I think the above aptly summarizes the return of the manga story line.
Episode itself was so so. The highlight of it is more or less the new OP/Ed theme song. I like the OP because the visual is light hearted which breaks the business-as-usual as it has been for Naruto quite some time. The show has become emo'ish storywise with little or no break. So the OP song's upbeat nature along with cheerful, comedic visual helps break the cycle that has been going on for a while. In that world it seems the apocalypse scenario is played out in every other episode. The ending song, on the other hand, is very stylish visually. The theme of it returns to the downcast mood of this show, but then it also breaks the cycle with an optimistic Naruto who is bent on showing Sasuke the feeling of warmth you get from not hating people.
Naruto also desperately wanted to hold Sasuke's hand.
Oh, and this is how a real man sleeps on a bed:
by lying on your stomach with a huge backback on your back. Gai sensei........!