Chapter Summaries

Hiruzen and the Senju Faction investigated Danzo’s unusually benevolent behavior and learned he was seeking to remove Root’s Cursed Seals. They suspected Hashirama’s cells and a Sharingan were influencing him, while Jiraiya’s suggestion to give Uchiha Hashirama cells left the meeting awaiting Hiruzen’s decision.

• Hiruzen, the Elder Advisors, Tsunade, and Orochimaru met to discuss Danzo’s suspiciously kind behavior and his efforts to remove Root’s Cursed Seals.
• Jiraiya wondered whether Danzo was under Genjutsu, but Hiruzen said Danzo’s chakra showed no signs of it.
• Homura suggested Hashirama’s cells were affecting Danzo, and Tsunade confirmed the cells could influence someone and even turn them into a tree.
• Hiruzen said Danzo was likely using a Sharingan to counter the aggressive effects of Hashirama’s cells.
• Jiraiya proposed implanting Hashirama’s cells into Uchiha to strengthen the village, prompting alarmed looks from Tsunade and the Elder Advisors.

The Third rejected Jiraiya’s proposal to transplant Hashirama cells into the Uchiha, and Tsunade took charge of researching the cells. Meanwhile, Danzo changed Root’s practices, stirring suspicion in the village, while Zou Hyuga attended a meeting with the Hyuga Main Family and sensed natural energy near their Gentle Fist training hall.

• The Third rejected Jiraiya’s suggestion to let the Uchiha receive Hashirama cell transplants, and Tsunade volunteered to research the cells.
• The emergency meeting ended without a plan to address Danzo’s unusual behavior.
• Danzo ordered Root to stop certain experiments and remove the cursed seals from new recruits, while Aburame Ryoma suspected he had fallen under Genjutsu.
• Rumors about Danzo’s changed behavior spread, making the clans worry that the village might take action against them.
• Zou Hyuga met with Hiashi and other Main Family members, who confirmed the Hyuga would not be targeted by the village.
• As Zou Hyuga prepared to leave the estate, he sensed natural energy near the Main Family’s Gentle Fist training hall.

Zou Hyuga stopped Hanabi from relying on natural energy during sparring and arranged to take her away for field training. He also planned to send Hinata and Neji to Oto, while keeping Hanabi’s trip secret because of the danger posed by Otsutsuki Toneri.

• Hanabi overwhelmed Hinata and Neji in sparring until Zou Hyuga absorbed the natural energy around them, after which they defeated her.
• Zou Hyuga asked Hiashi for permission to take Hanabi away for field training, and Hiashi agreed to a trip lasting a month or longer.
• Zou Hyuga suggested that Hinata and Neji train with Oto, and he told Hiashi to keep Hanabi’s trip secret.
• Zou Hyuga left the Main Family residence, where Hizashi followed him and thanked him for teaching Neji.

Zou Hyuga investigated Hidan’s conflict with the Box of Ultimate Bliss and traced the chakra keeping him alive to his heart. When Zou seized it, the Evil God took control of Hidan and threatened Zou and Oto Uchiha.

• Zou Hyuga brought Vortex Shizuko to the underground Laboratory, where Oto Uchiha monitored the unstable Box of Ultimate Bliss.
• Oto told Zou that Danzo was stable in the box, and Zou explained that he was experimenting with turning a monster into an exemplary ninja.
• Oto warned Zou that Hidan and the Box of Ultimate Bliss strongly rejected each other, so Zou went to examine Hidan.
• Zou found that the Evil God’s chakra was sustaining Hidan and traced its source to Hidan’s heart.
• Zou seized Hidan’s heart and had Oto seal the rest of his body, but the Evil God took control of Hidan and threatened them.

Zou Hyuga questioned the Evil God possessing Hidan about its power and the beings Moryo and the God of Death, then left after learning what he could. He had promised a blood sacrifice decades in the future but intended to deal with that obligation only if it became necessary.

• The Evil God possessed Hidan and assessed Zou Hyuga and Oto as powerful opponents, while Zou judged the Evil God’s strength and pressed it for answers.
• Zou threatened to uproot the Jashin Cult unless the Evil God explained its power, its connection to Moryo, and what the God of Death was.
• The Evil God said it could absorb negative emotions, had met Moryo centuries earlier, and feared the God of Death, but gave only ambiguous answers.
• Zou considered ways to free Kushina’s and Minato’s souls and revive them, but recognized that the known methods were difficult or costly.
• The Evil God exhausted its chakra and Hidan regained control; Zou left the research lab after agreeing to a blood sacrifice decades later.

Zou Hyuga and Vortex Shizuko used the Dead Demon Consuming Seal to retrieve Minato and Kushina’s souls and the sealed half of the Nine-Tails from the God of Death. Zou used Impure World Reincarnation to place the souls in their bodies, but the couple remained unconscious, leaving their recovery uncertain.

• Vortex Shizuko summoned the God of Death while Zou Hyuga entered Sage Mode and prepared to free the souls sealed inside it.
• Shizuko restrained the God of Death with Golden Chains, and Zou cut open its stomach, releasing Minato and Kushina’s souls along with the half of the Nine-Tails attached to them.
• Zou used White Zetsu as sacrifices for Impure World Reincarnation and restored the Fourth Hokage Couple’s souls to their bodies.
• Zou saw that Minato and Kushina’s spirit bodies were intact but dim, and he concluded they might need time to recover before waking.

Zou Hyuga and Oto Uchiha freed and subdued the Nine-Tails, then offered him a choice between becoming a summoning beast and being sealed inside a female tanuki. The Nine-Tails chose to hear about the summoning contract, and Zou gave Oto the chance to sign it.

• After Shizuko left, Zou Hyuga and Oto Uchiha released the Nine-Tails from the Fourth Hokage's reanimated body in their underground laboratory.
• Oto used her Mangekyō Sharingan to shrink and control the Nine-Tails, while Zou fitted him with a collar that restrained his power.
• Zou and Oto discussed finding the Nine-Tails a host, including sealing him inside a female tanuki, which horrified him.
• Zou offered the Nine-Tails a choice between signing a summoning contract and being sealed inside a female tanuki, and the Nine-Tails asked about the contract.
• The Nine-Tails agreed to consider becoming a summoning beast but insisted on signing with only one of them, so Zou offered the contract to Oto.

After contracting with Oto, the Nine-Tails accepted his new role while Zou Hyuga considered how to truly revive Minato Namikaze and Kushina. Zou left their recovery unresolved and asked Sasori about the Wandering Miko's whereabouts.

• Oto became the Nine-Tails' summoner, and the Nine-Tails accepted the arrangement because he could not defeat Oto and Zou Hyuga.
• Zou asked the Nine-Tails how to awaken Minato Namikaze and Kushina, then provoked him by suggesting he might resurrect the Sage of Six Paths.
• Zou decided to seek Orochimaru's knowledge of souls and entrusted Minato Namikaze and Kushina to Oto's care.
• Zou relocated the laboratory and visited Sasori, who reported progress on the Chakra Armor and praised Kabuto Yakushi's research skills.
• Zou asked Sasori whether he knew the Wandering Miko's whereabouts.

Zou Hyuga failed to learn where Yakushi Nonō was and decided to keep Kabuto Yakushi under tighter control. In Otogakure, Orochimaru investigated Kabuto’s disappearance, suspected Danzo’s spirit body was damaged, and left to handle other business as the Akatsuki Leader’s deadline approached.

• Zou Hyuga considered using Yakushi Nonō to recruit Kabuto Yakushi but, lacking information about Nonō, decided to have Sasori tighten his control over Kabuto.
• Kimimaro brought Orochimaru reports that Kabuto had vanished from Konoha and that Danzo demanded an explanation while requesting a soul-strengthening technique.
• Orochimaru suspected Danzo’s recent behavior and rapid growth in strength stemmed from damage to his spirit body, and he prepared a reply to exploit the situation.
• Orochimaru set aside Rasa’s letter, instructed his subordinates, and left Otogakure as the deadline to answer the Akatsuki Leader’s summons drew near.

Zou Hyuga took Hanabi to a hidden base to protect and train her, where she met Haku and learned that Karin’s mother had died. He let Karin remain at the base to assist his research and saw that the Merchant Company’s orphan recruits could still become a formidable force with proper equipment.

• Zou Hyuga and Hanabi left the village in disguise, and he explained that her purer Byakugan put her at risk of being kidnapped.
• Zou Hyuga brought Hanabi to a hidden base, where Haku demonstrated his ice abilities and agreed to help with her training.
• Zou Hyuga learned that Ms. Shizuko had died, and Karin chose to stay at the base and assist his research.
• Zou Hyuga visited the Merchant Company’s orphan recruits and judged that armor and weapons could make them a force to be reckoned with despite their limited ninja talent.

Nagato and Konan discussed Amegakure’s worsening hardship under the economic blockade and Akatsuki’s plans to capture the Four-Tails and Five-Tails. Nagato sent Ōnoki an invitation intended to occupy him, then prepared to meet the arriving Akatsuki members.

• Amegakure’s residents faced dwindling supplies and rising prices, while Konan struggled to keep the village supplied and manage its affairs.
• Konan told Nagato that Akatsuki had located the Four-Tails and Five-Tails but still had no news of the Seven-Tails.
• Nagato decided Akatsuki had to capture the Four-Tails and Five-Tails before Ōnoki could seek help from other villages.
• Nagato considered the risk that Akatsuki’s missing-nin might betray the organization and acknowledged that keeping them under control had become difficult.
• Nagato gave Konan a letter inviting Ōnoki to accompany him to a nearby small country's shinobi village, hoping to keep the Tsuchikage occupied.
• Nagato detected the other Akatsuki members arriving and sent the six Pains leaping from the rooftop to meet them.

Zou Hyuga and Hiruko tracked down Roshi in the Land of Earth to capture the Four-Tails. As Hiruko fought Roshi, Zou detected approaching ninja and warned him to finish quickly.

• Pain assigned Zou Hyuga and Hiruko to capture the Four-Tails while other Akatsuki members received their own missions.
• Zou Hyuga found Hiruko hunting ninja in a town, and they searched for Roshi, the Four-Tails jinchūriki.
• Zou Hyuga and Hiruko found Roshi fishing by a lake, and Hiruko attacked him after revealing his Akatsuki robe.
• Roshi countered Hiruko with Lava Release, while Zou Hyuga watched from a distance and avoided joining the fight.
• Zou Hyuga sensed nearby ninja approaching and warned Hiruko to pick up the pace.

Deidara flew to the lake to help Roshi fight Hiruko and Zou Hyuga, but Roshi transformed into the Four-Tails and urged Deidara to flee. After Hiruko chased Deidara away, Zou Hyuga subdued the Four-Tails and rescued Roshi, then waited for Hiruko while absorbing the beast’s chakra.

• Deidara took a commission to find the ninja killer and flew out to investigate sounds of battle near a lake.
• Deidara attacked Hiruko and Zou Hyuga with Clay Bombs, but they avoided the blasts and Zou Hyuga knocked Deidara’s Clay Bird back with an explosion.
• Roshi urged Deidara to tell Ōnoki what the Akatsuki had done, then lost control and transformed into the Four-Tails.
• Hiruko agreed to pay Zou Hyuga one million ryō to fight the Four-Tails while he pursued Deidara.
• Zou Hyuga dodged the Four-Tails’ lava attack, blasted a Tailed Beast Bomb into its mouth, and pinned it beneath the lake until it weakened.
• Zou Hyuga pulled the unconscious Roshi from the water and waited by the lakeside for Hiruko while absorbing the Four-Tails’ chakra.

Zou Hyuga and Hiruko captured Roshi after Hiruko was badly injured by Deidara, who escaped to Iwagakure and warned Ōnoki that the Akatsuki had attacked. After learning Han was injured as well, Ōnoki placed Iwagakure on wartime alert.

• Hiruko returned burned and missing an arm after Deidara escaped, and Zou Hyuga reminded him to hurry before Ōnoki learned what happened.
• Deidara returned to Iwagakure and told Ōnoki that Hiruko and Zou Hyuga had attacked Roshi and likely captured him.
• Ōnoki heard Deidara's account and realized the Akatsuki had broken their alliance by attacking Roshi.
• Kitsuchi reported that Orochimaru and Shinnō had attacked Han, who was injured and would need days to recover.
• Ōnoki judged that Iwagakure could not safely intercept the Akatsuki and ordered the village to enter wartime status.

Akatsuki extracted the Four-Tails from Roshi while Orochimaru and Shinnō secretly prepared to leave the organization. As the group flew toward Iwagakure, Zou Hyuga suspected Obito had already infiltrated the village to find the Five-Tails Jinchuriki.

• Deva Path questioned Orochimaru and Shinnō about failing to capture the Five-Tails Jinchuriki, and they explained that Iwagakure forces had made them retreat.
• Deva Path and the Akatsuki members extracted the Four-Tails from Roshi, after which Hiruko obtained permission to use Roshi's corpse for his experiments.
• Hiruko named nearly everyone in the organization as a possible traitor, and Nagato dismissed his suspicions as rivalry.
• Orochimaru and Shinnō secretly told Zou Hyuga they planned to leave the Akatsuki and act independently.
• The Akatsuki flew toward Iwagakure on Hiruko's Flying Summoning Beast, while Zou Hyuga suspected Obito had entered the village to search for the Five-Tails Jinchuriki.

Obito and Zetsu infiltrated Iwagakure to search for the Five-Tails Jinchuriki, prompting Ōnoki and the Rock Ninja to defend the village. Zou Hyuga broke through the village’s defenses and watched a nearby battle as the ground began to shake.

• A Rock Ninja spotted an approaching flying beast and sounded the alarm, while Obito and Zetsu slipped into Iwagakure.
• Ōnoki led the village’s response, flew toward the intruders, and struck their beast with Dust Release before the Preta Path blocked his next attack.
• Ōnoki warned the Rock Ninja that Iwagakure’s survival was at stake, and Deidara grew serious.
• Zou Hyuga landed on Iwagakure’s fortifications, swiftly incapacitated defending Rock Ninja, and raced through the defensive line into the village.
• Zou entered a residence and watched Rock Ninja evacuate civilians and join a nearby battle, then felt the ground shake violently.

Kitsuchi and the Iwagakure jonin fought Hiruko, whose stolen kekkei genkai let him overwhelm them until Deidara and Ōnoki intervened. Hiruko was left gravely wounded, and Deidara said the injured ninja had been handed to Medical Madara before they began questioning him.

• Kitsuchi and the Iwagakure jonin trapped Hiruko, but he escaped underground and unleashed Scorch Release and Lava Release, weakening the fighters with intense heat.
• Hiruko killed several jonin and used Lava Release to dehydrate Kitsuchi, leaving him unable to form hand seals.
• Deidara bombed Hiruko's feet with clay spiders, and Ōnoki struck him with Dust Release, forcing him to flee.
• Hiruko attacked Ōnoki, who had disguised himself as a genin, but Ōnoki's Dust Release destroyed nearly half his body.
• Deidara arrived and revealed that Ōnoki had been a clay clone, then said Medical Madara was treating Kitsuchi and the other wounded jonin.

Ōnoki fought the Paths of Pain as they searched for the Five-Tails, and Kitsuchi died after the Naraka Path extracted and examined his soul. Meanwhile, Obito searched Iwagakure for Han, who transformed into a maddened Five-Tails after Orochimaru and Shinnō cursed him, ending the chapter with its Tailed Beast Bomb aimed at them.

• Ōnoki saw Kitsuchi raise an earth wall against the Six Paths of Pain, but the Naraka Path seized him and pulled out his soul.
• Ōnoki attacked the Preta Path with Dust Release, while Zou Hyuga deflected his boulder and went after Deidara to find the Five-Tails and rescue Hiruko.
• After the Naraka Path found no information about the Five-Tails in Kitsuchi's memories, it killed him, and Ōnoki unleashed a massive Dust Release attack.
• Obito and Zetsu searched the Tsuchikage Building for Han's hiding place, then Obito headed toward an explosion at a training ground.
• Orochimaru's cursed seals transformed Han into a maddened Five-Tails, which immediately launched a Tailed Beast Bomb at Orochimaru and Shinnō.

Obito tried to take control of the Five-Tails, but Orochimaru and Shinnō ambushed him just after he succeeded. A mysterious pair of blood-red eyes overwhelmed Obito’s consciousness, leaving his fate uncertain.

• Obito arrived beside Orochimaru and Shinnō and failed to control the Five-Tails with his Mangekyō Sharingan at first.
• Obito used Susanoo to restrain the Five-Tails and eventually controlled both it and its Jinchūriki with genjutsu.
• Orochimaru transformed into a giant snake while Shinnō opened the Seventh Gate, and they attacked Obito from behind.
• Obito activated Intangibility but saw a pair of scarlet eyes that plunged his consciousness into a deep sea.

Obito was ambushed by Orochimaru, Shinnō, and Oyashiro En, who used genjutsu and stole his Mangekyō Sharingan eyes, but Izanagi restored him and exposed the deception. Orochimaru and Oyashiro En retreated with Shinnō and the Five-Tails, leaving Obito weakened and wary of Nagato and Konan.

• Obito realized the blood-red eyes around him had trapped him in genjutsu, and Orochimaru shattered his mask and took his right eye.
• Orochimaru attacked Obito with snakes and stole his other eye, seeing a face that looked like the Third Hokage in his youth.
• Oyashiro En released Orochimaru from a Mangekyō Sharingan genjutsu, and Orochimaru realized Obito had used an eye power that rewrote reality.
• Orochimaru and Oyashiro En chose to retreat, taking control of the Five-Tails as Shinnō escaped on its back.
• Obito tore off one of the Five-Tails' tails with Kamui, then decided not to pursue the others because he had little chakra left.
• Obito watched Pain and Konan from the cliff and worried that his exposed Izanagi would make it harder to attack them.