Chapter Summaries

Kakashi fought Orochimaru in the Land of Rice Fields until Jiraiya arrived and joined the battle with their giant summons. After Kakashi sent a warning to Konoha, Hiruzen learned that Jiraiya was fighting the S-rank missing-nin Orochimaru.

• Orochimaru overwhelmed Kakashi and taunted him for underestimating the Sannin.
• Jiraiya arrived, rescued Kakashi, and summoned Gamabunta to block Orochimaru's giant snake, Manda.
• Jiraiya ordered Gamabunta to drive Manda away from civilians, while Kakashi stayed behind to handle the aftermath.
• Kakashi summoned Pakkun and sent a scroll to the border guard post so the village could be notified by radio.
• An intelligence officer rushed to Hiruzen with news that Jiraiya was fighting Orochimaru.

Jiraiya fought Orochimaru but was badly wounded after Orochimaru distracted him with news about Yahiko, Nagato, and Konan. Kakashi and Guy arrived as Jiraiya struggled to stay conscious.

• Jiraiya tried to gather Senjutsu Chakra while Gamabunta and Manda clashed, but Orochimaru disrupted him and forced him to abandon Sage Mode.
• Jiraiya urged Orochimaru to return to Konoha, and Orochimaru dismissed him before asking about Yahiko, Nagato, and Konan.
• Orochimaru escaped with a Summoning Technique, then stabbed Jiraiya from behind with the Kusanagi Sword and warned him not to pursue him again.
• Kakashi reached the wounded Jiraiya, and Guy arrived while Kakashi was preparing to take him for treatment.

During a campfire barbecue, Hagoromo explained the Ino-Shika-Cho formation and discussed how his students might fit into teams, including Hinata’s interest in Medical Ninjutsu. The gathering was interrupted when an Anbu member summoned Hagoromo to the Konoha Medical Department at Hiruzen’s command.

• Ino asked Hagoromo whether she, Shikamaru, and Choji would be assigned to the same team, and Hagoromo confirmed their Ino-Shika-Cho formation.
• Hagoromo explained the clans’ roles in the formation and said Naruto and Sasuke could make a strong team, but both boys objected.
• Ino suggested Hinata could provide observation and support, and Hagoromo explained that teams often needed a capable medical-nin.
• Hinata said her Main Family status would likely prevent her from learning Medical Ninjutsu, but Naruto encouraged her to pursue what she wanted, and Hagoromo promised to arrange the rest.
• An Anbu member delivered Hiruzen’s summons and told Hagoromo to go immediately to the Konoha Medical Department, so Hagoromo left with him.

After receiving the Inch Power Eight Gates Taijutsu reward, Hagoromo increased his disciples’ physical training and prepared to teach them the style. Meanwhile, Jiraiya left the Hokage’s office to investigate something, asking Hiruzen Sarutobi to pass a message to Hagoromo.

• Hagoromo received the Mastery-level Inch Power Eight Gates reward after class and examined its Tiger Hunt and No-Self Realm techniques.
• Hagoromo announced more physical training and sparring every three days, and explained to Naruto and Sasuke that the Taijutsu required systematic training.
• Hagoromo warned Sasuke that the Sharingan could copy only the basics before reaching Mitsudomoe, and Sasuke agreed to heed him.
• Hiruzen Sarutobi urged the injured Jiraiya to rest and stop pursuing Orochimaru because the Land of Rice Fields had protested the destruction.
• Jiraiya told Hiruzen Sarutobi he intended to check on a few things, declined the offer to become Hokage, and asked him to pass a message to Hagoromo.

Hagoromo began basic foundation training for Naruto and the others, then took Naruto to practice striking moving targets. Naruto also told Hagoromo that Kurama kept summoning him to talk, while Minato revealed that his mental imprint was gradually disappearing.

• Hagoromo had Naruto and the others balance on posts with bowls of water as his Shadow Clones shook the posts.
• Naruto mastered the exercise first, and Hagoromo took him away to begin the next stage of training.
• Hagoromo demonstrated striking at fireflies and told Naruto he would make a training tool for him.
• Hagoromo asked about Minato, and Naruto said his father had not woken up and that Kurama kept summoning him to talk.
• Minato told Kurama that his mental imprint was gradually disappearing, and Kurama turned away from the jar.

Hagoromo trained Naruto, Hinata, Sasuke, Shikamaru, Ino, and Choji to improve their punching speed and reactions without relying on special abilities. Naruto and Hinata passed the paper-crane test, and Hagoromo introduced them to the Shield-Breaking Trial and Crescent Moon Breathing.

• Naruto, Hinata, Sasuke, Shikamaru, Ino, and Choji trained to strike paper cranes without using Ninjutsu or bloodline abilities.
• Hagoromo corrected Shikamaru's punching form while Sasuke struggled not to rely on his Sharingan.
• Hinata advised Sasuke to stop thinking about his Sharingan, and the group prepared for the next day's test.
• Naruto scored 170 paper cranes and Hinata scored 171, while Shikamaru and the others fell short of 150.
• Hagoromo showed Naruto and Hinata how to concentrate Chakra in their knuckles and punch through soaked straw mats.
• Hagoromo explained that Crescent Moon Breathing synchronized breathing and Chakra output as part of Inch Power Eight Gates.

Hagoromo taught Naruto and Hinata Crescent Moon Breathing, and Hinata quickly mastered it while helping the others train. She impressed everyone by sparring with Hagoromo using Inch Power Eight Gates, then promised not to reveal the breathing method to her clan.

• Hagoromo explained Crescent Moon Breathing and had Hinata guide Naruto through its Chakra circulation as he practiced punching soaked straw mats.
• Over the following days, Hinata helped Ino and the others learn the technique and became the first to break through the straw mats.
• Hagoromo tested Hinata's Inch Power Eight Gates and coached her through its attacks, defenses, and Chakra sensing as they sparred.
• Hinata's performance amazed Naruto, Sasuke, and the others, and she thanked Hagoromo for teaching her.
• Hinata promised not to reveal Crescent Moon Breathing to the Hyuga Clan, and Naruto praised how dashing she had been.

Hagoromo trained Naruto in Chakra-based Taijutsu, guiding him through Type Three: Mountain-Crushing and its Seamless State. Naruto unleashed a ranged inch-power strike at Hagoromo.

• Naruto accidentally made Hinata faint by putting his arm around her, and Ino helped her rest beneath a tree.
• Hagoromo discussed Hinata's Inch Power Eight Gates with his students and reassured Shikamaru that the Hyuga Clan would not cause trouble over the Chakra membrane's sensing ability.
• Hagoromo told his Academy class that the two student groups would compete in a few days, prompting Kiba to resolve to improve his standing.
• Naruto left a fist-shaped mark in a boulder during the Shield-Breaking Trial, then sparred with Hagoromo to practice his movements and breathing.
• Naruto entered the Seamless State and launched a ranged inch-power shockwave at Hagoromo.

Hagoromo helped Naruto recover after he overused Inch Power, then spoke with Shikaku and Choza about the tactical scrolls he had given the Ino-Shika-Cho clans. Shikaku welcomed him as an honored guest, and Hagoromo agreed to finish an energy-storage capsule for Choza.

• Naruto unleashed Inch Power at full strength, entered the Seamless State, and overloaded his cells, so Hagoromo checked him and said he would recover with rest.
• Hagoromo laid Naruto beside Hinata and told his other disciples to continue training while he watched over them.
• Shikaku and Choza visited Hagoromo and thanked him for the useful scrolls he had sent through Shikamaru.
• Shikaku invited Hagoromo to be an honored guest of the three clans, and Hagoromo explained that he had helped for the sake of his disciples.
• Choza asked when Hagoromo could provide the energy-storage capsule, and Hagoromo promised to finish it soon.

Hagoromo proposed a plan to evaluate graduating students through village D-rank missions, identify their talents, and direct them toward suitable roles before they suffered avoidable casualties. Hiruzen Sarutobi questioned how Hagoromo would secure the clans’ cooperation, and Hagoromo outlined incentives for several major clans.

• Hagoromo asked Kubo for a list of students nearing graduation.
• Hagoromo presented Hiruzen Sarutobi with the Konoha New Buds Cultivation Plan, proposing D-rank mission evaluations for graduating students.
• Hagoromo explained that evaluations could identify talents, prepare candidates for special departments, and keep unsuitable ninja away from frontline combat.
• Hiruzen Sarutobi asked how Hagoromo would fund the plan and win the clans’ support.
• Hagoromo proposed appealing to the Hyuga Clan and Uchiha Fugaku, then offering the Ino-Shika-Cho Clans a larger share of future medicinal-herb bidding.

Hagoromo’s internship plan for soon-to-be graduates moved forward after Hiruzen Sarutobi sent Asuma Sarutobi to publicly present it and draw attention away from Hagoromo. The clans began reacting to the plan, while Hagoromo expected to benefit once it was established.

• Hagoromo warned Hiruzen Sarutobi that the clans might obstruct his future Jonin promotion, and Hiruzen agreed to handle the plan for Konoha.
• Hiruzen Sarutobi summoned Asuma Sarutobi and sent him to help announce the internship plan at the Ninja Academy.
• Asuma Sarutobi presented the plan at a teachers’ meeting, and Hagoromo instructed Iruka to gather the teachers and explain its implementation.
• The Hyuga Clan increased its representation in the Konoha Military Police Force, while the Uchiha Clan made no public response, leading smaller clans to conclude that the Hokage had reached an agreement with both clans.
• Shikamaru told Hagoromo that Shikaku would not meet with him for the time being, then joined Naruto and Choji after Naruto called him over.

Hagoromo taught his students tree-climbing chakra control and gained new abilities from the lesson. Sasuke mastered the second form of Inch Power Eight Gates, while Naruto provoked him and was sent away to train.

• Kiba explained that graduating students would serve as intern ninja and be assigned according to their evaluations, while Naruto failed to recognize Shino.
• Hagoromo taught tree climbing, sent students who already knew it to physical training, and had the rest warm up with fifty laps.
• Hagoromo received Lion Combo and Great Fire Annihilation Jutsu as rewards after the lesson, then considered his chakra and the system's ranking standards.
• Sasuke successfully used Water Severing to deflect Hagoromo's shuriken and kunai, earning Hagoromo chakra and transcendent fire-nature transformation.
• Naruto smugly teased Sasuke, so Hagoromo flicked Naruto's forehead and warned Sasuke not to maintain Water Severing for too long.

Hagoromo and Naruto’s friends secretly prepared a birthday celebration for Naruto, who came home expecting to spend the evening alone. The surprise moved Naruto to tears, and everyone gathered to celebrate with cake and ramen.

• Naruto noticed his friends acting strangely while they trained, but Sasuke distracted him when he questioned them.
• Hagoromo and Hinata decorated Naruto’s room and prepared a surprise birthday celebration while Hagoromo cooked ramen.
• Naruto came home alone after his friends left training early and turned down a meal with Sasuke.
• Hagoromo, Hinata, Shikamaru, Choji, and Sasuke surprised Naruto with birthday wishes, and Naruto cried with happiness.
• Naruto blew out the candles on his cake, and Hagoromo brought out ramen for everyone to eat.

Naruto celebrated his birthday with Hagoromo and his friends, who gave him gifts he loved. After receiving a new disciple slot and Chakra, Hagoromo realized Hyuga Hiashi had wanted him to take Hinata as a disciple, while Naruto went to tell Kurama about the celebration.

• Naruto thanked Hagoromo and his friends for the birthday celebration, then opened gifts including goggles from Hinata, clothes from Hagoromo, shoes from Shikamaru and Choji, ointment from Ino and Hinata, and training weights from Sasuke.
• Hagoromo and the others left Naruto’s home, and Hagoromo took Hinata back to the Hyuga Clan Compound.
• Hyuga Hiashi thanked Hagoromo for looking after Hinata and asked him to continue guiding her.
• Hagoromo received a reward of one disciple slot and 2000 Chakra after Naruto’s gratitude triggered a critical-hit reward, and he realized Hiashi had hoped he would take Hinata as a disciple.
• Naruto entered the sealed space and happily told Kurama about his birthday celebration.

Naruto promised Kurama that they would confront the person who controlled him and help ease his hatred, but Kurama told him to prove his words through actions. The next day, Naruto wore his friends’ birthday gifts to class while Hagoromo discussed the intern ninja assessments with Kubo.

• Naruto told Kurama he wanted to help him face his hatred and defeat the person who controlled him, and Kurama demanded that he prove it through his actions.
• After Naruto left the sealing space, Minato Namikaze appeared and told Kurama he was content to have seen Naruto grow up; Kurama dismissed Minato’s words as empty talk.
• Naruto wore the clothes, shoes, and goggles his friends had given him and showed them off to Kiba Inuzuka, Hinata, Ino, Shikamaru, and Choji at school.
• Hagoromo reviewed Kubo’s report on the intern ninja assessments and said Kubo could help speak with students who might not be suited to the program or had other abilities.

Hagoromo encouraged his students to consider their future specialties and taught them to practice chakra control. At the training ground, Naruto used the smoke from Sasuke’s Great Fireball to hide a Shadow Clone and land a surprise kick, leaving Sasuke impressed and Hagoromo bemused.

• Hagoromo thanked Kubo for discussing students’ medical prospects and said he would arrange a conversation later.
• Hagoromo taught his class about chakra control and urged students to explore possible career paths before graduation.
• Kiba asked what students who had learned Tree Climbing should practice, and Hagoromo told them to build fitness and master the Three Basic Techniques.
• Hagoromo started a sparring match between Naruto and Sasuke, forbidding Sasuke from using his Sharingan and Naruto from using Rasengan.
• Naruto kicked apart Sasuke’s Great Fireball, used the smoke to conceal a Shadow Clone, and struck Sasuke from behind.
• Naruto told Sasuke the trick worked especially well without the Sharingan, while Hagoromo noted that Naruto had turned the Great Fireball’s smoke into a tactic.

Sasuke asked Hagoromo to teach him lightning release nature transformation so he could enhance his taijutsu. After sensing and transforming lightning chakra, Sasuke briefly shocked Naruto but damaged the chakra pathways in his palm, and Hagoromo explained that he needed better control and resistance to paralysis.

• Sasuke asked Hagoromo to teach him lightning release nature transformation after Naruto’s wind-enhanced kick gave him the idea.
• Hagoromo explained Lightning Release Nintaijutsu and suggested using lightning chakra to stimulate Sasuke’s cells and nervous system, but said Sasuke first needed to learn lightning nature transformation.
• Hagoromo taught Sasuke to sense lightning chakra and transform it by focusing on its stinging sensation and precise control.
• After several days of training, Sasuke formed a faint electric arc, then transformed lightning chakra across his palm.
• Sasuke’s current numbed his hand and damaged the chakra pathways in his palm, so Hagoromo healed it with Yang Release Chakra and advised him to control his chakra flow and build resistance to paralysis.

Hagoromo trained Sasuke to withstand Lightning Release’s effects and welcomed Hinata as his student. When Shikamaru asked how he could study a wider range of ninja tactics, Hagoromo considered using Genjutsu to create realistic combat scenarios but set the idea aside while he thought about how to make it work.

• Hagoromo explained that Sasuke would need to build resistance to paralysis by gradually exposing his wet body to electricity, and Sasuke agreed to train.
• After several days of increasing the current, Sasuke cried out, so Hagoromo stopped the session and used Yang Release Chakra to help him recover.
• Hagoromo asked Hinata to become his student, and she happily accepted.
• Shikamaru asked how he could study how different ninja act, and Hagoromo considered creating realistic scenarios with Genjutsu, ninja tools, and Sealing Jutsu.
• Hagoromo concluded that the Genjutsu he knew could not meet the requirements and told Shikamaru he would think about the idea later.

After Hinata Hyuga agreed to become his disciple, Hagoromo gained advanced Taijutsu knowledge and transcendent Chakra Shape Transformation. He learned that Konoha held the Mirage Vapor Pearl, a tool that could create illusions from memories, and left planning to use it for training.

• Hinata Hyuga's willingness to become Hagoromo's disciple earned him Taijutsu Compendium (Mastery) and Chakra Shape Transformation (Transcendent).
• Hagoromo asked Hiruzen Sarutobi about tools or seals that could sustain a training illusion, and Hiruzen told him about the Mirage Vapor Pearl from Mito Uzumaki's dowry.
• Hiruzen explained that the Mirage Vapor Pearl recorded settings and created illusions from memories, but its demanding user requirements had left it unused.
• Hiruzen told Hagoromo the pearl belonged to the Hokage and promised to have someone find it and bring it to him.
• Hagoromo said he could handle an ordinary Jonin but was not yet confident against an elite veteran like Kakashi, and Hiruzen let him choose when to take the Jonin exam.
• Hiruzen reported that several children in Hagoromo's proposed program were progressing well, and Hagoromo said the training could help protect Konoha's young talent from unnecessary harm.

Sasuke tested his first-form Cell Activation Mark against Naruto, whose Wind Release and shockwave techniques challenged Sasuke’s enhanced speed and strength. Hagoromo stopped the match before Sasuke could attempt Form Two and ordered both boys to intensify their physical training.

• Sasuke activated Cell Activation Mark, Form One, and used his enhanced speed to strike Naruto, who blocked and summoned two Shadow Clones.
• Naruto and his clones used Wind Release: Great Breakthrough to pressure Sasuke, while Sasuke’s electric attacks hindered Naruto’s counterattacks.
• Sasuke dispersed Naruto’s clones, retreated, and fired a Fire Release: Flame Bullet.
• Naruto destroyed the flame bullet with Thrusting Fist: Threefold Wave, a wind-powered shockwave.
• Hagoromo stopped the fight before Sasuke could use Form Two and told him to strengthen his body before attempting it.
• Hagoromo ordered Naruto and Sasuke to double their weights and increase their physical training.