So, our future Fourth Hokage Minato Namikaze mentally prepared himself and walked over to greet Shiyu Uchiha first.
Shun Mizutani and Taki Tachibana had already mastered the basics of swordsmanship. At that moment, they were sparring—one attacking aggressively while the other focused on defense—with Shiyu Uchiha acting as their referee.
Only when Minato approached closely did Shiyu notice someone coming. He turned around in surprise, realizing who it was, and felt quite shocked about why this person had come looking for him.
Caught off guard, Shiyu reacted slightly late. So Minato took the initiative and greeted him first: "Hello, mind if I join? I'm Minato Namikaze, a fourth-year student at the Ninja Academy."
Although it was their first meeting, Shiyu immediately sensed Minato's strong presence and charisma, so he replied without hesitation: "Hello Upperclassman Minato, I'm a third-year student. My name is Shiyu Uchiha. These two are my classmates, Shun Mizutani and Taki Tachibana. It's truly an honor to meet you, and I'd love to become friends."
Even though they had never spoken before, Shiyu—who came from another world—naturally found himself interested in Minato. In fact, he had already learned about Minato through various channels long ago.
He greatly admired Minato's achievements, even feeling that Minato seemed more like a transmigrated soul than he was himself. Though eager to meet him earlier, there simply hadn't been a suitable opportunity. Now that fortune smiled on him, he naturally accepted immediately.
At this moment, the two sly foxes each assumed the other didn't understand them well, yet neither realized the other had already thoroughly investigated their background.
These two, genuinely wanting to become friends, stood together chatting casually and found surprisingly smooth communication between them. Naturally, those who initially wanted friendship grew even more enthusiastic.
Even Shiyu momentarily forgot about Shun Mizutani and Taki Tachibana, who were sparring nearby. It wasn't until later that he remembered them—by then, their match had already ended, making him realize his lapse, which sparked their curiosity.
Sensing the shift in atmosphere, Shiyu hurriedly introduced Minato to the pair. With Minato helping lighten the mood, everything remained light-hearted and pleasant. Thus, Shiyu invited Minato to have dinner together, further strengthening their bond.
Then Shiyu took the lead, bringing out the ingredients and preparing to grill. Naturally, Minato—who often lived alone and thus became an excellent chef—politely stepped forward to help. Seeing this, the two girls started a fire as well. Together, they began their meal, during which the two girls gradually became more familiar with Minato.
After dinner, the four tidied up before Minato took his leave first. Then Shiyu escorted the two girls home, briefly introducing Minato to them again and advising them not to underestimate him, before heading back himself.
When he returned home in the evening, Shiyu Uchiha planned to continue his sword practice. After realizing the flaws in his training, he made adjustments and started improving rapidly. However, Uchiha Shizhi stopped him that day, clearly with something else in mind.
Because Shiyu's chakra reserves had significantly increased recently, he was now ready to perform the Summoning Technique. Uchiha Shizhi intended to establish a summoning contract for him.
The Uchiha Clan had many different summoned beasts—each branch typically having its own. For example, Shadow Ravens and Illusionary Butterflies were commonly used, and some even trained wild creatures into their very own trusted summoning beasts.
However, the most commonly chosen summoning beasts were undoubtedly the Ninken—cats of the Cat-Summoning Clan. Before Konoha was founded, the Nekomata Clan—who took care of the ninja cats—had long been close allies of the Uchiha, serving not only as informants but also as suppliers of weapons.
"Mom, am I signing a contract with a ninja cat?" Shiyu asked curiously.
"Yes, indeed, Shiyu. If you were able to master genjutsu, you would be eligible to form a pact with either a Shadow Raven or an Illusionary Butterfly. But given your current level, the ninja cat is your only available option. Do you have something else in mind?" Uchiha Shizhi gently replied.
"Not really, I was just curious. Let's keep going," Shiyu shrugged indifferently.
After saying that, Shiyu didn't receive an immediate response. Instead, Uchiha Shizhi led him directly to the courtyard and said, "Shiyu, watch closely—this is the Summoning Technique!"
Then, she slowly formed several hand seals, bit her finger, pressed it onto the ground, and shouted, [Summoning Technique!]
In a flash, a ninja cat appeared before them, holding a scroll in its mouth. Placing the scroll down, the cat spoke, "Greetings, Lady Shizhi and Master Shiyu. I've brought the summoning scroll for you, nya."
"Thank you, Yana. Here, this is for you—a little reward for all your hard work," Uchiha Shizhi handed over a can of catnip drink.
"Oh my, Lady Shizhi, you're truly too kind. Thank you so much, nya!" Yana happily clutched the drink to his chest while expressing his gratitude.
Though sometimes greedy, Yana wouldn't dare to show any attitude toward Lady Shizhi; after all, as a devoted cat lover, Uchiha Shizhi never summoned them empty-handed.
Then Yana unrolled the summoning scroll and said, "Master Shiyu, please sign here. Once the contract is complete, you'll be able to summon various ninja cats—including me."
Shiyu nodded and looked at the scroll carefully. The names listed on it were divided into two rows—one for ninken and one for ninjas—with names like his mother's and sister's already present. Without hesitation, he signed his name onto the scroll.
Then Shiyu said, "Yana, give me a brief introduction. Otherwise, I won't know enough about you, and that might make things difficult during summoning."
"Alright, Lord Shiyu Uchiha," Yana said with a nod. She briefly introduced over a dozen ninken—including herself—before pointing to the last one in line.
Pausing slightly, she continued, "Lord Shiyu Uchiha, this is Saya. She's a rising star within our ninken family. Though not yet fully grown, her abilities are impressive. Her speed rivals that of a speed-specialist Chunin, and she's great at sneaking around and gathering intel.
She's eager to go out into the world and make a name for herself. However, our clan feels uneasy about letting her go since she's still quite young. Lord Shiyu Uchiha, would you mind if she pays your household a visit?"
Her words sparked a bit of interest in Shiyu Uchiha. Seeing that Uchiha Shizhi didn't object, he replied, "I'd be honored. Please bring her by—I'd like to meet her and talk."
Among the ninken, there were often those who grew restless—especially those who had recently reached maturity and longed to explore beyond their homeland. It was rare, however, for someone not yet fully grown to express such a desire. Most underage ninken would simply visit the cat-summoning clan as a form of travel experience.
A few, though, sought greater power and would instead come to the Uchiha Clan. After all, the Uchiha household was famously known for having so many cat slaves.
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