Chapter Summaries

Jiraiya explained Kirigakure’s history and civil war as Team Jiraiya prepared for a sea voyage to the Land of Waves. At the coast, Torifu planned to visit the ruined Uzushio Village, and Minato, Akaseki, and Ranwu asked to join him.

• Jiraiya told Akaseki, Minato, and Ranwu how Kirigakure’s civil war began and why rogue shinobi and island nations were seeking help.
• Akaseki, Minato, and Ranwu bought supplies, then traveled with Team Jiraiya and Team Torifu Akimichi to the coast.
• Jiraiya explained that the Land of Waves’ merchant association envoy would meet them at the port on May 6, while Torifu announced he would visit the Land of Whirlpools.
• Jiraiya decided to accompany Torifu to pay respects to the destroyed Uzushio Village, Konoha’s former ally.
• Minato, Akaseki, and Ranwu each asked to go with them, and Akaseki cited the Uzumaki Clan’s ties to the Senju Clan and Konoha.

Akaseki, Jiraiya, and their companions visited the ruins of Uzushio Village to pay respects to the Uzumaki Clan. That night, Jiraiya told Akaseki, Minato, and Ranwu that Kumogakure was the likely culprit and began explaining how the First Hokage had prevented war.

• Akaseki, Ranwu, and the younger Ino-Shika-Cho joined Torifu and Jiraiya on a trip to Uzushio Village.
• Torifu paid respects in the Mask Storage Hall, while the others saw the devastation and learned that the Uzumaki bodies and possessions had been taken.
• Jiraiya explained that the Uzumaki Clan's destruction had united Konoha's clans behind Hiruzen Sarutobi after they had challenged his succession as Hokage.
• Akaseki, Minato, and Ranwu questioned Jiraiya during his night watch, and he said Kumogakure was the most likely force behind the attack.
• Jiraiya distinguished Kumogakure from the Second Raikage and began revealing how the First Hokage had secured peace by distributing the Tailed Beasts.

Jiraiya explained how the Tailed Beasts were distributed and how Kumogakure’s pro-war faction rose to power. He revealed why Tobirama stayed behind during the coup, and the chapter ended with Konoha uniting under the Third Hokage to deter Kumogakure.

• Hashirama captured and distributed the Tailed Beasts, while Sunagakure kept Shukaku and demanded territory and resources instead.
• Jiraiya explained that villages relied on Jinchuriki and described Kumogakure’s use of the Amber Purifying Pot and the Gold and Silver Brothers.
• Ranwu described Kumogakure’s Raikage succession, and Jiraiya explained how the pro-war faction gained influence over the village.
• Jiraiya said the Gold and Silver Brothers killed the Second Raikage at an alliance meeting and suggested the Yotsuki Clan may have helped enable the coup.
• Tobirama stayed behind to face the Gold and Silver Brothers, allowing six others to escape while he sealed away the Six Paths Tools.
• After clues linked Kumogakure to the Uzumaki Clan’s extermination, the Uchiha Clan supported the Third Hokage and Konoha prepared for war, prompting Kumogakure to back down.

Jiraiya discussed the political causes behind Kirigakure’s and Kumogakure’s conflicts with Akaseki, Minato, and Ranwu, then sent them to rest. Akaseki began his final Immersion in a veterinarian drama, gained a boost to Swift Flame, and received a mysterious Big Red Bite reward that searched for a target.

• Jiraiya explained that Kumogakure had attacked the Uzumaki Clan to obtain their Sealing Techniques but had gained only incomplete inheritances.
• Minato analyzed how internal divisions and neglected factions had fueled conflict in Kirigakure and Kumogakure, while Akaseki called for revenge against Kumogakure.
• Jiraiya warned Akaseki against letting anger and hatred cloud his judgment, then sent the students to rest before their return to the Land of Fire.
• Akaseki began his final Immersion in <You Called Me a Quack, So I Became a Veterinarian, All Right?> and watched Hong Yan’s pet hospital prosper.
• Akaseki’s Swift Flame progress surged to 3%, and a Big Red Bite reward began searching for a target, leaving him wondering whether Choza Akimichi would be chosen.

Akaseki discovered a dying Uzumaki Clan Ninja Beast Tanuki sealed inside the Mask Storage Hall and used the Big Red Bite system to revive it. Jiraiya recognized the tanuki, and Akaseki bought more nourishment as it weakened again.

• Akaseki followed the system marker to the Mask Storage Hall and found a small creature behind the Three-Eyed Pointed-Ear Mask.
• After Akaseki claimed the mask, the system priced it at five hundred ryo, and he fed the creature with the Big Red Bite system.
• Jiraiya arrived and saw the revived creature emerge from its hiding place; he recognized it as the Uzumaki Clan's Ninja Beast Tanuki.
• The tanuki asked for more nourishment, then weakened, so Akaseki agreed to use more of his limited power on it.
• Akaseki bought ten discounted servings through the Big Red Bite system to try to restore the tanuki.

Akaseki discovered that the Tanuki Beast could not yet leave the Mask Storage Hall, so Torifu and Jiraiya decided that Akaseki, Minato, and Ranwu would stay behind while they went to the Land of Waves. The others departed by boat, leaving the three young ninja to care for the Tanuki and return or gather intelligence if the mission team did not come back within ten days.

• After Akaseki fed it Big Red Bite, the Tanuki woke, knocked down a mask, then fell asleep with the mask attached to its back.
• The Tanuki struggled when Akaseki tried to carry it away from the Mask Storage Hall and bit his pant leg when he tried to leave it behind.
• Torifu recognized that the mask might let the Tanuki use the Uzumaki Clan's Sealing Techniques and agreed it should not be left alone.
• Torifu proposed that Akaseki stay behind while Jiraiya took Minato and Ranwu to the Land of Waves, but Jiraiya decided the three young ninja would remain instead.
• Ranwu and Minato agreed to stay with Akaseki, and Jiraiya told them to return or gather intelligence if the Tanuki recovered or the others had not returned after ten days.
• Jiraiya and Torifu left by boat to complete the mission in the Land of Waves.

Akaseki watched The One Who Died Is Your Mom, a drama about Hong Yan and his unfaithful wife, Shen Qingqing, and suffered another burst of anger when she refused to return to the hospital for her ill mother. After the first hour, he received a Temple Run immersion in which he had to flee a monster, and began using it to train his running and obstacle-avoidance skills.

• Akaseki chose the short show The One Who Died Is Your Mom and entered its story as Hong Yan, the live-in son-in-law of Shen Qingqing’s family.
• Hong Yan’s mother-in-law confronted him about Shen Qingqing using overtime as an excuse to meet her first love, An Ruhai.
• Shen Qingqing’s mother suffered a medical emergency, but Shen Qingqing dismissed calls from Hong Yan and the hospital and refused to come back.
• Akaseki finished his first hour of immersion, felt his anger flare, and received a Temple Run immersion as his reward.
• Akaseki discovered he could only run from a monster with no ninjutsu and began training by dodging obstacles.

Akaseki used repeated Immersion sessions to train his physical skills, then got caught in a hospital drama where Shen Qingqing repeatedly refused to believe Hong Yan that her mother was in danger. After the old woman died, Akaseki checked his progress and found Overspread Burning had risen to 9.51%.

• Akaseki tested the physical skills he gained during the trial run and began another Immersion session.
• Akaseki, acting as Hong Yan, rushed to bring Shen Qingqing to the hospital, but she believed An Ruhai and refused to go.
• Hong Yan returned to the hospital as the vice president began operating on the old woman, while Shen Qingqing arrived and was misled into thinking the patient was Hong Yan's mother.
• Shen Qingqing refused to operate, and the vice president emerged to report that the patient had died.
• Akaseki completed two hours of Immersion and found that Overspread Burning had reached 9.51%, while Scorching Heat and Incineration had reached 12% and 11%.

Akaseki tried a survival game where he could fuse ninjutsu and use the Sharingan to copy the resulting techniques. He learned that copying progress persisted between attempts, but balancing survival and copying was difficult; the trial ended when the Little Tanuki Beast woke him.

• Akaseki discovered that treasure chests granted techniques he already knew, but the game performed them automatically after he made the hand seals, limiting their value for training.
• Akaseki fused the Great Fireball Technique and Earth Prison Dome of Nothingness into the Roasting Hell Technique, then used his Sharingan to copy it and found that failed copying progress was preserved.
• Akaseki chose two Earth Clones, which increased his damage and appeared to improve his copying efficiency, but he died before reaching the fifth wave.
• Akaseki realized he had to balance game strength with copying opportunities and ended the trial without successfully copying a ninjutsu, though he thought a few more attempts could let him learn a simple combination technique.
• The immersion was interrupted, and Akaseki woke to the Little Tanuki Beast nudging him.

Akaseki and Ranwu trained their Genjutsu together, with Ranwu testing her unfinished Bringer-of-Darkness Technique against Akaseki’s Sharingan. The chapter left Minato training his sensory abilities on the island shore.

• Akaseki fed the Little Tanuki Beast a Big Red Bite, and it freed a second animal mask before falling asleep again.
• Ranwu brought Akaseki grilled fish, and they ate before beginning their planned training.
• Akaseki and Ranwu practiced Genjutsu against each other, with Ranwu using the Bringer-of-Darkness Technique to challenge his Sharingan.
• Akaseki stopped the session after Ranwu’s technique repeatedly interfered with his Sharingan, and Ranwu said Jiraiya knew she was learning it.
• Jiraiya continued guiding Minato’s sensory training, and Minato practiced detecting crab burrows in the sand.

Akaseki struggled through a looping short-drama immersion before entering the Wild Survivors trial, where he discovered that automatically attacking ninja tools could be strengthened with upgrades. After learning the game’s mechanics, he left to practice Genjutsu with Ranwu.

• Akaseki watched Shen Qingqing repeatedly refuse to look in the morgue, so the short drama never delivered its intended line before the immersion ended.
• Akaseki entered the Wild Survivors trial and found that most of his ninjutsu and close combat were ineffective, while his shuriken attacked enemies automatically using his Chakra.
• Akaseki leveled up, chose a kunai and later upgraded it, then added more weapons as he learned how their automatic attacks worked.
• Akaseki discovered that he could carry up to six types of ninja tools and strengthened their abilities through upgrades, becoming convinced that their manipulation was worth learning.
• Akaseki survived longer in repeated attempts as he practiced using Chakra to accelerate kunai and create shuriken clones.
• Akaseki ended the trial and met Ranwu to practice Genjutsu while Team 7 remained busy despite their suspended first B-rank mission.

Akaseki signed a Summoning Contract with the recovering Little Tanuki Beast, then named it Tanuki Treasure before it fell asleep again. He finished an immersive melodrama and received a two-hour game coupon, which he saved for later as he prepared to look around.

• Akaseki signed a one-on-one Summoning Contract with the Little Tanuki Beast after Ranwu suggested it wanted a high-five.
• Akaseki and Ranwu argued over whether Ninshu originally spread Chakra to connect people or to help them fight and protect companions.
• Akaseki used mutual understanding to name the Little Tanuki Beast Tanuki Treasure, but it fell asleep before dinner.
• Akaseki finished The One Who Died Is Your Mom and received a two-hour game experience coupon that could be used for any game he had trialed.
• Akaseki decided the coupon would be most useful for Warrior Synthesis, where he was close to copying Combination Ninjutsu, but chose to look around before using it.

Akashi completed Tanuki Treasure’s recovery by giving it the ninth Big Red Bite, while Minato and Ranwu investigated a suspicious ship that had arrived at the Land of Whirlpools. Minato sensed a group of powerful strangers disembarking and tried to learn more about them.

• Akashi discovered that most masks in the Mask Storage Hall had similar recycling values and chose one worth 500 points.
• Akashi learned that Tanuki Treasure was a Nine Mask Svāhā tanuki and that it needed one final Celestial Maiden mask to recover fully.
• Akashi gave Tanuki Treasure its ninth Big Red Bite, and the Celestial Maiden mask appeared on its back, completing its set of nine masks.
• Minato stopped Ranwu from approaching an unfamiliar ship, and they hid in the woods to observe its passengers.
• Minato used the Thousand Worlds Awareness Technique to sense the disembarked group and detected several people with jonin-level Chakra reserves.
• Ranwu asked whether Minato could hear the strangers, and he tried to sense their voices.

Akaseki discovered that urgency had awakened the burst flame aspect of his Fire Style chakra, then learned that enemy ninja might have captured the Land of Waves merchants and set a trap for Jiraiya’s team. As Akaseki and Ranwu went to find Minato, Tanuki Treasure stayed behind as the Mask Storage Hall vanished.

• Akaseki found that burst flame had appeared in his Fire Style chakra and considered how emotions might awaken other chakra aspects.
• Ranwu told Akaseki that an unidentified group of at least three Jonin and over a dozen Chunin had landed on the southern shore while Minato tracked them.
• Ranwu explained that Minato had heard the words “Konoha,” “trap,” and “merchants,” and that the group might have captured the Land of Waves merchants and endangered Jiraiya and Torifu Akimichi.
• Akaseki agreed that they could not abandon the merchants and prepared to join Minato with Ranwu.
• Tanuki Treasure refused to leave the Mask Storage Hall, and Akaseki told it to reverse-summon him if danger arose.
• Tanuki Treasure returned to the hall, whose doors shut before the entire building shimmered and disappeared.

Akaseki, Ranwu, and Minato tracked a group of Kirigakure ninja waiting by the northern shore, but the whirlpools and open sea made it difficult to follow them unseen. Akaseki proposed hiding in a cloud above the sea and revealed a special summoning seal, leaving his method of getting airborne to be seen.

• Akaseki and Ranwu left the sealed Mask Storage Hall after discussing Tanuki Treasure's recovery and its nine sealing techniques.
• Akaseki and Ranwu followed Minato's marks and met him in a forest, where he reported that the group they were tracking had stopped at the northern shore to wait for low tide.
• Ranwu and Minato explained that the whirlpools around the Land of Whirlpools interfered with Chakra and that the group included three ordinary people, making a water crossing risky.
• Akaseki suggested that Ranwu use the Hidden Mist Technique in the sky so they could pass as a cloud, then detour through the Whirlpool Sea region.
• Akaseki formed the hand seals for the Summoning Technique and pressed his palm forward, revealing a red-and-cyan seal bearing the character for Vermilion.

Akaseki revealed that Tanuki Treasure could transform into a flying Vermilion Bird, and he, Ranwu, and Minato used it to reach Whirlpool Mountain under cover of mist. As an approaching group landed, Akaseki left a hidden Shadow Clone to gather intelligence while the others retreated.

• Akaseki summoned Tanuki Treasure in its Vermilion Bird form, surprising Ranwu with its transformation and prompting them to discuss the masks and Sealing Techniques.
• Ranwu cloaked the flying Vermilion Bird with the Hidden Mist Technique as Akaseki, Ranwu, and Minato traveled toward Whirlpool Mountain.
• Minato joked about giving Tanuki Treasure a more imposing name, but Tanuki Treasure could not remember a long one.
• As the tide receded and the whirlpool zone shrank, Akaseki left a Shadow Clone underground near the expected landing spot to eavesdrop on the approaching group.
• Minato sensed that the group had landed, and the three waited in hiding for them to reveal useful information.

Akaseki, Minato, and Ranwu discovered that Kirigakure shinobi led by Akebino were forcing merchants from the Land of Waves to find Bloodthirsty Star Iron, while plotting against Teacher Jiraiya. At the sealed cave, Tanuki Treasure said only Akaseki and Ranwu could sneak inside, leaving Minato outside to provide support.

• Akaseki dispelled his Shadow Clone Technique and learned that Akebino's Kirigakure shinobi were coercing the merchants and searching for Bloodthirsty Star Iron.
• Akaseki, Minato, and Ranwu decided to rescue the merchants and tracked the group through the night.
• Minato located a sealed cave and inferred that the Kirigakure shinobi were preparing to break an Uzumaki Clan Sealing Technique.
• Akaseki summoned Tanuki Treasure on the far side of the mountain to find a way through the seal without damaging it.
• Tanuki Treasure indicated that only two people could enter, so Minato stayed outside while Akaseki and Ranwu prepared to sneak in.

Akaseki and Ranwu infiltrated the sealed mine while Minato stayed outside to watch over them and relay information. After finding the black crystalline ore, they discussed their chakra reserves and prepared for a possible fight with the Hidden Mist ninja.

• Akaseki, Ranwu, and Minato agreed to prioritize their own safety and the hostages, killing the Hidden Mist ninja if they had no other choice.
• Akaseki and Ranwu left shadow clones outside, then used Black Tortoise Tanuki Treasure to pass through the seal and enter the mine.
• Minato remained outside and maintained the Thousand Worlds Awareness Technique to monitor his companions.
• Akaseki and Ranwu found glossy black crystalline ore growing on the mine walls.
• Ranwu estimated her remaining strength, while Akaseki planned to save enough chakra to unleash a Great Dragon Fire Technique down the narrow tunnel.

Akaseki and Ranwu hid as ore while Kirigakure ninja entered the mine to test the bloodthirsty star iron with blood. Ranwu’s genjutsu trapped the rear guard in a vision of old grudges and conspiracies, leaving Shiokawa to realize he had stabbed Meizawa.

• Ranwu warned Akaseki that six Kirigakure Chunin and three hostages were approaching, and they disguised themselves as ore in the mining chamber.
• The Kirigakure ninja arrived with three merchants from the Land of Waves, and the scar-faced Chunin poured fresh blood over the ore to test it.
• Shiokawa and Meizawa entered the tunnel’s rear, where Shiokawa began to suspect that the passage and voices were behaving strangely.
• Ranwu’s genjutsu made Shiokawa believe Meizawa had accused him of killing his brother and that the clan ninja were plotting against commoners.
• Shiokawa fled through the tunnel and, mistaking Meizawa for an enemy, drove a kunai into his chest before realizing what he had done.

Akaseki and Ranwu ambushed and subdued four Kirigakure chunin in a mine on Whirlpool Mountain, while Akaseki’s illusion caused Shiokawa to kill Meizawa. The chapter left Urami Kiriota trapped and facing Akaseki’s summoned Three Platforms Messenger as he accused Konoha of trying to start a war.

• Shiotani Masumi and Urami Namiizō mined black crystalline ore while Urami Kiriota watched the merchants from the Land of Waves.
• Ranwu plunged the mine into darkness and restrained Momochi Senzan and Shiotani Masumi, while Akaseki ambushed Namiizō and trapped Kiriota with Rock Pillar Prison and explosive tags.
• Akaseki told Ranwu that Shiokawa had killed Meizawa after Akaseki’s Sharingan illusion drove Shiokawa mad.
• Akaseki taunted Momochi Senzan about Kirigakure’s internal divisions, and Kiriota recognized the conflict between civilian and clan ninja.
• Akaseki summoned the Three Platforms Messenger as Kiriota demanded to know whether Konoha intended to start a war with Kirigakure.