Seals and Chakra

Reo sat in his clan’s basement. The clan elders had forgiven him (mostly) his previous trespasses and were allowing him to do research in preparation for the Chuunin exams. Gaining access to the room had warranted a large amount of begging that he wasn’t used to, but he came down here for a reason.

That reason was that he couldn’t get much stronger before the Chuunin Exams. His training methods had amplified his power greatly, but it was extremely tiring. He needed to train still, but he would do just light training from now on. It would be designed to keep him in shape rather than to further his skills. Doing this meant no clones and a lot less time training so that he could wake up and actually move the next day. So, Reo decided that his best bet was to create new jutsu. It seemed all the best did that.

[Post 1; 152]

While it was true he had yet to master everything the clan had to offer, it couldn’t do any harm to experiment on his own. In fact, he found he really enjoyed his experimentation with the Curse. He could only dream of what type of abilities he could develop or unearth in his clans archives. The information on these scrolls was far more in depth and theoretical than the one Reo had read previously.

Still, the work was tedious and he couldn’t invite Fuu to come help him this time. She wouldn’t be allowed down here since it was considered their inner sanctum. This room housed all the secrets of their clan.

Reo strolled around the room, thinking. What could he use? Better yet, what was his clan good at? They were a clan focused around protecting the world from Shukaku - an evil chakra beast of some kind. What good would that be during an exam?

No! You’re thinking too small, Reo. The exam wasn’t what was important. The dragons were important. He had to remember to keep that in mind whenever planning out what abilities they had. That would make a huge difference. Actually, didn’t his clan had some information on sealing Shukaku? There were rumors of it being sealed into a person before. Perhaps he could find a scroll on that information in particular.

[2;227]

With that in mind, Reo began to look for scrolls on sealing. There were a few things Reo noted about the room. First, the scrolls were stored on walls or in crates. The room was so dusty that it made things difficult to read, but the crates and wall shelves were labeled. They were just labeled poorly. One shelf was simply labeled jutsu. Another was labeled archives - which could mean basically anything. A third was thankfully labeled sealing, so Reo began to dig into that shelf. The first scroll he pulled down was somewhat helpful.

“Let’s see. So sealing works by storing chakra within a symbol? What happens if that symbol breaks. In the blood protection curse I created, it is nullified when the symbol is destroyed. That didn’t seem like a good method of sealing a creature as powerful as they say Shukaku was. After-all, this creature inspired an entire clan to try to stop him. There must be more information on this somewhere.” Reo said as he read the scroll. It detailed how to perform a simple seal and the mechanics that made it work - but it didn’t detail why they worked. For instance, the scroll said that a symbol was needed but didn’t say why that symbol was needed or what happened if the symbol was scratched. Surely someone scratching that spot wouldn’t unleash a powerful monster. No, they had to function differently than curses somehow.

[241;3]

Reo pulled another scroll from the shelf. He was beginning to suspect that the sealing shelf focused less on specific seals and more on the principles behind seals and how to perform a seal in general. That was good, since Reo thought he may have to develop his own seal, but it also meant that if they already had a seal capable of holding a dragon that he wouldn’t run across it.

This scroll contained the information that Reo had been looking for in regards to the symbol. It seemed that the symbol was fortified with chakra and was placed on someone in more than a physical sense. The seal affected their entire being and not just that spot. That spot was on their chakra and soul as well - essentially. That was information that made sense to Reo, though part of him wondered if he’d be able to do the same for the curse he had developed. Of course, he wasn’t entirely sure he would want to do the same for that curse. It was a powerful and useful tool that he could use to protect his allies but it was also dangerous. If he had found a way to cement the symbol into their spirits like is done In a seal, then the jutsu could probably not be turned off. That meant that Reo couldn’t be around Fuu without taking damage for her. That definitely didn’t seem like a good move strategy wise. No, Reo decided that he didn’t want to try to incorporate that process of sealing into the curse.


[262;4]

Reo placed that scroll down - more questions filling his mind. How did the seal know when to trigger? How did it know what was sealed within it? what made one seal strong enough to hold a massive monster and another too weak? There were so many questions that Reo simply didn’t know the answer to. He would need to know all of these if he wanted to create the jutsu he was thinking of. Though, jutsu didn’t seem the right word for this kind of work. This was...something else...Reo looked at the label on the section he was at that said sealing. Underneath that there was another, slightly more difficult to make out, word. “Fuinjutsu”. Yes that would describe this work quite well.

Reo picked up the next scroll. Sadly, this one didn’t exactly answer any of the questions he had posed - though it did answer one he didn’t know to ask. This scroll detailed different kinds of seals. Odd and even were the most common seals. Odd seals dealt with chakra and the like while even dealt with other aspects. Reo was faced with an existential question at this point. Rather, he was faced with what he felt was. What kind of seal should he use? The question relied upon the idea of what constituted a person and what he wanted to seal of them. Well, he was wanting to seal a dragon but he assumed the concepts would still apply.


[244;5]

What made up a living being. Reo sat there in the dusty floor, a large scroll detailing sealing techniques in front of him, pondering this question. Well, there was the body. The physics aspects of a living being were important. But...chakra enhanced the physical aspects. Chakra...and soul. What was a soul? The monks taught that the soul was a combination of the body and mind. But, isn’t that what chakra was too? Reo wasn’t sure how deep into the philosophy he could go but the idea of chakra and the idea of the soul was beginning to sound very familiar. Or at the messy very enticing to him. With that in mind, Reo decided to go with an odd seal. The numbers seemed to matter, as well. Five point seemed to be the strongest. Reo had a couple ideas why that could be from reading the scroll. First, there were five main elements. Reo’s training told him that much. These elements were wind, fire, lightning, water, and earth. Reo used the wind element and Fuu used the fire and wind elements. Reo wasn’t quite sure what element tsukasa used but he knew Shao had access to wind. The seals probably didn’t require actually using the element, that would be a bit much - at least it would be for Reo since he only had access to one type. The number probably just symbolically represented each of the elements in order to attain balance.

At least, that was Reo’s theory as to why the five point would be the strongest method of sealing. Still, did that mean that all fuinjutsu using the five point seal would have the same strength? That seemed too simple. There had to be more to what caused one seal to be strong and another to be weak.



[302;6]

Reo dug out another scroll. Luckily, this one did begin to dig into some of the questions he had delved. Unluckily, much of what it discussed was theoretically rather than the true application of the question. The question regarded the strength of the seal. The scroll listed opposing viewpoints on this. One viewpoint argued that a stronger seal required a higher level of chakra. EssentiLly, if you keep pouring into the cup then it would widen and get heavier. The argument against this was that some seals used less chakra but were more powerful. This argument stated that it wasn’t the amount of chakra but how it was used. This scroll detailed how the five point seal is best for balance and the chakra should be in fine threads tying it all together for the most strength. Reo had to agree with this argument - though it was for a reason that wasn’t listed. Reo knew that there was some way to contain the monster known as Shukaku. In this case, the first argument had inherit fallacies. The argument of more chakra equals more powerful seal turned sealing into a battle of wills and a battle of strength. If this beast was strong enough that no one had managed to kill it but they had managed to seal it, then it seemed clear that it was stronger than the people who had sealed it. In that case, the seals lower must come from the intricate uses of chakra used to tie the seal together.

The last question that Reo had about seals pertained to how they knew what triggered them. The scrolls had somewhat explained how they knew what had gone into them with the odd and even sealing idea. Triggering, though? Reo still needed to figure that out. He couldn’t make a dragon sealing jutsu and not know if he accidentally put a trigger into it that would release the dragon onto the world once more.


[326;7]

Reo rolled up the current scroll and began to look for another one. There weren’t many left in the crate by this point. He grabbed the largest scroll he could find. Being the last large scroll in the bunch, this one has what he wanted to find. The trigger. Interestingly, the theory was quite complex and Reo has trouble understanding it. It seemed to involve the intent of the seal. It involved focusing on the intent when the seal was filled with chakra. Very metaphysical stuff.

Reo sat up. He had been on the floor for hours and it had been a while since he last worked on something for so long. He was growing accustomed to Shadow Clones and acting without them was difficult for him. He had been wanting to use the shadow clone jutsu to research faster at every opportunity but forced himself not to do so. He couldn’t afford to be tired during the Chuunin exams and the Shadow Clone method left him sore and tired for days afterward due to the increased stress that it placed him under.

Reo pushed himself to a standing position and looked around with weary eyes. The lighting was dim in the underground room and he was craving the warmth of the sun. Still, he couldn’t exit this room yet. First, he had to write this seal down on a blank scroll so he didn’t forget it. Then, he wanted to make a few more. He had uncovered more knowledge than he had anticipated and already thought of another seal he could make. It would have different properties...wait. He could make two more. He had ideas for two more right now at least.

So, Reo ran over and began to look for a blank scroll. He couldn’t imagine there wouldn’t be one in the room somewhere. Sealing. Summoning? That was weird, he didn’t know of any summoning jutsu affiliated with his clan. Reo walked over slowly and pulled a scroll off the shelf. Blowing the dust off it, Reo opened the scroll. The jutsu he found within was far too complicated for Reo to fully understand. However, what he could understand was that this wasn’t a kuchiyose no jutsu in the traditional sense. In fact, it didn’t seem like it was actually summoning anything. It was about...gods. It was strange to see a scroll detailing the mechanisms for summoning what his clan believed to be a god.

[409;8]

By all rights, Reo believed it too. Oddly enough, part of this scroll detailed how to summon specific aspects of these deities. Some seemed to call only upon their body for protection or their chakra or stamina for strength. Yet… one part called upon their mind.

Reo’s mind began to fire on all cylinders. It was as if he had an idea the likes of which he had never thought of. What if he sealed the consciousness of a deity within himself and gave it the release trigger of being put under the effect of a powerful Genjutsu? If so...well, Genjutsu was said to operate based off consciousness. The theory went that a large shock of chakra or if another consciousness invaded one’s mind. What if...that could work? Could that be a way to provide some Genjutsu relief to him? The problem would be the trigger - of course. He would need make it so it blocked a sufficiently powerful Genjutsu but not weaker ones so that it wouldn’t be wasted on a weak sense based genjutsu.

Reo quickly stashed that scroll as well and began his search for a blank scroll anew. It took him about half an hour to find a blank scroll lying against the wall. Luckily, it was in a small pile of blank scrolls and there was a quill and a bottle of ink next to it.

Reo began to write. He had never been much of a writer - though being a monk he had learned the skill. Tonight, he wrote far more than he had ever imagined he would choose to do. He wrote as if he were running out of time - which he very well could have been considering how close the Chuunin Exams were. He would need to leave in the morning. After what felt like an hour, Reo sat with four scrolls at his feet. He was covered in ink, but the scrolls themselves were immaculate. He had placed a sheet of sealing material - similar to what one would do with a piece of artwork so that it wouldn’t smear. Then, he rolled them up. On the outside, he wrote what each of them contained. The first was what he called Kami Fuin. That was the last jutsu he had come up with. It focused largely on sealing the consciousness of a deity within himself so that it could prevent Genjutsu. He wasn’t exactly sure if he had chosen the strength threshold correct - so he had also added some notes to explain his reasoning on a few matters.

[428;9]

The second was the sealing technique he had developed. It was capable of storing a massive amount of chakra and - he assumed - the essence of a person or creature within it. That was the seal he planned to use on a dragon if he summoned one from the Ryu Caller. With that in hand, he all but had to be the one to use the Ryu Caller. He was the only one who he could trust to properly seal the creature. Others may try to create systems to keep it under their control or just unleash it on the world. He couldn’t have that.

The third seal was a generic ninjutsu sealing jutsu. While he said it was generic, it utilized all of Reo’s sealing knowledge and should be capable of sealing just about any variety of ninjutsu on one’s body. While the other scrolls had a large amount of depth to them, this one wasn’t as deep but had a large variety of things it could do.

The fourth scroll was focused on storing stamina. While stamina was a different concept than chakra - it wasn’t that different as a resource. The scrolls he read seemed to indicate that energy other than chakra was stored within one’s body. That energy was one’s stamina. If Reo was correct, then he would be able to use this seal to store stamina and keep fighting in a pinch.

Now, to test them. Reo glanced around the room. His clan was full of monks and they - strangely - were quite fond of tattoos. He had designed some of the Seals to wear off - similar to the curse he made - but that wouldn’t be beneficial for some of these other seals. They required more power than he had found manageable in a simple ink or chakra marking format. In the corner Reo spotted the tattoo set. It was a needle with black ink that was designed to deposit the ink within one’s skin where it would stay - theoretically - for the rest of one’s life.

Reo walked over to it and closed his eyes. Was he ready to tattoo himself for the sake of testing a seal?

No. He wasn’t ready, but he had to be. People would be looking for the Ryu Caller and they would have powers far beyond his own. He had to do whatever it took to protect the scroll.

Reo picked up the needle. He couldn’t reach his own shoulder, so Reo began to tattoo the symbol on the right side of his chest. It didn’t hurt as much as he thought it would, which Reo was thankful for. In the end, he had a tattoo on his chest of an Ouroboros - though it was overlaid and interlocked with a custom variation on the Gojisou symbol. Reo placed his hand on it and pushed chakra into it.

The tattoo glowed for a moment. Then, nothing.

Reo could feel the difference though. The seal was complete but it felt...powerful. It contained something beyond his understanding.

It had worked.

One scroll tested. Three to go.

Reo promptly  grabbed the tattoo needle again and got to work. This one was placed over his left chest. It was also similar to the Gojisou icon but it was combined with a symbol of protection known as a Triquetra. That symbol was meant to be used as a way to allow him to safely store up his own stamina.  

Once done, Reo stared at his work. The two tattoos had been painful to place, but not as bad as he thought they would have been. Reo promptly tried to store a little bit of stamina. It came as second nature to him once the seal was there and he could feel his arms and legs growing heavier as he did. He stopped before he ran out of stamina completely [50%].

The last two weren’t the type that he could test right now. One was a seal for a variety of ninjutsu but he wasn’t sure just what he wanted to make a seal of yet, besides unless he had a particularly powerful ninjutsu he wanted to continuously recharge after use - a tattoo would be a bad idea. The last was the Dragon Sealing Seal which, of course, he couldn’t use without such a beast present.

Reo took a step but felt something...off. The seal he had placed to seal the deity within him didn’t feel powerful enough. It felt...unstable. Reo closed his eyes and concentrated on the seal. What could be wrong with it? It felt as if...yes, it wasn’t that the seal was wrong. The chakra just wasn’t laced tightly enough. Sadly, Reo had done everything he could to make it as strong as possible.

He would need some last minute chakra control training to perfect this seal.


Three hours later, the sun was beginning to come up and Reo found himself at the oasis. He stood carefully on the water. Getting to the middle was easy, but Reo had an interesting idea about making this training more difficult. Instead of focusing chakra in the feet, he would cover himself with chakra and practice a variety of movement techniques. Crawling, walking on hands, rolling. The amount of chakra needed for it would be far greater.

Reo closed his eyes and visualized the chakra spreading up from his feet and covering his entire body. When he opened them, he was happy to see that it had, but something about the chakra felt off. Other than the bit at his feet, it seemed to move a little quickly and...sharply? Had he unconsciously surrounded himself in wind Chakra?

Reo rolled on the water. The chakra lashed it upwards and Reo plunged deep beneath its depths. He floated to the top, the chakra dissipating as he stopped focusing on it.

Okay, so it was wind chakra. That was good to know at least. Reo slowly made his way out of the oasis and stood up - robes drenched with water from the lake. As he had just gotten tattoos, Reo promptly used a little bit of wind chakra to blow the water off the tattoos. He didn’t want them to get marred. Then, he stared at a tree.

Another idea was forming in Reo’s mind. What if he used that full body wind chakra to punch a tree? Could he channel….

Reo stopped thinking and surrounded himself in chakra the same way he just had. It was a thin layer, as he had been trying to make the chakra as weak as possible while still allowing him to walk on water. Reo dashed forward and punched the tree with a taijutsu technique known as the Ransaa. The chakra flowed suddenly from all around his body to coalesce in his fist and blast through the tree. He could feel the tree shake before suddenly falling backwards.

The inside of the tree was splintered and unevenly cut. The wind chakra had evidently flown out his fist and into the tree dealing damage directly. This was a dangerous but useful skill to know.

Reo turned his attention back on the water which he was trying to walk on. It was an easy task to walk, but rolling was far more difficult. He built up the chakra but made sure it wasn’t elemental chakra this time before stepping back towards the warm water. He rolled.

And he didn’t sink. Reo had to quickly adjust the chakra placement and amounts as his weight pushed in different amounts but he was able to do. Reo began to roll all over the water.

Reo went home by afternoon dead tired. The last thing he did before falling asleep was store the rest of his stamina. [49%, for a total of 99% stored].


[1,302; 10]
[TRAINING: Awareness X3, Endurance X 5]
[Learned all currently approved Custom Jutsu]
[Placed Seals: Kami Fuin
+ -Fuinjutsu: Eien no tatakai no inkan- >: 99% stored]

Used training weights, Clan ability, and Quick Learner for training.
Completed Chakra Forest for a third time: 15% Chakra Control - bringing total up to 60%