Recaps

Hatake Sakumo’s team reached the rendezvous point in the Land of Wind a day early, but their scouts found no sign of the spy. Sakumo decided to wait for the agreed time and entered the town in disguise with Shin'un and a female Anbu, leaving Shin'un disguised as a little girl.

• Hatake Sakumo led the team across the Land of Wind’s border and ordered three Anbu to scout the nearby town.
• The scouts returned without finding the rescue target, so Hatake Sakumo chose to wait until the rendezvous time.
• Hatake Sakumo selected Shin'un and a female Anbu to accompany him into town, and the three put on physical disguises.
• The team disguised Hatake Sakumo as a middle-aged man, the female Anbu as a plump middle-aged woman, and Shin'un as a petite little girl.
• Yūichi stifled a laugh when he saw Shin'un’s disguise, while Shiina Kō’s eyes lit up.

Shin'un disguised himself as a little girl while Hatake Sakumo and a female Anbu posed as his parents to enter a frontier town under scrutiny from Sand Ninja. After they secured a room at an inn, Hatake Sakumo suggested Shin'un join the Anbu, joking that his acting made him suited to infiltration.

• Shin'un wore a wig and girls' clothes for the mission, while Yūichi teased him about the disguise.
• Hatake Sakumo led Shin'un and the female Anbu to the town checkpoint, where they posed as a family fleeing bandits.
• The Sand Ninja questioned the trio, but accepted their story after hearing their village name and seeing Shin'un act frightened.
• The disguised family entered town and rented a room at an inn, where Shin'un released the female Anbu's hand.
• Hatake Sakumo asked Shin'un to consider joining the Anbu and said his convincing girl disguise showed he was suited to infiltration.

Hatake Sakumo’s team found Yakushi Nonō, who had disguised herself as an old man while fleeing Sand Ninja pursuers. After learning that Da and Raku were leading a large force close behind, Sakumo ordered the group to leave town immediately and rejoin their companions.

• Suzume spotted a suspicious old man outside the inn and brought him inside.
• Yakushi Nonō removed her disguise, recognized Hatake Sakumo, and explained that her disguise expertise had exposed his.
• Nonō reported that Da and Raku led the pursuit with ten ninja squads, including six Jonin and twelve Chunin.
• Nonō said the Sand Ninja had found her trail and would likely capture her before dawn if she received no support.
• Hatake Sakumo ordered Shin'un, Suzume, and Nonō to leave town and regroup with their companions outside.

Shin'un and the others were ambushed by Sand Ninja and their puppets while escorting Yakushi Nonō through the deserted town. Shin'un's Lightning Release barrier turned into an expanding ring that gave the group a chance to flee toward the outskirts.

• Shin'un and his companions sensed the town was unnaturally quiet and advanced with Yakushi Nonō protected between them.
• A black cat startled the group, and Shin'un noticed a swarm of puppets surrounding them as Sand Ninja took positions on nearby rooftops.
• Shin'un used Lightning Body Flicker and cast Lightning Release: Lightning Ring Wall to shield his group from the puppets' first attacks.
• Da and Raku prepared their puppets to strike again, but Shin'un's barrier broke and its lingering currents formed an expanding ring of electricity.
• Da sheltered himself and Raku inside a puppet while Shin'un and the others escaped toward the edge of town.

Shin'un and his companions broke through the Sand Ninja encirclement and fought a guard squad at the edge of town. After they defeated the guards, Shin'un hurled his Lightning Spear at the pursuing Sand Ninja, buying the group a brief advantage as they fled.

• Shin'un, Hatake Sakumo, Suzume, and their companion escaped the lightning barrier and rushed toward the town wall after Suzume launched a signal flare.
• Sand Ninja ambushed the group outside the wall, and Shin'un killed the Chunin attacking him with his newly developed Lightning Release: Lightning Spear.
• Hatake Sakumo used White Fang’s silver-white blade to defeat the Sunagakure Jonin, while Suzume fought the last Sand Ninja.
• Shin'un threw his remaining Lightning Spear at the pursuing Sand Ninja, missing the group but scattering lightning across a rooftop and injuring some nearby enemies.

Shin'un and his companions escaped Sunagakure's pursuit and reunited with the waiting Konoha Anbu. Da investigated the dead Sand Ninja, identified Shin'un as a likely Lightning Release user, and learned a clue about Hatake Sakumo before the group fled toward the Land of Rivers.

• Hatake Sakumo led Shin'un, Suzume, and Yakushi Nonō away after they finished their fights and saw the Sand Ninja closing in.
• Da examined the corpses while Raku led most of the Sand Ninja in pursuit, and he suspected the young girl had used Lightning Release to kill one of his men.
• A Sand Ninja showed Da a broken kunai with an unusually smooth cut and said he recognized the style as belonging to a man who was like a blade.
• Shin'un reflected on Hatake Sakumo's swordsmanship as the group ran, then Suzume spotted the Konoha Anbu waiting outside town.
• The Anbu joined Shin'un and the others, surrounded Yakushi Nonō in disguise, and changed course toward the Land of Rivers.

Shin'un’s group fled across the Land of Rivers as Sand Ninja closed in, forcing Hatake Sakumo to split the Konoha forces. Sakumo stayed behind to fight while Shin'un carried Yakushi Nonō toward the border with his squad.

• Shin'un and the others abandoned stealth and raced through the Land of Rivers while Sand Ninja pursued them.
• Four days later, the pursuers came within attack range, and Hatake Sakumo ordered Shin'un’s squad to escort Yakushi Nonō ahead while the rest turned to fight.
• Hatake Sakumo unleashed a long-range silvery-white sword attack against the approaching Sand Ninja.
• Shin'un grabbed Yakushi Nonō and rushed into the forest with his two teammates.

Shin'un led Yūichi and Shiina Kō away from Hatake Sakumo’s battle while escorting Yakushi Nonō toward the Land of Fire. When six Sand Ninja intercepted them, Shin'un chose to fight and began planning how to hide Yakushi Nonō first.

• Shin'un carried Yakushi Nonō deeper into the forest with Yūichi and Shiina Kō while Hatake Sakumo and the Anbu stayed behind to delay the Sand Ninja.
• The Sand Ninja attacked Shin'un’s group with wind blades, but Shin'un rescued Yakushi Nonō and landed safely with his teammates.
• Yūichi and Shiina Kō combined their Fire Style and Water Release techniques to create steam and block the pursuers’ view.
• Shin'un counted six pursuing Sand Ninja and decided to fight them rather than flee.
• Shin'un looked at Yakushi Nonō and planned to hide her in the steam before the battle began.

Hirakawa Shin'un fought the Sand Ninja while protecting Yakushi Nonō, outwitting their attempt to kill her and holding off their attacks. As the enemy tried to drain his chakra, Shin'un decided to reveal his newly equipped Qi Sea skill.

• The Sand Ninja attacked Shin'un's squad, and the Sunagakure Jonin recognized Shin'un and urged him to surrender, claiming Konoha White Fang was dead.
• The Sunagakure Jonin used conversation to distract Shin'un while a Chunin approached Yakushi Nonō, but the apparent Nonō was a Lightning Clone that paralyzed the attacker.
• Shin'un killed the paralyzed Chunin and taunted the Sunagakure Jonin before fighting him and another Chunin in close combat.
• The Sunagakure Jonin realized close combat favored Shin'un and ordered his comrade to help him use Wind Release to exhaust Shin'un's chakra.
• Shin'un blocked their paired Wind Release with Lightning Release and, seeing his chakra running low, prepared to use his hidden trump card, Qi Sea.

Shin'un used the chakra stored in his newly completed Qi Sea to recover during a battle with Sunagakure ninja, then unleashed a devastating Lightning Pillar. The attack left a nearby chunin mortally wounded while Shin'un assessed the technique's enormous chakra cost.

• Shin'un revealed the Qi Sea's stored chakra and replenished his depleted reserves.
• The Sunagakure jonin noticed Shin'un's sudden recovery and warned his chunin companion to watch out.
• Shin'un fired Lightning Release: Lightning Pillar, carving a massive, lava-lined scar through the forest.
• Shin'un estimated that the attack had consumed twenty percent of his stored chakra, enough reserves for only five uses.
• The Sunagakure chunin dodged part of the attack but lost his lower body and lay mortally wounded.

Shin'un tested his newly developed Lightning Release techniques against a Sunagakure Jonin, killing him with Lightning Release: Lightning Snake after the Jonin escaped Lightning Release: Lightning Net. Shin'un then inspected the remains, pleased with the technique’s usefulness but wary of its overwhelming destructive power.

• The Sunagakure Jonin examined the mortally wounded Toshihiko and ended his suffering, while Shin'un prepared another attack.
• Shin'un cast Lightning Release: Lightning Net, but the Jonin used Wind Release: Vacuum Wave to break through and escape.
• Shin'un summoned more than a dozen lightning snakes with Lightning Release: Lightning Snake and controlled them to pursue the Jonin.
• One lightning snake bit the Jonin, and the swarm surrounded him before exploding and leaving his body in pieces.
• Shin'un dispersed the lightning and checked the crater, judging Lightning Release: Lightning Snake practical but devastating against ordinary ninja.

After defeating the Sunagakure pursuers, Shin'un rejoined Shiina Kō and Yūichi and urged the team to resume escorting Yakushi Nonō toward the Land of Fire border. He hid his chakra in the Qi Sea and pretended to collapse from exhaustion so Nonō would report a less alarming account of his power to Konoha.

• Shin'un left the pit after confirming the Sunagakure Jonin was dead and noticed a powerful water blade cut through the forest nearby.
• Shiina Kō emerged carrying a Sunagakure ninja's head and half a Chunin's corpse, while Yūichi arrived with two heads and both stared at the destruction left by Shin'un's Lightning Pillar.
• Shin'un reminded Shiina Kō and Yūichi of their escort mission and told them to signal Yakushi Nonō so they could leave before more pursuers arrived.
• Shin'un transferred most of his remaining chakra into his Qi Sea, collapsed, and let Shiina Kō feed him a Military Rations Pill.
• Yakushi Nonō emerged from hiding, saw Shin'un's apparent exhaustion, and relaxed; Shin'un had staged the collapse so she would report that he had nearly exhausted his chakra.

Shin'un led his team to a Konoha border outpost and waited to rendezvous with Hatake Sakumo. The outpost's Jonin Kōsuke gave them shelter and dinner, which the team tested for poison before eating.

• Shin'un and his teammates traveled for two days toward the Land of Fire without encountering Sunagakure pursuers.
• Shin'un brought his group to the Konoha outpost, explained their situation to the patrol, and refused to reveal Yakushi Nonō's classified identity.
• Jonin Kōsuke recognized Shin'un, allowed the group to stay in an empty dormitory, and left ninja to watch them.
• The team rested in the dormitory, and Jonin Kōsuke sent them stewed wild boar and flatbread for dinner.
• Shiina Kō fed some stew to a white mouse, and the team waited half an hour before eating when it remained active.

After three years on the Land of Rain battlefield, Shin'un returned to Konoha with Hatake Sakumo and reunited with his parents at their flower shop. The next morning, Suzume told him that Lord Hokage wanted to see him.

• Hatake Sakumo arrived at the outpost, and the group rested before continuing to escort Yakushi Nonō toward Konoha.
• After four days of travel, Hatake Sakumo led Shin'un's group through the Konoha Gate and dismissed most of the Anbu.
• Shin'un, Shiina Kō, and Yūichi parted ways to return to their homes.
• Shin'un reunited with his parents, Toyoko Hirakawa and his father, at their flower shop, and they closed the shop to celebrate his return.
• The next morning, Suzume appeared outside Shin'un's window and told him that Lord Hokage wanted to see him.

Shin'un arrived at the Hokage's office and found Tsunade arguing with Hiruzen Sarutobi over Nawaki's graduation and deployment to war. After Tsunade accepted that she could not protect her brother forever, Hiruzen turned his attention to Shin'un.

• Shin'un entered the Hokage's office and was surprised to find Tsunade back from the front.
• Tsunade explained that she had returned to develop an antidote for Ibuse's poison gas after Hanzo's forces drove Konoha, Sunagakure, and the Stone Ninja into retreat.
• Tsunade confronted Hiruzen Sarutobi for secretly allowing Nawaki to graduate from the Ninja Academy and go to the battlefield.
• Hiruzen argued that Nawaki was a ninja who could not be protected forever, and Tsunade fell silent despite her anger.
• Hiruzen reassured Shin'un that, as Orochimaru's student, he belonged to Hiruzen's line of students, then regarded him as a promising future pillar of Konoha.

Hiruzen Sarutobi summoned Shin'un to explain that he was descended from the Senju Clan through his grandmother. Shin'un began reconsidering his unusual chakra growth, while Hiruzen told him to ask his father about the family history.

• Hiruzen Sarutobi discussed Shin'un's Lightning Release: Lightning Pillar, recognizing it as an S-rank technique best suited to enormous targets.
• Hiruzen Sarutobi revealed that Shin'un's grandmother belonged to the Senju Clan, making Shin'un a Senju descendant.
• Tsunade noticed Shin'un's silver-white hair resembled the white hair of her second grandfather and wondered if the trait had skipped generations.
• Hiruzen Sarutobi described Senju traits, including exceptional chakra growth, elemental aptitude, and the occasional powerful physique.
• Shin'un recalled that his chakra had grown unusually quickly, and Hiruzen Sarutobi urged him to ask his father about the Senju Clan.

Tsunade explained that Shin'un’s Senju blood made him eligible for the clan’s secret medicine and began telling him how the Senju Clan dissolved into Konoha. The chapter left her account about to begin after Shin'un recalled that Tobirama Senju had written the school history that minimized Madara Uchiha’s role.

• Hiruzen Sarutobi asked Tsunade to take Shin'un to the Senju compound for secret medicine, and she agreed.
• Tsunade explained how clan medicines were tailored to their bloodlines and said the Senju had warehouses full of their own.
• Hiruzen Sarutobi insisted that Nawaki’s graduation was decided and advised Tsunade to find him a suitable Jonin teacher.
• Tsunade told Shin'un that many Konoha residents carried Senju blood because the clan had disbanded and integrated into the village.
• Tsunade asked Shin'un how Konoha was founded, and he summarized the alliance between Hashirama Senju and the Uchiha Clan.
• Shin'un remembered that Tobirama Senju had written the history textbook, which praised the Uchiha while largely erasing Madara Uchiha.

Tsunade explained that Hashirama Senju dissolved the Senju Clan so its members could integrate into Konoha, while their descendants continued to gather around the clan’s secret medicines. As Shin'un entered the crowded Senju residence, he realized the clan had survived under a different name and wondered how many Konoha ninja carried Senju blood.

• Tsunade told Shin'un that Hashirama Senju had dissolved the Senju Clan with Tobirama Senju's support, scattering its bloodlines throughout Konoha.
• Shin'un followed Tsunade to the Senju residence and found many adult ninja and children entering and leaving to collect secret medicine.
• Tsunade explained that the crowd had gathered because ninja had recently returned from the border and front lines, and that the medicines served purposes beyond helping children grow.
• Tsunade led Shin'un inside as the visitors respectfully made way for her, and she confirmed that they all had Senju blood.
• Shin'un concluded that the Senju had preserved a close-knit clan network without its name, and marveled at how widespread their bloodline might be in Konoha.

Tsunade gave Shin'un Senju Secret Medicine and explained its many uses before taking him to meet the Senju Clan's remaining elders. After learning Shin'un's family history, the elders recognized his father’s name and asked whether he was Shinkaku Hirakawa.

• Tsunade collected a bag of Senju Secret Medicine and handed it to Shin'un, explaining its benefits and uses.
• Shin'un swallowed one pill and felt its effects spread through his body, lifting his spirits.
• Tsunade led Shin'un through the quiet rear of the Senju residence to meet five elderly clan elders.
• Tsunade introduced Shin'un and explained that his grandmother had married out of the Senju Clan.
• Elder Fukuma asked whether Shin'un's father was Shinkaku Hirakawa, and Shin'un confirmed it.

Shin'un learned that his grandmother was Senju Reima, making him and Tsunade distant relatives and peers, while the Senju elders urged him to serve Konoha and obey the Hokage. Tsunade invited him to lunch at the Senju residence and went to fetch her younger brother Nawaki, who was avoiding her.

• Elder Fukuma told Shin'un that his grandmother, Senju Reima, came from the Senju Clan's central branch and that Shin'un and Tsunade shared a great-great-grandfather.
• The head elder confirmed Shin'un had become a Jonin and told him to work for Konoha and respect the Hokage.
• Shin'un realized the Third Hokage had sent him to the Senju elders partly so they would persuade him to be loyal to Konoha.
• Tsunade explained that the Senju elders had always lectured clan members to serve first the clan and then Konoha.
• Tsunade invited Shin'un to stay for lunch and asked the servants to bring Nawaki, but Nawaki said he did not dare come.
• Tsunade left to drag Nawaki over after suspecting he was avoiding her because he had graduated from the Ninja Academy behind her back.

Shin'un visited Tsunade and met her younger brother Nawaki, who wanted to go to war in the Land of Rain despite Tsunade's objections. After Nawaki mistook Shin'un's warnings for encouragement and declared him his role model, Shin'un left and decided to test the Senju Secret Medicine through training.

• Tsunade introduced Shin'un to Nawaki, who had recently graduated as a Genin, and left them to finish lunch together.
• Nawaki told Shin'un that Tsunade wanted him to take safe missions in Konoha, while he wanted to go to the battlefield in the Land of Rain.
• Shin'un tried to make Nawaki reconsider by telling him to judge whether he was strong enough to survive on the battlefield, but Nawaki took it as encouragement.
• Nawaki called Shin'un his big brother and role model, then waved an exuberant goodbye as Shin'un hurried away from the Senju residence.
• Shin'un decided to train and test whether the Senju Secret Medicine was as impressive as Tsunade had claimed.

Shin'un tested the Senju Secret Medicine at a secluded training ground and discovered that it sped up chakra recovery, conserved stamina, and permanently strengthened his body during physical training. He decided to increase his conditioning and ordered custom training weights, prioritizing strength despite concerns about his growth.

• Shin'un went to a secluded training ground and tested the Senju Secret Medicine, finding that his chakra recovered about thirty percent faster.
• Shin'un ran and trained for an hour, discovering that the medicine conserved stamina and awakened strength that permanently strengthened his body.
• Shin'un decided to devote more time to physical training and planned to write a new training schedule at home.
• Shin'un noticed a ninja tool shop while returning to his family's flower shop and decided to order custom training weights despite worrying that they might affect his growth.

After a week of intensive training in Konoha, Shin'un was summoned by Hiruzen Sarutobi and told he would likely return to the increasingly dire battlefield in the Land of Rain. Hiruzen said he would explain the mission once another person arrived.

• Shin'un trained with heavy weights and swallowed another Senju Secret Medicine pill to sustain his workouts.
• Suzume found Shin'un at the training ground and told him Lord Hokage wanted to see him.
• Shin'un went home to change before following Suzume to the Hokage Building.
• Hiruzen Sarutobi cautioned Shin'un about training with weights at his age, then said the worsening front-line situation might require him to return to the Land of Rain.
• Hiruzen told Shin'un to wait until another person arrived before he explained the mission details.

Hiruzen Sarutobi ordered Tsunade to mass-produce an unfinished antidote and lead reinforcements to the central Land of Rain, while appointing Shin'un an elite jonin and sending him to aid Nara Shikahito in the south. After they left, Hiruzen defended his choice to the village advisers, questioning whether Koharu and Homura were still strong enough to lead troops.

• Tsunade told Hiruzen Sarutobi that her unfinished antidote could delay Ibuse's poison for at least two hours and could be mass-produced that night.
• Hiruzen ordered Tsunade to produce antidotes and lead reinforcements to Orochimaru and the others in the central Land of Rain.
• Hiruzen assigned Shin'un to lead a thousand ninja south to support Nara Shikahito against the Sand Ninja and promoted him to elite jonin on the spot.
• Tsunade and Shin'un accepted their mission orders and left the Hokage's office.
• Utatane Koharu questioned Hiruzen's decision to entrust the mission to thirteen-year-old Shin'un, and Hiruzen challenged her and Mitokado Homura's fitness to lead troops.

Hiruzen Sarutobi assigned Hirakawa Shin'un to lead reinforcements to Nara Shikahito and ordered Shimura Danzō to take Root into the Land of Rain to weaken the Sand Ninja–Stone Ninja alliance. Tsunade then asked Shin'un to take Nawaki to the Sand Ninja front, where she thought the fighting would be safer than the poison-filled Rain Ninja front.

• Hiruzen Sarutobi rejected Shimura Danzō's objections and confirmed that Hirakawa Shin'un would lead over a thousand ninja to Nara Shikahito before handing over command.
• Hiruzen Sarutobi ordered Shimura Danzō to lead Root into the Land of Rain and drive a wedge between the Sand Ninja and Stone Ninja; Danzō agreed to leave that night.
• Hiruzen Sarutobi's chakra cracked his pipe after Shimura Danzō and the two advisers left the Hokage's office.
• Tsunade asked Shin'un to take Nawaki with him to the Sand Ninja battlefield because she feared Nawaki would sneak to the front after she left Konoha.
• Tsunade explained that she preferred the Sand Ninja front because Ibuse's poison gas made the Rain Ninja front especially deadly, despite Konoha having an unfinished antidote.