Chapter Summaries

Naruto learned that Kushina was pregnant and worried that he would not know how to be a good big brother, but Minato reassured him and shared his own concerns. Later, Naruto led Iruka and the graduating students toward Iwagakure for an exchange, as Tsunade declared that a new era was beginning.

• Kushina worried that Naruto disliked the idea of a new sibling, but Naruto explained that he was afraid he would not know how to be a good big brother.
• Minato took Naruto to Hokage Rock, admitted that he was also nervous about raising another child, and encouraged Naruto to face the new responsibility with him.
• Minato carried Naruto home on his back, giving him a long-awaited moment of closeness with his father, and the family spent a happy morning together.
• An Anbu summoned Naruto to the school, where Tsunade, Shizune, and Iruka had assembled the graduating class for the trip to Iwagakure.
• Naruto, Iruka, and the students departed for Iwagakure, and Tsunade remarked that the winds of a new era were beginning to blow.

Naruto brought Konoha’s graduating class to Iwagakure for an exchange meeting, where Konohamaru’s group clashed with local students before the meeting could begin. The chapter ended with Konohamaru punching an Iwagakure student who insulted Naruto.

• Naruto warned Konohamaru and his classmates not to embarrass Konoha, and Konohamaru fired them up to show Iwagakure their strength.
• The Third Tsuchikage, Kitsuchi, and Kurotsuchi watched the graduates march toward Iwagakure’s Ninja Academy, while Naruto used his Rinnegan to float beside them.
• Naruto brought Jiraiya to the aerial viewing spot, and the group watched the students gather below.
• Iruka left Konohamaru and the other graduates waiting while he discussed the exchange meeting with Iwagakure’s teachers.
• Iwagakure students insulted Konohamaru, Konoha’s graduates, Naruto, and Sasuke, so Konohamaru punched one of them and sent him flying.

Konohamaru fought Iwagakure students during a live combat exercise, showing off the skills Naruto had taught him. The Third Tsuchikage praised Konohamaru’s strength, while Naruto decided he was ready to learn the Flying Thunder God Technique.

• Konohamaru knocked down an Iwagakure graduate and defeated him again after he charged back, while Iruka defended the students’ fight as a lesson in real combat.
• Iruka and Iwaya argued over whether the students should face the consequences of a real battle, and the teachers allowed the students to conduct a live combat exercise.
• Naruto laughed at Konohamaru’s villainous behavior and explained to Kurotsuchi and the Third Tsuchikage that he had taught Konohamaru ninjutsu and combat skills.
• Konohamaru created shadow clones to help his classmates while facing five Iwagakure students, then evaded their Earth Style attacks and used a Rasengan to shatter a boulder.
• Konohamaru pinned the five opponents’ clothes to the ground with his Shuriken Shadow Clone Technique and went to support his classmates.
• The Third Tsuchikage praised Konohamaru, and Naruto thought that Konohamaru was ready to learn the Flying Thunder God Technique.

Naruto persuaded the Third Tsuchikage to introduce graduation exercises in Iwagakure, then left with Jiraiya after returning the village’s stolen goods. Meanwhile, Zora and Vera discovered Christina and Lola in the Land of Water, and Sasuke confronted them after overhearing their report to Tianliu.

• The Third Tsuchikage accepted Naruto’s proposal and ordered Iwagakure’s graduating classes to pass a graduation exercise or repeat the year.
• Naruto said farewell to the Third Tsuchikage, who welcomed him to visit again and reflected that the world would change because of him.
• Kurotsuchi escorted Naruto and Jiraiya to Iwagakure’s gates, where Naruto returned the stolen goods and left with Jiraiya.
• Zora and Vera detected Christina and Lola in the Land of Water, then reported their discovery to Tianliu, who ordered Zora to search for Heaven Slayer and Vera to watch Christina.
• Sasuke emerged from hiding and fought Zora and Vera with his shuriken manipulation technique.
• Christina and Lola watched Sasuke’s fight in the Demon Race Hideout, and Lola joked that Christina would protect her from being taken back by the Immortal Emperor.

Sasuke defeated Vera with Amaterasu Kirin and retreated when Zora proved too strong to face head-on. Heaven Slayer met Tianliu, who demanded he return to inherit the Monster Race throne, and agreed to go home after he found the Light Sacred Dragon and Dark Demon Dragon and rescued Kaguya.

• Sasuke used the Rinnegan to switch places with Vera and Zora, bound Vera, and struck him with Amaterasu Kirin.
• Sasuke withdrew rather than continue fighting Zora, who stayed behind to care for the badly burned Vera.
• A spatial fissure carried the flames away, and Heaven Slayer swallowed them before Tianliu appeared and revealed he had used Vera and Zora to locate him.
• Tianliu urged Heaven Slayer to return and inherit the Monster Race throne, but Heaven Slayer said he still had to find the Light Sacred Dragon and Dark Demon Dragon and rescue Kaguya.
• Heaven Slayer agreed to return after completing those tasks, and Tianliu gave him a Projection Stone and said Zora and Vera would stay with him.

Naruto and Jiraiya unexpectedly arrived at Chiriku’s temple, where Chiriku kept them waiting until Sora returned. After sensing the Nine-Tails’ chakra in Sora, Naruto realized Chiriku wanted his help dealing with it.

• Naruto and Jiraiya reached Chiriku’s temple and Chiriku persuaded them to stay for tea and lunch.
• Jiraiya told Naruto how Chiriku had once tricked him into visiting a hot spring where elderly women were bathing, then sent Tsunade to catch him.
• Sora returned to the temple after completing an assignment, and Naruto sensed the Nine-Tails’ chakra in him.
• Kurama explained that ninja from Chiriku’s group had sealed away some of his chakra during his rampage through Konoha fourteen years earlier.
• Naruto realized Chiriku had kept them at the temple to ask for help with the Nine-Tails’ chakra inside Sora, and Chiriku confirmed it.

Naruto refused to remove Kurama’s chakra from Sora without letting Sora decide for himself, and planned to help him accept and control it first. After Kurama confirmed he could guide Sora, Naruto and Jiraiya agreed to visit the Land of Rain to find the Three-Tails and then see Nagato, Yahiko, and Konan.

• Naruto spoke with Sora, who explained that Teacher Chiriku had sent him, then left when Naruto pressed him about the reason for his visit.
• Naruto told Kurama that Sora should choose whether to keep the chakra, and Kurama agreed that the decision should be Sora’s.
• Naruto told Jiraiya and the old monk he would help Sora accept and control Kurama’s chakra before letting him decide whether to keep it.
• Kurama took control of Naruto’s body and assured Jiraiya and the old monk that Sora could control the chakra because it was his own power.
• Kurama said he had sensed the Three-Tails in the Land of Rain, and Jiraiya agreed to travel there and visit Nagato, Yahiko, and Konan afterward.

Naruto offered Sora a choice about the Nine-Tails chakra inside him, and Sora decided not to blame Naruto after Kurama calmed the chakra and made it controllable. The chapter then followed Obito, Rin, and Kisame Hoshigaki into a dangerous fog in the Land of Rain.

• Naruto told Sora he could remove the Nine-Tails chakra from his body if Sora chose, and asked him to consider the decision carefully.
• Naruto apologized for Sora's painful childhood and explained that the chakra belonged to Kurama, prompting Sora to feel angry at him.
• Kurama took control of Naruto, calmed the chakra surging inside Sora, and told him to blame the person who had sealed it into him rather than Naruto or Kurama.
• Sora let go of his resentment, discovered he could now control the Nine-Tails chakra, and thanked Naruto as Naruto left.
• Obito led Rin and Kisame Hoshigaki into a fog-filled mountain area and warned them to stay close because the fog caused powerful hallucinations.

Naruto reunited with Asuma, Shikamaru, Ino, and Choji and uncovered Kazuma’s plan to use Sora as a weapon against Konoha. After Kazuma revealed his disregard for Sora, Naruto trapped him with genjutsu and sealed his chakra, leaving him bound.

• Naruto met Asuma, then reunited with Shikamaru, Ino, and Choji, who explained that Kazuma had escaped after attempting to assassinate the Hokage.
• Naruto told the group that Kazuma had sealed Nine-Tails chakra inside his son Sora to make him a weapon and predicted Kazuma would come for him.
• Naruto and his friends watched Sora while waiting for Kazuma, and Ino asked Naruto about Sasuke, whom Naruto said was training and doing well.
• Kazuma appeared before Sora and admitted that he intended to control his son and use him to destroy Konoha.
• Naruto subdued Kazuma with genjutsu, bound him with Adamantine Sealing Chains, and sealed the chakra in his body.

Naruto helped Sora confront his grief and decide how to live with the power that had shaped his childhood. Sora chose to keep it and leave on a journey, while Naruto prepared to return to the people and village he called home.

• Naruto shared his own experiences of loneliness with Sora, who reconsidered his feelings and realized he longed for family, friendship, and love.
• Naruto and his companions brought the captured Kazuma back to the temple, where Asuma prepared to deliver him to Tsunade.
• Asuma, Shikamaru, and Choji left for Konoha with Naruto's letters and gifts, and Ino asked Naruto to tell Sasuke that his friends and family missed him.
• The next day, Sora told Naruto he had decided to keep his power and travel to see the world.
• Sora thanked Naruto for helping him find direction, and the two friends wished each other luck.

Naruto rescued Mizunotsuki Shingetsu from village bullies and learned that Kirigakure hardliners had taken Shingetsu’s parents. He pursued the kidnappers, found Shingetsu’s mother tortured and dead, and set off after those responsible.

• Naruto stopped a group of older boys from bullying Shingetsu, treated his head wound, and learned that masked people had taken his parents.
• Naruto and Jiraiya identified the kidnappers as likely Kirigakure Anbu, and Naruto named Kondo Koichi as a possible culprit.
• Jiraiya left to contact Kirigakure while Naruto promised Shingetsu he would help find his mother and father.
• Naruto followed the kidnappers’ chakra trail and found Shingetsu’s mother dead beside a river, her body bearing signs of torture.
• Naruto confronted his other personality’s accusations about his own past, and Kurama urged him to act according to what he wanted.
• Naruto thanked Kurama and resumed his pursuit, determined not to let the killers escape.

Naruto killed the Kirigakure Anbu commander and rescued Shingetsu’s dying father, who asked him to protect Shingetsu and let him live as an ordinary person. After returning to the village and finding Shingetsu being bullied again, Naruto grabbed one of the boys, but Jiraiya arrived with the Fifth Mizukage, Chojuro, and Ao.

• Naruto overheard Commander Kondo plotting to wipe out the Yuki Clan and learned that Shingetsu’s father was gravely wounded inside the cave.
• Naruto killed the Anbu surrounding the cave, including Kondo, and entered to find Shingetsu’s father near death.
• Shingetsu’s father asked Naruto to take Shingetsu to the Fifth Mizukage and keep him from becoming a ninja, then died; Naruto collected his body and Shingetsu’s mother’s body.
• Naruto returned to the village and found boys bullying Shingetsu, so he lifted their leader by the throat.
• Jiraiya arrived with the Fifth Mizukage, Chojuro, and Ao, and Naruto released the boy, telling him to consider himself lucky.

Naruto confronted villagers who had abused Mizunotsuki Shingetsu, then entrusted the orphan to the Fifth Mizukage and withdrew to calm down. By the river, he told the Nine-Tails he did not regret standing up for Shingetsu, but lamented how people feared and mistreated anyone different.

• Naruto released the frightened teenagers and argued with Jiraiya that ignorance did not excuse the villagers’ actions.
• Naruto showed Shingetsu his parents’ bodies and told the Fifth Mizukage that they had asked her to raise him as an ordinary, happy child.
• The Fifth Mizukage promised to care for Shingetsu without forcing him to become a ninja, then left for Kirigakure with him and his parents’ bodies.
• Naruto left the village alone, and Jiraiya let him go while following after him later.
• At the river, Naruto told the Nine-Tails he did not regret his actions but was relieved he had not killed anyone in front of Shingetsu.
• Naruto and the Nine-Tails discussed human nature as Naruto reflected on how people feared, exploited, or bullied those who were different.

Naruto calmed down after reflecting on human nature and continued toward the Land of Rain with Jiraiya. Meanwhile, Sasuke began gathering souls at an ancient battlefield to cultivate his dragon energy, while Orochimaru explained that Naruto would need chakra from the tailed beasts for his own training.

• Naruto told Jiraiya he would change what he could and accept what he could not, then learned that Shingetsu had returned to Kirigakure.
• Naruto and Jiraiya set off for the Land of Rain.
• Orochimaru brought Sasuke and Kabuto Yakushi to an ancient battlefield in the Land of Grass, where Sasuke began absorbing the souls of fifty thousand dead ninja.
• Orochimaru explained that Sasuke's cultivation focused on the soul, while Naruto's Demon Dragon Nine Transformations focused on his physical constitution.
• Orochimaru told Kabuto Yakushi that Naruto would need chakra from the nine tailed beasts and predicted that Naruto and Sasuke's contest would be decided in two years.

Sasuke absorbed the soul power of a fifty-thousand-strong ninja army and went to convert his chakra into dragon energy, while Orochimaru prepared to condense his star fate. At a dragon vein on the Land of Fire’s border, Jiraiya proposed a way for Naruto to turn protective dragon energy into an offensive Eight Trigrams formation.

• Sasuke absorbed the army’s remaining soul power, and the Sacred Dragon Apparition entered his body.
• Orochimaru had a girl lead Sasuke to a secluded chamber, then learned from Kabuto Yakushi that Jiraiya had condensed a Howling Moon Heavenly Wolf.
• Orochimaru discussed the ominous nature of his and Jiraiya’s star cultivation and ordered Kabuto Yakushi to lead him to condense his own star fate.
• Naruto and Jiraiya reached a dragon vein on the border of the Land of Fire and the Land of Rain, where Jiraiya explained its location and importance.
• Jiraiya proposed using dragon energy from the Tailed Beasts as guardians for Naruto’s Eight Trigrams Field, creating an offensive and defensive formation.
• Jiraiya said they needed to strengthen the other eight Tailed Beasts’ chakra, and identified the dragon vein as the key.

Orochimaru slaughtered the prisoners in his sealed base and formed a Blood Dragon star fate, announcing the arrival of the Heavenly Killing Star. Powerful fighters across the world sensed the event and recognized that the three stars of Kill, Break, Wolf had gathered, bringing an age of chaos closer.

• Orochimaru told Kabuto that he needed to strengthen himself before the Dragon Vein opened, then entered the prison base to harvest its captives for his star fate.
• Orochimaru killed the prisoners with the Kusanagi Sword and used its killing-intent energy to destroy a Water Dragon Bullet Technique and ten Kirigakure jonin.
• Orochimaru's Blood Dragon emerged from his chest, slaughtered and absorbed the remaining prisoners, and fully formed as a crimson pillar rose into the sky.
• Tsunade, Sasuke, Jiraiya, Naruto, Heaven Slayer, Lola, Christina, and other powerful fighters sensed Orochimaru's star fate and anticipated chaos in the world.

Tsunade and Minato led two teams from Konoha toward the Dragon Vein while Naruto’s training there ended in a backlash. Heaven Slayer offered Naruto guidance and a chance to reach the pinnacle in exchange for information about the Light Sacred Dragon and the Dark Demon Dragon, and Naruto accepted after negotiating a second opportunity for Sasuke.

• Tsunade assigned Shizuka Uchiha and Kurama Yakumo to travel with her, while Minato set out with Kakashi and Nawaki Senju, leaving Konoha in the Third Hokage’s care.
• Naruto’s attempt to use tailed-beast chakra to anchor an Eight Trigrams formation failed, causing him to spit blood as Jiraiya rushed to help him.
• Heaven Slayer arrived with Zetsu and told Naruto that he had made a mistake in trying to merge his powers.
• Jiraiya offered to accept Heaven Slayer’s request in exchange for an explanation, and Heaven Slayer proposed trading training guidance and an opportunity to reach the pinnacle for information.
• Naruto agreed to reveal where the Light Sacred Dragon and the Dark Demon Dragon were if Heaven Slayer provided a second opportunity for the person who inherited the Light Sacred Dragon’s power.
• Naruto disclosed their location, and Heaven Slayer promised to honor the deal.

Heaven Slayer explained that tailed beast chakra remained fundamentally tied to the God Tree, preventing Naruto from fusing its attributes, and offered a way to free Naruto from that power. He planned to send Naruto and others to another world during the Dragon Vein eruption, while Sasuke, Orochimaru, and Kabuto Yakushi set out for the same event.

• Heaven Slayer told Naruto and Jiraiya that tailed beast chakra could not be fused because its essence still belonged to the God Tree, and said he could make it independent.
• Heaven Slayer explained that Jiraiya could escape the God Tree by converting his chakra into star god power, while Naruto and another dragon-legacy cultivator needed spiritual energy the world could not provide.
• Heaven Slayer said the Dragon Vein eruption would create space-time rifts and offered Naruto Black Orbs that would let him and chosen companions travel to another world and return.
• Heaven Slayer left with Zetsu after telling Naruto to choose whom to bring before the eruption, and Naruto formed a plan.
• At Orochimaru's base, Sasuke, Orochimaru, and Kabuto Yakushi prepared to travel to the Dragon Vein, where Orochimaru expected Sasuke to gain the dragon energy needed for his cultivation.

Orochimaru explained why he was so interested in Sasuke, while Naruto and Jiraiya learned that their understanding of chakra was flawed and changed their plans. With the Dragon Vein due to open soon, Naruto prepared to seek more tailed beast chakra and began training for Sage Mode.

• Orochimaru told Kabuto Yakushi that Sasuke reminded him of his younger self and that he wanted to see Sasuke take a different path.
• Naruto and Jiraiya read Heaven Slayer’s book and learned that chakra had no inherent nature, forcing them to abandon their plan to turn Naruto’s protective dragon energy into an offensive ability.
• Nine-Tails urged Naruto to obtain chakra from the other tailed beasts, saying that Two-Tails, Eight-Tails, and Seven-Tails were heading their way while he searched for Six-Tails and Three-Tails.
• Jiraiya sensed that the Dragon Vein would open within ten days to half a month, and Naruto decided to use the time to find Hotaru and the Six-Tails’ jinchūriki.
• Jiraiya offered to teach Naruto Sage Mode, and Naruto sent a Shadow Clone with him to Mount Myōboku before marking the ground with Flying Thunder God and departing.

Naruto began Sage Mode training on Mount Myōboku while the Great Toad Sage warned Jiraiya that he might face Nagato in a dangerous battle. Jiraiya learned that a mysterious flash of light could change the outcome, then fled before Shima could serve him dinner.

• Naruto arrived at Mount Myōboku with Jiraiya, met Gamabunta, and heard the Great Toad Sage dream that he would pass through a spacetime wormhole and encounter nine dragons.
• The Great Toad Sage told Jiraiya that he would fight Nagato, who had the Rinnegan and Mangekyō Sharingan, and might die, though a flash of light could give him a chance to survive.
• Fukasaku explained the different Sage Modes and began Naruto's training, but Naruto immediately sat still in meditation, impressing Fukasaku and Shima.
• Jiraiya told Shima that Naruto could already absorb natural chakra and might enter Sage Mode quickly with toad oil and guidance.
• When Jiraiya learned Shima was preparing dinner, he made an excuse and vanished in a puff of smoke.