Chapter Summaries

The Daimyo offered Ming Jing control over the Land of Fire, and Ming Jing tried to refuse but was maneuvered into helping him govern. The Daimyo then asked the Third Hokage to assign Ming Jing to the same task as an SSSS-rank mission, leaving the Hokage shocked and unable to refuse.

• Ming Jing outlined disaster relief as the Land of Fire’s most urgent problem, and the Daimyo immediately appointed him to manage the country.
• Ming Jing declined the appointment, but the Daimyo promised not to interfere with his decisions and insisted that he help govern.
• Ming Jing realized his reference to following ninja rules had given the Daimyo a way to make his request into a mission.
• Ming Jing asked Tsukishiro Yuexi to prepare extra ingredients because he expected guests, and learned that Hinata and Yakumo were getting along well.
• The Daimyo met the Third Hokage and requested Ming Jing’s help governing the Land of Fire as an SSSS-rank mission.
• The Third Hokage recognized that the Daimyo had maneuvered him into the request and reluctantly accepted that he could not refuse.

Hyuga Hiashi visited the Kurama Clan after Ming Jing brought Hinata there, and accepted that his daughter could visit again. Their discussion also led Ming Jing to question whether Orochimaru knew why the Kurama Clan’s Bloodline Limit had stopped awakening.

• Hyuga Hiashi punished the careless clansman who had failed to guard Hinata and resolved that the Main Family and Branch Family system needed to change.
• Tsukishiro Yuexi escorted Hyuga Hiashi to the Kurama Clan, where he saw Hinata happily spending time with Ming Jing and Yakumo.
• Ming Jing explained that he had brought Hinata to protect her from the Cloud Ninja, and Hyuga Hiashi agreed to let the matter go.
• Over dinner, Ming Jing and Hyuga Hiashi discussed the Kurama Clan’s decline and its lack of awakened Bloodline Limit shinobi since the Second Shinobi War.
• Ming Jing connected the clan’s past battles against the Land of Rain to Orochimaru and Hanzō, while Yakumo and Hinata became friends and received permission to visit each other.

Ming Jing, Yuexi, and Qing Yan met their captain, Asuma Sarutobi, and began a test to earn his recognition by taking two bells. While Yuexi and Qing Yan fought Asuma, Ming Jing pondered how to advance his genjutsu and realized what it meant to believe in oneself.

• Asuma Sarutobi introduced himself as the team’s captain and asked Ming Jing, Yuexi, and Qing Yan about their skills and dreams.
• Asuma challenged the three to take two bells, warning that failure would bring extra training.
• Qing Yan charged Asuma, Yuexi attacked with Water Release, and Ming Jing split Asuma’s fireball with his sword.
• Asuma buried Ming Jing with Earth Release, but Yuexi launched him into the air with Ice Release while Qing Yan joined the fight for the bells.
• Buried in the ground, Ming Jing recalled Master Xing’s words and realized that believing in oneself meant first making oneself believe.

The Third Hokage watched Ming Jing and judged him a potential Hokage, while Asuma tested Ming Jing’s group at Training Ground Seven. After Ming Jing quietly took the bells, he worried that the world might be trying to replace Hinata in the altered plot, and realized Kurama Yakumo could be a candidate.

• The Third Hokage admired Tsukishiro Yuexi and Qing Yan, considered Ming Jing a natural Hokage, and explained why he had chosen Asuma to lead the Kurama Squad.
• Asuma spoke with Ming Jing while his Shadow Clone fought Yuexi and Qing Yan, then pulled Ming Jing out of the dirt at his request.
• Ming Jing revealed he had taken the bells while Asuma was pulling him free, and explained how genjutsu could work through psychological suggestion without Chakra.
• Ming Jing reflected on the tragedies suffered by heterosexual characters in Naruto and became anxious that the world’s consciousness was watching him.
• Ming Jing wondered who could replace Hinata in the altered plot and concluded that Kurama Yakumo might fit the role.

Ming Jing accepted the daimyo’s SSSS-rank mission and prepared to travel to the Land of Fire’s flooded border with the Land of Rain. After convincing Hyuga Hiashi that he would not betray Konoha, Ming Jing arranged for Hyuga Hizashi to accompany him and spoke of pursuing peace through a different path.

• Ming Jing decided to accept the daimyo’s mission and ordered Tsukishiro Yuexi to investigate the border flooding and prepare for their departure.
• Asuma left to report Ming Jing’s acceptance to the Hokage, while Qing Yan asked whether the daimyo had pressured him and Ming Jing denied it.
• Hyuga Hiashi challenged Ming Jing over accepting a political mission and questioned whether he planned to betray Konoha.
• Ming Jing assured Hiashi that his bonds to his clan, family, and friends would keep him from abandoning Konoha.
• Ming Jing proposed that Hyuga Hizashi travel with him, and Hiashi agreed to arrange it so Hizashi could avoid scrutiny and protect Ming Jing.
• Ming Jing told Hiashi that he hoped to pursue peace through a path beyond the ninja system.

Ming Jing agreed to join Yakumo and Mirai Kurama on an outing with Hinata, while Hinata Mai prepared Hinata for their trip by making her try on countless outfits and shoes. Mai led Hinata out, fiercely guarding her from the attention of passersby.

• Hyuga Hiashi left Ming Jing's home after sharing a meal and a frank exchange.
• Yakumo invited Ming Jing to join her and Mirai Kurama for a trip to the food street with Hinata, and he agreed.
• Hinata Mai arrived to guard Hinata and was overwhelmed by the enormous wardrobe of clothes Ming Jing had sent her.
• Mai mistook Ming Jing's gifts for an attempt to win Hinata over and resolved to keep him away from her.
• Mai made Hinata try on several outfits and over a hundred pairs of shoes before choosing her clothes for the outing.
• Mai led Hinata outside and used her Byakugan to glare at anyone who looked at Hinata for too long.

Ming Jing met Hinata and Yakumo with their guardians, then visited Uchiha Itachi to discuss their opposing approaches to peace. They agreed to pursue their own methods and compare the results in ten years, while Itachi remained unsure of Ming Jing’s true motives.

• Hinata arrived with Hinata Mai, and Yakumo and Hinata happily reunited before the group went to get Anko Dango.
• Ming Jing greeted Itachi at the shop, sampled his dango, and then left with Qing Yan to follow him to his training ground.
• Itachi attacked Ming Jing and Qing Yan with a kunai as they entered the training ground, but Qing Yan caught it.
• Ming Jing told Itachi that he wanted to try a different approach to achieving peace, and Itachi argued that shinobi held the real decision-making power.
• Ming Jing and Itachi agreed to work toward their ideals in their own ways and compare results in ten years.
• After Ming Jing left, Itachi wondered whether his friend was truly acting for peace and what he was really pursuing.

Ming Jing tried to keep Naruto at a distance, but Tsukishiro Yuexi invited him to eat and then asked him to visit the Kurama Clan. After Naruto left, Ming Jing revealed Naruto’s identity to Yuexi and ordered her punished, leaving to spend time with Hinata.

• Ming Jing returned to the shop and found Naruto eating Anko Dango with Yakumo and Hinata.
• Ming Jing paid for everyone’s food, and Hinata offered him money for herself and Mai.
• Tsukishiro Yuexi invited Naruto to the Kurama Clan, but Ming Jing refused to let him stay and sent him home.
• Ming Jing told Yuexi that Naruto was the Fourth Hokage’s orphan and Konoha’s Nine-Tails Jinchuriki, watched by the Third Hokage and Danzo.
• Yuexi apologized and blamed her impulsive kindness, and Ming Jing ordered Qing Yan to give her thirty strokes of the rod.

Ming Jing arranged to leave for the Royal Capital and asked Hizashi Hyuga to help distract Hinata’s guard, Mai. At dinner, Yakumo agreed to travel with him, and Hinata asked him to visit her when he returned.

• Hizashi Hyuga asked when he could return openly to Konoha, and Ming Jing assured him he would not miss Neji’s growth.
• Ming Jing asked Hizashi to lure Mai away from Hinata, then proposed impersonating Hiashi to draw her off with Gentle Fist training.
• Ming Jing changed their departure to seven the next morning and joined Hinata to watch a movie.
• Mirai Kurama told Ming Jing that Yuexi’s wound was minor and gave him ointment to treat it.
• Ming Jing asked Mai Kurama to let Yakumo travel with him to the Royal Capital, and Yakumo eagerly agreed.
• Ming Jing told Hinata he would be away on a mission, and Hinata asked him to visit her when he returned.

Ming Jing left Konoha with Asuma’s mission convoy and planned how his companions would handle disaster relief and government reforms in the Land of Fire. He assigned Yuexi to establish an Inner Study Hall in the Royal Capital, then struggled to devise its curriculum.

• Ming Jing set out from Konoha with Asuma, Yuexi, Qing Yan, Yakumo, Mirai Kurama, the Upper and Lower Brothers, and a large convoy, while Hizashi Hyuga secretly followed in a cargo cart.
• Ming Jing stopped Yuexi from begging him not to abandon her, apologized for his earlier anger, and explained that he was leaving her in the Royal Capital to help carry his responsibilities.
• Ming Jing assigned himself, Qing Yan, and the Left and Right Brothers to disaster relief, while Yuexi and the Upper and Lower Brothers would remain in the Royal Capital.
• Ming Jing told Yuexi to establish a school in the Prime Minister's Residence to train loyal officials, and they named it the Inner Study Hall.
• Ming Jing began drafting teaching materials but tore up his first attempt because he could not understand what he had written.

Ming Jing taught Yuexi and the Upper and Lower Brothers a confusing lesson in managing people before giving them three simple rules for their subordinates. Hizashi Hyuga revealed that the rules were already used by the Anbu, and Ming Jing realized they resembled a brainwashing method from Blue Star.

• Ming Jing recited Fan Zhongyan’s writing and then delivered a deliberately confusing lecture to Yuexi, the Upper and Lower Brothers, and Asuma.
• Asuma left with a headache, and Ming Jing admitted to Yuexi and the brothers that his lecture had been nonsense intended to fool Asuma.
• Ming Jing instructed Yuexi and the brothers to teach their subordinates to obey, follow through, and keep up with the Prime Minister’s Residence, and told them to report problems they could not solve.
• Ming Jing gave Yuexi medicinal salve prepared by Mirai for her to take to Mirai.
• Hizashi Hyuga told Ming Jing that obeying, keeping up, and following through were the Anbu’s rules, and Ming Jing recognized them as a pyramid-scheme brainwashing method from Blue Star.

After reaching the Royal Capital, Ming Jing reunited Yakumo with Koji Kurama and shared a risky plan with him. Koji then identified a flaw in Ming Jing’s genjutsu studies, leaving Ming Jing with new advice to consider and a possible search for Jiraiya.

• Ming Jing and his companions reached the Royal Capital, where Yakumo joyfully reunited with Koji Kurama.
• Koji Kurama hosted the travelers, then asked Ming Jing to explain his true intentions.
• Ming Jing gave Koji Kurama a letter outlining his plan, and Koji agreed they should try it despite the fifty-fifty odds.
• Koji Kurama noticed that Ming Jing’s demeanor made others wary and advised him to set genjutsu aside until he could stop approaching everything as deception.
• Ming Jing realized Koji’s advice might help with his studies of The Goose Illusionary Book and considered seeking guidance from Jiraiya and the Toad Sages.

Ming Jing secured the Daimyo’s permission to raise disaster-relief funds himself and obtained four hundred inspectors, then prepared to solicit wealthy merchants. After calculating that relief could cost at least sixty million qian, he resolved not to make the Kurama Clan shoulder the entire burden.

• Ming Jing learned that the Daimyo had no relief budget, won three days to raise funds, and requested four hundred inspectors for the disaster area.
• Ming Jing ordered Up to identify relevant merchants and told Qing Yan to prepare invitations and contact newspapers for a banquet the next night.
• Ming Jing explained to Asuma that he preferred to solicit merchants rather than divert Konoha’s funds, then challenged Asuma over Naruto’s situation.
• Up reported that thirty-seven merchants traded with neighboring lands, and Ming Jing singled out wealthy mine owner Masao Kosaka and transport magnate Fukuda Kō as primary targets.
• Ming Jing calculated that five months of relief for fifty thousand victims could cost at least sixty million qian and considered why the Kurama Clan should not pay for everything itself.

Ming Jing recruited Fukuda Kō to support a major charity drive for flood victims by promising the Fukuda Family a decade of canal tax exemptions. Fukuda Kō agreed to donate eight million qian, and the chapter ended with him preparing to attend Ming Jing’s fundraising dinner.

• Fukuda Kō learned that Akira Kurama had arrived in the Royal Capital and asked his butler to watch his movements.
• Ming Jing visited Fukuda Kō and explained his plan to use donations and disaster victims’ labor to dig a canal connecting four lands and reduce flooding.
• Ming Jing asked Fukuda Kō to cooperate with the fundraising and offered the Fukuda Family ten years of canal tax exemptions in exchange for support.
• Fukuda Kō agreed to donate eight million qian and realized that Ming Jing had used a ninja technique to warn him against scheming.
• Ming Jing told Qing Yan that Fukuda Kō’s transportation business made him an ideal first supporter, then prepared for the charity dinner.
• Fukuda Kō received an invitation to the Prime Minister’s Residence Charity Dinner and told his butler to remind him to attend.

Ming Jing hosted a charity dinner and used an immersive illusion to show guests the devastation caused by floods in Muchuan County, then asked them to fund a solution. Fukuda Kō donated five million ryo, but Masao Kosaka’s unexpected three-million-ryo pledge drew the reporters’ attention.

• Fukuda Kō arrived at the Kurama Clan’s charity dinner and observed the guests and lavish buffet.
• Ming Jing appeared onstage, introduced himself as Prime Minister, and transported the guests through an illusion depicting life and disaster in Muchuan County.
• Ming Jing explained the recurring floods and asked the guests to help fund a lasting solution, promising rewards for their contributions.
• Fukuda Kō pledged five million ryo for disaster relief, prompting shock among the guests.
• Masao Kosaka pledged three million ryo for his ancestral home, and reporters crowded around him while Fukuda Kō resented losing the spotlight.

Ming Jing secured donations for disaster relief by promising contributors tax-free canal transport or farmland in return. He left with the sixty million Ryo needed for the project, while the Daimyo had yet to hear of the deal.

• Masao Kosaka pledged three million Ryo, and other guests brought the donations to twenty million Ryo before Koji Kurama added ten million for the Kurama Clan.
• Ming Jing explained that the donations would fund a canal linking the Land of Rivers, Land of Rain, Land of Fire, and Land of Grass, with disaster victims paid in supplies for their work.
• Ming Jing offered qualifying donors tax-free canal transport or permanent-use farmland, with rewards capped at sixty years of tax exemptions and three thousand mu of land.
• Fukuda Kō pledged another ten million Ryo, bringing the Fukuda family's total to fifteen million, and the heads of the other five families pooled fifteen million to secure the remaining tax-free period.
• Masao Kosaka added seven million Ryo and asked for farmland, while Ming Jing reflected that he had secured the sixty million Ryo needed and wondered how the Daimyo would react.

Akira Kurama visited Tamamachi Seiyo to recruit him to oversee a canal project for disaster relief. After Tamamachi Kiki challenged Akira to a sword match and lost, Tamamachi Seiyo agreed to leave with him the next day.

• The daimyo heard a report about Ming Jing's fundraising and decided to watch what he did next rather than raise taxes.
• Akira Kurama and Qing Yan visited Tamamachi Seiyo to ask him to lead the excavation of a canal for the disaster-stricken border region.
• Tamamachi Seiyo judged that ninja could overcome the canal's technical difficulties, but said his granddaughter Tamamachi Kiki would not let him travel.
• Akira promised to protect Tamamachi Seiyo and challenged Tamamachi Kiki to a match, offering to take Seiyo along if he won.
• Akira defeated Tamamachi Kiki with a counterattack, and Tamamachi Seiyo agreed to leave with him the next day.

Ming Jing led a grain convoy toward flood-stricken Muchuan County while planning to investigate the Kurama Clan’s bloodline and the Land of Rain. As unrest grew in the county, Honma’s group planned to assassinate Ming Jing, while Konan ordered Honma to keep observing the crisis.

• Ming Jing inspected the convoy of forty carriages carrying enough grain to feed the disaster victims for a month, then told Asuma to watch over it.
• Xiao You reported that Muchuan County was close to collapse, local food would last only a week, and bandits in the area did not appear to be disaster victims.
• Ming Jing left the convoy stationed three kilometers outside the county and rode toward Muchuan with Qing Yan before events could spiral out of control.
• Honma’s masked group revealed plans to assassinate the Land of Fire’s Prime Minister in Muchuan, even if the disaster victims died as a result.
• Honma met Konan in the Land of Rain and reported shortages of food, clothing, and medicine; Konan told him to continue observing.

Ming Jing and Hizashi Hyuga went to Muchuan County to respond to a refugee riot, where Hizashi charged in to protect civilians and fought a group of hidden assassins. As Hizashi drew the attackers away, Shoko launched a poisoned-blade attack on Ming Jing.

• Ming Jing arrived with food and medicine and learned that refugees had revolted and detained the county magistrate.
• Ming Jing, Hizashi Hyuga, and Qing Yan reached Muchuan County and watched refugees loot the government granary.
• Hizashi charged into the crowd to protect women and children, despite Ming Jing urging him to wait.
• Hizashi used his Byakugan and Gentle Fist techniques to expose hidden ninja and fend off their attacks while the assassins retreated.
• Shoko spotted Ming Jing and, after flicking a pebble at Qing Yan, charged at him with a poisoned short blade.

Ming Jing survived Shoko’s assassination attempt and calmed the disaster victims by proposing a canal project to control future floods. He arranged for grain to be distributed and settled the government office siege with Yamashita Taiji.

• Qing Yan blocked Shoko’s poisoned blade and protected Ming Jing until Hizashi Hyuga arrived, forcing Shoko to retreat.
• Ming Jing addressed the disaster victims, learned they had not ordered the assassination, and held them accountable for besieging the government office.
• Ming Jing promised flood control through a canal and offered the disaster victims food, medicine, and clothing in exchange for their labor.
• The disaster victims agreed to dig the canal, and Ming Jing told Qing Yan to bring in the grain convoy and distribute food that afternoon.
• Ming Jing met Yamashita Taiji, who agreed not to pursue the disaster victims over the siege.