Chapter Summaries

Aokiji and Tsunade traveled by bicycle, with Tsunade secretly engineering a ride that ended in the bicycle’s destruction. They reached a coastal territory in the Land of Fire, where Tsunade was shown the corpse of a human mutated by a Sea Monster.

• Tsunade accepted Aokiji’s offer to ride on his bicycle after claiming her legs were sore.
• Aokiji taught Tsunade to ride, but she pretended to be clumsy so she could make him hold her waist when she sped up.
• Tsunade wrecked the bicycle, then accused Aokiji of groping her while he demanded compensation for it.
• Tsunade met the territory’s lord alone while Aokiji went to spend money at a Maid Cafe.
• Servants led Tsunade into a room and showed her the corpse of a human mutated by a Sea Monster.

Tsunade and Aokiji investigated a monster near Innsmouth Island, where villagers were being infected by parasitic young. After the village chief explained the situation, Aokiji secretly warned Tsunade that he might be lying, and they staged bed noises to fool someone listening through the wall.

• Tsunade examined a strange creature and went to find Aokiji at the Chocola and Vanilla maid café, where they teased each other before setting out on their mission.
• Tsunade and Aokiji reached Mouth Village and found villagers with strange skin and octopus-like creatures attached to their necks.
• The village chief told them the creatures were the monster's young, which drained their hosts and eventually transformed them, and Tsunade and Aokiji agreed to defeat the monster.
• Aokiji claimed Tsunade was his girlfriend so they could share a room, then wrote that he suspected the village chief had not told them the truth.
• Aokiji and Tsunade pretended to make the bed creak while someone listened from the other side of the wall.

Aokiji and Tsunade fought the village chief and the Fish-men who ambushed them, then discovered the chief was protecting a massive sea creature. Tsunade stopped her attack when the chief pleaded that killing it would doom his village.

• The village chief tried to kill Aokiji and Tsunade in their sleep, but they exposed the Shadow Clones and confronted him.
• Aokiji attacked the villagers, while Tsunade and he fought the chief until he escaped into the sea.
• Aokiji and Tsunade found the village deserted, then set out by boat the next morning and evaded a sea ambush.
• Aokiji and Tsunade repelled the Fish-men and restrained a giant sea creature with Ice Chains and Tsunade's punch.
• The village chief landed on the creature to stop Tsunade from striking again and pleaded that killing it would finish his village.

After learning how the luxury hotel had exploited Mouth Village, Tsunade broke down over the gambling and political corruption behind its suffering. Aokiji stopped her from causing trouble while drunk, and the next morning Tsunade feared she had revealed something embarrassing.

• The village chief explained how gambling debts and a fraudulent hotel led to the abuse and abduction of village women, with some transforming into monsters to fight back.
• Tsunade and Aokiji wanted to attack the hotel, but the village chief warned that its ties to the Daimyo made retaliation too dangerous.
• Tsunade drank heavily in despair, so Aokiji knocked her unconscious and took her to an inn, where she slept on the floor while he used the bed.
• The next morning, Tsunade angrily confronted Aokiji about leaving her without a blanket, and he defended his decision to save money.
• At breakfast, Tsunade anxiously asked whether she had said anything strange while drunk, and Aokiji answered with a knowing smile.

Aokiji teased Tsunade about supposedly confessing to him, and their chase nearly turned into a kiss before they returned to Konoha. There, Jiraiya announced another plan to win Tsunade over and asked Aokiji and Orochimaru for help.

• Aokiji joked that Tsunade had confessed her love to him, and she angrily denied it before he teased her about her figure and fled.
• Tsunade chased Aokiji and trapped him against a wall, but they nearly kissed before a crow startled them apart.
• Tsunade and Aokiji returned to Konoha and told Jiraiya and Orochimaru that their mission had failed, with Tsunade blaming Aokiji.
• Tsunade punched Jiraiya when he asked to partner with her, and Aokiji mocked him for pursuing her.
• Jiraiya declared that he had a brilliant new plan to make Tsunade fall for him and asked Aokiji and Orochimaru to help.

Aokiji agreed to help Tsunade practice combination Ninjutsu, and the two traded barbs after meeting their former classmate Inuzuka Ran and her oversized dog. They continued arguing as they headed to their usual training spot beneath the cliff.

• Aokiji ran into Tsunade, who invited him to practice combination Ninjutsu with her, and he agreed after hearing her reasons.
• Tsunade explained that her Water Release could work well with Aokiji’s Ice Release and that Jiraiya and Orochimaru were unavailable or unsuitable.
• Aokiji and Tsunade met Inuzuka Ran and watched her massive dog react jealously to a passerby’s small puppy.
• Tsunade imagined Aokiji comforting her like a dog and resolved to make him fall for her and tame him.
• Aokiji and Tsunade bickered with Inuzuka Ran before leaping down to their usual training area beneath the cliff.

Tsunade defeated Aokiji in a spar and then trained with him to combine Water Release and Ice Release, but their technique exploded. After their training, Aokiji cooked fish while Tsunade struggled with her own Military Ration Pill, and he ended the chapter by jokingly demanding payment for her fish.

• Tsunade used sensing, Water Release, and Monstrous Strength to break through Aokiji's ice defense and win their spar.
• Tsunade explained combined ninjutsu, and she and Aokiji tried turning a water dragon into an ice dragon, but it exploded.
• Aokiji refused Tsunade's homemade Military Ration Pill, caught fish, and cooked them while she trained.
• Tsunade rejected the fish at first, then eagerly ate half of one before Aokiji added seasonings from a scroll.
• After Tsunade joked that Aokiji would raise the price halfway through, he demanded 250 ryo for the fish.

Sarutobi Hiruzen promoted Orochimaru to provisional Jonin after gaining the advisers’ approval. He planned to reunite Orochimaru with Tsunade and Jiraiya, then named Uchiha Aokiji as the remaining teammate.

• Orochimaru reported on his mission, and Sarutobi Hiruzen praised his abilities before asking Danzo, Utatane Koharu, and Mitokado Homura for their opinions.
• Sarutobi Hiruzen proposed promoting Orochimaru to Jonin, and the advisers discussed his youth, qualifications, and the risk of favoritism.
• Mitokado Homura supported the promotion, Danzo raised no objection, and Sarutobi Hiruzen approved Orochimaru’s provisional Jonin appointment.
• The advisers discussed forming Orochimaru’s new team, and Sarutobi Hiruzen proposed reuniting him with Tsunade and Jiraiya.
• Sarutobi Hiruzen named Uchiha Aokiji as the final member of the team.

Sarutobi Hiruzen assigned Aokiji to a team with his disciples to improve ties with the Uchiha Clan and keep watch on him. After training Fugaku and agreeing to watch Mikoto, Aokiji left with Tsunade to meet Hiruzen, leaving Fugaku flustered as he looked after her.

• Danzo questioned Sarutobi Hiruzen's decision to assign Aokiji to the team, and Hiruzen explained that the move could ease relations with the Uchiha Clan while keeping Aokiji under observation.
• Aokiji defeated Fugaku at table tennis and made him call him Big Brother Aokiji.
• Aokiji agreed to look after his neighbor's daughter, Mikoto, and took her to the park while Fugaku followed along.
• Tsunade told Aokiji that Sarutobi Hiruzen wanted to speak with him, so Aokiji left Fugaku in charge of Mikoto.
• Mikoto introduced herself to Fugaku, who blushed as he remembered Aokiji's teasing that she might become his wife.

Aokiji was assigned to a four-person squad with Tsunade, Jiraiya, and newly promoted Jonin Orochimaru, then set out on an escort mission to meet Kozuki Momonosuke. The mission turned tense when their guide Kin'emon learned Aokiji was Uchiha and demanded that he be removed from the team, citing a history he refused to explain.

• Sarutobi Hiruzen made Orochimaru the Jonin leader of a squad with Aokiji, Tsunade, and Jiraiya, and gave them a B-rank escort mission.
• Aokiji asked Fugaku to watch Mikoto, changed out of his Uchiha-marked clothes, and joined the others at Konoha's gates.
• Kin'emon introduced himself as Kozuki Momonosuke's assistant and led the squad toward the Flower Capital to meet their escort target.
• Aokiji swiftly defeated bandits they encountered on the road, and Orochimaru revealed that Aokiji belonged to the Uchiha Clan.
• Kin'emon reacted with hostility to Aokiji's clan, demanded that he be removed from the team, and refused to explain the Uchiha Clan's history with his people.

Orochimaru, Jiraiya, and Aokiji continued their journey toward the Flower Capital after Kin'emon agreed not to change teams. In Kabukicho, Momonosuke manipulated a woman into spending money on him, then intervened when her husband confronted her.

• Kin'emon agreed to keep Aokiji on the team and warned him not to claim he was from the Uchiha Clan when they met Momonosuke.
• Orochimaru apologized to Aokiji for speaking out of turn, but Aokiji said it was an accident and told him not to worry about his feelings.
• Momonosuke charmed a customer at the White Horse Host Club and pressured her to keep supporting his supposed orphanage.
• The next day, Momonosuke dismissed his customer as a Ghost Pillow and said he expected people to believe him again after another incident.
• When the woman's husband confronted her outside the club, Momonosuke knocked him down and accused him of hitting a woman.
• The husband accused his wife of spending their savings on Momonosuke, while she defended the host and his supposed charitable work.

Momonosuke exploited his host club’s business scheme and prepared to travel under a ninja escort, while Dokai’s agents confirmed Momonosuke’s identity as their target. Uchiha Madara appeared before Dokai and used a Sharingan transcription seal on his eyes.

• Momonosuke framed a furious husband for causing trouble, then returned to his office and learned that Kanjuro wanted to discuss their host, brothel, and usury businesses.
• Momonosuke met the hired ninja escort, flirted with Tsunade, and became intrigued when she rejected his advances.
• In Wano Country, Dokai and his subordinates confirmed that Momonosuke was the man they had been searching for and discussed killing him despite the ninja escort.
• Uchiha Madara appeared before Dokai, inspected his three-tomoe Sharingan, and activated a Sharingan: Transcription Seal.

After Momonosuke was kidnapped during an ambush, Kin'emon revealed that he was a prince from Wano Country and pleaded for the team to rescue him. Aokiji refused to take on the newly exposed danger for a B-rank reward and demanded more payment, leaving the mission's fate undecided.

• Aokiji, Jiraiya, and Orochimaru were ambushed while escorting Momonosuke, and the attackers kidnapped him as Jiraiya pursued them.
• Kin'emon blamed the Konoha ninjas, but Aokiji pointed out that the mission's true difficulty had been concealed and learned that Momonosuke was a prince.
• Kin'emon recounted Wano Country's fall and the Uchiha Clan's role, then urged the team to rescue Momonosuke.
• Aokiji rejected the rescue as a dangerous private affair, despite pleas from Kin'emon and Tsunade.
• Kin'emon offered assurances about his allies, and Aokiji said the team would need more payment to continue.

Aokiji negotiated a 100-million-ryo payment for rescuing Momonosuke and set out for Wano Country. There, Dokai killed Momonosuke while trying to activate an altar, then learned that someone had started a rebellion.

• Aokiji demanded S-rank pay for the rescue mission and accepted Kin'emon's check for 100 million ryo.
• Aokiji confirmed the enemy's strength and prepared to rescue Momonosuke in Wano Country, which Elder Itachi had specifically mentioned.
• Dokai's followers brought Momonosuke to the Hexagram Altar, where Dokai killed him and tried to use his blood and necklace to activate it.
• Might Guy revealed himself after the failed ritual, dismissed the altar's legend, and left Dokai with Momonosuke's corpse.
• A subordinate told Dokai that someone was rebelling, and Dokai welcomed the chance to kill the former regime's remnants.

Aokiji’s team defeated the three Wano Country Jonin and discussed what they would do with their mission reward. Before they could finish the mission, Tyrant appeared, and Aokiji prepared for a dangerous fight.

• Jiraiya, Tsunade, and Orochimaru helped Aokiji’s team defeat the three Wano Country Jonin.
• The team celebrated the prospect of earning 100 million ryo and discussed how they would spend it: Tsunade planned to fund medical development, Orochimaru wanted to conduct experiments, and Aokiji planned to save his share for retirement.
• Tsunade refused to support Aokiji, while Jiraiya changed the subject and urged the team to finish the mission.
• Tyrant appeared with a spiked club, and Aokiji recognized his threatening aura and raised his guard.

Aokiji and his companions confronted Tyrant Dokai, who revealed that he had killed their employer and that their mission’s intelligence was false. The fight escalated as Dokai displayed immense power and Sharingan eyes, and the chapter ended with Aokiji’s group learning that Momonosuke’s side had deceived them.

• Dokai identified himself and tossed Kin'emon’s severed head to Aokiji and the others, then said Momonosuke was probably in trouble.
• Tsunade sensed Dokai’s enormous Chakra, and Aokiji decided the team had to fight despite realizing their intelligence was unreliable.
• Jiraiya tested Dokai with a Flame Bullet, but Dokai dodged it using Lightning Release and charged at Aokiji.
• Orochimaru and Aokiji combined Wind Release, defensive Earth and Ice techniques, and their other attacks against Dokai, who shrugged off the assault and countered with a powerful Lightning Release strike.
• Aokiji activated his Sharingan, and Dokai removed his bandages to reveal matching eyes, claiming he had obtained them by chance.
• Dokai explained that Momonosuke’s group had lied about wanting peace, leaving Orochimaru’s team questioning whether they should abandon the mission.

Aokiji and his companions confronted Dokai, but the real Momonosuke revealed himself and awakened his ancestors’ power. After Momonosuke II attacked Dokai, Dokai manifested a powerful Susanoo, leaving Aokiji and the others stunned.

• Dokai threatened to stop Aokiji and his companions from leaving and declared that he wanted Aokiji’s eyes.
• Tsunade vowed not to hand Aokiji over, while Jiraiya warned the arriving Kurozumi to leave.
• Kurozumi revealed that he was the real Momonosuke and explained how he had used his stand-in and the Konoha ninja to reach the Altar and awaken his ancestors’ power.
• Momonosuke II attacked Dokai with a barrage of punches and knocked him into a wall.
• Dokai recovered, overwhelmed Momonosuke II, and revealed a towering blue Susanoo armed with a lightning-wreathed club.

Dokai used Susanoo to overwhelm Orochimaru's team, leaving Jiraiya and Orochimaru unconscious and Tsunade struck away. Aokiji froze in terror but wounded himself to force his body to move, ending the chapter facing Dokai with renewed fighting spirit.

• Dokai's Susanoo beat Momonosuke II unconscious, and Aokiji recognized the technique as Mangekyō Sharingan before warning the others to run.
• Dokai's Blue Giant shrugged off the Explosive Tags, struck Tsunade away, and defeated Jiraiya despite his Great Flame Bullet.
• Orochimaru used a Great Green Snake to free Jiraiya, but Dokai tore it apart, crushed Orochimaru, and tossed him aside after he passed out.
• Aokiji froze as the Susanoo approached, convinced none of his ninjutsu could defeat it.
• Aokiji stabbed his thigh with a Kunai and forced himself to face Dokai without backing down.

Aokiji briefly awakened a glimpse of his future Mangekyō Sharingan ability, summoning a Ghost Hand that froze part of Dokai’s Susanoo before collapsing. Dokai’s Sharingan backlash then blurred his vision and ended Susanoo, leaving him open to Tsunade’s attack.

• Aokiji’s Ghost Hand stopped Susanoo’s strike, and Uchiha Madara recognized it as an early glimpse of Aokiji’s future Mangekyō ability.
• The Ghost Hand froze half of Susanoo, but Aokiji’s bleeding eyes could not sustain the ability and it vanished.
• Dokai’s Three Tomoe Sharingan suffered severe backlash, blurring his vision and forcing Susanoo to disappear.
• Tsunade struck Dokai in the forehead and sent him flying.

Aokiji and Tsunade fought Dokai while protecting their unconscious teammates, using a coordinated trap to overcome his Susanoo. Dokai was badly injured by Tsunade’s final blow and admitted that he had been the naive one.

• Tsunade lost heart after seeing Jiraiya and Orochimaru gravely injured, so Aokiji slapped her to rekindle her fighting spirit.
• Aokiji and Tsunade drew Dokai away from their unconscious companions and attacked him together, but he outmatched them and electrocuted them through the water.
• Aokiji used a Shadow Clone and a hidden real body to launch the combined Ice Release: Ice Wheel Orb, but Dokai emerged inside Susanoo.
• Aokiji used the ice created by the attack to trap Dokai’s real body with Ice Release: Hellish Demonic Hand, causing Susanoo to collapse.
• Tsunade struck the injured Dokai with her last remaining Chakra, and Aokiji told him he had seen through his abilities.
• Dokai coughed up blood and admitted that he had been the truly naive one.