Recaps

Danzo sent Naruto to Root’s Zeroing Room to be tested by Zero, who tried to break him with a traumatic Genjutsu. Naruto reversed the attack, exposed Zero’s coercion and doubts, then offered him a chance to join the New Order, leaving Zero shaken but hopeful.

• Danzo ordered Zero to test Naruto in Root’s Zeroing Room.
• Zero used a Genjutsu of Naruto’s lonely childhood and dead parents, but Naruto calmly dismantled the illusion and trapped Zero in his own mental world.
• Naruto analyzed Zero’s abilities and suspected Danzo controlled him through threats to his family; Zero’s reaction confirmed the guess.
• Naruto overwhelmed Zero with a backlash Genjutsu and ended the test without killing him.
• Naruto offered Zero a choice beyond Danzo’s control, and Zero watched him leave with renewed hope.

Zero concealed Naruto Uzumaki’s influence from Danzo and secretly gave Naruto control authority over Crow. Following Naruto’s instructions, Zero began restructuring Root to prove his value, and Danzo summoned him over his unauthorized changes.

• Zero told Danzo that Naruto Uzumaki had resisted his Genjutsu and was a perfect candidate for Root, so Danzo made Naruto a probationary member codenamed White Crow without a Cursed Tongue Eradication Seal.
• Zero secretly visited Naruto, handed him Crow’s channel key and control authority, and pledged his loyalty to Naruto’s envisioned system.
• Naruto warned Zero to avoid direct contact and urged him to prove his value to Danzo through bold efforts to improve Root’s efficiency.
• Naruto sent Zero an optimization plan, and Zero reorganized Root’s intelligence routes, surveillance teams, and paperwork.
• Danzo noticed Root’s improved results but was displeased that Zero had acted independently, so he summoned him.
• Zero knelt before Danzo and admitted that he knew he had committed an offense.

Zero secured Danzo’s approval for his reforms while secretly expanding Naruto’s intelligence network inside Root. At the training ground, Naruto replaced Kakashi’s general Chunin Exams preparation with a demanding, individualized plan for Sasuke and Sakura.

• Zero presented Danzo with an efficiency report that credited Danzo’s teachings, and Danzo approved the reforms for Root and put Zero in charge.
• Naruto studied Zero’s intelligence on Root’s divisions and began planning how to dismantle and rebuild the organization.
• Zero copied confidential Root intelligence about the Chunin Ninja Exams, including information on Baki and a suspected Orochimaru infiltration of Kusagakure’s examinees.
• Kakashi told Team 7 that he had submitted their exam recommendations and proposed teamwork training, but Naruto called the plan inefficient.
• Naruto assigned Sasuke three hours of sparring to improve his taijutsu and chakra use, and gave Sakura an exhausting strength, endurance, and sparring regimen.

Naruto pushed Sasuke and Sakura through brutal training while Kakashi watched uneasily. Later, Naruto studied intelligence on Gaara and began designing a chainsword to defeat the One-Tail Jinchūriki.

• Naruto's Shadow Clones repeatedly defeated Sasuke and criticized his fighting, but Sasuke demanded another round after Naruto provoked his resolve to face Itachi.
• Naruto ordered exhausted Sakura to climb a sheer cliff, and she hurried to obey rather than spar with him.
• Kakashi watched Team 7's punishing training and worried Naruto was pushing Sasuke and Sakura to their breaking points.
• Naruto reviewed a secret intelligence file describing Gaara's sand defense, violent instability, and status as the One-Tail Jinchūriki.
• Naruto interpreted Gaara's condition as a host corrupted by a Warp entity and drafted a chainsword blueprint for the Chunin Ninja Exams.

Zero repackaged Naruto’s expensive materials request as a Root weapons project, and Naruto built a Chainsword. At the Chunin Exam registration, Naruto identified Gaara as a dangerous source of Warp contamination and resolved to purify him.

• Zero presented Naruto’s materials list to Danzo as a project called Root’s Fang, and Danzo approved the use of special-grade warehouse supplies.
• Naruto used the materials to build a Chainsword in his rented basement workshop.
• At exam registration, Naruto stopped Sasuke from fighting Rock Lee and assessed Lee’s strengths and weaknesses.
• Kankuro provoked Sasuke in the crowded corridor, but Naruto noticed Gaara and sensed a hostile force within him.
• Naruto classified Gaara as a Grade-One Warp Contamination Source and declared that he must be purified.

Naruto confronted Gaara in the corridor before the Chunin Ninja Exams and stopped his sand attack with a powerful mechanical weapon. He left Gaara with a warning, while Kakashi and the other Genin were left shaken by Naruto’s strength.

• Gaara reacted to Naruto’s rejecting gaze by unleashing a giant hand of sand at him.
• Naruto summoned a Chainsword and destroyed Gaara’s sand defense with a direct strike.
• Naruto stopped the spinning Chainsword close to Gaara’s forehead and warned him to control his power before a final Purification arrived.
• Naruto left for the examination classroom, and Gaara quietly recalled his sand as Temari checked on him.
• Kakashi told Sasuke that Naruto’s weapon might be a new toy, while privately recognizing the widening gap between them.

Naruto unnerved Gaara with an unknown weapon, then entered the first Chunin Exam and calmly analyzed its security while other examinees cheated. Ibiki announced a final question that could permanently disqualify anyone who answered incorrectly.

• Ibiki arrived to stop the confrontation, but Kakashi steered him toward starting the exam after he saw Gaara reining in his sand.
• Sasuke asked Naruto what his weapon was, and Naruto called it a tool for judging heretics.
• Ibiki explained the written exam's rules, and Naruto identified the planted examiners and wrote a security assessment before answering the test.
• Examinees including Kiba, Shino, Ino, and Sasuke used covert methods to cheat while Ibiki expelled several teams.
• Gaara watched Naruto through a Sand Eye, which dispersed when Naruto glared at it.
• Ibiki announced that examinees could refuse the tenth question and be eliminated with their teams, or answer incorrectly and lose their right to take the exams forever.

Naruto led Team 7 into the Forest of Death after exposing the first exam's tenth question as a test of resolve. After the team swiftly defeated an Amegakure squad, Naruto sensed a dangerous follower of the Great Unclean One approaching and prepared to confront it.

• Naruto challenged Ibiki's intimidation tactic, and Ibiki revealed that the tenth question tested whether examinees had the resolve to face danger; Naruto said the examiner's lie had been easy to see through, unsettling Sasuke.
• Mitaraishi Anko explained the Forest of Death exam, and Naruto identified her threat as ineffective before sensing the Curse Mark Orochimaru had left on her.
• Team 7 entered the forest, where Naruto assigned Sasuke and Sakura roles in a silent marching formation.
• Sasuke spotted three Amegakure ninja, and Naruto directed him to eliminate them; Sasuke killed them with the Great Fireball Technique.
• Naruto sensed a follower of the Great Unclean One approaching, named it a priority-one target, and summoned his Chainsword.

Orochimaru ambushed Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura in the forest, intent on claiming Sasuke as a vessel. Naruto fought him with his Chainsword and Shadow Clones, leaving Orochimaru wary and questioning what Naruto was.

• Orochimaru revealed himself, swallowed the Heaven Scroll, and called Sasuke a perfect vessel.
• Naruto stepped between Orochimaru and Sasuke and challenged him with his Chainsword.
• Naruto split Orochimaru's summoned giant snake in half and cut down the snakes from Hidden Shadow Snake Hands.
• Naruto and three Shadow Clones attacked Orochimaru in a coordinated formation, but destroyed only an Earth Clone.
• Orochimaru reappeared unharmed and asked Naruto what he was.

Naruto and Sasuke coordinated against Orochimaru, with Sasuke overcoming his fear to track Orochimaru and support Naruto's attacks. They left Orochimaru seriously wounded for the first time, while he remained intent on claiming Sasuke as a vessel.

• Naruto identified Orochimaru as a threat and attacked as Orochimaru raised earthen walls and unleashed poisoned Senbon.
• Naruto's clones protected the team and moved Sakura to safety while Naruto ordered Sasuke to find Orochimaru's weakness.
• Sasuke stabbed his thigh to overcome his paralysis, used his Sharingan to locate Orochimaru, and blocked his path with a Great Fireball Technique.
• Naruto and Sasuke coordinated to counter Orochimaru's snakes and Kusanagi Sword, and Naruto blocked a fatal strike aimed at Sasuke.
• Sasuke trapped Orochimaru with Phoenix Flower Jutsu, allowing Naruto's Shadow Clone to tear open Orochimaru's arm and expose bone.

Kabuto Yakushi used neurotoxin and a feigned rescue to help Orochimaru knock out Naruto Uzumaki and reach Sasuke Uchiha. Orochimaru bit Sasuke and placed a curse mark on him, leaving Sasuke unconscious as Naruto lay defeated.

• Orochimaru signaled Kabuto Yakushi while facing Naruto Uzumaki, and Kabuto released neurotoxin into the forest air.
• Kabuto pretended to come to Team 7's aid, then fired poisoned Senbon at Naruto Uzumaki's Shadow Clones to open a gap in their formation.
• Orochimaru used the opening to evade Naruto Uzumaki's attack and strike his temple, knocking him unconscious and disarming him.
• Orochimaru approached the immobilized Sasuke Uchiha and bit his neck, forcing an evil chakra and a curse mark into his body.
• Sasuke Uchiha screamed, convulsed, and fell unconscious as the three black Tomoe markings on his neck stopped moving.

Orochimaru branded Sasuke with the Curse Mark and moved to seal and capture Naruto, but Haku and Zero intervened and forced Orochimaru and Kabuto Yakushi to retreat. As Haku prepared to evacuate the unconscious Naruto, Naruto murmured orders to recover his soldiers and assess Sasuke’s Pollution level.

• Orochimaru placed the Curse Mark on Sasuke, then approached the fallen Naruto to apply a Five Elements Seal.
• Haku trapped Orochimaru behind ice mirrors while Zero attempted to assassinate him, and Kabuto Yakushi arrived to assist Orochimaru.
• Haku declared that they were acting on the Political Commissar’s orders, and Orochimaru and Kabuto retreated after confirming Sasuke had been marked.
• Haku checked Naruto, gave him medicine, and found his pulse and breathing stable; Zero recovered Naruto’s Chainsword while Sakura rushed to Sasuke.
• As Haku prepared to carry Naruto away, Naruto murmured orders to recover the soldiers and assess Sasuke’s Pollution level.

Haku treated Naruto while Zero reported that the threat had retreated, and they ordered Sakura to hand over the injured Sasuke for recovery. As Naruto sank into memories of researching the Otsutsuki and the origins of chakra, he concluded that the alien clan would return to harvest the world and showed fear.

• Zero set traps around the battlefield and reported that the threat had retreated.
• Haku treated Naruto and ordered Sakura to let them take Sasuke, warning that the Curse Mark had contaminated him.
• Naruto's consciousness sank into memories of his research in Konoha's library.
• Naruto interpreted the Otsutsuki Clan's God Tree and chakra as an alien invasion and source of biological contamination.
• Naruto feared that the Otsutsuki Clan would return to harvest the world, and Haku saw fear on his face.

Naruto Uzumaki woke after defeating the enemy and concluded that Sasuke Uchiha’s Curse Mark was a soul-bound passage that could both empower and consume him. He recruited Sakura Haruno as a medic and ordered the group to withdraw with Sasuke to their temporary base.

• Naruto Uzumaki awoke from a coma, received Haku’s report, and learned that Sasuke Uchiha had a Curse Mark while Sakura Haruno could no longer fight.
• Naruto Uzumaki analyzed Sasuke’s Curse Mark and identified it as a two-way soul contract linking Sasuke to Orochimaru.
• Naruto Uzumaki told Sakura Haruno that she was weak but had potential as a medical ninja, then offered her the choice to become his medic or remain helpless.
• Sakura Haruno chose to become Naruto Uzumaki’s medic, and he assigned her the codename “Medic” and ordered her to help Haku stabilize Sasuke.
• Naruto Uzumaki ordered Haku and Zero to erase the battle traces and lead the group, including Sasuke, back to their temporary base.

Naruto ordered Zero to scout for Orochimaru while Haku directed Sakura to use ice Senbon to suppress Sasuke’s Curse Mark. As Amegakure attackers interrupted the treatment, Sakura carried out the procedure and Sasuke awakened with his Sharingan as the Curse Mark spread across his body.

• Naruto sent Zero into the shadows to scout Orochimaru’s trail and ordered him not to reveal himself.
• Haku told Sakura to use ice Senbon to guide the corrupted chakra in Sasuke’s pathways, and Naruto pressured her to act despite her fear.
• Three Amegakure ninjas ambushed the group and demanded their Heaven and Earth Scroll.
• Naruto created two Shadow Clones to fight the attackers while Sakura began inserting Senbon into Sasuke’s acupoints.
• A crippled Amegakure ninja unleashed a Water Dragon Bullet toward Sakura and Sasuke, and Haku prepared Demonic Mirroring Ice Crystals to protect them.
• Sasuke awoke with crimson, two-Tomoe eyes as the Curse Mark spread across half his body and face.

Naruto stopped Sasuke’s Curse Mark-fueled rampage by overpowering and subduing him. Sasuke’s Curse Mark receded, and Naruto left him defeated on the ground.

• Naruto’s Shadow Clones defeated the two Rain ninja with swift taijutsu, while Sasuke became consumed by his Curse Mark.
• Sasuke charged Naruto, who evaded his claws, dislocated his arm, and pinned him to the ground.
• Naruto told Sasuke that the Curse Mark made him a slave and demanded that he submit or be discarded.
• Sasuke lost the strength to resist, and his Curse Mark receded before Naruto released him.

Naruto forced Sasuke to abandon his reckless rebellion, questioned an Amegakure shinobi about Pain, and led Team 7 to the Chunin Exam tower with both required scrolls. As the preliminary matches began, Sasuke stepped forward to face Akato Yoroi despite his injuries.

• Naruto reset Sasuke's arm, warned him against relying on unstable borrowed power, and ordered Sakura to restrain him if needed.
• Naruto questioned an Amegakure shinobi, who revealed that Pain ruled Amegakure through several messengers, including the Angel.
• Team 7 reached the tower with the Heaven Scroll and Earth Scroll, and Naruto reported an attack by Orochimaru without mentioning Sasuke's Curse Mark.
• Hinata offered Naruto ointment, and Naruto ordered Haku and Zero to establish intelligence and logistics networks independent of Root.
• Kakashi examined Sasuke's temporarily suppressed Curse Mark as the preliminary matches were announced.
• Sasuke pushed away Sakura's support and entered the arena to fight Akato Yoroi.

Sasuke defeated Akato Yoroi despite his injuries and Curse Mark, then Naruto Uzumaki quickly beat Kiba Inuzuka with a single strike. Naruto left the examinees and Jonin stunned, and Rock Lee took his words as encouragement before preparing to fight Gaara.

• Sasuke resisted the Curse Mark's pain and defeated Akato Yoroi with a savage taijutsu counterattack.
• Naruto Uzumaki's next match was set against Kiba Inuzuka, who charged with Akamaru using Fang Over Fang.
• Naruto Uzumaki dodged their attack and knocked both Kiba and Akamaru unconscious with one elbow strike.
• Kurenai and Asuma recognized Naruto Uzumaki's attack as a precise killing technique, while Kakashi admitted he had not taught it to him.
• Naruto Uzumaki called Rock Lee a promising Berserker and told him not to die without worth, prompting Lee to embrace the words as recognition before his match with Gaara.

Naruto saved an incapacitated Rock Lee from Gaara after Lee lost their match, then defended his intervention to Hiruzen as protecting Konoha’s strength. The chapter ended with Naruto standing by his actions as the arena watched.

• Lee removed his leg weights, opened the First Gate, and used the Front Lotus, but Gaara escaped harm with a sand substitute.
• Lee opened the Second through Fifth Gates and struck Gaara with the Reverse Lotus, but Gaara’s Sand Armor survived and Lee collapsed, unable to move.
• After the match was decided, Gaara sent sand to attack Lee, and Naruto intervened, shattered the sand torrent, and threw Lee to Might Guy for medical treatment.
• Naruto cracked Gaara’s sand defense and warned him to put away his killing intent or face “Purification.”
• Hiruzen accused Naruto of violating the rules, and Naruto replied that he accepted Lee’s defeat but had acted to save a worthy warrior’s future.

Naruto presented himself to Hiruzen as a ruthless instrument for protecting Konoha, then used the confrontation to influence Danzo and requested a technique to strengthen his Shadow Clones. The chapter ended with Naruto spotting Jiraiya peeping into the women's bath and hurling a bar of soap at him.

• Naruto defended his intervention in Rock Lee's fight and told Hiruzen that he intended to become Konoha's emotionless error-correction mechanism.
• Hiruzen learned that Jiraiya had already returned to the village, while Naruto's report to Danzo convinced Danzo that Naruto could become the shadow he wanted.
• Naruto identified the weakness in his Shadow Clone tactics and requested the Shuriken Shadow Clone Technique from Danzo, who approved the request.
• Naruto recognized Jiraiya at the public bathhouse as he peered into the women's bath, then silently threw a bar of soap at the back of his head.

Naruto rebuffed Jiraiya’s attempts to connect with him, while Jiraiya grew troubled by how mechanical and isolated the boy seemed. After Naruto failed to create shadow clones of his Chainsword, he confronted Hinata Hyuga about watching him for three days.

• Naruto hit Jiraiya with a chakra-infused bar of soap after catching him peeping in the women’s bath, and called him a Peeping Pervert Sage.
• Jiraiya tried to bond with Naruto over ramen and a popsicle, but Naruto treated both encounters as brief stops in his schedule.
• Jiraiya watched Naruto eat alone and realized that even his meals seemed reduced to efficient refueling.
• Naruto failed to use the Shuriken Shadow Clone Technique to duplicate his Chainsword and concluded that he needed better chakra control and a deeper understanding of the weapon.
• Naruto detected Hinata Hyuga spying on him for the third consecutive day and demanded an explanation.

Naruto reassured Hinata that she was different from Sakura, and his awkward kindness left her overwhelmed with happiness. Jiraiya, watching them, decided Naruto valued loyalty and approached him with an offer to teach him Shadow Clone Jutsu.

• Hinata nervously asked Naruto whether he still liked Sakura, and Naruto remembered that Hinata had always cared for him.
• Naruto told Hinata that Sakura was only his medic and added that Hinata was different, prompting her to cry with happiness.
• Naruto tried to comfort Hinata by warning her about dehydration, then gave her tissues to wipe her face.
• Jiraiya observed their exchange and concluded that Naruto reserved his tenderness for people who had earned his trust.
• Jiraiya asked Naruto whether he had hit a training bottleneck and offered to teach him how to turn a saw into a Shadow Clone.

Jiraiya taught Naruto Uzumaki to create stable Chainsword Shadow Clones and persuaded him to sign the summoning contract. Naruto’s summoning produced ominous black mist instead of a toad, leaving Jiraiya alarmed while Naruto sensed a familiar loyalty within it.

• Jiraiya explained why Naruto Uzumaki’s Chainsword was difficult to duplicate and advised him to build a precise chakra mold.
• Naruto Uzumaki created ten unstable Chainsword Shadow Clones after dozens of failed attempts.
• Jiraiya suggested Naruto Uzumaki acquire a summoned beast, and Naruto agreed to sign the summoning contract.
• Naruto Uzumaki performed the Summoning Jutsu, but black mist and a strange metallic distortion appeared instead of the expected smoke.
• Jiraiya urged Naruto Uzumaki to dispel the summoning, but Naruto sensed familiar Order and absolute loyalty within the mist.

Naruto summoned Karsten, a battle-scarred soldier from another universe, and convinced him that he was his former Commissar. As Jiraiya and Hinata watched in disbelief, Naruto had Karsten demonstrate the power of his Bolter, leaving a training boulder blown apart.

• Karsten emerged from Naruto's Summoning Jutsu and raised his Bolter at Naruto, but Naruto ordered him to lower it in Imperial Gothic.
• Naruto proved his identity by recounting intimate details of Karsten's life, and Karsten recognized him as his Commissar and reported for duty.
• Naruto told Karsten that they were in Naruto's hometown and learned that Karsten had only three magazines and a nearly depleted power pack.
• Naruto asked Karsten to show Jiraiya his Bolter and described it as a large-caliber ninja tool.
• Karsten fired at a training boulder, which exploded into powder from within.

After Karsten vanished, Naruto concealed the nature of the summoning incident from Jiraiya, who agreed to keep it secret and watch over him. Naruto then performed the Summoning Jutsu again, and the chapter ended with Gamakichi appearing.

• Karsten warned Naruto that his coordinates were drifting before fading into black smoke, while Naruto sensed their summoning contract stretching toward a distant point.
• Jiraiya demanded an explanation, but Naruto described the event as an unknown summoning anomaly, and Hinata defended him.
• Jiraiya decided to keep the incident secret to protect Naruto from the Hokage and Root, and told Naruto and Hinata that no one else must learn about it.
• Naruto proposed a second summoning as a control test, and Jiraiya agreed to watch.
• Naruto blocked the beacon's fluctuations and summoned Gamakichi, who recognized Jiraiya.