Chapter Summaries

Sarutobi Hiruzen convened Konoha’s department heads to organize reconstruction and a response to the widespread Hollow threat, while accepting responsibility for the village’s recent disasters. He announced a Five Kage Summit and named Hyuga Yunchuan and Hatake Kakashi as his guards, leaving Konoha’s delegation set to travel.

• Sarutobi Hiruzen entered the conference room with the advisors, including Shimura Danzō, whose altered aura made Hyuga Yunchuan suspect he had combined Hashirama Cells with a Hollow.
• Sarutobi Hiruzen acknowledged his failures and said he would not remain Hokage much longer, prompting Nara Shikaku, Yamanaka Inoichi, and others to urge him to stay.
• Sarutobi Hiruzen ordered Konoha to prioritize civilian reconstruction, compensate fallen ninjas’ families, and establish a special operations department to coordinate research and Hollow countermeasures.
• Sarutobi Hiruzen directed registered ninja to search for Hollows in squads, protect key locations, and report suspected Espada-level targets instead of engaging them without authorization.
• Sarutobi Hiruzen announced that the Konoha Police Force would be reorganized with members from all clans, and Uchiha accepted the change without objection.
• Sarutobi Hiruzen formally initiated a Five Kage Summit and appointed Hyuga Yunchuan and Hatake Kakashi as his guards.

Sarutobi Hiruzen’s meeting approved Hyuga Yunchuan as a guard for the Five Kage Summit, with Tsunade and Jiraiya temporarily overseeing Konoha. As the leaders struggled to agree on a summit location, Miroku, the Shrine Maiden of the Land of Demons, appeared to Sarutobi and Yunchuan and proposed hosting it there.

• Sarutobi Hiruzen appointed Hyuga Yunchuan and Hatake Kakashi as guards for the Five Kage Summit, provoking shock from the Hyuga clan members.
• Sarutobi Hiruzen asked Tsunade and Jiraiya to take over Hokage duties while he was away, and ordered Shimura Danzō to have Root support intelligence gathering and Hollow research.
• The attendees voted to approve the meeting’s resolutions, and Sarutobi Hiruzen led them out of the conference room.
• Hyuga Yunchuan asked whether the other four Kage had agreed to attend, and Sarutobi Hiruzen explained that they were still arguing over the summit’s location and timing.
• Miroku appeared as a projection visible only to Sarutobi Hiruzen and Hyuga Yunchuan, then proposed that the Five Kage Summit be held in the Land of Demons.

Sarutobi Hiruzen presented four weapons from the Seven Deadly Sins and invited Konoha ninjas to try drawing them, but nearly everyone failed. After Tsunade and Danzo were repelled by Pride and Wrath, Hyuga Yunchuan began to suspect he understood how the weapons chose their wielders and urged Might Guy to try.

• Sarutobi Hiruzen revealed Pride, Anger, Gluttony, and Lust to the gathered Konoha ninjas and invited anyone to attempt to draw them.
• Genin, Chunin, and Jonin tried the weapons without success, though Lust trembled faintly when Yamanaka Inoichi touched it.
• Nara Shikaku examined the Sword Case's inscription while Tsunade forcefully drew Pride halfway before its recoil drove her back.
• Shimura Danzō drew Wrath an inch, but golden flames burned his arm and forced him to release it.
• Hyuga Yunchuan suspected he had grasped the Seven Deadly Sins' true nature and asked Might Guy to try drawing a weapon.

Might Guy pulled Gluttony from the Sword Case after Hyuga Yunchuan urged him to try it. Yunchuan explained that the Seven Deadly Sins represented rebellion against divine authority, leaving Nara Shikaku and the Konoha Jonin wondering whether the blades’ master sought to kill the gods or become their equal.

• Hyuga Yunchuan persuaded Might Guy to try Gluttony instead of Pride.
• Might Guy gripped Gluttony and pulled the massive Zanbato from the Sword Case as it released a violent crimson aura.
• Nara Shikaku asked Yunchuan how he knew Gluttony would respond to Guy, and Yunchuan connected the sin to biblical teachings about dependence on God.
• Yunchuan explained that Greed, Envy, Sloth, and the other sins also signified rebellion against divine will, linking them to himself, Kakashi, and Jiraiya.
• Nara Shikaku concluded that the Seven Deadly Sins’ creator may have intended to kill the gods and take their authority.
• Yunchuan suggested the creator might instead have sought to compare himself to a god, prompting the others to question whether the blades were meant to kill their maker.

Hyuga Yunchuan considered the purpose of the remaining Seven Deadly Sins weapons while Might Guy awakened Gluttony. After Gluttony devoured food and the Akimichi Clan’s secret medicines, Guy discovered its ability, “Mutual Devouring.”

• Hyuga Yunchuan concluded that Pride was meant for him—or more precisely, Ōtsutsuki Yunshi—and that no one in Konoha currently suited Wrath or Lust.
• Might Guy chose Gluttony, but he could not sense its ability and thought its weight made it useful for training.
• Gluttony melted into red, white, and black liquid, covered Might Guy, and formed close-fitting light armor with a hungry mouth in its palm.
• Sarutobi Hiruzen asked Guy to test whether Gluttony needed food, and Akimichi provided snacks, meat, Military Ration Pills, and the Akimichi Clan’s three secret medicines.
• Gluttony expanded into a giant maw and swallowed the entire pile, including the three secret medicines and the soil beneath them, then shrank back into Guy’s palm.
• Might Guy felt new energy and strength in his body and identified Gluttony’s ability as “Mutual Devouring,” combining symbiosis and devouring.

Might Guy learned that Gluttony could adapt his body to extreme strain, while Sarutobi Hiruzen encouraged him to feed it and asked Hyuga Yunchuan to find a religious text. Yunchuan reassured the disappointed Branch Family members, then defied Hyuga Riwo’s authority, prompting Riwo to summon the Main Branch elders for a private meeting.

• Might Guy learned that Gluttony could devour matter and energy with near-total efficiency, adapt him to harsh conditions, and gradually help him withstand the Eight Gates’ strain.
• Jiraiya considered whether Guy could adapt to Sage Mode, while Kakashi wondered whether he could adapt to a transplanted Sharingan; Sarutobi Hiruzen approved feeding Gluttony at the village’s expense.
• Sarutobi Hiruzen asked Hyuga Yunchuan to find the Bible, and Yunchuan agreed before heading back with the Branch Family members who had failed to draw the Seven Deadly Sins.
• Hyuga Yunchuan encouraged the Branch Family members, named their strengths, and urged them to find their own paths rather than limit themselves to the Gentle Fist.
• Hyuga Riwo ordered the Branch Family to stop, but they obeyed only after Yunchuan repeated the command; Riwo then invited several Main Branch elders to a private meeting without notifying Hiashi.

Hinata Hyuga improved during training with Neji, but Neji rejected the lunch she offered because he could not accept kindness from the Main Family. Afterward, Hizashi Hyuga entered a hidden chamber where the real Hiashi was imprisoned and met Lord Shadow.

• Hinata Hyuga demonstrated her progress in the Thirty-Two Palms, and Hizashi Hyuga praised her improvement.
• Hinata offered Neji a lunch she had made, but Neji refused and left the Training Room.
• Hizashi comforted Hinata after Neji left, then went to his room and opened a hidden passage.
• Hizashi entered the secret chamber, froze the real Hiashi Hyuga as he lunged at him, and warned him not to resist.
• Lord Shadow emerged from the darkness, and Hizashi thanked him for a gift that had helped him resolve problems.

Hizashi Hyuga confronted Hyuga Hiashi over the Caged Bird Cursed Seal and rejected the clan’s traditions in favor of securing Neji’s freedom. Shadow claimed he knew how to break the seal, and Hizashi asked to learn the method regardless of the cost.

• Shadow explained that Hizashi Hyuga controlled Hyuga Hiashi’s body by day and that he had sealed, but not removed, Hizashi’s Caged Bird Cursed Seal.
• Hizashi Hyuga asked whether the seal could be eradicated, and Shadow falsely claimed it was too deeply bound to his body and soul to remove.
• Hyuga Hiashi warned Hizashi not to trust Shadow, but Hizashi said Shadow had kept his promises while the clan had continued to trap its Branch Family.
• Hizashi Hyuga argued that he would abandon the Hyuga Clan for Neji just as Hyuga Hiashi had sacrificed family for the clan’s inheritance.
• After Shadow said he knew how to break the Caged Bird Cursed Seal, Hizashi asked him to reveal the method and offered anything he could give in return.

Shadow convinced Hizashi Hyuga that Neji could escape the Caged Bird Curse by evolving his Byakugan into the Tenseigan, and Hizashi resolved to seize the Main Branch’s eyes and kill those who controlled the curse. As Hizashi left to act, Shimura Danzō confronted him after deducing that he was impersonating Hyuga Hiashi, while Shadow watched from the shadows.

• Shadow showed Hizashi Hyuga a corpse with Byakugan and explained that it had come from a clan on the moon whose evolved eyes were called the Tenseigan.
• Shadow claimed Neji had learned an incomplete method of Byakugan evolution and offered to transplant the corpse’s bloodline into him.
• Hizashi decided to take the Main Branch’s Byakugan and kill every member who had mastered the Caged Bird Cursed Seal, despite Hyuga Hiashi’s protests.
• Hizashi left the secret chamber and encountered Shimura Danzō, who revealed that he had identified him as Hizashi impersonating Hyuga Hiashi.
• Shadow watched Danzō confront Hizashi, having guided Danzō to discover the impersonation.

Sarutobi Hiruzen, Hyuga Yunchuan, and Hatake Kakashi secretly traveled toward the Five Kage Summit by way of the Land of Waves. Meanwhile, Salamander Ibuse and two unidentified figures ambushed a fleet belonging to the supposedly defeated Land of Sky Village, and Shadow asked to meet its leader.

• Sarutobi Hiruzen told Hyuga Yunchuan and Hatake Kakashi they would travel by sea through the Land of Waves to reach the Land of Demons.
• Sarutobi Hiruzen's group stopped at a concealed cave for the night as the other Kage departed their villages.
• Two Sky Ninja tested their Flying Ninja Tools from a warship, unaware that Salamander Ibuse was approaching beneath them.
• Salamander Ibuse burst from the sea and swallowed the two Sky Ninja and their flight devices.
• Shadow and another figure landed on the warship, and Shadow asked the Sky Ninja to take them to their leader.

Hanzo and Shadow attacked the Land of Sky fortress, defeated its guards, and confronted Shinno beside the awakening Zero-Tails. Meanwhile, Ooyashiro En and Biwa Juzo approached Sasori to recruit him, but Sasori attacked them with the Third Kazekage Puppet.

• Hanzo dissolved the Sky Ninja's barrage with poison mist while Shadow summoned Armor Shadows to attack them.
• Shinno revealed Zero-Tails: Void and planned to use Hollows as its energy source before explosions shook the fortress.
• Hanzo and Shadow broke into Shinno's chamber and prepared to take him and Zero-Tails back to Nagato.
• Ooyashiro En and Biwa Juzo asked Sasori to join Akatsuki, but Sasori rejected their approach and summoned the Third Kazekage Puppet.
• Ooyashiro En revealed his Ketsuryūgan and raised the Sacred Annihilation Arrow as Sasori sent the Puppet toward him.

Kakuzu fought Hiruko in the forest, but Hiruko’s explosive attack brought out Satoru, which protected Kakuzu and carried Mui onto the battlefield. Mui questioned why Kakuzu had acted alone as Hiruko faced the arrival of another Akatsuki member.

• Kakuzu and Hiruko clashed, and Kakuzu mocked Hiruko’s stolen abilities while pressing him with Earth Grudge Fear.
• Hiruko summoned a stitched giant bird, escaped into the sky, and bombarded Kakuzu with explosive feathers.
• Satoru emerged from the smoke and shielded Kakuzu from the explosions with its wings.
• Mui walked out of Satoru’s mouth, confirmed Kakuzu was unharmed, and asked why he had not waited for help.
• Kakuzu complained about Mui’s delay, then corrected himself from saying he could kill Hiruko to saying he could take him away.

Mui and Kakuzu captured Hiruko after Satoru blasted him from the sky, while Nagato assembled Akatsuki’s members, welcomed new recruits, and ordered the Tailed Beast Capture Plan to begin. The chapter left Akatsuki poised to act now that the Five Kage had departed their villages, with Shadow watching from the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path.

• Hiruko fled on his strange bird, but Mui called on Muku, guiding Satoru to blast Hiruko and the bird from the sky.
• Mui and Kakuzu prepared to leave, with Mui saying Hiruko should have calmed down by then.
• Konan told Nagato that the Five Kage had left their villages and were likely headed for the Land of Demons, prompting Nagato to summon Akatsuki’s members.
• Nagato welcomed Hiruko, Shinno, and Sasori, assigned them partners, and warned that harming fellow members would mean death.
• Shadow appeared atop the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path as Nagato announced that the Tailed Beast Capture Plan would begin immediately.

Naruto began the new school semester after preparing for the day with help from the Nine-Tails, Yunshi, and Xiao Hei. Though villagers and parents still shunned him, his new class surprised him when Sasuke warmly introduced himself as Second Pillar.

• Naruto remembered it was the first day of the new semester, got ready, and left home after thanking Xiao Hei for bringing him his slippers.
• Xiao Hei revealed that its supposedly blind eye was a Byakugan and that its true owner was Hyuga Yunchuan.
• Parents at the Ninja Academy gate avoided Naruto and kept their children away, but he accepted their rejection and walked into school.
• Naruto entered his new classroom and sat by the window while the students soon resumed their conversations around him.
• Sasuke approached Naruto with a friendly smile, called himself Second Pillar, and asked Naruto's name, surprising both Naruto and Ōtsutsuki Yunshi.

Naruto Uzumaki introduced himself to his new classmates and considered Iruka’s lesson on the Will of Fire while studying books from Ōtsutsuki Yunshi. Meanwhile, Hyuga Yunchuan and Sarutobi Hiruzen arrived in the Land of Demons amid signs of trouble and sensed that several dangerous figures had gathered there.

• Sasuke introduced himself as an Uchiha who hoped to correct his clan’s mistakes, befriend his classmates, and become Hokage, earning their applause.
• Naruto told the class that he wanted a peaceful life and hoped to make friends, then met his desk mates Ryosuke Chiba and Karin.
• Iruka resolved to treat Naruto as an innocent student and began teaching the class about the Will of Fire.
• Naruto questioned Ōtsutsuki Yunshi about Konoha’s history and studied books Yunshi gave him, while Yunshi anticipated Naruto’s Uzumaki bloodline awakening.
• Hyuga Yunchuan and Sarutobi Hiruzen arrived by ship in the Land of Demons, saw signs of destruction, and sensed Moryo as well as the presence of Orochimaru and Uchiha Obito.

Naruto accepted Ryosuke Chiba and Karin’s invitation to eat, encouraged by Yunshi to experience life beyond his routine. Meanwhile, Neji rushed to Training Ground 3, where Hyuga Takashi and Hyuga Yoto’s public duel over the Main Branch and Branch Family’s unequal treatment began.

• Naruto considered refusing Ryosuke Chiba and Karin’s invitation but agreed to take them to a ramen shop after Yunshi urged him to socialize.
• Sasuke watched Naruto leave and regarded him as a future rival, while also considering Neji a potential opponent for the position of Hokage.
• Neji heard that the Hyuga Main Branch and Branch Family were fighting at Training Ground 3 and hurried to watch.
• Hyuga Yoto challenged Takashi after overhearing his complaint about the Branch Family’s restrictions on learning Gentle Fist techniques.
• Takashi deflected Yoto’s attempt to cripple his arm, and Yoto followed with Gentle Fist: Sixty-Four Palms.

Hyuga Takashi fought Hyuga Yoto, adapted the Main Branch’s techniques with Wind Style, and landed a potentially fatal cut that let him claim victory despite being badly injured. As Takashi left the training ground, Yoto rejected the loss and formed the hand seal to activate the Caged Bird, alarming Hyuga Neji.

• Hyuga Yoto overwhelmed Hyuga Takashi with the Sixty-Four Palms and struck his left shoulder, numbing his arm.
• Hyuga Takashi copied Yoto’s Gentle Step Twin Lion Fists and added Wind Style Chakra to counter the attack.
• The two exchanged Vacuum Palms and fought through the dust until Yoto broke Takashi’s left arm with the Mountain Breaking Strike.
• Hyuga Takashi revealed that his Wind Style hand blade had cut Yoto’s throat and declared that Yoto had lost before limping away.
• Hyuga Yoto raged at Takashi’s victory and raised his fingers to activate the Caged Bird, prompting Hyuga Neji to react.

Naruto accepted Ryosuke Chiba and Karin’s invitation to eat after Ōtsutsuki Yunshi urged him to engage with the world beyond his routines. Meanwhile, Neji rushed to Training Ground 3, where Hyuga Takashi and Hyuga Yoto began a public duel over the Main Branch’s privileges, and Yoto unleashed the Sixty-Four Palms.

• Naruto initially considered refusing Ryosuke Chiba and Karin’s invitation, but Ōtsutsuki Yunshi persuaded him to go, and Naruto suggested a ramen shop.
• Sasuke watched Naruto leave and considered him a future rival, while also thinking Hyuga Neji could become a contender for Hokage.
• Neji heard that the Hyuga Main Branch and Branch Family were fighting at Training Ground 3 and hurried there.
• Hyuga Yoto challenged Hyuga Takashi after overhearing Takashi complain about the Branch Family’s restrictions on learning Gentle Fist techniques.
• Hyuga Takashi deflected Yoto’s attempt to cripple his arm, but Yoto continued attacking and launched the Gentle Fist: Sixty-Four Palms.

Hyuga Takashi defeated Hyuga Yoto by adapting Main Branch techniques with Wind Style Chakra, despite suffering severe injuries. As Takashi limped away, Yoto rejected the result and raised the hand sign for the Caged Bird, alarming Hyuga Neji.

• Hyuga Yoto struck Hyuga Takashi’s shoulder with the Sixty-Four Palms, but Takashi suppressed the numbness and copied Yoto’s Gentle Step Twin Lion Fists with Wind Style Chakra.
• Hyuga Takashi and Hyuga Yoto exchanged Vacuum Palm attacks and clashed at close range, until Takashi’s Wind Style hand blade grazed Yoto’s throat and nearly killed him.
• Hyuga Yoto broke Takashi’s left arm with the Mountain Breaking Strike, but Takashi pointed out that Yoto had lost because his throat wound could have been fatal.
• Hyuga Takashi declared victory and limped away, while Hyuga Yoto became enraged and raised the hand sign to activate the Caged Bird.
• Hyuga Neji recognized the Caged Bird hand sign and reacted with alarm.

Hyuga Yoto lost to Hyuga Takashi, then tried to use the Caged Bird Cursed Seal before Hyuga Neji, Hyuga Iroha, and Hyuga Aoi stopped him. After Yoto fled, Iroha took Takashi for treatment and worried about Yoto’s threat; later, Yoto reported to an elder, insisting he had not truly lost.

• Hyuga Yoto activated the Caged Bird Cursed Seal, leaving Hyuga Takashi convulsing in pain.
• Hyuga Neji shielded Takashi while Hyuga Iroha threatened Yoto and Hyuga Aoi restrained his sealing hand.
• Hyuga Aoi condemned Yoto for using the Caged Bird after losing, and Yoto left the training ground in anger.
• Hyuga Iroha and Neji helped the injured Takashi and decided to take him for treatment.
• Hyuga Yoto recounted the duel to an old man, denied losing, and began accusing Takashi of using dirty tricks before the old man struck him.