Chapter Summaries

Chiba crushed Kumogakure’s invading army and rejected calls to annex the Land of Lightning, choosing instead to demand ransom and negotiate. The chapter ended with Kumogakure’s leaders learning of the defeat and receiving a bloodstained message from Konoha.

• Shikaku Nara reported that Chiba had devastated Kumogakure’s 5,300-man army, leaving the Raikage and Killer B gravely wounded and hundreds of prisoners.
• Fugaku Uchiha and Hyuga Hiashi urged Chiba to invade the Land of Lightning, but Chiba argued that Konoha lacked the manpower and resources to govern it.
• Chiba ordered Shikaku Nara to negotiate for Kumogakure’s treasury, ransom the Raikage, Killer B, and the prisoners, and have Fugaku assist him.
• Chiba threatened to kill the Raikage and sell Killer B to rival villages if Kumogakure refused to pay, then departed after ordering the battlefield cleared.
• A messenger told Dodai and Kumogakure’s leaders that Chiba had wiped out the invading force with one strike, while Mabui warned that the village could not withstand a Konoha advance.
• Mabui opened a bloodstained scroll delivered by hawk and reacted with anger, humiliation, and helplessness.

Kumogakure debated Konoha’s ransom demand, and Yugito Nii volunteered to negotiate. As Chiba’s victory over Kumogakure’s army spread, former Konoha elders feared his power while Ōnoki ordered Iwagakure to avoid provoking Konoha.

• Mabui told Dodai that Konoha demanded ten billion ryo and Kumogakure’s secret Lightning Release scrolls or it would kill the hostages.
• Yugito Nii offered to travel to Konoha with the village’s available cash and negotiate for the Raikage and Eight-Tails.
• Konoha’s civilians and ninja celebrated Chiba’s destruction of Kumogakure’s five-thousand-man army and capture of the Raikage and Eight-Tails.
• Sarutobi Hiruzen reassured Utatane Koharu and Mitokado Homura that Chiba had spared them and told them to avoid any moves against him.
• Ōnoki ordered Iwagakure to pull its border patrols back fifty li and warned his people not to provoke Konoha.

After Senju Qianye’s overwhelming strength became known, Sunagakure, Kirigakure, and Obito’s group reconsidered their plans against Konoha. At Konoha’s border camp, Shikaku Nara demanded a ransom from Yugito Nii for the captured Raikage and Killer B, then offered Kumogakure’s chakra mines to cover the shortfall.

• Rasa ordered Sunagakure to withdraw its spies and end actions against Konoha, then arranged gifts for the Fifth Hokage’s inauguration.
• Yagura forbade Kirigakure personnel from approaching the Land of Fire and ordered the execution of anyone who provoked Konoha shinobi.
• Obito and Black Zetsu discussed Senju Qianye’s power and decided they could not provoke Konoha for now.
• Yugito Nii confronted Shikaku Nara and demanded that Konoha release the captive Raikage and Killer B.
• Shikaku demanded ten billion ryo and Kumogakure’s Lightning Release secrets, then proposed that Kumogakure surrender chakra mines to cover the four-billion-ryo shortfall.

Yugito Nii accepted Kumogakure’s defeat and handed over a vast settlement to Konoha. Back in the village, Chiba ordered all the cash used to improve shinobi benefits, while Fugaku Uchiha and his family praised the Fifth Hokage’s leadership.

• Yugito Nii signed the surrender terms, agreeing to pay six billion ryo, hand over two Chakra Ore mines and ten high-ranking Lightning Release Scrolls, and return A and Killer B.
• Shikaku Nara and Fugaku Uchiha brought Kumogakure’s compensation to Konoha, and Chiba ordered the six billion ryo placed in a fund for shinobi mission rewards and pensions.
• Fugaku Uchiha returned home and found Itachi Uchiha training Sasuke Uchiha in the courtyard.
• Fugaku Uchiha told Itachi Uchiha that Chiba would use all the compensation to improve shinobi benefits, and Itachi agreed that the Fifth Hokage was different from the previous leaders.
• Fugaku Uchiha told Itachi Uchiha to take Sasuke Uchiha to the Ninja Academy when it opened in half a month.

At the Ninja Academy opening ceremony, Fifth Hokage Chiba rejected the traditional Will of Fire speech and urged students to focus on survival and their strengths. He announced stricter graduation standards that required mastery of basic techniques, combat skills, and at least one C-Rank Ninjutsu or taijutsu.

• Naruto arrived at the Ninja Academy with Kakashi, where he and Sasuke exchanged insults after meeting for the first time.
• Chiba appeared at the opening ceremony, and Naruto excitedly greeted him.
• Chiba told the students that they had come to learn how to kill and urged them to develop their strengths to survive and defeat enemies.
• Chiba announced revised graduation standards requiring proficient use of all three Three Body Technique techniques and comprehensive combat skills.
• Chiba added that students would have to master at least one C-Rank Ninjutsu or taijutsu before graduating.

Chiba imposed tougher Ninja Academy graduation standards, then addressed Iruka’s objection by opening every C-Rank Ninjutsu in Konoha’s library to registered ninjas and Academy students. The civilians cheered the policy, while Kakashi recognized that it would win them to Chiba’s side.

• Chiba told the parents and principal that students who failed the new graduation standards could repeat years or leave the Academy, insisting he would rather they fail than die as unprepared ninja.
• Iruka argued that students could not reasonably learn C-Rank Ninjutsu because teachers lacked the resources to teach techniques for every Chakra nature.
• Chiba agreed with Iruka and announced that all C-Rank Ninjutsu in Konoha’s library would be freely available to registered ninjas and Academy students.
• Civilian ninja, parents, and teachers celebrated Chiba’s decision, while the Major Clan heads saw little reason to oppose access to common techniques.
• Kakashi realized that Chiba’s policy would earn the loyalty of Konoha’s Civilian Ninja.

Chiba announced a ninjutsu exchange system and presented Konoha’s clan leaders with a catalog of powerful techniques, allowing them to remove only genuine clan secrets. He revealed that mission rewards would soon include Merit Points, which any ninja could save to exchange for B-Rank and A-Rank ninjutsu.

• Chiba promised that Konoha would soon make B-Rank and A-Rank ninjutsu available through a new exchange system.
• At a meeting with the clan heads, Chiba presented a catalog of more than a hundred B-Rank and dozens of A-Rank techniques, including some clan-associated jutsu.
• Chiba let the clans cross out genuine secrets from the catalog and warned them against falsely claiming techniques as clan inheritances.
• Fugaku Uchiha left the advanced Fire Release techniques untouched, while Hyuga Hiashi confirmed the catalog held no Gentle Fist secrets; the other clan leaders made only a few removals.
• Shikaku Nara asked how the exchange would work, and Chiba announced that mission rewards would include Merit Points that any ninja could use to obtain powerful ninjutsu.

Chiba established a Merit Point system that rewarded missions and village service, winning the Major Clans’ support while placing S-Rank ninjutsu exchanges under his personal approval. After the meeting, he checked on Kakashi’s Anbu reforms and encouraged Naruto to work toward becoming Hokage.

• Chiba announced that Merit Points would reward missions and that exchanging for S-Rank ninjutsu would require his personal approval.
• Shikaku Nara asked how village personnel tied to official posts would earn Merit Points, and Chiba promised fixed monthly salaries and year-end bonuses based on performance.
• Chiba tasked Shikaku with drafting the Merit Point regulations within three days, then ended the meeting as the clan heads respectfully watched him leave.
• Chiba reflected that the system would earn the loyalty of Civilian Ninja and clan ninja while allowing him to control Konoha through rewards with little real cost.
• Kakashi reported that Shisui Uchiha had cooperated and arranged for Uchiha elites to join the Anbu, which was now under Chiba’s control.
• Naruto declared that he would learn powerful ninjutsu, earn Merit Points, and become Hokage, and Chiba encouraged him to work hard.

Senju Qianye’s reforms drove Konoha’s civilian ninjas to train intensely after he opened access to C-Rank ninjutsu. He then announced a Merit Point System that let ninjas earn rewards through missions and exchange them for advanced techniques and other supplies.

• Ito and other civilian ninjas trained desperately with newly available C-Rank ninjutsu at Konoha’s public training grounds.
• Kakashi reported that the crowded grounds had caused more than three hundred ninjas to collapse from Chakra exhaustion, and Qianye ordered free Military Ration Pills for them.
• Qianye told Kakashi that Konoha lacked ambition more than combat power and hinted that Shikaku Nara’s Merit Points plan would transform the village.
• Three days later, Qianye announced mission-based Merit Points and a public exchange system for B-Rank through S-Rank techniques and other items from the Konoha Treasury.

Chiba’s Merit Point exchange system drove Konoha’s ninja to scramble for missions of every rank. The Mission Hall’s accumulated jobs were quickly claimed, leaving even D-Rank chores in fierce demand.

• Ninja flooded the Mission Hall after Chiba made advanced techniques and other rare rewards available through Merit Points.
• Shisui asked whether Forbidden Techniques would be exchangeable, and Chiba explained that S-Rank techniques still required his approval.
• Might Guy, Asuma, and Kurenai competed for A-Rank missions, while Jonin soon claimed all the available jobs of that rank.
• Genma Shiranui and other Jonin swept up B-Rank missions, putting veteran Chunin under pressure as clan ninja also joined the competition.
• Ito tried to claim a C-Rank mission, but Uchiha Tekka took it first, and the crowd rapidly cleared the remaining C-Rank jobs.
• With the higher-ranked boards empty, Chunin and Special Jonin rushed to claim D-Rank chores, squeezing Genin to the edges of the hall.

Jiraiya returned to Konoha and told Sarutobi Hiruzen why he had held back from challenging Senju Qianye after witnessing Qianye defeat Kumogakure’s army. He urged Hiruzen to stop opposing the new Hokage, whose Merit Points system had brought new life to the village.

• Asuma took three B-Rank Missions for Merit Points and rebuked Sarutobi clansmen who complained about having to compete for work.
• Sarutobi Hiruzen reflected on how Senju Qianye’s Merit Points system had dismantled clan privilege and pushed the Sarutobi Clan to earn resources through missions.
• Sarutobi Hiruzen sensed someone on the roof and invited Jiraiya down, and the former master and student reunited in the courtyard.
• Jiraiya explained that he had considered attacking Qianye but investigated Danzo’s dealings and recognized Hiruzen’s responsibility for allowing them.
• Jiraiya recounted how Qianye had defeated five thousand Kumogakure troops, including the Raikage and the Eight-Tails Jinchuriki, with Sage Art Wood Release: Several Thousand Hands.
• Jiraiya urged Sarutobi Hiruzen not to oppose Qianye, saying Konoha was alive and that Qianye was better suited to be Hokage.

After confirming that Sarutobi Hiruzen had given up resisting Qianye, Jiraiya walked through a transformed Konoha and saw Naruto living openly and happily under Kakashi’s care. Moved by the change, Jiraiya headed to join them for ramen.

• Sarutobi Hiruzen told Jiraiya he had surrendered the clan’s assets and would not risk fighting Qianye, then sent him away.
• Jiraiya saw ninja from different backgrounds eagerly taking missions and earning Merit Points, including Uchiha Police members completing a cat-catching task.
• Near the Ninja Academy, Jiraiya saw Kakashi walking Naruto home and heard Naruto excitedly talk about learning chakra extraction and getting ramen.
• Kakashi noticed Jiraiya watching them, while Naruto innocently asked who the white-haired man was.
• Jiraiya, overwhelmed to see Naruto welcomed in public, called out to Kakashi and invited himself to ramen.

Jiraiya saw how much Konoha had changed under Fifth Hokage Senju Qianye and left Naruto with renewed hope for the village. Six years later, Konoha had become powerful and prosperous, and Chiba learned that Naruto and Sasuke’s class was about to take its graduation examination.

• Jiraiya met Naruto and saw that villagers treated him kindly in Konoha.
• Kakashi explained that Senju Qianye’s laws protected Naruto and that Konoha had changed under the Fifth Hokage.
• Jiraiya encouraged Naruto’s dream of surpassing every Hokage before leaving Konoha.
• Over the next six years, Mei Terumi became Fifth Mizukage and reformed Kirigakure, while the other great ninja villages avoided provoking Konoha.
• Shikaku Nara reported that Konoha’s ninja ranks and villagers’ living standards had grown dramatically under Chiba’s Merit Points system and public ninjutsu policies.
• Chiba learned that Naruto and Sasuke’s class would take the Ninja Academy graduation examination in two days.

Fifth Hokage Chiba rejected early graduation for young students and reflected on how much stronger he had become over six years. He prepared to attend Naruto and Sasuke’s graduation exam in two days, while his Sage Mode brought him close to the Six Paths level.

• Shikaku Nara asked Chiba whether gifted students should graduate early, and Chiba forbade sending children under twelve to the battlefield.
• Chiba thought about Naruto’s happier childhood and Sasuke’s life in an intact Uchiha Clan, then scheduled a visit to their graduation exam in two days.
• Chiba checked his abilities and recalled that six annual system draws had produced no god-tier rewards.
• Chiba assessed his peak Super Kage strength and demonstrated Sage Mode, which had advanced to the edge of the Six Paths level.
• Chiba considered how easily he could defeat Nagato, Obito, and Black Zetsu, then turned his gaze toward the moon.

Konoha’s sixth-year students began their graduation examination as the village gathered to see the results of Chiba’s reforms. Naruto stunned the crowd with his Shadow Clone Technique, and the first test ended with only a few students failing.

• Fugaku Uchiha, Hyuga Hiashi, and other clan heads gathered outside the Academy and praised their children ahead of the examination.
• Naruto and Sasuke Uchiha argued over who would take first place while Sakura Haruno tried to stop them from fighting.
• Chiba appeared before the students, silenced the crowd, and ordered the examination to begin.
• Mizuki announced the Three Body Technique test, and Sakura Haruno impressed him with flawless technique and Chakra control.
• Sasuke Uchiha created three clones without hand seals, while Naruto filled half the training grounds with Shadow Clones and astonished the crowd.
• Mizuki passed most students but marked the few habitual truants who failed with an X.

At Konoha's Ninja Academy, students began a comprehensive combat assessment, displaying extraordinary ninja-tool skills before facing active-duty genin in taijutsu. The first round of combat began as Chiba watched from the elevated platform.

• Mizuki announced the two-part assessment, and the students showed impressive accuracy against stationary and moving targets.
• Sasuke used the Uchiha Clan's Shuriken Manipulation Technique to hit all ten moving targets and earn full marks.
• Naruto smashed five targets in a line with one powerful kunai throw, and Mizuki passed him.
• Mizuki introduced the taijutsu test, where students had to last five minutes against active-duty genin without ninjutsu or genjutsu.
• The first group entered the combat circles, and the genin began attacking without holding back.

At Konoha’s Ninja Academy, Chiba watched the students endure a brutal graduation assessment, where Shikamaru, Sakura, Hinata, and Sasuke each passed in strikingly different ways. The assessment continued after Sasuke swiftly defeated his examiner.

• The first round left more than twenty students injured and sent to the infirmary, while fewer than thirty lasted the full five minutes.
• Shikamaru dodged his examiner’s attacks with minimal movements until time ran out, then passed.
• Sakura used powerful chakra-enhanced punches to hold off her examiner for five minutes and passed.
• Hinata activated her Byakugan and defeated her opponent with Gentle Fist Art: Eight Trigrams Thirty-Two Palms in five seconds.
• Sasuke defeated his scar-faced examiner in under ten seconds with Uchiha Style Taijutsu, prompting Fugaku to hide his pride.

Naruto stunned the training ground by defeating his Genin proctor with one punch, and 127 students failed the combat assessment. The ninjutsu test showcased the students’ growing abilities and ended with Sasuke Uchiha being called forward.

• Naruto sent his veteran Genin proctor flying with a single punch, then the proctor conceded defeat.
• Mizuki announced that 127 students had failed the combat trials, and Chiba stood by the strict standard he had set.
• Fujiwara Koji passed the ninjutsu test by performing the Great Fireball Technique, followed by civilian students demonstrating their jutsu.
• Shikamaru Nara used Shadow Imitation Technique to pierce three targets, and Choji Akimichi broke a stone monument with his enlarged arm.
• Ino Yamanaka, Kiba Inuzuka, and Shino Aburame demonstrated their clan techniques before Mizuki called Sasuke Uchiha.

At the Ninja Academy graduation exam, Sasuke impressed the crowd with a powerful B-Rank Fire Release, but Naruto overwhelmed everyone by creating hundreds of Shadow Clones and combining their Wind Release attacks. Chiba praised the students as Mizuki declared that everyone had passed, leaving them ready to receive their Forehead Protectors and become Konoha ninja.

• Sasuke performed Fire Release: Fire Dragon Flame Bullet and melted a reinforced iron target, impressing the examiners and his father, Fugaku.
• Naruto filled the field with hundreds of Shadow Clones, astonishing the Hyuga clan members and the crowd.
• Naruto and his clones unleashed Wind Release: Great Breakthrough together, carving a huge crater and forcing the safety squad to raise a barrier around the stands.
• Naruto released the clones, and the stunned crowd compared his destructive power favorably to an S-Rank technique.
• Mizuki announced that every student had passed the ninjutsu test, and Chiba congratulated them and urged them to spread Konoha's influence across the Ninja World.

Chiba considered how to secure Konoha’s future beyond his own rule and ordered Anbu to locate Orochimaru, whose scientific knowledge he hoped to use despite his crimes. He asked Kakashi to guess his goal, leaving the answer—and the scope of Chiba’s ambition—unrevealed.

• Kakashi reported that Yamato was training Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura, with Naruto’s unruly behavior and Sakura’s combat weakness causing challenges.
• Kakashi delivered an Anbu report locating Orochimaru at an underground facility in the Land of Rice Fields.
• Kakashi warned Chiba that Orochimaru’s human experiments had crossed Konoha’s moral limits, but Chiba argued that Orochimaru’s scientific knowledge could strengthen the village.
• Chiba warned Kakashi that Konoha’s prosperity depended on his military power and argued that science could help civilian ninja overcome bloodline barriers.
• Chiba asked Kakashi what his goal was, but the chapter ended before he revealed it.