Chapter Summaries

Hiruzen Sarutobi confronted Shimura Danzō over the Death Paper, but a paper bearing Danzō’s handwriting fell from his sleeve and appeared to confirm the accusations. The other great shinobi villages then demanded Konoha surrender the paper, leaving Hiruzen facing the threat of war.

• Hiruzen Sarutobi offered to overlook Danzō’s past if he surrendered the Death Paper, but Danzō denied possessing it.
• A paper bearing the names Kurihara Ranmaru and Minato Namikaze fell from Danzō’s sleeve, shocking him and convincing Hiruzen that the Canopy Screen’s claims were true.
• Hiruzen let Danzō leave because Root was too powerful to confront without risking Konoha’s security, then kept the paper on his person.
• Fourth Raikage A demanded that Konoha hand over the Death Paper, while envoys from the other major villages arrived with the same demand.
• Hiruzen attended a remote Five Kage Summit where Fourth Raikage A, Ōnoki, Mei Terumi, and Baki threatened extraordinary measures if Konoha refused to surrender the paper.

Hiruzen Sarutobi rejected the other Kage’s demand for joint control of the Death Paper but agreed to explain how its death rule could be broken. Afterward, Sasuke Uchiha questioned how Naraka and Danzo were involved in the Uchiha massacre and what Itachi had known.

• Hiruzen Sarutobi refused to hand the Death Paper over or place it under the Five Kage’s joint supervision, declaring that Konoha would fight if necessary.
• Hiruzen offered to explain how to break the Death Paper’s death rule, and the Kage accepted the compromise before he ended the communication.
• Hiruzen worried that a major conflict was approaching but stood by his decision to keep the village’s safety in Konoha’s hands.
• Sasuke Uchiha brooded over the Canopy Screen’s revelation that Danzo and Naraka had plotted against the Uchiha.
• Sasuke wondered whether Itachi had known about Naraka, been manipulated by Danzo, or carried out the massacre for reasons he could not reveal.

Minato and Kushina prepared to seal the Nine-Tails and save Naruto, but the Death Paper weakened Kushina’s chains and the beast fatally impaled them. The chapter ended with Minato holding his family close and reassuring Kushina as he died.

• Minato summoned Gamabunta and used Flying Thunder God Guiding Thunder to transport the Nine-Tails to a distant valley, where Kushina restrained it with her chains.
• Kushina accepted that she was dying, but Minato decided to use the Reaper Death Seal and seal half of the Nine-Tails’ Chakra inside himself.
• Minato and Kushina argued over Naruto’s future before Minato sealed half the Nine-Tails’ Chakra and prepared to seal the rest inside Naruto.
• Shimura Danzō’s Death Paper caused Kushina’s chains to loosen, allowing the Nine-Tails to strike at Naruto.
• Minato shielded Kushina and Naruto from the Nine-Tails’ claw, which pierced both Minato and Kushina, and he comforted her as his life faded.

The Canopy Screen showed Minato and Kushina entrusting their remaining strength and the Nine-Tails’ other half to Naruto before they died. After Naruto erupted in grief and vowed to seek justice, Hiruzen revealed that he was Minato and Kushina’s son, leaving Konoha ashamed and Shimura Danzō contemptuous.

• Kushina poured her remaining Chakra and Minato’s half of the Nine-Tails into Naruto, and Minato completed the Eight Trigrams Sealing Style.
• Naruto learned that Danzo, Nine Nether, Naraka, and the Akatsuki Organization had killed his parents and broke down in rage and grief.
• Naruto remembered the people who had cared for him and resolved to grow stronger, protect his loved ones, and seek justice for his parents.
• Hiruzen announced that Naruto was the orphaned son of Minato Namikaze and Kushina Uzumaki, the new Nine-Tails Jinchuriki entrusted to Konoha.
• Konoha residents felt ashamed over how they had treated Naruto, while Iruka wept and Shimura Danzō criticized Hiruzen.

After grieving over his parents and vowing to take revenge on Shimura Danzō, Naruto was persuaded by Mizuki to steal the Scroll of Seals. Naruto entered the Hokage Building’s secret room, unaware that Mizuki was leading him into danger.

• Naruto mourned his parents and resolved to become strong enough to defeat Shimura Danzō.
• Mizuki visited Naruto at night and used his failed graduation exam and desire for revenge to gain his trust.
• Mizuki told Naruto to steal the Scroll of Seals, promising it would let him graduate and learn powerful ninjutsu.
• Naruto overcame his doubts and agreed to steal the scroll before dawn and meet Mizuki in the forest.
• Naruto found the Hokage Building unguarded and slipped into the room containing its secret materials.

Naruto broke into the Hokage Building, stole the Scroll of Seals and the Sheep Talisman, then learned the Multiple Shadow Clone Technique in the woods. Iruka confronted him and was wounded shielding him from Mizuki’s attack, as Mizuki revealed he had manipulated Naruto to steal the scroll for him.

• Hiruzen saw Naruto break into the Hokage Building but chose not to summon ANBU, and Naruto entered the protected Archives Room.
• Naruto searched unsuccessfully for the Death Paper, then stole the Sheep Talisman before taking the Scroll of Seals.
• Hyuga Xiu revealed that he had arranged for Naruto to find and take the Sheep Talisman to generate more Belief Points.
• Naruto practiced the Multiple Shadow Clone Technique in the training woods and successfully created many clones.
• Iruka arrived and questioned Naruto about the stolen scroll, learning that Mizuki had sent him to steal it.
• Mizuki attacked Naruto and Iruka with Kunai; Iruka shielded Naruto and was wounded, while Mizuki mocked Naruto and admitted he had used him.

Naruto defeated Mizuki with the Multiple Shadow Clone Technique, and Iruka declared that he had passed the graduation exam. As Iruka welcomed Naruto as a Konoha Ninja, Shimura Danzō arrived with Root agents and demanded that Naruto surrender for stealing the Scroll of Seals.

• Naruto reacted to Mizuki's betrayal by using the Multiple Shadow Clone Technique to overwhelm him.
• Iruka praised Naruto for using his power to protect others and declared that he had passed the graduation exam.
• Iruka tied his forehead protector around Naruto's head, and Naruto wept with joy and vowed to become Hokage.
• Shimura Danzō arrived with two Root agents and ordered Naruto to surrender so Root could take custody of him.

Naruto confronted Danzo after realizing he had orchestrated Mizuki's scheme, but Root captured him before Hiruzen arrived to stop Danzo from taking custody. Hiruzen claimed authority over Naruto's punishment and defended him as a child who had defeated a traitor and could become a loyal ninja.

• Naruto accused Danzo of sending Mizuki to trick him and attacked Danzo with Shadow Clones.
• Danzo's two Root ninja destroyed Naruto's clones, restrained him, and prepared to bind him with a Chakra-binding chain.
• Hiruzen arrived with ANBU and ordered Root to leave Naruto's case to him.
• Danzo argued that Naruto's theft of the Scroll of Seals and the danger of the Nine-Tails demanded severe action.
• Hiruzen blamed Mizuki, called Naruto's actions a prank, and said Naruto had shown the resolve to protect Konoha.
• Hiruzen said he trusted Minato's seal and Naruto, and urged Danzo to guide Naruto rather than imprison him.

Hiruzen overruled Danzo and let Naruto go home after the Scroll of Seals incident. Naruto discovered he had taken the Sheep Talisman, tested it without success, and fell asleep holding it as it began to glow and showed him something impossible.

• Hiruzen declared that Mizuki had plotted the incident, kept Root from interfering, and dismissed Danzo’s objections.
• Hiruzen reassured Naruto, lectured him, and allowed him to go home.
• Naruto found the Sheep Talisman he had taken from Hiruzen’s room and decided to test it before returning it.
• Naruto tried several ways to activate the talisman, but it did not respond, so he fell asleep on the floor holding it.
• The Sheep Talisman began to glow while Naruto slept, and he saw something impossible.

Naruto briefly left his body and encountered the Demon Fox before waking in his room with the Sheep Talisman. The Canopy Screen then showed Mahito delivering the Snake Talisman to the Lord of the Nine Nether, who praised him but did not explain why he was collecting the talismans.

• Naruto saw his soul floating above his sleeping body and tried to return to it.
• Naruto entered a dark, flooded space and faced the Demon Fox behind an iron cage.
• Naruto returned to his body, woke in his room, and found the Sheep Talisman in his hand.
• The Canopy Screen showed black-clad ninjas bringing Mahito to the Shadow Kingdom and the Lord of the Nine Nether.
• Mahito gave the Snake Talisman to the Lord of the Nine Nether, who praised him and kept the talisman beside his half Tiger Talisman.
• Mahito asked the Lord of the Nine Nether why they were collecting the talismans.

After the Canopy Screen revealed Nine Nether’s plan to gather the Twelve Talismans, the shinobi villages and Akatsuki reacted to the threat. Black Zetsu compared the Lord of Nine Nether to Hagoromo Otsutsuki, and Pain ordered Akatsuki to retreat into the shadows and investigate.

• The Soul Chatroom opened, where the leaders of the Great Shinobi Villages proposed an alliance and ordered searches for the Talismans; Sasuke Uchiha confronted Itachi Uchiha, and Kakashi Hatake confronted Obito Uchiha.
• Jiraiya wondered about the Lord of Nine Nether’s Rinnegan before being discovered and beaten out of Konoha’s Women’s Bathhouse.
• Deva Path Pain, Konan, Obito Uchiha, and Black Zetsu met in Amegakure to discuss Nine Nether and the Talismans.
• Black Zetsu said the Lord of Nine Nether’s aura and eyes reminded him of Hagoromo Otsutsuki and warned that the Talismans could make him a threat beyond the Five Great Nations.
• Deva Path Pain ordered Akatsuki to suspend large-scale Tailed Beast captures, gather information on Nine Nether, and avoid direct confrontation.

Naruto used the Sheep Talisman to enter the seal again and confront the Nine-Tails, hoping to understand why it hated him. The Nine-Tails blamed humans and the Uzumaki clan for its imprisonment, while Naruto explained that he had also suffered because of it.

• Naruto remembered his previous visit to the Nine-Tails and discovered that the Sheep Talisman could send his soul out of his body.
• Naruto decided to keep the talisman, convincing himself that it was safer with him and that he had a right to use it to understand the Nine-Tails.
• Naruto used the talisman again and stood before the Nine-Tails' sealed cage.
• Naruto introduced himself and declared that he would become Hokage, but the Nine-Tails mocked him as its vessel.
• Naruto asked why the Nine-Tails hated him, and the fox blamed humans and the Uzumaki clan for binding and exploiting it.
• Naruto said he had not caused the Nine-Tails' suffering and told it that people had hated him and he had grown up alone because of it.

Naruto used the Sheep Talisman to speak with the Nine-Tails again, then explored Konoha in his soul form and discovered the vast barrier protecting the village. He returned to his room with a new understanding of how heavily Konoha was guarded.

• Naruto ended his failed conversation with the Nine-Tails and returned to his body, convinced the fox might be more complicated than he had thought.
• Naruto struggled with Chakra control during Team 7's D-rank missions, causing trouble for Sasuke and Haruno Sakura and earning Sakura's punches.
• Naruto used the Sheep Talisman to leave his body and explore Konoha at night.
• Naruto saw a massive Chakra barrier covering Konoha, with its defenses concentrated around the Hokage Building and village walls.
• Naruto realized the village had likely treated him as one of its own when he stole the Scroll of Seals, allowing him to evade the barrier's highest alert.

Naruto triggered the Hokage Building's Barrier while spying on Hiruzen, prompting an ANBU search, then entered Haruno Sakura's dream. He found Sakura happily embraced by Sasuke Uchiha, leaving him heartbroken.

• Naruto tried to pass through the Hokage Building's Barrier, which detected his soul and forced him back.
• Hiruzen Sarutobi sensed the Barrier's warning, summoned ANBU, and ordered a search around the Hokage Building.
• Naruto fled home while ANBU searched, then botched another mission the following day and felt ashamed when Kakashi had to apologize and pay compensation.
• Naruto used Soul Departure to visit Sakura's room and touched the glowing light above her forehead, entering her dream.
• Naruto saw Sakura embracing Sasuke Uchiha in her dream and was devastated by her affection for him.

Naruto entered Sakura's dream and accidentally woke her, then visited Sasuke's nightmare and shielded him from the dream version of Itachi. Sasuke woke without the nightmare returning and began to regard Naruto as someone dear to him.

• Naruto interrupted Sakura's dream of Sasuke, causing the dream to shatter and Sakura to wake up annoyed with him.
• Naruto left Sakura's room and entered Sasuke's nightmare, where Sasuke relived the massacre and Itachi urged him to hate.
• Naruto stood between young Sasuke and Itachi, condemning hatred and insisting that people should understand one another.
• Naruto's words broke the nightmare, and Sasuke felt a faint warmth toward him before the dream ended.
• Sasuke woke in a cold sweat, but the nightmare did not return, and he kept thinking about Naruto.

Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura spent a month completing missions and growing stronger before the Canopy Screen revealed a tense Uchiha meeting after the Nine-Tails Incident. Itachi watched the images in the Land of Water and recalled that he had stayed silent because he feared a coup would leave Konoha in ruins.

• Naruto joined Sasuke Uchiha and Haruno Sakura for another round of missions, and Sasuke began treating Naruto with less contempt.
• Team 7 completed more than ten D-rank missions and two C-rank missions over the next month, improving their combat skills.
• The Canopy Screen showed Uchiha clan members condemning Konoha's treatment of them and calling for a coup.
• Fugaku Uchiha urged the clan to avoid civil war, while Shisui Uchiha asked them to trust their efforts toward a peaceful solution.
• Itachi Uchiha watched the images in an inn in the Land of Water and remembered that he had feared a coup would destroy Konoha.

Hiruzen Sarutobi watched the Uchiha’s suffering and recognized how his tacit approval of Shimura Danzō’s schemes had helped push the clan toward disaster. The next day, the Canopy Screen showed Danzō explaining to the Demon Naraka why he could not yet provoke the Uchiha into a full rebellion.

• Sasuke Uchiha recalled the tense year before the massacre and realized the Uchiha tragedy had not begun overnight.
• Hiruzen Sarutobi recognized that Shimura Danzō had spread fear and framed the Uchiha while he had allowed it, and he questioned his own role.
• Shimura Danzō wondered about his connection to Nine Nether and Naraka as other villages and the Akatsuki Organization showed little interest.
• The Canopy Screen showed Naraka mocking Shimura Danzō for failing to provoke the Uchiha into rebellion.
• Shimura Danzō told Naraka that Hiruzen Sarutobi’s oversight and the risk of alerting Fugaku Uchiha constrained his schemes, and that he wanted a rebellion that would justify eliminating the clan.

Naraka urged Shimura Danzō to use the Death Paper to kill Hiruzen Sarutobi, but a memory of Hiruzen saving him during the First Shinobi World War kept Danzō from acting. Naraka decided to provoke a bloody conflict involving the Uchiha and ordered Danzō to prepare Root.

• Naraka pressured Shimura Danzō to kill Hiruzen Sarutobi and take control of Konoha.
• Danzō remembered Hiruzen shielding him and taking Kunai wounds during a battle in the First Shinobi World War.
• Danzō and Hiruzen fought side by side, combining Wind Release and Fire Release to attack their enemies.
• Danzō refused to write on the Death Paper despite Naraka mocking his attachment to Hiruzen.
• Naraka announced he would use Uchiha blood to provoke a conflict and told Danzō to ready Root.

After watching the Canopy Screen, Hiruzen Sarutobi and Danzo both grappled with the remnants of their former bond and the possibility that Danzo would act against Hiruzen. Outside Konoha, Tsunade joked about young Danzo before warning that she and Shizune might have to confront him when they returned.

• Hiruzen Sarutobi remembered fighting beside Danzo and wondered whether their friendship could still change Danzo’s path, but decided that approaching him would only deepen the rift.
• Danzo tried to convince himself that Hiruzen had once saved him only for Konoha, yet the memory left him doubting whether he could strike Hiruzen.
• Danzo questioned where Naraka was and whether the Canopy Screen had shown the truth.
• Tsunade laughed at young Danzo’s appearance, then recalled how he had once seemed like a Ninja who could walk in the sunshine.
• Tsunade told Shizune they might have to deal with Danzo after returning to the village.

After seeing young Shimura Danzō fight beside Hiruzen Sarutobi, Naruto struggled to reconcile that image with the man who had caused his family’s tragedy. Fearing that becoming Hokage might push Sasuke into the same darkness, Naruto vowed to change the village and the meaning of Hokage.

• Naruto watched Shimura Danzō and Hiruzen Sarutobi fight together and questioned how Danzō had become cruel.
• Naruto connected Danzō’s past with Sasuke’s nightmare and feared that his own choices as Hokage could drive Sasuke into darkness.
• Naruto resolved to become Hokage without following Hiruzen Sarutobi’s or Danzō’s path.
• Naruto vowed to build an honest village that did not rely on Root’s secret schemes and to protect Sasuke from darkness.