Recaps

Nara Dan, a physically gifted Nara Clan member, reviewed his talent entries and worried that his training had hit a bottleneck. After Nara Shikaku summoned him to a clan meeting, Dan agreed to go and teased Shikaku about his reluctance to train.

• Nara Dan ate forged iron, strengthening his Copper Head Iron Bone talent entry.
• Nara Dan reflected on his expensive training and his stalled progress, then decided to plan for something in the Ninja World.
• Nara Shikaku arrived and told Nara Dan that the clan had called a meeting.
• Nara Dan stood up using only his leg strength and teased Nara Shikaku for neglecting his Taijutsu training.

Nara Dan attended a Nara clan meeting after becoming a Special Jonin at seventeen, where the clan honored his achievement despite his unusual focus on Taijutsu instead of the clan's Shadow Secret Technique. The elders remained unsure how to regard him, and the chapter left their disagreement over Dan's place in the clan unresolved.

• Nara Shikaku recalled how Dan's loud training had first drawn his attention and accompanied him to the clan meeting.
• Dan entered the meeting hall, where the Nara Clan Head announced that he had become the clan's first Jonin promotion since the Second Shinobi World War.
• The Nara Clan Head praised Dan's talent and awarded him ten pounds of Chakra Metal, a contract for monthly business dividends, and an unknown scroll.
• Dan thanked the Clan Head and accepted the rewards without making the speech the Clan Head had hoped for.
• The Nara elders reflected on Dan's rejection of the Shadow Secret Technique in favor of Taijutsu and questioned whether he fit the Nara Clan.

Nara Dan accepted the Nara Clan’s appointment as taijutsu instructor, then discovered that eating Chakra Metal strengthened his Copper Head Iron Bone Trait. He left home with a possible path past his bottleneck, though he estimated the breakthrough would require more Chakra Metal than Konoha might possess.

• The Nara Clan Head appointed Nara Dan as the clan’s taijutsu instructor, and Dan agreed to teach its pre-graduation members.
• Nara Dan ignored much of the clan’s political discussion, then left the meeting with the clan’s gifts as Nara Shikaku watched him admiringly.
• After returning home, Nara Dan completed his taijutsu training and ate a piece of the Chakra Metal the clan had given him.
• Nara Dan saw that eating ten pounds of Chakra Metal had deepened the color of his Copper Head Iron Bone Trait, suggesting it could eventually reach purple.
• Nara Dan estimated that he would need more than a hundred pounds of Chakra Metal to trigger a breakthrough and doubted Konoha had that much.

Nara Dan studied valuable Taijutsu insights from the clans and welcomed Kurenai Yuhi, who brought him a gift to celebrate his promotion. After teasing her about a private barbecue, he took her hand and led her away, while an unseen figure watched from the shadows.

• Nara Dan opened the clan’s reward scroll and found Taijutsu insights from Tobirama Senju, Madara Uchiha, and others, which he valued more than Secret Techniques or Chakra Metal.
• Nara Dan saw his Taijutsu Mastery entry turn purple and wondered if he could cultivate it into his first self-earned purple entry.
• Kurenai Yuhi visited Nara Dan and congratulated him on becoming a Special Jonin.
• Kurenai Yuhi gave Nara Dan a scroll of her clan’s Genjutsu defense and dispelling insights, and he was touched by her thoughtful gift.
• Nara Dan teased Kurenai Yuhi by inviting her to a barbecue for two, then took her hand and led her away as she blushed and punched him.
• An unseen figure silently watched Nara Dan and Kurenai Yuhi from the shadows.

After a date, Nara Dan encountered Danzo, who tried to recruit him into Root by offering the Eight Inner Gates. Danzo left the offer hanging as Nara Dan remained wary and unreadable.

• A heartbroken rival gave up on pursuing Kurenai Yuhi after comparing himself with Nara Dan.
• Nara Dan sensed Danzo waiting on a quiet road and confronted him.
• Danzo congratulated Nara Dan on his promotion and warned that Sarutobi might restrict his advancement.
• Nara Dan dismissed Danzo’s warning and noted that the White Fang had chosen his own fate.
• Danzo offered Nara Dan the Eight Inner Gates, claiming it was the only way to reach the next level of Taijutsu.

Nara Dan turned down Danzo’s attempt to recruit him while considering how to obtain the Eight Inner Gates and advance his Taijutsu. He chose to remain in Konoha and the Nara Clan for now, despite his interest in the technique.

• Nara Dan politely deferred Danzo’s offer to join him, saying he would consult the Nara Clan’s head and elders.
• Nara Dan noticed Aburame Ryoma spying on him, and Ryoma later told Danzo that he would quickly lose in a fight against Nara Dan.
• Danzo decided that recruiting Nara Dan’s strength remained important and began considering other ways to use him.
• Nara Dan reread Tobirama Senju’s notes on the Eight Inner Gates and concluded that the technique might help him reach the next level of Taijutsu.
• Nara Dan dismissed the idea of defecting because leaving Konoha would cost him the Nara Clan’s support, training resources, and access to the ingredients his Cheat System required.

The Third approved Sarutobi Asuma’s request to leave Konoha for the Capital, then summoned Nara Dan and tried to recruit him into the Anbu. Dan refused, choosing to focus on training and stay out of Konoha’s political struggles.

• The Third signed Sarutobi Asuma’s application to serve as a Daimyo’s Guardian Ninja in the Capital of the Land of Fire.
• The Third considered possible successors, worrying about Tsunade’s hemophobia, Jiraiya’s lack of interest, and Orochimaru’s obsession with forbidden techniques.
• The Third ordered an Anbu to summon Nara Dan and asked whether the newly promoted Jonin had any plans.
• Nara Dan said he wanted to train because the bottleneck holding him back was beginning to loosen.
• The Third offered Nara Dan a position in the Anbu, but Dan declined so he could avoid Konoha’s political conflicts.

Nara Dan received a mission to lead Hatake Kakashi and help him cope with White Fang’s death, while the Third Hokage questioned how close Dan was to reaching the next level. Dan suspected the Third was using the Eight Inner Gates to keep him under control, and he noticed something unusual on the street as he headed home.

• The Third Hokage promoted Nara Dan to Special Jonin and assigned him to lead a three-man squad that included Hatake Kakashi.
• The Third asked Nara Dan to help Kakashi work through his troubles after White Fang’s death, and Dan accepted without promising he could solve them.
• Nara Dan asked whether Minato could lead Kakashi instead, but the Third explained that Minato was on a secret mission in the Land of Wind.
• The Third asked how close Nara Dan was to reaching the next level, and Dan said he was half a step away and feared no one in a straight fight.
• Nara Dan suspected the Third was withholding the Eight Inner Gates to control him, then noticed something unusual on the street while walking home.

Nara Dan stopped a group of spies fleeing through a crowd and used overwhelming physical strength to kill them. The Konoha Police Force arrived after the fight, and its leader thanked him for intervening.

• Several spies disguised as merchants fled through a crowd while the Konoha Police Force ordered them to stop.
• Nara Dan stood in the spies’ path and smashed the leading man through a building wall with one punch.
• The remaining spies recognized Nara Dan as the Black Demon of Konoha and scattered, but he pursued and killed them.
• One spy attacked Nara Dan with a Great Fireball Technique, but his metallic body remained unharmed.
• Nara Dan killed the spy by thrusting his hand through the man’s heart, then the Police Force arrived and its leader thanked him.

Nara Dan killed three Mist Ninja spies and pursued the one who escaped. Anbu took over the aftermath and recognized Nara Dan as far more than an ordinary Jonin, while a suspicious merchant bathed alone at a Hot Spring Inn.

• Nara Dan told the Police Force that one spy had escaped and identified the spies as Mist Ninja by their scent.
• Nara Dan raced across the rooftops to pursue the remaining spy, while two Police Force members stayed behind to send word and maintain order.
• Anbu and Police Force reinforcements arrived, examined the brutal scene, and learned that Nara Dan had gone after the last spy.
• A veteran Anbu shinobi explained that Nara Dan was no ordinary Jonin, and the Anbu secured the surviving spy before setting out to assist him.
• At a Hot Spring Inn, a merchant-looking man bathed alone while anxiously watching his surroundings.

Nara Dan tracked the escaped Mist Ninja spy to a Hot Spring Inn and confronted his contact, Mei Terumi. He overwhelmed her techniques and close-combat defenses, leaving her injured as the fight continued.

• The escaped Mist Ninja spy met his contact at the Hot Spring Inn, but Nara Dan seized him and crushed his spine before the contact could answer.
• Mei Terumi erupted from the hot spring and attacked Nara Dan with her Skilled Mist Technique.
• Nara Dan inhaled and expelled Mei Terumi's mist, then charged through her Lava Release and began demolishing the inn in close combat.
• Mei Terumi struggled to evade Nara Dan's relentless attacks while the Konoha ninja watched from nearby.
• Mei Terumi's stamina faltered, and Nara Dan's fist grazed her shoulder, sending pain through her.

Nara Dan let the wounded Mei Terumi escape under cover of the Hidden Mist Technique, then returned the cleanup to Konoha’s Anbu. After learning about the failed mission and Nara Dan’s abilities, the Third Mizukage classified him as an S-Rank threat and prepared the Mist for war.

• Mei Terumi used the Hidden Mist Technique to escape after Nara Dan deliberately gave her room to form Hand Seals.
• Nara Dan inspected Mei Terumi’s Talent Entries and learned that she possessed Dual Kekkei Genkai and strong ninja talent.
• An Anbu reported that Mei Terumi had escaped, and Nara Dan left the cleanup to the Konoha ninja.
• The Third Mizukage learned that Nara Dan had defeated the Mist mission team and seriously injured Mei Terumi.
• The Third Mizukage raised Nara Dan’s threat assessment to S-Rank, ordered at least three Seven Ninja Swordsmen to handle missions involving him, and told Mei Terumi to recover for the coming war.

The Five Great Nations reacted to reports of Nara Dan’s growing strength, with their leaders weighing the threat and ordering closer watches. In Konoha, Uchiha Fugaku and Yamanaka Lin entered the underground prison to interrogate the injured man Nara Dan had captured.

• The Third Mizukage ordered Yagura to monitor the major clans as war approached.
• Chiyo and Ebizo discussed Nara Dan’s danger and set aside plans to target him, while Chiyo worried about the Third Kazekage’s disappearance.
• Ōnoki recognized that Nara Dan had grown stronger and ordered Iwagakure to watch him and Kumogakure.
• The Third Raikage judged Nara Dan promising but said Kumogakure had no immediate need to worry about Konoha.
• Uchiha Fugaku and Yamanaka Lin entered Konoha’s underground prison to interrogate the injured man Nara Dan had sent there.

Nara Dan received credit and a five-pound Chakra Metal allocation from the Third for protecting classified intelligence, then headed to meet his new squad. Kakashi arrived first at their training ground, carrying the pain of his father's death and the rumors surrounding him, before his two teammates arrived.

• Yamanaka Lin used the Mind Reading Technique on the gravely injured man, while Uchiha Fugaku reflected on Nara Dan's strength and considered whether he could help change the Uchiha Clan's situation.
• The Third praised Nara Dan for protecting classified intelligence and offered him supplies or Secret Techniques as a reward.
• Nara Dan requested Chakra Metal, and the Third granted him a five-pound allocation that included his previous mission credits.
• The Third asked whether Nara Dan was meeting Kakashi and the others, then sent him off to his first meeting as a Jonin instructor.
• Kakashi heard villagers whispering about his father's death and his reputation, but continued to the training ground, where he arrived before his two teammates.

Nara Dan met his new Genin team—Hyuga Nana, Ino Rinya, and Hatake Kakashi—and judged their abilities and backgrounds. He unleashed his killing intent to test them, and Kakashi overcame his fear and charged at him with the White Fang Blade amid crackling purple lightning.

• Nara Dan arrived at the Training Ground and introduced himself as a Taijutsu-specializing Special Jonin whose goal was to become the strongest.
• Hyuga Nana introduced herself as a Branch Family member who specialized in sensing and Gentle Fist and dreamed of traveling the world.
• Ino Rinya introduced himself as a civilian Genin who knew basic Taijutsu and Water Release and hoped to become a craft artist.
• Hatake Kakashi gave a brief introduction, while Nara Dan recognized his talent and noted that Ino Rinya was the sole survivor of his previous team.
• Nara Dan told the Genin to treat the test as a fight to the death and released his full killing intent.
• Kakashi pushed through the pressure, activated purple Lightning Release, drew the White Fang Blade, and charged at Nara Dan.

Kakashi, Hyuga Nana, and Ino Rinya faced Nara Dan in a training assessment, but Dan easily countered their attacks. The chapter ended with Kakashi using a taxing B-rank Earth Style technique against him.

• Nara Dan effortlessly kicked away Kakashi's opening sword attack and batted aside his Shuriken.
• Hyuga Nana prepared to fight while Ino Rinya vanished from beside her.
• Kakashi used Earth Style: Stealth Technique to sink underground, and Dan attacked Nana instead.
• Nara Dan overwhelmed Nana with his close-combat skill, leaving her body numb with a precise strike.
• Kakashi's Shadow Clone attacked Dan with Thunder Slash, but Dan blocked the blade with his shin and kicked the clone away.
• The real Kakashi emerged elsewhere and began casting Earth Style: Swamp of the Underworld.

Nara Dan defeated Kakashi, Hyuga Nana, and Ino Rinya by catching them with the Shadow Possession Technique, then criticized their fighting and ordered them to train with him every day. As he prepared to leave, Hyuga Nana asked him to celebrate their newly formed team over a meal and offered to pay.

• Kakashi, Hyuga Nana, and Ino Rinya coordinated attacks to restrain Nara Dan, but he caught all three with the Shadow Possession Technique.
• Nara Dan released the three and told them they had passed his ability test, then criticized Kakashi's kenjutsu, Hyuga Nana's physical strength, and Ino Rinya's lack of courage.
• Nara Dan ordered the team to meet him for training every day and warned them to get stronger or die.
• Hyuga Nana stopped Nara Dan from leaving and offered to treat the team to a meal to celebrate their formation.

Nara Dan rejected Hyuga Nana’s advances while considering the Hyuga Clan’s interest in his Taijutsu knowledge. After reflecting on his training bottleneck and the approaching war, he learned Hatake Kakashi had come to see him, realizing his earlier words had been bait for the Hyuga to offer their secret techniques.

• Nara Dan refused Hyuga Nana’s request and told her to contact him only about training.
• Hyuga Hiashi had instructed Hyuga Nana to get close to Nara Dan because he believed Dan’s knowledge could transform the Gentle Fist and strengthen the clan’s position.
• Nara Dan meditated and considered the limits of his Taijutsu Mastery as well as his need to break through his current bottleneck before war began.
• A servant told Nara Dan that Hatake Kakashi had arrived to see him.
• Nara Dan realized that Kakashi had taken the bait he left during the trio’s assessment, while his remarks had also invited the Hyuga Clan to share its Gentle Fist manuals.

Nara Dan counseled Kakashi about White Fang’s death, rejecting simple judgments of right and wrong and urging him to pursue strength instead. Kakashi broke down under the force of Dan’s words, beginning a profound change in his outlook.

• Nara Dan welcomed Kakashi, who asked him to guide his training and explain whether White Fang had been right.
• Nara Dan said White Fang had followed his own ninja way and deserved respect, though Dan considered his choice foolish.
• Nara Dan told Kakashi that strength could free him from having to choose between missions and comrades, and urged him to pursue it.
• Nara Dan placed a hand on Kakashi’s forehead and told him that White Fang had been weak in spirit, leaving Kakashi to bear the consequences.
• Kakashi fell to his knees, overwhelmed by conflicting emotions, as Nara Dan watched him undergo an inner transformation.

Nara Dan persuaded Kakashi to become his student and discovered that the young ninja was suffering from severe overtraining and emotional exhaustion. He sent Kakashi to Konoha Hospital to rest and receive treatment, where Kakashi woke feeling relieved of some of his burdens.

• Kakashi stopped trembling, asked Nara Dan to teach him, and revealed his face.
• Nara Dan inspected Kakashi’s Talent Entries and found that he had exceptional ninja talent and was a Child of Destiny.
• Nara Dan detected extensive injuries in Kakashi’s body and used Chakra to help him fall asleep and rest.
• Nara Dan sent Kakashi to Konoha Hospital for proper treatment.
• Kakashi woke at the hospital the next morning after twelve hours of sleep and reflected on how training had consumed his life.

Kakashi found comfort in Nara Dan’s care and began questioning the Third about his father’s death, but the Third’s answer did not satisfy him. Meanwhile, Hyuga Nana knelt before Nara Dan and asked to become his disciple.

• Kakashi thanked the nurse for her concern and accepted her advice to rest and recover.
• The Third visited Kakashi and praised Nara Dan, while Kakashi said he intended to learn everything from his new teacher.
• Kakashi asked the Third about White Fang’s death, recognized that his answer was not the truth, and resolved to grow stronger until he could uncover it.
• Hyuga Nana knelt before Nara Dan and asked to become his disciple.

Hyuga Nana offered herself as Nara Dan’s student on behalf of the Hyuga Clan and presented him with their secret teachings. Nara Dan discovered that the scroll also contained the Eight Inner Gates, a Taijutsu technique he had been seeking.

• Hyuga Nana told Nara Dan that becoming his student was the Hyuga Clan’s will and offered him a scroll as a gift.
• Nara Dan examined the scroll’s Gentle Fist teachings and judged that his own knowledge of the human body could let him counter the style.
• Nara Dan turned to the scroll’s final section and found the Eight Inner Gates, along with the Hyuga Clan’s research and training notes.
• Nara Dan realized the Hyuga Clan had studied the Eight Inner Gates but had failed to make it fit their Gentle Fist system.

Nara Dan accepted Hyuga Nana as his disciple and finally studied the Eight Inner Gates, hoping they would help him break through his Taijutsu bottleneck. After reading the technique, he found it incomplete and too similar to his own Release, leaving him unsure why his instincts had pointed him toward it.

• Nara Dan accepted Hyuga Nana as his disciple and sent her away so he could study the Eight Inner Gates scroll.
• Hyuga Nana left feeling dejected and resolved to seek advice from the older women in her clan.
• Nara Dan reflected that Konoha’s elders had likely withheld the Eight Inner Gates to limit his growth and keep him under their control.
• Nara Dan studied the Eight Inner Gates and learned that the technique’s final two gates were barely documented and carried great risks.
• Nara Dan compared the Eight Inner Gates with his own Release technique and concluded that the Gates would not help him surpass his current limits.
• Nara Dan saw that his Taijutsu Mastery was still just short of becoming a fully purple Talent Entry and struggled to understand his instincts.

Nara Dan tested the Eight Inner Gates and compared their effects with his Liberation technique. After opening the Third Gate, he demonstrated immense, tangible Chakra but recognized that it was difficult to control and could not be sustained for long.

• Nara Dan concluded that the Eight Inner Gates forced Chakra to flow faster at the cost of bodily strain, unlike his more controlled Liberation.
• Nara Dan opened the First Gate and sensed its effects on his Chakra flow, circulation, and body.
• Nara Dan opened the Second and Third Gates, causing his body and Chakra to swell dramatically.
• Nara Dan assessed the Third Gate's Chakra as vastly stronger than ordinary ninja's but too crude for ninjutsu or Genjutsu.
• Nara Dan released a Chakra-charged hand strike that destroyed a tree and noted the technique's heavy cost to his control and bodily potential.

Nara Dan opened the Fourth Gate and discovered it burned life force, but the danger let him understand the essence of life and transform his Taijutsu Mastery Entry. He gained precise control over his life force and displayed power far beyond Release—Limit State.

• Nara Dan opened the Fourth Gate and realized its uncontrolled chakra burned life force, unlike the physical damage caused by the first three gates.
• As his life force poured out, Nara Dan perceived the workings of his body in extraordinary detail, and his Taijutsu Mastery Entry became a pure purple Taijutsu Expert.
• Nara Dan used his new understanding to halt the loss of life force without closing the gate and gained complete control over it.
• Nara Dan's body became lean, crystalline, and free of scars and calluses as his gathered life force healed old injuries and strengthened his organs and bones.
• Nara Dan moved a hundred meters effortlessly and reduced a boulder to dust with a gentle touch, surpassing Release—Limit State.