Recaps

Uchiha Fugaku and Hatake Sakumo fought to hold off Iwagakure as Didaze and Kitsuchi covered their forces’ retreat. Fugaku survived a massive clay-bomb blast by using his eye’s Rewind ability, while Didaze reassured Kitsuchi that Fugaku could not sustain Susanoo indefinitely.

• Kitsuchi and Didaze decided to retreat after Fugaku escaped the Mountain Earth Technique, and Kitsuchi urged Hatake Sakumo to protect the Konoha ninja from the approaching clay centipedes.
• Didaze countered Fugaku’s charged Susanoo arrow, then sent a giant centipede clay bomb toward Fugaku while the Iwagakure ninja withdrew.
• Didaze detonated the bomb, shattering Fugaku’s Susanoo, but Fugaku used Rewind to restore himself to his earlier state at the cost of severe strain on his right eye.
• Shimura Danzō coveted Fugaku’s Susanoo power as the Iwagakure forces retreated and Kitsuchi worried about their position.
• Didaze told Kitsuchi that Fugaku’s Mangekyō Sharingan power would run out and that his vision was likely already deteriorating.

Kitsuchi withdrew Iwagakure’s forces after Didaze’s victory, while Ōnoki and Hiruzen Sarutobi reacted to the battle report and its consequences. In Kusagakure, Didaze found Nanako Uzumaki being used to heal an injured ninja.

• Kitsuchi sent a battle report and letter to Ōnoki, then retreated with Iwagakure’s forces to the Land of Grass border while Didaze searched Kusagakure for Karin’s mother.
• Ōnoki learned that Didaze had defeated the Konoha ninja and killed Orochimaru, then contacted Kirigakure after reading about Uchiha Fugaku’s Mangekyō Sharingan.
• Hiruzen Sarutobi learned of Fugaku’s Mangekyō and Orochimaru’s death, decided to hide the death from Tsunade and Jiraiya, and feared the Uchiha Clan might threaten Konoha.
• Kusagakure ninja forced Nanako Uzumaki to heal an injured ninja, who bit her arm to absorb her chakra.
• A voice from the sky identified Nanako as a survivor of the Land of Whirlpools.

Didaze rescued Nanako Uzumaki from Kusagakure and let her choose the fate of the Grass Ninja who had abused her. After she ordered their deaths, Didaze destroyed the village and flew away with her, leaving her curious about who he was.

• Didaze rescued Nanako Uzumaki and told her to stay with him, while the Kusagakure ninja hesitated to attack an Iwagakure ninja.
• Didaze gave Nanako Uzumaki the choice of whether the Grass Ninja would live or die, and she chose to kill those who had bullied her.
• Didaze unleashed Clay Bomb: Brood Nest, and the clay spiders killed the Kusagakure ninja as Nanako Uzumaki watched.
• Didaze detonated the remaining Clay Bombs, killing Kusagakure's leader and razing the village.
• Didaze told Nanako Uzumaki his name and flew away with her on the Clay Giant Bird.

Didaze brought Nanako Uzumaki to Iwagakure and told Kitsuchi how Kusagakure had exploited her as a medical kit. As they flew toward Iwagakure, Didaze began explaining how the Land of Whirlpools had fallen, leaving Nanako with the revelation that Konoha had refused to help and later profited most.

• Didaze told Nanako Uzumaki she would become one of Iwagakure's people and could become his disciple after catching up on her training.
• Didaze introduced Nanako to Kitsuchi and explained that he had destroyed Kusagakure and rescued her from being used as a medical kit.
• Didaze told Kitsuchi that Nanako's chakra reserves could have been twice their current size, and he decided to take her to Ōnoki in Iwagakure.
• Didaze asked Nanako whether she wanted to know the truth about the Land of Whirlpools, and she firmly said yes.
• Didaze explained that Kumogakure attacked the Land of Whirlpools and Kirigakure joined to seize its Sealing Jutsu, while Hiruzen Sarutobi refused its request for Konoha's help.
• Didaze told Nanako that Konoha had profited the most after the Land of Whirlpools was destroyed.

Didaze told Nanako Uzumaki that the Land of Whirlpools had been destroyed and that few survivors remained, prompting her to vow revenge. He brought her to Iwagakure, where Ōnoki learned of her mistreatment in Kusagakure and recognized her potential, while Didaze began to say that confronting Kusagakure might not be necessary.

• Didaze explained that Konoha had obtained advanced sealing jutsu after the Land of Whirlpools fell, while Kirigakure and Kumogakure intercepted and killed many survivors.
• Nanako Uzumaki vowed to take revenge on the villages responsible, and Didaze promised to help her grow strong enough to do so.
• Didaze flew Nanako Uzumaki to Iwagakure and entered Ōnoki's office by crashing through the window.
• Ōnoki welcomed Nanako Uzumaki and learned that Kusagakure had used her as a source of healing chakra and bullied her.
• After seeing Nanako Uzumaki's bite marks and sensing her enormous chakra reserves, Ōnoki became furious at Kusagakure, but Didaze said that making trouble for the village might not be necessary.

Ōnoki accepted Didaze’s plan to handle the fallout from Kusagakure’s destruction and began preparing him as a successor. He enrolled Nanako Uzumaki in Iwagakure’s Ninja Academy, and the village changed its graduation-age rule to twelve.

• Didaze argued that Iwagakure could avoid trouble from other villages and potentially annex the Land of Grass if it handled Kirigakure carefully.
• Ōnoki agreed with Didaze’s plan to negotiate with Konoha for sealing jutsu and end the war, then told Didaze to prepare to succeed him as Tsuchikage.
• Ōnoki arranged for Nanako Uzumaki to attend the Ninja Academy at age twelve and live across from his home for safety.
• Ōnoki ordered Didaze to fix the shattered office window after Nanako Uzumaki left.
• The next day, Iwagakure changed the Ninja Academy graduation age to twelve and banned entry through the Tsuchikage’s office window.

Ōnoki forced Kitsuchi to withdraw Iwagakure’s forces, and the war with Konoha ended in a ceasefire proposal. The Iwagakure envoy demanded sealing jutsu as compensation, and Hiruzen Sarutobi showed he might accept.

• Ōnoki left Iwagakure in secret, struck Kitsuchi on the head for disobeying orders, and ordered him to withdraw.
• Konoha and Iwagakure withdrew their forces, while a white snake appeared on the abandoned battlefield.
• Ōnoki sent an Anbu envoy to Konoha to propose a ceasefire and demand ten sealing jutsu of each rank from A to D.
• Shimura Danzō dismissed the ceasefire intelligence and ordered Root to keep spreading damaging claims about the Uchiha Clan.
• The Iwagakure envoy threatened an alliance with Kirigakure and Kumogakure if Hiruzen Sarutobi refused the demands, and Hiruzen softened his response.

Hiruzen Sarutobi agreed to give Iwagakure Sealing Jutsu to prevent it from joining forces with Kirigakure and Kumogakure, while Ōnoki prepared for the exchange. Three days later, Ōnoki and his guards arrived in the Land of Grass, where Hiruzen was waiting.

• Hiruzen Sarutobi offered Iwagakure five A-rank Sealing Jutsu and five of each other rank, including two techniques exclusive to the Uzumaki Clan.
• Ōnoki learned that the exchange would take place in the Land of Grass and summoned Didaze and Kitsuchi to serve as his guards.
• Didaze received the summons while training Wind Release and agreed to attend the talks in three days.
• Ōnoki arranged his plans as Han watched Roshi, and Iwagakure Anbu guarded Nanako Uzumaki.
• Three days later, Didaze flew Ōnoki to the center of the Land of Grass, where Hiruzen Sarutobi was already waiting.

Hiruzen Sarutobi and Ōnoki negotiated Iwagakure’s surrender and a ceasefire, exchanging sealing techniques for the agreement. The villages ended hostilities, while Hatake Sakumo’s faith in Hiruzen Sarutobi began to falter.

• Hiruzen Sarutobi had Hatake Sakumo give Ōnoki five A-rank Sealing Jutsu, including the Adamantine Sealing Chains and the Four Symbols Seal.
• Ōnoki handed Hiruzen Sarutobi a ceasefire agreement declaring Iwagakure’s surrender and one hundred million ryō in reparations.
• Didaze asked Konoha to pay Iwagakure one hundred million ryō, and Hiruzen Sarutobi agreed to pay fifty million while keeping the larger sum in the agreement.
• Hiruzen Sarutobi signed the agreement, and Ōnoki said Iwagakure would await Konoha’s Anbu at the border to collect the money.
• Hatake Sakumo’s view of Hiruzen Sarutobi changed, and Iwagakure and Konoha officially ceased hostilities.

Didaze went to the Land of Earth's border to recruit Deido as his deputy and brought him into his service. He planned to return to Iwagakure with Deido and meet Dogen and Raito.

• Didaze told Ōnoki he was heading to the border to recruit someone, and Ōnoki said Nanako Uzumaki would become his Jonin student after she graduated.
• Kōdo told Ōnoki that Didaze was already strong enough to be considered a Kage.
• Didaze reached the border and greeted Dogen, who refused Didaze's offer to leave his post.
• Didaze formally invited Deido to become his deputy, and Deido eagerly accepted.
• Didaze told Deido to accompany him to Iwagakure the next day, then headed to meet Dogen and Raito.

After Iwagakure agreed to a ceasefire, the Third Kazekage convened Sunagakure’s leaders, who voted to end the war and negotiate compensation with Konoha. Meanwhile, Orochimaru secretly took over a weak Genin’s body in the Land of Grass to recover, and Konoha and Sunagakure finalized a ceasefire deal as Jiraiya and Tsunade returned to the village.

• The Third Kazekage called a leadership meeting after learning that Iwagakure had agreed to a ceasefire, leaving Sunagakure isolated.
• Granny Chiyo supported a ceasefire, and most of Sunagakure’s leaders agreed to end the war.
• Orochimaru found a female Genin in the Land of Grass, took over her body, and began secretly recovering in a house whose occupants he had killed.
• After three days of talks, the Third Kazekage and Hiruzen Sarutobi agreed that Sunagakure would pay Konoha one hundred million in compensation.
• Jiraiya and Tsunade led the ninjas back to Konoha.

Jiraiya returned to Konoha, got arrested after crashing into the women's bathhouse, and learned from Hiruzen Sarutobi that Orochimaru had died in battle. Tsunade and Jiraiya reacted with fury and grief, and Jiraiya stopped Tsunade from striking the Hokage.

• Jiraiya peered toward the women's bathhouse, and Tsunade punched him through its door before Anbu took him to the Hokage's office.
• Jiraiya claimed he had entered the bathhouse to gather material for a book, then asked Hiruzen Sarutobi whether something had happened to Orochimaru.
• Jiraiya admitted that he had forged the battle reports he gave Tsunade to keep her from worrying about Orochimaru.
• Hiruzen Sarutobi told Jiraiya and Tsunade that Orochimaru had fallen in battle and that Iwagakure's Didaze had killed him.
• Tsunade smashed Hiruzen Sarutobi's desk and tried to punch him, but Jiraiya caught her wrist.

Didaze took Nanako Uzumaki to meet Karen, Iwagakure’s strongest Sealing Jutsu user, and proposed that Karen train her after school. Karen agreed to assess Nanako’s talent first, while Didaze believed she had the potential to become a great sealing specialist.

• Didaze picked Nanako Uzumaki up from school and asked whether she had made friends.
• Didaze brought Nanako to Iwagakure’s Sealing Squad and introduced her to Karen.
• Karen told Didaze that people had nicknamed him the “Bomb Maniac,” making Nanako laugh.
• Didaze asked Karen to take Nanako as her student, and Karen said she would first test Nanako’s talent for Sealing Jutsu.
• Didaze reflected that Nanako had exceptional potential and hoped she would become a master of sealing.

Karen discovered Nanako Uzumaki’s exceptional talent for Sealing Jutsu and agreed to teach her while she continued attending school. Didaze then received an A-rank mission from Ōnoki to hunt the missing-nin Ōiwa and met the Anbu assigned to assist him.

• Nanako Uzumaki told Karen she had earth and water chakra natures, and Didaze considered whether she might awaken Wood Release by combining them.
• Karen gave Nanako a scroll for the D-rank Rock Seal, and Nanako mastered it after reading the instructions once.
• Karen urged Didaze to let Nanako stop attending school and study Sealing Jutsu full-time, but Nanako said she still wanted to go to school.
• Didaze left Nanako with Karen and went to Ōnoki’s office, where Ōnoki assigned him an A-rank mission to hunt Ōiwa with help from five Anbu.
• The Anbu removed their masks, and Umu introduced herself to Didaze as Silver Rabbit.

Didaze joined Ōnoki’s Anbu squad and set out to capture the defector Ōiwa, following Golden Tiger’s lead toward the Land of Rivers. By nightfall they reached its border, where Didaze left command to Golden Tiger as the search was about to begin.

• Umu, Kindo, Satō Kei, Atsuchi, and Watanabe Tora introduced themselves to Didaze, and Ōnoki appointed Didaze captain with Golden Tiger as vice-captain to capture Ōiwa alive if possible.
• Golden Tiger gave Didaze a smiling mask, and the squad left Iwagakure after presenting Ōnoki’s authorization to the gate guard.
• Golden Tiger reasoned that Ōiwa was likely hiding in the Land of Rivers, and Didaze agreed to follow that lead without using a conspicuous clay Giant Bird.
• The squad crossed the border near the Land of Rain, where Rain Ninja fled from them, and reached the Land of Rivers’ border after nightfall.
• Golden Tiger asked Didaze whether he would take command, and Didaze told him to continue leading the squad.

Didaze and Umu encountered Ōiwa and Sakyū, two missing-nin who attacked them with falling rocks and poison-coated puppets. Didaze fought back with powerful Wind Release, leaving Ōiwa badly wounded as the battle continued.

• Didaze and Umu traveled together while Didaze recounted his battlefield exploits to her.
• Ōiwa and Sakyū attacked Didaze and Umu with Earth Release: Rock Drop.
• Didaze and Umu shattered the falling rocks with their Wind Release techniques.
• Sakyū launched a poison-coated puppet, but Didaze blew the puppet and its poison back into the air.
• Ōiwa attacked with Earth Flow Spears, and Didaze countered with multiple Wind Blades that slashed Ōiwa across the body.

Didaze defeated Sakyū and Ōiwa, then took them aboard a clay bird to meet Red Boar and Clown. As Red Boar and Clown traveled, Kakuzu confronted them and demanded their Anbu masks and forehead protectors.

• Didaze destroyed Sakyū's puppets with a Condensed Wind Blade, while Ōiwa fled.
• Umu knocked Ōiwa unconscious, and Didaze decided to take Sakyū to Iwagakure to obtain his Puppet Technique.
• Didaze loaded the unconscious Ōiwa and Sakyū onto a Clay Giant Bird, and Sakyū recognized him as Iwagakure's Bomb Maniac.
• Didaze made Sakyū knock himself unconscious, then flew with Umu to find Red Boar and Clown.
• Kakuzu confronted Red Boar and Clown and demanded their Anbu forehead protectors and masks in exchange for sparing them.

Didaze joined the fight against Kakuzu after Umu evacuated Red Boar and Clown, and the two tested each other’s ninjutsu. Didaze tricked Kakuzu with an apparent clay-spider explosion and launched a twin-winged bird at him, leaving the attack’s outcome unresolved.

• Kakuzu wounded Red Boar and overpowered Clown with his Earth and Fire Style attacks.
• Didaze arrived on his Clay Giant Bird, sent Umu to rescue Red Boar and Clown, and challenged Kakuzu.
• Kakuzu and Didaze’s combined Fire and Wind Style attacks collided and dissipated.
• Kakuzu unleashed attacks from his Earth Grudge Fear masks while Didaze used clay spiders and detonated them with Fire Style.
• Didaze feigned an explosion without using clay, then formed a twin-winged bird that flew toward Kakuzu at great speed.

Didaze and Kakuzu fought with increasingly powerful Ninjutsu as Didaze maneuvered through the air and prepared C3 No. 18. The chapter ended with Kakuzu firing Earth Grudge Fear: Final Shot into the enormous clay bomb, their attacks colliding in a devastating blast.

• Didaze used a hidden clay bird to destroy Kakuzu's lightning-attribute Earth Grudge Fear creature, then dodged Kakuzu's attacks from atop a clay dragon.
• Kakuzu destroyed Didaze's clay bombs and struck what he thought was Didaze, but the target was a Clay Substitute that exploded and destroyed Kakuzu's fist and arm.
• Didaze threw C3 No. 18, which expanded into a giant doll-shaped bomb, while Kakuzu realized he could not escape its blast.
• Kakuzu recalled his remaining Earth Grudge Fear creatures and fired Earth Grudge Fear: Final Shot at C3 No. 18.
• The two attacks collided, collapsing mountainsides and devastating the forest as Umu and the others watched from outside.

Didaze survived his explosive clash with Kakuzu, who fled after losing three hearts. Didaze recovered with Umu’s treatment and learned that Kakuzu planned to replenish his hearts in the Land of Grass.

• Didaze cushioned his fall with Wind Release and found Kakuzu badly burned but still alive.
• Kakuzu fled with only his own heart remaining, while Didaze decided not to pursue him because of his injuries and low chakra.
• Kakuzu headed for the Land of Grass to collect hearts, taking a few Genin hearts along the way as spare lives.
• Umu treated Didaze, and he recovered from his aches while remaining low on chakra.
• Didaze told Umu that Kakuzu had targeted him for his bounty, and Clown identified Kakuzu as an S-rank missing-nin from Takigakure.

Didaze explained that Hashirama Senju had been powerful enough to unify the Five Great Nations, despite choosing peace and distributing the tailed beasts, and began recounting the final battle at the Valley of the End. Meanwhile, Uchiha Fugaku confronted Root over escalating restrictions on the Uchiha Clan, imposed under Shimura Danzō’s interpretation of Hiruzen Sarutobi’s silence.

• Umu and Red Boar questioned Didaze about the First Hokage’s strength, and Didaze said the younger generation had forgotten how powerful Hashirama Senju was.
• Didaze gathered Umu, Clown, and Red Boar aboard a Clay Giant Bird and explained that Hashirama could have unified the Five Great Nations but had chosen to yield for peace.
• Didaze began recounting Hashirama’s final battle at the Valley of the End.
• Uchiha Fugaku protested that the village was preventing Uchiha from leaving their homes and had reduced their missions to menial D-rank tasks.
• A Root ninja told Fugaku that the restrictions were Lord Hokage’s orders, while Shimura Danzō escalated the village’s targeting of the Uchiha Clan after interpreting Hiruzen Sarutobi’s silence as permission.

Root confined the Uchiha Clan to its compound, and Uchiha Fugaku argued with his father over whether to rebel. His father rejected rebellion and told him to seek Tsunade’s help, then prepared him for the appeal.

• A Root ninja ordered Uchiha Fugaku and the Uchiha Clan to stay inside their compound, and Fugaku restrained Uchiha En from attacking him.
• Uchiha Fugaku told the Uchiha Clan Head that Root had sealed them in, then proposed rebelling with his Mangekyō Sharingan and the Nine-Tails.
• The Uchiha Clan Head argued that rebellion would bring the clan’s destruction, given Konoha’s powerful leaders and shinobi.
• The Uchiha Clan Head urged Uchiha Fugaku to seek Tsunade’s help, reasoning that she had inherited the First Hokage’s will.
• Uchiha Fugaku agreed to approach Tsunade, and his father coached him before he left.

Uchiha Fugaku sought Tsunade’s help against Shimura Danzō’s restrictions on the Uchiha Clan. Tsunade went to confront Hiruzen Sarutobi, accusing him of letting Danzō pursue his own ambitions.

• Uchiha Fugaku used his Mangekyō Sharingan to pass unseen by Root members, then searched unsuccessfully for Tsunade at her home, the casino, and the bar.
• Tsunade reflected on Orochimaru’s suspicious death before catching Jiraiya spying on her in the hot spring and beating him.
• After waiting outside Tsunade’s home for hours, Uchiha Fugaku told her Shimura Danzō had confined the Uchiha Clan to its compound, and Tsunade promised to speak with Hiruzen Sarutobi.
• Tsunade went to the Hokage’s office and challenged Hiruzen Sarutobi for failing to rein in Shimura Danzō, accusing Danzō of seeking Uchiha Fugaku’s Mangekyō Sharingan and the Hokage position.

Tsunade demanded that Hiruzen Sarutobi end Root’s operations against the Uchiha Clan and threatened to remove Root herself if they remained. Hiruzen summoned Shimura Danzō, who refused to withdraw his agents and dared Tsunade to act.

• Tsunade rejected Hiruzen Sarutobi’s defense of Danzo and ordered him to end every operation targeting the Uchiha Clan immediately.
• Tsunade confronted Mitokado Homura and Utatane Koharu, then announced she would visit the Uchiha Clan Compound the next day and drive out any Root members she found.
• Hiruzen Sarutobi dismissed Mitokado Homura and Utatane Koharu, then summoned Shimura Danzō to his office.
• Shimura Danzō arrived at Hiruzen Sarutobi’s office and learned that Tsunade had threatened to take action if Root remained at the Uchiha Clan Compound.
• Shimura Danzō refused to withdraw Root and challenged Tsunade to come after him.

Tsunade confronted Hiruzen Sarutobi after he delayed Shimura Danzō’s withdrawal of Root from the Uchiha Clan Compound. When Root remained in place the next day, Tsunade attacked its members, and Uchiha Fugaku decided to support her as the next Hokage.

• Shimura Danzō persuaded Hiruzen Sarutobi to give Root another day before withdrawing, and Hiruzen summoned Tsunade.
• Tsunade rejected Hiruzen Sarutobi’s explanation and left his office, so he ordered Root to withdraw by the next day.
• Shimura Danzō agreed outwardly to the order but had no intention of withdrawing Root.
• Uchiha Fugaku and his clansmen waited as Root stayed at the compound, while one underling urged rebellion.
• Tsunade arrived at the Uchiha Clan Compound and sent dozens of Root members flying with a punch.
• Uchiha Fugaku resolved to support Tsunade as the next Hokage, even if it meant risking the Uchiha Clan.