Recaps

Kōki and Mamoru Uehara tried to stop Taku from recovering intelligence from a fallen Anbu, but a Sunagakure force of more than a dozen Jonin arrived and surrounded them. Hiruzen Sarutobi ordered Minato and others to support Team Uehara as Taku confirmed that the intelligence remained on the Anbu's corpse.

• Taku tried to reach the fallen Anbu and recover or destroy the intelligence, but Kōki and Mamoru Uehara blocked him with Earth Release techniques.
• Taku struggled against Kōki and the Konoha ninjas until Shinji arrived with more than a dozen Sunagakure Jonin.
• Hiruzen Sarutobi learned that an elite Sunagakure unit had infiltrated the Land of Fire and ordered Minato, Akimichi Chōza, and others to rescue Team Uehara.
• Shinji told Taku that Lord Rasa had sent the force to support him, while keeping the unit's sabotage mission secret.
• Taku told Shinji that the intelligence was still on the fallen Anbu's corpse.

Kōki’s team was overwhelmed by Sunagakure ninja as Mamoru Uehara tried to hold them off, and Katsuto and Yui died protecting Kōki. After Mamoru also fell, Kōki released the chakra stored in his Yin Seal and faced the Sand ninja in a chilling calm.

• Mamoru Uehara attacked the surrounding Sunagakure ninja with Water Release and urged Kōki, Katsuto, and Yui to escape, but an enemy wounded him from beneath the water.
• Kōki tried to lead Katsuto and Yui away, but Katsuto pushed him clear of a Wind Release attack and died from the resulting chest wound.
• Ryūji charged at Kōki, and Yui intercepted the short sword meant for him; Kōki killed Ryūji with a punch through his chest.
• Yui told Kōki not to waste chakra trying to save her, comforted him, and died in his arms.
• Mamoru fell to the Sand ninja, and Kōki released the chakra stored in his Yin Seal before calmly confronting them.

Kōki unleashed his Wood Release against the Sand ninja, killing the entire unit with a giant wooden golem. He found his mortally wounded teacher Mamoru Uehara, who died after reassuring him, and Kōki vowed to resurrect him, Katsuto, and Yui.

• Kōki charged the Sand ninja and used Wood Release techniques to kill eight of them, revealing his power to the survivors.
• The Sand ninja recognized Kōki’s Wood Release and ordered Kanzaki to escape with the information, but Kōki killed him with Tree Binding Eternal Burial.
• Kōki summoned a giant wooden golem and crushed the remaining Sand ninja, while Minato and the others hurried toward the battlefield.
• Kōki found the grievously wounded Mamoru Uehara, who praised him, asked whether Katsuto and Yui had died smiling, and then passed away.
• Kōki created coffins for Mamoru, Katsuto, and Yui, preserved their bodies with his chakra, and resolved to resurrect them and break the fate of ninja.

Konoha reinforcements arrived after Kōki had defeated the Sand ninja and lost Mamoru Uehara and his teammates. Minato comforted Kōki, who resolved to face the world as part of it and recognized that he needed to improve his Yang Release.

• Minato and the Konoha reinforcements found Kōki kneeling beside four coffins amid the ruined battlefield.
• Kōki told Minato that he had killed all the Sand ninja, shocking the reinforcements with his victory and the fact that he was unharmed.
• Akimichi Chōza and the other reinforcements recognized traces of Wood Release, and Minato questioned Kōki about the technique and whether Hiruzen knew.
• Minato reminded Kōki that Mamoru Uehara and his teammates had died as heroes who trusted him, helping Kōki recall their final smiles.
• Kōki vowed to reunite with his teacher and teammates someday and realized he had to abandon his detached outlook on the world.
• Kōki recognized that his Yang Release was still lacking and believed mastering it might have saved Mamoru Uehara and the others.

Kōki explained why he suspected Sunagakure’s forces had separate objectives and warned that their invasion could signal the start of war. Minato recovered the intelligence and sealed away the fallen Konoha shinobi, and the group returned to Konoha, where Hiruzen was relieved to see Kōki alive.

• Minato encouraged Kōki to regain his resolve, and Kōki reaffirmed his goal of reviving Mamoru Uehara and the others.
• Kōki told Minato that the Sand shinobi’s explanation for the invasion seemed incomplete and noted that two separate groups had appeared on the battlefield.
• Kōki suspected the Third Shinobi World War was approaching, and Minato and the others searched the Anbu’s body for the intelligence.
• Minato found the intelligence scroll, sealed Mamoru Uehara and the others’ coffins for Kōki, and collected a few intact Sand shinobi heads.
• Minato led the group back to Konoha, where Hiruzen Sarutobi was relieved to see Kōki alive.

After Kōki Itō wiped out a Sunagakure unit and recovered its intelligence, Hiruzen Sarutobi confirmed that Kōki had awakened Wood Release. Rasa ordered Sunagakure to begin the war, and Orochimaru prepared Konoha’s forces for the coming battle.

• Minato Namikaze reported that Kōki was the only survivor of his team and had killed the infiltrating Sunagakure unit alone.
• Hiruzen Sarutobi confirmed that Kōki possessed Wood Release and had been instructed to keep it secret.
• Kōki told Hiruzen Sarutobi he would carry on the will of Teacher Uehara, Katsuto, and the others who had died.
• Rasa ordered Sunagakure to begin the war after learning its units had gone missing and its intelligence might have been leaked.
• Orochimaru ordered Konoha’s forces to prepare for battle and notified the village that Sunagakure had started the war.
• Sand shinobi charged Konoha’s forces, and a veteran recognized that the Third Shinobi World War had begun.

After Sunagakure declared war on Konoha, the other villages prepared to exploit the conflict while Chiyo devised a cautious strategy for Sunagakure. Madara Uchiha learned the war had begun and discussed his plans for the soon-to-graduate Obito Uchiha, who remained unaware of the danger.

• Ōnoki ordered Iwagakure's forces to the border, while Kumogakure held back and waited to see whether Konoha weakened.
• Chiyo advised Sunagakure to keep troops near the Iwagakure border and let Rasa's forces wear down Konoha before other villages joined the attack.
• Madara Uchiha asked Zetsu about the child he had been watching, and Zetsu reported that Obito Uchiha was still at the Ninja Academy and nearing graduation.
• Madara praised Obito's intense feelings and said they gave his Mangekyō extraordinary potential, while Obito eagerly awaited his graduation examination, hoping to impress Rin.

Hiruzen Sarutobi and Konoha’s leaders learned why Sunagakure had delayed its invasion and prepared for war after Sunagakure formally declared war. Hiruzen Sarutobi dismissed the war council but kept Minato’s group and Kōki behind.

• Hiruzen Sarutobi noticed that Kōki’s bearing had changed after his comrades’ deaths and summoned a war council to discuss intelligence from the front.
• Hiruzen Sarutobi revealed that the Daimyo of the Land of Wind had restored Sunagakure’s funding after its leaders wagered they would win territory from the Land of Fire.
• Danzo explained that the daimyo had cut funding because Sunagakure had lost the Third Kazekage and planned war without authorization, then urged Hiruzen Sarutobi to attack first.
• Hiruzen Sarutobi rejected Danzo’s proposal, warning that Konoha could become vulnerable to the other shinobi villages if it became bogged down fighting Sunagakure.
• An urgent messenger reported that Sunagakure had declared war and fighting had begun at the border.
• Hiruzen Sarutobi ordered Konoha’s leaders and forces to prepare for war, then dismissed everyone except Minato’s group and Kōki.

Hiruzen Sarutobi asked Minato Namikaze to keep Kōki’s Wood Release secret and gave Kōki a Flying Thunder God Kunai for emergencies. Kōki agreed to join the Anbu, entrusted his fallen comrades’ remains to Hiruzen, and began considering how he might bring them back to life.

• Hiruzen Sarutobi asked Minato Namikaze and the others to conceal Kōki’s Wood Release, and Minato gave Kōki a kunai he could use to summon help.
• Hiruzen Sarutobi assigned Kakashi Hatake, Obito Uchiha, and Rin Nohara to Minato’s team, and Minato agreed to try to change Kakashi’s outlook.
• Hiruzen Sarutobi suggested Kōki join the Anbu to conceal his identity and give him room to train, and Kōki accepted.
• Kōki handed Hiruzen Sarutobi a scroll containing the remains of Mamoru Uehara, Katsuto, and the others, and asked him to protect their coffins and return them to their families.
• Hiruzen Sarutobi gave Kōki several days to rest before reporting to the Anbu, while Kōki considered ways to resurrect his comrades and resolved to grow stronger.

Kōki considered four possible ways to reach the Six Paths level and concluded that studying chakra’s essence was the only method he might eventually pursue. He realized he first needed much more knowledge about the human body and chakra, and decided to ask Hiruzen Sarutobi for Tobirama Senju’s research materials.

• Kōki reasoned that Six Paths power was purified, fused chakra that transformed its wielder beyond humanity, and distinguished true Six Paths beings from those relying on borrowed power.
• Kōki considered becoming the Ten-Tails Jinchuriki, eating a God Tree’s fruit, fusing chakra into a new form, or absorbing natural energy as possible paths to the Six Paths level.
• Kōki judged studying and fusing chakra to be the most plausible method for him, though it would require extensive knowledge and practical experience.
• Kōki concluded that he needed to learn more about the human body and nature transformations before investigating chakra’s essence.
• Kōki decided to ask Hiruzen Sarutobi for Tobirama Senju’s experimental records and training manuals, and considered seeking Orochimaru’s advice later.

Minato returned home with photographs of his new team and told Kushina that Kōki’s Wood Release might give her a chance to leave Konoha. Kushina celebrated the possibility, though Hiruzen Sarutobi had not yet approved it, and Minato took her out to eat after she burned dinner.

• Minato came home while Kushina was preparing dinner and explained that he had overslept after a tiring day.
• Kushina saw the photographs Minato carried and learned that he was going to be a team leader.
• Minato told Kushina about Kōki’s Wood Release and explained that it could restrain the Nine-Tails if Kushina left the village.
• Kushina realized Minato meant to ask Hiruzen Sarutobi to lift the restriction on her travel and eagerly asked Minato to help.
• Kushina burned the food while celebrating, so Minato suggested they eat out.

Kōki weighed how to hide or use Wood Release while surviving the coming war, then considered asking Hiruzen Sarutobi to bring other villages into the conflict. Meanwhile, Minato Namikaze asked Hiruzen to let Kushina leave the village, and Kushina burst into the Hokage’s office when Hiruzen hesitated.

• Kōki considered the danger of revealing his Wood Release and decided his Anbu missions would let him use it while minimizing exposure.
• Kōki thought about discussing Konoha’s wartime strategy with Hiruzen Sarutobi.
• Minato Namikaze told Hiruzen Sarutobi that he had revealed Kōki’s Wood Release to Kushina and asked him to let her live as a normal ninja.
• Hiruzen Sarutobi explained why Kushina’s freedom and safety concerned him and began to refuse Minato’s request.
• Kushina Uzumaki smashed through the office door after overhearing Hiruzen’s hesitation, determined to argue for her freedom.

Kushina confronted Hiruzen Sarutobi over restricting her freedom and secured a written promise that she could go where she wanted after the war. Hiruzen secretly expected Minato’s future role as Hokage to keep Kushina in the village, while Minato and Kushina decided to visit Kōki the next day.

• Kushina challenged Hiruzen Sarutobi after overhearing him discuss keeping her from leaving the village.
• Hiruzen persuaded Kushina to stay in the village during the war against Sunagakure and wrote her a guarantee of future freedom.
• Hiruzen privately planned to rely on Minato becoming Hokage to keep Kushina from traveling after the war.
• Minato confirmed he saw nothing wrong with the agreement, and Kushina left the Hokage’s office with him.
• Kushina asked Minato about Kōki, and they agreed to visit him the next day.

Kōki visited Kurenai Yuhi’s home to apologize for delaying his request to learn genjutsu and ask Yūhi Shinku for advice. Yūhi Shinku questioned why someone with Kōki’s strength needed instruction and offered only to teach him how to dispel genjutsu.

• Kōki went to Kurenai Yuhi’s home during his days off to seek genjutsu instruction from her father.
• Kurenai Yuhi recognized Kōki and angrily asked why he had taken so long to visit.
• Kōki explained that nonstop missions and his teammate’s death had kept him away, and Kurenai Yuhi’s anger gave way to sympathy.
• Yūhi Shinku welcomed Kōki inside and said he had seen him at the previous day’s meeting and heard about his strength from another ninja.
• Kōki said he wanted to improve his genjutsu because he felt his abilities were incomplete.
• Yūhi Shinku said ordinary genjutsu would have little effect on Kōki and offered to teach him how to dispel it.

Kōki offered Yūhi Shinku his Superhuman Strength Technique in exchange for learning the fundamentals of Genjutsu. After Kōki demonstrated its internal-destruction stage, Shinku agreed to the exchange and pressed him to explain how it worked.

• Kōki clarified that he wanted to study Yūhi Shinku’s Genjutsu research and its underlying principles, not learn completed techniques.
• Kōki offered to trade his Superhuman Strength Technique for Shinku’s research and explained that it could destroy an enemy’s body from within.
• Kōki demonstrated the technique at Shinku’s training ground, cracking the earth with its external-destruction stage.
• Kōki flicked a rock with his finger, and Shinku discovered that its interior had been reduced to gray powder.
• Shinku identified the technique’s internal-destruction stage, agreed that it was worth the exchange, and asked Kōki how he had done it.

Kōki explained his two-level Superhuman Strength Technique to Yūhi Shinku and warned him about the skill and medical knowledge needed to master it. The two exchanged scrolls, and Kōki was pleased to find that Yūhi Shinku’s Genjutsu research included insights into Yin Release.

• Kōki described how his Superhuman Strength Technique used chakra to strike or pierce an opponent from within, and Yūhi Shinku recognized its lethal potential.
• Kōki warned Yūhi Shinku that the second level required precise chakra control and Medical Ninjutsu knowledge, while Kurenai Yuhi insisted her father could learn it quickly.
• Yūhi Shinku agreed to share all his Genjutsu knowledge and research notes, and Kōki gave him a scroll containing the technique’s training materials and precautions.
• Kurenai fetched Yūhi Shinku’s Genjutsu scroll, which he gave to Kōki along with an offer to explain its section on Yin Release.
• Kōki realized the scroll contained the Yin Release research he had hoped to find and recalled that he had visited Yūhi Shinku to test whether he had studied it.

Kōki explained to Yūhi Shinku that genjutsu could reach far beyond confusing an enemy, potentially controlling the senses and shaping reality through Yin Release. Shinku recognized the limits of his own talent and took comfort in the possibility that Kōki and Kurenai could continue exploring genjutsu.

• Kōki asked Yūhi Shinku to teach him genjutsu, and Shinku agreed, considering Kōki a potential successor to his legacy.
• Yūhi Shinku asked Kōki what genjutsu was and what it could achieve at its highest level.
• Kōki argued that genjutsu could control the senses, deceive consciousness, and, through Yin Release, blur the boundary between dreams and reality or create things from nothing.
• Yūhi Shinku acknowledged that some of Kōki's ideas were possible but believed such techniques would require extraordinary abilities, such as the Mangekyō Sharingan.
• Yūhi Shinku admitted he had only scratched the surface of Yin Release and lacked the talent to go further, but felt comforted by Kōki and Kurenai's potential.

Kōki agreed to study Genjutsu seriously under Yūhi Shinku, who explained the field’s limitations and encouraged him to help advance it. Kōki promised to do so, then continued learning from Yūhi Shinku while sharing ideas of his own.

• Yūhi Shinku asked Kōki to become his Genjutsu student, and Kōki agreed.
• Yūhi Shinku explained that Genjutsu depended on Yin Release chakra, spiritual energy, and chakra control, and that few ninja had both the talent and the incentive to specialize in it.
• Yūhi Shinku described how the Uchiha Clan’s Sharingan could cast, perceive, and counter Genjutsu, discouraging ordinary ninja from pursuing the field.
• Yūhi Shinku told Kōki he believed he could take Genjutsu to a new level, and Kōki promised to advance it.
• Yūhi Shinku continued teaching Genjutsu fundamentals as Kōki absorbed his explanations and offered ideas for them to discuss.

Kōki and Yūhi Shinku spent the day discussing Genjutsu and Yin Release, inspiring each other and deepening Shinku’s respect for Kōki. Kōki declined dinner and left after giving Kurenai Yuhi Chakra Scalpel notes, while Shinku reflected on the guidance he had received.

• Kurenai Yuhi interrupted Kōki and Yūhi Shinku’s discussion when evening arrived, reminding them that they had not eaten since noon.
• Yūhi Shinku praised Kōki’s insights and admitted their lesson had become a mutual exchange that gave him new inspiration.
• Kōki declined Yūhi Shinku’s dinner invitation so he could return home and write down what he had learned.
• Before leaving, Kōki gave Kurenai Yuhi his Chakra Scalpel notes as compensation for the Superhuman Strength Technique he had already exchanged with Yūhi Shinku.
• After Kōki left, Yūhi Shinku reflected that Kōki’s advice had clarified his path in Genjutsu and Yin Release, and wondered whether Kōki was more experienced than he appeared.

After studying Yūhi Shinku’s notes on Yin Release, Kōki read Tobirama Senju’s research into the Shadow Clone Technique and compared their findings. His understanding of Yin Release deepened, and he realized he might be able to create a special Clone Technique of his own.

• Kōki returned home, checked that nobody had entered, and wrote down what Yūhi Shinku had taught him about Yin Release.
• Kōki remembered the Shadow Clone Technique scroll Hiruzen Sarutobi had given him and read Tobirama Senju’s research notes.
• Tobirama Senju’s records described how he combined Yin Release chakra, Yang Release chakra, and spiritual energy to create conscious physical clones, eventually refining the Shadow Clone Technique.
• Kōki compared Tobirama Senju’s research with Yūhi Shinku’s notes and strengthened his understanding and control of Yin Release.
• Kōki realized that he might use Yin Release chakra to create a special kind of Clone Technique.

Kōki created a strange Yin Release clone that could possess animals and corpses, then considered how to use it to improve his genjutsu. He decided to seek a corpse from Konoha’s Kurama Clan.

• Kōki formed hand seals and created an unidentified mass of black chakra that he could control.
• Kōki tested the mass on a white rabbit and discovered it could possess the animal and control its body as a clone.
• Kōki concluded that the clone could likely possess only small animals without chakra or dead bodies, and found he could create only one clone at a time before it dissipated.
• Kōki considered using a corpse to strengthen his genjutsu, but realized Uchiha corpses would likely have their Sharingan removed.
• Kōki chose to obtain a corpse from the Kurama Clan, whose members had strong genjutsu talent and a genjutsu kekkei genkai.

Kōki infiltrated the Kurama Clan compound and overheard its members lamenting the clan’s decline and their frail bodies. Their discussion turned to Kurama Some, a gifted youth whose Kekkei Genkai awakened a monster that killed many of the clan’s ninja.

• Kōki sent a Shadow Clone to explore the Kurama Clan compound and searched its rooms unnoticed.
• Kurama Masahiro listened as his clansmen complained about discrimination and the Kurama Clan’s fading strength.
• Kurama Masahiro explained that the clan’s spiritual energy suppressed its physical energy, and that even Tsunade could not solve the problem.
• A clansman suggested releasing Kurama Some, whose talent might restore the clan’s prestige.
• The clansmen recalled that Some’s awakening of Five Senses Manipulation also awakened Ido, which took control of him and killed several Jonin and more than a dozen Chunin before he was subdued and sealed.

Kurama Masahiro revealed that Kurama Some had died by suicide after losing control of his Kekkei Genkai and killing his family, and explained why he had kept the death secret. Kōki overheard the clan meeting and decided to wait for Some’s burial before stealing his corpse.

• Kurama Masahiro ended the clansmen’s argument over releasing Kurama Some by announcing that Some had died a month after the clan conflict.
• Kurama Masahiro explained that Some had lost control when his Kekkei Genkai awakened, killed his family, and later took his own life from remorse.
• Kurama Masahiro admitted that he had kept Some’s death secret to investigate the awakening and madness, and showed the clansmen that Some’s corpse remained intact.
• Kōki, listening outside the room, decided that Some’s corpse was the specimen he wanted and watched Kurama Masahiro seal it in a scroll and put it on a shelf.
• Kurama Masahiro told the clansmen he would speak to Lord Hokage and bury Some the next day; Kōki chose to wait until after the burial to steal the corpse.

Kōki stole Kurama Some's preserved corpse and used his special Shadow Clone to inhabit it, discovering that it inherited Some's memories, strength, and bloodline. He tested the Kurama Clan's Five Senses Manipulation and found its genjutsu so realistic that even he struggled to distinguish it from reality.

• Kōki followed Kurama Masahiro to Kurama Some's funeral, then waited until the clan members had left before stealing Some's body and sealing it in a scroll.
• Kōki brought Some's corpse home and used his special Shadow Clone to possess it, making the body move and speak.
• The clone confirmed that it could extract chakra and had inherited Some's Jonin strength, combat experience, and Kurama Clan bloodline, though it could remain active for only three days.
• The clone used Five Senses Manipulation on Kōki, creating a vivid illusion of Kōki's previous life that he found difficult to recognize as false.

Kōki tested his clone’s powerful five-senses genjutsu and sealed Kurama Some’s body away before preparing to seek leads from Hiruzen Sarutobi. Minato Namikaze and Kushina Uzumaki arrived to ask for his Wood Release, and Kushina gave him a sealing jutsu that could keep Yin Release chakra from dissipating.

• Kōki questioned his clone about its genjutsu, learning it could control up to twenty targets and was difficult to escape without exceptional mental strength or Yin Release chakra.
• Kōki dismissed the special Shadow Clone Technique and sealed Kurama Some’s body in a scroll.
• Minato Namikaze and Kushina Uzumaki came to Kōki’s home, and Kushina asked for his help using Wood Release.
• Kōki agreed to help Kushina without asking for payment, then asked whether a sealing jutsu could prevent Yin Release chakra from dissipating.
• Kushina gave Kōki a scroll containing a sealing jutsu for Yin Release and offered to answer his future questions about sealing jutsu.