Chapter Summaries

Uchiha Asuka explained Tsunade’s self-directed “Genjutsu: Preserve Capital” and headed to the Senju Clan Land after Hashirama summoned him. Hashirama asked where Asuka had found Shukaku, whom Tsunade had brought inside after catching him frying eggs at the gate.

• Uchiha Asuka told Ichikishimahime that Tsunade’s genjutsu was her belief that not losing at gambling counted as earning.
• Uchiha Asuka and Ichikishimahime passed the shabby Hyuga gate, and Asuka joked that wars and misfortunes had repeatedly prevented the clan from repairing it.
• Uchiha Asuka noticed fresh ashes outside the Senju Clan Land and guessed Shukaku had cooked breakfast there.
• Uchiha Asuka entered the Senju courtyard, where Hashirama explained that Tsunade had caught Shukaku frying eggs and asked where Asuka had found him.
• Uchiha Asuka answered Hashirama, “Found him!!”

Uchiha Asuka claimed he had picked up Shukaku, but Hashirama Senju connected the tailed beast to Madara and confronted Asuka with evidence from his own grave. Hashirama revealed that Madara had left fried chicken there as a gift, and Asuka realized Spiral Zetsu had recorded Madara’s name beside it.

• Hashirama asked Asuka where he had picked up Shukaku, and Asuka said he had found the tea-kettle-like beast on the road.
• Hashirama recalled Asuka bringing an unknown old man to an Uchiha gathering and suspected the old man had been Madara.
• Hashirama showed Asuka portraits of young and elderly Madara and pointed out that chicken bones from Uchiha Fried Chicken had been left in Hashirama’s coffin.
• Hashirama said he had identified Madara as the gift-giver after finding a carved account explaining the two buckets of fried chicken.
• Hashirama revealed that a later inscription named Madara as the donor, and Asuka concluded that Spiral Zetsu had foolishly signed the gift record.

Asuka and Hashirama discussed Shukaku’s history and the danger its presence posed for Konoha’s peace with Sunagakure. Shukaku recalled the Six Paths Sage’s apology and plea for the tailed beasts to restrain their hatred, but admitted that even trampling its enemies’ graves had not eased its anger.

• Asuka insisted that the Shukaku in his kettle could not be Sunagakure’s tailed beast, while Hashirama worried about the consequences of Konoha possessing another Shukaku.
• Hashirama explained that people once sought fame by defeating tailed beasts and described Shukaku’s reputation for tormenting enemy clans over generations.
• Shukaku defended itself by saying that Kurama was the grudge-holder and that it and the Three-Tails only wanted places to sleep.
• Hashirama recounted how the One-Tail’s curses and destructive displays drove nearby humans to despair, while Shukaku silently remembered its loneliness.
• Shukaku recalled the Six Paths Sage apologizing for humanity’s future cruelty and asking the tailed beasts to restrain their hatred.
• Shukaku muttered that suppressing hatred was difficult and said it remained angry even after trampling its enemies’ graves.

Hashirama Senju explained how humans and Tailed Beasts went from leaving each other alone to treating the beasts as weapons, and how Konoha came to capture and distribute them. He left Asuka with the revelation that the Uchiha’s interest in the Tailed Beasts helped prompt Tobirama’s decision to give them to other villages.

• Hashirama Senju explained that the Senju, Uchiha, and Uzumaki clans had each been able to suppress or control Tailed Beasts in different ways.
• Hashirama Senju said humans began using Tailed Beasts as weapons, which led the beasts to retaliate against humans.
• Hashirama Senju recalled that Tobirama took him to capture Tailed Beasts after Madara attacked Konoha with the Nine-Tails.
• Hashirama Senju said Tobirama regretted bringing the beasts to Konoha and planned to have them sealed while he studied them.
• Hashirama Senju revealed that Tobirama chose to distribute the Tailed Beasts after Uchiha clansmen kept visiting them.
• Hashirama Senju said he had wanted to give the beasts to the other villages for free to discourage wars and create lasting peace.

Hashirama recalled how he and Madara became friends and founded Konoha to protect their younger brothers, then discussed Madara’s departure with Asuka. Asuka questioned why Hashirama had not found a way for the Uchiha to become Hokage, leaving Hashirama wondering whether he had died too early.

• Hashirama told Asuka about the clan wars that killed his younger brothers and how he first met Madara by a river.
• Hashirama explained that he and Madara founded the village to protect their younger brothers, though their clans’ expectations eventually drove them apart.
• Asuka reasoned that Izuna had likely sacrificed his life so Madara could gain new eyes and lead the Uchiha.
• Hashirama said Madara left because he believed the Uchiha would never hold the Hokage position, and because Hashirama would choose Tobirama over him.
• Asuka asked whether Hashirama had tried to solve the Uchiha’s exclusion from the Hokage position, and Hashirama wondered if he had died too early.

Asuka questioned Hashirama about the Uchiha Clan’s exclusion, and Hashirama explained that he had hoped to outlast those hostile to them and eventually let an Uchiha become Hokage. After Asuka confirmed that Madara had saved the village from the Nine-Tails, Hashirama reflected on their founding of Konoha.

• Asuka challenged Hashirama’s claim that he had died too early, and Hashirama described how villagers treated Uchiha clansmen with suspicion.
• Hashirama explained that he had urged Tobirama to include the Uchiha, while Tobirama created the Police Force and accepted Kagami Uchiha.
• Hashirama told Asuka that he had planned to outlive those who opposed the Uchiha and then consider letting an Uchiha become Hokage.
• Asuka confirmed that Madara had saved the village from the Nine-Tails, and Hashirama rejoiced that Madara had protected the village they built together.
• Hashirama remembered founding Konoha with Madara and naming it Konoha Ninja Village.

Danzo urged Itachi to spread the truth about Uchiha Madara to test the Uchiha Clan’s attitude, then gave him a photograph seemingly showing Fugaku with another woman. Itachi hurried home with the picture, while Danzo continued plotting against the Uchiha.

• Danzo corrected a mother’s account of Konoha’s history and warned Itachi that villagers might turn Hashirama and Madara’s bond into a love story.
• Danzo told Itachi to share everything Madara had done without changing the facts, hoping to test Itachi’s obedience and the Uchiha Clan’s regard for Madara.
• Danzo handed Itachi a photograph that appeared to show Fugaku sitting with a woman and claimed it had been accidentally taken at a blind date meeting.
• Itachi thanked Danzo and rushed toward the Uchiha grounds to handle the photograph privately.
• Danzo wondered whether the woman might comfort Fugaku, then thought about infiltrating the Uchiha Clan and praised the name Izanagi.

Uchiha Asuka discussed Uchiha Madara’s return to Konoha with Hashirama Senju, who wanted to know whether Madara had come back to mock the village. Asuka admitted that Madara had, leaving Hashirama discouraged by the village’s wars and failures to protect its children.

• Uchiha Asuka joked that the Uchiha Clan’s leaders had repeatedly betrayed one another and asked Hashirama Senju whether the Pure Land was bright.
• Hashirama Senju asked Asuka whether Madara would harm Konoha in the future, and Asuka said Madara probably would not act against the village.
• Hashirama asked why Madara had returned to Konoha near the end of his life, and Asuka claimed he had come to see the village because he believed Hashirama would lead it toward a bright future.
• Hashirama wondered whether Madara had returned to laugh at his failed dream of peace, and Asuka confirmed that Madara had mocked Konoha’s growing wars and the deaths of children on the battlefield.
• Hashirama Senju lowered his head in disappointment as he considered Asuka’s account of the village’s future.

Hashirama asked Asuka whether founding the village had been a mistake, and Asuka proposed that Hashirama and Tobirama should have exchanged their roles. Hashirama guessed that Madara had pursued a dream through an agent, then provoked Asuka about Tsunade until Asuka stormed off toward the Hokage Building.

• Shukaku lit a dry leaf beneath a tree, and Hashirama told Asuka that Madara had come to Konoha to mock him.
• Hashirama asked whether founding the village had been wrong, and Asuka argued that Hashirama should have ruled first before Tobirama stabilized the village and later handed the Hokage position to an Uchiha.
• Hashirama reasoned that Madara must have pursued his dream for decades and found an agent to carry it out, but he changed the subject rather than question Asuka further.
• Hashirama confronted Asuka about drawing Tsunade's likeness, and Asuka blamed a childhood misunderstanding for their long-running conflict.
• Hashirama urged Asuka to study Medical Ninjutsu with Tsunade and taunted him about her talent, so Asuka left for the Hokage Building.

Uchiha Asuka received an Anbu recruitment mission from Tsunade and was named its chief examiner. After he teased Tsunade about her drinking and made her furious, she decided to give him troublesome, low-paying missions to earn money for her.

• Tsunade gave Uchiha Asuka a document describing an Anbu recruitment mission and explained that she wanted more civilian ninjas in the Anbu.
• Uchiha Asuka read that he had been appointed chief examiner and criticized Tsunade for calling herself “this old lady.”
• Uchiha Asuka mocked Tsunade about drinking and waking up to use the bathroom, then dodged her punch by switching places with a flowerpot.
• Tsunade told Shizune to select difficult, low-paying missions far from the village for Uchiha Asuka so he could make money for her.

Asuka searched for civilian ninja to recruit into the Anbu, but San He declined because he was getting married. Asuka then reached the Anbu headquarters and learned that its entrance had been placed near the Uchiha Clan Grounds to make surveillance and arrests easier.

• Asuka reviewed Tsunade’s requirements for recruiting two civilian ninja into the Anbu.
• Asuka approached San He and invited him to join, but San He declined because he was getting married.
• Asuka congratulated San He, gave him wedding money, and added more personal criteria to the recruitment scroll.
• Asuka entered the Anbu headquarters through a hidden door beside Konoha’s largest vegetable market.
• Anbu staff discussed how the entrance near the Uchiha Clan Grounds had been established to simplify surveillance, arrests, interrogations, sentencing, and imprisonment.

Uchiha Asuka received a mission to recruit civilian ninjas while Sarutobi Nanaka struggled with her husband’s affair and asked him about Uchiha families having two children. Asuka interviewed Might Guy, who explained that the Third Hokage and Danzo had rejected his earlier Anbu applications.

• Asuka learned that Nanaka was furious because her husband’s mistress was pregnant, then delivered Tsunade’s recruitment mission to her.
• Nanaka gave Asuka a scroll listing the village’s civilian ninjas and questioned him about why Uchiha families often had two children.
• Nanaka recalled Asuka’s advice that Uchiha Fugaku consider divorce and connected the Uchiha clan’s high birth rate to its political prospects.
• Asuka interviewed Might Guy, who said he wanted to join the Anbu to improve himself.
• Guy told Asuka that the Third Hokage had said his talents did not suit the Anbu, while Danzo had called his skills poor and his qualities low.

Asuka interviewed Guy and San Pang for Anbu positions, trying to discourage Guy while following recruitment procedures. After learning how much San Pang could donate to the Anbu, Asuka enthusiastically welcomed him back, leaving Guy to recognize San Pang’s advantage.

• Asuka reassured Guy that he was exceptional and told him the Anbu needed someone like him, while secretly hoping he would give up after seeing other candidates.
• Asuka reviewed the files and called in San Pang, a wealthy former Anbu member who had reapplied after Hashirama Senju’s resurrection reignited his Will of Fire.
• San Pang explained that he had left the Anbu because he could not get along with its poor members, though Asuka corrected him that he had been kicked out.
• San Pang said he could donate two years of Anbu operating funds, and Guy realized the money could reduce Kakashi’s missions.
• Asuka praised San Pang’s wealth and devotion to the village and asked him to return to the Anbu.

Uchiha Asuka interviewed a poet whose bizarre verses and life story left him and Might Guy bewildered. Guy took Asuka’s encouragement as a call to embrace youth, then kicked through a window and ran off, leaving Asuka to remember he had meant to take him on a mission.

• Uchiha Asuka asked the poet to recite a poem, and the man performed his masterpiece, “Leather Coat.”
• Might Guy praised the poem, and Uchiha Asuka interpreted its meaning before asking what the poet could contribute to the Anbu.
• The poet revealed that his mother had sent him to a big city with money, where he gathered intelligence among women, and said he had returned after sensing that Hokage-sama had been resurrected.
• Might Guy realized the Anbu had many capable people, while Uchiha Asuka encouraged him by asking what youth was.
• Guy opened the Gate of Limit and kicked through a nearby window, and Uchiha Asuka recalled that he had planned to take Guy on a mission.

Uchiha Asuka complained about his lack of missions and read a gossip magazine that suggested Uchiha Fugaku had spent the night with a woman. The article’s description of the woman made Asuka and Fei Fei suspect it was implying Fugaku sought advice from someone like Uchiha Mikoto, leaving Asuka to wonder what the rumor meant.

• Asuka told Fei Fei that his Anbu record was poor and that Tsunade had only assigned him to screen recruits, not promoted him.
• Asuka and Fei Fei speculated about the dangerous fates of Hokage assistants and Sarutobi Shinnosuke.
• A breeze flipped through Asuka’s magazine to a photograph of Uchiha Fugaku with an unfamiliar woman and a headline claiming they had spent seven hours together.
• Fei Fei read the article’s hints that Fugaku wanted to conquer the path to becoming Hokage, while Asuka doubted Fugaku had the ambition described.
• Fei Fei said Uchiha Mikoto had become irritable and stopped cooking, and Asuka realized the article’s flattering description of the woman resembled how Mikoto used to be.

Uchiha Fugaku’s family confronted rumors that he had a mistress after a magazine published a photograph of him with a woman. The argument ended with Fugaku leaving, while Mikoto’s thoughts turned toward Uchiha Asuka and a looming confrontation.

• Uchiha Asuka arrived at Fugaku’s home and heard villagers claim that Fugaku had a mistress, with Itachi’s bathroom remarks offered as supposed proof.
• The onlookers connected the woman in the magazine photograph to Asuka’s earlier recommendation of her as Fugaku’s secretary, and Asuka admitted he had arranged it.
• Inside the home, Mikoto demanded an explanation from Fugaku and asked Itachi to judge the photograph, while Itachi tried to reassure her that nothing had happened.
• Mikoto rejected Itachi’s defense, and Fugaku insisted the photograph was misleading before preparing to leave without dinner.
• Mikoto threw a plate at Fugaku as he walked out, then resolved that she might have to perish together with Asuka.

Asuka learned that the White Snake Sage had prophesied future turmoil and a profound bond between the Uchiha and Ryūchi Cave. Ichikishimahime explained that the Sage had sent her to visit the Uchiha, leaving Asuka unimpressed by the prophecy.

• Asuka and Ichikishimahime argued over instant noodles and what to eat for breakfast.
• Ichikishimahime told Asuka that the White Snake Sage had awakened from hibernation and made a prophecy.
• Asuka asked whether the prophecy concerned the Child of Prophecy, and Ichikishimahime said it described future turmoil and an enemy with power equal to the Child of Prophecy.
• Ichikishimahime revealed that the White Snake Sage believed the Uchiha and Ryūchi Cave shared a deep bond and had sent her to visit the clan.
• Ichikishimahime said she had seen Uchiha Mikoto scratch the Uchiha Clan Head, and Asuka dismissed the White Snake Sage's prophecy as useless.

Asuka advised Uchiha Saburo to create a bigger scandal to distract the clan from rumors about Fugaku, then learned that Tsunade had sent Anbu to recruit him for an escort mission. The mission’s danger remained unclear as Asuka warned the group to prepare for trouble.

• Anbu arrived at the Uchiha Clan Grounds, where clansmen were gossiping about Fugaku and the rumors that he and Mikoto were living separately.
• At Asuka’s home, Uchiha Saburo worried that the gossip was damaging the clan’s stability, and Asuka suggested creating a larger scandal to bury it.
• Asuka proposed outrageous stunts for Saburo to perform, then suggested Danzo might be behind the fast-spreading rumors.
• Saburo decided to return later to discuss creating major news with Asuka and left to handle the clan’s unrest.
• The Anbu told Asuka that Tsunade had sent them to request his help after Kakashi became unavailable.
• Asuka learned the mission was to escort an important person and warned the Anbu that protection missions could be dangerous.

Asuka learned that the system could not have helped him save the Uchiha Clan because he could not defeat Uchiha Itachi before the massacre, then received a mission to earn the villagers’ respect. He considered the mission’s Bonds Scroll and mysterious ring but had not chosen how to use either reward.

• Asuka accepted a village-assigned mission from a group of shinobi and agreed to meet them at the village entrance the next morning.
• Asuka asked the system why it had not helped him defeat Uchiha Itachi before the Night of the Clan Massacre, and the system explained that Itachi had been too strong then.
• Asuka checked the date and found it was still three days after the Night of the Clan Massacre.
• Asuka read a new mission requiring him to earn villagers’ recognition after they mistreated him, with rewards including Sharingan progress, a Bonds Scroll, and a special ring.
• Asuka read that the Bonds Scroll could create a good or bad bond with a person or object and rejected the idea of using it on Kaguya Otsutsuki.

The Great Elder urged Asuka to resurrect Kushina, hoping her account would expose the mastermind behind the Nine-Tails incident and divert attention from the clan’s rumors. He left resolved to accept the consequences, convinced the culprit could not be a member of the Uchiha Clan.

• The Great Elder asked Asuka to create a major incident to bury the rumors about Fugaku and Mikoto, but Asuka suggested making the rumors true.
• The Great Elder rejected the suggestion and proposed that resurrecting Kushina could suppress the gossip and reveal the mastermind.
• Asuka asked whether the clan had identified the culprit or found a solution, and the Great Elder said it had done neither.
• The Great Elder invoked his father’s advice, “At worst, I die. Why think so much?”, and offered Asuka his Sharingan if needed.
• The Great Elder urged Asuka to resurrect Kushina, reasoning that no Uchiha Clan member could control the Nine-Tails.