Chapter Summaries

Orochimaru assessed Danzo as his main rival for the Hokage position and prepared Shikun Mitarashi to recover Raijin's Sword. Months later, he continued refining his Flying Thunder God technique, though he still needed prewritten formulas to use it.

• Orochimaru warned Shikun Mitarashi that Danzo was his greatest rival and predicted Danzo would target Sakumo next.
• Orochimaru gave Shikun Mitarashi scrolls containing the Flying Thunder God Technique and his analysis, promising him a chance to study the Scroll of Seals.
• Orochimaru revealed that Kakuzu had recovered Raijin's Sword and planned for Shikun Mitarashi to earn merit by retrieving it from the Land of Rain.
• Orochimaru explained that the Cosmic Cube's spatial energy had greatly improved Shikun Mitarashi's potential for space-time techniques.
• Several months later, Orochimaru tested his modified Ouroboros-shaped Flying Thunder God formula, which he still had to inscribe beforehand on paper and attach to a Kunai.

Minato Namikaze mastered Flying Thunder God under Orochimaru’s guidance, then Kushina tried to feed him her cooking. Later, Shikun Mitarashi told Orochimaru he had mastered the technique too but struggled to inscribe its formula quickly.

• Orochimaru demonstrated Flying Thunder God to Minato Namikaze and explained how to sense the formula and resonate with its chakra.
• Kushina brought Minato lunch, fed him her unusual cooking, and insisted she would make his dinners from then on.
• Orochimaru urged Minato to resume training, and Minato used a marked kunai to teleport across the training ground.
• Kushina called Minato back to finish his meal, while Orochimaru left him behind and took a break from his duties.
• Shikun Mitarashi visited Orochimaru and explained that he could use Flying Thunder God but needed a day to inscribe each formula kunai.

Shikun Mitarashi learned the Flying Thunder God after returning from the Land of Rain, while Orochimaru and Minato recorded their insights on the technique. Two years later, Minato and Orochimaru trained together until Shikun arrived wounded, leaving Orochimaru asking what had happened.

• Shikun Mitarashi left for the Land of Rain after memorizing a code to contact Jiraiya and preparing Flying Thunder God kunai.
• Minato and Orochimaru told the Third Hokage that they had learned the Flying Thunder God, then recorded their insights in the Scroll of Seals.
• Orochimaru spent three days writing about the Flying Thunder God and the theory of relativity, leaving the Third Hokage baffled by his work.
• Shikun Mitarashi returned wounded with Raijin's Sword, gained permission to view the Scroll of Seals, and later recorded his own insights after learning the Flying Thunder God.
• Two years later, Orochimaru and Minato sparred at Training Ground No. 7 while Kushina cheered Minato on.
• Shikun Mitarashi arrived at the training ground injured, and Orochimaru noticed the scent of blood and asked what had happened.

After returning from his mission, Shikun Mitarashi recovered under Orochimaru’s care, and Orochimaru traveled to Ryūchi Cave. The White Snake Sage sensed the Dragon Yuan within him, mistook its aura for that of a True Dragon, and offered to teach him Sage Art.

• Shikun Mitarashi told Orochimaru that Jiraiya had rescued him from Hanzo, and Orochimaru treated his injuries.
• Orochimaru went to Ryūchi Cave and considered modifying Manda while pretending to treat his damaged eye.
• Tagorihime brought Orochimaru before the White Snake Sage, who asked where the True Dragon aura on him came from.
• Orochimaru said the Divine Dragon was no longer in this world, and the White Snake Sage offered to teach him Sage Art without endangering his life.

Orochimaru negotiated with the White Snake Sage for access to Ryūchi Cave in exchange for helping her meet the True Dragon, then set about modifying Manda. After completing the surgery, Orochimaru kept his laboratory in Ryūchi Cave and began considering its snakes as experimental material.

• Orochimaru promised to help the White Snake Sage meet the True Dragon within a hundred years, and she offered him anything in Ryūchi Cave in return.
• Orochimaru asked for Manda as well as Sage Art, then returned to Konohagakure to gather supplies for experiments.
• The Three Snake Sisters restrained Manda while Orochimaru paralyzed him and performed surgery in his converted nest-laboratory.
• Orochimaru replaced Manda's blind eye with a glowing mechanical one, removed his frontal lobe, and added a horn, venom sacs, and a fire-breathing function.
• The Three Snake Sisters left Manda's nest, and Orochimaru decided to keep his equipment in Ryūchi Cave and use its snakes for future experiments.
• Manda gradually woke up after the modifications without his usual screaming and shouting.

Orochimaru tested Manda’s modifications, then dealt with Tsunade and Kushina eating his meals as he prepared to rest. The chapter left him exhausted, fed, and wondering what else his bad luck might bring.

• Orochimaru tested Manda’s new abilities and discovered that Manda’s responses were delayed, though she could follow commands and use her modified powers.
• Manda revealed that Garaga was mating with Mother Snake, prompting Tagorihime to react angrily while the White Snake Sage watched.
• Orochimaru returned to Konoha, where Tsunade and Shizune arrived; Tsunade ate his meal, and Orochimaru threatened to cook Tonton before Tsunade came to bid him farewell.
• Minato and Kushina accompanied Tsunade when she left, then Kushina and Minato joined Orochimaru at a restaurant, where Kushina ate an enormous amount of food.
• Orochimaru paid for the meal, concluded that he had been unlucky all day, and decided to go home and sleep.

Minato Namikaze and Shikun Mitarashi sparred with the Flying Thunder God before Hatake Sakumo arrived and challenged Orochimaru. Their fierce duel escalated into a clash of clones, blades, and combined elemental techniques, while Minato and Shikun defended Kakashi from the fallout.

• Minato Namikaze and Shikun Mitarashi fought to a standstill as they used the Flying Thunder God to outmaneuver each other.
• Hatake Sakumo arrived with Kakashi, and Minato stepped in front of Kakashi when the pressure of the duel made him uncomfortable.
• Orochimaru accepted Hatake Sakumo’s challenge, and the two began their spar as Minato, Shikun, and Kakashi watched.
• Orochimaru and Hatake Sakumo traded attacks with snakes, explosive kunai, elemental ninjutsu, and shadow clones.
• Orochimaru unleashed a combined Earth and Wind Release attack, while Minato and Shikun used defensive ninjutsu to shield Kakashi from the aftershocks.

Orochimaru and Hatake Sakumo’s spar ended when the Third Hokage stopped them, and both later reflected on the fight and how to counter the other’s strengths. Back home, Orochimaru resumed developing ninjutsu and created the Wind Release: Sonar Technique, which he planned to expand into an offensive technique.

• Hatake Sakumo and Orochimaru’s destructive spar was stopped by the arriving Third Hokage after the training ground was wrecked.
• Kushina took everyone to Q's Barbecue, where the feast exhausted the chefs and emptied Sakumo’s wallet.
• Orochimaru reviewed Sakumo’s speed and tactics, while Sakumo reflected that a sharper sword and firmer resolve might give him a chance against Orochimaru.
• Orochimaru tried adding Wind Release to the Rasengan but stopped the unstable technique before it exploded.
• Orochimaru developed Wind Release: Sonar Technique, with Infrasound and Ultrasound branches, and considered adapting it for offense.

Orochimaru developed living Snake Shuriken in Ryūchi Cave while pursuing his plans to learn Sage Art. In Sunagakure, the Third Kazekage and Sasori were missing, and the village’s leaders decided to blame Konoha and prepare for war.

• Garaga fought Manda after hearing that Manda had spread intimate details about him, then sought a mechanical eye from Orochimaru and agreed to serve him if his brain remained untouched.
• Orochimaru created Snake Shuriken by reinforcing small snakes with hardened scales and steel so they could coil into blades and attack if they missed their targets.
• Shamon found the Kazekage’s office empty and left without realizing that the Third Kazekage had disappeared and Sunagakure was leaderless.
• Ebizo reported that the Third Kazekage and Sasori had both vanished, prompting Chiyo to accuse Konoha of their presumed assassination.
• Chiyo, Pakura, and the other Sunagakure leaders decided to launch a war against Konoha to seize land with more water and avenge Chiyo’s family.

After Sunagakure blamed Konoha for the Third Kazekage’s death, Rasa became the Fourth Kazekage and declared war. Orochimaru took command of Konoha’s western forces, where he learned the enemy had converged at Kikyo Castle under Chiyo, Rasa, and Pakura.

• Chiyo and the elders backed war against Konoha, and Rasa became Fourth Kazekage with Chiyo’s support.
• Sunagakure announced that Konoha’s White Fang and Three Ninja had assassinated the Third Kazekage, then launched the Third Ninja War.
• Orochimaru returned to Konoha and was appointed commander of the western front after the jonin meeting.
• Orochimaru led three thousand ninja toward the border and sent Shikun Mitarashi and Minato Namikaze to scout.
• Minato and Shikun rescued a Konoha squad; Orochimaru saved its poisoned captain by amputating his leg and took a poison sample to develop an antidote.
• The captain reported that Chiyo, Rasa, and Pakura had united their forces at Kikyo Castle, leaving Orochimaru facing three Kage-level opponents.

Orochimaru led Konohagakure’s forces into their first direct battle with Sunagakure near the River Country. The fighting began with Orochimaru facing Rasa and Chiyo, while Shikun Mitarashi and Minato moved to disrupt Sunagakure’s other fighters.

• Orochimaru worried that a prolonged war with Sunagakure would leave Konohagakure vulnerable to attacks from the other great nations and to Danzo’s schemes.
• Orochimaru led Konohagakure’s shinobi to the borderlands, where their forces met Sunagakure’s army near the River Country.
• Chiyo accused Konohagakure of making Sasori disappear, and Orochimaru suggested that Sasori might have assassinated the Third Kazekage and fled.
• Rasa ordered a joint attack, and Pakura launched Scorch Release fireballs at Orochimaru, who countered them before blocking Rasa’s Gold Dust with Triple Rashomon.
• Orochimaru summoned Manda to fight Chiyo’s Puppets, while Shikun Mitarashi transferred Pakura away to fight her.
• Minato transferred away two of the Ten Puppets of Chikamatsu.

Orochimaru and Minato Namikaze fought Rasa and Chiyo while Shikun Mitarashi kept Pakura occupied. Minato left to reinforce Konoha’s main battlefield, where his attacks turned the fight against Sunagakure, as Orochimaru continued holding off the two Kage-level opponents.

• Orochimaru and Minato Namikaze pressured Rasa and Chiyo, while Shikun Mitarashi used Flying Thunder God to evade Pakura’s Scorch Release and search for an opening.
• Chiyo used poisonous smoke and her Puppets to force Orochimaru to evade, giving Rasa time to attack with Magnet Release: Golden Sand Wave.
• Orochimaru suppressed Rasa and Chiyo with combined Fire Release and Wind Release, then told Minato Namikaze to help the other Konoha Ninja.
• Rasa tried to use Gold Dust to interfere with another battlefield, but Orochimaru’s attacks forced him to withdraw it and defend himself.
• Minato Namikaze raced across the main battlefield, killing Sunagakure shinobi and boosting Konoha’s morale while Orochimaru kept Rasa and Chiyo occupied.

Orochimaru held Sunagakure to a stalemate after a day of fighting, while Konohagakure prepared for a prolonged war and Jiraiya returned home. The chapter left Sakumo’s future in danger as Hiruzen’s advisers and Danzo sought to limit his rise.

• Orochimaru, Minato Namikaze, Rasa, and Chiyo fought until both sides were exhausted, then withdrew without a decisive victory.
• Orochimaru returned to camp and concluded that he had achieved his goal of halting Sunagakure’s advance, leaving the front in a stalemate.
• Konohagakure gathered shinobi for possible reinforcements while keeping forces in reserve against Kumogakure and Iwagakure; Kirigakure remained occupied by internal conflict.
• Jiraiya finished training Yahiko, Konan, and Nagato, received a recall order, and returned to Konohagakure.
• Hiruzen’s advisers opposed Sakumo becoming a commander, while Danzo hoped to send White Fang on missions so secret or dangerous that his prestige would not grow.

Hatake Sakumo watched Kakashi begin at the Ninja Academy, where Kakashi met Might Guy, while the war against Sunagakure worsened and Hiruzen Sarutobi approved a mission to assassinate the Kazekage. Sakumo was chosen for the mission and left Kakashi that night to head for the front lines.

• Kushina woke Anko for the Ninja Academy entrance exam and made her eat the mung bean porridge she had prepared.
• Kakashi, Anko, Kurenai Yūhi, Asuma, Rin Nohara, Obito Uchiha, and other children entered the academy, while Might Guy failed the evaluation after running five hundred laps.
• Hatake Shōsō recognized Might Guy’s determination and told Kakashi to ask his name, setting Guy up as Kakashi’s future rival and friend.
• As the war with Sunagakure stalled at Kikyo Castle and threats from Kumogakure and Iwagakure grew, Shimura Danzō urged Hiruzen Sarutobi to act against the Kazekage.
• Hiruzen Sarutobi formed an elite Anbu squad for the Kazekage Assassination Plan, including Hatake Sakumo and his eldest son.
• Hatake Sakumo said goodbye to Kakashi and left that night for the front lines.

Rasa enlisted Bunpuku to use Shukaku against Kikyo Castle while he and Chiyo handled Orochimaru. As Hatake Sakumo set out on an assassination mission after Orochimaru warned him of a trap, the One-Tail went berserk in the Sunagakure camp, and Rasa flew to confront it despite his injury.

• Rasa, Chiyo, and Pakura persuaded Bunpuku to unleash Shukaku against Konoha’s defenses at Kikyo Castle.
• Hatake Sakumo arrived at Kikyo Castle with Shin'nosuke, Shin'nosuke’s wife, and the Root operative Leopard, then prepared to lead an assassination mission.
• Orochimaru privately warned Sakumo that the mission was a trap and arranged for Minato and Shikun Mitarashi to provide backup.
• Sakumo departed with his team, anxious about the danger but unwilling to abandon the mission or his comrades.
• The One-Tail suddenly rampaged in the Sunagakure camp while Rasa was being treated for a wound inflicted by Sakumo’s White Fang.
• Rasa ordered Leopard taken away and flew toward the berserk One-Tail using gold dust.

Hatake Sakumo rescued Leopard after the assassination mission failed, while Asuma Sarutobi and his wife were left crippled. Orochimaru seized the chaos caused by Shukaku to launch a decisive assault on Sunagakure, leaving Rasa and Pakura convinced he had planned the entire turn of events.

• Hatake Sakumo chose to rescue Leopard instead of abandoning him to complete the failed mission, while Asuma Sarutobi and his wife stayed behind with their injuries.
• Orochimaru sent Minato Namikaze to retrieve Shin'nosuke and led the survivors back toward Konoha's forces.
• Orochimaru judged the rampaging One-Tail and Rasa's injuries to be the best opening for a decisive attack, then rallied Konoha's remaining forces against the Sunagakure camp.
• Chiyo charged at Hatake Sakumo, Shukaku fled from Orochimaru, and Konoha's ninja swept through the disordered Suna camp.
• Rasa and Pakura praised Orochimaru's supposed contingency plan, while Orochimaru privately realized he had not anticipated the events that created the opportunity.

Orochimaru and the Konoha forces overwhelmed Sunagakure, forcing Rasa, Pakura, and Chiyo to retreat while Bunpuku and Shukaku stayed behind to cover their escape. Bunpuku became a perfect Jinchuriki and fought Orochimaru’s group, but Shukaku was ultimately killed, leaving Sunagakure unable to readily wage war for three years.

• Rasa and Pakura attacked Orochimaru together, but he countered their jutsu with powerful Water Release attacks and forced them onto the defensive.
• Hatake Sakumo fought Chiyo while Minato Namikaze and Shikun Mitarashi cut through the Sunagakure forces, inflicting heavy casualties.
• Rasa’s wounds reopened, and he and Pakura rescued Chiyo and fled as Bunpuku and Shukaku agreed to stay behind as the rearguard.
• Bunpuku became a perfect One-Tail Jinchuriki and joined Shukaku in battling Orochimaru, Hatake Sakumo, Minato Namikaze, and Shikun Mitarashi.
• Orochimaru used himself as bait, and Gamabunta, Garaga, and Manda restrained Shukaku before Hatake Sakumo decapitated it.
• Sunagakure lost Shukaku and would not readily start another war until the Tailed Beast revived and a new Jinchuriki was prepared.

After Sunagakure's defeat, Rasa sent Pakura to seek Kirigakure's help, secretly hoping to remove a rival for his Kazekage position. Pakura was ambushed and crippled by a Kirigakure shinobi, who attacked her as vengeance for past losses.

• Orochimaru joined Konoha's negotiations with Sunagakure, whose defeat had weakened Rasa's hold on power and sparked conflict among its leaders.
• Rasa told Pakura to travel to Kirigakure and persuade it to pressure Konoha during negotiations.
• Believing the mission would help Sunagakure, Pakura left her students and set out for the Land of Water.
• A Kirigakure shinobi met Pakura in a misty gorge and stabbed her in the back, paralyzing her.
• The shinobi attacked the helpless Pakura with kunai and shuriken, declaring it vengeance and a price for Kirigakure's support.

Hatake Sakumo faced a wave of rumors blaming him for Konoha’s losses, while Hiruzen and Danzo worked to undermine his standing. Meanwhile, Orochimaru used his intimidating presence to help negotiate Sunagakure’s mission-quota transfers and war reparations, and the chapter left him set to negotiate directly with Ebizo.

• Villagers spread rumors that Hatake Sakumo’s abandoned mission had caused Konoha’s losses, and Kakashi asked his father whether the accusations were lies.
• Hiruzen Sarutobi hoped the scandal would restrain Sakumo, while Danzo ordered Root to intensify the rumors and drive Sakumo from Konoha.
• Sakumo explained to Kakashi that he had failed to carry out the Hokage’s original mission, despite Orochimaru’s forces helping win the battle.
• Orochimaru’s intimidating presence helped Konoha and Sunagakure settle on transferring thirty thousand mission quotas over five years.
• The negotiators argued over war reparations until Ebizo demanded that Orochimaru negotiate directly with him.

Orochimaru returned to Konohagakure after the negotiations with Sunagakure ended and challenged Hiruzen over the pressure on White Fang. Sakumo brought Kakashi to Orochimaru and offered him the Konoha Style Sword Technique in exchange for protecting his son, but Orochimaru said the price was not enough.

• Orochimaru and Ebizo failed to agree at first, but after more than two months they settled on compensation that met Sunagakure's bottom line, and Orochimaru was recalled to Konohagakure.
• Sakumo taught Kakashi the Konoha Style Sword Technique and asked what he would do if his father died, then decided he needed someone else to protect Kakashi.
• Orochimaru returned to Konohagakure and asked Hiruzen whether he intended to kill White Fang, but Hiruzen insisted Danzo was only applying pressure and ordered Orochimaru not to interfere.
• Sakumo arrived at Orochimaru's home with Kakashi and offered the Konoha Style Sword Technique in exchange for Orochimaru protecting Kakashi until he came of age.
• Orochimaru refused to accept the offer as sufficient and indicated that he wanted something more from Sakumo.