Chapter Summaries

Naruto disguised himself as Kurosaki Ichigo and tried to join Akatsuki after encountering Kakuzu at the Underground Exchange Office. Kakuzu recognized Naruto as the Nine-Tailed Jinchuriki despite his alias and grew suspicious and hostile.

• Kakuzu recalled how an impostor using his name had earned him a 540-million-ryo bounty and caused ninja from several villages to hunt him.
• Naruto visited the Underground Exchange Office, noticed his teammates' bounties, and accepted Sakura's 200-ryo mission to protect her.
• Kakuzu arrived to investigate Naruto and spotted the yellow-haired boy he had come to find.
• Naruto introduced himself to Kakuzu as Kurosaki Ichigo, a Kusagakure ninja seeking to join Akatsuki.
• Kakuzu checked Naruto's photo, recognized him as the Nine-Tailed Jinchuriki, and asked whether Kurosaki Ichigo was really his name.

Naruto bribed Kakuzu with gold to help him join the Akatsuki, despite Kakuzu revealing the organization’s plan to capture the Tailed Beasts. Kakuzu agreed to get Naruto in, provided he hid that he was the Nine-Tailed Jinchuriki, and began treating him as his boss.

• Naruto drew attention at the Gold Exchange by showing Kakuzu gold bricks, prompting the crowd to attack them and try to seize the gold.
• Kakuzu fought off and killed the attackers while Naruto watched, then demanded the gold Naruto had been holding.
• Naruto gave Kakuzu two gold bricks and offered more in exchange for help joining the Akatsuki.
• Kakuzu refused at first, explaining that the Akatsuki did not accept Tailed Beast Jinchuriki, but revealed that it planned to capture the Tailed Beasts from every village.
• Naruto offered Kakuzu more gold, and Kakuzu agreed to find a way to get him into the organization if he kept his identity as the Nine-Tailed Jinchuriki secret.
• Naruto gave Kakuzu two more gold bricks, and Kakuzu stored the ten bricks in a Sealing Scroll before leading Naruto onward.

Naruto entered Amegakure disguised as Kurosaki Ichigo, hoping to join Akatsuki while hiding that he was the Nine-Tailed Jinchuriki. Sasori recognized the Gelel Stone’s power and mistook Naruto for the Church of the Mechanical God’s Bishop, while Pain angrily confronted Kakuzu and Naruto at the entrance.

• Naruto followed Kakuzu into Amegakure and put on a scratched Kusagakure forehead protector, claiming to be Kurosaki Ichigo.
• Sasori and Deidara sensed the Gelel Stone’s power in Naruto, and Sasori greeted him as the Church of the Mechanical God’s Bishop.
• Kakuzu pulled Naruto away from Sasori, while Sasori and Deidara followed them for their own reasons.
• Pain appeared at Akatsuki’s gate and demanded to know why Kakuzu had brought an outsider.
• Pain struck Kakuzu aside, and Naruto introduced himself as a Kusagakure ninja seeking to join Akatsuki and bring about world peace.

Naruto joined Akatsuki and left Amegakure with Sasori and Deidara to capture Gaara, but the two quickly urged him to abandon the organization and return to their church. The chapter ended with Naruto revealing a Gelel Stone, which made Sasori praise him and Deidara resolve to steal it.

• Pain ordered Naruto, Sasori, and Deidara to bring back One Tail within three days, then pulled Kakuzu aside to talk.
• Outside Amegakure, Deidara accused Naruto of infiltrating Akatsuki and demanded his Gelel Stone, while Sasori defended Naruto as a Bishop of the Church of the Mechanical God.
• Deidara realized Naruto was the Nine-Tailed Jinchuriki and Sasori produced Cyber Puppets, but Naruto stopped their fight by reminding them of Pain's mission.
• Sasori and Deidara urged Naruto to leave Akatsuki, admitting they had ignored the mission to capture One Tail for two years and had repeatedly deceived Pain.
• Naruto revealed a thumb-sized Gelel Stone, prompting Sasori to praise him and Deidara to decide to take the stone for himself.

Naruto led Sasori and Deidara toward Sunagakure to capture Gaara’s tailed beast, offering them Gelel Stones as a reward. Gaara mistook the Akatsuki arrivals for a threat to the Church of the Mechanical God’s plan to secede from the Wind Country, and Sasori revealed that plan to Naruto.

• Naruto tempted Sasori and Deidara with Gelel Stones and recruited them to help capture Gaara without killing him.
• Naruto opened a Light Gate and brought Sasori and Deidara to the outskirts of New Sand Village in Akatsuki uniforms.
• The Church of the Mechanical God’s watchers spotted them and sounded an alarm, prompting Gaara to call Sasori for intelligence.
• Gaara told Sasori that the Wind Country’s Feudal Lord had hired Akatsuki and asked whether their plan had been exposed.
• Sasori pulled Naruto aside and explained that the Church of the Mechanical God planned to break away from the Wind Country.

Naruto told Gaara that Akatsuki planned to capture the Tailed Beasts, and Gaara agreed to have Shukaku extracted. Shukaku took over Gaara and invaded Naruto’s Sealing Space to seal Kurama away, but found Kurama living there as an enormous, pot-bellied pig.

• Naruto explained Akatsuki’s plan to capture the Tailed Beasts, and Gaara said he had already prepared a new body for the extraction.
• Shukaku took control of Gaara’s body and accused Naruto of planning to capture and seal him away.
• Shukaku invaded Naruto’s consciousness and claimed his technique would seal Kurama away for good.
• Shukaku discovered that Naruto’s Sealing Space contained varied landscapes and animals, then saw Kurama eating from a gigantic pot.
• Shukaku laughed at Kurama’s enormous size, and Kurama dropped his chopsticks in fright.

Kurama brutally beat Shukaku after Shukaku mocked his appearance and called him Immortal Emperor, but Naruto stopped him from killing the One-Tail. Naruto went to the Sealing Space to seek help sealing Shukaku and encountered Minato, who mistook Kurama for the Nine-Tails.

• Shukaku mocked Kurama's swollen appearance, and Kurama grabbed him and slammed him into the ground.
• Naruto, Sasori, and Deidara tried to stop Kurama, but Kurama sent Sasori and Deidara flying and continued beating Shukaku.
• Naruto persuaded Kurama to spare Shukaku so he could be sealed inside Naruto and beaten later.
• Naruto suspected his parents' residual Chakra could help with the sealing, and Kurama gave him half an hour to find a solution.
• Naruto entered the Sealing Space and reached for Kurama's Sealing Tag, but Minato grabbed his wrist.
• Minato failed to recognize Kurama and called him the Nine-Tails, so Naruto covered Minato's mouth before Kurama could react.

Minato learned that Naruto was the Fifth Kazekage and prepared to help him deal with Shukaku. The chapter ended with Minato realizing Naruto wanted him to seal the One Tail inside Naruto, who already hosted Kurama.

• Naruto told Minato he was the Fifth Kazekage, then left the Sealing Space and urged him to help seal the One Tail.
• Kurama lent Minato his Chakra, while Shukaku retreated into Gaara and trembled in fear.
• Gaara brought out a mechanical replica of himself and asked Naruto whether he should kill himself to begin the process.
• Naruto placed the Undying Totem before him and told Minato to undo Gaara's seal and seal Shukaku inside Naruto.
• Minato began forming hand seals, then realized Naruto intended to host a second Tailed Beast alongside Kurama.

Naruto reassured Minato that sealing Shukaku inside him would be safe, but Minato refused out of concern for his son. Kurama took matters into his own hands, and Naruto helped begin removing the seal from Gaara.

• Kurama provoked Minato and urged Naruto to let Shukaku be sealed inside him.
• Naruto told Minato that sealing even all nine Tailed Beasts inside him would not harm him, while Kurama defended Naruto's strength.
• Minato refused to approve the sealing, admitting he had failed Naruto as a father and wanted him to grow up healthy and happy.
• Shukaku urged them to proceed, fearing Kurama might kill him and preferring to be sealed inside Naruto to staying with Gaara.
• Kurama bypassed Minato and reached for Gaara's stomach with a massive Chakra hand as Naruto reassured his father.
• Naruto knocked Gaara unconscious with the Undying Totem while Kurama began undoing the seal.

Naruto revived Gaara and said goodbye to Minato, then left with Sasori and Deidara. Kankuro ordered a cannon barrage on Akatsuki’s base, leaving Nagato to suspect that Akatsuki had a traitor.

• Naruto restored Gaara with the Undying Totem, leaving Gaara, Sasori, and Deidara unsure how to explain that One Tail was sealed inside him.
• Minato’s remaining Chakra began to fade, and he told Naruto to take care of himself before disappearing.
• Naruto shouted to Minato to beat up Kakashi the next time they met.
• Kankuro ordered the Myriad Insect Puppet to fire its Chakra Cannons at Akatsuki headquarters, then retreated.
• Naruto mistook Sunagakure’s cannon fire for fireworks and left with Sasori and Deidara.
• Nagato used the Six Paths to block part of the barrage, but the remaining attacks damaged Akatsuki’s base and made him suspect a traitor.

Naruto, Sasori, and Deidara returned to Akatsuki after claiming to capture the One Tail with a tiny portion of Shukaku's chakra. They arrived to find the base damaged, and Pain summoned the members to announce he suspected a spy; Naruto realized the White Masked Man was Itachi rather than Obito.

• Naruto, Sasori, and Deidara obtained one-tenth of Shukaku's chakra, which became a teapot-sized tanuki, and Naruto gave them Gelel Stones as their rewards.
• The three returned to Akatsuki's damaged base, where Konan summoned them to a conference meeting.
• Naruto warned Sasori and Deidara not to let their cover story slip, while he worried about seeing Obito.
• Naruto recognized that the White Masked Man was Itachi, not Obito.
• Pain announced that Akatsuki's base had been attacked and said he suspected a spy had revealed its location.
• Sasori nearly tried to self-destruct when he thought the attack might have exposed him, but Naruto stopped him.

Pain accused Itachi Uchiha of being an undercover agent and demanded to know why he had failed to gather intelligence on Naruto. Naruto, Sasori, and Deidara passed off the tiny Shukaku as the captured One Tail, and Deidara ended the meeting by calling for action against Itachi.

• Pain accused Itachi Uchiha of leaking information, citing his strange behavior and repeated failures to find Naruto.
• Kisame tried to defend Itachi, but Pain struck him into the conference room wall.
• Itachi argued that Sasori and Deidara were more suspicious because they skipped meetings, and Naruto presented Shukaku in a teapot as proof they had captured the One Tail.
• Naruto, Deidara, and Kakuzu backed up the claim that Shukaku had already been palm-sized when they captured him, and Pain let the matter drop.
• Pain again challenged Itachi over his lack of intelligence on Naruto, and Deidara stood up and called for everyone to get the undercover agent.

After the One-Tail mission, Naruto returned to the village to find Sasuke while injured Obito recovered in the Kamui Dimension. Black Zetsu discovered leftover Yang Power in Kakashi’s discarded bottles and used it to heal Obito, who prepared to face the powerful enemy in the sky.

• Nagato sealed the One-Tail Chakra into the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path, praised Sasori, Deidara, and Naruto, and told them to lie low.
• Naruto decided to return to the village and tell Sasuke that Itachi had defected again.
• In the Kamui Dimension, Black Zetsu found discarded bottles containing traces of powerful Yang Power and believed they could heal Obito.
• Black Zetsu gathered the leftover liquid and persuaded Obito to drink it by reminding him of the Eye of the Moon Plan and Rin.
• Obito drank the medicine, and its Yang Power healed his injuries enough for him to sit up.

Kakashi pretended to be controlled by Hiruko so he could find out who was targeting him, then struck Hiruko’s Shadow Clone with Purple Lightning. Hiruko escaped, and Naruto, Sasuke, and Kakashi returned to the village.

• Naruto spotted sleepwalking Kakashi leaving Konoha and contacted Sasuke for help.
• Sasuke joined Naruto at the village entrance, where they saw Hiruko approach Kakashi and boast about taking his Sharingan.
• Kakashi revealed he had regained consciousness earlier and let Hiruko lead him out of the village to identify his attacker.
• Kakashi pierced Hiruko with Purple Lightning, but Hiruko vanished as a Shadow Clone.
• Sasuke and Naruto dismissed the threat and started back, while Kakashi touched the glowing mark on his forehead and followed them.

Sasuke and Naruto learned that Hiruko had abducted Mitsuki and helped Orochimaru organize a search. Hiruko held Mitsuki captive, intending to use him to send a message to Orochimaru.

• Kakashi left to report the night's events to Tsunade, but Orochimaru called Sasuke to ask whether Mitsuki was with him.
• Sasuke and Naruto went to Orochimaru's base and told him that Kakashi had encountered Hiruko, who appeared to be after the Sharingan.
• Orochimaru ordered Yakushi Kabuto and the others to find Hiruko and bring him back alive.
• Naruto stayed at the base while Sasuke waited with Orochimaru for news.
• Hiruko restrained Mitsuki, who insulted him and insisted his fathers would come for him.
• Hiruko told Mitsuki that he and Orochimaru were old acquaintances.

Sasuke learned that Itachi had infiltrated Akatsuki and asked Naruto to help him find Itachi so he could kill him. When Hiruko announced the Fourth Shinobi World War through a projection across the world, Tsunade dismissed it and went back to sleep while other villages prepared for war.

• Naruto told Sasuke that Itachi had been an undercover agent in Akatsuki, and Sasuke asked Naruto to help him find Itachi so he could kill him.
• A giant projection of Hiruko appeared in the sky across the world, prompting Naruto and Sasuke to go outside and investigate.
• Hiruko recounted his rise from a Konoha defector and declared the beginning of the Fourth Shinobi World War.
• Tsunade ignored Jiraiya's warning and went back to sleep, and the Anbu dispersed after deciding the threat was not serious enough to worry about.
• The other villages prepared for war, while Ōnoki and the Raikage reacted furiously to Hiruko's projection.

Hiruko ended his boastful livestream after Mitsuki insulted him, while Sasuke worried that Itachi had heard about his child. Pain assigned Kurosaki Ichigo and Hidan to kill Hiruko, and Sasuke accompanied Naruto to meet Hidan, where the two clashed immediately.

• Hiruko bragged about his research and power before Mitsuki insulted him on the livestream, prompting him to end the broadcast.
• Sasuke left in a fury, and Itachi heard the exchange and wondered about Sasuke's child and how strong his brother had become.
• Naruto stopped Sasuke from leaving and answered Pain's call, accepting a mission with Hidan to bring back Hiruko's head.
• Naruto held Sasuke back and went with him to meet Hidan after Pain gave them their meeting place.
• Hidan swung his scythe at Sasuke, who dodged and kicked him in the face before asking Naruto if Hidan was really his teammate.

Naruto recognized Boruto speaking through Hidan and attacked him for stealing his book, while Sasuke confronted Hiruko. The chapter left Sasuke apparently in danger as Hiruko's lightning strike reached his neck.

• Naruto heard Boruto's voice from Hidan and accused him of stealing his book.
• Naruto sent Sasuke to rescue Mitsuki and confronted Boruto, who insisted Naruto was not his father and pleaded that he was not crazy.
• Hidan's tongue pulled Naruto in, but Naruto activated Sage Mode and struck Boruto with the black coffin.
• Naruto repeatedly beat Boruto, who was possessing Hidan's immortal body.
• Sasuke faced Hiruko, who used Storm Release to appear beside him and slash lightning toward his neck.

Naruto learned that Boruto had been hearing strange voices and could possess people from other worlds, but Boruto’s connection abruptly ended before he revealed more. Sasuke returned with Hiruko dead and brushed off Naruto’s questions about his strength as luck.

• Shukaku tried to tell Kurama that he sensed Chakra like an old man's, but Kurama whipped him before he could finish.
• Naruto questioned Boruto, who said he had nightmares, heard strange voices, and discovered he could possess people from other worlds.
• Boruto's connection to Hidan's body ended before Naruto could learn the whole truth, and Hidan woke up insisting he had heard Jashin's summons.
• Naruto checked on Mitsuki, who began crying and tried to tell him about the white-haired man.
• Sasuke appeared with Hiruko's dead body, claimed his recent strength came from luck, and asked Naruto if he wanted the head.

Obito came to kill Kakashi but fled after finding him posing in a qipao, leaving Kakashi unaware of who had visited. Elsewhere, Naruto encountered Whirlpool Stark arguing with the Impure World Third Hokage about researching Impure World Reincarnation.

• Kakashi admired his oversized qipao doll and changed into the outfit while alone at home.
• Black Zetsu reminded Obito that Kakashi had killed Rin, and Obito entered Kakashi's house intent on confronting him.
• Obito saw Kakashi posing in the qipao, lost his killing intent, and used Kamui to escape with Black Zetsu.
• Kakashi found the door open and suspected Naruto had witnessed him, unaware that Obito had been there.
• Naruto arrived at his territory and saw Whirlpool Stark and the Impure World Third Hokage arguing over Impure World Reincarnation research.
• Whirlpool Stark and the Third Hokage spotted Naruto as he tried to slip away.