Chapter Summaries

Ye Feng's group escaped their pursuers, returned to Konoha, and received a warm welcome for their service. Orochimaru reported to the Third Hokage, confirming Minato Namikaze's mastery of the Flying Thunder God Technique and describing the lightning kirin as an accidental feat.

• Ye Feng's group reached the Konoha border camp safely, rested, and let Orochimaru take credit for the lightning kirin by naming it Kirin.
• Orochimaru's group set out for Konoha the next morning, while Kakashi Hatake and Uchiha Shinichi ran hard to overcome their frustration at being unable to help during the mission.
• The Third Hokage and several clan heads, including Uchiha Tianchang, welcomed the returning ninja at Konoha's gates and granted the team extended leave.
• Orochimaru joined the Third Hokage and the advisors at the Hokage Office, where Shimura Danzō was waiting, and reported on the mission.
• Orochimaru confirmed that Minato Namikaze had mastered a modified Flying Thunder God Technique capable of transporting all nine members of the group.

Orochimaru reported to the Third Hokage about Ye Feng’s escape and the devastating lightning Kirin, while Shimura Danzō questioned his account. After returning to the village, Ye Feng met with Uchiha Tianchang and Uchiha Shinichi, and they discussed the Uchiha Clan’s covert organization and plans for the future.

• Orochimaru told the Third Hokage that Ye Feng had escaped through speed and concealment, and described the lightning Kirin as an attack triggered by a coincidence.
• The Third Hokage showed Orochimaru the battlefield report, and Orochimaru realized the Kirin had killed or wounded many Jonin; he promised to research deliberate use of the technique.
• Shimura Danzō doubted Orochimaru’s account, but the Third Hokage defended his student, classified the mission as high-tier S-rank, and awarded the team S-rank rewards.
• Uchiha Tianchang invited Ye Feng and Uchiha Shinichi to a meal, then told Ye Feng that the clan’s Anbu had established an organization beyond the Land of Fire’s border.
• Ye Feng advised Uchiha Tianchang to conceal the organization’s strength and develop intelligence and local support, then said they should wait before moving against Shimura Danzō.

Uchiha Shinichi learned that Uchiha Tianchang planned to target Shimura Danzō to protect the clan, not to rebel against Konoha, and grew disillusioned after confirming Ye Feng’s suspicions about the village’s missing elite ninja. Ye Feng returned home and discovered that absorbing three shadow clones at once wasted too much true qi, so he adjusted to absorbing two at a time.

• Ye Feng asked Uchiha Tianchang for advanced genjutsu scrolls for himself and Uchiha Shinichi, and Uchiha Tianchang realized both had Three-Tomoe Sharingan.
• Uchiha Tianchang warned Uchiha Shinichi to keep his eyes secret, then quickly obtained the scrolls for Ye Feng.
• Uchiha Shinichi asked whether the Uchiha Clan planned a rebellion, and Uchiha Tianchang explained that the clan meant to eliminate hostile advisors such as Shimura Danzō rather than fight the Third Hokage.
• Uchiha Shinichi asked about the deaths and disappearances of Konoha’s top ninja, and Uchiha Tianchang agreed the pattern was suspicious and suggested Ye Feng might know the reason.
• Uchiha Shinichi left Uchiha Tianchang’s residence disappointed in Konoha, while Uchiha Tianchang reflected that Shinichi still lagged behind Ye Feng in maturity.
• Ye Feng returned home and absorbed three shadow clones, but lost about twenty percent of their true qi, so he switched to absorbing two clones at a time.

Ye Feng used his vision of a peaceful Konoha and a war-free shinobi world to win Uchiha Shinichi’s allegiance and urge him to train. Meanwhile, Kakashi practiced swordsmanship in a resentful state of mind.

• Ye Feng absorbed twelve shadow clones’ cultivation, created thirteen more, and studied advanced genjutsu from Uchiha Tianchang’s scroll.
• Uchiha Shinichi visited Ye Feng, distressed by what he had learned about Konoha, and Ye Feng urged him to help change the village.
• Ye Feng described his ideal Konoha and his ambition to end war across the shinobi world, prompting Uchiha Shinichi to pledge his support.
• Ye Feng told Uchiha Shinichi to train and study genjutsu; Shinichi went to Uchiha Tianchang to request help from a genjutsu expert.
• Kakashi Hatake practiced with his short blade at Maruboshi Kosuke’s courtyard, while Kosuke noticed his resentment was undermining his sword practice.

Kakashi Hatake reflected on his failures during the mission and resolved to improve, while tensions between the hidden villages eased after the mission ended. Ye Feng learned that his team would train separately until March and had been entered in the Chunin Ninja Exams, while Danzō continued plotting against him.

• Maruboshi Kosuke advised Kakashi Hatake to stay composed and use his shortcomings as motivation, and Kakashi Hatake steadied his sword practice.
• The Third Kazekage learned Ōnoki had canceled their agreement and ordered spies to investigate Ye Feng’s Lightning Release technique, while Iwagakure also kept watch on Ye Feng.
• Sunagakure and Iwagakure withdrew their border troops after Ye Feng’s team completed its mission, easing the threat of war.
• Shimura Danzō ordered Gray Fox to monitor the mission desk, the Hokage Office, and the Konoha Gate for news of Ye Feng leaving the village.
• Ye Feng sensed Minato Namikaze’s Flying Thunder God Technique activating and began considering how to develop his ability to detect spatial fluctuations.
• Minato Namikaze told Ye Feng that the team would train separately until next March and that he had signed them up for the Chunin Ninja Exams.

Over half a year, Ye Feng advanced his natural energy training with Orochimaru, improved his genjutsu, and cultivated his true qi. After liquefying his true qi, he unleashed a devastating strike near Hokage Rock and left Konoha's leaders searching for the person responsible.

• Ye Feng visited Orochimaru as he learned to sense and absorb natural energy, while continuing to train with Might Duy and practice genjutsu against Minato Namikaze.
• Ye Feng filled his dantian with true qi, compressed it into liquid, and discovered that his natural energy absorption and divine sense had become stronger.
• Ye Feng tested his new power near Hokage Rock and cut a massive trench with a true qi sword before teleporting home.
• The Third Hokage, Hatake Sakumo, and Konoha's forces investigated the trench, but found no chakra traces or explanation for the strike.
• The Third Hokage ordered the Military Police Force, Anbu, and Shimura Danzō's Root to search Konoha, while Orochimaru recognized Ye Feng as the likely culprit.

Ye Feng reassured Orochimaru about the long road of cultivation, then sought Minato Namikaze to learn the Sealing Jutsu behind the Flying Thunder God Marks. Minato caught Ye Feng lying about causing the trench and agreed to teach him only if Ye Feng bought him lunch.

• Orochimaru visited Ye Feng, learned that Ye Feng had reached at least Kage Level, and left encouraged to keep cultivating.
• Ye Feng decided to learn how Minato Namikaze made Flying Thunder God Marks and went to Minato's home, where he used a mark to summon him.
• Minato Namikaze confronted Ye Feng about the trench near the Training Ground, and Ye Feng eventually admitted that a spirit talisman had caused it.
• Minato Namikaze demanded that Ye Feng pay for lunch before he would teach him the Sealing Jutsu, and Ye Feng reluctantly agreed.

Ye Feng learned the Flying Thunder God sealing jutsu from Minato Namikaze, then was surprised by a large weekend lunch gathering that Minato had arranged. The next day, Minato announced that Kumogakure and Konoha would jointly host the Chunin Ninja Exams in five days and prepared to test Kakashi Hatake and Uchiha Shinichi.

• Minato Namikaze taught Ye Feng the sealing jutsu for the Flying Thunder God Technique before leaving him to study it.
• Minato Namikaze, Kushina Uzumaki, Might Duy, and seven children arrived at Ye Feng’s door with ingredients, and Ye Feng helped cook lunch for everyone.
• Ye Feng reunited with Kakashi Hatake and Uchiha Shinichi at the Training Ground and noticed how much they had changed during their six months apart.
• Minato Namikaze told Ye Feng, Kakashi Hatake, and Uchiha Shinichi that the Chunin Ninja Exams would be jointly hosted by Kumogakure and Konoha in five days.
• Minato Namikaze asked Kakashi Hatake and Uchiha Shinichi to fight him so he could assess their growth, while Ye Feng watched from the edge of the Training Ground.

Minato Namikaze sparred with Kakashi Hatake and Uchiha Shinichi, whose improved teamwork and skills forced him to take the fight seriously. He ended the match by trapping Uchiha Shinichi with a Flying Thunder God Kunai after concealing it inside a Water Dragon Bullet.

• Kakashi Hatake and Uchiha Shinichi attacked Minato Namikaze with a coordinated strike, prompting him to evade with the Flying Thunder God Technique.
• Kakashi Hatake and Uchiha Shinichi fled into the forest, where Kakashi used a genjutsu-assisted attack and Shinichi followed with a Rasengan.
• Kakashi Hatake charged Minato Namikaze with Chidori, then anticipated Minato's Flying Thunder God attack and forced him to teleport away.
• Uchiha Shinichi tore off the sleeve bearing Minato's Flying Thunder God Mark and attacked with a segmented Giant Shuriken, making Minato teleport to evade.
• Minato Namikaze unleashed Water Release: Water Dragon Bullet Technique and concealed a Flying Thunder God Kunai in the water dragon, then held a kunai to Uchiha Shinichi's neck.

Minato Namikaze defeated Kakashi Hatake and Uchiha Shinichi in training, then he and his companions welcomed Kumogakure’s delegation ahead of the Chunin Ninja Exams. Ye Feng reunited with Killer B and Yugito Nii, and the group shared a meal before touring Konoha.

• Minato Namikaze used a Flying Thunder God Kunai and a punch to defeat Kakashi Hatake, then Ye Feng explained that Minato’s strength was close to Kage level.
• Minato Namikaze and the others trained for two days before the Third Hokage ordered them to welcome Kumogakure’s arriving ninja.
• Dodai, A, Killer B, Toroi, Yugito Nii, and nearly forty other ninja arrived at Konoha, and Killer B greeted Ye Feng with rap.
• Minato Namikaze and his companions escorted the delegation to an inn, slipped away, and then learned that Kumogakure had requested Ye Feng as a guide.
• Ye Feng brought Yugito Nii to join Minato Namikaze, Kakashi Hatake, Uchiha Shinichi, and Killer B for barbecue, where the group got along better.
• Minato Namikaze and the others showed Killer B and Yugito Nii around Konoha, and Yugito Nii admired the village’s scenery.

Killer B visited Konoha’s taijutsu training grounds and challenged Might Duy to a spar. After Killer B began to unleash a more dangerous power, Ye Feng stopped him, and the group left the training grounds.

• Minato Namikaze brought Killer B and Yugito Nii to watch the large crowd training, where they found Ye Feng and the Big Eaters Five.
• Kurenai Yuhi and Inuzuka Clan Fengyu questioned Ye Feng about Yugito Nii before Killer B asked Might Duy to spar.
• Might Duy accepted Killer B’s challenge and urged the onlookers to respect the effort taijutsu required.
• Killer B charged with lightning chakra, and Might Duy opened the second gate to evade and then trade blows with him.
• Killer B stopped the spar and began to raise orange chakra, but Ye Feng warned him not to unleash it in Konoha.
• Killer B thanked Might Duy for holding back, and Ye Feng led the group away as Kurenai Yuhi and Inuzuka Clan Fengyu flanked him.

Ye Feng hosted a barbecue on Hokage Rock, where the group devoured his skewers and even Orochimaru became engrossed in the food. After the adults took most of the food, Ye Feng revealed a whole roast lamb as his final surprise.

• Ye Feng suggested barbecue for dinner, and Minato Namikaze organized the group and invited Kushina Uzumaki, Might Duy, and his son.
• Ye Feng prepared a grill and charcoal while everyone gathered on Hokage Rock, where they set up a decorated canopy and arranged the food.
• The group rushed to devour Ye Feng's first batch of skewers, and Orochimaru quickly ate his share after tasting them.
• Tsunade and other adults took most of the second batch, leaving the children with few skewers, while Ye Feng let the adults have his companions' portions too.
• After Jiraiya and Tsunade had stuffed themselves, Ye Feng brought out a whole roast lamb and seasoned it until its aroma spread.

Ye Feng avoided his friends, then joined the Chunin Ninja Exams and realized Root had planted three candidates who knew the answers to the unusually difficult written test. The exam began with Ye Feng identifying the suspected stand-ins, while Shimura Danzō waited to see how his plan would unfold.

• Ye Feng shared roast lamb with his friends, while Jiraiya and Tsunade regretted filling their stomachs with grilled meat earlier.
• Killer B and the others came to Ye Feng's home the next morning, but found a note saying he had gone to seek a breakthrough; Ye Feng hid in the forest until exam day.
• Shimura Danzō confirmed that Root had arranged two operatives for a plan and told his subordinates to handle it carefully.
• Ye Feng arrived late at the Ninja Academy, where Yugito Nii loudly complained that he had sneaked away, provoking reactions from both villages' ninja.
• The Chief Examiner announced a difficult written test requiring every squad member to score above sixty, and Ye Feng noticed that ninety-nine candidates were present instead of the announced ninety-six.
• Ye Feng identified three extra candidates seated throughout the exam room and suspected they had been planted to help others answer the test.

Ye Feng used his abilities to help Kakashi Hatake and Uchiha Shinichi pass Konoha’s difficult written exam, while several other examinees obtained answers through their own techniques. Forty-five candidates advanced to the second exam in the Forest of Death, and Yugito Nii caught Ye Feng trying to slip away.

• The Third Hokage explained to Dodai that the written exam tested intelligence gathering, while Ye Feng’s unusually fast answers drew attention in the examination room.
• Ye Feng finished the test and used invisible threads to make Kakashi Hatake’s and Uchiha Shinichi’s pens write their answers.
• Ye Feng watched Yugito Nii use a tiny chakra mouse to gather answers and Yamanaka Keiko use the Mind Body Switch Technique, while the Ino-Shika-Cho trio also completed their papers.
• The examiners announced that forty-five candidates from fifteen teams had passed and would take the second exam in the Forest of Death the next day.
• Yugito Nii spotted Ye Feng sneaking toward the exit and warned him not to slip away again.

Ye Feng escaped Yugito Nii and was caught by Minato Namikaze, who bargained for meals in exchange for keeping his secret. Their lunch was interrupted by Kushina Uzumaki and Ye Feng’s friends, and the chapter ended with Minato being allowed to join dinner while Ye Feng was left out.

• Ye Feng fled the examination room and used the Flying Thunder God Technique to reach a spot near Hokage Rock, where Minato Namikaze confronted him about learning the technique.
• Minato Namikaze and Ye Feng bargained over his silence and settled on four meals, beginning with lunch at Minato’s home.
• Kushina Uzumaki and Ye Feng’s friends arrived during lunch, caught the two men together, and ordered them to serve the group as punishment.
• Kushina Uzumaki invited Killer B and Yugito Nii for dinner, and Ye Feng and Minato prepared the meal but were barred from eating at the table.
• Kushina Uzumaki let Minato join the table after hearing his stomach growl, while Ye Feng remained behind in stunned disbelief.

Ye Feng entered the Forest of Death with his randomly assigned teammates, Kojima Nobukawa and Kamii Ran, and quickly found both types of scroll. After uncovering their attempt to kill him with Explosive Tags, he knocked them out and took them to Orochimaru's laboratory.

• The chief examiner explained that teams would be randomly reshuffled and would need both a Heaven Scroll and an Earth Scroll to reach the Tower before nightfall on the third day.
• Ye Feng drew team number eight with Kojima Nobukawa and Kamii Ran, who acted strangely and claimed they did not know each other.
• After entering the Forest of Death, Ye Feng used his divine sense to locate and obtain a Heaven Scroll and an Earth Scroll.
• Kojima Nobukawa and Kamii Ran approached Ye Feng from behind, but he exposed their attack and knocked them unconscious.
• Ye Feng found many Explosive Tags on the two, suspected powerful people had sent them, and used the Flying Thunder God Technique to take them to Orochimaru's laboratory.

Ye Feng captured the two ninja who attacked him, then staged a massive explosion to make Konoha believe he had died while he went to the Central Tower. As Konoha searched for him and the Third Hokage confronted Shimura Danzō, Ye Feng remained hidden in the tower, training as the second exam continued.

• Ye Feng delivered the unconscious attackers to Orochimaru for interrogation, warned him to keep them alive, and returned to the Forest of Death.
• Ye Feng detonated Explosive Tags and clothing to fake his death, then headed to the Central Tower with both the Heaven and Earth Scrolls.
• A Root ninja and the Chief Examiner found the blast site and reported the apparent deaths, prompting the Third Hokage to order a search and summon Shimura Danzō.
• The Third Hokage accused Shimura Danzō of arranging the attack, but Shimura Danzō denied involvement while the Third Hokage worried about whether Uchiha Yefeng had survived.
• Ye Feng trained unseen atop the Central Tower, entering a state in which he could move with the wind without leaving a trace of his presence.
• After a day of searching, Yugito Nii's team had collected four Earth Scrolls and no Heaven Scroll, leaving Yugito Nii furious.

As teams gathered near the central tower, Yugito Nii and Kakashi Hatake’s group tried to trade scrolls, triggering a free-for-all. Ye Feng watched from the tower as several teams fought their way inside, while the remaining competitors battled over the last scrolls.

• Kakashi Hatake, Uchiha Shinichi, and Leimu headed to the central tower after finding only one Heaven Scroll, while the Ino-Shika-Cho trio arrived early to seek their missing scroll.
• The Third Hokage received a report that Konoha Ninja had failed to find Uchiha Yefeng and the other two, and he decided to let the matter involving Shimura Danzō go for now.
• Yugito Nii challenged the hidden teams and agreed to trade scrolls with Leimu, but the waiting teams rushed out to stop the exchange and seize the scrolls.
• Yugito Nii, Kakashi Hatake, Uchiha Shinichi, and their teammates fought through the ambush, while Yugito Nii threw two Earth Scrolls into the sky and used Fire Rat Balls to block their pursuers.
• Akimichi Dingyuan cleared a path for Nara Shikahira and the Ino-Shika-Cho trio to enter the central tower, and Ye Feng watched the fighting from above.
• A powerful Kumogakure ninja and his teammates entered the tower, then a Hyuga Clan ninja won the final scroll and followed them inside.

Ye Feng returned after surviving an attempt by his teammates to kill him, then accused them before the Hokage and Advisors. As Danzō pushed to have Ye Feng imprisoned, Orochimaru arrived carrying two unconscious children whose identities seemed to alarm Danzō.

• Ye Feng emerged from the Tower with the scrolls and told the Chief Examiner that his teammates had tried to murder him, so he had dealt with them.
• The Chief Examiner brought Ye Feng to the Hokage Office, where the Third Hokage welcomed him and ordered an investigation into the exam’s manipulation and killings.
• Danzō questioned Ye Feng’s account and demanded that he be disqualified and confined in the Dungeon, while the Third Hokage argued that he should remain in the exam under supervision.
• Orochimaru entered carrying two unconscious children and tossed them to the floor, prompting Danzō to recognize a troubling possibility about who they were.

After a memory reading revealed that Shimura Danzō’s Root had trained children as suicide operatives, the Third Hokage ordered him to hand over Root’s roster and records. Ye Feng returned home, discovered his wind affinity had grown stronger, and hosted Orochimaru for dinner.

• Orochimaru urged the Third Hokage to have the two unconscious attackers’ memories read, and the Hokage sent them to the Analysis Team.
• The Analysis Team’s report revealed that more than a hundred orphans, including Konoha children, had been trained until only eleven remained as suicide operatives.
• The Third Hokage ordered Shimura Danzō to hand over every Root ninja’s roster and all Root activity records, and Danzō reluctantly agreed before leaving.
• Ye Feng found that his liquefied true qi had increased to nearly one-fifth and that he could form small whirlwinds with his strengthened wind affinity.
• Orochimaru visited Ye Feng, discussed Danzō and the failed effort to expose him, and stayed until Ye Feng realized he was hoping for dinner.