Chapter Summaries

Uchiha Shisui awakened the Mangekyō Sharingan after taking the Turning God Tree Fruit and escaping its illusion. Kagetsu explained that Shisui’s eyes would temporarily revert to the Three Tomoe, while Orochimaru learned the name of the skeletal Mangekyō technique.

• Uchiha Shisui sat up from the experimental table with his Mangekyō Sharingan awakened and manifested a translucent emerald-green skeleton.
• Kagetsu gave Shisui calming medicine, and Shisui regained his composure and respectfully addressed Orochimaru.
• Orochimaru examined Shisui’s eyes and judged that the Mangekyō might bring him close to Orochimaru’s own strength.
• Anko noticed Shisui’s eyes had reverted to the Three Tomoe, and Kagetsu explained that the regression was temporary.
• Orochimaru asked about Shisui’s skeletal technique, and Kagetsu identified it as Susanoo.

Shisui revealed the Mangekyo abilities Kotoamatsukami and Amenotokotachi to Orochimaru and Kagetsu, who warned him to keep them secret and avoid overusing them. After Shisui left with eye ointment, Anko demanded a way to grow stronger, and Kagetsu offered risky modifications and equipment.

• Shisui told Orochimaru and Kagetsu that his left eye used Kotoamatsukami to control a target secretly, while his right eye used Amenotokotachi to protect himself and his companions.
• Kagetsu and Orochimaru reassured Shisui that Kotoamatsukami could be countered and advised him to keep his eyes and techniques secret.
• Kagetsu gave Shisui eye ointment to ease the strain on his optic nerves and warned him not to use or test his Mangekyo until he had recovered.
• Anko grabbed Kagetsu and demanded to know how she could become stronger so she would not be left behind.
• Kagetsu offered Anko risky modifications and equipment, and she agreed.

Kagetsu helped Anko implant a portion of Matatabi’s Chakra, and she learned to use it to greatly enhance her Fire Release. After Anko celebrated by ruffling the Cat Matatabi’s head, Kagetsu took the cat toward the Laboratory.

• The Cat Matatabi declared that Anko was too foolish to master its power, but Anko insisted on trying again.
• Kagetsu explained that he had removed the Tailed Beast’s will from the Chakra, then grafted a seal-bearing piece of Matatabi’s skin onto Anko’s arm.
• Anko used Matatabi’s Chakra to amplify her Dragon Fire Technique and perform a precisely controlled series of explosive fire attacks.
• Anko excitedly patted Kagetsu and ruffled the Cat Matatabi’s head before fleeing with the Body Flicker Technique as it flared up in anger.
• Kagetsu headed to the Laboratory with the grudge-holding Cat Matatabi perched on his shoulder.

At a war council, Konoha prepared for a conflict as Iwagakure and the Mist Village threatened to enter the war. Orochimaru revealed a new strength-enhancing technique, and after the meeting Namikaze Minato asked him for a favor involving Kagetsu.

• Nara Shikaji reported that Iwagakure had allied with Sunagakure and predicted the Cloud Shinobi would lose if Iwa entered the fighting.
• Nara Shikaji warned that Iwa might turn against Konoha after defeating the Cloud Shinobi, while Sunagakure was too weakened to wage another war soon.
• Hiruzen Sarutobi ordered Konoha to begin comprehensive wartime preparations and mobilize its Shinobi.
• Hiruzen Sarutobi asked Orochimaru about the Technology Development Department, and Orochimaru said the Tailed Beast Sealing technique had been created and could enhance a Shinobi's strength.
• After the meeting, Namikaze Minato stopped Orochimaru and asked him and Kagetsu for a favor.

Kagetsu examined Kakashi's Chidori and explained why its speed and power left Kakashi vulnerable to counterattacks. He offered three ways to address the flaw and gave Namikaze Minato a scroll for Active Static Blood Armor so Kakashi could improve his battlefield survival.

• Namikaze Minato brought Kakashi Hatake, Uchiha Obito, and Nohara Rin to Kagetsu for help with Kakashi's new technique.
• Kakashi demonstrated Chidori, and Kagetsu explained that Kakashi's eyes and reactions could not keep up with his high-speed attacks.
• Kagetsu proposed three solutions: transplanting a Sharingan or Byakugan, combining Chidori with defensive or sensory techniques, or using technology and drugs to improve Kakashi's reactions.
• Kagetsu offered Active Static Blood Armor as a practical way to strengthen Kakashi's defense, while Minato chose that approach for him.
• Kagetsu gave Minato a scroll of Active Static Blood Armor and said anyone Minato approved could learn it.

Kagetsu met Shisui and the young Itachi, while Cat Matatabi showed its hostility toward Shisui. Back at the Uchiha grounds, Fugaku ordered Itachi to prepare for the war and explained his plan to strengthen the clan’s ties to Orochimaru; Kagetsu then rejected Shin’s latest experiment.

• Kagetsu introduced Cat Matatabi to Itachi after meeting Shisui, and Shisui left without saying what had been on his mind.
• Fugaku told Shisui and Itachi that the Uchiha would join the coming war and that Itachi would accompany him to witness the battlefield.
• Fugaku said the Uchiha needed to help Orochimaru earn enough merit to become Fourth Hokage, and he hoped Itachi could become Orochimaru’s disciple.
• Kagetsu examined Shin’s clone experiment and declared it unqualified, telling Shin to master the books he had been given.

Anko demonstrated the flame-controlling Kekkei Genkai she had awakened after mastering Matatabi’s power, and Kagetsu began assessing how it would affect her training. Shisui identified it as similar to an ability once called Flame Release by an Uchiha ancestor.

• Kagetsu told Shin he would ask Orochimaru Sensei what part of Shin’s body to claim after Shin wasted another opportunity.
• As war drew closer, Kagetsu continued his assigned work on Tailed Beast Sealing techniques and updated Anko’s physical data.
• Anko arrived with Shisui and showed Kagetsu that she had mastered Matatabi’s power, then demonstrated blue flames that exploded after she moved.
• Kagetsu recognized Anko’s ability as a Kekkei Genkai, while Shisui noticed that her Chakra felt different from before.
• Anko explained that she could shape flames and influence their temperature and destructive power, and Kagetsu asked to collect data for her next stage of experiments.
• Shisui compared Anko’s flame control to Flame Release described in Uchiha records and said it could rival Pakura’s Scorch Release.

Kagetsu tested Anko’s Fire Release resistance and prepared her for a risky modification that would give her High-Speed Regeneration. He explained the ability’s limits and Chakra cost, while Shisui worried about the experiment’s dangers.

• Kagetsu found that Anko could control only Fire Release powered by her own Chakra, though she could better withstand other people’s fire techniques.
• Kagetsu postponed the next modification and told Anko to develop her Kekkei Genkai and prepare her will for painful tests involving Genjutsu from a Kurama Clan Jonin or Shisui.
• Kagetsu explained that the next modification would let Anko rapidly heal wounds, and named the ability High-Speed Regeneration.
• Kagetsu said the ability could heal ordinary wounds but was less effective against fatal injuries and consumed more Chakra as wounds grew larger.
• Shisui asked whether the modification carried great risks, comparing its potential cost to the Mangekyō Sharingan’s toll on its users.

Kagetsu reassured Shisui about the risks of their work as they discussed signs that war was approaching, while Kakashi, Obito, and Rin trained Active Static Blood Armor with Namikaze Minato. At a Hokage meeting, Konoha's leaders learned that Iwagakure had joined the war against Kumogakure and that Kirigakure was preparing to infiltrate the Land of Fire.

• Kagetsu told Shisui he would not let Anko participate in a dangerous plan unless he was certain, and Shisui shared his concern about the coming war.
• Kakashi used Blut Arterie to amplify Chidori during a spar with Namikaze Minato, but Minato countered him and advised him to rely on Blut Vene Mode unless necessary.
• Rin said she had mastered Blut Vene Mode and offered to help Obito learn Active Static Blood Armor, while Obito and Kakashi bickered before Namikaze Minato treated the team to a meal.
• The Third Hokage presented intelligence showing that Iwagakure had entered the war and surrounded the battlefield between Sunagakure and Kumogakure.
• Nara Shikaji warned that Iwagakure's next target might be Konoha and reported that Kirigakure had sent the Seven Swordsmen to infiltrate the Land of Fire.

Kagetsu showed Yakushi Nonō a Healing Tag that sealed the Mystical Palm Technique and could treat wounds when activated. Nonō recognized its potential as a portable Medical Ninja, though the chapter left its cost and broader use unresolved.

• After the Jonin Meeting, the Jonin accepted their missions and left the village for the battlefield.
• Kagetsu asked Yakushi Nonō whether Medical Ninjutsu could be sealed into scrolls and distributed to ninja.
• Yakushi Nonō explained that creating such scrolls required specialized materials, Sealing Techniques, and skilled Medical Ninjas, making them too costly for widespread use.
• Kagetsu asked whether the cost could match an Exploding Tag, prompting Yakushi Nonō to realize he already had a finished product.
• Kagetsu gave Yakushi Nonō a bluish-green Healing Tag, and she activated it to confirm that it released the Mystical Palm Technique and healed the skin beneath it.

Yakushi Nonō presented Kagetsu’s Healing Tag to the Third Hokage, who approved buying them for Konoha’s war reserves. As the tags gained recognition, Kagetsu received a Yang Attribute Body Trait boost and began considering the effects of other Chakra attributes.

• Yakushi Nonō explained the Healing Tag’s capabilities and limits to the Third Hokage, who approved purchasing them at the price of Exploding Tags.
• The Medical Department and Technology Development Department began producing Healing Tags, which Konoha added to its war reserves and issued to Chunin and Jonin.
• Konoha ninja tested the tags, and their popularity drove their recognition ahead of Kagetsu’s other recent creations.
• The Healing Tag’s recognition reached 18,711, granting Kagetsu greater physical fitness, more Chakra, and Yang Attribute Body Trait +1.
• Kagetsu examined his improved condition, found that Yang-aligned Medical Ninjutsu had become easier to use, and thought about the other Chakra attributes.

Kagetsu considered how recognition might grant new traits and found that the Healing Tag’s Yang Attribute boost had eased the physical strain caused by his growing Yin Release Power. He reflected on the dangers of awakening Yin Release Kekkei Genkai too early and recalled explaining to Shisui why early Sharingan awakening did not necessarily indicate greater talent.

• Kagetsu wondered whether high recognition caused inventions to develop new traits, and considered testing whether other Chakra attributes would grant corresponding abilities.
• Kagetsu realized the Yang Attribute boost from the Healing Tag had temporarily relieved the strain of his rapidly increasing Yin Release Power.
• Kagetsu recalled that early awakening of Yin Release Kekkei Genkai could overburden the body and increase the risk of Kekkei Genkai Disease.
• Kagetsu recalled explaining to Shisui that early Sharingan awakening required greater mental stimulation and could leave lasting emotional scars.
• Shisui had accepted Kagetsu’s conclusions, supported by the Second Hokage’s research, over the Uchiha Clan’s teachings about early awakening.

Anko used water-based tactics to counter Shisui’s Sharingan during their spar, but Shisui outmaneuvered her with a Genjutsu that did not require eye contact. He left her trapped in a painful illusion, and Anko wondered whether his crow technique was a Yin Release construct.

• Anko avoided looking at Shisui’s eyes and flooded the field to use water as cover and broaden her vision.
• Anko attacked Shisui with a water snake, kunai, and a surprise strike, but his Sharingan let him evade her attacks.
• Shisui appeared to be caught by Anko’s Snake Binding, then transformed into crows and re-formed above her.
• Shisui explained that Genjutsu could be triggered through more than eye contact, then trapped Anko in an illusion of being bound and cut apart.
• Anko asked whether Shisui’s crow technique was a Yin Release construct.

Shisui used Yin Release-created crows to defeat Anko in another sparring match, while Kagetsu and Orochimaru recognized the power behind his technique. Shisui reflected on Orochimaru and Kagetsu’s lack of prejudice toward the Uchiha and imagined that their leadership, together with Itachi becoming Kagetsu’s disciple, could ease the clan’s conflict with the village.

• Shisui’s Yin Release crows dispersed Orochimaru’s snakes and left Anko unconscious, as Kagetsu’s treatment helped her recover from the mental strain of their sparring.
• Orochimaru praised Shisui’s growth and considered the research potential of his Mangekyō Sharingan alongside the First Hokage’s Wood Release.
• Shisui took Orochimaru’s praise as a sign that he viewed the Uchiha like other ninja clans rather than with prejudice.
• Shisui thought Orochimaru and Kagetsu could become successive Hokage and help integrate the Uchiha into the village.
• Shisui considered that Itachi becoming Kagetsu’s disciple might reduce the Uchiha clan’s resentment toward the village.

Kagetsu conducted an experiment to grant Anko the power of the Wood Release Kekkei Genkai, and she endured three days and nights of bodily transformation. On the fourth morning, Anko regained consciousness inside the Medical Pod and began striking its glass walls.

• Anko drank Kagetsu's bitter medicine and entered the Medical Pod as Kagetsu began the experiment.
• Kagetsu monitored Anko's condition while Orochimaru studied the experiment, and the first stage succeeded without a rejection reaction.
• Anko underwent the second stage of the transformation for three days and nights as Kagetsu and the others took shifts watching over her.
• On the morning of the fourth day, Anko woke up and instinctively pounded on the glass, setting off alarms throughout the Laboratory.

After Kagetsu’s experiment, Anko woke with an enormous appetite, then tested her enhanced abilities with Shisui and Kagetsu. Her strength, Chakra reserves, ninjutsu, and recovery had all improved, though she still needed time to control her new power.

• Shisui arrived at the barbecue restaurant and found Anko eating intensely while Kagetsu explained that the experiment had succeeded and she needed to replenish her body’s energy.
• Shisui paid for Anko’s meal with his saved mission money, and Kagetsu said her extreme hunger would likely last only a few days.
• Kagetsu took Anko to the forest, where she knocked down a thick tree with a punch without activating Blut Arterie.
• Anko used Water Release: Water Surge and produced a wave powerful enough to uproot rows of trees, while Shisui observed that her Chakra reserves and ninjutsu had increased.
• Kagetsu tested Anko’s rapid healing by cutting her arm with a Kunai, and the wound healed completely before long.
• Anko was satisfied with the enhancements, but she still needed time to adjust to her increased strength and control her force.

The Third Raikage A learned that Konoha’s Healing Tags were created by Nara Kagetsu and ordered Dodai to obtain the technology, potentially by sending an envoy to Konoha under the pretense of negotiating peace. In Konoha, Hiruzen Sarutobi received intelligence about the proposed envoy and agreed to receive Kumogakure, hoping to delay the war.

• The Third Raikage A examined a Konoha Healing Tag as Dodai explained its battlefield impact and identified Nara Kagetsu as its creator.
• Raikage A asked whether Kumogakure could abduct Nara Kagetsu, and Dodai said it would be difficult while Konoha was investigating spies.
• Raikage A proposed sending an elite squad to Konoha under the guise of forming an alliance, and Dodai agreed to pursue the plan to obtain either Kagetsu or the technology.
• An Intelligence Hawk delivered a report to Hiruzen Sarutobi stating that Kumogakure wanted to send an envoy to negotiate peace and form an alliance.
• Hiruzen Sarutobi asked Nara Shikaji whether the proposal was credible, then ordered Konoha to receive the envoy in hopes of delaying the war.

Rui led the Kumogakure Delegation into Konoha to deliver peace terms while Namikaze Minato received and escorted them. The first negotiation ended in a breakdown, with Rui smashing a table and leaving in anger.

• Namikaze Minato welcomed Rui and the Kumogakure Delegation, while Killer B irritated Rui by rapping about their meeting.
• Minato brought Rui to meet the Third Hokage, where Shimura Danzō mocked Kumogakure’s position and the Third Hokage accepted their peace document.
• After Rui and Minato left, the Third Hokage and Shimura Danzō read Kumogakure’s demanding terms; the Third Hokage chose to negotiate to buy time and pursue possible peace.
• The next day, Konoha’s advisers and Jonin argued with the Kumogakure Delegation over the terms, and Rui smashed a wooden table before storming out with his delegation.

Rui planned to use peace negotiations and a staged contest to distract Konoha while Monim and Lai stole a Healing Tag. Kagetsu and Orochimaru learned of the plot and decided to let the Cloud Shinobi take a sample of the Cursed Seal of Emptiness, with Orochimaru volunteering to leave Konoha for the contest.

• Rui reviewed Monim's intelligence about the Technology Development Department and ordered Monim and Lai to infiltrate it during a diversion.
• Rui planned to draw Konoha's forces to the border, propose a contest to settle the peace terms, and have Monim and Lai escape with the stolen item.
• Orochimaru, Shisui, and Kagetsu emerged from a hidden doorway after overhearing Kumogakure's plan.
• Kagetsu explained why Kumogakure could not yet mass-produce Healing Tags and suggested allowing the intruders to take a sample of the Cursed Seal of Emptiness.
• Orochimaru agreed to the plan and volunteered to be drawn away from Konoha so he could later study the Cursed Seal up close.

Rui and the Third Hokage agreed to settle disputed peace terms through a contest between Konoha and Kumogakure. Meanwhile, Cat Matatabi warned Kagetsu that Kumogakure planned to exploit stolen intelligence during the competition, and the chapter left the attack looming.

• Rui rejected Konoha's peace terms and openly used Killer B's presence to pressure the Konoha delegation.
• Rui proposed a contest to decide disputed treaty conditions, and the Third Hokage agreed to hold it with Land of Fire nobles as witnesses.
• News of the friendly sparring competition spread through Konoha, and the contest was scheduled for the following day.
• Cat Matatabi told Kagetsu that Kumogakure planned to act during the competition and had received information about vulnerabilities in the Technology Development Department's barrier and building blueprints.
• Kagetsu examined Cat Matatabi's Shadow Realm technique, which let her use shadows as a domain space and draw on her replenishing Chakra to sustain it.