Chapter Summaries

Sarutobi Shinnosuke delivered the Third Hokage’s letter to the Fire Daimyo, who was interrupted by the arrival of a relative wearing the Land of Lightning’s Daimyo Fan Crown. After Kumogakure accepted Konoha’s terms of surrender, Danzo assembled the army and ordered it to march on the Valley of Clouds and Lightning.

• Sarutobi Shinnosuke brought the Third Hokage’s letter to the Fire Daimyo, who opened it and declared that the Hokage’s subordinates had acted on their own.
• A relative wearing the Land of Lightning’s Daimyo Fan Crown emerged and asked to read the letter.
• Dodai ordered Kumogakure’s forces to withdraw from the outer defensive lines after reports that the Two-Tails squad and outposts had been lost.
• A returning envoy delivered Konoha’s acceptance of Kumogakure’s surrender, prompting the village’s senior officials to celebrate while A and Dodai remained concerned.
• Danzo joined Takahashi Yū at the front, received Sakumo’s report that the Two-Tails Jinchūriki had been captured, and ordered the army to march on the Valley of Clouds and Lightning.

Konoha's Eastern Front gathered for a counterattack against Kumogakure as Danzo wrote a declaration justifying the war. Sakumo pledged himself to Danzo, and Root set out to spread the declaration across the world.

• Yamanaka Arashi recorded the arriving squads as Konoha's forces assembled in the Valley of Clouds and Lightning.
• Danzo wrote a declaration accusing Kumogakure of treachery and aggression, while Takahashi Yū tried to stop him from turning it into a call for rebellion.
• Sakumo was moved by Danzo's cause and swore that he was his to command, prompting Danzo to name him his general.
• Takahashi Yū recognized that Danzo's declaration could pressure Hiruzen Sarutobi to support the war and ordered a Root ninja to distribute it.
• The Root ninja copied the declaration onto the camp's paper, gave copies to his squad, and sent Root to announce it throughout the world.

Uchiha Setsuna received news of Danzo’s declaration of war while imprisoned, as Danzo gathered Konoha’s forces and waited for public pressure to weaken the Third Hokage. The Uchiha then offered to support Danzo, leaving him to consider how their allegiance could serve his plans.

• Uchiha Setsuna read the declaration of war in his solitary cell at Konoha Prison.
• Danzo, Takahashi Yū, and Sakumo reviewed intelligence at the Valley of Clouds and Lightning while Danzo waited for the declaration to spread.
• Uchiha Delia told Danzo that Uchiha from the village and the Land of Water Frontline wanted to come to his aid.
• Danzo considered the Uchiha’s offer and weighed the risks of using the clan as a weapon he could control.

Danzo and his forces prepared to launch a decisive attack against Kumogakure, while A and Dodai chose to meet Konoha’s army outside the village to protect its civilians. The two sides advanced toward a final battle.

• Danzo asked Takahashi Yū and Sakumo about trusting the Uchiha, and both supported treating them as comrades.
• Danzo ended the three-day rest and rallied more than three thousand Konoha ninja to avenge their fallen comrades.
• Dodai warned Kumogakure’s leaders that Danzo’s advancing troops made the Hokage’s letter a trap, and A struck down a higher-up who challenged him.
• A and Dodai decided Kumogakure could not defend the village without endangering civilians, and A declared that he would lead the Cloud Shinobi out to face Konoha.

Danzo used the disputed surrender letter to convince Konoha’s troops that Kumogakure had deceived them, then ordered an attack. The Konoha forces charged the Cloud Shinobi as Danzo resolved to shape the Shinobi World.

• A and Dodai assembled Kumogakure’s remaining ninja outside the village gates after debating whether to show Konoha the surrender letter.
• Takahashi Yū led Konoha’s troops toward Kumogakure, with Sakumo and the Undying Squad beside him and Danzo guarded within the main force.
• Dodai presented the Hokage-sealed letter and announced that Konoha had accepted Kumogakure’s surrender, but Danzo rejected it as a forgery.
• Dodai read the letter aloud and realized Danzo had manipulated the situation, while Danzo used the troops’ anger to make the Eastern Front his private army.
• Danzo signaled for the attack, and Konoha’s ninja charged Kumogakure’s forces.

Takahashi Yū and the Konoha forces devastated Kumogakure’s army, killing Dodai and driving the Cloud Shinobi back to the village entrance. A and the villagers’ resistance briefly rallied the defenders, but veteran Cloud Shinobi sacrificed themselves to save A as Kumogakure’s remaining forces pulled him away.

• Takahashi Yū knocked A aside, then worked with Sakumo to kill Dodai and plunged into Kumogakure’s ranks.
• Takahashi Yū, Sakumo, and the Uchiha F3 slaughtered Cloud Shinobi until the army collapsed and retreated toward the village entrance.
• A returned and confronted Takahashi Yū, taking a devastating punch while declaring Kumogakure’s fighting spirit.
• Takahashi Yū kicked A down and moved to stomp on his head, but older Cloud Shinobi used lightning chakra to block him and sacrifice themselves.
• Cloud Shinobi dragged A away while others rushed forward to cover his retreat, leaving Kumogakure’s forces in disarray.

Takahashi Yū and the Third Raikage fought their final duel, leaving both severely wounded and the Raikage seemingly dead. As Danzo prepared to attack the remaining Cloud shinobi, Sarutobi Shinnosuke arrived and called out to him.

• Takahashi Yū ordered Sakumo to kill A, but the Third Raikage appeared and rescued his son with black lightning.
• The Third Raikage declared A the Fourth Raikage and challenged Takahashi Yū to one last fight.
• Takahashi Yū and the Third Raikage exchanged devastating blows, and the Raikage's black lightning began destroying his body.
• The duel left Takahashi Yū wounded but standing while the Third Raikage was driven into the earth and appeared to have died.
• Takahashi Yū used [Dan-Ability] to make the Third Raikage dissipate, and Danzo prepared to order an attack.
• Sarutobi Shinnosuke arrived and told Danzo to call him the Eastern Front Commander.

Danzo used Shinnosuke’s joint letter from the Five Great Nations to turn the Eastern Front’s anger toward the Hokage and daimyo, while presenting himself as a protector of the troops and their families. The soldiers’ defiance grew, and Uchiha Shunji’s interrupted remark left the crowd wondering whether the rebellion talk was only a joke.

• Shinnosuke arrived with a joint letter demanding Kumogakure’s unconditional surrender and ordering Danzo’s forces to stop their attack.
• The Eastern Front’s ninja rejected the letter’s authority and loudly declared their loyalty to Danzo.
• Danzo urged the troops not to defy the daimyo, citing their families’ safety and the pensions owed to fallen soldiers.
• A soldier shouted that the Hokage was too weak, frightening Shinnosuke and surprising Danzo.
• Uchiha Shunji began to say that Danzo should take the Hokage’s place, but Delia and Kenichi covered his mouth as Gekko Yūma called it a joke.

Takahashi Yū read the request backed by five daimyo and blamed Sarutobi Shinnosuke for leaving the Eastern Front forces in limbo. Danzo calmed the angry warriors by accepting the daimyo’s demand, then ordered someone to summon Kumogakure to surrender.

• The Eastern Front ninja’s talk of who should become Hokage alarmed Danzo, who had intended to promote Sakumo instead.
• Takahashi Yū regained control of his body, approached Danzo and Shinnosuke, and inspected the letter bearing five daimyo’s seals.
• Takahashi Yū scolded Shinnosuke for obeying the daimyo and demanded to know what he would do about the warriors’ predicament.
• Danzo acknowledged that the Eastern Front had to answer the daimyo’s request and apologized to the warriors, who pledged to follow him.
• Takahashi Yū ordered someone to go to Kumogakure and call on them to surrender.

After Kumogakure surrendered, Takahashi Yū searched the village and took the Amber Purifying Pot, one of its Six Paths Tools. He demonstrated its power back at camp, where Sarutobi Shinnosuke suddenly sank to his knees.

• Takahashi Yū forced open Kumogakure’s gates, and A emerged to accept surrender as the new Fourth Raikage.
• Takahashi Yū and Uchiha Shunji spent three days searching Kumogakure and found only the Amber Purifying Pot before leaving with it.
• Killer B and the other children resolved to revive Kumogakure after many villagers fled.
• Back at camp, Takahashi Yū used the pot to suck Gekko Yūma inside and explained that it sealed anyone who answered when called by name.
• After Shunji suggested using the pot on Sarutobi, Sarutobi Shinnosuke sank to his knees.

Takahashi Yū, Sakumo, and Danzo discussed the harsh surrender terms for Kumogakure while struggling with their dwindling food. In Konoha, Nawaki volunteered to become the Nine-Tails’ Jinchūriki instead of Kushina, leaving Mito conflicted as she prepared to transfer the beast.

• Takahashi Yū questioned Danzo’s demands on the injured A, while Danzo defended them as necessary to delay Kumogakure’s recovery.
• Takahashi Yū, Sakumo, and Danzo ate coarse-grain noodles and worried that the camp was running out of food.
• Mito told the Third Hokage that she was ready to begin transferring and calming the Nine-Tails the next day, then asked him to bring Kushina.
• Nawaki arrived with the Third Hokage and declared that he would become the Nine-Tails’ Jinchūriki rather than let an Uzumaki take the burden.
• Tsunade felt ashamed as Nawaki condemned Konoha for failing the Uzumaki, while Mito dismissed everyone and wondered whether she had been wrong.

Danzo led Konoha’s Eastern Front troops home after forcing Kumogakure to accept unequal treaties, and he marked their victory with a monument near the village. As Danzo planned to use the returning army to elevate Sakumo and advance his own ambitions, Takahashi Yū found that a town in the Land of Fire had no grain to spare.

• Danzo halted the troops at the Valley of Clouds and Lightning and ordered earth-style ninja to raise a monument near Kumogakure.
• Sakumo carved the words “east” and “righteousness” into the monument as the Eastern Front ninja cheered.
• Danzo led the troops into the Land of Fire and privately planned to visit the capital, win favor for Sakumo, and secure his rise to Hokage.
• Takahashi Yū took Sakumo and the Undying Squad to a nearby town to buy grain, but the residents had none to spare.
• Takahashi Yū wondered where the Land of Fire’s wealth had gone after seeing how thin and impoverished the townspeople were.

Danzo sent Shinnosuke to deliver a letter to the Fire Daimyo and arranged for him to return to Konoha with the Eastern Front forces. The Daimyo eagerly prepared a triumphant welcome for Danzo, while Shinnosuke was left baffled by the difference in how the two men were treated.

• Danzo gave Shinnosuke a letter for the Fire Daimyo and told him to return with the Eastern Front forces.
• Danzo explained to Yamanaka Arashi that bringing Shinnosuke along was a precaution against a possible attack by Hiruzen.
• The samurai at the Daimyo’s Mansion welcomed Shinnosuke warmly after learning he carried a letter from Danzo.
• The Fire Daimyo read Danzo’s letter and ordered a citywide celebration and banquet for the Eastern Front forces’ return.
• The Fire Daimyo initially spoke disdainfully to Shinnosuke, then invited him to sit once Shinnosuke clarified that Danzo had sent him.

Danzo, Sakumo, and Takahashi Yū reached the Land of Fire's capital expecting a hostile meeting with the daimyo, but the daimyo welcomed them and demanded that the Eastern Front troops join a feast. Danzo was left baffled by the bizarre reception as the banquet-filled capital opened its gates to his army.

• Danzo halted the Eastern Front troops fifteen kilometers from the capital and warned Takahashi Yū and Sakumo to stay calm during their meeting with the daimyo.
• At the capital gates, nobles argued over whether Danzo should be called the Land of Fire's greatest hero or its most loyal man.
• The daimyo rushed out to greet Danzo, grabbed his hands, and demanded to know why he had taken so long to arrive.
• Danzo explained that he had kept the troops outside the capital to avoid disturbing the daimyo, who ordered Shinnosuke to bring them into the city for a feast.
• The daimyo cleared the nobles from the gates, and Danzo asked Takahashi Yū to give him a blast of killing intent because he thought he might be under a genjutsu.

The Land of Fire Daimyo hosted the Eastern Front ninja and agreed to award Hatake Sakumo a Hokage Half-Sleeve. The next day, he publicly named Shimura Danzō’s troops the “Elite Force of the Land of Fire,” giving Danzo’s army a recognized identity before they returned to Konoha.

• The Daimyo praised the Eastern Front soldiers at a feast, and Danzo blamed the Third Hokage for cutting off their food supplies.
• The Daimyo privately promised Danzo that Sarutobi would not remain Hokage much longer, but Danzo urged him not to rush the decision.
• Danzo asked the Daimyo to award Hatake Sakumo a Hokage Half-Sleeve, and the Daimyo agreed to arrange a ceremony.
• The next morning, the Daimyo held a ceremony at the capital gates and bestowed the title “Elite Force of the Land of Fire” on the Konoha troops under Shimura Danzō.

The daimyo awarded Sakumo the Hokage Half-Sleeve and Danzo the mysterious Daimyo Half-Sleeve, unsettling the Eastern Front troops with speculation about what the latter meant. Danzo hurried his forces back to the village, while Takahashi Yū urged Sakumo to support Danzo in changing the country.

• The daimyo awarded Sakumo the Hokage Half-Sleeve, prompting the troops to discuss whether he or Danzo would become the Fourth Hokage.
• The daimyo awarded Danzo the Daimyo Half-Sleeve, leaving Danzo and the troops confused about its significance.
• Shunji suggested the Daimyo Half-Sleeve might mean Danzo would become the next daimyo, and his companions beat him to silence him.
• Danzo took the half-sleeve and ordered the Eastern Front troops to pack up and return to the village.
• Takahashi Yū told Sakumo that Danzo could improve life for the common people and urged him to believe in Danzo's plans.

Danzo and the Eastern Front troops returned to Konoha amid rumors of Danzo’s ambitions and growing support for him among the soldiers. Their battlefield formation and fierce appearance alarmed the villagers and the Third Hokage as the three thousand ninja surrounded the village entrance.

• Takahashi Yū whispered an outrageous suggestion to Danzo, who replied that they should stockpile grain and not rush to proclaim themselves king.
• The Eastern Front soldiers’ morale rose as they interpreted Danzo’s words as proof of his hidden ambitions and rallied behind him.
• Villagers, the Third Hokage, and the Uchiha gathered at Konoha’s gate to welcome the returning Eastern Front forces.
• Danzo realized the troops had bypassed Konoha’s perimeter guards and rushed ahead to the village gate.
• Yamanaka Arashi and Akimichi Daixiong led the Eastern Front ninja onto the main road, where they formed a threatening encirclement around the entrance.

Danzo returned to Konoha with the victorious Eastern Front, where his soldiers’ loyalty and the clans’ suspicions made the Hokage’s welcome tense. After Sakumo revealed that Takahashi Yū had gone to his Farm, the clan representatives grew more fearful and Sakumo invited Danzo’s family to visit there.

• Mitokado Homura challenged Sakumo over the Hokage Half-Sleeve, and Danzo rebuked him for Konoha’s failure to learn about the daimyo’s honor.
• The Third Hokage welcomed the Eastern Front home, but its soldiers waited for Danzo’s signal before entering the village.
• The Uchiha admired Danzo and considered drastic action, while Danzo urged the soldiers to obey the Hokage and enter peacefully.
• The clan representatives suspected Danzo was making a bid for power and weighed joining him, especially after learning he had the daimyo’s support and Takahashi Yū’s backing.
• Sakumo told Danzo that Takahashi Yū had gone to his Farm and invited Danzo to bring his family there; Danzo replied that he would be busy, prompting the clan representatives to infer that he would become Hokage.

Takahashi Yū returned to Konoha and reunited with Mizuki and Simba at the wheat field, while Gekko Yūma discovered that his pregnant wife Ryōko had become aggressive after the captain’s murderous-intent ability strengthened their unborn son. The chapter left Yūma facing a difficult wait until his son Hayate was born.

• Takahashi Yū followed Mizuki’s directions through an illusory wall and found a wheat field outside Konoha.
• Mizuki welcomed Takahashi Yū home and said the orphanage had helped plant the crops.
• Gekko Yūma returned from the welcome ceremony worried that his father and wife had not come to greet him.
• Yūma found Ryōko pregnant, irritable, and ready to slap him, then learned that their unborn son’s heart had formed and his body was repairing itself.
• Yūma learned that Ryōko was expecting a boy they planned to name Hayate, and his father left him to cope with her until the birth.

Yūma visited Takahashi Yū to ask about the effects of his blood, and Takahashi arranged to consult Orochimaru. Meanwhile, Danzo confronted Hiruzen Sarutobi over the Nine-Tails and the Hokage’s secrecy, then ordered Root to publicize the Eastern Front’s battle record and intelligence from the Capital as he changed his plans.

• Yūma asked Takahashi Yū to help explain why his blood affected ordinary people, and Takahashi agreed to ask Orochimaru.
• Mizuki summoned a small white snake from a scroll, and the snake vanished after looking at Takahashi Yū.
• Danzo questioned Hiruzen Sarutobi about Lady Mito and the Nine-Tails, but Sarutobi refused to share Hokage-only information.
• Danzo put on the Daimyo Half-Sleeve, warned Sarutobi that news from the Eastern Front and the Capital would spread, and left the Hokage’s office.
• Danzo ordered Root to spread the intelligence, invite Uchiha Fugaku and Orochimaru, and publicize Sarutobi’s actions more widely.