Chapter Summaries

Nara Dan arrived on the Mist Ninja battlefield, stopped Might Duy’s Eight Inner Gates from killing him, and sent him back with Might Guy and the others. Meanwhile, Suikazan Fuguki reached the coast and discovered Samehada was terrified of someone approaching.

• Nara Dan restrained Might Duy, silently closed his Eight Inner Gates, and treated his old injuries before ordering him to retreat with Might Guy, Ebisu, and Shiranui Genma.
• Might Duy praised Nara Dan’s Taijutsu and urged Might Guy to follow his example, inspiring Guy to make Dan his goal.
• Nara Dan vanished to pursue the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist, while Might Duy concluded that Dan had surpassed the Eight Inner Gates.
• Suikazan Fuguki reached the Land of Fire’s coastline, found no Mist Ninja ships, and considered fleeing rather than returning to Kirigakure.
• Samehada struggled against Fuguki, who realized the sword was afraid, as Nara Dan appeared and addressed him as Samehada’s wielder.

Nara Dan caught Suikazan Fuguki, whose Samehada abandoned him, and killed him to finish off the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist. After examining and merging with Samehada, Nara Dan discovered it enhanced his Natural Energy sensing and control, leaving him eager to explore its potential.

• Nara Dan arrived with the other six Ninja Swords floating behind him, and Samehada broke free of Suikazan Fuguki to join him.
• Suikazan Fuguki recognized the danger and fled, but Nara Dan cut him into pieces with Gang Qi, ending the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist.
• Nara Dan examined Samehada's living, metal-like structure and found that it held a consciousness and a vast store of Chakra.
• Samehada merged with Nara Dan's right arm, giving it a blue, scaled, gill-marked appearance and increasing his Chakra reserves.
• Nara Dan realized Samehada improved his ability to sense and control Natural Energy, and Sage Mode runes spread across his transformed arm.

Nara Dan sealed the six Ninja Swords against summoning and sensed a Tailed Beast’s chakra, suspecting Madara Uchiha was making a move. He chose not to confront Madara and headed after the Uchiha Clan, while the Third Mizukage learned that the swords could not all be summoned.

• Nara Dan restrained the six Ninja Swords with Gang Qi and sealed their summoning formulas, while Samehada remained at his side.
• Nara Dan sensed a Tailed Beast’s chakra over the sea and considered how his actions had changed events involving Madara Uchiha and the Three-Tails.
• Nara Dan decided not to pursue Madara, reasoning that he could claim the Rinnegan and deal with Obito later, then headed toward the Uchiha Clan’s retreat.
• A subordinate told the Third Mizukage that someone had interrupted the summoning of six swords and that Samehada had refused to be summoned.

The Third Mizukage accepted that Kirigakure had been defeated and ordered surrender documents prepared, but a hidden Genjutsu made him withdraw the guards watching Isobu. At the Land of Fire's border, Uchiha Fugaku pledged the Uchiha Clan's loyalty to Nara Dan after Dan's reinforcement saved them from even greater losses.

• The Third Mizukage learned that Nara Dan had wiped out the Mist Ninja Army and ordered surrender documents prepared with a clause demanding negotiations with Dan.
• A subordinate reported that someone was trying to take Isobu, and a Genjutsu briefly affected the Third Mizukage.
• The Third Mizukage ordered the guards watching Isobu to withdraw and treated the matter as a confidential S-Rank mission.
• Uchiha Fugaku reviewed the battle's casualties and lamented that more than half of his clan had been injured or killed.
• Nara Dan arrived, and Fugaku pledged that the Uchiha Clan would follow him.

Nara Dan entrusted Uchiha Fugaku with six sealed Mist swords and met Might Duy and Might Guy after returning victorious. After examining Duy, Dan warned that continued intense training could kill him before he turned forty, leaving Guy desperate to save his father.

• Nara Dan told Fugaku he did not need to commit seppuku and gave him the six sealed Ninja Swords to store or distribute.
• Fugaku recognized the swords as belonging to the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist and realized Dan had defeated their owners.
• Might Duy and Might Guy arrived, and Duy praised Dan for defeating the enemies and celebrated the power of youth with his son.
• Dan examined Duy and warned him that further intense training could leave him dead before forty and cause him to age rapidly.
• Might Duy accepted the cost of youth, but Might Guy dropped to his knees and pleaded with Dan after hearing the warning.

Nara Dan explained the Way of the Flesh to Might Duy, helping him recognize that his exhausting training had been damaging his body rather than advancing his Taijutsu. He accepted Might Duy and Might Guy as students, while Uchiha Fugaku began wondering whether his own children could learn from Nara Dan.

• Nara Dan told Might Duy that conventional Taijutsu training squandered the body's potential and urged him to follow the Way of the Flesh.
• Might Duy realized he had pursued hard work in the wrong direction and abandoned his fixation on mindless exertion.
• Nara Dan privately considered how Chakra had constrained humanity's physical development and resolved to confront the Otsutsuki when he learned more about them.
• Might Duy and Might Guy knelt and asked Nara Dan to take Guy as his disciple, but Nara Dan lifted them with Gang Qi and accepted them both as students.
• Uchiha Fugaku watched Nara Dan accept the Might family and wondered whether his son or daughter could receive Nara Dan's teachings.

Nara Dan confronted Rin Nohara, who had been turned into a Three-Tails Jinchuriki and sent under Uchiha Madara’s control. After suspecting the Sage of Six Paths was using Madara’s plan to target him, Dan destroyed Rin’s Tailed Beast Bomb and prepared to face her.

• Nara Dan sensed an approaching threat and told Uchiha Fugaku that he was the target, ordering the Uchiha to retreat.
• Rin Nohara charged toward Dan in a Three-Tails transformation, controlled by Uchiha Madara.
• Dan concluded that the Sage of Six Paths had manipulated Madara’s plan to target him and declared that he would confront them both.
• Rin formed a small Tailed Beast Bomb, and Dan punched it, causing it to explode and leaving Rin badly injured.
• Rin roared as Tailed Beast Chakra began healing her, while Dan stood unharmed nearby.

Nara Dan tried to suppress Rin Nohara’s Tailed Beast transformation, but Madara Uchiha’s hidden control turned the confrontation into a battle inside her mental world. Nara Dan destroyed Madara’s mental presence and found Rin asleep beside a subdued Three-Tails.

• Nara Dan’s seals failed to contain Rin Nohara’s Tailed Beast Chakra, and her transformation began to overwhelm her.
• Rin’s Three Tomoe Sharingan interrupted the transformation and attacked Nara Dan’s mind with powerful Yin Release Chakra.
• Nara Dan entered Rin’s mental world, identified Madara Uchiha’s presence, and resisted his Amaterasu and the Three-Tails’ attack.
• Nara Dan enlarged his Dharma Manifestation and used Heaven Opening to split and devour the mental world, destroying Madara Uchiha’s presence.
• Nara Dan found Rin asleep beside a chained Three-Tails, which reacted angrily before falling silent.

Nara Dan freed Rin Nohara from Madara Uchiha’s genjutsu and tracked Madara to his underground hideout. Madara tried to recruit Nara, but Nara refused, and the two prepared to fight.

• Nara Dan made the Three-Tails promise not to trouble Rin Nohara, then sensed Madara Uchiha’s location through the remnant of Madara’s will inside Rin.
• Madara Uchiha urged Obito Uchiha to go see Rin, but abruptly changed his mind and knocked Obito unconscious when he sensed Nara approaching.
• Madara told White Zetsu that Nara had removed his genjutsu on Rin and destroyed his remaining mental will, then admitted Nara was already there.
• Nara Dan broke into Madara’s underground hideout, confronted him, and declared that only one of them would leave alive.
• Madara recognized Nara as a worthy opponent and invited him to join his plan, but Nara rejected the offer and said he was not interested in hearing it.

Madara Uchiha restored his youth with the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path and unleashed Wood Release against Nara Dan. Nara Dan tore through Madara’s attacks, but Madara followed with a devastating Uchiha Flame Formation.

• Madara Uchiha drew life force from the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path and regained his youthful body and nearly all his power.
• Madara Uchiha used Deep Forest Emergence to fill the underground and surrounding area with trees, but Nara Dan cut them down with Void-Born Gang—Breath-to-Sword.
• Madara Uchiha sent a Wood Dragon at Nara Dan, who smashed its head and charged toward him.
• Madara Uchiha summoned nine Wood Dragons to block Nara Dan, but Nara Dan destroyed them with compressed-air punches.
• Madara Uchiha unleashed Uchiha Flame Formation, sending four enormous pillars of fire toward Nara Dan.

Nara Dan fought Madara Uchiha, forcing him to reveal Complete Body Susanoo and land a powerful blow. After surviving the attack, Nara Dan used his superior speed to overwhelm Susanoo, though Madara's defenses remained intact.

• Nara Dan withstood Madara Uchiha's flames, struck him repeatedly, and shattered his samurai Susanoo armor with powerful attacks.
• Madara healed his wounds and expanded Susanoo into its hundreds-of-meters-tall Complete Body form, then slashed Nara Dan into a distant hill.
• Nara Dan survived the slash by activating the Heavenly God State and charged Madara's Complete Body Susanoo again.
• Nara Dan dodged Susanoo's sword and struck it at supersonic speed, leaving Madara unable to counterattack.

Madara used nine Susanoo to trap Nara Dan and unleashed a devastating Yasakani Magatama barrage, while Fugaku and the Third learned of the scale of Nara Dan’s victories. The chapter left Nara Dan emerging from Madara’s explosion as the Third recognized he had no way to restrain him.

• Madara, nearing the limit of the life force sustaining him, created eight Wood Clones and surrounded Nara Dan with nine Complete Body Susanoo.
• Nara Dan recognized that Madara was trying to confine his movement, but the Susanoo ring closed around him.
• Madara and his clones fired the Nine-Fold Formation of Yasakani Magatama, filling the enclosed space with a chain of massive explosions.
• As the blast faded, Madara searched for Nara Dan and saw a tall figure emerging through the shock waves.
• Fugaku had the unconscious Rin Nohara taken to camp and wondered about the powerful Sharingan traces surrounding her; he suspected Nara Dan was fighting the distant enemy behind the explosion.
• The Third learned that Nara Dan had killed thousands of Mist Ninja, including the Seven Ninja Swordsmen, and felt helpless to stop him.

Danzo, Utatane Koharu, and Mitokado Homura urged the Third to stop Nara Dan from returning to Konoha, but the Third refused and announced he would retire after Dan returned. The chapter then shifted to the coastline, where Nara Dan faced the aftermath of Madara Uchiha’s devastating attack.

• Danzo, Utatane Koharu, and Mitokado Homura confronted the Third and called Nara Dan a threat to Konoha.
• Danzo proposed using Orochimaru, Jiraiya, and Minato to prevent Nara Dan from returning, but the Third defended Dan as a Konoha shinobi.
• The Third said he would arrange his retirement after Nara Dan returned to the village, prompting Danzo and Mitokado Homura to leave.
• Utatane Koharu accepted the Third’s authority but urged him to act for Konoha and the First’s ideals.
• The Third reflected on his decision, while Nara Dan stood at the epicenter of an immense explosion unleashed by Madara Uchiha on the coast between the Land of Fire and the Land of Water.

Nara Dan survived Madara Uchiha’s devastating attack with an improvised spherical defense and recovered through his powerful regeneration. He then entered Sage Mode with Samehada’s help, prompting Madara to recognize his strength while refusing to surrender.

• Nara Dan compressed himself into a sphere to shield his organs from Madara Uchiha’s attack, emerging with serious but survivable injuries.
• Madara Uchiha assessed Nara Dan’s damage and offered him one last chance to join him or die.
• Nara Dan healed rapidly, told Madara that his Chakra was nearly depleted, and chose to fight him directly rather than wear him down.
• Nara Dan formed a seal and used Samehada Cells to enter Sage Mode, gaining control over natural energy and displaying fish-like traits.
• Madara Uchiha recognized that Nara Dan had reached Hashirama Senju’s level, but vowed not to surrender.

Nara Dan defeated Madara Uchiha’s nine Susanoo using a gigantic Sage Gang Qi Martial God, but Madara warned him that Senjutsu had deadly side effects. The revelation left Nara Dan suspecting that Senjutsu had caused Hashirama Senju’s early death.

• Nara Dan infused his Gang Qi with Natural Energy, immobilized and annihilated Madara Uchiha’s Yasakaka Magatama, and formed a nearly thousand-meter Sage Gang Qi Martial God.
• Nara Dan’s Martial God shattered one Complete Body Susanoo and overwhelmed the remaining eight with speed and swordsmanship.
• Nara Dan used Secret Sword: Immortal Slayer to cut through all eight Susanoo, leaving Madara Uchiha defeated in the remains of his own Susanoo.
• Madara Uchiha praised Nara Dan, tried to recruit him again, and suggested he expected to return for another fight.
• Madara Uchiha warned Nara Dan that Senjutsu was difficult to control and claimed Hashirama Senju had died young from using too much of it.
• Nara Dan realized that Senjutsu’s side effects might explain Hashirama Senju’s early death.

Nara Dan killed the dying Madara Uchiha and discovered that Madara’s corpse and the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path had been summoned away. After waking Obito Uchiha, Nara Dan explained Madara’s deception and removed a patch of black runes from Obito’s heart.

• Madara Uchiha’s life force ran out, and he died standing as Nara Dan reflected on the limits of his power.
• Madara Uchiha’s corpse vanished in a cloud of smoke before Nara Dan could seal it, and Nara Dan found that the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path was gone from the Underground Space too.
• Nara Dan found Obito Uchiha unconscious and woke him, after which Obito immediately asked for Rin Nohara and Madara Uchiha.
• Nara Dan told Obito Uchiha that he had killed Madara and explained that Madara had kidnapped him and Rin Nohara and used him for conspiracies.
• Nara Dan pierced Obito Uchiha’s heart with Gang Qi and pulled out a patch of strange black runes.

Nara Dan destroyed Black Zetsu’s body and ordered White Zetsu to take Obito back to Konoha, while Obito learned Rin was nearby. Dan left to handle another matter, leaving Obito and White Zetsu to make the long journey together.

• Obito realized Madara’s seal and the suspicious events surrounding Rin pointed to a deliberate conspiracy.
• Dan summoned White Zetsu, then stopped Black Zetsu from escaping and ground its body away, though a spark of life escaped into the void.
• Dan reasoned that Black Zetsu needed the Rinnegan to fulfill its plans and decided to cut off its path to resurrection.
• Dan placed a seal in White Zetsu’s heart and ordered it to take Obito back to Konoha.
• Dan told Obito that Rin was thirty or forty kilometers away, then vanished, leaving Obito to ask whether White Zetsu could carry him underground.

Jiraiya and Minato learned that the Cloud Ninja front had quieted after the Third Raikage and Ōnoki fought each other, leaving the war close to its end. Danzo then asked Jiraiya and Minato to ambush Nara Dan on his return to Konoha, and Jiraiya rejected the request.

• Minato reported that Cloud Ninja attacks had dwindled and that the AB Duo had disappeared.
• Jiraiya gave Minato intelligence about the Third Raikage and Ōnoki battling, suffering heavy losses, and retreating.
• Jiraiya explained that the rival villages’ losses left Konoha able to take advantage and brought the war near its end.
• Minato reflected that Nara Dan’s overwhelming victories had ended the war and overshadowed his own ambitions to become Hokage.
• A subordinate delivered a message in Root’s encryption, and Jiraiya recognized it as Danzo’s request to ambush Nara Dan.
• Jiraiya sent the scroll back and refused to follow Danzo’s plan, reasoning that attacking the war hero would provoke Konoha’s shinobi.

Minato and Jiraiya rejected Danzo’s scheme against Nara Dan, insisting that Dan’s service to Konoha deserved respect rather than punishment. Danzo’s plan failed, while Orochimaru dismissed him and became fascinated by Dan’s rapid physical evolution.

• Minato argued that Nara Dan was a Konoha jonin who had ended the war and saved many lives, and Jiraiya agreed that the Will of Fire meant serving Konoha’s people.
• Jiraiya praised Minato’s convictions and suggested that he could become the Fifth Hokage if he did not claim the Fourth’s seat.
• Danzo smashed a treasured teacup after Jiraiya returned his intelligence scroll, and he complained that no one understood the importance of Root.
• Orochimaru told Danzo that Jiraiya would reject his proposal and refused to get involved in a plan against Dan-kun.
• Orochimaru left, privately concluding that Danzo was likely finished and wondering how Nara Dan had evolved so rapidly.

Yahiko led the Akatsuki through a food shortage and arranged to meet Hanzo, hoping to secure supplies without surrendering the group’s ideals. Hanzo heard Yahiko’s appeal for peace but dismissed the Akatsuki as naive, reflecting on the great nations’ power and the Land of Rain’s inability to rise above them.

• Danzo angrily vowed to prove Sarutobi, Jiraiya, and the others wrong after Orochimaru left.
• The Akatsuki members told Yahiko they were running out of food, and Ishito urged him to accept Hanzo’s offer of supplies.
• Yahiko sent Konan to seek supplies in the Land of Fire and decided that he and Nagato would meet Hanzo to negotiate.
• Yahiko and Nagato met Hanzo outside Amegakure, where Hanzo praised Yahiko’s talent and urged him to join Amegakure.
• Yahiko criticized Amegakure’s violence and called for peace through communication, but Hanzo dismissed the Akatsuki’s beliefs as naive.