Recaps

Ye Feng brought Tsunade and Jiraiya back to Konoha, where they discovered an attack at the hospital and found the Third Hokage safe after Orochimaru defeated the infiltrators. Jiraiya realized the beast attack at the gate was a diversion targeting the hospital and rushed back as reinforcements were sent.

• Ye Feng used the Flying Thunder God Technique to transport Tsunade and Jiraiya to his home, and Jiraiya sent Ye Feng and Tsunade to Konoha Hospital while he went to the gate.
• Ye Feng and Tsunade found bodies and signs of battle at the hospital, while Orochimaru finished defeating the Black-Clad Ninjas near the Third Hokage's ward.
• Ye Feng and Tsunade found the Third Hokage and the others safe, but Tsunade collapsed after seeing the blood, so Ye Feng carried her to a clean ward.
• Jiraiya found beasts attacking the Konoha Gate and realized the assault was a diversion meant to target the Third Hokage at the hospital.
• Utatane Koharu sent Mitokado Homura to hold the gate and led five Elite Squads toward Konoha Hospital.

Jiraiya and the others found the Third Hokage alive after a series of attacks at Konoha Hospital, then confronted Shimura Danzō over the attempted assassination. Danzō denied responsibility and left, while Orochimaru remained certain of his guilt.

• Jiraiya and the others arrived at Konoha Hospital and found the Third Hokage missing from his damaged room.
• Minato Namikaze told them that the Third Hokage was unharmed and led them to his new room, where Hatake Sakumo and Orochimaru were waiting.
• Jiraiya asked about Ye Feng and Tsunade, and Orochimaru explained that Ye Feng had taken Tsunade to rest while she recovered.
• Jiraiya accused Shimura Danzō of arranging the attacks, and Hatake Sakumo recounted what had happened but admitted he had no evidence.
• Shimura Danzō denied the accusations, challenged the others to prove them, and left the room.
• Orochimaru recognized that Danzō would do anything to achieve his goals.

Tsunade found that she could remove the Third Hokage’s poison but was unsure she could repair the nerve damage, leaving his recovery uncertain and Konoha anxious about succession. Shimura Danzō pursued the Hokage position through secret means while Jiraiya and Orochimaru discussed who might replace the Third.

• After Shimura Danzō left, Orochimaru told Jiraiya that Danzō’s days were numbered but refused to explain his plan.
• Ye Feng stayed beside Tsunade overnight, and she woke the next morning before going with him to examine the Third Hokage.
• Tsunade said she could remove the poison but had less than a ten percent chance of repairing the brain nerve damage; otherwise, the Third Hokage might remain unconscious indefinitely.
• News of the Third Hokage’s condition spread, stirring unease among Konoha’s clans as they considered choosing a new Hokage.
• Shimura Danzō summoned a Root ninja and secretly gave him orders to help secure the Hokage position.
• Jiraiya complained that the clans were already forming factions, and Orochimaru suggested that Jiraiya become Hokage.

Ye Feng and Orochimaru worked to free a ninja from outside control while Konoha searched for a new Hokage. An urgent meeting drew Orochimaru, Jiraiya, and Tsunade away, leaving Ye Feng and Minato Namikaze to guard the unconscious Third Hokage as Hatake Sakumo faced a dangerous operation.

• Jiraiya and Orochimaru refused to become Hokage, and Tsunade rejected the position when she arrived at the hospital; Minato Namikaze confronted her for insulting the office.
• Jiraiya took Minato Namikaze outside to calm the situation, while Ye Feng urged Orochimaru to reconsider becoming Hokage.
• Two days later, Ye Feng and Orochimaru successfully used their method to free an unconscious ninja from control.
• An Anbu ninja summoned Orochimaru to an urgent meeting with the Three Advisors, and Ye Feng went to Konoha Hospital in case Shimura Danzō made another move.
• Tsunade left for the Hokage Office meeting after Ye Feng assured her that he and Minato Namikaze could guard the Third Hokage.
• Minato Namikaze told Ye Feng that Hatake Sakumo had mostly recovered but still faced a potentially fatal operation for his comminuted fracture.

Ye Feng and the others planned to stop Danzo from becoming Acting Hokage as Sunagakure prepared for war. After Jiraiya and Orochimaru refused the Hokage position, Orochimaru offered Tsunade the chance to bring her younger brother and Dan Katō back to life if she accepted it.

• Minato Namikaze felt downcast after seeing Hatake Sakumo's condition, and Ye Feng cheered him by joking about his future as Hokage.
• Jiraiya reported Sunagakure's military buildup, while Orochimaru said Danzo had gained the Advisors' support to become Acting Hokage.
• Ye Feng suspected Danzo was counting on winning an afternoon Jonin vote and ordered Jiraiya and Orochimaru to help seize Root and eliminate Danzo's influence.
• Jiraiya and Orochimaru refused to take over as Third Hokage, and Tsunade also rejected the position.
• Orochimaru offered to fulfill any request, including resurrecting Tsunade's younger brother and Dan Katō, if she became Hokage.

Tsunade agreed to compete for the Hokage position after Orochimaru offered to revive her younger brother and Dan Katō, while Ye Feng helped her firm her resolve. At the assembly, Shimura Danzō sought a vote to become acting Hokage, but his supporters appeared to fall short of a majority.

• Orochimaru told Tsunade that his research into bringing the dead back to life was nearly complete and urged her to become Hokage.
• Ye Feng used genjutsu to help Tsunade make up her mind, and she agreed to compete for Hokage and left Danzō to him.
• Ye Feng's shadow clone attended the assembly while his original body joined Jiraiya and the Anbu in capturing Root ninja.
• Shimura Danzō announced that he would temporarily assume the Hokage position and called for a vote.
• Small and medium-sized clan ninja and three Aburame Jonin stood in support of Danzō, but they appeared to lack the votes for a majority.
• Shimura Danzō interrupted Utatane Koharu as she prepared to announce the result and demanded to know why she was hesitating.

Orochimaru interrupted Shimura Danzō’s apparent victory in the Jonin vote and challenged his qualifications by presenting evidence linking him to attacks on Konoha leaders. He revealed two captured suspects, and the chapter ended as he connected the attackers’ life-sacrificing drug to Root.

• Hyuga Sanada and five Hyuga Jonin stood to support Shimura Danzō, angering Takeda Hyuga and disappointing Ye Feng.
• Utatane Koharu began announcing Shimura Danzō’s victory, but Orochimaru interrupted and questioned his qualifications.
• Orochimaru presented Blood Shadow, a captured attacker whose tongue bore the Cursed Tongue Eradication Seal, while Shimura Danzō denied knowing him and claimed he had been framed.
• Orochimaru brought in a white-haired old man and identified him as one of the twelve ninja who had attacked the Third Hokage.
• Orochimaru said the old man’s appearance resulted from a drug that increased combat strength by consuming life force, then asked whether Root possessed such a drug.

Orochimaru exposed evidence that Shimura Danzō’s Root had trained an assassin to kill the Third Hokage, while Ye Feng and Jiraiya captured Danzō’s trusted subordinates. Danzō tried to deny responsibility and reclaim his men, but Jiraiya blocked him and revealed that Root’s other ninja were also in custody.

• Orochimaru sent a surviving attacker to the Analysis Team to examine his memories, causing Danzō to fear that Root’s role would be exposed.
• Ye Feng and Jiraiya broke into the Root Base, where Ye Feng used his Sharingan to incapacitate two of Danzō’s trusted subordinates and learn about Root’s hidden locations and personnel.
• The Analysis Team’s report identified the attacker as a Root-trained assassin who had taken the Potential Drug and trained in the Eight Gates Released Formation to kill the Third Hokage.
• Orochimaru showed the report to the Meeting Hall, and Utatane Koharu and the other attendees were shocked by the evidence against Danzō.
• Jiraiya arrived with Ye Feng and two captured Root Ninja, then stopped Danzō from taking them away as Danzō insisted his subordinates had acted without his knowledge.
• Jiraiya told Danzō that all of Root’s ninja were outside and offered to bring in whichever ones Danzō wanted.

Orochimaru used the Kurama Clan head’s genjutsu and Ye Feng’s imitation of Shimura Danzō’s voice to expose Danzō’s role in the attempt to assassinate the Third Hokage. Utatane Koharu ordered Danzō imprisoned pending a public trial, but Ye Feng suspected he would escape and asked how Nawaki and Dan Katō had been dealt with.

• Orochimaru asked the Kurama Clan head to use genjutsu on two Root Ninja and used his own abilities to counter the Cursed Tongue Eradication Seal.
• Utatane Koharu questioned the Root Ninja about the plot against the Third Hokage, but they initially remained silent.
• Ye Feng imitated Shimura Danzō’s voice, prompting a Root Ninja to reveal that Danzō had ordered the Blood Moon Squad to ambush and kill the Third Hokage using the Eight Gates Released Formation.
• The Jonin denounced Shimura Danzō, and Utatane Koharu removed him as advisor and ordered him imprisoned pending a public trial.
• Ye Feng noticed a glint in Shimura Danzō’s eyes and, worried he might escape, asked how Nawaki and Dan Katō had been dealt with in Danzō’s voice.

After learning Shimura Danzō had arranged the deaths of Nawaki and Dan Katō, Tsunade attacked him, but his sacrificial sealing technique engulfed her and Ye Feng. Jiraiya and Orochimaru were left uncertain whether they had survived as they stared at Shimura Danzō’s lifeless body.

• A Root Ninja revealed that Shimura Danzō had arranged Nawaki’s death and disguised Dan Katō’s death during the Spirit Transformation Technique.
• Tsunade charged Shimura Danzō, while Orochimaru blocked Utatane Koharu and Jiraiya restrained Danzō from escaping.
• Tsunade beat Shimura Danzō through the Hokage Building’s wall and continued attacking him in the open space outside.
• As he lay dying, Shimura Danzō activated the Reverse Four Symbols Sealing Technique to take those around him with him.
• Ye Feng stopped Jiraiya and Orochimaru, activated the Eight Gates Released Formation, and rushed toward Tsunade, but the sealing sphere swallowed both of them.
• Jiraiya and Orochimaru found Shimura Danzō dead and feared that Ye Feng and Tsunade had not escaped.

Ye Feng rescued Tsunade from the aftermath of Shimura Danzō’s death, while Orochimaru secured support to lead Konoha’s forces against Sunagakure. The chapter ended with Tsunade resting at Ye Feng’s home as Konoha began arresting Root remnants.

• Ye Feng used the Flying Thunder God Technique to bring Tsunade to Jiraiya and then took her away to rest.
• Orochimaru proposed that Jiraiya and the Advisors defend Konoha while he led its forces against Sunagakure, and the clans stood to support him.
• Utatane Koharu announced the vote’s result, and the meeting continued for over two hours to settle battle plans and assignments.
• Ye Feng brought Tsunade to his home, made room for her, and went out to buy food and supplies while Garurumon watched over her.
• Ye Feng saw Anbu and the Military Police Force arresting suspected Root remnants and taking them toward the Hokage Building.

Ye Feng returned home to find Tsunade and Garurumon had wrecked his house while fighting, then agreed to stay at Tsunade’s place. Tsunade became fascinated with Garurumon and tried to take the tiny Summoning Beast for herself.

• Ye Feng arrived home and found Tsunade and Garurumon glaring at each other amid the wreckage; Garurumon complained that Tsunade had punched her.
• Ye Feng promised to take Garurumon outside, and she excitedly knocked him down and licked his face.
• Tsunade offered to pay for the damage, but Ye Feng declined and discovered his shadow clones had stayed behind a protective barrier instead of stopping the fight.
• Ye Feng brushed off Tsunade’s questions about his many shadow clones by claiming he was developing a new ninjutsu.
• Tsunade offered Ye Feng a place to stay, and he agreed to bring Garurumon along after shrinking her to palm size.
• Tsunade asked Ye Feng to give her Garurumon, then took the tiny beast from his clothes and cuddled her.

Ye Feng let Tsunade take Garurumon home for a few days and cooked a lavish meal at her request. Jiraiya and Orochimaru arrived to join them, and the three Sannin devoured the food while Ye Feng reflected on Naruto Uzumaki’s future.

• Tsunade took Garurumon to her home, while Ye Feng ignored Garurumon’s pleas for help.
• Ye Feng learned that Hiruzen Sarutobi had arranged for people to maintain Tsunade’s courtyard and thought about how Naruto Uzumaki would be neglected.
• Ye Feng cooked more than a dozen dishes for Tsunade, who eagerly began eating when he said the meal was ready.
• Jiraiya and Orochimaru arrived and sat down to eat, surprising Tsunade and Jiraiya when Orochimaru immediately started eating.
• Tsunade, Jiraiya, and Orochimaru raced to finish the food, leaving the plates clean while Ye Feng watched.

Orochimaru, Jiraiya, Tsunade, and Ye Feng planned Konoha’s response to Sunagakure’s invasion, agreeing that Tsunade would join the front lines after showing no sign of her hemophobia. As Jiraiya left, he noticed Ye Feng’s lecherous expression and concluded that Ye Feng might be able to see through things.

• Jiraiya said Sunagakure’s army had invaded the Land of Fire’s border and Orochimaru planned to lead the Ninja Forces against them.
• Orochimaru proposed bringing Ye Feng and Minato Namikaze while Tsunade stayed in Konoha with Jiraiya, but Ye Feng argued that Tsunade’s poison expertise and strength would be more useful at the front.
• Ye Feng cut his arm to test Tsunade’s hemophobia, and Tsunade showed no distress at the sight of blood.
• Jiraiya agreed Tsunade could go, reasoning that Might Duy and the Flying Thunder God Technique could help protect Konoha if danger arose.
• Tsunade told Jiraiya that Ye Feng would stay over with her, and Jiraiya recognized Ye Feng’s lecherous expression from earlier encounters.
• Jiraiya connected Ye Feng’s repeated presence and nosebleeds to his way of finding people, then shouted that Ye Feng could see through things.

Ye Feng escaped Jiraiya’s suspicions about his ability to see through things, then explained to Orochimaru that he wanted to limit Orochimaru’s power in the coming war. He revealed his plan to bring the Five Great Shinobi Villages into a controlled war to make them value peace and prevent future conflicts, leaving Orochimaru shocked by Ye Feng’s willingness to bear infamy.

• Jiraiya accused Ye Feng of using an ability to see through things, but Ye Feng claimed he could only sense people’s auras.
• Jiraiya and Orochimaru left, and Ye Feng found Tsunade deep in thought before he cleaned the kitchen and discovered she was gone.
• Ye Feng used the Flying Thunder God Technique to reach Orochimaru’s laboratory, where Orochimaru asked why he had insisted on sending Tsunade to the battlefield.
• Ye Feng said he wanted Orochimaru to hold back his strength and revealed his goal of ending the division among the five nations by making shinobi experience the pain of war.
• Orochimaru protested that Ye Feng planned to provoke the Third Shinobi World War, but Ye Feng argued that a controlled war could prevent future ones and said he would accept infamy before leaving the world.

Ye Feng persuaded Orochimaru to help shape the Shinobi World by prolonging the war with Sunagakure and secretly guiding a future conflict involving Madara Uchiha and the Rinnegan. After they agreed to cooperate, Ye Feng returned to Tsunade's house, where Tsunade accused him of spying on her while she bathed.

• Ye Feng told Orochimaru to hold back during the war against Sunagakure so other villages would underestimate Konoha and later unite against it.
• Ye Feng explained that Madara Uchiha would pass the Rinnegan to someone else, who could build a threatening force with the help of Missing-nin and their guidance.
• Orochimaru deduced that Madara Uchiha was still alive and agreed to support Ye Feng's plan.
• Ye Feng said he wanted Asura's reincarnation to guide the villages after the conflict, but explained that Indra's current incarnation, Madara Uchiha, had to die first.
• Ye Feng returned to Tsunade's house and found Tsunade wearing a bath towel; she teased him about peeping on her bathing, leaving him embarrassed.

Tsunade teased Ye Feng over his awkward discovery of her clothes and his past peeping, then questioned him about his long-range vision ability. The ability could help Konoha spot ambushes, though enemies could detect it, and Tsunade insisted Ye Feng sleep beside her.

• Ye Feng found Tsunade’s underwear among the clothes in his room, and Tsunade teased him when she caught him holding it.
• Tsunade pretended to be angry, then tricked Ye Feng into thinking she was naked beneath the covers before revealing she was still dressed.
• Tsunade asked Ye Feng how often he had seen her while using his ability, and he admitted it had happened twice by accident.
• Ye Feng told Tsunade that his ability let him see clearly within about six kilometers, but ordinary Jonin could sense it being used.
• Tsunade considered using the ability to detect enemy movements and ambushes, then ordered Ye Feng to sleep beside her, where he settled at the edge of the bedding.

Ye Feng spent an awkward, sleepless night beside Tsunade before joining the troops assembling at the Konoha Gate. He arrived on Garurumon and reunited with Inuzuka Clan Fengyu and the others, who were surprised to see her enormous form.

• Tsunade asked Ye Feng how much his unusual ability let him see, and he admitted it let him see more clearly than with his eyes.
• Tsunade fell asleep with an arm and a leg pinning Ye Feng down, leaving him unable to sleep until morning.
• Tsunade quietly left the room, and Ye Feng got up later to make breakfast; they ate together in silence before heading separately to the Konoha Gate.
• Ye Feng summoned Garurumon in her gigantic form, mounted her, and rode with her through Konoha toward the gate.
• At the crowded gate, Ye Feng met Inuzuka Clan Fengyu and the others, who first feared Garurumon before he explained that she was the little companion they already knew.

Ye Feng said farewell to his friends and joined Orochimaru’s force heading to the front. After Inuzuka Clan Fengyu confessed to him in public, Ye Feng received permission to travel ahead alone with Garurumon and support the fighting sooner.

• Garurumon greeted Ye Feng’s friends with her paw, and they excitedly hugged and petted her while Inuzuka Clan Fengyu rode her around the gate.
• Ye Feng left on Garurumon after the assembly call, and Inuzuka Clan Fengyu shouted that she wanted to marry him when he grew up.
• Ye Feng joined Orochimaru’s formation and ignored Tsunade’s teasing about his public confession.
• Ye Feng asked Orochimaru to let him travel ahead, and Orochimaru approved while sending Minato Namikaze ahead with fast-moving ninja.
• Ye Feng mounted Garurumon, and she raced toward the front at full speed.

Ye Feng reached a Konoha guard outpost and exposed a White Zetsu hiding among its guards. After learning that Sunagakure had invaded the Land of Fire, he headed toward the front lines.

• Tsunade worried about the unit's safety, but Orochimaru assured her he and Ye Feng could protect it.
• Ye Feng spent two days sightseeing before riding Garurumon to a guard outpost in the Land of Fire.
• The guards doubted Ye Feng was a Konoha Jonin until he showed his credentials and Sharingan.
• Ye Feng struck a guard and revealed him as a White Zetsu, then sealed its corpse for Orochimaru to study.
• The guard leader told Ye Feng that Sunagakure had crossed the Land of Rivers and captured several outposts, while no enemy had appeared in the Land of Rain.
• Ye Feng left the outpost with Garurumon and set off toward the temporary frontline outpost.

Ye Feng reached Konoha's temporary base and used a Water Dragon Talisman to break Sunagakure's encirclement, giving the surviving Konoha Ninja a chance to escape. He stalled the pursuing Sunagakure forces with a fire tornado and Metal Spirit Talismans while waiting for Minato Namikaze and the others to arrive.

• Ye Feng arrived at the battlefield, saw the outnumbered Konoha Ninja surrounded, and activated his Water Dragon Talisman.
• Ye Feng directed the water dragon to attack Sunagakure's forces and open a path for the Konoha Ninja to escape.
• Ye Feng called for the Konoha Ninja to flee and used the water dragon and tornadoes to hold back their pursuers.
• After the water dragon was destroyed, Ye Feng saw that the wounded Konoha Ninja were still in danger and decided to buy time for Minato Namikaze's group.
• Ye Feng created a powerful fire tornado that forced Sunagakure to stop and build sand shields, then used Metal Spirit Talismans to slow the forces approaching from the other side.

Ye Feng and Minato Namikaze reunited and found the Third Kazekage blocking their retreat. They sent the exhausted Konoha troops and Minato’s elite ninja to safety while staying behind to hold off the Kazekage.

• Ye Feng used the Flying Thunder God Technique to join Minato Namikaze, who had learned from rescued Konoha troops how Ye Feng had broken through an enemy encirclement with a water dragon.
• The Third Kazekage appeared in the air and barred Minato Namikaze, Ye Feng, and the Konoha forces from leaving.
• Ye Feng and Minato Namikaze chose to stay behind, and Ye Feng ordered the weakened Konoha troops to flee without leaving the wounded behind.
• Ye Feng persuaded Minato Namikaze’s elite ninja to leave as well, but the Third Kazekage launched a black cone at them.
• Ye Feng appeared before the elite ninja and cut the black cone apart with his miniature Kusanagi Sword, then urged them to keep fleeing.

Ye Feng and Minato Namikaze fought the Third Kazekage, who revealed that he had used surviving Konoha ninja as bait to draw out rescuers. Ye Feng and Minato discovered that lightning could exploit the conductivity of the Kazekage’s iron sand, but the battle remained dangerous as the Third Kazekage sprang a trap against them.

• The Third Kazekage recognized Ye Feng and admitted that he had planned to lure Konoha experts by leaving the fleeing ninja alive, then flew after them.
• Minato Namikaze blocked the Third Kazekage with Flying Thunder God and attacked with Lightning Release after Ye Feng warned that iron sand conducted electricity.
• Ye Feng charged through the Kazekage’s iron sand with his Kusanagi Sword while Minato attacked from behind with Lightning Serpents.
• The Third Kazekage sent a lightning-charged iron sand block at Ye Feng, who used Tornadoes to break his fall and crashed into a crater.
• The Third Kazekage ambushed Ye Feng with iron-sand spikes, but Minato appeared to protect him and struck the Kazekage’s Sand Shields with Lightning Whips.

Ye Feng took a fatal-looking blow meant for Minato Namikaze, who retaliated with a new Flying Thunder God attack that seemed to defeat the Third Kazekage. The Third Kazekage survived behind a layer of iron sand, leaving an exhausted Minato Namikaze facing death beside Ye Feng.

• The Third Kazekage impaled Ye Feng while Minato Namikaze tried to move him out of danger.
• Minato Namikaze attacked the Third Kazekage with a Rasengan and a wind blade, then used Flying Thunder God kunai to strike him repeatedly and send him crashing into a crater.
• Minato Namikaze ran out of chakra and sank to his knees, believing he had avenged Ye Feng by killing the Third Kazekage.
• The Third Kazekage rose from the crater as his false outer layer cracked away, revealing iron sand had shielded him from Minato Namikaze's attacks.
• Minato Namikaze realized the Third Kazekage was nearly unharmed and despaired as the Kazekage walked toward him.

Ye Feng rescued Minato Namikaze from the Third Kazekage with a surprise attack, forcing the Kazekage to retreat. Ye Feng also reclaimed the Kusanagi Sword, then teased Minato as they left the battlefield.

• The Third Kazekage offered to spare Minato Namikaze if he served him, but Minato refused and prepared to die.
• Ye Feng appeared behind the Third Kazekage and stabbed him, then used Flying Thunder God to rescue Minato when iron sand trapped his Kusanagi Sword.
• Ye Feng revealed that he had faked his death using the Wood Spirit Talisman and Turtle Breathing Technique, after planting a Flying Thunder God Mark on the Third Kazekage.
• The wounded Third Kazekage retreated toward Sunagakure, unable to pursue the fleeing Konoha ninjas.
• Ye Feng secretly reclaimed the Kusanagi Sword from the Third Kazekage, then ran off after telling Minato that the method was a secret.
• Minato chased Ye Feng despite his weakness, shouting that they still had a score to settle.