Chapter Summaries

Minamoto Takuya subdued Kazahana Dōtō with the Life-Death Talisman and learned that Kazahana Sōsetsu’s legendary treasure was underfloor heating, not a weapon or source of great power. He sent Kazahana Dōtō to confirm the truth, giving him three days to return.

• Minamoto Takuya sealed Kazahana Dōtō and used the Life-Death Talisman to make him suffer alongside the Snow Ninja Trio.
• Minamoto Takuya decided to travel to the Land of Water later to bring Haku back and have him stay beside Jugo.
• Minamoto Takuya asked Kazahana Dōtō about the power Kazahana Sōsetsu had hidden, and Kazahana Dōtō admitted he did not know what it was.
• Minamoto Takuya revealed that Kazahana Sōsetsu had hidden underfloor heating, leaving Kazahana Dōtō stunned and doubtful.
• Minamoto Takuya ordered Kazahana Dōtō to return within three days after checking with Kazahana Sōsetsu, and warned him not to flee or bring troops.

Minamoto Takuya waited for Kazahana Dōtō to return, then learned that the legendary treasure was merely underfloor heating and offered the Snow Ninja Trio a chance to grow stronger through service. He gave Tsurugi Fubuki a Gelel Stone as a reward, leaving the others eager to earn one.

• Minamoto Takuya waited with the Snow Ninja Trio for Kazahana Dōtō to return before the three-day deadline.
• Kazahana Dōtō returned after learning from Kazahana Sōsetsu that the legendary treasure was underfloor heating, and he recounted his angry reaction.
• Minamoto Takuya asked Kazahana Dōtō whether he wanted to become stronger and offered to help him if he worked for him.
• Minamoto Takuya gave the Snow Ninja Trio Gelel Stones to experience their power, then collected the stones back.
• Minamoto Takuya returned Tsurugi Fubuki's Gelel Stone to her as a reward, prompting the other three to seek his favor.

Minamoto Takuya ordered Kazahana Dōtō and the others to build a hidden prison, laboratory, and railway in the Land of Snow, then traveled to the Land of Water and took in Haku. Haku followed him with renewed hope, and Minamoto Takuya gave him food and the crow to keep.

• Minamoto Takuya instructed Kazahana Dōtō, Nadare Rōga, and Mizore Fuyuma to secretly build a prison and laboratory, plus a concealed railway to transport supplies.
• Minamoto Takuya gave the group a crow for contacting him and warned them to protect it before he left the Land of Snow.
• In the Land of Water, Minamoto Takuya found Haku beside a bridge and offered him a place with him because he needed Haku's Ice Release.
• Minamoto Takuya gave Haku clean clothes and let him hold his hand after he washed, then offered him the crow to keep.
• Minamoto Takuya gave Haku food, and Haku felt moved that someone cared for him after his mother's death.

Minamoto Takuya left Haku and Jugo in the care of a local leader, then returned to Konoha and resumed developing sealing techniques while training and mastering Wind Release: Rasenshuriken. He finished by shrinking the Rasenshuriken to make it light enough to throw quickly, giving him a more practical ranged attack.

• Minamoto Takuya brought Haku to meet Jugo and introduced them as companions and friends, then gave Jugo the crow he had once seen in the forest.
• Minamoto Takuya left Haku and Jugo with the local leader, returned to Konoha, and decided to develop the Water Sealing Seal and Earth Sealing Seal before leaving the Sealing Team.
• Minamoto Takuya trained at the Experiment Base and used his Uzumaki Bloodline and Gelel Stone-enhanced recovery to increase his strength and chakra reserves.
• Minamoto Takuya demonstrated his perfected Wind Release: Rasenshuriken and found that its weight made it too slow to throw effectively at full size.
• Minamoto Takuya reduced the Rasenshuriken to half its original radius, making it light enough to throw quickly while retaining its cutting effect.

Minamoto Takuya completed a weakened Wind Release: Rasenshuriken and was asked by Minato Namikaze to help prepare barriers for Kushina Uzumaki’s childbirth. After learning Kushina was Konoha’s Nine-Tails Jinchuriki, he joined Minato and Kushina to discuss defenses, though he knew Obito Uchiha’s attack would make ordinary barriers futile.

• Minamoto Takuya tested his miniature Wind Release: Rasenshuriken and decided to research the Chimera Technique more gradually.
• Minato Namikaze told Minamoto Takuya that Kushina Uzumaki was Konoha’s Nine-Tails Jinchuriki and asked him to help prepare barriers for her childbirth.
• Minamoto Takuya agreed to work with Minato on layered barriers intended to resist the Nine-Tails.
• Minamoto Takuya brought food to Minato and Kushina’s home, where he and Kushina discussed barriers while Minato cooked.
• Minato, Kushina, and Minamoto ate together, and Minato considered finding Minamoto a girlfriend.

Minamoto Takuya helped Minato Namikaze plan Konoha’s barrier while considering what he could gain during the coming Nine-Tails Incident. He decided the chaos might let him obtain Hyuga bloodline material and copy the Scroll of Seals, though the story left those plans untested.

• Minamoto Takuya and Minato Namikaze studied the terrain and planned the barrier, while Kushina Uzumaki rested because she was close to childbirth.
• Minato Namikaze considered how to reward Minamoto Takuya for his help but struggled to find something suitable.
• Minamoto Takuya weighed the risks of approaching Naruto Uzumaki, Sasuke Uchiha, and Orochimaru, and judged that confronting Orochimaru was beyond his current strength.
• Minamoto Takuya considered infiltrating the Hyuga Clan during the Nine-Tails Incident to obtain bloodline material without a Caged Bird mark.
• Minamoto Takuya realized the incident might also leave the Scroll of Seals poorly guarded and decided copying it could be his greatest opportunity.

Minamoto Takuya finished preparing a barrier for Kushina Uzumaki’s childbirth and waited for Naruto Uzumaki’s birthday. When Obito Uchiha unleashed the Nine-Tails inside Konoha, Takuya sent the Sealing Team to evacuate civilians while he put on an Anbu disguise and headed for the Scroll of Seals.

• Minamoto Takuya and two Anbu completed the barrier, and Minato Namikaze inspected it and found no flaws.
• On October 10, Obito Uchiha summoned the Nine-Tails inside Konoha, beginning the Nine-Tails Incident.
• Minamoto Takuya ordered the Sealing Team to help evacuate civilians while his Shadow Clone warned the Third Hokage that intruders had entered the village.
• The Nine-Tails fired a Tailed Beast Bomb toward Hokage Rock, and Minato Namikaze diverted it with Flying Thunder God: Guiding Thunder.
• Minamoto Takuya put on a Fox Mask and black robe and headed for the Scroll of Seals as his Shadow Clones monitored the battle and prepared an escape route.

During the Nine-Tails attack on Konoha, Minamoto Takuya knocked out the guards at the Scroll of Seals and copied its techniques before crossing paths with Obito Uchiha. He refused Obito’s invitation to join the Akatsuki Organization and continued toward the Hyuga Clan to seek a Byakugan.

• Minamoto Takuya sneaked past the two Anbu guarding the Scroll of Seals, knocked them unconscious, and began breaking Minato Namikaze’s barrier.
• The Third Hokage used Enma’s Wishful Transformation to push the Nine-Tails out of Konoha while Minamoto Takuya’s Shadow Clone observed the battle.
• Minamoto Takuya copied the Scroll of Seals’ techniques, including the Spirit Transformation Technique and the Eight Inner Gates, then put the scroll back.
• Obito Uchiha ambushed Minamoto Takuya, who defended himself with the Mysterious Peacock Method before the two discussed Konoha and the Hyuga Clan.
• Obito Uchiha invited Minamoto Takuya to join the Akatsuki Organization, but Minamoto refused and adopted the nickname Collector.

Minamoto Takuya infiltrated the Hyuga Clan during the Nine-Tails attack and abducted a Hyuga Main House member while keeping a young child hidden as a backup. After joining Minato Namikaze and Kushina Uzumaki, he entered the barrier around the restrained Nine-Tails to examine Kushina, leaving the sealing crisis unresolved.

• Minamoto Takuya infiltrated the Hyuga Clan compound, knocked out an unattended child, and hid him as insurance while searching for someone from the Main House.
• Minamoto Takuya found a Main House man without a Caged Bird Cursed Seal and captured him with a chakra python before escaping underground.
• Minato Namikaze teleported the Nine-Tails away from Konoha, where its Tailed Beast Bomb exploded beyond a mountain while Minamoto Takuya’s Shadow Clones watched and prepared to summon him.
• Minamoto Takuya used a crow’s reverse summoning to reach a Shadow Clone near the Nine-Tails, then joined Kushina Uzumaki, who had restrained it with Adamantine Sealing Chains.
• Minamoto Takuya declined to reveal his Uzumaki Bloodline, persuaded Minato Namikaze to let him enter the barrier, and went to examine Kushina Uzumaki.

Minamoto Takuya subdued the Nine-Tails and began splitting its chakra so half could be sealed into Kushina Uzumaki and half into Naruto Uzumaki. With Minato Namikaze out of chakra, Minamoto learned the Four Symbols Seal and prepared to learn the Eight Trigrams Seal.

• Minamoto Takuya explained that Kushina Uzumaki might survive if the Nine-Tails were sealed back into her, but warned that she might not withstand its full power.
• Minato Namikaze exhausted himself striking the restrained Nine-Tails with an Ultra-Big Ball Rasengan, leaving it weak enough for Minamoto Takuya to divide its chakra.
• Minamoto Takuya sealed one half of the Nine-Tails into Kushina Uzumaki, while Minato Namikaze and Kushina accepted that Naruto Uzumaki would have to host the other half.
• Minato Namikaze taught Minamoto Takuya the Four Symbols Seal because he had no chakra left to perform the sealing himself.
• Minato Namikaze began teaching Minamoto Takuya the Eight Trigrams Seal, formed from two Four Symbols Seals.

Minamoto Takuya saved Kushina Uzumaki and helped Minato Namikaze seal the Nine-Tails inside Naruto Uzumaki, though Kushina suffered lasting physical damage. After returning to the ruined Konoha, Takuya took stock of the rewards he had secretly secured and planned to use the Nine-Tails' Chakra and learn the Spirit Transformation Technique.

• Takuya used the Eight Trigrams Seal on Kushina Uzumaki, then sealed the Nine-Tails into Naruto Uzumaki while keeping a small portion of its Chakra for himself.
• Kushina Uzumaki collapsed after releasing her Adamantine Sealing Chains, and Takuya confirmed that her life was no longer in danger but warned that her lost life energy could affect her health and lifespan.
• Minato Namikaze told the Third Hokage that a Black-Clad Man had attacked and discussed Konoha's heavy casualties and the need to protect the Land of Fire from other nations.
• Takuya, Minato Namikaze, and the Third Hokage returned to Konoha, where Minato saw the destruction and Takuya discovered that his home had been reduced to ruins.
• At the Experiment Base, Takuya stored the Scroll of Seals and Hyuga bloodline, reviewed his gains, and decided to have the Little Ten-Tails absorb some Nine-Tails Chakra before learning the Spirit Transformation Technique.

After saving Minato Namikaze, Minamoto Takuya considered the political gains and began experimenting with learning the Spirit Transformation Technique through Shadow Clones. The other villages weighed Konoha’s losses against Minato’s survival, while Konoha mourned those killed in the Nine-Tails Incident.

• Minamoto Takuya considered how Minato Namikaze’s survival could help his advancement and plans to investigate Yamato and the Hashirama Cells, then studied the Spirit Transformation Technique and tested whether Shadow Clones could learn it.
• Mabui told the Fourth Raikage that the Nine-Tails had devastated Konoha but that Minato Namikaze and the Third Hokage had survived, so the Raikage ordered harassment of Konoha’s mission system instead of an invasion.
• Ōnoki decided against attacking Konoha because Minato Namikaze was alive, while considering how Iwagakure might win some of Konoha’s missions.
• Several days after the attack, Minamoto Takuya saw Konoha being rebuilt and joined the village’s mourning ceremony for the shinobi and civilians killed in the Nine-Tails Incident.

Minamoto Takuya trained at home while continuing to practice the Spirit Transformation Technique and strengthen his body for the Eight Inner Gates. Minato Namikaze then announced that Takuya would be promoted to Jonin at a public ceremony and presented as Konoha's hero for his actions during the Nine-Tails Incident.

• Minamoto Takuya discovered that he could separate a spirit body with the Spirit Transformation Technique, though he could not yet maintain or use it effectively.
• Minamoto Takuya trained in a weighted suit to improve his physical strength and prepare his body for the Eight Inner Gates.
• Minamoto Takuya visited Minato Namikaze, who described the workload and losses Konoha faced after the Nine-Tails Incident.
• Minato Namikaze told Minamoto Takuya that he would be promoted from Special Jonin to Jonin because of his Sealing Jutsu.
• Minato Namikaze revealed that he had arranged a public promotion ceremony and named Minamoto Takuya Konoha's hero for evacuating civilians, sealing the Nine-Tails, and saving Minato Namikaze and Kushina Uzumaki.
• Minamoto Takuya realized the ceremony had already been publicized and resigned himself to the attention.

Minamoto Takuya agreed to become Konoha's Anbu Deputy Captain and chose Hawk as his codename. After Takuya left, Minato Namikaze reviewed reports about five people who had infiltrated Konoha during the Nine-Tails Incident and worried about the threats facing the village.

• Minato Namikaze asked Minamoto Takuya to serve as a role model for Konoha after the Nine-Tails Incident, and Takuya reluctantly agreed.
• Minato Namikaze offered Takuya the Anbu Deputy Captain position, with responsibility for intelligence gathering while he kept leading the Sealing Team, and Takuya accepted.
• Minamoto Takuya chose Hawk as his Anbu codename because he wanted to avoid mask designs that could reveal his other identities.
• After Takuya left, Minato Namikaze read a report that five people had infiltrated Konoha during the attack, including a Fox-Masked intruder who stole ninjutsu from the Scroll of Seals.
• Minato Namikaze decided not to issue a wanted notice for the Fox-Masked intruder, but remained concerned about the four other infiltrators and Konoha's recovery.

Minamoto Takuya was promoted to Jonin while Shimura Danzō plotted to undermine Minato Namikaze after the Nine-Tails Incident. Minato asked Takuya to investigate Root’s actions during the attack, and Takuya assigned the inquiry to his Anbu squad.

• Shimura Danzō blamed Minamoto Takuya for losing his chance to become Hokage and ordered Root to stir up criticism of Minato Namikaze over the Nine-Tails Incident.
• Minamoto Takuya attended his Jonin promotion ceremony and delivered the speech Minato had prepared for him.
• Minato asked Takuya to find out whether Root had acted during the Nine-Tails Incident, as he considered whether the organization should continue to exist.
• Takuya went to his Anbu office, reviewed his squad’s files, and learned that fifteen of its original seventeen members remained.
• Takuya tasked his squad with asking evacuated villagers whether they had seen Root members wearing diamond-shaped masks.

Minamoto Takuya continued investigating Root while training to master the Spirit Transformation Technique. When he learned Shimura Danzō’s agents were spreading rumors blaming Minato Namikaze for the Nine-Tails Incident and calling Kushina Uzumaki and Naruto monsters, he informed Minato, who ordered the Anbu to identify the source.

• Minamoto Takuya improved his Spirit Transformation Technique training by passing each Shadow Clone’s accumulated experience to the next.
• An Anbu squad captain reported that rumors blaming Hokage Lord for the Nine-Tails Incident and vilifying his wife and son had begun spreading the previous afternoon.
• Minamoto Takuya suspected Shimura Danzō was behind the rumors and ordered the Anbu to track the people spreading them without repeating the claims.
• Minamoto Takuya told Minato Namikaze about the rumors after reporting that the Root investigation was about eighty percent complete.
• Minato Namikaze grew furious over the attacks on Kushina Uzumaki and Naruto and ordered Minamoto Takuya to find who was spreading the information.

Minato Namikaze uncovered Root’s role in spreading rumors about Kushina Uzumaki and Naruto and moved to confront Shimura Danzō. The chapter ended with Minato asking Konoha’s assembled jonin whether Root still needed to exist.

• Minato Namikaze gave Minamoto Takuya special Flying Thunder God kunai and ordered him to signal for support if they found anyone spreading rumors.
• Minamoto Takuya and Minato Namikaze identified two captured ninjas as Root agents through the Cursed Tongue Eradication Seal, while the investigation confirmed Root had stayed in its base during the Nine-Tails Incident.
• Minato Namikaze summoned Konoha’s jonin, the Third Hokage, the advisers, and Shimura Danzō to an emergency meeting.
• Minato Namikaze ordered Minamoto Takuya to raid Root with three Anbu divisions, search for evidence, and kill Root ninjas who resisted.
• Minato Namikaze opened the meeting by asking whether Root still needed to exist in Konoha, drawing everyone’s attention to Shimura Danzō.

Minato Namikaze confronted Shimura Danzō over Root’s failure to aid Konoha during the Nine-Tails Incident and revealed evidence of further crimes. After the clan leaders identified two Root members who spread damaging messages, Danzō faced calls for the death penalty, and Minato demanded an explanation.

• Minato Namikaze presented records showing Root had not helped villagers during the Nine-Tails Incident, while Fugaku Uchiha and Hyuga Hiashi challenged Shimura Danzō over his absence.
• Minato Namikaze rejected Danzō’s attempt to blame the Uchiha Clan and insisted the meeting was about Danzō’s conduct.
• The Third Hokage proposed reducing Root rather than disbanding it, but Minato Namikaze distributed files revealing Danzō had spread harmful remarks about the Hokage and leaked secrets about Kushina Uzumaki and Naruto.
• Mitokado Homura said Danzō’s crimes warranted death, and Danzō denounced the files as fabricated.
• Minato Namikaze brought in two Root members, whom two clan heads identified as their clansmen, and asked Danzō what he had to explain.

Minato Namikaze exposed Shimura Danzō’s defiance and sent Anbu to take control of Root, where fighting broke out. Amid the purge, Minamoto Takuya secretly incapacitated Kinoe and arranged to take his Wood Release, leaving Danzō facing a violent chakra surge.

• Shimura Danzō rejected the evidence against him and accused Hiruzen Sarutobi of taking the Hokage position from him, while the Third Hokage asked Minato Namikaze to spare his life.
• Kakashi Hatake reported that Root members had refused the Hokage’s order and were resisting Anbu at the base.
• Minamoto Takuya’s Anbu moved to inspect Root, and an unidentified attacker threw a shuriken at him, prompting him to order the Anbu to eliminate the resisting Root ninja.
• Minamoto Takuya sent Kakashi Hatake to report Root’s rebellion, then used a disguised Shadow Clone to attack Kinoe and prevent him from using Wood Release.
• Minamoto Takuya’s Shadow Clone switched places with Kinoe using a prepared substitute and later dispelled itself, while Danzō erupted with chakra in the meeting room.

After the Anbu wiped out Root and uncovered its hidden prison, Minamoto Takuya searched the base for Hashirama Cells. He found and took some, while a squad captain headed toward the Hokage Building and sensed a clash erupting in the village.

• Minamoto Takuya ordered the Anbu to search Root, where they discovered prisoners who had vanished from Konoha and sent them to the hospital for treatment and identification.
• Minamoto Takuya warned a squad captain to avoid the Hokage Building if fighting had begun, and the captain sensed two powerful chakra signatures erupt from the village center on his way there.
• An Anbu squad captain led Minamoto Takuya to a sealed room, where he broke through the barrier and found Sharingan, Aburame Clan insects, and other strange materials.
• Minamoto Takuya used Mind's Eye of the Kagura to locate a concealed tank of Hashirama Cells and took a portion of them.
• The Anbu gathered in the storage room and were shocked to see that Shimura Danzō had collected dozens of Sharingan.