Chapter Summaries

Deidara discovered that Aizen had controlled all five of his senses with Kyoka Suigetsu, making his attacks appear ineffective. Refusing to give up, Deidara described his unfinished C4 technique and revealed that C0 could let him take his opponent down with him.

• Deidara exposed his hidden eye and tried to use it to break what he believed was Aizen's genjutsu.
• Aizen explained that Kyoka Suigetsu had hypnotized Deidara and placed all five of his senses under his control.
• Aizen made himself appear bloodied and badly injured, but Deidara recognized that his senses could not be trusted.
• Deidara insisted that his unfinished C4 Garuda could restrict an opponent's attacks and overcome Aizen.
• Deidara revealed the mouth on his chest and said he could use C0 to perish alongside his opponent if C4 failed.

Aizen challenged Deidara’s belief that his explosive art was the ultimate, then demonstrated Hado #96: Itto Kaso. Deidara watched the devastating blast in awe, while Aizen’s charred arm healed and he asked for Deidara’s verdict.

• Deidara told Aizen he would sacrifice even his life to create the most dazzling explosion, and Aizen questioned whether that was truly the ultimate art.
• Aizen said his own technique might surpass Deidara’s explosive art, then jumped down from the crane and prepared his left arm.
• Aizen cast Hado #96: Itto Kaso, unleashing a colossal crimson blade that exploded into a vast sea of flames.
• Deidara flew farther away but watched the blast in a frenzy, captivated by its power and brilliance.
• Aizen’s charred skin crumbled away to reveal a healed arm, and he asked Deidara what he thought.

After Aizen unleashed Itto Kaso, Ulquiorra explained that Ichigo Kurosaki had been Aizen’s true opponent, while Gin realized Ichigo had likely defeated him and let go of his lingering regret. Deidara, awed by the technique, became convinced Aizen could help him surpass it.

• Gin discussed Aizen’s use of Itto Kaso with Sasori, and Ulquiorra explained Aizen’s view that Yamamoto had become a decayed relic.
• Ulquiorra revealed that Ichigo Kurosaki had been Aizen’s true opponent and that Aizen had cultivated his growth instead of conquering the Spirit World sooner.
• Gin inferred that Ichigo had completed his mission and felt relief as he thought of Rangiku, setting himself on the path back to the Soul Society.
• Deidara praised Itto Kaso as the pinnacle of art, and Aizen told him he had the potential to surpass it.
• Deidara stared silently at the devastated, lava-covered battlefield.

After witnessing Aizen’s devastating technique, Deidara decided to follow him and pursue more powerful explosive art. Sasori explained that Aizen had approved Deidara to use a reagent that would turn him into a Hollow, and Deidara eagerly accepted, though Sasori warned him to keep it secret from most of the Akatsuki.

• Deidara told Sasori he had decided to follow Aizen and cultivate true art.
• Sasori explained that the Akatsuki was already under Aizen’s command, so Deidara did not need to leave for Las Noches.
• Sasori revealed that Aizen had assessed Deidara to see whether he qualified for a reagent that could transform someone into a Hollow.
• Sasori explained that Gin and Ulquiorra were Hollows with advantages beyond those of humans, and Deidara accepted the prospect of becoming one.
• Sasori told Deidara the reagent could help him surpass Itto Kaso’s artistic achievement, and Deidara demanded the vials.
• Sasori agreed to give Deidara the reagent under Aizen’s order, but warned him not to tell anyone in the Akatsuki except Nagato and two others.

Aizen, Gin, and Ulquiorra discussed Deidara and set out to meet Fugaku’s child. Meanwhile, Itachi and Kisame waited by a lakeside until they sensed intruders approaching through the rain.

• Aizen reassured Ulquiorra that Deidara’s desires would keep him in line and predicted Deidara would shine if he became a Hollow.
• Aizen said he wanted to meet Fugaku’s child and emphasized the importance of gathering talent.
• Itachi and Kisame spoke by a lakeside about the Uchiha Clan head’s disappearance and the fate of shinobi.
• Itachi and Kisame sensed someone approaching, and Kisame called the intruders trash as they watched the rain-obscured ground.

Ulquiorra arrived in Akatsuki territory on Aizen’s orders to assess Itachi’s strength, while Aizen and Gin watched from concealment. After Ulquiorra effortlessly struck Kisame, Itachi prepared to face him himself.

• Ulquiorra confronted Itachi and said he had come to assess his strength on a certain lord’s orders.
• Aizen explained to Gin that Ulquiorra’s pressure would force Itachi to reveal his true abilities, and said he would discard Itachi if he proved disappointing.
• Kisame guessed that Barragan had sent Ulquiorra and stepped forward to fight him while Itachi watched.
• Ulquiorra vanished and struck Kisame with such speed and force that he could not be tracked, though Samehada helped Kisame recover.
• Itachi told Kisame to stand back and faced Ulquiorra, concluding that neither he nor Kisame could defeat him in taijutsu.

Ulquiorra Cifer tested Itachi on Lord Aizen’s orders, overwhelming him with speed and a powerful Cero. Itachi activated his Mangekyō Sharingan and trapped Ulquiorra in Tsukuyomi, where Ulquiorra recognized the technique as rule-based power.

• Itachi asked Ulquiorra Cifer why he had come, and Ulquiorra said he was there to test Itachi’s strength without killing him.
• Itachi attacked, but Ulquiorra struck him before he could finish forming a technique and sent him crashing into the forest.
• Itachi launched a Fire Style attack, and Ulquiorra countered with a Cero that blasted the battlefield.
• Itachi avoided the Cero with a Body Replacement Explosive Tag, then activated his Mangekyō Sharingan and resumed fighting Ulquiorra.
• Itachi used Tsukuyomi to trap Ulquiorra in a scarlet space, where Ulquiorra examined the restraints and identified them as rule-based power.

Itachi trapped Ulquiorra in Tsukuyomi, but Ulquiorra broke free by releasing his second form and overwhelmed Itachi and Kisame. Aizen appeared on the battlefield, and Kisame recognized him as the figure from the Battle of Rock Peak who had supposedly died.

• Itachi bound Ulquiorra in Tsukuyomi and tortured him while demanding to know about his lord, but Ulquiorra remained calm and praised the Mangekyō Sharingan.
• Ulquiorra shattered the Tsukuyomi, released his second form, and struck Itachi and Kisame with a Black Cero that battered their Susanoo and left them injured.
• Aizen arrived and commended Ulquiorra for his efforts.
• Kisame recognized Aizen and cried out in shock that he had not died.

Aizen confronted Itachi and Kisame after Ulquiorra defeated them, revealing that Uchiha Clan Fugaku had joined Las Noches. He told Itachi that his exceptional talent was the reason he had come, leaving Itachi to face Aizen’s interest in him.

• Kisame recognized Aizen from the Battle of Rock Peak and trembled as Aizen questioned him about their past encounter.
• Aizen praised Itachi’s battle performance and asked whether he feared Aizen’s arrival would affect his place in the Akatsuki.
• Ulquiorra returned and stood respectfully behind Aizen, startling Itachi and Kisame with his deference.
• Aizen revealed that Uchiha Clan Fugaku had joined Las Noches and lived under his rule.
• Aizen called Itachi a once-in-a-century Uchiha genius, and Itachi silently acknowledged his extraordinary talent.

Itachi and Kisame refused Aizen’s offers to join Las Noches, despite the danger. Aizen decided to punish them personally, and his attack slammed Susanoo to the ground.

• Aizen praised Itachi and offered him a place in Las Noches, but Itachi refused to serve him.
• Aizen offered Kisame a place as well, and Kisame nervously refused, choosing to stand with Itachi.
• Aizen accepted their defiance but warned them to prepare for punishment, while Ulquiorra offered to handle them.
• Aizen dismissed Ulquiorra and said a king should sometimes display his own power.
• Aizen challenged Itachi and Kisame to prove their resolve, then struck Susanoo and drove it into the ground.

Aizen overwhelmed Itachi and Kisame with his spiritual pressure, but they escaped beneath a flooded battlefield. Aizen then revealed a more powerful form and unleashed a devastating attack, apparently trapping the pair in the crater it created.

• Aizen's spiritual pressure crushed Itachi and Kisame's Susanoo, leaving them unable to fight or escape directly.
• Itachi used Amaterasu to make Aizen evade, then drove the Susanoo into a ravine while Kisame sealed the ground and flooded the battlefield, allowing them to hide underwater.
• Aizen deduced that Itachi and Kisame had stayed nearby rather than escaping, and he transformed as Gin and Ulquiorra watched.
• Aizen warned Gin and Ulquiorra away, then said his current power was not enough to draw something's attention.
• Aizen used Gravity Break Flow to unleash purple spheres that evaporated the lake and carved a vast crater into the earth.
• Itachi and Kisame stared in shock from within the crater as Aizen asked whether they could still escape.

Aizen devastated the crater and made clear that Itachi and Kisame could not escape or hide from him. Kisame came out to buy Itachi time, but Aizen struck him down before he could fight.

• Itachi and Kisame watched Aizen’s attack destroy the ground around their hiding place and realized they could not defeat him.
• Kisame told Itachi that Aizen wanted his submission and suggested one of them might survive if the other acted.
• Kisame left their shelter and faced Aizen, who asked whether he was trying to buy time for Itachi to escape.
• Kisame transformed with Samehada and declared that he would try to delay Aizen.
• Aizen vanished and struck Kisame with such force that he was hurled across the crater, then said he did not believe Kisame had that ability.

Aizen defeated Kisame with a single blow, then confronted Itachi in the underground cavern and challenged him to attack. Itachi summoned Susanoo, but Aizen overwhelmed it and sent it crashing through the rocks.

• Aizen struck Kisame so hard that he suffered numerous broken bones, while Samehada separated from him and began healing him.
• Aizen found Itachi hiding underground and told him to answer his fear by attacking.
• Itachi overcame his fear and summoned Susanoo, which burst through the cramped cavern.
• Itachi used the falling dust and rubble to conceal Susanoo's attack with its crimson greatsword.
• Aizen caught the greatsword with his bare hand and blocked Susanoo's shield, then vanished and struck Susanoo into the rocks.

Itachi used Susanoo and the Yata Mirror to find a possible opening against Aizen, but Aizen repeatedly overpowered him and revealed he had marked Susanoo with the Flying Thunder God Technique. Itachi then tricked Aizen into appearing in the path of Susanoo’s own blade and activated the Totsuka Blade’s sealing power, leaving Aizen unraveling as he praised Itachi.

• Itachi realized the Yata Mirror could affect Aizen and resolved to seize an opening despite his exhaustion.
• Itachi charged Aizen with Susanoo, but Aizen vanished from the Mangekyō Sharingan’s sight and struck Susanoo into the rubble again.
• Aizen explained that Itachi could not defeat him and revealed a Flying Thunder God marker on Susanoo’s armor.
• Itachi feigned another attack, then turned Susanoo’s blade toward its own chest to catch Aizen when he appeared beside the marked armor.
• Aizen caught the blade after it pierced him, but Itachi activated the Totsuka Blade and began sealing him as Aizen praised his strategy.

Aizen overwhelmed Itachi’s Susanoo and forced the Totsuka Blade out of his body, while Itachi collapsed from exhaustion and illness. Aizen rescued Itachi with a strange vitality-giving energy, leaving Itachi shocked by the figure beside him.

• Aizen revealed that he had deliberately exposed an opening so Itachi would strike him with the Totsuka Blade.
• Aizen unleashed a vast surge of purple energy that forced the blade away and pushed Susanoo back.
• Itachi’s Susanoo dissipated as his strength failed, and he collapsed, believing death would end his suffering.
• Aizen lifted the dying Itachi from the underground and surrounded him with energy that restored his vitality.
• Itachi awoke on the shattered surface, saw Aizen with a brilliant blue crystal at his chest, and noticed another figure beside him.

Aizen used the Hogyoku to restore Itachi after their battle, then had Kisame reveal that Aizen was connected to the Akatsuki. Itachi accepted that Aizen was his leader, though he remained shocked by Aizen’s power and the truth about their relationship.

• Aizen fully restored Itachi’s body and life force with the Hogyoku, and Itachi admitted he could not defeat him.
• Gin warned Kisame to tell Itachi Aizen’s true identity, and Kisame went to speak with him.
• Gin called Aizen godlike, while Ulquiorra insisted the Hogyoku was only a tool for Lord Aizen.
• Kisame explained Aizen’s relationship with the Akatsuki, leaving Itachi shocked.
• Itachi reasoned that Aizen being his leader explained why he had spared and revived him.

Aizen asked Itachi and Kisame to join him in changing the world, arguing that the Five Great Shinobi Villages’ balance perpetuated war and cruelty. He proposed establishing a Royal Hall above all nations and ending the era of ninja, then gave Itachi and Kisame test tubes containing what he called the key to a new era.

• After hearing Kisame’s account, Aizen asked Itachi whether he still wanted to fight him and whether he believed Aizen could change the world.
• Aizen invited Itachi and Kisame to follow him and help reshape the world, and both reacted with disbelief.
• Itachi asked what kind of world Aizen wanted, and Aizen condemned the wars and crimes sustained by the balance among the Five Great Shinobi Villages.
• Aizen announced that he would establish a Royal Hall to restrain every nation and bring an end to the era of ninja.
• When Itachi asked what would happen to the ninjas, Aizen handed him and Kisame test tubes and called them the key to a new era.

Aizen recruited Kisame and Itachi with the promise that his reagent would transform them into powerful new beings, then left Ulquiorra to guide them. Aizen and Gin departed through a tear in space, while a group arrived in the Land of Rain to investigate Orochimaru’s destination.

• Kisame agreed to follow Aizen, hoping to gain power and help cleanse the world of its ugliness.
• Itachi also pledged to follow Aizen if his ideal could become reality.
• Aizen left Ulquiorra behind to guide Kisame and Itachi as they learned to use the reagent.
• Aizen opened a tear in space and departed with Gin.
• A group reached a plain in the Land of Rain and asked whether it was the place identified as Orochimaru’s destination.

A team led by a woman searched the plains, while an underground Las Noches facility tested children enhanced with Hollow serum. White Hunter passed a strength test and was assigned to Lady Kazumi’s squad, leaving Kimimaro to send him off in service to Las Noches.

• The woman led her ninjas toward the plains as her companion wondered about Aizen.
• In Las Noches, White Hunter lifted and slammed a monstrous test dummy while researchers measured his strength.
• The researchers assigned White Hunter to Lady Kazumi’s squad after reviewing his test results.
• White Hunter thanked Kimimaro for helping him receive the serum, and Kimimaro told him to report to Lady Kazumi.

Tayuya watched Kimimaro leave and decided to seek Kazumi’s advice, while Tsunade led a ninja squad to investigate a hidden barrier. Nawaki disabled the seal and opened a passage underground, and Tsunade followed him inside.

• Tayuya hid from Kimimaro, then resolved to ask Kazumi for advice about her feelings.
• Tsunade deployed her ninja squads and vowed to punish whoever had used Orochimaru’s name to spread false information.
• Tsunade’s team found an invisible barrier concealed in the plain and realized it marked their target.
• Nawaki pierced the seal with branches, deactivated the barrier, and revealed a deep fissure beneath the ground.
• Nawaki entered the passage, and Tsunade followed him underground.