Chapter Summaries

Ningyuan tracked down and captured a giant white pheasant, bringing it and its eggs back to Yuanhong Records. Hiruzen Sarutobi dismissed the bird as ordinary, unaware that Chakra was beginning to form inside it.

• Ningyuan found feathers where Obito had seen a giant bird and followed their direction with Yūhi Kurenai.
• Ningyuan spotted a huge white pheasant and used Genjutsu to conceal his and Yūhi Kurenai’s approach from the Anbu following them.
• Ningyuan subdued the pheasant, discovered eight eggs beneath it, and took the bird and eggs back with him.
• The Anbu reported the capture to Hiruzen Sarutobi, who decided to stop monitoring Ningyuan.
• Chakra began forming inside the white pheasant as it rested at Yuanhong Records.

Ningyuan used his newly developed Curse Mark: Sympathetic Connection to make the White Chick experience Chakra extraction, hoping to raise it into a Ninja Beast. After hours of attempts, he sensed that the chick had begun to form Chakra, leaving the experiment with its first promising result.

• Yūhi Kurenai asked Ningyuan how to raise the White Chick into a Ninja Beast, and he explained why birds rarely learned to extract Chakra.
• Ningyuan considered how Itachi might have trained his crows and decided to use Genjutsu to teach the White Chick Chakra extraction.
• Ningyuan placed Curse Mark: Sympathetic Connection on the White Chick, linking the bird’s senses to his own and letting him share the sensation of extracting Chakra with it.
• Yūhi Kurenai built the White Chick a nest and placed its eight eggs inside while Ningyuan began the first training attempt.
• After feeding the frightened bird and trying again for two hours, Ningyuan sensed its confusion and curiosity, then saw Chakra in its abdomen with his Byakugan.

Ningyuan helped the white chick become a Ninja Beast, and Yūhi Kurenai learned to communicate with it through Genjutsu. They named it Bai Zhuzhu, while Kurenai discovered its eggs might not hatch because it had no husband.

• Ningyuan guided the white chick’s Chakra through its throat and brain, helping it gain Chakra and begin developing its intelligence.
• Yūhi Kurenai learned Ningyuan’s Genjutsu: Chain Lock Technique and connected with the chick, whose only thought was that it was hungry.
• Kurenai fed the chick rice, and Ningyuan named it Bai Zhuzhu after Kurenai suggested calling it White Pig.
• Kurenai reflected on her growing love for Ningyuan and resolved to work harder to become worthy of him.
• Hyuga Mie explained that birds could lay eggs without husbands, and Kurenai realized the eight eggs in the nest might not hatch.

Yūhi Kurenai showed off Bai Zhuzhu, her newly contracted Ninja Beast, to her father and later to Hiruzen Sarutobi. Hiruzen persuaded Kurenai to leave Bai Zhuzhu with the village for registration and training, and Kurenai watched anxiously as they headed to the Hokage Office Building.

• Yūhi Kurenai brought Bai Zhuzhu home, where Yūhi Shinku learned that she was Kurenai’s Summoning Beast and went searching for another Ninja Beast.
• Yūhi Kurenai rode Bai Zhuzhu past Hiruzen Sarutobi, who confirmed the pheasant had Chakra after she demonstrated it.
• Hiruzen Sarutobi told Kurenai that village rules required Summoning Beasts to be registered and offered to arrange Bai Zhuzhu’s training.
• Yūhi Kurenai agreed to leave Bai Zhuzhu with Hiruzen Sarutobi and watched anxiously as Bai Zhuzhu followed him toward the Hokage Office Building.

Ningyuan explained to Yūhi Kurenai why Hiruzen Sarutobi opposed him and why the Hokage’s rules limited what Hiruzen could do to him or Zhuzhu. The chapter ended as the village began examining Zhuzhu.

• Ningyuan told Yūhi Kurenai that Hiruzen Sarutobi had assigned him Swordsmanship and Medical Ninjutsu classes as subtle ways to hinder him.
• Ningyuan interpreted Yūhi Shinku’s message about Orochimaru as a suggestion to get closer to him, though Ningyuan was already Orochimaru’s superior.
• Ningyuan argued that Hiruzen wanted his son Sarutobi Shinnosuke to become Hokage, so he disliked geniuses who outshone his son.
• Ningyuan explained that village rules prevented Hiruzen from killing Zhuzhu or openly harming him, though wartime assignments could put Ningyuan in danger.
• Yūhi Kurenai announced that the village’s examination of Zhuzhu had begun.

Hiruzen Sarutobi ordered Bai Zhuzhu’s memories investigated, and Yamanaka Hiroshi found an apparently harmless account of how Ningyuan and Yūhi Kurenai had caught and contracted with the pheasant. Ningyuan had secretly used genjutsu to plant false memories, leaving Konoha’s investigation unaware of the truth.

• Hiruzen Sarutobi ordered Intelligence Department ninja to examine Bai Zhuzhu’s memories, investigate where she had lived, and search Konoha for other Ninja Beasts.
• Yamanaka Hiroshi used the Mind Body Switch Technique to read Bai Zhuzhu’s memories and saw how the children caught her, discovered her Chakra, taught her to read, and formed a contract with her.
• Yamanaka Hiroshi found no suspicious memories, recorded his findings for Hiruzen Sarutobi, and used a technique to calm Bai Zhuzhu before she awakened.
• The chapter revealed that Ningyuan had used genjutsu from the moment Bai Zhuzhu awakened to create false memories and conceal the truth from anyone reading her mind.

Hiruzen Sarutobi approved Bai Zhuzhu as a weak, low-intelligence Summoning Beast and sent her to Yūhi Kurenai, while Ningyuan used the reprieve to plan a sweeping mythological history for the ninja world. He began telling Kurenai the story of the Primordial World and secretly writing it for wider circulation.

• Hiruzen Sarutobi reviewed Bai Zhuzhu’s assessment, judged her abilities too limited to be useful, and ordered her handed over to Yūhi Shinku without a forehead protector or formal training.
• Ningyuan and Yūhi Kurenai learned that their mission had passed, and Ningyuan joked that being useless had kept Bai Zhuzhu from being seized or exploited.
• Ningyuan decided to create a vast historical narrative beginning with myths about the Primordial World so it could eventually help shape the ninja world’s culture and promote Chinese language.
• Ningyuan stopped the planned Tom and Jerry viewing and began explaining the Chaos World and the Three Thousand Demon Gods to Kurenai.
• As he narrated, Ningyuan secretly used Telekinetic Power to write the story, producing enough material to build it into a book.

Ningyuan met with Hiruzen Sarutobi to secure permission to leave the village for his Yuanhong Records performances. Hiruzen arranged a paid escort mission, and Ningyuan agreed to meet his assigned ninja at six the next morning.

• Hiruzen observed Ningyuan at the Hokage Office and grew more trusting after Ningyuan offered him a health recipe.
• Ningyuan insisted he needed to travel for his performances, but Hiruzen warned that he and Yūhi Kurenai could be in danger outside the village.
• Hiruzen proposed hiring a ninja escort and persuaded Ningyuan to accept a fee of one hundred thousand ryo for each two-day trip.
• Ningyuan signed the mission form and asked who would escort them, but Hiruzen kept the ninja's identity secret.
• Ningyuan said he would arrive at six the next morning to set out early, leaving Hiruzen worried that he would lose his weekly day to sleep in.

Ningyuan met Minato at the Hokage’s office, and the two set out with Yūhi Kurenai on a mission. As they left Konoha aboard White Bird, an Anbu observed them and returned to the village with a report.

• Ningyuan and Minato pretended to be surprised when Hiruzen Sarutobi assigned Minato to lead the mission.
• Ningyuan introduced Minato to Yūhi Kurenai at the village gate and told her Minato belonged to his organization.
• Yūhi Kurenai asked to join the organization, and Ningyuan promised to make her a probationary member until she graduated.
• Minato watched over the group and reflected on why he had joined the Ning Organization, including its aim to end war and protect Kushina and his future descendants.
• Ningyuan stopped outside the village, and Yūhi Kurenai summoned White Bird to carry the three into the sky.
• An Anbu recorded their departure and returned to the village.

Ningyuan left the village with Minato and Yūhi Kurenai, discussing the Hokage’s surveillance technique and his research into Sound Style while traveling toward Qingou Town. The group arrived and met Tsunade, who angrily confronted Ningyuan over the work he had assigned her.

• Ningyuan told Yūhi Kurenai and Minato that the Hokage used the Telescope Technique to spy on people, prompting their concern about public bathhouses.
• Ningyuan demonstrated a paper prototype that produced music and discussed the possibility of developing Sound Style as a Kekkei Tōta.
• Ningyuan sent Snake Uncle a message asking him to obtain the Impure World Reincarnation Jutsu so he could question Second Tsuchikage Mu.
• Ningyuan, Minato, and Yūhi Kurenai flew toward Qingou Town on a Paper Release bird, and Minato identified the Takigawa River and Fuming Mountain below them.
• Ningyuan considered plans to redirect water between the Land of Waterfalls, the Land of Wind, and the Land of Rain as the group descended.
• Tsunade arrived, complained that Ningyuan kept assigning her work, and pulled him into her arms.

Tsunade revealed how she had taken control of epidemic-stricken Mingchuan Town and explained its resources and oppressive former rule. Ningyuan saw the town as a strong base for their organization, while Tsunade’s reforms had already earned her the people’s support.

• Tsunade pulled Yūhi Kurenai and Ningyuan into her arms, and Minato greeted her as Lady Tsunade, who was using the alias Minghui.
• Tsunade brought them into the former city lord’s palace and explained that an epidemic had reduced Mingchuan Town’s population from about 180,000 to 40,000.
• Tsunade said she had treated the survivors, established defenses, and bought the city lord position for ten million ryo.
• Ningyuan and Tsunade assessed Mingchuan Town’s mines, bamboo, river, farmland, and collection of ninjutsu as a foundation for developing their organization.
• Tsunade explained that the former city lord had burdened residents with harsh taxes, controlled their land and fishing, and used wandering ninja to suppress them.
• Tsunade said she had abolished more than seventy taxes and reduced land and fishing taxes, earning the townspeople’s support.

Tsunade reported that Mingchuan Town’s factories and public services were developing, but the Ning Organization lacked enough people to run them. Ningyuan proposed opening a Dance School to train administrators and began considering ways to educate and control a much larger pool of recruits.

• Tsunade told Ningyuan that she had established a Security Office, introduced laws, and taken over or built several factories in Mingchuan Town.
• Ningyuan explained that Audio-Visual Stores and bookstores could expand the Ning Organization’s influence and help prepare administrators for the Land of Fire’s cities.
• Tsunade complained that the town’s factories, law enforcement, and medical work lacked staff, and said Orochimaru had sent fewer than fifteen hundred people.
• Ningyuan proposed opening a Dance School that would teach martial arts and general knowledge, while deciding not to teach students Chakra Extraction.
• Ningyuan considered using the Art of the Ninja Sect to transfer knowledge and modifying the Caged Bird to improve recruits’ loyalty.

Ningyuan brought his novel to Tsunade to help launch Mingchuan Bookstore, then traveled with Minato and Yūhi Kurenai to perform in Qingou Town. Their first song began to win over a large crowd, while an Anbu observer watched from among the townspeople.

• Ningyuan gave Tsunade his manuscript, The Primordial World, and she was captivated by its opening line.
• Ningyuan, Minato, and Yūhi Kurenai flew to Qingou Town, where nearly half the town had gathered to watch them perform.
• Ningyuan spotted an Anbu observer in the crowd, but he reassured the merchant and decided to perform as planned.
• Ningyuan and Yūhi Kurenai changed backstage while Minato set up the speakers and microphone.
• Yūhi Kurenai sang a gentle song onstage, surprising the townspeople with her beautiful voice.

Ningyuan and Yūhi Kurenai’s performances drew huge crowds and impressed a merchant, who tried to hire them for another show. After hearing the reports, Hiruzen Sarutobi saw a profitable opportunity for the Sarutobi Clan and planned to discuss starting a song and dance troupe.

• Ningyuan and Yūhi Kurenai performed songs and dances for nearly six thousand people in Qingou Town, earning an enthusiastic response.
• The merchant offered them another one hundred and fifty thousand ryo, but Ningyuan refused the extra payment and declined a new engagement because they were already booked.
• The merchant decided a song and dance troupe might earn more than his grain business, while Ningyuan welcomed others entering the growing entertainment market.
• After the performers returned to Konoha, Minato and an Anbu reported their trip and the performances to Hiruzen Sarutobi.
• Hiruzen Sarutobi concluded that the Sarutobi Clan could profit by forming a troupe with its many clan members and resolved to raise the idea at a clan meeting.

Ningyuan developed Curse Mark techniques to imprint thoughts and transfer memories, then fused them into Curse Mark: Personality Remolding to address the Ning Organization’s shortage of manpower. He left the chapter ready to use the new ability to transform bandits and ruffians into trained recruits.

• Ningyuan considered recruiting Yakushi Nonō to handle personnel matters for the Ning Organization.
• Ningyuan studied the brain and used his Byakugan to observe frontal lobes as he worked on a Curse Mark that could implant thoughts.
• Ningyuan conditioned a rabbit with a lightning-based Curse Mark and unlocked Curse Mark: Thought Imprint, then raised it to level 5 and gained the [Calling a Deer a Horse] trait.
• Ningyuan used the rabbit to unlock Curse Mark: Memory Transfer and gained the [Extreme Compression] trait by spending 150 General Experience.
• Ningyuan fused Curse Mark: Thought Imprint and Curse Mark: Memory Transfer into Curse Mark: Personality Remolding.

Ningyuan advised Orochimaru that the Third Hokage’s proposed disciple was tied to future Hokage succession and urged him to strengthen the Ning Organization by mentoring promising students. Orochimaru agreed to consider three students, while Ningyuan continued caring for Nogiko and returned home to eat with his family.

• Ningyuan asked Orochimaru about Konoha’s orphanage, and Orochimaru warned him that its new director was forceful.
• Orochimaru told Ningyuan that the Third Hokage had asked him to take a disciple, and Ningyuan explained how a student could affect the future Hokage contest.
• Orochimaru reconsidered declining the proposal after Ningyuan reminded him that taking students could strengthen the Ning Organization.
• Ningyuan recommended Yamashiro Aoba, Shiranui Genma, and Mitaraishi Anko as Orochimaru’s disciples, and Orochimaru agreed to consider them.
• Ningyuan gave Nogiko her medicinal soup, then returned home and ate the meal Hyuga Keiko had prepared.

Hiruzen Sarutobi dismissed Shōhoku Sōun’s concerns about Ningyuan’s behavior at the Ninja Academy, while Orochimaru secured permission to inspect the school for potential disciples. Orochimaru’s plan was inspired by Ningyuan’s Window Theory, and the chapter ended with him asking Hiruzen to discuss Ninjutsu.

• Shōhoku Sōun reported Ningyuan’s inattentiveness to Hiruzen Sarutobi, who decided not to change the Academy’s policy or give Ningyuan special attention.
• Orochimaru visited Hiruzen Sarutobi wearing clothes from a new village store and explained that he wanted a disciple to carry on his knowledge.
• Orochimaru proposed Hatake Kakashi as his disciple, but Hiruzen rejected the idea because he had other plans for Kakashi.
• Hiruzen allowed Orochimaru to inspect the Ninja Academy for gifted students, warning him not to approach clan children.
• Orochimaru privately credited Ningyuan’s Window Theory for helping him persuade Hiruzen, then asked his teacher to discuss Ninjutsu.

After finishing his Genjutsu lessons, Ningyuan spent his free time training with Yūhi Kurenai and brought her to the Konoha Orphanage, where they clashed with two children. Their confrontation was interrupted by Yakushi Nonō, whom Ningyuan recognized.

• Yūhi Shinku told Ningyuan that he only needed to return for monthly tests after learning all the Genjutsu he could teach.
• Ningyuan and Yūhi Kurenai trained their bodies together at a secluded waterfall while fishing and playing.
• Ningyuan and Yūhi Kurenai visited the Konoha Orphanage and faced two children who tried to rob them.
• Yūhi Kurenai struck down one child with a stick and prepared to fight Nabu, who challenged her.
• Yakushi Nonō appeared and called out to Nabu, and Ningyuan recognized her.

Hyuga Ningyuan visited Konoha Orphanage with Yūhi Kurenai, heard Yakushi Nonō explain why she had founded it, and challenged her faith in Hiruzen Sarutobi’s promised support. He revealed that he led the Ning Organization and invited Nonō to join it.

• Yakushi Nonō described how two orphans she had encountered died after she left them behind, inspiring her to establish an orphanage.
• Nonō explained that Hiruzen Sarutobi had agreed to let her reopen Konoha’s abandoned orphanage, but its funds were scarce and repairs had stalled.
• Ningyuan suspected Nonō was seeking a donation and questioned why Konoha had left her to rebuild the orphanage without adequate support.
• Ningyuan argued that Hiruzen had used the orphanage to improve his reputation without intending to fund it, and Nonō confronted him over his accusations.
• Nonō assumed Ningyuan was acting for the Hyuga Clan’s bid for the Hokage position, but Ningyuan denied representing the clan and invited her to join the Ning Organization.

Ningyuan recruited Yakushi Nonō into the Ning Organization by explaining its ideals and revealing that Tsunade and Orochimaru were members. He gave her a mission to recruit people, awakened her Sword Control Kekkei Genkai, and confirmed that Wood Release could not be granted simply by sharing Wood Style Chakra.

• Ningyuan showed Yakushi Nonō Tsunade’s necklace and revealed that Tsunade and Orochimaru had joined the Ning Organization.
• Ningyuan explained the organization’s goal of abolishing the ninja system and making the world better, and Yakushi Nonō agreed to join.
• Ningyuan assigned Yakushi Nonō to recruit people, noting that she could travel freely outside the village, and reassured her about the organization’s weak finances.
• Ningyuan told Yakushi Nonō to recruit bandits and other criminals, then gave her the Mind Control Seal to make them obey.
• Ningyuan awakened Yakushi Nonō’s Sword Control Kekkei Genkai and concluded that Wood Release could not be awakened merely by infusing someone with Wood Style Chakra.