Chapter Summaries

Umino Sasuke and Hatake Sakumo fought Chiyo’s pursuing Puppet Master Unit while retreating toward the border, where the Mitokado Clan forces were waiting. After Sakumo disrupted Sasuke’s plan to let the clan’s warriors be sacrificed, Sasuke used disguised Shadow Clones to secretly kill his targets and manipulate the Hidden Sand unit into fighting on; as the pursuers finally began to falter, Sasuke prepared to launch his counterattack.

• Umino Sasuke used his perception and puppet expertise to destroy puppets and kill puppet masters, then coordinated with Hatake Sakumo to retreat while exhausting Chiyo’s forces.
• At the border, Mito Kadena’s troops engaged the Hidden Sand puppet masters, and Sakumo protected the Mitokado Clan as they withdrew, disrupting Sasuke’s plan to use them as expendable bait.
• Umino Sasuke advanced to cover the retreat while his Shadow Clones, disguised as Hidden Sand puppet masters, secretly assassinated Mitokado Homura’s death warriors and other targets on the list.
• Sasuke’s Shadow Clones alternated between killing Mitokado ninja and encouraging or protecting Hidden Sand fighters, keeping the pursuit alive and driving Chiyo to intensify her attacks.
• As Hidden Sand’s puppet masters ran critically low on chakra and stamina, Sasuke’s Shadow Clones eliminated the remaining members of Homura’s branch, and Sasuke prepared to wipe out the exhausted unit and Chiyo.

Umino Sasuke revealed that he had been hiding his strength, overwhelmed the Hidden Sand Puppet Unit, and helped Hatake Sakumo regain most of his strength. The battle shifted when Sandstorm Gale appeared as a Mechanical Human Puppet, and his arrival gave the surviving Hidden Sand shinobi hope.

• Umino Sasuke replenished his chakra with Samehada, summoned ten War Machines, and launched a counterattack against the Hidden Sand forces.
• Umino Sasuke and Hatake Sakumo broke the Puppet Unit’s command structure, while Mito Kadena helped eliminate the scattered survivors.
• Umino Sasuke sensed Sandstorm Gale’s ambush and shattered his Poison Scorpion tail spike, revealing Gale’s Mechanical Human Puppet body.
• Chiyo was distracted by her son’s return, allowing Hatake Sakumo to wound her and destroy one of her Chikamatsu Puppets.
• Sandstorm Gale promised to kill Umino Sasuke, while the remaining Hidden Sand shinobi rallied behind him.

Umino Sasuke overwhelmed Sandstorm Gale’s Human Puppet technique until Sandstorm Gale summoned a powerful Human Puppet made from his uncle Ebizo, turning the battle against him. Sasuke then summoned Ruri Jade, whose greeting as his “Master” shocked the battlefield and stirred rumors that she had been involved with him.

• Umino Sasuke dismantled Sandstorm Gale’s Puppet attacks and used a Mecha Puppet to crush his Hundred Puppet Performance.
• Sandstorm Gale summoned Ebizo as a Human Puppet, horrifying Chiyo and the Hidden Sand ninjas and intensifying Chiyo’s fight with Hatake Sakumo.
• Ebizo attacked Umino Sasuke with powerful Wind Release and nearly two hundred Puppets, holding Sasuke and four Mecha Puppets in an even battle alongside Sandstorm Gale.
• Umino Sasuke summoned Ruri Jade, who greeted him as her Master and forced Ebizo back.
• Chiyo and the Hidden Sand ninjas recognized Ruri Jade and reacted with shock, while rumors of her affair with Umino Sasuke spread across the battlefield.

Sandstorm Gale unleashed a suicidal Puppet assault after mistaking Ruri Jade’s greeting for proof that Umino Sasuke had taken her as his lover, while Umino Sasuke’s Shadow Clones exposed themselves in an attempt to trap Chiyo. As Ebizo and the Glazed Mech Princess battled, Sandstorm Gale abandoned his attack on Sasuke and rushed to aid his mother.

• Sandstorm Gale flew into a rage over Ruri Jade calling Umino Sasuke “Master” and launched his Puppets in a self-destruction assault.
• Ruri Jade used the Mecha Puppets’ shields and precise Chakra Threads to counter the explosions while Umino Sasuke evaded the blasts and failed to reach Sandstorm Gale through his Iron-Magnetic Puppets.
• Umino Sasuke’s disguised Shadow Clones attacked Chiyo, but she recognized the ambush, blocked it with her Ten Puppets of Chikamatsu, and discovered the attackers were clones.
• Mito Kadena realized Umino Sasuke’s Shadow Clones had likely killed members of his clan, but he hid his anger to protect the clan’s survival.
• Hatake Sakumo and the exposed Shadow Clone Puppet Masters intensified their assault on Chiyo as Sandstorm Gale ordered Ebizo to help her.
• The Glazed Mech Princess deployed her own Ten Puppets of Chikamatsu and suppressed Ebizo, prompting Sandstorm Gale to leave Ebizo’s protection and rush toward Chiyo with his Puppets.

Umino Sasuke killed Sandstorm Gale and destroyed his hidden soul core, while Ebizo escaped with Chiyo through Reverse Summoning Jutsu. In the underground factory, Chiyo discovered that her son and brother were dead and vowed to develop a forbidden technique to bring them back.

• Chiyo and Sandstorm Gale joined forces against Hatake Sakumo and Umino Sasuke, but their defensive formation struggled under the assault.
• Umino Sasuke used the Flying Thunder God Mark on a Vajra Puppet to reach Sandstorm Gale and pierce his Chakra Regeneration Core with Chidori Sharp Spear.
• Sandstorm Gale triggered a Puppet self-destruction formation and ordered Ebizo to save Chiyo, while Umino Sasuke destroyed Sandstorm Gale's hidden soul core with the Thunder God Sword.
• Ebizo's Reverse Summoning Jutsu transported Chiyo, Sandstorm Gale's corpse, and Ebizo to a secret underground Human Puppet factory.
• Chiyo found Sandstorm Gale and Ebizo dead, blamed herself for sending the marked Vajra Puppet to protect her son, and vowed to create a forbidden technique to resurrect them.

After defeating Hidden Sand’s puppet forces, Umino Sasuke claimed the battlefield’s spoils and discovered that the Ten Puppets of Chikamatsu were made from extraordinary wood. The Mitokado Clan suppressed its demands for a share under Mito Kadena’s orders, while Sasuke considered making the clan his vassals and agreed to give Hatake Sakumo a portion of the spoils.

• The surviving Mitokado Clan ninja resented Umino Sasuke for the casualties and coveted the captured puppets, but they held back from claiming any spoils.
• Umino Sasuke inspected the Ten Puppets of Chikamatsu and found their wooden bodies exceptionally durable, resistant to chakra, and still imbued with vitality.
• The Mitokado Clan ninja confronted Umino Sasuke and demanded compensation, but Mito Kadena silenced them and reminded them that the clan depended on Sasuke’s mercy.
• Mito Kadena warned his confidants that angering Sasuke could doom the clan, then publicly accepted his right to the spoils and offered the Mitokado Clan’s service.
• Umino Sasuke considered absorbing the Mitokado Clan as vassals after Mitokado Homura’s crimes were exposed.
• Hatake Sakumo praised Sasuke’s victory and negotiated his share of the spoils down from thirty percent to twenty percent.

Umino Sasuke abandoned the return to Konoha plan and persuaded Hatake Sakumo to stay on the Land of Rivers front, citing the danger posed by Bunpuku and Hidden Sand’s retaliation. He ordered the Iron Wall Legion to attack the Sand Oasis Garrison, while the Mito-mon Ninja retreated in panic and division.

• Umino Sasuke and Hatake Sakumo left the defeated Mito-mon Ninja behind, prompting panic and renewed anger among the clan members.
• Mito Kadena ordered the Mito-mon Ninja to retreat, but several clansmen challenged his authority and accused him of betraying their clan.
• Umino Sasuke brought Hatake Sakumo to the Land of Rivers camp instead of returning to Konoha and warned him that Bunpuku and Hidden Sand threatened the front lines.
• Umino Sasuke persuaded Hatake Sakumo to crush Hidden Sand’s main force before returning to Konoha, while privately buying time for the Land of Fire daimyo’s intervention against Mitokado Homura.
• Umino Sasuke ordered the Iron Wall Legion to enter first-level combat readiness and march on the Sand Oasis Garrison to annihilate the enemy.

Umino Sasuke led Konoha’s Iron Wall Legion to surround the Hidden Sand oasis, while Sabakuya rallied the garrison and persuaded Monk Bunpuku to fight alongside Shukaku. The chapter ended with Bunpuku standing alone before Konoha’s central force as both armies prepared for battle.

• Umino Sasuke outlined a plan for Hatake Sakumo to breach Hidden Sand’s formation while he led combined Wind and Earth ninjutsu brigades against Shukaku.
• After learning that Chiyo’s Puppet Unit had been destroyed, Sabakuya rallied the frightened Hidden Sand garrison and urged Monk Bunpuku to defend the Land of Wind.
• Monk Bunpuku agreed to fight, and Shukaku reluctantly consented to help him despite Bunpuku’s guilt about causing him to kill.
• The Iron Wall Legion reached the oasis and surrounded it from the east, south, and north, leaving a gap to the north.
• Monk Bunpuku walked out to face Konoha’s central army while Sabakuya deployed Hidden Sand’s eight hundred ninja to defend the flanks.

Konoha’s army launched a three-pronged assault on Hidden Sand, while Umino Sasuke confronted Monk Bunpuku in the center. As the flanks began to collapse, Bunpuku let Shukaku take control of his Tailed Beast Transformation, leaving the battle facing a more dangerous opponent.

• Umino Sasuke ordered Konoha’s forces to attack, and Hatake Sakumo’s left flank and Torifu Akimichi’s right flank battered Hidden Sand’s defenses.
• Monk Bunpuku attacked the central force with Wind Release: Sand Scatter Shot, but Umino Sasuke’s Earth Release Brigade blocked it with a massive earth wall.
• Bunpuku transformed into a giant sand tanuki, and Umino Sasuke created a Rock-Earth Giant to hold him back.
• The Rock-Earth Giant endured repeated Air Bullets, healed with Umino Sasuke’s chakra, and grappled with the sand tanuki as Hatake Sakumo’s assault broke Hidden Sand’s left-wing defense.
• Seeing the Sand shinobi in danger, Bunpuku yielded control to Shukaku, whose transformation grew larger and took on a more savage appearance.

Umino Sasuke and the Combined Earth Release Ninjutsu Brigade trapped the fully transformed Shukaku with the Combined Earth Mountain Technique, destroying Hidden Sand’s last hope of reinforcements. Hatake Sakumo broke through the left flank, and Sabakuya’s flight sent the Sand forces into a rout as Hatake pursued him.

• Shukaku battered Umino Sasuke’s rock-and-earth giant with claws, his tail, and Air Bullets until the giant was nearly destroyed.
• Hidden Sand officers argued over retreat, but Sabakuya ordered his troops to hold the line while hoping Shukaku would aid them.
• Umino Sasuke summoned the Combined Earth Release Ninjutsu Brigade, whose Combined Earth Mountain Technique trapped Shukaku between two self-repairing earth hemispheres.
• Seeing Shukaku imprisoned and Hatake Sakumo breach the left flank, the Hidden Sand troops abandoned their positions and fled toward the western gap.
• The Tool Brigade and the Water, Lightning, and Fire brigades devastated the breach, while Hatake Sakumo cut down Sabakuya’s guards and pursued the fleeing commander.

Umino Sasuke’s forces defeated Hidden Sand’s main force, and he subdued Shukaku before capturing Monk Bunpuku. After the battle, Uchiha Mikoto persuaded Hatake Sakumo to delay their return so Sasuke could treat the wounded, while Kurama Kyoin viewed Mikoto as no real romantic rival to Tsunade.

• Hatake Sakumo killed Sabakuya, and Konoha’s Puppet Unit and Ino-Shika-Cho broke through Hidden Sand’s right-wing defenses as its left wing also collapsed.
• Umino Sasuke trapped Shukaku with weighted Mecha Puppets, anchor chains, and sticky syrup, then severed and sealed its tail.
• Shukaku withdrew into Monk Bunpuku rather than face Umino Sasuke’s finishing attack, and Sasuke captured the unconscious monk.
• Nara Shikaku reported that the captured Hidden Sand base held supplies worth at least a hundred million ryo, and Umino Sasuke ordered them inventoried and secured.
• Hatake Sakumo urged an immediate return to Konoha, but Uchiha Mikoto convinced him to let Umino Sasuke treat the critically wounded first.
• Umino Sasuke began healing the wounded while Uchiha Mikoto tended to him, and Kurama Kyoin quietly considered Tsunade his true romantic rival.

Umino Sasuke healed the wounded on the front line while his allies secured the Land of Rivers daimyo’s support and two S-Rank missions, delaying his return to Konoha. After learning that Pakura planned to abduct the daimyo, he ordered a team to rush to the palace and stop her.

• Umino Sasuke used Water Release: Healing Water Transformation to heal many wounded soldiers, earning their gratitude and loyalty.
• Tejiku Gin persuaded the Daimyo of the Land of Rivers to support Umino Sasuke, attend the Umino Clan founding ceremony, and issue two S-Rank missions.
• Umino Sasuke presented the missions to Hatake Sakumo, who agreed to postpone their return to Konoha and complete them first.
• Yamashiro Ryūba reported that Pakura and about thirty Hidden Sand ninja were preparing to attack the Daimyo of the Land of Rivers’ palace and abduct the daimyo.
• Umino Sasuke ordered Nara Shikaku, Uchiha Shun, Hatake Sakumo, Yamashiro Ryūba, and Mikoto to hurry to the palace, while Hatake Sakumo urged them to set out immediately.

Umino Sasuke delayed Konoha’s attack so Pakura’s assault on the Land of Rivers Daimyo’s Palace could strengthen Konoha’s political leverage, then sent his team into position as the Hidden Sand forces attacked. His disguised Shadow Clones disrupted the palace defenders, but Pakura broke through to the Quiet Heart Pavilion, where the daimyo remained under threat.

• Umino Sasuke persuaded Hatake Sakumo to wait for Pakura’s forces to attack the palace, arguing that rescuing the daimyo in a crisis would secure Konoha’s influence in the Land of Rivers.
• Umino Sasuke transported the team to a forest overlooking the palace, then divided them between protecting the daimyo and sealing off the Hidden Sand ninjas’ escape routes.
• Umino Sasuke arrived at the palace with Uchiha Mikoto and Nara Shikaku, created disguised Shadow Clones as Hidden Sand Puppet Masters, and sent them to join the fighting.
• The disguised Puppet Masters poisoned and badly injured Kagami Kawa Momoyo while holding Ebisu and Shiranui Mada at bay; Mikoto and Shikaku joined the battle and restrained the puppets.
• Pakura used the distraction to force her way into the Quiet Heart Pavilion, where Tejiku Gin and the injured Huangyan guarded the pale and frightened daimyo.

Umino Sasuke defeated Pakura, secured the Daimyo of the Land of Rivers’ support, and arranged for the daimyo and captured Hidden Sand forces to travel to Konoha. While a Shadow Clone led the procession, Sasuke returned to the Land of Waves, where Orochimaru monitored a young man in a cultivation tank as a potential container.

• Umino Sasuke arrived in Quiet Heart Pavilion, absorbed Pakura’s Scorching Release with Samehada, and drained her chakra until she collapsed unconscious.
• The Daimyo of the Land of Rivers praised Umino Sasuke, discussed trade and governance with him, and decided to travel to Konoha for the Umino Clan’s founding ceremony.
• Hatake Sakumo reported that the remaining Sand Ninja infiltrators had been killed, and the daimyo arranged to meet Gato through Umino Sasuke.
• Umino Sasuke sent Pakura to a guarded prison and ordered Inuzuka Ryo and Tejudo to organize the captives, supplies, and return march.
• The Daimyo of the Land of Rivers’ procession joined the Konoha force, and Umino Sasuke left a Shadow Clone in command before secretly departing.
• Umino Sasuke appeared in Laboratory No. 6 in the Land of Waves, where Orochimaru monitored the soul energy of a youth suspended in a cultivation tank.

Umino Sasuke identified soul erosion as the flaw in Orochimaru’s Impure World Reincarnation Technique and proposed using genetically identical clones to reduce the damage. After securing Orochimaru’s advanced cloning work for his own plans, Sasuke also ordered Hiruko to develop chakra-nature medicines from Tailed Beast flesh, including medicines that could help Sasuke master Fire Release.

• Umino Sasuke warned Orochimaru that repeated soul transfers would irreversibly erode his soul’s origin, undermining his pursuit of immortality.
• Umino Sasuke proposed homologous reincarnation using clones grown from Orochimaru’s own cells, and Orochimaru agreed to develop the technology while Sasuke provided funding.
• Umino Sasuke inspected a cloned Eight-Tails horn and a fragment believed to come from the God Tree, imagining that advanced cloning could produce Tailed Beast organs or a God Tree sapling.
• Hiruko reported that his Boil Release potion research had stalled but had yielded Water Release and Fire Release Secret Medicines purified from Five-Tails Mu King flesh.
• Umino Sasuke ordered Hiruko to mass-produce the Fire Release Secret Medicine for his training and develop Wind Release and Earth Release medicines from One-Tails Shukaku flesh.

Umino Sasuke gained Fire Release and helped Umino Kosuzu awaken Ice Release, giving the Umino Clan a powerful symbol for its upcoming founding ceremony. He then sent Shadow Clones across Konoha to spread accusations that the Mitokado family had sold intelligence to the Sand and exploited bereaved families, stirring public anger before the ceremony.

• Umino Sasuke copied Hiruko's secret medicine research and endured five doses of Fire Release Secret Medicine, awakening the Fire chakra nature and completing his set of seven basic natures.
• Umino Sasuke resolved to learn Impure World Reincarnation so he could question deceased masters about lost techniques such as Dust Release.
• Umino Tobirama took Wind Release Secret Medicine and Life Yang No. 1 but failed to awaken Ice Release, while Umino Kosuzu successfully formed a tiny ice flower and awakened the bloodline limit.
• Umino Sasuke sent Shadow Clones disguised as villagers around Konoha to spread claims that the Mitokado family had traded intelligence with the Sand and seized widows' homes through usury.
• The rumors reignited the grief and anger of the bereaved families and encouraged them to seek justice from the Hokage.

Widows and orphans protested the Mitokado Clan’s seizure of their homes, prompting Hiruzen Sarutobi to order Mitokado Homura to fund their resettlement. Homura’s clan assets were divided among Konoha’s major clans, and Hiruzen began addressing the crowd as the chapter ended.

• Widows and orphans marched toward the Hokage Building to demand justice, while Mitokado Homura ordered his ninja to stop them.
• The Uchiha Police Force blocked Homura’s ninja and let the bereaved families appeal to Hiruzen Sarutobi, drawing a larger crowd.
• At an emergency meeting, Uchiha Fire Nucleus accused both the Mitokado and Sarutobi Clans of profiting from the victims’ homes, and the other clan heads refused to pay compensation.
• Hiruzen ordered Homura to cover all resettlement costs within three days, and Homura accepted after Hiruzen threatened a full investigation.
• Konoha’s major clans, including the Sarutobi Clan, divided up the Mitokado Clan’s core properties, leaving the clan hollowed out.
• Hiruzen addressed the widows, orphans, and villagers, condemning Mito Kadomon’s crimes.

Hiruzen Sarutobi took public credit for addressing the bereaved families’ suffering, then privately blamed the Uchiha and Umino Sasuke for undermining his authority. As Sasuke returned to Konoha with the captured Monk Bunpuku, Pakura, and vast spoils of war, the Daimyo of the Land of Rivers stopped Hiruzen from ending the ceremony early and began publicly praising Sasuke’s victories.

• Hiruzen Sarutobi claimed he had exposed and punished Mito Kadomon, then announced that the Mitokado Clan would fund homes and compensation for the fallen heroes’ families.
• Uchiha Fire Nucleus mocked Hiruzen’s public performance, and Hiruzen silently suspected the Uchiha of manipulating events before deciding to send them to the Land of Rou front lines.
• Hiruzen resented Umino Sasuke’s independent command at the front and planned to suppress him, while Sasuke’s victorious procession approached Konoha with captives and spoils of war.
• Villagers and clan representatives gathered to witness Sasuke’s return, and Hiruzen welcomed the heroes before ordering the ceremony ended and the captives and spoils taken away.
• The Daimyo of the Land of Rivers challenged Hiruzen’s decision, stood beside Sasuke, and began recounting Sasuke’s battlefield achievements to the crowd.

The Fire Daimyo’s Finance Minister overturned Mitokado Homura’s accusations against Umino Sasuke, praised Sasuke’s achievements, and presented him with a title and rewards. He then read a decree condemning Homura for multiple crimes, leaving Konoha’s political conflict poised to escalate.

• The River Daimyo publicly called Umino Sasuke the “Konoha Demigod,” while Hiruzen Sarutobi grew wary of Sasuke’s rising prestige.
• Mitokado Homura denounced Sasuke as a traitor who had disobeyed orders, colluded with Sand Bandits, and endangered Konoha’s funding.
• The Fire Daimyo’s Finance Minister arrived and declared that he had come to reward Sasuke, not punish him.
• The Finance Minister explained that Sasuke had destroyed a Hidden Sand stronghold, eliminated notorious bandit leaders, and been falsely slandered by the Land of Wind’s Daimyo’s Mansion.
• The Finance Minister presented Sasuke with the title “Konoha Iron Wall,” gold, treasures, and brocade, then read a decree accusing Homura of serious crimes.

At Konoha's gates, the Finance Minister exposed accusations against Mitokado Homura, including evidence linking him to Senju Nawaki's murder, while Hiruzen Sarutobi tried to make him the sole scapegoat. Umino Sasuke prompted Mito Kadena to protect the Mitokado Clan by publicly denouncing Homura, and Kadena's dossier shattered Hiruzen's attempt to contain the scandal.

• The Finance Minister announced the Daimyo's honors for Umino Sasuke and condemned Mitokado Homura, prompting villagers to demand that Konoha's leadership purge corrupt officials.
• Utatane Koharu defended Mitokado Homura and blamed his son's crimes and Umino Sasuke's recall on the Daimyo's demands.
• The Finance Minister presented a dossier casting suspicion on Homura's role in Senju Midori's death, but Koharu and Hiruzen Sarutobi dismissed it as unproven rumors.
• The Finance Minister revealed what he called conclusive evidence that a Konoha Anbu squad had used Stone Ninja to kill Senju Nawaki, and Hiruzen Sarutobi ordered Homura arrested while trying to distance himself.
• Umino Sasuke secretly warned Mito Kadena that Hiruzen would sacrifice Homura and endanger the Mitokado Clan, urging Kadena to separate the clan from Homura.
• Mito Kadena publicly accused Homura of numerous crimes, presented a dossier, and declared that the Mitokado Clan severed its ties with him.