"Lord Ren!"
After Ren signed his name on the summoning contract—
the giant white lizard that had been disguised as a castle finally spoke.
"My name is Chūbei-maru, chief of the Lizard Clan."
"It is an honor to form a contract with a strong master like you."
Seeing how polite the summon was, Ren couldn't help feeling a little favorable toward it.
Unlike the arrogant summons from Mount Myōboku like Gamabunta, or the domineering Manda from Ryūchi Cave, this one had proper manners.
"Chūbei-maru, right?"
Ren nodded.
If it had been the arrogant type of summon that looked down on humans, he wouldn't have minded teaching it a lesson.
"So how do I release you?"
The contract binding it here wasn't a normal summoning seal.
A special method was required to remove it.
Otherwise—
even if its former contractor Shusaki Gōzu had died decades ago,
Chūbei-maru should have returned home long ago.
"You only need to form six hand seals in order: Tiger → Snake → Rat → Rooster → Horse → Ram."
Chūbei-maru replied.
"The technique left by my previous contractor will then be undone."
Before it even finished speaking—
Ren had already completed the seals.
"Release!"
"ROAR—!"
The ancient castle shook violently.
A powerful storm swept across the ruins.
Then—
a gigantic white lizard appeared before Tsunade and Shizune.
Its body was enormous.
Tsunade stroked her chin thoughtfully.
"With a body that big…"
"It could swallow Gamabunta whole without much trouble."
"Even Jiraiya's giant toad summon from Mount Myōboku might only be about the same size."
Of course—
size didn't necessarily equal strength.
Although the lizard must have been powerful at its peak,
Mount Myōboku was one of the three great summoning sacred lands.
Its clan heritage was far deeper.
Gamabunta himself wasn't even the strongest toad there.
Meanwhile this lizard was likely already one of the strongest members of its own species.
"Lord Ren, thank you very much for freeing me."
Chūbei-maru spoke respectfully.
Its enormous tongue suddenly shot forward—
rolling up the summoning scroll Ren had just signed—
and swallowed it.
Its hoarse voice echoed across the ruins.
"I must return to the homeland of the Lizard Clan now."
"If you ever require assistance, you may summon me or other members of my clan at any time."
Moments later—
the exhausted summon disappeared in a cloud of smoke.
"Today turned out to be quite productive."
Ren smiled.
The summoning contract with the Lizard Clan would definitely be useful.
He was especially interested in their chakra concealment technique.
That ability was worth studying.
Tsunade nodded.
"That concealment ability was impressive."
Even ordinary Uchiha Clan Sharingan couldn't detect it.
Even Ren's powerful sensing ability had failed.
On a battlefield—
that kind of ability could be extremely valuable.
"Congratulations, Ren."
Shizune said with a smile.
She herself had a contract with Katsuyu from Shikkotsu Forest, so she didn't need another summon.
However—
with her chakra reserves, she couldn't summon a giant Katsuyu like Tsunade could.
Just as Ren was about to reply—
he suddenly paused.
His gaze turned toward the distance.
Those familiar chakra signatures made him chuckle.
"Looks like some 'old acquaintances' are here."
"Root again?"
Shizune frowned angrily.
"They really are persistent."
"Tsunade-sama, could Ren's technique have failed?"
Tsunade frowned slightly.
"That would be troublesome."
Ren shrugged.
"No."
"Danzō isn't capable of breaking it."
"I think they're not here for us."
"If they were, they wouldn't send so few people."
Among the chakra signatures—
he sensed several Root ninjas.
But also two unfamiliar and unusual chakra sources.
He already had a guess about the situation.
Before Danzō lost consciousness—
Ren had given him several commands through Tsukuyomi:
Send people to Kusagakure to bring Karin and her mother back to Konoha. Search for the ruined Shusaki Castle and obtain the summoning contract from the creature trapped there. Collect and organize secret techniques, forbidden jutsu, and sealing techniques stored by Root and Konoha.
But unexpectedly—
Danzō had assigned both missions at once to the same team.
And Ren had accidentally arrived here first—
obtaining the contract before them.
It was honestly a bit ridiculous.
"Someone got here first?"
"Is that Tsunade of the Sannin?"
"Retreat!"
Soon—
several black-clad figures appeared in the distance.
But the moment they saw Tsunade and Ren—
their faces changed.
They immediately turned to leave.
They didn't know Ren's real strength.
They only knew that their leader Danzō Shimura had nearly died not long ago.
And they believed the culprit was Tsunade.
To them—
this legendary medical ninja was terrifying.
Their leader had even issued an order:
Root members must not provoke Tsunade again.
If a mission conflicted with her—
they were allowed to abandon it.
"Wait."
Tsunade suddenly spoke.
She noticed something.
The Root ninjas were carrying two unconscious females—
both with bright red hair.
She immediately became suspicious.
"What are those two you're carrying?"
The Root members stiffened.
They were instantly on guard.
Their leader hesitated before answering.
"Lady Tsunade…"
"These two are survivors of the Uzumaki Clan."
"We rescued them from Kusagakure."
"They were being used as 'healing medicine' because of their special chakra."
"Since the Uzumaki Clan was once allied with Konoha, we intend to bring them back to train them."
They couldn't reveal that it was Danzō's order.
All Root members carried curse marks preventing them from exposing their leader.
"Uzumaki Clan?"
Shizune looked shocked.
"Kusagakure… healing medicine?"
Tsunade's face darkened.
She looked at the young woman's arms—
covered with horrific bite marks.
Her fists clenched.
"Those bastards from Kusagakure…"
"This is unforgivable."
She knew the Uzumaki Clan's abilities well.
Without needing an explanation—
she could guess exactly what had happened.
Then Tsunade spoke coldly.
"Leave them here."
"You can go."
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