Chapter Summaries

Kusana spent the snowy holiday with his family and heard that Naruto and Sasuke had encountered a suspected human trafficker who looked strangely familiar. After winter passed and production resumed in the Land of Grass and the Land of Rain, Obito reached his graduation ceremony.

• Kusana reunited with Konan, Yahiko, and Nagato at Fusang's home, where the family gathered for the holiday.
• Yahiko complained that Mujitsu kept adopting boys, mentioning the newly welcomed Jugō, while Kusana listened to Yahiko and Nagato talk.
• Naruto and Sasuke returned after reporting a suspected human trafficker to the Military Police Force, and Naruto described the man as white-haired, red-clothed, and lecherous-looking.
• Kusana told Naruto and Sasuke to be wary of strangers and privately wondered why the suspect sounded familiar.
• Winter passed, production resumed in the Land of Grass and the Land of Rain, and Obito welcomed his graduation ceremony.

Kusana, Kushina, Mikoto, Naruto, Sasuke, and Jiraiya attended Obito Uchiha’s graduation ceremony in Kusagakure. As Obito thanked the Land of Grass in his speech, Jiraiya watched with complicated feelings and wondered if being a ninja could save Konoha.

• Kusana welcomed Jiraiya, who recounted how he had spent nearly a month imprisoned after being accused of abducting Naruto and Sasuke.
• Jiraiya said Konoha had delayed sending a ransom because the village was short on money, and Kusana denied Kusagakure had taken anything from the Sarutobi Clan treasury.
• Obito Uchiha was named the outstanding graduate and stepped onto the stage to give a speech.
• White Zetsu interviewed Obito for BBC Daily, and Obito thanked the Land of Grass, Kusagakure, and the Grass Ninja Leader.
• Kushina and Mikoto felt proud of Obito, while Jiraiya watched him and said that being a ninja might not save Konoha.

Kusana and Hanzō showed Naruto, Sasuke, and Little Xiang around Amegakure while preparing to send Danzō back to Konoha. When Konoha’s delegation arrived in Kusagakure, Shikaku Nara learned that Jiraiya had left an unpaid hotel bill.

• Kusana and Hanzō toured Amegakure with the children, and Hanzō proudly recounted the village’s transformation while hinting that they should attack Sunagakure.
• Kusana visited Little Scorpion at Factory No. 3, praised his work, and criticized the factory director over the workers’ well-being.
• Danzō met Kusana and insisted that he would never betray Konoha, while Kusana remarked that he had gained weight during his stay.
• A Grass ninja reported that Konoha’s ninjas had arrived in Kusagakure.
• Shikaku Nara asked about Jiraiya, then received a hotel bill and was asked to settle it.

Shikaku Nara arrived in Kusagakure to exchange intelligence with Jiraiya and ransom Danzo, but found himself facing Jiraiya’s enormous bill and delays. Danzo returned to Kusagakure under Kusana’s guidance, where Konoha ninja greeted him.

• Shikaku Nara learned that Konoha owed Kusagakure more than a million for Jiraiya’s bill and decided to pay it so he could pursue Danzo’s return.
• Shikaku Nara’s ninja companion reported that Danzo was touring the Land of Rain and had not yet returned to Kusagakure.
• Shikaku Nara paid the bill and waited for news, hoping to complete the mission and leave Kusagakure quickly.
• A Konoha ninja told Shikaku Nara that Danzo had arrived at the station, and Shikaku set out to welcome him.
• Kusana guided Danzo back to Kusagakure, where more than a dozen Konoha ninja bowed and welcomed him.

Shikaku Nara arrived in Kusagakure to bring Shimura Danzō back to Konoha, while Jiraiya refused to return and urged Hiruzen to develop the village. Danzō set off for Konoha after another costly stay in Kusagakure.

• Shikaku Nara questioned Leader Mang about Kusagakure's fees, but agreed to pay them so he could escort Shimura Danzō home.
• Jiraiya appeared at the station and told Shikaku Nara he could not return to Konoha yet, asking him to tell Hiruzen to develop the village properly.
• Jiraiya and Shimura Danzō argued over Konoha's future until Leader Mang offered to arrange another farewell ceremony.
• Shikaku Nara urged Shimura Danzō to leave, and Danzō set off for Konoha after declaring, "Thirty years east of the river, thirty years west of the river..."

Kusana expanded Kusagakure’s business and planned its next steps while wondering how Danzo and Homura were weakening Konoha. In Konoha, Danzo presented a “Prosperity and Village Rescue Plan” and promised to restore the village within three years.

• Naruto rejected Jiraiya’s offer to become his student, saying Kushina had warned him to stay away, and left with Kusana.
• Jiraiya realized Kushina was waiting at home with Naruto and wondered about her relationship with Kusana.
• Kusana ordered the village to expand Grass Ninja Manufacturing and strengthen its brands, while leaving changes to the BBC Daily to Mujie.
• Kusana planned for Sasuke and another future village pillar to attend school and noted the need to improve psychological care and ideological education.
• Danzo distributed the Prosperity and Village Rescue Plan to Konoha’s leaders and vowed to restore Konoha within three years.

Danzo presented detailed evidence that Kusagakure’s manufacturing business had made Konoha dangerously dependent on its products, but Hiruzen rejected Danzo’s proposed restrictions and investment. Danzo returned to the Root laboratory convinced that only he could restore Konoha, where a mysterious voice remarked that his plan had been rejected.

• Danzo showed Konoha’s leaders charts documenting Grass Ninja Manufacturing’s growth and warned that the village’s reliance on Kusagakure was dangerous.
• Mitokado Homura argued that Konoha could not afford new investments and that Kusagakure would keep supplying goods as long as it could profit.
• Hiruzen sided with Homura, saying Konoha needed to recover and that Danzo’s proposal was too extreme.
• Danzo accused Hiruzen of choosing Homura over him, then stormed out after Hiruzen reaffirmed his authority as Hokage.
• Danzo returned to the laboratory beside the Root base and declared that only he could guide Konoha back to glory.
• A cold voice told Danzo that his detailed plan had still been rejected.

Danzo returned to Orochimaru’s depleted laboratory and ordered him to resume experiments, while Orochimaru planned a money-making trip to the Land of Wind. In Kusagakure, Kusana and Uzumaki Yangzheng continued researching a village-specific Sage Mode and arranged for Jugō to attend the academy, before Hanzo of the Salamander arrived with news that the Fourth Kazekage had died.

• Danzo found Root’s laboratory nearly empty, blamed Orochimaru for neglecting the experiments, and promised to find money; Orochimaru said he might travel to the Land of Wind to earn some.
• Uzumaki Yangzheng explained to Kusana that research into storing Natural Energy alongside Chakra might create a Kusagakure Sage Mode, though the team still could not safely sense or extract Natural Energy.
• Kusana decided Jugō could attend the academy, and Jugō happily agreed after Kusana and Uzumaki Yangzheng reassured him that they would manage the risk of him losing control.
• Kusana asked whether someone in soul form could sense Natural Energy, and Uzumaki Yangzheng said they could try investigating the idea.
• Hanzo of the Salamander rushed into the laboratory and told Kusana that the Fourth Kazekage was dead.

After Rasa’s mysterious death, Chiyo and Sunagakure’s leaders investigated the killing and uncovered evidence of Rasa’s secret plans against the Land of Wind’s Feudal Lord. As Sunagakure prepared to stabilize the village and choose a successor, Kusagakure sent a mocking offer of Kazekage accident insurance.

• News of the Fourth Kazekage’s mysterious death spread across the ninja world, and Sunagakure feared another war.
• Chiyo and Ebizo examined the investigation report, which suggested Rasa had been killed by someone he knew while off guard; Chiyo suspected Pakura.
• Baki reported that Rasa had secretly transferred a large sum of money and left a plan to assassinate the Land of Wind’s Feudal Lord.
• Chiyo ordered the evidence kept confidential and discussed stabilizing Sunagakure, preparing for war, and selecting a Fifth Kazekage.
• Baki revealed that Kusagakure had sent Sunagakure a sarcastic offer for Kazekage Long-Term Accident Insurance.

Kusana arranged to sell old ninja tools to Sunagakure and hired Mikoto as his assistant, while Hanzō predicted Chiyo would visit Kusagakure. In Konoha, Orochimaru revealed that the Land of Wind had paid him to kill the Fourth Kazekage and destroy Sunagakure, and Danzo decided Root would take the destruction mission Hiruzen rejected.

• Hanzō proposed taking down Sunagakure, but Kusana insisted Kusagakure shared a deep friendship with its ally and chose to sell it old ninja tools while asking to buy its Magnetic Release Secret Technique.
• Hanzō left, predicting Chiyo would come to Kusagakure, and Kusana asked Mikoto how Sasuke was doing.
• Mikoto told Kusana she wanted a job, and he offered her a position as his assistant; she accepted.
• Orochimaru told Danzo that he had accepted payment from both Sunagakure and the Land of Wind, then carried out the Land of Wind feudal lord’s mission to kill the Fourth Kazekage.
• Orochimaru said Hiruzen had rejected the feudal lord’s request to destroy Sunagakure, so Danzo declared that Root would accept the mission.

As the Grass Country's school season began, Mikoto prepared for her first day at work while Sasuke and Naruto set off for the academy together. The chapter ended with Mikoto joining Kusana and the others, ready to start her job as his assistant.

• Mikoto helped Sasuke prepare for school and encouraged him to study, while Sasuke reassured her about starting work.
• Sasuke insisted he could get to school by himself, but Naruto arrived and pulled him along to the academy.
• Naruto greeted Mikoto and said Kushina had gone ahead, then he and Sasuke promised to study hard and become successors of the Grass Ninja Spirit.
• Mikoto went downstairs in her work uniform, and Kana, Fusang, and Kusana told her it suited her.
• Kusana welcomed Mikoto to work, and she formally asked him to take care of her.

Naruto and Sasuke began their first day at the Grass Ninja Academy, where they reunited with Jugō and encountered the self-proclaimed bully Black Zetsu. Naruto recognized Black Zetsu as the idiot Amang had warned him about, leaving Black Zetsu furious.

• Naruto and Sasuke arrived at the crowded academy, and Sasuke teased Naruto after he envied a child being seen off by both parents.
• Sasuke led Naruto to their First Year, Class A classroom, where they met Jugō and talked about the gifts Nagato and Yahiko had promised them.
• Black Zetsu swaggered up with several students and demanded that the new arrivals call him Brother Black.
• Naruto identified Black Zetsu as a six-time grade repeater who always scored zero, called him Black Egg, and repeated Amang's warning not to play with idiots.
• Black Zetsu angrily corrected Naruto, insisting that his name was Black Zetsu.

Black Zetsu confronted Naruto, Sasuke, and their classmate at the Grass Ninja Academy, while Kusana and Pakura watched and discussed his reputation as a student. After Madam Mikoto thanked Kusana, he told Pakura he had come to ask her about Sunagakure.

• Black Zetsu challenged the three freshmen to meet him after school, intending to put them in their place.
• Kusana declared that the academy should deal seriously with the bullying, but Pakura explained that staff monitored Black Zetsu and that he had repeatedly earned a Morally Excellent Student certificate.
• Pakura said Black Zetsu usually befriended new students after making a little fuss and never went too far.
• Madam Mikoto thanked Kusana for bringing her to see Sasuke stand by Naruto, relieved that they had become friends.
• Pakura prepared to host the opening ceremony and asked Kusana whether he would address the students.
• Kusana said he had come to ask Pakura about something, and she guessed that it concerned Sunagakure.

Pakura told Kusana she had refused Chiyo’s offer to become the Fifth Kazekage, while Kusana lamented the missed opportunity. After the school opening ceremony, Mujie reported that the Land of Wind’s Feudal Lord had ordered Sunagakure to disband, and Danzo prepared to take action as the ninja world stirred.

• Pakura said she had refused Chiyo’s offer to return to Sunagakure as Fifth Kazekage, citing her unpaid debt and fear of the Kazekage position’s supposed curse.
• Kusana urged Pakura to accept the position, but she sent him away as the academy’s opening ceremony began.
• Kusana and Mikoto watched the ceremony and saw Kushina among the teachers before preparing to leave.
• Mujie told Kusana that the Feudal Lord of the Land of Wind had accused the Fourth Kazekage of assassinating the feudal lord and demanded Sunagakure’s disbandment.
• Danzo read the news in an underground chamber and declared that it was time for him to take the stage.

Fusang took Little Xiang to a Uchiha-run pancake shop in Kusagakure, while Danzo arrived at Sunagakure to seek advantages after its announced disbandment. The chapter left Danzo startled by a banner welcoming visitors from Kusagakure.

• Fusang and Little Xiang bought pancakes and a red bean bun from the elderly Uchiha Kashi and enjoyed them in a grassy spot.
• Fusang recalled that Naruto, Sasuke, and Jugō had been caught by a teacher after their planned fight failed to happen.
• Danzo traveled to Sunagakure hoping to secure resources for Root and Konoha while other villages considered the turmoil.
• A Sand ninja told Danzo that Advisor Chiyo was waiting for him inside Sunagakure.
• Danzo froze when he saw a familiar-looking banner welcoming friends from Kusagakure.

Danzo fled Sunagakure after mistaking its banner and the news that Kusagakure would attend for a trap. Advisor Chiyo concluded Konoha could not help Sunagakure, but then learned the Grass Ninja Leader and Pakura had arrived and went to welcome them herself.

• Danzo saw Sunagakure’s banner and learned Kusagakure had been invited, then ran away while accusing Sunagakure of plotting to cheat him.
• A Sand ninja reported Danzo’s departure to Advisor Chiyo, who assumed he had fled because Kusagakure was coming.
• Chiyo realized Danzo’s flight made her plan to unite Konoha, Kusagakure, and Amegakure impractical and decided to seek another solution.
• A Sand ninja announced that the Grass Ninja Leader and Pakura had arrived, so Chiyo stood up to welcome them personally.

Pakura returned to Sunagakure, where Chiyo hoped she might help the struggling village, but Pakura declined to get involved. Chiyo then sought Kusagakure’s help with the Land of Wind’s feudal lord, only for Kusana and Hanzo to reveal their unusual affection for Danzō after learning he had left.

• Pakura returned to Sunagakure, reunited with her former student Katsuyu, and told Chiyo she had come only to visit and would leave any requests to her leader.
• Chiyo apologized to Pakura for the past, while Hanzo mocked Sunagakure’s troubles and Kusana tried to recruit its ninja.
• Chiyo explained that the Land of Wind’s feudal lord had ordered Sunagakure to disband and asked Kusana to cooperate in negotiations, but Kusana initially refused.
• Chiyo said Danzō had visited that morning and left when he heard Kusana was coming, prompting Kusana to call him his beloved friend.
• Hanzo called Danzō his brother in arms, leaving Chiyo bewildered by the two leaders’ attachment to Konoha’s assistant.

Hiruzen Sarutobi worried about Konoha’s strained finances and Danzo’s unexplained absence, then heard Danzo’s account of the crisis surrounding Sunagakure. Danzo urged Konoha to take action and proposed convening a Kage Summit.

• Hiruzen Sarutobi considered Konoha’s political troubles and lamented that the Sarutobi Clan’s fortune had been emptied.
• An Anbu ninja told Hiruzen that Danzo had left the village, prompting Hiruzen to order a search for him in Sunagakure.
• Danzo returned, and Hiruzen welcomed him with relief before learning that Danzo had encountered Kusagakure ninja and escaped.
• Danzo warned Hiruzen that Kumogakure and Iwagakure were making moves around Sunagakure, while Konoha needed money and influence.
• Danzo proposed that Konoha convene a Kage Summit.

Kusana tried to recruit Sunagakure’s struggling ninjas for Kusagakure, stirring the young Sand Ninja into signing up before Baki intervened. As Kusana went to meet Lady Chiyo, he spotted young Gaara and invited him to Kusagakure.

• Kusana and Pakura handed out recruitment flyers in Sunagakure, prompting Pakura to suggest that she return to become Kazekage instead.
• Kusana rallied the Sand Ninja by describing their hardships and promising jobs, benefits, training, and a chance to help Sunagakure rise again.
• The young Sand Ninja shouted their support and lined up to register with Kusagakure.
• Baki and the other Sand Ninja stopped the recruitment drive and told Kusana that Lady Chiyo wanted to see him.
• Kusana noticed young Gaara lingering with his sand toys and asked if he wanted to come to Kusagakure.

Kusana tried to recruit Gaara to Kusagakure’s academy while Danzo used a secret summit to persuade the other great villages to pressure Sunagakure. Danzo’s pitch was interrupted by a BBC Daily reporter asking to interview him.

• Kusana invited Gaara to attend Kusagakure’s Hope Academy, and Pakura recognized him as Rasa’s son and Sunagakure’s Jinchuriki.
• Baki tried to protect Gaara from Kusana and Pakura, then left the matter for Chiyo and Ebizo to handle.
• Danzo presented an analysis at a secret summit attended by the Kage of the four great villages, excluding Sunagakure.
• Danzo urged the villages to unite against Sunagakure and seize the opportunity created by the Fourth Kazekage’s alleged assassination of the feudal lord.
• A BBC Daily gold medal reporter appeared before Danzo and asked to interview him.