Chapter 61: Talent in Sealing Jutsu
Chapter 61: Talent in Sealing Jutsu
"Seal!"
On Monday afternoon, in the Southern Forest, Mu Yue was practicing the One-Finger Seal Jutsu that Kushina had taught him. As a jutsu meant to seal chakra, Mu Yue decided to test it on his Shadow Clone.
"Unable to gather chakra. Success," the Shadow Clone reported back.
"However, it feels like using full power would break it instantly," the clone added.
Mu Yue nodded. No wonder Sensei Sarutobi had mentioned that this sealing technique had little practical use in battle. Although he had just learned it, the fact that his clone, with only half his chakra, could break free so quickly was telling of its limitations.
"But I guess I can still consider it learned. Perhaps I have a talent for sealing techniques?" Mu Yue thought to himself.
Kushina had taught him this jutsu the night before, and he had mastered it in less than a day. By Kushina's standards, he was indeed a prodigy when it came to sealing jutsus.
To be precise, he had practiced for less than half a day. He had trained for a while last night and then again for a short while in the afternoon.
Mu Yue's mind raced with possibilities—was it due to the original body's innate talent, his own abilities, or a combination of both?
The reason didn't matter as much as the fact that this was undoubtedly good news. Even without considering the future and more powerful sealing jutsus, he could already glimpse a ray of hope for breaking free from Danzo's curse mark.
After studying books on sealing and curse marks and learning a new sealing jutsu, Mu Yue realized that curse marks were essentially a specialized form of sealing jutsu.
The Tongue Curse Seal was, in its essence, a sealing technique, albeit a rather unique one.
Sealing jutsus could generally be undone in two ways. The first was to break the seal with an overwhelming amount of chakra. The second was to use a corresponding release technique to undo the seal.
Mu Yue didn't think relying on chakra to break the seal was a reliable method. The Tongue Curse Seal was of a fairly high level, and if he could break it with raw power, defeating Danzo wouldn't be much of a challenge.
Thus, Mu Yue intended to learn more sealing jutsus, study the Tongue Curse Seal, and ultimately develop a release technique for it.
He had intentionally kept one of his Ninja Skill Proficiency Scrolls unused, specifically for sealing jutsu.
The system rewarded him with direct knowledge of corresponding nature transformations whenever he mastered a chakra attribute ninja technique that he didn't already know. Therefore, Mu Yue speculated that raising a sealing jutsu to a proficient level would also grant him some insight into sealing techniques.
Mu Yue didn't plan to use the proficiency scroll on the One-Finger Seal. He felt that this jutsu was akin to the Body Replacement Technique in the realm of sealing and that using the scroll on it would be a waste.
After concluding his disciples' training for the day, Mu Yue headed straight to the main district.
Since Kushina and Sensei Sarutobi had treated him to a meal the day before, it was only fitting that he invite them over to his place for dinner.
Today, Mu Yue prepared stir-fried eggs with chili peppers, tempura, and braised potatoes with meat.
Mu Yue's personal favorite was the stir-fried eggs with chili peppers. It was a dish his mother often made for him in his previous life.
Mu Yue loved eggs in all forms—steamed, boiled, fried, or scrambled—and he also enjoyed spicy food. Hence, he rarely made eggs and chives at home, opting mostly for eggs and chili peppers.
He first cracked the eggs into a bowl, quickly whisked them with chopsticks, then added the chili peppers and stirred before pouring the mixture into the pan.
Even with the Chef skill boosting his culinary abilities beyond his mentor's, whenever he cooked this dish, memories of his previous life surfaced.
"Mu Yue, what's wrong? Are you worried about your own cooking being too spicy for you?" Kushina teased, noticing that Mu Yue hadn't eaten the chili pepper stir-fried eggs after serving himself.
"It's amazing how delicious eggs and chili peppers can be when fried together," Sensei Sarutobi complimented.
He wouldn't have thought to combine chili peppers and eggs in a dish, let alone fry them together like this.
"Yes, eggs and chili peppers are a great combination," Mu Yue agreed.
As the three of them ate, their conversation turned to the sealing jutsu Mu Yue was currently studying.
"Mu Yue, can you perform the One-Finger Seal now?" Kushina asked.
Mu Yue shook his head. "Every time I rehearse it in my mind, it goes smoothly, but I just can't seem to execute it properly. It feels like something is missing."
Mu Yue didn't intend to reveal that he had mastered it in half a day; that would be too shocking a revelation, especially since Kushina had said she learned it in a day.
Wherever Kushina was, there were sure to be Anbu keeping watch. He didn't want to make his abilities seem too extraordinary.
He planned to pretend that it had taken him seven days to learn, neither too genius-level fast nor too slow, but still indicative of a talent for sealing techniques.
"That's normal. Very few people can learn it in a day. You're well within the normal range," Mizukage said reassuringly.
He was concerned that Kushina's previous comment might affect Mu Yue's mindset.
"Yes, as long as you can learn it within a month, there's no problem," Kushina added.
"Feel free to ask us if you have any questions. Don't be shy," Kushina said between mouthfuls of food.
Mizukage nodded in agreement, assuring Mu Yue that they were happy to help.
"As long as you don't mind the trouble," Mu Yue said with a smile.
...
Thursday afternoon in the Southern Forest on the outskirts of Konoha.
"Obito, eighty-five questions. Might Guy, thirty questions." Mu Yue announced the results of that afternoon's battle.
"Only eighty-five!" Obito's face lit up with excitement.
He felt that the brutal beatings he'd endured from Kakashi were finally paying off. This was the fewest number of questions he'd received since the change in combat rules, indicating his progress—he was getting hit less and landing more successful strikes himself.
Obito planned to use his 40% training discount that day, do 10% of the questions immediately, and then spread out the remaining 50% over time. After allocating the questions, he even felt that the total number wasn't too overwhelming.
"Thirty questions! I can't believe it!" Might Guy clenched his fists in disbelief. This was the most questions he'd received since the change in rules.
Even with the maximum training conversion rate, he'd still have to answer twelve questions.
"Great job, you two! Your progress has been remarkable. If you want to spread out your questions today, I'll even waive the interest," Mu Yue said with a smile.
Obito's eyes lit up at the prospect of being able to spread out his questions even further.
Might Guy thought about it and realized that without any interest, it was like getting something for free. He figured he might as well take advantage of the offer, so he also requested to spread out his questions over time.
After the training session, Might Guy sought out Kakashi to ask for his help in conducting an intensive training regimen.
Obito's progress had sparked a strong sense of crisis within him. Although he still had a significant advantage, he hadn't been allowed to use ninjutsu during the battles, so he hadn't even been fighting at half his strength.
Might Guy recalled Mu Yue's words about how combat was also an important aspect of improving one's strength, not just the training-oriented battles with Obito but also real fights where one gave their all.
"Full strength?" Kakashi queried.
Might Guy nodded in confirmation.
"Then I won't hold back," Kakashi warned.
Might Guy tensed his muscles, ready to unleash his taijutsu at any moment.
However, in the instant after Kakashi finished speaking, a large tree shot out of the ground and wrapped around Might Guy, immobilizing him.
Before Might Guy could even process that Kakashi had used a ninjutsu, the tree disappeared, and Kakashi was standing over him with a kunai pressed against his throat—the battle was over.
Might Guy realized he had fallen victim to Kakashi's genjutsu.
"The road to becoming the strongest is a long one," Might Guy thought to himself, having been taken down in an instant.
"Please, let's go again!"
Although the road was long, Might Guy refused to admit defeat!
(End of Chapter)
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