Chapter Summaries

Uchiha Yan defeated Minato and offered to teach him a hand-seal-less technique that complemented Flying Thunder God, hoping Minato might one day improve the Uchiha’s standing in Konoha. Minato accepted the offer and received a scroll with the Rasengan’s basic training method before they headed back.

• Minato attacked Uchiha Yan with Flying Thunder God, but Yan countered with a hand-seal-less Chakra technique and defeated him.
• Yan explained that the instant technique could complete a Flying Thunder God combat style, and Minato asked what it was.
• Yan offered to teach Minato the technique as an investment in his future influence and his potential to ease the village’s treatment of the Uchiha.
• Minato accepted and said he would help the Uchiha because he believed their exclusion was wrong and civil conflict would harm Konoha.
• Yan gave Minato a scroll containing the Rasengan’s basic training method, and Minato declined help with its later nature transformation.
• Yan and Minato agreed to return after spending a while away.

Uchiha Yan won Minato’s support by teaching him the Rasengan, then returned to Kushina and Rena. As Danzo continued plotting against Sakumo Hatake, Yan accepted Sakumo’s invitation to discuss kenjutsu, intending to warn him about the growing public hype.

• Uchiha Yan defeated Minato in a spar and gave him a Rasengan scroll, gaining Minato’s support; Minato hurried to Training Ground Three to master it.
• Kushina comforted Rena about her painful memories of Kusagakure, and Rena assured her that she had moved on.
• Uchiha Yan returned home and told Kushina he had taught Minato the Rasengan to bring him onto their side.
• Danzo ordered his subordinates to keep praising Sakumo Hatake publicly so that the growing expectations would make Sakumo’s eventual fall worse.
• Kakashi invited Uchiha Yan to Sakumo’s home to discuss kenjutsu, and Yan accepted, planning to warn Sakumo about the public hype.

Danzo planned to ruin Hatake Sakumo’s reputation by engineering a mission failure that would force him to choose his companions over the mission. Uchiha Yan visited the Hatake home with Kakashi, Asuma, and Obito, where he and Hatake Sakumo began a swordsmanship spar.

• Danzo waited for Konoha’s growing public praise of Hatake Sakumo to turn into scorn and planned a mission that would damage Sakumo’s reputation without harming the village.
• Kakashi invited Uchiha Yan to his home, and Asuma and Obito joined them after Uchiha Yan agreed.
• Uchiha Yan prepared enhanced Medical Talismans as a gift and headed to Kakashi’s home with Asuma and Obito the next morning.
• Hatake Sakumo welcomed the group and asked Uchiha Yan to spar with him using swordsmanship alone.
• Uchiha Yan and Hatake Sakumo drew their swords and clashed in the courtyard, impressing Sakumo with Yan’s strength.

Uchiha Yan fought Hatake Sakumo in a prolonged sword duel, impressing him with his strength and rapid improvement. The Third Hokage watched the match and remained intent on obtaining Yan’s training formulas, but decided to wait for a better opportunity.

• Hatake Sakumo unleashed his full swordsmanship against Uchiha Yan, while Obito and Asuma watched and Obito explained that Yan’s “Uchiha Basic Swordsmanship” was made up.
• Uchiha Yan learned rapidly as he and Hatake Sakumo exchanged blows for two hours, and Sakumo eventually stopped the duel, admitting Yan’s progress was astonishing.
• Uchiha Yan thanked Hatake Sakumo for the guidance, and the two agreed to spar together again.
• The Third Hokage watched the duel with the Telescope Technique and suspected Yan had a better Body-Tempering Pills formula than the one he sold.
• The Third Hokage recalled that Yan deflected his requests to Uchiha Senichi or Tsunade and decided to leave the matter for later.

The Third Hokage considered how to advance Asuma’s future and how to contain Hatake Sakumo, while Uchiha Yan and Sakumo discussed swordsmanship and chakra cultivation. Yan’s ideas gave Sakumo a new direction, but his final warning urged him to temper his sharpness.

• The Third Hokage hoped Asuma would grow strong enough to become Hokage and decided he would suppress Uchiha Yan if Yan failed to satisfy him.
• The Third Hokage watched Uchiha Yan and Hatake Sakumo stop fighting, then ended his Telescope Technique as the two men sensed his surveillance.
• Uchiha Yan described five paths of swordsmanship, and Hatake Sakumo recognized his own style in the Sharp Sword and Swordless paths.
• Hatake Sakumo felt his swordsmanship advance after Yan’s explanation, so Yan cautioned him to hear more before committing to that path.
• Uchiha Yan explained how yin and yang related to chakra and swordsmanship, then warned Sakumo that an overly hard sword could wound its wielder.

Uchiha Yan’s swordsmanship advice led Hatake Sakumo to recognize the political trap surrounding him and choose to retire rather than play along with the Third Hokage and Danzo’s schemes. He visited the Third Hokage and claimed an old injury had forced him to stay home, preparing to explain his decision.

• Uchiha Yan advised Hatake Sakumo to balance hardness with softness and avoid being manipulated by Danzo.
• Hatake Sakumo inferred that the Third Hokage and Danzo were using public praise to set him up for a fall, then decided to retire and spend more time with Kakashi.
• Hatake Sakumo waited several days and deliberately spread information to muddy the waters as village support for him grew.
• Hatake Sakumo went to the Hokage Building and told the Third Hokage that an old internal injury had flared up, keeping him away from Anbu duty.

Hatake Sakumo resigned as Anbu Commander and declared he would retire from ninja life, refusing Lord Third’s attempts to keep him in service. He then gathered Konoha’s attention in the square to make a public announcement, leaving Lord Third and the village elders alarmed about his intentions.

• Hatake Sakumo submitted his resignation and retirement applications, but Lord Third rejected them and offered him a month of leave instead.
• Sakumo insisted he would retire, said he would publicly explain his decision, and left Lord Third’s office after offering to return only if the village faced an overwhelming crisis.
• Lord Third cursed Danzo for the rumors and ordered an Anbu ninja to bring him in.
• Sakumo used a loudspeaker in the square to announce that he had a few things to say, drawing a large crowd and attention from the major clans.
• Utatane Koharu and Mitokado Homura hurried to the Hokage Office and questioned Lord Third about letting Sakumo gather the villagers.

Danzo, Hiruzen Sarutobi, Utatane Koharu, and Mitokado Homura argued over Hatake Sakumo’s decision to resign and retire, while Sakumo publicly explained his reasons. The village reacted with outrage, but Hiruzen ultimately accepted Sakumo’s departure as Sakumo appealed to the crowd to support the Hokage.

• Hiruzen Sarutobi blamed Danzo’s rumors for driving Hatake Sakumo to resign and retire, and Danzo argued that Sakumo could still take paid missions.
• Hiruzen warned that Sakumo would be an independent mercenary whom the village could not control, but Danzo insisted he would be able to manipulate him.
• Hatake Sakumo announced that old injuries prevented him from continuing as head of the Anbu and that he was retiring as an official Konoha ninja.
• The crowd protested Sakumo’s departure and suspected that Lord Hokage had forced him to retire, while Danzo claimed the public reaction had made it impossible to stop him.
• Hiruzen agreed to let Sakumo go, and Sakumo told the crowd that he wanted to spend time with Kakashi Hatake and urged them to stop praising him as a candidate for Hokage.

Hatake Sakumo refused to participate in the Hokage election, ending the effort to stir up support for him and leaving the Third Hokage and Danzo to abandon their maneuvering. Uchiha Yan sensed Black-and-White Zetsu leaving Konoha and began considering how to counter their plans, while discovering a powerful new sword technique.

• Hatake Sakumo declared that he would never run for Hokage and vanished from the platform.
• Nara Shikayama and Yamanaka Arashi recognized that someone had tried to push Hatake Sakumo toward power, while Akimichi Shigeyama struggled to understand the political stakes.
• The Third Hokage told Danzo to withdraw his agents, and Danzo chose not to further damage the Third Hokage's reputation.
• Black-and-White Zetsu watched Konoha's turmoil, discussed threats from Hidden Mist and Sunagakure, and fled northwest underground.
• Uchiha Yan sensed two overlapping life forces near Hokage Rock and suspected they belonged to Black-and-White Zetsu, prompting him to plan closer surveillance and seek Hashirama Senju's cells.
• Uchiha Yan recalled creating the Super S-rank Heaven-Cleaving Sword-Drawing Technique and suddenly had a new realization.

Uchiha Yan developed new sword techniques and taught them to his family, while Kakashi questioned his father about resigning from the Anbu. The chapter left Sakumo about to explain his decision to Kakashi.

• Uchiha Yan tested the Heaven-Cleaving Sword-Drawing Technique, which cut through the landscape but shattered his sword, and created an array to refine replacement blades.
• Uchiha Yan developed the S-rank Sword-Drawing Technique and the Taiji Sword Technique, deciding to teach both to his family.
• At dinner, Uchiha Yan passed the two techniques to his family, and Uchiha Senichi urged Uchiha Hao to value fundamentals as well as powerful moves.
• Kakashi Hatake confronted his father about resigning as Anbu captain and asked whether he had done it because of his injuries or to care for Kakashi.

Sakumo Hatake explained to Kakashi Hatake that he resigned to escape a plot against his reputation and to devote himself to mastering swordsmanship. Meanwhile, the Third Hokage questioned Asuma Sarutobi about Uchiha Yan’s meeting with Sakumo, suspecting Yan had influenced his sudden retirement.

• Sakumo Hatake told Kakashi Hatake that people had spread rumors to ruin him, so he stepped down to escape their schemes.
• Sakumo Hatake said retirement gave him time to refine his swordsmanship and promised to teach his new techniques to Kakashi Hatake.
• Kakashi Hatake vowed to train hard, carry on his father’s swordsmanship, and make the Third Hokage regret his actions.
• The Third Hokage confronted Asuma Sarutobi about visiting Sakumo Hatake and watching Uchiha Yan fight the White Fang.
• Asuma Sarutobi accused the Third Hokage of possibly forcing Sakumo Hatake to resign, but the Third Hokage denied it and asked what Uchiha Yan had said to Sakumo.

The Third Hokage questioned Asuma about Uchiha Yan’s meeting with Hatake Sakumo and became convinced Yan had helped Sakumo through his swordsmanship insights. After news of Sakumo’s retirement spread, Yan found him fishing outside Konoha, where Sakumo thanked him for his advice and described his renewed progress.

• Asuma recounted Yan’s theories on swordsmanship to the Third Hokage, who praised Yan’s understanding and dismissed his suspicions about him.
• The Third Hokage urged Asuma to spend more time learning from Yan, and Asuma described how Yan had defeated him, Guy, Kakashi, and Obito before giving them individual pointers.
• The news of Hatake Sakumo’s retirement spread through Konoha and beyond, while Danzo secretly worked to dampen the public attention.
• Sakumo avoided visitors and went fishing outside the village, where Yan appeared and teased him about the people looking for him.
• Sakumo thanked Yan for reminding him about the schemes against him and said that retirement and Yan’s guidance had begun to loosen his swordsmanship bottleneck.
• Yan denied that he had encouraged Sakumo to retire or had anything to do with his decision.

Uchiha Yan visited Hatake Sakumo, who had settled into a peaceful life after quitting as a ninja, and warned him that war might be approaching. In the Raikage’s office, the Third Raikage decided to let other villages test Konoha while he focused on the growing threat from Hidden Stone.

• Uchiha Yan explained to Hatake Sakumo that he had no reason to graduate early because he preferred training and studying over missions and rank.
• Hatake Sakumo said he had adjusted to his new life and felt more relaxed, then worried that the other villages might exploit his resignation and spark a war.
• Uchiha Yan advised Hatake Sakumo to make the Third Hokage pay well if they tried to bring him back, especially to fund Kakashi’s training and Body-Tempering Pills.
• The Third Raikage dismissed Dodai’s suggestion to declare war on Konoha and chose to let other villages test Konoha while monitoring Hidden Stone and preparing diversions along nearby borders.
• The Third Raikage planned to send elite squads to harass the Land of Fire and keep Ōnoki distracted.

Ōnoki and Kitsuchi discussed Konoha’s weakened state, while the Third Mizukage decided to launch a surprise attack on Konoha. Uchiha Yan learned that Uchiha Madara was manipulating the Mizukage and tasked his Divine Clone with obtaining clan research materials during the coming war.

• Ōnoki dismissed Kitsuchi’s suggestion to exploit Konoha’s turmoil and said Iwagakure should focus on weakening Hidden Cloud.
• The Third Mizukage persuaded Kirigakure’s clans to support a war against Konoha, scheduled to begin in five days.
• Uchiha Yan’s original body joined his Divine Clone and learned that the Third Mizukage had residual Sharingan ocular power in his brain.
• Uchiha Yan concluded that Uchiha Madara was manipulating Hidden Mist to provoke a wider war and exhaust Konoha.
• Uchiha Yan ordered his Divine Clone to obtain complete research materials from the Kaguya, Yuki, and Hozuki Clans, including a Hydrification Technique training scroll.

Uchiha Yan warned Uchiha Senichi that the Hidden Mist planned to attack Konoha in five days and that Uchiha Madara was secretly behind the threat. He explained Madara's survival and plans, then left Senichi with new questions about Madara's missing Rinnegan.

• Uchiha Yan told Uchiha Senichi that the Hidden Mist would attack Konoha in five days and suspected Uchiha Madara was behind it.
• Uchiha Yan explained that Madara had used Izanagi to fake his death, taken Hashirama Senju's flesh, and later awakened the Rinnegan.
• Uchiha Yan warned that Madara might target their family during the war, provoke them into awakening their eyes, and turn one of them into his pawn.
• Uchiha Senichi promised to warn the family and asked how much strength Madara retained and whether they could defeat him.
• Uchiha Yan said Madara was still far beyond Kage-level but had lost his Rinnegan and was using Three-Tomoe Sharingan; Uchiha Senichi asked where the Rinnegan had gone.

Uchiha Yan explained how Uchiha Madara recovered his eye and awakened the Rinnegan, then warned his father that the Uchiha clan would eventually face the battlefield. Elsewhere, Tsunade and Orochimaru told Jiraiya that Danzo was responsible for Nawaki’s death, leaving Jiraiya shaken.

• Uchiha Yan explained that Madara used the First Hokage’s flesh and blood to help his blinded eye recover and eventually awaken the Rinnegan.
• Uchiha Senichi learned that Uchiha Yan had placed Spiritual Sealing Techniques in his mind to keep secrets from being revealed.
• Uchiha Yan warned his father that the Uchiha clan would eventually end up on the battlefield, then left.
• Jiraiya, Tsunade, and Orochimaru discussed the treatment of Hatake Sakumo and the Third Hokage’s and Danzo’s actions.
• Tsunade suggested that Nawaki’s death was not an accident, and Orochimaru said Danzo could not escape responsibility, leaving Jiraiya stunned.

Tsunade left Jiraiya and Orochimaru after they argued over Danzo and the Third Hokage’s knowledge of his actions. Later, Uchiha Yan asked Tsunade to introduce him to Orochimaru so he could seek information about legendary swords, and she arranged a meeting.

• Tsunade walked away from Jiraiya, and Orochimaru told Jiraiya that the Third Hokage had approved Danzo’s actions.
• Uchiha Yan visited Tsunade and explained that his Super S-rank sword technique required a stronger weapon than ordinary refined iron swords.
• Yan asked Tsunade to introduce him to Orochimaru, who might know about the Kusanagi Sword.
• Tsunade warned Yan about Orochimaru, then learned that Yan had created the Super S-rank Ninjakenjutsu 'Zero Zero Zero.'
• Tsunade agreed to take Yan to meet Orochimaru and sent Haku to arrange a meeting at Uchiha Restaurant.
• Haku returned Orochimaru’s reply, which said, 'Yes.'

Uchiha Yan traded Orochimaru research booklets for a Kusanagi Sword and a lead, while Kakuzu accepted a bounty to find the same weapon. Orochimaru set out to gather the sword information, and Kakuzu began pursuing it independently.

• Tsunade brought Uchiha Yan to meet Orochimaru at the Uchiha Restaurant, where Yan asked for the Kusanagi Sword and offered two research booklets in exchange.
• Orochimaru praised the booklets and tried to recruit Yan, but Tsunade threatened him and forbade him from seeking cooperation with Yan.
• Orochimaru agreed to provide one genuine Kusanagi Sword and a lead in exchange for Yan's future research, then gave Yan a Summoning Contract scroll for contacting him.
• Tsunade warned Yan not to meet Orochimaru alone, and Yan reassured her that he would bring her along.
• Kakuzu found a bounty notice seeking Kusanagi Swords and leads, accepted the mission, and decided to search using information he had gathered before.

Kirigakure invaded the Land of Fire, forcing Konoha’s leaders to plan defenses against several possible fronts. The Third Hokage and Danzo decided to send the Uchiha and Hyuga clans to fight Kirigakure, hoping the dangerous assignment and rivalry would weaken them.

• Kirigakure sent more than six thousand ninja into the Land of Fire, while Hidden Cloud advanced near the Land of Hot Water and Konoha’s leaders feared attacks from the other great villages.
• The Third Hokage ordered Danzo to take fifteen hundred ninja to defend the borders near the Land of Grass and the Land of Rain and watch Hidden Stone.
• Danzo urged the leaders to send the Uchiha to the front lines, while the Third Hokage worried that battlefield losses might awaken their Mangekyō Sharingan.
• Danzo proposed assigning the Uchiha to fight Kirigakure, whose Water Release and Hidden Mist Technique would pose a particular challenge to them.
• The Third Hokage agreed to send the Uchiha and added members of the Hyuga clan, expecting their rivalry to cause further losses.

Konoha’s leaders arranged the war deployment, and Fugaku saw the expedition as a chance to earn support and become Uchiha clan head. At the clan meeting, Uchiha Hao condemned Fugaku’s plan, and the clan’s members openly favored Senichi instead.

• The Third Hokage assigned the Ino–Shika–Cho Trio to coordinate, put Orochimaru in command of the front, and tasked him with monitoring the Hidden Mist battlefield.
• Fugaku told Tian Rong he would lead the Uchiha on the expedition to earn merit and secure the clan-head position, while Tian Rong urged him to arrange a marriage with Uchiha Yunko before leaving.
• The Uchiha clan mobilized for war and held a meeting to discuss its deployment.
• Uchiha Hao accused Fugaku of pushing the clan into danger for the Hokage, and Fugaku could only say that he trusted the Hokage’s judgment.
• Uchiha clan members criticized Fugaku and praised Senichi, while even some of Tian Rong’s supporters began to doubt Fugaku.