Recaps

Uchiha Chen used Lightning Release: Kirin against Shukaku after Enma forced the tailed beast back to the surface. The attack engulfed Shukaku in a massive blast, leaving both sides staring at the destroyed battlefield.

• Enma fought Shukaku, dodging its sand attacks and enduring repeated blows before Shukaku buried him in a barrage of Wind Release: Drilling Air Bullets.
• Uchiha Chen climbed onto a tall earthen wall and formed a powerful lightning technique as Shinnosuke watched and wondered what he was holding back.
• Uchiha Chen summoned a lightning Kirin from the storm clouds, stunning the shinobi on both sides of the battlefield.
• Shukaku sensed the Kirin's danger and tried to sink beneath the sand, but Enma transformed into an iron staff and forced it back up.
• Chiyo ordered the sand shinobi to stop Uchiha Chen, but he sent the Kirin crashing into Shukaku, engulfing it in lightning and vaporizing everything within thirty meters.

Uchiha Chen’s Lightning Release shattered Shukaku’s body, leaving its Jinchuriki helpless and shifting the battlefield’s momentum toward Konoha. As the Sand shinobi rushed to recover Shukaku and target Chen, Hyuga Tenko ordered his forces to protect Chen at all costs.

• Uchiha Chen’s Lightning Release blasted Shukaku apart, though Shukaku survived and its Jinchuriki awakened beneath the sand.
• Chiyo ordered the Sand shinobi to recover Shukaku and kill Uchiha Chen, abandoning victory as their priority.
• The Sand shinobi charged toward Shukaku, exposing themselves and reversing the casualty exchange in Konoha’s favor.
• Hyuga Tenko mocked Chiyo and recognized that Chen’s attack had changed the battle’s prospects.
• Hyuga Tenko ordered his forces to protect Uchiha Chen at all costs.

Hyuga Tenko redirected Konoha’s Sealing Squad toward Shukaku, forcing Chiyo to abandon her attack on Uchiha Chen while Ebizo sealed Shukaku in a Chagama and fled. With the allied forces turning their attacks on Chen and Shinnosuke, they planned to escape with help from the approaching Hyuga Shinobi.

• Hyuga Tenko sent the Sealing Squad after Shukaku, and Ebizo warned Chiyo that Konoha was targeting the Tailed Beast.
• Chiyo ordered Ebizo to recover Shukaku while she led the Sand Shinobi to hold Konoha back.
• Ebizo and twelve Sand Shinobi sealed Shukaku into a Chagama, killing the Jinchuriki, and Ebizo carried it away from the battlefield.
• Konoha Ninja pursued Ebizo, while the remaining allied forces joined together and attacked Konoha more fiercely.
• Uchiha Chen told Shinnosuke they should escape and pointed out the approaching Hyuga Shinobi, then joked that the Hyuga Young Clan Head was his lackey.

Hanzō confronted Orochimaru, Tsunade, and Jiraiya after they saw a powerful lightning attack in the distance, then fought them alongside his Salamander. The battle left the three Konoha ninjas facing Hanzō and his beast’s overwhelming strength.

• Hanzō questioned Orochimaru, Tsunade, and Jiraiya about the source of the lightning, then argued with them over the Gold Mine mission and the war.
• Jiraiya attacked Hanzō with a Flame Bullet, but Hanzō split the flames with his scythe and quickly moved behind the three ninjas.
• Tsunade struck Hanzō’s scythe while Orochimaru and Jiraiya trapped him with Shuriken Shadow Clone Jutsu and Yellow Springs Swamp, but Hanzō blocked the shuriken with Flash.
• Hanzō summoned the Salamander, which broke the swamp and knocked Tsunade away as Jiraiya and Orochimaru protected her from Hanzō’s Water Release.
• The Salamander attacked the three with its tongue and tail, but Orochimaru and Jiraiya evaded and counterattacked with snake techniques and Earth Release.
• Hanzō used Flash to cut through Orochimaru’s Wind Blades, while the Salamander roared at the three Konoha ninjas.

Hanzō fought Orochimaru, Jiraiya, and Tsunade, using his speed, poison, and Salamander to overwhelm them despite their coordinated attacks. After trapping Jiraiya and Tsunade on a field of hidden Explosive Tags, he prepared to set them off.

• Hanzō dismissed the alliance and attacked Orochimaru, Jiraiya, and Tsunade after they launched Fire Release techniques at him.
• Hanzō cut Jiraiya with his poisoned scythe, but Orochimaru restrained him while Tsunade treated Jiraiya's wound.
• Orochimaru struck Hanzō with toxic snakes, but Hanzō revealed that the Salamander's venom had made him immune to poison.
• Hanzō used the Salamander to distract Orochimaru, then attacked Jiraiya and Tsunade with Kunai, a Water Dragon, and Explosive Tags.
• Jiraiya and Tsunade blocked the attacks with Needle Hell, Fire Release, and Rock defenses, but Hanzō transformed the ground beneath them into Explosive Tags and activated them.

Jiraiya, Tsunade, and Orochimaru survived Hanzō’s assault, and he chose to spare them after deciding Konoha had won the war. He named them the Konoha Sannin before leaving, and the three headed back to the battlefield.

• Jiraiya shielded Tsunade from Hanzō’s Explosive Tags with Needle Jizō, but suffered severe wounds and succumbed to the poison.
• Orochimaru broke through the Salamander’s blockade and reunited with Jiraiya and Tsunade as Hanzō demanded their surrender.
• Jiraiya, Tsunade, and Orochimaru refused to yield, while Hanzō weighed the risks of killing them and concluded Konoha had likely won the war.
• Hanzō let the three leave, declaring he would no longer join the Iwa-nin and sand shinobi or enter the battlefield.
• Hanzō dubbed them the Konoha Sannin and departed on the Salamander, and the three returned to the battlefield.

After Jiraiya, Tsunade, and Orochimaru returned victorious from their battle with Hanzō, the Ame and Sand forces withdrew from the battlefield. Konoha then turned its full strength against the isolated Iwa-nin, and Orochimaru ordered their annihilation.

• Hanzō's black eagle delivered a retreat order, and the Ame Shinobi began withdrawing as Konoha feared the Sannin had lost.
• Jiraiya, Tsunade, and Orochimaru arrived atop their Summoning Beasts and announced that Konoha had won the war.
• Orochimaru's group let the Ame Shinobi leave, and Chiyo ordered the Sand Shinobi to retreat as well.
• Uchiha Chen explained to Nawaki that Konoha should focus on the Iwa-nin rather than pursue Sunagakure.
• Kimura asked to withdraw his Iwa-nin forces, but Jiraiya and Orochimaru refused to negotiate.
• Orochimaru ordered Konoha's forces to annihilate the Iwa-nin troops and leave none alive.

After the battle against the Iwa-nin, Uchiha Chen slept for a day and night while recovering in Konoha’s field hospital. When Mikoto told him that he had been hailed as “Konoha Lightning” and compared to the Sannin, Chen worried that the fame would make him a target.

• Orochimaru led the Konoha Ninja in defeating the Iwa-nin, while Shinnosuke stopped the exhausted Uchiha Chen from returning to the fight.
• Shinnosuke brought Chen to the field hospital, where Mikoto watched over him as he slept for a day and night.
• Mikoto told Chen that Nawaki had been injured by an Explosive Tag and was recovering in the hospital.
• Mikoto reported that the Demigod had named Orochimaru, Tsunade, and Jiraiya the Konoha Sannin, while Hidden Sand Village had publicized Chen as Konoha Lightning.
• Chen feared that the praise comparing him to the Sannin would invite enemy assassins, though he recognized that his use of Kirin against Shukaku had fueled the rumors.

After the war in the Land of Rain ended in Konoha’s victory, Uchiha Chen returned to the Base and learned that Orochimaru had deliberately spread news of his accomplishments. Tsunade explained that Orochimaru thought highly of him, leaving Chen surprised and moved.

• Uchiha Chen left the hospital after Mikoto insisted he stay another day, while Nawaki remained behind to recover.
• Orochimaru, Tsunade, and the ninja units returned to Konoha’s Base, and the two-year war in the Land of Rain ended in victory.
• Uchiha Chen saw the Base celebrating and learned that shinobi regarded him as a hero known as Konoha Lightning.
• Tsunade called Uchiha Chen to her tent, asked about his health, and discussed his Kirin technique and its stormy-weather requirement.
• Tsunade told Uchiha Chen that Orochimaru had promoted his reputation instead of suppressing the stories about him because Orochimaru thought highly of him.

Uchiha Chen learned that Jiraiya had stayed in the Land of Rain to teach three orphans and asked him to look after Minato. He found Minato grieving his fallen teammates and questioning whether Konoha’s war was truly just, leaving Chen to comfort him as they faced the meaning of the conflict.

• Tsunade told Uchiha Chen that Jiraiya had stayed in the Land of Rain to care for three orphans and had asked Chen to watch over Minato.
• Uchiha Chen found Minato alone in a tree practicing Wind Release chakra nature transformation.
• Minato blamed himself for his teammates’ deaths, and Chen told him that war brought suffering and death to both sides.
• Minato questioned what the war was for and whether Konoha truly represented justice.

Uchiha Chen and Minato discussed the causes of war and whether lasting peace was possible. Chen proposed uniting the ninja villages into a new alliance, and Minato agreed to help him pursue that goal.

• Uchiha Chen told Minato that war arose from the villages’ competing interests and that the First Hokage’s One Country One Village System had not ended conflict.
• Minato said he believed peace would come when people learned to understand one another, but Chen argued that the ninja world could not heal itself.
• Uchiha Chen proposed uniting the villages and rebuilding the ninja world’s order, and Minato recognized that the plan would be difficult.
• Uchiha Chen told Minato they would need strength and discretion before pursuing their goal, and Minato agreed to help.
• Uchiha Chen clasped Minato’s hand and welcomed him to Team One.

Konoha’s forces prepared to withdraw from the Land of Rain, and Uchiha Chen was assigned to guard the supply convoy without Orochimaru’s help. Back in Konoha, Kushina celebrated Chen’s growing reputation and imagined joining him on missions.

• Sakumo planned the return route and assigned Uchiha Chen to protect the supply transport.
• Orochimaru told Uchiha Chen that he would not accompany him, treating the assignment as Chen’s first Jonin-level mission.
• Uchiha Chen told Nawaki, Mikoto, and Minato about their escort duty as the convoy began its slow journey toward Konoha.
• Kushina told the Nine-Tails that Konoha’s troops were withdrawing and that Uchiha Chen had earned the title Konoha Lace.
• Kushina imagined that Chen’s expected promotion to Jonin would let him take her on missions, and she suddenly opened her eyes wide.

Uchiha Chen and the Konoha convoy left the Land of Rain and climbed a narrow slope while escorting supplies toward the Land of Fire. When they encountered refugees begging for food, Orochimaru exposed their leader as a disguised enemy, and the attackers launched a barrage of kunai.

• Uchiha Chen taught Minato and Mikoto as the convoy traveled toward the Land of Fire.
• Orochimaru detected and neutralized traps on the steep road, then ordered the troops to help the civilians push the supply carts uphill.
• The Hyuga Shinobi spotted a ruined village and a group of civilians begging beside the road.
• A supposed village chief asked Orochimaru for food, but Orochimaru recognized the disguise and stabbed him with a Kunai.
• The disguised attacker vanished in a puff of smoke, and countless Kunai flew toward the Konoha force.

Konoha and Sunagakure forces clashed in a sudden ambush, and Uchiha Chen fought through waves of attackers while protecting Nawaki. As the battle intensified, Chen realized Konoha was falling into a disadvantage.

• Orochimaru and the Konoha forces countered Sunagakure’s surprise attacks, while Uchiha Chen unleashed Phoenix Sage Fire against the enemy.
• Uchiha Chen fought a Sunagakure captain, who mistook him for Konoha Lightning and revealed orders to kill whoever held that reputation.
• Chen used Genjutsu and a Great Fireball against the captain, then fended off more attackers with Hidden Shadow Snake Hands.
• Chen blocked the captain’s Exploding Stones from striking Nawaki, killed Nawaki’s opponent, and told Nawaki he would handle the captain.
• After Nawaki left, Chen surveyed the battle and concluded Konoha was at a disadvantage.

Uchiha Chen overwhelmed a Sunagakure captain with taijutsu and Lightning Release, then pursued him after cutting off one of his arms. The captain tried to flee, but Chen killed him with a thrown black kunai that also pierced several other sand shinobi.

• Uchiha Chen used Genjutsu, kunai strikes, and a powerful kick to suppress the Sunagakure captain in close combat.
• The captain used an Earth Clone and Wind Release blades to hide and attack Chen from a distance.
• Chen dodged the Wind Blades with his Sharingan, found the captain hiding in a boulder, and struck him with Chidori.
• Chen blasted away the Wind Blades with Chidori Stream and paralyzed the captain, then cut off half of his arm with Chidori Sharp Spear.
• The wounded captain fled, but Chen threw a black kunai through his head and several other sand shinobi.

Uchiha Chen cut through the attacking Sunagakure forces with speed, weapons, and Ninjutsu, eliminating the enemy ninja who posed the greatest threat. After deciding Minato and the others could handle the remaining opponents, he headed to support Sakumo, who was protecting Konoha’s wounded while several Elite Jonin engaged him.

• After the sand shinobi captain died, Uchiha Chen charged into the enemy flank and killed several ninja with Shuriken and his speed.
• Uchiha Chen disarmed a burly Sunagakure ninja, killed him with a long blade, and then used Chidori to pierce through more enemies.
• When another sand shinobi attacked through the corpses Chen was using as cover, Chen struck back with Chidori Sharp Spear and retreated from the Explosive Tags attached to incoming Kunai.
• Uchiha Chen survived the explosion, defeated three charging sand shinobi with Wind Release: Vacuum Sphere, and removed Shuriken lodged in his body.
• Uchiha Chen left Minato and the others to face the remaining enemies and went to support Sakumo, who was protecting the wounded from several Elite Jonin.

Uchiha Chen supported Hatake Sakumo by using Genjutsu to immobilize Sand Jonin, allowing Sakumo to kill them rapidly. Their effective partnership overwhelmed the Sand forces, and Sakumo relished the slaughter as Chiyo watched furiously.

• Uchiha Chen arrived after defeating the Sand Jonin guarding the supply transport, and Hatake Sakumo assigned him to protect the wounded with Genjutsu.
• Chen repeatedly trapped Sand Jonin with Genjutsu, giving Sakumo openings to kill them with his White Fang Short Sword.
• The Sand shinobi became terrified as the pair cut down Jonin, and Chen warned Sakumo when reinforcements approached.
• Sakumo charged the reinforcements, killing a Puppet Master and more Jonin while Chen continued disrupting their attacks.
• Chiyo watched angrily as the Konoha Lightning Fang combination devastated the Sand forces, while Sakumo reveled in the fight.

After Konoha’s victory over Sunagakure, Tsunade and Orochimaru discussed their casualties and the shortage of Medical Ninja. Tsunade began shaping a broader plan for medical reforms and other ways to weaken the Land of Wind.

• Tsunade asked Orochimaru about Konoha’s losses and learned that twenty-five Jonin and around one hundred and fifty Chunin and Genin had died.
• Orochimaru argued that the ambush had been worthwhile because repeated victories would weaken Sunagakure, but Tsunade cut off his analysis.
• Tsunade learned that only a little over ten Medical Ninja remained and proposed training one for every squad.
• Orochimaru pointed out the proposal’s risks, then reluctantly agreed it was not a bad idea when Tsunade urged him to raise it at the Jonin Meeting.
• Tsunade decided she would find someone else to test her proposal and imagined using casino winnings to impose economic sanctions on the Land of Wind.

Uchiha Chen rested and received treatment after the battle, then continued traveling with Konoha’s diminished formation. When the group had made little progress for several days and reinforcements were still absent, an Anbu summoned Chen to meet Orochimaru immediately.

• Mikoto insisted that Chen visit the Medical Ninjas, where he waited in line and saw the injured Minato and Nawaki.
• After an hour’s rest, the formation set out again, and Chen let Nawaki ride on the supply cart while Minato trained his Chakra control as he walked.
• The formation traveled slowly for several peaceful days, stopping often to accommodate the ordinary people among them.
• An Anbu appeared before Chen and told him Orochimaru wanted to see him immediately.

Orochimaru assigned Uchiha Chen a confidential mission to investigate whether Land of Fire merchants or the Daimyo had supplied the Hidden Sand Village with grain and other supplies. Uchiha Chen accepted the B-rank mission and prepared to leave with his companions, with fifteen days to report back.

• Orochimaru confirmed that Uchiha Chen's injuries had healed and gave him a new mission.
• Orochimaru explained that the Hidden Sand Village had obtained supplies that appeared to come from the Land of Fire, possibly through merchants or with the Daimyo's support.
• Orochimaru said that asking the Third Hokage to confront the Daimyo would likely only delay the war and bring Konoha more supplies.
• Orochimaru classified the investigation as a confidential B-rank mission, warned that Sunagakure shinobi might protect the merchants, and set a fifteen-day time limit.
• Uchiha Chen accepted the mission and left to gather his companions.

Uchiha Chen and his companions prepared to investigate grain convoys near the Daimyo's Capital, a relatively safe but politically complicated region. After several days of reconnaissance, the team left its hidden base in disguise and entered the prosperous capital to begin their mission.

• Orochimaru assigned Uchiha Chen to handle the mission in the Daimyo's Capital because senior Konoha shinobi were too politically conspicuous.
• Uchiha Chen, Minato, Mikoto, and Nawaki traveled to the capital using a mapped route and established concealed supply bases in the forest.
• Minato reported that another grain convoy had headed toward the Land of Wind and returned with a rabbit for the team's meal.
• Uchiha Chen ordered the team to check its equipment, put out the fire, and leave the base for the operation.
• Uchiha Chen led Minato, Mikoto, and Nawaki into the capital in disguise, where they found an inn and prepared to begin the mission.

Uchiha Chen investigated a trading company alone and discovered that the mission involved the Twelve Guardian Ninja. He returned to the inn and told Minato and Nawaki he would explain what he had learned the next day.

• Uchiha Chen used Genjutsu on a passerby to learn the location of a large trading company in the capital.
• Uchiha Chen infiltrated the company and used Genjutsu to subdue its guards and control three company presidents.
• Uchiha Chen learned that the mission involved the Twelve Guardian Ninja and realized the team could face serious danger.
• Uchiha Chen returned to the inn, where Minato and Nawaki had stayed awake waiting for him.
• Uchiha Chen told Minato and Nawaki he would share the mission details the next day.

Uchiha Chen’s team investigated a trading company suspected of supplying grain to the Land of Wind and learned that Ryoma was leading the deal. Chen uncovered the time and place of the next negotiation, scheduled for three days later.

• Nawaki returned with new booklets and reported that guards had increased across the streets.
• Uchiha Chen told Minato, Nawaki, and Mikoto that they would visit the trading company and leave immediately after dealing with the sand shinobi, since they could not face the Twelve Guardian Ninja.
• Chen entered the trading company and used Genjutsu to question its middle-aged leader about grain sales to the Land of Wind.
• The leader revealed that Ryoma had claimed to have the Daimyo’s approval and was leading the negotiations with Sunagakure.
• Chen learned that the sand shinobi would attend a second negotiation in three days and obtained its location.

Uchiha Chen’s squad waited for Sand Shinobi near the Daimyo’s Capital, then followed signs of recent activity to a campsite. Nawaki examined the remains and confidently concluded that the enemy squad included a female ninja.

• Uchiha Chen warned Minato that their mission might become A-rank, while Minato continued practicing Ninjutsu as they waited in the trees.
• Big White alerted Uchiha Chen to ninja activity, and he led Mikoto, Minato, and Nawaki toward the reported location.
• The squad traveled nearly ten kilometers and found a recently used campfire with food scraps nearby.
• Nawaki sniffed the leftovers and declared that a female ninja was among the enemy squad.

Uchiha Chen led his team toward a ninja squad after Big White tracked them, but the enemy struck first with a powerful Wind Release. The team escaped the attack, and Chen spotted a young girl among the enemy ninjas, leaving her identity unclear.

• Uchiha Chen used Big White to track the group that left the scented food scraps, then agreed with Nawaki, Minato, and Mikoto to approach together.
• Uchiha Chen sensed the enemy squad through Big White's thermal perception, but the enemy detected them and unleashed an area-of-effect Wind Release.
• Uchiha Chen grabbed Mikoto and kicked Nawaki into Minato to get them clear of the attack, then carried Mikoto as he retreated.
• Uchiha Chen pulled Mikoto behind a tree and examined the enemy squad's clothing and ages.
• Uchiha Chen noticed a purple-clad girl with a sand shinobi forehead protector and wondered who she was.