Reverse Summoning

After nearly a month of practice, Duanmu's mastery of the Chidori had reached the point where he could release it steadily while moving, no longer needing to charge for a long time like he had at the beginning before he could gather chakra.

He could even use the explosive force of Lightning Style while casting the Chidori to make short, high-speed bursts forward. For someone already skilled in taijutsu, that gave him another sharp killing move in close combat.

Sasuke, however, was still stuck at the stage of training the basic form. Though his Sharingan could capture the flow path of the Chidori's chakra, he still could not completely rein in the lightning's violent power into his palm the way Duanmu did.

He stood in the center of the training ground, watching Duanmu easily pierce through the fifth specially made steel plate with the Chidori, and a trace of unwillingness flashed through his black pupils.

He clenched his fists, his knuckles whitening from the force. Chakra churned violently inside his body, yet he still could not break through that invisible barrier.

Duanmu knew the anxiety in Sasuke's heart. He was still worried Sasuke would be as impatient for results as in the original story, that in his pursuit of power he would be blinded by hatred and even choose to defect to Orochimaru.

After all, in the original story, it was precisely that intense hatred for Itachi and anxiety over his own insufficient strength that had led Sasuke astray step by step.

Duanmu looked at Sasuke's clenched fists and slightly trembling body. He could sense the chakra inside him that was almost about to go out of control, as well as the restlessness hidden beneath his cold exterior.

He had to find a way to guide Sasuke, to make him understand that true strength did not only come from relying on extreme power. The bonds of comrades and the right direction were just as important.

But Duanmu also knew very well that Sasuke had always been stubborn. Direct persuasion would likely only disgust him, and might even make him close off his heart even more.

Perhaps he needed to use practical action to let him slowly experience it for himself, to let him know that even without walking the same old road as in the original story, he could still gain enough power to protect himself and take revenge, while also holding on to the things he should not lose.

By now, Naruto had more or less finished training with Jiraiya, and on the way back, Duanmu happened to run into Naruto coming out of the hospital.

"Hey, hey, Duanmu, do you know the Summoning Jutsu?" Naruto rubbed his hands together as he stared at Duanmu with sparkling eyes, and even the ground by his feet trembled slightly because of his excitement.

Duanmu shook his head. "No."

Seeing Duanmu say he did not, the smile on Naruto's face grew even brighter. He had not expected that even Duanmu had something he did not know how to do.

"Then come with me." Naruto pulled Duanmu and ran toward the nearest training ground.

"Hey, Naruto, I have to go back and eat."

"It's fine, I'll treat you to Ichiraku Ramen later!"

After they arrived at the training ground, Naruto immediately began showing Duanmu the Summoning Jutsu.

Naruto quickly formed hand seals and shouted, "Summoning Jutsu!" With a loud slap, a cloud of white smoke rose from the ground. When the smoke dispersed, a palm-sized little yellow toad, furry all over, had appeared before him.

The little guy blinked its round eyes and gave a dissatisfied "ribbit," as if it was not very pleased with this summoner.

When Naruto saw that, his cheeks instantly flushed bright red, and he hurriedly explained in a fluster, "No, Gamabunta! I clearly summoned you!"

The little toad only turned its head away and kicked the ground with its hind legs, looking as if it could not be bothered with him.

Duanmu stood to the side, watching Naruto flounder helplessly, and the corner of his mouth unconsciously curved into a smile—it seemed that even after Jiraiya's guidance, Naruto's Summoning Jutsu was still not very stable.

"Didn't you say you could summon a super huge toad?" Duanmu said with a smile.

Naruto's cheeks turned even redder. He scratched his hair, then rubbed his head a little sheepishly. "Well... maybe my chakra control still isn't that skilled! But next time! Next time I'll definitely summon Gamabunta!"

As he spoke, he even swung his fist hard, as if cheering himself on. But the little toad gave a "ribbit," shot him a contemptuous glance, then kicked off with its four little legs and actually jumped straight onto Duanmu's shoulder. It even stuck out its tongue and licked Duanmu's cheek.

Duanmu froze for a moment, then laughed despite himself. This little guy was pretty good at picking people.

When Naruto saw that, he immediately panicked. "Hey! You little jerk! I'm the one who summoned you!"

He reached out to grab the little toad, but the little guy nimbly dodged, hopping back and forth on Duanmu's shoulder and letting out giggling sounds.

Duanmu looked at the little toad and thought that this was probably Gamakichi when he was young.

"Oh right, Duanmu, do you want to try?" Naruto's eyes shone with anticipation. "Maybe you're super talented and can summon Gamabunta on your first try!"

"But you need to sign a contract with a scroll for that, right? I've never signed one," Duanmu said.

"Just try anyway." Without any explanation, Naruto grabbed Duanmu's hand and transferred a wisp of his own chakra over. "Follow me with the hand seals, focus on the creature you want to summon, then slap your chakra onto the ground!"

Helpless, Duanmu could only follow his instructions and form hand seals with both hands. He took a deep breath, gathered chakra into his palm, and slammed it down toward the ground.

"Summoning Jutsu!" With a soft shout, the expected smoke did not appear on the ground. Only a faint chakra fluctuation flashed and vanished.

Naruto's face instantly fell. "Huh? Why is there nothing?"

When he turned his head again, he discovered that Duanmu had already disappeared.

Duanmu's vision flashed. When he opened his eyes again, he saw pitch-black darkness all around him, and only a pair of enormous eyes in front of him were staring at him.

"This is the first human to come here." The voice was deep and ancient, as if it had come from an abyss stretching back to time immemorial, carrying an indescribable majesty and curiosity.

Those eyes were even larger than Konoha's hot spring pool. Points of starlight flowed within the pupils, and on closer look, they were actually like countless tiny runes slowly rotating.

Duanmu felt all the chakra in his body trembling faintly, as if those eyes had seen through all his secrets, leaving even the deepest thoughts in his heart with nowhere to hide.

He subconsciously tightened his grip on the kunai at his waist and warily looked around, only to discover that he seemed to be in a boundless space. Beneath his feet was a cold, smooth black floor, and when he looked up, he could not see any ceiling. Only those giant eyes suspended in the darkness emitted a faint glow.

"Is this Mount Myoboku?" Duanmu muttered.

"Hmph, are you comparing me to those toads?" That voice carried a trace of barely perceptible anger. The starlight runes in the giant eyes suddenly spun faster, and the surrounding air seemed to freeze in an instant. Duanmu felt an invisible pressure surging in from all directions, making it almost impossible for him to breathe.

"Those noisy creatures of Mount Myoboku are only fit to roll around in mud. I am the 'Star-Devouring Shadow' that dwells in the cracks between dimensions, born from the chaotic energy when heaven and earth first opened. How could I possibly be compared to those mundane summoned creatures?" The voice boomed like a great bell, shaking Duanmu's eardrums until they buzzed, and even the black floor beneath his feet spread with fine cracks.

Duanmu endured the discomfort in his body as his mind raced—this was definitely no ordinary summoned creature. The other party's tone was full of disdain for the toads of Mount Myoboku, and it even called itself the "Star-Devouring Shadow," sounding more like some ancient existence from legend.

His hand, which was gripping the kunai, relaxed slightly. Since the other party had not attacked immediately, perhaps it was not an enemy.

"Then you are?" Duanmu took a deep breath, trying to keep his voice steady.

"Hmph. A dragon. I am the one true dragon in this world!"