Chapter Summaries

Hiruzen Sarutobi learned that the Spirit Venerable had overwhelmed Jiraiya and Kakashi, then identified the retrieved object as the Death God Mask and ordered Jiraiya to visit the visitor. Jiraiya planned to ask the Spirit Venerable about the Child of Prophecy, while Kakashi went home still unable to remember that he had missed his shift with Hyuga Tokuma.

• Jiraiya told Hiruzen Sarutobi that the Spirit Venerable had pinned him and Kakashi down with his presence, and explained that the True Dragon had recently returned from the Pure Land.
• Hiruzen Sarutobi and Jiraiya identified the mask from the Uzumaki Clan's records as the Death God Mask, and Hiruzen decided Konoha should let the Spirit Venerable keep it.
• Jiraiya reported that the Spirit Venerable was still staying at a hot spring inn in Konoha, so Hiruzen asked Jiraiya to visit him and build friendly relations.
• Hiruzen worried that Orochimaru might have contact with the Spirit Venerable and asked Jiraiya to find out whether they had met.
• Jiraiya told Kakashi he would ask the Spirit Venerable about the Child of Prophecy, despite Kakashi warning him not to treat the Spirit Venerable's goodwill as leverage.
• Kakashi left for home without remembering his promised shift, while Hyuga Tokuma waited on a rooftop and cursed him.

Bane tried and failed to summon the Death God, then planned to touch its soul during Hiruzen Sarutobi’s Dead Demon Consuming Seal so he could track it through the Death God Mask. Jiraiya visited to apologize and offer Konoha’s help, and Bane asked about the Kato Clan’s soul-related secret techniques.

• Bane repeatedly activated the Death God Mask, but the Death God avoided appearing, seemingly out of instinctive fear of the Soul-Soul Fruit.
• Bane decided to wait for Hiruzen Sarutobi to summon the Death God, touch its soul, and use the mask to locate it afterward.
• A lodging attendant told Bane that Jiraiya had been waiting downstairs, and Bane invited him up.
• Jiraiya apologized for the previous night and offered Konoha’s assistance; Bane asked about the Kato Clan’s secret techniques related to souls.
• Jiraiya explained that the Kato Clan had withdrawn from village affairs while recovering from its losses, including Dan Katō’s death.

Bane reflected on the Senju Clan’s influence over Konoha and negotiated with Jiraiya for the Spirit Transformation Technique. While relaxing at a hot spring, he refused to judge Orochimaru’s actions, insisting that a summoned beast was not responsible for its summoner’s choices.

• Bane considered how the Senju Clan had withdrawn into the Land of Fire’s aristocracy while retaining influence over who could become Hokage.
• Jiraiya agreed to convey Bane’s request for the Spirit Transformation Technique to the Third Hokage and said the Kato Clan would likely be consulted.
• Bane invited Jiraiya to a hot spring, where they joked about mixed bathing and Jiraiya recalled being kicked out of baths with Hiruzen Sarutobi.
• Jiraiya asked whether Bane knew Orochimaru and whether he would answer Ryūchi Cave’s Summoning Jutsu, and Bane said he knew Orochimaru and might answer.
• Jiraiya warned Bane that Orochimaru was dangerous, but Bane rejected the warning and said a summoned beast was not responsible for its summoner’s deeds.

Bane told Jiraiya not to rely on the Child of Prophecy and agreed to reveal the child’s identity in exchange for knowledge. Jiraiya left to arrange the Kato Clan’s Spirit Transformation Technique and Make-Out Violence manuscript as payment.

• Jiraiya asked Bane about the Child of Prophecy, and Bane urged him to rely on his own efforts rather than fate.
• Jiraiya pressed Bane to identify the Child of Prophecy, and Bane agreed to answer once Jiraiya provided knowledge as a sacrifice.
• Bane rejected Jiraiya’s Wild Lion’s Mane Technique as payment and asked for secret techniques or Forbidden Jutsu instead.
• Jiraiya offered his unpublished Make-Out Violence manuscript, and Bane required the Kato Clan’s Spirit Transformation Technique as well.
• Jiraiya agreed to arrange the technique and left the hot spring to fulfill the deal.

Bane attended Konoha’s Chunin Exam selection tournament, where he witnessed Neji Hyuga’s fight with Hinata and sensed the Tailed Beasts within Gaara and Naruto. Jiraiya delivered the Spirit Transformation Technique and his manuscript, and Bane identified Naruto as the Child of Prophecy, leaving Jiraiya stunned by the prospect of teaching his former student Minato’s son.

• Bane studied the Uzumaki Clan’s Adamantine Sealing Chains until Kakashi invited him to watch the Chunin Exam selection tournament.
• Bane joined Kakashi at the tournament, noticed Gaara’s Tailed Beast and arrogant stare, and asked Jiraiya whether Naruto carried the Nine-Tails.
• Neji attacked Hinata with murderous intent, but Kakashi and other Konoha shinobi intervened before Neji ultimately won the match.
• Jiraiya gave Bane the Spirit Transformation Technique and his Make-Out Violence manuscript in exchange for the answer he had requested.
• Bane pointed out Naruto as the Child of Prophecy, and Jiraiya realized that Minato’s son might become his disciple.

Bane watched Naruto Uzumaki and Sasuke Uchiha at the arena, then interrupted Orochimaru’s attack on Konoha by forcibly extracting Shukaku from Gaara. The chapter ended with Gaara unconscious, Shukaku sealed in Bane’s Darkness Dimension, and the Nine-Tailed Demon Fox warning Naruto to run.

• Bane told Jiraiya and Kakashi that Naruto Uzumaki’s immense potential was held back by Nine-Tails, and suggested extracting the Tailed Beast.
• Bane identified Sasuke Uchiha as a genius carrying Orochimaru’s Natural Energy Cursed Seal, while Jiraiya asked whether Bane planned to take disciples.
• Explosions outside the arena signaled Orochimaru’s attack, and Baki ambushed Kakashi as Gaara unleashed Shukaku’s power against Naruto Uzumaki.
• Bane stopped Gaara’s sand and tore through his seal to pull Shukaku from his body, despite Shukaku’s desperate warnings.
• Bane failed to form Adamantine Sealing Chains, then tossed Shukaku through a spatial rift into the Darkness Dimension; Gaara collapsed unconscious.
• Naruto Uzumaki watched in fear as the Nine-Tailed Demon Fox spoke to him for the first time and ordered him to run.

Bane frightened Naruto Uzumaki and offered to remove the Nine-Tails, but Naruto refused to abandon his identity, and Bane left after Hinata Hyuga stood up for him. Meanwhile, Hiruzen Sarutobi and Jiraiya fought Orochimaru and Rasa inside the Four Violet Flames Formation, which they broke before Orochimaru summoned three coffins.

• Bane offered to extract the Nine-Tails from Naruto Uzumaki, but Hinata Hyuga shielded Naruto and Naruto declared he would face his problems himself.
• Baki rescued Gaara while Kakashi asked Bane to stop frightening Konoha's children; Bane warned Naruto that he would return for the Nine-Tails and then vanished.
• Atop Hokage Rock, Hiruzen Sarutobi fought Orochimaru and Rasa inside the Four Violet Flames Formation as battles spread through Konoha.
• Hiruzen Sarutobi summoned Enma and Jiraiya, then assigned Jiraiya to fight Rasa while he confronted Orochimaru.
• Hiruzen Sarutobi and Jiraiya used coordinated attacks to strike the barrier's guards and destroy the Four Violet Flames Formation.
• Orochimaru summoned three coffins, including ones marked First Hokage and Second Hokage, after Hiruzen failed to stop the technique.

During the Konoha attack, Orochimaru used Impure World Reincarnation to summon Hashirama, Tobirama, and Hanzo, while Zoro and Robin stole the Scroll of Sealing and Ain confronted Shikaku Nara. The chapter ended with Ain holding Shikaku at knifepoint after finding the Nara Clan’s secret technique scroll on him.

• Orochimaru summoned Senju Hashirama, Tobirama Senju, and Hanzo the Salamander, then erased their awareness with control kunai.
• Hashirama and Tobirama attacked Hiruzen Sarutobi while Hanzo and Rasa overwhelmed Jiraiya.
• Kabuto Yakushi tried to break the seal on a bookcase in the Hokage Office, but fled when Zoro and Robin entered.
• Zoro cut through the Chakra chains, and Robin retrieved the Scroll of Sealing from the bookcase.
• Ain searched Shikaku Nara’s study for the Shadow Possession Jutsu, but Shikaku caught her with his shadow technique.
• Ain escaped into Shikaku’s shadow, restrained him, and discovered that he carried the Nara Clan’s secret technique scroll.

Hiruzen Sarutobi used a series of attacks and seals to trap Orochimaru, Senju Hashirama, and Tobirama Senju, then summoned the Death God to consume their souls. Watching from Konoha, Bane attempted to fuse water and earth Chakra to awaken Wood Release, then set off toward the Death God.

• Hiruzen Sarutobi used Five Elements Great Barrage to devastate the forest, then trapped the Wood Golem Technique inside a Three-Way Sealing barrier.
• Hiruzen Sarutobi used Dead Demon Consuming Seal to immobilize Orochimaru, Senju Hashirama, and Tobirama Senju, and the Death God pulled Senju Hashirama's soul from his body and devoured it.
• Bane tried combining water and earth Chakra to awaken Wood Release, but the fusion failed.
• Bane saw the Death God appear behind Hiruzen Sarutobi, recognized it, and vanished from the rooftop.

Bane seized the Death God during Hiruzen Sarutobi’s Dead Demon Consuming Seal and followed him into the Pure Land, leaving his body behind. Orochimaru escaped after losing the souls of his hands, while Hiruzen survived and guarded Bane’s body as the invasion began to break apart.

• The Death God abandoned Hiruzen Sarutobi’s unfinished sealing ritual and tried to flee after Bane appeared.
• Bane smashed Hiruzen Sarutobi’s Three-Way Sealing, grabbed the Death God, and entered the Pure Land with him as Tobirama Senju and Hanzo the Salamander were pulled away.
• Orochimaru escaped inside a summoned snake after Hiruzen severed the souls of his hands, and Rasa fled when Baki’s signal flare ended the Konoha Crush Plan.
• Jiraiya returned to Hokage Rock, learned how Hiruzen had survived, and went back to the village while Hiruzen stayed to guard Bane’s body.
• Robin watched from outside Konoha and told Zoro he would not need to reveal himself.

Bane returned from the Pure Land with a finger taken from the Death God, and Hiruzen Sarutobi learned that the Death God would no longer answer his Dead Demon Consuming Seal. After Bane gave Hiruzen a strand of Source of Nature and left Konoha, Hiruzen declared all-out war on Sunagakure.

• Bane forced his way back from the Pure Land with the Death God's finger, then told Hiruzen Sarutobi that the Death God would not come for his soul.
• Hiruzen Sarutobi tried using the Dead Demon Consuming Seal again, but the Death God dispersed the offering and did not appear.
• Bane asked Hiruzen Sarutobi to find someone else who could use the seal, and Hiruzen named Orochimaru.
• Bane gave Hiruzen Sarutobi a strand of Source of Nature that could help him cultivate senjutsu and summon Bane once, then vanished from Hokage Rock.
• Kakashi reported that Bane had taken Shukaku and threatened to take the Nine-Tails from Naruto when he needed it.
• Hiruzen Sarutobi ordered Konoha to declare all-out war on Sunagakure.

After Konoha repelled the attack, Hiruzen Sarutobi learned that the Scroll of Sealing and the Nara Clan’s Shadow Possession Jutsu had been stolen, and he ordered an investigation into Akatsuki. He then began maneuvering toward retirement, but Jiraiya rejected the Hokage succession and revealed that he had found the Child of Prophecy: Naruto Uzumaki.

• Hiruzen Sarutobi told the remaining officials that the Scroll of Sealing had been stolen, and Shikaku Nara reported that a mysterious intruder had also taken the Shadow Possession Jutsu.
• Shikaku Nara described the intruder’s crimson-cloud cloak, and Jiraiya identified the attacker as a member of Akatsuki, an organization of S-rank rogue ninja that had once included Orochimaru.
• Hiruzen Sarutobi ordered Monkey to investigate Akatsuki and agreed to complete the Chunin Exams quickly despite the collapse of the joint event with Sunagakure.
• Hiruzen Sarutobi feigned frailty and signaled that he intended to retire, while Shikaku Nara, Kakashi, and Might Guy backed Jiraiya as a possible successor.
• Jiraiya refused the Hokage position and told Hiruzen Sarutobi that he had found the Child of Prophecy, Naruto Uzumaki.

Jiraiya confronted Hiruzen Sarutobi over Naruto’s neglect, then resolved to train Naruto and avoid joining the war against Sunagakure. Hiruzen Sarutobi insisted that Jiraiya or Tsunade must succeed him, and Jiraiya agreed to try to bring Tsunade back to Konoha.

• Jiraiya rebuked Hiruzen Sarutobi for allowing Naruto to grow up neglected, and Hiruzen Sarutobi defended keeping Naruto’s parentage secret for his protection.
• Jiraiya said Spirit Venerable had identified Naruto as the Child of Prophecy and confirmed he would take Naruto as his disciple and train him away from Konoha.
• Jiraiya refused to participate in the war against Sunagakure or become Hokage, and Hiruzen Sarutobi urged him to find Tsunade as a successor.
• Jiraiya proposed luring Tsunade back by exaggerating Hiruzen Sarutobi’s illness and invoking the Dead Demon Consuming Seal.
• Hiruzen Sarutobi agreed that Tsunade should become Hokage if Jiraiya could persuade her to return, but ordered Jiraiya to take the position himself if she refused.

After Konoha declared war on Sunagakure, Kakashi told Naruto that Jiraiya would take him away to train, while Sasuke wrestled with envy and thoughts of seeking power through Orochimaru and Spirit Venerable. As Kakashi prepared to leave for the front, Sasuke became more determined to grow stronger.

• At the funeral for the victims of the attack, Hiruzen Sarutobi declared war on Sunagakure, and Konoha began mobilizing for the conflict.
• Kakashi told Naruto, Sakura, and Sasuke that Naruto would train with Jiraiya and that he would soon leave for the front lines.
• Kakashi explained that Spirit Venerable was a True Dragon of Ryūchi Cave whose uncertain loyalties and interest in Tailed Beasts made him a potential threat.
• Jiraiya arrived, gave Kakashi an unpublished book, and invited Naruto to leave with him at noon for travel and training.
• Sasuke considered approaching Orochimaru to reach Spirit Venerable, then grew increasingly desperate for power as he faced losing Kakashi as his teacher.

Rasa accepted that Gaara was dead and prepared to seek political help from the Wind Daimyo to end the war with Konoha. In the Land of Grass, Orochimaru decided to seek Spirit Venerable to repair the damage to his arms and ordered Kabuto Yakushi to continue the plan involving Sasuke Uchiha.

• Chiyo told Rasa that she could not revive Gaara, who had been dead too long for her Forbidden Jutsu to work.
• Rasa left the hospital without comforting Temari and Kankuro, then told Baki that Gaara could not be saved and that he would seek the Wind Daimyo's support.
• Rasa named Baki acting Kazekage if he did not return and urged him to end the war and endure Konoha's demands.
• Kabuto Yakushi failed to restore Orochimaru's arms, and Orochimaru explained that the damage had severed the souls in them.
• Orochimaru told Kabuto Yakushi to wait for the others and activate the plan concerning Sasuke Uchiha, then set out for Ryuchi Cave to seek Spirit Venerable.

Bane returned to Ryuchi Cave with his companions and examined the Scroll of Sealing, learning more about the Pure Land and its forbidden techniques. Nami discovered that her Phoenix healing might let her master the Eight Inner Gates far faster than ordinary ninja.

• Bane returned to Ryuchi Cave, where the White Snake Sage welcomed him and he discussed the group's gains from their Konoha expedition.
• Bane showed the group the Death God's right index finger and the Spirit Transformation Technique, then examined Tobirama Senju's notes on Edo Tensei and the Pure Land.
• Robin unrolled the Scroll of Sealing, and the group read about its forbidden techniques, including the Dead Demon Consuming Seal and the Eight Inner Gates.
• Wyper and Nami recognized the Eight Inner Gates and learned that its long training process depended on repeatedly recovering from injuries.
• Nami realized that her Phoenix healing could remove the Eight Inner Gates' main training obstacle, and Bane agreed that she might master it unusually quickly.

Bane and the others examined the Scroll of Sealing, deciding that Nami would test its dangerous techniques first and discovering that it contained the complete Flying Raijin system. Bane planned to try the Flying Raijin himself after they verified the scroll, hoping it might help him reach the Pure Land, while expecting Orochimaru to seek him out.

• Robin warned that Konoha might have made the Scroll of Sealing a deadly fake, but Nami argued she could test it without fear of dying because she was a phoenix.
• Bane and Robin judged the scroll likely genuine and agreed that Nami would practice the Eight Gates first while they continued reading.
• The group read about the Mutually Multiplying Explosive Tags, and Bane identified Konan's Paper Release Secret Technique as a powerful way to produce and multiply explosive tags; Nami agreed to seek it after training the Eight Gates.
• Bane found the Flying Raijin system in the scroll and considered learning it to help him open a route to the Pure Land.
• Bane said Nami would still test the scroll first and predicted that Orochimaru, whose arms Hiruzen Sarutobi had severed, would come to find him.

Bane studied the Spirit Transformation Technique and developed a way to combine his soul and body by using the Soul-Soul Fruit to make his flesh enter a stable spirit form. The chapter ended with Orochimaru arriving at Ryuchi Cave, badly injured and asking Bane for help after Hiruzen sacrificed the souls of his hands to the Death God.

• Bane mastered the Spirit Transformation Technique and began exploring how to merge his soul with his physical body.
• Zoro and Wyper left Ryuchi Cave to stir up trouble in the Cloud Hidden Village, while Ain trained, Robin explored, and Nami pursued the Eight Inner Gates.
• Bane had sealed away Shukaku's Tailed Beast Chakra and turned it into a Homie, and Shukaku advised Fubuki on Sealing Jutsu and Wind Style.
• Bane used the Soul-Soul Fruit to make his finger a Homie, then held it in a stable translucent spirit state for over half an hour.
• Ichikishimahime informed Bane that Orochimaru had arrived in poor condition, and Bane agreed to see him.
• Orochimaru told Bane that Hiruzen had severed the souls of his hands and sacrificed them to the Death God, and asked Bane to help him.

Bane temporarily restored Orochimaru’s arms by filling them with Homies made from Soul Power, after agreeing to accept two pairs of Sharingan as payment. Orochimaru regained the use of his hands, though the arms remained loaned to him and visibly contained eyes and mouths.

• Orochimaru asked Bane to restore his arms, and Bane explained that the Death God had swallowed the souls severed from them.
• Bane refused to use pure Soul Power to heal Orochimaru but offered another temporary method in exchange for payment.
• Orochimaru offered the Eight Inner Gates, but Bane revealed that he had already obtained Konoha’s Scroll of Sealing and accepted two pairs of Sharingan instead.
• Bane pulled Orochimaru’s soul from his body and infused his arm containers with Soul Power, creating Homies that called Bane their master.
• Bane returned Orochimaru’s incomplete soul and connected it to the Homies, allowing Orochimaru to move his arms again.

Bane restored Orochimaru’s arms with soul creations that let him communicate with and be watched by Bane, then accepted Orochimaru’s offering of Sharingan and discussed the war between Konoha and Sunagakure. After Orochimaru questioned his ambitions and asked to follow Bane, Bane told him he would first have to prove his value.

• Bane ordered the eyes and mouths on Orochimaru’s restored arms to stay quiet and serve as his means of communicating with Bane.
• Orochimaru presented Bane with two pairs of three-tomoe Sharingan, which Bane stored in his Darkness Dimension.
• Orochimaru told Bane that Konoha was advancing into the Land of Wind, though negotiations between the feudal lords would likely end the war before it became a Fourth Great Ninja War.
• Orochimaru admitted that Bane’s power had made his own ambitions seem insignificant and asked whether ninjas could attain immortality and discover the truth of the world.
• Bane said he was pursuing a higher realm and described himself and Orochimaru as frogs who could see different stretches of sky.
• Orochimaru asked to follow Bane, and Bane said he would need to prove his value first.