Chapter Summaries

Sasori overheard staged surveillance-room chatter suggesting that Ren would lead an operation against Sarutobi, and he decided to use the coming mission as a chance to escape. Kabuto revealed that Sasori had been deliberately given the choice, and he and the Uchiha shinobi waited for Sasori to act.

• Sasori used his handmade listening devices to overhear two Uchiha shinobi discussing an upcoming operation involving Ren and Sarutobi.
• Sasori inferred that Ren planned to target the former Hokage's clan using only Uchiha forces and considered the laboratory's defenses too strong for an ordinary escape.
• Sasori decided to prepare carefully and attempt to flee before the operation in two days.
• Kabuto revealed that the conversation had been staged to reach Sasori and said the choice had been handed to him.
• Kabuto and the shinobi agreed to wait and see what Sasori would do.

Ren reviewed Hiashi’s work and ordered him to take over security for the Advisory Council. As Ren continued planning with Tongren Hyuga, a chakra-bearing crow entered the council, bringing the next development into view.

• Ren praised Hiashi’s work and told him to take over the Advisory Council’s security that afternoon.
• Tongren Hyuga reported on developments across Konoha, including the Military Police Force, and Ren concluded that the actors were in position.
• Ren asked Tongren Hyuga why he had chosen to serve him, and Tongren replied that Ren was stronger.
• Ren read a long list of Uchiha clan members who had applied for border duty and reflected that the clan’s past grievances had only been suppressed.
• Tongren Hyuga watched the Advisory Council through Ren’s modified office seals and saw a chakra-bearing crow fly inside.

Asuma spent time with Kurenai while brooding over a note calling him to act that night. After hearing rumors that the Sarutobi Clan planned a coup, he returned to the compound and prepared to confront the clansmen plotting trouble.

• A ninja slipped Asuma a note saying, "Tonight, after the barrier rises."
• Asuma and Kurenai overheard people spreading rumors that the Sarutobi Clan planned a coup, and Kurenai noticed his unease.
• Kurenai urged Asuma to handle what was troubling him, and he left to see his clansmen.
• Asuma secretly gathered the Sarutobi Clan members plotting trouble and told them their plan would begin that night under his orders.

Hiruzen Sarutobi learned through Itachi Uchiha’s genjutsu that the Uchiha Clan appeared to be preparing to attack the Sarutobi Clan at the end of the month. Suspecting Uchiha Yushu had planted misleading clues to provoke a conflict with Hiashi, Hiruzen stayed home to watch for what would happen.

• Hiruzen Sarutobi let a crow’s Sharingan genjutsu show him Itachi Uchiha receiving orders from Uchiha Ryusuke and Uchiha Mystic Moon to help seal off the Sarutobi Clan compound.
• Hiruzen watched Itachi search Uchiha Yushu’s office and discover signs of a coordinated end-of-month plan, including Uchiha leave requests and unusual deployments and gatherings.
• Hiruzen Sarutobi prepared for battle, then reconsidered after the apparent evidence seemed too obvious and too much like one of his old friend’s schemes.
• Hiruzen noticed that Byakugan guards had replaced the usual guards and suspected Uchiha Yushu was trying to make him fight Hiashi.
• Hiruzen Sarutobi decided not to leave his home and waited, believing he had seen through Uchiha Yushu’s plan.

Ren and Hyuga Hiashi arranged a covert confrontation with former Hokage Hiruzen Sarutobi at the Advisory Council. Hiashi confronted Hiruzen while Koharu left, leaving the two men to discuss matters.

• Ren left a gathering with several ninjas while most attendees failed to notice anything unusual.
• A Four Violet Flames Formation rose around the Advisory Council, and Ren ordered ninjas to conceal its chakra and light.
• Hiruzen revealed that he had prepared for combat and urged Koharu to leave, but she initially refused to abandon him.
• Hiashi arrived with a group of ninjas and told Koharu that he had come to speak with Hiruzen as Konoha's elder.
• Koharu accepted Hiashi's assurance that the matter did not concern her and quickly left Hiruzen behind.

Hiashi confronted Hiruzen Sarutobi over Hizashi’s death and attacked him, but could not overcome him. As Hiashi called the Hyuga to join the fight and Hiruzen summoned Enma, Sasori separately gathered valuable information from the laboratory building.

• Hiashi accused Hiruzen Sarutobi of forcing him to accept Hizashi’s death and demanded that Hiruzen die for Konoha.
• Hiashi attacked Hiruzen with the Gentle Fist, but Hiruzen defended himself without being seriously hurt.
• Hiruzen warned Hiashi that Uchiha Yushu was using him, but Hiashi insisted he acted for Konoha and ordered the Hyuga to attack together.
• Hiruzen summoned Enma, who transformed into a staff in his hand.
• Sasori intercepted a large amount of important information at the laboratory building and verified some of it during a walk through the streets.

Sasori used a knockout gas to escape Konoha, while Kabuto and the guards secretly staged the escape and followed him. Sasori passed through the village barrier, and Kabuto activated a scroll as he wondered whether the suspiciously easy exit was part of a backup plan.

• Sasori released knockout gas through the laboratory ventilation system, and Kabuto reassured the Uchiha ninja that he had prepared an antidote.
• Sasori dismantled laboratory devices, upgraded his body with stored equipment, and left the building after undoing its seals.
• Kabuto told the guards to revive the researchers and followed Sasori, while the guards began cleaning up the laboratory.
• Sasori reached the village barrier and saw Uchiha guards leave on an urgent mission, then hesitated before crossing the exit.
• Kabuto watched Sasori leave and poured chakra into a scroll while considering whether the apparent opening was a backup plan.

Uchiha Clan ninjas sealed off the Sarutobi Clan compound with a concealed Four Violet Flames Formation as Asuma’s faction debated what to do. Asuma persuaded them to postpone their coup and seek answers, while the Konoha Military Police Force blocked other Sarutobi Clan ninjas from moving freely.

• Ren ordered the Uchiha Clan ninjas to activate the barriers simultaneously after Sasori left Konoha.
• Xuanyue and Ryusuke led ninjas in raising a large Four Violet Flames Formation around the Sarutobi Clan compound and hiding it beneath another barrier.
• Sarutobi Clan ninjas gathered at Asuma’s residence, where the radical members suspected one another of leaking their plans.
• Asuma told the group to trust one another and focus on surviving the crisis, and they agreed to postpone the coup and seek answers.
• Konoha Military Police Force ninjas stopped Sarutobi Clan members trying to reach Asuma and told them they could wait or force their way through.

Asuma ambushed the Sarutobi Clan ninja who had gathered, confirming their worst fears that he had betrayed the clan. Despite wavering as his clansmen asked whether he had been threatened, Asuma declared that he had not and began killing them.

• The Sarutobi Clan ninja stayed to confront the Konoha Military Police Force while waiting for Asuma and the clan’s elites.
• Asuma led a group out of the clan grounds, then ambushed the Sarutobi Clan ninja with Fire Release: Ash Pile Burning; most escaped, and only a few died.
• The surviving clansmen realized Asuma had truly betrayed them after their sensor found no abnormal chakra in him.
• Asuma remembered Kurenai and his different path, then told the clansmen he had not been threatened.
• Asuma killed the nearest ninja with Wind Release chakra coating his knuckle dusters, wept, and charged at another.

Sasori escaped Konoha with Zetsu’s help and agreed to return to Akatsuki. Meanwhile, Hiruzen Sarutobi’s sudden lower back pain disrupted his defense against Hiashi and the Hyuga Clan, leaving the battle’s outcome in jeopardy.

• Sasori waited outside Konoha, expecting Uchiha Yushu to come after him, but Zetsu appeared instead.
• Black Zetsu showed Sasori an object carrying his chakra and explained that it had led Akatsuki to him.
• Sasori agreed to return to Akatsuki and left with White Zetsu while Black Zetsu stayed behind to gather intelligence in Konoha.
• Hiruzen Sarutobi calmly deflected attacks from Hiashi and more than ten Hyuga Clan elites as Hiashi challenged him over his past actions.
• Hiruzen Sarutobi was struck by sudden lower back pain, and Hiashi seized the opening to attack with Eight Trigrams: One Hundred Twenty-Eight Palms.

Hiashi nearly killed Hiruzen Sarutobi with a barrage of Gentle Fist strikes, but Hiruzen revealed that he had prepared a Shadow Clone to restore his sealed chakra. Hiruzen’s overwhelming aura returned, leaving Hiashi to realize his revenge had failed.

• Enma reverted to his original form and shielded Hiruzen Sarutobi, but Hiashi sealed Enma’s chakra points with repeated palm strikes.
• Hiashi battered the weakened Hiruzen Sarutobi until he appeared close to death and prepared an Eight Trigrams Vacuum Palm to finish him.
• An Earth-Style Wall blocked Hiashi’s final attack, and another Hiruzen Sarutobi appeared before dispersing as a Shadow Clone.
• The clone’s chakra flowed into Hiruzen Sarutobi and helped him break the Gentle Fist seal, restoring his chakra and releasing an imposing aura.
• Hiashi realized Hiruzen Sarutobi had prepared the Shadow Clone beforehand and accepted that his revenge had failed.

Ren arrived at the Advisory Council and challenged Hiruzen Sarutobi by showing how many people in Konoha wanted him dead. The chapter ended with the gathered people refusing to thank Hiruzen for dying in the war three years earlier.

• Hiruzen Sarutobi released his sealed acupuncture points but restrained his aura and argued that he had acted for Konoha as Hokage.
• Hiashi said he wanted Hiruzen dead, and Ren arrived with several people after learning Hiashi's operation had failed.
• Ren asked a middle-aged man, an old man, a child, a woman, and Kakashi whether they wanted Hiruzen dead, and each said yes.
• Ren asked whether the people would have thanked Hiruzen if he had died in the war three years earlier, and they answered that they would not.

Ren denounced Hiruzen Sarutobi as a source of suffering for Konoha and let villagers decide whether to kill him, but none could bring themselves to finish the deed. After Utatane Koharu treated the wounded Hiruzen, Ren revealed a mysterious object that seemed to show Asuma.

• Ren told Hiruzen Sarutobi that his actions had only brought suffering to Konoha and that the village did not thank him.
• Ren invited the villagers to kill Hiruzen Sarutobi, but most could not strike, and those who did only wounded him.
• The villagers left, and Utatane Koharu returned with a medical kit to treat Hiruzen Sarutobi.
• Ren called Hiruzen Sarutobi a disgrace as Hokage, and Hiruzen warned that Ren would meet the same end unless he died in battle outside the village.
• Ren had a ninja bring in a cube-like object, and Utatane Koharu said it seemed to show Asuma.

Hiruzen Sarutobi watched footage of Asuma fighting the Sarutobi Clan and realized his son was still alive. Asuma continued cutting down his clansmen, while Hiruzen ended the chapter by accusing Uchiha Yushu of being despicable.

• Hiruzen Sarutobi recognized Asuma in surveillance footage from the Sarutobi Clan Grounds and took hope from his survival.
• Asuma, badly burned and consumed by guilt, continued his mission to stop the clan coup and wanted to die afterward.
• Asuma began dodging the clansmen’s ninjutsu and used his chakra blades to kill a Sarutobi ninja.
• Hiruzen Sarutobi watched the battle at the Advisory Council and roared at Uchiha Yushu, calling him despicable.

Yushu confronted Hiruzen Sarutobi with a live broadcast connected to the Sarutobi Clan and refused to reveal its outcome. After overpowering Hiruzen with his chakra, Yushu agreed to let him leave for the clan compound.

• Hiruzen Sarutobi realized Yushu’s actions threatened the Sarutobi Clan and asked what Yushu wanted and what it would take to learn the outcome.
• Yushu explained that the device showed a live broadcast, then said he did not know the result.
• Hiruzen Sarutobi tried to leave, but Yushu blocked him and overwhelmed him with his chakra.
• Hiruzen Sarutobi asked Yushu to let him go to the Sarutobi Clan compound and addressed him as Lord Hokage.
• Yushu agreed, and Hiruzen Sarutobi rushed toward the clan compound, leaving a trail of blood.

Ren left the Advisory Council after ordering the evidence cleaned up, while Asuma fought the Sarutobi Clan to exhaustion. As Asuma launched his final attack, Itachi realized that Sasuke mattered more to him than the village or peace.

• After Hiruzen Sarutobi left, Ren ordered his people to erase the traces and evidence inside the Advisory Council, then departed to watch the fight’s conclusion.
• At the Sarutobi Clan Grounds, Asuma continued fighting despite severe injuries, while the surrounding Sarutobi ninjas regarded him with hatred and the Uchiha watched with contempt.
• Watching Asuma, Itachi imagined betraying his own clan but could not erase Sasuke from his thoughts, realizing Sasuke was what he cared about most.
• Asuma charged his most troublesome opponent and threw a chakra blade that cut through the incoming Fire Release and sliced the man in half.
• As several more attacks flew toward him, Asuma closed his eyes as Fire Release: Dragon Fire Technique and Earth Release: Earth Flow River were used.

Uchiha Yushu’s forces interrupted the Sarutobi Clan ninjas as they were about to kill Asuma, and Hiruzen Sarutobi realized Ren had anticipated his choices. After the Uchiha left, Hiruzen summoned Enma and swung his staff down as his clan demanded that he kill Asuma.

• A fire dragon and a wave of earth blocked the Sarutobi Clan ninjas’ attacks and saved Asuma.
• The Uchiha ninjas revealed themselves, and Itachi went to Asuma while Xuanyue ordered his clan to leave after Hiruzen arrived.
• Hiruzen recognized the hidden camera’s location and understood that Ren had outmaneuvered him by predicting his choices.
• The Sarutobi Clan ninjas urged Hiruzen to kill Asuma, who pleaded with his father to kill both them and him.
• Hiruzen summoned Enma, who transformed into a staff, and Hiruzen swung it down.

Ren forced Hiruzen Sarutobi to accept a false account of Asuma’s actions in exchange for Asuma’s release. The chapter ended with Ren chilling Asuma by dismissing the coup rumors as “only what you heard.”

• Hiruzen Sarutobi killed the men who insulted Asuma and claimed the village had bought him.
• Ren handed Hiruzen Sarutobi a camera, and Hiruzen watched its recording before crushing it.
• Hiruzen Sarutobi comforted Asuma and invented a story in which Asuma had stopped his attempted coup.
• Hiruzen Sarutobi asked Ren to accept the story, and Ren approved it as Hokage.
• Asuma tried to point out that the village was discussing the coup rumors, but Ren cut him off and said they were only what he had heard.

Yushu subdued Asuma, sealed away his memories of the night, and prepared to use Hiruzen Sarutobi in a plan that had begun on the day of his Hokage inauguration. Hiruzen questioned whether the plan was worth the damage to Konoha, and Yushu handed him a scroll and said it was.

• Asuma realized Yushu had exposed his reality as false and laughed in despair until Hiruzen Sarutobi confronted Yushu.
• Yushu told Hiruzen that Asuma would forget the night's events and used a sealing technique on him.
• Hiruzen recognized Yushu's skill with sealing and concluded that his Reaper Death Seal would not be effective against him.
• Hiruzen asked whether the plan was worth the damage to Konoha's reputation and his life.
• Yushu recalled that his plan had begun at his Hokage inauguration and that he had considered Hiruzen Sarutobi and Itachi Uchiha as candidates.
• Yushu handed Hiruzen a scroll containing much of Jiraiya's report and said the plan was worth it.

Hiruzen Sarutobi agreed to leave Konoha and use Akatsuki intelligence to infiltrate the organization, while Ren arranged for his injuries to be treated. As Konoha returned to its usual bustle, Sasuke celebrated beating Naruto on a written exam, and Itachi came home to find Xuanyue and his assistant waiting with an accusation.

• Hiruzen Sarutobi read Ren's intelligence on Akatsuki and agreed to leave Konoha to infiltrate the organization.
• Ren assured Hiruzen Sarutobi that Akatsuki would seek him out and had medical ninja treat him before he departed.
• Hiruzen Sarutobi left Konoha, and Ren watched him go as the village returned to its usual evening activity.
• Naruto felt gloomy over placing last on a written exam, while Sasuke celebrated scoring full marks alongside Sakura Haruno.
• Itachi Uchiha returned to the Uchiha Clan Grounds and found Xuanyue and his assistant waiting; the assistant asked whether Itachi had been lying all along.