"Under the dense fog, a giant insect-like monster with a human face appeared in the village. It started eating people, never seeming to get enough..."
"In an effort to kill this monster, the daimyo of the Land of Sea hired ninjas from Kirigakure in the neighboring country. But the monster was absurdly strong, and no matter how many ninjas were sent, none could defeat it."
"Shortly after, various giant mutant summoning beasts began appearing on the island. They, too, fed on human flesh or each other..."
"The daimyo knew that if this continued, everyone would die. So, he fled to another island overnight with his people, and the surviving villagers followed suit..."
"Since then, this island has become a paradise for summoning beasts."
"The terror of that insect-like monster is unimaginable. It's not only huge but its eyes are spiral-shaped, possessing extremely powerful visual abilities, including the use of genjutsu!"
"It feeds on humans and other summoning beasts. Anything it swallows, it absorbs their abilities. Because it has devoured hundreds of ninjas, it can now use their ninjutsu!"
"The scariest part is that it evolves!"
"The more it eats, the faster it evolves. It's now in its second evolutionary stage, but I don't know how many stages it will go through. I only know that if it ever reaches its final form, it will be a disaster for the world!"
"The former Mizukage of Kirigakure, Yagura Karatachi, named it the Ultimate Summoning Beast. He sent batch after batch of powerful ninjas to try to kill it and save the villagers, but so far... none have succeeded..."
At this point, Honoka clenched her fists, tears streaming down her face as she choked out her words.
"The current hellish state of Mother Island in the Land of Sea is all because of that monster!"
"I was an orphan living here when the disaster struck. The Mizukage saved me. He said I had a special power and was destined to be a savior. He left me here with his subordinates to help suppress the monster and other summoning beasts..."
"I tried so hard to unleash my potential. I thought I had succeeded, but today I caused the deaths of so many allied ninjas. It's all my fault..."
As Honoka finished her story, Natsuhane remained silent, simply watching her.
Knowing the plot, Natsuhane understood that things were far more complicated than they seemed.
Even if he told her his suspicions, she probably wouldn't believe him.
He decided to see for himself...
By now, the ground had stopped shaking.
Everything was calm again.
"Honoka, do you know where the monster is?"
"I do. The Kirigakure ninjas built a secret laboratory near its lair to observe it closely."
"Good. Take me there. I'm going to remove it from here."
"No! Even the Mizukage couldn't handle it. How can you? You're my savior; I don't want you to die."
"Don't worry, I won't die. If you really want to repay me, just listen to me."
...
Honoka and Natsuhane left the wooden hut. Guided by Honoka, they navigated through the dense forest and soon arrived at an underground secret laboratory.
Inside the lab, Natsuhane was surprised to see that the walls were made of transparent glass, beyond which lay the monster's lair.
A giant, caterpillar-like monster with a human face lay sleeping in the cave. Its belly was swollen, clearly having eaten a lot recently.
Natsuhane marveled, "This lab is quite elaborate..."
"Yes, it was built to facilitate the extraction of its genes. There are several hidden holes in the glass. When it sleeps, the staff would insert needles through the holes to extract its genes..."
"Oh? What do they do with its genes?"
"I'm not sure. Maybe they're trying to find its weaknesses..."
Natsuhane shook his head with a smile.
Such a naive girl was rare.
Being deceived to this extent without realizing it was impressive.
Honoka didn't notice Natsuhane's expression. She was looking at a photo on the table, tears streaming down her face.
"Uncle Yamada, Uncle Keimori, I'm so sorry..."
The two men in the photo were the same ones who had been eaten by the giant spider earlier.
Natsuhane didn't bother comforting her or disturbing the sleeping monster. Instead, he began rummaging through the lab.
"What are you doing?" Honoka asked, alarmed by Natsuhane's behavior. "Aren't you here to kill the monster? Or are you just here to steal something?"
Ignoring her, Natsuhane continued his search.
"Stop! That's my Uncle Yamada's stuff!" Honoka cried, trying to intervene.
Natsuhane finally found what he was looking for in a hidden cabinet—a notebook. He flipped through a few pages and let out a sigh of relief.
"Found it."
He tossed the notebook to Honoka. "Everything is recorded in here. See for yourself."
"?" Honoka took the notebook hesitantly and began to read:
"Research on Summoning Techniques, Modifications, and Creations..."
"Summoning beasts are an indispensable force in warfare. Having powerful summoning beasts can be a decisive factor in battles."
"Mother Island in the Land of Sea has an ideal geological environment, perfect for the survival and enhancement of summoning beasts."
"Therefore, with the village's approval and funding, I will lead a team of scientists to conduct a multi-year summoning beast modification project on Mother Island."
"April 1st: Released a large number of genetically modified summoning beast seedlings on Mother Island. Step one begins..."
"April 30th: All seedlings have developed. Observations show they started cannibalizing each other as soon as they developed consciousness and grew rapidly..."
"May 15th: Major discovery! Some seedlings were eaten by other animals and insects on the island. The animals that consumed the seedlings began to mutate and grow quickly..."
"June 30th: The seedling that consumed the most others has finally matured. It is incredibly powerful with outstanding abilities..."
"July 3rd: Unexpected development. The seedling... has started eating humans."
Honoka was stunned as she read.
The truth was horrifying...
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