Chapter Summaries

Uchiha Yoru explained the political unrest facing Konoha and accepted the chance to rally Orochimaru’s former followers on the front line. When Yūhi Kurenai told him Anko had been taken to the Interrogation Room, he rushed to intervene, seeing the incident as both a threat to Orochimaru’s remaining influence and an opportunity to gain power.

• Uchiha Yoru told Jiraiya that unrest at Konoha’s borders was likely after the Third Shinobi War, Nine-Tails Night, and Orochimaru’s expulsion.
• Jiraiya said Yoru would soon be free to go to the front line and encouraged him to protect Orochimaru’s connections; Yoru agreed and privately planned to gather his teacher’s former supporters.
• Yūhi Kurenai arrived and told Yoru that Anko had been taken to the Interrogation Room on suspicion of participating in Orochimaru’s human experiments.
• Yoru publicly condemned the authorities for targeting Orochimaru’s disciples and rushed toward the Intelligence Department, while Jiraiya recognized that his anger also offered a chance to send a signal.
• As Yoru and Kurenai raced across Konoha, he said he needed power to uncover the culprit behind Nine-Tails Night, and Kurenai warned him not to lose his original intentions.

Uchiha Yoru forced his way into the Intelligence Department and rescued Mitaraishi Anko, establishing his authority as Orochimaru's faction remained in Konoha. Hiruzen Sarutobi let the rescue stand, intending to use Uchiha Yoru to stabilize the village, strengthen the front, and create another voice within the Uchiha Clan.

• Uchiha Yoru confronted Inoichi Yamanaka over the unauthorized interrogation of Mitaraishi Anko and demanded her release.
• Uchiha Yoru tracked Anko to a secret chamber, incapacitated the interrogators, destroyed the interrogation apparatus, and took her away.
• Uchiha Yoru confronted Inoichi Yamanaka and Sarutobi Kawa, then accepted the incident as a misunderstanding and left with Anko.
• Hiruzen Sarutobi learned that Uchiha Yoru's rescue had become public and decided the incident could end without severing Orochimaru's remaining ties to Konoha.
• Hiruzen Sarutobi told Mitokado Homura he planned to use Uchiha Yoru to inherit Orochimaru's faction, support the front line, and counterbalance the Uchiha Clan.

After the Hokage appointed Uchiha Yoru a front-line commander, he accepted the promotion and used his Perfect Cursed Seal to replace Anko’s painful seal. He agreed to take Uchiha Itachi to the border, while his private discussion with Mikoto Uchiha ended on mutually satisfied terms.

• The Hokage’s order ended the village’s pursuit of the Orochimaru Incident and made Uchiha Yoru commander of a border region.
• Uchiha Shisui told Uchiha Yoru that the watchers had withdrawn, while remaining resentful about Orochimaru’s departure.
• Uchiha Yoru comforted Mitaraishi Anko and replaced Orochimaru’s Cursed Seal with his Perfect Cursed Seal, letting her fall asleep peacefully.
• Mikoto Uchiha asked Uchiha Yoru to take Uchiha Itachi to the front line, and he agreed to care for his student.
• Uchiha Itachi left the room to practice, and Mikoto Uchiha and Uchiha Yoru spoke privately before she departed with him.

Uchiha Yoru led more than two hundred shinobi from Konoha toward the front line, promising to inherit Orochimaru’s legacy and become Hokage. As Hiruzen Sarutobi and Shimura Danzō responded to rising border tensions, Hiruzen ordered Danzō to transfer Root’s wood style ninja Kou to the Anbu.

• Uchiha Yoru appointed Genma Squad as his guards and organized the Seventh Division and Uchiha elites into a spearhead squad.
• Uchiha Yoru promised the departing shinobi that he would aim for Hokage and fulfill Orochimaru’s regret, restoring their fighting spirit before leading them out of Konoha.
• Hiruzen Sarutobi watched the legion depart and considered Uchiha Yoru’s public journey a way to steady the village and settle Orochimaru’s faction.
• Shimura Danzō reported clashes with Kirigakure and provocations by Kumogakure, while Hiruzen ordered restraint at the front and the activation of spies in Iwagakure.
• Hiruzen Sarutobi told Shimura Danzō to use Root and Anbu to suppress reports of border unrest, then ordered Root’s wood style ninja Kou transferred to the Anbu.
• Shimura Danzō angrily protested Hiruzen’s order and suspected that Hiruzen had placed informants inside Root.

Uchiha Yoru arrived at the Land of Whirlpools as Konoha's Front Line Commander and turned the tide of Kirigakure's assault with Manda and his Many Snakes' Array. Kirigakure's mist attack was broken, and its ninjas faced the reinforced Konoha forces in fear.

• Uchiha Yoru led Konoha reinforcements to the Land of Whirlpools, where Kirigakure's forces had pushed Konoha's defenders back to the beach.
• Suikazan Fuguki ordered a Water Dragon Bullet Technique attack, but Manda rose from the sea and blocked the water dragons.
• Uchiha Yoru rode Manda onto the beach and used Majestic Destroyer Flame, while Kirigakure countered with water techniques that filled the battlefield with mist.
• Uchiha Yoru ordered a counterattack and unleashed his Many Snakes' Array, sending venomous snakes through the mist to attack Kirigakure's ninjas.
• Manda burst from underground and attacked the enemy as Konoha reinforcements arrived, leaving Kirigakure's ninjas facing the snake-strewn battlefield in fear.

Uchiha Yoru helped Konoha repel Suikazan Fuguki’s Mist Ninja assault, outmaneuvering Fuguki in a dangerous duel before the enemy retreated. Yoru earned the front-line Konoha Ninja’s confidence by invoking Orochimaru’s legacy, while Fuguki ordered reconnaissance and planned for the next battle.

• Suikazan Fuguki led the Mist Ninja in an attack on Konoha’s outpost as reinforcements, including Uchiha Yoru, arrived.
• Uchiha Yoru fought Fuguki with the Kusanagi Sword, using snakes, genjutsu, and his knowledge of Samehada’s weakness to fire.
• Fuguki tricked Yoru with a Water Clone and an Explosive Tag, but Yoru countered with a clone and a concealed venomous snake that poisoned Fuguki’s ankle.
• Fuguki ordered the Mist Ninja to retreat under cover of Hidden Mist, but Konoha’s Hyuga scouts and Wind Release users exposed their withdrawal.
• Uchiha Yoru ordered the wounded treated and the outpost secured, while the Konoha Ninja cheered and associated his Snake Style with Orochimaru.
• Fuguki forced the poison from his ankle and ordered Zabuza to gather intelligence, while Kisame received orders concerning the Hyuga and the Kaguya Clan.

Uchiha Yoru took command of Konoha’s camp in the Land of Whirlpools and arranged defenses around its valuable mineral bases. As Shisui and Kakashi challenged his faith in Konoha’s leadership and raised suspicions about the Third Hokage, Yoru demanded to know what their secret investigation had uncovered.

• Uchiha Yoru assigned Scout Squads to reinforce Konoha’s other mining bases and ordered Shisui and Kakashi to guard the resources and keep ninja from traveling alone.
• Uchiha Yoru secretly marked Chakra Metal as an additional loss and told Kakashi to sell it on the Black Market to fund death benefits for fallen ninja.
• Uchiha Shisui angrily accused Konoha’s elders of betraying the Will of Fire and questioned why they honored neither the Second Hokage’s sacrifice nor the younger generation’s lives.
• Uchiha Yoru calmed Shisui and asked Kakashi to watch over him, but Kakashi agreed that Konoha’s leaders might be at fault and voiced suspicions about the Third Hokage’s role in the Fourth Hokage’s death.
• Uchiha Yoru confronted Shisui and Kakashi, asking what their secret investigation had revealed.

Uchiha Yoru told Hatake Kakashi and Uchiha Shisui that Konoha’s leadership was corrupt, planned to target the Uchiha Clan after the war, and was using the front lines to weaken Orochimaru’s followers. He persuaded them to join his plan to preserve their strength, reform Konoha, and make him its next Hokage.

• Hatake Kakashi revealed that his investigation had linked Ume Sarutobi, the advisors, and Shimura Danzō to the village’s forbidden research and political schemes.
• Uchiha Shisui and Hatake Kakashi admitted that the Third had ordered them to monitor Uchiha Yoru, and both condemned the village leadership for its corruption.
• Uchiha Yoru warned them that Konoha planned to weaken Orochimaru’s followers in the border conflict and target the Uchiha Clan once the war ended.
• Uchiha Yoru proposed keeping the conflict unresolved to protect his allies and build strength before changing the village, while Hatake Kakashi revealed that the Third had ordered agents to sow discord among the Uchiha.
• Uchiha Yoru vowed to become Hokage, clear Orochimaru’s name, and honor White Fang, and Hatake Kakashi and Uchiha Shisui agreed to work with him toward reform.

Suikazan Fuguki explained Kirigakure’s limited conflict with Konoha and planned to request Anbu support, while Uchiha Yoru scouted the Mist base and later met his former teacher Orochimaru. Orochimaru praised Yoru’s strength and clear judgment, leaving the two reunited in the forest.

• Suikazan Fuguki told Kisame Hoshigaki and the Mist elites that neither village wanted the conflict to expand into a war, and he planned to request Kirigakure Anbu support.
• Uchiha Yoru and a Hyuga ninja recorded the locations and guards of Kirigakure’s watchtowers, then Yoru sent a Shadow Clone on an eagle to survey the enemy base.
• Zabuza Momochi spotted the summoned eagle and ordered the Mist Ninja to watch the sky.
• Uchiha Yoru found Orochimaru hiding in the forest and called him out.
• Orochimaru praised Yoru’s strength, and Yoru admitted he still fell short of a true Kage-level fighter.

Orochimaru gave Uchiha Yoru intelligence on the Land of Whirlpools and Kirigakure, shared research and training plans, and offered him a promising child as a tool for his ambitions. Their meeting ended with Yoru asking when a ninja reached his peak and how long that peak could last.

• Orochimaru gave Uchiha Yoru intelligence about factions in the Land of Whirlpools and Kirigakure’s dispatched Mist Ninja, including persecuted Kekkei Genkai ninja.
• Uchiha Yoru gave Orochimaru the Many Snakes' Array scroll, and they discussed Orochimaru’s plans to establish a base and a new ninja village in the Land of Rice Fields.
• Orochimaru gave Uchiha Yoru a targeted training plan and received Cursed Seal and flesh-and-blood research materials from him.
• Orochimaru promised to take Uchiha Yoru to meet a precious child in three days, whose Kekkei Genkai might help fulfill Yoru’s ambition.
• Orochimaru predicted he would complete the Corpse Reincarnation Technique within five years, and Uchiha Yoru asked when a ninja reached his peak and how long it lasted.

Uchiha Yoru warned Orochimaru about the dangers of soul-related Forbidden Techniques and pointed him toward the Uzumaki Clan’s Reaper Death Seal, prompting Orochimaru to investigate the Land of Whirlpools instead of focusing solely on the Corpse Reincarnation Technique. At the Konoha base, Yoru began teaching Uzuki Yugao, Yūhi Kurenai, and Mitaraishi Anko a hand-signless A-Rank Ninjutsu as tensions over their relationships with him simmered.

• Orochimaru explained how Chakra, control, injuries, and age affected a ninja’s physical peak.
• Uchiha Yoru cautioned Orochimaru against experimenting with souls and told him about the Uzumaki Clan’s Reaper Death Seal.
• Orochimaru became intrigued by the Reaper Death Seal and decided to investigate Uzumaki secrets in the Land of Whirlpools.
• Uchiha Yoru reprimanded Yūhi Kurenai for losing focus during training and said he would teach her, Uzuki Yugao, and Mitaraishi Anko a hand-signless A-Rank Ninjutsu.
• Yūhi Kurenai, Uzuki Yugao, and Mitaraishi Anko traded pointed remarks and jealous looks over their relationships with Uchiha Yoru.

Uchiha Yoru taught Yūhi Kurenai, Uzuki Yugao, and Mitaraishi Anko the Rasengan, demonstrating its power and explaining how to begin training. After he left, the women practiced while struggling with their own guilt, rivalry, and attachment to him.

• Uchiha Yoru explained that Orochimaru had independently developed the Rasengan after observing the Fourth Hokage, then warned the women about the technique’s Chakra demands.
• Uchiha Yoru discussed how the Rasengan could support each woman’s fighting style and demonstrated its destructive power on a tree.
• Uchiha Yoru showed the women how to practice Chakra control with water-filled balloons, then awkwardly left after their clothes got wet.
• Mitaraishi Anko and Yūhi Kurenai traded teasing remarks about their closeness with Uchiha Yoru while Uzuki Yugao quietly began training.
• Uzuki Yugao resolved to atone for spying on Uchiha Yoru, while Mitaraishi Anko eagerly practiced in hopes of earning his praise.

Uchiha Yoru found Guren after her awakened Crystal Release killed the bandits who destroyed her village, then took her in and treated her injuries. The next morning, Guren woke at the Eagles’ cliffside home and reunited with Yoru, who began introducing her to his world.

• Orochimaru told Uchiha Yoru that a promising child was in the village ahead and left to investigate the Uzumaki Clan ruins.
• Uchiha Yoru found the village’s dead encased in pink crystals and recognized Guren as the Crystal Release ninja Orochimaru had praised.
• Uchiha Yoru found the grieving Guren, invited her to come with him, and used Earth Release: Swamp of the Underworld to bury the burning village.
• Guren told Uchiha Yoru that her Kekkei Genkai had awakened and killed the bandits; she vowed to become his power, and he promised not to abandon her.
• Uchiha Yoru treated Guren’s frail body, and she later woke at the Eagles’ cliffside home and found him arriving on an eagle.

Uchiha Yoru discovered that Guren had awakened a powerful crystal Kekkei Genkai and began raising and training her in a remote cliffside house. As Guren studied ninja fundamentals and vowed to become his strongest tool, Yoru’s Shadow Clone also practiced sensing natural energy.

• Uchiha Yoru told Guren that her crystal ability was a Kekkei Genkai and warned her that bloodline users were at risk in the Land of Whirlpools.
• Guren showed Uchiha Yoru the crimson crystal she could create, and he praised her talent before feeding and caring for her.
• Uchiha Yoru promised to train Guren, taught her basic Chakra control and hand seals, and set her on a routine of study and harsh training.
• Guren practiced diligently and vowed to become the strongest tool in Uchiha Yoru’s hands.
• After teaching Guren, Uchiha Yoru’s Shadow Clone sat down to sense natural energy.

At the Konoha base, Uchiha Yoru, Kakashi, and Shisui planned how to divert and safeguard funds for the front-line ninja and their families while managing supply reports and wounded returns. The chapter ended with Yoru recognizing Yakushi Nonō among the reinforcements and suspecting Root had sent her to spy on him and the Uchiha.

• Shisui reported inflated medical supply figures, and Kakashi admitted he had overstated equipment losses by thirty percent.
• Yoru told Kakashi to report greater losses and, if needed, arrange for Mist Ninja to destroy storage sites to conceal the falsified accounts.
• Yoru divided the safeguarded funds among himself, Kakashi, Shisui, and Hizashi, explaining they were meant to support the families of front-line ninja.
• Yoru instructed Kakashi to gradually exaggerate some wounded ninja's injuries so they could return to the village, and warned Shisui against voicing his anger at the Sarutobi Clan's lack of front-line service.
• Yoru told Shisui to handle the arrival of Itachi and other Uchiha youths, and warned both men that Root agents were among the incoming reinforcements.
• Yoru recognized Yakushi Nonō on the reinforcement list and suspected Danzo had sent her to gather intelligence on him and the Uchiha.

Uchiha Yoru delegated front-line intelligence work to trusted guards while continuing to build loyalty and train his subordinates. At the Land of Whirlpools base, Uzuki Yugao recovered from being ordered to exhaust Yoru, then insisted on resuming her Ninjutsu training.

• Uchiha Yoru assigned Genma, Raidō, and Iwashi to divide intelligence duties with Hizashi, Kakashi, and Shisui, and told them to train Genin replacements for their guard shifts.
• Shin'nosuke Sarutobi warned Ume Sarutobi to stop plotting against Yoru, and Ume touched her unborn child while recalling that her pregnancy had saved her from harsher punishment.
• At the Land of Whirlpools base, Yoru used Medical Ninjutsu to treat the exhausted Uzuki Yugao and told her to rest after she had been ordered to drain his energy.
• Uzuki Yugao insisted that she wanted to continue practicing the Rasengan, and Yoru soothed her muscle soreness until she fell asleep.

Uzuki Yugao, Mitaraishi Anko, and Yūhi Kurenai trained while competing to master the Rasengan, as Uchiha Yoru practiced beneath a waterfall. Yūhi Kurenai joined Yoru underwater, and Anko accidentally discovered them, leaving her stunned as she watched.

• Mitaraishi Anko teased Uzuki Yugao for arriving late, and Yugao replied that her work as Uchiha Yoru's assistant kept her busy at night.
• The three squadmates continued training with a quiet rivalry, while Yūhi Kurenai watched Yugao with displeasure.
• Yūhi Kurenai found Uchiha Yoru beneath the waterfall, confronted him about Yugao, and embraced him while wrestling with her guilt over being a spy.
• Yūhi Kurenai and Uchiha Yoru played together underwater as Anko approached the lake to cool off.
• Mitaraishi Anko plunged into the lake, spotted Yoru and Kurenai beneath the surface, and stayed to watch in shock.

Uchiha Yoru learned that a Mist Ninja elite force planned to attack a Konoha supply depot and devised a defense and counterattack that would exploit the Byakugan and confuse the attackers. He appointed Kakashi to lead a ten-person support squad and left the force preparing to lure the Mist Ninja into an ambush.

• Hizashi Hyuga reported that more than fifty Mist Ninja planned to raid the depot holding Fine Iron and Chakra Metal.
• Uchiha Yoru warned that the intelligence might be a ploy to draw Konoha's forces away, then ordered the materials moved and traps prepared.
• Uchiha Yoru appointed Kakashi to lead a ten-person squad, joined by elite Uchiha and Hyuga teams and Genma Squad.
• Uchiha Yoru ordered Kakashi's squad to set a large fire in Mist Ninja territory once fighting began, prompting the attackers to believe their base was under attack.
• Uchiha Yoru instructed the Konoha forces to use the Byakugan and Signal Flares to prevent a surprise attack and ambush the Mist Ninja as they retreated.

Mist Ninja launched a decapitation strike against Uchiha Yoru’s Konoha base, using an informant and a rapid assault to overwhelm its defenses. After their Water Release breached the camp walls, Kisame Hoshigaki spotted a new threat descending from above.

• A sixty-strong Mist Ninja squad attacked a coastal Konoha outpost, but its Hyuga captain ordered a retreat and set traps that detonated as the attackers pursued.
• Uchiha Yoru learned the raid was meant to lure Konoha forces away, then sent eighty elite ninja out as a feigned reinforcement force while waiting for the Mist Ninja’s true move.
• Suikazan Fuguki received intelligence from an informant, began the decapitation strike, and sent Kisame Hoshigaki’s force toward Uchiha Yoru’s base.
• A Mist sensory ninja confirmed that Konoha had discovered the attackers but that no ambush lay ahead, so the Mist Ninja charged straight for the base despite its traps.
• Uchiha Yoru ordered the Konoha defenders to prepare for battle and withdraw while laying more traps; the Mist Ninja used Water Release to shatter the camp walls and flood the base.
• Kisame Hoshigaki looked up and warned the Mist Ninja as a dense whistling sound came from the night sky above.

Konoha and the Mist Ninja clashed after the Mist launched a Decapitation Strike to find and kill Uchiha Yoru. Yoru and his allies fought to delay the elite Mist force, and he charged Kisame Hoshigaki and Suikazan Fuguki as the battle intensified.

• Kisame Hoshigaki warned the Mist Ninja about the incoming Kunai and Explosive Tags, while Konoha's blasts broke the camp walls and weakened the flood attack.
• Suikazan Fuguki ordered the Mist Ninja to execute the Decapitation Plan, and a sensory Ninja located the target near Uchiha Yoru.
• Uchiha Yoru used Fire Style to attack through the Hidden Mist, while Konoha's Hyuga Ninja tracked the Mist forces and directed their allies.
• Yoru ordered Konoha's Ninja to use the terrain and delay the enemy, while Yūhi Kurenai, Uzuki Yugao, and Mitaraishi Anko fought together against the Mist Ninja.
• Kisame Hoshigaki, Suikazan Fuguki, and ten elite Mist Ninja began their Decapitation Strike against Yoru, who countered their Genjutsu with his Sharingan and charged with his Kusanagi Sword.