Chapter Summaries

Minato gathered his officers to discuss the report of Konoha’s trial and reforms, then returned secretly to the village to check on Kushina and investigate the changes. He found Kushina absent and saw that Orochimaru’s government had transformed Konoha, including its security force, confiscated Sarutobi grounds, and public access to the Konoha Code.

• Minato’s officers debated whether the report about Sarutobi Hiruzen’s trial and the new household policy was genuine, and Nara Shikaku judged it credible.
• Minato told his troops to hold their positions until Tsunade arrived to take command, while his subordinates worried about her facing Kumogakure’s AB Combination.
• Minato used the Flying Thunder God Technique to return to Konoha, found Kushina’s home empty, and disguised himself to explore the village.
• Minato observed that the reorganized Security Department patrolled in distinctive uniforms and received friendly greetings from villagers.
• Minato saw that the Sarutobi Clan compound had been cleared and inspected the Konoha Code monument, where villagers gathered to read and learn its characters.

Minato read the Konoha Code and watched Uchiha Mikoto introduce the Konoha People's Bank, learning how the new Hokage’s reforms would govern the village and protect people’s savings. After Mikoto finished speaking, Minato followed her, hoping she could tell him where Kushina was.

• Minato read the Konoha Code and realized its laws could settle ordinary disputes without burdening the Hokage.
• Minato saw a vast display of money and learned that the Konoha Finance Department, led by deputy director Uchiha Mikoto, was presenting it to the public.
• Mikoto explained that the money demonstrated the Fourth Hokage’s opposition to corruption and served as security for the Konoha People's Bank.
• Mikoto told the crowd that the bank would safeguard deposits and eventually let customers withdraw equivalent funds at branches throughout the Land of Fire and the ninja world.
• Minato listened to Mikoto’s speech, then followed her after she finished, hoping to ask where Kushina was.

Minato disguised himself to check on Kushina, but Tsunade recognized him and revealed that she, Orochimaru, and Kushina belonged to the Great Harmony Society. Minato learned the organization had planned Sarutobi Hiruzen’s downfall and was left curious about its purpose as Tsunade turned to the Kumogakure battlefield work.

• Mikoto became nauseated, and Tsunade told her she was pregnant and advised her to get checked at the hospital.
• Tsunade recognized the disguised Minato, who revealed himself and explained that he had been worried about Kushina.
• Minato found Kushina studying with Shizune, and Kushina greeted him with a long embrace.
• Minato asked whether anyone had directed the events involving Sarutobi Hiruzen, and Tsunade identified the Great Harmony Society as the planner.
• Minato read the Society’s organizational chart and discovered that Kushina and Kurama were members, while Tsunade and Orochimaru held Konoha leadership roles.
• Tsunade told Minato to ask Orochimaru about the Great Harmony Society and said they would discuss the Kumogakure battlefield work.

Minato met with Orochimaru, accepted command of the Fourth Legion, and learned the plan for the Mist Hidden Battlefield. Orochimaru gave him a book about the Great Harmony Society, and Minato began reading it as he left the village office.

• Minato spoke with Tsunade and realized that Jiraiya had given him a misleading impression of her.
• Orochimaru appointed Minato commander of the Fourth Legion and explained Konoha’s war strategy and his mission to defend against Kirigakure while eliminating targets on assigned lists.
• Orochimaru gave Minato Collected Writings of the Great Harmony Society and suggested that he visit civilians and refugees to better understand the organization.
• Minato asked for Kakashi and his other two subordinates to accompany him, and Orochimaru agreed they could join the Mist Hidden Battlefield.
• Minato left the office, reflected on Orochimaru’s resolve, and opened the book beneath the setting sun.

Sun Keiyun took command of the Konoha front against Sunagakure and outlined a plan to force a decisive battle, while Jiraiya watched him introduce sweeping reforms. Jiraiya reflected on Sarutobi Hiruzen’s death and admitted to himself that he had lacked the courage shown by Orochimaru and Tsunade.

• Jiraiya welcomed Sun Keiyun and introduced him to the front’s senior officers and clan representatives.
• Jiraiya briefed Sun Keiyun on Sunagakure’s declining strength, and Sun Keiyun estimated the enemy had about 2,700 troops.
• Sun Keiyun proposed ending the war in one battle by besieging a point Sunagakure would have to defend, then ordered Otogi to build a camp at Wushou Village near Blazing Fire Lake.
• Sun Keiyun halted new missions and ordered Nara Shikaho to register the soldiers for salary payments under the village’s new system.
• Jiraiya told Sun Keiyun that he accepted the trial’s outcome despite doubting Sarutobi Hiruzen had committed the accused acts, then reflected on his own failure to act.

Sasori returned to Sunagakure with fifteen trucks built by the Great Harmony Society, claiming he had come to discuss cooperation and introduce diesel-powered vehicles. At the village gate, he reunited with Chiyo and met his younger siblings Temari and Kankuro, while Rasa watched his impressive arrival with suspicion.

• Sasori led a convoy of fifteen trucks toward Sunagakure and discussed their limited performance with his driver.
• Sand Hidden Ninja tried to stop the convoy, but Sasori insisted he had come to discuss cooperation and told them to fetch Rasa.
• Rasa, Karura, Chiyo, Ebizo, and others waited at the village gate as Sasori's convoy arrived and lined up precisely.
• Sasori's fifteen student drivers formed ranks and reported to him before he explained that the vehicles were trucks powered by diesel, not puppets.
• Sasori offered the village cargoes of food and grain, then told Chiyo that he pursued the Way of Eternity rather than puppetry.
• Karura introduced Sasori to his younger sister Temari and brother Kankuro.

Sasori negotiated with Rasa, Chiyo, Karura, and Ebizo to develop the Blazing Fire Lake oilfield with Kashiwazaki Trading Company, securing Sunagakure a twenty-five percent share. He also canceled his ninja registration, leaving the village with a signed agreement and plans to discuss vehicle purchases later.

• Sasori explained that he had returned to cancel his ninja registration, promote the university’s vehicles, and acquire the Blazing Fire Lake oilfield for Kashiwazaki Trading Company.
• Sasori revealed that the lake contained petroleum, explained its importance to industrialization, and offered Sunagakure a role in protecting and developing the oilfield.
• Sasori presented a joint development agreement, and Karura negotiated Sunagakure’s share up from twenty percent to twenty-five percent.
• Sasori and Rasa signed the agreement, and Rasa approved Sasori’s request to cancel his ninja registration.
• Rasa declined to buy vehicles at their current price of eight million each, while Sasori left with his ninja status canceled and the oilfield partnership secured.

Sasori returned to Sunagakure as Rasa and the others prepared to guard Blazing Fire Lake, while Sun Keiyun used the lake to draw a squad into an ambush. Jiraiya fought Baki’s team and killed one of his subordinates, leaving Baki to wonder whether any of them could escape.

• Sasori agreed to rest at his preserved house, while Rasa, Karura, and Ebizo decided to send a Jonin squad to guard Blazing Fire Lake.
• Sun Keiyun explained to Jiraiya that Blazing Fire Lake and the surrounding sand could become valuable through technological development.
• Jiraiya spotted Baki’s squad approaching the lake, but Sun Keiyun vanished and used wind to restrain Jiraiya and raise a dust signal.
• Baki led his squad to guard Blazing Fire Lake and challenged Jiraiya after discovering him at the site.
• Baki and his team unleashed Wind Release: Dust Devil, but Jiraiya burrowed underground and dragged one subordinate beneath the earth, killing him.
• Baki abandoned his hope of defeating Jiraiya and focused on whether his remaining squad members could escape.

Sun Keiyun and Jiraiya captured Baki after defeating his squad and tried to learn why the Sand ninjas were guarding Blazing Fire Lake. Sun Keiyun left Baki tied outside overnight, but Baki discovered he could still use a hidden chakra meridian, escaped, and planned to report his intelligence.

• Baki ordered his squad to attack Jiraiya with a coordinated wind net and explosive tags, then fled while his two Genin drew Jiraiya away.
• Jiraiya captured Baki and brought him back to Sun Keiyun, who questioned him about why he had not abandoned his mission.
• Sun Keiyun suspected the Sand squad had discovered a way to use Blazing Fire Lake's unusual black water, but Baki refused to answer.
• Sun Keiyun built a stone building and tied Baki to a pillar outside to spend the night in the cold while Jiraiya waited for him to give up.
• Baki found that Jiraiya had left one puppet-master chakra meridian unblocked, cut his ropes with wind chakra, and escaped after the building went dark.

Rasa learned that Jiraiya and Sun Keiyun had appeared near Blazing Fire Lake, whose oil resources and promised wealth were vital to Sunagakure. After Konoha occupied and fortified the site, Rasa committed troops to the fight and concluded that Sunagakure’s shorter supply route gave it the advantage.

• Two genin reported to Rasa that they had encountered Jiraiya near Blazing Fire Lake, and Rasa ordered a search for the missing Jonin Baki.
• Rasa had Elder Chiyo wake Baki, who recounted meeting Jiraiya and Sun Keiyun and revealed that Sun Keiyun suspected Blazing Fire Lake held an important secret.
• Rasa sent Anbu squads to scout Blazing Fire Lake and ordered Gōbaku and Sōjōbō to mobilize forces to protect it.
• Rasa learned that Konoha ninja had occupied Sun Keiyun’s stone fortress, so he ordered Gōbaku and Sōjōbō to build a camp and kill any Konoha ninja they encountered.
• After Sunagakure’s attack failed against the fortress, Rasa weighed the risks of reinforcing Blazing Fire Lake and decided that Sunagakure’s shorter supply route gave it the advantage.

At Blazing Fire Lake, Sun Keiyun defended Konoha’s fortress and confronted the Fourth Kazekage, Rasa, who arrived with Sunagakure’s forces. After Sun Keiyun exposed Karura’s pregnancy and criticized Rasa, Rasa began an attack on the fortress.

• Rasa arrived at Blazing Fire Lake and learned from Gōbaku and Sōjōbō that Konoha’s stone fortress had resisted repeated assaults.
• Karura used Magnet Release to draw sand toward the fortress, but discovered its deep pillars kept it firmly in place.
• Sun Keiyun met Rasa and argued that wisdom mattered more than strength in a commander’s role.
• Sun Keiyun revealed that Karura was pregnant again, so Rasa sent Yashamaru to escort her back to Elder Chiyo.
• Sun Keiyun criticized Rasa for putting his pregnant wife on the battlefield, and Rasa defended his choices before deciding to attack.
• Rasa launched Gold Dust Sphere at Sun Keiyun and the fortress.

Sun Keiyun used an Electromagnetic Cannon to defeat Rasa and sever his left arm, forcing the Sand Hidden Ninja to retreat. In the hospital, Karura told Rasa she was pregnant and helped him regain his resolve; he planned to have a puppet arm made and lure Konoha into a decisive battle near Blazing Fire Lake.

• Sun Keiyun pierced Rasa’s Gold Dust Shield with an Electromagnetic Cannon and severed his left arm.
• Rasa ordered the Sand Hidden Ninja to retreat, and Sun Keiyun refused to pursue them.
• A medical ninja told Rasa that his damaged arm could be reattached but would not function properly, and Rasa angrily sent him away.
• Karura told Rasa she was pregnant and proposed that he could use a puppet arm, restoring his confidence.
• Rasa ordered Karura to summon Elder Chiyo and transfer the ninja from the Land of Rivers front.
• Rasa planned to attack the fortress and draw Konoha into a decisive battle near Blazing Fire Lake, then use victory to secure a peace agreement.

Sun Keiyun persuaded Jiraiya to return to Konoha, then joined Yunxiao above Iwagakure’s ambush against Kumogakure. Studying Iwagakure’s Chakra techniques led Sun Keiyun to conclude that the Sage of Six Paths had cultivated through Chakra fusion.

• Sun Keiyun explained his plan to make Rasa commit Sunagakure’s forces to attacking the fortress, and Jiraiya agreed to return to Konoha.
• Jiraiya left the Sunagakure camp without meeting Konoha’s higher-ups, while Sun Keiyun traveled to the Land of Earth.
• Yunxiao told Sun Keiyun that Iwagakure had discovered Kumogakure’s operation and prepared an ambush with ten thousand ninjas.
• Yunxiao explained Iwagakure’s public training in multiple Chakra natures and showed Sun Keiyun the Explosion Release unit led by Kitsuchi.
• Sun Keiyun examined Ōnoki and Kitsuchi’s Chakra, then reasoned that Chakra fusion could explain inherited powers and physiques.
• Sun Keiyun concluded that the Chakra system’s founder was the Sage of Six Paths, who had possessed the Rinnegan, Sharingan, Byakugan, Sage Body, Shikotsumyaku, and all seven Chakra natures.

Yunxiao confronted Black Zetsu with a theory about his origins, prompting Black Zetsu to claim that the Ten-Tails created him and that he sought to revive it. Yunxiao sealed him again, while he and Sun Keiyun doubted parts of the story and suspected it drew on real history.

• Yunxiao let Black Zetsu perceive the outside world and claimed the Sage of Six Paths had created him to secure his own rescue.
• When Black Zetsu panicked at Yunxiao's threat to kill him, he claimed the Ten-Tails had created him and that he had no feud with the Sage of Six Paths.
• Black Zetsu described the Ten-Tails as a Divine Tree that became the Rabbit Goddess, bore a fruit eaten by Hagoromo Otsutsuki, and was later split into the nine Tailed Beasts.
• Yunxiao connected Black Zetsu's plan to Nagato and the Akatsuki Organization, then argued that the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki could not be harmed and that reviving the Ten-Tails would be dangerous.
• Yunxiao resealed the Heart-Breaking Bracelet, and Sun Keiyun and Yunxiao agreed that Black Zetsu's story was only partly credible.

Third Raikage A led 800 Kumogakure elites into Iwagakure’s ambush, where Ōnoki’s 10,000 troops surrounded them. A ordered his men to escape while he held off the enemy, and the chapter ended with him battling Iwagakure’s forces to a stalemate.

• A learned from an Iwagakure spy that the village’s main force had supposedly left for the Konoha front, then led 800 elite Kumogakure ninja toward Iwagakure.
• Sun Keiyun watched through the Cloud Mirror Technique as A’s force entered the canyon, where A exposed a hidden Iwagakure ninja and revealed the ambush.
• Ōnoki disclosed that 10,000 Iwagakure ninja had been waiting, and A ordered his troops to break through the rear line while he stayed behind to cover their retreat.
• A charged the Explosion Release unit and defeated Kitsuchi’s defenses without being injured, then drew Ōnoki and Iwagakure’s troops toward himself.
• Ōnoki ordered his hardened fighters to engage A, but A’s speed and strength kept the 10,000 Iwagakure ninja from gaining the advantage.

Sun Keiyun visited the Great Harmony Society research base, where Konan told him about Uchiha Madara’s findings on Divine Tree energy and chakra mutation. Konan demonstrated her newly developed Paper Release, while Madara’s theory that prolonged exposure could lead to Wood Release remained unconfirmed.

• Sun Keiyun and Yunxiao watched the Third Raikage battle Iwagakure’s forces, and Yunxiao agreed to collect cells from the Raikage and Ōnoki for Impure World Reincarnation research.
• Sun Keiyun met Konan at the research base and learned that she had graduated early, taken the surname White, and become Uchiha Madara’s research assistant.
• Konan described Madara’s research, including the Spirit Origin Pill and the Great Harmony Society’s findings on Lightning Release, Fire Release, and Kekkei Genkai.
• Konan explained that prolonged exposure to untreated Divine Tree energy seemed to mutate chakra, and Madara suspected the change might eventually produce Wood Release.
• Konan showed Sun Keiyun that her altered chakra could create paper, a new ability she had named Paper Release.

Sun Keiyun and Uchiha Madara compared their accounts of the ancient Divine Tree, the Rabbit Goddess, and the Sage of Six Paths after Kushina’s golden Chakra was absorbed by the Divine Tree’s energy. Sun Keiyun began investigating the conflicting clues and suspected that an alien civilization might have planted the Divine Tree, leaving the story with him seeking verification.

• Sun Keiyun learned that Uchiha Madara had shifted from seeking leadership of the Great Harmony Society to researching ninjutsu, alchemy, biomedicine, and the human body.
• At Madara-sama's expanded base, Kushina fed her golden Chakra into stored Divine Tree energy, and it was absorbed; the Nine-Tails said it feared the Divine Tree and had been created by the Sage of Six Paths.
• Uchiha Madara revealed that the Uchiha records described the Divine Tree, the Rabbit Goddess, and the Sage of Six Paths, who sealed the Rabbit Goddess, and said the Senju, Uchiha, and Uzumaki shared an ancestor.
• Sun Keiyun compared Madara's account with Black Zetsu's, found several shared details, and questioned how reliable either version was.
• Sun Keiyun speculated that aliens might plant Divine Trees on inhabited planets to harvest their fruit and weighed whether the Rabbit Goddess or the Sage of Six Paths had eaten it, concluding that the clues still needed verification.

Yunxiao interrogated Black Zetsu and deduced that he was trying to revive the Rabbit Goddess rather than the Ten-Tails. He explained how Black Zetsu’s repeated attempts had failed and suggested a different path, leaving Black Zetsu stunned by the possibility.

• Sun Keiyun returned from the base and told Yunxiao that the Raikage was still fighting without tiring.
• Yunxiao questioned Black Zetsu about the Rabbit Goddess, and Black Zetsu claimed she was the Divine Tree and that Uchiha Madara had been misled by an altered stone tablet.
• Yunxiao deduced that Black Zetsu wanted to revive the Rabbit Goddess, who had created him, and that he had spent a thousand years trying to free her.
• Yunxiao inferred that Black Zetsu had guided Uchiha Madara toward gaining the Rinnegan, which could potentially revive the dead.
• Black Zetsu blamed the Uchiha for his failures, but Yunxiao argued that his strategy was wrong and proposed uniting the Uchiha and Senju through children or spreading the Rabbit Goddess’s message.

Yunxiao challenged Black Zetsu’s plan to recreate the Sage of Six Paths’ power and pieced together the Rabbit Goddess’s past, prompting Black Zetsu to reveal her identity and family. The chapter ended with Yunxiao learning that Otsutsuki Kaguya had been sealed by her two sons, Hagoromo Otsutsuki and Otsutsuki Hamura.

• Yunxiao proposed that Black Zetsu raise the strongest members of the Uchiha and Senju clans, but warned that his evil plan would eventually be stopped.
• Black Zetsu accidentally revealed that the Sage of Six Paths had been the Rabbit Goddess’s biological son, leading Yunxiao to reconstruct the ancient history.
• Yunxiao told Black Zetsu that the Rabbit Goddess had eaten the Divine Tree’s fruit, brought peace, and later fought the Ten-Tails and the Sage of Six Paths.
• Black Zetsu admitted that the Rabbit Goddess had two sons who joined forces to defeat and seal her.
• Black Zetsu identified the Sage of Six Paths as Hagoromo Otsutsuki and named the Senju, Uchiha, and Uzumaki as his descendants.
• Black Zetsu revealed that the second son was Otsutsuki Hamura, ancestor of the Hyuga Clan, and that their mother was Otsutsuki Kaguya.

Sun Keiyun freed Black Zetsu and argued that the Great Harmony Society had no grounds to arrest him for a plan he had only confessed to, while warning that its laws and protections would block his efforts. With his options restricted, Black Zetsu faced a choice between abandoning his goal and trusting the Society to find a way to save his mother.

• Sun Keiyun introduced himself as president of the Great Harmony Society and told Black Zetsu that Madara had joined as a senior researcher.
• Sun Keiyun removed Black Zetsu's seal and said the Society would not punish him based only on his confession.
• Sun Keiyun warned Black Zetsu that Konoha's laws and the Society's protections would make it dangerous to capture children, seize the Nine-Tails, or alter the Ten-Tails' shell.
• Black Zetsu realized that pursuing his plan could bring him into conflict with the Society and asked Sun Keiyun what he should do.
• Sun Keiyun urged Black Zetsu to trust the Great Harmony Society to recreate the Ten-Tails without killing the tailed beasts and save his mother.