Ōnoki

Biodata

Feature	Value
Name	Ōnoki (大野木)
Alias(es)	Third Tsuchikage 2
Gender	Male
Affiliation	Iwagakure, Land of Earth 2
Occupation/Role	Third Tsuchikage; Dust Release instructor; later an adviser to his successor, Kyoshin Uchiha 12 169 171
Status	Retired as Tsuchikage; remains active during the Allied Shinobi Forces’ battle against Madara 169 180
First Appearance	Chapter 2, “Iwagakure” 2

Power Progression

Stage / Realm / Level	Chapter	Notes
Dust Release mastery — historical	12	Recalls spending five years learning the prerequisites and achieving his first successful Dust Release, with nearly 100,000 failed attempts.
Mangekyō Sharingan transplant — alternate-world Ōnoki	143	Kyoshin transplants one of Obito’s eyes and reconnects its nerves with medical chakra so Ōnoki can use Izanami.
Izanami learned and used — alternate-world Ōnoki	143	Learns the technique from Kyoshin’s explanation, then activates it through physical contact with Kabuto. The technique permanently sacrifices sight in the eye used.

Appearance

• Build: An elderly man of short stature, particularly noticeable when standing among the other Kage 2 180.
• Face: Deep wrinkles, a beard, and cloudy but sharp eyes 2 171 180.
• Voice: Deep and steady, conveying the authority of a long-serving leader 2.
• Presence: His chakra pressure is described as being as heavy as a mountain 2.
• Movement: Frequently hovers or flies rather than walking 2 3 23 172.
• Physical complaint: Suffers frequent back pain, though he resists admitting that he is growing old 104.

Personality

Ōnoki combines political caution with an intense appetite for talent. He initially treats Kyoshin’s arrival as a possible infiltration attempt, mindful that persecution by Konoha does not automatically guarantee loyalty to Iwagakure. Once observation establishes Kyoshin’s sincerity, he commits substantial resources to his development 2 3 4.

His protective treatment of Kyoshin develops beyond strategic investment. He shelters the boy in his own home, prepares a detailed cover identity, and later rebukes Goriki for questioning his loyalty. Ōnoki explicitly regards Konoha’s treatment of the Uchiha as a warning that suspicion can drive valuable people away 2 6 50.

Passing on Dust Release is his strongest personal concern. Before Kyoshin’s success, he fears dying without a younger Iwagakure ninja inheriting it. His relief becomes openly emotional when Kyoshin produces the technique’s first stable light 12 23.

Despite his attachment to Iwagakure’s future, he willingly relinquishes authority once Kyoshin becomes Tsuchikage. He rejects the model of a retired leader continuing to control the office and deliberately avoids placing his own political observers around his successor 170 171.

Background / History

Early Career and the Burden of Dust Release

Ōnoki recalls attending the First Five Kage Summit as the First Tsuchikage’s guard. Madara Uchiha’s overwhelming chakra left him with a lasting fear of the Uchiha name. Tobirama later recognizes him as the youngster who had followed Mū 3 44.

By Kyoshin’s arrival, Ōnoki is the only person in Iwagakure who has mastered Dust Release. The village has few ninja capable of meeting its prerequisites, and even Kitsuchi remains far from learning it. This shortage makes Kyoshin’s natural Fire, Wind, and Earth affinities especially important to him 3 12.

Accepting Kyoshin Uchiha

After reading Kyoshin’s account of the Uchiha massacre, Ōnoki questions why he chose Iwagakure and whether he might still be loyal to Konoha. He permits the boy to stay at his home while arranging covert observation by intelligence and interrogation specialists 2 3.

A week of reports convinces Ōnoki that Kyoshin is trustworthy. He formally accepts him into the village, providing housing, a monthly stipend, ninja supplies, and access to ninjutsu scrolls. He subsequently gives him the local identity Kintsuchi, supported by behavioral guidelines and contingency plans 3 4 6.

Ōnoki protects that identity through diplomacy. He rejects Danzō’s initial search request and makes Hiruzen negotiate directly 6. His eventual conditions sharply restrict Konoha’s operation:

Search condition	Requirement
Payment	10 million ryō 7
Squad size	Three ninja 7
Strength ceiling	No member above elite chūnin level 7
Restricted area	No approach to Iwagakure 7
Time limit	Fifteen days 7
Oversight	Joint search with an Iwagakure squad 7

Konoha’s search ends without finding Kyoshin. Ōnoki also avoids publicizing the Uchiha conflict, preventing Konoha from using public reaction to estimate the boy’s location 7.

Training the Next Generation

Ōnoki has Akatsuchi spar with Kyoshin to measure his actual strength, ending the match once Kyoshin’s genjutsu threatens serious harm. He then arranges specialist jōnin instruction and begins preparing him for Dust Release 9 10 11.

Kyoshin masters the six prerequisite training methods in one month, far faster than Ōnoki’s estimate of at least half a year. Ōnoki teaches him the fusion process and assigns him to an Anbu squad led by two experienced elite jōnin so that training is complemented by mission experience 12.

When Kyoshin manifests a small, stable Dust Release glow, Ōnoki weeps with excitement. He directs the next stage of training toward greater duration, scale, and the structural formulas of Atomic Dismantling and Limitless Dismantling 23.

He later establishes the Iwagakure Seventh Special Operations Squad, codenamed Team Kintsuchi. Kyoshin becomes captain and jōnin instructor for Kurotsuchi, Deidara, and Karin. Ōnoki and Kitsuchi retain responsibility for Kurotsuchi’s and Deidara’s advanced instruction 26.

Recruitment and Foreign Affairs

Ōnoki welcomes Haku as an Iwagakure ninja and guarantees housing, equipment, training, and living expenses. He similarly supports Yakumo Kurama’s registration after Kyoshin brings her to the village 33 104.

Initially reluctant to expose Kyoshin at Konoha’s Chūnin Exams, he reconsiders after hearing about the planned Konoha Crush and its potential rewards. He personally leads Iwagakure’s delegation, accompanied by Kitsuchi, Akatsuchi, and an elite Anbu squad 33 34.

During the attack, he allies with Hiruzen against Orochimaru’s reincarnated Kage. His participation against five Kage-level opponents renews his reputation across the ninja world. Afterward, he entrusts Kyoshin with managing the recovered Yin Nine-Tails chakra, acknowledging both the boy’s abilities and his ownership of the trophy 45 56.

Other documented actions include stationing guards in the strategically located Land of Waves, receiving the Land of Snow’s alliance envoy, and supporting Kyoshin with Dust Release against Urashiki 62 78 79 97. When a marriage alliance with Kazahana Koyuki is proposed, he asks Kyoshin’s opinion rather than accepting it on his behalf 79.

Succession and Retirement

Ōnoki begins preparing Kyoshin for leadership by assigning him Tsuchikage work during Yakumo’s registration. He later presses him to choose a day to take office and formally passes on the title 104 166 169.

At the inauguration, he refuses to receive a diplomatic scroll addressed to the village’s leader and redirects the envoy to the newly appointed Fourth Tsuchikage. The transfer of authority is immediate, not merely ceremonial 170.

He remains available for advice but withdraws from routine political involvement. Before Kyoshin’s first Five Kage Summit as Tsuchikage, he urges him not to show weakness because he now represents Iwagakure 171 172.

During the battle against Madara, Tsunade, Mei, and Chiyo praise Iwagakure’s new leader and Ōnoki’s judgment in supporting him. Ōnoki responds with unmistakable pride 180.

Abilities & Skills

Dust Release

Ōnoki’s signature Kekkei Tōta combines Fire, Wind, and Earth chakra into a stable structure capable of decomposing matter to the atomic level 3 12.

• Atomic Dismantling Jutsu: Uses a white cubic barrier to erase a target’s body or body parts 148 156.
• Training method: Teaches simultaneous manipulation, balanced fusion, and stabilized output as three separate stages 12.
• Advanced knowledge: Identifies Atomic Dismantling and Limitless Dismantling as techniques requiring specific structural formulas 23.
• Coordinated attacks: Contributes his own Dust Release to Kyoshin’s assault on Urashiki 97.
• Limit against regeneration: Erases one of Moryo’s heads, but it immediately regrows; he recognizes that its chakra-construct body differs from ordinary matter 156.

Earth Release and Weight Manipulation

• Light-Weight Rock Technique and Added-Weight Rock Technique: Techniques associated with Ōnoki that Kyoshin adds to his training 23.
• Ultra-Light-Weight Rock Technique: Identified as a rare technique known to Ōnoki and a few other Tsuchikage 134.
• Flight: Repeatedly levitates and travels through the air 2 3 172.
• Underground movement: An alternate-world Ōnoki uses Earth Release to approach Kabuto from beneath the ground 143.

Political Strategy and Administration

• Counterintelligence: Organizes discreet loyalty testing and prepares a comprehensive cover identity for Kyoshin 3 6.
• Diplomacy: Allows a tightly controlled foreign search without surrendering Iwagakure’s security or revealing its protected resident 7.
• Talent development: Coordinates instructors, resources, mission experience, and complementary team roles 10 12 26.
• Succession planning: Trains Kyoshin in administrative work and then transfers authority without maintaining a parallel power structure 104 170 171.

Izanami — Alternate-World Ōnoki

• Acquisition: Receives Obito’s transplanted Mangekyō Sharingan and instruction from Kyoshin 143.
• Application: Touches Kabuto’s lower leg to initiate an endlessly repeating experience, leading Kabuto to accept his mistakes and surrender 143.
• Cost: Permanently loses sight in the eye used to cast the technique 143.

Relationships

• Kyoshin Uchiha / Jingxin / Kintsuchi — Refugee turned student, family member, and successor. Ōnoki gives him protection, resources, a cover identity, and Dust Release instruction; Kyoshin later calls him “Grandpa” and becomes the Fourth Tsuchikage 2 6 12 166 169.
• Kitsuchi — Son and trusted assistant. Carries out Ōnoki’s orders, participates in Kyoshin’s training, and accompanies the Konoha delegation 2 3 26 34.
• Kurotsuchi — Granddaughter. Ōnoki oversees her development and considers her feelings when discussing Kyoshin’s possible political marriage 2 7 78.
• Akatsuchi — Disciple, confidant, and former Kage Guard. Ōnoki uses him to test Kyoshin and prefers to retain his company after retirement 9 171.
• Deidara — Disciple whose advanced training Ōnoki shares with Kitsuchi; assigned to Team Kintsuchi 26 171.
• Hiruzen Sarutobi — Diplomatic rival and temporary battlefield ally. Ōnoki negotiates restrictive search terms with him and later fights beside him during the Konoha Crush 7 45 56.
• Madara Uchiha — A formative source of fear. Their early encounter influences Ōnoki’s initial apprehension about accepting an Uchiha into Iwagakure 3.
• Minato Namikaze — A feared and respected enemy of the past. Ōnoki remembers his devastating battle record while celebrating Kyoshin’s acquisition of Flying Thunder God 59.

Alternate-World Counterparts

Television-Era Iwagakure

• An elderly Ōnoki watches the visiting Kyoshin on television and becomes agitated when he learns that the boy is an Iwagakure Uchiha 129.
• Kyoshin’s Dust Release brings him to tears, followed by disappointment that his own world has no Kyoshin. He resolves to accelerate an unspecified plan 131.

Kurotsuchi’s Displacement and the Five Kage Summit

• Initially assumes the displaced, older Kurotsuchi is confused or disguised; the appearance of his world’s younger Kurotsuchi prompts him to order an Anbu encirclement 133 134.
• Takes her claims seriously after she demonstrates rare weight-manipulation techniques, then spends a week verifying her identity 134.
• Cares for her during her six-year stay and encourages her to live well while searching for a way home 135.
• Inside the false Tsukuyomi world, sides with Obito and kills the Raikage with Dust Release. He prefers the illusion because it supplies the Dust Release successor he lacks in reality 140.
• His imagined Kintsuchi, modeled on Kyoshin, is defeated; Kyoshin also defeats and seals Ōnoki 140 141.
• Abandons the Infinite Tsukuyomi plan after learning its true connection to Kaguya, then helps Kyoshin subdue Kabuto with Izanami 142 143.

Other Encounters

• A counterpart pursuing Uzumaki talent attempts to capture Karin with Dust Release after she refuses him. Kyoshin arrives during the confrontation 148.
• In the world threatened by Moryo, Ōnoki discovers that ordinary Dust Release cannot permanently destroy the monster’s rapidly regenerating chakra body 156.

Notable Quotes

“Only by treating people with sincerity can one truly keep talent within their own home.” 50

“If I could see a young man from Iwagakure use Dust Release even once, just once, I could close my eyes in peace.” 12

“From now on, all matters concerning Iwagakure will be decided solely by the Fourth Tsuchikage.” 170