Chapter Summaries

Chapter Summary: “Aftereffects and Temptation”

Key Plot Points and Events

• Kitsuchi arrives in Konoha as Hidden Stone’s representative to negotiate for the return of Han, the Five-Tails Jinchūriki.
• The Third Hokage presents Konoha’s demands:
  • The training method and research related to Dust Release.
  • Two hundred million in reparations.
  • Several restricted trade goods, bringing the total value to over one billion.
• Kitsuchi admits he lacks the authority to accept the terms and contacts Ōnoki, while the Third Hokage recognizes that the real negotiation is between Konoha and the Tsuchikage.
• Danzo returns to Konoha after undergoing treatment to restore his missing limbs. However, his new arms and legs produce severe swelling and a foul odor.
• Yamanaka Fu treats Danzo by transfusing blood directly into the swollen joints. The treatment rapidly restores his appearance, but Danzo reveals that the effects are temporary and that he requires regular blood transfusions.
• The Third Hokage warns Danzo that, as a prisoner, he is vulnerable to Uchiha Zhengye, who has become powerful enough that even Konoha must avoid provoking him.
• Danzo raises the possibility of supporting Hiruko’s research into the forbidden Chimera Technique, which steals and combines Kekkei Genkai.
• Although Hiruzen initially objects because the technique could make Konoha an enemy of the entire shinobi world—and because Hiruko hates Konoha—Danzo persuades him by emphasizing Zhengye’s youth and overwhelming future potential.
• Hiruzen agrees to provide Danzo with funds and materials for Hiruko’s experiments, though he refuses to protect Danzo if the Uchiha discover their involvement.

Character Developments

• Kitsuchi is shown to be an inexperienced negotiator, easily overwhelmed by Konoha’s demands. His role is mainly that of a messenger between Hiruzen and Ōnoki.
• The Third Hokage/Hiruzen remains politically calculating and pragmatic. He intends to profit from Han’s capture and recognizes Zhengye as a long-term threat. Despite his moral reservations, fear of Zhengye pushes him toward supporting forbidden research.
• Danzo has become more patient and controlled after two years of living without his limbs. He remains manipulative and determined to counter Zhengye, using Hiruko’s research as a possible weapon.
• Yamanaka Fu continues to serve Danzo loyally, providing intelligence and medical assistance.
• Hiruko, though absent, becomes increasingly important as a potential asset whose experiments may help Konoha create powerful shinobi.

Significant Themes

• Political leverage and opportunism: Konoha uses Han’s capture to demand enormous concessions from Hidden Stone.
• Fear of rising power: Zhengye’s youth and rapid growth make him a threat that conventional methods may no longer contain.
• Moral compromise: Hiruzen knowingly supports research involving a forbidden technique despite its danger and Hiruko’s hostility toward Konoha.
• The cost of restoration: Danzo’s reconstructed limbs come with grotesque physical consequences and a continuing dependence on blood.
• Temptation of forbidden power: The chapter’s central “temptation” is the possibility of using Hiruko’s Chimera Technique to create strength capable of opposing Zhengye.

Character Interactions

• Hiruzen and Kitsuchi: Hiruzen dominates the negotiation by presenting uncompromising terms and treating Kitsuchi as a representative rather than an equal negotiator.
• Hiruzen and Danzo: Their exchange reveals deep disagreement but a shared fear of Zhengye. Hiruzen distrusts Danzo’s schemes yet ultimately accepts his argument.
• Danzo and Yamanaka Fu: Fu demonstrates continued loyalty by treating Danzo and supplying the blood necessary to maintain his reconstructed body.
• Hiruzen and Zhengye: Although Zhengye never appears, his influence shapes every major decision. Both Danzo and Hiruzen regard him as a potentially unstoppable future power.
• Danzo and Hiruko: Their relationship is indirect but strategically important, with Danzo attempting to turn Hiruko’s dangerous research into a weapon for Konoha.

Key events

• Kirigakure is struggling after years of internal devastation, lost funding, and the collapse of its strongest fighters. Repeated clashes with Hidden Cloud have also damaged its maritime trade.
• Mizukage Yagura orders Kirigakure to avoid Cloud-controlled routes and hasten the training of Utakata, the new Six-Tails Jinchūriki.
• Reports from other villages alarm Yagura: Uchiha Zhengye helped turn the tide against Hidden Stone, killed a thousand Stone shinobi in minutes, and later helped capture the Five-Tails Jinchūriki Han. Yagura orders a congratulatory gift for Zhengye and decides Kirigakure should stay out of trouble.
• In Konoha, the Third Hokage accepts a scroll from Hidden Stone as part of the terms for returning Han. The scroll contains a secret technique that only one person can learn from it, so the Hokage sends it to Zhengye.
• Zhengye reads the scroll and discovers it contains Dust Release. He learns that it requires three chakra natures and is extremely dangerous to master without help.
• Zhengye then studies the Yuki and Kaguya clans’ secret techniques, preparing to understand their Kekkei Genkai before the children in his care grow old enough to use them.

Character developments and interactions

• Yagura acts cautiously, prioritizing Kirigakure’s recovery and recognizing Zhengye as a powerful figure worth befriending. Mei Terumī provides him with reports and carries out his orders.
• Kitsuchi secures Han’s return and reassures him that Hidden Stone will not abandon him. Han, weakened and ashamed, apologizes for the trouble he caused.
• The Third Hokage honors the agreement by arranging Han’s release and passes the restricted scroll to Zhengye rather than studying it himself.
• Zhengye treats Dust Release as a useful future skill despite its risks, while also taking responsibility for learning about the Kekkei Genkai he may need to support.

Significant themes

• Village decline and recovery: Kirigakure’s losses leave it vulnerable and force it to avoid conflict.
• Power shifts and growing danger: Zhengye’s extraordinary feats—and the capture of multiple jinchūriki—make the shinobi world seem increasingly perilous.
• Trust and diplomacy: Yagura seeks ties with Zhengye, while Konoha and Hidden Stone negotiate Han’s return through an exchange of valuable knowledge.
• Preparation and responsibility: Zhengye’s study of dangerous techniques and clan abilities reflects his effort to prepare for future needs.

Chapter Summary: “Nearly Two Years Later”

Key Plot Points and Events

• Nearly two years pass, bringing Naruto and his peers to roughly nine or ten years old.
• At the Ninja Academy, the children begin formal chakra-refinement training. Karin excels immediately, while Naruto performs poorly and becomes discouraged.
• The Academy also introduces “Will of Fire” lessons, which Kushina and Zhengye view cynically as political indoctrination intended to secure the children’s loyalty to Konoha.
• Naruto, Gaara, Karin, Sasuke, Kimimaro, and Haku leave the Academy together, while Jugo, Suigetsu, and Yakumo remain grouped with Orochimaru’s faction.
• At home, Naruto worries that he is unintelligent because of his slow chakra refinement. Kushina comforts him in her stern, affectionate manner and promises to help solve the problem.
• Zhengye reviews major political and technological developments:
  • Hidden Sand has successfully tested prototypes of the solar-powered seawater desalination device.
  • Desert Pasture Grass is being cultivated successfully for livestock.
  • Orochimaru’s limb-regeneration technology has succeeded.
  • Research into the Mangekyō Sharingan has advanced.
• Zhengye declines an invitation to visit Hidden Sand because of more urgent matters.
• Akatsuki has become a major black-market organization, led in reputation by Sasori, who reportedly destroyed an entire country using over a hundred puppets.
• The Uchiha Twin Eyes and Hidden Mist’s Twin Blades have become highly sought-after mission teams with exceptional completion rates.
• Tensions between Hidden Cloud and Hidden Mist are escalating, with Mist repeatedly suffering setbacks.
• Orochimaru summons Zhengye, apparently because of a breakthrough in his research.

Character Developments

• Naruto has grown more emotionally dependent on Kushina, whom he sees as a reliable maternal figure. Although he is increasingly capable and independent in daily life, he still seeks her reassurance.
• Karin has developed confidence in her enormous chakra reserves and strong physical potential. She enjoys competing with Naruto and is determined to surpass him if he overtakes her.
• Sasuke is beginning to feel pressure as the others catch up with him. His early training advantage has diminished, though he continues practicing independently, especially with shuriken.
• Gaara and Haku demonstrate excellent chakra control, while Naruto struggles with refinement despite his hidden potential.
• Kushina remains hot-tempered and outspoken but has become more mature and protective. Her harsh treatment of Naruto is balanced by obvious affection and emotional care.
• Zhengye continues acting as the Uchiha clan’s strategic leader while delegating routine political matters to Fugaku and the elders. He remains focused on technological progress, intelligence, and large-scale geopolitical threats.
• Orochimaru has made major scientific progress, particularly in limb regeneration and Mangekyō research.

Significant Themes

• Indoctrination versus independent thought: The Will of Fire classes are portrayed as political conditioning rather than simple moral education.
• Found family and emotional dependence: Naruto’s attachment to Kushina highlights the importance of consistent care and belonging in his development.
• Hidden potential and delayed growth: Naruto’s poor early chakra refinement contrasts with Zhengye’s confidence that he will soon surpass Karin.
• Competition among gifted children: The students’ changing abilities create pressure, rivalry, and motivation, especially for Sasuke and Karin.
• Technology and modernization: Zhengye’s scientific projects are reshaping relations between villages and may alter the balance of power.
• Rising international instability: The growth of Akatsuki and increasing conflict between Hidden Cloud and Hidden Mist suggest that larger wars or political crises may be approaching.

Character Interactions

• Zhengye and Kushina discuss the Third Hokage’s attempts to bond with Naruto and criticize Konoha’s Will of Fire curriculum.
• Karin enthusiastically reports her academic success to Zhengye and boasts about outperforming Naruto.
• Zhengye reassures Karin that Naruto will soon surpass her, prompting her to declare that she will overtake him again.
• Kushina comforts Naruto after Academy, mixing stern commands with maternal concern.
• Naruto instinctively responds to Kushina’s authority but appreciates the security and affection she provides.
• Zhengye works with Dongyou to assess Hidden Sand’s invitation, Akatsuki’s rise, and worsening village tensions.
• Junxia interrupts Zhengye’s briefing to relay Orochimaru’s summons, setting up the chapter’s next development.

Chapter Summary: “Seal Problems”

Key Plot Points and Events

• Konoha’s ANBU continue monitoring Naruto, but after two uneventful years they have become careless and treat the assignment almost like a vacation. They complain about having to eat bland dry rations and note that even the Police Force and Hyūga observers have stopped checking on Naruto.
• After dinner, Naruto attempts to refine chakra but fails because the chakra he produces seems to disappear immediately.
• Kushina notices his frustration and explains the structure of the seals on his abdomen:
  • The Dual Four Symbols Seal contains the Nine-Tails and was intentionally designed to allow a small amount of its chakra to leak through.
  • Heaven’s Cursed Seal, added by Konoha after Zhengye previously forced Naruto’s main seal open, absorbs both Naruto’s refined chakra and the Nine-Tails’ leaked chakra.
• Kushina uses a faucet, water, and a towel to demonstrate how the seals function. Naruto realizes that removing the outer seal would solve the problem, but Konoha would never permit that because of the danger of releasing the Nine-Tails.
• Naruto then cleverly suggests widening or expanding the outer seal so that chakra can overflow instead of being completely absorbed. Kushina confirms that this is the correct solution and prepares to modify the seal.
• The chapter ends with Kushina placing her hand on Naruto’s seal and mentally addressing the Nine-Tails, while Zhengye arrives at Orochimaru’s laboratory.

Character Developments

• Naruto demonstrates growing intelligence, curiosity, and problem-solving ability. Rather than simply accepting Kushina’s explanation, he reasons through the seal analogy and independently discovers a workable solution.
• He also shows increasing trust and affection toward Kushina, whom he calls “Auntie Liu.”
• Kushina acts as Naruto’s teacher and protector. She patiently explains a complex sealing problem in terms he can understand and is visibly proud of his intelligence. Her almost-slip when comparing him to her “son” reveals her deep emotional attachment to him.
• The ANBU are shown becoming complacent due to Naruto’s peaceful routine, suggesting that Konoha’s security around him has weakened.
• Zhengye’s off-screen arrival at Orochimaru’s laboratory hints at a parallel plot involving experimentation, research, or further developments connected to Naruto’s seals.

Significant Themes

• Secrecy and surveillance: Naruto’s life remains closely monitored, though the guards’ growing negligence exposes weaknesses in Konoha’s control.
• Control versus freedom: Naruto’s chakra is restricted by layers of seals designed both to contain the Nine-Tails and prevent him from accessing his own power.
• Parental protection and hidden identity: Kushina’s care for Naruto resembles that of a mother, while her suppressed reference to him as her son emphasizes the secrets surrounding his origins.
• Ingenuity and self-reliance: Naruto solves the seal problem through observation and logical thinking rather than relying entirely on adults.
• Dangerous power: The chapter reinforces that Naruto’s chakra and the Nine-Tails are both valuable and potentially catastrophic if improperly controlled.

Character Interactions

• The ANBU casually discuss Naruto’s surveillance duties, revealing their reduced concern and familiarity with his uneventful routine.
• Kushina comforts Naruto when he becomes frustrated, then teaches him about Jinchūriki and the two seals placed on his body.
• Through a practical demonstration, Kushina guides Naruto toward discovering the solution himself instead of simply telling him what to do.
• Naruto’s clever answer earns Kushina’s praise, strengthening their bond and subtly revealing her maternal feelings.
• The final connection between Kushina and the Nine-Tails suggests that she is about to intervene directly in Naruto’s sealing problem.

Chapter Summary: “The Direction of Evolution”

Key Plot Points and Events

• Zhengye visits Orochimaru’s expanded laboratory, now connected to Konoha Hospital and staffed by numerous medical ninjas.
• Orochimaru’s growing influence has altered the lives of several former recruits, including Guren, Tayuya, and others. These changes have also increased Zhengye’s available lottery draws.
• Orochimaru reveals that cell samples from Uchiha clansmen Soji and Tekka are compatible with Zhengye’s eyes.
• He proposes injecting their cells into Zhengye’s Mangekyō Sharingan as a possible route toward achieving the Eternal Mangekyō Sharingan. The process is experimental and risky, since the cells will not immediately fuse and may affect Zhengye’s eyes.
• Zhengye accepts without hesitation, believing that remaining stagnant would leave him unable to contend with future enemies such as Nagato and Madara.
• Orochimaru injects the compatible eye-cell extracts into both of Zhengye’s eyes. Medical ninjutsu immediately heals the injection wounds.
• Zhengye is instructed to use his ocular powers frequently so that natural eye damage will encourage the foreign cells to integrate. He must also report any changes for continued observation.
• The discussion shifts to Orochimaru’s Limb Regeneration research. Orochimaru explains that he is close to completing immune-tolerance engineering, which would allow transplanted organs and foreign cells to be accepted as the recipient’s own.
• This research is intended not only to improve limb regeneration but also to reverse-engineer Jūgo’s cellular abilities and eventually create perfect artificial humans through cell fusion.
• Orochimaru confirms that a functional limb-regeneration technique has been developed, though the cost is extremely high: he recently created a leg for Kosuke for forty million.

Character Developments

• Zhengye demonstrates increasing ambition and willingness to take risks. Having reached a physical and spiritual bottleneck, he is determined to evolve beyond the ordinary limits of the Mangekyō Sharingan.
• His confidence in Orochimaru has deepened. He readily accepts the experimental procedure and explicitly trusts Orochimaru to protect his eyes.
• Orochimaru has changed noticeably over the past two years. His former killing intent has faded, and he now appears more like a dedicated scholar and scientist.
• Orochimaru is also emotionally affected by Zhengye’s faith in him, showing that recognition and trust matter to him despite his detached scientific persona.
• Orochimaru’s research has expanded from bodily modification into advanced biotechnology, regenerative medicine, immune engineering, and artificial-human creation.

Significant Themes

• Evolution through science: Scientific research is presented as a means of surpassing natural limitations and transforming the possibilities of shinobi abilities.
• Risk versus advancement: Zhengye must endanger his Mangekyō Sharingan to pursue the Eternal Mangekyō, reflecting his belief that progress requires experimentation and sacrifice.
• Trust in knowledge and expertise: Zhengye’s willingness to undergo the procedure rests on his confidence in Orochimaru’s abilities and in the power of systematic scientific methods.
• The cost of progress: Orochimaru’s research promises extraordinary medical breakthroughs but requires enormous financial resources and potentially invasive experimentation.
• Changing destinies: Altered life trajectories have reshaped multiple characters and indirectly strengthened Zhengye’s resources, showing how one change can produce broad consequences.

Character Interactions

• Guren and Tayuya escort Zhengye through the laboratory and represent Orochimaru’s expanding organization.
• Zhengye and Orochimaru discuss the risks and potential benefits of the eye-cell transplant. Their exchange highlights Zhengye’s decisiveness and Orochimaru’s cautious professionalism.
• Zhengye’s praise and trust visibly move Orochimaru, strengthening their mutual respect.
• Their later conversation about limb regeneration becomes more relaxed and humorous, with Zhengye teasing Orochimaru about saving the Third Hokage money and reacting incredulously to the forty-million-cost artificial leg.

Chapter Summary: “Reunion”

Key Plot Points and Events

• Kushina enters Naruto’s inner world through the Dual Four Symbols Seal and discovers that its formerly dark, miserable environment has transformed into a bright, clean room, reflecting Naruto’s improved emotional state.
• She confronts the Nine-Tails, who is startled and fearful to see her alive. Kushina explains that Zhengye revived or preserved her and that he possesses knowledge of future events, including a coming calamity involving Naruto and the Nine-Tails.
• Kushina asks the Nine-Tails to release more of his chakra so it can be absorbed by the Heaven’s Cursed Seal outside Naruto’s body. This will allow Naruto to extract and refine chakra more effectively.
• Though reluctant, the Nine-Tails agrees, recognizing that the chakra he gives up is insignificant compared with the danger of being captured and absorbed by the Ten-Tails in the future.
• Kushina activates the sealing talisman and summons a chakra projection of Minato. The couple reunites emotionally and embraces.
• Kushina tells Minato that Naruto is now ten, that she has secretly cared for him while posing as “Aunt Liu,” and that Naruto is growing up happily under Zhengye’s influence.
• Minato is relieved to hear that Naruto is doing well but ends the meeting quickly to preserve enough chakra for a future reunion with his son.
• Back in the physical world, Naruto senses the additional energy flowing into the Heaven’s Cursed Seal. He successfully refines chakra for the first time and celebrates excitedly with Kushina.

Character Developments

• Kushina: Demonstrates her continuing devotion to Naruto and Minato. Although she remains aggressive and teasing toward the Nine-Tails, she acts as a mediator to secure its cooperation. Her reunion with Minato reveals her lingering grief and longing beneath her cheerful exterior.
• Naruto: Reaches an important milestone by successfully refining chakra. His happiness shows how much he has benefited from the stable, loving upbringing Kushina has secretly provided.
• Nine-Tails: Remains distrustful and resentful toward Kushina, but becomes more cooperative after learning about the future and the threats he and Naruto will face. His willingness to supply chakra hints at a possible future alliance with Naruto.
• Minato: Appears as a loving, restrained father. He is relieved by Naruto’s progress and trusts Kushina and Zhengye to protect him, but sacrifices a longer reunion to conserve his remaining chakra.
• Zhengye: Though absent, he remains influential through his time-space abilities, future knowledge, protection of Kushina, and role in Naruto’s development.

Significant Themes

• Family and reunion: Kushina and Minato’s brief meeting emphasizes their enduring love and their shared concern for Naruto.
• Healing and emotional recovery: Naruto’s improved inner world symbolizes his escape from loneliness and neglect.
• Sacrifice: Minato limits his time with Kushina so he can preserve chakra for Naruto’s future, while Kushina hides her pain to give Naruto a happy childhood.
• Trust and future cooperation: The Nine-Tails begins cooperating with Naruto’s development despite his hostility, foreshadowing a later partnership.
• Hope amid future danger: The characters know that a major calamity is coming, but Naruto’s growth and the support of his family offer hope.

Character Interactions

• Kushina and the Nine-Tails: Their hostile, tense exchange gradually becomes practical cooperation. Kushina intimidates him with her Adamantine Sealing Chains, while he reluctantly agrees to provide chakra.
• Kushina and Minato: Their reunion is deeply emotional, with mutual embraces, expressions of longing, and reassurance about Naruto.
• Minato and Naruto: They do not meet directly, but Minato learns of Naruto’s progress and looks forward to seeing him in the future.
• Kushina and Naruto: Kushina guides Naruto’s chakra development and shares in his excitement, while concealing her sadness over Minato’s absence.

Summary: “Utakata’s Defection”

Key Plot Points and Events

• At Konoha Hospital, Maruboshi Kosuke successfully tests Orochimaru’s experimental limb-regeneration technique. His previously crippled left leg has been restored, though it remains weaker and has slower chakra circulation.
• The Third Hokage and Konoha’s senior officials recognize the technique’s enormous potential. Although it currently takes nearly a year to cultivate a limb and costs around forty million, they believe it could restore many disabled ninja and significantly increase Konoha’s military strength.
• Konoha decides to increase funding for Orochimaru’s research, prioritize the clans of the village elders, and subsidize half the treatment cost. Because other villages would fear Konoha’s renewed strength, the technique is classified as a vital secret.
• In the Land of Water, Utakata attempts to flee Kirigakure. Kirigakure ANBU pursue him, insisting that he return because he is the village’s Jinchūriki.
• Utakata refuses, explaining that he cannot control the Tailed Beast inside him and is suffering from its corrosive influence. When the ANBU mention his deceased master, Harusame, Utakata loses control.
• His Tailed Beast chakra manifests as acidic, mucus-covered tentacles. One ANBU is dissolved to the bone, and the squad attacks Utakata with Explosive Tags.
• The resulting explosions collapse the mountainside, but Utakata escapes inside a bubble and drifts out to sea. The ANBU officially identify his escape as defection.
• An unidentified white figure secretly observes the confrontation and records the events before disappearing underground, suggesting that Utakata’s defection is being monitored by outside forces.

Character Developments

• Maruboshi Kosuke: Gains renewed hope and physical ability after his leg is restored. His willingness to undergo the risky experiment reflects his loyalty to Konoha and his desire to regain the life he lost.
• The Third Hokage and Konoha’s elders: Shift from viewing limb regeneration as an experiment to recognizing it as a strategic resource. Their response becomes pragmatic and politically motivated, emphasizing secrecy, clan privilege, and military advantage.
• Orochimaru: Though absent, his scientific achievement is central to the first half of the chapter. His research is shown to have potentially transformative consequences for Konoha.
• Utakata: Moves from desperation to open rebellion. Years of being treated primarily as a weapon, combined with the pain of Tailed Beast possession and the loss of his master, push him into a violent breakdown and eventual defection.
• Kirigakure ANBU: Initially attempt to retrieve Utakata through persuasion, but become increasingly fearful once he loses control and demonstrates the destructive power of his Tailed Beast chakra.

Significant Themes

• Science, recovery, and military power: Limb regeneration offers hope to injured ninja but also promises to dramatically alter the balance of power between villages.
• Secrecy and political exploitation: Konoha views medical advancement not only as a humanitarian breakthrough but as a weapon that must be hidden and strategically distributed.
• The burden of being a Jinchūriki: Utakata’s suffering highlights the cruelty of treating Jinchūriki as tools while ignoring their emotional and physical pain.
• Trauma and alienation: Utakata’s grief over Harusame’s death and his inability to control the Tailed Beast drive him away from his village.
• Freedom versus duty: Konoha’s disabled ninja regain freedom through medical treatment, while Utakata seeks freedom by abandoning the village that claims ownership over him.

Character Interactions

• Kosuke cooperates with Konoha’s medical ninja and reports his successful recovery to the Third Hokage.
• The Third Hokage consults Koharu, Homura, and Luhe, ultimately offering their clans priority access and financial support for the regeneration technique.
• Kirigakure’s ANBU try to reason with Utakata and remind him of his duty as a Jinchūriki, but their mention of Harusame intensifies his emotional breakdown.
• Utakata’s confrontation with the ANBU turns violent, demonstrating the catastrophic danger created when a traumatized Jinchūriki loses control.
• The hidden white observer watches the conflict without intervening, implying that Utakata’s defection will have consequences beyond Kirigakure.

Chapter Summary: Akatsuki, Part Two

Key Plot Points and Events

• Amegakure has become Akatsuki’s semi-public headquarters, though Pain remains hidden and avoids appearing on missions.
• Under Pain’s direction—and with technology provided by Uchiha Zhengye—the village has rapidly modernized:
  • Biogas production supports agriculture and heating.
  • Greenhouses produce vegetables and medicinal herbs.
  • Hydroelectric generators provide electricity.
• Akatsuki has also become a respected and profitable organization on the black market.
• Zetsu informs Pain that the Hidden Mist Village’s Six-Tails Jinchūriki has defected amid growing tensions between Hidden Mist and Hidden Cloud.
• Pain decides this information should be sold to Hidden Cloud, potentially worsening the conflict between the two villages.
• Konan reports that the mysterious “Uchiha Madara” and the former Fourth Kazekage, Rasa, have disappeared, suggesting that Zetsu and Madara may be building their own power base.
• Pain explains that Akatsuki is entering its “second phase”: deliberately escalating the Hidden Cloud–Hidden Mist conflict and establishing itself as an unavoidable force in the shinobi war market.
• Akatsuki’s long-term goal is to provide mercenary shinobi for wars, especially for smaller nations that cannot maintain large forces during peacetime, eventually controlling the market for military contracts.
• Pain and Konan discuss whether Uchiha Zhengye and the Uchiha Clan might interfere with or join this plan. Pain believes the Uchiha are moving toward independence from Konoha and could become a rival organization comparable to Akatsuki.
• Pain chooses not to warn the Uchiha or their ally “Twin Eyes” yet, preferring to observe whether Hidden Cloud escalates the situation or recruits Uchiha support.

Character Developments

• Pain: Becomes more politically strategic and focused on long-term power. He is transforming Akatsuki from a capable mercenary group into an organization capable of shaping entire wars while simultaneously turning Amegakure into a prosperous base.
• Konan: Remains loyal to Akatsuki’s goals but shows personal anxiety over the plan. Her friendship with Shisui makes her fear that the coming conflict could place them on opposing sides.
• Zetsu: Continues gathering intelligence and manipulating events behind the scenes. His actions demonstrate that he is actively exploiting rivalries between the major villages.
• Uchiha Zhengye: Although absent, his influence is significant. His technological assistance helped modernize Amegakure, while his clan’s growing independence and military strength make them a potential competitor or partner for Akatsuki.
• Akatsuki: Evolves from a hired combat organization into a faction seeking control over the broader economics and politics of war.

Significant Themes

• War as an economy: The chapter presents war and shinobi employment as essential parts of national finance, explaining why conflicts continue even during periods of relative peace.
• Power through manipulation: Rather than simply fighting directly, Akatsuki seeks to provoke conflicts, control information, and make itself indispensable to nations at war.
• Modernization and nation-building: Amegakure’s technological development contrasts with its former poverty and shows how practical innovations can strengthen political and military power.
• Independence versus allegiance: The Uchiha Clan’s attempt to separate itself from Konoha mirrors Akatsuki’s identity as an organization outside national control.
• Conflicting loyalties: Konan’s concern for Shisui highlights the tension between personal relationships and ideological or organizational commitments.

Character Interactions

• Pain and Zetsu: Zetsu provides intelligence about the Six-Tails Jinchūriki, and Pain immediately recognizes how the information can be used to influence Hidden Cloud.
• Pain and Konan: They discuss Madara, Rasa, the Uchiha Clan, and Akatsuki’s next phase. Pain remains pragmatic, while Konan raises concerns about Uchiha Zhengye and her friendship with Shisui.
• Konan and Shisui: Though Shisui does not appear, Konan’s private thoughts reveal that their friendship may become strained if Uchiha and Akatsuki support opposing sides.
• Akatsuki and the major villages: Akatsuki plans to manipulate conflicts between Hidden Cloud and Hidden Mist so that all major powers will eventually be forced to recognize and deal with it.

Chapter Summary: “Ambition”

Key Plot Points and Events

• In the Raikage’s office, Kumogakure’s leaders discuss intelligence supplied by Akatsuki about Hidden Mist Village and the defection of its Six-Tails Jinchūriki.
• Dodai concludes that the Six-Tails Jinchūriki is not yet combat-ready, meaning Hidden Mist Village cannot rely on a powerful Jinchūriki as a battlefield weapon.
• Kumogakure is judged to possess an overwhelming military advantage over Hidden Mist Village. Yagura is considered only barely capable of preserving the village’s reputation, while most of the Mist’s elite forces—especially the Seven Ninja Swordsmen—have defected or disappeared.
• The leaders recognize that Akatsuki deliberately sold them the intelligence cheaply to intensify the conflict. Akatsuki hopes Kumogakure will hire its powerful members, allowing it to profit from the war and establish itself as an influential mercenary organization.
• Dodai proposes hiring Akatsuki to support an elite strike against Hidden Mist Village. The operation would allow Kumogakure to test the village’s true strength while minimizing the risks of a distant sea invasion.
• Cee raises the issue of Uchiha Zhengye and the increasingly independent Uchiha Clan. The Raikage suggests offering the Uchiha land, ports, trade privileges, or other rewards obtained from a defeated Hidden Mist Village.
• Dodai warns that Kaguya Gaito may still pose a threat, but the Raikage dismisses the concern, believing Killer B’s speed, taijutsu, and Eight-Tails power give Kumogakure the advantage.
• The Raikage orders Dodai to negotiate with Akatsuki and sends Cee to Konoha to speak directly with Zhengye. The planned campaign is intended to determine whether Hidden Mist Village can resist and potentially become the first major step toward Kumogakure’s domination of the Shinobi World.

Character Developments and Interactions

• The Raikage displays increasing confidence and strategic ambition. He sees the weakness of Hidden Mist Village as an opportunity to expand Kumogakure’s influence and is willing to use both Akatsuki and the Uchiha Clan to achieve that goal.
• Dodai acts as the cautious analyst. He evaluates battlefield intelligence, recognizes Akatsuki’s hidden motives, and raises the potential danger of Kaguya Gaito, though he ultimately accepts the invasion plan.
• Mabui provides and confirms the reliability of Akatsuki’s intelligence, reinforcing the organization’s growing reputation.
• Cee demonstrates political awareness by asking whether Uchiha Zhengye’s position must be considered. He is assigned to negotiate with Zhengye directly.
• Killer B is presented as a major military asset whose strength is believed capable of countering Kaguya Gaito.
• Akatsuki emerges as more than a group of rogue ninja: it is becoming a powerful, organized war-for-hire faction capable of influencing international conflicts.
• The Uchiha Clan, represented politically by Zhengye, is portrayed as a potential independent power whose alliance could affect the outcome of the coming war.

Significant Themes

• Ambition and expansion: Kumogakure’s leaders are no longer focused merely on defense; they envision ruling or dominating the Shinobi World.
• The manipulation of war: Akatsuki seeks to provoke conflict for profit and influence, showing that wars can be engineered by groups outside the major villages.
• Military power and deterrence: The importance of Jinchūriki, elite ninja, and strategic advantages reflects the balance of power among the villages.
• Politics and opportunism: The Raikage plans to use conquered territory, trade rights, and economic privileges to win the Uchiha Clan’s support.
• Uncertainty beneath confidence: Although Kumogakure believes victory is likely, concerns about Akatsuki, Zhengye, and Gaito reveal that the situation remains politically and militarily dangerous.

Chapter Summary: “Storm Clouds Gathering”

Key Plot Points and Events

• Hidden Cloud hires Akatsuki through the black market to investigate Hidden Mist Village’s military strength, particularly whether Karatachi Yagura is the village’s only Kage-level fighter.
• Hidden Cloud also offers substantial assassination bounties: 200 million for Yagura, with additional rewards for other high-ranking shinobi.
• Cee visits the Uchiha Clan to offer Zhengye the same mission. Despite the generous payment, Zhengye declines because the Uchiha’s strained relationship with Konoha prevents him from leaving the village.
• After Cee leaves, Zhengye secretly uses a crow messenger to order Shisui and Itachi to investigate the situation, recognizing that the mission may create an important opportunity.
• Akatsuki gathers for a full meeting. Zetsu reveals that Utakata, the Six-Tails Jinchūriki, has defected from Hidden Mist Village—an unprecedented and destabilizing event.
• Pain announces that Hidden Cloud will send two Jinchūriki as its primary force, suggesting that the village may be preparing to attack or seriously weaken Hidden Mist.
• Pain and Konan will personally participate in the mission. Jūzō and Kisame volunteer because of their personal histories with Hidden Mist, while Sasori and Deidara choose to remain behind.
• The participating members are ordered to gather at Meeting Point Sixteen in the Land of Fire.

Character Developments and Interactions

• Zhengye remains cautious and politically aware. He rejects Hidden Cloud’s proposal publicly but secretly investigates it, showing that he may intend to exploit the unfolding conflict rather than participate directly.
• Cee acts as a diplomatic representative, presenting Hidden Cloud’s offer respectfully and accepting Zhengye’s refusal without conflict.
• Pain demonstrates firm leadership by organizing the mission, selecting the main participants, and allowing members to choose whether to join.
• Jūzō is motivated by revenge against the Hunter-nin who once pursued him as a defector. His reaction also reveals lingering resentment toward his homeland.
• Kisame expresses curiosity about how Hidden Mist has changed since his departure, suggesting a more reflective motive than simple financial gain.
• Kakuzu focuses on the enormous financial rewards and immediately recognizes Hidden Cloud’s wealth and possible strategic ambitions.
• Shisui and Itachi quietly receive Zhengye’s orders, linking the Uchiha to the developing crisis despite Zhengye’s refusal to join the expedition.
• Sasori and Deidara decline to participate, with Deidara following Sasori’s decision.

Significant Themes

• Political maneuvering and hidden agendas: Hidden Cloud uses Akatsuki while approaching the Uchiha separately, and Zhengye conceals his true interest behind a formal refusal.
• Power imbalance and military strategy: The defection of a Jinchūriki and Hidden Cloud’s deployment of two more indicate that the conflict could become a major confrontation between villages.
• The consequences of betrayal and defection: Utakata’s escape recalls the painful histories of Jūzō and Kisame, both former Hidden Mist shinobi.
• Mercenary violence and profit: Akatsuki’s involvement is framed through contracts and bounties, with Kakuzu especially emphasizing the financial motivation.
• Revenge and unresolved history: Jūzō’s desire to confront the Hunter-nin shows how past persecution continues to shape the characters’ choices.

Overall Significance

The chapter establishes a major crisis centered on Hidden Mist Village. Utakata’s defection has exposed possible weakness, prompting Hidden Cloud to consider military action and Akatsuki to accept a large-scale reconnaissance and assassination mission. Meanwhile, Zhengye and the Uchiha begin investigating independently, suggesting that several factions are preparing to exploit the coming conflict.

Key plot points and events

• The Akatsuki mobilizes toward the Land of Water. Kakuzu, Jūzō, Shisui, and Itachi travel by a shark-pulled boat, while Pain and Konan fly separately. Nagato is dangerously frail, but insists on joining because the mission could expand the Akatsuki’s influence, funding, and eventual ability to capture Tailed Beasts.
• Zhengye learns of the mobilization and heads for the Land of Water to limit the Akatsuki’s growing power. Since his flight device is still unusable, he races across the sea on foot.
• A small Hidden Cloud team—Yugito, Killer B, and elite jōnin Yega and Yato—also enters the Land of Water. With Yato’s sensory skills, they evade a Mist patrol and land discreetly, planning to investigate in Windrest City and wait for the Akatsuki.
• Zhengye reaches Windrest City disguised as Kaguya Gaito, concealing his chakra. Seeing that the civilians seem relatively unafraid and the region has recovered, he decides to warn Mizukage Karatachi Yagura. He unknowingly heads toward the same route as the Hidden Cloud team.

Character developments and interactions

• Nagato reveals both his physical vulnerability and his determination to press ahead with the Akatsuki’s ambitious plan. Konan worries about him but accepts that she cannot change his mind.
• Kakuzu complains about the rough sea journey, and Jūzō teases him about being seasick; Kakuzu insists his long experience at sea makes the accusation absurd.
• Yugito keeps Yega focused by reminding him of the mission’s importance—and of the painful consequences of underestimating her. Yega’s enthusiasm suggests he is eager for a fight, while Yato provides practical reconnaissance.
• Killer B and Gyūki operate in harmony, using Gyūki’s enormous aquatic form to travel quickly.
• Zhengye takes responsibility for the Akatsuki’s rapid growth, recognizing that his earlier support of Hidden Sand helped make the organization powerful. He shifts from reacting to events to trying to warn Yagura and regain the initiative.

Significant themes

• Ambition versus vulnerability: Nagato’s grand strategic goals contrast sharply with his failing body.
• Consequences and responsibility: Zhengye recognizes that his previous choices helped accelerate the threat he now intends to contain.
• Preparation and deception: The groups rely on disguises, concealed chakra, scouting, and indirect routes as they converge on the Land of Water.
• Unintended convergence: Zhengye and the Hidden Cloud team are moving toward overlapping territory, setting up a likely collision.

Chapter Summary: “Hidden Cloud’s Probe”

Key Plot Points and Events

• Outside Windrest City, Kaito notices he is being watched and uses the Byakugan Fake Glasses, allowing him to see in every direction.
• He discovers four disguised Hidden Cloud shinobi: the sensory ninja Yato, Yega, Yugito, and Killer B.
• Yugito attacks Kaito to assess his strength. Kaito defends himself with bone daggers made by Kimimaro, successfully blocking her claw attacks and forcing her back.
• Kaito realizes that fighting two Jinchūriki and two Hidden Cloud Jōnin would be dangerous in his current condition. Rather than reveal his abilities or waste his trump cards, he escapes through the forest.
• The Hidden Cloud team concludes that Kaito is likely Kaguya Gaito. Yugito judges him strong but slightly weaker than herself, while Yato notes that Kaito’s strength and agility exceed expectations.
• Their mission is revealed to involve verifying intelligence about the supposedly destroyed Kaguya Clan. The team then proceeds toward Windrest City, where Akatsuki is apparently waiting.
• Kaito decides to warn Hidden Mist Village about Hidden Cloud’s presence. He reaches the outskirts of Kirigakure within half a day.
• Because Kirigakure is sealed off and treats outsiders as threats, the Mist shinobi surround Kaito with the Hidden Mist Technique. Kaito demands to see Mizukage Karatachi Yagura, claiming to possess important intelligence, but an angry shinobi attacks him before he can explain.

Character Developments

• Kaito: Demonstrates excellent perception, quick reflexes, and tactical judgment. He tests himself against Yugito but recognizes when the odds are unfavorable and withdraws rather than exposing his full strength. He also takes responsibility for protecting Hidden Mist by attempting to report the Hidden Cloud team.
• Yugito: Shows confidence in her close-combat ability and acts as the Hidden Cloud team’s initial probe. She is impressed by Kaito’s reactions but remains convinced that she is stronger.
• Killer B: Retains his eccentric, rhythmic speech and playful manner while participating in the investigation. His confidence suggests he is not overly concerned by Kaito’s escape.
• Yato: Proves to be a capable sensory ninja but is surprised by Kaito’s ability to detect the team first. His uncertainty reflects the difficulty of assessing Kaito’s true capabilities.
• Hidden Mist shinobi: Their hostility and suspicion emphasize the village’s isolation and defensive posture.

Significant Themes

• Caution versus confrontation: Kaito values survival and information over pointless combat, retreating when the enemy’s combined strength becomes too great.
• Deception and hidden identities: Both sides use Transformation Techniques and conceal their affiliations, while Kaito disguises his own intentions and abilities.
• Information as power: The Hidden Cloud team is investigating the Kaguya Clan, while Kaito seeks to pass intelligence about their movements to Hidden Mist.
• Reputation and uncertainty: Conflicting reports about the Kaguya Clan’s destruction demonstrate how isolation and unreliable intelligence shape the characters’ decisions.
• Tension between villages: Kirigakure’s sealed borders and aggressive response show the continuing distrust between ninja villages.

Character Interactions

• Kaito and Yugito engage in a brief but intense exchange of taijutsu, with Kaito blocking her attacks and countering effectively.
• Yugito, Killer B, and Yato discuss Kaito’s identity and combat strength after he escapes.
• Killer B’s playful comments contrast with the serious investigation being conducted by the Hidden Cloud team.
• Kaito attempts to initiate contact with Karatachi Yagura, but Kirigakure’s defenders interpret his arrival as a hostile intrusion, ending the chapter with a confrontation.

Chapter Summary: “No Choice”

Key Plot Points and Events

• At the gates of Kirigakure, Kaito confronts and decisively defeats Zabuza in the mist. Kaito’s superior perception makes the Hidden Mist Technique ineffective, and his speed and skill force Zabuza to abandon his sword.
• The Fourth Mizukage, Karatachi Yagura, intervenes before the fight can escalate and personally brings Kaito into Kirigakure.
• Kaito reveals that Akatsuki has mobilized alongside the Hidden Cloud’s Two-Tails and Eight-Tails Jinchūriki. They have entered the Land of Water and intend to invade Kirigakure while its defenses are weakened by the Six-Tails Jinchūriki’s defection.
• Kaito delivers intelligence sealed by Uchiha Zhengye. The message states that Zhengye learned of the attack through Shisui and Itachi, implying that the two Akatsuki members are acting as spies or remain loyal to the Uchiha.
• Kaito explains that he has already encountered the Hidden Cloud group near Windrest City. He fought Yugito, identified Killer B despite his disguise, and detected that the enemy also has a sensory ninja.
• Yagura decides that Kirigakure must attack the Hidden Cloud forces before they can join Akatsuki. Despite knowing the operation may cause heavy casualties, he believes the village has no alternative.
• Kaito offers to personally hold off Yugito, reducing the burden on Kirigakure’s limited forces.
• Yagura gathers all available Jōnin—only seven, including Mei Terumī and Ao—and leads them, along with Kaito, toward Windrest City.

Character Developments

• Kaito: Demonstrates overwhelming combat ability, sharp perception, and confidence by defeating Zabuza with ease. He remains emotionally detached from the Kaguya Clan’s destruction and acts according to Zhengye’s interests rather than clan loyalty. However, he also shows practical concern for Kirigakure’s soldiers by volunteering to fight Yugito.
• Zabuza: Suffers a humiliating defeat and is forced to recognize the enormous gap between himself and Kaito. His frustration and resentment intensify, but he is unable to retaliate.
• Karatachi Yagura: Initially suspicious of Kaito, Yagura quickly shifts into a leadership role once the invasion threat is confirmed. Though shaken by the news, he suppresses his fear and commits to a preemptive attack to protect Kirigakure.
• Mei Terumī: Functions as Yagura’s trusted subordinate, immediately acting on his orders to mobilize the village’s Jōnin.
• Uchiha Zhengye, Shisui, and Itachi: Their influence is revealed indirectly. Zhengye is coordinating resistance to Akatsuki, while Shisui and Itachi appear to be supplying him with intelligence from within the organization.

Significant Themes

• “No choice” and desperate defense: Kirigakure is severely undermanned and weakened, leaving Yagura with no safe or ideal strategy. Even an attack likely to cause casualties is preferable to waiting for Akatsuki and the Hidden Cloud to combine forces.
• Loyalty and shifting alliances: The chapter questions whether Shisui and Itachi truly serve Akatsuki or remain loyal to Zhengye and the Uchiha. Political loyalties are uncertain and constantly changing.
• Power and vulnerability: Kaito’s effortless victory over Zabuza contrasts sharply with Kirigakure’s weakness against two Jinchūriki and Akatsuki. Individual strength can alter the balance, but the village still lacks enough elite fighters.
• Pragmatism over emotion: Kaito does not dwell on the Kaguya Clan’s extermination and focuses instead on the immediate military situation. Yagura likewise sets aside anger and fear to make the most practical decision available.

Character Interactions

• Kaito and Zabuza: Their brief battle establishes Kaito’s superiority and humiliates Zabuza.
• Kaito and Yagura: Their relationship begins with suspicion and guarded hostility, but develops into a temporary alliance based on mutual necessity.
• Kaito and Mei: Kaito provides intelligence while Mei helps verify and distribute it, establishing a cooperative military exchange.
• Yagura and Mei: Yagura relies on Mei to mobilize Kirigakure’s remaining elite forces quickly.
• Kaito and Zhengye: Though Zhengye does not appear, his seal and orders make clear that Kaito is acting as his representative and has authority over the coming battle.

Summary: “Hunter or Prey”

Key Plot Points and Events

• The Hidden Cloud group spends the day surveying Windrest City. Although they appear to be sightseeing, Yugito, Yega, and Yato carefully assess the city’s prosperity, security, and rumors of Hidden Mist’s former bloodline purges.
• They conclude that Hidden Mist Village suffered severe damage in the past. They also discuss whether Kaguya Gaito will report their presence to Hidden Mist, deciding that even if he does, the Cloud team is strong enough to handle reinforcements.
• Yato detects that Kaguya Gaito is approaching with a team. Killer B decides they should avoid fighting within the city and instead lure their enemies outside, where they can eliminate them without civilian interference.
• The Hidden Cloud group leaves the restaurant before eating and heads out of Windrest City, preparing to confront Gaito’s forces.
• Meanwhile, the Akatsuki arrive in the Land of Water after Kisame has their ship towed by shark summons. The violent journey leaves Kakuzu, Itachi, Obito’s Uchiha associate Shisui, and especially Jūzō Biwa exhausted or seasick.
• Jūzō reacts emotionally to returning to the Land of Water, calling it his hometown but also an unlucky place for him. Despite his reluctance, the group decides to travel toward Windrest City to meet the Hidden Cloud forces and find shelter.
• After the Akatsuki depart, Zetsu emerges to observe them. Obito, disguised as Senju Hiroshi, joins him through Kamui.
• Obito explains that Pain’s recent financial success and possible recovery make this operation an opportunity to assess Pain’s current strength. He also hopes Hidden Mist Village will create a situation revealing more about Pain and the organization’s capabilities.

Character Developments

• Yugito, Yega, and Yato: Demonstrate their competence as scouts and observers by analyzing Windrest City and gathering intelligence through overheard rumors and careful surveillance.
• Yugito: Remains calm and confident regarding Kaguya Gaito and Hidden Mist’s possible response, trusting the Hidden Cloud group’s superior lineup.
• Yato: Shows his sensory or detection abilities by discovering Gaito’s approaching team before they arrive.
• Killer B: Balances strategy with his eccentric personality. He proposes drawing the enemy outside the city and continues composing humorous rhymes while preparing for battle.
• Kisame: Shows his familiarity with the sea and lightly mocks the others for being unable to endure his extreme travel method.
• Jūzō Biwa: Is physically weakened by the journey and emotionally unsettled by returning home. His exhaustion causes him to question whether coming to the Land of Water was a mistake, temporarily dampening his usual eagerness to fight.
• Itachi and Shisui: Recover more quickly than the others, suggesting their physical or ocular abilities give them greater resistance to the voyage’s effects.
• Kakuzu: Recovers by rearranging the black threads of his Earth Grudge Fear body, emphasizing his unusual physiology.
• Obito: Acts cautiously and manipulatively. Rather than openly participating, he observes events to judge Pain’s strength and maintain leverage over the Akatsuki’s internal power balance.

Significant Themes

• Hunter and prey dynamics: Both the Hidden Cloud and Akatsuki are approaching the same conflict while trying to control the battlefield and gain information about the other side.
• Strategic deception and surveillance: The characters rely on observation, sensory abilities, disguises, and indirect tactics rather than rushing into combat.
• Power struggles within the Akatsuki: Obito’s concern about Pain becoming too powerful reveals distrust and competition beneath their cooperation.
• Homecoming and alienation: Jūzō’s return to the Land of Water evokes painful memories rather than comfort, portraying home as a place associated with failure and bad fortune.
• The aftermath of destruction: Windrest City’s relative prosperity and the rumors of devastated bloodline clans highlight Hidden Mist’s decline and the lasting consequences of past violence.
• Comedic relief amid danger: Killer B’s rhymes and Kisame’s teasing contrast with the serious preparations for battle and the characters’ political maneuvering.

Character Interactions

• Yugito consults Yega and Yato about Windrest City’s condition and later asks Killer B how to respond to Gaito’s approach.
• Killer B takes command of the immediate tactical response, persuading the group to lure the enemy away from the city.
• Kisame mocks Kakuzu, Itachi, Shisui, and Jūzō for their seasickness, while Jūzō angrily insists the journey was nothing like real combat.
• Kakuzu suggests waiting for Pain before meeting the Hidden Cloud, but Kisame pushes the group to move toward Windrest City.
• Jūzō’s complaints and Kisame’s teasing reveal contrasting attitudes toward the Land of Water: Kisame treats it as familiar territory, while Jūzō associates it with regret.
• Zetsu and Obito discuss the Akatsuki’s development and Pain’s possible intervention. Their conversation exposes Obito’s distrust and his desire to use the coming conflict to evaluate both Pain and Hidden Mist.

Chapter Summary: “A Deadly Duel”

Key Plot Points and Events

• The Hidden Cloud team—Yugito, Killer B, Yato, and Yega—travels into a remote mountain hollow to ambush and kill Kaguya Gaito.
• Gaito arrives with five Hidden Mist Jōnin, who immediately create a massive Hidden Mist Technique to obscure the battlefield.
• Using Ao’s Byakugan to track the Cloud shinobi through the mist, the Hidden Mist forces launch a surprise Tailed Beast Ball. The blast injures Yato and Yega while Yugito and Killer B withstand it more effectively.
• The Cloud team discovers that the enemy force includes Mizukage Karatachi Yagura, Mei Terumī, and Ao, whose vision suppression caused the Cloud sensory ninja to misread the battlefield.
• Killer B battles Yagura. His normally powerful Seven Swords Dance is hindered by Yagura’s short stature, forcing him to fight with only two blades. Both combatants injure each other.
• Yugito clashes with the Hidden Mist shinobi, killing one and wounding several others, though she is also injured by a sword thrust into her thigh.
• As the battle intensifies, Yugito, Killer B, and Yagura enter Partial Tailed Beast Transformation, overwhelming the ordinary Hidden Mist Jōnin with their chakra and physical power.
• Realizing the Mist forces may not be able to stop the Jinchūriki, Gaito injects himself with a temporary Shikotsumyaku Simulated Injector, granting him enhanced bone-manipulation abilities for thirty minutes.
• Gaito directly confronts Yugito, blocking her Cat Claw with a newly formed bone shield and then unleashing the Dance of the Larch, Ten-Finger Drilling Bullets, and Dance of the Clematis.
• Yugito’s regeneration keeps her alive, but Gaito dominates the fight and severely suppresses her.
• While Gaito occupies Yugito, the Hidden Cloud shinobi rush to help Yagura, who is being badly beaten by Killer B.

Character Developments

• Kaguya Gaito reveals exceptional courage and tactical decisiveness by stepping forward to fight Yugito personally despite the Jinchūriki’s superior chakra and durability. His injector-powered Shikotsumyaku makes him dramatically more dangerous than expected.
• Yugito remains formidable, using Partial Tailed Beast Transformation, Cat Claw, and Mouse-Tail Balls, but she is shocked by Gaito’s advanced bone techniques and is forced onto the defensive.
• Killer B demonstrates flexibility and combat skill, adapting his Seven Swords Dance after Yagura’s unusual height makes several of his weapons ineffective.
• Karatachi Yagura exploits his small stature and mobility to counter Killer B’s sword style, but he begins to lose ground and requires assistance.
• Ao proves crucial as the battle’s sensory specialist. His Byakugan allows the Mist forces to counter the Cloud team’s perception and coordinate the ambush.
• Yato and Yega are quickly incapacitated by the Tailed Beast Ball, showing the destructive gap between ordinary elite shinobi and Jinchūriki-level attacks.

Significant Themes

• Preparation versus raw power: The Hidden Mist side succeeds initially through planning, coordination, concealment, and Ao’s sensory advantage rather than brute force alone.
• The danger of underestimated abilities: Gaito’s Shikotsumyaku, initially unfamiliar to the Cloud side, allows him to challenge a Jinchūriki directly.
• Adaptation in combat: Both Killer B and Gaito adjust their techniques to exploit their opponents’ weaknesses—B changes his sword style, while Gaito uses bone defenses and projectiles to control Yugito’s movements.
• Sacrifice and resolve: The Mist Jōnin continue fighting despite severe injuries, while Gaito risks himself by taking the lead against Yugito.
• Escalation of power: The conflict rapidly progresses from an ambush into a battle involving Tailed Beast chakra, Jinchūriki transformations, and rare clan techniques.

Character Interactions

• Yugito and Gaito: Their duel becomes the chapter’s central confrontation. Yugito begins confidently, but Gaito’s temporary Shikotsumyaku enhancement allows him to overpower and repeatedly injure her.
• Killer B and Yagura: Their fight is a close, unconventional clash between B’s swordsmanship and Yagura’s low center of gravity, club attacks, and maneuverability.
• Gaito and the Hidden Mist Jōnin: Gaito protects and directs the injured Mist shinobi, signaling his willingness to shoulder the greatest danger himself. They support him by attacking Yugito when openings appear.
• Ao and the Cloud team: Ao’s Byakugan undermines the Cloud sensory ninja and enables the Mist side to create the surprise attack.
• The Hidden Cloud and Hidden Mist forces: Both groups suffer injuries, but the Mist side gains momentum after Gaito’s intervention, while the Cloud team is forced to split its attention between rescuing Yagura’s opponent and surviving Gaito’s assault.

Chapter Summary: “Shikotsumyaku”

Key Plot Points and Events

• Outside Windrest City, the Hidden Cloud and Hidden Mist forces continue their intense battle.
• Killer B, using a partial Tailed Beast Transformation, overwhelms Karatachi Yagura with his eight powerful Gyūki tentacles.
• Several Hidden Mist shinobi combine their Water Release to attack Killer B, but his Tailed Beast Cloak largely protects him.
• Mei Terumī intervenes with her Lava Release: Melting Monster Technique. Yagura takes advantage of Killer B’s limited mobility and crashes into him as a giant three-tailed turtle.
• Trapped beneath the combined assault, Killer B is severely burned and corroded by the lava. Two of his tentacles are dissolved, while the others are badly damaged.
• Enraged and desperate, Killer B fully transforms into Gyūki and restrains Isobu, preparing to fire a Tailed Beast Ball at the Three-Tails.
• Kaito abandons his fight with Yugito and uses his Shikotsumyaku technique, Bracken Dance, to summon a vast forest of bone spears from underground. The spears impale Gyūki’s limbs and body.
• Gyūki fires the Tailed Beast Ball despite his injuries, blasting both himself and Isobu across the battlefield and leaving both Jinchūriki gravely wounded.
• Yugito, transformed into Matatabi, struggles to protect Killer B from Kaito’s bone forest but cannot match Kaito’s speed and relentless attacks.
• Pain arrives just before Kaito can finish Killer B. Using Shinra Tensei, he destroys and repels the bone spears.
• Kaito immediately attacks Pain at close range, but Pain blocks his bone daggers and withstands spikes erupting from Kaito’s chest. A second Shinra Tensei sends Kaito flying.
• Kaito recovers, rescues Yagura, and pulls him away from Pain. Yugito similarly drags the injured Killer B to safety.
• Both Jinchūriki survive but are in terrible condition, their hatred toward one another still burning.
• Pain recognizes Kaito as a dangerous and unexpected opponent, though he remains confident in his superiority.
• The chapter ends with a large group of Akatsuki members arriving, signaling a major escalation in the battle.

Character Developments

• Killer B/Gyūki: Demonstrates overwhelming destructive power but is badly injured by Mei’s Lava Release and Kaito’s Shikotsumyaku. His pain and rage force him into a complete Tailed Beast Transformation.
• Karatachi Yagura: Despite being heavily suppressed, he coordinates with Mei and the Mist shinobi to trap Killer B. He takes a direct Tailed Beast Ball strike and is left severely wounded.
• Mei Terumī: Proves her tactical value by waiting for the right moment before unleashing her corrosive Lava Release, dealing the most serious damage to Killer B.
• Kaito: Reveals the enormous scale and lethality of his Shikotsumyaku. He quickly changes targets to save the battlefield from Gyūki’s Tailed Beast Ball and nearly kills Killer B before Pain intervenes.
• Pain: Establishes himself as a powerful new threat. He effortlessly clears Kaito’s bone forest with Shinra Tensei and survives Kaito’s surprise close-range attack.
• Yugito: Fully transforms into Matatabi and attempts to defend Killer B, but is unable to counter Kaito’s speed and bone techniques.

Significant Themes

• Escalation of power: The battle progresses from ordinary ninjutsu to partial and complete Tailed Beast Transformations, followed by Pain’s overwhelming gravitational abilities.
• Tactical cooperation: Mei, Yagura, and the Hidden Mist shinobi combine their abilities effectively against the stronger Killer B.
• Adaptability and battlefield awareness: Kaito quickly abandons his previous target and intervenes when Gyūki threatens Isobu, demonstrating his ability to prioritize the larger battle.
• The limits of individual strength: Even powerful Jinchūriki such as Killer B and Yagura can be overwhelmed when faced with coordinated attacks or specialized techniques.
• The arrival of a greater threat: Pain and the Akatsuki’s entrance suggest that the conflict is moving toward a much larger and more dangerous confrontation.

Character Interactions

• Mei and Yagura vs. Killer B: They combine Lava Release, physical attacks, and Tailed Beast power to defeat and severely injure him.
• Kaito vs. Gyūki: Kaito interrupts Gyūki’s attempted execution of Isobu and nearly skewers him with Bracken Dance.
• Kaito vs. Pain: Their brief confrontation establishes a rivalry between Kaito’s bone-based attacks and Pain’s Shinra Tensei. Kaito’s surprise attack fails, but Pain acknowledges his strength.
• Yugito and Killer B: Despite being enemies on opposite sides, Yugito attempts to rescue and protect the injured Killer B.
• Kaito and Yagura: After repelling Pain, Kaito personally extracts the wounded Yagura from danger.
• Akatsuki’s arrival: Their entrance changes the balance of power and leaves all sides facing a new, overwhelming enemy.

Chapter Summary: “One Sentence That Turned Akatsuki Against Itself”

Key Plot Points and Events

• Akatsuki arrives outside Windrest City with Pain, Konan, Itachi, Shisui, Kisame, Jūzō, and Kakuzu, giving them overwhelming numerical superiority over the weakened Hidden Mist forces.
• Jūzō mocks the badly wounded Mizukage, Karatachi Yagura, for the destruction of the Hidden Mist Village. Yagura admits that he is responsible for many atrocities committed while under genjutsu control.
• Kaito reveals that Pain, Konan, and the Tiger-Masked Man were responsible for controlling Yagura, ordering the extermination of Kekkei Genkai clans, and draining the Land of Water’s finances.
• This revelation shocks Jūzō, who realizes that he had spent years hating and abandoning his homeland while unknowingly serving the people who destroyed it.
• When Jūzō turns against Pain, Pain immediately attacks him. Itachi and Kisame intervene to protect Jūzō, while Konan blocks Kisame’s strike with her paper wings.
• Pain uses Shinra Tensei to repel Itachi, Shisui, Kisame, and Jūzō, but Itachi saves Jūzō from being thrown away.
• Kisame openly announces that he is leaving Akatsuki because of Pain’s role in the Hidden Mist’s downfall.
• Pain questions Itachi and Shisui about their loyalties. Itachi says he will not allow his teammates to die, while Shisui declares that he and Itachi joined Akatsuki to investigate the Tiger-Masked Man and now recognize that their ideals conflict with the organization’s methods.
• Convinced that Akatsuki has been betrayed by its own members, Pain declares that all four defectors will die and prepares to fight them.

Character Developments

• Jūzō Biwa: His hatred of Yagura changes into shock and rage when he learns that Pain was the true architect of the Hidden Mist’s suffering. He finally recognizes that he has been serving his own enemy.
• Karatachi Yagura: Accepts responsibility for the crimes committed while he was controlled, but exposes Pain and the masked man as the true instigators.
• Kisame Hoshigaki: Breaks from Akatsuki after learning the truth, choosing loyalty to the Hidden Mist’s people over the organization.
• Itachi Uchiha: Demonstrates loyalty and compassion by protecting both Jūzō and Kisame, refusing to let former teammates be killed.
• Shisui Uchiha: Rejects Akatsuki’s ideology after discovering the Tiger-Masked Man’s connection to the group. He concludes that Pain’s pursuit of peace is actually destructive ambition.
• Konan: Is emotionally hurt by Shisui’s judgment but remains silent because Akatsuki did contribute to the Land of Water’s exploitation.
• Pain: Becomes increasingly authoritarian and convinced of his own divinity. Rather than explain or defend his actions, he responds to dissent with violence and declares that the defectors must die.
• Kaito: Deliberately uses the truth about the Land of Water to expose the contradiction within Akatsuki and turn its members against Pain.

Significant Themes

• Truth as a weapon: Kaito’s revelation destabilizes Akatsuki more effectively than a physical attack, exposing the organization’s hypocrisy.
• Betrayal and misplaced loyalty: Jūzō and Kisame realize that their service to Akatsuki supported the very forces responsible for their homeland’s destruction.
• Responsibility and manipulation: Yagura accepts guilt for his actions while distinguishing between personal responsibility and the manipulation that caused them.
• Ideals versus methods: Shisui recognizes that Pain’s dream of peace is incompatible with the cruelty and exploitation used to achieve it.
• The danger of absolutism: Pain’s belief that he is a “god” prevents self-reflection and leads him to treat disagreement as treason.
• Found family and comradeship: Itachi’s defense of Jūzō and Kisame shows that personal bonds can outweigh organizational loyalty.

Important Character Interactions

• Jūzō and Yagura: Their confrontation shifts from mutual hatred to a painful revelation about the true cause of the Hidden Mist’s suffering.
• Kaito and Jūzō: Kaito intentionally reveals Pain’s role, provoking Jūzō to question his loyalty.
• Pain and Jūzō: Pain’s immediate attempt to kill Jūzō confirms his guilt and turns suspicion into open rebellion.
• Itachi, Kisame, and Jūzō: Their brief alliance marks the collapse of Akatsuki’s internal unity.
• Pain and the Uchiha: Pain challenges Itachi and Shisui’s allegiance, while both reject the organization’s methods for different but related reasons.
• Shisui and Konan: Shisui’s condemnation deeply wounds Konan, who cannot defend Akatsuki without acknowledging its crimes.

Chapter Summary: “Overwhelming Pressure”

Key Plot Points and Events

• The standoff outside Windrest City changes dramatically when Jūzō Biwa and Kisame Hoshigaki turn against Pain and the Akatsuki.
• Kaito and Karatachi Yagura exploit the betrayal, offering Jūzō and Kisame the chance to return to Hidden Mist Village and retain their ninja blades.
• Jūzō agrees to fight Pain first, effectively joining Hidden Mist’s side.
• The battlefield divides into several major confrontations:
  • Jūzō and Itachi vs. Yugito, who uses her Partial Tailed Beast Transformation and Mouse-Tail Balls.
  • Kisame and Konan, with Konan bombarding Kisame with Explosive Tags while avoiding direct combat.
  • Shisui vs. Kakuzu, as Kakuzu separates his Earth Grudge Fear creatures and unleashes four elemental attacks.
  • Kaito vs. Pain, the central and most intense battle.
• Both Karatachi Yagura and the opposing Jinchūriki, Yugito/Killer B’s side, use medicine and their regenerative abilities to recover from severe injuries.
• Kaito discovers that Pain possesses overwhelming physical strength and speed. Unable to defeat him directly, Kaito uses Shikotsumyaku techniques, including Dance of the Larch and Dance of the Seedling Fern, to create a stalemate.
• The chapter ends with Killer B beginning to recover and forcing himself upright.

Character Developments

• Jūzō Biwa and Kisame Hoshigaki abandon the Akatsuki, revealing that their hatred of Hidden Mist has weakened or changed enough for them to consider returning.
• Karatachi Yagura demonstrates political flexibility by immediately offering the defectors forgiveness and their former status.
• Kaito recognizes that Pain surpasses him in raw combat ability. Rather than continuing a losing close-range fight, he adapts tactically and relies on his bone-manipulation techniques.
• Pain remains calm and dominant, countering Kaito’s attacks with precise use of attraction and repulsion abilities as well as extraordinary physical strength.
• Itachi works effectively with Jūzō, using ranged fire techniques to create openings while Jūzō presses the attack.
• Kakuzu displays his caution and combat intelligence by splitting apart immediately and using his elemental hearts to stall Shisui rather than engaging him directly.
• Killer B shows his resilience by recovering from serious wounds and attempting to rejoin the battle.

Significant Themes

• Shifting loyalties and political pragmatism: Former enemies can become allies when circumstances change, and Hidden Mist is willing to forgive past betrayals for the sake of survival.
• Teamwork and battlefield adaptation: Fighters combine complementary abilities, such as Itachi’s ranged support with Jūzō’s swordsmanship and Kaito’s evolving tactics against Pain.
• Overwhelming power versus strategy: Pain’s superior physical ability forces Kaito to abandon direct combat and rely on defensive and indirect techniques.
• Endurance and regeneration: The Jinchūriki and other combatants repeatedly recover from devastating injuries, emphasizing the extreme resilience required in the conflict.
• Intelligence and caution in combat: Kakuzu’s decision to stall Shisui and Pain’s measured responses show that survival depends as much on judgment as strength.

Character Interactions

• Kaito silently coordinates with Yagura, prompting him to recruit Jūzō and Kisame.
• Yagura formally offers the two defectors a return to Hidden Mist, while Jūzō insists that Pain must be defeated first.
• Jūzō and Itachi fight as a coordinated pair against Yugito.
• Konan targets Yagura while Kisame protects the Hidden Mist side from her Explosive Tags.
• Shisui’s speed and afterimages neutralize Kakuzu’s large-scale elemental attacks.
• Kaito and Pain engage in a close, highly destructive exchange before their battle settles into a tense stalemate.

Chapter Summary: “Giant Water Ball”

Key Plot Points and Events

• Jūzō Biwa clashes with Yugito, deflecting her fireball attack while Itachi uses Amaterasu to burn her face just as she is about to release another Mouse-Tail Ball.
• Yugito transforms into the complete form of Matatabi, the Two-Tails, using its flames to force away Amaterasu. However, the black flames leave lasting injuries and pain.
• Matatabi attacks Itachi with another massive fireball, which Jūzō blocks using the Kubikiribōchō. The impact engulfs him in flames, but he extinguishes them with the Water Prison Technique.
• Itachi attacks Matatabi, evades her claw by transforming into crows, and traps Yugito in Tsukuyomi. Inside the illusion, he repeatedly impales her while manipulating her perception of time.
• Yugito collapses after resisting Tsukuyomi, reverting from her Tailed Beast form and bleeding heavily. Itachi also suffers severe strain, with blood flowing from his eyes after using Amaterasu and Tsukuyomi in succession.
• Killer B reenters the fight by throwing a weapon with the Super Vibrato Lightning Release Sword, destroying Jūzō’s Kubikiribōchō and impaling his shoulder.
• Elsewhere, Konan continues bombarding Karatachi Yagura and Kisame with Explosive Tags. Samehada becomes increasingly hungry and weakened until Yagura transfers chakra into it, causing the sword to grow to three times its size.
• Kisame uses Water Release: Great Exploding Water Colliding Wave, creating a huge mass of water around the battlefield. With assistance from Mei Terumī and four other Mist jōnin, the water expands into a colossal sphere roughly five kilometers wide.
• The water ball traps both Mist and Cloud forces, as well as Itachi, Jūzō, Shisui, and Kakuzu. The Mist shinobi are comfortable fighting underwater, but the injured Cloud forces are placed at a major disadvantage.
• Konan’s Explosive Tags cannot penetrate or destroy the enormous water sphere. Inside it, Samehada transforms into a spiked torpedo and charges toward Killer B.

Character Developments

• Itachi demonstrates the overwhelming power of Amaterasu and Tsukuyomi but pays a heavy physical price because of his young age and limited stamina.
• Yugito/Matatabi proves capable of resisting and countering Amaterasu, but the burns and Tsukuyomi leave her badly injured and vulnerable.
• Jūzō Biwa displays impressive defensive skill and strength, but his Kubikiribōchō is destroyed and he suffers a serious shoulder injury from Killer B’s attack.
• Killer B recovers enough to resume combat, showing his resilience despite extensive injuries.
• Kisame gains a renewed advantage after feeding Samehada with Yagura’s chakra, allowing both the sword and Kisame’s water-based abilities to become more dangerous.
• Samehada is characterized as actively hungry and almost animal-like, reacting enthusiastically when it receives chakra.
• Konan remains relentless and tactically effective, keeping Kisame and Yagura under constant pressure even after the battlefield changes.

Significant Themes

• The cost of power: Itachi’s strongest techniques injure him almost as severely as his opponents, emphasizing that immense power comes with physical consequences.
• Adaptation and preparation: The Cloud forces have prepared counters to Amaterasu, while the Mist forces quickly adapt to Kisame’s large-scale water technique.
• Battlefield control: The fight shifts from individual duels to environmental warfare, with the giant water sphere radically changing the advantages of both sides.
• Endurance and recovery: Yugito, Killer B, Yagura, and Samehada all recover or adapt in different ways, highlighting the importance of stamina and regeneration.
• Teamwork amid chaos: Characters who have not previously coordinated, particularly Kisame and the Mist jōnin, instinctively cooperate to reshape the battlefield.

Character Interactions

• Itachi and Jūzō coordinate against Yugito, with Jūzō defending against her attacks while Itachi searches for openings to use his ocular techniques.
• Itachi directly overwhelms Yugito through the combination of Amaterasu and Tsukuyomi, while Matatabi’s transformation allows Yugito to push back.
• Killer B intervenes against Jūzō, destroying his sword and injuring him but choosing not to pursue him immediately.
• Konan repeatedly pressures Kisame and Yagura with Explosive Tags, preventing Kisame from freely entering the battle.
• Yagura supplies chakra to Samehada, unintentionally—or strategically—restoring Kisame’s offensive potential.
• Kisame and the Mist shinobi cooperate to trap nearly everyone in the giant water sphere, setting up a new underwater confrontation between Samehada and Killer B.

Chapter Summary: “Entangled Battle”

Key Plot Points and Events

• Hidden Mist’s enormous water sphere gives its forces a major home-field advantage, but it severely reduces Uchiha Shisui’s mobility. Unable to use the Phantom Body Flicker Technique, Shisui swims to Itachi’s side instead.
• Itachi is being protected inside a Bubble Technique that supplies oxygen. Shisui examines him and realizes that Itachi has overstrained his ocular powers. Prioritizing Itachi’s safety over the battle’s objectives, Shisui remains with him as a guard.
• Karatachi Yagura, Mei Terumī, and other Mist ninjas fight within the water sphere, though they realize they cannot affect the battle outside it.
• The Hidden Cloud forces are prepared for underwater combat and use whistle-like devices to breathe. However, Kisame Hoshigaki gains the greatest advantage: Samehada merges with him, transforming him into a half-shark form with functional gills.
• Kisame attacks Killer B underwater. B’s movements are hampered by the water, while Kisame becomes faster and drains chakra from him with every clash. Gyūki warns B that Kisame is stealing his chakra.
• Elsewhere, Kaito’s battle with Pain reaches a critical point. Kaito’s Shikotsumyaku-enhanced bone armor repeatedly blocks Pain’s attacks, revealing that Pain lacks the raw offensive power to break through his defenses.
• Kaito deliberately shifts to a defensive strategy after realizing Kisame is likely to overwhelm the Hidden Cloud’s forces and potentially capture both Jinchūriki.
• Pain recognizes the danger inside the water sphere and attempts to reach it, but Kaito moves to stop him.
• Pain blocks Kaito’s Ten-Finger Drilling Bullets with a barrier, while Konan attacks from above with numerous Explosive Tags. Kaito evades and protects himself with layers of bone armor.
• Three Earth Grudge Fear creatures ambush Kaito with binding threads and combined elemental attacks. Kaito destroys their masks with bone spikes, but their partially released techniques explode, badly damaging his face. His exposed bone absorbs the blast, and his flesh rapidly regenerates.
• Kaito senses two remaining Earth Grudge Fear creatures escaping. Kakuzu, having lost three hearts, decides to withdraw and rationalizes that he can claim credit if the operation succeeds while avoiding blame if it fails.
• Pain finally arrives at the water sphere, setting up the next confrontation.

Character Developments

• Shisui demonstrates loyalty and restraint by abandoning offensive action to protect the injured Itachi.
• Itachi is revealed to be suffering from severe ocular strain after overusing his powers, making his survival a priority.
• Kisame reaches a new level of power through his fusion with Samehada, gaining underwater breathing, greater speed, and enhanced chakra absorption.
• Killer B is placed at a major disadvantage, forced to fight while losing chakra and mobility.
• Kaito proves the defensive strength, regeneration, and versatility of Shikotsumyaku. He also shows tactical awareness by focusing on delaying Pain rather than defeating him outright.
• Pain recognizes the strategic threat posed by Kisame’s attack but is frustrated by his inability to break Kaito’s defenses.
• Kakuzu displays his pragmatic and self-protective nature, retreating after sacrificing three hearts and attempting to avoid responsibility for the mission’s outcome.

Significant Themes

• Terrain and preparation determine strength: The Mist’s water sphere empowers its own forces, but the Cloud’s preparations prevent them from being completely helpless.
• Adaptation in battle: Kisame, Kaito, and the Hidden Cloud ninjas each exploit specialized abilities or equipment to survive the changing battlefield.
• Protection versus mission objectives: Shisui chooses Itachi’s safety over strategic goals, emphasizing loyalty and personal bonds.
• Offense versus defense: Kaito’s layered bone armor neutralizes Pain’s attacks, demonstrating that overwhelming defensive abilities can expose weaknesses in an otherwise powerful opponent.
• Pragmatism and self-preservation: Kakuzu’s retreat reflects his willingness to prioritize survival and personal accountability over cooperation or sacrifice.

Character Interactions

• Shisui and the Mist ninja cooperate to keep Itachi and Shisui supplied with oxygen.
• Shisui inspects Itachi’s condition and assumes the role of his protector.
• Kisame taunts Killer B before engaging him, while Gyūki warns B about the chakra-draining effect of Samehada.
• Kaito and Pain repeatedly clash, with Kaito blocking Pain’s attacks and preventing him from reaching the water sphere.
• Konan supports Pain by bombarding Kaito with Explosive Tags.
• Kaito counters Kakuzu’s Earth Grudge Fear creatures, destroying their masks and forcing the surviving creatures to flee.
• Kakuzu retreats after confirming that Kaito is no longer pursuing him.
• The chapter ends with Pain reaching the water sphere, bringing him into direct conflict with the Mist’s underwater forces.