwagakure and Sunagakure had outmaneuvered them, and Satoru told them to prepare to meet important visitors.
• Satoru transported Ōnoki, Rasa, Chiyo, Rōshi, and others to the Land of Rain, where Yahiko introduced himself as Akatsuki’s leader and Amegakure’s leader.
• Yahiko said Akatsuki had dealt with Hanzō and accused Iwagakure and Sunagakure of invading the Land of Rain, while contrasting their actions with Konoha’s.
• Yahiko asked the gathered leaders to let Akatsuki mediate the war, but Ōnoki and Rasa rejected his authority and threatened the Land of Rain.
• Satoru showed Ōnoki and Rasa a letter from the Third Hokage recognizing Yahiko’s leadership and declared that he could represent Konoha in the mediation.

Satoru represented Konoha in a tense confrontation with Ōnoki and Rasa, and both sides prepared for battle in the Land of Rain. Meanwhile, Uchiha Fugaku’s forces repelled Sunagakure’s attack, but he discovered that several fallen clansmen with Three-Tomoe Sharingan had vanished.

• Rasa and Ōnoki rejected mediation unless Satoru proved his strength, and threatened to invade Konoha if he failed.
• Satoru summoned the War Machine as Yahiko, Nagato, and Konan prepared to face the allied forces of Iwagakure and Sunagakure.
• Hizashi Hyuga and Uchiha Fugaku led their forces into action at the Land of Grass and Land of Rivers borders.
• Uchiha Fugaku’s clan defeated Sunagakure’s assault and began tending to the wounded and inspecting their dead.
• A subordinate reported that several Uchiha corpses were missing, and an investigation found that all the missing clansmen had awakened the Three-Tomoe Sharingan.
• Uchiha Fugaku ordered the discovery kept confidential and wondered who had taken the clansmen.