Chapter Summaries

Zhou Cheng arranged for Karin to become Tsunade’s disciple in exchange for giving Konoha basic Tai Chi. He then attacked the Kurama Clan to end the threat it posed to Kurama Yakumo, killing more than ten shinobi as the clan leader called for his people to defend their home.

• Zhou Cheng asked Tsunade to train Karin in Medical Ninjutsu, and Tsunade accepted her as a disciple after learning she was from the Uzumaki Clan.
• Zhou Cheng promised to give the village basic Tai Chi as Karin’s apprenticeship gift, then left Karin with Tsunade to discuss her lessons.
• Zhou Cheng took Kurama Yakumo to the Kurama Clan gates and said he would end the clan, but she hesitated to act against her family.
• Zhou Cheng destroyed the Kurama Clan gates with Rasenshuriken and fired a chakra arrow into the compound, demolishing more of it.
• The Kurama Clan leader emerged and rallied dozens of shinobi to defend their home, while Zhou Cheng killed more than ten of them with Earth Release: Earth Spear.

Zhou Cheng destroyed the Kurama Clan compound after condemning the clan for sending Kurama Yakumo to Root, while Tsunade, Danzo, and Jiraiya tried to stop him. Danzo survived and accused Zhou Cheng of betraying Konoha.

• The Kurama Clan Leader ordered his clansmen to join him in a genjutsu attack, but several refused after Zhou Cheng called out the clan's treatment of Kurama Yakumo.
• Zhou Cheng formed a forty-meter Chakra Blade infused with Wind Release as Tsunade, Danzo, and Jiraiya arrived and urged him to stop.
• Zhou Cheng told the gathered villagers that the Kurama Clan had sent Kurama Yakumo to Root and exposed Root's Cursed Seals and its role in the attack on Konoha.
• Zhou Cheng brought the greatsword down, cleaving the Kurama Clan compound in two and pulverizing it with Wind Release, killing the clan leader and several elders.
• Danzo feared Zhou Cheng's power but accused him of killing fellow villagers and betraying Konoha.

Danzo dissolved Root under public pressure after Konoha blamed his refusal to help defend the village for the casualties. Zhou Cheng helped Kurama Yakumo and the surviving Kurama clansmen, then Tsunade summoned him to the Hokage Office to confront him about his actions.

• The victims' families and villagers denounced Danzo for keeping Root from defending Konoha, and Jiraiya demanded he dissolve it.
• Danzo announced Root's dissolution, while privately vowing to keep its members loyal and plotting against Zhou Cheng.
• Zhou Cheng advised Kurama Yakumo to urge her clansmen to choose a new leader and live peacefully.
• Tsunade promised the surviving Kurama clansmen that Konoha would provide money, supplies, and construction crews to rebuild their homes.
• At the Hokage Office, Tsunade accused Zhou Cheng of going too far, and he insisted that anyone who hurt his friends would pay, even her.

Zhou Cheng rebuffed Tsunade, Jiraiya, and Kakashi’s pleas to keep a low profile, then invited them to dinner. While Konoha’s shinobi gathered at his new home for his cooking, Danzo sent Root shinobi to seek support from other villages for another attack on Konoha.

• Zhou Cheng argued that he only fought back when provoked, silenced Kakashi by comparing his own behavior to Kakashi’s youthful fame, and invited Tsunade, Jiraiya, and Kakashi to dinner.
• Kakashi defended Zhou Cheng after learning he would cook, and word of the meal excited the Konoha 12 and many Jonin.
• Danzo ordered Root shinobi to ignore outside authority and sent messengers to other villages with letters blaming Zhou Cheng for Konoha’s turmoil and promising benefits for their support.
• That evening, the Konoha 12 gathered outside Zhou Cheng’s home, and Zhou Cheng arrived with ingredients before starting to prepare dinner with help from the girls.
• Jonin set up a large table in the courtyard, and Tsunade and Jiraiya arrived, surprised by how many of Konoha’s future leaders had gathered around Zhou Cheng.

Zhou Cheng hosted Tsunade, Jiraiya, and the others for a hot pot dinner, then helped Sasuke leave Konoha so he could infiltrate Orochimaru’s base. He planned to save Kimimaro, while Naruto and the Konoha 12 pursued Sasuke and Neji stayed behind to face Kidomaru.

• Zhou Cheng served hot pot, and Tsunade, Jiraiya, and the others devoured the meal and praised his cooking.
• After nightfall, Zhou Cheng met Sasuke on Hokage Rock and arranged for him to leave Konoha, promising to leak the news and help him gain power.
• Zhou Cheng sent clones to alert the Konoha 12, then went ahead to the Sound Ninja’s interception point to target Kimimaro.
• Kidomaru helped Sasuke travel in a large barrel, then stayed behind as the Konoha 12 arrived in pursuit.
• Neji confronted Kidomaru so Naruto and the others could continue after Sasuke.

Zhou Cheng advanced past the battles between the Konoha 12 and the Sound Four, intent on taking Kimimaro for himself. After Kimimaro nearly killed Rock Lee, Zhou Cheng rescued him and challenged Kimimaro to land three attacks before he would fight back.

• Neji and Tenten stayed behind to fight Kidomaru while the others continued after Sasuke, and Zhou Cheng left a Shadow Clone behind to help.
• Zhou Cheng passed Choji, Ino, Shikamaru, Haku, Kiba, and Hinata as they held off Jirobo, Tayuya, and Sakon, then found Rock Lee and Shino facing Kimimaro.
• Kimimaro activated his Cursed Seal and overwhelmed Rock Lee, whose Eight Gates and Shino's insect defenses failed to give them an advantage.
• Shino used Zhou Cheng's special kunai to summon him as Kimimaro prepared to strike Rock Lee in midair, and Zhou Cheng appeared in time to save him.
• Zhou Cheng sent Rock Lee and Shino to help the others, then told Kimimaro he would let him attack three times before fighting back.

Zhou Cheng overwhelmed Kimimaro in their fight, even after Kimimaro used Curse Mark Stage Two, and challenged him to reconsider his loyalty to Orochimaru. Kimimaro defended Orochimaru, but Zhou Cheng’s claim that Orochimaru cared only about Sasuke struck a nerve.

• Kimimaro charged Zhou Cheng with his bone blades, but Zhou Cheng blocked his attacks without moving and counted off three moves.
• Zhou Cheng used Kunai Shadow Clone Technique, then fought Kimimaro with Tai Chi and prevented him from retreating.
• Kimimaro activated Curse Mark Stage Two and charged with a spiral bone drill, but Zhou Cheng stopped him with a Chakra Blade.
• Zhou Cheng told Kimimaro he was no match and tried to persuade him to stop fighting.
• Kimimaro asked who Zhou Cheng was and angrily defended Orochimaru when Zhou Cheng called the Sound Four expendable and said Orochimaru only cared about Sasuke.

Zhou Cheng defeated Kimimaro and offered to cure his bloodline disease in exchange for his loyalty. After healing Kimimaro with yang release chakra, he left him restored and facing a choice about whom to follow.

• Kimimaro fought Zhou Cheng with desperate resolve, but Zhou Cheng overwhelmed him and broke through his bone defenses.
• Zhou Cheng questioned Kimimaro's loyalty to Orochimaru, and Kimimaro's resolve wavered before he charged again.
• Zhou Cheng wounded Kimimaro with a powerful Wind Blade, leaving his right arm reduced to bare bones and Kimimaro unable to stand.
• Zhou Cheng offered to cure Kimimaro's disease if he became his subordinate, and Kimimaro doubted he could do it.
• Zhou Cheng used yang release chakra to heal Kimimaro's wounds and restore his body after half an hour.

Zhou Cheng persuaded the recovering Kimimaro to join Konoha instead of returning to Orochimaru, then reunited with the others after Naruto lost to Sasuke and was brought back. Sasuke escaped, and Zhou Cheng left the Konoha 12 to reflect on their defeat.

• Kimimaro confirmed that Zhou Cheng’s treatment had restored his body, though it had not cured his bloodline disease, and agreed to follow Zhou Cheng without taking part in anything involving Orochimaru.
• Zhou Cheng introduced Kimimaro to Gaara and the Konoha 12 as a former Kirigakure escapee who had joined their side.
• At the Valley of the End, Sasuke defeated Naruto, and Zhou Cheng’s Shadow Clone retrieved the unconscious Naruto while Sasuke escaped.
• Zhou Cheng told the group that Sasuke had gotten away, healed Naruto with Yang Release chakra, and watched Naruto awaken and ask where Sasuke was.
• Zhou Cheng scolded the Konoha 12 for being too weak, and they lowered their heads in regret.

Zhou Cheng settled Gaara’s group and Kimimaro in Konoha, then planned his next moves while discovering that Shukaku’s chakra had grown into a miniature Shukaku inside him. The next morning, he gathered young ninja at the Forest of Death and announced a dangerous second training camp.

• Kakashi arrived and found everyone safe, and Zhou Cheng invited Gaara and his companions to stay in Konoha for a few days.
• Zhou Cheng brought Kimimaro to Tsunade, who allowed him to remain in Konoha, then hosted dinner for him and Gaara’s group.
• Zhou Cheng reviewed his plans, including training the younger ninja, gathering tailed-beast chakra, and keeping Kimimaro away from Orochimaru.
• Zhou Cheng found that the Shukaku chakra he had taken had grown into a sleeping miniature Shukaku inside a golden-chain cage in his body.
• Zhou Cheng gathered the Konoha 12, Haku, Karin, Kurama Yakumo, Kimimaro, and Konohamaru’s trio at the Forest of Death.
• Zhou Cheng announced a second training camp and warned the gathered youngsters that careless participants could die.

Zhou Cheng sent the Konoha 15 into the Forest of Death for a ten-day survival training camp, where he and his shadow clones would hunt them. Afterward, he healed Anko’s Cursed Seal injuries and received an invitation to Mount Myōboku, leaving him planning to learn Sage Mode before seeking the tailed beasts.

• Zhou Cheng announced that the trainees would survive for ten days in the Forest of Death while he hunted them, and his killing intent frightened Konohamaru’s trio until Konohamaru stood back up.
• Zhou Cheng divided the trainees into six teams and sent them into the forest, declaring that the Konoha 12 had become the Konoha 15.
• Zhou Cheng healed the damage Orochimaru’s Cursed Seal had caused inside Anko, though he could not remove the seal itself.
• Zhou Cheng summoned a Messenger Toad to notify the clans, and it delivered Fukasaku’s invitation for him to visit Mount Myōboku.
• Zhou Cheng decided to visit Mount Myōboku after the training camp to learn Sage Mode, then leave the village to search for the tailed beasts.

Zhou Cheng sent his Shadow Clones after the Konoha teams, forcing them to fight rather than flee. Neji, Rock Lee, and Tenten’s attacks failed to stop him, and the chapter ended with Zhou Cheng promising to repay Tenten for her spent ninja tools if they survived.

• Zhou Cheng used the Mind's Eye of the Kagura to direct five Shadow Clones in pursuit of the six teams, and the teams fled when they sensed the danger.
• Zhou Cheng's Shadow Clones caught two teams, whose members realized he was serious when his kunai cut them, and the teams were forced to fight after they could not outrun him.
• Neji led Rock Lee and Tenten in an attack: Tenten's trap was countered by the Shuriken Shadow Clone Technique, while Neji and Rock Lee's combined assault failed to land a hit.
• Tenten unleashed her scrolls' entire supply of ninja tools, but Zhou Cheng's Earth Release Chakra Mode armor withstood the barrage.
• Neji spotted Zhou Cheng emerging unharmed from the pile of tools, and Zhou Cheng promised to cover Tenten's losses if they survived; Tenten immediately stopped crying.

Zhou Cheng completed ten days of brutal special training, and the eighteen trainees returned to the Central Tower dramatically stronger. After Tsunade pressured him to train more shinobi, he agreed to hold one more camp in exchange for the Thunder God Sword and left to test it.

• Zhou Cheng identified each trainee's weaknesses and continued chasing the six teams through ten days of training.
• At the Central Tower, Zhou Cheng healed the trainees, and their parents and Konoha's high command saw that twelve had reached chunin level, three were elite chunin, and Konohamaru's trio had reached genin level.
• Zhou Cheng declared the first phase over and gave the trainees two days off, while declining the clans' invitations to visit their homes.
• Tsunade demanded that Zhou Cheng run the camp again, but he refused until she offered him the Thunder God Sword; he then agreed to hold one more camp for no more than thirty people.
• Jiraiya said he would leave with Naruto, and Zhou Cheng departed with Haku, Karin, and the others, channeling chakra into the Thunder God Sword to test its power.

Zhou Cheng tested the Thunder God Sword, then traveled to Mount Myōboku to meet the Great Toad Sage. Gamamaru prophesied that the black-haired boy would inherit the legacy of the Six Paths, and Fukasaku agreed to let Zhou Cheng try learning Senjutsu.

• Zhou Cheng tested the Thunder God Sword's lightning arcs and decided its power did not meet his standards.
• Zhou Cheng summoned Gamakichi and used Reverse Summoning to travel to Mount Myōboku.
• Fukasaku brought Zhou Cheng to Gamamaru, who prophesied that the black-haired boy would inherit the legacy of the Six Paths and protect the world and the Three Great Sage Lands.
• Zhou Cheng asked to learn Senjutsu, and Fukasaku agreed to test his aptitude the next day.
• Fukasaku told Shima that Jiraiya had sent word that Zhou Cheng might be the Child of Prophecy.

Zhou Cheng began training in Senjutsu on Mount Myōboku and discovered that he had exceptional compatibility with natural energy, though he had not yet mastered the balance needed to form senjutsu chakra. Meanwhile, forces from Kirigakure infiltrated the Land of Fire, and Itachi and Kisame approached Konoha to investigate Zhou Cheng.

• Zhou Cheng sent the Messenger Toad to tell Haku and the others he was safe, then began Senjutsu training with Fukasaku and Shima, who found his compatibility higher than Minato's.
• Fukasaku explained how senjutsu chakra was formed, and Zhou Cheng quickly sensed and gathered natural energy with the help of toad oil.
• Zhou Cheng repeatedly failed to balance physical, mental, and natural energy, while Fukasaku and Shima marveled at how quickly he could gather natural energy.
• At the Land of Fire and Land of Water border, a female shinobi ordered teams of three to infiltrate the Land of Fire after a Root Shinobi misrepresented the status of other villages' forces.
• A man wearing the Vermilion ring reported that he had reached Konoha, and the man wearing the Zero ring ordered him to kill Zhou Cheng to protect the plan to capture the Nine-Tails.
• Itachi and Kisame approached Konoha in disguise to investigate Zhou Cheng, while Zhou Cheng used the Mind's Eye of the Kagura to sense natural energy and began gathering it across his sensing range.

Zhou Cheng achieved Perfect Sage Mode and learned from Gamamaru that something about his senjutsu resembled Hamura’s and could be improved by visiting Ryūchi Cave and Shikkotsu Forest. After returning to Fukasaku’s home, he noticed a glowing talisman inside the temple and suspected it was Mount Myōboku’s Sage Talisman.

• Zhou Cheng spent ten hours cultivating senjutsu chakra and discovered his Adamantine Sealing Chains could store it for later use.
• Zhou Cheng created over a hundred Shadow Clones to produce senjutsu chakra, then entered Perfect Sage Mode and tested his enhanced Rasengan and Rasenshuriken.
• Zhou Cheng told Fukasaku and Shima that his Sage Mode seemed capable of further improvement, so they took him to see Gamamaru.
• Gamamaru recognized Zhou Cheng’s senjutsu as being like Hamura’s and told him to visit Ryūchi Cave and Shikkotsu Forest to solve the problem.
• Zhou Cheng returned to Fukasaku’s home, collected the senjutsu chakra from his Shadow Clones, and learned from a clone’s memories about a green-glowing talisman inside the temple.

After returning from Mount Myōboku, Zhou Cheng learned that his three-day absence had alarmed his friends and then met with Tsunade about Root. He urged her to eliminate Danzo’s remaining forces and reform Konoha, leaving her to confront the need for change.

• Fukasaku sent Zhou Cheng back to the Shinobi World, and Zhou Cheng returned to Konoha after spending three days at Mount Myōboku.
• Zhou Cheng reassured his worried friends and explained that he had been training at one of the Three Great Sage Lands.
• An ANBU summoned Zhou Cheng to Tsunade, who asked what to do about Root’s shinobi still occupying their headquarters.
• Zhou Cheng urged Tsunade to kill Danzo’s loyalists, arguing that Root and Konoha’s factionalism threatened the village.
• Tsunade considered Konoha’s shortage of experienced fighters, and Zhou Cheng called for the village to remove hidden threats and rebuild its strength.

Zhou Cheng was pressured by Tsunade to train Genin and help with Root before rushing to confront Uchiha Itachi and Kisame Hoshigaki outside Konoha. He overpowered Kisame with powerful Water Release techniques and two elemental Rasenshuriken, prompting Itachi to use Amaterasu as the attack closed in.

• Tsunade persuaded Zhou Cheng to train selected Genin and asked him to help choose people for Root.
• An ANBU reported that Uchiha Itachi and another intruder had been intercepted by Kakashi, Might Guy, and Kurenai Yuhi, so Zhou Cheng hurried to the stream outside Konoha.
• Kurenai Yuhi's genjutsu failed against Itachi, who trapped her in vines and demanded to know where Zhou Cheng was.
• Zhou Cheng arrived, rescued Kurenai Yuhi, and learned that Kisame Hoshigaki had come for his thirty-million-ryo bounty.
• Zhou Cheng countered Kisame's Water Release with a larger shark and a seal-less Water Dragon Bullet, then launched Water and Wind Release Rasenshuriken at him.
• Itachi activated his Mangekyo Sharingan and used Amaterasu to protect Kisame from Zhou Cheng's attacks.

Zhou Cheng drove Itachi and Kisame to retreat, then learned that Danzo had placed a thirty-million-ryo bounty on him. After promising to teach Zhou Cheng swordsmanship in exchange for dinner, Kakashi agreed to help, while Zhou Cheng confronted Danzo at Root and declared that he would purge it.

• Zhou Cheng overwhelmed Itachi and Kisame with repeated Rasenshuriken until Itachi ordered a retreat, and both escaped before the attacks exploded.
• Zhou Cheng healed Kurenai Yuhi and concluded with Kakashi and the others that Danzo had funded the bounty on him.
• Zhou Cheng persuaded Kakashi to teach him swordsmanship by threatening to exclude him from dinner.
• Zhou Cheng told Tsunade what had happened, then used Body Flicker to reach Root and confront Danzo.
• Danzo emerged with Root shinobi, and Zhou Cheng accused him of placing the bounty and vowed to wipe out Root.

Zhou Cheng overwhelmed Danzo and Root, then confronted Danzo before Tsunade and Konoha's leaders. Danzo's crimes and ambitions were exposed, and he insisted he would become the Kage of the entire Shinobi World.

• Zhou Cheng attacked Danzo with the Thunder God Sword and killed and incapacitated Root Shinobi who tried to stop him.
• Zhou Cheng used successive Water Release techniques to defeat Root's ninjutsu and trap more than twenty Root Shinobi in water prisons.
• Danzo tried to threaten Zhou Cheng with his status as an advisor and planned to escape Konoha until outside reinforcements arrived.
• Tsunade, Mitokado Homura, Koharu, and the clan heads arrived but did not support Danzo, and Zhou Cheng declared that Danzo was finished.
• Danzo ranted about his ambition to become Hokage, while Zhou Cheng accused him of involvement in several crimes against Konoha.
• Danzo laughed and declared that he would become the Kage of the entire Shinobi World.