Shikigami Summoning in Konoha

Chapter 22: Awakening

"Reward for the first four-star spirit: 50 magatama!"

"Awakening unlocked!"

"Summoning conditions unlocked!"

"Magatama!? Awakening!? Summoning!?"

Katsuragi was momentarily overwhelmed by these notifications until the Three-Tailed Fox and Snow Woman called out to him a few times. After reassuring them that he was okay, he began to examine the new messages.

"50 magatama is straightforward enough, a clear gain."

However, Katsuragi felt a twinge of regret; it would have been nicer to get 100 magatama, enabling him to summon a third spirit.

"Awakening…"

Katsuragi studied the newly available information. The Three-Tailed Fox reaching four stars meant it had hit its limit, and awakening was the process of breaking beyond this limit. By awakening the Three-Tailed Fox, not only would her innate talents be enhanced, but she would also gain the ability to cultivate on her own.

Although Katsuragi could no longer help her increase her power through star upgrades, as long as the Three-Tailed Fox was diligent, she wouldn't have to stay stuck at four stars.

"Wow, that's expensive!"

The items required for awakening were newly listed in the shop, including four types: Fire Wheels, Wind Talismans, Water Carp, and Thunder Drums, each available in low, medium, and high grades.

For the Three-Tailed Fox's awakening, he needed sixteen low-grade Wind Talismans and eight medium-grade Thunder Drums.

Though this didn't sound excessive, the prices made Katsuragi gulp. Items that were easily farmable in games now cost 5,000 for low-grade, 10,000 for medium, and 30,000 for high-grade each.

This meant he needed 320,000 gold coins just to awaken the Three-Tailed Fox, a staggering sum considering he had spent only 110,000 to elevate her from two stars to four.

An awakening costing three times more than all previous upgrades left Katsuragi with a bitter smile. In the short term, he had no chance of affording it, and given the Three-Tailed Fox's lazy nature, even if awakened, she might not bother to train much.

"Sigh."

After exhaling deeply, Katsuragi moved on to the next item, the unlocked summoning conditions, which confused him a bit. It seemed he was still missing something; he only knew that having a full star rating and awakening were parts of it. He suspected that bringing the spirit out of the courtyard might be related as well.

However, just the step of awakening was already a hurdle, let alone the unknown conditions.

"Ah, gold coins, gold coins!"

As he lamented his dwindling gold reserves, Katsuragi initially thought that with increased power and bounty rewards, his wealth would grow, wondering what he'd do with excess coins. But the awakening's cost had dispelled that notion.

Even upgrading an R-grade spirit required three times the price, not to mention SR and SSR grades. He didn't even want to calculate those costs, knowing they were far beyond his current capabilities.

"What's wrong, Katsuragi? You look unhappy," the Three-Tailed Fox inquired, seeing him sigh repeatedly.

"It's nothing," Katsuragi waved off her concern, then stood up to address the visibly happier spirit. Since her upgrade to four stars, his own strength had also surged. Though he hadn't gained any new special moves, he did acquire new abilities.

For instance, when he used the Three-Tailed Fox's mystic energy in attacks, a certain amount of the damage would convert into life force for himself, essentially healing him. Additionally, as battles wore on, his speed could temporarily surge, becoming even faster.

"Fox Sister, Snow Woman, I'm going to head out!"

After spending some time in the courtyard with the spirits and eager to test out the Three-Tailed Fox's new power, Katsuragi excused himself. As he returned to his body, he noticed some changes.

"Feels like the Fox Sister's speed is a lot slower here!" After testing his speed indoors, Katsuragi frowned, realizing that while he was indeed faster than before, he was considerably slower compared to the Three-Tailed Fox in the courtyard.

"Is it due to the limits of my body?" Katsuragi wondered. It was plausible that his four-year-old body couldn't handle the enhancements from a four-star Three-Tailed Fox.

There was also the possibility that inheriting the spirit's power wasn't a full transfer but only a partial one. Either scenario would take time to verify, so Katsuragi wasn't in a rush. With his current strength, as long as he was cautious and had enough stamina, even ninja wouldn't be a threat to him—though he couldn't threaten them much in return, unless he ambushed them.

Despite feeling a bit down about the awakening, Katsuragi was overall pleased with achieving his first four-star spirit and the bonus of 50 magatama. Once he figured out how to gather another 50, he could attempt to summon a third spirit.

"Let's go spar with Neji!"

Happy with his progress and eager to share, Katsuragi decided to find Neji and share his joy—which meant demonstrating his enhanced strength with his fists.

As spring brought new life to the Village Hidden in the Leaves, with trees sprouting fresh leaves and flowers blooming, Katsuragi headed towards the small forest where Neji often trained.

"Huh!? He's not here? Maybe I came too early."

After a quick search failed to locate Neji, whom he knew had been practicing here lately, Katsuragi felt a bit puzzled. Just as he was about to leave, his ears picked up a faint sound. While not as acute as a rabbit's, his enhanced senses as a four-star mystic fox detected some activity in the distance.

He also caught a whiff of Neji's scent, so he decided to check it out, reasoning that it was still within Hyuga territory and likely safe.

"That kid Neji, daring to secretly change his training spot!"

Arriving at the new location and spotting the familiar figure training under a tree, Katsuragi felt a mix of annoyance and amusement. If not for his enhanced abilities today, Neji might have successfully evaded him, though that seemed to be his intention.

"Good afternoon, Neji!"

"Who's there!?"

Startled by Katsuragi's voice, Neji quickly looked towards the source. Seeing Katsuragi sitting casually on a branch with a grin, Neji was momentarily dumbfounded, then somewhat frantically said,

"How... how are you here? I was sure that I..."

"Sure of what?" Seeing Neji stop mid-sentence, Katsuragi teasingly pressed for an answer.

"Nothing!" Neji regained his composure and, relieved that he hadn't revealed his efforts to find this secluded spot just to avoid Katsuragi, asked somewhat irritably, "What do you want?"

"What do I want? Well, of course…"

End of Chapter 22