Recaps

Anyo gave Deidara a Sasori-made puppet that could serve as a substitute and asked him to retrieve Iwagakure’s vessel for sealing the Five-Tails. Orochimaru tried to recruit Tobi as an ally, but Tobi departed after saying he might need Orochimaru’s power later; Anyo and Orochimaru then set off for Kirigakure to find the Six-Tails.

• Tobi dropped his comic act when Orochimaru revealed he knew Tobi had once been in the Akatsuki.
• Anyo met Deidara in the clouds and gave him a scroll containing a puppet that could replicate his abilities as a substitute.
• Anyo asked Deidara to go to Iwagakure and bring back the vessel once used to seal the Five-Tails, and Deidara agreed.
• Orochimaru offered to join forces with Tobi and promised he could raise an undying army using Impure World Reincarnation.
• Tobi said he might need Orochimaru’s power in the future and vanished using Space-Time Ninjutsu.
• Anyo appeared beside Orochimaru, and they decided to seek the Six-Tails in Kirigakure.

Anyo and Orochimaru discussed Kirigakure’s history and Orochimaru’s experiments, while Anyo took an interest in Hozuki Suigetsu. At a bounty station, Kakuzu calculated his future earnings as Hidan was attacked by Konoha ninja, but Kakuzu spared them and decided to charge Anyo for the lost bounty later.

• Anyo asked Orochimaru about Kirigakure, and Orochimaru explained the village’s history and its bloody policies toward kekkei genkai users.
• Orochimaru recalled Kimimaro and told Anyo that Hozuki Suigetsu had survived his experiments thanks to the Hydrification Technique.
• Anyo connected Suigetsu to the Hozuki Clan and challenged him to a future sword spar, while Suigetsu sensed an ominous chill elsewhere.
• Kakuzu took a monk’s corpse to a Bounty Station, collected thirty million, and calculated how much money he could control after the organizations merged.
• Konoha ninja ambushed Hidan outside the station, but Kakuzu intervened and warned them to leave.
• Kakuzu recognized Asuma and decided to spare the Konoha ninja, planning to ask Anyo for forty million later instead.

Anyo and Orochimaru searched Kirigakure for the Six-Tails, but Anyo found no trace of it and questioned Genji. Genji revealed that Karatachi Yagura had been controlled by a mysterious Sharingan user before disappearing with the Six-Tails, while Anyo promised to leave without seeing Mei Terumi.

• Asuma declared that he and the other Konoha ninja would not let Hidan and Kakuzu go, and Hidan charged ahead to fight.
• Anyo and Orochimaru entered Kirigakure, where Anyo searched the village with Sage Mode but could not sense the Six-Tails.
• Anyo approached Genji, who angrily called him a liar, but eventually listened when Anyo asked about the Six-Tails.
• Genji explained that Karatachi Yagura had sealed the Six-Tails inside himself and later fell under the control of a mysterious person with the Sharingan.
• Genji said Karatachi Yagura vanished along with the Six-Tails while Genji was preparing to expose the person controlling him.

After Orochimaru extracted Six-Tails cells, the container shattered and triggered Kirigakure’s alarm, forcing Anyo and Genji to prepare a Space–Time Barrier as Mei Terumi closed in. Meanwhile, Sasori watched Kakuzu and Hidan retreat from the battle at the Bounty Station and decided to contact Tenten to help Konoha defeat Kakuzu.

• Anyo took Genji’s Six-Tails container, and Orochimaru extracted cells from it before it shattered and activated Kirigakure’s village barrier.
• Genji began teaching Anyo to set up a Space–Time Barrier so he could escape Kirigakure unnoticed.
• Mei Terumi sent Ao to search for the intruder, and Ao detected an unseen power near Genji’s home.
• Anyo made rapid progress on the barrier before Mei Terumi trapped the area with her Lava Release and demanded that he surrender.
• At the Bounty Station, Kakuzu and Hidan retreated after Pain ordered them to seal a tailed beast, while Sasori watched the battle.
• Sasori decided to visit Konoha and contact Tenten about helping the Konoha ninja take down Kakuzu.

Anyo reunited with Mei Terumi in Kirigakure after years apart, and she confronted him for leaving her without word. He promised to stay with her until she was ready to leave her duties as Mizukage, and they finally embraced.

• Mei Terumi rushed to Anyo, sealed his chakra, and bound him with water so he could not escape.
• Mei Terumi accused Anyo of breaking his promise and leaving her waiting in Kirigakure without sending a letter.
• Anyo freed himself and showed Mei Terumi a flyer proving he had publicly searched for a marriage partner, then explained he had planned to see her after collecting Six-Tails cells.
• Mei Terumi asked Anyo to stay in Kirigakure with her until she could train a successor, and he agreed.
• Mei Terumi embraced Anyo and sobbed that she hated how long and uncertain it had been to wait for him.

Anyo postponed his tailed-beast plan to stay with Mei Terumi in Kirigakure, while Naruto and Kakashi defeated and killed Kakuzu. Sasori then sent Da'an to search for a location tied to his plan, warning him not to betray him.

• Anyo told Orochimaru that he would delay cultivating tailed-beast cells and stay with Mei Terumi until the approaching Five Kage Summit.
• Genji dismissed the gathered Kirigakure ninja, then accepted Anyo and Mei Terumi's invitation to go fishing and share a meal.
• Tenten flew to the battlefield with Sasori's puppet and watched Naruto's Wind Release: Rasenshuriken destroy Kakuzu's hearts.
• Kakashi delivered the finishing blow and killed Kakuzu, after which Sasori and Tenten left the battlefield.
• Sasori ordered Da'an to begin searching for a location and warned him that betrayal would bring fatal consequences.

Mei Terumi and Anyo discussed Kirigakure’s reforms, and Anyo promised to fund them, leaving Mei to repay the village’s debt as Mizukage. Meanwhile, Sasori confirmed that Kakuzu’s hidden gold was buried on a deserted island and rewarded Da'an for bringing him there.

• Mei Terumi questioned Anyo about his identity and age, and he gave her a story to explain the name Ōbu.
• Anyo advised Mei Terumi to develop Kirigakure’s economy and reform its internal policies, then promised to provide the needed money.
• Anyo teased Mei Terumi and said the Mizukage would have to repay Kirigakure’s debt.
• Sasori arrived at the island Da'an had identified as the hiding place of the gold and rewarded Da'an with authority, funds, and a powerful puppet.
• Sasori used Dragon Vein Power to search the island and wondered how much money Kakuzu had hidden there.

Sasori learned that Kurotsuchi was trapped in Kirigakure and left Orochimaru’s hideout to find him. In Kirigakure, Anyo tested Chōjūrō in a fierce sword clash, and Mei Terumi teased Anyo for holding a grudge against the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist.

• Sasori delivered the Four-Tails’ cells to Orochimaru, who began cultivating its embryo and gave Sasori a scroll listing the experiment’s required materials.
• Orochimaru told Sasori that Kurotsuchi was trapped by a woman and revealed that Kurotsuchi was in Kirigakure, so Sasori left to find him.
• Mei Terumi announced new reforms in Kirigakure and told Anyo that she had committed the village’s reserve funds to them.
• A messenger reported that an intruder had broken into Kirigakure, and Anyo sensed that Sasori had arrived and went to locate him.
• Anyo challenged Chōjūrō to draw Hiramekarei and overwhelmed him with a display of blades before Mei Terumi stopped the test.
• Mei Terumi dismissed Chōjūrō and teased Anyo for holding a grudge against the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist.

Sasori defeated a group of Mist Ninja without killing them, then brought a vast fortune from Kakuzu’s vault to Kirigakure as a loan for Mei Terumi. After discussing Kakuzu’s wealth and the recovered Rasa puppet, Anyo realized Orochimaru may have been hiding something from Sasori.

• Sasori used his puppets to repel the Mist Ninja with precise water-blade attacks, and Anyo joined him in his mental space.
• Anyo introduced Sasori to Mei Terumi, and Sasori greeted her as his sister-in-law.
• Anyo healed the fallen Mist Ninja, then Sasori revealed Wooden Ox puppets packed with gold in the Mizukage's Office.
• Mei accepted the gold as a loan, while Anyo and Sasori left to talk at Anyo's wooden house.
• Sasori told Anyo he had emptied Kakuzu's immense hidden vault and recovered the Rasa puppet through his divided soul in Konoha.
• When Sasori said Orochimaru had initially refused to reveal Anyo's whereabouts, Anyo realized something was wrong.

Anyo realized Sasuke might soon fight Itachi and sent Sasori to bring Itachi back before Orochimaru could take Sasuke’s body. Meanwhile, Jiraiya prepared to investigate the Akatsuki’s leader in Amegakure, leaving Tsunade worried and urging her to choose her heart over the village if forced to choose between Konoha and Anyo.

• Anyo told Sasori to find Itachi and bring him to Kirigakure, even by force, because he believed Itachi would lose to Sasuke.
• Sasori learned that Sasuke had defeated Deidara and used the Zero Organization’s intelligence network to locate Itachi and Kisame.
• Jiraiya told Tsunade that his investigation pointed to Amegakure as the Akatsuki leader’s hiding place, and he planned to infiltrate the village.
• Jiraiya rejected Tsunade’s suggestion to rely on Anyo, arguing that Anyo would protect only himself and those he cared about.
• Jiraiya left to investigate Amegakure after advising Tsunade to follow her heart if she ever had to choose between Konoha and Anyo.

Tsunade regretted letting Jiraiya take a mission alone, while Kikyo secretly followed his trail. Sasori brought Itachi to Kirigakure, where Itachi confirmed his choice through a crow clone, and the crow carried Shisui’s Kotoamatsukami to Anyo.

• Tsunade lamented letting Jiraiya go alone, and Shizune took her home while Kikyo secretly followed Jiraiya’s tracks.
• Sasori confronted Itachi and Kisame, then used his senjutsu power to make Itachi agree to go with him to Kirigakure.
• Kisame stayed behind as Itachi and Sasori flew away in a Flying Mecha, and a familiar voice told Kisame it still needed his help.
• Obito told Pain and Konan that Sasori had gone to Kirigakure to find the Three-Tails, while the Akatsuki prepared to pursue the remaining tailed beasts.
• Anyo asked Itachi whether this was his choice, and Itachi asked if his mother was alive before entrusting Sasuke to Anyo.
• Itachi vanished as a flock of crows, and one crow carrying Shisui’s Kotoamatsukami flew toward Anyo.

After Itachi used Kotoamatsukami to deceive Sasori, Anyo explained the genjutsu and decided to convene a third Five Kage Summit as the Akatsuki neared its pursuit of the Eight-Tails and Nine-Tails. Meanwhile, Jiraiya entered Amegakure and was detected by Pain, while Kikyo found a way to slip into the village unseen.

• Sasori apologized to Anyo for failing to bring Itachi back, and Anyo explained that Itachi had used Kotoamatsukami to guide Sasori into mistaking a clone for the real Itachi.
• Anyo described how Kotoamatsukami affected people with different levels of resistance and explained that it could plant suggestions even in someone with his own strength.
• Anyo told Sasori to convene the third Five Kage Summit, and Sasori showed him ten lakes near the Land of Fire where the Three-Tails might be found.
• Sasori returned to Sunagakure, and Mei Terumi told Anyo she would leave with him once Kirigakure no longer needed her.
• Jiraiya entered Amegakure, alerting Pain through the chakra-infused rain, while Kikyo realized the Rain Tiger at Will Technique had exposed him.
• Kikyo hid her physical body in the ground with Inorganic Reincarnation and sent her holy soul body into Amegakure to warn Jiraiya.

Kikyo witnessed Jiraiya fight Pain in Amegakure, while Sasuke and Anyo faced turning points in the aftermath of their own troubles. News of a Five Kage Summit and Jiraiya’s death reached Kirigakure and Konoha, where Haku revealed that Kikyo had gone missing.

• Kikyo watched Jiraiya defeat three Rinnegan-wielding opponents with auditory Genjutsu, but six Paths of Pain then appeared and severed one of Jiraiya’s arms.
• Sasuke collapsed beside Itachi’s body after their battle, overcome by grief despite having won his revenge.
• Anyo spoke with Mei Terumi about his unease, and she agreed to spend the night with him after he offered to reveal how he had become younger.
• Genji gave Mei Terumi the Kazekage’s letter proposing a Five Kage Summit in the Land of Hot Water, and he insisted she attend despite her reluctance.
• Fukasaku told Naruto that Jiraiya had died fighting Pain, and Tsunade recalled that Jiraiya and Anyo had once cared for orphans in Amegakure.
• Haku arrived at the Hokage Office and told Tsunade that Kikyo was missing from Konoha.

After news of Jiraiya’s dangerous mission unsettled Konoha, Tsunade learned that Anyo was connected to the coming Five Kage Summit and worried that Kikyo had disappeared. Meanwhile, Anyo promised Mei Terumi a hot-spring outing but panicked when she asked him to pledge his necklace.

• Kakashi asked Haku where Anyo had gone, and Naruto angrily confronted Tsunade after learning she had sent Jiraiya on a dangerous mission.
• Utatane Koharu and Mitokado Homura delivered a Five Kage Summit letter, and Haku inferred Anyo would attend because Mabui had already left for the Land of Hot Water.
• Tsunade spoke privately with Haku about her relationship with Anyo and learned that Kikyo had not been seen since going to check on Tsunade at a tavern.
• At Kirigakure’s gates, Anyo admitted to Mei Terumi that he had anticipated the summit and promised to take her to the hot springs.
• Mei Terumi declined Anyo’s Supreme Edge as a pledge and asked for his necklace instead, leaving him flustered.

Anyo found the Three-Tails and reunited with Rin Nohara, who had survived as a soul and befriended the beast. He prepared to take the Three-Tails away, but Rin pleaded with him to leave her companion alone.

• Mei Terumi accepted the Mizukage Hat from Genji and set out for the Five Kage Summit with Chōjūrō and Ao as her guards.
• Anyo searched three lakes near the Land of Fire and found the Three-Tails hiding beneath the third lake.
• Anyo trapped the Three-Tails in ice, but it stopped its attack when it recognized his soul power.
• Anyo reunited with Rin Nohara, who explained that she had developed the Spirit Body Technique and named the Three-Tails Goodie.
• Anyo produced a container, and Rin spread her arms to beg him not to take Goodie away.

Anyo learned how Rin Nohara survived inside the Three-Tails and persuaded her to let him seal it so he could stop Akatsuki from gathering the Tailed Beasts. He secured the Three-Tails and left with Rin's soul in his mental space, planning to sustain her cultivation.

• Rin Nohara told Anyo that she survived her apparent death by joining her soul with the Three-Tails, which she called Xiaoguai, and later developed a technique that let her move outside it.
• Rin Nohara explained that she had hidden Xiaoguai from Akatsuki and another mysterious organization, while Anyo warned her that Akatsuki's plan could bring about the Ten-Tails and destroy the world.
• Anyo promised Rin Nohara that he would protect Xiaoguai and return it unharmed after stopping Akatsuki, and Rin persuaded the Three-Tails to agree to be sealed.
• Anyo sealed the Three-Tails in its container without resistance and said he would wait for Deidara to bring back the Five-Tails container.
• Anyo invited Rin Nohara's soul into his mental space and offered to provide chakra for her cultivation, and she accepted after he mentioned that she might one day live again in a new body.

Raikage A and Ōnoki prepared to attend the Five Kage Summit while Deidara brought Kurotsuchi to Orochimaru's northern hideout. After Sasori attacked Kurotsuchi over her name, Anyo treated her injuries and suggested she change her name to Clay.

• Raikage A ordered Hi to strengthen the Valley of Clouds and Lightning's defenses and protect Killer B while he attended the summit.
• Ōnoki departed for the summit with Kitsuchi and Akatsuchi, still unable to find Kurotsuchi.
• Kurotsuchi followed Deidara to the hideout, where Sasori attacked her after hearing her name and demanded that she change it.
• Anyo returned after capturing the Three-Tails, healed Kurotsuchi, and suggested the name Clay.

Anyo completed preparations to gather the chakra of all nine tailed beasts and learned that Orochimaru had abandoned his final attempt to take Itachi’s body. After receiving alarming intelligence, Anyo headed to Amegakure, where he spoke with Konan and promised to bring about a new order and restore the village.

• Anyo gave the Five-Tails Vessel to Anyo’s associate and left Kurotsuchi with a new name to consider and a Sailor Moon manga.
• Anyo restored Orochimaru’s chakra and soul, then placed the Three-Tails’ and Five-Tails’ cells in their Experiment Chambers, completing the collection of all nine tailed beasts’ chakra.
• Orochimaru told Anyo that Itachi’s Totsuka Blade had defeated his Eight Branches Technique and that he had given up on another attempt.
• After reading intelligence from Haku, Anyo burned the scroll and told Sasori they would attend the Five Kage Summit and wait for their opponents to reveal themselves.
• Anyo traveled to Amegakure and questioned Konan about whether Nagato had captured anyone after Jiraiya’s death; Konan said she knew nothing about another infiltrator.
• Anyo discussed Amegakure’s suffering with Konan, then disappeared after urging her to stay alive until he established a new order and helped the village flourish again.

Anyo reassured Tsunade that he knew where Kikyo was, then destroyed Mountain Graveyard with a devastating sword strike while waiting for Obito. When Obito failed to produce Kikyo, Anyo swiftly severed one arm and pinned his remaining limbs, trapping him before he could escape through his Mangekyō Sharingan.

• Anyo met Tsunade, Yugao, and Shizune on the way to Konoha and promised Tsunade she would see Kikyo after the Five Kage Summit.
• Anyo learned that Naruto was training in senjutsu at Mount Myōboku and that Kakashi was overseeing Konoha's security.
• Anyo unleashed a powerful sword slash that erased Mountain Graveyard.
• Obito appeared, and Anyo offered him the Three-Tails' vessel in exchange for Kikyo.
• When Obito failed to produce Kikyo, Anyo cut off one of his arms and pinned his other arm and legs with the Unintentional Blade and Sharp Edge.
• Anyo accused Obito of trying to deceive him as Obito wondered why his Mangekyō Sharingan ability had failed.

Obito captured Kikyo after she saved Jiraiya’s soul, intending to use her as leverage against Anyo. Trapped in Kamui’s dimension, Kikyo revealed that unsealing her Rinnegan could let her escape with Yomotsu Hirasaka, and Jiraiya began teaching her sealing jutsu.

• Anyo used his time-based dōjutsu to counter Obito’s Kamui and demanded answers about Kikyo.
• Kikyo recalled how she used the Spirit Transformation Technique to save Jiraiya’s soul before it dissipated, then fled Amegakure.
• Obito ambushed Kikyo outside Amegakure and pulled her into the Kamui Dimension, planning to keep her as a trump card.
• Black and White Zetsu told Obito that Sasuke had defeated and killed Itachi.
• Kikyo told Jiraiya that unsealing the Rinnegan on her forehead would let her use Yomotsu Hirasaka to escape, and Jiraiya agreed to teach her sealing jutsu.

Kikyo awakened her Rinnegan and escaped Obito’s Kamui Dimension, while Anyo entered and broke out of it. Anyo traded the Three-Tails for Itachi’s Mangekyō eyes, and Obito decided to change his plan and bring Madara out.

• Jiraiya discovered Kikyo’s extraordinary talent for Sealing Jutsu as she quickly learned his techniques and studied Moon in the Well.
• Kikyo’s Rinnegan awakened, and she used Yomotsu Hirasaka to escape the Kamui Dimension.
• Anyo asked Obito to send him into the Kamui Dimension, then used his Mangekyō to witness Kikyo’s escape and leave the dimension himself.
• Anyo gave Obito the Three-Tails in exchange for Itachi’s Mangekyō eyes after learning Itachi’s body had been destroyed.
• Obito resolved to bring Madara out and pursue a new plan while Pain headed toward Konoha.

The Five Kage gathered in the Land of Hot Water for the summit called by Sasori, while Anyo treated the badly injured Hanzō and confronted him over the Zero Organization's accounts. After sensing that someone had arrived, Anyo prepared to act.

• Ōnoki and A complained about the crowds as they hurried through the flower-lined streets toward the summit venue.
• Tsunade and Mei Terumi met, introduced themselves, and chatted warmly before joining Ōnoki and A in the Summit Hall.
• Sasori arrived with Mabui, explained his delay, and began the summit after A challenged him and Mei urged the Kage to stop arguing.
• Anyo found Hanzō near Konoha, treated his wounds, and revealed that Sasori had attacked him on Anyo's orders.
• Anyo showed Hanzō a ledger exposing his misuse of the Zero Organization's support, then put him under genjutsu and sensed someone approaching.

At the Five Kage Summit, Sasori tried to persuade the Kage to unite against Akatsuki, but their argument nearly turned violent before Mabui restored order. Meanwhile, Pain invaded Konoha as Anyo entered the village to confront someone, leaving Sasori with instructions to keep a list of people alive.

• Ōnoki interrupted Sasori’s opening remarks, and the two traded insults before Mei Terumi urged Sasori to explain Akatsuki’s threat.
• Mei Terumi, Ōnoki, and Tsunade debated whether Akatsuki could use captured tailed beasts, and Sasori pointed out that Raikage A could control one perfectly.
• Raikage A’s anger brought the guards to arms, but Mabui warned the Kage against fighting, and Sasori sat down first.
• Pain’s Animal Path broke through Konoha’s barrier, and the Six Paths of Pain’s summons devastated the village.
• Anyo entered Konoha and learned from Sasori that Might Guy had taken Tenten, Neji, and Rock Lee out of the village; he warned Sasori to keep certain people alive and went underground to deal with someone.

Anyo confronted Danzo beneath the Hokage Building, revealing his role in the White Fang’s death and explaining Hiruzen’s bond with Danzo. After an explosion reduced Konoha to ruins, Anyo crippled Danzo’s arm and caught him before he could escape, leaving Danzo to activate a sealing technique.

• Danzo ordered Root to remain underground while he waited for Anyo and the Akatsuki to weaken each other, but Anyo arrived and incapacitated the Root members with genjutsu.
• Anyo told Danzo that he had known Danzo was behind Heiye and had spared him at someone’s request, then revealed that the person was Orochimaru and discussed Hiruzen’s indulgence of Danzo.
• Anyo explained that he had met Tobirama Senju through Impure World Reincarnation, and Danzo accused him of desecrating their teacher’s soul.
• After a massive explosion shook the underground refuge, Anyo told Danzo that Konoha had been reduced to ruins and promised to sever the shinobi world’s rules.
• Danzo tried to escape through a secret passage, but the Sharingan in his arm burst and its Hashirama cells began transforming him, forcing him to cut the arm off.
• Anyo appeared in front of Danzo, who declared him Konoha’s greatest enemy and activated the Reverse Four Symbols Sealing Technique on his chest.

Anyo defeated Danzo, dissolved Root into the Anbu, and left Danzo incapacitated as Konoha faced Pain’s assault. Pain used Shinra Tensei to devastate the village, and Naruto arrived just afterward.

• Anyo stopped Danzo’s suicide attempt, knocked him unconscious, and declared that Root would be disbanded and its members incorporated into the Anbu.
• After Anyo left, Root members chose to join the fight and rushed aboveground to defend Konoha.
• Deva Path Pain confronted Tsunade and demanded Naruto’s location, but Tsunade refused to cooperate.
• Pain unleashed Shinra Tensei, flattening Konoha and leaving many residents and Ninja dead or near death.
• Anyo watched the destruction and predicted Naruto’s arrival, and Naruto appeared on giant toads.