Chapter Summaries

Kabuto applied to join the Uchiha Clan’s Police Force and began its assessment, drawing the attention of curious villagers. He passed the genjutsu test and demonstrated exceptional shuriken skills, while Inabi Uchiha suspected he had formerly served in the Anbu.

• Kabuto submitted his application to Kiriha Uchiha, marking his classified work experience as confidential, and entered the building for assessment.
• Villagers recognized Kabuto as a helper at an orphanage and watched to see whether he would pass.
• Kabuto realized the corridor was trapped in a Fox Heart Technique genjutsu and dispelled it before reaching the training ground.
• Inabi Uchiha explained the shurikenjutsu assessment, and Kabuto began throwing at the wooden posts.
• Kabuto hit the center of every target from each distance, impressing Inabi Uchiha and making Tekka Uchiha eager to spar with him.

Kabuto passed the Police Force's recruitment tests and joined the Second Squad of the Sixth Enforcement Brigade, where he met Izumi Uchiha and his captain, Kojiro Uchiha. He arrived for duty and handed Kojiro his job description.

• The Police Force opened recruitment with tests in Genjutsu, Shurikenjutsu, and Taijutsu, hiring anyone who met the standards until positions filled.
• Kabuto passed all three tests, and his appearance in a new uniform drew a crowd of applicants to the recruitment site.
• Recruitment and Personnel Section staff processed Kabuto and assigned him to patrols and crime prevention under Kojiro Uchiha.
• Kabuto met Izumi Uchiha at his squad's office and saw her Sharingan awaken with excitement at meeting the new recruit.
• Kojiro arrived, initially wondered if he had entered the wrong office, then recognized Kabuto as his squad's new recruit.

Sōken managed the Police Force’s staffing and financial crisis after its restructuring, while Kabuto began work in the understaffed Security Division and investigated a string of disappearances in Konoha’s New Development District. Kabuto found no leads, but learned that a thief he questioned had stolen evidence implicating Gato Company.

• Sōken learned Kabuto had joined the Police Force and assigned him to the understaffed Second Squad of the Sixth Enforcement Brigade, where he planned to let him settle in before making further use of his talent.
• Sōken told Arashiyama to ask injured and disabled clansmen whether they wanted to keep working, then recruit replacements for those who returned to clan life.
• Arashiyama warned Sōken that the Police Force’s spending on land, its new headquarters, wages, and supplies had left it nearly broke, so Sōken decided to seek funding from the Hokage.
• Kabuto and Izumi questioned a thief from Tanzaku Street, who revealed she had stolen a Gato Company executive’s briefcase containing evidence of bribes to Land of Fire finance officials.
• Kabuto told Izumi that four young male construction workers had disappeared from the New Development District, but the crowded, ever-changing neighborhood had yielded no useful leads.
• Kojiro appeared with pastries after sending a Shadow Clone to patrol, and shared Three-Color Dango with Izumi and Kabuto.

Kabuto’s investigation into a series of disappearances revealed seven missing construction workers, and the case was assigned to Kojiro Uchiha’s squad. Meanwhile, Sōken devised a plan for Uchiha Arashiyama to use evidence against Gato Company and corrupt Ministry of Finance officials to secure funds for the Police Force.

• Izumi Uchiha told Kojiro Uchiha that Kabuto had found no leads despite four confirmed disappearances and three more workers missing within five days.
• Kojiro Uchiha sent Kabuto to report the case, and reports about the disappearances and a captured thief tied to Gato Company and Ministry of Finance officials reached Sōken.
• Sōken proposed that Uchiha Arashiyama investigate the corrupt officials and Gato Company as a way to raise money, while Kabuto continued investigating the disappearances.
• The Police Force assigned the disappearance case to Kojiro Uchiha’s squad and freed its members from patrol duties.
• Kabuto proposed staking out the area that night because the missing workers had all disappeared after dusk, and Kojiro Uchiha approved the plan.

Kojiro Uchiha, Kabuto, and Izumi Uchiha investigated the disappearances of construction workers in the New Development District. Kabuto traced the mystery to a Courtesan House and learned that Rokuro Arasaka’s family had forced it to help capture people, leaving the old woman who ran it to explain further.

• Kojiro Uchiha split up the squad, leaving Kabuto and Izumi Uchiha to watch the New Development District while he patrolled the west side.
• Kabuto watched a Courtesan House as Izumi Uchiha monitored several groups of thugs, but neither found anything conclusive during the night.
• Kabuto noticed that seventeen construction workers entered the Courtesan House but only fifteen left, so Kojiro Uchiha joined him to investigate.
• Kojiro Uchiha used his Sharingan to question the handyman, who revealed that guests had been disappearing since Lord Arasaka arrived a week earlier.
• The old woman who ran the Courtesan House said the Arasaka Family had forced them to capture people, and Kojiro Uchiha demanded that she explain everything she knew.

Kojiro Uchiha and Kabuto traced the disappearances to an Arasaka Family brothel and found evidence that a shinobi had helped create a hidden tunnel. At the Special Envoy’s Office, Kazuma confronted Kisei Hiramiya, revealed he knew about the abducted people, and warned him not to cause trouble in Konoha.

• Kojiro Uchiha questioned the old woman at the Arasaka Family’s brothel, and she showed him and Kabuto a trapdoor leading to a tunnel used to remove drugged victims.
• Kabuto identified the tunnel as a product of Earth Style Jutsu, and the old woman said Rokuro Arasaka had visited with a hooded man who likely made it.
• Kojiro and Kabuto decided to report their findings to the department and leave the response to their superiors.
• Rokuro Arasaka brought the abducted people, whom Kisei Hiramiya called goods, to the Special Envoy’s Office and mentioned that he had encountered Kazuma.
• Kazuma appeared on the wall and told Kisei Hiramiya that he knew about the abductions, then warned him not to cause trouble in Konoha.

Obito Uchiha and Pain discussed Akatsuki’s plans to recruit powerful rogue ninja and capture the Tailed Beasts, until Pain detected an intruder in Amegakure. The intruder was Orochimaru, who had come seeking the Rinnegan and began extracting information from captured Rain Ninja.

• Obito Uchiha visited Pain, who reported that he could control the Six Paths bodies from nearly five kilometers away but had made no progress mastering the Outer Path.
• Pain and Obito discussed the difficulty of locating Jinchuriki and recruiting Akatsuki members, including Sasori of the Red Sand and Orochimaru.
• Pain’s Rain Tiger at Will Technique detected a powerful intruder in the heart of Amegakure.
• Orochimaru entered Amegakure through a drainpipe and avoided acting impulsively as he assessed the village.
• Orochimaru captured two Rain Ninja with venomous snakes and began reading one captive’s memories.

Orochimaru infiltrated Amegakure to investigate Pain and encountered Konan, who attacked him on Pain’s orders. As Konan fought him, Orochimaru summoned three reanimated shinobi, and Animal Path witnessed that they were members of the Uchiha Clan.

• Orochimaru pieced together what the Rain Shinobi knew about Pain and realized the rain had stopped after Pain’s surveillance technique detected him.
• Konan confronted Orochimaru, but he escaped her paper trap with an Earth Clone and recognized her as one of Jiraiya’s former students.
• Konan attacked Orochimaru with Paper Shuriken and Paper Flying Wheels, while he deliberately provoked her to learn more about Pain.
• Pain told Obito Uchiha that Konan would try to kill Orochimaru and that he would recruit Orochimaru himself if she failed; Obito declined to join Akatsuki officially.
• Orochimaru used the Impure World Reincarnation Jutsu to summon three coffins, and Animal Path saw him leading three Uchiha Clan shinobi against Konan.

Orochimaru fought Konan with three immortal Uchiha shinobi summoned through the Impure World Reincarnation Jutsu, until the Animal Path and Obito Uchiha arrived. Orochimaru learned that the Animal Path wielded the Rinnegan and began battling his summons, while the fight continued with an explosive attack from a giant bird.

• Orochimaru controlled three reincarnated Uchiha Jonin, whose Fire Style attacks overwhelmed Konan's paper techniques.
• The Animal Path arrived, and Obito Uchiha explained that the Impure World Reincarnation Jutsu could only be countered by sealing its victims or releasing the technique.
• Orochimaru recognized the Animal Path's Rinnegan and revealed that he had come to Amegakure to investigate rumors about it.
• The Animal Path summoned a three-headed hound that split into more hounds, but Orochimaru's Uchiha shinobi burned them away with combined Wind and Fire Style Jutsu.
• The Animal Path sent a giant bird overhead, and the eggs it dropped began exploding around Orochimaru.

Orochimaru battled Pain’s paths and witnessed the Rinnegan’s power to destroy his Impure World Reincarnation victims and repel his attacks. He joined Akatsuki to survive, then revealed that Uchiha Sōken had told him Madara Uchiha was still alive, prompting Obito Uchiha to confirm it.

• The Animal Path summoned the Deva Path, Human Path, and Preta Path, who defeated Orochimaru’s three Impure World Reincarnation victims by extracting their souls and draining their Chakra.
• Orochimaru attacked with a vast swarm of snakes, but the Deva Path used Shinra Tensei to repel them and blast Orochimaru through the tower.
• Orochimaru emerged unharmed and, after concluding that the Rinnegan was too powerful to challenge, agreed to join Akatsuki rather than be killed.
• Pain asked Orochimaru how he had learned about the Rinnegan, and Orochimaru said Uchiha Sōken had told him it might exist in Amegakure and that Madara Uchiha was still alive.
• Obito Uchiha reacted angrily to Sōken’s betrayal and confirmed that Madara Uchiha was alive, leaving Orochimaru to wonder whether Obito was Madara.

Orochimaru joined the Akatsuki, met its members, and was paired with Kakuzu while still coveting Pain’s Rinnegan. Uchiha Obito then proposed targeting one of the Twelve Guardian Ninja to create a rift between Konoha and the Fire Daimyo, leaving Pain interested in the plan.

• Orochimaru entered the Akatsuki’s meeting through his ring and met Zetsu and Kakuzu.
• Pain assigned Orochimaru to partner with Kakuzu, and the members arranged a place to meet before ending the meeting.
• Konan worried Orochimaru might reveal Akatsuki secrets, but Pain judged that his interest in the Rinnegan would keep him from seeking help against them.
• Uchiha Obito argued that Konoha was too occupied with internal reforms and war losses to attack Amegakure soon.
• Uchiha Obito proposed targeting a member of the Twelve Guardian Ninja to exploit disagreements over whether Konoha or the Fire Daimyo should command the Land of Fire’s ninja.

Sōken weighed the Police Force’s investigation of disappearances tied to the Daimyo Mansion against the risk of provoking the Fire Daimyo, then approved the case and proposed hunting missing-nin to address the Force’s financial shortfall. He left to seek funding from the Hokage while keeping a secret Uchiha laboratory’s research into safely transplanting White Zetsu cells under wraps.

• Sōken chose to suspend the Ministry of Finance investigation and have Kabuto's team continue investigating the disappearances linked to the Daimyo Mansion’s special envoy.
• Sōken told Uchiha Arashiyama that the Police Force’s Special Operations Unit could pursue missing-nin for bounty money to supplement its dwindling funds.
• Sōken said he would ask the Hokage for funding and told Uchiha Arashiyama that a secret laboratory at Naka Shrine was conducting research vital to the Uchiha Clan’s future.
• Sōken explained that the laboratory was studying how to safely transplant White Zetsu cells to protect Uchiha from the Mangekyō Sharingan’s effects, though the research had made little progress.

Sōken met with Fifth Hokage Torifu Akimichi to request reserve funds for the Police Force reforms and warn him about a missing-persons investigation connected to the Special Envoy's Office. Torifu approved a funding request and ordered the Police Force to investigate cautiously, leaving the possible involvement of the Fire Daimyo's envoy unresolved.

• Sōken told Jiraiya that Naruto could stay in the village and train at his own pace, and Jiraiya thanked him for helping avoid a rushed decision.
• Sōken reported that the Police Force reforms were expanding patrols but straining the budget, and Torifu agreed to consider extra reserve funds if Sōken submitted a request with a suitable reason.
• Torifu and Sōken agreed that Torifu could remain Hokage for another four or five years while Sōken focused on managing the Police Force and his research.
• Sōken reported that construction workers were disappearing in the New Development District and that the case was connected to the Special Envoy's Office; Torifu and Jiraiya initially mistook it for an Orochimaru-style forbidden-technique case.
• Torifu directed Sōken to continue the investigation through the Police Force, prioritize finding the missing people, and avoid clashing with the Special Envoy's Office without clear evidence.

Kojiro Uchiha continued the investigation into the Arasaka Family while Uchiha Arashiyama sent Itachi Uchiha and Kaguya Kimimaro to protect his squad. Meanwhile, Obito Uchiha secretly told Kazuma that the Police Force was investigating Takanori Hiramiya and Ogasawara Uemon, leaving Kazuma worried about the Daimyo’s reputation.

• Kojiro Uchiha told Kabuto and Izumi Uchiha to investigate the Arasaka Family after the Deputy Minister ordered the case to continue.
• Kabuto worried the investigation could reach powerful figures at the Special Envoy’s Office, but Kojiro promised the Police Force would protect them and their families.
• Uchiha Arashiyama sent Itachi Uchiha and Kaguya Kimimaro to follow Kojiro’s squad and intervene if they faced danger.
• Kazuma meditated on his anger at Konoha and his concerns about Takanori Hiramiya’s secret crimes.
• Obito Uchiha entered Kazuma’s room through the closed door, identified himself as an enemy of Konoha, and said they would cooperate sooner or later.
• Obito Uchiha warned Kazuma that the Police Force was investigating Takanori Hiramiya and Ogasawara Uemon, and Kazuma resolved to think of a way to respond.

Kojiro Uchiha, Kabuto, and Izumi Uchiha searched the Arasaka residence for Arasaka Rokuro, then went to the Special Envoy's Office when they did not find him. Before Rokuro met the Police Force, Kazuma ordered him to confess to abducting people and urged them to delay their next move until they could catch their target in the act.

• Kojiro Uchiha questioned Katsumasa Arasaka about his son, and Katsumasa said Rokuro was likely at the Special Envoy's Office.
• Kabuto and Izumi Uchiha searched the Arasaka residence by following the Police Force's enforcement procedures but did not find Rokuro.
• Kojiro Uchiha led his team toward the Special Envoy's Office while Itachi Uchiha and Kaguya Kimimaro secretly followed to protect them.
• Arasaka Rokuro learned the Police Force had come looking for him and worried about whether to confess or deny his involvement in abducting people.
• Kazuma confronted Rokuro with a kunai and instructed him to tell the Police Force everything and advise them to wait until the next day, preferably to catch their target in the act.
• Rokuro agreed to follow Kazuma's orders.

Rokuro Arasaka secretly gave Kojiro Uchiha a lead connecting the Hotei Bathhouse and Ito Butcher Shop to the disappearances, and Kojiro’s team sought backup to investigate the Special Envoy’s Office. Sōken approved their request and prepared for a nighttime operation, while the suspected involvement of Takanori Hiramiya threatened to delay the Funding Plan.

• Rokuro Arasaka handed Kojiro Uchiha a hidden note and claimed that ninja were causing trouble at his friend’s courtesan house.
• Kojiro Uchiha, Kabuto, and Izumi Uchiha left the office, then examined the note and suspected the Hotei Bathhouse and Ito Butcher Shop were used to abduct and transport victims.
• Kabuto questioned why Rokuro Arasaka was cooperating and warned that their squad might need reinforcements to raid the suspected operation.
• Kojiro Uchiha’s team filed a support request, and Sōken approved it while instructing them to continue their investigation without worrying about safety.
• Sōken and Uchiha Arashiyama agreed to delay the Funding Plan and prepare an operation against Rogue Nin as an alternative source of funds.

Takanori Hiramiya and Ogasawara Uemon continued a stolen Evil God Cult ritual to create an immortal body while plotting against Kazuma. Obito Uchiha, disguised as Madara, stole the ritual records and left Kazuma suspecting that the man might truly be Madara Uchiha.

• Takanori Hiramiya argued with Ogasawara Uemon about whether to pause their daily ritual, which used kidnapped people and blood to seek the Evil God's blessing.
• Ogasawara Uemon urged Takanori Hiramiya to kill Kazuma and blame him for the kidnappings, but Takanori told him to devise a workable plan.
• Takanori Hiramiya lay in the blood-filled triangular pit to take his turn in the ritual.
• Obito Uchiha and Zetsu discussed recruiting Hidan after Obito found the stolen ritual records in Takanori Hiramiya's study.
• Obito noticed Kazuma eavesdropping, skimmed the remaining documents, and escaped with Zetsu after telling Kazuma they would meet again.
• Kazuma recognized the clues of Sharingan and Uchiha and feared that the man using Madara's name might be Madara Uchiha himself.

Kojiro Uchiha's team tracked the missing-persons victims to the Special Envoy's Office and confronted Ogasawara Uemon. Itachi Uchiha and Kimimaro intervened, leaving Kimimaro to duel the samurai while Kojiro went to support his subordinates and secure evidence.

• Kojiro Uchiha's team followed Rokuro Arasaka as he delivered captives from the Hotei Bathhouse to the Special Envoy's Office.
• Rokuro Arasaka brought the captives to the Tea Room, where Ogasawara Uemon attacked Kojiro after he demanded answers about the Missing Persons Case.
• Ogasawara Uemon unleashed an Iai Slash, but Itachi Uchiha intercepted the strike and revealed that he and Kimimaro had been following Kojiro's team.
• Itachi Uchiha urged Kojiro to help his subordinates and preserve evidence while he and Kimimaro faced Ogasawara Uemon.
• Kimimaro fought Ogasawara Uemon with his bone weapons, deflected a heavy strike, and wounded the samurai before Ogasawara used Body Flicker to retreat.

Obito Uchiha watched Itachi Uchiha and Kimimaro battle Ogasawara Uemon while he questioned Kazuma about his plans and proposed an alliance. Beneath the Tea Room, Kojiro Uchiha’s team uncovered a grisly Secret Chamber and raised a distress signal, drawing the Police Force and Konoha’s leaders toward the Special Envoy’s Office.

• Obito Uchiha predicted Ogasawara Uemon would lose and offered Kazuma a wager that would lead to cooperation against Konoha if Obito won.
• Kojiro Uchiha entered the Secret Chamber and found Kabuto, Izumi, several corpses, and six or seven surviving captives in an iron cage.
• Kojiro Uchiha sent a Shadow Clone aboveground, where it fired a Police Force distress signal from the Special Envoy’s Office.
• Uchiha Yoru ordered Police Force squads to assemble and contacted the Minister and Deputy Minister as the signal’s origin became known.
• Nara Shikaku informed Torifu Akimichi of the incident, and the Hokage prepared to go to the Hokage Building.
• Naruto noticed the signal, but Jiraiya sent him to the Ninja Academy and chose not to get involved.

Kazuma intercepted Takanori Hiramiya as he fled the Special Envoy's Office and killed him after discovering that the Evil God ritual had made him difficult to kill. Kazuma planned to blame Ogasawara Uemon for Hiramiya's death and use it to protect the Daimyo's reputation while ending the secret ritual.

• Takanori Hiramiya lost contact with the Tea Room and ordered his men to break through a wall and flee toward Konoha for help.
• Kazuma blocked Hiramiya's escape, confronted him over his disgraceful actions, and attacked as Hiramiya's guards charged.
• Hiramiya ran toward the Tea Room, surviving a Kunai through the heart until Kazuma disabled his legs and wrist and beheaded him.
• Kazuma sealed Hiramiya's brain and heart in a Scroll to prevent his resurrection and keep Konoha's ninja from reading his memories.
• Obito Uchiha questioned Kazuma about Hiramiya's immortality, and Kazuma explained that he intended to pin the blame on Ogasawara Uemon.