Chapter Summaries

Sunagakure’s force ambushed Konoha’s elite squad, aiming to capture the Uchiha alive, while Shimizu and Sasori were given enemy ninja to fight as training. Sasori blocked a fire attack with Ibuse and revealed it had been prepared for Shimizu as the two young puppeteers launched their own attacks.

• Ishido briefed the Sand Ninja on Konoha’s squad and its Uchiha capture target, then Kyuichi took command and assigned the teams.
• Kyuichi and Ishido engaged Nara Shikahira’s Ino-Shika-Cho trio while the Puppet Force and Kana targeted the Uchiha.
• Miyaki told Shimizu and Sasori that two Konoha ninja would be allowed through for them to practice against.
• A Konoha ninja attacked Shimizu and Sasori with Fire Style: Flame Bullet, and Sasori used Ibuse to block it.
• Sasori told Shimizu that Ibuse had originally been prepared for him, and Shimizu and Sasori sent their puppets around it to attack.

Shimizu and Sasori fought two Konoha ninjas with their puppets, and Shimizu revealed the Fatty Puppet’s overwhelming power. As Miyaki and Kana prepared to join the fight, an unexpected change interrupted them.

• Termite and Little Boy attacked the two Konoha ninjas with poisoned senbon, but the sword-wielding ninja deflected most of them and swallowed an antidote pill.
• Sasori and Shimizu used their puppets to pressure the Konoha ninjas, who trapped Termite with wired shuriken and set the wires ablaze with Fire and Wind Release.
• Shimizu piloted the Fatty Puppet and shattered the sword-wielding ninja’s blade and body with a Pneumatic Fist, while Sasori helped corner the surviving middle-aged ninja.
• Miyaki told Kana they should stop letting the fight continue and join in against the remaining enemy, but an unexpected change occurred.

Hatake Sakumo arrived too late to save most of Konoha’s squad, but he killed Kyuichi after the Sand forces retreated. Nara Heiya died after warning him about Ishido and the two young Puppeteers, leaving Sakumo unable to pursue them or bring the squad home.

• Ishido ordered the Sand Ninjas to kill Uchiha Sen, take his Sharingan, and withdraw when a huge mass of Chakra approached.
• The Sand Ninjas overwhelmed Uchiha Sen, and a puppet killed him before he could destroy his Sharingan.
• Ishido’s group fled as Hatake Sakumo appeared, while Nara Heiya used the Shadow Imitation Technique to restrain Kyuichi briefly.
• Hatake Sakumo fought Kyuichi and killed him, then found only Nara Heiya and the unconscious Iyuu alive from Konoha’s squad.
• Nara Heiya told Hatake Sakumo that the Sand unit was led by Ishido and included two dangerous young Puppeteers, then asked him to end his suffering.
• Hatake Sakumo snapped Nara Heiya’s neck and admitted he could neither pursue the Sand Ninjas nor bring the squad home.

Hatake Sakumo pursued the Sunagakure retreat with overwhelming force, and the Third Kazekage intervened while Ishido fought to delay him. The Third Kazekage returned to Black Sand City with the badly wounded Ishido, leaving the team to treat him and recover.

• Hatake Sakumo closed Nara Heiya's eyes and faced the Iron Sand cloud approaching across the desert.
• Ishido ordered the messenger ninja to report to the village, then went alone to confront Hatake Sakumo while Miyaki led the others back to Black Sand City.
• Miyuki, Miyaki, Shimizu, and Sasori waited anxiously in Black Sand City and discussed Hatake Sakumo's strength and their damaged puppets.
• The Third Kazekage arrived at the Sunagakure outpost carrying the bloodied Ishido and called for a Medical Ninja.
• Miyuki took Ishido inside to treat him, and the Third Kazekage recognized Miyaki and praised his promotion to Special Jonin at sixteen.

The Third Kazekage reunited with Sasori and Shimizu, then declared their mission a success after the ambush severely wounded the White Fang. In Gotham, Shimizu took control of the Cole Gang and learned how its tribute arrangement with the Two-Face Gang also kept the police at bay.

• The Third Kazekage greeted Sasori and Shimizu, praising Shimizu for ranking first in the Puppet Force selection.
• Sasori asked whether the White Fang was dead, and the Third Kazekage admitted he had only wounded him severely.
• The Third Kazekage declared the mission successful because the ambush had incapacitated Hatake Sakumo for the time being.
• Shimizu announced that he would lead the Cole Gang, killed a punk who challenged him, and watched his fortune increase.
• A gang member told Shimizu that the Cole Gang paid tribute to the Two-Face Gang, which had connections with Gotham's police.

After taking control of the Cole Gang, Shimizu learned about its meager resources and ordered the gang to search Chidi Cole’s locked room for his hidden property. As a ceiling panel cracked open, Shimizu used Chakra to walk upside down across the ceiling, leaving the thugs stunned.

• Shimizu heard that the Cole Gang feared losing protection and asked Dura Bent to explain the gang’s territory, income, and weapons.
• Shimizu ordered Dura to lead him to Chidi Cole’s private room, and the gang members introduced themselves as they went.
• Black Gold smashed open Chidi’s door, and Shimizu ordered the thugs to search the room while reprimanding them for trying to suck up to him.
• The search continued into the evening without finding money, so Shimizu told the gang to turn on the lights and keep searching.
• When a thug tried to fix the bulb, the ceiling loosened; Shimizu stopped him and used Chakra to walk across the ceiling, astonishing the gang.

Shimizu opened a hidden safe, took control of the Cole Gang’s money, and renamed the gang Hogg United. In Sunagakure, he found Sasori assembling Black Ant and learned that Sasori blamed the Third Kazekage for the war’s casualties.

• Shimizu picked the safe’s lock with a Chakra Thread-guided paperclip and found stacks of cash inside.
• Shimizu distributed money to the thugs, set aside funds for weapons, and renamed the Cole Gang Hogg United.
• Shimizu explained to Dura that the new name and a future football-club front could help conceal the gang’s criminal activities.
• Shimizu went to the Puppet Force base and found Sasori assembling Black Ant after staying there all night.
• Sasori challenged Shimizu to another match once Black Ant was finished and said the Third Kazekage had failed to defeat Konoha, costing many lives.

Shimizu explained to Sasori why Sunagakure fought wars, then sparred with him at the Puppet Force training ground. The battle between their puppets ended in a standstill, though Shimizu recognized Sasori's greater skill.

• Sasori asked Shimizu who was to blame for the deaths caused by war and challenged his explanation that the Third Kazekage had needed to fight.
• Shimizu argued that Sunagakure's poverty and lack of funding made war necessary, while attacking the daimyo would unite the shinobi world against the village.
• Sasori set aside the discussion and asked to test Shimizu's unusual puppet, which housed a person inside its body.
• Shimizu and Sasori brought their puppets to the training ground and used Chakra Threads to control them.
• Little Boy and Black Ant fought evenly, then tried to disrupt each other's control by cutting Chakra Threads.
• Shimizu recognized that Sasori's Puppet Technique still surpassed his own and judged Black Ant to have a strong foundation.

Shimizu and Sasori fought a sparring match between their puppets, which ended when Sasori's poison incapacitated them both. Sunakami Sayama confronted them and demanded antidotes, leaving Shimizu and Sasori facing consequences for releasing poison inside the base.

• Shimizu used Fatty Puppeteer's Pneumatic Fist to smash Black Ant apart and pressure Sasori, while Sasori kept Ibuse between himself and the heavy puppet.
• Sasori used Black Ant to release poisonous smoke, but Shimizu blew it back with Wind Release, leaving Sasori and Ibuse poisoned and incapacitated.
• Shimizu gave Sasori the antidote, and Sasori explained that his nerve toxin was difficult for ordinary people to cure.
• Sunakami Sayama arrived wearing a gas mask, scolded Shimizu and Sasori for releasing poison inside the base, and demanded their antidotes.

After Shimizu and Sasori cleaned the Puppet Force base, Sasori brought Shimizu to Chiyo's house, where Shimizu chose to study Monzaemon's Chakra Thread Application Techniques. Ebizo arrived at the study and asked Sasori to introduce his friend.

• Shimizu retrieved the Antidote Pills, and Sunakami Sayama punished him and Sasori by ordering them to clean the base.
• Sasori offered Shimizu access to one of Chiyo's books whenever Shimizu beat him in a spar, and Shimizu agreed to visit his home after cleaning.
• Shimizu chose Monzaemon's Chakra Thread Application Techniques from Chiyo's collection and read while his DC World clone recorded the book.
• Ebizo entered the study, and Sasori greeted him as Second Grandpa before Ebizo asked for an introduction to Shimizu.

Shimizu learned Wind and Lightning Ninjutsu to support his engineering-based Puppet Technique, while his DC World incarnation upgraded Black Gold with sensors and pneumatic systems. The work continued late into the night, when the accountant announced that Mr. Cobblepot had arrived.

• Shimizu exchanged battle merits for the C-Rank techniques Gale Dance and Lightning Release: Earth Run, planning to use their principles to improve his puppets.
• Shimizu's incarnation installed a sensor display system in Black Gold using a DLP chip, a microcontroller, and other components.
• Shimizu began adding pneumatic cylinders and linkages to Black Gold's limbs to improve its speed and striking power.
• After working on Black Gold throughout the day, Shimizu heard from the accountant that Mr. Cobblepot had arrived.

Shimizu struck a deal with Penguin for weapons, equipment, and a truck in exchange for taking over Decker Street by eliminating the Sparletta Family. Hogg United set out to attack Simmons Sparletta, while Penguin watched for a profitable shift in Gotham’s underworld.

• Penguin inspected Shimizu’s Black Gold puppet and proposed a partnership, learning that only Shimizu could operate the machine.
• Shimizu agreed to target Simmons Sparletta and John Sparletta, and renamed his gang Hogg United.
• Penguin sold Shimizu a truck for thirty thousand dollars and explained his monthly interest terms; Shimizu declined to borrow money and promised to pay the next day.
• Shimizu led Hogg United toward the Sparletta Family’s territory with Penguin’s driver guiding them.
• Penguin predicted Shimizu could alter Gotham’s underworld balance and left to discuss business with Marone.

Shimizu led Hogg United in a surprise attack on the Sparletta Family’s bar to avenge Chidi Cole and expand his territory, while a signal jammer cut off the area. Hogg United was pinned down by the more experienced defenders until Black Gold arrived.

• Shimizu reviewed Penguin’s intelligence on the Sparletta Family and framed the attack as revenge for Chidi Cole and a gang war.
• The truck driver activated a signal jammer, and Shimizu led more than thirty armed Hogg United members to the Sparletta bar.
• Accountant shot a guard, and Aman led the gang’s charge inside.
• John and Simmons Sparletta organized the family’s defense, trapping Hogg United’s inexperienced fighters on the first floor as calls for police failed.
• Aman waited for Boss Wade as Hogg United suffered casualties, and Black Gold burst through the bar’s wall.

Shimizu and his crew defeated the Spaletta gang and interrogated Simmons and John about their money and a stolen shipment. After learning that Hugo Strange had ordered the hijacking, Shimizu handed the father and son over to Penguin.

• Black Gold stormed the bar, and Shimizu ambushed Simmons and John as they tried to escape.
• Shimizu captured the Spaletta father and son and ordered his crew to secure the bar and search for hidden money.
• Simmons told Shimizu where the gang kept its funds and revealed that Hugo Strange had wanted the shipment taken from Penguin.
• Simmons said the shipment contained an unknown high-tech item made by Dayton Industries in Metropolis.
• After separately interrogating John, Shimizu ordered Anthony to contact Penguin and turn over the Spalettas.

Shimizu expanded Hogg United after taking over the Sparletta Family’s assets, then focused on training his members and improving his puppets. He upgraded Fatty and began modifying Little Boy, using springs to boost its movement.

• Shimizu watched the System Panel’s progress rise after Hogg United took control of the Cole Gang and wiped out the Sparletta Family, while deciding to expand carefully to avoid Batman’s attention.
• Shimizu planned to train Hogg United’s members and use the gang’s remaining funds to support its operations and future upgrades to Black Gold.
• Shimizu used Wind Release techniques through the Fatty Puppet to speed up its pneumatic pump, then inspected the damaged cylinder and revised the puppet’s blueprint.
• Shimizu bought materials through the Puppet Force and began upgrading Fatty and Little Boy.
• Shimizu devised a spring mechanism for Little Boy’s feet and leg joints, using its light weight and the Puppet Force’s supply of suitable metal.

Shimizu defeated Sasori again after upgrading Little Boy, then studied the puppet knowledge in Sasori’s family home. Their dinner plans were interrupted by the return of Chiyo and Ebizo from the Land of Rain front, and Chiyo praised Sasori for becoming the youngest member of the Puppet Force.

• Shimizu’s modified Little Boy helped him defeat Sasori’s Black Ant and Ibuse more decisively than before, and Sasori accepted the loss before leaving with him.
• Miyaki told Miyuki that Shimizu and Sasori had surpassed her, then estimated Shimizu’s chances against his own puppets.
• Shimizu studied Monzaemon’s book at Sasori’s home and learned how Chakra Hub modifications could let puppeteers control more puppets with fewer Chakra Threads.
• Shimizu invited Sasori to eat out, but Sasori noticed the troops returning from the Land of Rain front with supplies and saw his grandmother approaching with Ebizo.
• Chiyo greeted Shimizu and praised Sasori for becoming the youngest member in the history of the Puppet Force.

Chiyo and Ebizo reviewed Shimizu and Sasori’s potential, then arranged transfers to protect and develop them. Shimizu was promoted to Chunin and assigned to the Elite Combat Force, while Sasori remained at the Puppet Force base and Shimizu asked whether he would receive two salaries.

• Chiyo joined Shimizu and Sasori for a meal, and Ebizo praised Shimizu’s puppet-making talent as comparable to Monzaemon’s.
• Chiyo read reports on Shimizu and Sasori, discovered they had encountered Hatake Sakumo, and ordered that Sasori’s missions receive her approval.
• Ebizo proposed breaking up the Sixth Division Third Squad to protect Shimizu and Sasori, and Chiyo decided to evaluate Shimizu for special cultivation.
• Miyaki announced that he was transferring to the First Division, Miyuki was joining Chiyo’s Medical Support Squad, and Sasori would stay with the Sixth Division.
• Shimizu was promoted to Chunin and transferred to the Elite Combat Force’s Ninth Squad while retaining his Puppet Force affiliation.
• Shimizu asked whether retaining that affiliation meant he could collect two salaries.

After his promotion to Chunin, Shimizu joined Ninth Squad alongside Pakura and Baki under Jonin captain Kazakami Senran. As the squad began taking on B-Rank missions and Shimizu received guidance and support from Sunagakure’s leaders, he realized Chiyo and Ebizo were deliberately cultivating him.

• Miyaki explained that Shimizu’s transfer to the Elite Combat Force gave him full pay and a Chunin allowance, and Shimizu completed his promotion paperwork with Ebizo.
• Shimizu collected his Chunin vest and met Pakura, Baki, and their Jonin captain, Kazakami Senran, at the Second Training Ground.
• Kazakami Senran told the three Chunin that he had accepted a B-Rank mission for them, despite their concern about starting with a difficult assignment.
• Shimizu found that Ninth Squad mainly handled B-Rank missions and trained under Kazakami, while seeking additional Puppet Technique guidance from Ishido, Sasori, Chiyo, and Ebizo.
• Shimizu recognized that Chiyo and Ebizo had given him special attention and resources to help raise his standing in Sunagakure.

Shimizu prepared to confront Keman Cole and the Two-Face Gang when they arrived at Hogg United’s base. Harvey Dent revealed he had come to deal with Keman’s disobedience and left the decision on Keman’s fate to his coin.

• Shimizu continued modifying Black Gold while Hogg United’s recruits struggled through their training.
• Blondie warned Shimizu that Keman Cole had arrived with dozens of armed men, and Shimizu armed himself and led Hogg United outside.
• Keman demanded to know where Chidi Cole and Shimizu were, and Shimizu struck Keman’s hand with a shuriken when he pointed his gun at him.
• Harvey Dent emerged from his car, said his coin had advised him not to make an enemy of Shimizu, and ordered the Two-Face Gang to lower their guns.
• Harvey accused Keman of disobeying orders and tossed his coin to decide whether Keman should be spared.

Shimizu negotiated with Harvey Dent over his remaining Titan Venom sample, while Dent offered territory, money, weapons, and access to Victor Fries. The talks ended with Shimizu revealing Black Gold and claiming his own creation surpassed the Titan Serum.

• Harvey Dent asked Shimizu whether he had any Titan Venom left and questioned his connection to Ra's, which Shimizu denied.
• Shimizu considered Dent's offer to give him two streets and a neighborhood in exchange for sharing the results of Victor's research on the Titan Venom.
• Harvey Dent added one million dollars, retired police firearms, and two modified armored vehicles to his offer.
• Shimizu asked Dent to introduce him to Mr. Victor, but Dent said Victor worked with him because of the funding he provided.
• Shimizu said he was not interested in the Titan Serum because his own creation was more powerful, then summoned Black Gold through a wall.