Recaps

Rikuto nullified Danzo’s Kotoamatsukami with his Mangekyō Sharingan and tore out Danzo’s right eye, but Danzo survived with Izanagi and attacked again. Tsunade watched as Rikuto continued to face him, and the chapter ended with Rikuto unleashing Deep Forest Emergence.

• Rikuto crushed Danzo with a giant wooden hand, but Danzo reappeared and revealed his Mangekyō Sharingan.
• Danzo used Kotoamatsukami on Rikuto, but Rikuto reflected the genjutsu and used a vine to tear out Danzo’s right eye.
• Danzo escaped the eye injury with Izanagi and questioned how Rikuto possessed a Mangekyō Sharingan.
• Tsunade watched the battle and recognized Danzo’s use of Izanagi as Rikuto continued to hold back.
• Danzo charged at Rikuto with a Wind Release blade, and Rikuto unleashed Wood Release: Deep Forest Emergence.

Rikuto repeatedly overwhelmed Danzo with Wood Release, while Danzo used Izanagi to survive and counterattack. After Danzo’s giant tree failed to kill Rikuto, he faced the choice of retreating as his remaining Sharingan and Chakra dwindled.

• Rikuto’s vines trapped Danzo, who stabbed himself to escape with Izanagi and reappeared behind him.
• Danzo attacked with Vacuum Great Sphere and Wind Release Shuriken, but Rikuto blocked them with a wooden shield and substituted a wooden carving for himself.
• Rikuto impaled Danzo with a wooden vine, and Danzo used Izanagi to reappear and unleash Tree Root Burial Explosion.
• Danzo’s giant tree swallowed both fighters, but Rikuto emerged unharmed and turned the tree against Danzo, trapping him again.
• Danzo revived through Izanagi with five uses left and considered retreating as he worried about his dwindling Chakra.

Rikuto defeated Danzo by trapping him in Tsukuyomi, making him believe he had escaped and forcing him to lose Shisui’s eye and his arm. As Danzo tried to attack again, Rikuto revealed that he might still be trapped in the illusion.

• Danzo tried to flee, but Rikuto’s wood clones repeatedly attacked him in the Tsukuyomi illusion.
• Danzo believed Hashirama Cells had caused his right arm to fail, severed it, and then lost Shisui’s eye to Rikuto.
• Rikuto revealed that the battle had been Tsukuyomi and that only an instant had passed outside the illusion.
• Tsunade watched Rikuto take Danzo’s arm and eye and suspected he had used Tsukuyomi.
• Rikuto mocked Danzo for failing to recognize the illusion, and Shisui’s eye shriveled and turned to ash.
• Danzo charged at Rikuto, who questioned whether Danzo had escaped Tsukuyomi at all.

Chiya Rikuto broke Shimura Danzō through three days of torture and humiliation in a Tsukuyomi illusion. Danzō awoke bound and powerless, and Rikuto declared that he would use Kotoamatsukami to make Danzō suffer his own methods.

• Rikuto trapped Danzō in an illusion where Tsunade became Fifth Hokage and the villagers condemned and tortured Danzō and the former Konoha leaders.
• After three days and nights of punishment, Danzō broke down and admitted defeat in the illusion.
• Danzō awoke bound by vines with little Chakra left and begged Rikuto to kill him.
• Rikuto refused, saying death would be too easy, and promised to turn Danzō’s Kotoamatsukami against him.

Chiya Rikuto used Kotoamatsukami to make Shimura Danzō loyal to him, then treated him so he could secretly control Root. When Root members arrived, Tsunade drove them back with a powerful strike, and they retreated with the unconscious Danzo.

• Chiya Rikuto used Shisui's eye to cast Kotoamatsukami on Shimura Danzō, making him permanently loyal before he passed out.
• Chiya Rikuto transplanted an ordinary Sharingan into Danzo's damaged eye socket and healed him to conceal the loss of Shisui's eye.
• Chiya Rikuto told Tsunade he planned to use Danzo and Root, and said Kotoamatsukami would prevent Danzo from escaping his control.
• Chiya Rikuto sensed Root members approaching and asked Tsunade to put on an act.
• Root members arrived, found Danzo injured, and moved to confront Tsunade and Rikuto.
• Tsunade stomped the ground, opening a huge fissure that forced Root to retreat with Danzo.

After defeating Shimura Danzō, Rikuto traveled on with Tsunade and Shizune, developing new tactics and mastering the Rasengan with ease. The chapter ended with Rikuto explaining how his precise Chakra control let him recreate the technique.

• Tsunade warned the Root members that she would spare Shimura Danzō this once, then left with Rikuto.
• Rikuto told Tsunade that fighting Danzō had inspired him to develop miniature Wood Clones that could spread through the ground and trees.
• Half a month later, Tsunade sent back Anbu who came to question her about the battle near the capital of the Land of Fire.
• After Tsunade described the Rasengan's basic principles, Rikuto recreated the A-rank Ninjutsu in front of Tsunade and Shizune.
• Rikuto explained that his precise Chakra control made it easy to gather, spin, and compress Chakra into the Rasengan.

Rikuto demonstrated a chakra technique to Tsunade and Shizune while Danzo recovered from his ordeal and decided to help Rikuto take power in Konoha. Days later, Karin and her exhausted mother struggled under Kusagakure’s exploitation as unseen observers watched them.

• Rikuto turned his fingers into vines and formed spinning balls of chakra before Tsunade and Shizune.
• Danzo awoke after nearly half a month unconscious, ordered Root to stop watching Tsunade, and began doubting Hiruzen’s leadership.
• Danzo resolved to clear obstacles for Rikuto’s return and called for someone.
• A Kusagakure shinobi forced Karin’s weakened mother to keep treating wounded fighters, while Karin protested and her mother shared their bread with her.
• Observers hidden in the forest watched Karin and her mother and asked whether they were the targets.

Root abducted Karin and her mother from Kusagakure on Danzo’s orders while Rikuto, Tsunade, and Shizune investigated the ruins of Shuto Castle. Rikuto uncovered a nearly exhausted giant lizard hidden as the castle and proposed subduing it, leaving Tsunade to respond to Shizune’s concern about his existing contract with Shikkotsu Forest.

• Root used Genjutsu to knock out Karin and her mother, then took them from Kusagakure to bring them back to Konoha.
• Rikuto sensed an unstable Chakra source near Shuto Castle, and a villager warned Tsunade and Shizune about the cursed ruins.
• Rikuto, Tsunade, and Shizune traveled to Shuto Castle, where Rikuto found that even his Three-Tomoe Sharingan could not detect its Chakra.
• Rikuto used his Mangekyō Sharingan to reveal that the castle was a giant white lizard that devoured anyone who entered and concealed its Chakra.
• Rikuto proposed subduing the lizard, and Shizune questioned whether taking another contract would be improper after he had signed Shikkotsu Forest’s contract.

Rikuto freed the giant lizard Chūbēmaru from the castle and formed a summoning contract with him. After Chūbēmaru returned to his clan, Rikuto sensed familiar Chakra signatures approaching and suspected Root had arrived.

• Rikuto used Wood Clones to overcome Chūbēmaru's castle traps and found the summoning contract scroll bearing Masashi Kishimoto's name.
• Rikuto signed the contract, learned the seals needed to free Chūbēmaru, and released the giant lizard from the castle form.
• Chūbēmaru thanked Rikuto, swallowed the new contract, and returned to the Lizard Clan's territory.
• Rikuto sensed familiar Chakra signatures approaching, and Shizune identified the newcomers as Root while Tsunade asked whether his technique was still active.

Rikuto and Tsunade encountered Root members carrying Nanako Uzumaki and Karin, survivors of the Uzumaki Clan who had been abused in Kusagakure. Tsunade forced Root to leave them behind, and the mother and daughter awoke in the group’s care.

• Rikuto realized Danzo had sent Root to Kusagakure to retrieve Karin and her mother while also searching for Shuto Castle’s Summoning Contract.
• Root members carrying the unconscious Nanako Uzumaki and Karin tried to retreat when they saw Tsunade, but she stopped them and demanded to know who the women were.
• A Root Jonin said the Uzumaki survivors had been rescued from Kusagakure, where Karin’s mother had been used as miracle healing medicine.
• Tsunade ordered Root to leave Nanako and Karin behind, and Rikuto backed her up until the Root members handed them over and retreated.
• Shizune dispelled the Genjutsu on Nanako and Karin, and Tsunade reassured the frightened pair that they were out of danger.

Rikuto, Tsunade, and Shizune rescued Nanako Uzumaki and her daughter Karin from Kusagakure, and Tsunade began treating Nanako's severe exhaustion. As night fell, Rikuto fed Karin and reassured her that her mother would recover.

• Tsunade told Nanako that her grandmother, Mito Uzumaki, had tried to help the Land of Whirlpools but died heartbroken, then offered Nanako and Karin a place to stay and a recommendation for Konoha.
• Tsunade and Shizune examined Nanako and found that years of using her Chakra to heal others had left her critically weakened, though Tsunade believed she could still save her.
• Rikuto used Wood Release: Four Pillars House Technique to create a wooden house after the fog cleared.
• That night, Rikuto offered Karin roasted wolf meat, and she cried as she ate, overwhelmed by his kindness.
• Shizune asked Rikuto to make porridge for Nanako, and he reassured Karin that Tsunade would help her mother recover.

Rikuto showed Karin his techniques and began teaching her to extract Chakra, then trained his Wood Clones in elemental Ninjutsu while starting medical training with Tsunade. The chapter ended as a huge disturbance split the ruins apart.

• Rikuto used a storage scroll and Ninjutsu to prepare rice porridge, then offered to teach Karin to extract Chakra.
• Karin quickly learned to extract and use Chakra, and Rikuto considered her suited to inherit Tsunade's medical legacy.
• The next morning, Rikuto created five Wood Clones and had them practice Ninjutsu using different Chakra natures.
• Rikuto asked Shizune to teach Karin the basic Three Basic Techniques, and she agreed.
• A tremendous rumble shook the ruins as the earth suddenly split down the middle.

Two years after Rikuto trained with Tsunade, he continued to build his strength and learn medical skills while developing his techniques. The chapter ended as Shizune and Karin returned from gathering herbs.

• Rikuto's Wood Clones demonstrated powerful Water Release and Fire Style techniques, impressing Nanako Uzumaki, Karin, Shizune, and Tsunade.
• Tsunade explained that Hashirama's Senjutsu came from adapting techniques associated with Shikkotsu Forest and Mount Myōboku, and encouraged Rikuto to pursue it.
• Two years passed, during which Tsunade formally accepted Karin as her third disciple and Rikuto arranged for Nanako to live and work in Konoha.
• Rikuto completed a punishing weighted one-handed training routine while Tsunade asked where Shizune and Karin had gone.
• Shizune and Karin returned after going out to gather herbs.

Tsunade gave Rikuto the Yin Seal and Strength of a Hundred Technique after recognizing that his medical skills had nearly caught up with hers. The group planned to travel to the Land of Hot Water, while Karin prepared to gain practical healing experience.

• Tsunade suggested that she, Rikuto, Karin, and Shizune visit the Land of Hot Water for its famous hot springs.
• Karin demonstrated that she had mastered the Mystical Palm Technique, and Tsunade planned to give her practical experience.
• Tsunade gave Rikuto a scroll containing the Yin Seal and the Strength of a Hundred Technique, explaining that he needed the Yin Seal to store excess Chakra.

Rikuto proposed sealing powerful techniques such as the Yin Seal and Strength of a Hundred Technique into another person, and Tsunade warned him that developing such a Forbidden Technique could require human experimentation. He promised to keep his principles and decided to learn Sealing Jutsu, while Tsunade considered helping him.

• Rikuto suggested using a special Sealing Jutsu and Chakra conversion to let others wield the Yin Seal and Strength of a Hundred Technique.
• Tsunade warned Rikuto that creating the technique could involve human experimentation and urged him not to lose his principles.
• Rikuto promised not to act recklessly, and Tsunade agreed to trust him as long as he followed limits like the Second Hokage.
• Rikuto said he would first master the Yin Seal and Strength of a Hundred Technique, then seek Sealing Jutsu from Danzo or visit the Land of Whirlpools.
• Tsunade realized Rikuto wanted her help and worried about leaving him to pursue the work alone.

Rikuto mastered the Yin Seal with astonishing speed, while Tsunade continued preparing Karin to inherit her legacy. Three days later, the group arrived in the Land of Hot Water and found the town unusually deserted, ending with the innkeeper warning them not to go out alone.

• Tsunade had Rikuto study the Yin Seal and Strength of a Hundred Technique scrolls before teaching him, and he mastered the Yin Seal in less than half an hour.
• Rikuto said the Yin Seal could not store enough Chakra for him, and Tsunade told him to keep practicing while she went to guide Karin.
• Three days later, Tsunade, Shizune, Karin, Rikuto, and Tonton traveled to the Land of Hot Water, where Karin eagerly ran ahead to explore the town.
• The group found most businesses closed and the streets nearly empty, so Rikuto suggested they find an inn and ask what had happened.
• The innkeeper welcomed them and warned them not to go out alone because things had not been peaceful lately.

Rikuto and his companions learned that a Jashin Cult killer had been murdering people near the city, and Karin sensed the suspect outside town. After deciding to investigate following a hot spring break, they relaxed at the inn while Rikuto teased Karin and Tsunade.

• The innkeeper told Karin, Tsunade, Rikuto, and Shizune that brutal killings had plagued the area and that Yugakure ninja sent to investigate had also been murdered.
• Rikuto sensed a strong Chakra source outside the city and said they would meet the Jashin Cult killer after bathing and eating.
• Karin used Mind's Eye of the Kagura to locate the suspected killer about three kilometers southeast of the city.
• Tsunade agreed to Rikuto's plan to investigate, suspecting he was eager for a fight.
• The group soaked in the inn's hot springs, where Rikuto teased Karin about her figure and Tsunade warned him not to use Ōnamuchi to sneak into the women's bath.

After Tsunade brought Rikuto and the others to confront Hidan, Rikuto used wood-based techniques to bind him and test his apparent immortality. Hidan endured repeated injuries and claimed he could not die, and the chapter ended with Rikuto cutting off his head.

• Hidan rested beneath a grove and considered killing more people before Tsunade, Shizune, Rikuto, and Karin arrived.
• Hidan invited Tsunade and Karin to join the Jashin Cult, but Tsunade sent Rikuto to fight him.
• Rikuto blocked Hidan’s scythe with an ironwood stake, then bound him in vines and drained his chakra.
• Hidan transformed into a black, white-marked form and remained alive after Rikuto pierced his heart, declaring himself immortal.
• Rikuto stabbed Hidan repeatedly and used a vine to swing the scythe down and cut off his head.

Rikuto captured Hidan as an experimental subject and uncovered White Zetsu spying on the group. After returning, he met with Aburame Ryoma, who delivered forbidden techniques, clan secrets, and collected shinobi remains and DNA for Rikuto’s plans.

• Rikuto reattached Hidan’s head, healed him, and sealed him inside a storage scroll to preserve him as a test subject.
• Rikuto forced White Zetsu out of the ground, trapped him with vines, and used Genjutsu to learn that the original had sent him to search for the serial killer in the Land of Hot Water.
• Rikuto’s vines devoured White Zetsu, and Tsunade led the group back while Rikuto noticed a figure that looked exactly like him watching from afar.
• Aburame Ryoma met Rikuto and delivered scrolls containing Konoha clan secrets, forbidden techniques, Second Hokage documents, and collected corpses and DNA from powerful shinobi.
• Rikuto asked Aburame Ryoma about the Impure World Reincarnation he had requested.

Rikuto received a trove of techniques from Danzo and bet Tsunade that he could master Flying Thunder God Level One within three hours. Tsunade accepted, leaving Rikuto poised to begin learning the technique.

• Aburame Ryoma told Rikuto that Root had collected Kekkei Genkai bodies and forbidden techniques, including Flying Thunder God.
• Rikuto examined Danzo's scrolls, delegated the sealing techniques to his Wood Clones, and admitted he had failed to gain Hidan's immortality by absorbing his blood.
• Tsunade recognized the Flying Thunder God Technique and explained its difficulty to Rikuto.
• Rikuto bet Tsunade that he would master Flying Thunder God Level One within three hours, wagering that she would be his body pillow if he succeeded and five million ryō if he failed.
• Tsunade accepted the bet, confident that Rikuto could not learn the technique so quickly.

Rikuto studied the Flying Thunder God Technique and used the Chakra stored in his Yin Seal to create a hundred Wood Clones for training. Tsunade realized he had planned to share the training among his clones and feared he might master the technique within hours.

• Rikuto spent half an hour memorizing the Flying Thunder God Technique while Tsunade discussed Minato's talent and the possibility of annotations in the Scroll of Seals.
• Rikuto teased Tsunade before leaving, and a Wood Clone told her that the original liked her.
• Tsunade worried about Rikuto's feelings for her and about the influence Root's environment might have on him if he returned to the village.
• Tsunade realized Rikuto could use his Strength of a Hundred Technique to fuel multiple Wood Clones and train in Flying Thunder God.
• Rikuto released his Yin Seal in a deserted forest and created a hundred Wood Clones, giving each a share of his Chakra to train.

Rikuto used his Wood Clone Shared Training Mode to master both levels of the Flying Thunder God Technique in under three hours, winning his bet with Tsunade. The chapter ended with Tsunade waking beside him after a night in his arms and recalling a wonderful dream.

• Rikuto sent more than a hundred Wood Clones to train in the Flying Thunder God Technique while sharing and refining their experience.
• Rikuto mastered Flying Thunder God Level One and instructed the clones to continue with Level Two.
• Tsunade waited anxiously at the inn, doubting that Rikuto could master the technique before the deadline.
• Rikuto appeared in Tsunade's room using Flying Thunder God Level Two and reminded her that he had won their bet.
• Tsunade kept her promise, and the next morning she woke with Rikuto in her arms and remembered her dream.

Rikuto teased Tsunade about her dream before returning to his room and studying the S-rank Spirit Transformation Technique. He began practicing the soul-separation technique while a Wood Clone guarded his body.

• Rikuto reassured Tsunade that she could preserve her youth and extend her lifespan, then teased her about drooling in her sleep.
• Tsunade blushed at the memory of her dream and told Rikuto to leave, while privately worrying about her growing feelings and his influence on her.
• Rikuto used his Wood Clones’ accumulated practice to review their Sealing Jutsu training and reflected on strengthening his Yin and Yang Release to awaken the Rinnegan.
• Shizune and Karin took Rikuto to visit scenic spots, while Tsunade later took them to find people for Karin to practice on.
• Rikuto returned to his room, read the Spirit Transformation Technique scroll, and began practicing with a Wood Clone guarding his body.

Rikuto mastered the Spirit Transformation Technique, visited Tsunade in her mental world, and discovered he could control another person’s body while using his own abilities. He left the Yugakure Chunin and returned to his body after testing the technique with a destructive display of ninjutsu.

• Rikuto repeatedly attempted the Spirit Transformation Technique until he separated his spirit from his body and told his Wood Clone to guard it.
• Rikuto entered Tsunade’s mental world, hugged her, and told her he had learned the technique after emptying Root’s collection of forbidden jutsu.
• Rikuto sensed a powerful chakra approaching the Land of Hot Water, dismissed it as a passerby, and left Tsunade’s mental world.
• Rikuto possessed a Yugakure Chunin and found that he could use his own chakra, Sharingan, and Wood Release through the man’s body.
• Rikuto tested various ninjutsu on the nearby terrain, then left the Chunin’s body and returned to his own while the confused man woke among the destruction.

After returning to his own body, Rikuto sensed a powerful stranger peeping at women’s baths and recognized him as Jiraiya. He warned Tsunade, Shizune, and Karin, and they prepared to lure the intruder closer.

• Rikuto dismissed his Wood Clone and studied the Flying Thunder God Technique while Tsunade, Shizune, and Karin went to the hot springs.
• Karin proudly told Tsunade about treating patients, then shouted that she would surpass Rikuto, who teased her from the men’s bath.
• Rikuto sensed an unfamiliar Chakra moving between bathhouses and used Wood Eye to spot Jiraiya peeping from a hidden corner.
• Rikuto warned Tsunade, Shizune, and Karin that a powerful pervert was approaching, and they dressed to confront him.
• Tsunade, Shizune, and Karin loudly complimented one another to draw Jiraiya closer while Rikuto watched.