Chapter Summaries

Ye Fan negotiated with Inuzuka Goya to leave the Inuzuka Clan in exchange for money and benefits, offering the clan head a way to protect his reputation. After returning home, Ye Fan explained his decision to Hana Inuzuka and Kiba Inuzuka, who embraced him despite their distress.

• Ye Fan confronted Inuzuka Goya, arguing that expelling him would damage the clan head's reputation and offering him two choices.
• Ye Fan warned that secretly killing him risked exposing Inuzuka Goya, then proposed leaving the clan in exchange for financial support.
• Inuzuka Goya agreed to negotiate payment, and Ye Fan left the residence satisfied with their deal.
• Ye Fan told Hana Inuzuka and Kiba Inuzuka about the agreement and explained that he wanted to choose his own path and grow stronger.
• Hana Inuzuka and Kiba Inuzuka embraced Ye Fan.

Ye Fan bought a remote, run-down residence with its own courtyard and found old forging equipment inside, planning to make a special gift for Neji Hyuga before their make-up exam. Tenten warned Neji about Ye Fan's powerful Ninja Hound, but Neji remained confident he would win.

• Ye Fan searched for a home and chose an abandoned residence on the outskirts of Konoha after meeting its owner, Tenten.
• Ye Fan bought the property and found usable forging tools inside, deciding to gather materials and craft hidden weapons for Neji Hyuga.
• Tenten went to Neji and Rock Lee's training spot and warned Neji about Ye Fan's Ninja Hound and apparent preparations.
• Neji dismissed Tenten's concerns and insisted he would defeat Ye Fan in the make-up exam.

Ye Fan’s makeup exam against Neji Hyuga began, with the onlookers wondering how Ye Fan would fare despite having no chakra. Neji charged without activating his Byakugan, but Dark Shadow struck first and sent him sliding backward, leaving the crowd stunned.

• Hanabi Hyuga told Hinata Hyuga she expected Ye Fan to pass easily and revealed that she had secretly observed him with the Byakugan.
• Neji Hyuga arrived at the training hall and glared at Ye Fan, who waved to Hanabi instead of responding to him.
• Iruka explained the five-minute exam rules and started the match between Ye Fan and Neji.
• Ye Fan mounted Laiyun and casually declared himself ready, angering Neji.
• Neji rushed Ye Fan without activating his Byakugan, and Dark Shadow intercepted him with a powerful strike that knocked him backward.

Neji Hyuga battled Dark Shadow during Ye Fan’s makeup exam, defeating the Ninja Hound before pursuing Ye Fan and Laiyun. Ye Fan then threw a pill-shaped object at Neji, and an unbelievable scene began to unfold.

• Neji Hyuga activated his Byakugan and fought Dark Shadow, whose attacks briefly stalemated against his Eight Trigrams Sixty-Four Palms.
• Tenten, Rock Lee, Hanabi Hyuga, Kiba Inuzuka, and Shino Aburame watched and commented as Neji gradually read Dark Shadow’s attacks.
• Neji struck Dark Shadow’s acupoints, obstructing its chakra and knocking it down, while Ye Fan judged that it lacked combat experience.
• Neji charged at Ye Fan, but Laiyun kept leaping away and preventing him from getting close.
• Ye Fan told Neji he had a special gift for him and threw a pill-shaped object toward him; Neji did not dodge.

Ye Fan used pungent red pills to fill the exam hall with painful gas, overwhelming Neji Hyuga’s Byakugan and forcing everyone to evacuate. After the crowd recovered outside, Hanabi Hyuga activated her Byakugan and saw an eerie scene inside.

• Neji Hyuga failed to track Ye Fan’s vanished hidden weapon and noticed its strange scent.
• Kiba Inuzuka told Shino Aburame that Ye Fan had planned to use smell against the Byakugan.
• Ye Fan threw red pills onto the floor, filling the hall with gas that burned everyone’s eyes and airways.
• Iruka ended the make-up exam, and the attendees, Neji Hyuga, and Iruka fled outside to recover.
• Hanabi Hyuga used her Byakugan to search for Ye Fan and saw an eerie scene inside the hall.

Ye Fan passed the retest after gathering the smoke he had created into a pill, while Hanabi Hyuga watched in amazement. Neji Hyuga tried to attack Ye Fan after the result was announced, and the chapter ended with Laiyun sending Neji flying and charging after him.

• Hanabi Hyuga watched Ye Fan clear the hall by gathering its smoke with an unfamiliar technique.
• Ye Fan emerged, explained that he had used an improved smoke bomb, and Iruka declared that he had passed the retest.
• Neji Hyuga, furious at the outcome, tried to attack Ye Fan despite Iruka, Tenten, and Rock Lee attempting to stop him.
• Hanabi Hyuga stepped in to protect Ye Fan and activated her Byakugan as Neji charged at her.
• Laiyun struck Neji Hyuga and sent him flying, then charged after him with killing intent.

Ye Fan stopped Laiyun from seriously injuring Neji Hyuga and warned Neji not to threaten Hanabi Hyuga again. He then took Hanabi away to a secluded place, where he used Spirit Dew to soothe her painful eyes.

• Laiyun overpowered Neji Hyuga, caught Tenten's kunai, and knocked Rock Lee aside before Ye Fan ordered him to stop.
• Ye Fan warned Neji Hyuga that he would cripple him if Neji showed murderous intent toward Hanabi Hyuga again.
• Ye Fan took Hanabi Hyuga away on Laiyun, leaving Iruka to handle the injured Neji and the fallout.
• At a secluded spot, Ye Fan reassured Hanabi that Dark Shadow would recover after his chakra seal wore off.
• Ye Fan applied two drops of Spirit Dew to Hanabi's eyes, easing the pain and beginning to sharpen her vision.

Ye Fan healed Hanabi Hyuga's eyes with Spirit Dew and showed her how to release the acupoints Neji Hyuga had sealed in Dark Shadow. He agreed to secretly teach Hanabi Hyuga, beginning with a chakra-adapted version of his Gentle Fist technique, Thousand Mechanisms, Realm-Binding.

• Hanabi Hyuga's eyes recovered after Ye Fan gave her Spirit Dew, and she checked Dark Shadow's still-sealed chakra with her Byakugan.
• Ye Fan explained how Neji Hyuga's chakra had blocked Dark Shadow's meridians, then cleared them with a single tap while Hanabi watched.
• Ye Fan offered to teach Hanabi how to release acupoints, and he explained that he used Spirit Power rather than chakra.
• Hanabi Hyuga mistook Ye Fan's Spirit Power for Sage Arts, and Ye Fan offered to teach her if she kept it secret from everyone, including her family.
• Ye Fan decided to teach Hanabi a new Gentle Fist called Thousand Mechanisms, Realm-Binding, adapted for chakra and divided into three levels.

Ye Fan completed his Genin registration but had no instructor or teammates yet. When Inuzuka Seto provoked him, Ye Fan ordered Laiyun to defeat Seto and his wolfhound, then warned Seto not to challenge him again.

• Ye Fan returned Hanabi Hyuga to Hinata Hyuga and left to collect his forehead protector and register as a Genin.
• Ye Fan completed the registration process and learned that Hiruzen Sarutobi might place him in an existing Genin squad, though no team had been chosen.
• Inuzuka Seto mocked Ye Fan for leaving the Inuzuka Clan and threatened to teach him a lesson.
• Ye Fan ordered Laiyun to attack, and Laiyun sent Inuzuka Seto flying and overpowered his black wolfhound.
• Ye Fan called Laiyun back after Seto could no longer stand and warned Seto that he was not as good as Ye Fan's dogs.

Inuzuka Seto admitted that Ye Fan had beaten him, prompting Inuzuka Goya to send a clansman to summon Ye Fan. Ye Fan refused to answer the summons and unsettled the messenger by claiming Seto had revealed the Inuzuka Clan’s secret training of Ninja Hounds.

• Inuzuka Seto initially hid who had injured him, but eventually told Inuzuka Goya and the clansmen that Ye Fan had beaten him.
• A clansman reminded Inuzuka Goya that Ye Fan’s Ninja Hound had belonged to Aoi Inuzuka, and Goya ordered someone to bring Ye Fan to him.
• Ye Fan dismissed the messenger, saying Inuzuka Goya had no authority over him because Ye Fan was no longer part of the Inuzuka Clan.
• Ye Fan accused the Inuzuka Clan of plotting against the Hokage and said Inuzuka Seto had told him they were secretly training Ninja Hounds.
• The messenger denied the accusation but panicked when Ye Fan suggested Seto might have told other people, while Ye Fan privately enjoyed setting Seto up.

Ye Fan faced Inuzuka Goya’s attempt to summon him and take Aoi Inuzuka’s Ninja Hound, Laiyun, during a meal with Hana Inuzuka and Kiba Inuzuka. He stopped the two Special Jonin and revealed a Hokage-certified document declaring Laiyun his Ninja Hound.

• Kiba Inuzuka invited Ye Fan to celebrate his Genin promotion, and Hana Inuzuka served them a meal at home.
• Two Special Jonin arrived and ordered Ye Fan to meet Inuzuka Goya, but Ye Fan refused.
• Hana Inuzuka and Kiba Inuzuka stood up for Ye Fan as the men announced they had come to take Laiyun.
• Ye Fan challenged the men over whose orders mattered more, the Hokage’s or Inuzuka Goya’s, and his power made their Ninja Hounds collapse in pain.
• Ye Fan showed one of the men a document certifying that Laiyun was his Ninja Hound, with the Hokage’s approval.

Ye Fan used a certificate from Lord Hokage to stop two Inuzuka Clan men from taking Laiyun, and an ANBU ninja confirmed the document was genuine. The ANBU ninja then summoned Hana Inuzuka to meet Lord Hokage, leaving Ye Fan curious about the polite woman.

• Ye Fan showed the two Inuzuka Clan men Lord Hokage’s certificate naming Laiyun as his Ninja Hound, and Hana Inuzuka confirmed she had witnessed him obtain it.
• The men questioned their Ninja Hounds about the strange sensation that had made them struggle, but the dogs could not explain what had happened.
• A female ANBU ninja arrived and told Hana Inuzuka that Lord Hokage wanted to see her.
• Ye Fan showed the ANBU ninja the certificate, and she confirmed Lord Hokage’s seal and signature were genuine.
• The two men left without Laiyun after Ye Fan challenged them to try taking the dog in front of the ANBU ninja.
• The female ANBU ninja apologized to Hana Inuzuka for arriving without knocking, and Ye Fan grew interested in her.

Ye Fan warned Kiba Inuzuka that the Inuzuka Clan might soon face trouble, then returned home and began cultivating to break through to the Beast-Taming Stage, Second Layer. As Ye Fan’s breakthrough caused strange patterns to appear on his face, Laiyun sensed someone approaching and prepared to defend the courtyard.

• Ye Fan cautioned Kiba Inuzuka to stay alert and contact him if trouble arose, then left Dark Shadow with Kiba to keep watch.
• Ye Fan returned to his courtyard and began preparing to break through, telling Laiyun to guard him.
• Ye Fan meditated for hours as Laiyun remained on watch, until an air vortex erupted around him and dark-golden patterns appeared on his face.
• Laiyun sensed someone running toward the courtyard and readied itself to stop the intruder while Ye Fan remained at a critical point in his breakthrough.

Laiyun stopped Kiba Inuzuka from disturbing Ye Fan during a dangerous breakthrough, while Dark Shadow relayed news of the ANBU surrounding Inuzuka Goya's residence. After reaching the Beast-Taming Stage, Second Layer, Ye Fan went to find Kiba, who began telling him that something huge had happened to the Inuzuka Clan.

• Kiba Inuzuka rushed to Ye Fan's courtyard to report that ANBU had surrounded Inuzuka Goya's residence, but Laiyun prevented him from interrupting Ye Fan's cultivation.
• After confirming that Hana Inuzuka and Tsume Inuzuka were safe, Kiba Inuzuka left and asked Laiyun to tell him when Ye Fan finished his experiment.
• Ye Fan completed his breakthrough at dawn, reaching the Beast-Taming Stage, Second Layer, and learned through his Soul Contract with Dark Shadow that Kiba had visited.
• Ye Fan found Kiba Inuzuka at Team 8's training spot, where Kiba excitedly told him that something huge had happened to the Inuzuka Clan.

Kiba Inuzuka told Ye Fan that Tsume Inuzuka had officially become the Inuzuka Clan head and that Inuzuka Goya had disappeared. Ye Fan declined to consider returning to the clan, stabilized his cultivation, and began planning to secure his courtyard before exploring places in Konoha that might aid his cultivation.

• Kiba Inuzuka told Ye Fan that Tsume Inuzuka had become the Inuzuka Clan head, while Inuzuka Goya had disappeared and the details remained unclear.
• Ye Fan retrieved Dark Shadow from Kiba Inuzuka's side and returned to his courtyard to rest and stabilize his newly advanced realm.
• Ye Fan tested his Detection Ability and sensed everything within a hundred meters, then expanded its range to more than three hundred meters after meditating.
• Ye Fan decided to set up a Mist Formation in his courtyard because the location was unsuitable for a Spirit-Gathering Formation.
• Ye Fan considered investigating Konoha's forbidden areas and other locations that might help him gather spiritual energy.

Ye Fan searched Konoha’s forest for five vital trees to use in his Mist Formation and found four before encountering Naruto Uzumaki practicing kunai throwing. Examining the tree Naruto had been targeting, Ye Fan discovered it held spiritual energy and seemed to have been grown by a plant-based spell.

• Ye Fan and Laiyun slipped past Konoha’s patrols as they searched the forest for trees suitable for the Mist Formation.
• Ye Fan found four trees with strong vitality but could not yet find a suitable tree for the formation’s eye.
• Ye Fan detected Naruto Uzumaki practicing kunai throwing and told him his technique had a flaw, though Naruto did not understand the hint.
• Ye Fan examined Naruto’s target tree and discovered traces of spiritual energy and signs that it had been force-grown by a plant-based spell.

Ye Fan identified a flaw in Naruto Uzumaki’s kunai-throwing technique, then returned home and found his Detection Ability had expanded. The next morning, Kiba Inuzuka told him he could return to the Inuzuka Clan, but Ye Fan resolved to refuse and eventually leave Konoha.

• Ye Fan showed Naruto Uzumaki the small downward motion his wrist made when releasing a kunai, and Naruto confirmed the habit through repeated throws.
• Naruto Uzumaki tried correcting his wrist but failed to hit the tree, then decided Ye Fan must have been messing with him and resumed his usual practice.
• Ye Fan returned to his residence, discovered his Detection Ability’s range had expanded, and meditated to restore his True Essence Power.
• Dark Shadow woke Ye Fan the next morning, and Kiba Inuzuka arrived to tell him his return to the Inuzuka Clan had been confirmed.
• Ye Fan decided he had no intention of returning to the Inuzuka Clan and planned to leave Konoha someday to found his own sect.

Ye Fan refused to rejoin the Inuzuka Clan but reassured Kiba that he was still his brother. He planted five trees for his Mist Formation and taught Hanabi how to redirect an opponent’s force, leaving her trying to understand the lesson.

• Ye Fan accepted Tsume Inuzuka’s reprimand but stood by his decision not to return to the Inuzuka Clan, and Tsume promised the clan would still support him.
• Ye Fan told the saddened Kiba Inuzuka that he preferred an unfettered life and remained his brother regardless of clan membership.
• Ye Fan marked planting spots, collected five trees from Konoha’s mission hall, and planted them with a medicinal solution to prepare for his Mist Formation.
• Hanabi Hyuga visited with Hinata Hyuga and demonstrated the New Gentle Fist technique Thousand Mechanisms, Realm-Binding for Ye Fan’s guidance.
• Ye Fan had Hanabi push him, then stepped aside so she fell forward, teaching her to redirect an opponent’s force; Hanabi began reflecting on the sensation.

Team 7 trained kunai throwing while Hiruzen Sarutobi visited and noticed Naruto Uzumaki's throwing flaw. Naruto realized that Ye Fan had given him the same advice, prompting Hiruzen to ponder what Naruto told him about their encounter.

• Sasuke Uchiha hit the bullseye with three kunai, while Naruto Uzumaki's attempt went astray and nearly struck Sakura Haruno before Sasuke blocked it.
• Hiruzen Sarutobi arrived as Kakashi was preparing to dismiss Team 7 and watched Naruto demonstrate his kunai throwing.
• Naruto hit the bullseye twice in five throws, but missed with every kunai when Hiruzen asked him to try again.
• Hiruzen identified Naruto's downward wrist motion as the cause of his poor aim.
• Naruto told Hiruzen that Ye Fan had pointed out the same flaw, then described their encounter; Hiruzen fell into thought.

Hiruzen Sarutobi assigned Kakashi to assess Ye Fan and decide whether he belonged in the Ninja Academy instead of as a Genin. That night, Ye Fan entered Konoha's forbidden Forest of Death with Laiyun and Dark Shadow, where he sensed a hidden threat.

• Kakashi told Hiruzen Sarutobi that Ye Fan was unfit to be a ninja and suggested sending him back to the Ninja Academy for logistics training.
• Hiruzen Sarutobi ordered Kakashi to personally assess Ye Fan and send him back to the academy if he judged him unfit to be a Genin.
• After Hinata Hyuga and Hanabi Hyuga left, Ye Fan prepared for a nighttime trip and found his Detection Ability had expanded to one kilometer.
• Ye Fan brought Laiyun and Dark Shadow to the Forest of Death, warning Dark Shadow to stay quiet and close.
• Ye Fan avoided patrolling ninjas, entered the forest, and sensed killing intent lurking in the darkness.