Why in the world would they want to do that? The whole point of a summoning jutsu is to summon something with abilities that humans don't have. [Like frogs that can spit oil, or ferrets that can slice down entire forests, or giant dogs that can track you and... bite... really hard...]

No way, seriously? How has the village not heard about this before now? [Minato would have said SOMETHING, surely. People haven't been going missing since Orochimaru's lair was discovered. So then... we're back to the genjutsu and/or afterlife theory. Neither of which make any sense but what else IS there?] Can you tell me where we are, right now?