Chapter Summaries

The Shadow Clone taunted Sasori while Kakashi and Zabuza fought Hiruko, each probing the puppet’s defenses and narrowly surviving its poisoned weapons. After Kakashi split Hiruko apart, Sasori revealed a hidden flame attack aimed at both ninja.

• The Shadow Clone exaggerated Kakashi and Zabuza’s reputations to provoke Sasori, who decided to fight rather than retreat.
• Sasori attacked with Hiruko’s tail and senbon, piercing Zabuza with a decoy tail tip and poisoning Kakashi’s clones before Kakashi and Zabuza revealed their substitutions.
• Sasori shed Hiruko’s robe and exposed the puppet’s full form, prompting the Shadow Clone to fire a signal flare for reinforcements.
• Kakashi blocked Hiruko’s senbon with an Earth Wall as Zabuza launched a Water Dragon Bullet, and the two attacked from opposite sides.
• Zabuza trapped Hiruko with the Water Prison Technique, and Kakashi cut the puppet in half with Lightning Cutter.
• Sasori’s broken Hiruko extended gun-barrel devices from its hands and unleashed a massive torrent of flames at Kakashi and Zabuza.

Kakashi and Zabuza fought Sasori, only to discover that his true body was another puppet and that he could unleash a hundred puppets at once. When Sasori pursued them, Ren's cowardly Shadow Clone fled with Kakashi and Zabuza, leaving the battle unresolved.

• Kakashi and Zabuza destroyed Hiruko, but Sasori attacked them with flames from his hidden puppet body.
• Kakashi ambushed Sasori and tried to cut his throat, but his kunai broke against Sasori's puppet neck.
• Sasori counterattacked with poisoned senbon and water, while Kakashi ran low on chakra and recognized him as Sasori of the Red Sand.
• Sasori summoned over a hundred puppets, and Zabuza grabbed Kakashi and ran toward Ren's Shadow Clone for help.
• Ren's Shadow Clone fled instead, and Sasori chased the clone, Kakashi, and Zabuza with his puppets.

Kisame arrived to help Ren’s team and defeated Sasori with a massive water technique, while Kakashi recognized the Third Kazekage among Sasori’s puppets. Ren’s Shadow Clone retrieved a marked fragment and left the remaining mission to Kisame, Zabuza, and Kakashi.

• Kisame joined Ren’s Shadow Clone, Zabuza, and Kakashi, then flooded the battlefield with Great Exploding Water Colliding Wave.
• Kisame attacked Sasori with Thousand Feeding Sharks, destroying some of his lower-grade puppets but failing to seriously injure him.
• Sasori summoned the Third Kazekage, and Kakashi warned Kisame about the Kazekage’s Magnet Release.
• Kisame swallowed Sasori and the Third Kazekage with Great Shark Bullet, ending the battle.
• Ren’s Shadow Clone recovered a fragment marked Sasori and left for Konoha, entrusting the rest of the mission to Kisame, Zabuza, and Kakashi.

Ren met Orochimaru in Kusagakure and smoothed over the hostility left by their previous encounter. They discovered they each had a request for the other, leaving their conversation poised to continue.

• Ren recalled meeting Orochimaru the previous night in a secluded Kusagakure courtyard beside two corpses.
• Orochimaru recognized Ren and remembered his earlier encounter with Ren's Shadow Clone Technique, which had led him to see Ren as both vulgar and shameless.
• Ren apologized for the Shadow Clone Technique's past behavior, and Orochimaru accepted the explanation while hiding his doubts.
• Ren offered to leave Karin to Orochimaru, while Orochimaru suggested Ren take her back to Konoha, as each tried to do the other a favor.
• Ren and Orochimaru began to make requests at the same time, then agreed that they seemed to have much in common.

Ren offered Orochimaru funding from the Konoha Military Police Force in exchange for researching chakra’s essence. Orochimaru accepted and left wondering whether Ren knew something about the Uzumaki descendant.

• Ren offered Orochimaru financial support to replace Root’s patronage and asked him to research the essence of chakra.
• Ren explained that understanding chakra might reveal why it existed and how it formed ninjutsu and bloodlines.
• Orochimaru was intrigued by Ren’s questions and agreed to the deal.
• As they parted, Ren urged Orochimaru to take the Uzumaki descendant with him, suggesting she might hold part of the answer.
• Orochimaru thanked Ren and wondered whether he knew something about the girl.

Black Zetsu and Obito learned that Uchiha Yushu had killed Sasori, while Pain considered new Akatsuki recruits and Nagato focused on mastering his Rinnegan. In the Land of Rivers, Yushu’s Shadow Clone saw Jiraiya use a disguise and his fame to get free food, giving the clone an idea.

• Black Zetsu questioned White Zetsu about its return, then sent it to report to Obito, who absorbed it and dispatched a new White Zetsu to inform Nagato that Sasori had been killed by Uchiha Yushu.
• Konan gave Pain intelligence on possible recruits, and Pain decided to watch the cult in the Land of Hot Water and the other rogue ninjas until he mastered a Rinnegan technique.
• Konan reminded Pain that the Eight-Tails would not revive for several years, and Nagato quietly thanked her for staying by his side.
• Yushu’s Shadow Clone wandered the Land of Rivers after arranging for Riko to deliver Sasori’s regeneration core to Mitsuba, and grew tired of its life without money or good food.
• The Shadow Clone watched Jiraiya disguise himself, claim his identity to a vendor, and receive buns and a book-signing request without paying.
• The Shadow Clone realized it could use Yushu’s face in a similar way.

Ren secretly traveled to the Land of Earth and used a staged artistic revelation and subtle genjutsu to recruit Deidara. Deidara recognized Ren as Uchiha Yushu and agreed to go with him.

• Ren traveled toward Iwagakure, hoping to recruit Deidara without attracting the village's attention.
• Deidara completed his C2 Dragon, delighted in flying, and tested his explosive art on a mountaintop.
• Ren appeared at Deidara's home as a mysterious, glowing figure and called explosions true art.
• Ren synchronized his words with Deidara's and used a subtle genjutsu to make him feel recognized.
• Deidara recognized Ren as Uchiha Yushu and agreed to go with him.

Ren traveled with Deidara and praised his art while trying to redirect the boy away from a self-destructive technique. He introduced the idea that the sun’s light and heat came from endless explosions, leaving Deidara fascinated by the scale of true art.

• Ren and Deidara left a town near Iwagakure and flew away on Deidara’s clay dragon.
• Ren praised Deidara’s flying and encouraged him as Deidara pushed the dragon to high speed.
• Deidara showed Ren the scar over his heart and explained his plan to gather chakra there for a powerful explosion.
• Ren told Deidara not to use the technique before mastering true art and began explaining the sun’s immense distance.
• Deidara realized that the sun’s light and heat came from endless explosions.

Ren brought Deidara to Konoha and entrusted him to Kabuto to learn the basics of explosions. After dismissing his rogue Shadow Clone and receiving its memories, Ren wondered whether he should visit the Pure Land.

• Ren decided Deidara should study the principles behind nuclear explosions and waited for his Shadow Clone to report back.
• In the Land of Rivers, the Shadow Clone exploited Ren's reputation to enjoy a noble's lavish entertainment, then left him behind and continued toward its next destination.
• Ren brought Deidara to Konoha, where Deidara was captivated by the village and its Kage Rock.
• Ren introduced Deidara to Kabuto and left him in Kabuto's care to learn the basics before pursuing his explosive art.
• After learning about the Joint Pursuit Force, Ren dismissed the Shadow Clone and received its memories, which made him consider visiting the Pure Land.

Ren abandoned his plan to seek the Sage of Six Paths and turned to recruiting Sasori, only to find that Qingyue had placed Sasori's Regeneration Core inside a robot body. Sasori recounted the torment of being trapped in darkness before Qingyue discovered his chakra signals, and the chapter ended with him confronting Ren in his new form.

• Ren decided he was too weak to risk traveling to the Pure Land to meet the Sage of Six Paths.
• Ren went to Qingyue's laboratory, where he found her working with a wheeled robot assistant.
• The robot revealed that it was Sasori of the Red Sand, and Ren warmly greeted him.
• Sasori recalled how being trapped in his Regeneration Core left him isolated in darkness and silence, until he began sending out chakra pulses for help.
• Qingyue investigated the faint chakra fluctuations, secured her laboratory, and discovered they were coming from Sasori's Regeneration Core.

Uchiha Qingyue experimented on the Regeneration Core containing Sasori, then spoke with him and learned he had transformed himself. She built him a heavily restricted robot body, leaving Sasori eager to learn why Yushu had brought him back.

• Qingyue experimented on the Regeneration Core, nearly draining its chakra before restoring it with nutrient solution and chakra.
• Qingyue connected the Regeneration Core to a sound device, and Sasori introduced himself as a rogue ninja from Sunagakure who had turned himself into his current state.
• Qingyue checked Sasori's files, contacted him again, and asked him to explain the body he wanted.
• Qingyue built Sasori a cylindrical robot body with restricted offensive abilities and seals that limited his chakra output.
• Qingyue made Sasori assist her in the laboratory and shut him down each day, while Sasori wondered why Yushu had brought him back.

Ren negotiated with Sasori over a new body and offered him a ten-year contract with the Konoha Military Police Force. Sasori accepted the agreement, leaving his future under Ren’s terms.

• Ren praised Qingyue for building Sasori a trial body and explained that he trusted her to manage future research.
• Ren denied having a specific purpose for Sasori and offered to release him, but Sasori demanded a new body.
• Ren told Sasori to offer something useful in return, and Sasori agreed to do anything he could.
• Ren presented Sasori with a ten-year work agreement that promised a customized body, a salary, and necessary safety measures.
• Sasori accepted Ren’s agreement.

Ren arranged for Qingyue and three elite Uchiha Clan members to supervise Sasori’s work, then returned to the Konoha Military Police Force and imposed recurring assessments to remove its least qualified clansmen. The threatened members panicked, while the undercover group criticizing Ren remained unaware that their leader had invented a claim about nearing Mangekyo Sharingan to keep them patient.

• Ren gave Qingyue Sasori’s list of future work and told her to monitor his results, with three elite clansmen arriving to help keep him under control.
• Ren reviewed the poor attendance record for evening studies and ordered Mitsuba to announce an assessment in three days, with the bottom three expelled from the department.
• Mitsuba informed the Uchiha Clan members in the Konoha Military Police Force, prompting those who had neglected their studies to scramble to catch up.
• A group of undercover Uchiha Clan members criticized Ren’s reforms and asked their leader how long they had to remain undercover.
• The undercover leader claimed his ocular power was improving and that he was close to awakening the Mangekyo Sharingan, then privately admitted he had made it up to keep the others in line.

After Uchiha clan members who failed Ren’s assessment were expelled from the Military Police Force, Kabuto and Deidara clashed over studying chemistry at the Konoha Orphanage. Kabuto beat and then healed Deidara, and challenged him to demonstrate his art.

• The three lowest-ranked Uchiha clan members removed their Military Police Force uniforms and left the force, prompting the others to take their studies more seriously.
• Deidara rejected his chemistry book and demanded that Kabuto teach him to master the power of the sun.
• Kabuto told Deidara to study the basics as Ren had instructed, and Deidara insulted him as a nobody.
• Kabuto attacked Deidara with a Chakra Scalpel and beat him badly while Deidara insisted that Kabuto did not understand his art.
• Kabuto treated Deidara’s injuries, then stood back and told him to begin demonstrating his art.

Deidara’s clay spiders failed to explode because Kabuto had secretly neutralized them with an electrical battery-and-wire device, then Kabuto explained how he had prepared for Deidara’s abilities. Deidara denied wanting to study but eventually picked up his Basic Chemistry book, while Ren saw him and Kabuto studying and left, satisfied.

• Deidara sent clay spiders after Kabuto, but Kabuto pinned them with senbon and Deidara’s explosions failed to activate.
• Kabuto beat Deidara again, then explained that his battery-powered wires had used electricity to neutralize the clay spiders.
• Deidara accepted Kabuto’s explanation as proof that his art had not been countered by Water Style and refused to admit he wanted to study.
• Deidara quietly picked up his Basic Chemistry book and began reading while watching Kabuto.
• Ren arrived, saw Deidara and Kabuto studying amid the courtyard’s battle damage, and left satisfied.

Yushu clarified that he wanted to make the Konoha Military Police Force inseparable from Konoha before taking control of the village, rather than simply becoming Hokage. He left the chapter determined to bring Konoha under his influence and shape a better life for his family and clan.

• Yushu learned that the Joint Pursuit Force had found traces of Obito and concluded that Kisame was helping him, then stopped worrying about Kakashi.
• Yushu decided that his age and incomplete influence made it too soon to move against Hiruzen Sarutobi, since discrediting the Hokage could damage Konoha itself.
• Yushu resolved to expand the Konoha Military Police Force throughout village life until it became synonymous with Konoha and gave him total control.
• Yushu rejected abandoning Konoha to build a new village, believing the Uchiha Clan should reclaim the home they had helped found.
• Yushu reaffirmed that his priority was securing a comfortable future for his family and clansmen, and anticipated bringing Konoha under his hand.

Orochimaru joined Akatsuki and used a discovery about chakra to try to pressure Yushu into paying him more. Yushu saw through the ploy and sent Orochimaru a White Zetsu corpse, leaving Orochimaru intrigued by how much Yushu seemed to know.

• Orochimaru discovered that natural energy could be converted into chakra and began reconsidering the Sage of Six Paths.
• Pain and Biwa Jūzō recruited Orochimaru into Akatsuki, and Orochimaru accepted without a fight.
• Orochimaru sent Yushu a message exaggerating the danger of his situation to imply that he needed more money.
• Yushu replied with “Read!” and sent Orochimaru a captured White Zetsu corpse as a warning.
• Orochimaru realized his scheme had failed and wondered how Yushu knew so much.

Ren learned that Pain had begun acting earlier than expected and continued developing himself while the Konoha Military Police Force expanded. After Naruto met Utakata, Ren asked Utakata to teach Naruto to master the Nine-Tails’ power and gave him intelligence about Turtle Island.

• Ren received Orochimaru’s information that Pain was becoming active ahead of schedule and suspected his actions had changed events.
• Utakata spent the day in Konoha until Naruto approached him, and the two discovered they were both jinchuriki.
• Naruto introduced himself to Utakata before Ren called him away.
• Ren asked Utakata to teach Naruto to control the tailed beast’s power, and Utakata said his own control was incomplete.
• Ren told Utakata he would soon become a perfect jinchuriki and handed him intelligence about Turtle Island.

Ren welcomed Shisui back to Konoha after his journey from the Land of Water, where the daimyo’s daughter had become infatuated with him. Ren promised to handle the princess so Shisui could focus on the mission to accompany Utakata to Turtle Island.

• Ren recalled Shisui from the Land of Water so he could accompany Utakata to Turtle Island and help restore him if the attempt to become a perfect jinchuriki failed.
• Shisui took half a month to return, during which Utakata and Naruto grew closer.
• Ren welcomed Shisui at Konoha’s gates and saw him arrive with a large entourage, including the Land of Water daimyo’s daughter.
• Shisui explained that the princess had followed him after falling for his performances, and that he had avoided rejecting her because he feared hurting her and disrupting Ren’s plans.
• Ren promised to resolve the princess problem, while Shisui worried that rejecting her could harm their operations in the Land of Water.

Uchiha Yushu stopped a Land of Water convoy at Konoha's entrance and confronted the princess, only to discover she was a very young girl. Black Zetsu learned of Yushu's reaction and decided he had found a weakness to exploit.

• Yushu halted the inspections at Konoha's entrance and had Uchiha ninja disarm the Land of Water princess's guards.
• Yushu ordered the carriage dismantled, then apologized to the frightened young princess and told her Shisui hated her before leaving.
• The princess broke down crying, and her guard sent a report to the Land of Water Daimyo.
• The Daimyo passed the intelligence to White Zetsu, who delivered it to Black Zetsu.
• Black Zetsu concluded that Yushu's attitude changed when he saw a little girl and decided he had found Yushu's weakness.