Chapter Summaries

Nara Kaikei’s strength and speed reached A-rank as he continued training Tsunade and conducting research, while Konoha’s leaders debated how to deploy him, Five-Tails Kokuō, and Kagami Uchiha. Their discussion was interrupted by news that the Third Raikage had routed Konoha’s forces in the Land of Hot Water and severely wounded Danzō.

• Nara Kaikei’s strength and speed rose to A- and his overall evaluation increased to A+ after several days of rest.
• Nara Kaikei continued teaching Tsunade the Sage Clan Guiding Technique and several martial techniques while his clones advanced his research.
• Hiruzen Sarutobi and the elder advisors debated whether to send Nara Kaikei and Five-Tails Kokuō to the Land of Rain, worried about Kaikei’s growing reputation.
• Hiruzen Sarutobi decided to assign Kagami Uchiha to Minato Namikaze’s team to help build Minato’s reputation.
• A Root Ninja reported that the Third Raikage had routed Konoha’s main camp in the Land of Hot Water and left Danzō too badly injured to fight.

As Konoha faced a coordinated assault by four rival villages, Hiruzen Sarutobi promoted Nara Kaikei to jonin and appointed him commander of the Land of Hot Water defensive line. Kaikei received an S-rank mission to rally Konoha’s scattered forces and resist Kumogakure, then asked whether Kokuō would be paid separately for joining the fight.

• Kumogakure, Iwagakure, Sand Village, and Kirigakure launched attacks on multiple Konoha fronts, while Shimura Danzō was severely wounded by the Third Raikage.
• Hiruzen Sarutobi sent Kagami Uchiha and Minato Namikaze to delay Kumogakure, then summoned Nara Kaikei to the Hokage Building.
• Nara Kaikei left Tsunade behind, traveled to Konoha with an Anbu Ninja, and joined Uchiha Shisui, Hyuga Kiyoshi, and Shizune at the Hokage’s Office.
• Hiruzen Sarutobi promoted Nara Kaikei to official jonin and appointed him supreme commander of the Land of Hot Water defensive line.
• Hiruzen Sarutobi assigned Uchiha Shisui to lead Hyuga Kiyoshi and Shizune to the front, while Nara Kaikei received an S-rank mission to gather Konoha’s remnants and resist Kumogakure.
• Nara Kaikei asked Hiruzen Sarutobi whether Kokuō would also be sent to battle and argued that Kokuō deserved a mission reward.

Nara Kaikei brought Five-Tails Kokuō to the Konoha front and took command after the Third Raikage’s surprise attack drove Konoha out of the Land of Hot Water. As Kaikei and Nara Shikaku investigated the nearly simultaneous attacks on several fronts, they suspected a larger conspiracy, while Shimura Danzō’s future as a ninja appeared uncertain.

• Hiruzen Sarutobi assigned Five-Tails Kokuō a mission, and Nara Kaikei led his teammates to meet the Tailed Beast in Nara Forest.
• Nara Kaikei took Kokuō and his teammates to the Land of Fire border, where he reunited with the retreating Konoha ninja and received his appointment as supreme commander of the Kumogakure battlefield.
• Nara Shikaku explained that the Third Raikage had attacked Konoha’s camp, severely injured Shimura Danzō, and forced Konoha to retreat from the Land of Hot Water.
• Nara Kaikei and Nara Shikaku noted that Konoha camps in the Land of Grass and the Land of Rain had also been attacked at nearly the same time, suggesting someone had leaked their locations.
• Nara Kaikei suspected Ōnoki or Uchiha Madara was behind the coordinated attacks, while Nara Shikaku reported that Shimura Danzō had lost most of his right arm and might not be able to continue as a ninja.

Nara Kaikei organized the scattered Konoha forces, then joined Minato Namikaze and Kagami Uchiha against Kumogakure’s A and B Combo. The chapter ended as Kaikei prepared to attack the pair with his Dark Spiral Ring.

• Nara Shikaku told Nara Kaikei that Minato Namikaze had arrived, defeated the Kumogakure force, and gone to the front lines with a masked ninja.
• Nara Shikaku proposed a three-part plan: Kaikei would support the front lines, Shikaku and Hyuga Kiyoshi would search for scattered Konoha ninja, and Uchiha Shisui and Shizune would guard the wounded.
• Nara Kaikei borrowed Uchiha Shisui’s Flame Fan, gave him the Three-Star Fan, and left Shikaku a mask bearing a Flying Thunder God Technique mark before heading out on Five-Tails King.
• Nara Kaikei arrived to find Minato Namikaze and Kagami Uchiha fighting A and Killer B, and the two sides paused when Five-Tails King appeared.
• Nara Kaikei used a Shadow Creature to carry the exhausted Minato Namikaze and Kagami Uchiha, then formed a Dark Spiral Ring and prepared to attack A and Killer B.

Nara Kaikei’s [Dark Spiral Ring] severely wounded the Eight-Tails and forced A to carry the exhausted Killer B away, but Killer B escaped a counterattack attempt with a lightning clone. The Konoha group pursued them into the Land of Hot Water, where Kumogakure’s Third Raikage A appeared from the occupied camp.

• Nara Kaikei’s [Dark Spiral Ring] struck the Eight-Tails, severing one of its tails and leaving Killer B exhausted while A remained largely unharmed.
• A carried Killer B away, and Nara Kaikei led Five-Tails King and the others in pursuit.
• Killer B transformed his severed tentacle into a clone and attacked Five-Tails King, but Nara Kaikei restrained him and deflected his lightning-clone counterattack with [Uchiha Reflection].
• Nara Kaikei’s group chased A and Killer B across the border into the Land of Hot Water, with A using Lightning Release Chakra Mode to widen the gap again.
• Minato Namikaze warned Nara Kaikei that someone important was approaching, and Kumogakure’s Third Raikage A arrived from the former Konoha camp.

Nara Kaikei confronted the Third Raikage, using the [Flame Fan] and Wind Release to overwhelm his Lightning Release defenses. After the Five-Tails King and Killer B clashed with Tailed Beast Bombs, Kaikei destroyed the Cloud Village Camp with Dark Blazing Meteor, while the Third Raikage and his allies watched in shock.

• A warned the Third Raikage that Dark Shadow was stronger than expected and could use a devastating attack similar to a Tailed Beast Bomb.
• Nara Kaikei prepared to exploit the Third Raikage’s weakness to Wind Release, using the [Wind Style Mask], [Boil Release Mask], and [Flame Fan].
• The Third Raikage charged through Kaikei’s [Wind Style: Wind Scythe Technique], but Kaikei blocked his attack and struck him at close range with [Wind Style: Great Breakthrough], badly wounding him.
• The Five-Tails King fired a Tailed Beast Bomb at the camp, and Killer B intercepted it with a smaller Tailed Beast Bomb, detonating both in midair.
• Nara Kaikei released Dark Blazing Meteor, which obliterated the Cloud Village Camp and the Kumogakure forces.

Nara Kaikei faced the Third Raikage after destroying Kumogakure’s temporary camp, and the two fought at close range. The chapter left the Third Raikage’s Four Finger Thrust blocked as Nara Kaikei unleashed a counterattack with the Flame Fan.

• The Third Raikage recovered from Nara Kaikei’s Wind Style attack and used Lightning Release Chakra Mode to heal his wounds.
• The Third Raikage charged Nara Kaikei, dodged his Shadow Tentacles and Spiral Shadow Binding Bullet, and attacked with Lightning Release: Black Ant.
• Nara Kaikei absorbed Black Ant with the Flame Fan and used Boil Release: Unrivaled Super Strength to block the Third Raikage’s Hell Stab: Four Finger Thrust.
• Nara Kaikei released the absorbed lightning and the Wind Style Chakra from his mask in a counterattack he called Uchiha Reflection.

Nara Kaikei used [Rashomon], Genjutsu, and shadow techniques to defeat and secretly take control of the Third Raikage, then helped him escape the battlefield with A and B. Kagami Uchiha was badly injured, and Nara Kaikei declared that the war was not over.

• Nara Kaikei used [Wind Style: Wind Scythe Technique] to wound the Third Raikage, who counterattacked with Hell Stab: One-Finger Nukite.
• Nara Kaikei blocked the Third Raikage with [Rashomon], transformed the defense into [Shadow Grip Technique], and trapped him.
• Nara Kaikei weakened the Third Raikage with [Illusion Technique: Lacquer Eye] and seized control of his body with [Shadow Manipulation Technique].
• Nara Kaikei received an S-Rank Ninja Scroll and made the controlled Third Raikage appear to break free and retreat toward A and B.
• Kagami Uchiha pursued the Third Raikage, but the Raikage reversed direction and struck Kagami down with Cloud Hidden Secret Taijutsu: Righteous Thunderous Anger Axe.
• Minato Namikaze and Kagami Uchiha regrouped with Nara Kaikei, who said the war was not over.

After returning victorious to the Konoha camp, Nara Kaikei left its recovery and battlefield duties to Nara Shikaku and went to a hot spring with Kokuō. He opened an S-Rank Ninja Scroll containing Kirin, realized it could use natural lightning without his own Lightning Release, and planned to test the jutsu with Kokuō.

• Nara Kaikei returned to the Konoha camp on Kokuō and announced victory, earning cheers from the surviving ninja.
• Nara Shikaku reported on the camp's needs, and Nara Kaikei assigned him and a Shadow Clone to manage the battlefield duties.
• Nara Kaikei took Kokuō to a nearby hot spring and opened the S-Rank Ninja Scroll he had obtained from the Third Raikage.
• Nara Kaikei discovered the scroll contained Kirin and realized the jutsu manipulated natural lightning rather than requiring Lightning Release Chakra.
• Nara Kaikei asked Kokuō to create a cumulonimbus cloud with Boil Release steam, and the two prepared to test their Combination Jutsu.

Nara Kaikei tested the lightning technique Kirin with Five-Tails King's help and considered how to strengthen his abilities. Meanwhile, Nara Raikage returned to the Kumogakure camp injured and demanded scrolls and the Amber Purifying Pot, threatening to seek a ceasefire with Konoha if he could not find a way to counter Dark Shadow.

• Nara Kaikei and Five-Tails King used Boil Release to create thunderclouds, and Kaikei summoned Kirin to destroy a mountain peak.
• Five-Tails King praised Kirin's power, while Nara Kaikei judged it weaker than Dark Spiral Ring and said even that technique needed improvement.
• Nara Kaikei reflected on Kirin's strengths and wondered whether he could use Natural Energy to produce other Chakra natures.
• Nara Raikage arrived at a Kumogakure camp badly injured with A and Killer B, and Dodai arranged for medical ninjas to treat them.
• Nara Raikage ordered the village's ninjutsu scrolls and the Amber Purifying Pot sent to the camp, warning that Kumogakure might need a ceasefire with Konoha if he found no answer.
• Nara Raikage explained that Dark Shadow could fly and use an attack like a Tailed Beast Bomb, and Dodai agreed to notify the village.

Nara Raikage examined Kumogakure’s classified scrolls and uncovered the alliance between Kumogakure, Iwagakure, and Kirigakure, including their plans to target Hyuga Kiyoshi’s Byakugan. After receiving Kumogakure’s ninja tools and jutsu scrolls, he inspected their contents and found only two S-Rank ninjutsu.

• Nara Raikage read the Tailed Beast Sealing Seal scroll and suspected Uchiha Madara, while keeping Shimura Danzō on his list of possible conspirators.
• Nara Raikage read messages from Ōnoki and the Third Mizukage and learned that Iwagakure and Kirigakure wanted to capture Hyuga Kiyoshi and divide his Byakugan.
• Nara Raikage pieced together how Kumogakure, Iwagakure, and Kirigakure had coordinated attacks against Konoha, while Sunagakure took advantage of the conflict.
• Dodai brought Nara Raikage the Amber Purifying Pot and Kumogakure’s Sealing Scroll, and Nara Raikage inspected the pot’s sealing ability.
• Nara Raikage scanned Kumogakure’s jutsu collection and saw that it contained only two S-Rank ninjutsu.

Nara Raikage examined Kumogakure’s techniques and discovered that its Lightning Release Chakra Mode could inspire a new Yang Release Chakra Mode when combined with Ranshinshou. After judging which of Kumogakure’s techniques could threaten the Dark Shadow, he concluded that the Third Raikage should make peace with Konoha.

• Nara Raikage examined the Heavenly Transfer Technique and Storm Style: Storm Dragon, finding the former a technology-based transport method and the latter a costly lightning technique.
• Nara Raikage compared Kumogakure’s and Iwagakure’s Lava Release methods and realized their different properties could help his main body refine Kekkei Genkai fusion experiments.
• Nara Raikage studied Black Lightning and Lightning Release Chakra Mode, then considered combining the latter with Tsunade’s Ranshinshou to develop a Yang Release Chakra Mode.
• Nara Raikage reviewed Kumogakure’s Nintaijutsu and Cloud Style Swordsmanship, preferring the sword techniques to the village’s brutal hand-to-hand moves.
• Nara Raikage concluded that only a few of Kumogakure’s techniques could threaten the Dark Shadow and decided the Third Raikage should make peace with Konoha.

Nara Kaikei learned that Kumogakure needed a stronger tailed-beast seal and arranged for a clone to keep controlling the Third Raikage as he planned around an approaching ceasefire. Back at the Konoha camp, he learned the village would send no reinforcements and avoided investigating a lightning strike he knew was his own Kirin.

• Nara Kaikei used Flying Thunder God to reach Kumogakure's camp, absorb his clone's memories, and discover the village needed a new Two-Tails Jinchuriki and a reliable sealing technique.
• Nara Kaikei ordered a new clone to keep controlling the Third Raikage and prepare for future plans, while leaving the clone to decide how to handle Kumogakure's Two-Tails Jinchuriki.
• Nara Kaikei returned to the Konoha camp and learned from Nara Shikaku that Hiruzen Sarutobi had ordered the forces to hold the front without reinforcements, while considering transferring Minato and Kagami away.
• Nara Shikaku asked Nara Kaikei to investigate a lightning storm that had shattered a mountain, but Nara Kaikei recognized it as Kirin and declined the mission so he could rest.

Nara Kaikei discovered that assigning an S-Rank mission as Nara Clan Head earned him an S-Rank Ninja Scroll, which contained the devastating Lava Release: Meteor Volcano. He then joined an investigation into the previous day’s unnatural thunderstorm and began helping Hyuga Kiyoshi learn elemental ninjutsu as they reached the devastated site.

• Nara Kaikei learned that the Nara Clan Head could assign one S-Rank mission per month, then completed one by giving the clan his Lava Release Chakra Manufacturing Method: Magma scroll.
• Nara Kaikei opened the reward scroll and obtained the S-Rank jutsu Lava Release: Meteor Volcano, a large-scale magma attack.
• Nara Kaikei joined Hyuga Kiyoshi, Uchiha Shisui, and Inuzuka Gakku on a B-Rank investigation of an unnatural thunderstorm near the Konoha camp.
• Nara Kaikei took Hyuga Kiyoshi with him into the air while Uchiha Shisui and Inuzuka Gakku traveled on the ground, then asked Hyuga about her ninjutsu training.
• Nara Kaikei taught Hyuga Kiyoshi Earth Style: Earth Dragon Burrowing Technique and Earth Style Substitution before they began investigating the collapsed mountain.

Nara Kaikei’s investigation mission yielded an Inuzuka Clan scent technique, and Minato Namikaze visited to show him a new jutsu inspired by the Tailed Beast Bomb. Kaikei revealed that he already knew the Rasengan and offered to teach it to Minato.

• Yellow Ball cowered before Nara Kaikei, and Inuzuka Gakku suspected the captain had caused the storm they were sent to investigate.
• Nara Kaikei returned to camp, gave Hyuga Kiyoshi two Earth Release scrolls, and told her to make good use of her eyes.
• After the mission was submitted, Nara Kaikei opened a B-Rank Ninja Scroll and obtained the Inuzuka Clan’s [Hyper Scent].
• Minato Namikaze showed Nara Kaikei his unstable new Chakra sphere, which he had begun developing after observing Tailed Beast Bombs.
• Nara Kaikei formed a stable [Rasengan], stunned Minato Namikaze, and offered to teach it to him.

Minato Namikaze doubted whether he was the Child of Prophecy after seeing Nara Kaikei’s Rasengan and asked him to teach it. Kaikei gave Minato a crash course in exchange for Minato sharing any Rasengan techniques he developed, and Minato gave Kaikei an improved Flying Thunder God scroll.

• Minato Namikaze compared his unfinished Rasengan with Kaikei’s advanced techniques and questioned whether he was truly the Child of Prophecy.
• Minato asked Kaikei to teach him the Rasengan, and Kaikei agreed in exchange for Minato sharing future Rasengan-based techniques.
• Kaikei offered Minato a complete lesson or a crash course, and Minato chose the crash course to master the Rasengan quickly.
• Kaikei wrote out the crash-course method while Minato wrote a scroll of his own.
• Minato gave Kaikei his improved Flying Thunder God Technique scroll, and Kaikei’s panel identified it as the S-rank Flying Thunder God Technique: Sword of Ninja Love Version.

Nara Kaikei studied Minato Namikaze’s improved Flying Thunder God Technique, then developed Yang Release Chakra Mode to enhance his physical attributes. As Konoha remained wary of Kumogakure, White Zetsu Tobi appeared before Nara Raikage at the Cloud Village Camp.

• Nara Kaikei examined Minato Namikaze’s Sword of Ninja Love version of the Flying Thunder God Technique and realized its marks enabled longer-range teleportation with less Chakra.
• Nara Kaikei planned to use Minato’s technique as a foundation for his own improvements, then focused on combining Ranshinshou with Lightning Release Chakra Mode.
• Nara Kaikei created the A-Rank Yang Release Chakra Mode, which enhanced his strength, speed, and precision, and considered replenishing its Chakra with a Chakra Crystal.
• Nara Kaikei returned to the Konoha camp and learned that Hiruzen Sarutobi had kept Minato Namikaze and Kagami Uchiha there because Konoha feared a Kumogakure operation.
• White Zetsu Tobi emerged from the ground at the Cloud Village Camp, and Nara Raikage recognized him.

Nara Raikage confronted a One-Eyed Uchiha and White Zetsu Tobi over their demand that Kumogakure attack Dark Shadow, refusing to risk his forces without better terms. The One-Eyed Uchiha withdrew after hinting that several villages, even Konoha, would cooperate in a future operation.

• Nara Raikage rejected the One-Eyed Uchiha's demand to hold back or kill Dark Shadow, explaining that Dark Shadow's flight and Tailed Beast Bomb-like technique made an attack too costly.
• White Zetsu Tobi and the One-Eyed Uchiha realized they had underestimated Dark Shadow and pressed Nara Raikage to honor their agreement, citing the [Tailed Beast Sealing Seal] and [Lightning Style: Light Fang] they had already provided.
• Nara Raikage refused to return the payment and demanded better terms, also accusing the One-Eyed Uchiha of secretly investigating Kumogakure's Jinchuriki information.
• The One-Eyed Uchiha said Kirigakure, Iwagakure, and even Konoha would cooperate when the time came, then escaped underground after Nara Raikage attacked him with Lightning Release: Black Ant.

Nara Kaikei traced the conflict to Uchiha Madara and investigated whether a missing Uchiha jonin had aided the scheme, while suspecting Shimura Danzō and other Konoha factions. The chapter ended with Minato Namikaze demonstrating the Rasengan as Kaikei asked him to inspect the Flying Thunder God Mark on Little Jizo.

• Nara Kaikei reviewed Nara Raikage’s intelligence and concluded that Uchiha Madara had manipulated Iwagakure, Kirigakure, and Kumogakure to draw Konoha’s forces into battle.
• Nara Kaikei suspected that someone in Konoha had cooperated with the operation and considered Shimura Danzō and the One-Eyed Uchiha as possible participants.
• Nara Kaikei asked Nara Shikaku about Uchiha jonin who had disappeared or died accidentally, and Shikaku identified Uchiha Setsuna as a deregistered Hawk Faction leader.
• Nara Shikaku described Uchiha Setsuna’s hostility toward the Senju and the Second Hokage, and Nara Kaikei mocked the supposed hawks for acting tough only after Uchiha Madara had left.
• Nara Kaikei escaped when Nara Shikaku tried to recruit him to handle paperwork.
• Minato Namikaze visited Nara Kaikei and demonstrated the Rasengan, and Kaikei asked him to check the Flying Thunder God Mark on Little Jizo.

Nara Kaikei and Minato Namikaze discussed the power and dangers of Rasengan as Minato prepared to develop its Nature Transformation. After Hatake Kakashi’s squad was attacked in the Land of Hot Water, Kaikei and Nara Shikaku went to investigate the attackers, who had been called Immortal Ninjas.

• Minato Namikaze inspected Kaikei’s Flying Thunder God mark and admitted he could find no flaws in the technique.
• Minato explained Rasengan’s power, and Kaikei warned him that fusing Nature Transformation into the close-range technique could injure him.
• Minato told Kaikei that Kakashi’s squad would soon join them on the Kumogakure battlefield.
• Nara Shikaku told Kaikei that Hatake Kakashi’s squad had been attacked after entering the Land of Hot Water but had suffered no serious injuries.
• Kaikei and Shikaku joined Minato at the medical area, where Kakashi was being treated and the alleged Immortal Ninjas lay dead on tables.