Chapter Summaries

Yuhan and the Shirofukuji Pirates defeated Haidō’s forces, seized the Gelel Fortress and warships, and sailed back toward the Land of Spring. Haidō was left stranded at sea until Zetsu offered to help him get revenge and find a Gelel Ore Vein.

• Yuhan froze the three Nuclear Shadows elders, and Jūgo threw them into the sea after they argued about firing the cannons.
• Shirofukuji, Ainz, and Kikin lifted the Gelel Fortress and warships out of the water, while Haidō fell into the sea and lost control of his forces.
• Ranke and Fugai tried to seize the Titanic, but Sōsuke trapped Fugai in a multilayered Genjutsu and Chino defeated Ranke with her Ketsuryūgan.
• Shirofukuji’s crew sang Binks’ Sake as the pirates towed the Titanic and a damaged Gelel warship toward the Land of Spring.
• Zetsu approached Haidō and offered help reclaiming the Gelel Fortress and finding a Gelel Ore Vein.

Kyōai and Shino discussed Sunagakure’s weakened state with Gaara and offered chakra armor in exchange for permission to confront Hoshigakure. Gaara agreed to let one four-person squad led by Temari act alongside the Sand Ninja.

• Kyōai and Shino revealed that Sunagakure had only about a hundred ninja and that its defenses were severely weakened after the Konoha Crush Plan.
• Gaara said Sunagakure was secretly training new forces, while Kyōai offered a hundred sets of Ninjutsu Type Two Chakra Armor to help rebuild its strength.
• Kyōai and Shino warned Gaara that Hoshigakure was ambitious and that the Sand Ninja’s recent battles with the Star Ninja were straining its limited resources.
• Kyōai asked to handle Hoshigakure in return for access to its unusual ore and the Mysterious Peacock Method, proposing that Temari lead a team under the cover of an alliance.
• Gaara accepted the plan on the condition that the team consist of only four people.

After Hongshi and Rock Lee were charged exorbitant prices for water in Sunagakure, Kyōai assigned missions: Temari, Hongshi, and Shino would hunt Star Ninja, while Kyōai took Choji, Rock Lee, and Kankuro to a banquet. Hongshi created a sand boat to travel north, and Gaara recognized how powerful he was.

• Hongshi and Rock Lee spent heavily on water at Sunagakure’s dango shop, then learned from Kyōai that seawater could be purified for drinking.
• Gaara assigned Temari, Hongshi, and Shino to eliminate the Star Ninja, while Kyōai took Choji, Rock Lee, and Kankuro to a banquet in the Land of Rivers.
• Kyōai distributed Blue Bird Type Four flying ninja tools, and the two groups prepared to depart on separate missions.
• Shino tempted the reluctant Hongshi with news of Hoshigakure’s billion-ryo meteorite, and Hongshi eagerly agreed to go.
• Hongshi used Earth Release: Desert Boat to form a sand vessel and set off with Temari and Shino toward the Land of Bears.
• Baki suggested placing Hongshi under special watch, but Gaara said Sunagakure could not defeat someone capable of sealing Shukaku.

Shino, Temari, Hongshi, and Hōryūsai met near the Land of Bears and discussed signs of a plot involving Star Ninja and disguised outsiders. They headed toward a Star Ninja squad, while the Lord God revealed that Hōryūsai was a Jinchūriki.

• Hongshi taught Temari about Wind Release, and she developed a twin-tornado technique with her Great Sickle Weasel Fan.
• The desert ship reached a weathered-rock landscape near the Land of Bears, where Hōryūsai joined the group.
• Hōryūsai reported seeing Star Ninja and disguised ninja along the border, and said both Sand Ninja reconnaissance squads had been wiped out.
• Shino warned that the Star Ninja might be working with outsiders to test Sunagakure, and the group agreed to investigate before sending word to Gaara.
• Hōryūsai directed Hongshi toward a Star Ninja squad, and the Lord God confirmed that Hōryūsai was a Jinchūriki.

Yotaka’s Star Ninja squad patrolled the Land of Bears border while Hongshi and his companions crossed into it from the Land of Wind. Hōryūsai quickly incapacitated a mercenary squad, and the group prepared to deal with another one as Hongshi asked when they would eat.

• Yotaka explained that Hoshigakure had hired mercenaries to hunt Natsuhiboshi, while secretly probing Sunagakure, and said she could rival the Fourth Hoshikage.
• Hokuto Star spotted a strange yellow sailboat racing across the desert, and Yotaka’s squad watched it approach the border.
• Hongshi’s Desert Boat crumbled after five days of travel, and Hōryūsai carried the sleeping Hongshi off it as Temari and Shino followed.
• Temari chose to confront the approaching mercenaries, and Hōryūsai used his Flame Explosion Unrivaled technique to knock out their four-person squad in seconds.
• Shino revealed that his paralytic kikaichū had already incapacitated another squad, while Hongshi demanded to know when they would eat.

Temari, Shino, and Hōryūsai captured mercenary ninja who revealed a bounty targeting Sunagakure, then discovered that the Star Ninja were suffering from their chakra training. Hōryūsai absorbed Sanrensei’s harmful chakra and decided Hoshigakure was worth visiting, while the group paused to cook.

• Shino’s insects paralyzed four mercenary ninja, and Temari decided to question them after Hongshi treated their injuries.
• Shino poisoned the mercenaries when they resisted, and Temari learned their group had accepted a black-market bounty to kill Sand Ninja.
• Hatoyama Raifu offered to lead the group to his boss, who might know the bounty’s client, and Shino knocked the mercenaries unconscious.
• Hōryūsai noticed the Star Ninja were sick and absorbed the excessive chakra causing Sanrensei’s purple blotches.
• Hōryūsai became interested in the Mysterious Peacock Method and suggested visiting Hoshigakure, while Hongshi returned with a wild boar.

Shino, Temari, Hongshi, and Hōryūsai questioned the Star Ninja about the threat to Sunagakure and the dangers of their training. When Natsuhiboshi arrived to take the Star Ninja away, Hōryūsai challenged her and their fight began.

• Hōryūsai released the Star Ninja children from paralysis, while Shino questioned them about the hired ninja and Hoshigakure’s plans.
• Hōryūsai criticized the Star Ninja’s training, and Hongshi demonstrated how easily he could form chakra wings.
• Shino warned that the children were damaging their bodies, and Hōryūsai offered Hokuto Star and Sanrensei pills from the Xiong Family Old Formula.
• Natsuhiboshi arrived and demanded the Star Ninja; Temari refused to let anyone leave before their investigation was complete.
• Hōryūsai challenged Natsuhiboshi, who attacked with the Mysterious Peacock Method, and he blocked her chakra beast with Twin Bones and flames.

Hōryūsai overwhelmed Natsuhiboshi with his white Fire Style and invited her and the young Star Ninja to join his village. As Natsuhiboshi attacked again, he drew Beef Tendon Jaka and revealed the power of the Thirteen Nuclear Guardian Pillars.

• Natsuhiboshi attacked Hōryūsai with chakra senbon that pierced his body and dispelled his flaming wings, but he countered with Great Flame Breakthrough.
• Hōryūsai unleashed White Vermilion Bird, which destroyed Natsuhiboshi’s Mysterious Peacock Method dragon and left her kneeling, defeated.
• Temari and Shino questioned Hōryūsai about his white flames, while he invited Natsuhiboshi to talk and offered the young Star Ninja a chance to join him.
• Subaruboshi refused to believe Hōryūsai’s strength surpassed theirs, and Hōryūsai claimed he had shown only a tenth of his power before summoning his walking stick from the cave.
• Hōryūsai drew Beef Tendon Jaka and released its scorching white flames as Natsuhiboshi sent her beast to attack him from behind.

Temari and her allies learned that Akahoshi had killed the Third Hoshikage and that Star Training endangered its users. Natsuhiboshi revealed she was Subaruboshi’s mother and asked them to destroy the star, while Hōryūsai proposed taking it in exchange for a safer training method.

• Temari questioned Natsuhiboshi about her defection, and Natsuhiboshi explained that the Third Hoshikage had ordered her to leave the village and guard it from outside.
• Hōryūsai slapped Subaruboshi for interrupting, and Natsuhiboshi revealed that Akahoshi had assassinated the Third Hoshikage after he tried to stop Star Training.
• Natsuhiboshi told Temari and Shino that the Hatoyama Organization’s attack on the Sand Ninja squad involved unusually skilled and coordinated opponents.
• Natsuhiboshi revealed that Subaruboshi was her son, proving it with a matching purple cross pendant.
• Natsuhiboshi asked to destroy the star because Star Training had killed her comrades and would eventually kill Sanrensei.
• Hōryūsai offered to take the star to the Nuclear Ninja Village and leave Hoshigakure an improved Mysterious Peacock Method without side effects.

Hōryūsai demonstrated Chakra Wing Transformation as a safer alternative to Hoshigakure’s Mysterious Peacock Method, then offered Natsuhiboshi a place in the Nuclear Ninja Village. After she refused, questioning Yotaka revealed that Akahoshi had arranged the Third Hoshikage’s assassination and that the Stone Ninja had placed the bounty on the Sand Ninja.

• Hōryūsai explained the Mysterious Peacock Method’s risks and demonstrated how Chakra Wing Transformation could incorporate nature transformation.
• Natsuhiboshi refused Hōryūsai’s offer to join the Nuclear Ninja Village, choosing to protect Hoshigakure.
• Shino poisoned Yotaka when he resisted, then Natsuhiboshi questioned him about the bounty and the hired ninja.
• Yotaka admitted that Akahoshi had killed the Third Hoshikage, claiming he did it for the village’s future.
• Yotaka revealed that the Stone Ninja had placed the bounty targeting the Sand Ninja, alarming Temari, Shino, and Hōryūsai.

Hongshi and Natsuhiboshi set out to infiltrate Hoshigakure, but Hongshi openly announced their mission and defeated a group of Star Ninja with lightning. After Natsuhiboshi urged him to disguise himself, Hongshi mistook a tree branch for a disguise and neither he nor his clone knew who Yotaka was.

• Hongshi and Natsuhiboshi reached Poison Gas Canyon, and Hongshi jumped across despite Natsuhiboshi warning him that their mission was infiltration.
• A group of Star Ninja confronted Hongshi, who loudly declared that he was a Konoha ninja there to steal the star.
• Natsuhiboshi tried to flee, but Hongshi used Lightning Release: Lightning Binding to capture and incapacitate the Star Ninja.
• Natsuhiboshi told Hongshi to release the captives and disguise themselves before entering Hoshigakure, so Hongshi created a shadow clone.
• Hongshi held up a branch and claimed he was a tree, while his clone praised the disguise; neither knew who Yotaka was when Natsuhiboshi told them to transform into him.

Hongshi infiltrated Hoshigakure's office, defeated Akahoshi and Shizo, and used Mental World to make them his subordinates after learning Akahoshi knew something about the Rock Ninja affair. Natsuhiboshi returned with the stolen star and found Akahoshi and Shizo kneeling to her, while Hongshi's original body had fainted during a fight in the Land of Birds.

• Hongshi entered Akahoshi's office disguised as a leafy branch, but Shizo exposed him and attacked with the Mysterious Peacock Method.
• Hongshi shattered Shizo's chakra beast, burned away Akahoshi's chakra rope, and blocked Shizo's kunai before stopping Akahoshi from escaping.
• Hongshi used Amenominaka: Mental World to alter Akahoshi and Shizo's wills, and learned that Akahoshi knew something about the Rock Ninja affair.
• Hongshi's Shadow Clone vanished from exhaustion, and the same exhaustion made his original body faint while Sakura and Kiba Inuzuka fought a ghost warrior in the Land of Birds.
• Natsuhiboshi arrived with the stolen star, and Akahoshi and Shizo knelt before her and apologized.

Temari and Hōryūsai tracked Vulture Gangō to a cave, where they discovered that he and his coordinated fighters were Iwagakure ninja. After Kurotsuchi knocked Hōryūsai back, he drew his katana and unleashed his Bankai, leaving the fight poised to escalate.

• Temari, Hōryūsai, and Hatoyama Dayū entered the Vulture Organization’s cave, where Vulture Gangō exposed their disguises.
• Temari and Hōryūsai fought the four mercenaries, whose coordinated Earth Release revealed them as Rock Ninja.
• Temari and Hōryūsai combined Wind and Fire Release, but the four ninja blocked the attack and countered with an Earth and Stone Dragon.
• Kurotsuchi, disguised as Vulture Gangō, burst from the dragon’s remains and struck Hōryūsai with an Added-Weight Rock Fist, knocking him down.
• Hōryūsai drew the katana hidden in his cane and activated Bankai: Zanka no Tachi, East: Kyokujitsujin.

Hōryūsai overpowered Kurotsuchi and forced her to surrender, but Hongshi's Shadow Clone arrived and interrupted the fight. Kurotsuchi recognized Hongshi, insulted his appearance, and called for her grandfather.

• Kurotsuchi and the Seigan brothers attacked Hōryūsai, but he defended himself with Zanka no Tachi and trapped the brothers with White Flame Clones.
• Kurotsuchi used a Rock Clone to trick Hōryūsai and seal him in concrete, but he broke free with a violent explosion.
• Hōryūsai destroyed Kurotsuchi's Clay Giant and held his sword to her forehead, prompting her to surrender.
• Hōryūsai told Kurotsuchi to return to Sunagakure with them, but she began to object.
• Hongshi's Shadow Clone arrived, scolded Hōryūsai, and threw his katana away before Kurotsuchi called him ugly and shouted for her grandfather.

Hōryūsai and Temari survived a Dust Release attack that appeared to come from Ōnoki, then realized the scene was suspicious and returned toward the cave with Hongshi and the star. The attackers were revealed as Orochimaru, Kabuto Yakushi, and Mu in disguise, pursuing Orochimaru’s plans to destroy Konoha.

• Ōnoki struck Hongshi with Dust Release, but Hongshi survived by using the Preta Path’s Absorption Seal.
• Temari and Hōryūsai questioned why Ōnoki had attacked without killing them, then decided to return to Sunagakure after Hongshi confirmed he had obtained the star.
• Hōryūsai carried the sleeping Hongshi back toward the cave, while Hatoyama Tayu cried out after the recalled katana struck him.
• Kitsuchi revealed himself as Orochimaru, and Ōnoki and Kurotsuchi revealed themselves as Mu and Kabuto Yakushi.
• Orochimaru said he intended to destroy Konoha and planned to summon more Impure World Reincarnation ninja and cultivate Sasuke.
• Kabuto sealed Mu into a coffin and agreed to search for the tombs of other targets.

After resolving Hoshigakure’s crisis, Hongshi and his companions raced back toward Sunagakure, where Shino revealed a mutated Chakra Mother Insect that could supply him with chakra. The group began discussing training and the future potential of insects that could use ninjutsu.

• Natsuhiboshi delivered the star to Hōryūsai, and Akahoshi announced that she would become the next Hoshikage as Hoshigakure ended Star Training and allied with the Nuclear Ninja Village.
• Hongshi woke during the group’s journey through the desert, then used the Desert Boat to speed their return to Sunagakure.
• Temari asked Hongshi how he had countered Dust Release, but he kept his methods secret, while Hōryūsai joked that daily basic exercises and a Scientific Ninja Tool training device made the Nuclear Ninja Village strong.
• Hongshi invited Temari, Hōryūsai, and Shino to practice wind nature transformation as they traveled.
• Shino showed the group a mutated Chakra Mother Insect that gathered chakra for him and explained his dream of enabling insects to use ninjutsu.

Hōryūsai taught Temari and Shino about nature transformation while Hongshi demonstrated a devastating Five Release Rasenshuriken technique. In the Land of Rivers, Kyōai suspected the daimyo’s invitation to a conference was a trap as Nuclear Ninja Village prepared to move south.

• Hōryūsai explained chakra, shape transformation, and nature transformation to Temari and Shino, then demonstrated a Fire Style Rasengan.
• Hongshi created five Rasenshuriken with different nature transformations and used Senjutsu Chakra to throw them at a dune, reducing it to a crater.
• Temari and Shino began practicing their own techniques while Hōryūsai trained in Senjutsu.
• At the Katabami Gold Mine, Kyōai, Choji, and Kankuro examined the daimyo’s invitation for factions to discuss dividing their spheres of influence.
• Kyōai warned that the invitation might be a trap because the daimyo had recently hired Nuclear Ninja Village to purge the country’s factions, just as the village was preparing to move south.

Kyōai tested Choji’s red Chili Pill and survived its effects by absorbing the chakra and converting it into vitality. Chinchiku concluded that the Land of Rivers’ daimyo was probably being controlled, and Kyōai prepared to attend the meeting with Choji and Kankuro to investigate.

• Chinchiku judged the daimyo’s invitation to negotiate with rebels suspicious and asked Kyōai for information about the meeting’s attendees.
• Kyōai swallowed Choji’s Chili Pill, endured its destructive effects, and healed himself with his Nuclear Ninja constitution.
• Kyōai promised to have Kendon develop pills without side effects after studying how the Chili Pill worked.
• Chinchiku concluded that the daimyo and senior officials were likely being controlled and advised Kyōai to attend the meeting with Choji and Kankuro.
• Kyōai decided Chinchiku would oversee the village while Sōretsu, Ujin, and Kendon provided support, and Chinchiku urged him to bring his equipment.

Kyōai and his companions arrived in Yamakawa Castle for a meeting of the Land of Rivers’ factions, where he clashed with Crow Kuroha and discovered that every resident had disappeared. They headed to the meeting wary of a possible danger and prepared to alert Sōretsu and the others if trouble arose.

• Kyōai, Choji, and Kankuro entered Yamakawa Castle and found its streets deserted except for faction representatives.
• Crow Kuroha confronted them and threatened Nuclear Ninja Village, so Kyōai cut through his armor and vowed to destroy his faction.
• Kuroha threatened to attack Nuclear Ninja Village after the meeting, but a bell called the factions to gather before they could fight.
• Kyōai told Choji and Kankuro that his senses detected no residents anywhere in the city and warned that the meeting might be dangerous.
• Kyōai instructed Choji to take the modified Chili Pill and alert Sōretsu and the others if a problem arose, then the three went to the daimyo’s residence.

Kyōai attended a meeting at Yamakawa Castle as a representative of the factions absorbed into Nuclear Ninja Village, while the daimyo, Ishidate Yasuki, requested that the leaders mark their territories on a map. Kyōai recognized that the map was poisoned and had Kankuro use a puppet clone, but the gathering remained tense.

• Kankuro provoked the assembled leaders, and Kyōai warned him and Choji that a barrier was restricting sensory abilities.
• Ishidate Yasuki arrived and questioned why several southern factions were absent, while Kyōai explained that they had joined Nuclear Ninja Village.
• Crow Kuroha challenged Kyōai, who defended the village’s founding and agreed to visit the Crow Clan after the meeting.
• Ishidate Yasuki asked the leaders to mark their territories on a freshly drawn map, and Kyōai detected poison that could paralyze them.
• Kyōai told Kankuro to use a puppet clone, and Kankuro marked the southern territory before mocking the northern factions.