Chapter Summaries

Aokiji and Tsunade discussed marriage, and he promised to marry her after the war ended. A week later, they began planning Konoha’s attack on the Land of Sky’s sea fortress.

• Tsunade pressed Aokiji for a definite answer about marriage, and he said he wanted their child to be born in a peaceful era after the war.
• Sarutobi Hiruzen assigned Aokiji and Tsunade to lead a mission against the Land of Sky while Orochimaru and Jiraiya went to reinforce the front lines.
• Aokiji and Tsunade found the Land of Sky’s mobile fortress and armed vessels at sea, and Tsunade took command of the mission.
• Tsunade ordered Yujo Ryoma to secretly multiply his insects on the armed ships but keep them off the fortress, where Konoha hoped to recover secret techniques.

Tsunade organized a nighttime infiltration of the Mobile Fortress, assigning Hiten to use the Byakugan to guide the team and Aokiji to assassinate the Land of Sky’s leader. Aokiji found the masked queen, who detected him and raised the alarm, leaving him to face approaching Sky Ninja.

• Tsunade assigned Hiten to assist the mission with his Byakugan and ordered Aokiji to infiltrate and fight if necessary.
• After nightfall, Aokiji and the team stealthily boarded the Mobile Fortress, subdued the guards, and entered using disguises.
• Guided by Hiten’s map, the Konoha ninja split up to sabotage the power system, retrieve supplies, and carry out the decapitation mission.
• Aokiji reached the main chamber and discovered that the masked queen had sensed his presence.
• The queen activated an alarm, and Aokiji summoned a Shadow Clone as armed Sky Ninja approached through the tunnel.

Aokiji and the Konoha forces attacked the Land of Sky fortress, while Aokiji fought Queen Ichihime in the main chamber. After unmasking her, he noticed her pointed ears and wondered if she was an elf.

• Aokiji froze a tunnel and trapped the Sky Ninjas rushing toward the main chamber.
• Yujo Ryoma used swarms of bugs to destroy the Land of Sky warships, and Tsunade ordered a full-scale attack.
• Hiten and the Konoha ninjas defeated the Sky Ninjas guarding the fortress, then Hiten used his Byakugan to watch Aokiji's fight.
• Aokiji used Fire Release and Boil Release to strike Ichihime and break her mask.
• Aokiji saw Ichihime's pointed ears and wondered whether she was an elf.

Ichihime revealed that the Kara Clan had been destroyed by the Land of Fire and that the Uchiha forged their Gunbai from the Tree of Life. She then trapped Aokiji with Thorn Release and prepared to expose the power inside him.

• Aokiji questioned Ichihime about her pointed ears and learned that she had a special constitution and was the Kara Clan’s sole survivor.
• Ichihime explained that the Land of Fire hired the Uchiha Clan to help destroy the Kara Clan and burn the Tree of Life.
• Ichihime said the Uchiha forged the tree’s vital portion into the Gunbai, while the Land of Fire concealed the clan’s history with a false story about Elf Art.
• Ichihime revealed that she had found ancient technology and used it to establish the Land of Sky while seeking revenge on the Land of Fire.
• Ichihime unleashed Thorn Release: Thorn Forest, overwhelmed Aokiji with proliferating vines, and bound him so he could not form hand signs.
• Ichihime said she knew there was an interesting power inside Aokiji and prepared to show him something.

Ichihime captured Aokiji and brought him to the chamber where Zero-Tails was being cultivated, intending to feed the Konoha ninja to it. After Shinno merged with Zero-Tails and the creature trapped Aokiji, he awakened his Sharingan and struck Ichihime with an Ice Wheel Orb, leaving their fight unresolved.

• Ichihime captured Aokiji and took him underground, where Shinno reported that he still could not supply Zero-Tails with stable nourishment.
• Ichihime ordered Shinno to feed Aokiji to Zero-Tails, but Aokiji broke free of his bindings and attacked them with ice techniques.
• Aokiji discovered Zero-Tails inside a glowing cocoon, and Ichihime explained that she had cultivated it from a substance stripped from the demon Moryo.
• Zero-Tails absorbed Aokiji's attacks, then pulled Shinno into its cocoon and emerged with Shinno fused to it.
• Aokiji tried to escape, but Ichihime and Zero-Tails blocked the tunnel and pressured him with chakra-draining tentacles.
• Aokiji awakened his Sharingan and landed an Ice Wheel Orb on Ichihime's abdomen.

Aokiji fought Ichihime and the Zero-Tails until Tsunade and the Konoha Ninja arrived, exposing his Sharingan in front of them. After the Zero-Tails trapped him, Aokiji overwhelmed its absorption limit with the Five-Tails’ Chakra and froze the battlefield, leaving Ichihime escaping the ice while the Zero-Tails was frozen solid.

• Ichihime shrugged off Aokiji’s Rasengan and kicked him into a wall, forcing him to beg the Five-Tails for Chakra.
• Tsunade and the Konoha Ninja arrived and discovered Aokiji’s Sharingan, while Hiten realized he would need to report it to the Third Hokage.
• Ichihime sent the Zero-Tails against the Konoha Ninja, and Hiten identified the Stone Tablet as the source controlling it.
• Aokiji rushed toward the Stone Tablet, but the Zero-Tails caught him with its tentacles as Ichihime attacked Tsunade’s team.
• Aokiji released enough of the Five-Tails’ Chakra to exceed the Zero-Tails’ absorption limit, broke free, and urged everyone to retreat.
• Aokiji unleashed Ice Age, freezing the Zero-Tails and the surrounding area while Ichihime leaped clear.

Aokiji defeated Ichihime, retrieved a secret scroll from the collapsing fortress, and escaped as it sank, while Shinno survived and accepted Moryo’s offer. After the mission, Hiten reported details about Aokiji to Sarutobi Hiruzen, leaving the Hokage regretful about his past decisions.

• Tsunade destroyed the Stone Tablet and replenished Aokiji’s Chakra, allowing Hiten to seal Ichihime’s Chakra points before Aokiji killed her with an Ice Sword.
• Zero-Tails went out of control, and the Konoha team escaped the collapsing fortress without Aokiji, who stayed behind to find a hidden scroll containing the Regeneration Technique.
• Aokiji escaped the sinking fortress and reunited with Tsunade, hiding the scroll inside his Summoned Beast while Hiten secretly checked him with the Byakugan.
• Shinno sank beneath the sea with Zero-Tails and called out for power to take revenge, and Moryo answered his plea.
• Hiten privately reported details about Aokiji to Sarutobi Hiruzen, who recalled Danzo’s warning and began to regret his choices.

Aokiji tried to keep a secret ninjutsu from the village, but Tsunade discovered it was designed for women and agreed to learn it in exchange for a favor. Days later, Fugaku arrived with orders from the Uchiha clan head for Aokiji to go to the Konoha Police Department.

• Aokiji used a summoned penguin to retrieve a scroll containing a secret ninjutsu from the Land of Sky.
• Tsunade confiscated the scroll and insisted Aokiji turn it over to the village, but he persuaded her to keep it secret.
• Tsunade discovered the ninjutsu gave women ears like Ichihime's and could grant increased lifespan and eternal youth, so Aokiji offered it to her to study.
• Aokiji asked Tsunade for a favor in exchange, and she agreed to give him thirty seconds before angrily ending their encounter.
• A few days later, Fugaku visited Aokiji and said the clan head wanted him to come to the Konoha Police Department.

Aokiji confirmed that he had the Sharingan to the Uchiha clan, prompting them to consider him as their future clan head and the Fourth Hokage. Meanwhile, Danzo and the other elders discussed Aokiji’s power and influence, and Danzo proposed killing him.

• Uchiha Yashiro confronted Aokiji about rumors that he had the Sharingan, and Fugaku confirmed that people had seen him use Three Tomoe.
• Aokiji admitted the rumors were true and revealed his Sharingan to the assembled Uchiha.
• The Uchiha clan’s patriarch told Fugaku to keep close watch on Aokiji, whom the clan now viewed as its strongest candidate for clan head.
• Danzo accused Aokiji of pursuing the Hokage position through Tsunade and suggested that someone was guiding him from behind the scenes.
• Danzo proposed killing Aokiji as the best way to resolve the threat, and Sarutobi Hiruzen reacted with alarm.

Sarutobi Hiruzen and Danzo debated how to contain Aokiji, whose strength, Sharingan, and ties to Tsunade and the Uchiha Clan complicated their plans. The meeting ended without a solution, with Hiruzen facing the risk that Iwagakure might abandon its neutrality over the Five-Tails and Danzo threatening to act on his own.

• Danzo urged Sarutobi Hiruzen to seize Aokiji, but Hiruzen argued that Aokiji's power and the Uchiha Clan's support made a direct confrontation too dangerous.
• Sarutobi Hiruzen proposed keeping Aokiji and Tsunade apart on missions so Aokiji could not gain enough military merit to be considered for Hokage.
• Utatane Koharu pointed out that Tsunade might become Hokage, which would leave Aokiji with influence over the village through their relationship.
• Danzo reminded Sarutobi Hiruzen that Ōnoki had demanded the Five-Tails in exchange for an alliance, and that the agreement depended on Aokiji not having the Sharingan.
• Sarutobi Hiruzen ended the meeting without resolving the matter, and Danzo warned that he would use his own methods unless Hiruzen gave him a satisfactory answer about Aokiji's Sharingan.

Danzo recognized that Aokiji had become too powerful to eliminate easily and resolved to act before he grew stronger. Aokiji refused Sarutobi Hiruzen’s order to leave Tsunade and reinforce the front lines, ending their pretense of a harmonious relationship.

• Danzo assessed Aokiji’s combined Kekkei Genkai and Tailed Beast power, then decided he had to kill him within the next year or two.
• Aokiji told Tsunade he might accept becoming Uchiha Clan Leader, and they teased each other about their future roles as spouses.
• Sarutobi Hiruzen summoned Aokiji and asked him to leave Tsunade to reinforce a pressured front line.
• Aokiji refused, saying Tsunade’s safety mattered more to him than anything else, even as Sarutobi Hiruzen raised the village’s needs.
• Aokiji left the Hokage’s Office, and Sarutobi Hiruzen suspected the young ninja had outplayed him.

Half a year later, Uchiha Madara visited Kakuzu and hinted that he was preparing a mission involving Konoha. On the battlefield near the Land of Demons, Aokiji and his allies fought Hanzō, whose sudden attack left Orochimaru in danger before an unknown speaker used Ice Age to save him.

• Kakuzu demonstrated his mastery of the Seven-Tails' power, and Uchiha Madara told him he was preparing to give him a mission after making trouble for Hiruzen as insurance.
• Aokiji challenged Hanzō on the battlefield, and their Water Release and Ice Release techniques canceled each other out.
• Jiraiya tried to attack Hanzō from behind, but Ibuse's tail struck him and sent him flying, so Tsunade ran to heal him.
• Hanzō's explosive kunai failed to harm Tsunade, while Orochimaru bound Hanzō with giant pythons and Aokiji attacked with Eight-Part Ice Wheel.
• Hanzō escaped with Water Body Flicker, struck Orochimaru, and ignited Explosive Tags on his body.
• An unknown speaker shouted Ice Age and froze the Explosive Tags before they could detonate.

Aokiji and his companions faced Hanzō the Salamander, whose powerful Ibuse and massive Water Release trapped them underwater. Aokiji used Tsunade’s Chakra to freeze the enormous water sphere, leaving Hanzō and Ibuse caught in the ice.

• Aokiji protected Orochimaru, assessed Hanzō’s techniques, and told the team to summon their beasts.
• Jiraiya, Tsunade, and Orochimaru summoned their creatures, but Ibuse poisoned Gamabunta and forced him to return to Mount Myōboku.
• Aokiji created Ice Crystal Saint Cloth for himself and his companions, and Hanzō unleashed a huge Water Release that trapped them all in a vast sphere.
• Aokiji summoned an Orca to carry the group out of the water, then dismissed the summoned beasts and asked Tsunade to lend him Chakra.
• Aokiji entered Sage Mode 2 and used Ice Age to freeze the entire water sphere.

Aokiji, Jiraiya, Orochimaru, and Tsunade fought Hanzō the Salamander, who survived Aokiji’s freezing attack by hiding inside Ibuse. Hanzō proposed a ten-minute fight before conceding the title Konoha’s Four Ninja, then singled out Aokiji for a one-on-one battle that remained unresolved.

• Hanzō emerged from Ibuse after avoiding Ice Age, and Aokiji led his companions onto an Ice Dragon as Hanzō escaped the collapsing ice.
• Orochimaru and Jiraiya combined their attacks, while Hanzō countered with a water technique; Aokiji, Tsunade, and Jiraiya then coordinated attacks that sent Hanzō flying.
• Hanzō praised the four and offered to concede if he could not defeat them within ten minutes, then summoned Shadow Clones and charged with three of them.
• Aokiji faced Hanzō’s real body, using Steam Armor and Boil Release: Peerless Super Strength to contest his taijutsu and evade his chained scythe attacks.
• Hanzō unleashed his Rain God sword art, but Aokiji used his speed to retreat rather than meet the varied slashes head-on.

After Hanzō escaped, Aokiji and his companions planned to take their wounded allies to the Land of Demons, while Sarutobi Hiruzen attended an alliance meeting in the Land of Iron. Ōnoki demanded the Five-Tails, and the Third Mizukage proposed exchanging it for the Six-Tails before revealing that Kirigakure wanted Aokiji’s corpse.

• Aokiji, Tsunade, Jiraiya, and Orochimaru accepted that their fight with Hanzō had ended in a draw and decided to move their injured companions to the Land of Demons.
• Sarutobi Hiruzen arrived in the Land of Iron and joined the Third Mizukage and Ōnoki to discuss an alliance between their nations.
• Ōnoki demanded that Konoha return the Five-Tails, threatening war if Sarutobi Hiruzen refused.
• Sarutobi Hiruzen rejected Ōnoki’s demand, arguing that handing over Aokiji would severely weaken Konoha.
• The Third Mizukage offered the Six-Tails as compensation for the Five-Tails, then revealed that Kirigakure wanted Aokiji’s corpse.

The Third Mizukage pressured Sarutobi Hiruzen to trade Aokiji for the Five-Tails and offered the Six-Tails in advance, while Uchiha Madara planned to exploit the deal to break Aokiji and replace Hiruzen with Danzo. Hiruzen left to consult Konoha’s elders, but he and his guards were ambushed in a canyon and collapsed from poison in the snow.

• The Third Mizukage offered Sarutobi Hiruzen the Six-Tails in exchange for Aokiji and threatened a joint Kirigakure-Iwagakure attack if Hiruzen refused.
• The Third Mizukage hinted that he had more information about Aokiji, then discussed Hiruzen’s likely agreement with the controlled Ōnoki and Uchiha Madara.
• Uchiha Madara planned to use the Fire Country Daimyo’s anger and pressure from other villages to make Konoha betray Aokiji, and considered replacing Hiruzen with Danzo.
• Sarutobi Hiruzen told his guards he would return to Konoha to consult Danzo, Koharu, and Homura, and ordered them to keep the negotiations secret.
• Sarutobi Hiruzen and his guards crossed a canyon on their way back, where poison in the snow made them collapse.

Sarutobi Hiruzen fought Kakuzu, who had been sent by Uchiha Madara to leave him severely wounded. Hiruzen pierced Kakuzu’s heart with a lightning spear, but Kakuzu rose again, leaving the fight unresolved.

• Kakuzu used sleep-inducing scale powder to incapacitate most of Sarutobi Hiruzen’s guards, then killed the two who attacked him.
• Sarutobi Hiruzen tested Kakuzu with Earth, Fire, and Wind Release techniques, learning that Kakuzu could use Earth and Lightning Release and harden his body.
• Hiruzen and Kakuzu fought at close range, and Kakuzu caught a Shadow Clone and pierced it while trying to reach Hiruzen’s heart.
• Hiruzen’s original body surprised Kakuzu and pierced his heart with Lightning Release: Lightning Spear.
• Kakuzu rose again after appearing to die, just as Sarutobi Hiruzen lowered his guard.

Sarutobi Hiruzen summoned Enma to fight Kakuzu, whose body could survive catastrophic damage and whose strange creatures wielded multiple elemental attacks. As Kakuzu revealed more of his abilities, Hiruzen realized that the masked creatures likely represented the Five Basic Natures.

• Sarutobi Hiruzen summoned Enma and explained what he knew about Kakuzu's abilities.
• Enma attacked Kakuzu, but Kakuzu survived being beaten, decapitated, and torn in half as black threads restored his body.
• Enma created durable clones while Kakuzu split off four masked creatures, one of which collapsed after Hiruzen had destroyed its heart.
• Kakuzu's creatures combined Fire Release and Wind Release, forcing Sarutobi Hiruzen to block the inferno with a Water Release wall.
• Sarutobi Hiruzen deduced that Kakuzu's creatures each used a different Chakra nature and realized Kakuzu could wield all Five Basic Natures.

Kakuzu fought Sarutobi Hiruzen, who identified his heart-based abilities and nearly defeated him with the Adamantine Staff and Samadhi Fire. Kakuzu revealed he was a Seven-Tails Jinchuriki and ultimately incapacitated Hiruzen, but an arriving attacker stopped him from taking Hiruzen’s heart.

• Kakuzu took an unconscious guard’s heart to replenish one of his lost hearts while Sarutobi Hiruzen analyzed his abilities.
• Sarutobi Hiruzen used Enma as the Adamantine Staff and landed targeted blows on Kakuzu’s hearts.
• Kakuzu attacked with his Fire, Wind, and Water hearts, but Sarutobi Hiruzen used Kinto'un to get behind him and set him ablaze with Samadhi Fire.
• Kakuzu revealed his Tailed Beast Cloak and used its power to overcome Sarutobi Hiruzen, leaving him unable to move after a fierce battle.
• Kakuzu approached Hiruzen to take his heart, but a shuriken interrupted him, so he withdrew and prepared to move on to his next mission.

In the Land of Demons, Aokiji and his companions agreed to protect the pregnant Priestess Suiren from the demon Moryo, which threatened to break free from its weakened seal. They set out to meet her, and Orochimaru revealed that she possessed the ability of prophecy.

• Tsunade asked the Land of Demons soldiers to shelter her injured companions, but Aokiji's Sharingan alarmed them until Jialan arrived and offered the group a place to recuperate.
• Jialan asked the Konoha ninja to protect Priestess Suiren, explaining that Moryo was poised to break free while Suiren's pregnancy weakened its seal.
• Jialan explained that Moryo could not be destroyed because it would return as long as humanity's darkness remained, and that the Priestess traditionally paid with her life to seal it.
• Aokiji agreed to protect Suiren, warning that Moryo's escape could destroy the world; Jialan then explained the threat to Tsunade and Jiraiya.
• Aokiji suggested they visit Suiren, and Orochimaru redirected the conversation by revealing that the Priestess could prophesy.