Chapter 88 Chikli

"Dip each finger in your blood, press a hand seal on the blank space, and write the kanji of your name on it. The scroll will perform the first summoning, and after that you can summon it at any time with the correct hand seal sequence."

As everyone watched, Sasuke followed instructions, coating each finger in blood and pressing them against a blank area of ​​the scroll.

Then, using the inner edge of his thumb, he wrote the kanji for "Uchiha Sasuke" on it.

The scroll absorbed the blood like a sponge, the red gradually disappearing, replaced by a black color. With a loud bang like a firecracker, a cloud of glittering smoke suddenly appeared in the air in front of Sasuke, like dust.

Then, the wind blew violently, the sound of wings flapping could be clearly heard, and the feathers of a creature were faintly visible in the smoke. There was another flap of wings, and the smoke dissipated like dust, and a summoned beast appeared on the scroll.

It was a slender bird, about the same size as a falcon, mostly white with golden-brown markings, and a sharp hooked beak.

The raptor looked ordinary, except that its feathers seemed to emit a faint glow.

As it tilted its head, light shone on a round light blue gemstone set on its forehead.

The creature jumped and fluttered its wings, and Shikamaru realized that underneath its first pair of wings, there was a second pair of wings hidden.

The raptor looked Sasuke over curiously, seemingly having no interest in anyone else in the room, its attention focused solely on its summoner.

Its piercing golden eyes were framed by soft black markings, and appeared particularly bright in the soft light of the room.

"Hello." It said politely. "I am Chikeli, from the Dapeng clan."

Dapeng? Is it the giant bird in myths and legends? I didn't expect it to really exist.

Shikamaru resisted the urge to exclaim, as he didn't want to disturb this crucial moment between the summoned beast and the summoner.

"Uchiha Sasuke," Sasuke replied, his tone slightly confused but he nodded slightly nonetheless.

Chikli seemed to appreciate this gesture of respect as he bowed slightly in return and spread his four wings.

"Nice to meet you, Master Sasuke," Chikuri said sincerely, leaping forward and landing on Sasuke's lap, his eyes fixed eagerly on Sasuke's shoulder.

It seemed reluctant to fly in such a small space, but was also unwilling to stay on the ground.

Sasuke noticed this and held out his arm, but Chikuri carefully stepped on his forearm, but the sharp claws did not cut the Uchiha's tiered skin.

When Sasuke raised his arm, it jumped onto Sasuke's shoulder.

Chikeli settled down there comfortably, burying his head in his wings and preening some feathers on the second pair of wings.

The second pair of wings is larger than the first and is located closer to the abdomen, much further away from the spine than in normal birds.

This means the creature can flap both pairs of wings at once, making it much faster than any bird.

"Master Sasuke, do you have any questions for me?" Chikri asked eagerly, tilting his head in anticipation.

Sasuke thought for a moment.

"I would be grateful if you would tell me a little about yourself and your race."

Sasuke's polite and formal tone seemed to please Chikuri very much, and it shook its feathers excitedly.

"Of course! As I said before, I am Chikli from the Roc Clan. I am three years old, almost four, and will be fully grown when I am twelve. I am a female golden-winged bird, and the Roc Clan is divided into three clans. Our Golden Wing Clan is the second-class messenger of the Wing Council, and I am the first one to hatch from my nest."

At the end, it puffed up its chest proudly. "We, the Dapeng clan, are the overlords of the sky, the kings of all birds of prey. We have three elders, representing three families, and they are also the largest and oldest members of our race. We are not limited to families when summoning, you can summon any Dapeng from the three families."

Are all the summoned beasts in these scrolls of this rank? Shikamaru wondered. Having them to help him in battle would be a huge advantage.

After Chikli introduced himself and his race, he looked at Sasuke hopefully and moved towards Sasuke's shoulder. "Can you tell me something about yourself, Master Sasuke? We in the Dapeng clan haven't had a contractor for a long time. I admit that I am very curious about you."

Sasuke blinked, a little surprised.

"I guess that's fair," he admitted.

As Sasuke and his new summoned beast were talking in low voices, Sakura nudged Shikamaru gently.

"Your turn, Shikamaru." Sakura said cheerfully, still holding her scroll. "I think I'll save mine for last."

Shikamaru nodded and bent down to pick up the scroll he had his eye on earlier.

He had expected the metal and lacquer scroll to be cold, but the opposite was true, a warmth passed from his fingertips up his arm, warming his palm.

He sat down and placed the scroll on the floor in front of him, Inuzuka Kiba swapped places with him to make room for him, then curled up next to Sakura, with Akamaru snuggling in his arms.

Sakura gently stroked the ninja dog's chin while Akamaru lay comfortably on her lap, rubbing her knees in a coquettish manner.

Shikamaru bit his thumb and pressed the blood into the groove of the scroll.

The scroll responded the same way as Sasuke's second attempt, humming for a few seconds before releasing a low roar and the ring snapped open. He dipped his fingertips in blood and unrolled the scroll.

Shikamaru finally understood why he was attracted to this scroll.

The pattern surrounding the blank contract area bears a striking resemblance to the traditional paintings on all the sliding doors of the main house in Nara, depicting lush forests and running stags.

It’s just that the stag in this painting seems to be dragging light and mist behind it, which is dreamy and beautiful.

Shikamaru pressed his fingerprint and wrote the kanji of his name on it, watching the space in front of him fill up with smoke again.

This time the summoning sound was more melodious, like a violin string being slowly plucked, and a silver mist swirled and exploded in front of him.

When the mist cleared, a petite deer appeared on the scroll. It was larger than any deer Shikamaru had taken care of in the forest, lying there with its legs curled up.

Judging from the newly grown antlers behind its wide ears, it was a male deer - assuming that the female of this summoned beast did not have antlers.

The fawn's fur was a weapon-like metallic grey, with white dots dotting it and flickering along its back. A greyish-white mist drifted from its hair, casting a hazy phantom over the creature.

The little deer blinked its strange white eyes, twitched its ears curiously, and then stood up silently. Its legs were still a little unstable, and it stood up unsteadily, then fell into Shikamaru's arms, kicking its clumsy limbs randomly, and its head resting on his knees.

As it fell, the glowing strands of its fur floated up, making Shikamaru feel itchy even through the fabric.

"Hello." It said cheerfully, as if it was not itself that had just tripped. "I am Weilan."