Chapter Summaries

Qi Shuang enforced strict rules for merchants drawing leases on Kirigakure land, warning them against taking plots they could not operate and announcing a surprise in the lottery. After the merchants formed lines to draw, a ninja reported that Xiao Quan, an old acquaintance of Qi Shuang, wanted to see him.

• Qi Shuang used his authority and a display of icy chakra to silence merchants who challenged the fairness of the land-lease rules.
• Qi Shuang explained that merchants could return higher-grade plots drawn from lower-grade boxes but could not return lower-grade plots drawn from higher-grade boxes.
• Qi Shuang announced that he had moved ten plots from each grade into the next lower-grade box, with fifth-grade plots placed in the first-grade box.
• Qi Shuang required leased plots to meet operating standards after reconstruction and warned that he would reclaim those that failed inspection.
• The merchants divided into five lines to draw for land, and a Kirigakure ninja told Qi Shuang that Xiao Quan had come to see him.

Qi Shuang completed the land allocation for Mist Village’s commercial district, secretly giving Xiao Quan a fourth-tier plot lot in fulfillment of his promise. After most merchants received plots and some dissatisfied merchants left, Qi Shuang explained how they could identify their leased land and use the planning blueprints.

• Qi Shuang offered Xiao Quan a choice of two fifth-tier plots or one fourth-tier plot, and Xiao Quan chose the fourth-tier plot.
• Qi Shuang ordered a Mist Ninja subordinate to secretly steal a fourth-tier lot, then gave it to Xiao Quan and told him to pretend he had drawn it himself.
• The daylong land allocation ended, with most merchants leasing plots while a small number left because they considered the asset-based system unfair.
• Qi Shuang had his subordinate distribute detailed planning blueprints and display the master plan so merchants could locate their plots.
• Qi Shuang explained that merchants would share section blueprints and advised them to copy the parts relevant to their plots.

After Kirigakure leased plots to merchants, construction brought work and money to the village, driving a rapid economic recovery. Qi Shuang proposed building a canal to cut transport costs and suggested hiring Iwagakure specialists to dig it.

• Merchants examined the land map, and Qi Shuang warned representatives that unnumbered first-grade plots were reserved for Kirigakure's shinobi clans.
• Merchants began construction, hiring Kirigakure residents and spending heavily on supplies and materials.
• Qi Shuang told Mei Terumi that transporting timber and other supplies by road was costly and damaging the streets.
• Qi Shuang proposed digging a canal for water transport, and Mei Terumi worried the village lacked workers for such a large project.
• Qi Shuang suggested hiring professionals from outside and pointed to Iwagakure's terrain-changing specialists.

Qi Shuang arranged for Kirigakure’s Engineering Department to plan a canal, with Stone Ninjas from Iwagakure intended to dig it. After leaving the department, he went to the plaza to address the Ice Prisons obstructing construction.

• Mei Terumi approved Qi Shuang’s proposal for a canal and told him to have the Engineering Department plan it before commissioning Iwagakure ninjas to dig it.
• Qi Shuang informed the Engineering Department of the assignment, and a young designer questioned whether the canal would give enemies a route into Kirigakure.
• Qi Shuang explained that the canal would let Kirigakure’s Water Release ninjas fight where their abilities were strongest, and the designers began planning the project.
• A senior designer told Qi Shuang that Ice Prisons in the plaza were obstructing construction, and Qi Shuang agreed to deal with them.
• Qi Shuang reached the plaza, where Kisame Hoshigaki remained imprisoned after Killer B and the other Cloud Ninjas had left Kirigakure.

Qi Shuang cleared the construction site by moving the sealed Six-Tails and Black Zetsu underground, then transferred Kisame Hoshigaki to a high-security prison. He left instructions for the planned fountain plaza and said Kisame would be brought back once it was finished.

• A construction worker asked Qi Shuang to move the Ice Prisons so work on a fountain plaza could proceed.
• Qi Shuang sent away Kisame Hoshigaki’s four guards and questioned Kisame about what he had learned about Kirigakure’s recovery.
• Qi Shuang used the Cold Chain to drag the bronze cauldron, sealed Six-Tails, and frozen Black Zetsu into the underground waterway.
• Qi Shuang reshaped Kisame’s restraints, punched him unconscious, and ordered the guards to take him to the highest-security cell with chakra-suppressing medicine and precautions.
• Qi Shuang told the construction worker how to manage the blocked water outlet and asked to be notified when the fountain plaza was finished.

Kirigakure continued rebuilding under Qi Shuang’s protection, but the village’s progress came at a cost to neighboring dock cities. The chapter ended with Qi Shuang arriving at the Hozuki Clan’s mourning ceremony after Hozuki Mangetsu died.

• Kirigakure restored much of its infrastructure, recovered its grain supply, and began using a new canal excavated by Stone Ninjas.
• The canal diverted traffic from dock cities, forcing residents to relocate or rebuild near its entrances.
• Mai reported that Hozuki Mangetsu had died, and Mei Terumi sent Qi Shuang to the Hozuki Clan residence.
• Qi Shuang found the Hozuki Clan in mourning around the ice coffin holding Hozuki Mangetsu’s body, with Hozuki Suigetsu standing beside an empty wheelchair.

Qi Shuang warned the Hozuki Clan’s Great Elder to protect Hozuki Suigetsu and avoid internal conflict as the clan chose a new head. After Mei Terumi arrived, Yusuke Kaki asked when Kirigakure would lift the ban on the Killing Rules and resume ninja promotions.

• Qi Shuang learned that the Hozuki Clan Head had died after his clone disappeared, and that the Great Elder was temporarily managing the clan.
• Qi Shuang told the Great Elder to keep Hozuki Suigetsu safe and warned that Kirigakure would intervene if the clan’s leadership dispute caused turmoil.
• Mei Terumi arrived to pay her respects and asked Qi Shuang whether he had said everything he needed to the Hozuki Clan.
• Mei Terumi introduced Yusuke Kaki as the new Kaki Clan Head when he approached them at the memorial.
• Yusuke Kaki asked Mei Terumi when the village would lift the ban on the Killing Rules and restart ninja promotions.

Mei Terumi explained why Kirigakure would not restore the old Killing Rules, while she and Qi Shuang worked on a replacement. After Hozuki Mangetsu’s funeral, the Hozuki Clan decided that the grieving, young Hozuki Suigetsu was not ready to become clan head.

• Mei Terumi told Yusuke Kaki that Kirigakure would resume ninja promotions but needed time to consider the rules, as she and Qi Shuang prepared a new order to replace the Killing Rules.
• Yusuke Kaki departed, and Qi Shuang teased Mei Terumi until she stomped on his foot in frustration.
• The Hozuki Clan buried Hozuki Mangetsu in the ice coffin Qi Shuang had provided, then held a meeting to choose a new clan head.
• The Great Elder announced that the elders would select another capable person to lead the clan, while Hozuki Suigetsu would remain heir and a candidate for a later succession.

The Hozuki Clan chose Hozuki Kaisuke as its new head through three assessments, while Hozuki Suigetsu struggled to master the replica swords his brother had left behind. After a month of fruitless practice, Suigetsu decided to seek guidance from his nominal teacher, Qi Shuang.

• The Great Elder announced that the Hozuki Clan would choose its next head through a written test, a martial test, and a popular vote, after Qi Shuang warned against further turmoil.
• The candidates completed the assessments, and the elders stopped the martial test from becoming a Water Transformation Jutsu water fight; Hozuki Kaisuke won the position of clan head.
• About a week later, Hozuki Suigetsu emerged from his grief and began training with replicas of the seven Ninja Sword Wielder blades.
• After nearly a month of struggling to control the replica swords, Suigetsu broke down and called himself useless.
• A servant reminded Suigetsu that he had a nominal teacher in Qi Shuang, and Suigetsu decided to go ask him for help.

Suigetsu sought out Qi Shuang for guidance after struggling to find his place in the Hozuki Clan. Qi Shuang urged him to discover his own talents rather than follow Mangetsu’s path of mastering the ninja swords, and Suigetsu’s account of Mangetsu’s lessons gave Qi Shuang a clue about how his brother had assessed him.

• Suigetsu went to the Mizukage Building to find Qi Shuang, but guards directed him to the Eastern Training Ground.
• Suigetsu found Qi Shuang practicing chakra control by transforming a bouncing ball of water into ice and back again.
• Qi Shuang explained that the Hozuki Clan would take time to accept Suigetsu and that, without Qi Shuang’s support, Suigetsu might lose his position as heir.
• Suigetsu asked how to master the seven ninja swords and become as strong as Mangetsu, but Qi Shuang advised him to find a path suited to his own talents.
• Suigetsu recalled that Mangetsu had stopped his sword training after a month and instead assigned him manuals on the Five Great Basic Release Techniques and Water Release ninjutsu.

Qi Shuang tested Suigetsu’s Water Gun Technique, then agreed to guide his Water Release training while warning him against trying to master multiple ninja swords. Suigetsu was left to choose whether to train with one imitation sword, despite his reluctance to give up the weapons.

• Suigetsu fired his Water Gun Technique at Qi Shuang, whose Ice Release: Chakra Mode froze the water bullet and left him unharmed.
• Qi Shuang praised Suigetsu’s skill and explained that he would guide his Water Release training at the training ground in the afternoons.
• Suigetsu hesitated to give up the ninja swords, and Qi Shuang allowed him to practice with one imitation sword if he wished.
• Qi Shuang warned Suigetsu that his elder brother likely saw that he was unsuited to swordsmanship and admonished him not to practice with multiple ninja swords.

Qi Shuang encouraged Suigetsu to attend the Ninja Academy so he could become part of Kirigakure, then reviewed Mei Terumi’s draft for a new system of governance. The chapter left Mei and Qi Shuang preparing reforms to Kirigakure’s laws and Ninja Academy.

• Qi Shuang told Suigetsu to return to the training ground the next day and explained that attending the Ninja Academy would help him fit into village life.
• Mei Terumi showed Qi Shuang her draft of thirty-five articles for Kirigakure’s new system of governance, and he praised it and proposed discussing it with the village’s new leaders.
• Mei Terumi urged Qi Shuang not to use violence to push reforms, and he promised to talk things through while noting that many former leaders who might oppose them were dead.
• Qi Shuang proposed changing the Ninja Academy to a three-year curriculum during wartime and a six-year curriculum during peacetime, and Mei Terumi agreed that the shorter program was too brief.

Qi Shuang persuaded Mei Terumi to expand Kirigakure’s school curriculum with medical studies and agriculture to address shortages caused by the village’s recent conflict. Mei Terumi issued decrees reforming the school and establishing an Agriculture Department, then sent them out for public notice.

• Qi Shuang proposed adding basic courses to the school and directing students into specialized fields according to their abilities, so those who could not become ninjas could contribute elsewhere.
• Mei Terumi agreed that the school needed reform after Qi Shuang explained the village’s shortage of medical and agricultural personnel.
• Qi Shuang proposed making agricultural studies mandatory and establishing an Agriculture Department with paid Agricultural Technicians.
• Mei Terumi suggested recruiting experienced farmers, recording their knowledge, and having them teach the agricultural course.
• Qi Shuang recommended adding only medical studies and agriculture at first, and Mei Terumi wrote decrees for the school reform and Agriculture Department.
• Mei Terumi gave the decrees to Mai to deliver to the school and Propaganda Department for public notices.

Mei Terumi proposed abolishing Kirigakure’s old system and implementing a new one, while the village began organizing a new Agriculture Department. Qi Shuang’s defense of changing the rules silenced traditionalist elders and left the newly appointed leaders considering the change.

• Kirigakure’s farmers welcomed the announcement of an Agriculture Department, and many elderly farmers headed to the Mizukage Building to apply.
• The Personnel Department struggled to devise selection criteria for recruiting agricultural workers.
• Mei Terumi convened Kirigakure’s first high-level meeting under her leadership and proposed abolishing the old system.
• A Kaki Clan elder challenged Mei Terumi’s authority to discard traditions established by the First Mizukage.
• Qi Shuang argued that the old Kirigakure had been destroyed and that the current generation had the right to establish new rules.
• The traditionalist elders fell silent, while newly appointed leaders began considering whether to abolish the old system.

Qi Shuang persuaded Kirigakure’s council to abolish the first Mizukage’s Killing Rules by highlighting their toll on the village and its clans. Mei Terumi presented a draft for a new system, while the newly formed Agriculture Department recruited experienced farmers and prepared for her inspection.

• Yusuke Kaki quieted his clan elder and asked Qi Shuang to justify abolishing the old system.
• Qi Shuang argued that the Killing Rules had caused internal strife, weakened Kirigakure, and cost the clans many lives.
• Hozuki Kaisuke, Yusuke Kaki, the Terumi Clan, and the remaining representatives supported abolishing the old system, and the motion passed.
• Mei Terumi gave the council copies of her draft for a new system and asked them to revise and expand it together.
• The Personnel Department selected slightly more than a hundred experienced farmers for the Agriculture Department and divided them into crop-specialized teams.
• A Personnel Department recruiter reassured a worried farmer that Mizukage-sama would honor the promised wages and would inspect the department in person.

Mei Terumi and Qi Shuang met the farmers recruited for Kirigakure’s new Agriculture Department and explained its purpose. Qi Shuang promised to double or triple crop yields, leaving the farmers and Mei Terumi doubtful of his bold claim.

• After the conference, Mei Terumi learned that the Personnel Department had recruited more than a hundred farmers for the Agriculture Department and told Qi Shuang to run it.
• Mei Terumi visited the farmers and announced that Kirigakure would establish an Agriculture Department to research farming techniques and improve food production.
• Mei Terumi handed the central seat to Qi Shuang so he could explain the department’s plans.
• Qi Shuang challenged the farmers to consider increasing yields and promised to double or triple the land’s output.
• The farmers questioned whether Qi Shuang was ill, and Mei Terumi touched his forehead before asking why he was talking nonsense.

Qi Shuang explained that Kirigakure’s Agriculture Department would research ways to increase grain production and train talent rather than send elderly farmers to work on people’s fields. He left the farmers looking forward to their new jobs and told Mei Terumi he would temporarily lead the department until it was ready to be handed over.

• Mei Terumi doubted Qi Shuang could improve farming methods because he had no agricultural experience, but he assured her he had planned the department carefully.
• Qi Shuang told the old farmers that the Agriculture Department would focus on research and training, not house-to-house farm work.
• The farmers agreed to report to the department when Qi Shuang chose its office and said they would stay nearby and avoid missing work.
• After the farmers left, Qi Shuang told Mei Terumi he would temporarily head the Agriculture Department and later step aside for someone more capable.

Qi Shuang secured a site and farmland for Kirigakure’s new Agriculture Department, insisting that the farmers be treated fairly. Five days later, the Engineering Department finished the facilities, and Qi Shuang asked Mei Terumi for permission to inspect them.

• Qi Shuang asked Mei Terumi to provide an office, experimental farmland, and administrators for the Agriculture Department.
• Qi Shuang confronted the Engineering Department director for dismissing the importance of farmers and their role in feeding the village.
• Qi Shuang selected a plot near the village entrance and requested one mu each of several farmland types, with compensation for any land taken from its owners.
• The Engineering Department director estimated that the fields would be ready in one day and the office in five days.
• Five days later, the director reported that construction was complete, and Qi Shuang asked Mei Terumi to let him inspect the facilities.

Obito Uchiha asked Deva Path Pain to use Rinne Rebirth or lend him the Rinnegan so he could revive Rin, but Pain refused and ordered him to leave. Obito departed with growing hostility, while Pain prepared defenses against a possible betrayal; meanwhile, Konoha began secretly investigating Akatsuki but could not identify its leader.

• Obito Uchiha asked Deva Path Pain to revive Rin with Rinne Rebirth, arguing that the Demonic Statue could bear the technique's cost.
• Deva Path rejected Obito's request, explaining that Rinne Rebirth was reserved for reviving a particular person and that he would not entrust the Rinnegan to Obito.
• Obito asked for one of the Rinnegan so he could revive Rin himself, but Deva Path refused again and summoned the Six Paths of Pain to drive him away.
• Obito left the tower in the rain, secretly deciding that Nagato had forced him into conflict.
• Deva Path discussed Obito's exposed rebellious intentions with a shadow and a blue-haired woman, deciding to strengthen defenses while giving Obito a chance.
• Konoha secretly investigated Obito's possible survival and discovered Akatsuki, but its members could not uncover the organization's leader.

Qi Shuang organized Kirigakure’s new Agriculture Department and explained that its purpose was to research ways to improve crop yields. He asked the old farmers to dictate their farming knowledge so administrators could record it in books, and planned for them to teach children and help cultivate Agriculture Ninjas.

• Qi Shuang inspected the new Agriculture Department office and confirmed that the Engineering Department had prepared the requested farmland.
• Qi Shuang assigned the twenty administrators to manage the department’s operations and ordered office supplies.
• Qi Shuang reassured the arriving old farmers that the department would focus on research rather than simply sending them to work in the fields.
• Qi Shuang asked the farmers to dictate their farming experience so the administrators could compile it into books for the department and schools.
• Qi Shuang promised to preserve the farmers’ names in the books and have them teach children, helping train future Agriculture Ninjas.