Reverse Summoning Technique, I Became a Summoning Beast?

"I'll go, I'll go!" Hatsumi waved her hands eagerly, unable to contain her excitement after seeing Great Ferocity's majestic display. She wanted to see if she could summon some powerful bugs too—preferably those giant ancient ones, the cooler the better.

"Alright, go ahead and try. Just follow the method I taught you—it's simple." Tenzo nodded, a hint of nostalgia in his voice. He remembered being just as excited as Hatsumi and the others back then. Summoning Beasts were a ninja's best partner; he'd completed many missions with Great Ferocity's help. The beast had accompanied him through his weak early days, growing alongside him, forging a deep bond.

Hatsumi rolled up her sleeves and mimicked Tenzo's earlier movements, biting her finger until it bled and pressing it to the ground just as he had.

Tenzo spoke up from the side, "Don't forget to channel your Chakra and feel the presence on the other side of the summoning array. Not all Summoning Beasts are as good-tempered as Great Ferocity. Some are hot-headed, and a few will even attack those trying to form a contract with them. If something feels wrong, you must break the technique immediately."

Hatsumi nodded, feeling her Chakra drain as she focused on the sensations from the other side of the technique. She communicated patiently, using the thread of Chakra as a bridge. Through the array, she could sense all kinds of presences on the other side.

There was a soft, wet blue energy like a lump of mud; a black-and-white, fluffy, round energy that looked fuzzy to the touch; and a twisted, maddening purple tentacle-like energy radiating a sinister aura.

Hatsumi swam through the vast ocean of energy. Some were strong, others seemed weak, but none satisfied her. Just as her Chakra was about to run out, she spotted an energy form she liked in her vision—a mass that flickered between vibrant green and withered yellow, not particularly abundant in energy.

But for some reason, Hatsumi felt a "this is the one" instinct. The shifting light seemed to notice her too. She extended her Chakra thread toward it, and after a moment's hesitation, it responded.

"Pfft~" A small puff of smoke dispersed. Hatsumi collapsed to the ground, drained, her Chakra nearly gone. But she'd succeeded in forming the contract just in time.

"I... I did it." Hatsumi panted, opening her palm under everyone's puzzled gaze. There lay a tiny cicada, like an exquisite craft made from brown wood and leaves.

Its head was brownish-yellow, textured like tree rings. Its broad, translucent wings overlapped like two leaves, each bearing similar vein patterns—a typical netted leaf vein structure with a central stem radiating outward. Its body was dull and rough, dark as dead wood.

Its wings weren't fresh green but withered yellow, like autumn leaves about to fall. The wingtips curled slightly, chipped like leaf edges, looking frail and far from healthy.

Tenzo glanced at the sickly little cicada Hatsumi had summoned, shook his head slightly, and patted her head in consolation.

"Don't be discouraged. You can have multiple Summoning Beasts. As long as your Chakra reserves are sufficient, you can contract another one. But I don't recommend contracting too many at once—it puts a heavy burden on the caster. And you can always cancel a contract, so don't lose heart." Tenzo assumed Hatsumi was disappointed with her summon and tried to reassure her.

"Ah, I think it's fine. Actually, I'm really happy with this little guy. He might be weak now, but I believe he'll grow strong. Teacher's Great Ferocity started out weak too, right?"

"And Teacher, you said yourself that Summoning Beasts and ninjas choose each other. Wouldn't it be cruel to abandon someone you chose? I've decided—I'm going to raise Bugs into a Summoning Beast that surpasses Great Ferocity!" Hatsumi was genuinely cheerful. To her, this bug suited her taste; strength was secondary.

Tenzo paused, then shook his head with a wry smile. He'd always focused on value and strength, habitually thinking only powerful Summoning Beasts were worth raising. Now it seemed his students were teaching him a lesson.

Zi Xu leaned in to look at the bug in Hatsumi's hand. Hmm, it seemed he'd have another rival on his path to becoming the strongest trainer in the ninja world. Meanwhile, the Silent Clone lying in the room snoring turned over and went back to sleep.

Seeing Hatsumi successfully contract a Summoning Beast, Chino refused to be outdone. Without waiting for Tenzo's reminder, she formed hand seals, bit her finger, and completed the talisman in a smooth, fluid motion. Tenzo nodded inwardly—a model student, quick to learn.

Chino closed her eyes, using her Chakra to communicate with Summoning Beasts in another dimension. Amid the dazzling array of energy clusters, she picked one suited to her. Unlike Hatsumi, she chose quickly.

Just as Zi Xu and Tenzo were about to examine Hatsumi's bug for special abilities, white smoke erupted around Chino. She dispelled the technique and stepped out of the mist.

"Huh? That fast? What's your Summoning Beast?" Hatsumi put away her bug and squeezed in, her head barely peeking over Zi Xu's shoulder since she was shorter.

Chino wore an odd expression—one Zi Xu and the others had never seen before, as if she didn't know whether to laugh or cry. She extended her left leg, and then everyone saw her Summoning Beast.

It was a fluffy creature with two dark circles around its eyes, like a bold "eight" character. Its nose resembled a small cake, the inverted-triangle tip like a piece of dark chocolate atop white cream. Its pink little paws hadn't fully turned black yet, and it was curled up, clinging tightly to Chino's leg.

"Wow, that's criminal. Absolutely jail-worthy." Zi Xu commented admiringly. Back in his past life, this would earn you years of picking up soap in prison. Wasn't this a panda? And a cub at that!

"A Panda Cub. Cute, but lacking in combat power. Hmph, I hope it won't hold me back." Chino said that, but Zi Xu could see her lips barely suppressing a smile. She was fighting the urge to pet it, even trembling slightly.

"So cute!!! Squee squee squee~" Hatsumi had no such restraint. She lunged at the little panda, hugging and squeezing it, pinching its fluffy short ears and soft pink paw pads. The cub was terrified, gripping Chino's leg even tighter.

Chino lifted the black-and-white fluffball from her leg and cradled it in her arms, blocking Hatsumi, who was practically drooling. She nodded at Zi Xu, who was still pondering how many years in prison this warranted. "Hurry up, it's your turn. I'm curious to see your Summoning Beast."

Tenzo glanced at the Panda Cub in Chino's arms, silently chanting, "Great Ferocity is the best. Not getting to pet it is fine. Great Ferocity is the best."

Zi Xu snapped out of his daze. He didn't want to contract anything weird—just something normal. His standards weren't high. From what Chino and the others said, it was just about picking an energy cluster. Pick a normal one, right? Thinking this, he began forming hand seals, but then the long-absent system prompt appeared again.

code
[Temporary Quest: Reverse Summoning Technique]
[Quest Requirement: Use the summoning technique in reverse]
[Quest Description: How can a ruler of the seas be afraid? Challenge the unknown to hone your kingly aura]
[Quest Reward: The host's willpower will be enhanced]
[Accept Quest?]

"..."

"What's wrong? Go ahead and contract. It's not that hard—you can do it." Tenzo, seeing Zi Xu hesitate to form seals, thought he lacked confidence and encouraged him.

"Oh, right." Zi Xu initially wanted to refuse—after all, "enhancing the host's willpower" sounded like something that would happen just by doing it. But in that moment, for some reason, he linked contracting a Summoning Beast to his past life's gacha pulls... Gacha! Gacha!

That thought perked him right up. He'd heard about superstitious rituals to improve pull rates, and now he couldn't stop. The system's temporary quest felt like a gacha tutorial—he accepted!

As he performed the reverse technique with both hands, he felt the connection to the summoning array. Before Tenzo could finish his encouragement, Zi Xu had already completed the seals. Since Tenzo wasn't focused on him, he didn't notice the reversed technique.

Zi Xu's experience matched what Chino and the others described—feeling different energy clusters floating in the void. But before him were several larger ones: a warm, gentle dark-gold energy; a moist, life-filled blue-green energy; and a violent, icy white energy.

There was no way he'd pick that brutal, cold white cluster. He reached for the dark-gold energy. Everything went smoothly, with no surprises.

"Pretty smooth," Zi Xu thought. But then, suddenly, a powerful suction came from the white violent energy. His Chakra thread had no resistance against it and was pulled straight into the white cluster.

In reality, Zi Xu's body also changed. With a "pfft," white smoke appeared—but instead of summoning his beast, he himself vanished.

"Damn, gacha really is a trap. Did I just become a Summoning Beast?" Zi Xu felt the sensation of being transported and thought wryly.

"Pfft~" Zi Xu reappeared in a dim cave. The dripping water and strange smell made him uncomfortable. A long-haired man with simple clothes, snake-like golden slit pupils, and purple eyeshadow stared at him oddly, glancing at his own hands as if unsure if he'd used the wrong technique.