Recaps

Zuo Hao handed Gato and his immense fortune over to Obito, then returned to Konoha and anticipated the coming Chunin Exams. At the exam announcement, Kakashi recommended Team 7, prompting Iruka to question whether they were ready.

• Zuo Hao told Obito that Gato controlled shipping in the Land of Waves and possessed an estimated three hundred billion ryō, then left Gato in Obito's hands.
• Zuo Hao returned to Konoha and considered the Chunin Exams and his hidden mission to work with Orochimaru and kill the Third Hokage.
• Hiruzen announced that the Chunin Exams would begin in Konohagakure in three days.
• Might Guy, Asuma, and Kurenai discussed the promising Genin on their teams.
• Kakashi recommended Naruto, Sakura, Sasuke, and Sahiro for the exams, and Iruka questioned whether Team 7 was ready.

Kakashi defended his decision to nominate Team 7 for the Chunin Ninja Exams despite other jōnin doubting the squad’s readiness. The discussion shifted when the Third confirmed the team’s Land of Waves report described an encounter with Zabuza Momochi and a powerful Ice Release user.

• Iruka, Asuma, and Kurenai argued that Team 7 lacked the combat skills and coordination needed for the Chunin Ninja Exams.
• Kakashi insisted that he wanted to nominate all of Team 7, while Asuma and Kurenai warned that the Forest of Death could kill inexperienced Genin.
• Asuma began to mention Zuo Hao’s performance during the Land of Waves mission, but Might Guy interrupted and hinted that Team 7 had accomplished something remarkable.
• Kakashi stopped Might Guy from revealing the team’s true performance, which he had concealed in the mission report at Zuo Hao’s request.
• Hiruzen asked Kakashi about the report, and Kakashi confirmed that Team 7 had encountered Zabuza Momochi and an Ice Release user of at least Special Jōnin strength.

Zuo Hao encountered Neji Hyuga practicing the Gentle Fist in Konoha Back Mountain and received a quest to help him escape the fate imposed by the Caged Bird Seal. Neji tried to leave after questioning Zuo Hao, but Zuo Hao stopped him by claiming his Heavenly Spin had a flaw.

• Zuo Hao found Neji Hyuga practicing the Gentle Fist and Heavenly Spin in a clearing.
• The system triggered the Caged Bird Bond Quest, tasking Zuo Hao with helping Neji break free of his predetermined fate during the Chunin Ninja Exams.
• Zuo Hao considered the quest rewards and the control the Caged Bird Seal gave the Hyuga Main Family over Branch Family members.
• Neji noticed Zuo Hao's immense chakra and recognized him as the Uchiha orphan who had placed first in the Ninja Academy Graduation Exam.
• Neji questioned Zuo Hao's reason for being there, then turned to leave after Zuo Hao said he had only stopped to watch.
• Zuo Hao told Neji that his Heavenly Spin had a flaw.

Zuo Hao identified a flaw in Neji’s Rotation and challenged his belief that fate could not change. Neji demanded proof and attacked, but Zuo Hao evaded his strikes before confronting him about a fatal weakness in the Gentle Fist.

• Zuo Hao explained that Neji released chakra more slowly from the chakra points on his back, creating a blind spot in his Rotation.
• Zuo Hao told Neji he had never met the Hyuga Main Family and asked whether Neji hated them because of the Caged Bird Seal and his father’s death.
• Neji attacked Zuo Hao, but Zuo Hao used Intangibility to let the strike pass through him and urged Neji to challenge Hyuga Hiashi instead.
• Zuo Hao suggested that a bird in a cage might find a way out, prompting Neji to demand a fight and proof that fate could change.
• Neji unleashed successive Eight Trigrams Palm attacks, but Zuo Hao evaded them and then stopped to meet one strike head-on, declaring that the Gentle Fist had a fatal weakness.

Zuo Hao defeated Neji and challenged him to stop relying on the Byakugan and the Hyuga Clan’s prescribed fighting forms. Neji began to reconsider whether the Caged Bird Seal and his clan’s traditions had to define him.

• Neji used an enhanced Rotation and Vacuum Palm against Zuo Hao, who countered with Majestic Destroyer Flame and defeated him.
• Zuo Hao told Neji that he had lost to his own predictable reliance on the Byakugan and standard Gentle Fist patterns.
• Zuo Hao asked Neji what the Byakugan meant to him, leading Neji to recognize its connection to the Caged Bird Seal and his branch-family status.
• Zuo Hao argued that Neji’s dependence on the Byakugan, not the Byakugan itself, constrained his thinking and fighting.
• Neji recalled Zuo Hao’s words about a bird in a cage flying free and realized he had not understood them before.

As the Chunin Ninja Exams began, Rock Lee confessed to Sakura and, after she rejected him, challenged Sasuke to prove that hard work could surpass genius. Lee struck Sasuke so quickly that even Sasuke’s Sharingan could not follow, leaving him slammed into a wall.

• Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura waited for Zuo Hao before the Chunin Ninja Exams, but Team 3 arrived instead.
• Rock Lee fell for Sakura at first sight, proposed to her, and was decisively rejected.
• Rock Lee challenged Sasuke, who dismissed him and declared that the Uchiha meant strength and being unbeatable.
• Rock Lee vanished with pure Taijutsu speed and kicked Sasuke into the corridor wall before Sasuke could track him.

Sahiro Uchiha stepped in to protect Sasuke from Rock Lee, then defeated Rock Lee with a deadly Sharingan technique. He left Rock Lee’s life in danger and gave him about five minutes before the chakra attacking his heart meridians would kill him.

• Rock Lee nearly struck Sasuke with Konoha Whirlwind, but Sahiro caught his ankle and threw him aside.
• Sahiro told Sasuke not to underestimate others or think the Uchiha were invincible, and Sasuke struggled to his feet.
• Sahiro challenged Rock Lee and trapped him in a powerful Sharingan technique that left him unconscious.
• Neji saw that Sahiro’s chakra was spreading through Rock Lee’s heart meridians and warned that it would stop his heart.
• Tenten demanded that Sahiro release Rock Lee, but Sahiro said Rock Lee had about five minutes before he would die.

Zuo Hao confronted Might Guy after Rock Lee nearly injured Sasuke, then released Lee from his technique after Might Guy apologized and promised to discipline him. Zuo Hao and Sasuke went to the Chūnin Exam, where Ibiki announced the written test rules and noticed Zuo Hao remained calm.

• Zuo Hao accused Might Guy of failing to stop Rock Lee from hurting Sasuke and defended his actions as an overprotective brother.
• Might Guy apologized on Lee's behalf and asked Zuo Hao to release him from the technique.
• Zuo Hao removed the technique, and Rock Lee recovered; Might Guy thanked Zuo Hao and promised to discipline Lee.
• Zuo Hao checked on Sasuke, then took him to the examination room for the Chūnin Exam.
• Ibiki Morino announced the written test rules, and Zuo Hao stayed relaxed while the other examinees grew anxious.
• Ibiki Morino noticed Sahiro Uchiha's unusual calm.

During the Chunin Ninja Exams, Sahiro Uchiha secretly trapped five assistant examiners in a genjutsu, stunning the Jōnin watching from the observation room. He then appeared among them using a Shadow Clone, leaving them questioning how a twelve-year-old Genin had learned the forbidden technique.

• Ibiki Morino noticed that Sahiro Uchiha remained unusually relaxed during the written exam.
• Ibiki discovered that all five assistant examiners had been caught in a genjutsu, and the watching Kakashi, Might Guy, Asuma, and Kurenai realized Sahiro had cast it without being noticed.
• Kurenai admitted that Sahiro's genjutsu skill surpassed what she could manage, while Kakashi considered speaking with him after the exam.
• Sahiro appeared silently in the Jōnin's observation room while his Shadow Clone remained in the examination hall.
• Kakashi identified the technique as a Shadow Clone, and Asuma questioned how Sahiro had learned a forbidden technique.

Zuo Hao revealed that he had trapped four Konoha Jōnin in his original double-layered Genjutsu, Mirror Flower, Water Moon, and explained how trying to see through or release it triggered the second layer. He left the observation room after telling them that his request to look after Sasuke had been real, leaving the Jōnin wondering what else he could do.

• Zuo Hao exposed the illusion in which Asuma, Kurenai, Kakashi, and Might Guy had confronted him, revealing that they had been under Genjutsu since entering the observation room.
• Zuo Hao explained that Mirror Flower, Water Moon trapped its victims in a second layer when they saw through the first, and that trying to release the Genjutsu reinforced the trap.
• Kurenai identified the technique as a double-layered Genjutsu, while Zuo Hao explained how the illusion drew on each Jōnin's suspicions and fears.
• Ibiki Morino announced that seventy-nine candidates had passed the first exam, and Zuo Hao deactivated his Sharingan and prepared to leave.
• Zuo Hao told the Jōnin that his request to look after Sasuke had been genuine, then left the observation room.
• Might Guy called Zuo Hao a monster, Kakashi called him a true genius, and Asuma wondered what other abilities he had kept hidden.

Anko introduced the Forest of Death scroll-capture test, while Zuo Hao entered the forest alone to search for Orochimaru before he could target Sasuke. The chapter ended with Shikamaru, Ino, and Choji sensing three fast-moving people with a lot of chakra nearby.

• Anko explained the five-day test rules, warned that candidates could die, and had every team collect a Heaven or Earth Scroll.
• Zuo Hao spotted a disguised Kusagakure candidate whom he believed was Orochimaru and told Sasuke, Naruto, and Sakura to stay together while he went alone.
• Sasuke agreed to handle the test with Naruto and Sakura as Zuo Hao raced through the forest searching for Orochimaru.
• Shikamaru, Ino, and Choji hid while planning to wait for other teams to weaken, since they already had a Heaven Scroll.
• Shikamaru sensed three people approaching quickly with a lot of chakra and warned Ino and Choji.

Team 10 was overwhelmed by three powerful Amegakure ninja, leaving Choji, Ino, and Shikamaru gravely injured. Just as the tall ninja prepared to finish Shikamaru, a mysterious figure with a Three-Tomoe Sharingan appeared in the forest.

• The tall Amegakure ninja attacked Team 10 with wind blades, badly injuring Choji and forcing Shikamaru to dodge.
• Shikamaru used Shadow Possession Jutsu against the bald giant, but the short ninja poisoned him and broke his concentration.
• Ino tried to seize the short ninja's body with Mind Body Switch Technique, but his mental force overwhelmed her.
• Choji protected Ino from the short ninja's claws and was brutally beaten while Shikamaru and Ino could not get up.
• The tall ninja prepared to kill Shikamaru, but stopped when a figure with a Three-Tomoe Sharingan appeared on a high branch.

Sahiro defeated the three Rain Ninja who had attacked Shikamaru, Choji, and Ino, then faced Orochimaru as the others fled. Outside the Forest of Death, Anko identified Orochimaru’s handiwork on three dead Kusagakure exam candidates and ordered the Third Hokage alerted.

• Sahiro defeated the three Rain Ninja and rescued Shikamaru, Choji, and Ino.
• Orochimaru appeared disguised as a Kusagakure Genin, and Sahiro ordered his injured friends to flee before confronting him.
• Sahiro released the Cursed Seal of Heaven, and Orochimaru questioned him about its origin as they prepared to fight.
• A Konoha Chunin found three murdered Kusagakure exam candidates near the Forest of Death and reported the discovery to Anko.
• Anko recognized Orochimaru’s method on one of the bodies and ordered a report sent to the Third Hokage requesting ANBU.

Anko investigated the devastation left by Orochimaru’s battle in the Forest of Death and discovered an unfamiliar chakra that resonated with her Cursed Seal. She followed a fresh chakra pulse into the forest and confronted Orochimaru in the mist.

• Anko ordered the scene sealed off and entered the Forest of Death to track Orochimaru.
• Anko found a flattened clearing and crater, sensed Orochimaru’s chakra and an unknown fire-and-lightning presence, and felt her Cursed Seal react.
• Anko recognized Manda’s scales in a scorched snakeskin and found cloth carrying a trace of the unfamiliar chakra.
• Anko sensed a brief chakra pulse deeper in the forest and hurried toward it, realizing something had resisted Orochimaru.
• Anko met two pairs of golden slit-pupiled eyes in the mist, and Orochimaru spoke to her from the darkness.

Sahiro recovered from his fight with Orochimaru and rushed to Team 7 after sensing the Sannin's chakra, but arrived as Orochimaru marked Sasuke with a Cursed Seal and subdued Naruto. The chapter ended with Sahiro reaching the devastated clearing and calling for Orochimaru to stop.

• Orochimaru told Anko that Sahiro had wounded him enough to escape, then revealed he intended to give Sasuke a gift.
• Anko attacked Orochimaru, but he triggered the Cursed Seal on her neck and vanished into the fog to pursue Sasuke.
• After recovering overnight, Sahiro sensed Orochimaru and raced toward Team 7 when he heard a scream.
• Orochimaru bit Sasuke and implanted a Cursed Seal while Sakura froze in fear and Naruto erupted with Nine-Tails chakra.
• Orochimaru used the Five Elements Seal to suppress Naruto's power, then left Sasuke unconscious and the team defeated.
• Sahiro reached the ruined clearing and shouted for Orochimaru to stop.

Zuo Hao brought Orochimaru into his Kamui Dimension and struck a deal with him to work together against Hiruzen Sarutobi, while demanding Orochimaru leave Sasuke alone. After returning to the Forest of Death, Zuo Hao sensed Sasuke was in danger and rushed toward Team 7 as ANBU tried to take the injured boy away.

• Zuo Hao transported Orochimaru into the Kamui Dimension and proposed working together to kill Hiruzen Sarutobi.
• Zuo Hao blamed Hiruzen for the Uchiha Clan Massacre and said he wanted Konoha to witness the Hokage's downfall.
• Orochimaru agreed to cooperate on the condition that Zuo Hao study the Sharingan with him, and Zuo Hao warned him not to touch Sasuke.
• Zuo Hao returned to the Forest of Death, sensed Sasuke moving quickly, and raced toward him after hearing Sakura shout.
• Two ANBU tried to take the injured Sasuke to the village, while Sakura clung to him and Naruto fought back despite Orochimaru's seal blocking his chakra.

Zuo Hao found Root blocking his path and learned that they had taken Sasuke, then agreed to surrender his weapons so Yamanaka Fū would let him see his brother. After Yamanaka Fū insulted the Uchiha brothers, Zuo Hao smiled, leaving his response unresolved.

• Zuo Hao tracked Sasuke's chakra trail until Yamanaka Fū and twenty Root ninja surrounded him.
• Yamanaka Fū said Root had taken Sasuke under the Third Hokage's orders and demanded Zuo Hao cooperate.
• Zuo Hao sensed Torune Aburame hiding nearby and agreed to go with Root after demanding to see Sasuke alive.
• Zuo Hao surrendered his weapons and custom kunai after Yamanaka Fū detected them.
• Yamanaka Fū and the Root ninja mocked the Uchiha clan and insulted Sasuke and Zuo Hao, who responded with a smile.

Zuo Hao retaliated against Yamanaka Fū and the Root ninjas with an enormous Fire Release technique, then revealed that their attacks passed through his body. As other teams watched from hiding, Neji sensed something unusual in Zuo Hao’s chakra.

• Zuo Hao rebuked Yamanaka Fū and unleashed Fire Style: Majestic Destroyer Flame, evaporating the Root ninjas’ Water Formation Wall.
• Zuo Hao curved the flames around a fallen Root ninja and burned Torune Aburame’s concealed position, forcing Torune out of hiding.
• Yamanaka Fū ordered the Root ninjas to attack, but their blades passed harmlessly through Zuo Hao as he claimed to show them the Uchiha Clan’s Kekkei Genkai.
• Teams 8, 3, and 10 and Gaara, Temari, and Kankuro watched the fight from the shadows while Shikamaru stopped Ino from rushing to help Zuo Hao.
• Neji watched Zuo Hao with his Byakugan and sensed that his chakra was unlike ordinary Ninjutsu, possibly involving a Cursed Seal and something else.

Zuo Hao distracted Yamanaka Fū and Root while secretly rescuing Sasuke, then revealed that the figure facing them was also a Shadow Clone. Yamanaka Fū's attacks failed to hit him, leaving the confrontation unresolved.

• Shikamaru assessed Zuo Hao's Fire Release as Jōnin-level and suspected he was still holding back, while Gaara recognized his unusual power and chose to leave.
• Zuo Hao demanded that Yamanaka Fū hand over his brother or die, and Fū attacked him with the Mind Body Switch Technique as Torune circled behind him.
• Zuo Hao's Sharingan repelled Fū's mental attack, injuring him and making him stagger.
• A Shadow Clone carrying Sasuke appeared after killing the two Root ninja guarding him, revealing that Zuo Hao had used the confrontation to stage a rescue.
• Fū hurled kunai at Zuo Hao, but they passed through him as he revealed that the figure before Fū was also a Shadow Clone.

Sahiro rescued Sasuke from Yamanaka Fū and Root, then carried him toward the Forest of Death's exit as Sasuke recovered. The reunited Team 7 set out for the tower with both scrolls, while Danzo learned that Sahiro had defeated Root's squad and vowed revenge.

• Sahiro defeated Yamanaka Fū, rescued Sasuke, and warned him to tell Danzo that he would visit him himself.
• Sahiro gained a stronger Sharingan and Chidori techniques when Sasuke's Bond Level rose to LV3, then treated Sasuke's wounds and carried him toward the forest exit.
• Sasuke told Sahiro he wanted to become strong enough to stand beside him, and Sahiro agreed to wait for that day.
• Naruto and Sakura found Sahiro and Sasuke, and the four reunited before heading toward the tower.
• Sahiro revealed he had an Earth Scroll, giving Team 7 both required scrolls, but cautioned them not to assume they would become Chunin.
• Yamanaka Fū reported Sahiro's rescue of Sasuke to Danzo, who vowed to kill the Uchiha.

Zuo Hao confronted the Third Hokage over Danzo’s attempt to seize Sasuke during the Forest of Death, forcing Kakashi to intervene. The preliminaries were postponed until the next day, and Zuo Hao later questioned whether Hiruzen would really dare kill him.

• Zuo Hao objected to the preliminaries and accused village authorities of letting someone infiltrate the exam and try to take Sasuke.
• Zuo Hao pressed Hiruzen about whether Danzo had ordered the ANBU to seize Sasuke, demanding to know why they had tried to take his injured brother away.
• Neji was shaken by Zuo Hao’s defiance and wondered whether he too could escape the Caged Bird Seal and his fate.
• Kakashi covered Zuo Hao’s mouth and dismissed his accusations as nonsense, and Hiruzen postponed the preliminaries until the next day.
• At Yakiniku Q, Kakashi warned Zuo Hao that challenging Hiruzen was dangerous, but Zuo Hao questioned whether the Third Hokage would dare kill him.

Zuo Hao explained to Kakashi that he would risk anything to protect Sasuke, and Kakashi affirmed that he stood with them. After Sasuke collapsed from his spreading Cursed Seal and Kakashi rushed him away, Zuo Hao encountered Gaara, Kankuro, and Temari blocking his path.

• Kakashi warned Zuo Hao that challenging the Third Hokage and Danzo had put him at risk, but Zuo Hao insisted that protecting Sasuke mattered more than his own safety.
• Zuo Hao asked Kakashi what he would have done if Obito had been taken by ANBU, and Kakashi admitted that some things could not be measured by reason and said he stood with Zuo Hao and Sasuke.
• Naruto and Sakura brought an unconscious, barely breathing Sasuke to the barbecue restaurant after his Cursed Seal spread down to his collarbone.
• Kakashi checked Sasuke, recognized the danger, and hurried away with him for immediate care.
• Zuo Hao reassured Naruto and Sakura, then walked home alone until Gaara, Kankuro, and Temari blocked his way.

Zuo Hao effortlessly suppressed Gaara and Shukaku with his Sharingan after Gaara challenged him, leaving Temari and Kankuro terrified of his strength. Zuo Hao returned home to train, but Ino called for him late that night.

• Gaara challenged Zuo Hao, who dismissed him as unworthy and provoked him into releasing his chakra and sand.
• Zuo Hao used his Three-Tomoe Sharingan to subdue Gaara and force Shukaku into slumber.
• Temari and Kankuro realized Zuo Hao had suppressed the monster inside Gaara with a single glance.
• Zuo Hao told the siblings to return and wait until the Chunin Ninja Exams arena before challenging him again.
• After Zuo Hao left, Gaara told Temari and Kankuro that his eyes had made the monster inside him fear death.
• Zuo Hao returned home to train, then heard Ino calling for him late at night.

Torune Aburame disguised himself as Ino and ambushed Zuo Hao with chakra-devouring insects on Danzo’s orders, leaving him badly poisoned. Sasuke rushed to defend his brother, but Torune escaped, and three ANBU appeared as Zuo Hao urged Sasuke to find Kakashi.

• Torune Aburame disguised himself as Ino and gave Zuo Hao a bouquet filled with poisonous insects.
• The insects burrowed into Zuo Hao’s meridians, and Torune revealed Danzo had ordered him to stop Zuo Hao from competing and cripple him if possible.
• Zuo Hao realized Torune was tracking his heart, while Sasuke burst out of the house and threatened the attacker.
• Torune escaped using the Body Flicker Technique, and Zuo Hao coughed up blood as Sasuke tried to take him to the hospital.
• Zuo Hao told Sasuke to find Kakashi and stay out of the fight, then three cat-masked ANBU appeared.

After Torune Aburame poisoned Zuo Hao in an ambush, he was hospitalized and told he might die within a month. As Zuo Hao accused Danzo and the Third Hokage of allowing the attack, Neji Hyuga unexpectedly appeared at his hospital room.

• Sasuke questioned the ANBU escort, but Zuo Hao told him to find Kakashi and report the attack.
• The ANBU took Zuo Hao to Konoha Hospital, while Sasuke found Kakashi and told him Torune Aburame had poisoned his brother.
• Kakashi persuaded Sasuke to go home, then visited Zuo Hao, who said the poison had left him unable to move.
• Zuo Hao said the Medical Team expected him to die within a month and accused Danzo of ordering the attack with the Third Hokage's approval.
• Zuo Hao asked Kakashi whether the Uchiha had always been unwanted in Konoha, and Neji Hyuga appeared in the doorway.