She wasn't back yet.
However, I had other things to do. I want resistance seals, they can be used to bind prisoners. Their task is to seal away the strength of the sealed person. It's not that the person loses his strength, he just has to use more for the same effect. So perfect for training. If I get my hands on some it might be a major boost for my attributes.
The downside is that they are hard to learn and even harder to apply. Seal tattoos, the ones I would need, are something only masters of sealing can do. Normally you use seal tags for prisoners, but I wanted to use them for myself.
I may be able to raise my Sealing to 100% with my Game points, however, that would be suspicious and is not something I want. I don't plan to specialize in sealing. I only need the Uzumaki basics. I also don't think that a level of 100 gives you true mastery over a skill. I think it feels more as if you aren't wasting anything when you learn.
Like your brain has normally a 100% memorisation rate, but something is limiting it, which lowers the % rate of learning or mastering a skill. I mean in real life it's the same. The more you learn about something, the easier it will be to learn or use related things.
So just because I might have a sealing of 100% does not mean that I am a master. I merely learn a lot quicker and all related physical skills are a lot easier for me. Essentially still OP, just not god like OP. Thankfully! I do want to be strong, but with effort. Otherwise, life will quickly become pretty boring.
After all the time of learning a craft is often a lot of fun. Cooking, dancing, sex, no one would want to be instantly perfect in those. Maybe for a short time, but not forever. It would be boring.
Luckily, I had a seal master as my grandma. I took her favourite tea leaves, pretty expansive stuff from the land of tea. Buying enough for 10 tea ceremonies costs the same as the living monthly expenses of a normal family. And then made her most liked cake. Grandma Mito loves self-made cake.
Sometimes she has her tea parties with other old grandmas. They are the mothers of the current clan heads, a lot of political power. No good son will immediately decline a request of his mother. They will at least try. And there is a lot of political might behind if the Hyuuga, Senju, Aburame and Sarutobi-clan heads all ask about the same thing.
Have I mentioned that Grandma Mito is awesome?
Grandma Mito's house was within the Senju compound and close to my own house. She didn't want to move into our home when Hashirama died. I still try to visit her at least once a week, more often if possible. Her house is most likely the safest place in the whole of Konoha, with all the seals Mito had put on and inside it. Anyone who is not welcomed won't be able to enter. I was very welcomed.
The seals did not react to my approach, only giving grandma Mito a warning that I would come. That was why she opened her door to let me inside without me needing to even knock. Mito was beautiful. Looking as if she was still in her thirties with bright red hair, even if she was in her late fifties. She eyed me, the tray I had with me and smiled fondly, already knowing that I was up to something.
So, after drinking tea and eating cake she sat down her plate and studied me. “So, what does my sweet little grandson want from me this time?” She finally said with a fond smile.
“You wound me Grandma Mito, can't I come over just for tea and your nice company?” I asked in a mock hurt tone. Acting as if I was deeply wounded.
“Keep the smooth talk for a girl of your age, Ken-kun. You may be less obvious than my Hashi-kun was, but I know you almost as good as him. Whenever you come with my favourite tea and cake you want something.”
I blushed a little, feeling embarrassed for getting seen through this easily. “Well, I did want to spend time with you. Tsu-chan is still with her Genin team. I passed by the way, my teacher is Uchiha Kagami and my teammates are Uchiha Ariha and Hatake Sakumo.”
“I know of him, a good Jonin. One of the rare acceptable Uchiha and the Hatake-clan is known for their aptitude with the sword. You are lucky to have them in your team. Please try to get along with the Uchiha girl. They can be pretty nice, once you get past the hun and grunts. And girls are a lot more vocal than boys anyway." She smiled knowingly while taking a sip of her tea. "But don't try to change the topic. What can I do for you? It's not a Jutsu, you'd ask Tobirama-kun if it was. It must be a seal, I told you that you aren't ready to write your own. Maybe in a month or two, if you better some of your handwriting. Only then will I allow you to draw one, naturally under supervision.”
“You know me too well grandma Mito,” she smiled again, “yes, I want to ask you something related to seals. There is this seal I have read about, the Inhibition Seal. According to the scroll I have read it is for keeping prisoners from escaping by sealing away the strength of them. They will need to use more strength for the same amount of movement.”
“I know of that seal, what of it? Do you want some tags for a possible prisoner on your future mission?” She asked, already in the process of standing up.
“Not exactly, but I would greatly appreciate having some. I want to ask you to draw them on my body, as seal tattoos and in different levels,” I clarified. She stopped standing up and looked at me as if I was crazy.
“You what?! You want me to draw on you seals for prisoners?” She half shouted incredulously. I nodded quickly, not eager to see the fully risen ten tails of hair. I saw it happen once and there was hell to pay.
She sighed, closed her eyes, sighed again and then stood fully up. “Come with me into my study and explain what you have come up with, this time.” I quickly followed her into her study. A room I rarely was inside. It's one of the few rooms I had no access to. She must release the seals herself.
The room was littered with seals and brimmed with her Chakra, it was everywhere. This room was her domain, her refuge and no one had any authority inside, other than her. I'm not sure if even Kaguya would have a chance against Grandma Mito within this room. I don't know about all the defensive seals, but there are some against space-time manipulation and chakra manipulation. I know that Grandma Mito knows about Senjutsu, she will have sealed that off as well.
She sat down on a comfortable looking armchair and gestured for me to sit down in front of her. “Tell me, what do you want to have exactly? If your stunt fails you will be either dead or crippled.” She asked once I have sat down, there was no third option in her prognosis.
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The big chair was way too large for me and I wish I could have sat in her lap, but our talk would have been awkward then. “You see, I know that there are different kinds of level of the same seal. Each level increases the strength that is held back. I thought it would be possible for me to use the seal for training. If I seal away my strength and then get used to the strain I will be a lot stronger and faster once I undo the seals.
I'm not stupid enough to try that on my own. I can't even start to imagine the seal pattern to draw it myself. And the seal I bought for inspection was way too complicated.” She let out a short laugh at the possibility of me drawing any such seal in the foreseeable future.
“But I know that you are skilled enough. I want to have the seal as a seal tattoo, this way it won't vanish when I get wet. And if the seal is keyed into and to my Chakra I can release and activate it with a simple Seal Kai and Seal Activate.” I continued without minding her. I know that I am not even on the sealer list. I know more than any Genin, heck probably more than most Chunin and some Jonin, at least theoretically. But doing seals like grandma Mito is far away from me. If I will ever be as good as her, which I don't think I will.
She thought about my idea, giving it a real chance, rather than dismissing it outright. Grandma Mito loves seals and is researching seals whenever she has free time. Which is pretty often. She also loves to teach seals and there the importance of safety.
Seals are dangerous, especially seal tattoos. The least danger is that they are crippling if not done correctly. And then the danger increases with the mastery of the seal writer. A master can create perfect slaves with enough Chakra and seal tattoos. For me to ask her to do them is a sign of utmost trust in her and her abilities.
That is why she was getting angry this quickly and why she is giving this real thought. It is important enough for me to risk, even if extremely low with her, being crippled. As for the other danger, that is a 0% chance with Grandma Mito. She has been born at the heights of the waring era and as an Uzumaki. Family is above EVERYTHING, something that she made sure was hammered into the heads of me, Tsunade and Mom even before we could walk.
“It is a new concept, one that was never tested. Logically it should work, your body would get used to the needed increase of strength and energy, with time. You are a Genin now, an adult. That's why you waited until now didn't you? I would have asked Iria-chan if she agrees with this.” I nodded, mom would never allow it. “Hmm, very well. I think I can do it. I have written such a seal tattoo a few times, the seal itself isn't any different. I only have to add your Chakra to the key.
How much of your body do I have for the seal?”
I was happy that she agreed to help this easily, I have had already thought about other ways to make her agree if logic and her interest in new applications for seals failed. “The more you can place the seal on the more layers you can do right?” she nodded, “Then as much as you need. I'd like to have as many layers as possible, only leave my stomach and face free. This way I can use them for the rest of my life. Please start low and increase them until not even Hashirama-jii could have moved.”
She raised an eyebrow at that. Hashirama has been fucking strong, more so in his Senjutsu mode. A seal in which he can't move will kill any normal Jonin, their heart won't be strong enough to beat.
“Only if you promise me to only activate when you have beaten Tobirama-kun in a fight,” she said in a none nonsense tone. I nodded, knowing that it will take a long time for me to get this strong, but having the possibility alone is enough.
“Very well, I know you, so I know that you'd like to have the seal as early as possible. Do you have time now?” She said once she was sure that I would do as she has said. My respect for her was such great. This woman knows so much and has done great things. It's sad that she hasn't gotten more screen time in the anime. The whole of the early Konoha, really.
“Yes, I'm free for the rest of the day,” I agreed.
“Good, then strip, down to your boxers and lay down on the table, on your stomach.” She ordered. I did so quickly and tried not to move. She took some of my and her blood for the ink, it will make the seal more resistant to damage and tampering. Now only a mixture of her and my blood can alter it and both of us can activate or deactivate it. She then gathered her sealing materials and placed them down on the table.
“I will now place a stasis seal on you, you won't be able to move for the time I have it activated. It will prevent you from messing the seal up with any unwanted movement,” she explained after a moment of preparation.
I nodded and felt her hand on my head, then I felt her Chakra flowing onto my scalp and the seal forming. The moment the seal was fully formed I was no longer able to move, see or feel. Normal people would have blacked out, but it seems like Gamer's Mind and Gamer's Body stops that from happening. Good to know, memo to myself, never get placed inside stasis. I'm still able to think clearly, but the lack of sensory stimulus will drive me crazy with time. That is if I can become crazy with Gamer's Mind, to begin with.
“That felt strange,” I muttered the moment the stasis got lifted. A quick survey showed that I could feel Mito's Chakra on my body, interwoven into intricate lines and symbols. None of them was active, I could feel ten different seals. Each of them more difficult than the other.
“How so? They are not active yet, is something wrong?” Asked grandma Mito in concern. She was standing next to me and looked at me worriedly.
“No, not that. I can feel each seal, none of them is activated and all of them are beyond my comprehension. What I meant is the feeling of a paralysis seal. I could not see, feel or move. Yet I was still able to think,” I answered.
Mito frowned. “That should not have been possible, the Paralysis Seal knocks someone out. We are lucky that the sealing took only three hours. Staying without sensory stimulation can drive someone insane relatively quickly. Keep quiet about that, better no one knows about your ability to think while being under stasis.” I nodded in agreement.
I jumped off the table and walked over to a full body mirror. My whole body has seals on it now. From my hands to my arms, over my whole back, down to my legs and feet. They reach up to my neck and come close to my face. They looked like a swirly tribal tattoo, coloured in a blackish red.
Some places had more seal clusters, nine of them to be exact. Two on each hand, two on each foot, two on my arms and legs and one on my back. The last is the biggest and feels the most obscure. It must be the strongest.
“As you asked, I did not draw any on your face and stomach, it would have given you another layer, but I thought it not advisable to have seals where everyone can see them.” I nodded in thanks while inspecting each seal. They really look awesome.
I turned to grandma Mito and gave her one of my strongest and biggest hugs. “Thank you, grandma Mito. They even look totally badass and cool.”
She chuckled in amusement and patted my head, a soft sigh escaped her. She might have been worried I find myself hideous now. “Let me explain each seal to you. There are nine. The weakest is on your left hand, followed by the right. Then your feet, I kept the left and right pattern. After that come your arms, then your legs, your back is the strongest.
Hashi-kun wouldn't have been able to move with the seal on your back. You can activate more than one seal at the same time, they will stack on each other. I'm pretty sure a strong Chunin won't be able to move with both your hands and feet activated.
Each seal needs a different set of hand signs to activate, this way you can't activate one of the stronger ones by mistake.” She explained and wrote down the different hand signs for each seal. They don't need many, one or two at most. I'll have to put Chakra into them and either say Seal Kai or Seal Activate to get results.
I did the single seal for my left hand and activated it, my hand began to glow purple, before flashing once. The sign of an activated seal. The lines of the seal were now in a steady low pulse of dark blood red, showing everyone that they were active.
I instantly felt how some kind of weight was restraining my every move. From breathing to even moving my eyes. This thing is awesome. A soundless status showed that I had a -20 in every attribute with the exception of intelligence, luck and charisma.
“This is great, training will be so much easier now,” I gushed and gave her another strong hug, even if it was used with way more energy than first thought.
She laughed at my obvious surprise at the sudden 'heaviness'. “I'm glad they work and you like them. I am also proud that you came to me and did not try to do them yourself or asked someone of lesser skill,” she said fondly.
“Why should I ask someone else? You are the best seal master in the world,” I proclaimed loudly. I didn't see her happy smile, I already had bent down to get clothed again, but I heard it.
“There are better seal masters than me. In Uzushiogakure are a lot more seal masters, some of them are more skilled in different areas than me,” she replied proud of her own clan.
“We have to visit them sometime then,” I declared while finishing with my clothes. The seals on my hands were still visible, but every other one was hidden behind clothes.
“That would be nice,” she replied, but I could feel that she doesn't believe it. She must not be allowed to leave the village, not with the Kyuubi inside her stomach. Then I'll have to save the Uzumaki from destruction and kidnap Mito. I'll only have to get strong enough to stop an invasion of three major villages, no biggie.
“Do you want to come over? I'm sure Tsu-chan is finished with her Genin team and eager to tell what she has had to do,” I offered.
Mito shook her head. “No, I'm tired of the sealing and will take an early rest.” Now that she says it she does look tired. Doing so many complicated seals with such precision must have been pretty taxing. The Chakra requirement increases as well with the difficulty of the seal. And I'm sure I don't have a random seal restriction on me.
I gave her another hug in thanks and then run back home, the resistance seal was doing its work and I felt the short run.