"So? Is it good?" Retsu asked with a grin as he leaned closer, watching Xia Lan bury her head in food, her lips shiny with oil.
"Mhm! Mhm!" Xia Lan nodded vigorously while chewing, her cheeks puffed out as she focused seriously on eating.
"Then…" Retsu asked casually, his tone probing, "you'll agree to sign the summoning contract now?"
"Uh…"
Xia Lan froze.
She glanced reluctantly at the grilled fish still half-finished in her hands. Struggle flashed clearly in her red eyes.
"No! I don't want to lose my freedom!"
"Relax, you won't," Retsu explained helplessly.
"After signing with me, I'll only summon you when I need help. Once the fight is over, you can cancel it and go back anytime. It won't affect your normal life at all."
"Huh? Really? You're not lying?" Xia Lan immediately looked up, staring at him suspiciously with wide red eyes.
"I swear," Retsu raised his hand solemnly.
"And it's a two-way contract. If you're ever in danger or need help, you can summon me too. I'll come fight for you."
"Really…?"
Xia Lan tilted her head, hesitating for a moment.
Finally, she clenched her teeth and nodded.
"Fine, I'll agree! But…"
She looked down at her fish, her voice softening.
"Next time we meet, you have to grill fish for me again."
"No problem!" Retsu beamed.
"Every time I summon you, I'll bring you fresh fish. As much as you want."
He then took a scroll from his back.
This was a summoning scroll he had specially prepared for this moment and had been carrying with him all along.
"Let's sign it now. After that, I'll teach you how to use the technique."
He spread the scroll on the ground and explained while demonstrating.
"I've already prepared it. You just need to write your name with your blood, then press your handprint."
He pointed to one side.
"You sign here as the summoned party. I'll sign on the other side."
As he spoke, Retsu bit his finger and began writing.
Interestingly, his Edo Tensei body normally had no blood at all.
But when using special techniques like summoning contracts, blood would still flow normally.
It was yet another reminder of how mysterious and powerful this forbidden technique was.
Retsu quickly wrote his name and pressed his bloody handprint.
Then he handed the scroll to Xia Lan.
Imitating him, she extended her claws, cut her fingertip, and wrote her name with blood.
After hesitating briefly, she pressed down her five-finger handprint.
"Is… is this okay?" she asked nervously as she handed it back.
"Perfect."
Retsu checked it carefully, confirmed the contract was complete, and rolled the scroll back up.
Excitement flickered in his eyes.
"Want to test it now?"
"Yeah!" Xia Lan nodded eagerly.
"Stay here. I'll go summon you from over there," Retsu said, walking more than ten meters away.
He bit his finger again, smeared blood on his palm, formed seals rapidly, and slammed his hand on the ground.
"Summoning Jutsu!"
A black summoning array spread across the ground, radiating faint chakra.
At the same time, Xia Lan felt a strong connection surge through her mind, and instinctively, she accepted it.
The next instant, two clouds of white smoke exploded.
One at her feet.
One at the center of the array.
When the smoke cleared, Xia Lan was no longer by the campfire.
She was standing right in front of Retsu.
"It worked!" Retsu couldn't hide his smile.
"I can't believe it actually worked!"
"Wow! That's amazing!"
Xia Lan stared at her hands, then back at the distant campfire.
Her eyes widened, her tail standing straight up and swaying excitedly.
"I really teleported instantly!"
"Try canceling it," Retsu said. "I'll teach you how."
He explained the method to her.
"Mm… I think I can feel it."
She closed her eyes and focused on the connection, following his instructions.
"Poof!"
With a soft sound, her body turned into smoke and vanished.
At the same time, smoke gathered by the campfire, and Xia Lan reappeared there.
"This is so fun! Way better than smoke bombs!" she shouted happily, her tail swishing even harder.
She rushed over and grabbed Retsu's sleeve excitedly.
"Quick! Teach me how to summon you too! I want to try!"
"Slow down, I'll teach you," Retsu laughed.
Casually, he reached out and patted her head.
Her soft short hair felt surprisingly nice.
"Mm, hurry up!" Xia Lan urged, completely absorbed in her excitement, not noticing his little move at all.
She dragged him toward the wooden house.
"Heh, cat heads really do feel great," Retsu thought smugly.
With a flick of Earth Style, he extinguished the campfire and followed her.
Soon, they arrived in front of the wooden building.
"Huh? Why is there a house in the forest?"
Xia Lan circled it in surprise, poking the wooden wall.
"Did you build this?"
"I made it with jutsu. Just a temporary place," Retsu said, opening the door.
"Come in. I'll teach you slowly."
"Oh!" Xia Lan hurried after him, closing the door behind her and climbing the stairs.
Retsu opened a door beside the bedroom.
"This room is yours. Stay here for now and leave after you learn reverse summoning."
He had deliberately built an extra room for her.
As for whether she would cooperate—
He had never worried.
With catnip, feather toys, yarn balls, and more prepared, he hadn't expected grilled fish alone to do the trick.
Much smoother than planned.
Of course, if she really refused, there was nothing he could do—
But that seemed unlikely.
"Oh…" Xia Lan nodded and was about to step inside.
Suddenly, she stopped.
Her eyes widened as realization hit.
"No, wait! I can't stay here!"
She shook her head vigorously.
"I still have to complete my big sister's mission and gather information about the Shikon Jewel!"
She slapped her forehead in frustration.
"I can't believe I almost forgot my assignment!"
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