Chapter Summaries

Hyuga Mirai visited Orochimaru’s Laboratory and reviewed experiments that reproduced some Hashirama Cells traits in test subjects. He traded his Perfect Clone Technology for Ryūchi Cave’s Summoning Scroll and the Spirit Transformation Technique, leaving with the scroll while Orochimaru promised to send the technique later.

• Hyuga Mirai entered Orochimaru’s Laboratory and learned that Orochimaru had reproduced Hashirama Senju’s genetic traits in test subjects, though the experiments still had a high mortality rate.
• Hyuga Mirai examined three test subjects and their data, finding that two had gained powerful regeneration while the third could use a limited form of Wood Release.
• Hyuga Mirai suggested breeding successful male and female test subjects to cultivate embryos that might inherit more of the Hashirama Cells’ Gene Sequence, exciting Orochimaru.
• Hyuga Mirai offered Orochimaru his Perfect Clone Technology in exchange for Ryūchi Cave’s Summoning Scroll and the Spirit Transformation Technique.
• Orochimaru accepted the exchange, summoned a python carrying Ryūchi Cave’s Summoning Scroll, and said White Snake would deliver the Spirit Transformation Technique later.

Hyuga Mirai advanced his research into a Byakugan and Hashirama Cells injection that could remove his Caged Bird Seal before he was sent to the front. He then attended a gathering with his former classmates, where he learned Kakashi had joined Namikaze Minato’s team.

• Hyuga Mirai took a sample of Hashirama Cells from Orochimaru and assigned ten Shadow Clones to develop an injection by combining its Gene Sequence with the Byakugan’s.
• Hyuga Mirai left the laboratory as his Shadow Clones estimated the injection research would succeed within a month, and he worried he might be sent to the border before it was finished.
• Hyuga Mirai arrived late at Yuhi Kurenai’s gathering and greeted his former classmates, including Nohara Rin and Kakashi.
• Hyuga Mirai sat between Hyuga Kiyomi and Yuhi Kurenai, prompting Hyuga Kiyomi to grow jealous.
• Hyuga Mirai learned that Kakashi had joined Namikaze Minato’s team with Uchiha Obito and Nohara Rin.

As war drew near, Hyuga Mirai learned that his squad might be sent to the front and worried Hyuga Kiyomi could be kept from the battlefield. He continued his training and research, leaving the chapter expecting a Caged Bird Seal-removal injection in less than ten days and planning to practice the Spirit Transformation Technique.

• At dinner, Hyuga Mirai learned that Shiranui Genma and Namiashi Raidō's squad had received orders to go to the border, while medical supplies grew scarce.
• After dinner, Hyuga Mirai told Hyuga Kiyomi and Yuhi Kurenai that war was close and that he might be transferred to the front as a Medical-nin or squad member.
• Hyuga Kiyomi said she would ask her grandfather to let her go, and Yuhi Kurenai promised to follow Hyuga Mirai's orders if they remained together.
• At Konoha Hospital, Hyuga Mirai found many familiar staff gone and the remaining workers overwhelmed, so he left before anyone assigned him extra work.
• Hyuga Mirai trained for several hours, then reviewed his Shadow Clones' research memories and concluded they could make an injection to remove the Caged Bird Seal in under ten days.
• Hyuga Mirai decided to practice the Spirit Transformation Technique that night.

Sunagakure faced the threat of a Kumo-nin invasion after the Third Kazekage disappeared, and Chiyo entrusted Rasa with defending the village. As Konoha prepared for escalating border battles, Hyuga Mirai began injecting himself with a Hashirama-cell treatment intended to reconstruct his gene sequence and remove his Caged Bird mark.

• At Sunagakure's leadership meeting, Chiyo challenged the Elders to defend the village from the Third Raikage and Rasa volunteered to stop Kumo-nin's invasion.
• Konoha halted escort missions and bought strategic supplies, while Hyuga Mirai received a mandatory wartime assignment to produce ten Healing Tags each day.
• Hyuga Mirai and his Shadow Clone raised the gene fusion rate to 96% and decided to proceed with the Hashirama-cell treatment.
• Hyuga Mirai injected himself near his chest and anticipated completing five injections over twelve days to reconstruct his genes and remove his forehead mark.

Hyuga Mirai completed his fusion with the Hashirama Cells’ Gene Sequence, removing the Caged Bird Seal from his body and greatly enhancing his Byakugan. He learned that he and his teammates would soon be sent to the front line, where their team might be reorganized.

• Hyuga Mirai confirmed that the fusion had increased his Chakra and removed the Caged Bird Seal from his body, then continued submitting extra Healing Tags to conceal his research.
• After the final injection, Hyuga Mirai regained his Byakugan and discovered that its range had expanded to nearly eight kilometers.
• Hyuga Mirai considered asking Orochimaru about Iwagakure’s Added-Weight Rock Technique and continued thinking about how to study Yin Release and the Spirit Transformation Technique.
• Yuhi Kurenai and Hyuga Kiyomi visited Hyuga Mirai and told him that the Hyuga Clan would send thirty Ninja to the front line.
• Hyuga Mirai, Hyuga Kiyomi, and Yuhi Kurenai discussed the coming deployment and battlefield preparations before parting that evening.

Hyuga Mirai prepared to leave for the front line after Konoha assigned medical teams to two threatened borders. Orochimaru summoned him to his laboratory, where Mirai discovered a developing clone embryo, and hinted that he would arrange Mirai’s duties.

• Hyuga Mirai finished securing his research laboratory and checked that his second Scientist Template extraction was available, but postponed using it before deployment.
• Vice-Director Kimura told the Medical-nin that Iwagakure and Sunagakure were massing forces, then assigned Hyuga Mirai and twenty Medical-nin to Kikyo Castle.
• Hyuga Mirai received Orochimaru’s message through a White Snake and went to his laboratory.
• Hyuga Mirai found Orochimaru conducting a cloning experiment with an embryo developing in a large cultivation machine.
• Orochimaru noted that Hyuga Mirai was headed to the front line and offered to arrange his duties at Kikyo Mountain.

Hyuga Mirai and Orochimaru discussed cloning and genetic research before Orochimaru prepared to lead Konoha’s forces against the Suna-nin. The first group of about five hundred Ninja gathered at the Hokage Tower and set out for Kikyo Castle.

• Hyuga Mirai examined Orochimaru’s Clone Embryo research and learned that its Clone Body could finish growing in two years.
• Orochimaru said Shin would watch over the laboratory and its test subjects while he went to the battlefield.
• Orochimaru offered Hyuga Mirai an Eight-Tails Horn for research in exchange for a copy of the experimental parameters.
• Hyuga Mirai left with the Hyūga Clan and joined about five hundred Ninja assembled to head to Kikyo Castle.
• Sarutobi Hiruzen and Konoha’s council of Elders gave the departing Ninja a morale-rousing speech.

Hyuga Mirai and the Konoha force arrived at Kikyo Castle, where Orochimaru planned a surprise attack against the Suna-nin. As Mirai rested, he noticed changes in his Byakugan and suspected Hashirama Cells had catalyzed them, while Yuhi Kurenai glimpsed a flash of blue in his eyes.

• Hyuga Mirai scouted with his team during the march, and the force reached Kikyo Castle after three days.
• Kikyo Castle's former commanding Jonin reported that more than one thousand Suna-nin had gathered in Sandstorm Town and that the town held strategic supplies.
• Orochimaru asked Nara Shikaku about their Exploding Tags and Healing Tags, then ordered the supplies distributed while the Jonin awaited orders.
• Hyuga Mirai rested in his tent and used eye drops after his Byakugan vision grew blurry during extended scouting.
• Hyuga Mirai warned Yuhi Kurenai and Hyuga Kiyomi about Suna-nin poisons, then suspected his Byakugan had changed because of the Gene Sequence of the Hashirama Cells.
• Yuhi Kurenai noticed a flash of blue light in Hyuga Mirai's eyes, but saw no further changes.

Hyuga Mirai led Yuhi Kurenai and Hyuga Kiyomi on a risky reconnaissance mission, choosing to bypass River Country and infiltrate the Land of Wind for intelligence. After traveling for over a day and resting near the border, the squad entered the Land of Wind.

• Hyuga Mirai decided to avoid Suna-nin intelligence specialists in River Country and instead target isolated logistics squads in the Land of Wind.
• Yuhi Kurenai and Hyuga Kiyomi agreed to Hyuga Mirai's plan, and he ordered them to follow his commands without question during the mission.
• The squad took a long detour around the main battlefield, using Soldier Pills to restore Chakra as Hyuga Kiyomi kept her Byakugan active.
• Hyuga Mirai noticed occasional blurriness in his Byakugan and wondered whether the Caged Bird Seal on his soul was responsible.
• After resting near the Land of Wind border, Hyuga Mirai, Yuhi Kurenai, and Hyuga Kiyomi hurried into the country.

Hyuga Mirai, Hyuga Kiyomi, and Yuhi Kurenai ambushed a Suna-nin supply route in the Land of Wind and killed ten Suna-nin. They retreated before a patrol arrived, leaving Sunagakure with only signs of a fierce battle to investigate.

• Hyuga Mirai planned an Exploding Tag ambush on one of Sunagakure's supply routes and waited with Hyuga Kiyomi and Yuhi Kurenai.
• Hyuga Mirai spotted ten approaching Suna-nin, and Hyuga Kiyomi confirmed that three were Genin while the others were Chunin.
• The Exploding Tags detonated beneath the Suna-nin, killing seven and forcing the three survivors toward Hyuga Kiyomi and Yuhi Kurenai.
• Hyuga Kiyomi incapacitated two Suna-nin with Eight Trigrams Sixty-Four Palms, while Yuhi Kurenai trapped the third with an illusion.
• Hyuga Mirai killed all ten Suna-nin with Shuriken, sealed their corpses in scrolls, and retreated with Hyuga Kiyomi and Yuhi Kurenai.
• A Suna-nin patrol arrived after the trio had left and returned to report the battle.

Hyuga Mirai’s squad returned to Kikyo Castle after ambushing three Suna-nin squads and bringing back their corpses and equipment. Orochimaru praised their success and promised two A-rank Mission credits if the bodies yielded useful intelligence.

• Hyuga Mirai told Hyuga Kiyomi and Yuhi Kurenai that Yamanaka Clan Ninja could extract intelligence from the Suna-nin corpses, then complained about the Exploding Tags he had spent.
• Hyuga Mirai searched the corpses, found a mission order from the Kazekage and thirteen Puppet Scrolls, and inferred that the Fourth Kazekage had not yet reached Sandstorm Town.
• Hyuga Mirai, Hyuga Kiyomi, and Yuhi Kurenai traveled back to Kikyo Castle without encountering enemies.
• Hyuga Mirai reported their ambush and presented the corpse Sealing Scrolls to Shirakumo Taneha, who escorted them to the war conference room.
• After hearing Hyuga Mirai’s mission report, Orochimaru praised the squad and offered them two A-rank Mission credits if the corpses provided useful intelligence.

Orochimaru’s forces learned that Chiyo was holding Sandstorm Town while the Fourth Kazekage was still preparing reinforcements, and Orochimaru dismissed concerns about Hyuga Mirai keeping captured Suna-nin gear. Mirai divided the supplies with Kiyomi and Kurenai, then led them on patrol while practicing with the puppets he planned to sell.

• Yamanaka Ran reported that Chiyo held Sandstorm Town with roughly eleven hundred Suna-nin, while the Fourth Kazekage would not arrive for at least ten days.
• Yamanaka Ran mentioned that Hyuga Mirai had kept the captured Suna-nin’s Ninja Tool Pouches and mission commission, but Orochimaru told him not to pursue the matter.
• Hyuga Mirai inspected the captured weapons and puppets, quickly demonstrated control with Chakra Threads, and rejected Kiyomi’s suggestion that he develop puppetry.
• Hyuga Mirai divided the captured supplies among himself, Kiyomi, and Kurenai, keeping the puppets to sell in the Black Market.
• After receiving a nearby patrol assignment, Mirai took Kiyomi and Kurenai out to check designated locations and planned to practice puppet control along the way.

Hyuga Mirai’s squad joined Sarutobi Hisashi and another squad on a mission to eliminate Suna-nin scouts and ambush those who fled. After locating three enemies, the teams prepared a coordinated attack and aimed to finish the fight within two minutes.

• Sarutobi Hisashi took command of the ten-man team and warned everyone to obey his orders during the mission.
• Hyuga Mirai calmed Hyuga Kiyomi after she took offense at Sarutobi Hisashi’s pointed warning, and both squad captains agreed to his plan.
• Hyuga Mirai spotted three Suna-nin ahead, and Yuhi Kurenai radioed their location to the other squads.
• Sarutobi Hisashi adjusted the team’s formation and assigned the squads to surround the Suna-nin from three directions.
• Sarutobi Hisashi prepared to lead the assault while Hyuga Kiyomi and Yuhi Kurenai targeted the enemies, with the team aiming to end the fight within two minutes.

Hyuga Mirai’s squad cleared Suna-nin across the River Country and reached its ambush site near Sandstorm Town without being detected. While resting after laying traps, Mirai examined the captured puppets and planned to build a bio-mechanical assistant using an Eight-Tails Horn, Hashirama Cells, and mechanical parts.

• Hyuga Mirai killed the last of four Suna-nin with an Exploding Tag and collected trapped Ninja Tool Pouches after checking them with the Byakugan.
• Sarutobi Hisashi stopped another squad member from taking a Suna-nin pouch without checking for traps.
• Hyuga Mirai’s squad discovered and killed five groups totaling seventeen Suna-nin while traveling from Kikyo Castle to the Land of Wind border.
• Sarutobi Hisashi reported to the assault force, then led the squad toward its mission site near Sandstorm Town, where they set linked traps and hid to rest.
• Hyuga Kiyomi questioned Mirai about collecting puppets, and he explained that he planned to study them and consider using them for a bio-mechanical assistant.
• Hyuga Mirai planned to combine an Eight-Tails Horn, Hashirama Cells, and mechanical limbs, and to use a loyal summoned snake as an option for the assistant’s biological modifications.

Konoha’s forces launched a surprise attack on Sandstorm Town, using summoned snakes and coordinated squads to overwhelm the Suna-nin. As Orochimaru kept the defenders occupied, he sent Nara Shikaku to search for their military supplies, leaving the assault ongoing.

• Hyuga Mirai warned Hyuga Kiyomi to avoid challenging any Suna-nin Jonin as they watched the explosions at Sandstorm Town from their ambush site.
• Orochimaru’s Konoha force summoned Ryuchi Cave Great Snakes outside Sandstorm Town, alerting the Suna-nin and breaking through the town’s defenses.
• Nara Shikaku and Akimichi Haru worked with Konoha squads to kill Suna-nin as the snakes and coordinated attacks turned the assault into a massacre.
• Orochimaru told Nara Shikaku to lead three squads to find the Suna-nin’s military supplies and use Exploding Tag signals as the cue.
• Orochimaru used the Summoning Technique again while the battle continued.

Orochimaru’s forces launched a surprise attack on Sandstorm Town, where Manda rampaged through the Suna-nin and Chiyo confronted the pair. Orochimaru kept Chiyo occupied as explosions erupted near the town’s southeastern supply stores, suggesting his forces had struck Sunagakure’s stockpile.

• Orochimaru summoned Manda, who attacked and swallowed a Suna-nin before rampaging through Sandstorm Town.
• Chiyo ordered Shin to lead four combat units against Konoha’s forces and sent Shamu to receive the wounded, then went to face Orochimaru and Manda.
• Chiyo used the Chikamatsu Ten Puppets to interrupt Manda’s attack, while Orochimaru countered with Earth Style and Hidden Shadow Snake Hands.
• Orochimaru harassed Chiyo and Manda’s attacks to keep her from leaving, and Chiyo realized he was likely targeting Sunagakure’s military supplies.
• Explosions sounded from the southeastern side of Sandstorm Town, confirming that another part of Orochimaru’s attack was underway.

After Konoha’s surprise attack on Suna, Hyuga Mirai considered the political consequences for Orochimaru and his own meager mission rewards. Back at the medical camp, he used Shadow Clones to help treat the wounded and impressed the other medics with his apparent selflessness.

• Sarutobi Hisashi led his team back to camp after they received orders to retreat from the successful assault on Sandstorm Town.
• Hyuga Mirai told Yuhi Kurenai that Orochimaru might face criticism because Konoha had struck first, deliberately letting the rest of the team hear his concern.
• Hyuga Mirai returned to camp and was summoned to the Medical Camp, where he treated wounded ninjas through the afternoon.
• Hyuga Mirai told Medical Jonin Aoki he would handle the lightly injured, then created two Shadow Clones to assist while he treated a poisoned ninja himself.
• Medical Jonin Aoki admired Hyuga Mirai’s dedication and urged the other Medical-nin to keep treating the wounded until relief arrived.

After treating wounded ninjas for hours, Hyuga Mirai returned to his quarters and continued designing a Bio-Mechanical Assistant, considering Hoshigakure’s Star Stone as a possible energy source. His research was interrupted when White Snake delivered a summons calling him out in the middle of the night.

• Hyuga Mirai finished eleven critical surgeries and returned to his quarters after Medical Jonin Aoki sent him to rest.
• Yuhi Kurenai brought Hyuga Mirai rice balls, thanked him for treating the wounded, and left him to rest.
• Hyuga Mirai used his Byakugan to watch for intruders and resumed studying the puppets he had collected on the battlefield.
• Hyuga Mirai sketched designs for a Bio-Mechanical Assistant and considered building an energy reactor powered by Hoshigakure’s Star Stone.
• White Snake delivered a scroll, and Hyuga Mirai read a summons calling him over in the middle of the night.

Hyuga Mirai showed Orochimaru his Bio-Mechanical Assistant design and proposed using wartime supply logistics to fund Orochimaru’s research. Orochimaru agreed to consider the plan and approved Mirai’s request for long-term reconnaissance missions outside the village.

• Orochimaru explained that Mirai’s collection of Sunagakure puppets had drawn suspicion, but he had dismissed calls to question him.
• Mirai showed Orochimaru a design for a bio-mechanical external limb and discussed solving the assistant’s energy and mental-control problems.
• Orochimaru considered mechanically modifying his two Hashirama Cells subordinates after studying Mirai’s design.
• Mirai proposed profiting from the war by managing supplies and accounting for extra weapons, and Orochimaru agreed to consider the idea.
• Mirai asked for more freedom to undertake long-term reconnaissance missions outside the village, and Orochimaru approved.

Danzo celebrated Orochimaru’s victory over Sunagakure and urged Sarutobi Hiruzen to send reinforcements, but Hiruzen instead condemned Orochimaru for starting the war without authorization and planned to appoint a deputy commander. Danzo left the Hokage’s Office furious after Hiruzen warned him not to let Root make any unusual moves.

• Danzo learned that Orochimaru had killed around two hundred Suna-nin and destroyed much of Sandstorm Town’s military supplies at the cost of fewer than thirty Konoha Ninja.
• Danzo met with Sarutobi Hiruzen, Mitokado Homura, and Utatane Koharu to discuss the battle and demanded immediate reinforcements for Orochimaru.
• Mitokado Homura and Utatane Koharu warned that Orochimaru’s attack could damage the Land of Fire’s reputation and funding.
• Sarutobi Hiruzen ordered a second Support Unit but said he would appoint a deputy commander and would not credit Orochimaru for starting the war.
• Danzo stormed out after Sarutobi Hiruzen warned him that Root must not interfere with the Land of Wind’s envoy or make unusual moves.