Recaps

Lin Ze, disguised as Suzaku, negotiated with the priestess of the Land of Demons for access to basic sealing records in exchange for eliminating bandits corrupted by Dark Chakra. He left with the mission scroll and headed toward the border, hoping the records would help him break the Ryūmyaku seal Minato Namikaze had left behind.

• Lin Ze entered the priestess’s palace and asked to study materials about the Bloodline Contract Seal.
• The priestess refused to share the core secret but offered access to basic contract-rune principles and non-core records if Lin Ze proved his value and sincerity.
• The priestess gave Lin Ze a scroll detailing bandits suspected of Dark Chakra corruption and tasked him with eliminating them and retrieving any Dark Crystals in exchange for three days with permitted sealing records.
• Lin Ze and the priestess agreed to contact each other through Mercenary Guild commissions addressed to Suzaku.
• After leaving the palace, Lin Ze checked that no one was following him and headed toward the Land of Demons’ border to study the scroll and complete the mission.

Lin Ze completed his mission to retrieve Dark Crystals and earned three days to study the Land of Demons’ Contract Seals. After learning that Sara was the key to safely accessing the Ryūmyaku, he left for Konoha to report and prepare his next moves.

• Lin Ze defeated Dark Chakra-corrupted bandits, recovered their Dark Crystals, and returned to the Land of Demons’ capital.
• Lin Ze delivered the crystals to the priestess, who granted him three days to study Contract Seals with an attendant available to answer basic questions.
• Lin Ze learned that the Ryūmyaku’s seal relied on ancient contractual rules and that Sara, the queen of Rōran, was its rightful inheritor and the safest point of intervention.
• Lin Ze studied the scrolls with the aid of five Shadow Clones, improving his understanding of Contract Seals and the Ryūmyaku’s seal.
• After his study period ended, Lin Ze left the palace and headed back to Konoha to report on his mission and pursue Artificial Tailed Beast technology from Orochimaru.

Lin Ze reunited with Qingtian in the Land of Fire and discovered that the monkey had grown stronger, more intelligent, and more dragon-like after a year in Peach Paradise. Qingtian had earned some respect in its clan but still struggled to master its weapon-transformation ability, though it promised Lin Ze it would soon be able to help him.

• Lin Ze summoned Qingtian in a remote forest and was astonished by its growth and transformation over the past year.
• Qingtian spoke to Lin Ze in halting human language and insisted on calling him Master because he had saved it, strengthened it, and given it a name.
• Qingtian told Lin Ze it had won several fights in Peach Paradise but still wanted to prove itself further.
• Qingtian demonstrated speed approaching an ordinary Jōnin’s Body Flicker Technique, strength capable of shattering a huge boulder, and keen sensory abilities.
• Qingtian tried to transform its arm into a weapon but could not control the unstable process, and it told Lin Ze it would soon be able to help him.

Lin Ze visited Qingtian and White Tiger, tested how much they had grown, and strengthened them with his essence blood. After leaving them, he considered building an army of loyal Summoning Beasts enhanced by his blood.

• Lin Ze praised Qingtian for reaching the threshold of transformation and urged him to keep building a solid foundation.
• Qingtian summoned White Tiger, who had grown into a massive, powerful beast with remarkable speed, strength, and reflexes.
• Lin Ze tested White Tiger’s abilities and judged his speed to be close to Special Jōnin level.
• Lin Ze fed two drops of essence blood to Qingtian and two to White Tiger, further refining their strength and potential.
• Lin Ze signed a Summoning Contract with White Tiger, told both companions to keep growing, and left the forest.
• Lin Ze considered using his blood to create an army of powerful, loyal Summoning Beasts.

Lin Ze tested how his blood affected ordinary beasts and discovered they could not withstand its power, abandoning his plan to create an army of beasts. After returning to Konoha, he reported on Sunagakure and used his two days off to seek Fox.

• Lin Ze fed ordinary blood to a wolf and a black bear, and both rampaged before their bodies collapsed and burst apart.
• Lin Ze gave a mountain leopard one drop of essence blood, which caused it to explode almost instantly, confirming that ordinary beasts could not survive his blood’s power.
• Lin Ze abandoned his idea of building an army of beasts, though he considered testing his blood on the intelligent toads and snakes at Mount Myōboku and Ryūchi Cave.
• Lin Ze burned away all traces of the experiments with Dragon Breath and returned to Konoha before his mission deadline.
• Lin Ze gave Hiruzen Sarutobi a report on Sunagakure’s postwar weakness and received two days off.
• Lin Ze went to the ANBU logistics office to ask about Fox and Root’s base, then found Fox sorting documents in an archive room.

Lin Ze returned from his mission, learned more about Root from Fox, and received an invitation to Gray Wolf and Night Owl’s wedding. He planned to attend and decided to offer Night Owl a chance to form a Summoning Contract with White Tiger.

• Lin Ze visited Fox in logistics, who warned him about Root and shared possible locations of its secret bases.
• Fox gave Lin Ze an invitation to the wedding of Heishi Kenji and Chiba Aya, with Kirigakure Hisanobu as witness.
• Lin Ze learned that Gray Wolf had also been transferred to logistics and that Night Owl had recovered from the puppet poison and returned to ANBU missions.
• Lin Ze decided White Tiger could help protect Night Owl and grow through field experience.
• Lin Ze bought a practical wedding gift and left Night Owl a note asking her to visit the Orphanage after the ceremony.

Lin Ze located two Root bases while searching for Yamato, then attended Gray Wolf and Chiba Aya’s intimate wedding. Yamato had not yet appeared, and Lin Ze’s Shadow Clones remained on stakeout.

• Lin Ze decided to track down Yamato and secretly gather information about him before approaching Orochimaru.
• Lin Ze sensed and marked two underground Root bases near the Forest of Death and the lower Naka River, leaving Shadow Clones to watch for Yamato.
• Lin Ze returned to the Orphanage and waited while his Shadow Clones kept watch, but neither detected Yamato overnight.
• Lin Ze went to Gray Wolf’s wedding and saw him marry Chiba Aya in a small gathering of friends and teammates.

After attending Gray Wolf and Night Owl’s wedding, Lin Ze gave Night Owl’s new ANBU squad a powerful safeguard by letting her sign a summoning contract with Xiao Bai. He resumed his training while waiting for Yamato to appear, determined to obtain the power of the Ryūmyaku.

• Fox officiated Gray Wolf and Night Owl’s simple wedding, and the couple thanked Lin Ze for supporting them as a teammate.
• After the wedding, Lin Ze summoned Xiao Bai and offered to let Night Owl sign a contract with the white tiger for protection on ANBU missions.
• Night Owl accepted Lin Ze’s gift, signed the Summoning Contract scroll as Chiba Aya, and promised to keep Xiao Bai’s origins secret.
• Lin Ze saw Night Owl off, noted that his shadow clone had not reported Yamato’s appearance, and resumed his Taijutsu and Sealing Jutsu training.

Lin Ze accepted an S-Rank mission to investigate Kirigakure and traveled to the Land of Water, gathering reports of growing tension and tighter security. He remained in a coastal tavern, listening for more intelligence as a new figure entered.

• Hiruzen Sarutobi ordered Lin Ze to infiltrate the Land of Water and assess Kirigakure’s intentions and internal situation.
• Lin Ze checked his shadow clones’ surveillance of Root’s bases, found no sign of Yamato, and left two chakra-rich clones to continue watching.
• Lin Ze traveled disguised as a merchant to the Land of Water, recovering his chakra along the way.
• Lin Ze spent two days collecting intelligence around a coastal island and learned that Kirigakure was tense internally and tightening its outside defenses.
• A figure entered the tavern where Lin Ze was listening to the locals.

Lin Ze recognized Hiruko in a tavern and decided to wait until the Chimera Technique was more mature before pursuing it. After confirming signs of Kirigakure preparing to deploy toward the Land of Wind, he headed for the village’s outskirts to gather firsthand intelligence.

• Lin Ze spotted Hiruko and identified him as a rogue ninja developing the Chimera Technique.
• Lin Ze considered approaching Hiruko but held back because his strength was unknown and the technique was likely incomplete.
• Hiruko left the tavern without noticing Lin Ze, who resolved to prioritize securing the Ryūmyaku before pursuing Kekkei Genkai fusion.
• Lin Ze judged from merchant reports and other intelligence that Kirigakure was preparing to move against the Land of Wind.
• Lin Ze left town and raced toward Kirigakure to scout its outskirts.

Lin Ze confirmed that Kirigakure’s elite forces had left to attack the Land of Wind, then visited an underground Bounty Station to raise money for his Kekkei Mōra research. He accepted two dangerous missions worth thirty-five million ryō and left to begin hunting.

• Lin Ze observed Kirigakure for five days and found no sign of its elite forces or the Third Mizukage.
• Lin Ze concluded that Kirigakure’s main forces had deployed to the Land of Wind and decided his reconnaissance was complete.
• Lin Ze traveled to a hidden Bounty Station in the Land of Water to earn funds for his research plans.
• Lin Ze accepted a bounty on a Kirigakure Elite Jōnin and a mission to eliminate a pirate band, worth thirty-five million ryō combined.
• Lin Ze left the Bounty Station with a one-month deadline to complete both missions.

Lin Ze finished a bounty mission by wiping out Dotō’s pirate hideout, then tracked the defected Kirigakure jōnin Hōzuki Zangetsu to a remote island. There, he watched Hōzuki fight four Kirigakure ANBU, including the young Mei Terumi, whose attack left her wounded.

• Lin Ze killed Dotō and defeated the pirates in their sea-cave hideout, then took the required proof and valuables.
• Lin Ze followed intelligence to a remote island and sensed Hōzuki Zangetsu battling four Kirigakure ANBU.
• Hōzuki used Water Release and the Hydrification Technique against the ANBU, while Mei Terumi attacked him with Lava Release.
• Hōzuki unleashed his Water Hail Secret Technique, and several needles struck Mei Terumi’s left arm and shoulder.

Lin Ze ambushed and killed Hōzuki Zangetsu, then collected the bounties for him and the Dotō pirate crew at the Land of Water's Bounty Station. He accepted several more missions as the name Suzaku began circulating among bounty hunters.

• The fox-masked ANBU captain took Hōzuki Zangetsu's attack while protecting Mei Terumi, and the ensuing fight left both sides wounded and exhausted.
• Lin Ze rushed in, pierced Hōzuki Zangetsu's heart with a lightning-charged strike, and sealed his body in a scroll.
• Lin Ze escaped the Kirigakure ANBU, and Mei Terumi learned his code name was Suzaku and memorized his appearance.
• At the Land of Water's Bounty Station, Lin Ze turned in the Pirate Captain's Token and Hōzuki Zangetsu's body and received twenty-eight million ryō.
• Lin Ze accepted several more missions worth roughly fifteen million ryō, while bounty hunters began circulating the name Suzaku.

After earning more than fifty million ryō through bounty missions in the Land of Water, Lin Ze returned to Konoha and received the memories of a Shadow Clone tracking Kinoe, who was later known as Yamato. He decided to intercept Kinoe on his squad’s return from the Land of Rain and headed to the Hokage Building with a cover story prepared.

• Lin Ze completed several bounty missions in the Land of Water, collected his rewards, and returned to Konoha before his mission deadline.
• Hiruzen Sarutobi praised Lin Ze’s intelligence report and granted him two days of rest.
• At the Orphanage, Lin Ze felt dizzy when his Shadow Clone dispersed and sent back nearly two months of memories.
• Lin Ze learned that Kinoe’s Root squad was conducting a mission near the border of the Land of Rain and decided to ambush them on their return to Konoha.
• Lin Ze prepared to leave the village under the pretext of searching for Summoning Beasts and headed toward the Hokage Building.

Lin Ze disguised himself and flew to the Land of Rain border, where he waited for Yamato’s squad to finish its mission and tracked them back toward Konoha. He chose a mountain pass for an ambush and hid as the four members of the squad approached.

• Lin Ze left Konoha, changed his appearance, and flew toward the Land of Rain border using the Fish-Fish Fruit, Model: Azure Dragon.
• Lin Ze met his Shadow Clone in a hidden cliff fissure and learned that Yamato’s squad was still at a temporary camp.
• Lin Ze waited until the squad headed back toward Konoha, then followed them through the night and into the Land of Fire.
• Lin Ze flew ahead and hid in a narrow mountain pass along the squad’s route.
• Yamato and the other three members of the Root squad entered the pass in formation.

Lin Ze ambushed Root, killed three of the four ninja, and secretly took a tissue sample from Yamato’s shoulder. He let the wounded Yamato survive and fled, leaving Yamato to return to Konoha with news of the attack.

• Lin Ze used Partial Beastification to kill the Root Jōnin and two Root Chunin in a sudden attack.
• Yamato used Wood Release to restrain Lin Ze, but Lin Ze tore through the trees and wounded him.
• Lin Ze secretly collected a small sample of Yamato’s blood and tissue from the shoulder wound.
• Lin Ze pretended to hear something, then left Yamato alive and vanished into the forest.
• Yamato bandaged his wound and headed toward Konoha to report the unknown enemy’s attack on Root.

Lin Ze returned to Konoha after stealing Yamato’s cells and considered establishing a base of his own. At the orphanage, Kabuto explained why he was studying medicine, prompting Lin Ze to revisit his ambitions and consider a future collaborator.

• Lin Ze escaped after stealing a sample of Yamato’s cells, then sensed a strange presence nearby before an azure afterimage appeared in a disrupted spatial rift.
• Lin Ze returned to Konoha with an alibi and expected Yamato’s report of the attack on Root to draw Danzo’s and Hiruzen Sarutobi’s attention.
• Lin Ze found Kabuto studying medical ninjutsu and medicinal herbs late at night.
• Kabuto told Lin Ze that witnessing people die had made him want to learn medicine and save lives.
• Lin Ze connected Kabuto’s desire to save people with his own search for control over his destiny and considered Orochimaru as a potential collaborator on kekkei mōra.

Lin Ze decided to train Kabuto as a trusted researcher for his Kekkei Mōra project instead of relying on Orochimaru. He planned to build a hidden laboratory beneath the Orphanage and outlined the cloning and Kekkei Genkai experiments he would eventually need.

• Lin Ze recognized Kabuto’s talent for medical research and decided to guide him into becoming his assistant.
• Lin Ze encouraged Kabuto to study and offered to help him learn from Konoha’s medical ninja.
• Lin Ze planned to use his bounty earnings to build a concealed underground laboratory beneath the Orphanage.
• Lin Ze reviewed his chakra natures and concluded that Kekkei Mōra required fusing all seven rather than merely possessing them.
• Lin Ze planned to obtain Hiruko’s Chimera Technique and test it on five elemental Kekkei Genkai Clones before risking his real body.

Lin Ze contacted Orochimaru to propose a deal for Konoha’s artificial tailed beast research documents. Orochimaru met him in the forest and asked what Lin Ze could offer in return, and Lin Ze began by mentioning Orochimaru’s Wood Release research.

• Lin Ze decided that obtaining the Rinnegan for his Yin Release plans would be difficult and set the idea aside while studying the Contract Seal.
• Lin Ze summoned the communication snake and sent Orochimaru a message requesting a meeting.
• Orochimaru received Lin Ze’s message and traveled to meet him in a forest near the Land of Fire’s front line.
• Lin Ze asked Orochimaru for the technical documents on artificial tailed beasts.
• Orochimaru asked Lin Ze what he would offer in exchange, and Lin Ze brought up Orochimaru’s research into Wood Release.

Orochimaru betrayed Lin Ze during their negotiation after discovering extraordinary vitality in a blood sample Lin Ze had left behind. Lin Ze fought back with the Eight Gates and Chakra Enhanced Strength, trying to prove himself dangerous enough to keep the trade alive.

• Lin Ze showed Orochimaru Yamato's sealed cell tissue as proof of a successful Wood Release test subject.
• Orochimaru attacked Lin Ze, who opened the fifth gate and dodged the strike.
• Orochimaru revealed that he had collected and analyzed Lin Ze's blood from the battlefield after his fight with Pakura.
• Orochimaru said Lin Ze's vitality rivaled the First's cell samples and declared Lin Ze a more accessible prize than the Wood Release tissue.
• Orochimaru launched a barrage of strange attacks and snakes, while Lin Ze fought back and retreated, judging that he needed to show his strength.

Lin Ze revealed his Azure Dragon power to stop Orochimaru from treating him as a captive specimen, but Orochimaru summoned Manda to test him further. Lin Ze deliberately intensified his dragon might, making Manda tremble with instinctive fear.

• Lin Ze entered his Pseudo Beastification Form and struck Orochimaru's snake swarm with a punch that cracked the Rashomon Orochimaru summoned to block it.
• Orochimaru recognized Lin Ze as a formidable potential partner, but summoned Manda to test the limits of his power.
• Manda demanded sacrifices and then noticed that Lin Ze's faint aura stirred an inexplicable fear deep in his bloodline.
• Lin Ze deliberately amplified his dragon might, and Manda shuddered under its overwhelming pressure.

Lin Ze used his dragon might to frighten Manda away, forcing Orochimaru to negotiate rather than fight. They exchanged Wood Release cells for artificial tailed beast research materials, and Lin Ze left with the scroll while Orochimaru remained intent on uncovering his secrets.

• Lin Ze intensified his dragon might and ordered Manda to leave, prompting Manda to abandon Orochimaru and flee to Ryūchi Cave.
• Orochimaru recognized that Lin Ze was too dangerous to attack and agreed to trade on equal terms.
• Orochimaru gave Lin Ze a scroll containing artificial tailed beast theories, sealing formulas, and experimental data, and Lin Ze handed over the Wood Release cells.
• Lin Ze left the forest, while Orochimaru vowed to obtain the secrets of Lin Ze's mysterious power.
• After reaching safety, Lin Ze deactivated the Eight Gates Released Formation and reflected that the trade had secured the artificial tailed beast technology.

After Yamato reported that a mysterious enemy with blue-green scales had nearly wiped out his Root team, Danzo enlisted Hiruzen’s help to investigate. Hiruzen sent Team C-2 to the attack site, and Night Owl set out with her squad.

• Yamato returned to Root and told Danzo that a dragon-clawed enemy had killed the captain and two Chunin and gravely wounded him.
• Danzo rebuked Yamato but decided to use Hiruzen’s resources to identify the attacker.
• Danzo told Hiruzen about the attack, and Hiruzen ordered ANBU to search the scene for clues, especially claw marks and scales.
• Hiruzen assigned Team C-2 to investigate the attack site, and Night Owl departed with her teammates.

Lin Ze studied Orochimaru’s artificial tailed beast scroll and realized the Ryūmyaku could serve as its powerful, stable chakra source, though he would first need sea dragon jade and mastery of the sealing formulas. He set out to complete his mission in the Land of Earth, while reflecting on how his transaction with Orochimaru had revealed more of his unusual constitution than he intended.

• Lin Ze studied the scroll and learned that artificial tailed beasts required a durable shell, complex sealing formulas, and rare sea dragon jade, and that they were prone to going berserk.
• Lin Ze concluded that the Ryūmyaku could power a more stable artificial tailed beast and planned to find sea dragon jade and study sealing jutsu at the ruins of the Land of Whirlpools.
• Lin Ze decided to complete Hiruzen Sarutobi’s S-Rank mission in the Land of Earth before pursuing the Ryūmyaku and his experiments.
• Two days after his transaction with Orochimaru, Lin Ze traveled through the Land of Earth and considered how Orochimaru had nearly discerned the nature of his unusual constitution from a small blood sample.
• Lin Ze recognized that Orochimaru’s increased interest in him had also made Orochimaru more willing to proceed with their transaction.

Lin Ze gathered intelligence in the Land of Earth while avoiding actions that might expose him, and he spotted toddler Deidara in a city near Iwagakure. He left Deidara alone and entered a secluded alley to pursue his plans.

• Lin Ze weighed the threat Orochimaru and Danzo might pose and resolved to strengthen himself by advancing the Kekkei Mōra Project.
• Lin Ze infiltrated the Land of Earth's rear, evaded Iwagakure patrols, and recorded supply routes and border outposts for his report to Hiruzen Sarutobi.
• Lin Ze searched towns and black-market outposts near Iwagakure for rare materials needed to establish a laboratory.
• Lin Ze entered a city disguised as an itinerant merchant and noticed toddler Deidara handling chakra-infused clay in a courtyard.
• Lin Ze decided Deidara was too young to be a useful research target and followed secret information into a dead-end alley.