Recaps

Madara confronted Black Zetsu over his identity and the altered Uchiha stone tablet, then destroyed him. Meanwhile, Obito planned to use Impure World Reincarnation to revive Kinkaku and Ginkaku, and targeted Tsunade for information about their bodies.

• Black Zetsu returned to Madara and claimed he had been scouting Konoha, but Madara questioned his whereabouts and knowledge of Indra.
• Madara accused Black Zetsu of tampering with the Uchiha stone tablet and burned him into black mist with a jutsu.
• Tsunade and Shikaku hurried back toward Konoha and encountered thousands of white figures blocking their route.
• Obito mourned his bond with Tobi but resolved to continue the Infinite Tsukuyomi alone.
• Obito studied the Impure World Reincarnation Jutsu and planned to revive Kinkaku and Ginkaku to restore the Ten-Tails.
• Obito entered White Zetsu's ambush perimeter and decided he needed Tsunade to learn where Kinkaku's and Ginkaku's bodies were.

Obito captured Tsunade and demanded the location of Kinkaku and Ginkaku’s remains, but Shikaku deduced why he wanted them and offered to help him obtain a better result. Shikaku asked Obito to spare Tsunade’s life, leaving Obito to consider the request.

• Obito lifted Tsunade and demanded to know where Kinkaku and Ginkaku’s remains were, while Tsunade refused to reveal their location.
• Obito prepared to use the Rinnegan’s Human Path to extract information from Tsunade, but Shikaku interrupted and deduced that Obito wanted the brothers’ Nine-Tails chakra for his plan.
• Shikaku reasoned that Obito was seeking an inferior substitute for the tailed-beast component he lacked, and Obito praised his intelligence.
• Shikaku offered to help Obito obtain the real version of his desired outcome and volunteered to submit to Sharingan control.
• Obito agreed to hear Shikaku’s request, and Shikaku asked him to spare Tsunade’s life.

Madara killed Black Zetsu and reaffirmed his commitment to the Eye of the Moon plan, preparing to face the coming battle without considering retreat. In Sunagakure, Konoha’s refugees speculated about their missing leaders and mysterious rescuers, while Gaara withdrew after learning of Konoha’s destruction and was approached by a pink-haired girl.

• Madara discovered that killing Black Zetsu had not changed the Black Cursed Seal and dismissed Asura’s warnings about the stone tablet and Infinite Tsukuyomi.
• Madara considered the risks posed by Sasuke and Naruto, then rejected the idea of preparing an escape route and vowed to prove himself right.
• Madara glanced at Izuna’s sealed resting place and left, resolving to devote himself to the battle twenty-one days later.
• In Sunagakure, Konoha’s refugees grew anxious about Tsunade and Shikaku’s silence, while Kurenai Yuhi and Might Guy identified the genjutsu user as Uchiha Itachi and wondered who had helped him form the Four Red Yang Formation.
• Gaara mourned Naruto’s unfair fate as he stood alone beneath the moon, then noticed a pink-haired girl approaching from the shadows.

Sakura told Gaara that Sasuke’s apparent attack on Konoha contradicted a dream she had experienced under his Genjutsu, and asked him to help uncover the truth. Gaara refused to intervene, urging her to make her own choice, and wondered whether Sasuke had ever expected anything of him.

• Gaara recognized Sakura and listened as she explained that Naruto had been controlled during the attack on Konoha.
• Sakura said Sasuke could not truly have joined Naruto, but struggled to explain why; Gaara promised to hear her out.
• Sakura recounted her decades-spanning dream of Sasuke’s experiences and argued that she had felt his genuine emotions through the Genjutsu.
• Gaara questioned how Sakura could know the dream was real, then asked what she hoped to accomplish by telling him.
• Sakura asked Gaara to help because Tsunade had not returned, but he refused to interfere in Konoha’s affairs and told her to make her own choice.
• Gaara suggested Sasuke had shown Sakura the truth so she could choose for herself, then privately wondered if Sasuke had ever expected anything of him.

Sakura resolved to stop relying on others and summoned Katsuyu to seek help finding Tsunade. Katsuyu agreed to contact Mount Myōboku after Sakura risked her life on her suspicion that Obito Uchiha had captured Tsunade.

• Sakura told Gaara she wanted a secluded place to attempt a summoning, and he brought her to his father's tomb.
• Sakura explained that she needed Katsuyu to help locate Tsunade and successfully summoned a small Katsuyu clone.
• Katsuyu revealed that her main body had failed to reverse-summon Tsunade, suggesting Tsunade was either dead or trapped in another dimension.
• Sakura suspected Obito Uchiha had taken Tsunade and asked Katsuyu to contact the Great Toad Sage so he could reach Jiraiya.
• Katsuyu questioned whether Sakura's information was reliable, and Sakura admitted it was only a suspicion before pledging her life if it led Jiraiya astray.
• Katsuyu accepted Sakura's plea and agreed to help.

Sakura and Gaara discovered that Kabuto had disturbed Rasa’s grave, then discussed ways Sakura could gain strength quickly. As Gaara took her to show her a possible source of power, Neji spotted them overhead, while Hiashi ordered Hinata to sever her ties with Naruto.

• Katsuyu vanished, and Gaara found that his father Rasa’s grave had been dug up; Sakura suspected Kabuto Yakushi had been there.
• Gaara replaced Rasa’s body with a sand replica and reburied the grave.
• Sakura told Gaara she wanted to use an external chakra source to form a temporary Yin Seal, and Gaara mentioned the dragon vein and another possible source.
• Gaara carried Sakura above Sunagakure on sand cushions, and Neji saw them through the storm with his Byakugan.
• Hiashi told Hinata that Naruto could never return to Konoha and ordered her to sever all ties with him.

Gaara took Sakura to a sealed pyramid in the desert and revealed Gold Dust Shukaku, a creature formed from Shukaku’s consciousness and Rasa’s gold dust. He gave Sakura a way to absorb its chakra for her Yin Seal, then asked her to help Naruto when the truth about him came out.

• Gaara raised the buried pyramid and removed its Sealing Talisman, releasing Gold Dust Shukaku.
• Gaara explained that Rasa had created Gold Dust Shukaku by combining his Magnet Release with Shukaku’s chakra, intending to control the creature and claim its power.
• Gaara charged the chakra stored in Sakura’s forehead with a magnetic field so she could absorb Gold Dust Shukaku’s power and form her Yin Seal.
• Gaara asked Sakura to help Naruto when he learned the truth, and Sakura promised to support her comrade even if it meant standing against Konoha.
• Gaara crushed Gold Dust Shukaku with a waterfall of sand and urged Sakura to absorb its chakra.

Sakura tried to absorb Shukaku’s Magnet Release chakra, and Gaara’s apology persuaded Shukaku to stop resisting. As Sakura neared the breaking point, Sasuke resonated with her across the distance and stabilized the power, allowing her to form a silver-gray Yin Seal; the gold dust then revealed another man whose will had remained within it.

• Sakura struggled to draw Shukaku’s Magnet Release chakra into her forehead until Shukaku’s will disrupted her concentration.
• Gaara entered Sakura’s Inner Sea, apologized to Shukaku, and knelt before him, leading Shukaku to stop obstructing Sakura.
• Sakura continued channeling the chakra until her Chakra Network neared destruction, and Neji used his Byakugan to steady her pathways and urged her to stop.
• Sakura refused to quit, and Sasuke sensed her choice from Blue Moon Island, discovered their minds’ resonance, and sent Magnet Release chakra into her heart.
• Sasuke’s chakra stabilized the power in Sakura’s body, and she formed a silver-gray Yin Seal before thanking him.
• The gold-dust covering peeled away after Shukaku was demagnetized, revealing a man whose will Gaara recognized as his father’s.

Rasa apologized to Gaara for the cruelty of his childhood and revealed that Gaara’s sand control came from Karura’s love, not Shukaku’s curse. After Rasa vanished, Gaara accepted the truth and turned back to Sakura and Neji, who challenged her to spar.

• Rasa praised Gaara and admitted that he had treated his son as a weapon and wrongly dismissed him as a failure.
• Gaara told Rasa that he did not hate him but could not love him, and explained that he had learned to love everyone from someone who shared his suffering.
• Rasa revealed that Gaara’s ability to control sand came from Karura’s love, and Gaara broke down in tears.
• Rasa urged Gaara to lead Sunagakure as Kazekage before dissolving into golden sand.
• Sakura withdrew her prejudice against Rasa, then explained that she had used a shortcut to activate the Strength of a Hundred Seal.
• Neji asked Sakura to exchange blows, and Sakura admitted she did not know how strong she had become.

Neji challenged Sakura to a spar so she could learn to use her new power, and her punches revealed extraordinary strength and a magnetic pull that nearly crushed him. Neji urged her to train in Taijutsu with Might Guy, but Sakura remained committed to Medical Ninjutsu and said she could not consider changing paths while Lady Tsunade was missing.

• Neji attacked Sakura, and she used the Horn between her eyebrows to track and react to his movements.
• Sakura's punch unleashed a powerful gale and blasted a huge crater into the sand, startling Neji.
• Sakura's next punch created a magnetic pull that dragged Neji into its path, but Gaara rescued him with his sand.
• Neji recognized Sakura's potential and urged her to train in Taijutsu under Might Guy instead of focusing on Medical Ninjutsu.
• Sakura thanked Neji but declined to consider his advice while Lady Tsunade was missing, remaining determined to become a better Medical Ninja.

Jiraiya and Konan learned that Konoha had been attacked and that Obito Uchiha had captured Tsunade, so they prepared to rescue her. The Great Toad Sage sent Jiraiya to seek the White Snake Sage’s help in locating Obito, bringing the estranged Three Sage Lands closer to reconciliation.

• Konan told Jiraiya that someone had investigated the laboratory equipment’s commissioner, but she had not uncovered their identity or confirmed whether Kara was active.
• Gamatatsu delivered a scroll revealing that Madara had attacked Konoha by controlling Naruto and that Obito Uchiha had captured Tsunade.
• Jiraiya entrusted the Naruto and Madara situation to Sasuke and Orochimaru, while he and Konan planned to rescue Tsunade; Konan stayed behind to prepare for battle.
• At Mount Myōboku, the Great Toad Sage told Jiraiya that Sakura Haruno had relayed the capture through Katsuyu and directed him to seek the White Snake Sage’s divination.
• Jiraiya agreed to visit the White Snake Sage after learning that the Great Toad Sage had already contacted her and that Fukasaku and Shima were waiting to guide him to Ryūchi Cave.

Jiraiya and the Two Great Sage Toads entered Ryūchi Cave to meet the White Snake Sage, but the Cobra King attacked them in the mist. Jiraiya countered his poison and faced the enraged snake’s next assault.

• Fukasaku and Shima accompanied Jiraiya into Ryūchi Cave despite his offer to go alone.
• The White Snake Sage sent the Cobra King to confront Jiraiya after Shinji suggested he could vent his anger over Kabuto.
• The Cobra King attacked Jiraiya, explaining that Manda had been his child, and Jiraiya dodged his strike.
• The Cobra King’s venom arrow created poisonous smoke, which Jiraiya absorbed with Wood Release: Wooden Toad Cask.
• The Cobra King launched his Ultimate Technique: Fire-Lance Tail Spike, and Jiraiya responded with Sage Art: Sealing Fire Underworld Swamp.

Jiraiya reached the White Snake Sage after trapping the Cobra King and passing Ichikishimahime and Tagitsuhime. He asked her to divine Obito Uchiha’s location so he could rescue Tsunade, and the divination began despite uncertainty about the information behind his request.

• Jiraiya sank the Cobra King into the Sealing Fire Underworld Swamp with Gamahiro and left him trapped.
• Ichikishimahime and Tagitsuhime stopped Jiraiya at the temple, but let him enter alone.
• Jiraiya met the White Snake Sage, who recognized his Sage Mode and Wood Release and discussed the coming importance of Jiraiya, Itachi, and Kabuto.
• Jiraiya asked the White Snake Sage to divine Obito Uchiha’s whereabouts, explaining that Tsunade had been captured.
• The White Snake Sage warned that the divination required a certain premise and could harm her if the claim was false, but she began the technique and a face filled with bitterness and hatred appeared.

Jiraiya learned where Obito was hiding and received a tracking Shadow Gu and a life-saving talisman from the White Snake Sage before setting out to rescue Tsunade. In Sunagakure, Sakura withheld what she knew about Sasuke from Neji, and Neji asked her to tell him first once she had sorted out the facts.

• Jiraiya saw Obito with Shikaku standing beside him and learned that their stronghold was in the mountains near the Land of Earth and Land of Rain border.
• The White Snake Sage gave Jiraiya a Shadow Gu to track Obito and a talisman infused with Ryūchi Cave sage power.
• After Jiraiya left, the White Snake Sage told Tagorihime that Jiraiya bore a heavenly mandate and faced a great calamity.
• Sakura told Neji that she knew things about Sasuke connected to his genjutsu but was still weighing the facts, and Neji agreed to keep her secret.
• Sakura asked Neji how Hinata was doing, and Neji stopped walking.

Sakura reassured Shizune after revealing Katsuyu could not bring Tsunade back, then agreed to care for the unconscious Kakashi. Meanwhile, Shikamaru confirmed that a tooth found in Konoha’s Control Room belonged to Inoichi and asked Temari to help him find the person Inoichi meant to reach.

• Neji told Sakura that Hinata had defied Hiashi to defend Naruto and was now confined, while Sakura reflected on Hinata’s long-standing bond with Naruto.
• Shizune asked Sakura to summon Katsuyu for news of Tsunade, and Sakura explained that Katsuyu’s Reverse Summoning attempt had failed.
• Sakura suggested Tsunade might be trapped in an alternate dimension, giving Shizune a possibility to hold on to before exhaustion overcame her.
• Shizune asked Sakura to treat Kakashi before dawn, and Sakura promised to care for him until Tsunade returned.
• Shikamaru received a DNA report showing that blood on the tooth from Konoha’s Control Room matched Ino’s blood as a parent-child relation.
• Shikamaru asked Temari to use Sunagakure’s intelligence division to help him find the person Inoichi had wanted to contact, and Temari teased him before considering his request.

While the nations held back from attacking the Land of Fire, Madara tested his new Sage techniques and claimed he had surpassed his prime. On Blue Moon Island, Orochimaru finished preparing to install the Core of the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path into Sasuke’s Susanoo.

• The four Kage persuaded their daimyo to abandon plans to invade the Land of Fire after warning them about Madara, while Shixiu ordered Konoha rebuilt and called for Asuma to protect him.
• Madara developed Sage Art: Dark Curse Yin Lightning and demonstrated his power by slicing apart two meteorites and flattening waves with Sage Wave Wind Festival.
• Madara declared that he had surpassed his prime and wondered whether Sasuke would surprise him in the Ten Battles’ main event three days later.
• Orochimaru told Sasuke that he and Amado’s technology had enabled them to use the life essence extracted from the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path.
• Sasuke raised his skeletal Susanoo and told Orochimaru to install the Demonic Statue’s core into it.

Sasuke and Orochimaru gave Susanoo an independent chakra network by installing a Demonic Statue Core, while Orochimaru prepared to support Jiraiya and Konan against Obito after Sasuke’s Ten Battles. Jiraiya and Konan waited near Obito’s stronghold, where Obito returned with two captured Stone Ninja and began performing the Impure World Reincarnation.

• Sasuke and Orochimaru installed the Demonic Statue Core in Susanoo, giving it its own chakra network and a new form of life.
• Kabuto Yakushi told Orochimaru that Jiraiya had sought the White Snake Sage’s Divination, and that Obito had captured Tsunade and controlled Shikaku with genjutsu.
• Orochimaru decided to send everyone as reinforcements against Obito after Sasuke’s Ten Battles.
• Jiraiya and Konan tracked Obito to his stronghold, but when Obito moved to the Land of Fire, they chose to wait for him near the stronghold in the Land of Earth.
• Obito returned to the stronghold with two captured Stone Ninja, prepared a ritual circle with preserved pieces of flesh, and began the Impure World Reincarnation.

Obito defeated Kinkaku and Ginkaku, capturing them with the Six Paths tools and planning to use them to revive the Ten-Tails. He then noticed Jiraiya and Konan watching from the shadows and ordered them to reveal themselves.

• Kinkaku and Ginkaku recognized Obito as the caster of Impure World Reincarnation, and Obito used Deva Path to seize the Amber Purifying Pot while absorbing Kinkaku’s Nine-Tails chakra with Preta Path.
• Obito tricked Ginkaku into answering questions and sealed him inside the Amber Purifying Pot.
• Kinkaku attacked Obito with his Demon Fox Cloak, Six Paths tools, and a Tailed Beast Bomb, but Obito absorbed the attacks and restrained him with Wood Release and Black Rods.
• Obito used the Gold Binding Rope and Seven-Star Sword to draw Kinkaku’s word soul into Benihisago, then forced Kinkaku to confirm that Ginkaku was sealed inside the pot.
• Obito sealed Kinkaku in Benihisago and discussed using the brothers to revive the Ten-Tails, while Shikaku Nara warned him about the danger of drawing his enemies to a weakened Ten-Tails.
• Obito noticed Jiraiya and Konan hiding nearby and called on them to come out.

Madara and Sasuke met at the Valley of the End for their tenth battle, but Madara first tried to recruit Sasuke into the Eye of the Moon Plan. He revealed that Izuna’s Ayekashi would kill Sasuke in a month and offered to share the Ten-Tails to save him.

• Madara waited atop his statue and told Sasuke he had disposed of Black Zetsu and confined Izuna.
• Sasuke suspected Madara still intended to carry out the Eye of the Moon Plan, and Madara confirmed he wanted to reclaim what Obito had taken.
• Madara questioned Sasuke about Orochimaru and revealed that Izuna’s Ayekashi would take effect in a month and kill Sasuke.
• Madara admitted that he felt an intense attachment to Sasuke and did not want him to become an enemy.
• Madara offered Sasuke equal control of the Eye of the Moon Plan and half of the revived Ten-Tails as a way to save his life.

Jiraiya and Konan confronted Obito to demand Tsunade’s release, but Obito refused and fought them. Jiraiya escaped Obito’s attack by revealing a hidden Wood Clone and entering Sage Mode, then joined Konan to begin the Kite Plan.

• Konan accused Obito of manipulating Nagato and killing him, while Jiraiya asked Obito to release the abducted Tsunade.
• Obito admitted he had captured and injured Tsunade, then attacked Jiraiya as Jiraiya launched a Flame Bullet.
• Konan coordinated paper spears with Jiraiya’s attack, but Obito used Susanoo to block them before Jiraiya and Gamahiro forced him underground with a swamp technique.
• Jiraiya tried to free Shikaku, but Shikaku trapped him with a shadow technique and declared allegiance to Obito.
• Obito pierced Jiraiya with wooden barbs, only for the impaled body to turn out to be a Wood Clone as the real Jiraiya emerged from its shadow in Sage Mode.
• Jiraiya and Konan exchanged a glance and announced the start of the Kite Plan.

Sasuke and Madara began their final battle at the Valley of the End, trading elemental techniques, weapons, clones, and genjutsu. Sasuke reflected Madara’s illusion and knocked him into his statue, then summoned Kirin as the fight escalated.

• Sasuke told Madara that he would protect the shinobi world and that Madara was destined to fall, and both formed the Seal of Confrontation.
• Sasuke and Madara exchanged Fire, Water, Earth, and Wind techniques, then clashed with a Ninja Blade and Madara’s scythe until Sasuke’s blade shattered.
• Madara used Hidden Mist and hundreds of Shadow Clones with Rasengan, but Sasuke countered with Rotation and Chidori Senbon.
• Madara cast genjutsu through Sasuke’s Byakugan, but Sasuke reflected it back and kicked Madara into the face of his statue.
• Sasuke summoned Kirin and prepared to unleash Lightning Release: Kirin.

Sasuke outmaneuvered Madara’s statue and shattered his Susanoo, forcing Madara to combine his Nine-Tails, Curse Mist, Sage Mode, and Vortex powers for a direct attack. When Sasuke caught Madara’s fist, the final power of white cursed Seal state four fell into place.

• Madara absorbed Kirin with the Preta Path’s Sealing Barrier, entered Sage Mode through his statue, and attacked Sasuke with Dark Curse Yin Lightning.
• Sasuke redirected the lightning through Susanoo bones and deduced that Madara’s statue was absorbing natural energy for him.
• Sasuke used the Wood Immortal: Eight-Armed Vajra and Hashirama’s Pillar statue to launch an attack that shattered Madara’s Susanoo and dragged his statue down.
• Madara emerged from his statue, combined his Nine-Tails chakra with Curse Mist, Sage Mode, and Vortex chakra, and charged Sasuke.
• Sasuke caught Madara’s fist, completing his absorption of the final power of white cursed Seal state four, while Orochimaru recognized the transformation on Blue Moon Island.

Sasuke and Madara fought with increasingly powerful techniques, as Sasuke’s restored Uchiha eye and Hashirama-like body let him withstand Madara’s attacks. The battle continued with Madara preparing a senjutsu-enhanced Tailed Beast Bomb.

• Sasuke used Adamantine Strength to blast Madara back, then evaded his taijutsu and countered his Fox Tail Kick with a Pressure Point Strike.
• Madara hit Sasuke with Majestic Destroyer Flame, but Sasuke burned through it with Amaterasu and attacked with waves of wire-guided Fūma Shuriken.
• Madara repelled one shuriken wave with Shinra Tensei, then trapped Sasuke in Chibaku Tensei by making him its gravity core.
• Sasuke summoned the Yasaka Flame Dragon to break free, but Madara used the Preta Path to absorb its attacks and cut through Susanoo and Chibaku Tensei with Sage Art: Storm Release: Light Fang.
• Sasuke escaped Madara’s attacks and ignited a poison-pollen-filled Flower-Tree World, but Madara absorbed the flames and pollen before preparing an Asura Sage Path: Tailed Beast Bomb.

Sasuke survived Madara’s Tailed Beast Bomb and used his enhanced Susanoo to fire a devastating arrow at him. Madara barely escaped the shot, only to crash into the Uchiha Naka Shrine beneath Konoha.

• Madara fired a Sage Art: Tailed Beast Bomb at Sasuke, but Sasuke’s half-body Susanoo blocked it.
• The Demonic Statue’s Core repaired and strengthened Sasuke’s Susanoo as it formed a compound bow from purple tendrils.
• Sasuke used bone energy and the Outer Path’s power to draw the bow, then switched to the Byakugan to aim at Madara.
• Madara fled, but Sasuke fired the Super Heavenly Kaguya Arrow at him.
• Madara used Super Shinra Tensei, but the arrow pierced its force field and sent him tumbling into the Naka Shrine beneath Konoha.

Madara discovered that the Naka Shrine tablet exposed Black Zetsu’s deception, but he doubled down on the Infinite Tsukuyomi and confronted Sasuke with a devastating attack. Sasuke answered by unveiling a new Susanoo technique as Madara prepared to strike.

• Madara read the Naka Shrine tablet with his Rinnegan and saw that its Infinite Tsukuyomi passages had been replaced by the Sage of Six Paths’ wish for Senju-Uchiha harmony.
• Sasuke watched from above and realized Madara had confirmed Black Zetsu’s manipulation, but Madara dismissed the revelation and reaffirmed his plan.
• Madara emerged from the ruins in a Complete Body Susanoo, flew high into the sky, and charged a sword strike infused with natural energy.
• Sasuke expanded his Susanoo into its Crow Tengu form and activated the Magnifying Glass in both Mangekyō Sharingan eyes.
• Sasuke unleashed Susanoo: Extra Form, astonishing the observers on Blue Moon Island.