Chapter Summaries

After an exhausting day of tactical training, Uka Senju called a stop and suggested the friends rest before continuing tomorrow. Aburame Kaun treated Uka Senju and Inuzuka Furin to an enormous barbecue meal because he hoped to persuade his adoptive father to help his child improve their chakra capacity.

• Aburame Kaun remembered that a child with Senju blood had unusually high chakra capacity and began thinking about his own child.
• Uka Senju noticed that the group was worn out, and Brown and White collapsed before Inuzuka Furin agreed to end training for the day.
• Aburame Kaun offered to pay for barbecue at the Akimichi Clan's place, while Uka Senju and Inuzuka Furin warned that the meal could be expensive.
• The three humans and Brown and White ate a huge meal, and Aburame Kaun privately planned to ask his parents for money to help his child.
• Uka Senju arranged to meet at the same training ground at nine the next morning, then carried Brown and White out with the others.

Uka Senju, Inuzuka Furin, and Aburame Kaun passed Senju Tsukika’s assessment and earned permission to begin taking missions. Meanwhile, Senju Toka’s clan elders prepared an operation to locate Sarutobi and his allies’ hidden bases as their campaign in the Land of Grass neared its end.

• Uka Senju, Inuzuka Furin, and Aburame Kaun coordinated their attacks against Senju Tsukika, who evaded them with the Substitution Technique and praised their teamwork.
• Senju Tsukika told the three students they could begin taking missions and instructed them to meet her on January 1.
• Uka Senju felt relieved that he could finally leave the village, while Aburame Kaun celebrated their victory and Inuzuka Furin’s Ninja Dog barked happily.
• Senju Toka met with the clan elders to review their plan to locate Sarutobi and his allies’ hidden bases before the Land of Grass fell.
• The Sixth Elder told Senju Toka that Sarutobi and the others were selling covert assets and might expand their training after the war, then asked whether the Senju should do the same.

Senju Toka agreed that Uka should join a future campaign so he could develop as a leader. Meanwhile, Shimura Danzō oversaw Konoha’s assault on the Grass Ninja village and set off to intercept its leader, who was fleeing with a child.

• Senju Toka ordered her aides to verify reports of the Sarutobi’s expansion and prepare to consult the First Elder about striking a neighbor.
• Mito Uzumaki persuaded Senju Toka to let Uka join the planned campaign with experienced deputies so he could learn to lead.
• Shimura Danzō waited as Konoha forces launched a coordinated fire-and-wind attack on the Grass Ninja village.
• Konoha’s masked ninja breached the village walls with Earth Release and began slaughtering its defenders.
• Shimura Danzō saw the Grass Ninja leader escaping with a child and vanished to intercept them, preparing a Wind Release attack.

On January 1 of Konoha’s 28th year, Uka Senju prepared to leave the village for his first mission, excited to travel but mindful of the dangers awaiting him beyond his clan’s protection. After receiving a protective charm from Chiharu and her warning about his rising bounty, he reached the meeting hall with his household, ready to depart.

• Uka Senju woke early, reflected on the risks of leaving the village, and packed weapons and supplies for his mission.
• Senju Chiharu gave Uka a handmade protective charm, which he put on before joining the household for breakfast.
• Uka and Chiharu walked together toward the meeting hall, where she warned him to flee if danger arose and not to trust anyone because his bounty had increased.
• Uka reassured Chiharu that he had prepared for this departure for years, then released her hand as Senju Tsukika reminded them they had reached the meeting hall.

Senju Toka appointed Uka Senju and his teammates as Genin on Konoha's southern front and gave them their first mission. After leaving the Senju compound, Uka fastened his new Forehead Protector to his arm, explaining that wearing it there was more practical.

• Senju Toka warned Senju Chiharu to control her worry about Uka Senju, then decided to send her out on missions.
• Uka Senju and his teammates met Senju Tsukika and entered Senju Toka's office as the assembled Wood Release Squad.
• Senju Toka gave the three Genin Forehead Protectors and booklets, assigned them to Konoha's southern front, and handed Senju Tsukika a scroll of suitable missions.
• Uka Senju left a wooden ring for the worried Senju Chiharu before following his squad out of the compound.
• Uka Senju fastened his Forehead Protector to his left arm, telling Aburame Kaun that it was more convenient there than on his head.

Senju Tsukika led Uka Senju, Aburame Kaun, Furin, and Furin’s ninja dog out of Konoha for the students’ first C-rank mission. After explaining the mission’s deadline and proof requirements, she took the lead and left the students to follow.

• Aburame Kaun removed his forehead protector and hung it at his waist as the group approached Konoha’s gate.
• Senju Tsukika had the guard register the group, then led them outside the village.
• Senju Tsukika explained that the students had to complete their C-rank mission and return with undamaged proof before dinner.
• The students considered the planning skills the mission would test, and Senju Tsukika said she would guide them this time but expected them to plan future missions themselves.
• Senju Tsukika used the Body Flicker Technique to set off, and Uka Senju turned toward Furin’s ninja dog as the three students prepared to follow.

Uka Senju and his teammates pursued Teacher Tsukika through the forest, then recognized her trap when they reached a supposed rest stop. The chapter ended with the three confirming the real Tsukika’s identity and lowering their guard.

• Uka Senju, Inuzuka Furin, and Aburame Kaun followed Brown and White’s trail for hours while Uka updated his map.
• Furin reported that their teacher had stopped ahead and that Brown and White had detected a faint smell of blood.
• Uka went ahead to scout, while Furin and Kaun hung back to keep watch.
• Uka attacked the figure beside the roast meat after noticing something was amiss, while Kaun used an Insect Clone and Furin prepared the Four Legs Technique.
• Senju Tsukika revealed that the roast-meat figure was a Shadow Clone and that she had used the setup to test their caution.
• Uka stopped his attack after Brown and White and his teammates confirmed the newly appeared Tsukika was real.

Senju Tsukika corrected her students’ reliance on a single source of information, then explained the field decisions she had made during their journey. Elsewhere, Shimura Danzō reviewed the spoils from Kusagakure and ordered the captured people on Root’s list disposed of.

• Senju Tsukika praised the students’ reconnaissance but warned them to verify conclusions with multiple methods instead of trusting the ninja dog alone.
• Senju Tsukika had Uka Senju slice bear meat to a precise thickness while she explained the group’s route, pace, and rest stops.
• The students helped prepare another meal and listened as Senju Tsukika discussed the decisions they would need to apply on future missions.
• Shimura Danzō compared inventory sheets and noted that the stolen share of Kusagakure’s supplies would support Root’s secret bases.
• A masked Shimura subordinate reported that the pursuit team had captured everyone on the list and that the extra supplies had reached Base Two.
• Shimura Danzō ordered the captured people disposed of.

Shimura Danzō ordered Wolf to begin capturing people and handing them off, while Uka Senju and his teammates reached their mission target after a day of stealth training. The team prepared to raid the mountain stronghold and eliminate everyone there.

• Shimura Danzō told Wolf to lead the handoff team, using borrowed personnel for captures and Root personnel for transfers.
• Uka Senju recognized that Senju Tsukika’s afternoon travel training taught them to conceal their movements for secret missions.
• Uka Senju led Kaun and Furin past hidden sentries to a concealed position overlooking the mountain stronghold.
• Uka Senju asked Kaun and Furin to report their condition, then assigned Kaun to scout the stronghold and block the uphill road.
• Uka Senju ordered Furin to clear the perimeter sentry posts and block the downhill road, warning both teammates to signal if anything went wrong and let no one escape.

Uka Senju prepared to infiltrate a stronghold containing hundreds of bandits while Aburame Kaun mapped the compound and Inuzuka Furin cleared its hidden sentries. Uka began his assault on the central mansion as Furin and her Ninja Dog silently eliminated guards outside.

• Inuzuka Furin warned Uka Senju to signal if the bandits resisted, and Uka reassured her that he would stay within his limits.
• Uka checked his weapons and used the Battle Armor Technique while Aburame Kaun's insects infiltrated the stronghold and mapped its layout.
• Aburame Kaun reported that 730 people were inside, identified the bandits' guard shifts, and located the chief in the central mansion.
• Uka memorized Kaun's map, instructed him to guard the outside, activated Chakra Coating, and used the Body Flicker Technique to approach the central mansion.
• Inuzuka Furin used the Four Legs Technique and, with her Ninja Dog Brown and White, killed two hidden sentries and moved toward another.

Uka Senju infiltrated the bandit leader’s residence, killed the leader and those inside, and collected the mission’s required proof. He then cleared the rest of the residence and headed for the remaining targets, having confirmed that the system rewarded killing the weak or young.

• Uka Senju slipped past the guards and entered the bandit stronghold, identifying the lit room where his target was located.
• Uka Senju witnessed the bandit leader abusing a young woman and killed the leader and four others in the room.
• Uka Senju killed the woman with a senbon after realizing she was continuing to crawl and ring a bell despite the chance to escape.
• Uka Senju collected the required proof, sealed it in a scroll, and swiftly killed the other people living in the residence.
• Uka Senju gained energy from the killings, confirmed his theory about the system’s rewards, and moved on to the remaining targets while preserving the required intact heads.

Shimura Danzō celebrated Root’s gains and planned the Shimura Clan’s expansion, but learned that the Crane Squad had been wiped out and White Sparrow had lost the Wood Release user. He ordered White Sparrow back to the village, then left the hill as clouds covered the moon.

• Shimura Danzō reflected on Root’s new prospects, the Fat Pig Plan, and plans to recruit children and expand the Shimura Clan.
• A messenger reported that the Senju had detected White Sparrow and Crane while they tracked the Wood Release user, and the Crane Squad had been wiped out.
• Shimura Danzō rebuked the surveillance squads for losing the target and ordered White Sparrow to return to the village and rebuild with skilled reinforcements.
• The messenger sealed Shimura Danzō’s orders and sent them by summoned vulture to White Sparrow at Safe House 218.
• Shimura Danzō saw clouds cover the moon and returned from the hill.

Uka Senju raced to the Women's Courtyard after a bandit sounded the alarm, then faced more than three hundred armed men charging out. He fought them with his straight saber and wooden spikes, leaving the fourth chief hiding among the second wave as the battle continued.

• A limping bandit discovered corpses in the mansion and raised the alarm with a gong, but Uka Senju killed him with a Senbon.
• Uka hurried to the Women's Courtyard to stop its occupants from fleeing and met a crowd of armed bandits at the entrance.
• The fourth chief rallied the bandits by urging them to charge, citing the contrasting fates of the Ken Bandit Stronghold and the Ki Bandit Stronghold.
• More than three hundred bandits charged Uka, who drew his straight saber and attacked while using wooden spikes to kill men behind him.
• The fourth chief hid in the second wave as Uka calmly continued cutting down the charging bandits, targeting their necks to preserve their heads as proof.

Uka Senju slaughtered the bandits in the stronghold while Inuzuka Furin and her ninja dog blocked the mountain pass and cut down fleeing men. Furin created two shadow clones to accelerate the pursuit as the survivors panicked and jumped from the cliff.

• Uka Senju let the fourth chief flee until he reached the edge of the crowd, then killed him with a vine and watched for other escapees.
• Inuzuka Furin and her ninja dog guarded the pass down the mountain after clearing the sentries.
• Matsube led a squad toward the pass, and his companions mocked a short fellow who had been called a ninja for enduring an encounter in the Women's Courtyard.
• Furin and her ninja dog killed Matsube's squad and attacked another crowd of armed men fleeing the stronghold.
• Several bandits jumped from the cliff as Furin formed hand seals and created two shadow clones to speed up the slaughter.

Inuzuka Furin and Uka Senju finished clearing their respective parts of the stronghold and collected the proof required for their first mission. Uka tested absorbing energy from plants, then continued processing the proof while waiting for his teammates.

• Inuzuka Furin and Brown and White cleaned up the battlefield after defeating the attackers.
• Inuzuka Furin used her Beast-Man Clone and short blades to collect proof and discard unnecessary remains.
• Uka Senju confirmed no one remained alive in the stronghold and fired a green signal to report the mission's completion.
• Uka Senju checked the energy gained from his kills and absorbed energy from the courtyard plants, gaining 248 energy as they withered.
• Uka Senju decided to keep his system secret and resumed collecting the mission's proof.

Uka Senju, Aburame Kaun, and Inuzuka Furin gathered proof from the defeated targets after completing their mission. Nearby, a Senju operative reported to Senju Tsukika that Danzo had likely sent hostile teams against them.

• Aburame Kaun arrived at Uka Senju’s location and apologized for leaving him to face the battle alone.
• Uka Senju comforted Aburame Kaun, then told him to help collect proof despite his discomfort.
• Inuzuka Furin and Brown and White saw the green signal, joined Uka and Kaun, and helped gather proof.
• A Senju operative appeared before Senju Tsukika and reported that his team had killed three attackers, including a likely Shimura Clan jonin.
• The operative said intelligence pointed to Danzo as the one who sent the attackers.

Uka Senju reflected on his team’s first mission while preparing breakfast, learning why the Senju had been contracted to avenge the wealthy man and his son. The chapter left him stirring porridge after nearly scorching it as his thoughts turned to the mission’s origins.

• Senju Tsukika instructed her subordinate to report the escaped enemies’ information and warned him not to let future fights distract him from protecting the Wood Release user.
• At dawn, Uka Senju prepared meat porridge while his teammates and teacher slept, then reviewed the previous day’s mission and his decisions.
• Uka recalled that the Senju had accepted a prepaid, ten-year contract to avenge the wealthy man if he or his son were killed by a chunin or weaker opponent.
• Uka realized the wealthy man’s surviving wife and daughters had kept the contract secret because the bandits would have killed them if they knew the Senju were coming.
• Uka noticed the porridge was beginning to scorch, lifted the lid, and started stirring it.

Uka Senju learned that he would lead his teammates through their second mission while Senju Tsukika watched without intervening. After reviewing the assignment to eliminate bandits at Asakura Stronghold, he began weighing how to complete it before sunset the next day.

• Senju Tsukika praised Uka Senju's handling of their previous mission and told him he would make the arrangements for the next one.
• Uka Senju read the C-rank cleanup mission details, which required three bandit leaders' intact heads as proof.
• Senju Tsukika told Uka Senju he could choose between infiltration and assassination or a frontal assault, as long as he preserved the required proof.
• Uka Senju considered whether killing only the leaders would leave the bandits able to appoint replacements and wondered about Fukuyama Village's finances.
• After breakfast, Uka Senju briefed Aburame Kaun and Inuzuka Furin, and Aburame Kaun asked when they would leave.

Uka Senju’s team planned to reach Fukuyama Village and begin their second mission that evening, while the First Elder weighed how to respond to unrest against the Senju and the Trade Association. The chapter left the First Elder considering the Fifth Elder’s suggestion to crush the dissenters, despite worrying about the consequences.

• Uka Senju proposed speeding up the journey so the team could arrive in Fukuyama Village around 16:00 and investigate around sunset; Aburame Kaun and Inuzuka Furin agreed.
• Furin found the xishou dumplings Senju Tsukika had cooked and thanked her, then suggested eating them instead of preparing lunch.
• Kaun objected to replacing a normal meal with the dumplings, while Uka sided with Furin and Kaun appealed to Tsukika for support.
• At Ihyo Castle, the First Elder considered how to punish several groups challenging the Senju and how to manage the fallout from conquering their territories.
• The Fifth Elder urged the First Elder to wipe out the dissenters and their families, and the First Elder began to consider that advice while worrying about the aftermath.

The Senju elders discussed a response to the Trade Association and learned that spies had been following Wood Release’s first mission, prompting warnings about the border defenses. In the north, Ōnoki shared a tender breakfast and farewell with his wife Kyōko and their son Kitsuchi before leaving for work.

• The Senju First Elder ordered a squadron sent to assist the Trade Association and instructed them to eliminate its pawns, investigate who was behind them, and await further orders.
• After reading a report about spies following Wood Release, the First Elder rebuked the Fifth Elder over the southeastern branch’s defenses.
• The Inuzuka elder accepted responsibility for part of the northern defenses, and the First Elder told him to keep a closer watch while Wood Release trained.
• Ōnoki finished breakfast, teased his son Kitsuchi, and prepared to leave for work.
• Kyōko reminded Ōnoki to take care of his health and come home early, telling him that she and Kitsuchi were waiting for him.