Chapter Summaries

Naruto and Lucci tested each other’s strength on the border of the Land of Rain before Kalifa halted their fight and the Celestial Dragons demanded authority over the Shinobi World. Naruto and the leaders rejected the demand, leaving both sides poised for conflict.

• Naruto arrived with Sasuke, the Five Kage, and Konoha’s elite, and Lucci attacked him in his transformed state.
• Naruto activated Nine-Tails Mode and fought Lucci through dozens of rounds without either gaining the upper hand.
• Kalifa stopped the fight, and Lucci called Uchiha Sen out of hiding; Sen said he was observing the situation on a mission.
• Lucci declared that the Celestial Dragons intended to restore their authority over the Shinobi World, but Naruto rejected the demand.
• Lucci claimed the Celestial Dragons had ruled the land a thousand years earlier and that its nobles descended from their former slaves; Sasuke and Naruto dismissed his claim.
• Kalifa warned the assembled shinobi that the Celestial Dragons had powerful fighters and warships and that the Shinobi World could not defeat them.

Naruto and the Shinobi World’s leaders negotiated with Lucci over the Celestial Dragons’ claim to the Shinobi World after the Black Ship destroyed an intruder. Naruto proposed peaceful exchange between the two worlds, leaving Lucci’s response uncertain.

• Sasuke and Naruto challenged Lucci’s claim that his power surpassed chakra, but the Black Ship suddenly fired on and annihilated a distant mountain while targeting hidden intruders.
• Lucci and Kalifa explained that the Black Ship could detect hostile life forms and attack autonomously, alarming Naruto, Sasuke, and their companions.
• Lucci insisted that the Shinobi World return to Celestial Dragon control and warned that their forces would make the Shinobi World pay for refusing.
• Uchiha Sen argued that the Celestial Dragons were invaders and that the ruined Shinobi World was not worth a devastating conflict, easing the tension.
• Naruto proposed entering the Celestial Dragons’ small world, and Lucci warned that Naruto would likely be killed there because his chakra would expose him as an outsider.
• Naruto asked for friendly exchanges and peaceful relations between the two worlds, with each sharing resources and maintaining a place in the other.

Naruto’s negotiations with Lucci collapsed when Lucci revealed the Celestial Dragons viewed the shinobi world as a breeding farm, prompting Naruto to warn that the shinobi had hidden means to resist. As Naruto demanded Sarada’s release, Kalifa revealed the Knights had been operating in the shinobi world for over a decade, leaving Naruto suspicious of her motives.

• Lucci told Naruto that the Celestial Dragons wanted the shinobi world as a breeding farm for slaves and living weapons, not as an equal partner.
• Naruto warned Lucci that the shinobi world had preserved powerful trump cards and could stand against the Celestial Dragons’ forces.
• Kalifa said the Vanguard could not negotiate on behalf of headquarters, and Naruto asked them to hand over Sarada.
• Kalifa deduced that Naruto had sent Langwei to infiltrate the perimeter and secretly rescue Sarada.
• Kalifa revealed that the Knights had their own small world and had entered the shinobi world more than a decade before the Celestial Dragons.
• Uchiha Sen suggested Langwei had been a sleeper agent, and Naruto asked Kalifa why she had revealed the Knights’ secrets.

Kalifa offered the Allied Shinobi Forces an alliance against the Knights, but Naruto refused and demanded Sarada's release. Kalifa returned the weakened Sarada, and Sasuke rushed to catch her and demanded to know whether the Celestial Dragons had abused her.

• Kalifa proposed that the Celestial Dragons and the Allied Shinobi Forces join forces against the Knights and offered them the pocket world.
• Naruto rejected the alliance, saying he would not join a plot that could start a war.
• Naruto demanded that Kalifa return Sarada before the Elder arrived, and Lucci agreed to release her.
• Kalifa brought Sarada down from the Black Ship, frail and pale after her imprisonment.
• Sasuke caught Sarada and asked Kalifa and Lucci whether they had abused her, and Kalifa denied it dismissively.

Sasuke rescued the weakened Sarada, and Naruto's side and Lucci's side agreed to a temporary truce while awaiting talks with the Celestial Dragons' Elders. Lucci and Kalifa reported their concerns to headquarters as Naruto's group left the battlefield, where Sarada thanked them for saving her.

• Sarada told Sasuke that her captors had locked her up without food, and Sasuke gave her rations and water.
• Lucci explained that he had assumed Sarada would refuse food from her enemies, leaving Sasuke speechless as Sarada privately questioned the assumption.
• Naruto and Lucci's sides failed to resolve their disputes but agreed to exercise restraint until the senior Elders arrived for formal talks.
• Lucci and Kalifa discussed Naruto's strength and the uncertain goals of the Veil Organization, then returned to the Black Ship to send their intelligence to headquarters.
• Naruto led his group away from the battlefield, and Sarada thanked them for rescuing her and said she understood the danger they had faced.

Sasuke apologized to Sarada for failing to find and protect her, while Naruto reassured the group that he had a trump card against the Celestial Dragons. As the Shinobi World speculated about Six Paths power, Jiraiya revealed that Nagato had possessed the Rinnegan left by the Sage of Six Paths.

• Sasuke admitted that he had wrongly assumed Sarada was a lab-grown experiment and apologized for not seeking her out sooner.
• Sarada asked about Langwei and Kisame, and Naruto said they were likely recovering in hiding and would find them after sensing his Nine-Tails Chakra signal.
• Orochimaru warned Naruto that the Celestial Dragons and their Black Ship could overwhelm the Shinobi World, but Naruto insisted that he had a powerful trump card.
• People across the Shinobi World speculated that Naruto's trump card was either the Veil Organization or Six Paths power.
• Tsunade and Jiraiya theorized that merging the yin power inherited by Sasuke and the yang power inherited by Naruto might create Six Paths power.
• Jiraiya told Tsunade that Nagato, one of the orphans he had taught in the Land of Rain, had possessed the Sage of Six Paths' Rinnegan.

Jiraiya revealed that Nagato possessed the Rinnegan and explained why he had kept it secret, while Tsunade suspected Danzo had caused Nagato to turn against Konoha. In the Land of Rain, Nagato resolved to change the future after wondering whether he had given his eyes to Naruto, and Konan raised the possibility that the Otsutsuki had defeated the Celestial Dragons.

• Jiraiya told Tsunade that Nagato had the Rinnegan and that he had hidden the secret to protect Nagato from Konoha's leadership.
• Tsunade said Konoha could have guided Nagato and prevented future tragedies, then suspected the Third Hokage had acted against him.
• Tsunade and Jiraiya questioned Hiruzen, who denied harming Nagato, and the three concluded that Danzo was responsible.
• Nagato wondered whether he had given his Rinnegan to Naruto after his defeat, while Konan refused to accept that future sacrifice.
• Nagato vowed to change the future and not lose again, while Konan suggested the Otsutsuki might have defeated the Celestial Dragons a thousand years earlier.

On the journey back from the Land of Rain, Naruto, Sasuke, Orochimaru, and Sarada discussed the Veil Organization and the threat it posed. After Naruto and Sasuke took Sarada toward Konoha, Orochimaru met Uchiha Sen, who asked whether his Immortality Technique had succeeded, stunning viewers across the Shinobi World.

• Orochimaru warned Naruto and the others that the Veil Organization's unknown goals and hidden strength made it dangerous.
• Sarada described Uchiha Hikari's strength, and Sasuke advised her to keep her distance from the Veil Organization and avoid investigating it.
• Naruto sent the group home to recover, while Sasuke arranged for Sarada to return to Konoha and wait for Kisame and Langwei.
• Orochimaru left the group and, after they had gone, called out Uchiha Sen, who emerged from the forest.
• Uchiha Sen asked Orochimaru whether his Immortality Technique had succeeded, and the Sky Screen broadcast the revelation to the Shinobi World.

Orochimaru learned that his future self had mastered immortality and became determined to pursue the technique, while Uchiha Sen confronted him about his secrets and used Sarada’s name to expose his vulnerability. Sen offered to protect Sarada’s secrets in exchange for the complete Immortality Technique, then began recounting how he had witnessed Orochimaru’s resurrection and allowed him to escape.

• Orochimaru celebrated the Sky Screen’s revelation that he would achieve immortality and resolved to keep researching.
• Uchiha Sen asked Orochimaru about immortality, then revealed that he knew about Uchiha Sarada.
• Orochimaru’s composure broke, and he directed killing intent at Uchiha Sen.
• Uchiha Sen offered to keep Sarada’s secrets in exchange for Orochimaru’s complete Immortality Technique, but Orochimaru denied knowing anything about it.
• Uchiha Sen explained that he had witnessed Orochimaru resurrect from a Cursed Seal and had let him escape after discovering he had taken over a woman’s body.

Uchiha Sen revealed how he used his Mangekyō Sharingan ability, Rationalization, to manipulate Orochimaru into helping preserve the Uchiha bloodline. He left Orochimaru to reckon with the discovery that Sen had secretly engineered the scheme years ago.

• Uchiha Sen explained that Rationalization let him subtly influence people as long as he did not violate their deepest principles.
• Sen told Orochimaru he had secretly planted the idea that Orochimaru needed his own Uchiha bloodline and body to obtain a perfect vessel.
• Sen revealed that he had watched Itachi grow remorseful and want to rebuild the Uchiha Clan, which required restoring its population.
• Orochimaru recognized that his weakened state after reincarnation and Itachi's guilt had made Itachi receptive to the plan.
• Sen recalled observing the events from the shadows and leaving before he could be discovered.
• Orochimaru fell silent as he realized Sen had manipulated him throughout the scheme.

The Sky Screen revealed that Orochimaru gave birth to Sarada after Uchiha Sen manipulated events, then showed Sen forcing Orochimaru to choose between cooperation and having their secrets exposed. Konoha's leaders discussed Sen's mind-altering power, while Orochimaru was left stunned by the revelation.

• Uchiha Sen confronted Orochimaru with his knowledge of their secrets and demanded that he choose between mutual destruction and cooperation.
• The Shinobi World reacted in shock as the Sky Screen revealed how Sarada came to be and how Uchiha Sen's rationalization Dōjutsu influenced Orochimaru and Itachi.
• Jiraiya and Tsunade discussed Orochimaru's role in Sarada's birth and speculated that he had developed maternal feelings for her.
• Jiraiya warned Tsunade that Uchiha Sen's ability to manipulate people's choices made him a dangerous threat, then provoked her and was punched away.
• Orochimaru watched the revelation at his hidden base and lost his composure after learning that he would give birth to Sarada.

Orochimaru rejected Uchiha Sen’s demand for his Immortality Technique after confirming that Sen’s Rationalization Dōjutsu had not changed his desire to keep it. The Sky Screen’s revelations also enraged Itachi and Sasuke, with Sasuke awakening his Sharingan, while Orochimaru’s final refusal left his deal with Sen broken.

• Karin recoiled from Orochimaru after the Sky Screen revealed that Sarada was his child with Itachi, and Orochimaru vowed to remember Uchiha Sen.
• Itachi erupted in fury at the claim that he had fathered Sarada with Orochimaru and threatened to kill both Orochimaru and Uchiha Sen.
• Sasuke punched Naruto, awakened his Sharingan, and swore to kill Uchiha Sen for disgracing the Uchiha Clan.
• Orochimaru examined his own feelings and concluded that Uchiha Sen’s Rationalization Dōjutsu had not made him willing to surrender his Immortality Technique.
• Orochimaru told Uchiha Sen that he would not hand over the technique, breaking their deal, and then began to respond to Sen’s demand.

Orochimaru revealed that he had once planned to use Sarada as a vessel for immortality but later arranged for Kisame to protect her. Overwhelmed by the truth that others had used her, Sarada awakened her Mangekyō Sharingan.

• Naruto, Sasuke, and Sarada emerged from hiding and confronted Orochimaru and Uchiha Sen, having overheard their conversation.
• Sarada demanded the truth, and Orochimaru admitted he had intended to take her body before abandoning the plan and arranging for Kisame to protect her.
• Uchiha Sen fled after his scheme was exposed, while Sasuke swore to hunt him down for exploiting Uchiha Itachi's legacy.
• Sarada realized Orochimaru and Uchiha Sen had both used her, and her overwhelming anguish triggered her Mangekyō Sharingan awakening.

Sarada awakened her Mangekyō Sharingan after learning the truth about her life, while Danzo remained under house arrest and plotted to seize powerful Dōjutsu. The Sky Screen then revealed that the Celestial Dragons had planted hidden pawns a thousand years ago, and that their scheme had helped shape the Shinobi World.

• The Shinobi World reacted with shock to Sarada's Mangekyō Sharingan, while Danzo envied her eyes and vowed to take Uchiha Sen's Rationalization Dōjutsu someday.
• Orochimaru left the Dense Forest after Sarada awakened her Mangekyō, and Naruto and Sasuke let him go as Sarada quietly examined her trembling hands.
• The Sky Screen showed Lucci and Kalifa reporting to the Celestial Dragons' Main Headquarters aboard the Black Ship.
• An aged Celestial Dragon leader condemned the descendants of Otsutsuki and revealed that their ancestors had planted hidden pawns and contingencies a thousand years earlier.
• Lucci and Kalifa listened as the leader declared that the Celestial Dragons' long-laid scheme had helped turn the balance of power during the world's upheaval.

After the Sky Screen revealed the Celestial Dragons’ thousand-year scheme, people across the Shinobi World wondered whether it had caused the decline of the Otsutsuki descendants. In Konoha, Tsunade explained the Senju Clan’s decline but remained uncertain whether the Celestial Dragons had influenced the Uchiha Clan’s destruction, leaving the world to grapple with the possibility that the Celestial Dragons were its true enemy.

• The Elder ordered Lucci and Kalifa to suspend operations, avoid conflict, and gather intelligence while they awaited further orders.
• After the Sky Screen broadcast ended, people across the Shinobi World connected the Celestial Dragons’ thousand-year scheme to the decline of the Senju and Uchiha Clans.
• People debated whether the Otsutsuki had driven the Celestial Dragons’ ancestors from the Shinobi World, while insisting the Celestial Dragons should not be there.
• In Konoha’s Hokage Office, Jiraiya tried to reassure Tsunade that the Celestial Dragons’ scheme might not have affected the village’s leadership.
• Tsunade explained that the First and Second Hokages had dispersed the Senju Clan to secure Konoha’s rule, but she and Jiraiya remained uncertain whether the Celestial Dragons’ scheme had helped bring about the Uchiha Clan’s destruction.
• People across the Shinobi World began to see the Celestial Dragons as their true enemies, though the broadcast’s end did not stop the turmoil.

Tsunade and Jiraiya sought ancient knowledge about the Ōtsutsuki Clan and the Celestial Dragons to understand the threat facing the Shinobi World. The Slug Sage confirmed the Ōtsutsuki were invaders and directed Tsunade toward the Great Toad Sage, who remained asleep at Mount Myōboku.

• Tsunade decided to investigate the events from a thousand years ago, while Jiraiya traveled to Mount Myōboku to question the Great Toad Sage.
• The Slug Sage told Tsunade that the Sage of Six Paths, Hagoromo Otsutsuki, fathered Indra and Asura, making the Senju and Uchiha descendants of the Ōtsutsuki.
• The Slug Sage confirmed that the Ōtsutsuki had come from beyond the heavens to invade and plunder the world, but said the Great Toad Sage might know more.
• Sage Fukasaku told Jiraiya that the Great Toad Sage was asleep and not receiving visitors, possibly observing the Sky Screen through Future Sight.
• Sage Fukasaku said he knew neither the truth about the ancient upheaval nor anything about the Celestial Dragons, so Jiraiya asked to be notified when the Great Toad Sage awoke.

Tsunade and Jiraiya failed to learn the ancient secrets from the Sage Lands and decided to address the threat posed by Nagato through diplomacy instead of sending Jiraiya to Amegakure. Later, Kusagakure held a bonfire celebration where people discussed the Sky Screen and mourned the Uzumaki Clan’s fate.

• Tsunade and Jiraiya compared what they had learned from Shikkotsu Forest and Mount Myōboku, and Tsunade accused Mount Myōboku of hiding its knowledge.
• Tsunade and Jiraiya set aside the ancient mysteries and agreed that Nagato of Amegakure was the most urgent threat to Konoha.
• Jiraiya offered to visit Nagato, but Tsunade refused and proposed contacting him by letter before sending a merchant caravan with supplies and goodwill.
• Tsunade and Jiraiya agreed on the diplomatic plan and began discussing preparations for the caravan.
• At Kusagakure’s bonfire celebration, villagers discussed the Sky Screen, the Uzumaki Clan’s connection to the Veil Organization, and Karin’s heritage.

Kusagakure ninjas noticed Kanae’s vivid Uzumaki-red hair and grew wary that she might be connected to the Veil Organization. Kanae revealed an unsettling side beneath her sweet appearance and insisted she had not arrived too late, leaving the ninjas unsure of her intentions.

• Kusagakure ninjas discussed Karin’s mother and the healing abilities associated with the Uzumaki Clan.
• The ninjas spotted Kanae eating near their bonfire and noticed her exceptionally vivid red hair.
• The ninjas became cautious after joking that Kanae might be an Uzumaki orphan or a member of the Veil Organization.
• Kanae introduced herself with a sweet smile that shifted into a chilling, calculating expression.
• A Kusagakure ninja warned Kanae that Karin had left with Orochimaru, but Kanae calmly said it was not too late.

Kanae launched a brutal attack on the Kusagakure ninja, killing them with terrifying speed and ripping out their hearts. When Kusagakure's leader and core jonin engulfed her in a barrage of Fire Release techniques, Kanae emerged from the flames unharmed.

• Kanae told the Kusagakure ninja she had come alone on her first official mission and taunted them into attacking.
• The Kusagakure ninja launched a coordinated barrage of weapons and ninjutsu, but Kanae evaded it and began killing them at close range.
• Kanae slaughtered the Kusagakure ninja as some begged, some fought back, and others tried to flee.
• Kusagakure's leader arrived with the remaining core jonin and attacked Kanae with multiple Fire Release techniques, also engulfing a nearby Grass Ninja.
• Kanae ripped out the Grass Ninja's heart before the flames consumed her, then walked out of the inferno completely unharmed.

Kanae slaughtered Kusagakure’s forces, shrugging off their attacks and healing instantly as the village fell into panic and despair. She identified herself as Lord God's most beloved child and the Veil Organization’s one and only Kanae.

• Kusagakure’s leader offered Kanae compensation and begged her to stop, but Kanae refused and charged at the village’s remaining fighters.
• Kusagakure’s ninja raised walls and attacked with ninjutsu, but Kanae evaded, pierced, or endured every defense.
• Kanae killed the village’s fighters in a brutal massacre, while the leader barely escaped her attacks and watched his forces collapse.
• Kusagakure’s survivors wondered why their attacks could not harm Kanae and speculated that the Veil Organization served otherworldly forces.
• Kanae mocked the Otsutsuki and Celestial Dragons, then declared herself Lord God's most beloved child and the Veil Organization’s one and only Kanae.