Chapter Summaries

Akaseki and his allies fought Rain Ninja in Mountain Hollow Village while poisonous mist filled the enclosed settlement. After thinning the poison with coordinated Wind Release, Akaseki withdrew with his strength and chakra nearly spent, and considered trying a new technique.

• Akaseki used Airflow Wild Dance to push poisonous air toward the exit, but the enclosed hollow allowed only a small amount to escape.
• Akaseki summoned Tanuki Treasure in the White Tiger, while Ranwu and Yakushi Nonō used Hidden Mist Technique to obscure the battlefield and track the Rain Ninja.
• Akaseki’s Mirror Clone struck Muddy Current with a kunai while Tanuki Treasure’s White Tiger attacked the giant salamanders blocking the exit.
• Akaseki and his Mirror Clones coordinated Wind Release along the path of the Great Dragon Fire Technique, driving nearly a third of the poisonous mist out of the cavern.
• Akaseki’s Mirror Clones disappeared and Tanuki Treasure returned to recover, so Akaseki, Ranwu, and Yakushi Nonō retreated as Akaseki considered trying a new technique.

Akaseki used a newly discovered Air Release technique to expel most of the poison gas from Mountain Hollow Village, but the blast left him injured and disoriented. Ranwu carried him toward the exit as Orochimaru, Jiraiya, and Minato heard the explosion and spotted Giant Salamander poison gas rising from the mountains.

• Akaseki, Ranwu, and Yakushi Nonō used the Detoxification Technique while waiting for the Giant Salamanders to release more poison.
• As the villagers weakened and the poison worsened, Akaseki chose to attack without testing the route with a Mirror Clone.
• Akaseki used Air Release: Air Burst Technique, forcing most of the poison gas out of the mountain hollow and diluting what returned.
• The technique's pressure change made Akaseki bleed from his ears and nose and left him dazed, so Ranwu carried him toward the exit.
• Orochimaru, Jiraiya, and Minato heard the blast and saw purple poison gas rising from the mountains near Mountain Hollow Village.

Ranwu and Yakushi Nonō tried to escape Mountain Hollow Village with the incapacitated Akaseki while the Rain Ninja pursued them. They broke through the salamanders at the exit, and an avalanche gave them a chance to escape as Orochimaru, Jiraiya, and another companion spotted them.

• Ranwu and Yakushi Nonō used Hidden Mist Technique and disguises to mislead the Rain Ninja while carrying Akaseki toward the exit.
• Dark Drizzle realized that Ranwu and Yakushi Nonō had impersonated Haze Marsh, but giant salamanders blocked the way out.
• Yakushi Nonō attacked Muddy Current as Ranwu unleashed Water Release: Great Exploding Water Colliding Wave to force a path through the entrance.
• Ranwu escaped on the current while Yakushi Nonō turned back to cover her and Akaseki from the pursuing Rain Ninja.
• Ranwu spotted the avalanche triggered by Akaseki's earlier technique and urged Yakushi Nonō to flee with them.
• Jiraiya saw figures ahead of the avalanche as Orochimaru and the others watched from afar.

Orochimaru and Jiraiya arrived at Mountain Hollow Village and used Triple Rashōmon to stop the avalanche, then captured the six Rain Ninja. Akaseki recovered after oxygen therapy and explained his new Air Release technique, leaving Orochimaru intrigued by how he had developed it.

• Orochimaru summoned Triple Rashōmon to block the avalanche, and Minato stopped Dark Drizzle as the Rain Ninja tried to flee.
• Orochimaru bound all six Rain Ninja and demanded that they summon the Giant Salamander, while Jiraiya examined Akaseki and joined Yakushi Nonō in rescuing villagers.
• Ranwu treated Akaseki with oxygen therapy, and he soon regained consciousness at the supply station.
• Akaseki told Orochimaru about his Air Burst Technique, and Orochimaru identified it as Air Release that made air expand violently.
• Orochimaru explained that Akaseki had injured himself with his own technique rather than suffering backlash, then questioned whether he had created the technique to push the poison mist away.

Akaseki tested his new Air Burst Technique with Orochimaru, who judged it an A-rank technique but noted that its use of Air Release limited its wider value. Akaseki then demonstrated his C-rank Wind Pressure Technique, which Orochimaru approved for use against poisonous mist and ordered him to record for Konoha.

• Akaseki used a Mirror Clone to test the Air Burst Technique, but its clones were left dazed by oxygen deprivation.
• Orochimaru analyzed Air Burst and rated it A-rank, while Akaseki realized that the rank reflected difficulty and cost rather than practical strength.
• Akaseki demonstrated the Wind Pressure Technique, and Orochimaru praised its broad, sustained airflow for dispersing poisonous mist and Hidden Mist.
• Akaseki gave an elaborate explanation for inventing the technique, and Orochimaru told him to write it down for Jiraiya to send to Konoha.
• Jiraiya praised Akaseki, while Ranwu pointed out that Konoha could teach the useful C-rank technique to thousands of ninjas.

Orochimaru offered Akaseki a chance to take Rashomon’s trial, but Ranwu revealed her clan could provide the same opportunity, and Akaseki insisted he had acted for Konoha rather than for a reward. The squad rested in Mountain Hollow Village after sending Akaseki’s Wind Pressure Technique to Konoha, while Orochimaru released two Rain Ninja despite Jiraiya’s concerns.

• Orochimaru offered Akaseki the chance to undergo Rashomon’s difficult trial, and Jiraiya recalled how he had failed before finding Mount Myoboku’s contract scroll and passing the Toad Sage’s trial.
• Ranwu claimed that her elders had already promised Akaseki a chance at Rashomon’s trial, prompting Orochimaru to say he had nothing left to teach him; Akaseki declared that he had acted for Konoha, not a reward.
• Akaseki wrote down the essentials of the Wind Pressure Technique and gave the scroll to Jiraiya, who sent it to Mount Myoboku along with a letter about the squad’s situation and Akaseki’s declaration.
• Orochimaru’s squad rested in Mountain Hollow Village, where Orochimaru fed four captured Rain Ninja to Manda and took venom sacs from two others after they summoned giant salamanders.
• Orochimaru released the remaining two Rain Ninja, dismissing Jiraiya’s concerns and the anger of the Land of Iron samurai.

Orochimaru’s team entered Severed Mountain City and met with the Land of Iron’s samurai leaders, who sought compensation for their fight against the Land of Rain. Orochimaru rejected their appeal for aid while offering to trade recovered supplies for chakra metal, leaving negotiations open.

• Orochimaru’s team entered Severed Mountain City after its samurai welcomed them for rescuing people from the Land of Iron.
• Mifune prostrated himself in gratitude, then offered his renowned blade Black Marsh in exchange for supplies the Konoha ninja had recovered; Orochimaru declined the blade.
• Master Swordsman Three-Eyes argued that the Land of Iron had been dragged into war with the Land of Rain for Konoha’s sake and demanded compensation.
• Akaseki challenged the samurai’s complaints by pointing out that wandering samurai terrorized the Land of Fire, and Orochimaru backed his point without reprimanding him.
• Orochimaru offered to exchange the recovered supplies for chakra metal at equivalent value if the Land of Iron had enough in stock.

Orochimaru and Jiraiya exposed the Land of Iron’s desperate trade with Kumogakure and used its shortage of supplies to renegotiate the deal. Three-Eyes agreed to seek the General’s approval to trade the Heavenly Cloud Sword for grain, while Orochimaru also requested cattle and wine.

• Orochimaru proposed expanding the trade, but Three-Eyes admitted the Land of Iron could not provide the chakra metal ores and asked to pay later with interest.
• Jiraiya revealed that the Land of Iron had increased its trade quota with Kumogakure, and Three-Eyes disclosed that the deal was for Four-To Wine and Black-Haired Cattle rather than grain.
• Three-Eyes knelt and asked Orochimaru to make the transaction a loan, and Orochimaru refused to offer an unsecured loan.
• Orochimaru demanded the Heavenly Cloud Sword in exchange for the grain from this deal and twice as much grain previously taken from the Rain Ninja, and Three-Eyes agreed to inform the General.
• Orochimaru requested one cow and one barrel of Four-To Wine, and Three-Eyes agreed to provide them whether or not the main transaction succeeded.

While Orochimaru’s squad rested in Severed Mountain City, Akaseki tried to develop Air Release chakra so he could create an Air Release Shadow Clone. Jiraiya offered limited advice, and Orochimaru arrived to ask Akaseki how he planned to develop the technique.

• Akaseki and the others ate black yak beef and drank liquor presented as a congratulatory gift, while Ranwu defended Yakushi Nonō from Akaseki’s teasing.
• Orochimaru told Jiraiya that Konoha only needed to prevent the Land of Iron from collapsing, and Jiraiya worried about Orochimaru’s growing ideological differences with their teacher.
• Akaseki, Ranwu, and Minato practiced ninjutsu outside the city, with Akaseki repeatedly using the Air Burst Technique to improve his Air Release control.
• Jiraiya told Akaseki that repeated use of the corresponding ninjutsu might help him adapt to his newly developing kekkei genkai.
• Orochimaru came to observe Akaseki’s practice and asked what he thought about developing Air Release further.

Akaseki discussed developing Air Release with Orochimaru, then learned that Konoha would aid the Land of Iron at Severed Mountain City. Orochimaru agreed to join the fighting while making clear that Konoha would not face Hanzō.

• Akaseki proposed mastering Air Release Chakra and creating an Air Release Shadow Clone, and Orochimaru explained that Air Release controlled air density and could become deadly if sustained.
• Akaseki, Ranwu, and Minato noticed samurai frequently traveling near the eastern side of Severed Mountain City, and Minato guessed they were searching for hidden supplies.
• The Land of Iron's general sent Orochimaru the Heavenly Cloud Sword and supplies in exchange for two Kusanagi swords, and Orochimaru revealed his stored provisions to Three-Eyes.
• Three-Eyes asked Konoha's squad to stay and help defend Severed Mountain City, and Orochimaru agreed while refusing to confront Hanzō.
• Orochimaru told Jiraiya, Akaseki, and the others they would seek chances to join the fighting that afternoon as Rain ninja and Iron samurai continued their war of attrition.

At Severed Mountain City, Akaseki and the Konoha team learned why the Land of Iron had agreed to daily challenge bouts with Amegakure and suspected Hanzō might be preparing to withdraw. When three Sword Masters fell and Mifune was stopped from answering the latest challenge, Akaseki, Minato, and Ranwu stepped forward to fight the three Amegakure jonin.

• Jiraiya explained that Hanzō and the Land of Iron had agreed to daily bouts in which samurai kept fighting until they won once, often paying with their lives.
• Akaseki reasoned that Hanzō might have withdrawn most of his forces or even left, but Jiraiya warned him not to jump to conclusions, and Orochimaru said the situation was the Land of Iron's responsibility.
• After three Sword Masters lost, Mifune prepared to answer the Amegakure jonin's taunts, but Three-Eyes ordered him to stand down.
• Three-Eyes approached Orochimaru, and Akaseki, Minato, and Ranwu stepped forward to handle the challenge.
• The Amegakure jonin mocked the three Konoha Chunin, and Akaseki revealed his Sharingan and taunted them in return.

Akaseki and Ranwu countered the Rain Ninja’s poison mist with their techniques, revealing Ranwu’s new Water Release application. Their success impressed the Land of Iron samurai, while Mifune remained committed to advancing swordsmanship through chakra projection.

• Three-Eyes silenced Mifune when he offered to fight, while the giant salamanders and Rain Ninja released poison mist below the gate.
• Akaseki used four Wind Pressure Techniques to blow most of the poison mist away, then dismissed his shadow clone to conserve chakra.
• Ranwu used a concentrated Hidden Mist Technique to absorb poison particles and slow the remaining mist’s spread.
• Orochimaru explained that Ranwu had developed the technique by adapting her efforts to counter giant salamander poison, though it demanded exceptional Water Style chakra control.
• The Land of Iron samurai were shaken by the young Konoha Ninja’s abilities, but Mifune resolved to pursue chakra projection as the future of swordsmanship.

Minato, Ranwu, and Akaseki used Wind Release: Snare to carry the Hidden Mist Technique through the poison mist, clearing safer paths as they attacked the giant salamanders. Akaseki trapped an underground Rain Ninja with Hell's Gate, then used Air Burst Technique and his clones to knock the Rain Ninja unconscious while forcing more toxins to settle.

• Minato used Wind Release: Snare to spread the Hidden Mist Technique through the poison mist and create low-toxicity corridors.
• Akaseki, Minato, and Ranwu charged the giant salamanders, dodging or countering the Rain Ninja's underground attacks.
• Akaseki's Mirror Clones used Hell's Gate to heat the ground, forcing a Rain Ninja out of hiding with damaged protective gear.
• Akaseki ambushed the injured Rain Ninja and used Air Release: Air Burst Technique to disorient him.
• Akaseki's clones repeated Air Release: Air Burst Technique, rendering the Rain Ninja unconscious and making poisonous particles settle from the air.

Akaseki, Ranwu, and Minato overwhelmed the Rain Ninja forces outside Severed Mountain City, then withdrew when reinforcements blocked their pursuit. The Land of Iron samurai prepared to attack the Rain Ninja position after concluding Hanzō had left, while Orochimaru declined to commit Konoha to their assault.

• Akaseki's Air Burst Technique dropped toxins onto the ground and knocked a Rain Ninja unconscious, while Ranwu and Minato gained the upper hand against their opponents.
• Akaseki ambushed a Giant Salamander from underground, and Minato killed the Rain Ninja who lost his balance when the summon disappeared.
• The last Rain Ninja fled to his main force, where Earth Style walls stopped Akaseki, Ranwu, and Minato; the one-eyed Rain Ninja leader called off the confrontation.
• Mifune thanked the Konoha ninja for driving off the enemy, and Orochimaru remarked that Hanzō had not personally interfered with their mission.
• Three-Eyes announced that the samurai would attack the Rain Ninja position that night, but Orochimaru led the Konoha group away without promising support.
• The samurai resolved to fight anyway, believing Hanzō had taken part of the Rain Ninja force with him and that they outnumbered those left behind.

Orochimaru’s squad planned to ambush the Rain Ninja force while the Land of Iron samurai engaged Hanzō’s bait force. The samurai’s raid began, but Orochimaru’s team waited for confirmation that Hanzō had appeared elsewhere before attacking.

• Jiraiya and Orochimaru warned Akaseki and Ranwu that Hanzō was likely still with the Rain Ninja and outlined a plan to strike an ambush force while the samurai fought him.
• Orochimaru arranged contingencies for the attack, and his squad rested before leaving Severed Mountain City at night.
• Three-Eyes led over a thousand samurai on a night raid, while Mifune stayed behind to guard the city after refusing to surrender Black Marsh.
• The samurai pushed the Rain Ninja back through the poison mist, as Orochimaru’s Shadow Clone watched from a nearby slope.
• Orochimaru’s squad waited outside the valley hiding more than three hundred Rain Ninja, planning to attack only after confirming Hanzō was with the bait force.

Orochimaru, Jiraiya, and Akaseki ambushed the Rain Ninja at the valley entrance, trapping the survivors between Manda and the toads while their team fought through the poison mist. As the Rain Ninja were being slaughtered, the Great Salamander King appeared and forced Orochimaru to call for a retreat.

• Orochimaru warned Jiraiya that Hanzō had attacked and that more than a thousand samurai were trapped in poison mist.
• Akaseki’s Mirror Clones detonated Air Burst Techniques at the valley entrance, killing around fifty Rain Ninja and leaving others stunned.
• Manda and Gamabunta blocked both ends of the passage as Akaseki, Jiraiya, Orochimaru, and their allies fought the remaining Rain Ninja and Giant Salamanders.
• Ranwu helped Gamabunta withstand the poison mist, and Jiraiya replaced him with Gamaken when Gamabunta had to withdraw.
• Akaseki, Minato, and Yakushi Nonō guarded the passage while Orochimaru and Jiraiya attacked the Rain Ninja.
• Manda sensed the Great Salamander King, and Orochimaru told Jiraiya to retreat.

Orochimaru and Jiraiya escaped Hanzō after the Rain Ninja ambush failed, while Hanzō spared the wounded Mifune and pursued Orochimaru's group. After fleeing for a day and night, Orochimaru, Akaseki, and Yakushi Nonō reached the coast near the land bridge to the Land of Lightning, where Orochimaru sensed something ahead.

• Orochimaru ordered a retreat when the Great Salamander King's poison began affecting Manda and he feared Hanzō would arrive.
• Mifune challenged Hanzō to a single strike, lost, and was paralyzed by poison; Hanzō gave him an antidote after Mifune asked him to spare his comrades.
• The Great Salamander King reverse-summoned Hanzō to the valley, where he learned Orochimaru and Jiraiya had escaped and set off after Orochimaru's group.
• Orochimaru split from Jiraiya so one group could survive to report what happened, then slowed Hanzō with traps as Akaseki and Yakushi Nonō fled with him.
• After running through the day and night, Orochimaru, Akaseki, and Yakushi Nonō reached the coast near the land bridge to the Land of Lightning, and Orochimaru stopped Akaseki as he sensed something ahead.

Orochimaru, Yakushi Nonō, and Akaseki captured a Kumogakure escort and discovered that its doctors were bound for the Eight-Tails Jinchuriki. Rather than simply kill them, Orochimaru proposed infiltrating Kumogakure by taking their faces, and Akaseki agreed to learn the technique.

• Orochimaru, Yakushi Nonō, and Akaseki ambushed the Kumogakure escort, killing two ninja and capturing Murusu, Doctor Tetsusai, and their assistants.
• Akaseki and Orochimaru used Genjutsu to learn that Tetsusai was a psychological-treatment specialist being taken to treat the Eight-Tails Jinchuriki.
• Orochimaru rejected killing the doctors as ineffective and revealed his Vanishing Facial Copy Technique by taking Tetsusai's face and wearing it as a disguise.
• Akaseki asked Orochimaru to teach him the technique, and Orochimaru agreed on the condition that it required advanced sealing techniques and Nine-Faced Tanuki's cooperation.

Orochimaru, Akaseki, and Yakushi Nonō disguised themselves as a Land of Sea medical team and entered the Land of Lightning under Kumogakure’s escort. They arrived in Kumogakure on August 31, where Dodai announced that the Raikage wanted to meet Doctor Tetsusai.

• Orochimaru taught Akaseki and Yakushi Nonō the limits of the Vanishing Facial Copy Technique, while Akaseki disguised himself as Genta and Tanuki Treasure took the form of the Southern Dipper Sage.
• Orochimaru issued Akaseki and Yakushi Nonō a provisional A-rank mission to infiltrate Kumogakure, and the three prepared disguises and planted evidence of a staged battle.
• Akaseki and Orochimaru convinced Dodai and Toroi that Konoha ninja had attacked their medical team, while Dodai and Qiyueyi returned from investigating and blamed Amegakure.
• Dodai escorted Orochimaru, Akaseki, and Yakushi Nonō through the Land of Lightning and into Kumogakure on August 31.
• Dodai said the Raikage wanted to meet Doctor Tetsusai, surprising Orochimaru.

Orochimaru, Akaseki, and Yakushi infiltrated Kumogakure under the guise of doctors and learned they were expected to treat the Eight-Tails Jinchuriki, the Third Raikage’s nephew. Orochimaru planned to drug the jinchuriki and unleash the Eight-Tails within the village, while suspecting Kumogakure’s recent seal modifications had exposed the jinchuriki to the beast’s consciousness.

• Shizuma escorted Akaseki and Yakushi to their guarded lodgings, where they acted like ordinary medical assistants.
• Orochimaru returned and told them that members of the Kinkaku Force were surveilling the building.
• Orochimaru explained that killing the jinchuriki would only cause the Eight-Tails to revive, so he planned to prepare drugs that would release it inside Kumogakure.
• Akaseki learned the jinchuriki was the Third Raikage’s nephew and that Kumogakure had recently modified its sealing technique.
• Orochimaru suspected the altered seal allowed the Eight-Tails’ consciousness to reach the jinchuriki.