Chapter Summaries

Master of Open Stratagems, Emperor of Sinking, and Corpse Bearer revealed their campaign settlement rewards to the legion. Corpse Bearer received powerful Eight Gates techniques, including Night Guy, and the players recognized his rewards as a deadly offensive weapon.

• Master of Open Stratagems showed his rewards, including an S-Rank Death-Substitution Puppet, an S-Rank summoning technique, and 80,000 war merits.
• Emperor of Sinking showed his rewards, including an A-Rank Death-Substitution Puppet and an S-Rank Beast-Taming Egg, while taking a jab at Master of Open Stratagems for assigning him to the Cavalry Squad.
• Corpse Bearer revealed his Killing Machine bonuses, Bloodlust, and A-rank Eight Gates Released Formation.
• Corpse Bearer displayed his settlement rewards: an S-Rank Death-Substitution Puppet, 100,000 war merits, and S-rank Night Guy, a fatal technique that costs the user's life.
• The legion channel compared Master of Open Stratagems's defensive rewards to a shield and Corpse Bearer's life-consuming techniques to a spear.

Corpse Bearer explained how Bullfighting Master helped him earn his rewards, and Bullfighting Master defended the painful Taijutsu as a way to build strength. He revealed that their in-game physical improvements had affected their real bodies, leaving Master of Open Stratagems alarmed and asking for confirmation.

• Players reacted to Corpse Bearer's rewards, which included powerful but painfully costly forbidden Taijutsu.
• Corpse Bearer explained that Bullfighting Master helped him secure kills by wounding enemies while Corpse Bearer delivered the finishing blows.
• Bullfighting Master said the pain and rewards of forbidden Taijutsu could strengthen willpower, fighting spirit, and constitution.
• Bullfighting Master revealed that he and Corpse Bearer had tested improvements to physical fitness in the game and found they slightly affected their real bodies.
• Master of Open Stratagems locked down the legion chat and asked Bullfighting Master whether the real-world effects were true.

The players shared their tailored rewards, while Ye Chen gained substantial power through their progress and realized the game could affect visitors’ real world. After seeing how deeply Dai Xiaomei had become absorbed in the game, he worried that its realistic world could cause serious consequences.

• Corpse Bearer clarified that the game improved players’ mental willpower and pain tolerance rather than directly strengthening their bodies, and he and Bullfighting Master logged off during the reward showcase.
• The players displayed their exclusive rewards and ended their meeting satisfied.
• Ye Chen received chakra and numerous ninjutsu, taijutsu, and other rewards through feedback from the villagers’ progress.
• Ye Chen asked the system whether the open world affected visitors’ other world, and learned that its improvements had a 0.01% effect there.
• Ye Chen watched footage of Dai Xiaomei becoming deeply immersed in the game and worried that its realism could make the effect dangerous.

Ye Chen worried that players’ immersion in Hidden Jun Ninja could draw authorities’ attention and disrupt the game, so he ordered new anti-addiction measures. The players reacted angrily to the announcement, while a few defended the changes.

• Ye Chen saw that Hidden Jun Ninja had affected the other world by 0.01% and worried that players might lose touch with reality and attract official scrutiny.
• Ye Chen ordered the feedback system to add an eight-hour daily play limit and reduce simulation fidelity by 5%, with compensation for players.
• The system announced the anti-addiction measures to all players, leaving the game world briefly silent.
• Some players blamed the changes on a busybody or jealous rival developers and condemned whoever had reported the game.
• A few players defended the report, saying the game’s realism could distort perceptions and praising the developers for responding, but louder criticism drowned them out.

Ye Chen monitored Corpse Bearer and Bullfighting Master and discovered that Taijutsu movements from the game could be brought into the real world, though without their full power. The system explained that things existing in both worlds could be carried from one to the other.

• Ye Chen ordered the system to monitor Corpse Bearer and Bullfighting Master's communications and watched them talk in the real world.
• Corpse Bearer told Bullfighting Master to keep their physical improvements secret because neither of them could prove whether the game had directly caused them.
• Ye Chen had the system retrieve their previous communications and reviewed the available recordings.
• Ye Chen found that Taijutsu movements learned in the game could be performed in the real world, but were much weaker without Taijutsu Chakra.
• The system explained that things already existing in both worlds could be brought into the other world.

After Kusagakure merged into Hidden Jun Village, Ye Chen upgraded the village to level five and gained a Ninja Academy, then spotted a Konoha ninja waiting outside the village. The chapter left Ye Chen facing an unexpected visitor.

• Ye Chen reasoned that techniques could pass between the real world and the game world when they followed both worlds' rules, and wondered whether he could use those rules to travel back.
• The system announced that Kusagakure had merged into Hidden Jun Village and that the village met the requirements for an upgrade.
• Ye Chen upgraded Hidden Jun Village to level five and received Five Elements Ninjutsu, a Ninja Academy, and a Bounty Hall.
• Ye Chen decided the Ninja Academy could train low-ranking ninja and give the captured Kusagakure Jonin a role as teachers under his watch.
• Ye Chen sensed someone outside the village, vanished, and found a ninja wearing a Konoha Forehead Protector.

Yamato delivered Konoha’s invitation for six Hidden Jun Village shinobi to enter its Chunin Tournament, offering the slots left vacant by the destroyed Kusagakure. Ye Chen declined to keep his small village out of the Five Great Shinobi Villages’ conflicts, while Yamato hinted they would meet again soon.

• Yamato introduced himself to Ye Chen as a Root member from Konoha and said he had brought a confidential directive.
• Yamato told Ye Chen that Shimura Danzō, after consulting the Hokage, had invited six Hidden Jun Village Chunin to Konoha’s tournament.
• Yamato explained that the six slots had belonged to Kusagakure, whose contestants were now refugees in Konoha after the village’s destruction.
• Ye Chen considered the benefits of sending his shinobi to gain experience but worried that joining the tournament would draw Hidden Jun Village into wider conflicts.
• Ye Chen politely declined the invitation, and Yamato accepted his answer and prepared to return to Konoha.
• Yamato turned back to tell Ye Chen that they would meet again before long.

Ye Chen discovered that the Land of Rain bordered the Land of Grass and realized Hidden Jun Village was closer to Amegakure and the Akatsuki than he had thought. He estimated that Hidden Jun Village was still remote from the major nations, then asked the system to show who had explored the newly unlocked area.

• Ye Chen saw a system notification that the Land of Rain had been unlocked and the Land of Grass had six of eight exploration areas completed.
• Ye Chen used the map to realize the Land of Grass bordered the Land of Rain and reconsidered how Kusagakure had hired Kisame Hoshigaki.
• Ye Chen connected Kisame Hoshigaki and Uchiha Itachi's appearance to the Akatsuki under Nagato and Madara Uchiha, and worried that conflict might spread to the Land of Grass.
• Ye Chen estimated that Hidden Jun Village was more than six hundred li from Amegakure and at least a thousand li from the Land of Fire and the Land of Lightning.
• Ye Chen asked the system to replay the footage of whoever had explored the newly unlocked territory.

Ye Chen realized Raijin had discovered that the Land of Grass bordered the Land of Rain and worried that Hidden Jun Village could be drawn into conflict with the Five Great Shinobi Villages. In Konoha, Hiruzen Sarutobi and the other leaders reviewed Root intelligence about Hidden Jun Village.

• Ye Chen watched the system's reconstructed footage and saw Raijin exploring the map aboard Azure Bird: Thunderclap.
• Ye Chen considered how Hidden Jun Village's location and his own strength could attract the Five Great Shinobi Villages, and began planning how to prepare for conflict.
• Ye Chen recalled Yamato's invitation for Hidden Jun Village's Chunin to attend Konoha's competition and feared it was meant to assess the village's strength.
• Hiruzen Sarutobi read Root's intelligence about Hidden Jun Village, then passed it to Shimura Danzō to distribute among Konoha's High Command.

Konoha's leaders debated how to respond to Hidden Jun Village, with Shimura Danzō proposing a scheme to exploit the Chunin Tournament and destroy it indirectly. Confidential reports about the village also prompted the leaders of Sunagakure, Kumogakure, and Iwagakure to consider their next moves.

• Hiruzen Sarutobi heard opposing views on whether Konoha should attack Hidden Jun Village, and Kakashi Hatake, Asuma Sarutobi, and Tsunade argued against starting a war immediately.
• Shimura Danzō proposed moving the Chunin Tournament's battlefield to the Land of Grass, investigating Hidden Jun Village, and using battlefield accidents to destroy it.
• Hiruzen Sarutobi postponed the decision and said Konoha's leaders would discuss the plan further before the tournament.
• In Sunagakure, the stern-faced man asked Elder Chiyo about Gaara's whereabouts, handed her a confidential report, and left to attend to something.
• In Kumogakure, the older brother of Killer B read the report, called the situation an opportunity, and left, while Killer B examined the report.
• In Iwagakure, the small old man read the report, called it interesting, and left the conference room.

As trouble brewed among the Five Great Nations, Ye Chen prepared for the coming storm by recruiting players and issuing missions. The chapter ended with an announcement that Hidden Jun Ninja would launch its fifth closed beta.

• Mei Terumi and Kirigakure's senior officials discussed a secret report and decided to avoid getting involved in the coming trouble.
• Orochimaru received a secret report, then ordered his group to ambush the approaching Kazekage.
• Ye Chen published a recruitment post on the official Hidden Jun Ninja forum and issued missions to players through the system.
• Forum users argued about the Ninja Village War and envied the exclusive rewards earned by closed-beta players.
• A promotional video appeared on the forum and announced Hidden Jun Ninja's fifth closed beta.

Ye Chen welcomed 144 players into Hidden Jun Village ahead of an impending war and discovered that the system had selected an elderly player with terminal cancer. After letting Old Yu explore the village at his own pace, Ye Chen steadied himself and resumed his preparations for the coming conflict.

• Netizens rushed to claim slots for Hidden Jun Ninja’s fifth closed beta, and 144 new players joined Hidden Jun Village.
• Ye Chen assessed the recruits and worried that many were life-skill players who might not be suited to the war threatening the Shinobi World.
• Ye Chen found an elderly player named Old Yu Next Door and learned that Yu Zhongqing was a 76-year-old retired worker with late-stage lung cancer.
• Yu Zhongqing explored Hidden Jun Village, taking in its scenery while the other new players watched him with curiosity.
• Ye Chen decided not to interfere with Yu Zhongqing’s experience, regained his composure, and returned to his planned prewar preparations.

Ye Chen expanded the Hidden Jun Village’s intelligence network and built a fortified garrison at the former site of Kusagakure while preparing for the village’s future. He realized Konoha’s Chunin Tournament could become a pretext for the great nations to threaten his village, and intercepted intelligence confirming that danger was arriving.

• Ye Chen sent players to investigate Amegakure and offered bounty rewards for intelligence.
• Ye Chen prioritized building a Resurrection Hall and military defenses at the former site of Kusagakure.
• Raijin told players about the coming Konoha Chunin Exams, and Ye Chen concluded that the tournament might draw the great nations against the Hidden Jun Village.
• Ye Chen intercepted intelligence through a bounty mission accepted by Master of Open Stratagems and learned that the expected threat had come at last.

Master of Open Stratagems learned that Tsunade was leading a large group of ninja toward the Land of Grass, and Raijin recognized many famous figures among them. Ye Chen used the system’s target lock to inspect the approaching group and saw Naruto and Sasuke among its formidable ranks.

• A frontline player reported that over a hundred unidentified ninja were approaching the Land of Grass from the Land of Rain’s border.
• Master of Open Stratagems asked Raijin to identify the group after a player described its leader as Tsunade.
• Raijin warned that Tsunade was a powerful Kage-level ninja whose support made the group especially dangerous.
• As the frontline player described more of the group, Raijin recognized Kakashi Hatake, Naruto Uzumaki, Sasuke Uchiha, members of other villages, and others associated with the Chunin Ninja Exams.
• Ye Chen activated the system’s target lock and saw Naruto and Sasuke among the approaching ninja.

Ye Chen used the system to identify the shinobi teams gathered at the Land of Grass border, including Tsunade and a disguised Orochimaru. Worried that confronting them outside the Hidden Jun Village would leave him vulnerable, he considered taking the initiative before the visitors stopped to rest.

• Ye Chen identified teams from Konoha, Sunagakure, Iwagakure, Kumogakure, Otogakure, Takigakure, Amegakure, and Kusagakure among the visitors.
• Ye Chen noticed that a pale woman in Kusagakure clothing detected his scrutiny and recognized her as Orochimaru in disguise.
• Ye Chen worried that Tsunade and Orochimaru could threaten the Hidden Jun Village if he confronted them away from its protection.
• Tsunade led the group to the designated location and told everyone to rest.

Ye Chen learned that Tsunade’s forces planned to use the Chunin Tournament to investigate Amegakure while pressuring the Hidden Jun Village, not destroy it. He decided the village should accept the invitation and use the tournament to give its players combat experience.

• Tsunade ordered the Genin to rest, then led Kakashi Hatake and the other Konoha High Command members into the woods to discuss a tournament venue.
• Tsunade chose the Forest of Death and assigned Kakashi Hatake and the others to bring dangerous creatures into it.
• Tsunade explained that Konoha’s main objective was investigating Amegakure and that the forces would camp near the border to watch both sides.
• Tsunade ordered Yamato to invite the Hidden Jun Village’s Village Chief to the tournament and threatened to force his cooperation if he refused.
• Ye Chen realized Konoha intended only to intimidate the Hidden Jun Village and decided to accept the invitation so its players could gain experience.

Ye Chen met Granny Qianyin at the Summoning Hut, where she insisted she would help him whenever he was in trouble. Later, he agreed to bring people to the Chunin Tournament after Yamato invited him again, but he set out several conditions.

• Granny Qianyin scolded Ye Chen for avoiding her and promised to help him whenever he faced trouble.
• After Ye Chen left, Granny Qianyin decided to make an exception and go on a trip to support him.
• Yamato arrived at Hidden Jun Village and watched Ye Chen chatting with the villagers before Ye Chen greeted him and led him away from the crowd.
• Yamato asked Ye Chen again to bring people to the Chunin Tournament, and Ye Chen agreed.
• Ye Chen told Yamato he had several conditions for participating.

Ye Chen told Yamato that every ninja from his village must join the tournament and that their leader must negotiate in person. Tsunade came to Hidden Jun Village to discuss the conditions with Ye Chen, who brought her to his residence for a private conversation.

• Ye Chen gave Yamato his two conditions for Hidden Jun Village's participation in the tournament, and Yamato left to report them.
• Yamato returned with Tsunade, who met Ye Chen and softened after he praised her.
• Ye Chen asked Tsunade to discuss the matter inside Hidden Jun Village, and she ordered Yamato to wait outside.
• Raijin and the other players crowded around Tsunade at the village entrance, and Ye Chen guided her inside.
• Ye Chen brought Tsunade to his residence and closed the door so they could talk privately.

Ye Chen hosted Tsunade in his sparse home, winning their gambling match and feeding her until she trusted him. He then offered to reveal the Hidden Jun Village's full strength at the Chunin Tournament, leaving Tsunade to consider his terms.

• Tsunade entered Ye Chen's home and commented on its shabby furnishings.
• Ye Chen brought out a gaming table, and he beat Tsunade in several rounds of gambling.
• Ye Chen served Tsunade tonkotsu ramen, sake, and side dishes, and she ate until she was mostly full.
• After their tests of each other eased Tsunade's suspicions, Ye Chen asked whether she planned to investigate Amegakure in the Land of Rain.
• Ye Chen offered to have everyone from the Hidden Jun Village participate in the Chunin Tournament and reveal the village's full strength.

Ye Chen negotiated with Tsunade for Hidden Jun Village to join the Chunin Tournament as trial administrators who would obstruct the contestants without taking tournament slots. They agreed on cooperation in the tournament and reconnaissance of Amegakure, and the Chunin Tournament began.

• Ye Chen explained that Hidden Jun Village's Chunin-and-below villagers would act as trial administrators, testing contestants without competing for slots or rewards.
• Tsunade agreed to let Hidden Jun Village participate after Ye Chen said his villagers would bear their own losses.
• Ye Chen planned to use the tournament to train Hidden Jun Village's forces ahead of upheaval in the nearby Land of Rain.
• Tsunade explained that teams would enter the Forest of Death with Heaven or Earth scrolls and have five days to cross it while Hidden Jun Village obstructed them.
• Ye Chen offered Hidden Jun Village's experts for reconnaissance of Amegakure and asked the Five Great Shinobi Villages for help if his village faced danger; Tsunade agreed on Konoha's behalf.
• Ye Chen and Tsunade settled the details of their cooperation, and the Chunin Tournament began.