Chapter Summaries

Shuichi finished a capture mission early and gathered Kakashi’s classmates to arrange a birthday meal, hoping to reconnect with him. After waiting outside Kakashi’s home for over an hour, Shuichi invited him, but Kakashi coldly refused.

• Shuichi captured a bear in the Forest of Death, and Tanaka let him leave early after recording his mission as complete.
• Shuichi went to the Ninja Academy and asked Rin, Tatsuki, Obito, Might Guy, and the others to celebrate Kakashi’s birthday with him.
• Rin told Shuichi that Kakashi had been distant and had repeatedly turned her away when she visited.
• Shuichi arranged for everyone to meet after school the next day and promised to bring Kakashi.
• Shuichi waited outside Kakashi’s home until after nine, then invited him to join the meal.
• Kakashi said he still had training to do and would probably not attend.

Shuichi persuaded Kakashi to attend his birthday gathering, where their classmates celebrated him with gifts and a surprise party. Afterward, Shuichi gave Kakashi only a partial explanation about his father and challenged him to a match the next day before revealing more.

• Shuichi convinced Kakashi to meet him at Fujiwara BBQ Restaurant by hinting that he knew details about Kakashi's father.
• Shuichi bought Kakashi an adult book as a birthday gift and met Ishikawa Tatsuki and Might Guy on the way to the restaurant.
• Kakashi arrived to find his classmates gathered for his birthday, and Nohara Rin and Might Guy set off a surprise while everyone wished him well.
• Shuichi and the others gave Kakashi gifts, and the classmates shared a cheerful dinner while Shuichi discussed ninjutsu.
• After the gathering, Shuichi told Kakashi that his father's actions may have involved the village, former subordinates, and Kakashi's future, but withheld his full suspicions.
• Shuichi challenged Kakashi to an all-out match at the forest near Training Ground 36 at three the next afternoon, promising to consider telling him more if Kakashi won.

Shuichi and Kakashi began their long-awaited, no-holds-barred fight at Training Ground 36, while the Third Hokage watched with two Anbu. After exchanging ninjutsu, weapons, and close-range attacks, both remained ready to continue.

• Shuichi and Kakashi met at Training Ground 36 and agreed to fight without holding back, knowing the Third Hokage had arranged for powerful ninja to watch over them.
• The Third Hokage watched from a nearby tree and told the Anbu that Orochimaru considered both boys talented enough to challenge them.
• When Shuichi dropped a stone to signal the start, Kakashi retreated and attacked with Lightning Style: Earth Run, but Shuichi dodged and charged while throwing Shuriken.
• Kakashi drew White Fang's short sword and clashed with Shuichi's Kunai, then changed tactics when Shuichi proved stronger.
• Shuichi evaded Kakashi's upward slash and countered with a kick that struck Kakashi's arm before both fighters opened the distance.

Shuichi used Shadow Clones in a carefully coordinated formation to overwhelm Kakashi and drain his stamina. After replacing the clones as Kakashi tried to attack them, he maintained control of the fight with a fresh formation.

• Shuichi summoned two Shadow Clones and arranged them at different angles behind him before charging Kakashi.
• Shuichi and his clones coordinated Kunai, Shuriken, and Shadow Snake Hand attacks, forcing Kakashi to retreat and defend while his stamina waned.
• Kakashi circled toward a Shadow Clone, and Shuichi dismissed it when Kakashi attacked, then dismissed the other clone and summoned two replacements with more Chakra.
• Kakashi tried to rush the distant replacement clone, but Shuichi intercepted him and used the Body Flicker Technique to retreat with the formation intact.

Shuichi defeated Kakashi using a Shadow Clone tactic that drained Kakashi’s stamina while Shuichi fought at close range. After the Third Hokage praised the duel, Shuichi explained how he had planned the tactic and how he would adapt it against different opponents.

• Kakashi’s attacks failed to break through Shuichi’s Shadow Clones, and the clones wore him down with repeated harassment.
• Shuichi and his two Shadow Clones attacked Kakashi from different directions, knocked away his sword, and pinned him to the ground.
• Kakashi questioned why Shuichi had not used offensive jutsu, and Shuichi explained that conserving Chakra and avoiding unnecessary risk were important.
• Shuichi forced Kakashi to complete the Reconciliation Seal, and the Third Hokage emerged with the Anbu to praise the battle and comfort Kakashi.
• Shuichi explained that he had used close combat to gather information before making his original body draw Kakashi’s attention while the clones attacked from the sides.
• The Third Hokage recognized that Shuichi’s tactic had no single fixed form, and Shuichi described how he could change his approach if an opponent countered it.

After Shuichi and Kakashi recovered from their spar, Shuichi began a month of genjutsu training with Orochimaru, learning how genjutsu worked and how its demands limited its users. Orochimaru planned to make Shuichi more well-rounded before taking him on missions the following year.

• Shuichi told Kakashi that Konoha's major clans knew the truth about his father and advised him to focus on becoming a strong ninja.
• Two months later, Shuichi received a message from Orochimaru and met him at the training ground the next day.
• Orochimaru said he would take Shuichi on missions starting the next year and began special training to broaden his abilities.
• Orochimaru explained that genjutsu relied on Mental Energy to interfere with Chakra in an opponent's brain, but warned Shuichi not to rely on it as his main fighting method.
• Orochimaru described how genjutsu was cast and maintained, explaining that users had to sustain their Mental Energy transmission and often needed teammates to finish their targets.

Shuichi analyzed the strengths and limitations of ordinary genjutsu and the Sharingan before Orochimaru taught him when to use genjutsu and how to counter it. The lesson ended with Shuichi adding observations about how eye contact, speed, willpower, and the Eight Gates affected defenses against genjutsu.

• Shuichi concluded that ordinary genjutsu had limited value against high-level opponents, while the Sharingan gave Uchiha powerful advantages in Mental Energy, speed, control, and defense.
• Shuichi agreed with Orochimaru that genjutsu training had limited potential, though it remained useful for ambushes and restraining exhausted enemies.
• Orochimaru explained that sound and steam could transmit special genjutsu, but such methods made the attack less concealed.
• Orochimaru described countering genjutsu through pain, strong Mental Energy, or Chakra injected by an ally, and Shuichi added that trained users could detect and disrupt foreign Mental Energy.
• Shuichi explained that Might Guy could avoid Sharingan genjutsu through his willpower, speed, and ability to release the Eight Gates, and that genjutsu became harder to break the longer it remained uninterrupted.

Orochimaru pushed Shuichi through brutal genjutsu training, leaving him better prepared for illusions but anxious about taking his first life. In the new year, Shuichi enlisted Kakashi to teach him swordsmanship and began training with him daily.

• Orochimaru cast a D-rank genjutsu showing Shuichi the deaths of Ishikawa Tatsuki and Yūhi Kurenai, and Shuichi dispelled it before Orochimaru tested him with a stronger illusion.
• Orochimaru repeatedly ambushed Shuichi with genjutsu throughout the final month of the year, improving Shuichi's resistance while leaving him exhausted.
• Shuichi worried that future missions would force him to kill and tried to prepare himself by imagining violent scenes.
• After the new year, Shuichi visited Kakashi and asked him to teach swordsmanship in exchange for helping him train his genjutsu.
• Shuichi had his father's sword polished and trained with Kakashi each day, learning the Hatake clan's practical techniques and preliminarily mastering ninja swordsmanship without Chakra.

Shuichi received a difficult B-rank mission to track down and eliminate a group of Rogue Ninja who had massacred a village near the borders of several countries. The Third Hokage questioned whether Shuichi was ready, but Orochimaru backed his disciple, and Shuichi learned he would have to lead the mission while Orochimaru stayed out unless absolutely necessary.

• Watanabe Shin'ya told Shuichi that the Third Hokage wanted to see him after his D-rank missions.
• At the Hokage's office, the Third Hokage and Orochimaru disagreed over whether Shuichi should take his first mission outside the village.
• The Third Hokage gave Shuichi a B-rank mission involving Rogue Ninja who had looted and massacred a village near the borders of the Land of Rivers, the Land of Rain, and the Land of Fire.
• The Third Hokage explained that the group included a Chunin and several Genin, and that Shuichi's team had to locate their base, identify their leader, and prevent anyone from escaping.
• Orochimaru agreed to accompany Shuichi but would not intervene unless absolutely necessary.

Shuichi accepted an urgent mission and left Konoha with Orochimaru, who appointed him captain and made him responsible for the decisions. After informing his friends and beginning the journey, Shuichi planned their route and led them toward the incident site.

• Shuichi accepted the mission, and Orochimaru appointed him captain, telling him to make the decisions while treating Orochimaru as a team member.
• Shuichi packed his supplies, took his father's short sword, and left notes for Ishikawa Tatsuki and Kurenai before departing.
• Shuichi met Orochimaru at the village gate, where the guards registered their departure from Konoha.
• Orochimaru gave Shuichi maps and left the route planning to him, so Shuichi studied the information and led them toward the village where the incident occurred.
• After traveling for more than two hours, Shuichi spotted a nearby city and decided they would stop there for food and supplies before continuing toward their destination.

Shuichi and Orochimaru investigated a remote village attacked by a group of bandits and discovered that iron ore had likely drawn the attackers there. Shuichi reviewed the mission report and learned that a Sunagakure Missing-nin named Amaru had ambushed the Konoha squad leader, leaving the battle’s outcome uncertain.

• Shuichi and Orochimaru traveled through the mountains and reached the deserted village near the Land of Fire border.
• Shuichi searched the village and its surroundings, then followed villagers’ footprints to a pool that served as their water source.
• Orochimaru led Shuichi to a cave, where they discovered iron ore that might have attracted the attackers.
• Shuichi studied the mission report and learned that Amaru, a defected Sunagakure Chunin, had ambushed the Konoha squad leader.
• The Konoha Chunin survived the ambush but was injured, turning the fight against the Konoha squad.

Shuichi and Orochimaru hurried to Rock Mountain City to intercept Amaru’s Missing-nin group before they could sell their stolen iron ore. After scouting the road, Shuichi spotted a large caravan and approached a man hauling a cart of fruit, hoping to learn more about the travelers.

• Shuichi decided Rock Mountain City was the most likely place for Amaru’s group to sell the stolen iron ore.
• Shuichi and Orochimaru took a direct route through the forests and reached Rock Mountain City around dawn.
• Shuichi and Orochimaru searched the road south of the city, then continued scouting at sunrise while disguised as ordinary travelers.
• Shuichi heard a large group approaching, removed his forehead protector, and saw a caravan nearly fifty meters long.
• Shuichi caught up with a man pulling a cart of fruit and asked to buy some peaches.

Shuichi identified a grain caravan as the Missing-nin group and, unable to spot Amaru, devised a plan with Orochimaru to draw him out without endangering civilians. Their staged bandit attack disrupted the merchant caravan, and the disguised Missing-nin revealed themselves while demanding the iron ore.

• Shuichi bought peaches from a vendor traveling with a large merchant caravan and learned how independent merchants paid to travel under the army’s protection.
• Shuichi spotted a suspicious grain caravan whose heavy carts and seemingly unstrained pushers led him to identify its members as Missing-nin.
• Shuichi decided not to attack without seeing Amaru and followed the caravan with Orochimaru to a place near Rock Mountain City where they could provoke a response.
• Shuichi and Orochimaru staged a bandit attack, with Shuichi’s disguised group demanding the iron ore from the three carts.
• The Missing-nin exposed themselves by claiming the carts held iron ore rather than grain and threatening the merchant guild’s soldiers if they interfered.

Shuichi and Orochimaru’s group ambushed the Missing-nin carrying the Iron Ore, hoping to draw out Amaru, but Banbi and Danzou’s betrayal complicated the fight. The rival groups faced off, each uncertain who had leaked the cargo’s secret.

• The soldiers abandoned the Missing-nin and bandits, then fled as the two groups fought in the smoke from the Missing-nin’s Smoke Bombs.
• The Bandit Leader killed Black Water, prompting Yaro and Red Water to call for Amaru to join the fight.
• Amaru revealed himself from among the fleeing soldiers and attacked with Wind Release, but the Bandit Leader blocked it with Earth Release.
• A Konoha Rogue Ninja called Banbi emerged and offered to help the bandits, while another Missing-nin ran to stand behind him.
• Amaru accused Banbi of being Danzou’s traitor, and Shuichi recognized that his own ambush had disrupted their plans to steal the Iron Ore.

Shuichi posed as a bandit and allied with Banbi to attack Amaru, but fled when Amaru revealed another Missing-nin helper, Yudō. He lured the two pursuers away from his companions, then stopped near a tree as Yudō’s Senbon narrowly missed him.

• Shuichi agreed to split the Iron Ore profits with Banbi and led an attack on Amaru’s group.
• Amaru called Yudō out of the woods, and Yudō joined the fight after receiving a small piece of iron.
• Shuichi and his companions fled under cover of a Smoke Bomb, leaving Banbi and the other Missing-nin to face Amaru and Yudō.
• Amaru and Yudō killed Banbi’s companion, then struck Banbi with Shuriken and killed him as he struggled to escape.
• Shuichi drew Amaru and Yudō away from his companions, and he dodged Yudō’s Senbon before stopping near a tree.

Shuichi and Orochimaru defeated and interrogated Amaru and Yudō, uncovering their role in massacring a village for its iron ore. Shuichi found two pieces of Chakra Metal among the loot, and the mission’s tangled scheme was exposed.

• Shuichi trapped Amaru and Yudō in a swamp, wounded them with shuriken, and subdued them with venomous snakes.
• Orochimaru joined Shuichi, and Shuichi interrogated the captives before they suffocated to death.
• Shuichi searched the corpses and found two pieces of Chakra Metal.
• Amaru’s greed for a rich iron deposit had led him and other Missing-nin to slaughter the village and secretly mine its ore.
• Shuichi and Orochimaru learned that Yudō and other conspirators had followed the caravan to claim a larger share of the profits.

Shuichi and Orochimaru defeated the Missing-nin, then sold the caravan’s Iron Ore in Rock Mountain City for 5.5 million ryo. After exploring the city and buying ninja tools and gifts, Shuichi met Orochimaru and began the journey back to Konoha.

• Shuichi and Orochimaru returned to the caravan after Shuichi buried the bodies, and Shuichi told the merchants and soldiers that the Missing-nin had been dealt with.
• Orochimaru appraised the Iron Ore and Chakra Metal, letting Shuichi keep the Chakra Metal and agreeing to split the Iron Ore proceeds with him.
• Shuichi created six Shadow Clones to haul the Iron Ore to Rock Mountain City, where Orochimaru helped sell it for 5.5 million ryo.
• Orochimaru gave Shuichi an hour to explore Rock Mountain City, and Shuichi bought snacks, ninja tools, and gifts for his friends.
• Shuichi met Orochimaru at the city gate, and they set off for Konoha.

At a banquet, the Daimyo of the Land of Fire agreed to a Joint Chunin Exam proposed by the Daimyo of the Land of Wind, then learned it might be an attempt to probe Konoha. Tanaka urged him to contact Hiruzen, while Orochimaru and Shuichi returned to Konoha.

• Shiji Shinden welcomed the visiting Daimyos and hosted a banquet at the Daimyo's Mansion.
• The Daimyo of the Land of Wind proposed a Joint Chunin Exam to encourage exchanges between allied nations, and Shiji Shinden agreed.
• Tanaka warned Shiji Shinden that the Land of Wind might be trying to gather intelligence on Konoha, so Shiji Shinden decided they should contact Hiruzen.
• Orochimaru and Shuichi returned to Konoha, and Orochimaru told Shuichi to rest while he reported their mission.

After returning from a dangerous mission with a fortune, Shuichi treated Kakashi, Ishikawa Tatsuki, and Yūhi Kurenai to barbecue and recounted what had happened. He used the mission’s violence and moral compromises to make his friends confront the realities they might face in the coming war.

• Shuichi returned to Konoha and decided to treat his friends after earning a large sum on his first mission.
• Orochimaru reported the mission to Sarutobi Hiruzen, who regretted doubting Shuichi, before an urgent message arrived from the Daimyo's Mansion.
• Shuichi took Kakashi, Ishikawa Tatsuki, and Yūhi Kurenai to Barbecue Q and revealed that he had earned around six million ryo.
• Shuichi recounted the mission and explained that he wanted to help his friends grow stronger before the Third Great Ninja War.
• Shuichi described killing enemy ninja and taking wealth from villagers, leaving Yūhi Kurenai and Ishikawa Tatsuki shaken while Kakashi understood his purpose.

Shuichi continued adapting to ninja life while training Ishikawa Tatsuki and Yūhi Kurenai, then accompanied Orochimaru to report a mission to the Third Hokage. The village elders and Shimura Danzō gathered for an important discussion, and nearly every available Jonin was summoned to a meeting.

• Kakashi warned Ishikawa Tatsuki and Yūhi Kurenai that the dangers of being a ninja were real, and both resolved to keep up with Shuichi.
• Shuichi promised to teach Ishikawa Tatsuki and Yūhi Kurenai advanced Chakra techniques and ninja experience when he had time.
• Shuichi adapted to missions and trained during a peaceful stretch between the Second Shinobi War and the Third Shinobi War.
• Shuichi and Orochimaru entered the Hokage's Office and met Mitokado Homura, Utatane Koharu, and Shimura Danzō.
• Shuichi left the office after greeting the elders, while the Third Hokage told Orochimaru that he had summoned the available Jonin for an important discussion.
• Several hours later, nearly every Jonin in the village who was not on a mission had gathered in the Administration Building's Meeting Room.