Chapter Summaries

Koki, Shisui, and Hayate prepared to begin their lives as ninja after graduating early, and Hiruzen chose Minato to lead their squad. At the academy ceremony, they learned they would train under a Jonin instructor, but the instructor's identity remained unknown.

• Hiruzen asked Minato who should lead Koki, Shisui, and Hayate, and Minato volunteered to teach them.
• News of Koki and Shisui's early graduation spread through Konoha, while Koki spent the following days training Itachi, helping his mother, and sparring with Shisui.
• Koki and Shisui went to the academy for the squad assignment ceremony and discovered Hayate had also graduated early.
• Koki asked Hayate about his health, and Hayate said the medicine Koki brought had helped him.
• A Jonin instructor congratulated the three new Genin, explained that they would form a squad, and told them to meet at the training ground the next morning.

Koki and Shisui speculated about their future teacher before discovering that Minato Namikaze would train them alongside Gekko Hayate. The boys introduced themselves and shared their dreams, leaving Minato impressed by their abilities and the loyalty they felt toward Koki.

• Koki considered possible teachers from several clans, while Shisui reminded him they would soon learn who their teacher was.
• Koki and Shisui arrived at the training ground and found Minato Namikaze waiting for them as their new teacher.
• Minato asked Koki, Shisui, and Gekko Hayate to introduce themselves and explain their skills, interests, and dreams.
• Koki said he liked good food and had not yet found a clear dream, while Shisui said he wanted to protect someone precious to him.
• Hayate said he wanted to help Koki achieve his dream, and Minato reflected that Koki drew people toward him.

Minato tested Koki, Shisui, and Gekko Hayate’s Chakra natures, discovering that Koki had all five. He ended their first lesson with a class photo and a meal instead of the bell-stealing exercise Koki had expected, and the new team celebrated their picture together.

• Minato explained Chakra Paper and tested the boys’ natures, revealing that Shisui had fire, wind, and lightning, while Gekko Hayate had wind and water.
• Koki’s paper showed all five Chakra natures, and Minato congratulated him while reminding him that he still needed to train and learn how to use them.
• Minato announced that they would take a class photo and go for a meal, leaving Koki disappointed that they would not play the bell game.
• Minato took the three boys to a photography studio, where the owner welcomed his new students and recalled Minato’s previous visit with two bickering boys.
• Minato posed with Shisui, Hayate, and Koki for a group photo, and the boys admired the result as a happy memory.

Koki and Shisui went to the Hokage's office with Gekko Hayate to receive their ninja identification cards and begin taking missions. Minato explained that their squad could only take D-rank missions for now, leaving Koki excited despite the humble work ahead.

• Koki got up early and promised Itachi he could join a simple mission in the future if he trained hard.
• Koki and Shisui met Gekko Hayate at the Hokage's office and collected their ninja identification cards.
• Minato warned Koki that newly graduated Genin were limited to D-rank missions unless they earned approval through their work.
• Minato explained the mission ranks, rewards, and duties before telling Koki's squad to take D-rank assignments such as finding pets, shopping, and farmwork.

Koki learned how profitable ninja missions could be before Minato gave him, Shisui, and Hayate a mission to find Cat Granny’s missing Ninja Cat. Equipped with cat-ear headbands that let them communicate with cats, the three followed Minato to the Meow Demon Hall.

• Koki realized that ninja missions could bring substantial rewards and help villages grow stronger.
• Minato handed Koki a mission scroll, and the team learned they were to find a missing Ninja Cat.
• Minato explained that Cat Granny’s heartbroken cat had run away to the underground Meow Demon Hall.
• Koki laughed at the cat’s unkempt appearance in its photo, then tried on a pink cat-ear headband.
• Minato gave the three cat tools that let them understand cats, and they followed him toward the Meow Demon Hall.

Koki, Shisui, and Hayate searched Meow Demon Hall for the Ninja Cat and found it drunk and upset over its clan pressuring it to settle down. When the Ninja Cat attacked Hayate and fled, they chased it through the hall, where Shisui pursued it along a wall.

• Minato left Koki, Shisui, and Hayate to complete the mission while he stayed behind to play with a kitten.
• Koki asked the cats for clues, and they pointed him toward a cat chef who directed them to the Ninja Cat's hiding place.
• Koki tried to relate to the Ninja Cat, but it mocked him; Hayate then spoke with it until it attacked him for insulting the female cat it liked.
• Koki and Shisui rushed to stop the Ninja Cat, which dodged Koki's kunai and vanished, prompting the three to chase it through Meow Demon Hall.
• Koki avoided a disguised trap, and Shisui leaped onto a wall to keep pursuing the Ninja Cat.

Koki's team captured the Ninja Cat and quickly completed their mission, then set out to clear Konoha's D-Rank Missions in bulk. After earning widespread praise for their work, Koki walked home with Shisui and sleeping Itachi, wondering whether Obito and Kakashi would return safely.

• Koki used the Ninja Cat's whiskers and tail to guide Shisui's Kunai attack, and Koki caught the unconscious cat before returning it to Cat Granny with Shisui and Hayate.
• Koki asked Minato how many D-Rank Missions remained and persuaded him to accept all of them for the team to complete within a month.
• Koki, Shisui, and Hayate took on the D-Rank Missions, using their different skills and Shadow Clones to work efficiently.
• Over the next month or two, Koki's team completed most of the accumulated D-Rank Missions and earned a one-hundred-percent approval rating from their clients.
• Koki walked home with Shisui and sleeping Itachi, and the two wondered whether Obito and Kakashi would return safely that day.

Koki and his team completed their missions, including one where Itachi killed a giant wild boar with three punches. Over ramen, Minato told Koki that the Hokage wanted to see him, and Koki agreed to go.

• Itachi killed a giant wild boar with three punches, leaving Koki and Gekko Hayate astonished.
• Koki sent Gekko Hayate to take the boar carcasses back to the village and went with Itachi to check on Shisui.
• Koki, Itachi, Shisui, and Hayate completed their missions, with Itachi helping Koki handle a difficult childcare assignment.
• Minato treated Team Koki to ramen at Ichiraku after they submitted their missions.
• Minato told Koki that the Hokage wanted to see him, and Koki agreed without hesitation.

After Minato Namikaze's Team took nearly all the D-rank missions, Hiruzen Sarutobi summoned Koki, Shisui, and Hayate and offered to recommend them for the Chunin Ninja Exams. Koki left with the others to discuss the offer with their father, but warned them not to accept.

• Several ninja complained to Hiruzen Sarutobi that Minato Namikaze's Team had taken every D-rank mission, though they had followed the rules.
• Hiruzen Sarutobi called Koki, Shisui, and Hayate to his office and praised their mission work.
• Hiruzen Sarutobi offered to recommend Koki and Hayate for the Chunin Ninja Exams, surprising them because they had graduated only a month earlier.
• Koki said they would discuss the offer with their father before giving Hiruzen Sarutobi an answer.
• Outside the Hokage Building, Koki told Shisui and Hayate not to accept the recommendation and joked that Genin were the strongest people in Konoha.

After Minato Namikaze began teaching Koki the Body Flicker Technique, Koki practiced weaving between trees and gradually improved. He was moved by Minato’s tender concern when he got a minor scrape, but insisted on continuing his training.

• Minato Namikaze arranged several days off for his students and promised B-rank missions soon, while Koki went to meet him for Body Flicker training.
• Minato explained the technique and padded the training trees with quilts and pillows to protect Koki from collisions.
• Koki practiced without relying on his Sharingan, struggled at first, and eventually made it around five trees before hitting a smaller one.
• Minato helped Koki up, fussed over his small scrape, and urged him to stop practicing.
• Koki fought back tears at Minato’s concern and told him he wanted to continue, so Minato stepped aside.

After Koki pushed through an exhausting training session, Minato gave him a graduation present: a finely crafted kunai engraved with his name. The kunai secretly let Minato locate Koki and rush to his aid, a safeguard Minato chose not to explain.

• Koki repeatedly got back up and continued training until Minato stopped him for the day.
• Minato helped the exhausted Koki to his feet, and Koki insisted he could walk home on his own.
• Minato gave Koki a kunai he had made himself as a graduation present, saying it was only for him.
• Koki accepted the kunai gratefully, unaware that Minato's matching kunai could reveal Koki's location and help Minato reach him in danger.

Madara questioned White Zetsu about Kumogakure’s movements, Nagato, and Obito, then grew interested in Uchiha Kōki as a possible replacement for Obito in his plan. He ordered White Zetsu to provoke a clash between Kumogakure and Konoha and to send Kōki to the Land of Rain, leaving a wider scheme underway.

• White Zetsu reported that Kumogakure ninja were secretly plotting near Konoha and likely had hostile intentions.
• Madara told White Zetsu to keep watching the Kumogakure ninja and asked about Nagato and Obito.
• White Zetsu described Obito’s recent changes and suggested Uchiha Kōki would be better suited to Madara’s plan.
• Madara learned that Kōki had recently graduated from the Ninja Academy and would soon leave the village on a mission.
• Madara ordered White Zetsu to set Kumogakure and Konoha against each other and arrange for Kōki to go to the Land of Rain.

The chapter contrasts the Land of Rain’s rise under Hanzō with his later decline into fear and suspicion. In Hanzō’s guarded palace, Danzo taunts him about the young people threatening his position, and Hanzō is left wondering what will become of his country.

• Hanzō led Amegakure into war against three great nations, and the village won renown despite Konoha’s eventual victory.
• Hanzō later became greedy and mistrustful, surrounding himself with guards and suspecting those around him.
• Hiruzen Sarutobi had Orochimaru revive Danzo and made a deal with Hanzō to keep him hidden and safe.
• Danzo taunted Hanzō about young people who would soon take his place, and Hanzō slapped him and ordered him to be quiet.
• Danzo silently vowed to return to Konoha and reclaim his power, while Hanzō wondered about the Land of Rain’s future and his lost courage.

Sasori of the Red Sands woke from a nightmare furious at the noise next door and summoned Hanzo of the Salamander to demand progress on his assignment. Hanzo asked for more time and left after Sasori granted him one final chance.

• Sasori of the Red Sands woke from a nightmare and decided the people making noise next door should be killed.
• Sasori summoned Hanzo of the Salamander and threatened to find another partner if he failed to complete his assignment.
• Hanzo recalled his past battle with the puppet old hag, who had adapted to his poison and discovered its weakness.
• Hanzo restrained his anger and asked Sasori for more time to finish the task.
• Sasori gave Hanzo one more chance and warned him of the consequences if he failed again.

Hanzo of the Salamander pressured Hiruzen Sarutobi to send Uchiha Kōki to Amegakure by threatening Danzo’s safety. Sasori revealed that he had killed the missing Third Kazekage and planned to turn his corpse into a puppet.

• Hanzo of the Salamander slapped Danzo and ordered a subordinate to tell Hiruzen Sarutobi that Uchiha Kōki must come to Amegakure or Danzo’s safety could not be guaranteed.
• Hiruzen Sarutobi read Hanzo’s demand and worried that sending Kōki would endanger him and anger the Uchiha Clan, while Danzo’s safety also concerned him.
• Sasori gazed at a photograph of someone he had cherished, then opened a hidden chamber behind a wall.
• Sasori revealed the corpse of the missing Third Kazekage and mocked him as a trophy.
• Sasori decided to make the Third Kazekage’s corpse into his most perfect puppet.

Sasori turned the Third Kazekage’s corpse into a deadly Human Puppet and added it to his collection of 297 puppets. Afterward, he was summoned to Hanzō’s residence, where he went to meet him.

• Sasori modified the Third Kazekage’s corpse with poison, weapons, and a Regeneration Core to create a powerful Human Puppet.
• Sasori admired his 297 Human Puppets and stored the Third Kazekage puppet in a scroll.
• A ninja told Sasori that Hanzō had been waiting for him.
• Sasori followed the ninja to Hanzō’s residence and entered to meet him.

Sasori accepted Hanzō’s demand after reading Hiruzen Sarutobi’s reply, which required Koki’s safety and Danzo’s protection. In Amegakure, Yahiko and Konan rescued Yamamoto Yūto from a group of ninja and agreed to take him into their organization.

• Sasori read Hiruzen Sarutobi’s letter agreeing to Hanzō’s request while insisting that Koki be kept safe and Danzo protected.
• Sasori told Hanzō to bring his grandmother, and Hanzō laughed at the prospect of revenge.
• Yahiko and Konan intervened when several ninja tried to steal Yamamoto Yūto’s food and defeated them.
• Yamamoto Yūto told Yahiko and Konan that he had no home and asked to join their organization.
• Konan urged Yahiko not to leave the child behind, and Yahiko agreed to take Yamamoto Yūto with them.

Koki’s squad received an A-rank mission to escort the daimyo’s son, Kohaku, to the Land of Fire. After Kohaku became fixated on Koki, Minato warned the team not to underestimate the mission and ordered them to meet at the Konoha Gate the next morning.

• Koki enjoyed a mahjong game with Kakashi and Obito before Minato summoned the squad to the Hokage building.
• Hiruzen Sarutobi assigned Minato’s squad the mission of escorting the daimyo’s son to the Land of Fire, and Minato accepted after reviewing the details.
• Kohaku arrived and arrogantly dismissed the ninja, prompting Koki to rebuke him.
• Kohaku became intensely attracted to Koki, while Koki felt unsettled by his stare and Shisui stopped Kohaku from approaching.
• Minato led the squad away and instructed them to meet at the Konoha Gate at seven the next morning.

Koki prepared to leave Konoha on his first mission, while his family and friends worried over him and packed far too much equipment. Minato and Hayate accompanied him out of the village, leaving the group excited to begin their mission.

• Obito and Shisui packed Koki's luggage with scrolls, medicine, and ninja tools, while Kakashi advised him on staying safe outside the village.
• Mikoto stopped Obito and Shisui from trying to pack kitchen supplies, and Koki promised everyone he would return safely.
• The next morning, Shisui gave up on bringing a pot but carried the scrolls Obito had packed for Koki.
• Kakashi and Obito insisted on seeing Koki off at the Konoha Gate, where Minato and Hayate were waiting.
• Minato reassured Kakashi and Obito that he would keep Koki safe, and the gatekeeper let the group leave Konoha.

Koki endured Kohaku’s constant demands and attention as Minato’s team escorted the daimyo’s son toward the capital of the Land of Fire. As the mission neared its end, Minato warned the team to stay alert, and Koki resolved not to become complacent.

• Kohaku repeatedly interrupted the journey with demands and pestering, angering Koki and alarming Shisui, Minato, and Hayate.
• With the capital of the Land of Fire two days away, Koki felt relieved and appreciated the team’s comfortable stay at a hot spring inn.
• Minato gathered Koki, Shisui, and Gekko Hayate and warned them that the A-rank mission could still take an unexpected turn.
• Koki recalled how Naruto’s team had accepted a supposedly C-rank escort mission that turned out to involve Zabuza, then reminded himself to remain vigilant.