Chapter Summaries

Son Goten returned to Ichiraku Ramen Shop with Kimimaro and Tayuya after abandoning Sasuke, and he left Kakashi to handle the mission report. He made Tayuya the shop’s new greeter, where she reluctantly began serving ramen under Ayame’s care.

• Goten told Kakashi he had sent Sasuke downriver and gave him Sasuke’s scratched forehead protector, while claiming Kimimaro as a war trophy.
• Goten explained that his ki was keeping Kimimaro alive and said Tsunade could treat him and study his bones for ramen bowls.
• Goten called Tayuya his new greeter and flew off toward Ichiraku Ramen Shop, leaving Kakashi with Kimimaro and the report.
• Goten introduced Tayuya to Ayame as a new employee and threatened to publicly tie her up again if she refused to work.
• Ayame led Tayuya into the kitchen, and half an hour later Tayuya emerged in uniform to serve Goten ramen.
• Goten pinched Tayuya’s waist as she served him, and Ayame told him not to bully the new employee.

Goten comforted Sakura after Sasuke left, and Sakura decided to stop pursuing Sasuke and choose Goten instead. He took her to a barbecue restaurant, where Ino angrily confronted them and Goten teased her by calling her his future wife.

• Goten returned to Sakura's house and gave her Sasuke's slashed forehead protector, explaining that he had kicked Sasuke into a river after Sasuke refused to return.
• Sakura cried in Goten's arms until she fell asleep, and Goten carried her to bed and stayed beside her through the night.
• Sakura woke to find Goten sleeping by her bedside and promised that he would be the only one in her heart from then on.
• Goten hugged Sakura and took her to a barbecue restaurant, proudly introducing her as his little wife.
• Ino saw Goten and Sakura together and confronted them, while Goten teased Ino by calling her his future wife.

Goten refused Jiraiya’s invitation to leave the village and train with Naruto, preferring to stay near the women in his life. After Naruto and Jiraiya departed, Goten found Hinata training and offered her instruction before taking her to the Dango Shop.

• At a barbecue restaurant, Goten teased Ino while Sakura celebrated being publicly chosen as his little wife.
• Jiraiya returned to the village and invited Goten and Naruto to train with him, warning that the Akatsuki were hunting jinchūriki.
• Goten refused to leave, listing the women he wanted to protect and keep company, while Naruto chose to go with Jiraiya.
• Tsunade learned that Goten had declined the training trip and said she had expected his decision.
• Goten found Hinata practicing Gentle Fist at Training Ground Three, adjusted her posture, and took her to the Dango Shop.

Three years after Naruto left to train, Goten had grown stronger and spent his days teasing the women of Konoha and eating at Ichiraku. The chapter ended with Goten wondering how Naruto’s training was going and whether he would still be a crybaby when he returned.

• At Ichiraku, sixteen-year-old Goten ate fifty-one bowls of ramen, flirted with Ayame, and teased Tayuya, who had become a hostess at the shop.
• Goten visited Tsunade’s office, lounged on her desk, and teased Tsunade and Shizune throughout the afternoon.
• Goten met Hinata, Sakura, and Ino in the village and took them to the sweets shop, where he stole dango from Anko.
• Goten’s strength had grown as his replenished source energy surpassed its former level, though he avoided using it for fear of damaging the world.
• Back at Ichiraku, Goten looked at the moon and wondered how Naruto’s training was going.

Naruto returned from three years of training and challenged Goten to prove how strong he had become. Goten defeated him with a casual flick, sending him crashing through the ramen shop and into a wall across the street.

• Naruto returned to Ichiraku Ramen Shop and excitedly told Goten he had trained with Pervy Sage and wanted to bring Sasuke back.
• Naruto challenged Goten, saying he would show the results of his three years of training.
• Naruto unleashed his Nine-Tails Chakra and charged Goten with a powerful punch.
• Goten flicked Naruto in the chest with an invisible shock wave, sending him through the shop wall and into a crater in a wall across the street.
• Goten blew on his finger and dismissed Naruto's strength as disappointing.

After Naruto returned from three years of training, Goten defeated him with one finger and pointed out his poor control and combat skills. Naruto regained his resolve when Goten offered to train him, then received an extreme first assignment.

• Naruto attacked Goten at the ramen shop but was sent through the wall and left too exhausted to stand.
• Sakura and Hinata helped Naruto while Goten challenged his claims about rescuing Sasuke and protecting Konoha.
• Jiraiya confronted Goten, who criticized Naruto's crude control of his powerful chakra and Jiraiya's gradual training approach.
• Naruto heard Goten offer to teach him and eagerly agreed to endure any training.
• Goten ordered Naruto to haul five hundred tons of Ichiraku Ramen flour barrels every day without breaks, with no food if he failed.

Goten put Naruto through brutal daily training to strengthen his body and teach him to sense and use ki, healing him after each session. Two years later, Naruto had become faster and more composed, and he challenged Goten, certain he could finally win.

• Goten dragged exhausted Naruto to a training ground, weighed him down, and ordered him to stand and run a hundred laps.
• Goten instructed Naruto to rely on ki rather than chakra and pelted him with pebbles until Naruto instinctively dodged one.
• Goten healed Naruto with ki after the day’s training, then fed him grilled meat and told him they would continue the next day.
• For two years, Naruto endured Goten’s punishing training and recovery routine, growing stronger and learning to sense and use ki.
• Naruto faced Goten on the training ground and declared that he could beat him now.

On his eighteenth birthday, Goten celebrated with gifts from Konoha’s women and then sought the present he had wanted from Tsunade for years. After they kissed and spent the night together, they woke in each other’s arms, with Goten declaring he would take care of her.

• Naruto demonstrated his improved Big Ball Rasengan, and Goten told him he was making progress.
• Konoha held a grand birthday banquet for Goten, where Hinata, Sakura, Ino, and others gave him presents.
• After the guests left, Goten went to the Hokage Building and asked Tsunade for the birthday present he had always wanted.
• Tsunade responded to Goten’s kiss, and they spent the night together in her private resting room.
• The next morning, Goten woke beside Tsunade and told her he would take care of her from then on.

After learning that the Akatsuki had captured Gaara, Tsunade sent Kakashi, Naruto, and Sakura to rescue him, with Goten joining as a special combat asset. Goten said goodbye to Ayame and Tayuya, and the four-person squad departed for Sunagakure.

• Shizune delivered urgent intelligence that Sasori and Deidara had attacked Sunagakure and captured Gaara.
• Tsunade summoned the Jonin and ordered an immediate rescue mission after Sunagakure requested help.
• Naruto volunteered to save Gaara, and Tsunade assigned Kakashi to lead a pursuit squad with Naruto and Sakura.
• Goten announced he would join the mission, reassuring the Jonin and prompting Tsunade to name him a special combat asset.
• Goten told Ayame he would be away for a few days, asked Tayuya to watch the shop, and met Kakashi, Naruto, and Sakura at Konoha's gate.
• Goten and the others set out for Sunagakure.

Son Goten led Kakashi, Naruto, and Sakura toward Sunagakure, where they learned that Gaara had been captured by the Akatsuki. Goten rejected Kakashi’s suggestion to coordinate with Sunagakure and charged ahead to rescue Gaara as a powerful battle shook the land ahead.

• Son Goten outpaced Kakashi, Naruto, and Sakura as they raced away from Konoha.
• Goten sensed approaching chakra signatures and two unpleasant ki signatures, and Kakashi’s group encountered injured Sunagakure ninja.
• A Sunagakure ninja told Kakashi that the Akatsuki had taken Gaara and that Chiyo had led a pursuit team after them.
• Goten dismissed Kakashi’s plan to join Sunagakure’s forces and declared that they would break the enemies’ bones and take Gaara back.
• Goten, Kakashi, Naruto, and Sakura sped toward the enemy, where a violent surge of energy shook the ground ahead.

Goten helped Sakura stabilize Kankuro after Sasori of the Red Sands poisoned him, then replenished her chakra when her antidote research exhausted her. When Sakura found the antidote required an unavailable ingredient, Goten took over and began forcing the poison out of Kankuro.

• Naruto and Sakura found Kankuro and several Sunagakure ninja badly wounded, and Sakura began treating Kankuro's severe poisoning.
• Goten used a faint golden light to suppress the poison temporarily while a surviving Sunagakure ninja identified Sasori of the Red Sands as the attacker.
• Sakura analyzed Kankuro's complex poison while Goten restored her depleted chakra, but the key ingredient for her antidote was only available in Konoha's medicinal garden.
• Goten pushed past Kakashi and Naruto, placed his hand on Kankuro's abdomen, and used brilliant golden light to drive blackish-purple poison gas from Kankuro's body.

Goten forced Sasori’s poison out of Kankuro and healed Sakura’s hands, then found a strange blue chip in Sasori’s puppet wreckage. After Might Guy and Team Guy arrived, Goten set off ahead of the others, uneasy about the chip’s unfamiliar energy.

• Goten used his ki to force the poison from Kankuro, who regained consciousness as the Sunagakure ninja watched in shock.
• Goten healed Sakura’s injured hands and teased her, while Kakashi ordered her to examine Sasori’s discarded puppet arm.
• Goten found a faintly glowing blue chip in the wreckage, claimed it, and told Sakura he would make her an earring with it.
• Kankuro thanked Goten, who called him his future brother-in-law because Temari would be one of his future wives.
• Might Guy arrived in an exaggerated leap toward Sakura, but Goten kicked him away; Neji, Tenten, and Rock Lee then greeted Goten.
• Goten sensed cold, mechanical energy and a twisted will within the chip, then left ahead of Kakashi’s group to pursue the enemy.

Goten and Sakura were ambushed by Scorpion’s puppets, and Sakura took a poisoned needle meant for Goten. After destroying the attackers, Goten carried her into a cave and prepared to use a drastic method to save her.

• Goten carried Sakura ahead of the group and stopped in a canyon after sensing an ambush.
• More than a hundred poisoned puppets emerged and surrounded Goten and Sakura.
• Scorpion’s blue chip disrupted Goten’s Ki, letting a hidden puppet shoot a poisoned needle at him.
• Sakura shoved Goten aside and took the Crimson Prison Poison needle, which rapidly poisoned her.
• Goten unleashed a golden Ki wave that destroyed the puppets, then carried Sakura into a cave.
• Goten said he would not let the King of Hell take Sakura and reached for the fastenings of her outfit to try to save her.

Goten purifies the poison in Sakura’s body and saves her life. After Sakura wakes and kisses him, they embrace and head deeper into the cave together.

• Goten uses his Ki to destroy the poison spreading through Sakura and notices a stubborn energy fluctuation resembling the one from his blue crystal chip.
• Goten heals the damage to Sakura’s body and confirms that the poison has been completely expelled.
• Sakura wakes, realizes she is unclothed with Goten beside her, and breaks down in tears from relief and gratitude.
• Sakura embraces and kisses Goten, and he deepens the kiss before carrying her farther into the cave.

After recovering from the ambush, Sakura learned that Goten considered her his wife, and the two grew closer before rejoining their allies. Goten sensed the chakra-disrupting chip’s significance and located the hideout of the scorpion and his partner.

• Sakura asked what she and Goten were, and Goten declared that she was the wife he had chosen.
• Sakura discovered that her injuries had healed and her chakra had increased, while Goten kept his identity and ki secret.
• Goten examined the dim blue chip and reassured Sakura after she recalled fearing she would never see him again.
• Sakura resolved to grow stronger and asked whether eating papaya would improve her figure; Goten promised she would eat it daily.
• After hearing Kakashi and the others call from outside, Goten sensed two ki signatures and found the scorpion and his partner’s hideout.

Goten emerged from the cave with Sakura after destroying the puppets, and their intimate behavior revealed that they were now together. He then identified the Akatsuki's location and flew there with Sakura, leaving Kakashi to follow with the others.

• Kakashi, Naruto, Tenten, and the others found the canyon devastated and saw Goten and Sakura emerge from the cave together.
• Goten announced that Sakura was officially his woman, while Sakura said he had purified the poison from a needle wound.
• Kankuro thanked Goten for saving Sakura, and Tenten questioned Sakura about the mark on her neck.
• Goten interrupted Kakashi's attempt to revise the mission plan and pinpointed the Akatsuki's location northeast of them.
• Goten kissed Sakura's forehead, carried her into the sky toward the Akatsuki, and Kakashi hurried after them with the team.

Goten and Sakura encountered Deidara while traveling, and Goten watched as Deidara fought Kakashi, Naruto, Might Guy, and the others. After Goten destroyed Deidara’s clay owl and caught him, he asked what Deidara had called art.

• Goten and Sakura spotted Deidara flying on a clay owl in the desert, and Deidara sent explosive clay spiders toward them.
• Goten erased the spiders with a wave of Ki, while Kakashi, Naruto, Might Guy, Neji, Tenten, and Rock Lee arrived in pursuit of Deidara.
• Naruto attacked Deidara’s clay bird and was thrown back by its explosion, then Kakashi and Might Guy joined the battle.
• Goten and Sakura watched from the sidelines as Goten gave her a rice ball and said they would visit the Akatsuki hideout afterward.
• Deidara prepared to use C3, but Goten destroyed the clay owl with a thin beam of Ki and caught Deidara as he fell.
• Goten held Deidara by the neck and asked him what he had called art.

Goten tortured Deidara into revealing the Akatsuki hideout and met Temari and Granny Chiyo on the way there. He destroyed the Five-Seal Barrier with one punch, opening the cave so the group could go rescue Gaara.

• Goten used painful soul-crushing attacks to make Deidara reveal that Sasori was extracting a Tailed Beast's chakra at a hideout in a northeast valley.
• Goten learned that Sasori was interested in the mysterious Blue Chip, then led Kakashi's group toward the hideout with Deidara captive.
• Goten reunited with Temari and Granny Chiyo, teased Temari by calling her his wife, and assured her that Gaara would survive.
• Kakashi and Granny Chiyo began discussing how to remove the Five-Seal Barrier's charms, but Goten walked up to the entrance instead.
• Goten shattered the enormous boulder and its sealing formulas with one punch, revealing the cave entrance.

Goten joined the rescue party at the cavern where Gaara lay unconscious after his tailed beast was extracted, while Chiyo and Sakura confronted Sasori. As Sasori summoned more puppets and overwhelmed them, Goten stayed with Temari and Naruto, leaving the battle unresolved.

• Naruto, Kakashi, Chiyo, Temari, Sakura, and Goten entered the cavern and found Gaara lying motionless on an altar beside Kisame and Sasori.
• Goten steadied Temari, promised Gaara would survive, and provoked Kisame, whose Samehada reacted excitedly to him.
• Goten asked Sasori whether he had hurt Sakura, while Chiyo recognized Sasori as her grandson and joined Sakura in preparing to fight him.
• Chiyo and Sakura battled Sasori's Third Kazekage puppet as Goten led Temari and Naruto to watch from the side.
• Sasori gained the advantage with iron sand and summoned the Red Secret Technique: Performance of a Hundred Puppets.

Son Goten crushed Sasori’s puppet army, defeated Kisame, and destroyed Sasori’s core after learning Orochimaru was at Tenchi Bridge. When Granny Chiyo prepared to sacrifice her life to revive Gaara, Goten stopped her and implied he had another way to save him.

• Goten compressed Sasori’s hundred puppets into a metal ball and told Tenten to take the scrap for new ninja tools.
• Goten blasted Kisame into a rock wall when he tried to escape, leaving Samehada behind.
• Goten endured Sasori’s poison and flames, tore out his puppet core, and crushed it; Sasori named Orochimaru and Tenchi Bridge before dying.
• Granny Chiyo confirmed Gaara had no heartbeat or breath, and Goten comforted the grieving Temari.
• Granny Chiyo began preparing a forbidden technique to trade her life for Gaara’s, but Goten stopped her and said he did not need her to save him.