Chapter Summaries

Hanma tried to negotiate with Matatabi while caring for the injured Nata, but the Third Raikage arrived with a Kumogakure squad to retrieve her. Hanma and the Raikage ended their tense strength contest as Tsunade's group arrived, leaving both sides wary of a fight.

• Matatabi shut herself off from the outside world, and Nata lost consciousness when the Tailed Beast Chakra supporting her vanished.
• Hanma used a painful first-aid technique to revive Nata and tried to reassure Matatabi, but the Third Raikage struck at him with a lightning-wreathed palm.
• Hanma and the Third Raikage exchanged greetings as a Kumogakure squad, including the future Fourth Raikage, Dodai, and the Eight-Tails Jinchuriki, emerged from the woods.
• Hanma agreed to let the Third Raikage take Nata, but the two men turned their handshake into a contest of strength that split the ground.
• Tsunade's group arrived, and Hanma and the Third Raikage eased off their strength while each recognized the other's power.

Hanma let the Third Raikage take Nata and reflected on the Raikage’s strength as the two sides withdrew. The group headed back to Konoha, each carrying concerns about what the war had changed.

• Hanma allowed the Third Raikage to take Nata, and the Raikage led Kumogakure away while urging his son to train harder.
• Hanma considered the Third Raikage’s power and concluded that he still needed to grow stronger.
• Hanma told the others that the war was nearing its end, while Tsunade held his arm and Jiraiya thought about his mission to find the Child of Prophecy.
• Orochimaru questioned Konoha’s Will of Fire after being ordered to attack Amegakure, and Minato worried about being unable to protect those he cared about.
• Hanma and the others began their journey back to Konoha, carrying the consequences of the war with them.

The Third Hokage reviewed the war’s devastation and worried that uchiha ryousuke’s military success was driving the Uchiha Clan further from Konoha. He recalled the clan’s volatile power and took comfort in Hanma’s relationship with Tsunade as he planned the postwar settlement.

• Nara Shikayama organized Anbu reports describing uchiha ryousuke’s victories, Sunagakure’s retreat, Amegakure’s destruction, and the Third Raikage’s withdrawal.
• The Third Hokage considered the heavy casualties suffered by Konoha and the deaths of Ebizo, Bunpuku, and Dan Katō.
• The Third Hokage recalled that Uchiha Setsuna had confronted him with Mangekyō and Three Tomoe wielders after Danzo’s deception, and that Uzumaki Mito had mediated the dispute.
• The Third Hokage reflected on Tobirama’s explanation of the Uchiha Clan’s love, hatred, and Sharingan, while worrying about Hanma’s influence and uchiha ryousuke’s distance from the village.
• The Third Hokage reassured himself that Hanma’s relationship with Tsunade made an Uchiha rebellion less likely, then began planning the distribution of postwar benefits.

Uchiha Setsuna decided Hanma would succeed him as clan head, while Fugaku apologized to Hanma for following Danzo’s orders and endangering him. Hanma accepted Fugaku’s promise of loyalty but worried about leading the Uchiha, whose members had embraced his heroism with chūnibyō fervor.

• Uchiha Setsuna ordered Fugaku to reflect in the shrine after he recalled troops on Danzo’s advice and nearly left Hanma facing two Tailed Beasts.
• Setsuna told Fugaku that Hanma would become the next Uchiha clan head and that the clan should follow Hanma rather than Konoha’s leaders.
• At Konoha’s entrance, Fugaku tried to kneel before Hanma and admitted he had wronged him by following Danzo’s orders.
• Hanma stopped Fugaku from kneeling, forgave him, and told him to serve the Uchiha and repay his mistake through his achievements.
• Fugaku revealed that Setsuna planned to announce Hanma as clan head and that Obito’s badges bearing Hanma’s image had become popular.
• Hanma worried that leading the Uchiha would mean enduring their dramatic displays of devotion.

Hanma took Konan shopping through the Uchiha Territory and told her she would soon become part of the Uchiha Clan, giving her a home and family. After a day of treats and new clothes, Tsunade saw Konan feeding Hanma dango and mistakenly thought he already had a child.

• Hanma brought Konan to the bustling Uchiha Territory, where she was captivated by its shops and prosperous streets.
• Hanma told Konan that he would add her to the Uchiha clan register and that the clan would become her family, friends, and support.
• Hanma reflected on the cycle of war in the Shinobi World and vowed to oppose the Otsutsuki Clan's arrogance.
• Hanma spent money taking Konan shopping until she looked like a wealthy young member of the Uchiha Clan.
• Konan offered Hanma a skewer of dango, and Tsunade returned from Uzumaki Mito's home and mistook Konan for his child.

Hanma introduced Konan to Tsunade, who welcomed her into the Uchiha Clan and helped settle her into a vacant house. Konan quickly met young Obito, and Hanma asked him to look after her, leaving Hanma uneasy about their budding friendship.

• Tsunade mistook Hanma’s meeting with Konan for a romantic betrayal until Konan explained that her parents had died and Hanma had rescued her from starvation.
• Tsunade welcomed Konan into the Uchiha Clan, then went shopping with her and helped Hanma bring her belongings to a vacant house in the clan compound.
• Hanma gave Konan ninjutsu scrolls and learned that she had taught herself to use Chakra.
• Obito visited Konan’s new home, excitedly asked Hanma for an autograph, and gave him a badge bearing Hanma’s image.
• Hanma introduced Konan to Obito and asked him to look after her, while Konan gave Obito a paper flower and flustered him.

Hanma reassured Tsunade that she should not become the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki, urging her to build her strength through training instead. He left her persuaded and flustered after winning a rigged dice bet that set an intimate condition for their next exercise.

• Tsunade told Hanma that Uzumaki Mito wanted to meet him after he became Uchiha Clan head, and she admitted she was considering becoming the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki to grow stronger.
• Hanma comforted Tsunade and firmly rejected the idea of her becoming a Jinchuriki, directing her toward Senjutsu training in Shikkotsu Forest and research into Wood Release with Orochimaru and Nawaki.
• Hanma proposed a dice bet, secretly used Blood Qi to ensure an even result, and made Tsunade agree to an additional condition.
• Hanma gave Tsunade a bag of skimpy clothes and stockings and asked her to wear them and pose during their later exercise.

Danzo exposed an underground operation that let ninja transfer earned merits, prompting the Third to confront Sarutobi Shinnosuke over the Anbu’s involvement. Shinnosuke resigned and left Konoha to join the Twelve Guardian Ninja, while Danzo turned the Third’s attention to Orochimaru.

• Danzo presented the Third with evidence of a merit-boosting network involving Anbu, and the Third ordered the Anbu Captain to appear.
• The Third struck Sarutobi Shinnosuke and accused him of hiding the operation and sending money to the Uchiha Clan.
• Shinnosuke defended uchiha ryousuke’s transfer of genuine merits as an expression of the Will of Fire and questioned the village’s treatment of him.
• Shinnosuke resigned as Anbu Captain, accepted responsibility, and announced he would leave Konoha to join the Twelve Guardian Ninja in the Land of Fire.
• Danzo informed the shaken Third that Orochimaru had embezzled research funding for his experiments.

Hanma studied the crude Eight Inner Gates technique and learned how it relied on physical training and the will to surpass fear and pain. As he reflected on the Gates of Wonder and Death, a rare visitor arrived with troubling news about the village.

• After Tsunade abandoned her plan to become the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki and chose to learn Senjutsu at Shikkotsu Forest, Hanma examined the Eight Inner Gates scroll.
• Hanma learned that the technique had been passed down from the Warring States Period, later rejected by Konoha, and classified as a Forbidden Jutsu because of its damage to the body.
• Hanma studied how the first six Gates released the body's restrained potential and concluded that cultivation required both a strong physique and the resolve to endure pain and death.
• Hanma read the scroll's descriptions of the dangerous Gate of Wonder and the theorized Gate of Death, including Tobirama Senju's note about protecting Konoha through the Will of Fire.
• A rare visitor told Hanma that something had happened in the village and that both their reputations had been ruined.

Orochimaru told Hanma that the village was investigating him over a series of serious accusations, while public opinion also painted Hanma and the Uchiha Clan as threats to Konoha. Hanma traced the accusations to Shimura Danzō’s attempt to erase his own stains after losing his position as Hokage’s Assistant, with Orochimaru caught in the crossfire and his path to becoming Hokage undermined.

• Orochimaru visited Hanma and described how the elders had searched his laboratory, seized his research, and launched an investigation into him.
• Orochimaru listed the accusations against him, including misusing orphanage funds, conducting human experiments, stealing the First's cells, and disobeying orders at Amegakure.
• Orochimaru explained that the village had publicized the investigation, damaging his reputation even before the charges were formally decided.
• Orochimaru told Hanma that rumors portrayed the Uchiha Clan as corrupt, disobedient, and inherently destructive, while Hanma accepted the accusations with little concern.
• Hanma connected the accusations to Shimura Danzō losing his position as Hokage’s Assistant and concluded that Danzō had used Orochimaru to cover his own stains and block Orochimaru’s hopes of becoming Hokage.

Hanma explained to Orochimaru how Konoha’s political system and Danzo had made him a convenient scapegoat. Disillusioned with the Will of Fire, Orochimaru declared that he wanted to overturn the Shinobi World and asked Hanma to join him.

• Hanma reflected on how the Military Police Force had isolated the Uchiha and kept them from ordinary shinobi missions.
• Hanma told Orochimaru that accusations about the orphanage, human experiments, and the Amegakure battlefield had exploited the gray areas of Orochimaru’s work.
• Orochimaru realized that Konoha’s leaders had sacrificed him and his subordinates while the Third protected Danzo.
• Orochimaru rejected the Will of Fire and called the Shinobi World a decaying system that had lost its meaning.
• Orochimaru asked Hanma to join him in overturning the Shinobi World.

Hanma welcomed Orochimaru’s offer to join him, then used a meal and a discussion of their old ideas to clarify their plans for changing the Shinobi World. He rejected a coup in Konoha and showed Orochimaru an island where they would build their future country.

• Orochimaru invited Hanma to join him, and Hanma returned with a feast and enthusiastically accepted his help.
• Hanma and Orochimaru drank together and recalled their academy-era discussion of bottom-up revolution and top-down reform.
• Orochimaru reflected on Konoha’s political structure and asked which approach Hanma intended to pursue.
• Hanma said he would choose bottom-up change but explained that a coup in Konoha would be too costly and likely end in disaster.
• Hanma pointed to an island on a map and told Orochimaru they would build their country there.

Hanma explained to Orochimaru why Kirigakure was the best target for building a powerful hidden village and outlined a plan to exploit its conflict with the bloodline clans. He assigned Orochimaru to gather those clans and inflame the unrest, promising support from the Uchiha Clan.

• Hanma rejected Orochimaru's suggestions of smaller nations, arguing they lacked the territory and population to protect the Uchiha Clan and support a new village.
• Hanma explained that Kirigakure's isolation would let them reform the Land of Water without interference from the other major nations.
• Hanma described how the Third Mizukage's purges had turned Kirigakure's bloodline clans against him and created an opening for rebellion.
• Hanma proposed gathering the persecuted clans and provoking the Third Mizukage into sending troops, then using a decapitation strike to seize Kirigakure.
• Hanma gave Orochimaru a large supply of money and tasked him with fomenting Kirigakure's internal conflicts and recruiting its bloodline clans.

Hanma and Orochimaru agreed to build their power by taking Kirigakure, recruiting clans, and challenging the Daimyo’s control. Their preparations advanced as Orochimaru revealed a surviving Wood Release experiment and progress on mutated ninja insects.

• Orochimaru proposed using the Land of Hot Water as a base and settling recruited Kirigakure clans there.
• Orochimaru urged Hanma to approach declining Konoha clans, then asked how he would handle Tsunade’s loyalty to the village.
• Hanma explained that Kirigakure’s isolation would help them challenge the Daimyo and overturn the Shinobi World’s existing order.
• Hanma and Orochimaru planned to use Uchiha to brainwash the Land of Water’s officials and redirect tax revenue toward the village and research.
• Orochimaru revealed that a child had survived his Wood Release experiments and that his mutated ninja insects might help recruit Aburame Shikuroo.
• Hanma gave Orochimaru a thick stack of banknotes, and they agreed to begin.

Hanma planned to obtain the Box of Paradise to evolve his Chakra-devouring ability while Konoha’s hostility toward him and the Uchiha grew. When Uchiha Setsuna and Minato arrived eager to attack Danzo and launch a coup, Hanma instead told them of his plan to devour Kirigakure, leaving them arguing over who would become Mizukage.

• Hanma searched Shinobi World secrets for ways to improve the Heaven and Earth Furnace and settled on obtaining the Box of Paradise from Kusagakure.
• Danzo’s influence fueled rumors against Hanma and the Uchiha, but Hanma stayed home and focused on his plans.
• Uchiha Setsuna confronted Hanma and demanded that the clan gather to force Danzo to answer for the rumors.
• Minato arrived with Flying Thunder God coordinates across Konoha and offered to help launch a coup against the Hokage.
• Hanma shared his plan to devour Kirigakure, and Minato and Setsuna began disputing who would become Mizukage.

Hanma, Minato, and Setsuna discussed Minato’s support for Hanma’s plans and Kushina’s estrangement from Konoha. Setsuna proposed a scheme to weaken Danzo’s Root and expand Uchiha influence, which Hanma found feasible.

• Minato told Hanma that Kushina supported him and explained that he had urged her to stop relying on Konoha and Uzumaki Mito.
• Minato and Setsuna traded jokes about Minato and Kushina, while Hanma disclaimed responsibility for Minato’s peculiar beliefs.
• Setsuna proposed having Orochimaru’s forces impersonate Kirigakure and attack the Land of Fire’s border to expose Root and create an opening for the Uchiha.
• Setsuna said the Uchiha could use the crisis to relocate clan members, gain authority, support Tsunade’s rise, and expand their influence in Konoha and Kirigakure.
• Hanma judged Setsuna’s proposal feasible and agreed with it.

Danzo’s rumors about Hanma and Orochimaru spread through Konoha, while Hanma organized the Uchiha to counter them with a covert public-opinion campaign. A week later, Jiraiya heard a new rumor linking the Second Hokage’s death to the current Hokage’s Assistant.

• Rumors accusing Orochimaru and Hanma circulated among Konoha’s civilians and lower-ranking ninja as the village’s leaders stayed silent.
• News of Konoha’s internal conflict reached other villages, while Danzo’s campaign exploited Hanma and Orochimaru’s reputations and gray-area actions.
• Hanma ordered Fugaku’s group to spread counter-rumors and Tekka’s group to arrest Root members under the pretense of identifying enemy spies.
• A week later, Utage told Jiraiya that the Second Hokage’s death had been connected to the current Hokage’s Assistant.
• Jiraiya was shocked by Utage’s claim and spat liquor across her face.

Jiraiya heard rumors questioning the Second Hokage’s death and Konoha’s past, then realized the growing distrust threatened the village. Danzo, blamed as the mastermind behind the death, refused to confront the Uchiha directly, while Uzumaki Mito confronted Hiruzen in the Hokage Building.

• Utage told Jiraiya that the Second Hokage’s mastery of the Flying Thunder God raised questions about why he died covering his disciples’ retreat.
• Jiraiya overheard Konoha ninja speculate that the Sarutobi and Shimura clans plotted against the Second Hokage, that Kagami Uchiha’s death was suspicious, and that Konoha had failed to protect the Land of Whirlpools.
• Jiraiya recognized that the rumors were spreading through Kabukicho and rushed to the Hokage Building to address the crisis.
• Danzo learned that the rumors cast him as the Second Hokage’s killer and that a Root squad had been detained by the Military Police Force.
• Danzo ordered a Root member to ask the Third Hokage what to do rather than attack the Military Police Force.
• Uzumaki Mito sat in the Hokage’s seat and told Hiruzen Sarutobi that she was disappointed in him.

Uzumaki Mito confronted Third over his rigid policies toward the Uchiha and urged him to find a new path for Konoha. She also warned that she had little time left and pressed him to choose a successor to inherit the Nine-Tails, leaving Third uncertain about whom he could trust.

• Third admitted to Uzumaki Mito that events involving Danzo, Orochimaru, and Hanma had spiraled beyond his control.
• Uzumaki Mito criticized Third for blindly following Tobirama's policies and warned that forcing the Uchiha into submission would worsen matters.
• Third defended Tobirama's policies and insisted that the Uchiha Clan still needed to be restricted.
• Third proposed that the Administrative Department blame the village rumors on spies from other villages and issue an official clarification.
• Uzumaki Mito told Third to choose someone to inherit the Nine-Tails soon, while Third considered Kushina unsuitable because of her close ties to Hanma's disciple.

After Hanma was publicly cleared of slander and praised as a hero, the Uchiha celebrated their improved reputation and began pressing Setsuna to hand over the clan leadership. Hanma prepared to take over with a clan-wide combat gathering, intending to establish his authority by personally testing the assembled Uchiha.

• The Third issued a notice crediting Hanma with wartime achievements, calling the rumors against him lies spread by enemy spies, and declaring the suspects apprehended.
• The Uchiha celebrated their improved standing in Konoha, while Setsuna felt uneasy as clansmen increasingly favored Hanma as their next clan head.
• Setsuna asked Hanma to take over the clan leadership, and Hanma agreed to hold an unprecedented inauguration gathering at the Forest of Death Arena.
• Hanma invited every Uchiha, regardless of age or rank, to attend an internal exchange meeting and asked capable clansmen to demonstrate their strength.
• More than a dozen Three Tomoe Uchiha stepped into the arena, unaware that Hanma intended to fight each of them himself.