Recaps

After failing to stop Tobi from escaping, Ueno Kei learned that Jiraiya had gone alone to Amegakure and set out after him. Jiraiya infiltrated the village, where Nagato sensed his arrival.

• Ueno Kei accepted that the unstable space prevented the Great Elder from using Spatial Lockdown, then left with Naruto after the Great Elder took Itachi Uchiha's body.
• An Anbu informed Ueno Kei that Jiraiya had gone alone to Amegakure, so Ueno Kei asked Might Guy to take Naruto and the others back to Konoha and departed on an urgent mission.
• Naruto noticed that Ueno Kei was hiding something but chose not to cause trouble, and returned to Konoha with Might Guy and Sakura.
• Jiraiya entered Amegakure and reflected on his former students Yahiko, Nagato, and Konan as he made his way toward the tower.
• Nagato opened his eyes inside the tower and sensed Jiraiya's arrival.

Jiraiya confronted Pain and Konan in Amegakure, trying to persuade his former disciple to abandon his plan for peace. As the battle escalated, Jiraiya asked Gamaken to hold off Pain’s forces while he prepared to summon the Great Sages.

• Pain blasted Jiraiya from the tower and revealed that Amegakure’s rain had detected his intrusion.
• Pain and Konan attacked Jiraiya, who defended himself with Needle Jizo and summoned Gamaken.
• Jiraiya urged Nagato to stop gathering the tailed beasts, but Pain declared himself the god of a new world and insisted his plan would bring peace.
• Pain’s summoned beasts and Konan’s paper attacks struck Gamaken, but he and Jiraiya survived the assault.
• Jiraiya told Gamaken to hold off Pain’s forces while he summoned the two Great Sages, leaving Gamaken to defend him as he prepared for battle.

Ueno Kei infiltrated Amegakure and was confronted by Konan while Pain battled Jiraiya elsewhere in the village. Konan tried to hold Ueno Kei back as Pain prepared to finish dealing with Jiraiya and then face him.

• Jiraiya and Gamaken escaped Pain's rabid dogs using a technique that immobilized them.
• Konan alerted Pain that Ueno Kei had infiltrated Amegakure, and Pain told her to delay him while he dealt with Jiraiya.
• Ueno Kei recognized the chakra in Amegakure's rain, then killed a nearby Rain ninja as Konan and dozens of others surrounded him.
• Ueno Kei used Shadow Kill to kill the attacking Rain ninja and challenged Konan.
• Konan took to the air and attacked Ueno Kei with Paper Dance, while she hoped to hold him until Pain could join the fight.

Ueno Kei left Konan occupied with a Shadow Clone and headed toward Jiraiya, who struggled against all six Pains despite entering Sage Mode. As Jiraiya was gravely wounded and the sages prepared to leave with his message, an unidentified newcomer arrived and struck Pain.

• Ueno Kei’s Shadow Clone fought Konan, then vanished, revealing that the real Ueno Kei had already gone to find Jiraiya.
• Jiraiya summoned Fukasaku and Shima, entered Sage Mode, and defeated the summoned dogs, but then faced all six Pains.
• Jiraiya realized the Pains shared their vision and suspected the truth about the orange-haired Pain, while Pain continued attacking him.
• Pain’s attack pierced Jiraiya, and Jiraiya gave Fukasaku a scroll to take to Qi and Tsunade before ordering the sages to leave.
• An unidentified newcomer drove the six Pains back and pierced one with a lightning-charged katana, then greeted the wounded Jiraiya as his senior brother.

Ueno Kei saved Jiraiya from Pain and arranged for him to escape to Mount Myoboku, but Tobi appeared as Kei prepared to retreat. Surrounded by the Six Paths of Pain and Tobi, Kei readied himself to fight.

• Ueno Kei arrived in time to save Jiraiya and ordered Fukasaku and Shima to use Reverse Summoning to take him to Mount Myoboku.
• Jiraiya warned Ueno Kei about Pain, while Konan returned and admitted she had failed to hold Kei back.
• Fukasaku summoned Jiraiya away, and Ueno Kei decided to withdraw rather than fight Pain alone.
• Tobi appeared behind Ueno Kei, and the Six Paths of Pain grew confident they could keep him there.
• Ueno Kei faced Pain and Tobi, awakened the golden crosses in his eyes, and prepared to fight.

Ueno Kei confronted Tobi, Pain, and Konan, overpowering their opening attacks and nearly cutting Tobi with the Lingyu Blade. Pain blasted Ueno Kei into a ruined wall and followed with a missile barrage, leaving his condition unclear.

• Ueno Kei faced Tobi, Pain, and Konan with overwhelming killing intent, and Konan retreated in a burst of paper.
• Tobi ordered an attack as chains, missiles, and the Human Path and Animal Path converged on Ueno Kei.
• Ueno Kei used lightning to stop the chains, dodged the Paths’ attacks, and cut the incoming missile in half.
• Tobi attacked from behind, but Ueno Kei’s Lightning Armor and Ling Domain halted the space-time assault and let him counterattack.
• Pain blocked Ueno Kei’s slash with a black iron rod, blasted him into a ruined wall with Almighty Push, and sent missiles exploding around him.

Ueno Kei fought Pain and Tobi, using Lightning Prison and a devastating counterattack to destroy five of the Six Paths. He emerged nearly unharmed and challenged Deva Path Pain to reveal Nagato’s real body.

• Ueno Kei countered Deva Path Pain’s Universal Pull with Lightning Prison and blocked the missiles with a barrier.
• A Rinnegan lizard restrained Ueno Kei, and Human Path and Asura Path Pain impaled him with their iron rods.
• Ueno Kei sent a mysterious force through the rods and unleashed a destructive attack that destroyed five of the Six Paths.
• Tobi and Deva Path Pain survived, and Zetsu emerged to taunt them as Ueno Kei appeared nearly unharmed.
• Ueno Kei called Deva Path Pain Nagato and challenged him to come out, leading Pain to suspect that Jiraiya had revealed his secret.

Ueno Kei struggled to break through Deva Path Pain and Tobi’s coordinated attacks while Zetsu repeatedly interfered. Unable to escape or gain an advantage, he prepared to unleash a massive explosion using his seven Thunder Orbs.

• Ueno Kei failed to shake off Deva Path Pain and Tobi as Pain used Almighty Push to create openings for Tobi’s space-time attacks.
• Ueno Kei discovered that Tobi had somehow blocked his Summoning Technique, preventing him from calling the Great Elder.
• Zetsu caught Ueno Kei off guard with chains, but Ueno Kei broke free just before Pain’s black rod could strike him fatally.
• Ueno Kei formed seven Thunder Orbs around himself and prepared to use them as the source of a large-scale attack.

Ueno Kei unleashed a catastrophic Lightning Release technique to break through Tobi and the Six Paths of Pain’s attack, destroying the area and badly injuring himself. He emerged from the blast ready to retreat, but the Six Paths of Pain, Tobi, and Zetsu appeared unharmed atop the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path and prepared to kill him.

• Ueno Kei decided to detonate all seven Thunder Beads, using natural energy from the Lingyu Blade to unleash a devastating attack despite losing control of its power.
• The Six Paths of Pain realized Ueno Kei’s technique threatened to flatten Amegakure and tried to stop him.
• Ueno Kei cast Lightning Release—Apocalypse Judgment, tearing through the surrounding area and apparently damaging space itself.
• Ueno Kei survived the blast with severe wounds and a damaged Lingyu Blade, then decided to retreat rather than check whether his enemies had been killed.
• A huge shadow appeared behind Ueno Kei, and he saw the Six Paths of Pain, Tobi, and Zetsu standing unharmed atop the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path.
• The Six Paths of Pain declared that Ueno Kei had to die for the sake of peace.

Ueno Kei faced Pain, Tobi, and Zetsu after his attack nearly destroyed Amegakure, but the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path protected them. Badly wounded and depleted, he was cornered as an unknown white light began to shine from his eyes.

• Pain summoned the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path, allowing himself, Tobi, and Zetsu to survive Ueno Kei's attack inside its mouth.
• Ueno Kei realized his chakra was low, his arm was damaged, and his attack had ruined the Lingyu Blade, leaving him unable to maintain Sage Mode.
• Ueno Kei resolved to survive for Yuki, Naruto, Jiraiya, and Tsunade, then faced Pain and Tobi as they attacked him.
• The Demonic Statue struck Ueno Kei with its chains while Tobi's Mangekyō Sharingan disrupted his movement, but Tobi only bound a Shadow Clone.
• Tobi and Pain closed in on the battered Ueno Kei, who prepared to fight back as an unknown white glow appeared in his pupils.

Hamura reflected on his brother’s failed efforts to establish a new order as Ueno Kei was defeated and killed by Tobi and Pain. Afterward, Tobi ordered Pain to move up the plan to capture the Nine-Tails in Konoha.

• Hamura left his brother to accompany their mother, while his brother remained to restore peace and establish a new order.
• An ancient Hamura lamented that his brother had failed and sensed that their mother’s revival might be near.
• Ueno Kei, badly injured and without his Lingyu Blade, admitted defeat as Tobi and Pain prepared to kill him.
• Pain fired the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path’s attack, and Ueno Kei vanished in its red light.
• Tobi ordered Pain to capture the Nine-Tails in Konoha, and Pain agreed to go once the Six Paths’ bodies were restored.

Konoha’s search party found Ueno Kei’s bloodstained forehead protector and Lingyu Blade in the ruins of Amegakure, but no body. Naruto and Kazahana Yuki were devastated as the village faced the possibility that Kei had died protecting Konoha.

• Might Guy, Asuma, and Konoha Anbu searched the ruined Amegakure for Ueno Kei and found no trace of him or his enemies.
• An Anbu discovered Ueno Kei’s Lingyu Blade and a damaged, bloodstained Konoha forehead protector.
• Might Guy and Asuma returned to Konoha with the artifacts and reported that Kei was missing, leaving everyone to fear the worst.
• Naruto rejected the possibility that Kei was dead, while Kazahana Yuki broke down in tears.
• Tsunade, Jiraiya, Kakashi, and the others remained silent as Konoha mourned the possibility of losing Ueno Kei.

Ueno Kei met Hamura Otsutsuki in his consciousness space and learned the history of Kaguya, Hagoromo, and the Ten-Tails. Hamura revealed that Kaguya might revive, then hinted at a more alarming purpose that left Ueno Kei shaken.

• Hamura Otsutsuki appeared in Ueno Kei’s consciousness space and explained that his chakra imprint had been inside Ueno Kei from the beginning.
• Hamura revealed that he was Hagoromo Otsutsuki’s younger brother and recounted how they had defeated and sealed their mother, Kaguya Otsutsuki.
• Ueno Kei learned that the Ten-Tails had once been a single entity, that Black Zetsu was Kaguya’s creation, and that Naruto and Sasuke carried the chakra of Asura and Indra.
• Ueno Kei questioned Hamura about Tobi, Pain, and the plan to revive Kaguya, but Hamura said he did not know all the details.
• Ueno Kei asked if Hamura wanted him to defeat and seal Kaguya again, and Hamura nodded before shaking his head and saying something that left Ueno Kei’s face changed with shock.

Sasuke accepted Tobi’s request for help after learning the truth about Itachi and vowing revenge on Konoha. He awakened his Mangekyō Sharingan and left to confront the Eight-Tails’ jinchūriki, while Tobi promised to retrieve Itachi’s body and eyes.

• Sasuke vowed to avenge his clan after Tobi revealed the truth about Itachi.
• Sasuke learned that Ueno Kei had taken Itachi’s body, and his Sharingan awakened into the Mangekyō Sharingan.
• Tobi claimed that Ueno Kei had died fighting him and Pain, and promised to recover Itachi’s body.
• Tobi explained that Sasuke could use Itachi’s Mangekyō Sharingan to obtain the Eternal Mangekyo, but Sasuke postponed deciding about the eyes.
• Sasuke agreed to handle Tobi’s task and left wearing an Akatsuki cloak to confront the Eight-Tails’ jinchūriki.

Ueno Kei returned from the dead after Hamura Otsutsuki saved him, but he struggled to control the new power Hamura had given him. He reached the Originless Realm and reunited with the Great Elder, while the ninja world prepared to confront Akatsuki.

• Tobi watched Sasuke leave, confident that his plan was proceeding smoothly, then vanished to prepare for the next stage of capturing the Eight-Tails and Nine-Tails.
• News of Ueno Kei's death, Pain's attack on Konoha, and Akatsuki's tailed-beast captures alarmed the major villages, leading the Five Kage to arrange a summit in the Land of Iron.
• Seven days after Kei's reported death, Ueno Kei emerged from a spatial vortex among Amegakure's ruins, having survived Pain's attack because Hamura Otsutsuki had saved him.
• Kei sensed the restorative and sensory power Hamura had bestowed on him, but realized he could not yet control it.
• Kei worried about Konoha and the threats posed by Tobi, Pain, and Black Zetsu, then used a hand seal to travel to the Originless Realm.
• The Great Elder greeted Kei with relief and joy, and Kei asked him to take him to someone important.

Ueno Kei met the supposedly dead Itachi Uchiha in the Originless Realm, where Itachi agreed to recover and honor their plans for Sasuke. Returning to Konoha, Ueno Kei found the village devastated and suspected Akatsuki had targeted Naruto.

• Ueno Kei told Itachi Uchiha that Hamura's power had delayed his death, but Itachi's damaged body left him only a few years to live unless he rested and gave up fighting.
• Ueno Kei instructed Itachi Uchiha to recover in the Originless Realm and keep his promise concerning Sasuke's future in Konoha.
• Itachi Uchiha said Tobi might be Uchiha Madara but admitted that his identity could not be confirmed.
• Ueno Kei left the Originless Realm after speaking with the Great Elder and returned to Konoha.
• Ueno Kei saw that Konoha had been devastated and hurried toward the village, suspecting Akatsuki had set its sights on Naruto.

Tsunade and Jiraiya worried about the Five Kage Summit, Naruto’s mission to protect Sasuke, and Ueno Kei’s apparent death. Ueno Kei returned alive to the Hokage’s Office and began telling them what had happened to him.

• Tsunade and Jiraiya discussed whether the Five Kage Summit would form the Allied Shinobi Forces and worried about the tensions between Konoha and Iwagakure.
• Jiraiya and Tsunade learned that Naruto had gone to the Land of Iron to ask the Fourth Raikage to revoke the warrant for Sasuke.
• Tsunade spoke sadly about Ueno Kei’s absence and the grief Naruto and Kazahana Yuki were carrying.
• Ueno Kei appeared in the Hokage’s Office, and Tsunade embraced him before scolding him for staying away.
• Ueno Kei explained most of what had happened in the mysterious space and his conversation with Hamura Otsutsuki to Jiraiya and Tsunade.

After learning of Nagato’s death and Naruto’s role in saving Konoha, Ueno Kei left for the Land of Iron to bring Naruto back. Naruto met the Fourth Raikage and asked him to withdraw the warrant for Second Pillar, prompting an icy response.

• Jiraiya told Ueno Kei that Nagato had attacked Konoha, then sacrificed his life to revive those killed in the assault.
• Ueno Kei learned Naruto had gone to the Five Kage Summit and decided to travel to the Land of Iron.
• Ueno Kei assured Tsunade that he had already returned home and seen Kazahana Yuki before departing Konoha.
• Naruto introduced himself to the Fourth Raikage, whose manner softened after he recognized Naruto’s identity and strength.
• Naruto asked the Fourth Raikage to withdraw the warrant for Second Pillar, and the Raikage reacted with anger and hatred.

Naruto struggled with the Fourth Raikage’s challenge to his ideals as the Five Kage Summit began in the Land of Iron. Nearby, Sasuke and Hawk headed toward the summit while Tobi left to meet Naruto.

• The Fourth Raikage told Naruto that the ninja world demanded hard choices, leaving Naruto uncertain about his ideals.
• The Fourth Raikage arrived at the summit, where Mifune welcomed him and announced the rules for the neutral meeting.
• Kakashi, Ōnoki, Mei Terumi, and Gaara joined the Fourth Raikage as the Five Kage Summit began.
• Tobi told Sasuke that the Fourth Raikage had targeted him and that Naruto had come to ask for the arrest warrant to be revoked.
• Tobi left to meet Naruto, while Sasuke and Hawk set off toward the summit.

The Five Kage Summit stalled as the leaders argued over who would command the Shinobi Allied Forces and traded accusations about their villages’ ties to Akatsuki. Mifune recognized that the Eye of the Moon Plan threatened the whole world, so the samurai could not remain neutral.

• The Fourth Raikage demanded that he lead the Shinobi Allied Forces, but Mei Terumi and Ōnoki challenged his suitability.
• The Fourth Raikage accused Iwagakure, Kirigakure, and Konoha of links to Akatsuki, then dismissed Gaara as too young to speak.
• Kakashi rebuked the Fourth Raikage for disrespecting Gaara, and the Raikage fell silent without apologizing.
• Mifune judged the Kage’s argument and recognized that Akatsuki’s plan threatened the Land of Iron as well as the rest of the world.
• Mifune concluded that the samurai could not stay neutral in the fight against Akatsuki.

At the Five Kage talks, Mifune tried to move discussion away from the disputed Allied Shinobi Forces commander, but Ōnoki insisted the issue had to be resolved first. Gaara challenged Ōnoki and Mei Terumi over their cynicism, leaving the meeting deadlocked.

• Mifune suggested that the Five Kage set aside the commander dispute and discuss other matters first.
• Ōnoki rejected the suggestion and questioned whether an alliance could work without agreement on its commander.
• The Fourth Raikage split the table and confronted Ōnoki after he argued that shinobi could not trust one another to cooperate.
• Gaara asked Ōnoki when he had lost his ideals, but Ōnoki dismissed him as naive and inexperienced.
• Mei Terumi also called Gaara naive for speaking of ideals in a world shaped by bloodshed.

Ueno Kei appeared alive at the Five Kage Summit and confronted the Third Tsuchikage, Fourth Raikage, and Mei Terumi. As tensions rose, he sensed another intruder and demanded that they reveal themselves.

• Gaara resolved to keep pursuing his ideals as Kazekage despite the other Kage's skepticism.
• Ueno Kei emerged from the shadows, surprising the summit attendees and delighting the Konoha and Sunagakure representatives.
• The Third Tsuchikage questioned how Ueno Kei had survived, and Ueno Kei confirmed he was alive while suppressing him with his killing intent.
• The Fourth Raikage condemned Ueno Kei for disrupting the Five Kage Summit, and Ueno Kei prepared to respond.
• Ueno Kei sensed someone else had infiltrated the venue and demanded that they come out.

Ueno Kei exposed White Zetsu hiding in the Kage meeting, and White Zetsu revealed that Sasuke had infiltrated the area before killing himself. The Fourth Raikage rushed after Sasuke, while Ueno Kei discovered a Wood Release trace on White Zetsu and set out with Kakashi to follow.

• Ueno Kei noticed Tobi hiding in the meeting room, and White Zetsu emerged from beneath the floor.
• The Fourth Raikage seized White Zetsu and demanded to know where Killer B and Second Pillar were.
• White Zetsu announced that Second Pillar had infiltrated the area, then twisted his own neck and died.
• C located Sasuke, and the Fourth Raikage led his group out to pursue him.
• Ueno Kei sensed a strong Wood Release aura in White Zetsu's body, then agreed with Kakashi to follow the Raikage's group.

Ōnoki and Mei Terumi tried to keep Konoha’s delegation from leaving, suspecting Konoha might help Second Pillar evade capture. Ueno Kei rejected their demands and intimidated the Rock and Mist ninja with his overwhelming aura, leaving the confrontation unresolved.

• Ōnoki accused Konoha of arranging Second Pillar’s defection and urged Mei Terumi to detain Konoha’s group.
• Mei Terumi proposed that Ueno Kei and Kakashi stay behind, while Ueno Kei insisted Konoha would handle Second Pillar and threatened anyone who interfered.
• Kakashi backed Ueno Kei’s position, and Mei Terumi summoned Ao and Chojuro as the dispute grew more hostile.
• Ueno Kei stopped Kakashi from intervening and released a powerful aura that frightened Ōnoki, Mei Terumi, and the assembled ninja.
• Ueno Kei declared that Konoha would never yield if the Rock and Mist ninja chose to become its enemies.

Sasuke and his group were discovered inside the Land of Iron, where they fought the samurai guarding the castle. The Fourth Raikage intervened and confronted Sasuke, who emerged with a newly changed Sharingan.

• Ueno Kei warned the Kage against provoking Konoha, then left with Kakashi, the Fifth Mizukage, and the Third Tsuchikage to find Sasuke.
• Sasuke asked Karin to locate Kakashi while Suigetsu and Jugo waited with him inside the castle.
• The samurai surrounded Sasuke’s group, and Sasuke, Suigetsu, and Jugo attacked and cut down their opponents.
• Sasuke demanded directions to the Five Kage Summit from a samurai, but the Fourth Raikage struck him into a wall before he could kill the man.
• The Fourth Raikage ordered the samurai to stand down and faced Sasuke as Suigetsu and Jugo rushed to him.
• Sasuke emerged from the dust with a blood-colored six-pointed star turning in his eyes.