Chapter Summaries

At a village celebration, Chiba struggled with worries about Nao’s strange illness and his promise to Hirohiko to treat her. Kakashi encouraged him to focus on the long work ahead, and Chiba joined the others as the gathering grew lively again.

• Chiba sat apart from the celebration, distracted despite holding freshly grilled food.
• Kakashi sat beside Chiba, and they acknowledged that Shiga had chosen to betray their comrades.
• Kakashi noticed Chiba watching Hirohiko and Nao, and Chiba explained that Nao’s strange illness had left her blind.
• Chiba admitted he did not know whether he could cure Nao, but promised to try to treat or stabilize her condition for Hirohiko’s sake.
• Kakashi reminded Chiba to eat and rest for the difficult treatment ahead, and Chiba began eating.
• Kakashi and Chiba rejoined the group, where everyone welcomed Chiba back to the celebration.

After the others left, Chiba began planning Nao’s treatment and asked her and Hirohiko to stay at his home so he could treat her more easily. Hirohiko agreed, and Nao accepted Chiba’s support before they left to pack and seek Tsunade’s diagnostic report.

• After the guests departed, Chiba asked for Tsunade’s diagnostic report and decided to examine Nao after resting.
• Hirohiko gave Chiba Tsunade’s prescription for the medicine she had prepared for Nao and said the hospital might have her diagnostic report.
• Chiba asked Nao and Hirohiko to stay at his home so he could treat Nao and train her more efficiently.
• Hirohiko agreed to move in with Nao, and Chiba reassured Nao that she was not a burden and asked her to treat him as a friend she could order around.
• Nao accepted Chiba’s offer, and she and Hirohiko left to pack and check the hospital for Tsunade’s report.
• After they left, Chiba began researching Tsunade’s medicine prescription.

Chiba studied Tsunade’s formulas and realized Nao’s severe illness required medicine merely to keep her alive. He planned further investigation into her condition and an intense training schedule, just as Hirohiko and Nao returned to the cabin.

• Chiba examined Nao’s daily medicine formula and recognized Tsunade’s skill in combining many herbs.
• He studied the medicine for severe illness and concluded that Nao’s condition was grave and the formulas were keeping her alive.
• Chiba resolved to obtain Tsunade’s diagnosis report or arrange a thorough hospital examination for Nao.
• He planned to study both medicines, improve Nao’s treatment, and train for the coming war and Kannabi Bridge Battle.
• Chiba wrote a schedule for training and Nao’s care, then Hirohiko and Nao entered the cabin carrying bags.

Chiba and Hirohiko expanded the cabin’s kitchen and shared dinner after settling in with Nao, who remained asleep because of her illness. Hirohiko gave Chiba Tsunade’s diagnosis report but asked him to wait until after dinner to read it, and they ended the evening imagining they would keep eating together.

• Chiba and Hirohiko finished enlarging and furnishing the cabin’s kitchen, using Hirohiko’s Wind Release to gather lumber and Chiba’s carpentry skills to build a wall cabinet.
• Chiba asked whether Nao should be woken for dinner, and Hirohiko explained that Tsunade had advised her to sleep more and move as little as possible.
• Chiba and Hirohiko reheated leftover grilled meat and vegetables and sat down to eat together.
• Hirohiko gave Chiba the diagnosis report Tsunade had written after examining Nao, then stopped him from opening it until after dinner.
• Chiba and Hirohiko ate in companionable silence and both thought that they would keep sharing meals from then on.

Chiba read Tsunade’s diagnosis and prescription for Nao, concluding that her illness and blindness might be treatable, though improving the medicine would be limited by Hirohiko’s finances. Chiba and Hirohiko went to sleep, with more work awaiting them the next day.

• Chiba concluded that Tsunade’s prescription was designed to restore Nao’s body, but better medicines were too scarce or costly for Hirohiko to afford.
• Chiba told Hirohiko that Nao’s condition might be treatable, including her blindness, though treatment and prescription improvements would take time.
• Hirohiko accepted Chiba’s answer without showing much emotion, and Chiba sensed that he did not want to pressure him.
• Chiba noticed that Hirohiko was reviewing an advance copy of Ninja Chronicle in exchange for payment equal to a D-rank mission reward.
• Chiba and Hirohiko put away their books, prepared their bedding, and went to sleep after wishing each other good night.

Chiaki reflected on growing up during the conflicts between the ninja villages and reassured Hirohiko that the missing Chiaki had survived the Amaterasu flames. The two set aside their worries and went to sleep, believing she would return someday.

• Chiaki remembered how Hirohiko had cared for him in the hospital and considered how war had forced children to mature early.
• Hirohiko asked Chiaki whether the missing Chiaki could have survived the Amaterasu flames and explosion.
• Chiaki argued that Chiaki was exceptionally gifted and must have awakened an unknown power to escape the flames.
• Chiaki told Hirohiko he believed Chiaki was alive and would be able to survive any danger.
• Hirohiko's worry eased, and the two agreed to sleep because they had much to do the next day.

Chiba discovered that his stamina and strength had increased again after recovering from near-death, leaving him uneasy about the unexplained change and its possible cost. He resumed his training, but Yukina came out and reacted in shock to the damaged cabin.

• Chiba completed three thousand punches while wearing Weighted Training Gear and broke the wooden post.
• Chiba wondered whether his post-recovery strength increases came with a hidden price, rejecting the idea that he had Saiyan blood.
• Chiba decided to continue his training and raised the base count for his remaining taijutsu exercises to three thousand.
• Chiba began practicing side kicks on another post as Yukina opened the cabin's back door and asked what had happened to the house.

Yukina returned to find Hirohiko repairing the cabin and Nao staying there, while Chiba struggled to explain the changes. The two women introduced themselves and exchanged polite greetings, leaving Chiba confused and Hirohiko exasperated.

• Yukina confronted Chiba about Hirohiko repairing the cabin, the changed kitchen, and the extra bedding.
• Hirohiko apologized for staying without permission and called Yukina the lady of the house, making her blush.
• Nao appeared at the window, recognized Yukina from the hospital, and introduced herself as Hirohiko's girlfriend.
• Yukina and Nao exchanged names and courteous greetings while Chiba watched, unable to understand their interaction.
• Hirohiko covered his face in despair at Chiba's continued confusion.

Yukina and Nao agreed to share a room and planned to go shopping together, while Chiba trained and Hirohiko finished repairing the house. The four of them prepared to live together, and Chiba resolved to grow stronger and find a way to treat Nao’s Chakra disorder.

• Yukina understood that Nao and Hirohiko had moved in so Chiba could treat Nao more easily, and she offered to share her former room with Nao.
• Nao and Yukina agreed that neither had any objections to living together, and Yukina invited Nao to go clothes shopping as friends.
• Chiba continued kicking a wooden post and noticed that his body had grown stronger and tougher, then resolved to test its limits.
• Chiba considered how Yukina’s Byakugan might help uncover the cause of Nao’s Chakra disorder and decided to work harder to ease Hirohiko’s burden.
• Hirohiko finished repairing the roof and chimney, then watched Chiba train and heard Yukina and Nao laughing as he looked forward to the four of them living together.

After completing an exhausting training session, Chiba discovered that his strength and stamina had greatly increased. He received Kushina’s message to meet atop the Hokage Rock Faces the next morning, then realized Yukina was cooking hot pot again.

• Chiba finished thousands of repetitions of four exercises and recognized that his physical strength and stamina had improved dramatically.
• Chiba found Kushina’s note summoning everyone to gather atop the Hokage Rock Faces at eight the next morning.
• Chiba told Hirohiko about the gathering, and Hirohiko reacted nervously to the prospect of following Kushina’s mysterious plans.
• Yukina showed Chiba a scroll for Nao’s condition and invited him to dinner.
• Chiba learned that Yukina was making hot pot and reacted with dismay.

Chiba and Hirohiko survived Yukina’s poisonous hot pot, then Chiba examined Nao’s Chakra diagram and realized her condition was far more severe than he had thought. He decided to ask Yukina for another favor, though the chapter left his plan unstated.

• Chiba and Hirohiko collapsed after eating Yukina’s dark cuisine and lost consciousness.
• They woke in terror, refused Yukina’s offer of more food, and hurried out of the kitchen.
• Chiba told Hirohiko he would check Nao’s examination results and said a structural diagram would help with remodeling the bathroom.
• Chiba studied Yukina’s scroll and saw that Nao’s Chakra flow was impossibly chaotic and disordered.
• Chiba realized he had underestimated Nao’s condition and called to Yukina to ask for another favor.

Yukina and Hirohiko found Chiba still asleep after he stayed up researching Nao’s condition, and Yukina accidentally startled him when he woke while holding her foot. Chiba rushed to get ready after Hirohiko told him it was already 7:20, and Chiba warned Hirohiko to remember this.

• Yukina tried to wake Chiba for Teacher Kushina’s summons but let him sleep after Hirohiko said he had been researching late into the night.
• Chiba woke while holding Yukina’s bare foot, apologized, and watched her hurry upstairs in embarrassment.
• Hirohiko concluded that Chiba’s obliviousness made him a suitable match for Yukina.
• Hirohiko told Chiba it was already 7:20, and Chiba leaped out of bed and hurried to wash.
• Chiba shouted that Hirohiko had better remember this.

Chiba, Yukina, and Hirohiko left Nao safely asleep in their padded cabin and headed to meet Kushina at Hokage Rock Faces. A waiting ninja guided them through a concealed entrance, while reflecting that Chiba had grown considerably since his confinement three years earlier.

• Yukina finished childproofing the cabin for Nao, and Chiba, Yukina, and Hirohiko set off for their meeting.
• The three reached Hokage Rock Faces and prepared to climb after reading Kushina's instructions to gather there.
• A Chunin stopped them and said Kushina had asked him to show them a shortcut.
• The ninja gave them a sequence of directions and revealed a hidden opening in the cliff.
• Chiba, Yukina, and Hirohiko entered the passage, and the ninja concealed its entrance again.

Chiba, Hirohiko, and Yukina followed a concealed route through the high ground of the Hokage Rock Faces, navigating identical corridors by a precise sequence of turns. They emerged from the passage expecting to have reached safety, but the sight before them froze their relieved smiles.

• Chiba recognized the pipe-lined passage as a hidden route through the high ground toward the confinement cells.
• The ordinary-looking ninja guided Chiba, Hirohiko, and Yukina through the maze, warning them to follow the turns and red signals carefully.
• The three reached a brighter passage lined with iron doors, and Chiba realized they were near the confinement cells.
• Chiba wondered if Kushina had sent them through the passage to test their ability to withstand pressure.
• The three hurried toward a glowing exit and emerged with relief, but their smiles froze at what they saw.

Chiba, Yukina, and Hirohiko admired the view of Konoha from the Second Hokage's monument, where Yukina and Hirohiko recognized Chiba's usual sense of distance from the village. Chiba realized he had begun to see Konoha as home, and the chapter ended with him happily affirming that it was their village.

• Chiba, Yukina, and Hirohiko stepped out onto the Second Hokage's monument and gazed over Konoha.
• Yukina and Hirohiko said Chiba usually seemed like an outsider, but calling Konoha “our village” made him sound like he belonged.
• Chiba reflected that he had long treated Konoha as a place to protect rather than as his home, and wondered whether he had finally come to see it differently.
• Chiba denied that anything was unusual, and Yukina and Hirohiko firmly insisted that he was part of the village and their trusted companion.
• Chiba smiled and called Yukina and Hirohiko idiots, while they stared at his unusually joyful expression.

Chiba, Yukina, and Hirohiko searched Konoha from Hokage Rock while waiting for Kushina, and Chiba wrestled with whether he could still consider himself an outsider to the world and its people. Kushina arrived, and the three turned toward her in surprise.

• Yukina used her Byakugan to spot Kakashi, Obito, Rin, and several other acquaintances around the village while she and Hirohiko tried to find Kushina.
• Chiba reflected on how every person in this world had a life of their own and questioned whether he could still think of himself as a transmigrator.
• Chiba worried that he had been naive to believe he could change fates as easily as he hoped, but he reassured Yukina and Hirohiko that he was fine.
• Yukina told Hirohiko that Kakashi and Obito had abandoned their barbecue plans after checking their wallets and gone to Ichiraku Ramen instead.
• Kushina called out to Chiba, Yukina, and Hirohiko from behind them, and all three turned toward her with widened eyes.

Kushina brought an elderly photographer to take a class photo with Chiba, Hirohiko, and Yukina after their victory, then gave Chiba a new set of clothes. Chiba accepted the warm, soft garments, stunned by the gift.

• Kushina arrived carrying a black-cloth-covered object and the frightened old man, then singled out Chiba for his clothing.
• Kushina reminded Chiba, Hirohiko, and Yukina that they had earned a group photo by defeating her.
• Kushina introduced the old man as Grandpa Zang, a renowned village photographer whom she had persuaded to come out of retirement.
• Kushina gave Chiba snow-white clothes and told him to try them on, and he accepted them in surprise.

Chiba changed into a new white outfit for the group photo, stunning Yukina, Hirohiko, and Kushina with his appearance. Grandpa Zang prepared the camera and took the photograph, leaving the group startled by Kushina’s claim about his uncanny photography skills.

• Chiba reflected on how Yukina had repeatedly patched his old clothes and put on the new outfit she had given him.
• Kushina set up a camera while Grandpa Zang rose slowly and demonstrated an intimidating aura before he began gasping for breath.
• Chiba emerged in his white, flame-trimmed outfit, and Yukina, Hirohiko, and Kushina stared at his transformed appearance.
• Kushina called Chiba over, and the four of them gathered for a group photo with Grandpa Zang behind the camera.
• Kushina warned that Grandpa Zang’s photographs could catch even ghosts, and Grandpa Zang immediately pressed the shutter.

Chiba, Hirohiko, Yukina, and Kushina watched Grandpa Zang develop their class photo and discovered a purple hand and wisps of smoke peering into the frame. Kushina demanded a retake, leaving Grandpa Zang devastated.

• Grandpa Zang developed the photograph beneath the sunlight while Chiba, Hirohiko, Yukina, and Kushina watched nervously.
• Chiba, Hirohiko, and Yukina feared the photo might reveal a ghost, and Kushina wondered whether Jiraiya's story about Grandpa Zang's supernatural photographs had been true.
• The photograph showed a purple hand pinching pale purple wisps of smoke as though someone outside the frame were peering at them.
• Kushina shakily demanded that Grandpa Zang retake the photo, and he dropped his cane and stood speechless.

After resolving the strange photographs, Chiba, Hirohiko, and Yukina returned to the village and parted ways, with Chiba deciding to go back into town and spend some of his savings. The chapter left Hirohiko and Chiba scheming to keep Yukina from cooking while they planned to renovate the washroom.

• Kushina’s Tailed Beast Chakra helped her bring Grandpa Zang and the dismantled camera down, and the strange marks faded from the old photograph in sunlight.
• Chiba, Hirohiko, and Yukina admired their new group photo and chose to return by the craftsmen’s path rather than risk climbing down.
• Chiba told Hirohiko and Yukina that his confinement room had been inside the Second Hokage’s stone monument.
• At the village fork, Chiba sent Hirohiko and Yukina ahead, then arranged for Hirohiko to cook that day so Yukina would not have to.
• Hirohiko left for home to cook and review Chiba’s washroom renovation plan, while Chiba headed into the village, expecting to use his savings.