Chapter Summaries

Hiruzen took Jiraiya, Tsunade, and Orochimaru to a familiar shop for dinner, where they shared stories about their outings. Orochimaru's encounter with a mysterious man at Fire Temple left him wondering whether the Ninja World's legends and history were true.

• Hiruzen brought his three students to Iseya, where they ate and spoke with the elderly owner.
• Jiraiya told the group he had visited Drunken Fragrance House and met an old man who shared his thoughts about people's hidden troubles.
• Tsunade admitted she had gone to Casino Street and lost everything, while Hiruzen cautioned her not to become absorbed in gambling.
• Orochimaru said he had read legends at Fire Temple and met a man who questioned whether the Ninja World's history was real or false.
• Orochimaru recalled that the man left without making a sound, and Hiruzen suggested he might have been a reclusive monk.

After dinner, Hiruzen and his students prepared to leave for the Land of Hot Water the next morning. At the Daimyo's Palace, the daimyo secretly reported to the Divine Envoy, who warned that Konoha's growing strength threatened the palace and challenged the daimyo to keep searching for something that would enable the Envoy's descent.

• Hiruzen explained to Jiraiya, Tsunade, and Orochimaru how the Daimyo's Palace differed from Konoha and urged them to observe carefully when dealing with politics.
• Hiruzen told his students they would depart early for the Land of Hot Water to inspect a commercial project, and the group returned to the inn after dinner.
• Jiraiya recalled that a man had asked for a copy of his book, and Hiruzen encouraged him to finish writing it.
• The daimyo entered a concealed underground chamber and reported to the Divine Envoy that Hiruzen had been respectful and that Konoha depended on the palace's funding and commissions.
• The Divine Envoy accused the daimyo of underestimating Konoha, citing its university, West District development, and support for the Uzumaki Clan as signs of its growing independence.
• The daimyo said he had begun searching for what the Divine Envoy wanted but feared he would die before witnessing the Envoy's descent, and he asked for something to give him hope.

The daimyo received power from the voice inside the crystal and promised to complete its task. The next day, Hiruzen Sarutobi traveled with his students and began teaching them the Summoning Technique during a rest by a stream.

• The voice inside the crystal gave the daimyo power and ordered him to complete its task quickly.
• Hiruzen Sarutobi, Jiraiya, Tsunade, and Orochimaru left the inn and traveled east from Daimyo's Palace.
• The four discussed legends about the Land of Hot Water as they journeyed along the road.
• Hiruzen Sarutobi stopped beside a stream and decided to teach his students the Summoning Technique.
• Hiruzen Sarutobi explained the contract scroll and summoning process, while Tsunade and Orochimaru clarified the technique for Jiraiya.

Hiruzen Sarutobi demonstrated the Summoning Technique to Tsunade, Orochimaru, and Jiraiya, but Jiraiya copied it without a contract and vanished. He landed alone in a vast forest, unsure whether he was still in the Land of Fire.

• Hiruzen Sarutobi summoned Enma to demonstrate the technique, then dismissed him after explaining the process to his students.
• Jiraiya imitated Hiruzen Sarutobi’s hand seals and used the Summoning Technique without a contract, causing him to disappear.
• Tsunade and Orochimaru worried about Jiraiya, while Hiruzen Sarutobi decided they would continue their mission at dawn and wait for Jiraiya to return.
• Jiraiya came to in a primeval forest, called out for his companions, and received no answer.

Jiraiya accidentally arrived at Mount Myōboku and interrupted a man cultivating Senjutsu, nearly causing him to turn to stone. The frogs detained him, and Jiraiya prepared to fight back.

• Jiraiya wandered through Mount Myōboku and found a shrine where clothed frogs trained.
• Jiraiya approached a man meditating by a pool, and the man began transforming into a frog.
• A large frog struck the man with an iron staff, stopping the transformation, then questioned Jiraiya.
• Jiraiya explained that he had arrived by accident, but the frog said he would be detained for interrupting Senjutsu cultivation.
• Frogs surrounded Jiraiya, and he reached into his ninja tool pouch to fight back.

Jiraiya escaped the frogs’ encirclement but was separated from his team, while Hiruzen Sarutobi continued the mission and left an Anbu behind to watch for him. In a hidden settlement in the Land of Hot Water, the Uzumaki Clan gathered as members discussed their lost homeland and the future of young Kushina Uzumaki.

• Jiraiya used a smoke bomb to escape the frogs, but their leader tracked him down and sent them chasing after him.
• The next morning, Hiruzen Sarutobi told Tsunade and Orochimaru that Jiraiya might have reached a sacred land, then left an Anbu behind to wait for his return.
• Hiruzen Sarutobi, Tsunade, and Orochimaru continued toward a hot spring town in the southeastern Land of Hot Water.
• Members of the Uzumaki Clan gathered in a secluded valley and wondered why their elder had summoned them.
• The women introduced the two-year-old Kushina Uzumaki, while the adults mourned the destruction of their village in the Land of Whirlpools.

Elder Mei Chuan told the scattered Uzumaki clan that Shui Yuan Uzumaki was alive in Konoha and had sent for them. The clan debated whether Konoha could be trusted, while a young woman said she wanted to go there with the child Kushina.

• A young clansman and another villager argued over whether the clan head and the others had failed to protect the Land of Whirlpools.
• Elder Mei Chuan quieted the gathering and announced that he had news from Konoha, prompting renewed arguments over Konoha’s role in the village’s destruction.
• Mei Chuan revealed that Shui Yuan Uzumaki was alive in Konoha and had sent people to bring the scattered clan there.
• Mei Chuan said more than two hundred clan members had settled in Konoha, where they had received land, houses, and work using their Sealing Jutsu skills.
• A scar-faced man questioned whether Konoha could be trusted, while a young woman said she wanted to go there with Kushina.

Mei Chuan decided that the Uzumaki Clan would leave its refuge and move to Konoha, where they could live safely and with dignity. Meanwhile, Jiraiya discovered he was on Mount Myōboku, but the frogs caught him again and carried him deeper into the mountains.

• Mei Chuan acknowledged the clan members’ doubts about Konoha and urged them to choose a safer future.
• Mei Chuan announced that the Uzumaki Clan would go to Konoha, and the clan members began packing to leave the next day.
• Jiraiya rested on Mount Myōboku after fleeing the frogs and realized he had reached the legendary sacred land.
• The frogs ambushed Jiraiya, tied him to a pole, and carried him away despite his protests.

Jiraiya was captured after wandering into Mount Myōboku and interrupting a Senjutsu training session. Fukasaku recognized that Jiraiya matched the Great Toad Sage’s prophecy and took Shima to seek confirmation.

• Gamabunta and the other Toads carried the bound Jiraiya through Mount Myōboku while he pleaded, threatened, and complained.
• Fukasaku and Shima met Gamabunta, who explained that Jiraiya had disturbed someone training in Senjutsu and was about to be taken into custody.
• Fukasaku recognized Jiraiya’s white hair and Konoha origins as matching the Great Toad Sage’s prophecy and ordered Gamabunta to take him to the reception area instead of locking him up.
• Fukasaku told Shima that Jiraiya might be the person prophesied to bring changes to Mount Myōboku, and they went to consult the Great Toad Sage.

The Great Toad Sage confirmed that Jiraiya was the prophesied white-haired boy and ordered Fukasaku and Shima to train him, while reflecting on an unseen person whose arrival had changed fate. Meanwhile, Kumogakure’s Anbu discovered that the Uzumaki Survivors were preparing to evacuate, leaving their operation facing a sudden change.

• Fukasaku and Shima asked the Great Toad Sage to confirm whether Jiraiya fulfilled his prophecy.
• The Great Toad Sage sensed Jiraiya and told the elders to guide his training and bring him back when the time came.
• The Great Toad Sage recalled that someone from Konoha had long been hidden from his visions and that Jiraiya’s arrival connected that person to Mount Myōboku.
• Saddam arrived at Kumogakure’s surveillance post near the Uzumaki Survivors’ settlement.
• The surveillance captain told Saddam that the settlement’s people had begun packing and appeared ready to evacuate.

Saddam prepared Kumogakure to seize the Uzumaki Survivors, while Black Zetsu planned to exploit the coming chaos to abduct Uzumaki children. In the Land of Hot Water, Tsunade and Orochimaru suspected Hiruzen Sarutobi’s visit involved more than cooperation talks.

• Saddam ordered the Kumogakure ninjas to capture all the Uzumaki Survivors alive the next day.
• Black Zetsu instructed White Zetsu to infiltrate evacuation routes and secretly take the Uzumaki children during the attack.
• Black Zetsu directed another group of White Zetsu to disguise themselves as ninjas and guide the adults toward the Land of Grass, abandoning them if necessary.
• Hiruzen Sarutobi brought Tsunade and Orochimaru to an inn in the Land of Hot Water and said he had official matters to handle.
• Tsunade asked whether Hiruzen Sarutobi had come only to discuss cooperation, and Orochimaru pointed out that the delegation’s size and members suggested otherwise.

Tsunade and Orochimaru settled in for the night while Hiruzen prepared a plan to extract Uzumaki survivors who were being watched by Kumogakure. At Mount Myōboku, Fukasaku and Shima heard a fight erupt in the reception courtyard as they went to find Jiraiya.

• Tsunade decided to explore the Land of Hot Water the next day, while Orochimaru stayed behind and privately hoped Jiraiya was lucky.
• Hiruzen learned that Kumogakure was monitoring the Uzumaki survivors and that Elder Mei Chuan had agreed to meet Konoha's people at an abandoned shrine.
• Hiruzen ordered the Anbu and Root to prepare for a possible clash and prioritize getting the Uzumaki survivors to safety.
• Hiruzen instructed the elite ninja posing as a business delegation to continue their scheduled visit to the Land of Hot Water's capital as a fallback.
• Fukasaku and Shima headed to the reception courtyard at Mount Myōboku and heard Jiraiya arguing with someone as furniture crashed.

Jiraiya and Gamabunta became close after sparring, and Gamabunta agreed to help train him on Mount Myōboku. Meanwhile, the Uzumaki Clan’s journey to safety ended in an ambush by Kumogakure ninja.

• Jiraiya and Gamabunta exchanged apologies after their fight and declared themselves brothers.
• Shima told Gamabunta that the Great Toad Sage had ordered him and the other sages to guide Jiraiya’s training, and Gamabunta eagerly agreed.
• Jiraiya asked Fukasaku and Shima to notify his companions and teacher, and Fukasaku promised they would find a way.
• Mei Chuan warned the Uzumaki Clan that danger might await them on their journey and told them to prioritize the children’s safety.
• Mei Chuan led the Uzumaki group southeast toward the rendezvous point, with Kushina and infant Nagato among them.
• Saddam of Kumogakure confronted the group, demanded they go to Kumogakure, and ordered his ninja to attack when Mei Chuan refused.

Hiruzen Sarutobi intervened when Kumogakure attacked the Uzumaki Clan, and the battle spread across the battlefield. Tsunade and Orochimaru joined the fight and worked with Hiruzen to wound Saddam.

• Hiruzen Sarutobi appeared between the Uzumaki Clan and Kumogakure, but Saddam ordered his forces to attack anyway.
• Tsunade and Orochimaru watched from a rocky outcrop while an Anbu told them to stay put.
• Kumogakure fighters pushed toward the Uzumaki Clan as White Zetsu abducted Nagato's parents and several scattered elders without being noticed.
• Tsunade rushed into battle and knocked out a Kumogakure Chunin, while Orochimaru subdued another ninja with Shuriken and a Kunai.
• Hiruzen assigned Tsunade to flank and Orochimaru to support, and their teamwork helped Hiruzen strike Saddam and cut his waist.

Hiruzen Sarutobi defeated Saddam’s Kumogakure force and escorted most of the Uzumaki Clan toward a rendezvous point, while Black Zetsu secretly abducted seven people, including infant Nagato. Saddam’s surviving subordinates offered to share responsibility for the failed mission as they prepared to return to Kumogakure.

• Hiruzen Sarutobi forced Saddam to retreat after Kumogakure lost more than twenty men and suffered heavy casualties.
• Hiruzen learned that seven Uzumaki were missing, including Uzumaki Yi Qing, Uzumaki Fu Sha, and their infant son Nagato, and sent an Anbu squad to search for them.
• Hiruzen led the surviving Uzumaki toward the rendezvous point while Tsunade and Orochimaru followed behind.
• Black Zetsu had White Zetsus carry the seven captives through underground passages toward the Land of Grass, identifying Nagato as the Rinnegan’s incubator.
• Saddam’s surviving subordinates urged him not to bear the blame alone and said they would share responsibility for the failed mission.

Saddam’s Kumogakure squad found Uzumaki Sealing Jutsu notes after failing to capture the clan, giving them a valuable prize to take back. Hiruzen arranged for the Uzumaki to reach safety, then rebuked Tsunade and Orochimaru for disobeying his orders during the battle.

• A Genin gave Saddam a booklet of Uzumaki Sealing Jutsu notes, which Saddam decided would help Kumogakure’s research.
• Saddam led his exhausted subordinates back toward their village with the notes.
• Hiruzen learned from an Anbu that the Uzumaki were withdrawing in batches toward the Land of Fire’s border, where they would be received.
• Mei Chuan thanked Hiruzen before leaving with the Uzumaki, including Kushina, for Konoha.
• Hiruzen confronted Tsunade and Orochimaru for entering the battlefield against his orders, and Orochimaru admitted he had failed to think things through.

Hiruzen warned Tsunade and Orochimaru to act carefully after their battle, while Black Zetsu and White Zetsu secretly transported abducted Uzumaki clansmen and altered their memories. Cassius recovered inside a spatial rift, broke through its weakened barrier, and escaped to search for Ray and the others.

• Hiruzen told Tsunade and Orochimaru to rest and behave while he traveled to the Land of Hot Water, and Tsunade asked whether Jiraiya was safe.
• White Zetsu used Wood Release: Pollen Hypnosis to keep the abducted Uzumaki clansmen asleep as Black Zetsu ordered their memories altered so they would believe they had been rescued.
• Black Zetsu told White Zetsu to watch infant Nagato closely, calling him the incubator of the Rinnegan.
• Cassius recovered from his injuries, noticed the spatial rift had a weakened barrier, and blasted open a passage with his Quantum Annihilation Wave.
• Cassius escaped through the passage and set out to find Ray and the others.

Cassius recovered his strength with the dark energy Phantom Blake left behind and set out to find Blake’s true body and their missing companions. In the Land of Hot Water, Hiruzen left for the capital while Tsunade explored Atami Town and Orochimaru stayed behind to write his report.

• Cassius met Phantom Blake, who explained that the group had been forced into an unfamiliar world and that Ray and the others were missing.
• Phantom Blake said he had taken the unconscious Cassius into a nearby Sora for shelter and had used Cassius’s Qiankun Reversal to restore his own bodily functions.
• Cassius absorbed the dark energy, returned to peak condition, and read the coordinates of Blake’s last known location.
• Cassius set out to find Blake’s true body.
• Hiruzen left for the capital to discuss cooperation, while Tsunade and Orochimaru stayed in the Land of Hot Water.
• Orochimaru continued writing his research report, and Tsunade walked through Atami Town.

Tsunade explored the busy streets of the Land of Hot Water, then rescued a boy from a group of men threatening him. The boy told her that children had been abducted and were being held for a sacrifice at an abandoned temple outside town.

• Tsunade enjoyed street food and performers, passed a casino without entering, and chose not to visit the open-air hot spring.
• A sugar-figurine vendor warned Tsunade that ninja had fought outside town the previous day and several people had died.
• Tsunade heard a cry for help and found several men beating a boy in an alley for what he had seen.
• Tsunade kicked the group's leader away, causing the men to flee, and told the boy to leave with her.
• The boy told Tsunade that children had disappeared, that he had found the kidnappers hiding in an abandoned temple, and that they planned to use the children for a sacrifice.

Tsunade agreed to help a boy rescue children kidnapped for a ritual and found a hidden cave where they were being held. She entered through a rear passage and located all eight children, including the boy’s captured friend, while two guards watched over them.

• After hearing that children were being kidnapped for a ritual, Tsunade decided to help the boy find the hideout.
• Tsunade and the boy reached a cave and watched its mostly ordinary occupants, spotting one man who appeared to be a low-ranking ninja.
• Tsunade gave the boy a Teleportation Talisman and told him to wait before sneaking in to rescue the captives while she drew the guards away.
• Tsunade circled the cave, found a narrow rear entrance, and slipped into a stone chamber where eight children were confined behind a wooden fence.
• Tsunade recognized the boy’s beaten friend among the captives as one of the two guards stood up to stretch.