Recaps

Kazahana Koyuki confronted Naruto about his intentions for the Land of Snow, insisting she would not surrender her ancestral responsibility, but Naruto pointed out that the country depended on his protection. Later, after Koyuki lost a drinking contest and fell asleep, Naruto covered her with a blanket and watched the landscape in silence.

• Kazahana Koyuki told Naruto she would not hand over the Land of Snow, even to him, because protecting it was her duty as Daimyo.
• Naruto explained that the Land of Snow could not defend itself and relied on Konoha's forces and his deterrence for its security.
• Naruto waited silently as Koyuki struggled with the choice between her ideals and the country's dependence on him.
• Naruto won a drinking contest with Koyuki, who became drunk and admitted she had not expected to lose to him.
• Naruto gathered the sake bottles, covered the sleeping Koyuki with a blanket, and gazed out the window with an unreadable expression.

Kazahana Koyuki woke hungover and teased Naruto Uzumaki while he practiced Senjutsu, but he said he was a minor and had no interest in taking advantage of her. When she learned he had agreed to marry several women in Konoha, she asked whether she had a chance, and Naruto left her question unanswered.

• Kazahana Koyuki woke on the tatami with a hangover and found Naruto Uzumaki meditating in the next room.
• Kazahana teased Naruto about leaving her alone while she was drunk, and Naruto reminded her that he was still a minor and would not take advantage of someone unconscious.
• Kazahana hugged Naruto from behind and asked whether he felt tempted now, but he questioned whether she would think that way about someone she had to care for while drunk.
• Kazahana asked about Naruto's close female friends, and Naruto said they had agreed on when to marry, explaining that Inoichi Yamanaka and Hyuga Hiashi had pressed him to commit to their daughters.
• Kazahana asked whether she had a chance with Naruto, and he met her gaze without answering.

Kazahana Koyuki accepted that Naruto already had important partners and asked only to mean more to him than an ordinary friend, but Naruto reaffirmed that the Land of Snow could not remain sovereign. Later, Naruto reunited with Yuto at kindergarten, where he and Koyuki introduced their children, Yuto and Feng Xuehui, to each other.

• Kazahana Koyuki told Naruto she wanted him to love her a little more than anyone else, then asked about his plans for the Land of Snow.
• Naruto said the Land of Snow could not retain its sovereignty because unifying the shinobi world was his bottom line, and Kazahana Koyuki told him to take it himself.
• Naruto picked up Yuto after kindergarten, and Yuto happily told his father how much he had missed him.
• Kazahana Koyuki introduced her daughter, Feng Xuehui, to Naruto and explained that she had given the girl her old stage name.
• Yuto took Feng Xuehui's hand, invited her to see Himawari, and led her toward an ice cream shop while Naruto and Kazahana Koyuki shared a smile.

Naruto struggled to locate Jigen, reasoning that Jigen might be operating alone while searching for a suitable vessel. He suspected he himself could be Jigen’s prime target and decided to devise a controlled plan to lure him out.

• Naruto used Divine Technique: Clairvoyance to search for Jigen but concluded that a broad search would waste too much time and chakra.
• Naruto reasoned that Jigen might not have founded Kara yet and could be hiding alone while seeking a suitable vessel.
• Naruto realized that his own vitality, chakra, and potential made him an ideal vessel, and suspected Jigen might already be watching him.
• Naruto decided to build a wider intelligence net and consider using himself as bait under carefully controlled conditions.
• A figure slowly walked into the Land of Rain.

At the Uzumaki Residence, Hinata, Hanabi, Sakura, Ino, Karin, and Uchiha Hikari gathered around Naruto’s handmade Hokage robe and discussed how to order their close-knit group. Hanabi’s suggestion to rank them by age collapsed when Hikari revealed she was over two hundred years old, and Hikari proposed settling things with their fists.

• Hinata, Hanabi, Sakura, Ino, Karin, and Uchiha Hikari met at the Uzumaki Residence beside the Hokage robe they had sewn for Naruto.
• Hanabi suggested ranking the girls by age, prompting them to consider their birthdays.
• Uchiha Hikari revealed that she came from the Warring States Period and was over two hundred years old, leaving the others stunned.
• Hanabi laughed that Hikari’s age was cheating, and the girls wondered whether to rank themselves another way.
• Uchiha Hikari challenged the girls to settle the matter with their fists, while Otohime grew excited at the prospect of a fight.

A Hyuga Branch Family ninja awakened a dangerous pseudo-Tenseigan after receiving Hamura Otsutsuki’s chakra, then attacked Hiashi. Sasuke stopped him before he could unleash a devastating technique, while Hiashi left Orochimaru to investigate the risks as Konoha reacted to the chakra eruption.

• Shikaku and Shikamaru noticed a powerful chakra surge from the Hyuga Clan Compound, prompting ANBU and other Konoha ninjas to respond.
• A Hyuga Branch Family ninja’s Byakugan evolved into a pseudo-Tenseigan after he received Hamura Otsutsuki’s chakra, and his newfound power made him turn against Hiashi.
• The Caged Bird Seal disrupted the ninja’s technique, allowing Sasuke to knock him unconscious before the attack could cause greater damage.
• Hiashi asked Orochimaru to determine whether the dangerous reaction was an isolated case or an inevitable consequence of awakening the pseudo-Tenseigan.
• Orochimaru agreed to study the unconscious ninja and noted that Naruto had arranged for Sasuke to be present, while Hiashi anticipated questions from the village.

Orochimaru examined the unconscious Hyuga Branch Family ninja, Hinata Shin, and discovered that Hamura Otsutsuki’s chakra had rapidly altered his genes and evolved his Byakugan, though the transformation appeared unstable. Sasuke considered the power’s danger and reaffirmed his resolve to help Naruto, while awaiting Orochimaru’s research into the Tenseigan and his own pursuit of the Rinnegan.

• Orochimaru took blood and tissue samples from the restrained Hinata Shin while Sasuke watched and recalled how the newly awakened power had made him an overwhelming opponent.
• Orochimaru’s preliminary genetic analysis indicated that Hamura Otsutsuki’s chakra had repaired defects in Hinata Shin’s genes and driven his Byakugan to evolve.
• Orochimaru suspected that the unstable transformation caused severe mental shock and an uncontrollable desire for destruction, and considered further experiments, mental guidance, or a sealing formula.
• Sasuke realized Naruto’s plans involved powers beyond ordinary shinobi conflicts and resolved to use his sword to make a path for him.
• Sasuke continued to hope that Orochimaru would research the Tenseigan and then help him awaken the Rinnegan.

Uchiha Hikari defeated Hinata, Sakura, Ino, and Karin in the Uzumaki Mansion courtyard, then confronted Otohime. Otohime trapped Hikari in her Dragon Palace genjutsu, but Hikari countered with Tsukuyomi, and their competing illusions remained locked in conflict.

• Uchiha Hikari left Hinata, Sakura, Ino, and Karin unable to move while Hanabi stayed unharmed and watched.
• Hikari entered Otohime’s room, and Otohime put away her game console and opened the door to face her.
• Hikari’s second-stage Susanoo seized Otohime, who used her golden Rinnegan to pull Hikari into a Dragon Palace genjutsu.
• Hikari cast Tsukuyomi and summoned a blood moon into Otohime’s illusion, but Otohime’s visual power restored the Dragon Palace as the two genjutsu clashed.

Uchiha Hikari attacked Otohime and the Dragon Palace with Susanoo, then left its protection to fight Otohime at close range. Otohime shattered Susanoo with a casual strike, leaving Hikari shocked by how much she had been holding back.

• Hikari's Susanoo struck the Dragon Palace with the Shindo Sword, but Otohime summoned sea beasts to hinder the attack and the Palace repaired itself.
• Hikari left Susanoo's forehead crystal and charged Otohime with a chakra blade while Susanoo continued fighting the sea beasts.
• Hikari and Otohime exchanged taijutsu among the Dragon Palace's rooftops, with Otohime precisely countering Hikari's attacks.
• Otohime casually struck Susanoo with her free hand and shattered its chakra armor and bones.
• Hikari realized Otohime had been holding back during their close combat and stared at her in shock.

After Otohime defeated Uchiha Hikari in an illusion duel, Hikari asked how she had lost to Naruto, prompting Otohime to angrily list excuses. The other girls overheard and laughed, and Otohime retreated to her room, mortified.

• The illusion space vanished, and Otohime reached to pinch Hikari's cheek before Hikari stopped her.
• Hikari accepted her defeat and asked Otohime how someone so powerful had lost to Naruto.
• Otohime complained that Naruto's abilities countered her dōjutsu and insisted that their sparring match did not count as a real loss.
• Ino, Sakura, Hinata, Karin, and Hanabi arrived and overheard Otohime's excuses.
• The girls laughed, and Otohime slammed her door and shouted for them to stop laughing.

Naruto found Yota’s neglected grave and remembered the brief childhood friendship that had offered warmth amid his isolation. After cleaning the marker and reflecting on Yota’s faith in him, Naruto resumed his search for Jigen.

• Naruto spotted Yota’s grave while searching the mountains for Jigen and remembered the boy who could control the weather.
• Naruto recalled how Yota had befriended Sakura, Ino, Shikamaru, and Choji while Naruto watched from the shadows.
• Naruto remembered Yota thanking him before the Impure World Reincarnation ended and admitted he had never thought of himself as a good person.
• Naruto used Ino’s handkerchief to wipe Yota’s grave marker clean and told him that his friends were doing well.
• Naruto left the grave and continued his journey to find Jigen as Yota’s ghost encouraged him to keep going.

Jigen, who was inhabited by Ōtsutsuki Isshiki, entered Amegakure seeking information about Nagato’s Rinnegan and resources to restore his power. He weighed Naruto Uzumaki’s growing threat against the possibility that Kaguya, Hagoromo, or Hamura could still endanger him, and recognized that he could not safely risk fighting Naruto yet.

• Jigen arrived in Amegakure, where repairs and rebuilding were underway alongside Konoha ninja and engineers.
• Jigen considered whether Nagato’s Rinnegan had fallen into Konoha’s hands or been destroyed after Naruto defeated Pain.
• Jigen reflected that Naruto’s strength had disrupted his plans to find a perfect vessel and recover his power.
• Jigen feared Kaguya might escape her seal and that Hagoromo and Hamura might have left contingencies behind.
• Jigen resolved that he needed a perfect vessel to restore Isshiki’s full strength, but judged that trying to mark Naruto with Kāma could get him killed.

Hagoromo Otsutsuki and Gamamaru decided to join forces against Jigen, whom they saw as an outside threat to the shinobi world. They drew Jigen into a supernatural shogi game, where he faced an army of powerful figures from across history.

• Hagoromo Otsutsuki watched Jigen search Amegakure and asked Gamamaru whether they should strike.
• Gamamaru argued that Naruto Uzumaki could be an ally against Jigen, whom he identified as the greater external danger.
• Hagoromo agreed to seize the chance to eliminate Jigen and transformed the image of him into a luminous shogi board.
• Jigen tried to escape when Hagoromo and Gamamaru’s power enveloped him, but he was transported onto the board as its lone King General.
• Hagoromo, Gamamaru, Asura, and powerful figures from past generations appeared as pieces on the opposing side.
• Jigen recognized that Hagoromo was alive only as a soul, and Hagoromo declared that he would not let an outsider destroy the shinobi world.

Trapped in Hagoromo Otsutsuki’s Pure Land chessboard, Isshiki realized he could not escape or defeat the assembled souls. Hamura attacked and overpowered him, leaving Isshiki to discover that Hagoromo and his allies controlled the game’s rules and space.

• Isshiki assessed the assembled warriors and realized that Jigen’s body, his lack of Takami Musubi, and the chessboard’s restrictions left him unable to win or escape.
• Hamura charged at Isshiki with a Truth-Seeking Orb staff, and Isshiki fought back despite objecting that Hamura was ignoring the board-game rules.
• Hamura broke through Isshiki’s defenses and struck his chest, shattering his breastbone and sending him tumbling across the board.
• The board and its pieces vanished, and Isshiki found himself shrunk before the immense figure of Hagoromo Otsutsuki.
• Isshiki realized Hagoromo and his allies were both players and pieces who controlled the space and its rules.

Isshiki forcibly resurrected through Jigen, gaining his true form despite having only about two and a half months to live. He caught Hamura’s next attack and prepared to fight back with his restored powers.

• Isshiki decided to risk a full resurrection rather than let Hamura and the gathered souls wear him down in Jigen’s weakened state.
• Isshiki overwrote Jigen and transformed, revealing his horns, white robe, Byakugan, and Black Eyes, but his body could sustain him for only about two and a half months.
• Hamura attacked Isshiki with his Truth-Seeking Orb staff, but Isshiki caught the strike with his right palm.
• Isshiki knocked Hamura’s staff aside and used his Byakugan and Black Eyes to track Hamura as he prepared to fight.

Madara Uchiha arrived in the chessboard space and challenged Ōtsutsuki Isshiki, whose contempt provoked him into battle. Madara used Uchiha Reflection to absorb Isshiki’s chakra and unleash an amplified wind attack, leaving Isshiki engulfed in the storm.

• Madara Uchiha appeared between Hamura and Ōtsutsuki Isshiki, driving them apart with his blue Gunbai.
• Isshiki insulted Madara as an ant, and Madara answered with a furious challenge.
• Madara charged Isshiki and struck his defense with the Gunbai.
• Madara activated Uchiha Reflection, absorbing Isshiki’s chakra and transforming it into wind release.
• Madara reflected the amplified storm back at Isshiki, swallowing him in razor-sharp wind blades.

Madara Uchiha traded blows with Isshiki, whose Daikokuten cubes shattered Madara’s Perfect Susanoo and forced him to retreat. Madara then counterattacked with a flying kick, trapped Isshiki with Susanoo, and launched a massive fireball at him.

• Madara struck Isshiki with the Gunbai’s reflected Wind Release, knocking him backward and drawing his furious scorn.
• Isshiki summoned enormous Daikokuten cubes over Madara, and Madara knocked Hamura away before confronting them with Perfect Susanoo.
• The cubes crushed Perfect Susanoo, but Madara escaped their impact and was thrown across the ground by the shock wave.
• Isshiki redirected the cubes toward Madara, who tried a chakra rod and Wood Dragons; Isshiki stored the cubes and dragons in Daikokuten.
• Madara attacked Isshiki from behind with a flying kick, caught him in a Susanoo arm, and used Fire Release: Majestic Destroyer Flame.

Madara Uchiha and Ōtsutsuki Isshiki fought fiercely in hand-to-hand combat on the Six Paths Life-and-Death Shogi board. Gamamaru explained the tool to Hashirama Senju and hinted that it could be used to control Naruto, leaving Hashirama uneasy about the Sage of Six Paths' interference.

• Isshiki punched through Madara Uchiha's Majestic Destroyer Flame and struck him with a powerful blow.
• Madara and Isshiki exchanged brutal close-range attacks, with Isshiki holding the advantage and Madara relying on his regenerative body to keep fighting.
• Hashirama Senju wondered how he had arrived on the board and where Naruto's Wood Clone had gone.
• Gamamaru explained that the Six Paths Life-and-Death Shogi connected the shinobi world to the Pure Land and let souls fight with much of their living strength.
• Gamamaru implied that the tool could be used to keep Naruto in check, and Hashirama questioned the Sage of Six Paths' intervention in the mortal world.

Asura tried to smooth things over with Hashirama, but Hashirama ignored him and Indra mocked him. Asura reflected on his older brother’s loneliness before turning his attention to Madara Uchiha and Ōtsutsuki Isshiki’s battle.

• Asura attempted to reconcile with Hashirama, who turned his back and refused to respond.
• Indra mocked Asura for being snubbed by his own reincarnation, and Asura protested that they had only had a misunderstanding.
• Indra privately took satisfaction in Asura’s rejection, while the Great Toad Sage and the assembled Kage watched their exchange.
• Asura’s irritation faded as he remembered Indra’s lonely nature and the care his brother had shown him when they were children.
• Asura stopped arguing and watched Madara Uchiha and Ōtsutsuki Isshiki fight, while Indra sensed his brother had calmed down.

Ōtsutsuki Isshiki escaped the Pure Land battle by sealing himself inside Daikokuten and eventually reemerged in Amegakure, gravely injured. He resolved to take Naruto Uzumaki’s body as his perfect vessel.

• Isshiki recalled how Madara Uchiha, Hashirama Senju, and Hamura Otsutsuki overwhelmed him in the Six Paths Life-and-Death Shogi.
• Kaguya Otsutsuki’s brief chakra presence distracted Hagoromo and Hamura, giving Isshiki an opening to seal himself with Daikokuten.
• Isshiki’s disappearance broke the shogi game, and he waited in Daikokuten until he could use his remaining strength to escape into Amegakure’s drainage system.
• Isshiki crawled from the pipe and struggled to his feet despite his severe injuries.
• Isshiki decided he must abandon Jigen’s failing body and vowed to take Naruto Uzumaki as his perfect vessel.

Black Zetsu eroded the moon seal and reached Kaguya, whose awakening power shattered her prison. Kaguya faced Hagoromo and Hamura’s souls, who arrived to stop her from claiming freedom at others’ expense.

• Black Zetsu finally corroded a hole in the seal and slipped inside to reach Kaguya.
• Kaguya instinctively drained Black Zetsu’s chakra, awakening a dim Rinnegan on her forehead.
• The damaged seal cracked, and Kaguya broke free with a surge of chakra.
• Hamura’s chakra apparition appeared, but Kaguya scattered it with a wave of her hand.
• Hagoromo and Hamura’s souls arrived from the Pure Land and confronted Kaguya about her freedom.
• Kaguya challenged her sons, asking whether they had given the people of the Shinobi World—or her—freedom.

Naruto arrived on the moon, where Kaguya had escaped her seal and faced Hagoromo and Hamura, and revealed he had been hiding beneath her skirt. As Black Zetsu urged them to join forces, Naruto refused, leaving the brothers bewildered by the tangled relationships.

• Naruto used Flying Thunder God to reach the moon, but Kaguya had concealed his mark and he appeared beneath her skirt.
• Kaguya explained that she had hidden Naruto's mark from Hagoromo and Hamura so he could arrive unnoticed.
• Black Zetsu emerged from Kaguya's sleeve, called Naruto his godfather, and urged him and Kaguya to defeat Hagoromo and Hamura.
• Naruto rejected Black Zetsu's proposal, while Kaguya, Black Zetsu, Hagoromo, and Hamura reacted to his refusal and the strange alliances.

Naruto confronted Hagoromo about taking the resurrected Konoha ninja’s souls, then silently challenged the Sage’s claim that the dead should not affect the living. As Hagoromo and Hamura appeared poised to confront Kaguya, Black Zetsu saw Naruto’s distrust of Hagoromo as a chance to secure his neutrality or help.

• Naruto asked Hagoromo whether he had taken the souls of Hashirama, Tobirama, Minato, Kushina, and the other resurrected Konoha ninja.
• Hagoromo admitted he had taken them and said he had promised Hashirama to release their souls once the shinobi world achieved lasting peace and broke Indra and Asura’s cycle.
• Naruto silently doubted Hagoromo’s stated principles, recalling that he had allowed the Fourth Shinobi World War’s mass use of Impure World Reincarnation to continue.
• Black Zetsu assessed Kaguya’s weakened state and recognized Naruto’s distrust of Hagoromo as a possible opening.
• Black Zetsu urged Kaguya to win Naruto’s help, or at least keep him neutral, before Hagoromo and Hamura could seal her again.

Kaguya followed Black Zetsu’s advice and positioned herself beside Naruto, then proposed that they cooperate so she could regain bodily freedom while he dealt with the restraints he felt. Naruto weighed the risks of accepting her offer as Hagoromo and Hamura watched them warily.

• Black Zetsu advised Kaguya to stand beside Naruto and let the tension between him and Hagoromo and Hamura work to her advantage.
• Kaguya moved beside Naruto and shielded him, signaling a possible alliance to Hagoromo and Hamura.
• Naruto cautiously shifted away from Kaguya, wary of Black Zetsu’s presence and history of betrayal.
• Kaguya told Naruto she wanted freedom and to stay alive, and distinguished her wish for bodily freedom from his more complicated desire for spiritual freedom.
• Naruto considered whether Kaguya could help with his conflicts and weighed the risks of cooperating with her and Black Zetsu.

Naruto agreed to join forces with Kaguya and confronted Hagoromo over his control of the Pure Land and its souls. Hagoromo proposed a shogi match between their forces in one month, but Naruto had not yet heard what would happen if he lost.

• Hamura objected to Naruto and Kaguya ignoring him and Hagoromo, while Hagoromo watched Naruto warily.
• Naruto agreed to cooperate with Kaguya and declared that he saw Hagoromo and the Pure Land as threats to his plans for a new order.
• Naruto accused Hagoromo of controlling the Pure Land and using its souls to interfere in the living world instead of letting them reincarnate.
• Hagoromo summoned his Black Staff and proposed a battle through a shogi game, promising to stop interfering if Naruto won.
• Hagoromo said he would prepare a Treasured Tool to connect their forces for the match in one month, and Naruto asked what would happen if he lost.