Recaps

Yanbai responded to rumors about himself by ordering Shikaku Nara to spread absurd legends about him throughout Konoha Shinobi Village. He explained that overwhelming plausible gossip with ridiculous stories would make people dismiss future accusations, leaving Shikaku to carry out the plan.

• Shikaku Nara told Yanbai that Lady Mito wanted to see him, and Yanbai agreed to go after assigning Shikaku a task.
• Yanbai ordered Shikaku to invent outrageous rumors about Princess Senju and himself and have the Anbu spread them throughout Konoha Shinobi Village.
• Shikaku Nara and Senju Nawaki listened as Yanbai explained that absurd legends would drown out plausible rumors and make future scandals easier to dismiss.
• Shikaku Nara summarized the strategy, and Yanbai agreed that clearing his name or retaliating against the rumor-spreaders would only give the gossip more attention.
• Shikaku Nara closed his notebook and prepared to spread the stories, with the eventual option of exposing the rumors as malicious fabrications.

Yanbai visited the ailing Mito and learned that the Uzumaki Clan had left another child in her care, hoping to secure his help. He recognized the boy as Nagato and challenged the idea that keeping him from becoming a shinobi would protect him.

• Yanbai met Mito at the Senju Clan's residence after Senju Nawaki withdrew.
• Mito explained how repeatedly helping her birth family had exhausted her, and Yanbai remained unwilling to aid the Uzumaki Clan without a price.
• Yanbai learned that the Uzumaki Clan had entrusted Kushina to Mito and had now sent the young Nagato as well.
• Mito told Yanbai that Nagato's mother had opposed him becoming a shinobi because shinobi were more likely to die.
• Yanbai argued that a civilian without status or wealth was also in danger during wartime.

Yanbai discussed Mito’s concerns about Nagato and Kushina and explained why he had not taken Kushina in before. Mito asked him to care for the children after her death, and Yanbai left the decision to them while revealing hints about the children he had adopted.

• Mito said Nagato’s mother believed leaving him in Konoha was the best way to keep him safe, and Yanbai argued that people without power had no control over their fate.
• Mito asked whether Yanbai would resurrect Hashirama after she died, and Yanbai said the timing was not right.
• Yanbai deduced that Mito wanted him to take in Kushina and Nagato after her death, then warned that his home was full of ghosts and told her to ask the children what they wanted.
• Yanbai explained that he became Orochimaru’s guardian to make amends for an experiment and hinted that his other adopted children resembled Madara or himself.
• Mito apologized and said Yanbai was the only person she trusted; Yanbai gave Kushina and Nagato gifts, easing Kushina’s worries about his earlier refusal to adopt her.

Yanbai learned that the other nations had gone to war without involving the Land of Fire, and he ordered measures to grow the country’s population and economy. He then used a Daifuku shop owner’s experience to teach Nawaki that people’s respect often followed perceived strength and usefulness.

• Shikaku Nara reported that Iwagakure, Kumogakure, Kirigakure, Sunagakure, and smaller nations were fighting while the Land of Fire remained uninvolved.
• Yanbai told Shikaku Nara to ask the Daimyo to encourage childbirth and to offer Kakuzu paid road-building work in the Land of Fire.
• Nawaki complained to Yanbai that he had improved himself but still could not win Mikoto over, then quieted under Yanbai’s stare.
• Yanbai told Nawaki how a Daifuku shop owner partnered with his Wedding and Celebration Services Business, grew her business, and regained respect from her husband’s family.
• Yanbai explained to Nawaki that people often treat others better when they seem strong or potentially useful.

Yanbai advised Senju Nawaki that he needed strength as well as good looks to win Uchiha Mikoto, who remained focused on her work and refused his advances. After leaving the Hokage Office, Nawaki encountered Junlin, who pinned him against a wall and demanded that he call him Uncle.

• Yanbai told Senju Nawaki that he needed to become stronger, and Nawaki left the Hokage Office discouraged.
• Senju Nawaki reflected on Uchiha Mikoto's independence and her refusal to date him, while she shared his and Uchiha Fugaku's gifts with her coworkers.
• Senju Nawaki left the Hokage Building, wary of his surroundings and still sore from being beaten by Director Shukaku and Uchiha Fugaku.
• Senju Nawaki sensed that Junlin had targeted him again, and an invisible force slammed him against a wall.
• Junlin accused Senju Nawaki of bothering his mother and ordered him to repeat, "Uncle Junlin."

Junlin brutally injured Senju Nawaki, then manipulated him into staying quiet and promised to help him marry Uchiha Mikoto. Muye and Silver Moon watched Junlin take Nawaki to the Hokage Building and decided not to interfere, leaving Junlin to follow his own path.

• Senju Nawaki accused Junlin of acting weak to win affection, and Junlin intensified the invisible force crushing him.
• Junlin realized Nawaki was badly injured, helped him up, and warned him not to tell the adults what had happened.
• Junlin persuaded Nawaki to go to their mother and promised to help him marry Uchiha Mikoto.
• Junlin supported Nawaki toward the Hokage Building as Muye and Silver Moon watched from the air with the Revenants.
• Muye told Silver Moon that Junlin had to walk his own path, so they chose not to tell their mother or interfere.

Yanbai’s fabricated rumors became so absurd that locals dismissed them, while foreigners saw the stories as proof that the Land of Fire was prosperous and safe. The resulting wave of immigration weakened rival nations and left their leaders debating whether to end their wars and unite against Konoha.

• Konoha’s Anbu spread bizarre rumors about Yanbai, but villagers treated them as obvious fabrications and blamed foreign nations for slandering him.
• Foreign visitors collected the rumors, and people from other countries began yearning for the Land of Fire and applying to immigrate there.
• Shimura Danzō received a surge of Immigration Application Reports and began to understand the purpose behind Yanbai’s orders.
• Ōnoki learned that the rumors had reminded people of Yanbai’s power and had prompted the Daimyo of the Land of Earth to demand an end to the war.
• The other nations’ daimyō reported that civilians were fleeing to the Land of Fire, leaving the shinobi leaders to weigh cooperation with Konoha against an alliance against it.

Yanbai oversaw the construction of Hanamaki City and expanded the Land of Fire’s border development, attracting civilians and turning the country into a safe, prosperous haven amid wars elsewhere. As weapons production and trade grew, Yanbai walked through the busy city while the border-building plan continued.

• Yanbai completed Hanamaki City as a modern coastal city with a port and proposed that the Land of Fire build a naval base there.
• Yanbai hired Kakuzu from Takigakure to build roads and Kaguya Clan shinobi from Kirigakure to construct houses, then sold weapons to their villages and other countries.
• Yanbai and the Daimyo of the Land of Fire prioritized border defenses, city construction, and population growth while Konoha ninja supported civilian efforts.
• Civilians fleeing wars in other countries began arriving in the Land of Fire to help build cities, turning it into a haven from the surrounding turmoil.
• Orochimaru expanded industrial production of ninja tools, while the Daimyo maintained weapons deals with other countries.
• Yanbai walked through Hanamaki City's bustling streets as residents politely greeted him.

As the Land of Fire prospered from the prolonged war, Yanbai accelerated development with relentless new plans. When no one from the Hyuga, Uchiha, or Senju clans applied to succeed him as Hokage, Yanbai summoned the Hyuga Clan Leader to push the clan toward the position.

• The Land of Fire sold weapons to other nations in exchange for labor, while prisoners of war worked on infrastructure and gradually lost their shinobi abilities.
• Yanbai used Multiple Shadow Clones to complete government work and draft new development plans, which alarmed the Hokage Advisors.
• No one from the Hyuga, Uchiha, or Senju clans applied to succeed Yanbai, and Tsunade declined because she was a candidate for Daimyo.
• Kagami Uchiha proposed reopening Hokage selection to commoners and other clans after the position stopped attracting applicants.
• Yanbai blamed the Will of the World for the succession problem and ordered Shikaku Nara to summon the Hyuga Clan Leader.

Junlin sought Yanbai’s advice about his future marriage and indirectly asked how he felt about the Uzumaki Clan. After Junlin left, Yanbai questioned his Ghost Servants and learned that the girl pursuing Junlin was Kushina Uzumaki.

• Muye and Silver Moon continued visiting Madara while Junlin spent his lunches with Yanbai.
• Junlin asked Yanbai what he thought about Junlin’s future marriage, saying a girl liked him too much.
• Junlin asked whether Yanbai disliked the Uzumaki Clan, and Yanbai explained that he felt no particular connection to them.
• After Junlin returned to school, Yanbai asked the Ghost Servants about Junlin’s situation.
• Yanbai learned that Kushina Uzumaki was the girl giving Junlin so much attention.

Yanbai reflected on why Kushina might be drawn to Junlin and on the troubled rivalry between Junlin and Nawaki. He wondered how the altered lives of the younger generation would reshape future family ties, including Naruto’s parentage.

• Yanbai reasoned that Kushina’s need for a strong protector could explain her attraction to Junlin, though he thought she might still end up with Minato.
• Yanbai recalled that Junlin was liked by many in Konoha and the Senju Clan, while he secretly bullied Nawaki.
• Yanbai considered how Nawaki’s anxious upbringing and lack of setbacks had shaped his rebellious nature and his strange willingness to face Junlin.
• Yanbai realized Junlin and Nawaki understood each other’s hidden dissatisfaction and silently played out their roles as tormentor and target.
• Yanbai wondered whether Nawaki or Fugaku would become Itachi and Sasuke’s father, and whether Junlin’s presence would change Naruto’s parentage.

Yanbai opened his successor training to the Hyuga and Uchiha clans, requiring them to pay extra to share what they learned with their families. His offer drew in several young shinobi, leaving him with four disciples and a group of possible future Hokage.

• Yanbai ordered the Hyuga Clan to nominate a successor and agreed to teach that candidate in exchange for extra tuition.
• Kagami Uchiha brought Uchiha Fugaku to ask for the same opportunity, and Yanbai accepted them.
• Hyuga Yuisaki arrived with his résumé, and Yanbai welcomed him without telling him that Fugaku might become a rival.
• Fugaku's arrival prompted Nawaki to join Yanbai's lessons, while Junlin and Minato Namikaze also sat in.
• Yanbai began teaching all four disciples, and Minato became his student instead of Jiraiya's future student.

After assessing his five students for seven days, Yanbai assigned each a technique suited to their abilities, including a dubious stealing technique for Uchiha Fugaku and an unsettling medical method for Hyuga Yuisaki. Hyuga Yuisaki memorized Yanbai’s meridian lessons, then discovered they were meant to teach him where to strike opponents to cause pain and distress.

• Yanbai spent seven days assessing his students and found Hyuga Yuisaki obedient and quick to memorize, but unable to adapt or think independently.
• Yanbai began teaching individualized techniques: Minato Namikaze learned the Flying Thunder God Technique, Senju Nawaki learned escape techniques, Uchiha Fugaku learned pickpocketing, and Hyuga Yuisaki learned the Urinary and Fecal Incontinence Technique.
• Uchiha Fugaku felt embarrassed that Yanbai had taught him a stealing technique, despite its connection to Uchiha Izuna.
• Yanbai taught Hyuga Yuisaki to use the Byakugan beyond tracking chakra flow and had him study traditional Chinese medicine and human meridians.
• After Hyuga Yuisaki memorized the meridian system, Yanbai explained where to strike an opponent to cause physical suffering and mental anguish.

Yanbai questioned whether his rule limiting Hokage succession to the Three Noble Clans had been a mistake, and Shikaku Nara offered a perspective shaped by his lessons and experience. The chapter left Yanbai considering Shikaku’s view that giving up could sometimes take more effort than persevering.

• Hyuga Yuisaki learned lethal and bowel-loosening pressure points, recorded the techniques, and brought his notes to the Hyuga Clan's leader.
• Junlin left with Minato Namikaze for dinner, while Yanbai ate with Shikaku Nara, who had been attending his lessons.
• Yanbai asked Shikaku whether his decisions were always right and admitted he was questioning his rule that only members of Konoha's Three Noble Clans could inherit the Hokage position.
• Shikaku explained that people often remained trapped in suffering because they insisted on solving problems, and that giving up could sometimes be harder than persevering.

Shikaku Nara explained how fear of loss could trap people in painful situations, prompting Yanbai to recognize that his need to prove himself useful had shaped his life and exhausted him. Yanbai thanked Shikaku and began considering who he could be beyond his duties and old wounds.

• Shikaku Nara described how Inoichi Yamanaka had stayed in a miserable job because an uncertain future seemed worse than enduring it.
• Shikaku Nara asked Yanbai how he felt when his family relied on him, and Yanbai admitted he felt reassured and irreplaceable.
• Yanbai recalled how Butsuma had treated him as a useless daughter and realized he had spent years proving his worth to the Senju Clan and others.
• Shikaku Nara suggested that letting go could pause the pain and help Yanbai reconsider what else he could do.
• Yanbai reflected on who he might be apart from his clan and responsibilities, then thanked Shikaku Nara for helping him understand.

Yanbai continued as Hokage while the Land of Fire entered an industrial age and the younger generation pursued tangled ambitions and relationships. He visited the ailing Mito, who tried to persuade him to take in five-year-old Nagato, but Yanbai showed little interest despite Nagato’s extraordinary talent.

• Yanbai stopped feeling an urgent need to leave the Hokage position and continued training his four disciples as two years passed and the Land of Fire developed rapidly.
• Yanbai observed that Nawaki had survived, Tsunade and Dan Katō had never met, and Orochimaru remained devoted to science while the younger generation pursued their own relationships and goals.
• Yanbai continued visiting Mito, whose health had declined as she ate very little and tried to entrust Kushina and Nagato to him.
• Mito told Yanbai that five-year-old Nagato was gifted, had learned to extract chakra in ten minutes, and possessed all five nature affinities, but Yanbai remained indifferent.

Yanbai refused Mito’s request to take Kushina and Nagato as disciples, though he agreed to shelter them until they could support themselves. On his way back to work, he met Uchiha Sumi and complained that he could not find a suitable successor as Hokage, then teased Sumi for never applying.

• Yanbai told Mito he would care for Kushina and Nagato but would not take responsibility for training them as disciples.
• Yanbai reassured Mito that the Land of Whirlpools would remain safe while the Land of Fire was strong and he remained the Uzumaki Clan’s backer.
• Yanbai left the Senju Clan grounds and reflected on how Konoha Shinobi Village had grown into a prosperous, beautiful city.
• Uchiha Sumi greeted Yanbai, and they walked together as Yanbai explained that he could not retire because he lacked a suitable Hokage successor.
• Yanbai told Uchiha Sumi that he should have applied for the position, leaving Sumi speechless.

Yanbai's casual praise made Uchiha Sumi reconsider his responsibilities, though Sumi left without applying to succeed as Hokage. Yanbai then watched Senju Nawaki and Uchiha Fugaku compete and concluded that Nawaki had no chance with Uchiha Mikoto.

• Yanbai's remark about Uchiha Sumi's potential as Hokage left Sumi wondering whether he had disappointed him.
• Yanbai reassured Uchiha Sumi that he should not force himself into the Hokage role and encouraged him to raise Shisui well.
• Uchiha Sumi left after silently watching Yanbai enter the Hokage Building, but he did not submit an application to succeed as Hokage.
• Yanbai reflected that the younger generation might surprise him, then stopped dwelling on Uchiha Sumi's decision.
• With six months remaining before Kushina and Minato Namikaze graduated, Yanbai observed Senju Nawaki and Uchiha Fugaku continue competing and decided Mikoto liked Fugaku, not Nawaki.

Years into Yanbai’s rule as Hokage, Kakuzu visited Konoha and offered to sell him intelligence about Akatsuki, an organization Kakuzu had recently joined and left. Kakuzu agreed to explain his departure, leaving Yanbai wondering what kind of mission had driven him away.

• Yanbai watched Uchiha Fugaku and Senju Nawaki continue their evenly matched duels while training his four disciples rigorously.
• As graduation approached, Yanbai encountered Kakuzu in an alley during an inspection of Konoha and invited him for tea.
• Kakuzu told Yanbai that he had joined Akatsuki the previous year but had since left, and offered intelligence on its members for nine million ryo each.
• Yanbai asked why Kakuzu had left, and Kakuzu said the leader’s strange missions had finally become too much for him to tolerate.

Yanbai learned that Kakuzu wanted to leave Akatsuki because its missions had turned from ordinary schemes into meddling in Konoha relationships, and he paid Kakuzu before they parted on friendly terms. Back in Konoha, Yanbai found that Fugaku and Mikoto had become a couple, while the rejected Nawaki and Kushina had unexpectedly started dating each other.

• Kakuzu told Yanbai that Akatsuki's increasingly strange missions, including interfering in romances in Konoha, made him want to quit, and Yanbai paid him a substantial sum.
• Kakuzu thanked Yanbai and asked him to keep in touch before leaving the teahouse.
• Yanbai returned to his daily life and learned that Uchiha Fugaku and Mikoto had decided to be together, leaving Senju Nawaki heartbroken.
• Junlin told Kushina that they could be friends and partners but were incompatible as spouses, and Kushina was heartbroken.
• Senju Nawaki and Kushina unexpectedly began dating after both had been rejected.

Yanbai watched the younger generation’s relationships and Konoha’s changing school system before meeting the young Obito while disguised as an old man. Six months later, he visited a failing Mito, who asked him to care for Kushina and Nagato after her death.

• Yanbai judged Senju Nawaki’s treatment of Kushina as halfhearted but decided not to interfere in their relationship.
• Yanbai followed Jiraiya’s writing career and required people to wear swimwear at the hot springs, officially to prevent contamination.
• Yanbai observed Kakashi Hatake’s generation begin school under a system that placed children in shinobi or regular classes, and noted that Might Guy was happy in a regular class.
• Disguised as an old man, Yanbai let Obito help him, then revealed himself as the Hokage and invited Obito to visit him.
• Six months later, Yanbai visited Mito as her health worsened, and Mito entrusted Kushina and Nagato to his care after her death.

Yanbai agreed to become Nagato and Kushina’s guardian and continued managing the Land of Fire’s education system while trying to keep Obito on schedule. When Obito came to the Hokage Office and explained why he was dating young, Yanbai heard how Uchiha children’s upbringing and prospects differed from those of commoners.

• Yanbai agreed to let Nagato and Kushina live with him until they reached adulthood, then left them largely in Muye and Silver Moon’s care.
• Yanbai reflected on the demanding credit and exam requirements for early graduation in the Land of Fire’s compulsory education system.
• Obito repeatedly ran late after talking with Yanbai, and Yanbai once caused him to fail a physical fitness assessment when he choked on a candy.
• Obito came to the Hokage Office for wontons and told Yanbai he was dating young.
• Obito explained that his grandmother encouraged him to experience more than studying and described how Uchiha children received clan schooling before the Ninja Academy.
• Obito questioned whether graduating at the top would earn him the same treatment and opportunities his grandmother had received, and Yanbai recognized that it would not.

Yanbai reflected on Obito’s grandmother’s advice that people needed experience with love to make calm choices, and considered how marriage could shape a person’s life. He wondered whether a more level-headed Obito would avoid becoming the man who once brought disaster upon the Shinobi World.

• Obito told Yanbai that his grandmother believed life had different priorities for different generations of the Uchiha Clan.
• Yanbai explained that Obito’s grandmother wanted him to become accustomed to loving and being loved so he could make rational choices.
• Yanbai remembered asking Madara whether he should push Muye and Silver Moon to compete harder, and Madara said parents should provide a safety net without interfering too much.
• Yanbai concluded that children needed protection from destructive relationships as well as support in their education.
• Yanbai escorted Obito to the Ninja Academy and explained the situation to his homeroom teacher.
• Yanbai wondered whether Obito would avoid his future catastrophe if he learned to approach love with a level head.

Kushina ended her relationship with Senju Nawaki after his continued devotion to Mikoto left her feeling neglected. Yanbai comforted Kushina, then confronted Nawaki and learned how little he truly valued her, leaving him stunned by Yanbai’s rebuke.

• Kushina broke down after Nawaki again left her behind to fuss over Mikoto, and she demanded a breakup in the Hokage Office.
• Yanbai hugged Kushina and promised to protect her, then used his Dōjutsu to inspect Nawaki’s memories when he came to win her back.
• Yanbai sent Shikaku Nara to take Kushina to a lounge and told Nawaki they should break up.
• Nawaki insisted he loved Kushina and did not want to leave her, but Yanbai accused him of hurting her through his unchanged behavior.
• Nawaki compared his attachment to Kushina to growing attached to a dog, and Yanbai sarcastically agreed that Kushina had grown attached to him.

At the family feast, Kushina announced that she wanted to marry Minato, prompting Yanbai’s family to scrutinize their relationship and question whether the two had considered what marriage involved. Muye and Silver Moon began assessing the match in practical terms, leaving Kushina and Minato stunned.

• Yanbai arranged for Kushina to live independently while Junlin and Minato visited her, and Muye and Silver Moon took Nagato along on their travels.
• Kushina brought Minato to the monthly family feast and announced that she wanted to marry him.
• Orochimaru praised Minato and urged the others not to intimidate the couple, but the family’s questions made Minato realize Kushina came from a powerful family.
• Muye and Silver Moon challenged Kushina and Minato to explain whether they understood marriage and described it as a partnership between two families.
• Muye argued that they should weigh the objective benefits and drawbacks of marriage rather than relying on feelings, and Yanbai laughed at her veiled jab at Nawaki.