Chapter Summaries

After the Joint Chunin Exam, Minato Namikaze chose to learn the Flying Thunder God Technique from the Scroll of Seals and trained under Jiogan. Back in Kirigakure, Jiogan arranged a tournament to decide who would inherit the five ninja blades, while Minato and Kushina continued growing stronger.

• The Third Mizukage's delegation left Konoha after Yuki Hyouba and eleven other Kirigakure ninja earned Chunin status, and Minato Namikaze saw them off.
• Hiruzen Sarutobi let Minato choose one Ninjutsu from the Scroll of Seals, and Minato chose the Flying Thunder God Technique.
• Jiraiya told Hiruzen Sarutobi that Minato was not suited for the Anbu, so Hiruzen respected Jiraiya's advice.
• After returning to Kirigakure, Jiogan reported on the Joint Chunin Exam and announced a Blade Seizing Tournament for Chunin with swordsmanship experience.
• Jiogan taught Minato the Flying Thunder God Technique, and he estimated Minato could create his own seal within half a year.
• Kushina earned Chunin status and secretly developed Nine-Tails Chakra Mode and her Sealing Jutsu until she surpassed Minato in strength.

As Feiyun’s due date approached, Jiogan arranged protections and kept watch while she gave birth at Konoha Hospital. Their daughter Yunzhi was born safely, and the chapter ended with Jiogan preparing to pursue a breakthrough while Feiyun and the baby stayed protected at home.

• Tsunade examined Feiyun, and Jiogan persuaded her to deliver at Konoha Hospital after promising to guard her and their child.
• Feiyun went to the hospital, where Tsunade delivered a healthy girl thirteen days later; Feiyun and Jiogan named her Yunzhi.
• Friends and relatives, including Kushina and Hiruzen Sarutobi, visited Feiyun and Yunzhi, and Feiyun returned home with the baby the next day.
• Jiogan held Yunzhi for the first time, then placed protective ninja tools on her and asked Feiyun to make sealing talismans.
• Jiogan told Feiyun that he felt close to a breakthrough that might bring him to the peak strength of the First Hokage and Madara Uchiha.

Jiogan broke through to the Four Seas Realm, gaining immense Origin Power, expanded perception, and spatial abilities. After testing his new powers on Concentric Island, he returned to Konoha and stayed with Feiyun and their daughter until dawn approached.

• Jiogan filled his fourth Sea of Origin and officially entered the Four Seas Realm, gaining a major increase in power and four independent spaces within his Dantian.
• Jiogan raised and controlled a water dragon, then discovered his Mind's Eye of the Kagura could perceive everything within thirty kilometers by reconnecting with natural Heaven and Earth Qi.
• Jiogan tested the Sea of Origin spaces and found that objects could be stored inside, while only aquatic creatures and creatures with Water Release could survive there.
• Jiogan kept swordfish and sea turtles in a Sea of Origin to observe whether long-term residence would change them, then returned to Konoha that night.
• Feiyun asked whether Jiogan had succeeded in his breakthrough, and Jiogan said he now stood at the peak of the Ninja World before staying with his wife and daughter until near dawn.

Lord Jiogan tested whether the Three-Tails and Six-Tails could gain Origin Power and become independent of the Ten-Tails. Isobu agreed to go first, and Lord Jiogan placed a small split body of Isobu in the Sea of Origin, where it showed no signs of distress.

• Lord Jiogan brought Isobu and Saiken to Concentric Island and released them from their Sealing Jars.
• Lord Jiogan showed Isobu and Saiken how the Giant Turtle had evolved from Chakra to Origin Power in the Sea of Origin.
• Lord Jiogan explained that transforming the Tailed Beasts might make them independent of the Ten-Tails, and Isobu volunteered to test the process first.
• Isobu sent a Little Three-Tails split body into Lord Jiogan's Sea of Origin, where it appeared comfortable, but Isobu could not contact it across the separate space.
• Isobu asked Lord Jiogan to connect the Sea of Origin Space to the outside world so he could communicate with his split body.

Jiogan brought Isobu and Six-Tails Saiken into separate Seas of Origin, then gathered sea beasts to protect Concentric Island and created the Beast Scroll. A month later, Feiyun joined the family’s visit to the island, where Jiogan summoned the six sea beasts to meet them.

• Isobu and Six-Tails Saiken chose to enter Jiogan’s Sea of Origin, and the space placed them in separate seas while Jiogan connected them with Spiritual Sense channels.
• Jiogan absorbed four more Ninja Beasts, named them Little Crab, Little Sha, Little Pearl, and Little Black, and created the Beast Scroll for the six sea beasts guarding Concentric Island.
• Jiogan calmed a storm with a Water Palm and vowed to wait for Madara’s return to the Pure Land.
• A month later, all four Ninja Beasts had evolved into sea beasts, and Jiogan brought the Beast Scroll home for Feiyun to sign.
• Jiogan, Feiyun, and Little Yunzhi traveled to Concentric Island, where Jiogan summoned the six sea beasts to meet his family.

Jiogan reunited with Kushina and Kurama, explained why he had faked his death, and brought Isobu and Saiken to meet them. He described how the Tailed Beasts were staying in his Sea of Origin Space, where they had yet to convert their chakra into Origin Power.

• Jiogan visited Kushina and entered her sealing space with her to meet Kurama.
• Kushina learned that Kurama and Minato had known Jiogan survived, and Jiogan explained why he had stayed hidden and arranged for Minato and Kurama to train her.
• Kurama told Jiogan that Kushina had mastered the second stage of Nine-Tails Chakra Mode, and Jiogan praised her progress.
• Jiogan summoned Isobu and Saiken, introduced them to Kushina and Kurama, and calmed the ensuing exchange of teasing and apologies.
• Jiogan explained his Sea of Origin Space and said that Isobu and Saiken had not yet converted their chakra into Origin Power despite feeling comfortable there.

Lord Jiogan helped Minato and Kushina advance their cultivation, then arranged for his Karatachi Yagura identity to become Kirigakure’s next leader. After the Daimyo approved the succession, Karatachi Yagura took office as Fourth Mizukage in Konoha Year 42, drawing reactions from the other villages.

• Lord Jiogan told Kushina to pursue the One Sea Realm and predicted that she could eventually free Kurama from her body.
• Minato mastered the Flying Thunder God Technique, reached the One Sea Realm with the Konoha Spirit Gathering Array, and learned to train in the Rasengan.
• Lord Jiogan concluded that Isobu and Six-Tails Saiken could not evolve through the Sea of Origin unless he reached the Five Seas Realm.
• Lord Jiogan decided that his Karatachi Yagura identity had enough prestige to succeed the Third Mizukage.
• At a Jonin Meeting, the Third Mizukage announced his resignation and recommended Karatachi Yagura, who promised to preserve the village’s policies.
• The Daimyo approved the succession, and Karatachi Yagura became Fourth Mizukage in Konoha Year 42, prompting reactions from the other village leaders.

The Third Mizukage took Mei Terumi and Yuki Hyouba to a remote island, where he began an intensive training plan for Mei. After struggling through endurance training and swordsmanship sparring, Mei resolved to work harder.

• The Third Mizukage invited Mei Terumi and Yuki Hyouba to accompany him on a journey and training retreat lasting one to three years, and Mei persuaded Miho Terumi to let her go.
• The Third Mizukage, Mei Terumi, and Yuki Hyouba left Kirigakure after Fourth Mizukage Karatachi Yagura and their clans saw them off.
• The three settled on an uninhabited island, where the Third Mizukage stayed in a cave and assigned Mei and Yuki daily training tasks.
• Yuki Hyouba led Mei on an island patrol of nearly eighty kilometers, leaving her exhausted, and the Third Mizukage then assigned her swordsmanship sparring to address her weakness in Taijutsu.
• After Mei collapsed from sparring, the Third Mizukage demonstrated swordsmanship by fighting Yuki Hyouba, inspiring Mei to keep training.

Over three months, Mei Terumi trained in swordsmanship, taijutsu, and ninjutsu while the Third Mizukage supported her recovery with food and medicinal baths. Her training culminated in an ambush exercise against Yuki Hyouba, which she failed despite showing impressive adaptability and talent.

• The Third Mizukage fed Mei Terumi well and prepared a medicinal bath to restore her body and prevent hidden injuries.
• Mei Terumi improved through three months of training, developing her swordsmanship, taijutsu, and chakra while preparing for the Second Joint Chunin Exam.
• The Third Mizukage assigned Mei Terumi to find and ambush Yuki Hyouba on the island.
• Mei Terumi studied the traps and launched a coordinated kunai, shuriken, and Water Trumpet attack, but Yuki Hyouba revealed that she had struck his Water Clone.
• Mei Terumi exchanged sword strikes and ninjutsu with Yuki Hyouba, using a Water Clone and Boil Release in an attempt to surprise him.
• Yuki Hyouba defeated Mei Terumi's ambush, but her quick learning and talent impressed him.

Mei Terumi strengthened her skills under the Third Mizukage’s guidance as the villages maneuvered around Konoha and Sunagakure’s alliance. Years later, Jiogan visited Minato Namikaze and told him to lie low after his growing fame made him a potential target.

• The Third Mizukage and Yuki Hyouba praised Mei Terumi’s mission performance, corrected her use of Boil Release, and gave her five Earth Release scrolls to master.
• After the Second Joint Chunin Exam, Sunagakure allied with Konoha, prompting Iwagakure and Kumogakure to seek influence and draw Kirigakure away from the alliance.
• Over the following year, Mei Terumi built structures across the island and improved rapidly, while Jiogan planned for Little Yunzhi to begin cultivating at age three.
• In Konoha Year 43, Jiogan found Minato Namikaze at home and told him that Bingyu had secretly reached Kage-level strength.
• Jiogan warned Minato Namikaze that his fame as the Yellow Flash made him vulnerable and advised him to hide himself and observe the village for the next few years.

Jiogan returned to the island while Minato and Kushina prepared to travel the Ninja World, and Orochimaru obtained the Impure World Reincarnation Jutsu through a deal with Shimura Danzō. After failing to summon Jiogan, Orochimaru concluded that he was still alive and began investigating his whereabouts.

• Jiogan encouraged Minato to travel with Kushina and trusted his safeguards to keep her safe.
• Shimura Danzō and Orochimaru arranged a trade: Orochimaru would provide a Hashirama Cells arm, and Danzō would give him the Impure World Reincarnation Jutsu.
• Orochimaru tested the jutsu with a Kumogakure spy as the sacrifice, then discovered that only his attempt to summon Jiogan failed.
• Orochimaru inferred that Jiogan was alive because the jutsu could not summon him using hair taken from his cenotaph.
• Orochimaru visited Jiogan's Home with Tsunade and observed Feiyun and Kushina, then concluded that they knew Jiogan was alive while Tsunade and Jiraiya likely did not.

Jiogan returned from the Land of Water to check on Feiyun and Little Yunzhi, then confronted Orochimaru after suspecting the Sannin had discovered he was alive. Orochimaru revealed that his failed use of the Impure World Reincarnation Jutsu had exposed Jiogan’s survival.

• Mei Terumi and Yuki Hyouba discussed their training and hoped the Third Mizukage would soon complete his breakthrough so they could return to the village.
• Jiogan returned to Konoha, reunited with Feiyun and Little Yunzhi, and learned that Minato and Kushina had left to travel.
• Feiyun told Jiogan that Orochimaru and Tsunade had visited Little Yunzhi, prompting Jiogan to suspect Orochimaru had been probing for clues.
• Jiogan secretly observed Orochimaru’s experiments and learned that Shimura Danzō had successfully received a Hashirama Cells transplant.
• Orochimaru caught Jiogan’s water clone, but Jiogan transported Orochimaru to a forest outside Konoha with the Flying Thunder God Technique.
• Jiogan confronted Orochimaru, who explained that his failed attempt to summon Jiogan with the Impure World Reincarnation Jutsu had revealed that Jiogan was still alive.

Jiogan explained to Orochimaru why he had stayed hidden and warned him that Shimura Danzō had likely used Kagami Uchiha’s Sharingan to control Hashirama Cells. Orochimaru realized Danzō had been trying to balance the two transplants, leaving him with a new explanation for Danzō’s experiments.

• Jiogan told Orochimaru that he had survived his battle with Madara Uchiha by destroying the Water Giant and escaping with Flying Thunder God, then remained hidden to avoid conflict with Konoha’s higher-ups.
• Jiogan revealed that only Feiyun, Minato, and Kushina knew he was alive, and asked Orochimaru to keep the secret from Tsunade.
• Orochimaru explained that his human experiments had failed and that Shimura Danzō had concealed how he handled the rejection caused by Hashirama Cells.
• Jiogan suggested that Danzō had transplanted Kagami Uchiha’s right eye and used its Sharingan to restrain Hashirama Cells.
• Orochimaru concluded that Danzō had been trying to use Hashirama Cells to counter the Sharingan’s burden while using the Sharingan to control the cells’ erosion.

Jiogan guided Orochimaru toward seeking immortality through research into the spirit, then reassured Feiyun that Orochimaru would leave his family alone. As winter ended, Jiogan prepared to use the first spring rain to help Mei Terumi deepen her understanding of the water element.

• Orochimaru invited Jiogan to his home for drinks and shared his weariness with power struggles and his search for life's meaning.
• Jiogan recognized that Orochimaru's experiments were driven by a desire for immortality and suggested that the spirit might outlast the body.
• Orochimaru thanked Jiogan for helping him find a new line of research and confirmed that he no longer wanted to become Hokage.
• Jiogan told Feiyun that Orochimaru had discovered he was alive but would not threaten their family.
• After winter passed, Jiogan decided to use the spring rain to help Mei Terumi deepen her comprehension of the water element, and Mei Terumi and Yuki Hyouba hurried back toward their residence to witness the Third's breakthrough.

Mei Terumi gained a profound understanding of the water element while the Third Mizukage broke through, then returned to Kirigakure with Yuki Hyouba and her teacher. As Trial Island construction began and the Joint Chunin Exam and Six Kage Summit approached, Konoha’s leaders prepared for the strain of hosting them.

• Jiogan used the Third Mizukage’s domain field to help Mei Terumi experience the water element’s cycle through nature, and she emerged with a new insight.
• The Third Mizukage congratulated Mei Terumi and Yuki Hyouba, then told Mei to map the island and write up the Trial Island Plan for Yagura.
• A week later, the three left for Kirigakure, and construction of Trial Island began another week afterward.
• As the Joint Chunin Exam drew near, all Five Great Shinobi Villages prepared to attend, and the Third Mizukage planned to join the Five Kage Summit in support of Yagura.
• Hiruzen Sarutobi ordered Konoha’s departments to finish preparations, summoned Minato and Kushina back, and reassigned Tsunade to security while Feiyun took over the hospital.

The Five Kage and their groups gathered in Konoha ahead of the Joint Chunin Exam, while Jiogan discussed the village’s preparations and Feiyun’s hidden strength. As tensions rose among the visiting villages, Jiogan encouraged Minato and revealed that his allies planned to help him become Hokage.

• Kirigakure’s Third and Fourth Mizukage led their group to Konoha, where Hatake Sakumo welcomed them before the Third Kazekage’s group arrived later that day.
• The Third Mizukage declined Hiruzen Sarutobi’s banquet and all activities apart from the Five Kage Summit, while Karatachi Yagura assured Hiruzen that Kirigakure would avoid underhanded moves during the exam.
• The Third Raikage’s group arrived the next day, and the Third Tsuchikage’s group arrived last, on the eve of the Joint Chunin Exam.
• Feiyun told Jiogan that she had taken over Konoha Hospital and expected the exam’s battles to test its ability to handle casualties.
• Minato told Jiogan that Iwagakure’s arrival had sparked a clash among examinees, which security stopped before anyone was hurt.
• Jiogan revealed to Minato that Feiyun was a Kage-level genjutsu expert who had mastered the Kurama Clan’s Five Senses Seal, then urged him to keep her abilities secret and said they would support his rise to Hokage.

Jiogan revealed to Minato that he had secretly been the Third Mizukage and explained his plans for Kirigakure. The Joint Chunin Exam’s brutal matches left the Five Kage arguing bitterly, while Feiyun and Minato worked to treat and rescue injured candidates ahead of the upcoming summit.

• Jiogan told Minato he had been the Third Mizukage and explained that Kirigakure’s reforms and transition to the Fourth Mizukage were under his control.
• Jiogan offered Minato a summoning contract with sea beasts empowered by Origin Power.
• The Third Joint Chunin Exam began with 120 candidates, and the Forest of Death’s battles caused many deaths and severe injuries.
• Minato transported injured candidates to Konoha Hospital while Feiyun treated them, and Kirigakure’s candidates avoided deaths by following the Fourth Mizukage’s orders.
• The Five Kage argued fiercely over brutal advancement matches, and only ten candidates qualified for the final round.
• The final matches were moved up to one week later, while Feiyun and Minato recovered from their exhausting work and Jiogan anticipated the Five Kage Summit.

The Five Kage Summit debated making the Joint Chunin Exam a regular event and establishing recurring summits. The villages agreed to hold the exam every two years on a rotating basis and to meet every five years in the Land of Iron.

• Hiruzen Sarutobi opened the summit, and Ōnoki and the Third Raikage accused Konoha of using the Joint Chunin Exam to gather intelligence.
• Karatachi Yagura proposed holding the exam every two years, with the Five Great Shinobi Villages taking turns hosting it.
• The Third Kazekage and the Third Raikage supported Yagura's proposal, and Hiruzen Sarutobi eventually agreed.
• The Kage decided that Konoha would host the next exam, followed by Sunagakure, Kirigakure, Iwagakure, and Kumogakure in that order.
• The villages agreed to hold future Five Kage Summits every five years in the Land of Iron, separate from the exams, with no more than two Kage attending each exam.

Madara Uchiha learned that the villages had established a rotating Joint Chunin Exam and regular Five Kage Summits, and planned to exploit them to stir up conflict. After the exam ended, the Kirigakure delegation left Konoha, and the retired Third Mizukage began a private journey across the Ninja World.

• The Ninja World learned that the Joint Chunin Exam would rotate among the Five Great Shinobi Villages every two years and that the Five Kage Summit would take place in the Land of Iron every five years.
• Black Zetsu reported the new arrangements to Madara Uchiha, who welcomed the chance to inflame hostility and asked about Nagato and the growing Akatsuki Organization.
• Black Zetsu told Madara that Karatachi Yagura had become the Fourth Mizukage and a Perfect Jinchuriki, while the Third Mizukage had stepped down and Kirigakure's transfer of power was complete.
• Madara ordered Black Zetsu to monitor the villages and prepare to cause trouble when Sunagakure hosted the Joint Chunin Exam two years later, then fell asleep.
• Four days later, the Joint Chunin Exam finals ended, and the candidates who had been promoted to Chunin began returning to their villages.
• Karatachi Yagura and the Third Mizukage said goodbye to Hiruzen Sarutobi outside Konoha; after leaving the Land of Fire, the Third Mizukage separated from the delegation and set out to travel the Ninja World.

Jiogan’s life on Concentric Island and with Feiyun and Little Yunzhi continued as Konoha’s next Joint Chunin Exam began in Sunagakure. A staged crisis at the exam led to Hatake Sakumo’s death and war among Konoha, Sunagakure, and Iwagakure, while Jiogan returned to Konoha.

• Jiogan trained on Concentric Island, used messenger fish to communicate with home, and renovated the island’s house for Feiyun and Little Yunzhi.
• Feiyun left her hospital and other duties to care for Little Yunzhi, while Jiogan often brought them to the island.
• Kakashi Hatake, Rin Nohara, and Obito Uchiha became Minato’s disciples, and they attended the Joint Chunin Exam in Sunagakure.
• Megure Thirteen reported that a Konoha contestant’s killing of a Sunagakure elder’s grandson and an attack on Iwagakure contestants had triggered chaos at the exam.
• Hatake Sakumo stayed behind to protect the Konoha ninja, but Sasori crippled him, and Sakumo died of his injuries; negotiations failed and Konoha, Sunagakure, and Iwagakure declared war.
• Karatachi Yagura ordered an emergency meeting and sent the news to Jiogan, who had already returned to Konoha.