Chapter Summaries

Xie Zongqi woke in the body of Hyuga Soji, a five-year-old heir of the Hyuga Main Family who had awakened his Byakugan after overtraining. Reunited with his grandfather after three days unconscious, Soji accepted his new life and decided to train harder.

• Hyuga Soji regained his memories and realized he had transmigrated into the Naruto world as the sole heir of the Hyuga Main Family's third branch.
• Hyuga Kumokawa tearfully welcomed Soji’s recovery and promised not to force him to train again after his overtraining and Byakugan awakening had left him unconscious.
• Soji ate, received care from the household maid, and persuaded Hyuga Kumokawa to get some rest.
• Alone for the night, Soji considered the dangers of the ninja world and felt relieved that he belonged to the Main Family rather than the Branch House.
• Soji resolved to train harder from the next day and fell asleep dreaming of defeating Madara Uchiha.

After recovering from chakra exhaustion, Hyuga Soji asked Hyuga Kumokawa to resume training and revealed that he had awakened the Byakugan. Hyuga Kumokawa explained the Byakugan’s rules in Konoha and began teaching Soji the Gentle Fist.

• After spending several days recovering, Hyuga Soji visited Hyuga Kumokawa and asked him to train him more harshly than before.
• Hyuga Soji requested to learn the Gentle Fist, but Hyuga Kumokawa initially objected because Soji was only five years old.
• Hyuga Soji activated his Byakugan, stunning Hyuga Kumokawa, who confirmed that his grandson had awakened the dojutsu.
• Hyuga Soji told Hyuga Kumokawa that he wanted to control his own destiny, while privately setting his sights on someday attaining the Tenseigan.
• Hyuga Kumokawa warned Soji not to use the Byakugan freely in Konoha and then began teaching him the Gentle Fist.

Hyuga Soji learned the Gentle Fist from his grandfather, Hyuga Kumokawa, and quickly performed sixteen palms on his first attempt. After an afternoon of sparring and instruction, Soji continued practicing alone past midnight, unaware that someone had watched him.

• Hyuga Kumokawa demonstrated Eight Trigrams Sixty-Four Palms, and Soji performed sixteen palms on his first try.
• Hyuga Kumokawa corrected Soji’s technique and force during a sparring session, blocking all of his attacks.
• Hyuga Soji and Hyuga Kumokawa trained together from noon until evening, then shared dinner and talked about Soji’s parents.
• Hyuga Soji returned to the courtyard after his grandfather went to bed and practiced the Gentle Fist until past midnight.
• An unseen observer watched Hyuga Soji train from the corridor and withdrew after he returned to his bedroom.

After recovering, Hyuga Soji visited the Clan Head’s residence with Hyuga Kumokawa and learned more about the Hyuga Clan’s Main House and Branch House divide. Meeting Hyuga Hiashi and Hizashi Hyuga, he resolved to break the system or leave no descendants, while the clan’s leaders remained in council.

• Hyuga Kumokawa urged Hyuga Soji to train carefully, then took him to visit the Clan Head after breakfast.
• At the council meeting, the Clan Head welcomed Soji’s recovery and gave him a century-old blood ginseng.
• The Clan Head sent Soji to the courtyard to meet Hyuga Hiashi while the Main House members discussed clan matters.
• Seeing Hizashi Hyuga’s Caged Bird Seal, Soji reflected on the brothers’ unequal fates and resolved to break the Main House and Branch House rules or have no descendants.
• Hyuga Hiashi greeted Soji and mentioned that his father had intensified his training, while Hizashi Hyuga asked after Soji’s recovery.

As Konoha prepared for another Ninja World War, the Hyuga Main House elders debated how to mobilize the clan and settled on sending Main House fighters later while prioritizing volunteers. Meanwhile, Soji learned about the Ninja Academy and watched Hiashi and Hizashi prepare to spar with the Byakugan and Gentle Fist.

• Soji learned from Hiashi that the Ninja Academy was on break and that the brothers had stayed home because their father had restricted them from going out.
• Hyuga Ryusuke convened the Main House elders to discuss Konoha's war-preparation orders, and they agreed to draw fighters proportionally while delaying Main House members' entry into battle.
• Hyuga Kumokawa proposed giving priority to any clan member who volunteered for the battlefield, and the elders accepted his suggestion before planning to inform the Branch House representatives.
• Soji asked Hiashi and Hizashi about the Ninja Academy's rules and learned that he would enroll next year as they prepared to graduate.
• Hiashi agreed to let Soji join their training, and he and Hizashi activated their Byakugan and assumed the Gentle Fist stance for a sparring match.

Hiashi defeated Hizashi in a fierce Gentle Fist spar after Hizashi finally fought seriously, though Hizashi nearly disabled Hiashi’s right hand. Soji then revealed that he had awakened his Byakugan at age five and asked to spar with the brothers, leaving them stunned by his early ability.

• Hiashi pressed Hizashi to stop holding back, and Hizashi began fighting with greater determination.
• The brothers exchanged Gentle Fist strikes, with Hizashi targeting Hiashi’s right hand while Hiashi sealed acupoints across Hizashi’s body.
• Hiashi won by sealing sixteen of Hizashi’s acupoints before Hizashi sealed fifteen of his, though Hizashi had nearly crippled Hiashi’s right hand.
• Hiashi praised Hizashi’s fighting spirit and asked Soji whether he had followed their Gentle Fist techniques.
• Soji requested a spar and revealed his Byakugan, shocking Hiashi and Hizashi because he had awakened it at only five years old.
• Soji explained that he had awakened the Byakugan shortly before fainting and reflected that he would need far greater strength to survive the dangers ahead.

Soji sparred with Hizashi and used surprise attacks to overcome Hizashi’s initial restraint, revealing his skill with the Gentle Fist—Eight Trigrams Sixteen Palms. Although Hizashi technically won by striking more of Soji’s acupoints, both Hizashi and Hiashi refused to train with Soji again and urged him to seek an elder’s instruction.

• Soji asked Hizashi to instruct him in a spar, and Hizashi agreed while secretly planning to go easy on the five-year-old.
• Soji exploited Hizashi’s defensive stance, knocked him off balance, and forced him to block a powerful kick before Hizashi took the match seriously.
• Soji revealed that he could perform the Gentle Fist—Eight Trigrams Sixteen Palms, astonishing Hizashi and Hiashi.
• Soji mixed kicks, elbows, and a headbutt into their exchange, but Hizashi won after striking sixteen of Soji’s acupoints compared with Soji’s nine.
• Hizashi complained that he never wanted to spar with Soji again, and Hiashi told Soji to seek special training from a clan elder.

Hyuga Soji learned that Hizashi faced punishment under the Hyuga Clan’s rules for defeating a Main House member, and he challenged the fairness of the Caged Bird system. As Clan Head Hyuga Ryusuke waited to hear Soji’s response, Soji came up with a plan to undermine the rules.

• Hyuga Ryusuke and Hyuga Kumokawa discussed Soji’s unorthodox fighting methods and Hizashi’s talent after watching their match.
• Hyuga Ryusuke reminded Hizashi that he had violated the rule against a Branch House member defeating someone from the Main House, and Hizashi knelt to accept punishment.
• Hiashi knelt beside Hizashi and pleaded with their father to punish him instead, while Hizashi insisted he alone was responsible.
• Hyuga Kumokawa explained the Caged Bird’s past punishments to Soji, who was shocked that the clan expected Branch House members to lose to the Main House.
• Soji called the rule unfair, but Ryusuke challenged him to reject generations of Hyuga tradition, leaving Soji searching for another way to save Hizashi.
• Soji realized he could undermine the rules rather than argue against them.

Soji avoided Hizashi’s punishment by asking that the Main House not interfere the next time he requested a spar, while Clan Head Hyuga Ryusuke recognized Soji’s unusual regard for the Branch House and planned to present him as a Main House genius. The chapter ended with Ryusuke asking Soji to protect Hiashi and Hizashi if they faced mortal danger, as Soji’s grandfather began correcting his fighting methods.

• Soji persuaded Hyuga Ryusuke to let him choose Hizashi’s punishment, then asked that no Main House member interfere with his next request to spar with Hizashi.
• Hyuga Ryusuke told Hyuga Kumokawa that he valued Soji’s talent and his equal treatment of Branch House members, and asked to present him as the Hyuga Clan’s Main House genius.
• Soji apologized to Hizashi, who thanked him for preventing the Caged Bird Curse Mark’s activation; Soji then privately told Hizashi that he had noticed him holding back against Hiashi.
• Hiashi and Hizashi discussed their strained trust and agreed that Soji was different from other Main House members and worth knowing better.
• Hyuga Ryusuke asked Soji to help Hiashi and Hizashi if their lives were ever in danger, and Soji and Hyuga Kumokawa solemnly agreed.
• On the way home, Hyuga Kumokawa declared that Soji would train instead of resting and began correcting his fighting methods.

After a year of intensive training, Hyuga Soji prepared to enter the Ninja Academy while carrying the clan’s reputation as its new-generation genius. He ended the night by heading to bed before his first day at school.

• Hyuga Soji increased his Byakugan’s range, learned the Thirty-Two Palms and other techniques, and trained regularly with Hiashi and Hizashi.
• Hyuga Kumokawa taught Soji the Caged Bird Seal’s activation incantation but warned him never to use it without special circumstances.
• Soji explained that he had chosen the Ninja Academy to gain theoretical knowledge, meet people, and fight more ninja.
• Soji recalled how the Clan Head and Kumokawa had spread his reputation as a genius, bringing him challengers and access to clan resources.
• After sparring with Kumokawa, Soji went to bed to prepare for his first day at the academy.

Hyuga Soji began his first day at the Ninja Academy and met Minato Namikaze, who welcomed him into a group of future clan leaders and classmates. The Uchiha students arrived just before the children entered the school, led by an arrogant boy named Homura.

• Hyuga Kumokawa escorted Soji to the Academy, warned him to stay put after school, and left for his clan duties.
• Minato Namikaze introduced himself to Soji and invited him to meet the other children.
• Soji met classmates including Inoichi Yamanaka, Choza Akimichi, and Shikaku Nara, then joined their conversation.
• A group of Uchiha arrived at the Academy with Homura, whom a clan member left in the teachers' care.
• Homura entered the school ahead of the other students, and the teachers led the children toward their classrooms.

On his first day at the Ninja Academy, Hyuga Soji befriended Minato Namikaze and learned that his Chakra natures were Water Release and Wind Release. Uchiha Homura declared his clan’s ambition to claim the Fourth Hokage position, leaving Soji and Minato to consider the future rivalry.

• Soji found that Homura’s arrogant arrival made his classmates friendlier toward him, and he sat beside Minato while Homura sat alone.
• Minato agreed to make friends with Homura, then helped Soji realize he had been keeping others at a distance; Soji sincerely thanked Minato and asked him to call him Soji.
• During introductions, Homura said the Uchiha Clan’s dream was for the Fourth Hokage to come from their clan, and the teacher tried to soften his declaration.
• Minato noted that Homura could become a future competitor for Hokage, while Soji said he had no desire to become Hokage because he did not want to spend his days handling paperwork.
• Soji took the Chakra nature test and learned that he had Water Release and Wind Release Chakra.

On his first day at the Ninja Academy, Hyuga Soji studied theory and met Uchiha Homura, who provoked him and challenged him on behalf of the Uchiha Clan. Homura secretly decided Soji was worth defeating, while Soji went home with his grandfather after class.

• Minato Namikaze approached Uchiha Homura after class, and later told Soji they had gotten to know each other a little.
• Soji and the other students listened seriously to their theory lessons before Soji rested beneath a tree with Minato at lunch.
• Uchiha Homura approached Soji, insulted his appearance, and challenged him to a future fight on behalf of the Uchiha Clan.
• Minato stepped between Soji and Homura, and Homura privately judged Soji worthy of defeating after seeing his composure.
• Soji went home with Hyuga Kumokawa after the afternoon lessons, while one Uchiha clansman came to pick up Homura.

Hyuga Soji and his classmates began their first practical training class, throwing Kunai and Shuriken. Uchiha Homura scored highly and challenged Soji to match him, leaving Soji called up next as the class prepared to compare their results.

• After nearly two months of lessons, the teacher began the first training class and explained that each student would throw ten Kunai and ten Shuriken.
• Uchiha Homura threw his Kunai with precision, scoring seven tens and three nines for a total of ninety-seven points.
• Uchiha Homura scored five tens, four nines, and an eight with his Shuriken after a final throw struck another Shuriken in the target.
• Uchiha Homura brushed off the class's applause while Soji teased him about his greedy final throw.
• The teacher called Hyuga Soji to the target immediately after Uchiha Homura, and Soji realized the class would compare their scores.

Hyuga Soji dominated the ninja tool throwing contest, then Minato Namikaze astonished the class by throwing kunai and shuriken simultaneously and aiming for perfect scores. The chapter ended with Minato’s final shuriken striking his kunai midair, and both tools fitting into the last gaps in their targets.

• Soji scored ninety-nine with kunai and ninety-eight with shuriken, surpassing Uchiha Homura and earning enthusiastic applause from his classmates.
• Homura accepted his loss and vowed to improve, while Shikaku Nara, Inoichi Yamanaka, and Choza Akimichi posted strong, closely matched scores.
• Minato asked to throw kunai and shuriken at the same time, then hit the bullseyes with three of each on his first two throws.
• Minato filled the shuriken target’s ten-point area with successive bullseyes, leaving the class and teacher stunned as he prepared his final throws.
• Minato’s final shuriken struck his kunai midair, and both tools lodged in the remaining gaps in their targets.

Minato Namikaze stunned the Ninja Academy with a perfect score, prompting his teacher to report his talent to Hiruzen Sarutobi. As Hiruzen and the council debated whether Minato should train with the Anbu or Root, Jiraiya arrived and offered to take him as a student.

• Minato Namikaze earned 200 points, placing first ahead of Hyuga Soji and Uchiha Homura in the training session.
• The teacher reported Minato's exceptional performance to Hiruzen Sarutobi while Hiruzen, Danzo, Utatane Koharu, and Mitokado Homura discussed the threat of war with Iwagakure.
• Danzo proposed training Minato in Root, but Hiruzen, Mitokado Homura, and Utatane Koharu favored the Anbu instead.
• Jiraiya entered the Hokage's office and offered to take Minato as his disciple if the boy met his requirements.

Jiraiya returned to Konoha and agreed to take Minato Namikaze as his disciple, while he and the Third Hokage learned that four great ninja villages were preparing to attack. The Third Hokage decided to begin the Second Ninja World War and defeat their enemies one by one, leaving Danzo to bear the blame as Jiraiya reluctantly accepted the need to protect Konoha.

• Jiraiya read Minato Namikaze's file and insisted that the promising student become his disciple.
• Teacher Kimura received an A-rank mission record for reporting Minato's talent to the Third Hokage.
• Jiraiya reported that Kumogakure had gathered elite ninja near the Land of Hot Water, while the Third Hokage said Sunagakure and Kirigakure were also mobilizing.
• The Third Hokage proposed starting the Second Ninja World War and defeating the enemy villages one by one, and Danzo volunteered to take the blame.
• Jiraiya told the Third Hokage that he understood the decision and would protect the people he cared about if war became unavoidable.

The Third Hokage and the elders chose Sunagakure and Kirigakure as Konoha’s surprise-attack targets, and decided to recall Orochimaru and Tsunade for intelligence. Jiraiya skipped the recall mission to enjoy himself, while Minato Namikaze’s talent became the talk of Konoha and Hyuga Soji welcomed the attention shifting away from him.

• Danzo proposed attacking Sunagakure first, and the Third Hokage and the elders agreed that it was the weakest village.
• Jiraiya argued that Konoha should also target Kirigakure because its isolation would prevent Iwagakure and Kumogakure from sending reinforcements.
• The Third Hokage approved Kirigakure as the second target and ordered Jiraiya to summon Orochimaru and Tsunade back from their intelligence missions.
• The Third Hokage discovered that Jiraiya had already left, then shouted after him when Mitokado Homura explained what happened.
• Jiraiya ignored the recall assignment and headed to the pleasure district, while Minato Namikaze’s academy talent spread throughout Konoha.
• Hyuga Soji accepted that Minato Namikaze had drawn public attention away from him and preferred to stay out of the spotlight.

Soji struggled with being surpassed by Minato and injured himself trying to master the Sixty-Four Palms ahead of schedule. Meanwhile, Jiraiya approached Minato, proved his identity, and took him away to begin training as his disciple.

• Hyuga Kumokawa checked that Soji was handling the attention Minato had received at school, and Soji reassured him.
• Soji tried to perform the Gentle Fist: Eight Trigrams Sixty-Four Palms, suffered chakra backlash, and resolved to beat Minato while he still could.
• Jiraiya stopped Minato on his way to school and tried to recruit him, but Minato grew wary and ran off.
• Jiraiya trapped Minato in a genjutsu, revealed himself by releasing it and summoning a toad, and convinced Minato he was the real Jiraiya.
• Jiraiya had the toad carry Minato out of the village, telling him he would teach him personally instead of going to school.

After two months of training with Jiraiya, Minato met Orochimaru, who tried to recruit him but was refused. Orochimaru warned that war would begin when Tsunade returned, and Jiraiya left Minato to prepare for it, sending him back to school.

• Jiraiya trained Minato for two months and taught him ninjutsu, theory, and skills beyond what most clan students knew.
• Orochimaru emerged near Minato and Jiraiya, inspected Minato, and offered to take him as a disciple, but Minato refused out of loyalty to Jiraiya.
• Orochimaru told Jiraiya that Tsunade would return soon and that the old man had said to prepare for war.
• Jiraiya reassured Minato that adults would handle the war, and Minato promised to grow stronger so he could help the village.
• Jiraiya took Minato back to Konoha, then left him a letter the next day explaining that he had to prepare for war and that Minato should return to school.