Chapter Summaries

Senju Chen recounted his operations in the Land of Rain to Konoha’s gathered leaders, carefully presenting his role in the victories as obedience to Orochimaru’s plans. He reached the northern-front battle and revealed that, facing Iwagakure’s overwhelming ambush, he had used Wood Release: Deep Forest Emergence.

• Senju Chen entered the council chamber and reported to Hiruzen Sarutobi before Konoha’s senior leaders and clan heads.
• Senju Chen described how he and Orochimaru worked with Hanzō to eliminate foreign agents and capture Han, the Five-Tails Jinchuriki, during Iwagakure’s attack.
• Senju Chen recounted using Han as leverage against Iwagakure, setting fires in the Land of Earth’s backyard, and helping forge an alliance with Kumogakure.
• Senju Chen explained that Ōnoki’s ambush routed Kumogakure’s forces while he, the Raikage’s son, and the Eight-Tails Jinchuriki lured Roshi away.
• Senju Chen told the council that he used Wood Release: Deep Forest Emergence when Iwagakure’s army and Dust Release left him with nowhere to retreat.

Senju Chen reported how he had used Wood Release and a self-developed sealing jutsu to capture the Four-Tails Jinchūriki and shape the war in Konoha’s favor. The council praised his achievements, and Hiruzen Sarutobi sent him home to rest, promising rewards later.

• Senju Chen explained that he had released Wood Release: Deep Forest Emergence three times after extracting the Four-Tails' chakra, then abducted the unconscious Jinchūriki and handed him to Kumogakure's Third Raikage.
• The council members reacted with shock and recognized that Senju Chen's actions had secured strategic advantages and major victories for Konoha.
• An elder asked Senju Chen about his Tailed Beast-sealing jutsu, and Senju Chen said he had developed it by combining Wood Release with the Uzumaki Clan's Sealing Jutsu.
• The clan heads and senior officials praised Senju Chen's achievements and called for a generous reward.
• Hiruzen Sarutobi thanked Senju Chen, told him to go home and rest, and said the village would issue his rewards later.

Konoha’s leaders debated how to reward Senju Chen, with factions competing to recruit or promote him after his battlefield achievements. He returned to the Senju manor and found comfort in Kushina Uzumaki’s concern, believing family cared most about having him safely home.

• Hiruzen Sarutobi asked the officials what reward Senju Chen should receive, and they argued over publicity, battlefield deployment, and promotion to Jonin.
• Shimura Danzō tried to recruit Senju Chen into Root, while Shikaku Nara argued that he belonged in Strategic Command and offered him a deputy commander role.
• Uchiha Fugaku and Hyuga Hiashi considered ways to bind Senju Chen to their clans, including a possible marriage alliance.
• Senju Chen walked home, reflecting that his report had clarified his loyalty to Konoha and that he could afford to wait for a meaningful reward.
• Kushina Uzumaki worried that Senju Chen had been troubled or would be sent away again, then cheered when he said he would stay home for a long time.

After reuniting with Kushina Uzumaki, Senju Chen trained with Lightning Body Tempering and sought out forbidden soul techniques to strengthen himself. He left the family library with two scrolls and began studying them in his room.

• Senju Chen ate Kushina Uzumaki's welcome-home breakfast and recounted humorous parts of his two years away, including Minato Namikaze's safe arrival in the Land of Rain.
• Senju Chen practiced Lightning Body Tempering, using the Third Raikage's experience to improve his physical strength.
• Senju Chen found the Spirit Transformation Technique, created by Dan Kato, in the Senju family's secret library.
• Senju Chen took Soul Sealing as well, intending to study both techniques and use them to strengthen his soul.
• Senju Chen returned to his room and began studying the two forbidden techniques.

Senju Chen studied the forbidden techniques Soul Sealing and Spirit Transformation Technique, recognizing how they could develop and unite body, energy, and soul. He realized Spirit Transformation Technique might explain Orochimaru’s later body-changing immortality, then decided to take a break from training.

• Senju Chen analyzed Soul Sealing and concluded it compressed an enemy’s mental power until their body became rigid.
• Senju Chen discovered that Spirit Transformation Technique used the practitioner’s own soul power to strengthen its bond with the body.
• Senju Chen learned that advanced mastery could let the soul leave the body, attack over long distances, and enter another person’s mental world.
• Senju Chen connected the technique’s potential for an undying soul and rebirth in another body to Orochimaru’s later survival and body changes.
• Senju Chen put away both scrolls and considered relaxing by going shopping with Kushina.

Senju Chen took Kushina Uzumaki shopping through Konoha, enjoying snacks and ramen while reflecting that the village’s attention was shifting away from his wartime achievements. Kushina reassured him that she cared about him and urged him to take things less seriously, and they returned to the Senju mansion laughing together.

• Senju Chen put away the Scrolls of Seals and invited the bored Kushina Uzumaki to go shopping.
• Senju Chen and Kushina Uzumaki walked through Konoha as villagers discussed recent battlefield successes and Senju Chen’s name faded from public conversation.
• Kushina Uzumaki bought snacks for herself and Senju Chen, then took him to Ichiraku Ramen for a meal.
• Kushina Uzumaki told Senju Chen she had worried about him and apologized for not taking better care of him while Tsunade was away.
• Senju Chen reassured Kushina Uzumaki and agreed to ease up on himself, and the two returned to the Senju mansion laughing.

Utatane Koharu and Mitokado Sancai visited Senju Chen, seeking to gauge his future plans after his battlefield achievements. Chen reassured them that he wanted to rest for now but would serve Konoha when needed, and the visitors left satisfied.

• Utatane Koharu and Mitokado Sancai arrived at the Senju estate and met Senju Chen and Kushina.
• Senju Chen recognized their political motives and cut off Mitokado Sancai's prepared praise, demanding that he speak plainly.
• Utatane Koharu asked Chen about his plans for the future, framing the question as an elder's concern for him.
• Senju Chen said he wanted to rest and spend time with Kushina, but promised to serve Konoha if the village needed him.
• Utatane Koharu praised Chen's answer, promised Konoha would reward him, and left with Mitokado Sancai.

Senju Chen received a series of visitors offering him positions and seeking ties with him after his wartime achievements. He chose a nominal post in Strategic Command and learned he would be promoted to Jonin, while Danzo’s representative arrived to renew the offer of a role in Root.

• Shikaku Nara praised Senju Chen’s strategic record and offered him positions in Strategic Command or at the Ninja Academy.
• Senju Chen chose a nominal deputy commander post in Strategic Command.
• Shikaku Nara told Senju Chen that his Jonin promotion was coming and that Lord Hokage had rejected Danzo’s attempt to recruit him into Root.
• Sarutobi Shinnosuke visited with gifts, thanked Senju Chen for looking after his son in the Land of Rain, and sought closer ties between their families.
• A Shimura Clan representative relayed Danzo’s offer of a deputy commander position in Root and promised that Danzo would eventually return control of Root to Senju Chen.

Senju Chen received visits from Danzo, Hyuga Hiashi, and Uchiha Fugaku, each trying to draw him toward their interests. He left Fugaku’s offer of Uchiha support for a future bid to become Hokage open while agreeing that the Senju and Uchiha should strengthen their ties.

• Senju Chen sent Danzo away by saying he would abide by Konoha’s arrangements.
• Hyuga Hiashi visited Senju Chen and proposed that he meet a Hyuga girl as a future marriage prospect, but Chen politely declined to consider romance.
• Uchiha Fugaku asked Senju Chen what he thought of becoming Hokage and offered the Uchiha Clan’s support if he pursued the position.
• Senju Chen neither accepted nor rejected Fugaku’s offer, but said closer Senju-Uchiha ties would benefit both clans and Konoha.

Senju Chen received his official promotion to Konoha Jonin and was appointed provisional deputy commander of the Konoha Strategic Command. Shikaku Nara showed him the command center, whose intelligence network Senju Chen saw as a valuable way to monitor developments across the Shinobi World.

• Kushina asked Senju Chen why so many visitors had come, and he concealed Uchiha Fugaku’s surprising remarks from her.
• After a week of training and researching forbidden jutsu, Senju Chen was summoned to the Hokage Building by Third Hokage Hiruzen Sarutobi.
• Hiruzen Sarutobi promoted Senju Chen to Konoha Jonin and appointed him provisional deputy commander of the Konoha Strategic Command on Shikaku Nara’s nomination.
• Shikaku Nara led Senju Chen through the Strategic Command and explained how its ninja and messenger birds gathered and relayed intelligence.
• Senju Chen recognized the command center as a valuable source of information that could help him track changes across the Shinobi World.

Senju Chen joined Konoha’s Strategic Command as deputy commander and was astonished when its analysts greeted him with enthusiastic admiration. After realizing they respected him for the strategies they had witnessed during the war, he settled into his new post with amusement.

• Shikaku Nara introduced Senju Chen to the Strategic Command as its new deputy commander.
• The command staff applauded Senju Chen and crowded around him to ask about his tactics and wartime decisions.
• Shikaku Nara sent the analysts back to their stations and told them to save their questions for after work.
• Senju Chen realized the analysts admired his strategic work, not his clan or age, and smiled as he took in the command center.

Senju Chen joined Konoha’s command headquarters and used scattered reports to detect a likely Iwagakure attack on outpost A5. He left the headquarters after advising the staff, earning Shikaku Nara’s admiration for his instincts and analysis.

• Senju Chen examined the map and requested patrol reports and supply records from the Land of Grass border.
• Senju Chen connected changes in Iwagakure patrols with reduced Konoha outpost supplies and predicted an elite squad would target A5.
• The command staff raised alert levels and ordered patrols around A5 to prepare a trap.
• Shikaku Nara asked how Senju Chen had suspected trouble there, and Chen said his instincts came from having recently returned from the area.
• Shikaku Nara teased Senju Chen about his forest patches, and Chen ended his visit and went home.

Over a year of war, Senju Chen refined his techniques and advised Konoha's Strategic Command. When Uchiha Fugaku killed Kirigakure's Third Mizukage, Chen recognized the victory as a powerful pledge from the Uchiha that would also intensify Konoha's political tensions.

• Senju Chen advised analysts that Kirigakure squads attacking supply fleets might be hiding in mobile underwater bases near three ocean eddies.
• An intelligence scroll reported that Uchiha Fugaku's force had killed the Third Mizukage off the coast of the Land of Whirlpools and recovered his body.
• Senju Chen interpreted Fugaku's victory as a declaration of the Uchiha Clan's strength and support, while worrying that the achievement could invite political suppression.
• Senju Chen reflected on the war's rising stars, including Minato Namikaze, Shisui Uchiha, and Kitsuchi, as Fugaku's feat overshadowed them.
• Senju Chen anticipated that Fugaku's victory would shake Konoha's leadership, even as the Uchiha Clan moved farther from the center of power.

Senju Chen completed the first stage of the [Spirit Transformation Technique], gaining heightened perception but failing to extend his soul energy beyond his body. He realized he had reached a bottleneck and came up with an idea for practicing control by attaching his mental power to a kitchen knife.

• Senju Chen formed a resilient layer of soul energy around his body after a year of practicing the [Spirit Transformation Technique].
• Senju Chen sensed details throughout his surroundings but found that mental power dissipated when he tried to extend it beyond his fingertip.
• Senju Chen concluded that he had reached a bottleneck and would need to temper his soul energy through continued practice during everyday activities.
• Senju Chen saw Kushina Uzumaki bored on the sofa and considered attaching his mental power to a kitchen knife.

Senju Chen decided to take over cooking so he could train his mental power, and prepared braised pork belly for Kushina using precise knife work and heat control. Kushina found the meat tender, but her uncertain reaction left Chen waiting to hear whether the dish had succeeded.

• Senju Chen told Kushina he would cook their meals from then on, despite her doubts about his past kitchen mishap.
• Senju Chen entered the kitchen and began preparing braised pork belly while Kushina watched from the doorway.
• Senju Chen used his mental power and swordsmanship to cut the pork belly into evenly sized pieces, impressing Kushina with his precision.
• Senju Chen discovered the kitchen lacked most traditional seasonings, so he made do with sugar and a mild bean sauce.
• Senju Chen served the glossy, tender pork belly, and Kushina tasted it before saying that the meat was stewed well.

Senju Chen spent three days trying to recreate seasonings for his cooking, but his homemade soy sauce failed and left him exhausted. After Kushina took him out for ramen, he spotted ripe chilies in the courtyard and found a new direction for his experiments.

• Senju Chen realized his braised pork lacked depth because Konoha had few familiar seasonings and spices.
• Senju Chen searched Konoha with Kushina and found substitutes for some spices, but not soy sauce, cooking wine, or vinegar.
• Senju Chen turned the kitchen into a makeshift laboratory and spent three days testing seasonings and fermenting soybeans.
• Senju Chen tasted his first soy sauce and found it bitter and raw, while his repeated failures left him frustrated.
• Kushina removed a leaf from Senju Chen's hair, took him out for ramen, and helped him relax.
• Senju Chen spotted ripe chilies on a wild bush and told Kushina he had found a new way to develop his cooking.

Senju Chen discovered that a wild chili could help him make a bold, intensely flavored dish with the limited ingredients available. After preparing chili oil and pouring it over chicken, he served Kushina a plate of mouthwatering chicken, leaving her eager to taste it.

• Kushina watched Senju Chen’s mood change when he found a bright red wild chili and declared he had found a way to make a new dish.
• Senju Chen decided to focus on intensifying a single flavor rather than building layers with many seasonings.
• The next morning, Senju Chen used his spiritual power to precisely pour hot oil over crushed chilies and numbing spices, creating an intensely aromatic chili oil.
• Senju Chen boiled and chilled chicken, chopped it, and topped it with chili oil, salt, sugar, sauce, and scallions.
• Senju Chen offered Kushina the finished mouthwatering chicken, and she stared at the enticing dish, eager to eat.

Senju Chen served Kushina Uzumaki a fiery, numbing chicken dish, and she devoured it despite its overwhelming spice. After finishing every drop of chili oil with rice, Kushina demanded that he make it again tomorrow.

• Kushina Uzumaki tasted Senju Chen's spicy chicken and was overwhelmed by its heat and numbing sensation.
• Kushina kept eating, captivated by the dish's flavors, while Senju Chen sensed her growing excitement and satisfaction.
• Kushina asked for rice, poured the chili oil sauce over it, and finished the remaining food.
• Kushina told Senju Chen that she wanted the dish again tomorrow.

Senju Chen trained his spiritual power by preparing increasingly precise dishes, then began making red bean-filled sweets for Kushina Uzumaki. Minato Namikaze returned to Konoha and surprised Kushina, while Senju Chen wondered whether something important had happened.

• Senju Chen experimented with cooking to develop his spiritual power, and Kushina Uzumaki tasted and criticized his dishes.
• Kushina Uzumaki asked Senju Chen to make sweet, chewy balls filled with red bean paste, and he agreed.
• Senju Chen used his spiritual power to knead glutinous rice dough and prepared to wrap it around the filling.
• Kushina Uzumaki cried out when Minato Namikaze arrived at the courtyard entrance.
• Minato Namikaze told Kushina Uzumaki that his mission had ended and he had returned to rest and report, then noticed Senju Chen.

Senju Chen welcomed Minato Namikaze home with a meal and heard about the war and Obito Uchiha’s reported death. He agreed to visit the guilt-ridden Kakashi, while suspecting Obito’s death might be a ruse.

• Kushina urged Senju Chen to cook for Minato Namikaze, who praised Chen’s dishes after tasting them.
• Minato Namikaze described the fierce fighting in the Land of Rain and said he had returned to report to Lord Hokage and escort fallen comrades home.
• Senju Chen asked about Kakashi, and Minato Namikaze revealed that Obito Uchiha had died and Kakashi blamed himself.
• Minato Namikaze asked Senju Chen to comfort Kakashi, and Chen agreed to visit him.
• Senju Chen suspected Obito’s death might be fake and decided to check Kakashi’s condition and whether he had received Obito’s Sharingan.