Chapter Summaries

As the Nine-Tails attacked Konoha, Zou Hyuga and Oto Uchiha joined the battle before heading to the back mountain, where they witnessed the Fourth Hokage fight the Masked Man. The Fourth Hokage defeated his opponent but was wounded by an unseen shadow, while the Masked Man escaped with Zetsu.

• Fugaku brought the Military Police Force to support the Third, and Hiashi and his brother led the Hyuga to reinforce the battle against the Nine-Tails.
• Oto Uchiha reunited with Zou Hyuga, and they discussed whether to fight the Nine-Tails or rescue villagers before Zou led her toward the back mountain.
• The Fourth Hokage transported the Nine-Tails' Tailed Beast Bomb away from Kage Rock and returned to battle the Masked Man.
• The Fourth Hokage used the Contract Seal to break the Masked Man's control over the Nine-Tails, then defeated and pinned him with Flying Thunder God.
• An undetectable shadow struck the Fourth Hokage from behind, and the Masked Man escaped with Zetsu after the Fourth Hokage was injured.
• Zetsu warned the Masked Man that the Third Hokage and Anbu Ninja were approaching, and the Masked Man vanished while growing wary of Zetsu.

The Third led the village’s forces toward the Nine-Tails while Zou Hyuga and Oto bypassed Minato’s barrier to reach the dying Kushina. Kushina refused to wait for help and headed toward Minato and the Nine-Tails, while Zou followed.

• The Third and the ANBU elites moved to confront the Nine-Tails, and Fugaku worried that the Sharingan incident would worsen tensions with the Uchiha Clan.
• Hiashi learned that Hizashi had found no trace of Lord Yu as the Hyuga brothers traveled with the Third’s group.
• Zou and Oto passed beneath Minato’s barrier using Earth Release and found Kushina near death after the Nine-Tails had been extracted from her.
• Zou stopped treating Kushina when he realized that medical ninjutsu would consume her remaining vitality, and Kushina told them to protect Naruto.
• Kushina rejected the possibility of surviving by retaining part of the Nine-Tails, then rose and walked toward Minato and the beast; Zou followed her.

Zou Hyuga helped the Fourth Hokage and Kushina restrain the Nine-Tails, then used his dangerous natural-chakra jutsu to give the dying couple ten more minutes with Naruto. As the Third and a force of elite ninja arrived, Zou waited beside Oto Uchiha, thinking they had all come too late.

• Zou Hyuga caught the Fourth Hokage's kunai and took the newborn Naruto while the injured Hokage returned to face the Nine-Tails.
• Zou Hyuga brought Naruto to Kushina, who restrained the Nine-Tails with Adamantine Sealing Chains as the Fourth Hokage began the Dead Demon Consuming Seal.
• Zou Hyuga blocked the Nine-Tails' final attack with Eight Trigrams Palm, Rotation, leaving the beast pinned by Kushina's chains.
• The Fourth Hokage told Zou Hyuga that two attackers had fought him and began to reveal more before a surge of chakra interrupted him.
• Zou Hyuga used his life-threatening natural-chakra jutsu on the Fourth Hokage and Kushina, extending their lives by ten minutes so they could speak to Naruto.
• Zou Hyuga waited beside Oto Uchiha as the Third arrived with elite ninja, too late to prevent the couple's impending deaths.

After the Nine-Tails was sealed, the Third learned that Minato had used the Dead Demon Consuming Seal and was unlikely to survive, while the two enemies had escaped. Zou Hyuga returned home seeking his uncle and found a scroll containing his last words, secret techniques, and a request.

• The Third entered the basin and learned that Minato had sealed the Nine-Tails with the Dead Demon Consuming Seal and was already mortally wounded.
• Minato told the Third that two enemies had escaped, including one with Mangekyō Sharingan space-time abilities and Wood Release, and asked him to care for Naruto.
• Zou Hyuga and Oto Uchiha left Minato and Kushina, then reunited with their clans as the ninja surveyed the ruined battlefield.
• Zou Hyuga told Hiashi that Minato and Kushina were in critical condition, then left to search for his uncle, Hyuga Yu.
• Oto Uchiha passed Fugaku without accepting his thanks, while Fugaku reflected that the Uchiha had nearly made a grave mistake by hesitating to help.
• Zou Hyuga found a Sealing Scroll at home containing Hyuga Yu's last words, Main Family Secret Techniques, and a request.

After the Nine-Tails' Rampage, Oto Uchiha and Zou Hyuga met with the Third, who ordered them to keep the attacker's Sharingan and Wood Release secret and asked them to serve under him. A Medical Team report revealed that Minato and Kushina were unconscious but still alive, leaving the Third to consider their uncertain recovery along with Danzo's disappearance and the Uchiha Clan.

• Oto Uchiha and Zou Hyuga discussed the villagers' suspicion of the Uchiha and the attacker's Sharingan and Wood Release as they walked to the Hokage Building.
• The Third asked Oto Uchiha and Zou Hyuga to keep the attacker's powers secret, and Oto admitted she had already told Fugaku.
• Oto Uchiha and Zou Hyuga declined the Third's offer to serve under him while they dealt with their personal losses and circumstances.
• A Medical Team jonin reported that Minato and Kushina were alive but unconscious, sustained by an unknown energy, and might wake up.
• The Third ordered the Medical Team to keep Minato and Kushina alive and turned to Danzo's disappearance and how to handle the Uchiha Clan.

After refusing the Third's invitation, Zou Hyuga discussed the Uchiha Clan's troubles with Oto Uchiha and encouraged her to tell the clan head about Wood Release. Kakashi learned that Minato and Kushina had not truly died, then Danzo tried to recruit him into Root, leaving Kakashi wary and undecided.

• Zou Hyuga asked Oto Uchiha whether she had hoped to improve the Uchiha Clan's standing, and advised her to tell the clan head about Wood Release.
• Zou Hyuga told the grieving Kakashi that Minato and Kushina had left him Naruto to care for, prompting Kakashi to hurry to the Hokage Building.
• Kakashi learned from the Third that Minato and Kushina had not truly died, but the Third refused his offer to look after Naruto.
• Danzo approached Kakashi at the Heroes' Cemetery and invited him to join Root.
• Kakashi said he needed time to think and vanished, wary of Danzo and Root.

Danzo proposed relocating the Uchiha to the village outskirts during a meeting about land for reconstruction, but Fugaku challenged his accusations and defended the clan’s service during the Nine-Tails’ Rampage. The Third intervened to keep the Uchiha’s grounds unchanged after Fugaku secretly signaled that the attacker possessed Wood Release.

• Danzo allocated a woodland plot to the Nara Clan with the other major clans’ approval.
• Danzo proposed moving the Uchiha and the Military Police Force to the village outskirts, and Fugaku objected that the location would undermine their security work.
• Fugaku reminded Danzo that the Military Police Force had rescued villagers during the Nine-Tails’ Rampage while Danzo and the ANBU had failed to act.
• Danzo accused the Uchiha of causing the Nine-Tails’ Rampage because the beast had displayed Sharingan, and Fugaku denied that the clan had the power to control it.
• Fugaku secretly signaled to the Third that the attacker had used Wood Release, and the Third ruled that the Uchiha would keep their current grounds.
• Danzo accepted the Third’s decision without objection, and the meeting continued.

Zou Hyuga experimented with the Caged Bird Seal, learning to inscribe it on chakra-bearing ninja beasts and discovering it improved his control over them. After considering the possibility of building his own force, he left the laboratory with Oto Uchiha and learned that the village’s land allocation had left the Uchiha compound unchanged.

• Zou Hyuga studied the Caged Bird Seal’s formula and tested its restraints on himself, but made little progress toward breaking his own seal.
• Zou Hyuga began testing the seal on artificially created ninja beasts and found its restraints improved his control while reducing his natural chakra consumption.
• After half a month, Zou Hyuga activated the seals on a group of ninja beasts and considered using his abilities to build a force of his own.
• Oto Uchiha told Zou Hyuga that Konoha’s clans were disputing land allocation after the Nine-Tails’ Rampage.
• Oto Uchiha said the Uchiha compound had kept its old location despite the Military Police Force’s rescue efforts, and Zou Hyuga felt reassured that his intelligence about the attacker had been useful.

On the way back to the village, Oto Uchiha discussed the Uchiha clan’s troubles and asked Zou Hyuga how she could become strong enough to lead the clan. After Zou returned to the Hyuga compound, Hiashi told him that his uncle Yu had been confirmed dead, while Hiashi continued to suspect the mysterious attacker had taken him.

• Oto Uchiha complained that Fugaku was too weak and asked Zou Hyuga how she could become strong enough to become Uchiha Clan Head.
• Zou warned Oto that she could not defeat Fugaku without accounting for his genjutsu, and she rejected Zou’s offer to try his new methods for awakening the Mangekyō Sharingan.
• Oto asked Zou if she could stay at his house, but Zou gave her money for a guest room, and they parted at the village entrance.
• A guard summoned Zou to see Hiashi, who told him that Hyuga Yu had been confirmed dead and that his ashes were in the Ancestral Hall.
• After Zou left, Hizashi told Hiashi that the clan had found no trace of Yu, and Hiashi suspected the mysterious attacker had taken him.

Kakashi, Zou Hyuga, and Oto Uchiha joined the Third’s ANBU crackdown on spies, uncovering a wider network and several enemy agents. During Zou’s leave, Oto encouraged Shisui Uchiha to focus on easing tensions between the Uchiha and the village, while the clan’s growing respect for Shisui and Oto began shifting its internal balance.

• Kakashi, Zou Hyuga, and Oto Uchiha caught an ordinary informant and reported him to the Third, who recruited the three into his ANBU and ordered a broader spy hunt.
• The Third tracked more than ten spies through the crackdown, then ended the operation when the surviving agents proved too skilled to catch without disturbing the village.
• Zou Hyuga used spies he had released to expose their handlers and gathered ninja as test subjects, finding that natural chakra mattered more than the Caged Bird Seal in his experiments.
• Oto Uchiha told Shisui Uchiha she could not solve the clan’s problems and advised him to do his own part; Shisui recorded her words and continued hoping to mend relations with the village.
• Shisui left Oto’s home considering whether to join the ANBU, while the Uchiha increasingly recognized him and Oto alongside Fugaku as powerful figures, shifting the clan’s internal currents.

After Minato and Kushina died, the other villages considered how Konoha’s loss might affect the balance of power, while Nagato and Konan discussed Akatsuki’s plans. Konan left Nagato wondering whether the peaceful world they wanted could exist anywhere beyond dreams.

• Rasa discussed Minato’s death with Chiyo and Ebizo, but Sunagakure chose not to provoke Konoha while facing other threats.
• Ōnoki welcomed the news of Minato’s death and decided to send the Third Hokage a condolence gift.
• A regretted losing Minato as a rival but considered taking advantage of Konoha’s weakened position before rushing off to deal with Killer B.
• Konan brought Nagato news of Minato and Kushina’s deaths, and Nagato ordered her to leave the Nine-Tails alone while pursuing new Akatsuki recruits.
• Nagato refused to make Tobi a full Akatsuki member and ordered Konan to keep him under surveillance.
• Konan reflected on Nagato’s devotion to Yahiko and wondered whether their envisioned peaceful world existed only in dreams.

Obito recovered from his battle with the Fourth Hokage and headed to Kirigakure to secretly control the Fourth Mizukage. Near Konoha, Zou Hyuga recruited Oto to help him turn his surviving experiment subjects into a source of income, disguising them as Danzo and the Masked Man.

• Obito learned that the Fourth Hokage had died, remained wary of Zetsu, and decided to carry out Madara Uchiha's plan without resurrecting him.
• Zetsu told Obito that Karatachi Yagura had become the Three-Tails' jinchūriki and was trying to settle Kirigakure's clan conflicts; Obito said he would secretly control Yagura to help create chaos among the Five Great Nations.
• Zou Hyuga, short on money for his experiments, decided to send the surviving test subjects out to earn money after Oto erased their memories.
• Oto brought Zou a meal, and he explained his plan to make money with her help; she warned that exposure could doom them both.
• Zou gave Oto a tiger-striped mask and dressed himself in bandages and an eye patch, claiming the disguises would conceal their identities as they impersonated the Masked Man and Danzo.

Zou Hyuga sent memory-altered test subjects across the Land of Fire to build a future power base. Meanwhile, Hiruzen Sarutobi weighed Konoha’s political strains, and the Ino-Shika-Cho leaders chose to follow him and protect Minato’s child.

• Zou Hyuga and Oto sent the researchers out across the Land of Fire after erasing their memories and implanting the pair’s appearances.
• Hiruzen Sarutobi reflected on Konoha’s losses, his difficulty finding a successor, and his efforts to restrain Danzo and manage tensions with the Uchiha.
• Hiruzen Sarutobi considered Oto Uchiha and Shisui Uchiha as possible bridges between the Uchiha and the village.
• After Torifu Akimichi died from injuries linked to the Nine-Tails’ Rampage, Choza Akimichi, Inoichi Yamanaka, and Shikaku Nara discussed their clans’ future.
• Shikaku Nara urged the others to follow the Third’s orders and help protect Minato’s child, and Choza Akimichi and Inoichi Yamanaka agreed.

Zou Hyuga and his ANBU squad completed a border mission, then Zou investigated a former test subject who had learned to use the natural chakra inside him. He left the merchant with more chakra and a strengthened cursed seal before rejoining Oto and the squad.

• Zou Hyuga, Oto Uchiha, and Kakashi eliminated a Kumogakure squad and began their return journey.
• Zou stayed behind in a border town after sending Oto's disguised shadow clone to follow Kakashi.
• Zou found a middle-aged merchant using natural chakra to repel rogue ninja, then followed him to a courtyard.
• The merchant explained that strange chakra had appeared inside him after he left Konoha and had let him use ninjutsu accidentally.
• Zou questioned the merchant, reinforced his cursed seal, and left him some natural chakra before returning to the ANBU squad.
• Oto asked where Zou had gone, and he said it was a secret related to his experiment.

After returning to Konoha, Zou Hyuga secretly developed an organization and watched the village prepare for war with Kumogakure. Hiashi asked him to protect and eventually teach Hinata Hyuga, while Zou worried about Hizashi being sent to the front lines.

• Zou Hyuga concluded that his experiments could let ordinary people use his natural chakra to perform ninjutsu, then traveled around the Land of Fire to recruit talent for his secret organization.
• As war with Kumogakure began, Zou Hyuga gave Oto Uchiha a Sealing Scroll containing Samehada, which had severed its Summoning Contract with Kirigakure and taken the Hyuga name.
• Hiashi mobilized the Hyuga clan to reinforce the front lines but kept Zou Hyuga behind and asked him to protect Hinata Hyuga and become her teacher when she grew up.
• Zou Hyuga accepted Hiashi's request and learned that Hiashi knew little about the Lunar Ōtsutsuki, while wondering whether Hizashi had gone to the front lines in the Main Family's place.

Oto returned to Zou Hyuga’s home injured after a battle with Kumogakure, and Zou treated her while learning that Samehada had gone dormant from chakra depletion. They discussed possible Mangekyō Sharingan users and their plans to become jonin, leaving their old promise to remain genin behind.

• Zou found Oto collapsed at his door, treated her superficial injuries, and discovered Samehada was dormant from a lack of chakra.
• Oto explained that she had fought the Two-Tails’ jinchūriki and Kumogakure forces, and Zou gave her a Gentle Fist massage to improve her circulation and provide chakra.
• Oto questioned whether Fugaku had the Mangekyō Sharingan and suggested Shisui might have awakened one after he killed an elite Kumogakure jonin.
• Zou added Shisui to their list of potential enemies because of his possible Mangekyō Sharingan and Kotoamatsukami.
• Oto said she planned to apply for jonin, and Zou told her he planned to do the same.

With the war over, the Third prepared for peace talks with Kumogakure while Jiraiya returned to Konoha and visited the shopping street. Jiraiya bought sake branded by the Tailed Beast Merchant Association and headed to Minato and Kushina’s graves, while the Third kept their bodies alive despite knowing their souls remained trapped by the Reaper Death Seal.

• Kumogakure withdrew from the Land of Fire and sought peace talks, which the Third intended to hold in Konoha.
• The Third asked Jiraiya about the Masked Man; Jiraiya reported no progress and learned that Yamato had survived Orochimaru’s experiments and could use Wood Release.
• Jiraiya asked about Naruto, and the Third said ANBU secretly protected him and that his allowance was delivered regularly.
• The Third read a classified report showing that Minato and Kushina had remained unconscious for three years because their souls were held by the God of Death.
• Jiraiya bought sake bearing tailed beast emblems from a shopkeeper and learned the bottles were products of the Tailed Beast Merchant Association.
• Jiraiya drank as he walked toward the Heroes’ Cemetery to pay respects to Minato and Kushina.

Zou Hyuga and Oto Uchiha watched over Naruto before handing their ANBU shift to Kakashi and Yamato. Afterward, they discussed the Uchiha’s risks and bought Nine-Tails Sake, which Zou revealed he had helped develop.

• Zou Hyuga asked Oto Uchiha about Shisui’s newly awakened Mangekyo Sharingan and warned her to be cautious of his dojutsu.
• Oto Uchiha said Shisui would remain neutral and that she might challenge Fugaku for the Military Police Force captaincy with Zou’s help.
• Kakashi and Yamato arrived for the shift change, and Zou asked Yamato to tell him if Kakashi got any new books.
• Zou and Oto left their post and stopped at a shop selling Nine-Tails Sake.
• Oto bought a bottle, and Zou admitted he had supplied the sake’s recipe.

Zou Hyuga managed the growing Tailed Beast Organization while continuing experiments that let Oto Uchiha use a temporary pseudo-Sage Mode to strengthen herself for a future fight with Fugaku. After Oto endured another trial, the two joked about her finding a husband and Zou’s reluctance to marry.

• Zou Hyuga read the Tailed Beast Organization’s report, learned it had become a legitimate merchant association through ties with minor nobles, and ordered its members to avoid approaching ninja clans.
• Zou Hyuga took Oto Uchiha to his sealed basement laboratory and tested her ability to enter pseudo-Sage Mode using natural chakra.
• Oto Uchiha sustained pseudo-Sage Mode for several minutes, but Zou Hyuga recorded that it exhausted her and warned her to stop if she felt unwell.
• Zou Hyuga carried the exhausted Oto to the bathroom, then worried that someone using his stored chakra would force him to replenish it.
• Oto Uchiha joked that she would ask Zou Hyuga to take her in if she could not find a husband, and Zou Hyuga dismissed the idea.

After the war’s end brought celebrations to Konoha, Zou Hyuga watched Hinata and Neji train and challenged the Hyuga Clan’s reliance on Gentle Fist alone. Hiashi questioned Zou about the village leadership, while Hizashi worried about the Branch Family’s future as Zou left the dojo.

• Zou Hyuga returned from a mission to a festive Konoha and then visited Clan Head Hiashi at the Hyuga compound.
• Zou watched Hinata lose to Neji and advised that she should flee an unwinnable fight and use tools like pepper spray and gold dust rather than limit herself to Gentle Fist.
• Hiashi reflected on the conflict between Hinata’s Main Family status, Neji’s greater strength, and the clan rules governing inheritance.
• After Hizashi took the children away, Hiashi asked Zou whether the Third had made any moves, and Zou said he knew of none beyond the Kumogakure delegation’s visit.
• Hizashi worried about the Caged Bird Seal and the Branch Family’s fate as Zou emerged from the dojo and walked past him.