Chapter Summaries

Xuanyu and Yuhi Kurenai left Tsunade behind, while Tsunade knocked out a local jonin and drew the attention of Zetsu. Zetsu reported her location as Itachi’s illness worsened, and Kisame set out with him to find her.

• Xuanyu denied having sent Tsunade flying, and he and Yuhi Kurenai continued on their way.
• Shizune stopped the furious Tsunade from chasing Xuanyu and tried to take her back to the inn.
• A jonin arrived with his underlings to confront Tsunade, but she punched him unconscious and made his men flee.
• Black and White Zetsu watched Tsunade and realized she was the medical ninja Itachi and Kisame had been seeking.
• In a cave, Itachi coughed and appeared increasingly ill, so Kisame urged him to go to the nearby town and find Tsunade.

Itachi’s worsening illness drove him to seek Tsunade’s treatment, while Tsunade confronted Xuanyu over being thrown the previous night. Xuanyu taunted her by calling her an old lady, and Tsunade lunged at him to teach him a lesson.

• Itachi coughed blood and asked Kisame to take him to Tsunade because he still had unfinished missions.
• Kisame supported Itachi as they left their cave and headed toward town.
• Tsunade returned to the inn, determined to confront Xuanyu the next day about being thrown twice.
• Xuanyu told Yuhi Kurenai that he did not care if his strength was exposed.
• Tsunade found Xuanyu at breakfast and asked if he had thrown her; Xuanyu denied it and called her an old lady and grandma.
• Tsunade grew furious and reached for Xuanyu’s neck.

Tsunade’s confrontation with Xuanyu ended when Shizune’s bleeding wrist triggered Tsunade’s war trauma, leaving her unable to face the blood. Xuanyu accused her of abandoning the Senju Clan, and Tsunade asked what had happened to the clan in Konoha.

• Tsunade tried to attack Xuanyu for insulting her, while Shizune and Yuhi Kurenai held her back.
• Tsunade offered to pay for the damaged table, but Shizune warned that they had little money left.
• Shizune’s wrist was cut, and the sight of blood caused Tsunade to collapse into her chair.
• Shizune explained to Yuhi Kurenai that Tsunade had been unable to bear the sight of blood since the ninja war.
• Xuanyu criticized Tsunade for wallowing in despair, drinking, and gambling while the Senju Clan in Konoha struggled.
• Tsunade stood with Shizune’s support and asked Xuanyu what he meant about the Senju Clan in Konoha.

Uchiha Xuan Yu told Tsunade that Sarutobi Hiruzen’s care had failed the Senju Clan, with some clansmen displaced and others subjected to experiments. Tsunade rejected his claims and threatened him, leaving the group poised for a fight.

• Tsunade asked what had happened to the Senju Clan after Xuan Yu said its members were not living well.
• Tsunade insisted Sarutobi Hiruzen would protect the Senju, but Xuan Yu accused him of allowing clansmen to be displaced and taken for experiments.
• Tsunade accused Xuan Yu of trying to turn her against Konoha’s leaders and refused to believe him.
• Xuan Yu mocked Tsunade as a coward weakened by her fear of blood, and she threatened to kill him without making him bleed.
• Hinata and Shino Aburame prepared to defend Xuan Yu as he and Tsunade faced off.

Uchiha Xuan Yu confronted Tsunade over Konoha’s treatment of the Uchiha and Senju, while Yuhi Kurenai explained the Sarutobi Police Force’s abuses and the Senju Clan’s decline. Tsunade decided to investigate Konoha, then challenged Xuan Yu to a fight, but he proposed competing at something else.

• Shizune demanded that Xuan Yu apologize to Tsunade, but he rejected Tsunade as an elder and accused her of making trouble for him.
• Tsunade took offense and prepared to teach Xuan Yu a lesson, while Yuhi Kurenai stepped in to explain Konoha’s recent abuses and the Senju Clan’s poor condition.
• Kurenai told Tsunade that Xuan Yu had taken in two Senju siblings, leaving Tsunade shocked and uncertain about the Konoha she believed in.
• Tsunade said she would return to investigate, then again demanded an apology and threatened to beat Xuan Yu despite Kurenai’s warning.
• Xuan Yu told Kurenai not to interfere and suggested that he and Tsunade compete at something other than sparring.

Uchiha Xuan Yu offered Tsunade a high-stakes bet to divert her from beating him, enticing her with the chance to win up to 500,000 taels. Tsunade accepted the wager, while Xuanyu’s real plan remained hidden.

• Xuanyu proposed a bet and offered 100,000 taels if Tsunade won, along with letting her beat him.
• Yuhi Kurenai and Dazner watched in confusion and surprise as Xuanyu displayed the money.
• Tsunade agreed to gamble, but Xuanyu insisted she put up a stake of her own.
• Xuanyu proposed betting 100,000 taels against Tsunade’s 10,000 taels and offered up to five rounds.
• Tsunade accepted eagerly and threatened Xuanyu if he was deceiving her.

Tsunade challenged Xuanyu to gamble, secretly using Chakra threads to manipulate the dice, but Xuanyu won every round. Frustrated and suspicious, Tsunade swept the dice off the table and demanded they play cards instead.

• Tsunade had Shizune bring dice and a Dice Cup, then challenged Xuanyu to guess high or low.
• Tsunade secretly used Chakra threads to alter the dice, but Xuanyu subtly countered her and won the first bet.
• Tsunade kept shaking the dice for several more rounds, and Xuanyu won each one despite her cheating.
• Tsunade accused Xuanyu of cheating, but he pointed out that she had shaken her own dice and offered no proof.
• Tsunade knocked the Dice Cup and other items to the floor, then challenged Xuanyu to play cards.

Xuanyu repeatedly beat Tsunade at cards until she lost all her money, then refused her offer of an IOU. He revealed that his real goal was Tsunade’s necklace, and she reacted with anger and guardedness.

• Shizune tried to stop Tsunade from gambling, but Tsunade ordered her to bring the cards and challenged Xuanyu to high card.
• Xuanyu drew the Spade K, and Tsunade’s repeated attempts to change the game’s rules still ended in losses.
• Shizune told Tsunade she had run out of money, and Xuanyu gathered his winnings and prepared to leave with Hinata and the others.
• Tsunade stopped Xuanyu and offered an IOU, then proposed her weapons and medical scrolls as collateral, but he refused them.
• Xuanyu asked Tsunade to wager the necklace left by the First Hokage, and Tsunade clutched it and demanded to know whether he wanted it.

Xuan Yu pressured Tsunade into wagering her precious Pendant, and Tsunade raised the stakes and chose arm wrestling for their next bet. Xuan Yu accepted her conditions and remained certain he would win.

• Tsunade realized Xuan Yu wanted her Pendant, but agreed to wager it rather than let him leave with his winnings.
• Tsunade demanded that Xuan Yu put up his winnings and 500,000 ryo, and he accepted.
• Tsunade added that she could beat Xuan Yu if he lost and choose the contest, and Xuan Yu accepted those conditions too.
• Tsunade proposed arm wrestling, expecting her strength to guarantee victory.
• Xuan Yu agreed to arm wrestle and confidently declared that he would win.

Xuan Yu challenged Tsunade to an arm-wrestling match over more than seven hundred thousand ryo, confident he would win. He proved vastly stronger than her, leaving Tsunade struggling and regretting the wager as she activated her Yin Seal to avoid losing her pendant.

• Tsunade accepted Xuan Yu's arm-wrestling challenge, and Shizune started the match.
• Tsunade used half her strength, then increased her effort, but she could not move Xuan Yu's hand.
• Xuan Yu teased Tsunade as Shizune and Yuhi Kurenai watched in disbelief at his strength.
• Xuan Yu began pressing Tsunade's hand toward the table, and Tsunade activated her Yin Seal to fight back and protect her pendant.

Xuanyu defeated Tsunade in an arm-wrestling match and won her pendant, which resonated with his Wood Release. After he left, Tsunade wondered whether it was time for her to return to Konoha.

• Tsunade activated her Yin Seal and fought with all her strength, but Xuanyu steadily overpowered her in the arm-wrestling match.
• Tsunade admitted defeat and gave Xuanyu the pendant she had wagered.
• Xuanyu confirmed the pendant held energy connected to the First Hokage's Wood Release and said Hua Yu would like it.
• Xuanyu paid the tavern owner for the damage and food, then left with Hinata and the others.
• Shizune offered to retrieve Tsunade's pendant, but Tsunade stopped her and asked what she knew about Xuanyu.
• After hearing Shizune's account, Tsunade wondered whether she should return to Konoha and kept thinking about Xuanyu.

Xuan Yu refused Shizune’s plea to return Tsunade’s Pendant, saying he would give it to a Senju descendant and challenging Tsunade to reclaim it herself. Tsunade resolved to return to Konoha and meet the Pendant’s future owner, while Uchiha Itachi and Kisame Hoshigaki approached the town.

• Yuhi Kurenai asked Xuan Yu why he had won Tsunade’s Pendant, and he said Tsunade no longer deserved to possess it after neglecting the Senju Clan.
• Xuan Yu and his companions ate at another restaurant, where Shizune arrived and pleaded for the Pendant on Tsunade’s behalf.
• Shizune explained the Pendant’s importance to Tsunade, but Xuan Yu said he intended to give it to a Senju descendant and told Tsunade to take it by force if she could.
• Tsunade emerged from outside, said she would return to Konoha to meet the Pendant’s future owner, and vowed to reclaim it if that person proved unsuitable.
• Uchiha Itachi and Kisame Hoshigaki approached the town in Akatsuki’s black cloaks.

Itachi and Kisame arrived in town seeking Tsunade, but met her and Shizune as they were leaving. Tsunade attacked Itachi, whose Genjutsu stopped her strike, and the confrontation continued as Xuanyu and the others sensed the battle from inside town.

• Itachi and Kisame approached the town, wary of a possible trap and sensing that someone had locked onto them.
• Tsunade and Shizune headed out, planning to take a mission before returning to Konoha for the Chunin Exams.
• Itachi introduced himself to Tsunade, and Shizune recognized him as the wanted Konoha Rogue Ninja who had massacred the Uchiha Clan.
• Tsunade attacked Itachi, but her kick passed through his Genjutsu and struck the ground, creating a huge crater.
• Kisame prepared to fight Tsunade, but Itachi stopped him and said he would handle her himself.
• Xuanyu, Hinata, and Yuhi Kurenai sensed the powerful battle from inside town and wondered who was fighting.

Xuan Yu learned that Itachi had come to town seeking Tsunade’s help and went to meet him. During their battle, Itachi trapped Tsunade in a genjutsu and revealed that Konoha’s higher-ups had ordered him to wipe out the Uchiha Clan, but Tsunade remained unconvinced.

• Xuan Yu spotted Itachi and Tsunade near town and went to see them with Yuhi Kurenai, Hinata, and Shino Aburame.
• Itachi stopped Kisame from confronting Tsunade and asked her to treat his injuries, but Tsunade attacked him as a rogue ninja.
• Itachi fought Tsunade and caught her in a genjutsu that bound her in a dark space.
• Itachi told Tsunade that Konoha’s higher-ups had ordered him to destroy the Uchiha Clan and betray Konoha.
• Tsunade rejected Itachi’s claim, insisting that he was lying to persuade her to treat him.

In the Genjutsu Space, Uchiha Itachi told Tsunade that Konoha’s leaders had ordered him to massacre the Uchiha Clan and that he had killed his parents himself. Tsunade doubted the Third Hokage’s role, then agreed to examine Itachi’s illness and possibly prolong his life; after the space collapsed, Shizune found her shaken.

• Tsunade was shocked when Itachi explained that Konoha’s mistreatment of the Uchiha had led some clan members to consider a Coup.
• Itachi admitted that he had chosen Konoha’s side and killed his parents, believing he had to protect the village’s civilians.
• Itachi said the Third Hokage oversaw the mission and Shimura Danzō ordered it, while Uchiha Xuan Yu had interrupted the massacre.
• Tsunade insisted that Sarutobi Hiruzen would not have ordered the clan’s extermination, and Itachi maintained that the Third Hokage was behind it.
• Itachi asked Tsunade to treat his illness, and she said she needed to examine him but might be able to prolong his life.
• The Genjutsu Space collapsed, and Shizune found Tsunade trembling and covered in cold sweat.

Tsunade examined Itachi and found that his body had been severely depleted, leaving his condition beyond a cure. After explaining that Hashirama Senju had died from the same condition, she offered ways to prolong Itachi’s life, and he chose treatment that would preserve his strength; Xuanyu then arrived with others.

• Tsunade examined Itachi and found his body too depleted for her to cure.
• Kisame grew angry at Tsunade’s diagnosis, but Itachi stopped him and asked whether she could delay his death.
• Tsunade revealed that Hashirama Senju had died from the same bodily depletion and described methods she had developed to prolong life.
• Tsunade said Itachi might live for decades if he gave up his Chakra and eyes, but Itachi refused because he needed his strength to protect his younger brother.
• Tsunade offered a second plan using special methods and precious supplements, and Itachi agreed to undergo it.
• Xuanyu arrived with several people and remarked on the lively scene.

Xuanyu confronted Kisame and Itachi, revealing that he had once taken Kisame’s Samehada and warning Itachi to survive until Konoha’s Chunin Exams. Itachi feared Xuanyu was planning a major upheaval, but Xuanyu hinted that hidden truths would be revealed.

• Kisame threatened Xuanyu, but Itachi warned him that he was no match for Xuanyu.
• Xuanyu provoked Kisame by claiming even his father might lose to him, and Itachi reminded Kisame how he had lost Samehada.
• Itachi revealed that Xuanyu was the masked person who had defeated Kisame and taken Samehada, leaving Kisame stunned.
• Xuanyu told Itachi he hoped he would hold on until Konoha’s Chunin Exams, then hinted that important truths would come to light there.
• Itachi asked what Xuanyu planned to do, and Xuanyu said he hoped Itachi would attend to witness the truths, including something he might want to see.

Xuanyu told Itachi that the Chunin Exams would reveal a hidden truth, prompting Itachi and Tsunade to plan to return to Konoha. As Xuanyu traveled with his companions, he revealed that he had once stopped Itachi during the Uchiha massacre, and Yuhi Kurenai asked whether Akatsuki Phantom Tiger was a Uchiha.

• Xuanyu told Itachi that he would learn the truth when the time came, then left with Hinata.
• Itachi told Tsunade that Xuanyu was the strongest Uchiha he had ever seen and had already surpassed him before the massacre.
• Itachi decided to attend the Chunin Exams in Konoha to discover what truth Xuanyu had meant, while Tsunade planned to return as well.
• Yuhi Kurenai asked Xuanyu about his past fight with Itachi, and Xuanyu said he had stopped Itachi from slaughtering the Uchiha Clan.
• Yuhi Kurenai asked Xuanyu whether Akatsuki Phantom Tiger was also a member of the Uchiha Clan.

Xuanyu and Yuhi Kurenai discussed the masked Phantom Tiger and Xuanyu’s plans to reveal hidden truths during the Chunin Exams. As the group approached the Land of Waves, Hinata spotted ninja concealed beneath puddles, and Xuanyu assigned her and Shino to deal with them.

• Xuanyu confirmed that Phantom Tiger was not a member of the Uchiha Clan and said he might appear during the Chunin Exams.
• Yuhi Kurenai warned Xuanyu that acting during the exams could be dangerous, but Xuanyu insisted they meant to expose the truth.
• Xuanyu led the group onward as they traveled for several days toward the Land of Waves.
• Xuanyu slowed on a forest road and told Hinata to inspect their surroundings.
• Hinata used her Byakugan to discover ninja hiding beneath puddles, and Xuanyu tasked her and Shino with handling them.

Xuanyu's group was ambushed on the road to the Land of Waves, but Hinata and Shino Aburame quickly turned the attack against the hidden ninja. The attackers remained in the fight, wary of Xuanyu after mistaking his unseen defense for a blade tool.

• Yuhi Kurenai reassured Dazner that she would protect him while Xuanyu and the others handled any attackers.
• A masked ninja emerged from a puddle and wrapped a Thorn Chain around Xuanyu, but the chain could not touch him.
• Hinata struck the attacker with a powerful whip kick when he tried to pull the chain.
• Hinata fought another ninja while Shino Aburame's Bloodthirsty Insects drained a sneak attacker's blood.
• Xuanyu praised Shino's insects and hinted that they might evolve after the mission.
• The ninja Hinata had kicked warned his companion that Xuanyu might have a defensive blade tool.