Chapter Summaries

Natsume helped Tsunade establish a Hokage Secretary Corps and choose a Hokage Guard, recruiting Kurenai Yuhi, Might Guy, and Kakashi Hatake, who accepted after Natsume offered him Sasuke Uchiha as a student. After Tsunade returned home, the two spent the evening together, and Tsunade took another day off the next morning.

• Natsume gave Tsunade his proposal for a Hokage Secretary Corps, and she agreed to study its management and compensation system.
• Natsume gave Tsunade a diamond ring engraved with a Flying Thunder God Mark and persuaded her to establish a Hokage Guard.
• Tsunade approved Kakashi Hatake, Might Guy, Kurenai Yuhi, and Shizune as guard candidates, and Natsume recruited Kurenai Yuhi and Might Guy.
• Natsume persuaded Kakashi Hatake to join the guard by offering him the chance to teach Sasuke Uchiha, earning thirty-seven Destiny Points as their destinies changed.
• Natsume cooked dinner after returning home, and Tsunade joined him in the kitchen before the two spent the evening together.
• Tsunade took another day off the next morning while the Hokage Secretary Corps kept Konoha's important affairs moving.

Natsume advanced his schemes in the Land of Water, encouraged Mikoto Uchiha to awaken her Sharingan through a humiliating training ordeal, and then received a visit from Ino Yamanaka. Ino asked whether Tsunade was still taking disciples and considered learning Medical Ninjutsu herself.

• Mei Terumi reported that construction of the five waterways had begun, and Natsume asked her to hire talented chefs for his seafood venture.
• Mei Terumi performed the singing and dancing she had promised Natsume, who praised her and said he would bring her a new outfit next time.
• Natsume borrowed Tayuya’s flute, then told Mikoto Uchiha that Sasuke Uchiha had been assigned Kakashi Hatake as his teacher.
• Natsume prompted Mikoto Uchiha to practice a special Water Style ninjutsu and transformed into Fugaku Uchiha, causing her Sharingan to flare and her strength to increase.
• Ino Yamanaka visited Natsume to ask whether Tsunade was still accepting disciples for Sakura Haruno, then said she might learn Medical Ninjutsu herself.

Tsunade agreed to take Ino Yamanaka as her disciple after Natsume persuaded her, and Inoichi Yamanaka brought Ino to the Hokage's Office to accept. Ino began her medical training with Shizune, though the intimidating stack of books and the strange Hokage Guard office left her regretting how much studying awaited her.

• After Ino Yamanaka left, Natsume persuaded Tsunade to take her as a disciple.
• Tsunade told Inoichi Yamanaka that she planned to teach Ino, and he eagerly accepted on his daughter's behalf.
• Inoichi fetched Ino from class, and she realized Natsume might have helped her without helping Sakura Haruno.
• Tsunade welcomed Ino as her disciple and sent her to study medical ninjutsu basics with Shizune.
• Ino entered the Hokage Guard office, saw its unusual occupants, and discovered Shizune had prepared a mountain of books for her.

Natsume helped Tsunade resolve the dispute over leadership of the Konoha Military Police Force by proposing Maruboshi Kosuke as director. He then set plans in motion to investigate Shimura Danzō and challenge the Hokage advisors, leaving with records of missing and deceased ninjas.

• Natsume proposed dividing the Konoha Military Police Force into two departments and suggested Maruboshi Kosuke as its director, which Tsunade accepted as a strong candidate.
• Natsume told Ino Yamanaka to send Sakura Haruno to Konoha Hospital to study under Yakushi Nonō, then complimented Ino and caused her to blush.
• Natsume asked Hizashi Hyuga to gather records of recently missing or deceased ninjas so he could investigate Shimura Danzō.
• Natsume urged Hizashi Hyuga to provoke Utatane Koharu and Mitokado Homura, and Hizashi agreed to consult Hyuga Hiashi before acting.
• Natsume left the Hokage Secretary's Office with the requested records.

Hiashi Hyuga agreed to help Natsume, while Shimura Danzo plotted to kill Tsunade and seize the Hokage position. Natsume then asked Maruboshi Kosuke’s revived Konoha Military Police Force to investigate a string of identical explosions tied to Danzo’s Gozu Tennō experiments.

• Hiashi Hyuga approved Hizashi Hyuga’s cooperation with Natsume and reminded him to uphold the Hyuga Clan’s hierarchy.
• Utatane Koharu and Mitokado Homura urged Shimura Danzo to kill Tsunade so he could become Hokage, and Danzo agreed to lure her outside Konoha.
• Mitokado Homura proposed using Hiruzen Sarutobi’s orders to draw Tsunade out, while Danzo planned to deal with Hiruzen afterward.
• Maruboshi Kosuke restarted the Konoha Military Police Force, dividing it into Ninja and Villager divisions.
• Natsume asked Maruboshi Kosuke to investigate nine identical explosion deaths, suspecting they were linked to Shimura Danzo’s Gozu Tennō experiments.

Natsume and Maruboshi Kosuke gathered evidence that Shimura Danzō had continued dangerous Hashirama Cell experiments, while Tsunade learned that a meeting arranged by Utatane Koharu might be a trap. Tsunade prepared to confront the conspirators, and Natsume mobilized the Hokage Guard to capture Shimura Danzō.

• Maruboshi Kosuke gathered evidence of Shimura Danzō's Gozu Tennō experiment with support from the Hyuga Clan and agreed to help make the arrest.
• Utatane Koharu invited Tsunade to meet Hiruzen Sarutobi, Shimura Danzō, and the advisers at the Valley of the End, but Natsume interrupted her departure with the evidence.
• Tsunade read the documents and decided Shimura Danzō's experiments were unforgivable; Natsume warned her the meeting could be a trap.
• Tsunade agreed to meet the others alone while Natsume followed with the Hokage Guard and Konoha Military Police Force.
• Natsume went to the Hokage Guard office and ordered Kakashi Hatake, Might Guy, and the others to help capture Shimura Danzō, while Ino Yamanaka stayed behind.

Natsume and Tsunade led a force to confront Shimura Danzō, who had lured Tsunade into an ambush with Root’s help. Natsume defeated the Hokage advisors and overwhelmed Danzō, who used Reverse Four Symbols Sealing to cover his escape.

• Natsume left a Shadow Clone with Maruboshi Kosuke’s team and hurried ahead as Tsunade confronted Shimura Danzō in the forest.
• Shimura Danzō trapped Tsunade with a Sealing Jutsu, but Might Guy, Kakashi Hatake, Maruboshi Kosuke, and the others arrived and broke up the ambush.
• Natsume found Utatane Koharu and Mitokado Homura plotting to support whoever won, then used his Eternal Mangekyo Sharingan to make them attack the battlefield, where Might Guy killed them.
• Shimura Danzō used Izanagi to survive Natsume’s Sage Art: Water Style: Water Severing Wave, but Natsume repeatedly overwhelmed him with Water Style attacks.
• Shimura Danzō activated Reverse Four Symbols Sealing, and Tsunade ordered everyone to scatter as he tried to escape.

Tsunade’s forces defeated Danzō’s rebellion, though Shimura Danzō escaped, and Natsume gained respect and Destiny Points for his role. After the others left, Tsunade offered Natsume a Hokage aide position, and they headed home together after he persuaded her to grant him a personal reward.

• Shimura Danzō used the All Creation: Four Symbols Sealing to cover the area in black Cursed Seals and escape, while Tsunade’s forces captured the remaining Root members and found Utatane Koharu and Mitokado Homura dead.
• Natsume received 560 Destiny Points as the fates of Shimura Danzō, Mitokado Homura, Utatane Koharu, Ryoma Aburame, Fū Yamanaka, and others changed.
• Tsunade ordered Kakashi Hatake to send the advisers’ bodies to the Analysis Team and told Shizune to list Shimura Danzō as an S-rank missing-nin.
• Hiruzen Sarutobi arrived, learned that Utatane Koharu and Mitokado Homura had died and Shimura Danzō had escaped, and urged Tsunade to limit the upheaval’s impact on Konoha.
• After the others left, Natsume told Tsunade that he had exposed the two advisers, and she offered to appoint him Hokage’s aide as a reward.
• Natsume persuaded Tsunade to grant him a personal reward, and she agreed to discuss it when they got home.

After becoming Tsunade’s aide, Natsume went home with her, visited Hinata Hyuga, and cooked for her and Rinka Hyuga. He ended the night with Tsunade, who fled in the morning and postponed their promised sparring match.

• Tsunade and Natsume returned home together, where Shizune reported that she had carried out Tsunade’s order to list Shimura Danzō as an S-rank missing-nin.
• Natsume used the Flying Thunder God Technique to visit Hinata Hyuga, then went to the Hyuga Clan kitchen with permission from Hiashi Hyuga and cooked for Hinata and Rinka Hyuga.
• After Natsume returned home, he joined Tsunade in the bathroom, and they spent the night together.
• In the morning, Tsunade told Natsume not to go to the Hokage Building and postponed their promised sparring match for a couple of days.

Tsunade exposed Shimura Danzō’s crimes and moved to seize the Sarutobi Clan’s Wood Style shinobi, while Orochimaru prepared to relocate his research. In Amegakure, Itachi Uchiha learned that Danzō had defected and decided to return to Konoha with Kisame Hoshigaki to visit Sasuke Uchiha.

• Hyuga Hiashi and Rinka Hyuga discussed Natsume’s strength and accepted that Hinata could keep associating with him.
• Orochimaru learned that Danzō had defected and ordered Guren to move his documents and experimental equipment to the secret base.
• Tsunade ordered Hiruzen Sarutobi to transfer seven Sarutobi Clan shinobi with Wood Style to Anbu, and Hiruzen agreed.
• Hiruzen Sarutobi reflected on Kurenai Yuhi’s changed attitude toward Asuma Sarutobi and advised his son to take his time.
• Obito Uchiha told Itachi Uchiha that Shimura Danzō had defected, and Itachi decided to return to Konoha with Kisame Hoshigaki to give Sasuke Uchiha a gift.

Naruto Uzumaki reconnected with Sasuke Uchiha at the Academy, while Natsume’s organization pursued the Sky Hidden Village and received a report on the Uchiha Clan. After school, Naruto and Sasuke began a spar that drew a crowd.

• Sasuke Uchiha returned to Class 3-A, challenged Naruto Uzumaki to a fight after school, and Naruto accepted.
• Sakura Haruno told Naruto Uzumaki that she was studying Medical Ninjutsu under Lady Yakushi Nonō, then went to cheer for Sasuke Uchiha.
• Shisui Uchiha reported that he had found the ruins of Sky Hidden Village and a huge structure beneath them, and Natsume ordered him to keep searching for Shinno and building the intelligence network.
• Uzumaki Naruto's mother reported that Uchiha Clan members had been assigned roles that boosted the Thousand Sunny Merchant Guild's manpower.
• Naruto Uzumaki and Sasuke Uchiha fought at the training field after school as Lee Rock, Neji Hyuga, Shikamaru Nara, Choji Akimichi, Kiba Inuzuka, Shino Aburame, and Sakura Haruno watched.

Naruto Uzumaki defeated Sasuke Uchiha in their spar, while Natsume encouraged Hinata Hyuga to develop a long-range form of Gentle Fist. Later, Natsume and Tsunade discussed Root, his protection, and the Flying Thunder God Technique before their evening together in the Hokage's Office.

• Hinata Hyuga watched Naruto Uzumaki outmaneuver Sasuke Uchiha and told Natsume that defeating them would be difficult.
• Natsume suggested that Hinata develop a long-range Gentle Fist technique, then watched Naruto Uzumaki defeat Sasuke Uchiha with a whirlwind kick.
• Rinka Hyuga invited Natsume to dinner, but he declined and went to the Hokage's Office, where Ino Yamanaka accidentally let a rooster die during medical ninjutsu practice.
• Tsunade and Natsume agreed not to rebuild Root, and Tsunade urged him to choose guards for protection.
• Natsume asked to learn the Flying Thunder God Technique and proposed researching whether Tsunade could awaken Wood Style.
• Tsunade teased and kissed Natsume, and they continued their private evening in the Hokage's Office.

At a Jonin meeting, Tsunade appointed Natsume as her aide after gaining support by ending Root and restoring the Konoha Military Police Force’s authority. Natsume explored the Scroll of Seals, then returned to his new office and cleaned it with Ino Yamanaka.

• Hiashi Hyuga noticed Natsume occupying Shimura Danzō’s former seat and considered the benefits of a connection between Natsume and Hinata.
• Kurenai Yuhi told Kakashi Hatake that she had ended her relationship with Asuma Sarutobi, and Natsume received 150 Destiny Points for changing their fates and Mirai Sarutobi’s.
• Tsunade announced that Root would not be rebuilt, its former members would become ordinary ninjas, and the Konoha Military Police Force would take over public security from Anbu.
• Hiashi Hyuga, Maruboshi Kosuke, Shikaku Nara, and most of the Jonin supported Natsume’s appointment as Hokage’s aide.
• Natsume read the Scroll of Seals and memorized the Spirit Transformation Technique before returning to his new office.
• Ino Yamanaka helped Natsume clean his office, and he asked her to keep calling him by his familiar name rather than senior brother.

Natsume brought Mikoto Uchiha to witness Itachi Uchiha confronting Sasuke Uchiha, then returned with her to the Land of Waves. After Mikoto’s emotions erupted, she woke the next afternoon still without awakening her Sharingan.

• Natsume discovered Itachi Uchiha and Kisame Hoshigaki in Konoha, then took Mikoto Uchiha from the Daimyo's Mansion in the Land of Waves to the Uchiha Clan compound.
• Itachi Uchiha defeated Sasuke Uchiha and used Tsukuyomi to make him relive the Night of the Massacre while Mikoto Uchiha watched from Natsume’s barrier.
• Natsume confronted Itachi Uchiha, who released Sasuke Uchiha and left with Kisame Hoshigaki without fighting.
• Mikoto Uchiha embraced Sasuke Uchiha before Natsume took her back to the Land of Waves, where she asked him for more power and bit his hand to drink his blood.
• Mikoto Uchiha woke the next afternoon, remembered what had happened, and wondered why she had not awakened her Sharingan.

Natsume visited Orochimaru as the Hokage's assistant and arranged a secret partnership to research awakening Wood Style, offering resources and protection in exchange for Orochimaru ceasing attacks on Konoha's people. He sent Kabuto Yakushi to learn from Orochimaru, then was summoned by Tsunade.

• Mikoto Uchiha ate the porridge Natsume brought, asked why she had not awakened the Mangekyō Sharingan, and agreed to train her ocular power with Naruto Uzumaki's mother.
• Natsume finished approving documents at the Hokage Building and went to Orochimaru's residence to discuss Konoha's Wood Style research.
• Natsume and Orochimaru agreed to cooperate: Orochimaru would oversee the experiment, stop targeting Konoha's shinobi and villagers, and receive prisoners and resources in return.
• Natsume arranged for Kabuto Yakushi to study under Orochimaru, and Kabuto welcomed the chance to learn his techniques.
• Kurenai Yuhi told Natsume that Tsunade wanted to see him.

Natsume arranged for Naruto Uzumaki to be recognized as the Fourth Hokage's son and receive his parents' inheritance, changing how the village treated him. He then led a team to find Shinno and the Sky Fortress, confronting him in a rainforest village.

• Tsunade gave Natsume Naruto Uzumaki's file and assigned him to publicize Naruto's identity and inheritance.
• Natsume gave Naruto his parents' passbook and told him that Tsunade had announced he was the Fourth Hokage's son.
• Naruto's identity spread through Konoha, earning Natsume forty-nine Destiny Points as villagers reacted and Hiruzen Sarutobi learned the news.
• Shisui Uchiha told Natsume that Shinno had returned to the ruins of the Sky Hidden Village, and Natsume ordered the team to prepare to leave.
• Natsume led Shisui Uchiha, Izumi Uchiha, Mikoto Uchiha, and other shinobi into the rainforest, where Shisui captured a Sky Ninja who revealed Shinno's location.
• Natsume confronted Shinno at Yurui's house, claiming Shinno owed compensation for injuring one of his subordinates.

Natsume and his companions confronted Shinno in the Land of Sky, where Mikoto Uchiha defeated two Sky Ninja and Natsume rescued Yurui. Shinno activated the Land of Sky Fortress and raised it into the air, leaving Natsume’s group facing the enormous weapon.

• Natsume told Shinno that Zero Tail had been created using Konoha’s stolen jutsu, and Shinno ordered the Sky Ninja to capture the group alive.
• Mikoto Uchiha fought the Sky Ninja Jonin, defeating one with a kick and killing the other with a kunai and a punch.
• Natsume stopped Shinno from taking the unconscious Yurui, knocked him through a wall, and ordered Shisui Uchiha to follow him without interfering.
• Natsume took Yurui to the Daimyo's Mansion of the Land of Waves, entrusted her to Naruto Uzumaki's mother, and returned to the Land of Sky.
• Shinno sacrificed Sky Ninja to generate Dark Chakra, then activated the Land of Sky Fortress and transformed into a muscular younger form.
• The Land of Sky Fortress rose from the earth and floated into the sky, while Mikoto Uchiha and Izumi Uchiha worried that the group could not fight it.

Natsume defeated the Sky Fortress and Zero Tail, then ordered Shisui Uchiha and the others to take the fortress to the Land of Snow as a secret base for the Heaven's Will Organization. He stayed behind with Mikoto Uchiha, while Shinnō was captured for his knowledge and techniques.

• Natsume summoned the Susanoo Great Buddha and withstood the Sky Fortress's Chakra cannon, leaving Shinno convinced his attack had been an illusion.
• Natsume and Shisui Uchiha subdued Zero Tail, and Shisui Uchiha hypnotized Shinnō after Natsume tricked him into separating from it.
• Natsume decided to move the Sky Fortress to the Land of Snow and ordered Shisui Uchiha, Izumi Uchiha, and the others to seize control of it without pursuing Kazahana Dōtō after gaining the upper hand.
• Natsume sent the eleven shinobi to the Land of Snow but kept Mikoto Uchiha with him, and she accepted that she could not resist him.

Natsume returned to Konoha, where he and Tsunade discussed Shimura Danzō’s escape from Amegakure and Hanzō’s possible plans before their private time together. In the Land of Snow, Kazahana Dōtō ordered an attack on the Sky Fortress and demanded news of Kazahana Koyuki.

• Natsume left Mikoto Uchiha to rest, then visited Karin and learned that Yurui wanted to return to her village.
• Uzumaki Ena told Natsume that waterways would open next month and chefs from Kirigakure had arrived before he returned to Konoha.
• Natsume read a report that Shimura Danzō had sought out Hanzō in Amegakure, suffered serious injuries, and escaped.
• Tsunade warned Natsume about Hanzō’s strength, then wrestled with him in her office while Shizune and Ino Yamanaka waited outside.
• Kazahana Dōtō learned that his scouts had disappeared inside the Sky Fortress and ordered his forces to attack it the next day.
• Kazahana Dōtō demanded news of Kazahana Koyuki, but Tsurugi Fubuki reported that they had found no trace of her.

Natsume brought Kazahana Koyuki to the Land of Snow, defeated Kazahana Dōtō and his forces, and helped her reclaim the throne. After learning the truth about her father’s environmental machine, Koyuki accepted Natsume’s protection and took control of the country.

• Natsume found Kazahana Koyuki and Sandayu Asama at the Metropolitan Cinema and persuaded Koyuki to come with him to the Land of Snow.
• Natsume used the Flying Thunder God Technique to take Koyuki to Snow Castle, where Kazahana Dōtō ordered his Snow Ninja to attack them.
• Natsume used Wood Style to capture the Snow Ninja and killed Kazahana Dōtō, Nadare Rōga, Tsurugi Fubuki, and Touma Hyohyo.
• Koyuki accepted Natsume’s offer to protect the Land of Snow and became its daimyō after the Snow Ninja pledged allegiance to her.
• Natsume and Koyuki visited Rainbow Glacier, where the Hexagonal Crystal activated Kazahana Sōsetsu’s machine and revealed his plan to transform the Land of Snow.
• Sandayu Asama began preparing Koyuki’s succession ceremony, and she took control of the Land of Snow within three days.