Chapter 1 (Sasuke Retsuden)

An ailing Naruto begs Sasuke not to leave the village, but Sasuke departs regardless. His search takes him to the remote Land of Redaku, where he asks after the Sage of Six Paths and finds almost no one who recognises the name. A young woman named Lyla overhears and points him toward her mother, Kail, only for them to reach Kail's shop moments after it has been robbed. Sasuke chases the thieves down with Amenotejikara and binds them in a Sharingan genjutsu, baffling Lyla while Kail correctly pegs him as a shinobi. The captured men are handed to the authorities and hauled off to the Astronomy Research Institute, the prison that serves the Land of Redaku.

Recovering her late husband's wedding ring from the stolen loot, Kail assumes Sasuke means to propose to Lyla. He sets her straight, explaining that he is already married and is chasing information about the Sage, who once endured the very sickness now afflicting Naruto. Sasuke hopes to learn how the Sage recovered. Lyla knows nothing of the illness but recalls the Sage's ties to the Astronomy Research Institute, and Sasuke asks the way there.

A fortnight later, the thieves still labour at the Institute, digging endlessly toward some undisclosed goal. Spotting Sasuke among a fresh batch of inmates, they attack and are swiftly beaten. When guards move to punish him, the director, Zansūru, steps in to defend him. At breakfast one thief proposes escaping together under cover of the heavy morning fog, which could hide them from Menō, but Sasuke refuses, having come to the prison on purpose. The thief storms off to flee alone, and as the prisoners head for the digsite, they find Menō devouring what is left of him.

Sasuke leaves an ill Naruto behind to seek a cure in the Land of Redaku. He deliberately gets himself imprisoned in the Astronomy Research Institute, where the Sage of Six Paths once found relief from the same disease. The creature Menō is established as the prison's deadly guardian when it kills an escaping thief.

This is the first chapter of the Sasuke Retsuden manga, part of the Heavenly Stardust storyline collected in volume one. It released on Shonen Jump Plus on October 23, 2022.