Chapter Summaries

Didaze discovered that he could combine Earth and Fire chakra to create Explosion Release, then used clay bombs to repel Kumogakure's invasion of Iwagakure's border. His aerial assault devastated Kumogakure's rear ranks, while Yotsuki A realized the attack was an unprecedented long-range form of Explosion Release.

• Didaze regained his memories and learned that Kumogakure's forces, led by Yotsuki A, were close to breaking through Iwagakure's border defenses.
• Didaze discovered he could combine Earth and Fire chakra and decided to use clay bombs because he could not defeat Yotsuki A in close combat.
• Didaze asked a subordinate to bring him clay, molded a giant bird, and took to the sky.
• Didaze unleashed explosive clay spiders that killed or wounded over a hundred Kumogakure ninja, then switched to faster clay birds when they began dodging the spiders.
• Yotsuki A saw Didaze decimating Kumogakure's rear ranks and was shocked that Explosion Release could be used at long range.

Didaze used his Explosion Release to break through Dodai’s defenses and force the Kumogakure army to retreat. Yotsuki A stayed behind to cover the withdrawal, then escaped once the main force was safe, while Didaze avoided fighting him to keep his weakness to Lightning Release hidden.

• Dodai protected the Kumogakure ninja with layered Rubber Walls as Didaze tested them with explosive clay birds.
• Didaze unleashed C2: Dragon, whose repeated bombs weakened one point in the Rubber Wall before the dragon’s explosion blasted it open.
• Didaze sent two-winged birds through the breached wall, killing and wounding Kumogakure ninja inside.
• Yotsuki A urged Dodai to retreat and offered to hold off Didaze, but Dodai ordered the army to withdraw in squads.
• Didaze refrained from attacking Yotsuki A, and Yotsuki A fled after the Kumogakure force had retreated.
• Didaze resolved to find a way to overcome his vulnerability to Lightning Release.

After helping repel Yotsuki A’s raid, Didaze counted the casualties and attended a meeting with the Iwagakure captains. Raito proposed handing Didaze the position of head captain, leaving the other captains stunned and questioning whether he was too young.

• Didaze learned that the battle had left two hundred Iwagakure ninja dead and seven hundred wounded, then chose Deido to serve as his attendant.
• A messenger summoned Didaze to a meeting with Raito, and Didaze flew Deido to the border headquarters on a giant clay bird.
• Raito and Dogen welcomed Didaze and credited him with saving the border defenses.
• Raito apologized to the captains for the near defeat, then announced that he wanted Didaze to take over as head captain.
• One captain objected that Didaze was still too young for the position.

Didaze accepted Raito’s offer to become commander-in-chief after proving his strength in battle. Impressed by Didaze’s long-range Explosion Release, Ōnoki summoned him to Iwagakure, and Didaze flew there aboard a giant clay bird with an Anbu escort.

• Raito offered Didaze the commander-in-chief position, and Didaze accepted as the captains applauded.
• Raito resigned and recommended Didaze, reporting his performance in battle to Iwagakure.
• Ōnoki received the border report, learned that Didaze had developed long-range Explosion Release, and ordered him recalled to Iwagakure.
• Ōnoki told Kōdo to find Didaze’s records and said he wanted to meet the young shinobi in person.
• An Anbu summoned Didaze to Iwagakure, and Didaze carried them both there on a giant clay bird.

Didaze met Ōnoki, who praised his battlefield performance and offered to teach him powerful techniques in exchange for sharing his long-range Explosion Release. Didaze explained that the technique was too difficult and dangerous to teach yet, and Ōnoki sent him to the battlefield with Kōdo assigned to protect him.

• Didaze arrived at Iwagakure on his clay bird and followed Kōdo to the Tsuchikage Building.
• Ōnoki praised Didaze's talent and asked how he developed his long-range Explosion Release and whether he could teach it to others.
• Didaze explained that he controlled the technique by feel and could not safely teach it because a mistake could make it explode on the user.
• Ōnoki promised to teach Didaze the Added-Weight Rock Technique, the Light-Weight Rock Technique, and Dust Release if he made a name for himself in the war.
• Ōnoki advised Didaze to develop wind-nature chakra and told him to protect his life on the battlefield.
• Ōnoki ordered Kōdo to take Didaze to the battlefield and remain there to protect him.

Didaze and Kōdo traveled by clay bird to Iwagakure’s front lines in the Land of Grass, where Kōdo introduced Didaze as the Tsuchikage-appointed Jonin meant to reinforce them. Didaze’s strength was doubted at Kitsuchi’s command tent, so he said he would prove himself in the next battle.

• Kōdo swore to protect Didaze, and the two left Ōnoki’s office together.
• Didaze flew Kōdo to Iwagakure’s encampment in the Land of Grass on a giant clay bird.
• Kōdo identified Didaze to the troops as a Jonin personally appointed by Ōnoki, then went to see Kitsuchi.
• Kōdo introduced Didaze as the more important reinforcement, but Kitsuchi questioned his claim.
• Didaze told Kitsuchi and the others he would prove his strength in the next battle.

Didaze joined Kitsuchi's Iwagakure force and launched a solo aerial surprise attack on Konoha's camp. He destroyed Shimura Danzō's summoned Baku and inflicted heavy casualties before Konoha's Aburame ninja tried to counter him.

• Kitsuchi introduced Didaze to Han and Kari, then decided Iwagakure would attack Konoha that night.
• Didaze took Kōdo into the sky on a giant clay bird while Kitsuchi's forces advanced toward Konoha.
• Didaze dropped hundreds of Explosive Clay: Spiders on Konoha's camp, killing or injuring many ninja.
• Shimura Danzō summoned Baku and used its suction to try to pull Didaze down, but Didaze's C2: Dragon exploded in Baku's mouth and forced it to vanish.
• Konoha's Aburame ninja sent Flying Kikaichū after Didaze, but he struck again with Explosive Clay: Two-Winged Birds, bringing his total casualties to nearly three hundred.

Didaze retreated from the first clash after inflicting heavy casualties, then joined Kitsuchi and the Iwagakure forces for an assault on Konoha. His expansion bullets devastated the Akimichi Clan, prompting Kitsuchi to order the attack.

• Didaze escaped the kikaichū swarms, and Kōdo urged him to join the arriving Iwagakure forces.
• Kōdo told Kitsuchi that Didaze had killed three hundred Konoha ninja and destroyed Shimura Danzō's Baku, so Kitsuchi ordered an advance.
• Shimura Danzō ordered Konoha's ninja to remain on high alert while Orochimaru declined to challenge his command.
• When the Iwagakure forces approached, Didaze took to the air and attacked the Akimichi Clan with expansion bullets.
• The expansion bullets grew in the Akimichi Clan's hands and exploded, killing nearly all of them and badly injuring nearby Konoha ninja.
• Kitsuchi ordered the Iwagakure forces to attack while Konoha's morale was shaken.

Iwagakure's forces clashed with Konoha's, as powerful fighters and specialized units joined the battle. Didaze devastated Konoha's ranks with explosive clay, but Kōdo rescued him from a genjutsu and fire attack, after which Didaze sent concealed hummingbirds into the sky.

• The Hyuga Clan took the front line while Shimura Danzō fought Kitsuchi and Orochimaru faced Han, as Didaze joined the battle.
• Gari led the Explosion Release Corps into the fighting, and their attacks pushed Konoha's forces back.
• Didaze attacked Konoha's specialized clans with explosive clay centipedes, killing most of the Aburame Clan's insects when they tried to neutralize them.
• A Uchiha Clan ninja briefly trapped Didaze in genjutsu and attacked him with the Great Dragon Fire Technique, but Kōdo dispelled the genjutsu and shielded him with Steel Release.
• Didaze created hummingbirds from explosive clay, concealed their chakra, and sent them high into the sky.

Didaze used clay clones and hummingbird bombs to kill Nara Kawahiro, leaving the Konoha forces under Shikaku Nara’s command. As the battle continued, Didaze sent exploding fleas toward the Konoha ranks, and Shikaku ordered everyone to raise Earth Style walls.

• Nara Kawahiro ordered the Konoha clans to divide their forces and attack Didaze while the Aburame and Hyuga clans held off the Explosion Release Corps.
• Kōdo blocked the Konoha attack, but Nara Kawahiro caught him with Shadow Possession Jutsu, allowing a Shimura Clan ninja to reach Didaze and be killed by a clay clone bomb.
• Didaze’s hummingbird bombs killed Nara Kawahiro and injured several nearby Konoha ninja, so Shikaku Nara took command and ordered Uchiha ninja to restrain Kōdo with genjutsu.
• Didaze hid his real body behind a rock and sent exploding clay fleas toward the Konoha forces.
• Shikaku recognized the danger and ordered the Konoha ninja to use Earth Style Wall.

Didaze’s explosive clay devastated Konoha’s forces, wiping out Shikaku Nara’s position and eliminating the Aburame Clan. With little chakra left, Didaze turned his attention to the remaining Hyuga Clan members and prepared a plan to defeat their Rotation.

• The Sarutobi Clan’s Fire Style strengthened Didaze’s clay fleas, and the explosions killed Konoha ninjas and nearly wiped out Shikaku Nara’s forces; Akimichi Chōza rescued Shikaku at the cost of severely burning his arm.
• Didaze used Splitting Bombs to exhaust the Aburame Clan’s kikaichū reserves, then killed the Aburame ninjas with clay arrows while the Explosion Release Corps kept them trapped.
• Didaze ordered five clones to approach the Hyuga Clan with arrows and self-destruct as soon as the Hyuga stopped using Rotation.

Didaze and the Explosion Release Corps defeated the Hyuga Clan fighters and turned Iwagakure’s battlefield advantage into a rout. Shimura Danzō ordered Konoha to retreat, and the war ended with Konoha defeated and Iwagakure celebrating.

• Didaze’s clones and arrows killed the Hyuga Clan fighters who exhausted themselves maintaining Rotation, while Kari protected him from the last two survivors.
• Kari escorted Didaze away as Gari led the Explosion Release Corps to reinforce Iwagakure’s regular battlefield, where they overwhelmed Konoha’s forces.
• Shimura Danzō ordered a full retreat after Konoha’s troops suffered heavy losses.
• Han fired a Tailed Beast Bomb at the retreating Konoha ninja, while Orochimaru ordered Manda to shield the rear guard.
• Iwagakure won the war against Konoha, and its ninja celebrated their victory.

After Iwagakure routed Konoha’s forces, its leaders celebrated Didaze’s long-range Explosion Release and Kari pledged his loyalty to him. Konoha’s casualty report revealed that several major clans had been devastated, and Orochimaru blamed Didaze for the losses.

• Kitsuchi ordered Iwagakure to retreat after Orochimaru shielded the surviving Konoha ninja, then praised Didaze for his role in the battle.
• Kari praised Didaze’s long-range Explosion Release, and Didaze promised to teach him once he had recovered.
• Kari declared Didaze his true brother, prompting laughter among the Iwagakure leaders.
• Orochimaru confronted Shimura Danzō when he tried to intimidate Orochimaru’s subordinate into giving the casualty report.
• The report revealed that the Hyuga Clan and Aburame Clan had been wiped out, most of the Sarutobi and Shimura Clans were dead, and only a quarter of Konoha’s ordinary ninja remained alive.
• Orochimaru blamed the heavy casualties on the explosion brat.

Orochimaru and Shimura Danzō decided to ask Konoha for reinforcements after Didaze’s remote explosions hurt their campaign against Iwagakure. The next day, Didaze met the Explosion Release Corps, introduced himself, and began teaching them how to make Clay Bombs.

• Orochimaru concluded that his forces could not stop Iwagakure without help, and Shimura Danzō agreed to write Hiruzen Sarutobi for reinforcements.
• Shimura Danzō quickly wrote a letter and sent a Root member to deliver it to Konoha.
• The members of the Explosion Release Corps introduced themselves to Didaze, including the twins Shi and Fuku and the brothers Gari and Kari.
• Didaze explained that he had only recently developed his Explosion Release and had been promoted to Jonin before Ōnoki summoned him.
• Didaze described how precise chakra control, Explosion Release, and Lightning Release were used to make Clay Bombs, then demonstrated a simple one for the corps to copy.

Didaze’s Explosion Release Corps failed to make even basic clay bombs, while Didaze returned to researching how to prevent Lightning Release from triggering his explosions. After receiving Shimura Danzō’s request for aid, Hiruzen Sarutobi decided to send Hatake Sakumo and summon the major clan heads for reinforcements.

• Fuku, Gari, and the other Explosion Release Corps members failed to make clay bombs, and Didaze invited them to return if they wanted to keep practicing.
• Didaze returned to his tent and considered how to replace Lightning Release as the trigger for his explosions.
• A Root member delivered Shimura Danzō’s letter, which reported Iwagakure’s long-range Explosion Release genius and requested urgent reinforcements.
• Hiruzen Sarutobi sent a letter to Shimura Danzō and ordered Anbu Tei to deliver another to Hatake Sakumo.
• Hiruzen Sarutobi decided to send ninja from kekkei genkai clans as well and ordered Otsu to summon the major clan heads.

Hiruzen Sarutobi received a report revealing catastrophic losses among Konoha’s clans on the Iwagakure front and summoned the clan heads to tell them. The meeting ended with the Aburame Clan head demanding to know why Hiruzen had called them together.

• Hiruzen Sarutobi read the Iwagakure casualty report and discovered that the Aburame and Hyuga forces had been wiped out, while the Sarutobi, Shimura, and Akimichi Clans had only a few survivors.
• Hiruzen Sarutobi learned that Nara Kawahiro had been killed, while the Yamanaka, Uchiha, and Inuzuka Clans had avoided heavy losses.
• Anbu Otsu reported that he had notified the clan heads, and Hiruzen decided to tell them the truth while taking some blame for his mistaken assessment.
• Uchiha Shin and Hyūga Ranichi traded insults before Hiruzen Sarutobi interrupted them and began the meeting.
• Hiruzen Sarutobi announced the casualties, prompting the Hyuga and Aburame Clan heads to protest and the other clan heads to react with relief or alarm.
• The Aburame Clan head asked Hiruzen Sarutobi why he had called the meeting.

Hiruzen Sarutobi asked Konoha’s clan heads to reinforce the Iwagakure front, and their willingness to commit more forces after learning Hatake Sakumo would go made him wary of Sakumo’s growing prestige. After receiving news of the crisis and Didaze’s strength, Sakumo left the Sunagakure front for Iwagakure while Hiruzen studied Didaze’s Ninjutsu.

• Hiruzen Sarutobi asked the Aburame clan head to send more ninja to the Iwagakure front, and the clan head agreed to send forty and go himself after hearing Hatake Sakumo would be transferred there.
• The Hyuga, Akimichi, Nara, Yamanaka, Inuzuka, and Uchiha clan heads pledged additional ninja, with several clan heads also volunteering to go to the battlefield.
• Hiruzen Sarutobi grew wary that Hatake Sakumo’s prestige might have surpassed his own as he watched the clan heads commit their forces.
• At the Sunagakure front, Hatake Sakumo received Hiruzen Sarutobi’s letter reporting a major defeat at Iwagakure and orders for him to go there.
• Tsunade warned Hatake Sakumo that Didaze was dangerous, and Sakumo left for Iwagakure after telling her to keep Sunagakure contained.
• Hiruzen Sarutobi studied the report on Didaze’s Explosion Release and recognized him as a serious opponent.

Didaze joined Kitsuchi’s advance against Konoha and used his explosive techniques to breach the valley’s natural barrier. He unleashed C3 No. 18 at Orochimaru, who escaped by sacrificing Manda to the blast.

• Didaze continued practicing detonating Clay Bombs with Fire Style, despite its instability, because he wanted to overcome his weakness to Lightning Release users.
• Kitsuchi explained that Konoha had retreated behind a narrow, snake-filled passage, and Didaze offered to clear the way; Kitsuchi ordered the army to advance.
• Didaze took Han and Kōdo toward Konoha and widened the valley with ten C2: Dragon explosions, while Kitsuchi led the army behind them.
• Didaze sent out decoy puppets on clay birds and launched C3 No. 18 at Orochimaru, who summoned Manda and escaped using an earth substitution.
• Didaze detonated C3 No. 18, and Manda absorbed the explosion while Orochimaru watched from safety and regretted losing his powerful summoning beast.

Didaze and Han attacked Konoha, with Didaze targeting Orochimaru and Shimura Danzō from the air while Han tore through the ninja on the ground. Han wiped out the last Uchiha, leaving only Orochimaru and Shimura Danzō alive as Konoha's forces were annihilated.

• Manda died after speaking only a few words, and Didaze resumed his aerial attack while Kōdo protected him.
• Didaze fired explosive arrows at Orochimaru and Shimura Danzō as Han transformed into the Five-Tails and charged into Konoha's forces.
• Shimura Danzō was battered by the explosions, while Orochimaru used his substitution technique but was still blasted into a rock and badly injured.
• Han drained the chakra of the remaining Uchiha, then trampled them after they ran out of strength.
• Han and Didaze left Konoha's forces annihilated, with only Shimura Danzō and Orochimaru surviving.

Han killed the severely injured Orochimaru, while Didaze told Kitsuchi not to pursue the fleeing Shimura Danzō because he still had a use for him. Hatake Sakumo’s reinforcements met Danzō, learned the Konoha force had been wiped out, and advanced toward Iwagakure as Didaze recovered.

• Han stomped Orochimaru to death, and Didaze praised Han for the kill.
• Kitsuchi arrived and was shocked to find Orochimaru dead, but Didaze stopped him from pursuing Shimura Danzō.
• Shimura Danzō escaped and convinced himself Iwagakure had spared him to make Konoha suspect and reject him.
• Hatake Sakumo’s reinforcements encountered Danzō, who reported that Orochimaru and the other Konoha ninja had died.
• Danzō explained the losses to the clan heads, who blamed him for the deaths of their clansmen and sons.
• Hatake Sakumo led the reinforcements onward while Kitsuchi’s force advanced and Didaze rested to replenish his chakra.