Chapter Summaries

Hagoromo practiced the Rasengan while Naruto trained, and his unusual Chakra let him master both the Rasengan and its advanced Big Ball form. He demonstrated the technique’s destructive power, leaving Naruto eager to learn it.

• Naruto began running with weights while Hagoromo practiced shaping Chakra with water balloons.
• Hagoromo bought rubber balls and used his golden-glowing Chakra to create an enormous Big Ball Rasengan.
• The Rasengan’s force swept across the training ground and knocked Naruto face-first into the ground, so Hagoromo sealed the volatile Chakra with a golden membrane.
• Naruto asked to learn the technique, and Hagoromo told him to train hard before he could teach him.
• Hagoromo explained that his Yang Release Chakra had combined with the Nine-Tails Chakra, then used a Rasengan to punch a huge hole through a tree, which collapsed behind him.

Hagoromo taught Naruto the basics of Chakra control through Tree Climbing, and Naruto made quick progress despite twice losing his footing. As Naruto continued practicing, Hagoromo considered extra training for when the Nine-Tails interfered and recalled a method involving Chakra Threads.

• Naruto asked Hagoromo to teach him Chakra control after being told he was not ready to learn the Rasengan.
• Hagoromo demonstrated Tree Climbing and explained how Chakra adhesion let a person stick to a tree.
• Naruto climbed the tree successfully at first but fell after celebrating, then fell again when fear of heights disrupted his Chakra.
• Hagoromo caught Naruto and explained that nervousness and fear of heights could make him lose control of his Chakra.
• Hagoromo decided Naruto might need additional exercises and recalled Sunagakure puppeteers' Chakra Threads training method from the Land of Wind.

After Naruto completed Chakra control training, Hagoromo gave him exercises that could awaken the Mind's Eye of the Kagura. Later, a Root ninja tried to take Hagoromo to Danzo, and Hagoromo attacked him with a Rasengan.

• Naruto completed Hagoromo's tree-climbing Chakra control exercise, earning Hagoromo a mental strength training reward.
• Hagoromo wrote Naruto daily exercises intended to develop the Mind's Eye of the Kagura and sent him home.
• Hagoromo sensed someone following him and turned into a secluded alley, where a Root ninja ordered him to come with him on Danzo's orders.
• Hagoromo insulted Danzo, and the Root ninja attacked him with a Shuriken and charged.
• Hagoromo used Earth Release: Double Suicide Decapitation Technique to seize the Root ninja's foot from below, then descended with a Rasengan as the ninja pleaded that he was from Root.

Sawada Hagoromo killed a Root ninja who claimed Danzo had summoned him, then brought the corpse to Hiruzen Sarutobi at the Hokage Building. Hiruzen ordered the body sealed for interrogation and questioned Hagoromo about the injuries, which resembled Minato Namikaze’s work.

• Sawada Hagoromo killed the Root ninja with a Rasengan and carried the headless corpse to the Hokage Building.
• Sawada Hagoromo identified himself to the Anbu and requested an audience with Lord Third.
• Hiruzen Sarutobi ordered a middle-aged man to seal the corpse so information could be extracted from it.
• Hiruzen Sarutobi dismissed the Anbu and brought Sawada Hagoromo into the building to speak privately.
• Sawada Hagoromo claimed the Root ninja had attacked him after mentioning Danzo, and Hiruzen Sarutobi asked how the ninja had received injuries resembling Minato Namikaze’s.

Hagoromo revealed that he had recreated the Rasengan after studying Minato Namikaze’s demonstration, convincing Hiruzen Sarutobi of his talent and dedication to Konoha. After Kakashi confirmed Hagoromo’s account, Hiruzen decided to keep him under observation and considered assigning Kakashi to the task.

• Hagoromo demonstrated the Rasengan to Hiruzen and said he had developed it after studying it.
• Hagoromo explained that he had seen Minato Namikaze demonstrate the Rasengan at the Ninja Academy and had spent years studying material about it.
• Hiruzen praised Hagoromo’s commitment to Konoha and told him they would speak again the next day.
• After Hagoromo left, Kakashi confirmed that Minato had demonstrated the Rasengan at the Ninja Academy.
• Hiruzen asked Kakashi if he would leave the Anbu and prepare to observe Hagoromo later.

Hiruzen Sarutobi confronted Shimura Danzō over Root’s unauthorized attack on a Ninja Academy teacher and ordered him to stop directing Root. After Danzō left, Hiruzen tasked Kakashi Hatake with investigating Root’s operations and its unofficial personnel.

• Shimura Danzō learned his men had failed to capture Hagoromo and went to meet Hiruzen Sarutobi at the Hokage Building.
• Hiruzen demanded that Danzō address him as Lord Third Hokage and questioned him about Root attacking a Ninja Academy teacher without authorization.
• Danzō claimed he suspected the teacher was a spy and insisted Root should take him for interrogation.
• Hiruzen ordered Danzō to stay home and leave Root’s affairs alone, and Danzō left after warning that Hiruzen would regret it.
• Hiruzen asked Kakashi Hatake to investigate Root’s recent operations and look for unofficial personnel.

Hagoromo received powerful rewards after earning an S rating for his lesson on the five chakra natures, then met with Hiruzen Sarutobi, who offered him a path toward Jonin promotion through missions. Hagoromo declined, saying he preferred teaching and lacked combat experience.

• Hagoromo sensed Root's members moving supplies through the night before Hiruzen Sarutobi's people arrived and tensions eased.
• Naruto greeted Sasuke and took notes during Hagoromo's lesson on the five chakra natures.
• Hagoromo earned an S rating and received the Bringer-of-Darkness Technique at Mastery, Shadow Clone at Proficient, and Water Release at Entry.
• Hiruzen Sarutobi summoned Hagoromo and offered to recommend him for Jonin after he qualified through missions.
• Hagoromo thanked Hiruzen Sarutobi but said he wanted to keep teaching and was not confident in his combat abilities.

Hagoromo accepted Hiruzen Sarutobi’s plan to teach during the week and take missions on weekends, then received two Ninjutsu to study. After practicing the Shadow Clone Technique, he passed the principal’s office and noticed a masked, silver-haired Anbu watching him.

• Hiruzen Sarutobi arranged weekend missions for Hagoromo while keeping him at the Ninja Academy on weekdays, and offered him two Ninjutsu as a reward.
• Hagoromo agreed as long as the missions did not interfere with his teaching, and Hiruzen gave him a scroll.
• Hagoromo opened the scroll on the rooftop and found the Shadow Clone Technique and Hiruzen’s Earth Release: Earth Dragon Bullet.
• Hagoromo used the Shadow Clone Technique and created five Shadow Clones while Kakashi reported his performance to Hiruzen Sarutobi.
• Hagoromo headed downstairs to eat with Naruto and noticed a masked, silver-haired Anbu standing guard outside the principal’s office.

Hagoromo shared lunch with Naruto, Choji, and Shikamaru, and Choji asked to become his disciple after tasting the bento. Hagoromo sent Choji to seek his father’s approval and used Naruto’s training lesson to draw Shikamaru’s interest.

• Choji followed Naruto to the rooftop, where he and Naruto were eating lunch with Hagoromo, and Shikamaru joined them.
• Hagoromo corrected Naruto’s Chakra training and explained that excitement had disrupted his Sensory Ninjutsu practice.
• After learning Naruto was Hagoromo’s disciple, Choji asked to become one too, while Naruto objected to sharing his teacher.
• Hagoromo told Choji to ask his father before deciding, and Shikamaru backed him up with a signal to Choji.
• Hagoromo discussed Naruto’s training, including the Mind’s Eye of the Kagura and Chakra control, and Shikamaru stayed to listen.

Hagoromo pushed his students through a running warm-up and arranged extra training for Naruto, while urging him to keep up with his schoolwork. Naruto left determined not to lose to Sasuke, who remained his rival.

• Hagoromo threatened to make the last three students run extra laps, spurring Shikamaru and Choji to speed up.
• Naruto kept pace with Sasuke at the front, impressing Hagoromo and surprising Shikamaru, who noticed Naruto's weighted legs.
• Hagoromo told Naruto to train after school from Wednesday through Friday because he expected to be busy with weekend missions.
• Naruto admitted that studying was difficult, and Hagoromo reminded him that a future Hokage needed knowledge as well as combat skills.
• Hagoromo compared Naruto to top student Sasuke, prompting Naruto to vow that he would not lose to him.

Hagoromo trained Naruto in Water Walking and taught him Wind Release: Wind Cutter Technique at the training ground. After Naruto mastered the technique, Hagoromo revealed that Shikamaru and Choji had been watching from the bushes.

• Hagoromo tested Naruto's Water Walking by disturbing the stream, causing Naruto to fall in, and warned him about unstable water.
• Hagoromo demonstrated Wind Release: Wind Cutter Technique and explained its hand seals, chakra compression, and shape transformation.
• Naruto practiced the technique, first producing weak wind and then successfully forming wind blades that struck the trees.
• After Hagoromo demonstrated the technique several more times, Naruto unleashed powerful wind blades and celebrated his success.
• Hagoromo revealed that Shikamaru and Choji had been watching, and Naruto asked why they were there.

Hagoromo accepted Shikamaru and Choji as disciples after Naruto received extra sensory exercises for failing to notice them. Choji’s trust earned Hagoromo a powerful Summoning Contract containing Senjutsu and Sage Mode, which Hagoromo set aside until he became strong enough to use it.

• Hagoromo punished Naruto with five hundred copies of his sensory exercises after Shikamaru and Choji revealed they had been hiding nearby.
• Shikamaru and Choji asked to become Hagoromo’s disciples and said their parents had agreed.
• Hagoromo accepted them after warning them not to slack off, and Choji asked him to bring lunch each day.
• The panel granted Shikamaru latent Yin Release Chakra and gave Hagoromo a Summoning Contract through Choji’s intermediate trust level.
• Hagoromo learned the contract offered Senjutsu and Sage Mode but required elite Jonin strength, then chose to focus on training.
• Hagoromo used Shadow Clone Technique to assign Shikamaru and Choji to Chakra control practice while he trained Naruto.

After saying goodbye to Hagoromo, Naruto, Shikamaru, and Choji planned to do their homework together at Naruto’s house. Tenzo brought Hagoromo to the Anbu base, where Kakashi registered him under the codename Mirror Flower and told him to meet at Konoha’s main gate for an assessment mission the next evening.

• Naruto warned Choji and Shikamaru against skipping Hagoromo’s homework, and the three decided to work on it together at Naruto’s house.
• Tenzo introduced himself as a member of the Hokage’s Direct Anbu Sixth Squad and escorted Hagoromo to the hidden Anbu base.
• Kakashi told Hagoromo that an assessment mission the next day would determine whether he could join the Anbu.
• Hagoromo registered the codename Mirror Flower, and Kakashi sealed his Anbu information.
• Kakashi gave Hagoromo a fox mask and told him to meet at Konoha’s main gate at about six the next evening.

Hagoromo joined Kakashi on an Anbu mission to eliminate the bandits in a mountain stronghold and leave their leader alive. While the bandits celebrated, their leader threatened an old adviser who had warned him to stop attracting attention, then decided to have him killed.

• Hagoromo met Kakashi at Konoha's gate, and they left the village together.
• Kakashi explained that the stronghold was suspected of raiding villages, abducting children, and trafficking, and assigned Hagoromo to kill every bandit except the leader.
• Hagoromo and Kakashi raced toward the stronghold while Kakashi silently watched Hagoromo's pace.
• At the stronghold, an old adviser warned the leader that their raids had drawn too much attention, but the leader threatened him and dismissed him.
• After the old man fled, the leader urged the bandits to resume celebrating and decided to kill the adviser.

Hagoromo infiltrated the bandit stronghold, killed its men, and brought its crippled boss to Kakashi’s Squad Six. A search confirmed that the stronghold held supplies of the kind used by ninja villages, including goods from Konoha, leaving Kakashi to investigate who had supplied them.

• Hagoromo slipped into the stronghold and killed the lookout, the strategist, and Yuji as he made his way inside.
• Kakashi regrouped Squad Six after Uzuki reported that Hagoromo had emerged from the stronghold with its boss, whose arms and legs were broken.
• Uchiha Itachi used Genjutsu on the bandit boss, then reported that he had obtained information from him.
• Hagoromo told Kakashi that a kidnapped woman had killed herself and that the cellar contained organized supplies, including items from Konoha.
• Kakashi sent Tenzo to verify the supplies, and Tenzo confirmed that some were the kind used by ninja villages.

After completing his assessment mission, Hagoromo returned to Konoha with Kakashi and learned the bandits’ supplies implicated both the village and the Land of Rice Fields. Hiruzen declared Hagoromo an Anbu member and ordered an investigation into a suspected insider, leaving Hagoromo to continue teaching that afternoon.

• Kakashi sent Tenzo and Team Six onward with intelligence from the bandit chief, then returned to Konoha with Hagoromo.
• Kakashi reported to Hiruzen and handed over intelligence and supplies showing that some stolen goods belonged to Konoha and others pointed to the Land of Rice Fields.
• Hiruzen suspected a traitor connected to the Administration Department and summoned the Council of Elders and Shikaku through Kakashi.
• Hiruzen told Hagoromo he had passed the assessment and joined the Anbu, then ordered him to keep the mission top secret.
• Hagoromo declined Hiruzen’s offer to rest, agreed to teach his classes, and accepted a promised raise.

Hagoromo taught his class about the Three Basic Techniques and received a Physique Training Method, then took Naruto and Choji to train after school. He demonstrated a powerful Wind Cutter Technique, impressing Ino, who had arrived with Shikamaru.

• Hagoromo returned to the Ninja Academy and taught his students the theory behind the Three Basic Techniques.
• Hagoromo earned an A+ lesson evaluation and received a Physique Training Method with techniques and medicinal bath recipes.
• Hagoromo took Naruto and Choji to their training ground, where Naruto asked why his Wind Cutter Technique was weak.
• Naruto demonstrated his technique, which only scratched a wooden post, and Hagoromo explained that Naruto was comparing himself to Sasuke.
• Hagoromo unleashed a dozen powerful wind blades that shattered the wooden post, while Naruto and Choji watched in amazement.
• Shikamaru arrived with Ino, who admired Hagoromo's demonstration.

Ino joined Hagoromo’s disciples, and he gained proficient Yin Release Chakra from her trust. Hagoromo explained Naruto’s weaknesses and assigned his disciples training, then earned advanced trust from Shikamaru and Choji after giving them a physique training method, unlocking proficient Yin-Yang Release Chakra Nature Transformation.

• Ino asked to become Hagoromo’s disciple, and her intermediate trust gave him proficient Yin Release Chakra.
• Hagoromo explained that Naruto’s wind blade lacked power because his Nature Transformation and ninjutsu proficiency were insufficient, though his Chakra control was good.
• Hagoromo gave Shikamaru a medicinal bath formula as a thank-you gift and asked him to provide Naruto’s share of the ingredients.
• Hagoromo sent Shadow Clones to teach Naruto Nature Transformation and Ino Chakra control, while he prepared training for Shikamaru and Choji.
• Hagoromo gave Shikamaru and Choji a physique training method, raising their trust to advanced and granting him proficient Yin-Yang Release Chakra Nature Transformation.

Hagoromo demonstrated how Naruto’s weighted training and Chakra conditioning had increased his strength, while explaining the limits of the method to Shikamaru and Choji. He left the Shadow Clone to supervise their training and turned to Naruto’s confusing questions about Wind Release.

• Shikamaru doubted the effectiveness of Hagoromo’s demanding training notes, so Hagoromo had Naruto remove his leg weights and punch Shikamaru to demonstrate his speed and strength.
• Naruto’s blow sent Shikamaru flying, and Choji bandaged his injured arms while Hagoromo used Yang Release Chakra to help them recover.
• Shikamaru realized Naruto’s training involved Chakra conditioning, and Hagoromo explained that Naruto could use the method more often than others while Choji might manage it only twice a month.
• Hagoromo’s Shadow Clone took Shikamaru and Choji aside to train them, while the original asked Naruto what he had said to make the clone fear a mental overload.
• Naruto explained that he had questioned how Wind Release could uproot trees without cutting them and whether it could chop vegetables, so Hagoromo threatened to make him copy homework.

Hagoromo demonstrated how wind-natured Chakra could cut through rock and explained why physical training and Taijutsu mattered. Naruto, Shikamaru, Choji, and Ino continued training, spurred on by Hagoromo’s promise of unlimited barbecue.

• Naruto asked to learn Nature Transformation, but Hagoromo first demonstrated how wind-natured Chakra could compress into a cutting blade and unleash a powerful gust.
• Hagoromo told Naruto he would test his Chakra nature with Chakra Paper the next day, then sent him to train with Shikamaru and Choji.
• Hagoromo explained to Ino how skilled Taijutsu users could overcome Ninjutsu and Genjutsu, and named Might Guy and his father as examples.
• Hagoromo pushed Ino to join the training and watched Naruto take the lead while Shikamaru and Choji chased after him.
• Hagoromo promised barbecue to whoever completed the training, and Choji charged after Naruto while chanting for meat, with Shikamaru following.