Recaps

Zhou Cheng discovered that his Perfect Byakugan granted him a short-range oppressive force and a personal space-time dimension, then traveled to the Land of Rice Fields to find Orochimaru. He infiltrated Otogakure’s hidden headquarters by disguising himself as a Sound Ninja and concealing himself in a supply cart.

• Zhou Cheng tested his Perfect Byakugan and discovered its oppressive force and a space-time ability that let him enter a private dimension and travel to marked coordinates.
• Zhou Cheng learned that the Purple-Gold Gourd would finish refining Hinata’s talent in a month, then returned to his room using his new ability.
• Three days later, Zhou Cheng left Konoha and traveled on foot to the Land of Rice Fields, placing coordinates along the route.
• Zhou Cheng located Otogakure and identified the village chief’s house as the entrance to Orochimaru’s headquarters.
• Zhou Cheng disguised himself as a Sound Ninja, hid inside a supply cart, and used genjutsu to enter Orochimaru’s true headquarters.

Zhou Cheng infiltrated Orochimaru's base, discovered the prisoners and experiments there, and watched Sasuke survive a deadly battle against hundreds of shinobi. He confronted Orochimaru and demanded Ryūchi Cave's Summoning Scroll, but refused to heal Orochimaru's sealed hands; the confrontation remained unresolved.

• Zhou Cheng sensed the base's prisoners and experiments, then found Sasuke training and followed him to a chamber where he was ordered to fight hundreds of shinobi.
• Sasuke killed all three hundred opponents, and Orochimaru praised his progress while Kabuto brought him into the chamber in a wheelchair.
• Zhou Cheng burst into the chamber and asked Sasuke to return to Konoha, while Sasuke maintained his cover as a Rogue Ninja.
• Zhou Cheng demanded Orochimaru hand over Ryūchi Cave's Summoning Scroll and threatened to spare his life only if he complied.
• Orochimaru offered the scroll in exchange for Zhou Cheng healing his hands, but Zhou Cheng said Yang Release could not restore hands whose souls had been sealed away.

Zhou Cheng forced Orochimaru to give him Ryūchi Cave’s Summoning Scroll, then traveled there to seek the White Snake Sage and learn its Sage Mode. While he was away, the Masked Man persuaded Orochimaru to help trap Zhou Cheng when he returned.

• Zhou Cheng revealed that he had learned Sage Modes from Mount Myōboku and Shikkotsu Forest, then threatened to destroy Orochimaru’s research unless Orochimaru gave him the Summoning Scroll.
• Zhou Cheng signed the scroll, summoned a python, and had it reverse-summon him to Ryūchi Cave; he spared Orochimaru and Kabuto and told Sasuke to wait for his return.
• The Masked Man approached Orochimaru and proposed using his base to trap and kill Zhou Cheng, and Orochimaru agreed on the condition that he could have Zhou Cheng’s corpse.
• Zhou Cheng arrived in Ryūchi Cave, fought off snakes that tried to eat him, and reached the temple of the White Snake Sage.
• Three snake women blocked Zhou Cheng at the temple gates, and he activated Mount Myōboku’s Sage Mode as he asked them to let him see the White Snake Sage.

Zhou Cheng forced his way past Ryūchi Cave’s Elders and met the White Snake Sage, who gave him permission to learn the cave’s Sage Mode. He mastered it quickly and began assessing its strengths and drawbacks, leaving the final drawback unexplained.

• Zhou Cheng attacked the three Ryūchi Cave Elders with Sage Art: Wind Release: Rasenshuriken and subdued them with Pressure after tracking their invisibility with his Byakugan.
• The White Snake Sage appeared, recognized Zhou Cheng’s other Sage Modes and Byakugan, and agreed that he could learn Ryūchi Cave’s Sage Mode.
• The White Snake Sage gave Zhou Cheng a training scroll and a private temple in which to practice.
• Zhou Cheng followed the scroll’s chakra-circulation method and transformed into Ryūchi Cave’s Sage Mode.
• Zhou Cheng compared its continuous, combat-compatible senjutsu chakra refinement with the Sage Modes of Mount Myōboku and Shikkotsu Forest, then noted that it had drawbacks.

Zhou Cheng combined the Sage Modes of the Three Great Sage Lands after tailed beast chakra helped their senjutsu chakra fuse, creating a powerful new form. He named it Azure Dragon Mode, though its enormous chakra consumption kept him from maintaining it for long.

• Zhou Cheng repeatedly failed to balance and fuse the three types of senjutsu chakra, then unknowingly drew a wisp of chakra from the One-Tail Shukaku into his final attempt.
• Zhou Cheng realized the tailed beast chakra's Yin-Yang Release let the three types of senjutsu chakra fuse, creating a new chakra and transforming him.
• Zhou Cheng's new Sage Mode unleashed immense pressure, prompting the White Snake Sage to destroy her temple and move him outside before it collapsed.
• The White Snake Sage recognized that Zhou Cheng had combined all three Sage Modes, while the snakes and three elders submitted to him in fear.
• Zhou Cheng tested Azure Dragon Mode, found that it greatly increased his strength and speed but consumed senjutsu chakra rapidly, and decided to store more chakra.
• The White Snake Sage congratulated Zhou Cheng and asked him to name his new Sage Mode, so he called it Azure Dragon Mode.

Zhou Cheng returned from Ryūchi Cave in Azure Dragon Mode and found the Akatsuki attacking Orochimaru’s hidden base. He fought Kakuzu and Hidan, then faced Kakuzu’s five masked hearts as the battle intensified.

• Zhou Cheng left Ryūchi Cave after the White Snake Sage warned that his Azure Dragon Mode made him stronger than the three Founder-class sages.
• Zhou Cheng returned to Orochimaru’s base and sensed that Akatsuki members were there while supplies and research materials were being moved out.
• Sasori, Deidara, Kakuzu, and Hidan confronted Zhou Cheng, and Kakuzu demanded his head for a hundred million ryo.
• Kakuzu attacked Zhou Cheng with fire and wind techniques, but Zhou Cheng split the flames with his sword and overpowered Kakuzu’s wind attack.
• Zhou Cheng kicked Hidan away and countered Kakuzu’s attacks, prompting Kakuzu to release two masked, black-threaded creatures representing all five nature transformations.

Zhou Cheng used his enhanced modes and speed to overwhelm Hidan, Kakuzu, Sasori, and Deidara, then tore Hidan apart and left him unable to fight. Kakuzu, Sasori, and Deidara regrouped and launched a coordinated all-out attack on Zhou Cheng.

• Zhou Cheng activated Wind Release Chakra Mode, struck Hidan into a wall, and destroyed one of Kakuzu's hearts with a single punch.
• Sasori and Deidara joined the fight, and Zhou Cheng activated Byakugan and Azure Dragon Mode to crush their puppets, pin Kakuzu's masks, and slow the others with Pressure.
• After Azure Dragon Mode faded, Hidan charged again, and Zhou Cheng used a Rasengan and Thunder God Sword to tear off Hidan's limbs and head.
• Zhou Cheng kicked Hidan's body parts away and embedded his head in the ceiling, temporarily removing him from the fight.
• Kakuzu, Sasori, and Deidara surrounded Zhou Cheng and unleashed their strongest attacks together.

Zhou Cheng survived the Akatsuki’s combined explosion and unleashed his full power, overwhelming Kakuzu, Sasori, Deidara, and Hidan. As the fight continued, Kakuzu recognized that only their leader could stop him and urged the others to find a chance to escape.

• Zhou Cheng countered the Akatsuki’s attacks with a giant Rasenshuriken, but the resulting explosion buried Hidan and left Zhou Cheng missing.
• Zhou Cheng reappeared alive, having used the Seventh Gate, and activated several powerful modes that sent the Akatsuki reeling.
• Kakuzu, Sasori, and Deidara prepared to fight with everything they had, while Zhou Cheng identified Deidara as the first target.
• Zhou Cheng destroyed Deidara’s clay spiders, swatted aside Kakuzu’s and Sasori’s ninjutsu, and struck Deidara hard enough to send him crashing into a wall.
• Kakuzu told the others to find a chance to run because only their leader could deal with Zhou Cheng.

Zhou Cheng fought the Akatsuki at Orochimaru’s base, escaped the destruction with rescued Sound Ninja, and returned to Konoha. There he learned Hinata had gone missing and suspected Zetsu had been tracking him.

• Kakuzu tried to flee as Deidara detonated C4, and Zhou Cheng countered the blast with Sage Art: Rasengan.
• Obito’s vortexes pulled Deidara, Sasori, and Kakuzu away, while Zhou Cheng entered another vortex and escaped the explosion.
• Zhou Cheng rescued Sound Ninja from the burning Otogakure, then returned to Konoha after hearing the Akatsuki had only been stalling him.
• The Konoha 15 told Zhou Cheng that Hinata had disappeared during a mission, despite a day of searching with their Jonin teachers.
• Zhou Cheng became furious and concluded that Zetsu had likely watched his movements and arranged Hinata’s disappearance.

Zhou Cheng learned that Mitokado Homura and Utatane Koharu had arranged Hinata’s mission and abducted her, then confronted them with Genjutsu to force a confession. Tsunade arrived before he could continue torturing them, while Hinata’s whereabouts remained unknown.

• Zhou Cheng questioned Kiba about Hinata’s disappearance, and Shikamaru concluded that someone had abducted her.
• Kakashi told Zhou Cheng that Mitokado Homura and Utatane Koharu had arranged Hinata’s seemingly ordinary mission, but the village had found no trace of her.
• Zhou Cheng vowed to question the advisors without killing them and used a space-time technique to appear in Homura’s office.
• Zhou Cheng trapped Homura and Koharu in a Genjutsu that made them believe they were facing Tobirama Senju in the World of the Dead.
• Zhou Cheng inflicted intense sensations of heat and cold on the advisors, and Tsunade arrived with ANBU and criticized his methods.

Zhou Cheng tortured Mitokado Homura and Utatane Koharu until they revealed that Hinata had been abducted as bait for a trap in the Land of Lightning. The Akatsuki assessed Zhou Cheng’s abilities and prepared to hunt him, while Hinata’s captors neared the Land of Lightning.

• Zhou Cheng continued torturing Mitokado Homura and Utatane Koharu despite Tsunade’s objections, then used genjutsu again when they tried to have him arrested.
• Mitokado Homura confessed that he and Utatane Koharu had worked with Kumogakure to abduct Hinata and lure Zhou Cheng into the Land of Lightning, but said they did not know where she was being held.
• Zhou Cheng warned Mitokado Homura and Utatane Koharu not to harm Hinata, then vanished through a spatial spiral as Tsunade recognized his Space-Time Ninjutsu.
• Zetsu told the Akatsuki that Zhou Cheng possessed several powerful techniques, including a brief Sage Mode approaching Hashirama Senju’s strength and Space-Time Ninjutsu resembling Madara’s.
• Pain ordered the Akatsuki members to join the operation in the Land of Lightning, while reminding them that capturing tailed beasts remained their priority.
• A group of five carrying a figure in Hyuga Clan clothing hurried toward Kumogakure, expecting its shinobi to meet them inside the Land of Lightning.

Zhou Cheng crossed into the Land of Lightning to rescue his abducted friends and fought the Fourth Raikage, A, at the border. He survived A’s strongest attacks and matched him blow for blow, while A prepared to continue the battle.

• Konoha’s pursuers stopped at the border as Kumogakure’s forces confronted them, and Zhou Cheng crossed into the Land of Lightning after the abductors.
• A intercepted Zhou Cheng and demanded that he avenge Kumogakure’s fallen comrades, while Zhou Cheng insisted that A return his abducted friends.
• A struck Zhou Cheng with Four-Finger Nukite, but Zhou Cheng’s Earth Armor protected him and he rose unharmed.
• Zhou Cheng used Flying Thunder God to attack A with Sage Art: Super Big Ball Rasenshuriken, and both survived the explosion.
• A attacked with Lightning Oppression Horizontal Chop, but Zhou Cheng blocked it with Earth Release: Fist Rock Technique and taunted him into using Heavy Outburst Flow.

Zhou Cheng fought Raikage A in a close-range showdown, then activated Wind Release Chakra Mode and the Seventh Gate to push his speed and attacks beyond A's. The battle continued as Zhou Cheng unleashed White Tiger against A's Two-Finger Nukite.

• Zhou Cheng used water blades and a Wind Release kunai to withstand Raikage A's attacks, and the two traded blows evenly.
• Raikage A praised Zhou Cheng's strength and offered him the position of next Raikage, but Zhou Cheng refused to leave Konoha.
• Zhou Cheng activated Wind Release Chakra Mode and the Seventh Gate, then attacked A with Morning Peacock as A shattered the fireballs with his lightning-coated fists.
• Zhou Cheng unleashed the Seventh Gate's full power and surpassed A in speed, prompting A to use Two-Finger Nukite.
• Zhou Cheng compressed the air around his fist and launched White Tiger at A.

Zhou Cheng overwhelmed Raikage A in battle, then stopped A and Killer B’s combined Lariat after activating azure dragon mode. He left both Raikage brothers badly beaten and declared they could die.

• Zhou Cheng’s air tiger struck A and blasted nearby Konoha and Kumogakure shinobi with a shock wave that injured and killed several of them.
• A attacked Zhou Cheng with One-Finger Nukite, but Zhou Cheng’s Azure Dragon technique hurled A hundreds of meters away.
• Killer B and Yugito arrived, learned that A had been injured, and heard A admit that he was no match for Zhou Cheng.
• A and Killer B joined forces to strike Zhou Cheng with Lariat from opposite sides.
• Zhou Cheng activated azure dragon mode, caught both attacks with his palms, and punched A and Killer B hundreds of meters away.

Zhou Cheng opened the Gate of Death and unleashed Azure Dragon against Yugito and Killer B’s Tailed Beast Bombs, leaving all three tailed beasts and Raikage A badly weakened. As Kumogakure’s shinobi moved to kill the wounded Zhou Cheng, Tsunade, Kakashi, Guy, and the Konoha forces prepared to rescue him.

• Yugito joined Raikage A and Killer B in attacking Zhou Cheng, but he sent her flying with a single punch.
• Zhou Cheng transformed his chakra snakes into dragons and formed a massive Azure Dragon as Yugito and Killer B entered Complete Tailed Beast Transformation.
• Zhou Cheng opened the Eighth Gate and charged at the two Tailed Beast Bombs with Azure Dragon, triggering a colossal explosion.
• After the blast, Zhou Cheng stood wounded at the crater’s edge while Yugito and Killer B’s tailed beasts were severely damaged and A was nearly out of chakra.
• Kumogakure’s shinobi cheered for Zhou Cheng’s death, while Kakashi, Guy, Tsunade, and the Konoha shinobi prepared to save him.

Zhou Cheng recovered enough to rejoin the fight after defeating Raikage A, Killer B, and Yugito, forcing Kumogakure’s forces to retreat. He caught up with the exhausted leaders as they tried to reach their ANBU rescue party, leaving Killer B and Yugito convinced they were doomed.

• Konoha and Kumogakure shinobi traded insults while Zhou Cheng recovered in Shikkotsu Forest Sage Mode and assessed the battle’s costs.
• Zhou Cheng activated Wind Release Chakra Mode, reassuring Konoha’s shinobi that he was still able to fight.
• C ordered Kumogakure’s forces to retreat and rescue Raikage A, Killer B, and Yugito, while Tsunade held Konoha’s forces back from the border.
• Konoha’s shinobi cheered Zhou Cheng and taunted the retreating Kumogakure forces.
• Zhou Cheng rode the wind across the crater and caught up with A as he struggled to carry Killer B and Yugito toward the ANBU.
• Killer B and Yugito urged A to escape without them, but Zhou Cheng’s arrival left them believing death was imminent.

Zhou Cheng rescued Hinata from Obito’s ambush and exposed Akatsuki’s plan to capture the tailed beasts, forcing the organization to retreat before a thousand Konoha and Kumogakure Shinobi. With his forces weakened and outnumbered, A faced Zhou Cheng across the border and had to consider Kumogakure’s survival.

• Zhou Cheng restrained Yugito and Killer B, then waited for Hinata while recovering his chakra and watching for Akatsuki.
• Zhou Cheng used his Byakugan’s phasing ability to save Hinata from Obito’s Kamui ambush and released Yugito and Killer B as Akatsuki appeared.
• Zhou Cheng warned the Konoha and Kumogakure Shinobi that Akatsuki sought to collect the tailed beasts, prompting the thousand Shinobi to prepare for battle.
• Obito withdrew every Akatsuki member with Kamui rather than face the assembled Shinobi forces.
• Zhou Cheng taunted A across the border, and A recognized that Kumogakure could not afford to fight on with its elite forces and Jinchūriki compromised.

Zhou Cheng demanded compensation and Kumogakure techniques after defeating Raikage A, while Tsunade negotiated a reduced settlement. Zhou Cheng returned to his alternate dimension and woke Hinata, who wondered if she had died.

• Zhou Cheng demanded two hundred million ryo for Konoha, another hundred million for himself, all Lightning Release Ninjutsu below S-Rank, and advanced Kenjutsu from Kumogakure.
• Raikage A threatened to resume the battle, but Tsunade rejected his attempt to divide Konoha and negotiated thirty million ryo, all B-Rank Lightning Release, and intermediate Kenjutsu.
• Raikage A accepted the terms, left C in charge, and vowed to take back what he had lost from Zhou Cheng.
• Zhou Cheng used a vortex technique to return to his alternate dimension, leaving Kakashi wondering if he had a Mangekyo Sharingan and Kamui.
• Zhou Cheng released Hinata from a sleep genjutsu, and she woke up asking whether she was in the World of the Dead.

Zhou Cheng rescued Hinata and returned with her to Konoha, where word spread of his victory over the Raikage and Kumogakure’s jinchūriki. Meanwhile, the Akatsuki debated who had placed a bounty on Zhou Cheng and decided to continue funding their tailed beast plan through other bounties.

• Zhou Cheng rescued Hinata from the Alternate Dimension, and she kissed him before they returned to Konoha.
• Neji and Naruto tried to leave Konoha to find Hinata, but Shikamaru stopped them before Zhou Cheng and Hinata arrived safely.
• Katsuyu relayed Tsunade’s message that Zhou Cheng had defeated the Raikage and two jinchūriki, forced Kumogakure to surrender, and secured compensation and ninjutsu.
• The Akatsuki questioned who had offered Zhou Cheng’s bounty, and Kakuzu argued that Zhou Cheng was unlikely to have funded it himself.
• Zero ordered Kakuzu to take bounties on Konoha jonin and told the others to prepare for capturing the tailed beasts in teams of three if necessary.

Obito and Pain discussed Zhou Cheng's strength, while Kumogakure recovered from its defeat and Kirigakure's leaders learned that Zhou Cheng had beaten the Raikage. The chapter ended with Mei Terumi silencing the leaders when they assumed Zhou Cheng had died, revealing her Kage-level strength.

• Obito told Pain that he had only a fifty-fifty chance against Zhou Cheng and agreed to investigate who was behind the conflict.
• C urged A and Kumogakure's leaders to recover their resolve, and A ordered public training, an Akatsuki investigation, and round-the-clock guards for Bee and Yugito.
• Kirigakure's leaders debated exploiting Konoha's absence when an ANBU reported that the border clash had ended without a full war.
• The ANBU revealed that Zhou Cheng had defeated A in a one-on-one fight, astonishing the leaders and pleasing Mei Terumi.
• The ANBU added that two jinchūriki had joined the fight, and Kirigakure's leaders assumed Zhou Cheng had been killed.
• Mei Terumi shouted down the leaders and unleashed an aura that made them realize she possessed Kage-level strength.

Mei Terumi learned that Zhou Cheng had defeated the Raikage and the Two-Tails and Eight-Tails, while Kirigakure began plotting to bring him back. After enjoying a comfortable week in Konoha, Zhou Cheng received a message from Sasuke asking to return and train with him, though Zhou Cheng suspected Orochimaru was still hiding in Sasuke’s Cursed Seal.

• Elder Genshi described Zhou Cheng’s New Sage Mode and how he defeated the Raikage and two Jinchūriki, even after they fully transformed into the Two-Tails and Eight-Tails.
• Mei Terumi agreed to contact Zhou Cheng about returning to Kirigakure, while Elder Genshi and the others considered how to reclaim him.
• Zhou Cheng returned to Konoha, where the people celebrated him, and he settled into a comfortable life after Tsunade gave him ten million from Kumogakure’s compensation.
• A week later, a snake from Ryūchi Cave delivered Sasuke’s message asking to return to the village and train with Zhou Cheng.
• Zhou Cheng suspected Orochimaru was still concealed inside Sasuke’s Cursed Seal despite Sasuke claiming he had killed him.

Zhou Cheng reviewed his new strength and plans, then fell into an unusually deep sleep and dreamed of being lost in his Alternate Dimension. After waking and confirming he was healthy, he entered the dimension to investigate whether it was connected to the dream.

• Zhou Cheng told the little snake to have Sasuke organize Orochimaru's research materials and warned it to be careful of Kabuto.
• Zhou Cheng rested in the courtyard, reflecting on his Sage Mode fusion, the Akatsuki, and his plans to replicate Sasuke's Sharingan and pursue Six Paths-level power.
• Zhou Cheng fell asleep until evening, while Hinata, Ino, and the others let him rest and resolved to train harder.
• Karin examined Zhou Cheng and found nothing wrong, and the girls reassured him before he escaped to the house.
• Zhou Cheng recalled dreaming that he was lost in his Alternate Dimension and being watched, then used Phasing to enter it and investigate.

Zhou Cheng investigated the strange Alternate Dimension and discovered Otsutsuki Kaguya trapped inside a crystal. She asked him to free her and promised him power, leaving him alarmed and backing away.

• Zhou Cheng explored the Alternate Dimension but found no sign of whoever seemed to be watching him, then returned home to share dinner with his family.
• The next day, Zhou Cheng woke sore and exhausted after dreaming that he had walked through the Alternate Dimension all night.
• Zhou Cheng ignored the young ninjas' concern and entered the Alternate Dimension again to find the source of the watching sensation.
• A voice spoke directly into Zhou Cheng's mind and guided him across the dimension to a large white crystal.
• Zhou Cheng recognized the figure inside the crystal as Otsutsuki Kaguya, who asked him to free her and offered him unparalleled power.
• Zhou Cheng questioned how Kaguya could be there if she had been sealed on the moon, then began backing away.

Zhou Cheng learned that the Kaguya sealed inside the Expansive Truth-Seeking Ball was only a lingering consciousness, refused to free her, and returned to find that a day and night had passed. Meanwhile, Obito confronted Sasuke at Orochimaru's base and tried to lure him toward Itachi by claiming to know where he was.

• Kaguya told Zhou Cheng that she was a remnant of the Kaguya sealed on the moon and could not escape while her true body remained sealed.
• Zhou Cheng refused Kaguya's offer of the God Tree's fruit, warned her to stay put, and left through a vortex.
• Zhou Cheng woke in his room after sleeping for a day and night, reassured the girls and Uzuki Yugao that he was fine, and spent the day watching the youngsters train.
• At Orochimaru's base, Sasuke chased Kabuto away after they argued over Orochimaru's research, then waited for Zhou Cheng to arrive.
• Obito appeared before Sasuke, introduced himself as Madara Uchiha, and claimed that he knew where Itachi was.

Sasuke set out to confront Itachi after Obito gave him a location, while Kabuto escaped the destruction of Orochimaru’s base and resolved to seek Sage Mode. In Konoha, Zhou Cheng learned Sasuke was heading for Itachi and sensed that his marked kunai was still with him.

• Obito gave Sasuke Itachi’s location and warned him to bring trusted allies, but Sasuke left to face Itachi alone.
• Sasuke sent Orochimaru’s research materials to Zhou Cheng, rigged the base with explosive tags, and destroyed it as he departed.
• Kabuto escaped the explosions, blamed Sasuke for destroying his refuge, and decided to go to Ryūchi Cave to master Sage Mode.
• Itachi, gravely ill, learned from Zetsu that Sasuke was coming and placed his hopes on Shisui’s right eye.
• Zhou Cheng received Sasuke’s research materials from a summoned snake, realized Sasuke was going after Itachi, and checked that his Flying Thunder God Kunai was still on Sasuke.