Chapter Summaries

Yukina returned to confront the Iwa elites and searched for a scroll during the fight. Surrounded by attacks from every direction while airborne, she used Eight Trigrams Palm, Rotation.

• The Iwa captain saw Konoha’s signal and ordered the remaining Iwa elites to pursue Yukina.
• Yukina ambushed the group with an Exploding Tag and a powerful Eight Trigrams Vacuum Palm, but the captain escaped with the Substitution Technique.
• Yukina spotted a damaged Ninja Tool Pouch and a partially exposed scroll, then launched herself toward it.
• The Iwa elites struck Yukina with Wind, Fire, and Earth Release attacks, along with Kunai and Shuriken, while she was trapped in midair.
• Yukina spun Chakra into a blue dome with Eight Trigrams Palm, Rotation.

Yukina deflected the Iwa elites’ coordinated attack with Rotation, revealing that she was a Hyuga Main Family descendant. She used their desire to capture her as bait and prepared to fight them so she could keep them from leaving with information about the scroll.

• Yukina used Rotation to repel the eight Iwa elites’ attacks and land unharmed.
• The Iwa ninja recognized Rotation as a Main Family technique and decided to capture Yukina.
• Yukina realized she could not defeat all eight opponents with taijutsu alone, but chose to reveal her identity to keep them there.
• Yukina took a Gentle Fist stance as the Iwa elites readied themselves for battle.

Surrounded by Iwa elites, Yukina used her Byakugan and Gentle Fist to evade attacks from four directions and injure two opponents without using Rotation. As the rain began to pour and the Iwa fighters prepared to attack again, Yukina smiled.

• Yukina dodged a shuriken and wind blade, then caught a kunai and countered the Iwa elite attacking from her right.
• Yukina flung the kunai at the Iwa squad leader and struck toward the left-side attacker with Eight Trigrams Vacuum Palm.
• Yukina retreated from a descending sword strike after using her Byakugan to track the fighters’ movements and spot the Iwa elites blocking her escape routes.
• The Iwa squad leader was grazed by the thrown kunai, the right-side attacker’s arm was wounded, and Yukina avoided all four attacks without using Rotation.
• Rain began pouring as the Iwa fighters readied themselves for another assault, and Yukina smiled in her Gentle Fist stance.

Taki Chiba and Hirohiko arrived to rescue Yukina, who had returned despite severe injuries to hold off the Iwagakure Ninja. After Hirohiko caught her, the Iwagakure captain ordered his forces to prioritize killing Chiba.

• An Iwagakure sensory ninja detected an approaching enemy, but Taki Chiba struck him unconscious from behind before he could finish warning the others.
• Hirohiko arrived and caught Yukina as she collapsed, recognizing her grievous back wound and the blood on his hand.
• The Iwagakure Ninja recognized Chiba as Konoha's Little Monster, and Hirohiko realized Yukina had fought while badly injured to buy time.
• Chiba told Hirohiko to protect Yukina, then faced the Iwagakure forces as their captain ordered them to kill him at the first opportunity.

Chiba was surrounded by an Iwagakure squad inside his Rock Pillar Prison and evaded their coordinated attacks, but the chapter ended as the captain’s explosive-tagged kunai detonated beside him.

• Chiba appeared among the four Iwagakure ninja and trapped them inside a Rock Pillar Prison.
• The Iwagakure captain ordered an attack, and the squad launched shuriken, blade strikes, and an Earth Spear at Chiba.
• Chiba leapt over the first attacks, but the Earth Spear caught him in midair.
• A Shadow Clone pulled Chiba aside, letting him evade the Earth Spear while the attack tore his clothing.
• The Iwagakure captain threw explosive-tagged kunai at Chiba, and they detonated against his shoulder and waist.

Chiba survived the Iwagakure leader’s explosive trap with the Rock Hardening Technique and counterattacked with powerful Earth Release techniques. He trapped three Iwagakure elites in a stone hand and began another jutsu to crush them.

• The Iwagakure leader believed his Exploding Tags had killed Chiba and imagined capturing the Sharingan and Byakugan for Iwa.
• The blast smoke cleared to reveal Chiba protected by the Rock Hardening Technique, shocking the four Iwagakure elites.
• Chiba used a wire-tied Kunai to reach the earthen wall, then transformed it into a giant stone fist that struck at the Iwagakure Ninja below.
• As three Iwagakure elites leaped toward him with weapons, Chiba formed a stone hand from the wall and seized them in its grip.
• Chiba sprang beyond the Rock Pillar Prison and used Earth Flow River, intending to crush the trapped elites.

Chiba tricked the Iwa elites into entering the Rock Pillar Prison and crushed them with Earth Style: Earth Flow River. After defeating them, he began treating Yukina’s serious injuries while Hirohiko kept watch.

• Two Iwa elites threw a teammate upward to escape the Rock Pillar Prison, but Chiba trapped him between closing stone walls.
• Chiba crushed every Iwa elite inside the prison, then shattered the rock ball surrounding them.
• Hirohiko called Chiba over after finding Yukina badly injured by burns and a kunai wound.
• Chiba removed the kunai and used Medical Ninjutsu to treat Yukina while Hirohiko searched the area and kept watch.
• Hirohiko reflected on Chiba’s growth and wondered whether he still lagged behind him.

After healing Yukina, Chiba worried that Iwa had not responded to the battle and wondered what had happened to its encirclement command. He then examined the recovered plan scroll and revealed that it was sealed, leaving Yukina surprised that she had missed the Sealing Jutsu.

• Chiba healed Yukina's burns and reflected on her strength after she survived an attack by fifteen people.
• Chiba and Hirohiko noticed that no Iwa patrol had come to investigate or provide support, leaving Chiba puzzled.
• Yukina woke, apologized for losing the plan, and struggled to hold back tears while Chiba awkwardly tried to reassure her.
• Chiba found another scroll and asked Yukina how many times she had opened it; she said she had opened it five times.
• Chiba formed a hand seal and revealed Sealing Jutsu on the scroll, surprising Yukina.

Chiba explained that the plan scroll’s seal showed it had not been read by the Iwa shinobi, and reassured Yukina that losing it would not ruin their mission. After Yukina accepted his comfort, Chiba and Hirohiko decided to retreat to their temporary base while staying alert for a possible ambush.

• Chiba explained that the scroll’s Sealing Lock showed it had been opened six times and that its plans had not been leaked.
• Chiba reassured Yukina that the scroll’s loss would not compromise their mission, and Yukina took it back without blaming herself.
• Hirohiko joined Chiba and Yukina and asked what they should do next.
• Chiba decided they should retreat because he had used much of his Chakra, Yukina was injured, and Iwa reinforcements had not arrived.
• Chiba told Yukina to keep her Byakugan active in case enemies were waiting at the rendezvous point, and the three headed for their temporary base.

A Kumogakure commander learned that Taki Chiba’s group had rescued a Hyuga Main Family girl and tried to understand their moves. He ordered his forces to hold position, while a girl behind a wooden wall offered to act and was asked to wait.

• The Kumogakure commander learned that eight elites and other troops had died after turning back to support the Hyuga girl.
• A scout reported that the girl had used the Hyuga Main Family’s Rotation, leading the commander to conclude that Konoha’s fighters had prioritized rescuing her over the Defense Map.
• The scout reported that Iwa’s reinforcements had been annihilated by Taki Chiba and that Taki Chiba’s group had returned to rest.
• The commander decided not to send more troops and ordered close surveillance, stronger defenses, and no rash action.
• A girl behind a wooden wall offered to act, but the commander asked her to wait, fearing her move would prompt Iwa to send more troops.

An Iwagakure commander examined a plan scroll recovered from Taki Chiba’s group and struggled to determine whether Chiba had planted it as a deception. After considering Kumogakure’s cautious stance, the commander concluded the scroll was genuine and ordered Iwa to hold position and strengthen its guard.

• An Iwa elite reported that the Hyuga princess had sent a distress signal after noticing the scroll was missing, and admitted he had escaped while Taki Chiba trapped the others.
• The short, plump Iwagakure commander questioned whether the elite’s escape and the scroll’s discovery were part of one of Taki Chiba’s schemes.
• The Iwa elite said his team had copied the scroll without changing it and returned it to its original place, while the commander weighed whether its plan was real or fake.
• A scout reported that eight Kumogakure elites had been killed and that Kumogakure had only strengthened its security.
• The commander decided Taki Chiba wanted to preserve the balance and concluded that the plan scroll was genuine.
• The commander ordered Iwa’s forces to imitate Kumogakure by holding their positions and strengthening their guard.

Chiba explained that the team would feint toward Kumogakure and break through Iwa’s encirclement to pursue the Defense Map and rescue the intelligence team. The three prepared for the dangerous mission, with Chiba convinced that success could end the war and change the future.

• Hirohiko asked why Chiba had let an Iwa ninja escape after knocking him from a tree, and Chiba explained that it would make the enemy suspicious of the scroll.
• Chiba said they would change their route and break through Iwa’s side while feinting toward Kumogakure, whose forces likely knew their plans and had strengthened their defenses.
• Hirohiko wondered why Chiba had kept the plan scroll and seemed to know it had been lost, but decided to trust him and the risks of the mission.
• Chiba and Hirohiko finished preparing the soup while Yukina kept watch from a tree, and Chiba called the team to eat.
• Chiba thought that obtaining the Defense Map could save the intelligence team, end the war, and prevent future tragedies.

Chiba, Hirohiko, and Yukina broke through Iwagakure’s defenses and entered the encirclement after discovering that both Iwagakure and Kumogakure appeared to be deliberately letting them pass. Once inside, they signaled the intelligence team, and Chiba suspected Kumogakure was hiding a larger plan.

• Chiba, Hirohiko, and Yukina used an ambush and explosive pellets to break through Iwagakure’s defenses.
• Chiba learned from his Shadow Clones that they had also passed through Kumogakure’s defenses with little resistance.
• Chiba concluded that both sides were allowing the group into the encirclement, though he suspected Kumogakure had a hidden motive.
• After entering the dim primeval forest, Chiba told Hirohiko and Yukina to signal the intelligence team.
• Hirohiko fired a signal launcher, and Chiba prepared for the danger ahead.

Kumogakure and Iwa prepared to pursue Taki Chiba’s group, each commander believing the shifting balance offered a chance to capture Konoha’s intelligence team and reclaim the Defense Map. Both sides sent their strongest squads after him, leaving the confrontation poised to begin.

• A Kumogakure scout reported that Taki Chiba’s group had entered the encirclement from Iwa’s side, and the burly commander ordered three squads to track them.
• The Kumogakure commander believed Taki Chiba would rendezvous with Konoha’s intelligence team and saw the moment as a chance to capture them and end the war.
• The Iwa scout asked whether Iwa would act, and the short, stout commander confirmed that they would pursue Taki Chiba’s group.
• The Iwa commander declared that the Defense Map would be reclaimed and ordered three elite squads to follow Taki Chiba without fighting Kumogakure.

Chiba explained that Kumogakure and Iwa had marked the rescue team, so splitting up would likely get all three of them killed. He chose to keep the group together and preserve the fragile balance between the villages, while Yukina and Hirohiko trusted his judgment.

• Hirohiko questioned whether it was safe for the three of them to stay together at the campsite.
• Yukina asked Chiba why they had abandoned the original plan to split up and send signals from separate locations.
• Chiba said Kumogakure and Iwa had marked them, making it safer to remain together with the intelligence team.
• Chiba explained that the rescue team offered all three sides an opportunity, and that unusual moves could cause the commanders to overreact and destroy the balance.
• Yukina tended the fire and Hirohiko took watch without questioning Chiba, who realized the Third Hokage had sent them because they trusted him unconditionally.

Kumogakure commander Yazuki Kaito and an Iwa commander each assessed Taki Chiba’s decision to keep his group together and ordered their forces to hold position. Iwa secretly possessed the group’s plan scroll, giving it an advantage as both sides waited for a chance to act.

• Yazuki Kaito interpreted Taki Chiba’s camp and signal as an attempt to provoke his pursuers, then ordered three teams to follow at a distance and wait for the group to rendezvous with Konoha’s intelligence unit.
• After questioning why Taki Chiba kept his team together, Yazuki Kaito struggled to understand his unpredictable strategy.
• At Iwa’s base, the short, stout commander compared Taki Chiba’s movements with the captured plan scroll and recognized them as Plan B.
• The Iwa commander ordered his forces to hold position, move if Kumogakure did, and deliver intelligence reports every hour or half hour.
• The Iwa commander remembered that seven elite Iwa shinobi had died to obtain the plan scroll and honored them as heroes.

Chiba weighed whether to delay the rendezvous with the intelligence team, but realized that waiting had given the Kumogakure and Iwa commanders time to calm their tracking squads. He decided that further delay was too dangerous, leaving the group facing a likely battle against a cautious force three times their size.

• Chiba woke beneath the forest canopy and confirmed that the traps around his group had not been disturbed.
• Chiba reasoned that the Kumogakure and Iwa tracking squads were nearby and praised their commanders for keeping their troops patient and disciplined.
• Chiba reflected on his own shortcomings as a commander while practicing a Water Release technique and considering whether to send the rendezvous signal.
• Chiba concluded that delaying could push the intelligence team toward despair, so they needed to begin the rendezvous soon.
• Chiba regretted waiting an extra day, realizing that his delay had calmed the tracking squads instead of making them more anxious.

Chiba resolved to lead Hirohiko and Yukina into a decisive fight after they fired a signal to regroup, and both Kumogakure and Iwa prepared to attack them as soon as they gathered. The chapter ended with the enemy commanders mobilizing for the coming battle over the Defense Map.

• Chiba saw Hirohiko and Yukina were awake and ready to support his decision to fight.
• Chiba ordered the remaining boar meat cooked before the team fired the signal, and he urged them not to hold back in the coming battle.
• Yazuki Kaito learned that the signal had been fired and ordered the tracking teams to attack when the trio regrouped, deciding to join them himself.
• Hiratsuka Shin ordered Iwa’s forces to attack when the trio regrouped, then gave a reconnaissance shinobi an additional instruction before watching smoke rise in the southwest.

Chiba, Hirohiko, and Yukina prepared to meet their intelligence team while tracking nearby Kumogakure and Iwagakure forces. When the enemy moved to intercept the team approaching from the northwest, Yukina spotted another intelligence team approaching from the southeast, and the enemy suddenly stopped.

• Chiba, Hirohiko, and Yukina extinguished their campfire and sent signals to the intelligence team.
• Yukina used her Byakugan to locate twelve Kumogakure Ninja northeast of them and twelve Iwagakure Ninja southwest of them.
• Chiba reviewed their battle plan, including meeting the intelligence team, splitting into pairs, and keeping Yukina apart from him.
• Yukina spotted their intelligence team approaching from the northwest as Kumogakure and Iwagakure forces charged toward it.
• Yukina discovered a second intelligence team approaching from the southeast and reported that the enemy had stopped moving.

Chiba recognized that the information team had sent out a Shadow Clone decoy to confuse Kumogakure and Iwa, and decided to head southeast to join the real team. As he explained how he identified the real group, he worried that something might still go wrong.

• Chiba realized the information team had created a Shadow Clone decoy, forcing Kumogakure and Iwa to hesitate over which team carried the Defense Map.
• Hirohiko and Yukina asked Chiba what to do, and he chose to head southeast toward the second information team.
• Chiba explained that the information team's goal was to assemble with them, making the first, more exposed team the likely decoy and the second team the real one.
• Chiba, Hirohiko, and Yukina hurried through the forest toward the second team, while Chiba privately hoped nothing would go wrong.