Chapter Summaries

Hiruzen Sarutobi learned that Cangyue planned to bring the Akatsuki to Konoha for the chunin exams and prepared for their arrival. During the journey, Cangyue activated Eternal Dream on Uchiha Itachi, giving him a chance to choose his path again.

• Hiruzen Sarutobi refused the Akatsuki's application, then realized it was a notice and ordered Tsunade and Jiraiya recalled while assigning Might Guy to guard him during the exams.
• Cangyue, Pain, and Konan chose a carriage to travel to Konoha, and Pain and Konan stayed behind to catch up later.
• Cangyue drove the carriage as the Akatsuki members and Darui boarded, while Pain worried about Cangyue's driving.
• The Akatsuki members fell asleep and continued improving through Eternal Dream, which Darui recognized from intelligence reports.
• Cangyue left the reins for the horses, entered Eternal Dream, and activated it on Uchiha Itachi to see what he would choose in a second chance.

Itachi woke in a dream of his former home and chose to answer the Uchiha conflict with war instead of compromise. After using Tsukuyomi to awaken Fugaku’s Mangekyo Sharingan, he led Fugaku and Shisui to gather the clan and march on Konoha.

• Itachi recognized the Uchiha Clan Compound as a dream but went along with it after failing to break free.
• When Fugaku asked his opinion on the conflict with Konoha, Itachi said the clan should fight and revealed his Mangekyo Sharingan.
• Itachi trapped Fugaku in Tsukuyomi, showing him the Uchiha massacre until Fugaku awakened his own Mangekyo Sharingan.
• Shisui agreed that the Uchiha should strike before Konoha was ready, and Fugaku joined their decision.
• Itachi ordered the clan to gather and led the Uchiha to move out while Cangyue watched eagerly.

In Cangyue’s dream, the Uchiha launched a coup and defeated Konoha after Fugaku and Shisui returned from apparent deaths, leaving Itachi in control of the village. Itachi realized the world was a dream because Kambara Sogetsu did not exist, then suspected Cangyue was watching him.

• Danzo urged Hiruzen Sarutobi to strike first against the Uchiha, but an Anbu reported that the Uchiha had already launched their coup.
• Itachi, Shisui, and Fugaku used their Perfect Susanoo to overwhelm Konoha’s forces, while Danzo sealed Fugaku away and Hiruzen Sarutobi used the Reaper Death Seal to kill Shisui.
• An old Uchiha used Izanagi to restore Fugaku and Shisui, and Konoha surrendered after its last hope of victory collapsed.
• Itachi took control of Konoha and searched for Kambara Sogetsu, but found no record of him anywhere.
• Cangyue watched from outside the dream and was startled when Itachi deduced that Eternal Dream had created the world.
• Itachi stared into the empty air and called out to Cangyue, asking if he was watching.

Itachi experienced more than a decade in a dream where he led the Uchiha to victory and unified the shinobi world by force, then awoke in the moving carriage with his dream memories intact. He confronted Cangyue, who denied causing the dream, and Itachi asked who had accused him.

• Itachi and Fugaku exchanged eyes, gained Eternal Mangekyō Sharingan, and defeated Konoha’s forces with their Perfect Susanoo.
• Itachi and Shisui used Kotoamatsukami to uncover Obito’s identity and plans, while Shisui recovered and Obito reunited his Kamui eyes.
• Itachi drove back Kumogakure, then joined forces with Obito and the Six Paths of Pain to rout a three-nation alliance and capture its participating Kage.
• After Konoha’s forced unification faced continued resistance, Itachi stepped down as Hokage, left his eyes to Sasuke, and died of illness.
• Itachi awoke in the carriage and found Cangyue on the roof; Cangyue denied causing the dream, and Itachi asked who had accused him.

After Itachi woke from a long dream, he told Cangyue how it had changed his outlook and plans for himself and Sasuke. The carriage reached Konoha while the others were still asleep.

• Itachi described the dream’s brutal lessons and admitted he would not attack Konoha without the strength to win.
• Itachi planned to implant Hashirama cells to treat his illness, then help Sasuke awaken the Mangekyo Sharingan so they could exchange eyes and gain the Eternal Mangekyo Sharingan.
• Itachi revealed that Tobi was Obito Uchiha, and Cangyue teased him before admitting he already knew Obito’s identity.
• Darui took the reins while Cangyue and Itachi talked on the carriage roof, since the others were asleep and the horses had been traveling without a driver.
• Darui saw Konoha ahead and woke the others as the carriage approached the village gate.

Cangyue brought the Akatsuki to Konoha to participate in the Chunin Ninja Exams, where Izumo Kamizuki and Kotetsu Hagane nearly provoked a fight while demanding their entry documents. Gojō Ryūsen intervened with the Hokage’s approval, and Cangyue led the group into the village.

• Pain and Konan joined Cangyue and the Akatsuki near Konoha, while Jiraiya had already left.
• Izumo Kamizuki and Kotetsu Hagane stopped the Akatsuki at the gate and demanded their identities and entry documents.
• Hidan threatened the gate guards, and he and Kotetsu drew their weapons as the confrontation escalated.
• Gojō Ryūsen arrived and explained that the Hokage had approved the Akatsuki’s participation in the Chunin Ninja Exams.
• Izumo taunted Hidan, but Cangyue laughed and urged everyone inside before a fight could start.
• Cangyue flew through the gate on his Purple Flame Sword and welcomed the Akatsuki to Konoha.

Cangyue brought the Akatsuki members into Konoha ahead of the Chunin Ninja Exams, where Naruto revealed he had learned the Eight Gates Released Formation and had already met Tsunade. Itachi, disguised in a Swirl Mask, encountered Sasuke without being recognized, and Cangyue led everyone toward Ichiraku Ramen.

• Cangyue gave Itachi a two-eyehole Swirl Mask, and the Akatsuki members entered Konoha under Gojō Ryūsen's guidance.
• Naruto reunited with Cangyue and said Might Guy had taught him the Eight Gates Released Formation, which he could open through the third gate.
• Cangyue suggested Naruto learn Tsunade's Yin Seal and Chakra Enhanced Strength after Naruto described meeting Tsunade and Shizune the previous night.
• Sasuke felt an instinctive loathing toward the masked Itachi and questioned him, but Tobi interrupted before Sasuke could learn his identity.
• Cangyue introduced the Akatsuki members to Naruto, and Pain shook Naruto's hand while claiming they protected wildlife.
• Cangyue led the group to try Ichiraku Ramen.

Rasa brought Sunagakure's delegation to Konoha for the chunin exams and encountered Orochimaru, who tried to recruit him into a plan to seize the village. Rasa rejected him and warned Hiruzen Sarutobi that Orochimaru intended to build a new Konoha.

• Rasa warned Gaara to control his temper in Konoha, and Gaara quietly agreed.
• At Konoha's gate, Orochimaru approached Rasa under optical camouflage and asked him to cooperate; Rasa refused.
• Kimimaro led Otogakure's ninja, including a mysterious figure in a black trench coat, into Konoha without noticing Orochimaru.
• Orochimaru claimed his latest creation could challenge Kambara Sogetsu and urged Rasa to join his plan to take over Konoha, but Rasa hurried away.
• After settling Sunagakure's examinees, Rasa rushed to Hiruzen Sarutobi and reported that Orochimaru planned to build a new Konoha.

Rasa warned Hiruzen that Orochimaru had infiltrated Konoha, while Orochimaru explained to Myriad-Eyed how cursed seals could enable people killed during the Konoha Crush Plan to be resurrected. The Akatsuki arrived at Ichiraku Ramen, where Hidan unknowingly picked a fight with Cangyue’s Myriad-Eyed Dao Body.

• Rasa told Hiruzen that Orochimaru had invited Sunagakure to join the Konoha Crush Plan and entered Konoha with a powerful creation.
• Hiruzen ordered the Barrier Team, the Sensing Unit, and the Otogakure delegation monitored for Orochimaru.
• Myriad-Eyed asked Orochimaru about his plan to make the Konoha Crush Plan appear deadly without leaving permanent casualties.
• Orochimaru explained that cursed seals recorded bodies and anchored souls so he could resurrect the dead in newly grown, healthy bodies.
• Orochimaru revealed that airborne cursed seal spores had already marked most people in Konoha.
• Hidan entered Ichiraku Ramen and demanded that Myriad-Eyed move, provoking Cangyue’s Dao Body without realizing who it was.

Myriad-Eyed revealed that he possessed the Rinnegan and escaped Konoha using Kamui, alarming the Akatsuki and Kakashi. Kakashi went to report the unregistered intruder, while Cangyue returned to eating ramen with the Akatsuki.

• Hidan bullied Myriad-Eyed until Myriad-Eyed kicked him into a distant clump of bushes.
• When the Akatsuki confronted him, Myriad-Eyed revealed his Rinnegan, shocking Pain, Konan, and Obito.
• Kakashi and Might Guy stopped Pain from attacking, but Myriad-Eyed escaped with a space-time technique that Obito recognized as Kamui.
• Kakashi left to report Myriad-Eyed to the Hokage, while Pain pinned Hidan to the ground with a black rod for complaining.
• Cangyue pulled out the rod and urged the Akatsuki to eat their ramen, pleased to have earned 700 valor points.

Cangyue and the Akatsuki ate at Ichiraku before Sasuke led them to stay in the Uchiha Clan Compound. Sasuke realized the masked Akatsuki member was Uchiha Itachi and attacked him, slicing him in half with one stroke.

• Naruto devoured several bowls of ramen, and Kakuzu reluctantly paid the bill after Cangyue told Pain to handle it.
• Sasuke led the Akatsuki to the vacant Uchiha Clan Compound, where Kisame questioned Itachi's absence.
• Sasuke declared that he would kill Itachi himself, while Hidan offered to help curse him to death.
• The masked Itachi revealed his familiarity with the compound by assigning rooms, making Sasuke increasingly suspicious.
• Sasuke confronted the masked man as Itachi, and Cangyue urged them to fight before Sasuke sliced Itachi in half.

Itachi trapped Sasuke in a genjutsu and made him stab himself, while Cangyue arranged for Karin to heal him. Sasuke survived with his newly awakened Two-Tomoe Sharingan, and Cangyue decided he needed more training.

• Itachi overwhelmed Sasuke with a crow illusion, and Sasuke awakened his Two-Tomoe Sharingan before using a lightning sword technique to find Itachi’s real body.
• Sasuke thought he had stabbed Itachi, but the genjutsu made him discover that he had plunged the Kusanagi Sword into his own chest.
• Deidara, Hidan, and Sasori watched and realized that Itachi had defeated Sasuke without moving.
• Cangyue called Orochimaru for a healer, and Karin arrived with a phone and injected Sasuke with a healing potion.
• After Karin healed Sasuke and left, Cangyue carried him away and decided he needed more thorough training.

After Sasuke lost to Itachi, Cangyue agreed to teach him the true Sword Way through Eternal Dream. In a martial-world dream where Itachi became Sasuke’s loving brother and sword mentor, Sasuke returned to find the Uchiha Clan slaughtered and Itachi standing among the dead.

• Sasuke woke at the Konoha Riverbank and learned that Itachi had defeated him with a single glance.
• Cangyue told Sasuke his swordsmanship was still far from the true Sword Way, and Sasuke asked him to teach it so he could kill Itachi.
• Cangyue placed Sasuke into an Eternal Dream set in a martial world where the Uchiha were famed swordsmen.
• Sasuke trained with the Thunder Sword and grew close to the dream’s Itachi, who taught and cared for him.
• Sasuke returned alone to the Uchiha compound and found his clan dead, with Itachi standing amid the bodies and purple flames.

Sasuke relived a life in a martial arts world where he avenged the Uchiha Clan, then woke and asked Cangyue whether the dream reflected reality. Cangyue left him to seek answers from Itachi and encountered Ino, Shikamaru, and Choji, with Ino bristling at his teasing.

• In Sasuke's dream, he discovered that the imperial court and Madara Uchiha had driven the Uchiha Clan's destruction, fought Itachi, and gained Itachi's eyes after defeating him.
• Sasuke attacked the imperial army, but after Hashirama Senju's defeat, Madara's forces and an intangible masked swordsman overwhelmed him, and he woke beside Cangyue.
• Sasuke asked Cangyue whether the dream reflected reality and wondered if Itachi had acted on someone's orders when he massacred the clan.
• Cangyue told Sasuke to ask Itachi himself and left the riverbank, then met Ino, Shikamaru, and Choji on the road.
• Ino questioned Cangyue about his strength, and he teased her about gaining weight until she angrily denied it.