Chapter Summaries

Li Yao kept Sarutobi Tenchu and Ayase Sarutobi captive aboard the Black Iron Giant Eagle, forcing them to stay alive while he planned to torment the Third Hokage through them. After resting and checking for pursuers, he left Viper Island and flew north toward a remote, colder place, keeping watch with Ink Eagles.

• Li Yao used the Perception Deprivation Technique to stop Ayase Sarutobi from harming herself, washed her, and fed her and Sarutobi Tenchu Soldier Pills.
• Li Yao fell asleep from exhaustion, then woke the next day to find Ayase Sarutobi still awake and helped her close her eyes.
• Sarutobi Tenchu hinted that his companions could track him, but Li Yao decided he could abandon the couple if Konoha's ninja caught up.
• Li Yao sent Ink Eagles out from Viper Island to check for pursuers, then flew north with ten Ink Eagles scouting around him.

Li Yao tried to force Sarutobi Tenchu and Ayase Sarutobi to explain the Spirit Transformation Technique, but they endured his torture and kept its secrets. On the third morning, the Third Hokage still had no word from Tenchu and worried in his office.

• Li Yao asked Sarutobi Tenchu what the Spirit Transformation Technique did, but Tenchu stayed silent.
• Li Yao threatened Ayase Sarutobi and mutilated Tenchu, yet neither revealed the technique's effects.
• Ayase bit off her tongue, while Tenchu remained silent and resolved to die rather than betray the secret.
• Li Yao spent the next three days traveling above the sea with the captive couple.
• The Third Hokage asked Chiba Emi whether Tenchu had sent word, and she said there was still no news.

The Third Hokage worried about his missing son and daughter-in-law while Li Yao confirmed that Chakra could be inherited through bloodlines. After deciding to leave the couple, Li Yao mutilated Sarutobi Tenchu, and Ayase Sarutobi broke his genjutsu through hatred and vowed revenge.

• The Third Hokage summoned Enma and asked him to check whether Sarutobi Tenchu and Ayase Sarutobi's names remained on the Enma Clan contract scroll.
• Li Yao sensed his Chakra in Ayase Sarutobi's womb and confirmed that Chakra could be inherited by descendants.
• Li Yao bound Ayase Sarutobi and used a Wind Release Chakra blade to mutilate Sarutobi Tenchu until he fainted.
• Ayase Sarutobi's hatred shattered Li Yao's genjutsu, and she swore to kill and eat him.
• Li Yao considered killing Ayase Sarutobi but chose to keep her alive so the Third Hokage could suffer more.

Li Yao left Sarutobi Tenchu and Ayase alive on an island after mutilating Tenchu, while the Third Hokage learned that the Third Raikage had attacked Konoha’s northern forces and used the Reverse Summoning Technique to bring the couple back. Seeing his son’s condition, the Third Hokage blamed Li Yao and erupted in grief and rage.

• Li Yao healed Sarutobi Tenchu enough to keep him alive, gave him a Soldier Pill, and searched for an island to leave him and Ayase on.
• Enma confirmed that Tenchu and Ayase’s names remained on the Sarutobi summoning contract, but the Third Hokage remained uneasy about their silence.
• The Third Hokage learned that the Third Raikage had launched a surprise attack on the northern border and that Mitokado Homura urgently needed reinforcements.
• The Third Hokage ordered Enma to use the Reverse Summoning Technique, bringing back Tenchu as a human stick and Ayase naked.
• The Third Hokage roared Li Yao’s name, blamed him for Tenchu’s condition, and ordered the Sarutobi Clan members away from the backyard.

Li Yao fled to an Arctic island to live in seclusion while the Five Great Nations plunged into war. After Sarutobi Tenchu awoke, he begged the Third Hokage to kill Li Yao, deepening Hiruzen’s resolve to pursue revenge.

• Biwako found Sarutobi Tenchu and Ayase Sarutobi gravely traumatized, and she and the Third Hokage took them inside to rest.
• Li Yao released the chakra he had left in the Sarutobis and flew north, pleased that his revenge had caused the Third Hokage pain.
• Li Yao crossed the Arctic region, built a wooden house on a remote island, and vowed to leave only when he became invincible.
• The Five Great Nations entered a widespread war, and the Third Hokage sent the Uchiha Clan’s neutral and Konoha-friendly factions to the battlefield while keeping the hawks at home.
• After learning Sarutobi Tenchu had awakened, the Third Hokage rushed to his secret chamber, where Tenchu urged him to kill Li Yao immediately.

Sarutobi Tenchu warned the Third that Li Yao did not know the Spirit Transformation Technique and needed to be killed before he grew stronger. The Third agreed to send a search party into the Sea of War, while still protecting his authority by planning to join them only after they found Li Yao.

• Sarutobi Tenchu told the Third about Li Yao's abilities and argued that he had never known the Spirit Transformation Technique.
• The Third reconsidered his assumptions but hesitated to leave Konoha because he feared losing control of the village.
• Sarutobi Tenchu accused his father of putting power before Konoha, and Ayase confirmed that Li Yao did not know the technique.
• Biwako Sarutobi offered to find Li Yao and summon the Third to her, while Ayase insisted on going too.
• Biwako, Ayase, and Dan Katō flew into the Sea of War on an Ink Great Bird to search for Li Yao.

Li Yao spent a day in secluded training in the Arctic, strengthening his body and practicing Transformation Jutsu while improving his Wood Release and Black Iron Chains. He ended the day by returning to bed and planned to repeat the same routine the next day.

• Li Yao trained Lightning Release Chakra Mode by using lightning to stimulate his cells and Wood Release to heal them, aiming to adapt his body to Lightning Release Chakra.
• After six hours of exercise, Li Yao caught a huge fish through an ice hole, prepared it for storage, and ate fish soup in his heated cabin.
• Li Yao practiced transforming into stone and a snow rabbit, confirming that he could replicate flesh but not another person's Chakra.
• Li Yao pondered obtaining the Third Hokage's Spirit Transformation Technique to help develop a Perfect Transformation Jutsu that could replicate Chakra.
• Li Yao researched ways to strengthen his Black Iron Chains while his Shadow Clone worked to intensify his Wood Release Chakra nature.
• Li Yao recalled his Shadow Clone, set another to tend the boiler, and went to sleep before planning to repeat his training routine.

Three months after Li Yao tortured Ayase Sarutobi, Biwako Sarutobi confronted her over the pregnancy, only to learn Ayase planned to give birth and eat the child in front of Li Yao as revenge. Ayase demonstrated a powerful new form of Super Beast Imitation Drawing, while Dan Katō intervened to stop Biwako from attacking her.

• Biwako Sarutobi demanded that Ayase Sarutobi abort the child, but Ayase said she would give birth and eat it in front of Li Yao.
• Ayase thought that she had died when Li Yao humiliated her and that she now lived only to make him suffer in revenge.
• Biwako charged at Ayase, but Ayase blocked her Sealing Palm Thrust with a hardened ink shield and flew away on an Ink Great Bird.
• Dan Katō stepped between the two women and urged Biwako not to attack her comrade.
• Biwako revealed that she had realized five days earlier that Ayase's vomiting was morning sickness, not a psychological aftereffect of Li Yao's torture.

Biwako learned that Ayase was carrying Li Yao’s child and tried to prevent her from giving birth, but Dan Katō stopped her. Third Hokage ordered them to protect Ayase and the unborn child, whom he named Konoha Hatsune, and the group prepared to return to Konoha.

• Biwako discovered that Ayase knew Li Yao had fathered her child and attacked her, but Dan Katō intervened.
• Biwako, Ayase, and Dan Katō waited on an island for Third Hokage’s reply after their search failed to find Li Yao in the Sea of War.
• A Messenger Hawk delivered separate scrolls for Ayase and Dan Katō, and Biwako read Dan Katō’s reply first.
• Third Hokage ordered Biwako and Dan Katō to escort Ayase to Konoha and protect the child, naming the unborn baby Konoha Hatsune.
• Dan Katō vowed to protect Ayase and the child, while Biwako suspected her husband had a hidden motive.

Ayase Sarutobi returned to Konoha after accepting the Third Hokage’s secret revenge plan against Li Yao, while Biwako and Dan Katō resumed the search with Akira Inuzuka. A year later, the war had produced famous new warriors, including the Konoha Sanin and the Konoha White Fang.

• Ayase Sarutobi agreed to return to Konoha after reading the Third Hokage’s letter, and Biwako Sarutobi and Dan Katō accompanied her.
• The Third Hokage secretly explained his plan to Ayase, then told Biwako he still intended to find and kill Li Yao.
• The Third Hokage assigned Akira Inuzuka to join Biwako and Dan Katō in searching the small nations for Li Yao.
• A year passed as the Ninja World War intensified, while Li Yao remained hidden on an island near the Arctic Circle.
• Hanzo of the Salamander spared Jiraiya, Tsunade, and Orochimaru and named them the Konoha Sanin.
• The Konoha White Fang gained fame on the Land of Rivers battlefield by defeating many Sunagakure jonin.

Li Yao reached the physical limits of his civilian body and blamed bloodlines for holding back his potential. He resolved to overcome those limits through Chakra control and increase his reserves before leaving seclusion.

• Li Yao shattered thick sea ice with a punch and concluded that his body had reached its training limit.
• Li Yao reflected that his civilian bloodline limited his physical potential and that Hashirama's cells might be the only way to improve it.
• Li Yao activated his tightly controlled Lightning Release Chakra Mode and ran at a speed comparable to the Third Raikage.
• Li Yao assessed his reserves as equivalent to ten Kakashis and found them insufficient for large-scale Wood Release or fighting powerful Jinchuriki.
• Li Yao created a Shadow Clone to inscribe the Devouring Seal Array on his body and decided to spend half his time studying it and the rest condensing Wood Release Chakra.

Madara Uchiha leaked Li Yao’s location to push him into danger, prompting several factions to dispatch scouts. Li Yao completed a major improvement to his Black Iron Chains and grew confident he could defeat the Third Raikage, unaware that his pursuers were closing in.

• Madara Uchiha learned that Li Yao had been hiding near the Land of Extreme Cold and ordered White Zetsu to reveal his location.
• Ōnoki received detailed intelligence about Li Yao and sent Dalaran to investigate, while the Third Raikage and Biwako’s group also headed toward the reported location.
• Li Yao perfected the Black Iron Chains’ defensive weave and tested it against his One-Finger Nukite.
• Li Yao’s Shadow Clone was hurled into a cliff, but the Black Iron Feather Cloak remained intact.
• Li Yao concluded that his improved defense and Lightning Release Chakra Mode would let him defeat the Third Raikage.

Li Yao confronted Dodai Dalaran, who attacked with Clay Explosion Release, but Li Yao used Lightning Release to disable his clay birds. Dalaran then detonated a clay decoy that unleashed C4 Nanobombs, leaving Li Yao facing a swarm of tiny explosive clay worms.

• Li Yao sensed an approaching shinobi, replenished his Chakra from a sealing scroll, and flew out to meet him.
• Dodai Dalaran spotted Li Yao and sent clay birds toward him while keeping his distance and preparing to report Li Yao's location to the Third Tsuchikage.
• Li Yao fired Lightning Release senbon and pierced the clay birds, recognizing that lightning countered Dalaran's Clay Explosion Release.
• Dalaran abandoned a clay bird, which detonated at a distance and released a huge cloud of C4 Nanobombs.
• Li Yao sensed the swarm of tiny Chakra points rushing toward him and realized they were nanoscopic clay worms.

Li Yao chased Dalaran, copied his Earth and Explosion Release chakra, and survived Dalaran’s enormous self-destruction attack. Dan Katō reached the blast site and found Li Yao unharmed, but was unsure whether the changed-looking man was really Li Yao and wondered why he used Senior Ayase’s ink technique.

• Li Yao evaded Dalaran’s clay bombs, copied the chakra natures in his clay insects, and created white clay and Explosion Release chakra.
• Dalaran failed to escape Li Yao and unleashed his C4.5 Modified—Annihilation technique.
• Li Yao layered ink, lightning, and Black Iron Feather Cloak defenses around himself as Dalaran’s explosion engulfed him.
• Dan Katō used the Spirit Transformation Technique to investigate the blast while Biwako and Akira Inuzuka waited nearby.
• Li Yao emerged unharmed, replenished his chakra from a sealing scroll, and hovered on an Ink Eagle.
• Dan Katō saw Li Yao using Senior Ayase’s ink ninjutsu and wondered whether the mature-looking man was really Li Yao.

Li Yao survived Dalaran’s Clay Clone explosion, tracked down Dalaran, and killed him by sealing and devouring his chakra. He then turned toward a lone Kumogakure ninja, while Biwako concluded Li Yao might possess and reincarnate through others and resolved to kill him immediately.

• Li Yao sent out Ink Little Eagles to broaden his vision, while Dalaran rested behind an iceberg, believing Li Yao had died in the explosion.
• Li Yao sensed Dalaran’s chakra, recognized that the earlier target had been a Clay Clone, and flew toward the real Dalaran as Dan Katō monitored him.
• Dalaran’s Clay Flying Birds detected Li Yao, and Dalaran defended himself with an Earth-Style Wall against Li Yao’s falling Ink Senbon.
• Li Yao used his Adamantine Sealing Technique to pierce the barrier, devour Dalaran’s remaining chakra, and kill him.
• Li Yao spotted a lone Kumogakure ninja and headed toward them, while Biwako and Akira Inuzuka remained concealed from his Ink Little Eagles.
• Biwako reasoned that Li Yao might use an unknown possession-and-reincarnation technique and decided he had to die immediately; she and Akira continued following him from a distance.

Li Yao used an Ink Little Eagle to lure Daruma Noji into believing Konoha had reported his whereabouts, then ambushed him while disguised as an iceberg. He left Daruma Noji unconscious and sealed after killing his Summoning Beast Giant Eagle.

• Daruma Noji mistook Li Yao’s Ink Little Eagle for a message from Konoha and followed it, believing his organization was prepared to deal with Li Yao.
• Li Yao realized Daruma Noji had misunderstood the Ink Little Eagle and transformed himself into an iceberg to hide from him.
• Daruma Noji used Airflow Sensing Technique to search the area, unaware that the iceberg was Li Yao.
• Li Yao revealed himself and pursued Daruma Noji on an Ink Flying Bird, then trapped him in genjutsu before he could attack.
• Li Yao killed Daruma Noji’s Summoning Beast Giant Eagle and used Adamantine Sealing Technique to drain and seal Daruma Noji’s Chakra.

Li Yao killed Daruma Noji and searched for the Konoha forces he believed were monitoring him, while Dan Katō judged Li Yao’s abilities too dangerous to attack directly. Dan Katō, Biwako, and Akira Inuzuka evaded Li Yao’s searching Shadow Clones, and Li Yao eventually left for the Sea of War without finding them.

• Dan Katō watched Li Yao’s Genjutsu overwhelm and kill Daruma Noji, then considered how difficult Li Yao would be to defeat.
• Li Yao waited for Konoha’s forces to appear, suspected they were concealed nearby, and sent nine Shadow Clones to search in every direction.
• Dan Katō realized Li Yao’s Shadow Clones were searching for them, woke up, and led Biwako and Akira Inuzuka away from the area.
• Dan Katō’s group retreated a hundred kilometers while Li Yao’s Shadow Clones searched without finding them.
• Li Yao concluded that Konoha’s forces either had not come or could sense him from a hundred kilometers away, recalled his Shadow Clones, and flew toward the Sea of War.

Dan Katō and his companions reported Li Yao’s strength to the Third Hokage, who concluded that killing him required a coordinated force able to counter his genjutsu and defenses. He decided to enlist Sarutobi Gekko, the Sarutobi Clan’s sole shinobi capable of opening the Eight Gates Formation.

• Dan Katō, Akira Inuzuka, and Biwako assessed Li Yao’s genjutsu and concluded that multiple elite squads would be needed to corner him.
• Biwako sent the Third Hokage a report describing Li Yao’s growing strength, and the Hokage worried that he could no longer defeat Li Yao alone.
• The Third Hokage planned to use Mito Uzumaki’s Four Red Yang Formation and Dan Katō’s Spirit Transformation Technique to trap Li Yao and resist his genjutsu.
• Dan Katō confirmed that his Spirit Body could block Li Yao’s genjutsu, easing the Third Hokage’s concerns.
• The Third Hokage decided to bring Sarutobi Gekko, the Sarutobi Clan’s Eight Gates specialist, to help kill Li Yao.

The Third Hokage decided to seek an alliance with the Third Tsuchikage and Third Raikage to kill Li Yao, following Chiba Emi’s advice. Three days later, the Daimyo of the Land of Fire hesitated to support the plan because he feared losing face by admitting Konoha needed help.

• The Third Hokage worried that Konoha lacked enough experts able to withstand Li Yao’s Genjutsu and defeat him.
• Chiba Emi suggested that the Third Hokage join forces with the Third Tsuchikage and Third Raikage, and he agreed.
• The Third Hokage wrote to the Daimyo of the Land of Fire and prepared letters urging the Third Tsuchikage and Third Raikage to unite against Li Yao.
• The Third Hokage sent Mitokado Homura to deliver the letters to the Daimyo at the Feudal Lord’s Mansion.
• Three days later, the Daimyo read the Third Hokage’s warning about Li Yao’s future Wood Release but balked at proposing an alliance to the Land of Earth and Land of Lightning.

The Daimyo agreed to a joint operation against Li Yao and demanded that all Five Great Nations send their Kage, after learning that Li Yao could possess others and be reborn. Third Hokage welcomed the expanded alliance but remained uncertain about the strength of the isolated Third Mizukage.

• The Daimyo panicked after reading Mitokado Homura's letter about Li Yao's power, prompting both the Daimyo's guards and Konoha's Anbu to ready themselves for a fight.
• The Daimyo ordered Mitokado Homura to deliver a secret reply agreeing to kill Li Yao and demanding that the Daimyos of the Lands of Earth, Lightning, Wind, and Water send their Kage and forces.
• The Daimyo threatened to revoke Konoha's legitimacy and funding if Li Yao survived, then sent Mitokado Homura back to Third Hokage with the sealed letter.
• Third Hokage was astonished that the Daimyo feared Li Yao so intensely, but he welcomed the Five Kage alliance because it meant Sarutobi Gekko would not need to sacrifice himself by opening the Eight Gates Formation.
• Third Hokage considered how Dan Katō's Spirit Body and the Kage's powerful Chakra natures could protect them from Li Yao's Genjutsu, but worried that he knew little about the Third Mizukage.