Chapter Summaries

Kuzan arrived in the Land of Grass, where the king publicly blamed him for assaulting a disabled man and then acknowledged that the kingdom was protecting Nico Robin. Kuzan prepared to discuss his mission, but the king postponed the conversation and pulled him away.

• Kuzan was brought to the Land of Grass after an incident aboard a passenger ship and was greeted with music, flowers, and dancing.
• The king accused Kuzan of forcing a disabled man to pay for a meal and endangering passengers, despite Kuzan's protests.
• Kuzan recognized Nico Robin and pointed out that the Land of Grass was sheltering a World Government wanted criminal.
• The king defended Robin as his assistant and said he had dared to kill a Celestial Dragon, while Robin thanked Kuzan for what he had done for her.
• Kuzan set aside his reaction to Robin and began to explain his mission, but the king interrupted and said they could discuss it later.

Kusana kept Kuzan occupied with a tour of the Land of Grass while reporter Deks recorded the visit for the news agency. After the welcome banquet and a luxurious night’s lodging, Kuzan was interrupted by Nico Robin.

• Kusana led Kuzan through Hope Town and Mount Colubo, showing him the Land of Grass’s development while Kuzan tried to discuss his business.
• Kusana showed Kuzan a construction site where Gray Terminal residents worked, including Garp’s grandson, and praised the young man’s progress.
• Reporter Deks introduced himself and explained that the news agency had been invited to document the World Government’s visit after its relationship with the BBC Daily soured.
• Kusana described the visit as a major step toward cooperation between the Land of Grass and the World Government, while Kuzan silently gathered information.
• Kusana guided Kuzan around the country, and Kuzan saw Garp’s grandson eating and a Three-Sword Style swordsman planing wood before attending the welcome banquet.
• After the banquet, Kuzan settled into his lodging, but Nico Robin appeared at his doorway late at night.

Kusana tried to recruit Aokiji, but the Marine Admiral rejected the offer and warned Robin that the World Government would not spare the Land of Grass. Aokiji stayed in his room overnight, and the next morning a furious caller demanded to know what he had done.

• Robin delivered the Land of Grass Talent Introduction notice to Aokiji, who refused to betray the Marines and warned that the World Government would not let the Land of Grass off easily.
• Aokiji froze Robin’s feet and sent her outside, then told Kusana that Robin was a notorious criminal; Kusana admitted he had expected Aokiji to refuse but was glad he had received the notice.
• Kusana and Robin joked about her overtime pay and rumors that he liked married women before leaving the door.
• Aokiji overheard Kusana’s remark about married women, planned to return after finishing his mission, and went to sleep.
• The next morning, a Den Den Mushi woke Aokiji and angrily asked what he had done the night before.

Kuzan learned that a news agency article had portrayed his visit to the Land of Grass as a secret defection, damaging his standing with the World Government as the Marines chose a Fleet Admiral. Sengoku asked him to infiltrate the Land of Grass, but Kuzan revealed he had thrown away the Talent Introduction Plan and had only just retrieved it; meanwhile, Sengoku called a meeting at Navy Headquarters.

• Sengoku angrily questioned Kuzan about a news report suggesting he might defect to the Land of Grass, and Kuzan read the article and called it slander.
• Sengoku said the World Government favored Sakazuki and asked Kuzan to report what intelligence he had gathered about the Land of Grass.
• Kuzan reported that the Land of Grass had hidden strength, had partnered with Morgans's news agency, and was rumored to have a king who liked married women.
• Sengoku asked Kuzan to pretend to defect and use the Talent Introduction Plan to infiltrate the Land of Grass, but Kuzan said he had thrown the plan away and was retrieving it from the trash.
• Sengoku told a Marine to summon Garp for a meeting, ordered him to confiscate Garp's wine, and asked Colonel Kabuto to notify every department.

Navy Headquarters prepared to announce Sakazuki as the next Fleet Admiral while Kuzan accepted a secret mission to infiltrate the Land of Grass. Kuzan met its king expecting a difficult negotiation, but was hired almost immediately.

• Sengoku gathered the Navy Headquarters officers to announce the World Government's final decision on the Fleet Admiral succession.
• Kuzan read the World Government's plan to have him defect and infiltrate the Land of Grass, and resolved to earn its trust despite the risks.
• Kuzan learned that Sakazuki had been appointed the next Fleet Admiral and prepared to approach the King of the Land of Grass.
• The King of the Land of Grass welcomed Kuzan and hired him at once, leaving Kuzan stunned by how quickly it happened.

Kuzan joined the Land of Grass and was appointed its first Fleet Admiral, though he suspected the easy recruitment and prestigious role concealed a scheme. The king introduced a familiar, blind assistant, leaving Kuzan speechless.

• Kuzan offered to join the Land of Grass, and the king hired him immediately without asking for a pledge of loyalty.
• Kuzan asked what work he would do, and the king assured him the country would not ask him to betray the Marines or commit crimes.
• The king gave Kuzan a prepared appointment naming him the Land of Grass's first Fleet Admiral and said the country needed a navy to protect its waters and people.
• Kuzan suggested killing a Celestial Dragon to prove his sincerity, but the king refused and promised him full support and a capable assistant.
• A blind man approached Kuzan and greeted him as Admiral Aokiji, leaving Kuzan silent again.

Kuzan was recruited by the King of the Land of Grass immediately and appointed Fleet Admiral of its Navy, leaving him unsure how to explain the situation to Sengoku. When he reported his unexpected success, Sengoku mistook the appointment for a powerless post and proposed ways to advance his infiltration, until Kuzan revealed his new rank.

• Kuzan left the King's office with a Talent Introduction form and an appointment letter naming him Fleet Admiral of the Land of Grass Navy, while Issho warned that he would watch him closely.
• Kuzan answered Sengoku's secret call and was formally assigned to infiltrate the Land of Grass as a traitor to Navy Headquarters, with Sengoku as his sole contact.
• Kuzan told Sengoku that the King had accepted his application immediately, without any negotiation or trial mission.
• Sengoku guessed that the King had given Kuzan a marginal position to humiliate Navy Headquarters, then assumed he could still rise through the ranks.
• Kuzan revealed that he was already Fleet Admiral of the Land of Grass Navy, prompting Sengoku to ask whether he had betrayed the Navy and World Government.

Kuzan told Sengoku that the Land of Grass had made him its Fleet Admiral, while Sengoku mistook his assistant Issho for a suspicious outsider and offered to help Kuzan take control of the new navy. The chapter ended with the seas reacting to a wave of changes, including Kuzan’s public defection, Akainu’s appointment, and the Land of Grass establishing its own navy with Kuzan at its head.

• Kuzan told Sengoku he suspected the Land of Grass had appointed him Fleet Admiral as a figurehead and assigned Issho to watch him.
• Sengoku promised Navy Headquarters would secretly help Kuzan gain control of the Land of Grass navy, then asked about Issho and offered to have him removed.
• Kuzan described Issho’s appearance and mentioned he was blind before ending the call; Sengoku wondered whether Kuzan had truly defected.
• Sengoku learned that the World Government’s appointment letter had arrived, as the chapter reported that he resigned and Akainu became Fleet Admiral.
• The World Government announced that Marshall D. Teach and Trafalgar Law would become Shichibukai and that it would begin a World Conscription.
• The Land of Grass announced its own navy and named Kuzan its first Fleet Admiral, stunning people across the seas.

Akainu and Sengoku discussed Aokiji becoming Fleet Admiral of the Land of Grass, the Navy’s planned World Conscription, and the World Government’s effort to control public opinion through BBC News Agency. As Sengoku went to meet the agency’s president, an estranged father and son faced each other at Marineford Harbor and silently judged that the World Government was doomed to fall.

• Akainu angrily condemned Aokiji’s appointment as Fleet Admiral of the Land of Grass, while Sengoku urged him not to doubt Kuzan’s justice.
• Sengoku explained that the Navy would launch a massive World Conscription to strengthen its forces against the Land of Grass and rising pirates.
• Sengoku told Akainu that the World Government had hired BBC News Agency to promote the Navy and that its president had arrived at Marineford.
• Sengoku left to check on the delayed visitors, while a father and son who had not met in a long time silently faced each other at Marineford Harbor.

Kabuto’s Navy role appeared in the World Government’s conscription film, astonishing the ninjas of the Land of Grass, while Kusana claimed he had sent out a trump card. At Marineford, four elderly newcomers arrived to enlist and introduced themselves as Hiruzen Sarutobi, Shimura Danzō, Mitokado Homura, and Utatane Koharu, leaving Sengoku convinced they were no ordinary people.

• Mujie recognized his son Kabuto at Navy Headquarters, but kept their relationship hidden while Sengoku praised Kabuto’s promotion and tragic family history.
• Sengoku and Mujie arranged for Kabuto to feature prominently in the World Conscription film, and Kabuto left without revealing his feelings to his father.
• The Land of Grass’s ninjas watched Kabuto appear as a Navy poster figure, and Kusana said he had already sent out their trump card.
• A few days later, Hiruzen Sarutobi, Shimura Danzō, Mitokado Homura, and Utatane Koharu arrived at Marineford to join the conscription.
• The four elders introduced themselves to Sengoku, whose impression of their imposing presence was that they were no ordinary people.

Kusana sent Hiruzen Sarutobi, Shimura Danzō, Mitokado Homura, and Utatane Koharu away, apparently hoping Danzō would join the World Government and give the Land of Grass a worthy opponent. As the four elders continued their spy mission, Danzō asked whether they truly wanted to keep going as before.

• Kusana wrote a Spirit of Grass edition of the Navy Training Manual and planned for Kuzan to use it to train the Land of Grass navy.
• Robin warned Kusana that Hiruzen Sarutobi, Shimura Danzō, Mitokado Homura, and Utatane Koharu might break their agreement and oppose the Land of Grass by joining the World Government.
• Kusana denied that he would harm his dear friends, but his excitement at the prospect of fighting Danzō again made Robin doubt his sincerity.
• Danzō sneezed while walking with Hiruzen, who was in a wheelchair, and the two wondered whether people in Konoha still remembered them.
• Hiruzen said the four elders would continue their spy mission, but Danzō turned to Hiruzen, Mitokado Homura, and Utatane Koharu and asked if they merely wanted to carry on as before.

Danzo rallied Hiruzen Sarutobi, Utatane Koharu, and Mitokado Homura to regain hope and fight the Land of Grass, and Sengoku welcomed them as powerful recruits for the Marines. Their renewed resolve faltered when two Grass bandits appeared at Navy Headquarters, leaving the six staring at one another in dismay.

• Danzo reminded his companions of Konoha’s humiliation and invoked the Will of Fire to persuade them not to give up.
• Hiruzen Sarutobi, Mitokado Homura, and Utatane Koharu agreed to fight alongside Danzo and regained their determination.
• Sengoku praised the four as extraordinary recruits and offered them Navy Rear Admiral ranks while asking them to promote the World Conscription.
• Two Grass bandits arrived, and Hiruzen Sarutobi and the others realized that their supposed chance to fight the Land of Grass had brought them face-to-face with their captors.

Kuzan struggled with the Land of Grass Navy’s tiny size while studying its Spirit of Grass, then met the King’s new recruits and learned how the navy would begin training. The chapter left Black Zetsu serving under Kuzan and Issho, concealing his resentment for his mother’s sake.

• Kuzan read about Navy Headquarters’ recruitment and reflected on how the Land of Grass Navy had only himself and Issho.
• Kuzan studied the Spirit of Grass and concluded that it served as the Land of Grass’s guiding belief.
• Kuzan met Kusana, Pakura, and Black Zetsu at the navy headquarters, recognizing Pakura as the woman at the center of the Celestial Dragon incident.
• Kusana gave Kuzan the Land of Grass Navy Training Manual and appointed Pakura to assist with naval training.
• Kusana introduced Black Zetsu as an inheritor of the Spirit of Grass and told Kuzan and Issho to discipline him if necessary.
• Black Zetsu introduced himself as Little Black and agreed to work under Kuzan and Issho for his mother’s sake.

Black Zetsu joined the newly forming Navy to gather energy for another Divine Tree, hoping to help save his mother. Kuzan and Issho suspected he was closely connected to the King of the Land of Grass, while Kuzan later received a trembling Den Den Mushi and called Sengoku with important intelligence.

• Black Zetsu recalled that the King of the Land of Grass had given him the goal of gathering energy to nourish another Divine Tree, and he joined the Navy to do it.
• Kuzan and Issho watched Black Zetsu linger after the King left and suspected that he had a special connection to the King.
• Kuzan called Black Zetsu Little Black and questioned him about his relationship with the King and his mother.
• Black Zetsu insisted he had no father and praised his mother as the most beautiful, reinforcing Kuzan's suspicion that their family ties were unusual.
• Kuzan noticed a Den Den Mushi trembling in his clothes, excused himself, and called Sengoku from a secluded room to report important intelligence.

Kusana returned to the ninja world to bring the remaining ninja forces into the Land of Grass's East Blue Overlord Plan and visited Kaguya on the moon. After gathering the ninjas in Kusagakure, he ordered them to set off for the sea.

• Kusana planned to send most of the ninja villages' forces to the East Blue, recruit Water Release users for the navy, and establish a Navy Academy.
• Kusana visited Mrs. Kaguya on the moon and told her that Black Zetsu was serving at the Land of Grass's Navy Headquarters.
• Kusana returned to Kusagakure, where the ninjas from the Four Great Ninja Villages and Robin were assembled.
• Jiraiya teased Kusana about visiting a lonely woman, and Kusana claimed he had visited the family of a hardworking subordinate.
• Jiraiya asked Kusana to spare his teachers, but Kusana insisted that Hiruzen, Danzō, and the others were his close friends and had a mission to complete at sea.
• Kusana asked Robin about the ninja world's situation, then ordered the assembled ninjas to set off.

Kusana settled the newly arrived ninjas into the Land of Grass and checked on the training and research underway before visiting the pregnant Kushina. Meanwhile, Obito brought Kakashi to a street on the island to wait for Afei.

• Kusana handed the ninjas he had brought across the sea to Kusagakure staff and left their transition and training to them.
• Kusana noted that Naruto, Sasuke, and others were training Haki and Sage Curse Marks while the Research Institute studied life energy and ways to improve training.
• Kusana visited the resting Kushina, told her Kakashi had arrived, and suggested naming their expected daughter Little Jiu.
• Obito brought Kakashi to a busy street and explained that they were waiting there for Afei to join them.

Kakashi, Obito, and Tobi encountered Hashirama and Tobirama, who revealed that Madara had created Tobi using Hashirama’s cells. The Hokage brothers left to pursue another task, and Kakashi was left wondering what mission awaited him in the unfamiliar world.

• Kakashi greeted Hashirama and Tobirama when they approached the group.
• Tobirama and Hashirama recognized Tobi as someone Madara had created using Hashirama’s cells, and Hashirama thanked Tobi for keeping Madara company.
• Hashirama and Tobirama set off to stop someone from escaping, while Tobirama assured Kakashi that Hiruzen and the others were safe.
• Obito asked Kakashi what they should do next, and Kakashi walked ahead, considering whether he would begin a new mission in this world.

After the World Conscription ended, Navy Headquarters grew concerned about the Land of Grass’s expanding navy and its recruits preparing for live-combat training. Both Sengoku and Kusana held emergency meetings as the Land of Grass faced a severe budget shortage, and Fleet Admiral Kuzan was asked for a solution.

• The World Conscription brought Navy Headquarters four veteran recruits and one new Marine Admiral, while the Whitebeard Pirates put a kill order on Marshall D. Teach.
• The BBC Daily rose to challenge Morgans’s news agency after gaining support from the World Government.
• Sengoku reviewed reports that the Land of Grass’s navy was preparing live-combat training and that the nation was nearly out of money.
• Sengoku convened the secret anti-Land of Grass task force and asked Danzo for his opinion.
• Kusana held a meeting about the Land of Grass’s looming financial crisis and asked Fleet Admiral Kuzan what they should do.

At the Anti-Grass Special Task Force’s first meeting, Danzo misread the Grass leader’s refusal to stay in contact as a challenge to a final showdown. He offered Sengoku a plan to hurt the Land of Grass: divert disaster elsewhere and sow discord.

• Hiruzen Sarutobi and the others learned that the Land of Grass had told them to handle the mission themselves and would not contact them again.
• Danzo recalled that the Grass leader had hung up on him, and he grew angry at what he took to be a slight.
• Kabuto reassured Danzo that the Grass leader wanted an honorable final battle and reminded him of their past encounter in the Land of Rain.
• Danzo decided to accept the supposed challenge and, after Sengoku called him back to the meeting, proposed diverting disaster and sowing discord.

Hiruzen Sarutobi and the other Konoha elders accepted Kusana’s challenge and resolved to rise again. Meanwhile, Kusana planned to fund Grass Navy training by catching pirates and mining Sky Island gold, while Kuzan struggled with his loyalty and ended by asking Sengoku for better Navy Headquarters pay and benefits.

• Danzo assured Hiruzen Sarutobi and the other elders that Kusana had genuinely released them, and they decided to accept his challenge and renew their resolve.
• Kusana rejected Kuzan’s suggestion to suspend Grass Navy training and planned to make pirates suffer while the Land of Grass mined Sky Island gold.
• Robin asked whether Kuzan should be watched, but Kusana insisted the cadres should trust him and focus outward.
• Kuzan reflected on how rapidly the Grass Navy had grown and considered recruiting Kisame Hoshigaki for Navy Headquarters, but Kisame asked about pay, benefits, and working hours instead.
• Kuzan received a call from Sengoku and immediately asked whether Navy Headquarters could improve its salaries and benefits.