He Was the Summoning Beast Himself (Please Read!)

Yamashiro Aoba held down his sunglasses, which had nearly been blown off. "A summoning beast?"

"No, there's no clone up there."

"What's going on?"

Shizune chuckled. "It's not the Summoning Technique. It's the Transformation Technique!"

Yamashiro Aoba turned to look at Shizune, bewildered.

The Transformation Technique?

This was the Transformation Technique?

Whose Transformation Technique let someone turn into a bird that could fly?

Shizune wasn't surprised at all by Yamashiro Aoba's reaction. She'd been just as shocked and incredulous the first time she saw it.

"This is a version of the Transformation Technique that Genma improved himself."

Shizune spoke with a hint of pride.

Hatake Sakumo said, "This should save us quite a bit of effort. In that case, I'll leave the intelligence gathering to Genma."

It was his first time seeing it too. Kakashi had told him about it before, so he wasn't as shocked as Yamashiro Aoba, but he was still impressed.

After all, being able to turn into a hawk and gain its extraordinary eyesight was astonishing, even just to hear about.

"As long as they're in the mountains or have left behind a trace, there won't be a problem."

Genma didn't hide anything.

As for summoning beasts—

Did he need one?

He was the summoning beast himself!

He left the search to his Shadow Clones, while he and the others returned to the town.

They didn't sit idle, though. They split into two teams and questioned the townspeople separately to gather information.

After all, the town had been raided by Igata Kaito not long ago.

That evening.

Just after dinner, Genma received memories from one of his Shadow Clones.

There was a lead!

They hadn't found their target yet, but they had found a group of people hiding in the mountains.

They were already inside the Land of Rain.

Hatake Sakumo decided they should set out, and the four of them left the town and headed into the mountains.

Then the memories from a second Shadow Clone came in.

"Sensei, there's another lead."

Genma shared what he'd learned. "That group really is a band of bandits. Igata Kaito used to be with them, but he's already left."

"They said he joined a ninja organization and went to the Land of Rain."

Things seemed to have gotten a little complicated.

"Let's meet up with your Shadow Clone first," Hatake Sakumo said.

Genma nodded and continued leading the way.

Half an hour later.

Inside a cave lit by a torch, Genma dispelled his remaining Shadow Clones.

There were seven bandits in all. They stood motionless, each of them immobilized by the Shadow Clone from earlier.

The Shadow Clones that followed had learned more details. Genma sorted through the information and explained, "Igata Kaito was actually the one who gathered these people. This place was only meant to be a temporary hideout."

"But not long ago, after returning from the Land of Rain, Igata Kaito told them he'd joined a ninja organization called Jieyu and was going to become a great ninja."

Yamashiro Aoba looked at the bandits. "So he abandoned them?"

Genma shook his head. "More accurately, they went from being his accomplices to his slaves."

"This place became a fallback for Igata Kaito."

Genma pointed deeper into the cave. "They've stockpiled quite a bit of wealth in there. Igata Kaito made them do it."

"That guy comes back every so often."

Yamashiro Aoba was puzzled. "Why do these guys obey him so readily?"

"They could easily leave. It's not like Igata Kaito can hunt them down, is it?"

"They were branded with Cursed Seals," Genma said.

Shizune was startled. "Cursed Seals? An ordinary ninja couldn't do that, could they?"

Yamashiro Aoba rubbed his chin thoughtfully. "It sounds like Igata Kaito isn't so simple after all."

Genma nodded. "Something about this does seem off."

"These guys killed people the first time they raided the town below the mountain, but after that, they only threatened people and demanded tribute."

"That's probably why there hasn't been any more information about Igata Kaito. After that first incident, the town didn't report anything."

"That matches the information we gathered this afternoon."

Hatake Sakumo walked toward the bandits. "Genma, where are the Cursed Seals?"

Genma stepped forward. "On their right shoulders, toward the back."

Hatake Sakumo tore open one bandit's clothes and, sure enough, found a seal. "This is a Cursed Seal specifically used for tracking."

"Sensei, can it be used to track the person who placed it?" Genma asked.

"Yes, provided you have sensory abilities."

"And the distance could be considerable."

Genma grinned when he heard that. "As it happens, I meet both conditions."

Yamashiro Aoba was surprised again. "Genma, you're a sensor ninja too?"

Genma nodded. "I know a little!"

That sounded like it could make someone want to hit him!

Yamashiro Aoba grumbled silently.

Just then, Shizune raised a question. "Even if these people can help him steal valuables, wouldn't placing tracking Cursed Seals on them expose him too?"

"Does he think the people pursuing him won't notice?"

Genma nodded at her words. There really were quite a few contradictions in the situation.

But many things in the world didn't make sense, especially when it was impossible for people to do everything perfectly.

As the Jonin leading the team, Hatake Sakumo made the decision. "Let's set those questions aside for now. Once we catch our target, we can ask him."

"We'll rest here tonight and begin tracking him tomorrow."

Genma and the others nodded.

The night passed quickly.

At eight in the morning, following his teacher Hatake Sakumo's instructions, Genma fed his chakra into the Cursed Seal on one of the bandits and activated it.

Then, following the connection between the seal and its owner, Genma's sensory range quickly spread as he tracked the target.

"Found him!" Genma said sharply.

Hatake Sakumo immediately gave the order. "We're leaving now. I'll leave a clone here to deal with these people."

If Genma and the others hadn't been there, he would have ordered the bandits executed.

Genma didn't ask what would happen to them.

They had blood on their hands. They deserved to die.

After leaving behind a Shadow Clone, Hatake Sakumo led Genma and the others toward the Land of Rain.

The clone had the bandits carry the stolen valuables to the town they'd visited earlier.

He would return the valuables to the townspeople, and the bandits would be executed by the town's security officer.

With Igata Kaito captured by the real Hatake Sakumo, there would be no danger of retaliation against the townspeople.

After crossing the mountains and entering the Land of Rain, Genma and the others immediately sensed that this place was different.

The sky was gloomy, as though it could rain at any moment.

It was still spring, but the weather felt a little colder than in the Land of Fire, and the cold was damp and clammy.

Meanwhile.

In a desolate town in the Land of Rain.

A middle-aged man with a ponytail, dressed as a samurai with a sword at his waist, stood on a rooftop and gazed toward the Land of Fire. "Heh. So they finally followed me here?"

"Must be ninjas from Konoha, right?"

"Heh, only Konoha's ninjas would come after me."

Igata Kaito sneered. "I hope they're good. Otherwise, they'll all die without a trace~"

He wasn't a sensor ninja, so he could only rely on the Cursed Seals to keep track of those people.

The Cursed Seal had just been activated. Since it contained his chakra, he could sense it too.