Recaps

Rasa learned that Sōkyū Hatake had joined Rōran and captured Pakura, then summoned Sunagakure’s elders to discuss how to respond. Chiyo challenged Rasa’s plan and urged him to pay compensation, while Rasa warned that letting Sōkyū Hatake become an enemy would be dangerous.

• Sunagakure Anbu reported that Sōkyū Hatake had appeared in Rōran and claimed to belong to it, and Rasa berated them for failing to uncover the information sooner.
• Rasa asked how Sunagakure could recover Pakura, and the Anbu said Sōkyū Hatake was unlikely to release her without compensation.
• Rasa summoned Elder Chiyo and the other elders to discuss Pakura’s capture after learning that the Great Elder was away.
• Rasa told the elders that Sōkyū Hatake had likely made the Hirenkyaku Shoes and had captured Pakura during Sunagakure’s attempt to seize them.
• Chiyo exposed Rasa’s plan and recommended paying compensation, but the finance elder claimed Sunagakure could not afford it.
• Chiyo mocked the finance elder and questioned Rasa, who argued that Sunagakure could not risk turning Sōkyū Hatake against it.

Rasa declared Pakura a rogue ninja so Sunagakure could distance itself from her and seek cooperation with Rōran over the Hirenkyaku Shoes. Chiyo shared the decision with Maki, while Ōnoki learned that his plan to draw Sunagakure to Rōran had succeeded.

• Rasa persuaded Sunagakure’s elders to declare Pakura a rogue ninja, despite Chiyo’s objections, and then turned the meeting to pursuing cooperation with Rōran.
• Maki asked Chiyo about Pakura, and Chiyo told her that Sunagakure had abandoned Pakura as a rogue ninja.
• Chiyo left Maki and lamented Sunagakure’s fading fortune.
• Ōnoki learned that Sunagakure had gone to Rōran and celebrated that his scheme to draw the village there had worked.

Sōkyū Hatake’s move to Rōran deterred other factions from acting against it, while his new Tailwind Express service drew attention across the Five Great Villages. In Rōran, he comforted Pakura after Sunagakure declared her a Rogue Ninja and asked her to become a ninja instructor, then pulled her into an embrace.

• Sōkyū Hatake’s move to Rōran prompted the factions to cancel covert missions that might provoke him, though they continued sending undercover agents to gather intelligence.
• Tailwind Express appeared in the Five Great Villages and demonstrated its ability to deliver items instantly.
• The Fourth Raikage concluded that Kumogakure had little chance of controlling Tailwind Express and ordered an infiltration attempt to learn how it operated.
• Pakura told Sōkyū Hatake and Ayame that she was hurt after giving so much to Sunagakure, which had declared her a Rogue Ninja.
• Sōkyū Hatake asked Pakura to teach ninjutsu in Rōran, and she broke down in tears as Ayame and Mitaraishi Anko left them alone.
• Sōkyū Hatake pulled Pakura into his arms, comforting her.

Pakura accepted Sōkyū Hatake’s offer to stay in Rōran as its ninja instructor after the two kissed. Meanwhile, the Akatsuki discussed Sōkyū Hatake’s strength and assigned Kakuzu, Sasori, and Konan to capture him.

• Sōkyū Hatake asked Pakura to stay in Rōran as its ninja instructor, and Pakura kissed him instead of answering.
• Sōkyū Hatake kissed Pakura, then disappeared with her; Ayame and Mitaraishi Anko arrived and found the spot empty.
• After the battle, Pakura surrendered to Sōkyū Hatake’s terms and agreed to remain in Rōran as its ninja instructor.
• Nagato, Obito Uchiha, Sasori, Kakuzu, and Konan discussed Sōkyū Hatake, with Obito warning that he was exceptionally strong and Sasori demanding his death.
• Nagato ordered Kakuzu, Sasori, and Konan to bring Sōkyū Hatake back, and Kakuzu insisted on claiming the bounty.

Kakuzu, Sasori, and Konan traveled to Rōran to pursue Sōkyū Hatake’s 150-million-yen bounty and assess the country for the Akatsuki. They entered the city in disguise and headed toward its shopping street.

• Kakuzu set out with Sasori and Konan, eager to claim Sōkyū Hatake’s bounty and improve the Akatsuki’s finances.
• Sasori left Hiruko behind when its slow pace annoyed him, and Kakuzu teased him before threatening to claim Chiyo’s bounty.
• The three discussed how they would spend their mission bonuses: Kakuzu would save his, Sasori would buy equipment, and Konan would stock up on Explosive Tags.
• At Rōran’s edge, Konan proposed inspecting the impoverished country as a possible Akatsuki branch, while Kakuzu recalled its weak defenses.
• The three disguised themselves as citizens of the Country of Roran, entered the city easily, and spotted a shopping street.

Konan, Kakuzu, and Sasori explored Rōran’s lively shopping street, where a vendor explained how visitors and trade had helped the town grow. After learning that a local shop sold weapons and materials developed by Mayuri Kurotsuchi, including Hirenkyaku Shoes, Sasori hurried to see it.

• Konan suggested visiting Rōran’s shopping street, and Sasori and Kakuzu agreed to go with her.
• The three were struck by the cheerful crowds and Konan thought of the peaceful country Yahiko had hoped to create.
• Konan bought fried dough sticks and soy milk from a vendor, who said Sōkyū Hatake had invented the snack and that more visitors had brought business to the street.
• The vendor told Sasori that a nearby weapons shop sold novel items developed by Mayuri Kurotsuchi.
• After hearing that Hirenkyaku Shoes were on display, Sasori stood up to visit the shop, and Konan paid for their meal.

Konan, Sasori, and Kakuzu visited Rōran’s weapon shop, where Sasori discovered modern firearms with unusual capabilities. Sasori ordered several weapons, and Kakuzu reluctantly paid ten million yen; Konan planned to study them after they returned.

• Konan brought Sasori and Kakuzu to the busy weapon shop, where they recognized spies from other villages, including Kumogakure.
• Sasori examined the unfamiliar weapons as the shopkeeper explained the AK47 and the Bullet M82A1 sniper rifle’s range and ammunition.
• Konan realized the weapons could threaten powerful ninja and considered reporting them so Rōran’s defenses could be reassessed.
• Sasori ordered several weapons, hoping to add them to his puppets, and learned they would take at least half a month to prepare.
• Sasori found he lacked enough money, so Kakuzu reluctantly paid the ten million yen bill.

Sōkyū Hatake met Konan, Sasori, and Kakuzu and used his knowledge of Yahiko and Nagato to unsettle Konan before trying to recruit Kakuzu to Rōran as Finance Minister. Kakuzu declined, but Sōkyū Hatake began tempting him with Rōran’s immense wealth.

• Konan proposed that the group visit Rōran’s laboratory, but Sōkyū Hatake appeared and offered to guide them.
• Kakuzu considered Sōkyū Hatake’s 150-million bounty, while Konan invited him to join the Akatsuki; he refused and suggested the Akatsuki join Rōran instead.
• Sōkyū Hatake described Yahiko’s death and revealed that Nagato had made Yahiko the Deva Path, provoking Konan to unleash her aura and demand to know what he knew.
• Sōkyū Hatake invited Kakuzu to leave the Akatsuki and become Rōran’s Finance Minister, but Konan intervened and Kakuzu declined.
• Sōkyū Hatake claimed Rōran’s wealth was worth ten thousand of Kakuzu’s heads as he tried to persuade him.

Sōkyū Hatake offered Kakuzu a share of Rōran’s profits, then confronted Nagato’s Six Paths of Pain and proposed buying Akatsuki. After moving the group to the desert, he tested their strength, and Sasori’s attack on him was interrupted by Mayuri Kurotsuchi.

• Sōkyū Hatake offered Kakuzu 1% of Rōran’s annual net profits to manage its finances, but Kakuzu initially affirmed his loyalty to Akatsuki.
• Nagato appeared through the Six Paths of Pain and challenged Sōkyū Hatake for trying to recruit Kakuzu.
• Sōkyū Hatake suggested buying Akatsuki, then moved its members to a nearby desert to assess their abilities.
• Sōkyū Hatake released Conqueror’s Haki, which affected Sasori most among the group.
• Sasori sent the Third Kazekage puppet to attack Sōkyū Hatake with Iron Sand Drizzle.
• Mayuri Kurotsuchi stabbed the puppet with Ashisogi Jizō, paralyzing it briefly before it broke free and retreated to Sasori.

Sōkyū Hatake let Mayuri Kurotsuchi fight Sasori while trying to recruit Kakuzu by offering him control of Rōran’s finances. When Deva Path Pain attacked, Sōkyū resisted Shinra Tensei and faced a combined assault, ending with lightning gathering in his hands.

• Sōkyū Hatake allowed Mayuri Kurotsuchi to fight Sasori, who was angered when Mayuri criticized his puppets.
• Sōkyū Hatake offered Kakuzu complete authority over Rōran’s finances, and Kakuzu began considering the offer.
• Deva Path Pain attacked Sōkyū with Shinra Tensei, but Sōkyū endured the force with Sage Art: Iron Body.
• Deva Path Pain ordered Konan and Kakuzu to attack alongside him, and the three advanced on Sōkyū.
• Sōkyū summoned a Thunder Ring, which Deva Path Pain, Konan, and Kakuzu destroyed with their combined techniques.
• Sōkyū smiled and gathered lightning in his hands as he prepared another attack.

Sōkyū Hatake revealed his strongest form by combining Perfect Sage Mode with Chōmei’s Tailed Beast Transformation. Nagato, Konan, and Kakuzu attacked him with their strongest techniques while Black Zetsu and Obito Uchiha watched from a distance, leaving the battle’s outcome unresolved.

• Sōkyū Hatake fused with Pikachu to enter Perfect Sage Mode, then called Chōmei and took on its Tailed Beast Cloak.
• Sōkyū Hatake announced that he would show Nagato his strongest form, while Konan and Kakuzu prepared to fight alongside Pain.
• Nagato gathered the other Pains’ chakra into Deva Path Pain and unleashed Super Shinra Tensei as Konan used Dance of the Shikigami and Kakuzu launched a combined fire-and-wind ninjutsu.
• Black Zetsu watched from ten kilometers away and doubted whether his plan could continue against Sōkyū Hatake’s strength.
• Obito Uchiha appeared beside Black Zetsu and questioned whether Nagato and the others could defeat Sōkyū Hatake.

Sōkyū Hatake defeated Pain’s combined attack and revealed that Nagato’s Rinnegan belonged to Madara Uchiha and were weakening his body. He exposed White Zetsu hidden on Nagato, Konan, Kakuzu, and the Six Paths of Pain, leaving Nagato to recognize the conspiracy behind them.

• Obito Uchiha and Black Zetsu discussed the possibility of Nagato and the others losing and agreed they would need to retrieve Madara Uchiha’s Rinnegan.
• Sōkyū Hatake countered Pain, Konan, and Kakuzu’s combined attack with his Tailed Beast Thunder God Cannon and emerged victorious.
• Sōkyū Hatake told Nagato that his Rinnegan belonged to Madara Uchiha and that using the incompatible eyes was draining his life force.
• Nagato accepted that Sōkyū Hatake’s explanation made sense, while Konan questioned how Madara Uchiha could be involved.
• Sōkyū Hatake used clones and Flying Thunder God to reveal and paralyze White Zetsu hidden inside the Six Paths of Pain, Konan, Kakuzu, and Nagato.

Sōkyū Hatake revealed to Nagato that Black Zetsu had manipulated the White Zetsu and secretly fueled the ancient conflict between Indra and Asura. He explained how their descendants’ chakra led to the Rinnegan, leaving Nagato confronting the truth as an unknown power began to emerge.

• Sōkyū Hatake showed Nagato that the White Zetsu attached to him were acting under hidden orders and suggested Black Zetsu was responsible.
• Sōkyū Hatake explained Hagoromo Otsutsuki’s history and revealed that Indra and Asura were his sons whose chakra passed down through the Uchiha, Senju, and Uzumaki lines.
• Sōkyū Hatake told Nagato that the Rinnegan required the powers of both Indra and Asura, which Nagato had never knowingly encountered.
• Sōkyū Hatake revealed that Black Zetsu had existed since Indra and Asura’s time and had provoked their conflict.
• Nagato noticed Sōkyū Hatake’s mention of Black Zetsu as an inexplicable power began to appear around them.

Sōkyū Hatake revealed that Black Zetsu had been working to free Kaguya Otsutsuki, and Kakuzu left the Akatsuki to join Rōran. After Sōkyū Hatake and Mayuri Kurotsuchi defeated the Akatsuki’s resistance, they returned with Kakuzu, while Sōkyū Hatake left to meet someone.

• Sōkyū Hatake told Deva Path Pain that Black Zetsu’s mission was to release Kaguya Otsutsuki from her imprisonment within the moon.
• Kakuzu agreed to leave the Akatsuki, handed Konan his robe and ring, and accepted a position as Rōran’s minister of finance.
• Deva Path Pain approved Kakuzu’s departure and asked him to keep the Akatsuki’s information confidential.
• Mayuri Kurotsuchi revealed that he had dismantled Sasori’s puppets, including the Third Kazekage puppet, and Sōkyū Hatake mocked Sasori before leaving with Mayuri and Kakuzu.
• Black Zetsu sensed that someone had blocked something from him as the groups departed.
• Sōkyū Hatake sent Mayuri Kurotsuchi and Kakuzu to his office while he went to meet someone.

Sōkyū Hatake met Hagoromo Otsutsuki and pressed him about whether he knew Black Zetsu was Kaguya Otsutsuki’s third son. Hagoromo denied knowing, but Sōkyū suspected he was hiding something, and the encounter ended as Hagoromo began to unleash a terrifying pressure.

• Sōkyū Hatake sensed Hagoromo Otsutsuki’s presence and called out to him as he prepared to leave.
• Hagoromo appeared and explained that he had been observing the world, while Sōkyū said his growing power let him sense Hagoromo.
• Sōkyū asked whether Hagoromo knew Black Zetsu was Kaguya Otsutsuki’s third son and had deliberately kept him alive.
• Hagoromo denied knowing Black Zetsu’s identity, but Sōkyū took his silence as a sign that he was concealing something.
• Hagoromo began releasing a terrifying pressure as Sōkyū dismissed the importance of his answer.

Sōkyū Hatake reached an agreement with Hagoromo Otsutsuki to keep him from acting within Rōran, while promising not to harm Black Zetsu. After Hagoromo withdrew, Sōkyū and Sara prepared to appoint Kakuzu as Rōran’s finance minister.

• Sōkyū Hatake used his Conqueror’s Haki to pressure Hagoromo Otsutsuki into agreeing not to act within Rōran.
• Hagoromo Otsutsuki agreed on the condition that Sōkyū Hatake leave Black Zetsu alone, and Sōkyū accepted.
• Hagoromo Otsutsuki withdrew his power from Rōran, which the God's-eye View marked as Sōkyū Hatake’s territory.
• Sōkyū Hatake reasoned that Hagoromo Otsutsuki’s plan depended on Black Zetsu succeeding in his effort to rescue his mother.
• Sara told Sōkyū Hatake that she had prepared Kakuzu’s appointment as Rōran’s finance minister, and Sōkyū asked her to announce it in person.

Sōkyū Hatake reassured Kakuzu by presenting documents that cleared his rogue status and appointed him Rōran’s Finance Minister, and the palace welcomed him at a banquet. Meanwhile, Minato Namikaze became Konoha’s Fourth Hokage and moved to end the ongoing war as the nations paused their fighting to develop technology and guard against Rōran.

• Sōkyū Hatake gave Kakuzu documents clearing his status with Takigakure, canceling his bounty, confirming his departure from Akatsuki, and appointing him Finance Minister of Rōran.
• Kakuzu accepted the appointment, thanked Sōkyū Hatake, and pledged to help Rōran prosper at the welcoming banquet.
• Minato Namikaze became the Fourth Hokage after Hiruzen Sarutobi stepped down and Orochimaru disappeared, while Uchiha Fugaku and Hyuga Hiashi became Hokage Advisors.
• Minato Namikaze called for Shikaku Nara to help end the war and plan Konoha’s future.
• The factions across the Shinobi World halted their fighting and began pursuing military technology after seeing Rōran’s War Machines, while treating Rōran as a threat.

Over the year, Minato Namikaze consolidated his authority while Rōran expanded Tailwind Express and its weapons industry across the Shinobi World. As Naruto Uzumaki's birth approached, Sōkyū Hatake decided to return to Konoha with his companions, leaving just as Sara arranged to handle her duties remotely.

• Minato Namikaze consolidated former Root and strengthened his control as Hokage, while Rōran rapidly expanded Tailwind Express and weapons production.
• Sōkyū Hatake worried that something might happen around Kushina's impending birth and learned that Obito Uchiha was away on an Akatsuki job.
• Sōkyū Hatake announced that he, Kakashi Hatake, Mitaraishi Anko, and Ayame would head to Konoha, where Minato had rebuilt the Hatake residence.
• Sara asked to join the trip, and Pakura offered to accompany her as Rōran's Anbu chief.
• Sara used Mayuri Kurotsuchi's notebook system to handle her remaining duties, and Sōkyū Hatake asked Kakashi Hatake to bring Rin Nohara along.

Sōkyū Hatake brought Sara, Pakura, Ayame, and others to Konoha, where their arrival drew the attention of Minato Namikaze, Uchiha Fugaku, and Hyuga Hiashi. The group reunited with old friends and planned to stay for over a month as Kushina approached childbirth.

• Sara, Ayame, and Pakura explored Konoha while Kakashi Hatake went to the Memorial Stone and Mitaraishi Anko headed for Orochimaru's laboratory.
• Uchiha Fugaku and Hyuga Hiashi approached Sōkyū Hatake, Sara, and Pakura, and Minato Namikaze soon joined them.
• Sōkyū Hatake and his friends traded jokes and blows, and Minato asked why he had brought so many people to Konoha openly.
• Sōkyū Hatake said they had come for a visit, and Minato welcomed them to stay for over a month because Kushina was close to giving birth.
• Sara asked whether Uchiha Fugaku and Hyuga Hiashi were truly so close in private, and Sōkyū Hatake joked that they got wild together.

Sōkyū Hatake warned Minato Namikaze that someone might target Kushina during her delivery, prompting Konoha to raise its defenses. As night fell, Kushina remained in the secluded cave awaiting the birth, with Minato and the village on alert.

• Sōkyū Hatake warned Minato Namikaze, Uchiha Fugaku, and Hyuga Hiashi of his premonition that someone might cause trouble during Kushina's delivery.
• Uchiha Fugaku put the Anbu on level-one alert, while Hyuga Hiashi mobilized his clan to watch the delivery site with their Byakugan.
• Sōkyū Hatake left with Pakura and Sara, promising to stay on alert without being followed.
• Minato Namikaze returned to Kushina and told her Sōkyū Hatake had come back, but kept the warning from her.
• Kushina told Minato Namikaze that Biwako Sarutobi was preparing supplies in the next room and reassured him that she and the baby would be safe.
• Night fell as Konoha's ninja gathered outside the cave to guard Kushina's delivery under level-one alert.

Black Zetsu and a shadowy collaborator planned to free the Nine-Tails during Kushina Uzumaki’s childbirth, despite the threat posed by Sōkyū Hatake. As Konoha’s guards watched the Cave, an intruder’s team killed an Anbu squad while Black Zetsu approached unseen.

• Black Zetsu told his collaborator to release the Nine-Tails when Kushina Uzumaki’s seal weakened during childbirth and insisted she must die; they agreed to avoid confronting Sōkyū Hatake directly.
• The shadowy figure demanded that Black Zetsu honor his promise after the operation, and Black Zetsu persuaded him with the trial version of the Infinite Tsukuyomi.
• After Black Zetsu vanished into the earth, an aged figure appeared and said he had covered the operation’s traces, calling Black Zetsu his foolish little brother.
• Uchiha Fugaku and Hyuga Hiashi checked the defenses around the Cave while Sōkyū Hatake watched from a table atop Minato Namikaze’s Hokage Rock statue.
• An intruder killed Hyūga Kaze and the other Anbu guards, then used the earth to conceal their bodies as two companions followed.
• Black Zetsu emerged above the Cave, relying on his concealment to remain undetected.

Shadows infiltrated Konoha to release the Nine-Tails, but Uchiha Fugaku and Hyuga Hiashi discovered them and raised the alarm. Hiruzen Sarutobi, Mitokado Homura, and Utatane Koharu arrived, and Fugaku realized they were connected to the attack as they refused to leave Kushina’s guard post.

• The infiltrators killed Anbu sentries and exploited a blind spot in the Hyuga Clan’s field of vision while advancing toward their target.
• Hyuga Hiashi used his Byakugan to detect suspicious chakra signatures among the guards, and Uchiha Fugaku ordered maximum alert across Konoha.
• Fugaku and Hiashi confronted three Kage-level figures near the cave, while Fugaku ordered someone to bring Lord Orochimaru from the laboratory.
• Hiruzen Sarutobi, Mitokado Homura, and Utatane Koharu appeared and claimed they had come to help guard Kushina.
• Fugaku told the three former leaders to leave, but Hiruzen refused as the objects summoned by the infiltrators appeared behind them.

Hiruzen Sarutobi summoned Hashirama Senju, Tobirama Senju, and Hanzo of the Salamander with the Impure World Reincarnation Jutsu to oppose Minato Namikaze, Uchiha Fugaku, and Hyuga Hiashi. The resurrected leaders emerged, and Hanzo immediately challenged Hashirama to a fight.

• Hyuga Hiashi and Uchiha Fugaku confronted Hiruzen Sarutobi after realizing he was preparing a forbidden jutsu.
• Minato Namikaze arrived, and Hiruzen said he rejected Minato's Konoha and wanted to create a world with Shimura Danzō in it.
• Uchiha Fugaku accused Hiruzen of betraying the village, while Hiruzen condemned Minato and his allies for their actions.
• Hiruzen performed the Impure World Reincarnation Jutsu and opened three coffins containing Hashirama Senju, Tobirama Senju, and Hanzo of the Salamander.
• Hashirama and Tobirama realized they had been resurrected, and Hanzo challenged Hashirama to prove who was the God of the Shinobi World.

Hiruzen Sarutobi summoned Hashirama Senju and Tobirama Senju, then accused Minato Namikaze and the Hyuga and Uchiha clan heads of conspiring to kill Shimura Danzō. Minato revealed that Sōkyū Hatake had killed Danzō and challenged Hiruzen to explain the Hatake Clan’s departure from Konoha.

• Hanzo of the Salamander challenged Hashirama Senju, and Tobirama Senju rushed to defend his brother before Hiruzen Sarutobi silenced Hanzo.
• Tobirama Senju recognized Hiruzen Sarutobi and learned he had been summoned with Hashirama Senju to help Konoha.
• Tobirama Senju suspected the Uchiha Clan of rebelling, but Minato Namikaze identified himself as the Fourth Hokage and Hyuga Hiashi vouched for him.
• Hiruzen Sarutobi accused Minato Namikaze and the Hyuga and Uchiha clan heads of joining with people from the Country of Roran to kill Shimura Danzō.
• Minato Namikaze said Sōkyū Hatake had killed Danzō and challenged Hiruzen Sarutobi to explain why the Hatake Clan had come under suspicion and left Konoha.
• Tobirama Senju demanded that Hiruzen Sarutobi explain what had happened to the Hatake Clan.

Hiruzen Sarutobi and Mitokado Homura used the Impure World Reincarnation to control Hashirama Senju, Tobirama Senju, and Hanzo of the Salamander, then left while the three fought Minato Namikaze, Uchiha Fugaku, and Hyuga Hiashi. Near the cave where Kushina Uzumaki was giving birth, Hiruzen Sarutobi and his companions discovered the area had been cleared and came face to face with Sōkyū Hatake and Pakura.

• Hiruzen Sarutobi and Mitokado Homura placed control talismans in Hashirama Senju, Tobirama Senju, and Hanzo of the Salamander, forcing them to fight.
• Minato Namikaze engaged Hashirama Senju, Uchiha Fugaku fought Tobirama Senju, and Hyuga Hiashi attacked Hanzo of the Salamander.
• Hiruzen Sarutobi, Mitokado Homura, and Utatane Koharu left the battle and headed toward the cave where Biwako Sarutobi was assisting Kushina Uzumaki's delivery.
• Utatane Koharu sensed that the area around the cave had gone unnaturally quiet, and Hiruzen Sarutobi realized someone had cleared it out.
• Sōkyū Hatake and Pakura appeared before Hiruzen Sarutobi, Mitokado Homura, and Utatane Koharu, shocking Hiruzen.