Recaps

Shikaku reported that Konoha’s first Five-Nation Joint Chunin Ninja Exams had generated enormous revenue, prestige, and diplomatic opportunities, confirming Shihōin Naraku’s strategic foresight. Tsunade then ordered the village to secure the safe departure of the visiting delegations and ninja.

• Shikaku presented estimates showing the exams’ direct and indirect gains matched Konoha’s fiscal revenue over the previous five years, with further income expected from new agreements and missions.
• Shikaku explained that hosting the first exams drew the Shinobi World’s attention, visitors, money, and intelligence to Konoha for the next three years.
• Tsunade and Jiraiya praised Naraku’s planning, while Shikaku acknowledged that he had underestimated the strategy behind hosting the event first.
• Tsunade warned that the work was not finished because the visiting powers remained in Konoha, and she assigned Shikaku to oversee their orderly departure.
• Shikaku confirmed that ninja forces were rotating in three shifts and ANBU patrols had been increased near the other villages’ quarters.

Tsunade coordinated Konoha’s security as the Chunin Ninja Exams ended and instructed Jiraiya to keep impersonating Shihōin Naraku for the remaining public duties. The leaders then discussed Sasuke’s progress in Space-Time Ninjutsu and decided to investigate further after the foreign factions left Konoha.

• Tsunade assigned Shikaku Nara overall coordination and Kakashi Hatake intelligence and security while warning them to monitor departing factions.
• Tsunade told Jiraiya to continue impersonating Shihōin Naraku, and Shikaku reported that officials from the Land of Rain and the Land of Lightning had requested private meetings with the Hokage.
• Jiraiya agreed to attend the meetings with Tsunade and Shikaku’s support, while handling everyday situations himself.
• Tsunade asked Kakashi about Sasuke’s training, and Kakashi said Sasuke had made strong progress but had not yet opened a spatial passage.
• Tsunade ordered Kakashi to secretly send more ninja to investigate once the other factions had left Konoha.

Tsunade ordered a worldwide search for Naraku while Jiraiya reassured her before leaving to rest. The next day, thousands departed Konoha in escorted convoys, and Shikaku monitored their safe progress as the village remained busy.

• Tsunade directed Kakashi to search across the nations for Naraku, investigate spatial disturbances and sightings, and keep watch on Sasuke’s training.
• Jiraiya tried to reassure Tsunade about Naraku, then left her alone in the Hokage’s Office and went home.
• Before dawn, Shikaku learned that more than two thousand people had registered to leave Konoha after ANBU stopped bandits preparing to target travelers.
• The Land of Wind’s convoy departed first, followed by Kirigakure, Iwagakure, and Kumogakure, while Gaara, Mei Terumi, Kurotsuchi, and Burūi remained behind.
• Kakashi reported that the departing groups had traveled normally without attacks or suspicious movements, and Shikaku continued overseeing the departures.
• Shikaku headed to Tsunade with the day’s report and saw that Konoha’s streets and Ichiraku Ramen remained busy despite the departures.

Shikaku, Tsunade, and Jiraiya prepared for a Five Kage Summit to establish rules for future joint Chunin exams, with Jiraiya impersonating Shihōin Naraku as Hokage. The Kage began arguing over which village would host the next exams, and the meeting ended with Burūi and Mei Terumi at odds.

• Shikaku reported that village departures were proceeding normally, and Tsunade confirmed the Four Kage had been summoned to discuss formalizing the joint Chunin exams.
• Jiraiya wore Shihōin Naraku’s Hokage robes and took the Hokage’s seat as Tsunade and Shikaku supported him at the summit.
• The Four Kage gathered, and Burūi immediately declared that Kumogakure would host the second joint Chunin exams.
• Kurotsuchi challenged Burūi’s claim and argued that Iwagakure deserved the chance to host, citing its improved young ninja and the Land of Earth’s promised funding.
• Mei Terumi backed Kirigakure as host, pointing to its funding, accessible ports, and wartime losses, while criticizing Kumogakure’s difficult mountain access.

Jiraiya tried to steer the Kage meeting toward setting a date for the second five-nation Joint Chunin Ninja Exams, but Burūi, Kurotsuchi, and Mei Terumi kept fighting over which village would host. Sunagakure was unable to compete because it could not afford the expense, and Jiraiya ended the chapter by ordering the three arguing leaders to calm down.

• Jiraiya realized Gaara stayed silent because Sunagakure could not afford to host the exams.
• Jiraiya set aside the hosting decision and asked the Kage to choose how many years would pass between exams.
• Burūi proposed holding the next exams in two years, Kurotsuchi called for at least three, and Mei Terumi said either interval would work while suggesting the host villages draw lots.
• Burūi argued Kumogakure deserved priority, while Kurotsuchi and Mei Terumi challenged his claim and pressed their own villages’ advantages.
• Burūi, Kurotsuchi, and Mei Terumi continued arguing over hosting, resources, transport, and their ninja’s performance until Jiraiya ordered them to calm down.

Jiraiya, disguised as Shihōin Naraku, guided the Five Kage toward rules for choosing the host of the second joint Chunin Ninja Exams. The Kage agreed to hold the exams in three years, in summer, while leaving the host-selection arrangements for their evening meeting.

• Jiraiya used Naraku's authority to quiet the conference room, and Shikaku Nara proposed a fair process for choosing the next host.
• Jiraiya proposed a vote with one vote for each village, and Burūi, Mei Terumi, and Kurotsuchi all agreed.
• Shikaku Nara suggested the Kage settle the voting arrangements at their evening meeting.
• Kurotsuchi and Mei Terumi proposed holding the exams in three years, and Burūi accepted the timing while insisting villages continue their own Chunin Ninja Exams.
• Gaara agreed, and Jiraiya announced that the second joint Chunin Ninja Exams would take place in summer three years later.

After the Five Kage Summit paused its debate over the host of the Second Joint Chunin Ninja Exams, Tsunade, Jiraiya, and Shikaku assessed the candidates’ chances. The contest came down to which village would pay the highest price, and Burūi and Mei Terumi immediately sought Gaara’s support.

• Jiraiya ended the meeting after the Kage agreed to resume the host-location vote at seven that evening.
• Tsunade argued that Mei Terumi had a strong chance because she had united Kirigakure and restored the Mizukage’s authority.
• Shikaku argued that Burūi needed the hosting rights to strengthen his position as Raikage, while Kirigakure might struggle to fund the bid after its wartime losses.
• Shikaku explained that Kurotsuchi was fighting to show Iwagakure she defended its interests, but her position as Tsuchikage was already secure.
• Shikaku reported that Burūi and Mei Terumi had gone directly to Gaara to seek his support.

Burūi, Mei Terumi, and an Iwagakure elder visited Gaara to win Sunagakure’s vote on who would host the Second Joint Chunin Ninja Exams. Burūi’s generous offer secured Gaara’s support for Kumogakure, while the Iwagakure elder had yet to meet with him.

• Shikaku and Jiraiya discussed the three villages’ efforts to secure Gaara’s vote and Sunagakure’s urgent need for money.
• Gaara arranged to meet the visitors one at a time, starting with Mei Terumi.
• Mei Terumi offered trade routes, mission-sharing, and intelligence cooperation, then left confident she had won Gaara over.
• Burūi offered funding, mission cooperation, two trade routes, and supplies for Sunagakure.
• Gaara agreed that Sunagakure would support Kumogakure.

Burūi secured Gaara’s support for Kumogakure and then won Konoha’s vote by offering trade and resource concessions. With three votes in hand, Kumogakure appeared certain to host the Second Joint Chunin Ninja Exams, though Mei Terumi had yet to approach Konoha.

• Gaara accepted Burūi’s offer, leaving Mei Terumi and Iwagakure’s elder without Sunagakure’s support.
• Jiraiya, Shikaku Nara, Kakashi Hatake, and Tsunade discussed the vote, then received Burūi at the Hokage’s Office.
• Burūi offered Konoha a three-year trade route, resource access, and money in exchange for its vote.
• Jiraiya agreed to Burūi’s terms after the other Konoha leaders signaled their approval.
• Burūi left with Kumogakure’s third vote secured, while Tsunade warned that Mei Terumi would still come to negotiate.

Mei Terumi tried to secure Konoha’s vote for Kirigakure, but Jiraiya had already promised it to Burūi. At the Five Kage Summit, Kumogakure won the right to host the Second Joint Chunin Ninja Exams, while Shihōin Naraku remained missing.

• Mei Terumi offered Konoha trade, missions, intelligence, and funds in exchange for its vote, but Jiraiya told her he had already promised it to Burūi.
• Mei Terumi left the Hokage’s Office disappointed, and Tsunade and Shikaku discussed Kirigakure’s inability to match Kumogakure’s resources.
• Burūi anticipated that hosting the exams would bring Kumogakure prestige and help him reclaim authority from the village elders.
• At the resumed summit, Shikaku announced that Kumogakure had received three votes, Kirigakure one, and Iwagakure one, awarding Kumogakure the hosting rights.
• Burūi thanked the other Kage and said he would see them in Kumogakure in three years as the first day of the summit ended, while Shihōin Naraku remained missing.

While Konoha concealed Shihōin Naraku’s disappearance, Naraku remained sealed in the Alternate Space and waited for his chakra to recover. At Kara’s secret base, Ōtsutsuki Isshiki recovered from his near-fatal injuries and regained consciousness.

• Tsunade ordered Jiraiya to keep impersonating Naraku until Naraku returned, and rejected Jiraiya’s suggestion to make Kakashi Hokage in his place.
• Sealed in the Alternate Space, Naraku sensed his chakra recovering slowly and wondered whether Ōtsutsuki Pushi had found a way to save Isshiki.
• At Kara’s secret base, Pushi watched Isshiki recover in a pool of cyan liquid and worried about Naraku escaping the Time-Sealing Box.
• Isshiki woke, climbed out of the pool with help from the researchers, and Pushi approached him.

Ōtsutsuki Isshiki recovered after being pulled from the pool and asked whether Shihōin Naraku had escaped the Time-Sealing Box. Pushi admitted he could not safely investigate, then spotted the researchers as a possible way to confirm Naraku’s condition.

• Isshiki emerged from the pool with help from his subordinates and received nutrient IVs until his breathing and strength improved.
• Pushi mocked Isshiki for establishing an organization in the Shinobi World to save his life, and Isshiki let the remarks pass.
• Isshiki asked whether Naraku had broken through the Time-Sealing Box, and Pushi said he could not rule it out.
• Isshiki insisted they find out whether Naraku had escaped, but Pushi refused to approach or investigate the Alternate Space.
• Pushi glanced at the researchers and appeared to have thought of a way to check Naraku’s condition.

Ōtsutsuki Pushi refused to risk investigating Shihōin Naraku himself, so he and Ōtsutsuki Isshiki decided to send Kara agents to Konoha to learn whether Naraku had returned. Fujiwara and Mizuki set out under merchant disguises, leaving Isshiki and Pushi waiting for news in their Alternate Space.

• Ōtsutsuki Pushi refused Isshiki’s request to investigate Shihōin Naraku because he feared facing Naraku again.
• Pushi proposed sending Kara subordinates to Konoha to check whether Naraku had returned from being sealed.
• Isshiki agreed that Kara agents could blend in among merchants and travelers after the joint chunin ninja exams.
• Isshiki summoned Fujiwara and Mizuki and ordered them to confirm whether Naraku was in Konoha, then return immediately either way.
• Isshiki warned Fujiwara and Mizuki to pose as medicinal herb merchants from the Land of Fire Border and avoid drawing attention.

Fujiwara and Mizuki entered the Land of Fire under orders from Ōtsutsuki Isshiki and traveled to Konoha disguised as merchants. They passed the village guards’ inspection and began surveying Konoha without drawing attention.

• Ōtsutsuki Isshiki ordered Fujiwara and Mizuki to avoid unnecessary actions, and Ōtsutsuki Pushi transported them to the Land of Fire with Yomotsu Hirasaka.
• Fujiwara and Mizuki traveled toward Konoha, changing into civilian clothes and preparing a bandaged-leg cover story along the way.
• Fujiwara and Mizuki joined the crowded line at Konoha’s gate and told the guard they were herb merchants delayed by Mizuki’s injury.
• Fujiwara and Mizuki registered under false names and entered Konoha after the guard found nothing suspicious.
• Fujiwara and Mizuki walked through the busy village streets, posing as merchants while quietly observing their surroundings.

Fujiwara and Mizuki searched Konoha for Shihōin Naraku while posing as medicinal herb merchants, but Fujiwara could not detect his chakra. After three days, they left the village unaware that an ANBU squad had begun following them.

• Fujiwara sensed the Hokage Building and found no chakra signature matching Shihōin Naraku.
• Fujiwara and Mizuki searched Konoha’s streets and other locations, then decided to keep looking for two more days.
• The pair overheard villagers discussing the Chunin Ninja Exams and praising Lord Naraku while they ate at a restaurant.
• After three days of searching without results, Fujiwara and Mizuki sold their herbs and left through the Konoha Gate.
• An ANBU squad silently followed Fujiwara and Mizuki after they left the village.

Fujiwara and Mizuki split up while fleeing the ANBU pursuit, and Kakashi continued after Fujiwara as an explosion sounded where the other squad was chasing Mizuki. Fujiwara ambushed Kakashi and his partner, knocking the ANBU member into the woods and leaving Kakashi facing him alone.

• Fujiwara sensed five pursuers, including one powerful one, following him and Mizuki from Konoha.
• Fujiwara and Mizuki split up, drawing two pursuers toward Fujiwara and three toward Mizuki.
• Kakashi followed Fujiwara on Jiraiya's orders to capture the herb merchants alive, while an explosion erupted in the direction of Mizuki's pursuers.
• Kakashi deflected Fujiwara's shuriken, but an explosive tag detonated and engulfed the area in smoke and dust.
• Fujiwara burst from the smoke and kicked Kakashi's ANBU partner through the trees, leaving Kakashi alone.

Kakashi fought Fujiwara in the forest but was overwhelmed by his speed and strength. Fujiwara spared Kakashi and the injured ANBU member, then disappeared, leaving Kakashi unable to identify his faction.

• Fujiwara attacked Kakashi, whose counters and taijutsu could not match his speed and strength.
• Kakashi used Great Fireball Technique, but Fujiwara countered with Rending Wind Palm and knocked him from a branch.
• Fujiwara warned Kakashi to stop pursuing him, but Kakashi refused and continued fighting.
• Fujiwara battered Kakashi and left him injured against a tree before disappearing into the forest.
• Kakashi found the injured ANBU member alive and concluded that the mission had failed.
• Kakashi could not identify Fujiwara or determine which faction he belonged to.

Kakashi recovered beneath a tree after an unknown, overwhelmingly strong enemy defeated him but deliberately spared his life. Naruto arrived to help Kakashi and the injured ANBU, then went to search for another squad.

• Kakashi recalled how the enemy had held back and concluded he had avoided killing him because he feared Konoha's retaliation.
• Kakashi found no clues to the enemy's identity in his memories and speculated that the man had never operated openly or had his identity erased.
• Naruto arrived after Jiraiya sent him to help, and Kakashi directed him to the injured ANBU member.
• Naruto confirmed the ANBU member was alive, then helped Kakashi walk and left to find the other squad.

Naruto found the four injured Anbu Ninja alive and helped Kakashi send a message to Konoha for medical aid. Sakura arrived, treated Kakashi and the Anbu, and heard their description of the powerful stranger before the group prepared to return once the injured could travel.

• Naruto found the three missing Anbu Ninja and carried them back to Kakashi, confirming that all four had survived their injuries.
• Kakashi judged that the enemy had deliberately avoided killing anyone, and Naruto gave the injured Anbu emergency pills.
• Naruto sent a toad message to Tsunade and Jiraiya requesting medical help for Kakashi and the four Anbu.
• Sakura arrived, treated Kakashi and the Anbu, and confirmed that their injuries were serious but not fatal.
• Kakashi described the tall, thin enemy and his Kage-level chakra, while warning Naruto not to pursue him.
• The four Anbu regained consciousness, but remained too injured to travel immediately.

Fujiwara and Mizuki escaped Konoha and returned to Kara with Pushi, but Fujiwara had found no evidence of Shihōin Naraku’s presence. Isshiki and Urashiki remained unsure whether Naraku had been absent or had hidden his chakra.

• Fujiwara and Mizuki fled toward the Land of Fire border after injuring three Konoha Anbu, and Fujiwara identified Naruto Uzumaki or Sasuke Uchiha as the likeliest pursuers.
• The pair crossed into the Land of Grass, where they waited for Pushi and confirmed Konoha’s forces had not followed them.
• Urashiki Otsutsuki arrived and used Yomotsu Hirasaka to take Fujiwara and Mizuki through several spaces before returning them to Kara’s Alternate Space.
• Fujiwara reported to Ōtsutsuki Isshiki that he had spent three days in Konoha but had not sensed chakra matching Shihōin Naraku’s level.
• Urashiki pointed out that Naraku might have concealed his chakra, and Fujiwara admitted he could not tell whether Naraku had been absent.

Mizuki analyzed reports from Konoha and concluded that the Shihōin Naraku appearing there was an impostor, since Fujiwara could not find Naraku’s chakra and Naraku had been seen in the village every day. Isshiki and Urashiki agreed that Naraku remained sealed in the Alternate Space, leaving them convinced Konoha’s Hokage was a fake.

• Isshiki blamed Fujiwara for failing to find Shihōin Naraku and prepared to kill him.
• Mizuki intervened and explained that people throughout Konoha had repeatedly seen Shihōin Naraku during the joint chunin ninja exams and the days before them.
• Mizuki concluded that the Shihōin Naraku in Konoha was an impostor, and Urashiki suggested someone was impersonating him.
• Urashiki said the Time-Sealing Box could not be broken within a day or two, even by Shihōin Naraku.
• Isshiki concluded that Shihōin Naraku was still sealed in the Alternate Space and that Konoha’s Hokage was an impostor.

Urashiki left the Alternate Space to search the Land of Wind for Kama before Shihōin Naraku escaped his seal. Meanwhile, Kakashi Hatake and his injured team returned to Konoha and went to meet Jiraiya, who was disguised as Naraku.

• Isshiki ordered Urashiki to find Kama before Shihōin Naraku escaped the Time-Sealing Box.
• Urashiki opened a Space-Time Portal, traveled to the Land of Wind, and vanished beneath the desert sand to begin searching.
• Sakura Haruno treated Kakashi Hatake and the others, allowing them to return to Konoha under Naruto Uzumaki's protection.
• Kakashi entered the Hokage's Office, where Jiraiya, disguised as Shihōin Naraku, waited with Tsunade and Shikaku Nara.

Kakashi reported that an unidentified, powerful enemy had beaten him but withdrawn for unknown reasons, leading Tsunade, Jiraiya, Shikaku, and Kakashi to suspect the enemy served Ōtsutsuki Isshiki. They concluded the enemy may have come to find out whether Shihōin Naraku was in Konoha, but they could not explain why Naraku had not returned if Isshiki had escaped.

• Kakashi recounted his mission and how an overwhelmingly strong enemy withdrew instead of killing him.
• Shikaku asked whether Naruto’s arrival had caused the enemy to retreat, but Kakashi said Naruto came more than half an hour later.
• Kakashi said the enemy’s fighting style revealed no village or school, and Shikaku proposed that the man was either unknown or deliberately concealed.
• Tsunade named Ōtsutsuki Isshiki as a possible connection, and Jiraiya suggested the enemy had come to check whether Shihōin Naraku was in Konoha.
• Jiraiya argued Isshiki must have ordered the enemy to act, and Kakashi suggested Isshiki might have escaped Naraku.
• Tsunade asked why Naraku had not returned to the village if Isshiki was already back.

Tsunade and the others discussed Shihōin Naraku's disappearance and concluded that Isshiki had likely trapped him in an alternate space but did not know whether he had escaped. They left Naraku presumed alive and unable to return for now, and Tsunade ordered Konoha to secretly strengthen its defenses.

• Kakashi said Isshiki was the only one who might know what had happened to Naraku, but Tsunade noted that Isshiki had sent subordinates to investigate Naraku's whereabouts in Konoha.
• Shikaku reasoned that Isshiki did not know Naraku's current situation and might have trapped him in an alternate space without confirming whether he could escape.
• Shikaku assessed that Naraku was most likely alive because Isshiki had been defeated by him and probably lacked the strength to kill him quickly.
• Tsunade ordered Kakashi to record intelligence about the enemy, including his chakra signature and fighting habits.
• Tsunade told Jiraiya to keep impersonating Naraku so other villages would not act against Konoha.
• Tsunade ordered Shikaku to raise Konoha's alert level, expand patrols, and secretly station ANBU in civilian clothes around the Hokage Building.

Tsunade sent Kakashi to ask Sasuke how soon he could open a usable Space-Time Portal, as Konoha needed a plan to rescue Naraku. Sasuke warned that Isshiki could recover and attack again before Naraku escaped, leaving the village with little time and few fighters able to oppose him.

• Tsunade assigned Shikaku to handle security, Jiraiya to keep posing as Naraku, and Kakashi to obtain Sasuke’s training timetable.
• Kakashi found Sasuke practicing and learned that he could only tear open a brief spatial rift, not create a portal people could travel through.
• Kakashi told Sasuke that Isshiki had sent two people to Konoha to check on Naraku, and Sasuke concluded Isshiki was still capable of acting.
• Sasuke warned that Isshiki and Momoshiki might recover and start another war while Naraku remained trapped, and that Naruto and Sasuke would struggle to defeat them.