Chapter Summaries

The Nine-Tails attacked Konohagakure, but Namikaze Minato diverted its Tailed Beast Bomb and moved the beast away before dying alongside Kushina after sealing it into one of their twin sons. Sarutobi Hiruzen named the infants Uzumaki Menma and Namikaze Naruto, while Menma silently wondered who he was and where he had ended up.

• The Nine-Tails rampaged through Konohagakure, killing hundreds of Konoha Ninjas before Sarutobi Hiruzen and the village’s elite forces contained it temporarily.
• The Nine-Tails prepared a Tailed Beast Bomb, but Namikaze Minato used the Flying Thunder God Technique—Guiding Thunder to send the attack far from the village and then move the beast away.
• Sarutobi Hiruzen reached the outskirts and saw the Nine-Tails sealed into a red-haired infant as Minato and Kushina lay dead.
• Sarutobi Hiruzen carried away the twins, naming the red-haired infant Uzumaki Menma and the blond-haired infant Namikaze Naruto.
• Uzumaki Menma silently panicked as he questioned who he was and where he had ended up.

Five-year-old Uzumaki Menma reflected on his painful place as the Nine-Tails’ host and Minato and Kushina’s overlooked son, while keeping his resentment hidden to avoid provoking Sarutobi Hiruzen. He trained and gathered food in the mountains, ending the chapter with a successful winter fishing trip.

• Uzumaki Menma recalled waking in this world to Minato and Kushina’s deaths and learning that his brother Namikaze Naruto received the village’s affection while he was treated as a monster.
• Menma restrained his resentment because he feared Sarutobi Hiruzen would remove the Nine-Tails and imprison him if he showed hostility toward Konoha.
• Menma left his apartment early to avoid villagers and went to the nearby mountains, where he trained and gathered extra food.
• Menma plunged into the cold river, caught fish and shrimp, and returned to shore pleased with his plentiful haul.

Menma sensed the surveillance around him end and took a secluded route home, where he encountered Hinata being bullied. Before he could intervene, Naruto rushed in to protect her and made the boys back down.

• Menma sensed that the Third Hokage's surveillance had ended and left the mountain, avoiding villagers along the way.
• Menma spotted Hinata surrounded by several boys near his home and recognized the scene from Naruto's childhood.
• Naruto charged ahead of Menma, stood between Hinata and the boys, and told them to stop bullying her.
• One boy recognized Naruto as Young Master Naruto, and the group apologized and hurried away.
• Naruto accepted their apology and reminded them that men should not bully girls.

Menma watched Naruto and Hinata meet, then returned home feeling excluded from the life Naruto seemed to have. On New Year’s Eve, Sarutobi Hiruzen visited and told Menma he would be able to attend the Ninja Academy next year.

• Naruto introduced himself to Hinata, and she thanked him while admiring him.
• Menma watched Naruto and Hinata talk, then walked away, convinced their happiness had nothing to do with him.
• Menma returned home and ate alone, feeling cold and lonely as December of Year 53 of Konoha ended.
• Sarutobi Hiruzen visited Menma on New Year’s Eve and asked about his health and his New Year’s wish.
• Menma told Sarutobi Hiruzen he wanted to become a great ninja, and Sarutobi Hiruzen said he should start at the Ninja Academy next year.

Menma received a chakra extraction scroll from Sarutobi Hiruzen and began training after successfully extracting chakra for the first time. He planned to use the six years before the Original Work's story began to build basic abilities and protect himself.

• Sarutobi Hiruzen told Menma he had to pass a chakra extraction test before entering the Ninja Academy and gave him a scroll.
• Menma celebrated the chance to enroll, then hid his thoughts after Sarutobi Hiruzen left.
• Menma considered how chakra worked and focused on the Uzumaki bloodline and Nine-Tails chakra that could help him extract it.
• On January 1st of Konoha Year 54, Menma successfully extracted his first wisp of chakra despite the Nine-Tails chakra interfering.
• Menma devoted himself to practicing chakra extraction and control, determined to gain basic self-defense skills before the Original Work's story began.

Menma spent three months building his chakra control and prepared to begin at the Ninja Academy, but that night he unexpectedly entered the sealing space inside his body. He approached the Nine-Tails’ prison and was drawn closer by its voice.

• Menma trained chakra extraction and control from January through March, reaching a level that let him move and leap beyond ordinary human limits.
• Menma ended his training early, went home, and rested ahead of his first day at the Ninja Academy.
• Menma awoke in the dark sealing space inside his body and recognized it as the place where the Nine-Tails was sealed.
• Menma followed the Nine-Tails’ chakra to its prison, where the beast’s arrival stirred a powerful surge of chakra.
• The Nine-Tails called Menma closer, and he approached in a daze.

Menma confronted Kurama in his inner world and revealed that he had been conscious since birth and knew about the Nine-Tails’ sealing and the events surrounding it. He proposed that they cooperate, leaving Kurama intrigued but unconvinced.

• Menma resisted Kurama’s tempting aura and steadied himself before speaking to the Nine-Tails.
• Kurama questioned how Menma knew of him, and Menma suggested they could get along because their lives were bound together.
• Menma walked through the metal bars and told Kurama he knew about the masked man, his parents sealing Kurama, and his younger brother.
• Kurama laughed at the revelation and recognized that Menma knew about Sarutobi Hiruzen’s intentions.
• Menma urged Kurama to cooperate by pointing out that Menma’s death would harm him and appealing to Kurama’s desire for freedom.

Menma persuaded Kurama to help him pursue freedom and revenge, then left Kurama shaken by knowing his name. Meanwhile, Mitokado Homura questioned Sarutobi Hiruzen’s decision to send Menma to the Ninja Academy, but Hiruzen stood by it.

• Menma argued that Kurama could help him without risking anything and promised to free him and help him take revenge on their shared enemies.
• Kurama agreed to lend Menma his Chakra, and the two bumped fists to seal their arrangement.
• Menma called the Nine-Tails Kurama before leaving the mental world, leaving Kurama shocked and wondering whether Menma was the person the Old Man had spoken of.
• Mitokado Homura urged Sarutobi Hiruzen to have Anbu train Menma instead of sending him to the Ninja Academy.
• Sarutobi Hiruzen rejected Homura’s concerns and asked whether he trusted Minato and Kushina, or trusted him.

On Konohagakure Ninja Academy enrollment day, Sarutobi Hiruzen’s chosen teacher, Umino Iruka, came to take Menma to school. Menma and Iruka set off together, while villagers’ hostility toward Menma remained evident.

• Mitokado Homura accepted Sarutobi Hiruzen’s decision and hoped Menma would become a pillar of the village.
• On enrollment morning, Menma waited at home for the person Sarutobi Hiruzen had arranged to escort him.
• Umino Iruka arrived, introduced himself as Menma’s homeroom teacher, and offered him his hand.
• Menma took Iruka’s hand, and they left for the Ninja Academy.
• Villagers showed malice toward Menma but restrained themselves when they noticed Iruka with him.

Menma officially enrolled in the Ninja Academy and joined Iruka's class, where he noticed several familiar young faces. The class's attention shifted when Naruto, the Fourth Hokage's celebrated son, arrived as a new student.

• Menma ignored the villagers' hostile stares as Iruka escorted him to the Ninja Academy and completed his enrollment.
• Iruka brought Menma to his classroom, where Menma chose a seat at the back and spotted Shikamaru Nara, Shino Aburame, Sakura Haruno, Ino Yamanaka, Hinata, and Sasuke Uchiha.
• Naruto entered the classroom with a Konoha Ninja escort, drawing excited attention from the students and surprise from Menma.
• The escort told Iruka that Naruto would join his class, and Naruto politely asked Iruka to guide him.

Naruto and his classmates began their first day at the Ninja Academy by introducing themselves and sharing their dreams. Naruto and Sasuke became the class's main attractions, while Naruto felt a fleeting, unexplained familiarity with Menma.

• Naruto drew the girls' attention, making Sasuke feel displeased at losing his place as the center of attention.
• Iruka introduced himself as the children's homeroom teacher and asked them to share their names, interests, and dreams.
• Sasuke said he wanted to become a ninja as outstanding as his brother, and the girls praised him.
• Naruto introduced himself as Namikaze Naruto, said he liked Ichiraku Ramen, and declared his dream of becoming Hokage like his father.
• Menma said he wanted recognition from many people, and Naruto briefly felt an inexplicable connection to him before dismissing it as an illusion.

Menma began attending the Ninja Academy and spent the following year training while resenting the village that confined him. In June of Konoha Year 55, the village was shaken by the Uchiha Clan massacre, which Menma recognized when Sasuke Uchiha failed to arrive at class.

• Menma envied Naruto's life but held onto his affection for his biological younger brother and hoped Naruto would not follow his path.
• Iruka welcomed the students to the Ninja Academy and began teaching them about the duties and nature of a ninja.
• Menma left the academy determined to break free from the life he saw as a cage.
• Menma settled into a routine of attending the academy and training his body and Chakra control.
• In Konoha Year 55, June, Menma noticed the village's alarm and realized the Uchiha Clan massacre had begun when Sasuke Uchiha's seat was empty.

Menma ignored the political fallout from the Uchiha Clan massacre and focused on strengthening himself through study and training. Sasuke returned to the academy changed by the massacre, while the threat of war faded and Menma entered a new stage of training at the end of Konoha Year 55.

• Menma dismissed the Uchiha Clan massacre as irrelevant to his immediate goal of becoming stronger and continued his daily studies and training.
• Sasuke Uchiha returned to the academy a week later, cold and gloomy after witnessing Itachi kill their parents and clan.
• Konoha's leadership contained the fallout from the massacre, and the Five Great Shinobi Villages did not start another war.
• Menma continued training as Konoha Year 55 ended and his third school year approached, entering a new stage of development.

Menma reflected on Iruka's sincere kindness and made rapid progress learning the Three Body Techniques. The chapter left Iruka arriving with a fresh supply of Ninja Tools for Menma.

• Menma sensed that Iruka had begun treating him with genuine care, leaving him unsure how to respond to the kindness.
• Iruka gave Menma extra instruction, and Menma learned the Transformation Technique, Substitution Technique, and Clone Technique in less than a week.
• Menma practiced the Substitution Technique and considered sparring with Iruka to improve through actual combat.
• Iruka found Menma at his training spot and used a Sealing Scroll to give him a new bag of Ninja Tools.

Iruka gave Menma a set of Ninja Tools and encouraged him to keep working hard as he prepared to enter his third year at the Ninja Academy. In the 56th year of Konoha, the school began emphasizing practical training, where Menma ranked first, ahead of Uchiha Sasuke and Sakura Haruno.

• Iruka gave Menma Ninja Tools and advised him to balance training with rest.
• Iruka told Menma that his third year would focus more on practical training and urged him to keep striving for strong results.
• The 56th year of Konoha began, and Menma entered his third year at the Ninja Academy.
• The Academy added practical subjects such as physical conditioning, Ninja Tools practice, trap training, sparring, and the Three Body Techniques.
• Menma ranked at the top of the class in practical performance, with Uchiha Sasuke second and Sakura Haruno in the lower-middle range.

By Konoha Year 59, Menma and his classmates had spent years training at the Ninja Academy, with Naruto emerging as a powerful practical fighter. Iruka paired Menma against Sasuke for another spar, while Shikamaru suspected Menma was still holding back.

• Naruto's talent in practical combat became clear after the class began studying ninjutsu, taijutsu, and genjutsu, placing him alongside Sasuke and Menma.
• By the winter of Konoha Year 59, Iruka was supervising the class's regular paired sparring at the Ninja Academy.
• Iruka paired Menma with Sasuke after noticing Sasuke's eagerness, despite Sasuke having lost every previous match against Menma.
• Naruto teased Sasuke about nearing his thirtieth loss, while the other students doubted Sasuke could win.
• Shikamaru told Choji that Menma would likely win again and privately regarded Menma with unusual interest.

Menma defeated Sasuke decisively in their sparring match, leaving Sasuke frustrated by his thirtieth loss. Their classmates recognized the widening gap between them, while Iruka watched the result.

• Shikamaru considered the responsibilities ahead as he reflected on Menma's unusual qualities.
• At Iruka's signal, Menma and Sasuke began their match, and Sasuke charged to seize the initiative.
• Menma overpowered Sasuke's guard, then struck his shoulder and stopped his hand at Sasuke's throat.
• Iruka ended the match, and Sasuke formed the Reconciliation Seal with Menma before returning to the line.
• Sasuke resolved to work harder and eventually defeat Menma, while their classmates remarked on Menma's overwhelming advantage.

As graduation approached, Iruka warned the students to prepare for their January assessment but refused to reveal what it would cover. Menma left for home focused not on graduating but on the dangers awaiting him when Year 60 of Konoha began.

• Iruka ended the class by reminding the students that their graduation exam was less than a month away.
• The students pressed Iruka to reveal the exam contents, but he said the assessment changed each year and covered what they had learned.
• Naruto led the students in demanding answers, so Iruka dismissed the class and walked away.
• Menma left the training ground without drawing close to his classmates, who had grown used to his distant manner.
• Menma considered the coming Year 60 of Konoha and the threats posed by Orochimaru, Itachi Uchiha, Jiraiya, Tsunade, and the Akatsuki Organization.

Menma assessed how much of Kurama’s Chakra his body could withstand as he prepared to grow strong enough to protect himself from powerful enemies. Kurama estimated that Menma could endure three tails’ worth, and Menma resolved to find a chance to test the power while keeping it hidden until he graduated.

• Menma worried that Konoha, the Akatsuki Organization, and other powerful enemies would target him because he contained the Nine-Tails.
• Menma asked Kurama how much of his Chakra his current body could withstand, and Kurama estimated three tails’ worth at most.
• Menma considered that three tails would not be enough against Kage-level foes and hoped to withstand four or five tails before the Chunin Exams.
• Kurama warned Menma that the Chakra’s malice could erode his consciousness, and Menma acknowledged the danger.
• Menma said he needed to find an opportunity to test Kurama’s power, then looked toward the Hokage Building and anticipated the real stage beginning.

Iruka reported on Menma and his classmates to Sarutobi Hiruzen, who decided Kakashi Hatake should lead Menma’s team after graduation. In January of Konoha Year 60, the graduation examination began, and Menma passed the Clone Technique test.

• Iruka brought Sarutobi Hiruzen a detailed report on his students, especially Menma and Sasuke.
• Sarutobi Hiruzen praised Iruka and told him to pay close attention to the students’ graduation examination.
• Sarutobi Hiruzen chose Kakashi Hatake to lead Menma’s team and sent an Anbu to summon him that evening.
• Menma, Naruto, Sasuke, and their classmates began their graduation examination in January of Konoha Year 60.
• Menma performed the Clone Technique successfully, and Iruka marked him as passed.