Chapter 114: Emotionally Constipated and Summon-Blocked Too

Chapter 114 - Emotionally Constipated and Summon-Blocked Too {Chapter might be a bit heavy BUT before jumping on any conclusion read the notes at the end.} ~~~ As soon as Utakata's words fell, Ren froze. He hadn't expected his sensei to be this observant, so much so that he could notice the details Ren himself had ignored. A quiet unease settled in his chest as he reflected, 'Even I didn't know I was this emotionally unstable. But back then.' His thoughts drifted to the day he brought Eiji's broken team back to the village. One clear thought had etched itself into his mind, 'If I hadn't intervened, Eiji would have died.' That event had opened a door in his mind, one he hadn't been ready to face. 'That's when I started thinking, maybe all the characters not shown in canon would eventually die too. That fear stuck with me more than I expected.' As Ren lost himself in reflection, Utakata continued, his voice calm and steady. "The most recent change," he said, "was when you defeated Itachi. I don't know what sort of rivalry you had with him, but after that match, after you sat beside him on the ground, you stabilized. From that point until today, I haven't seen any fluctuation in your emotions." He paused, watching Ren closely. "That's a good thing, I hope. But Ren," Utakata stepped forward and gently placed his hand on the boy's head, his tone softening, "a shinobi's foundation is remaining calm in all situations. But that doesn't mean you suppress your emotions. It doesn't mean you deny them." Ren's eyes dropped slightly as Utakata spoke. "All this time, you've been denying who you really are," Utakata went on. "Before, you avoided people, stayed polite, talked little. Then you changed, but only in method. You became loud, more casual, more talkative, even rude at times. But it was still a mask. Your real self remained hidden." He began to walk slowly across the training ground, motioning for Ren to follow. "When you were a baby, I looked after you a few times," Utakata said. "Once, I asked you if you wanted to become a shinobi. Do you remember what you said?" Ren thought, but no memory came to mind. Utakata answered for him. "In your broken voice, you said something very few shinobi ever say out loud, 'Shinobi are not good. They are not human.'" He let out a sigh. "I don't know where a child learned something like that, but you weren't wrong. Over time, shinobi stop being human. That's the reality." He stopped and turned, facing Ren directly. "But do you know what people do when that happens?" he asked. "They find reasons to stay human. They form friendships. They fall in love. They start families. They hold onto whatever feelings remind them that they're still alive, still themselves. Or. They abandon everything." Utakata's expression darkened slightly. "Ren, the way you keep avoiding your real emotions, the way you keep putting on different faces, it leads down the path of abandonment. I can't say whether that path is right or wrong. But. I don't want that for you." He looked into Ren's eyes. "I want to see you live a fulfilling life. I can't teach you how to do that. All I can do is advise you, do something. Don't keep running." He sighed once again and turned away. "Meet me here tomorrow at the same time," he said simply, then flickered away without waiting for a response. Left alone in the stillness of Training Ground 1, Ren remained frozen for a long moment. Then, slowly, he looked down at his hand and opened and closed it. 'Was I really doing all that?' he thought. 'Was I hiding behind all these layers? I. I don't even know anymore.' He placed his hand over his chest and frowned. 'I always thought I was just adapting, but maybe I was just avoiding thing subconsciously without even knowing about them.' He looked up at the sky and exhaled slowly. 'It was easier when I didn't know these things. But now that I do, it just feels weird.' Turning to leave the training ground, he pulled out the scrolls Utakata had given him. A small smile formed on his face. 'Well, whatever. Let's go learn some jutsu.' Hidden in the shadows of the trees, Utakata remained a moment longer, silently watching Ren as he left. 'So you've chosen to deflect again.' he thought. 'I wonder how long you'll keep avoiding yourself, Ren. But when that day finally comes, I just hope your real self wins, and not this fake one you created to shield yourself.' With that, he too disappeared into the wind. ~~~ The next day soon arrived, and Ren once again arrived at Training Ground 1. When he got there, Utakata was already waiting, standing with his hands behind his back. Neither of them brought up the events of yesterday. Instead, they simply sat down on the grass facing each other as if everything was normal. Utakata began directly. "Although I gave you the two jutsu scrolls yesterday, I have something else for you today." From his jacket, he pulled out a large, worn scroll wrapped in red cord. He placed it carefully on the ground, and Ren immediately recognized it. "This is the toad summoning scroll," Utakata explained. "I borrowed it from sensei so that you can make your contract. Though summoning animals in combat isn't always feasible, having a summoning partner can help in many tricky situations, combat or otherwise." Ren looked at the scroll with interest but also a bit of skepticism. 'I'm not particularly excited about toads. In the original series, summoning wasn't that game-changing outside the Pain arc. Still, there's Senjutsu potential here. And the toads could help me with that.' He turned to Utakata and asked, "Sensei, do you also have a summoning contract with the toads?" Utakata nodded. "Yes. All three of us from Team Jiraiya team signed contracts with the toads. It wasn't just for combat though, it gave us a stable communication channel when needed." Then, he unfurled the scroll with a flick of his wrist, revealing the blank spaces for signatures. "Alright, sign your name with your blood. Then I'll show you how to use the summoning technique." Ren nodded. He bit his thumb, let a drop of blood fall onto the scroll, and signed his name in the empty space. But the second he finished writing, something strange happened. The blood markings began to burn and vaporize, vanishing from the scroll entirely. Both of them frowned. "That's... odd," Utakata muttered. He asked Ren to try again. Ren repeated the process, bit his thumb, signed again, but the same thing happened. The signature simply vanished. Utakata's brow furrowed. He bit his own thumb, made a series of quick hand signs, and slammed his palm on the ground. [Summoning Jutsu]. There was a small puff of smoke, and a small, olive-green toad appeared on the ground. "Kimura," Utakata said, "please inform Elder Fukasaku to summon himself to my location." The toad gave a croaky affirmation and vanished with another puff. A few minutes later, there was another burst of smoke, and a raspy old voice echoed through the training ground. "What's the matter that you had to summon this old toad, Utakata-boy?" When the smoke cleared, an aged, white-mustached toad with greenish skin stood before them. Fukasaku, one of the two elder of Mount Myoboku has arrived. Utakata greeted him respectfully. "Elder Fukasaku. Thank you for coming. I summoned you because something strange is happening. My student, Ren here, Juichi's son, tried to sign the toad summoning scroll, but the contract won't take. As soon as he finishes signing, it disappears." Fukasaku turned to Ren, examining him with his large toad eyes. "Could you try again for me, child?" Ren nodded and repeated the process a third time. Just like before, the blood signature vanished into smoke. Fukasaku's expression grew a bit serious. "Hmm, it may be that some other summoning realm has placed a claim on this boy already. Something powerful enough to block the scroll's acceptance." He turned to Utakata. "Call the others. We need to confirm something." Utakata nodded. He bit his thumb again and performed another summoning. This time, a massive plume of smoke erupted, and a calm, feminine voice rang out, "It's been a while, Utakata-sama, Fukasaku-sama." When the smoke cleared, a large white slug stood before them. Katsuyu of the Shikkotsu Forest has also arrived. Ren's eyes widened. 'Sensei has contracts with two of the Three Great Holy Lands?!' But Utakata wasn't done. He summoned one more creature. There was a sudden puff and a hissing sound. A large white snake slithered out of the smoke, flicking its tongue. "Utakata... we agreed you wouldn't call all three of us at the same time." Before Utakata could explain, Ren gasped. "You have all three? You have summoning contracts with all three Holy Lands?!" Fukasaku chuckled. "Hoho, don't underestimate your sensei, child. Utakata is the only person in history who's been approved by all three Holy Lands to form summoning contracts. It's been, centuries, perhaps more, since such a precedent was made." Katsuyu added, "Yes. Utakata-sama's compatibility is beyond exceptional." The snake hissed, clearly annoyed. "Enough with the praise." Utakata gestured calmly. "Fukasaku-sama, can you explain why I called you all here?" The old toad nodded. "Katsuyu, little snake, please check whether the boy is compatible with your respective summons." The snake was about to refuse but Fukasaku glanced at it and then nodded. The snake slithered forward and rose up to eye level with Ren. Ren locked eyes with the snake and got ready for any sudden movements, after all snakes = Orochimaru. It rested its head on Ren's forehead and sent a pulse of chakra into his body. After a few seconds, it pulled back and said curtly, "He is compatible, but something's blocking the connection. And it stinks. It's foul." With that, the snake disappeared in a puff. Katsuyu moved closer and asked gently, "Ren-sama, may I have a drop of your blood?" Her antenna-like eyes fluttered adorably, and Ren found himself smiling. He crouched down, bit his thumb, and dropped blood into Katsuyu's open mouth. 'If it were the snake, I'd say no. But Katsuyu is cute so it's trustworthy,' he thought. Katsuyu stayed quiet for a bit, processing, before spitting the blood back out and saying with a surprisingly excited tone, "Ren-sama's chakra is remarkable. His yang chakra is extremely refined, it almost reminds me of-" "Please, the result," Utakata interrupted. Katsuyu composed herself. "Yes. Ren-sama is highly compatible with our contract. However, something. Something external, is interfering. Much like the snake said, it's a protective block. It's not powerful enough to scare us off, but it's deliberate. Some other summoning realm has claimed him." Fukasaku frowned again. "And it's strong enough to interfere with even our contracts? How curious." "But it isn't overpowering," Katsuyu clarified. "When I tried to push against it, it resisted, but in a protective way. Its first priority wasn't to reject us, but to keep Ren-sama's blood safe." Utakata turned serious. "We need to figure out what summoning realm this is. Fukasaku-sama, your suggestion?" "Teach the boy the Reverse Summoning Technique," Fukasaku said. "It's the only way. If another realm is so determined to claim him, then summoning him there directly might give us answers." Ren raised a brow. "Is it safe?" Katsuyu replied, "Yes. The protective energy seems aligned with your safety. It won't harm you." With that, both summons puffed away. Utakata looked at Ren with a sigh. "Nothing ever goes normally with you." Ren smiled and gave a peace sign. "I'm built different." Shaking his head, Utakata handed him a seal and began instructing him. "This is the Reverse Summoning Seal. It was developed by Sensei and the Third Hokage for situations like this, where people don't have a summon and wants to find a suitable summoning land for themselves. It locks your chakra coordinates to this place, so you can always summon yourself back if things go wrong. I'll show you how to use it." Ren studied the instructions carefully, absorbing everything. Once he was ready, he placed his chakra into the seal and gently stuck it to the ground. He double-checked everything one more time and looked at Utakata, who gave a final nod. "Be careful. Protective or not, this is still an unknown summoning realm. Don't drop your guard." Ren took a breath, formed the hand seals, and slammed his hand onto the ground. 'Let's see who's gone to such lengths for me that they would even block the big three,' he thought. In the next instant, he vanished in a puff of smoke. ~~~~ {What do you think? Is Ren really subconsciously rejecting things so he doesn't know about them, or is Utakata just being delusional? Anyway, since Ren let go of it for now, we'll do the same.} {Double release today so gimme the stones} {You can join my pat-reon if you wanna see a Gen Z going up against a boomer (adjusted for ninja world of course)} { h t t p s : / / w w w . p a t r e o n . c o m / / Z e e n o n } {You know what else to do.} {STONES!!!!}