Chapter Summaries

Jueming decided to prevent a Senju-Uchiha clash by draining the Uchiha Clan’s money, believing poverty would keep the clan focused on survival. He began his plan by borrowing Mikoto Uchiha’s private savings and left intending to visit more Uchiha households.

• Jueming told Tekka Uchiha he would protect the Uchiha from the Senju while borrowing money from the clan to defuse the conflict.
• Jueming returned to the Jonin standby area, found Inabi Uchiha absent, and went to Fugaku Uchiha’s home instead.
• Mikoto Uchiha opened the door to Jueming, who asked to borrow money despite her pregnancy.
• Mikoto Uchiha gave Jueming her private savings and said Fugaku managed the larger household funds.
• Jueming left with the money and told Mikoto to prepare more for his next visit.

Senju Jueming visited the Uchiha compound and borrowed money from its residents, preventing them from preparing for a raid on the Senju. Tekka Uchiha defied Yashiro Uchiha’s push for war, and Jueming left after borrowing from the returning Fugaku Uchiha and the rest of the clan.

• Tekka Uchiha returned to the compound and found Senju Jueming borrowing money from Uchiha residents, while Kakashi explained Jueming’s supposed [Talk no Jutsu] Kekkei Genkai.
• Kakashi warned Tekka Uchiha that Jueming had borrowed from people throughout the compound, leaving the clan too short of money for dinner and too distracted to raid the Senju.
• Yashiro Uchiha confronted Tekka Uchiha for missing preparations, but Tekka refused to support an attack on the Senju and argued that war would benefit Konoha’s higher-ups.
• Jueming arrived during the argument, and Yashiro Uchiha tried to leave before Jueming asked him to lend money.
• Fugaku Uchiha and the other senior ninja returned to find their clan members handing Jueming money, and Jueming departed after greeting them.

Jueming borrowed 600 million ryō from nearly the entire Uchiha Clan, leaving its members unable to afford food and prompting Fugaku to gather funds for them. The next day, Jueming began stripping the clan’s homes of furniture, appliances, and even Itachi’s books to fund his cultivation.

• Jueming borrowed money from almost every Uchiha, and Fugaku realized the clan had lost 600 million ryō and had to find money for food.
• Jueming invited Kakashi and Tekka Uchiha to stay with him and planned to take them to the Senju Clan Forbidden Ground to learn powerful techniques.
• Fugaku gathered Uchiha ninja at Naka Shrine to discuss the clan’s financial crisis and left Mikoto and others to guard the clan land.
• Jueming followed his list of addresses and emptied one Uchiha household after another, taking their furniture and appliances.
• Jueming broke into Fugaku’s locked home, reassured Mikoto that he was not borrowing money, and took everything inside, including Itachi’s books.

Jueming enlisted Kakashi and Rin Nohara to strip the Uchiha homes of their belongings and used Talk no Jutsu to take the clan’s remaining money at Naka Shrine. After raising his funds to over nine hundred million, he left the Uchiha compound pushing the stroller Fugaku and Mikoto had prepared, where Fugaku and Mitokado Homura blocked his next attempt to borrow money.

• Mikoto Uchiha found Itachi's room emptied out and grew furious at Jueming’s relentless borrowing.
• Jueming had Kakashi and Rin Nohara use Shadow Clones to help him empty more homes and seal away their belongings.
• Mikoto reported Jueming’s actions at Naka Shrine, where Fugaku Uchiha ordered the clan to stop lending him money or property.
• Jueming discovered the shrine’s underground gathering place, distracted its guards, and borrowed money from the gathered Uchiha, raising his funds above eight hundred million.
• Jueming and his helpers gathered more than nine hundred million in total, leaving him less than one hundred million short of learning Earth Grudge Fear from Kakuzu.
• Jueming pushed aside the baby stroller Fugaku and Mikoto had made, then tried to borrow from Mitokado Homura; Fugaku and Homura resisted his techniques and blocked his way.

Jueming persuaded Mitokado Homura to invest in him by claiming he would master the Mutual Explosion Tag and become Konoha's next great powerhouse, then failed to borrow money from Hiruzen Sarutobi's family. He left nearly at his funding goal and planned to train Yakushi Nonō and Rin Nohara before the A-Rank learning session.

• Jueming told Mitokado Homura that he was borrowing money to learn the Mutual Explosion Tag and buy Explosive Tags, while Homura questioned why he had taken a stroller.
• Jueming convinced Homura to invest by claiming Utatane Koharu had given him her fortune and property deeds, and Homura agreed to give him his money.
• Fugaku Uchiha realized Jueming had used Sound Genjutsu to sway Homura and decided to ask Hiruzen Sarutobi how to counter it.
• Jueming visited Hiruzen Sarutobi's home but left without borrowing money after Biwako Sarutobi and Jiji rejected him.
• Jueming considered selling Nuibari and Princess Tsunade's necklace to raise more money, then planned to train Yakushi Nonō and Rin Nohara to the third stage.

After gaining new abilities and increasing his cultivation and computational power, Jueming met Kakashi and Tekka to address the danger of Uchiha retaliation. He led them to Momoka Senju to learn the Senju legacy and convinced Tekka to aim for the Hokage position.

• Jueming obtained Grass Release: Grass: Submission, which let submissive Grass Weapons channel his power through a ritual, and reviewed his plans to learn A-Rank techniques and seek Kakuzu.
• Jueming met Kakashi and Tekka, who worried that the Uchiha Clan would retaliate after Jueming emptied its wealth.
• Jueming led Kakashi and Tekka to Momoka Senju, explaining that she was nearing Mutation and held the Senju Clan's legacy.
• Kakashi and Tekka agreed to learn the Senju techniques, with Tekka hoping the power would help him change his clansmen's minds.
• Jueming told Tekka to become Hokage so the Uchiha would follow him, and Tekka grew excited at the prospect.

Jueming brought Kakashi and Tekka Uchiha to Momoka Senju so they could study her A-rank techniques. Momoka allowed them one day to learn, and Kakashi and Tekka chose techniques suited to their needs.

• Jueming told Tekka Uchiha that he planned to bring Shimura Danzō down and warned him to prepare for what he would see in the forbidden area.
• Jueming, Kakashi, and Tekka passed through the Barrier and reached Momoka Senju, whose mutated appearance strengthened Tekka’s resolve to overthrow Danzo.
• Jueming introduced Kakashi and Tekka as trusted companions, and Momoka accepted them and brought them into an illusion, warning that they had only one day.
• Momoka presented them with a catalog of A-rank techniques and explained that many required unusual conditions or extensive effort to master.
• Kakashi chose to learn Eight Inner Gates, while Tekka chose Multiple Shadow Clone Technique.

Momoka Senju revealed that Sayuri was an artificial human created from Tobirama Senju's cells and a volunteer from the Uzumaki Clan, explaining her exceptional abilities and limits. As Momoka let Jueming, Kakashi, and Tekka Uchiha begin studying the Senju techniques, Mito Uzumaki appeared and recognized that Momoka had changed.

• Jueming, Kakashi, and Tekka Uchiha chose techniques to study, and Jueming focused on the Wood Release category while hoping to obtain Grass Essence.
• Momoka Senju told the three that Sayuri had half of Tobirama Senju's bloodline and had been created through biotechnology using Uzumaki cells.
• Jueming realized Sayuri's survival of the Mutual Explosion Tag had also come from her bloodline, while Momoka explained that Sayuri could never reach Tobirama Senju's full potential.
• Mito Uzumaki appeared in Jueming's Mental Space and explained that Momoka had changed from her former blind loyalty, partly because of Jueming.
• Momoka Senju began the lessons, but Jueming told Tekka Uchiha that his Sharingan would not work properly in the Mental Space and explained why Momoka had not copied the techniques earlier.

Jueming used his enhanced computational power and photographic memory to memorize and master nearly all the A-Rank techniques in two hours, astonishing Kakashi, Tekka Uchiha, and Momoka Senju. He then decided he needed to create more Grass Weapons to increase his learning speed further.

• Jueming memorized every scroll at a speed that stunned Kakashi and Tekka Uchiha.
• Jueming learned the Water Release: Great Waterfall Technique after practicing its Hand Seals a few times.
• Kakashi and Tekka Uchiha compared Jueming’s talent to the Sharingan and wondered whether Wood Release had affected his abilities.
• Jueming learned nearly all the A-Rank techniques in two hours, leaving Momoka Senju astonished and Tekka Uchiha doubting he could catch up.
• Jueming calculated how much faster he could learn S-Rank techniques with more computational power and resolved to create more Grass Weapons.

Jueming converted Wood Release techniques into Grass Release and rapidly practiced several of them. Momoka Senju watched in amazement and wondered whether Grass Release could rival or even be another form of Wood Release.

• Jueming decided to focus on converting A-Rank Wood Release techniques into Grass Release instead of cultivating the Eight Inner Gates.
• Jueming used Grass Release: Great Plains Technique to cover the illusion’s terrain in grass and realized he could create dangerous tumbleweed, though he chose to grow ordinary grass.
• Jueming practiced Grass Release: Bamboo Shoot Technique, raising a curved bamboo shelter that could potentially deflect a Tailed Beast Ball.
• Momoka Senju watched Jueming’s extraordinary progress and considered whether Grass Release was related to Wood Release and could surpass Hashirama Senju’s techniques.
• Jueming used Grass Release: Sack Binding Technique to create large grasping hands from the ground.

Jueming mastered a range of Grass Release techniques, including techniques adapted from Wood Release, and impressed Momoka Senju and his companions with his progress. He planned to rebuild the Senju Clan grounds after leaving the training illusion, but first needed more power and Grass Essence.

• Jueming created a sturdy bamboo house with Grass Release and considered using the technique to rebuild the Senju Clan's homes.
• Jueming renamed Hashirama Senju's beast-suppressing technique Grass Release: Headpat Kill and explained how it could suppress Tailed Beast chakra and Jinchuriki.
• Jueming told Momoka Senju he had learned every technique, and she examined him while concealing her alarm at his mutation-related physical changes.
• Kakashi and Tekka Uchiha reacted with disbelief to Jueming's mastery, while Momoka warned him that learning techniques was only the first step toward using them in battle.
• Jueming planned to renovate the Senju Clan grounds, but recognized that he needed more chakra and intended to obtain Grass Essence and later seek Kakuzu's Earth Grudge Fear.

Rin Nohara used Jueming’s power through the [Ritual] skill to drive off Inabi Uchiha, who came to collect a debt. Jueming returned home after advising Kakashi and Tekka Uchiha, while Tekka stayed away from the Uchiha compound until he awakened his eyes.

• Inabi Uchiha demanded that Rin Nohara pay Jueming’s debt, and Rin stalled him because Jueming was away.
• Jueming sensed Rin’s call and sent her part of his power through the [Ritual] skill.
• Rin used Grass Release: Art of the Grass Man to beat Inabi Uchiha and carry him away.
• Yakushi Nonō left the residence looking exhausted and troubled, while Rin hurried to feed Sayuri.
• Jueming told Kakashi to study the First Gate and advised Tekka Uchiha to stay away from the compound until he awakened his eyes.
• Tekka Uchiha left to practice the Multiple Shadow Clone Technique and help Tsume Inuzuka.

Jueming returned home, learned that Utatane Koharu’s mission had led her group to Akatsuki’s base in Amegakure, and brutally overpowered her when she came back. Utatane Koharu recounted the battle with Nagato, Jiraiya, and Yahiko, leaving Jueming to consider how the encounter would shape Nagato.

• Jueming returned home, spoke with Rin Nohara, and told her about his day studying in the Forbidden Area and seeing Kakashi.
• Utatane Koharu returned to Jueming’s house, and Jueming seized her wrist, threw her down, and attacked her while Rin Nohara watched in shock.
• Utatane Koharu told Jueming that her group had followed Jiraiya to Amegakure, where Jiraiya fought Yahiko over their opposing ideals.
• Nagato used the Rinnegan to defeat Jiraiya and battle Utatane Koharu’s group, while Shisui Uchiha and the others struggled to hold him back.
• Yahiko returned and took a blade meant for Nagato, and Orochimaru and Konan carried the gravely injured Yahiko deeper into the Akatsuki base.

Jueming learned Kakuzu was waiting at the Underground Exchange and discovered that Danzo planned to send him out and have Kakuzu kill him. Meanwhile, Nagato feared Yahiko was dying from his injuries and mutation, but Yahiko emerged unharmed alongside Orochimaru, leaving the secret of the base unexplained.

• Utatane Koharu told Jueming where to find Kakuzu, and Jueming visited the wounded Jiraiya at the hospital.
• Jiraiya admitted his responsibility for Nagato, while Danzo confronted Jueming about his loan business and secretly arranged for Kakuzu to hunt him.
• Utatane Koharu told Jueming that Danzo had arranged a mission to get him out of the village, and Jueming prepared to leave with her to find Kakuzu.
• In the Land of Rain, Nagato prepared to use the Samsara of Heavenly Life Technique if Yahiko died, but Yahiko appeared unharmed with Orochimaru.
• Shennong asked Nagato about the secret hidden in the base, and Nagato silently looked toward the barrier-shrouded depths.

Yahiko welcomed Hiru into Akatsuki after persuading him to value unity and protect the innocent. When Obito challenged Yahiko to reveal how he had resisted Mutation, the gathered members began to wonder whether their leader was hiding the answer.

• Yahiko returned safely and invited Hiru to join him, asking to study Hiru’s Chimera Technique for a way to suppress Mutation Factors.
• Hiru described his ambition to conquer the Five Great Nations, and Yahiko warned him not to harm innocent people; Hiru then joined Akatsuki.
• Yahiko led Hiru, Konan, and Orochimaru into the hall, where Nagato and the others faced the masked man calling himself Madara.
• Yahiko stopped his followers from attacking the visitor and invited him to debate his ideas instead.
• Obito asked Yahiko how he had survived Mutation and accused him of keeping the method secret, prompting anxious whispers among the gathered members.

Yahiko brought Konan and Shennong into a hidden hall to reveal his method for resisting Mutation. He explained that he transferred his soul into cloned bodies, but his final remark left Konan questioning what that meant for his identity.

• Yahiko asked Obito what could counter Mutation, then said his own experimental method offered a different path.
• Obito offered to join Akatsuki in exchange for seeing the secret, but Yahiko rejected him because he concealed his identity.
• Orochimaru proposed letting trusted representatives inspect the secret, and the group chose Konan and Shennong.
• Yahiko led Konan and Shennong into a hall containing jars of cloned Yahikos, including children, adults, and mutated bodies.
• Yahiko said he had used Living Corpse Reincarnation to transfer his soul into a clone after contracting Mutation.
• Konan felt relieved that Yahiko had only changed bodies, but Yahiko pointed out that every clone already had a soul of its own.

Yahiko No. 20 explained to Konan that each new Yahiko inherited the previous one's memories and power through self-sacrifice and Living Corpse Reincarnation. Konan rejected him as not being the Yahiko she loved, while Yahiko prepared to pass his legacy to Yahiko No. 21.

• Yahiko No. 20 told Konan and Shennong that he had become a new Yahiko by absorbing the previous Yahiko, rather than taking over another person's body.
• Yahiko No. 20 revealed that the original Yahiko had sacrificed himself to create a cycle of reincarnations, and said he could now defeat Jiraiya.
• Konan broke down after learning the Yahiko she had known was dead, and she left in tears, telling Yahiko No. 20 that he was not her Yahiko.
• Orochimaru explained that each Yahiko was a distinct person despite inheriting the same memories, and Yahiko No. 20 accepted that he could pass his power to Yahiko No. 21.

Utatane Koharu led Senju Jueming and several Root members outside Konoha on a mission arranged by Danzo. At their overnight stop, Jueming built a bamboo villa with Grass Release, and after Koharu ordered him to share it with her, he used Grass Rope on her.

• Utatane Koharu visited Kunugi Mokume in the hospital and told him she would take Senju Jueming on the mission instead of him.
• After leaving the hospital, Jueming beat Utatane Koharu in an alley and learned that Shimura Danzō had arranged the mission.
• Utatane Koharu led Jueming and several Root members beyond the Barrier, where the polluted environment caused Jueming's Mutation Level to rise.
• At their overnight stop, Jueming reflected that Shimura Danzō had killed most people and blamed the Senju Clan.
• Jueming used Grass Release to build a two-story bamboo villa on a rooftop, and Utatane Koharu ordered him to stay inside with her.
• Inside the villa, Jueming took bedding from the Great Scroll and sent Grass Rope toward Utatane Koharu.

Jueming met Kakuzu at the ruined Underground Exchange and traded supplies for the Earth Grudge Fear technique. After the deal, Kakuzu revealed that someone had hired him to kill Jueming and began recalling his past fight with Hashirama Senju.

• Jueming and Utatane Koharu reached the ruined Underground Exchange and found Kakuzu and Konan there.
• Konan attacked Utatane Koharu after Jueming asked whether Yahiko was well, and the two women fought.
• Jueming traded Kakuzu one billion worth of supplies for the S-Rank Secret Technique: Earth Grudge Fear, then memorized it.
• Jueming left with Mito Uzumaki, while Kakuzu later followed him and said someone had paid him to kill him.
• Jueming guessed Shimura Danzō had hired Kakuzu, and Kakuzu acknowledged Jueming's Wood Release before recounting his past battle with Hashirama Senju.

Jueming fought Kakuzu, whose nearly century of combat experience and stolen hearts made him a formidable opponent. The battle continued as Jueming and Kakuzu traded powerful techniques, with neither gaining a decisive advantage.

• Mito Uzumaki warned Jueming that Kakuzu had grown far stronger since fighting Hashirama, and Kakuzu revealed Danzo had offered one billion for Jueming's head.
• Jueming opened the fight with Great Waterfall Technique, but Kakuzu emerged unharmed and unleashed a combined Fire Release and Wind Release attack.
• Jueming defended himself with Wood Release: Bamboo Shoot Formation, then dodged Kakuzu's Lightning Release: False Darkness by emerging from underground and trapping Kakuzu in Yellow Spring Swamp.
• Kakuzu broke free of the swamp with a single punch, and Jueming used Great Forest Technique to bury him before Kakuzu blasted the growth apart with wind and fire.
• Jueming launched Wood Release: Cutting Sprigs Technique, but Kakuzu caught the flying bamboo spikes in his palm.