Hand Seal Practice

Having finished researching Chakra and gained nothing from it, Uchiha Kiyoshi felt rather frustrated. It seemed that not everything was as simple as he imagined.

Indeed, since he had transmigrated here, this truly was a real world. He could not treat everyone else like fools. Countless ninjas must have tried something as simple as this already. How could they possibly have waited for him to pick up the leftovers?

Uchiha Kiyoshi adjusted his mindset and began considering his own path forward.

He had always thought that many things would be easy enough, but when he actually tried to do them, he discovered that they were truly difficult—or perhaps even impossible.

Uchiha Kiyoshi reflected on his earlier mistakes. I was still taking things too much for granted. This is a real world; not everything revolves around me. Many things have to be done step by step to succeed, and it is better not to dwell on unrealistic ideas.

My plans need to change as well. In a real world, unexpected events can happen at any time. Not everything can go according to my expectations. I can only try to keep the overall direction unchanged, while adapting to circumstances when it comes to the small matters.

As Uchiha Kiyoshi continued reflecting, he drafted a new plan. His overall goal was to grow stronger. As for the short-term goal, during the coming years at the Ninja Academy, he would strive to reach Chunin level. Only then would his safety be guaranteed.

"Kakashi became a Chunin at six. It is not unreasonable for me to become one at ten, right?"

Having set a goal for himself, Uchiha Kiyoshi naturally would not waste any more time.

In the Ninja World, Ninjutsu was the guarantee of a ninja's strength. Only by mastering powerful Ninjutsu could one truly wield great power. Otherwise, one would be like Naruto in the early days: possessing plenty of Chakra, yet unable to improve in Ninjutsu and completely incapable of displaying the strength one should have had.

There were two most crucial aspects to releasing Ninjutsu: sufficient Chakra and correct hand seals. Of course, some special Ninjutsu did not require hand seals.

In Uchiha Kiyoshi's understanding, not needing hand seals did not mean there was truly nothing to do. Rather, the hand-seal process had been omitted through proficiency or exceptional Chakra control.

To put it plainly, forming hand seals was a process that coordinated with the ninja's mobilization of Chakra.

Well... Uchiha Kiyoshi had read all of this in the Archives.

As for Chakra, Uchiha Kiyoshi had no solution. He could only accumulate it step by step. What he could do was thoroughly understand the process of forming hand seals.

Perhaps because he had received the most scientific education in his previous life, progressing gradually from the basics to advanced levels, he found that many things became easy to learn once he had a foundation. Thus, after arriving in the Ninja World, Uchiha Kiyoshi could not help wanting to explore the essence of many things.

Or rather, he did not necessarily need to uncover that essence. As long as he could establish a relatively basic theory and learn based on it, his efficiency would increase considerably.

Take Ninjutsu, for example. He would set aside the principles behind its release for now. What Uchiha Kiyoshi needed was to learn Ninjutsu quickly, and to release Ninjutsu, a ninja only needed to form the correct hand seals and possess enough Chakra. But what exactly counted as correct hand seals?

Therefore, during the previous four years, aside from materials on Medical Ninjutsu and Sealing Jutsu, Uchiha Kiyoshi had spent his time reading theoretical knowledge about Ninjutsu, such as the purpose of hand seals and techniques for forming them.

From this, he learned that different ninjas required different hand seals to release different Ninjutsu! As long as one was sufficiently proficient and had adequate Chakra control, some hand seals could be omitted!

This was what Uchiha Kiyoshi needed to investigate: how hand seals could be omitted, and why they could be.

In any case, he was only six years old and had not yet reached the age to learn Ninjutsu. He still had time to research it. Uchiha Kiyoshi was not afraid of failure. Even if he failed, perhaps some part of the research process would prove useful for his future studies.

He still knew too little. Only through constant accumulation and gradual development could he truly establish the theoretical system he wanted.

That was right, establish a system. Uchiha Kiyoshi wanted to build his own theoretical system to explain his understanding of many things, making it easier for him to create his own Ninjutsu in the future.

Of course, he would set aside that research for now. He had something more important to do.

"First, practice hand seals."

Uchiha Kiyoshi did not even know how to form hand seals yet. How could he research them otherwise?

There were twelve hand seals in total for ninjas: Rat, Ox, Tiger, Rabbit, Dragon, Snake, Horse, Ram, Monkey, Rooster, Dog, and Boar. Uchiha Kiyoshi practiced them one by one in order.

Starting out clumsy, he gradually became more proficient. After an afternoon, Uchiha Kiyoshi's hand-seal speed had reached... one seal every two seconds...

Uchiha Kiyoshi was troubled as well. There was no helping it; hand seals could only be improved through repeated practice. Only after his fingers became familiar with the movements of every seal could he make rapid progress. As a beginner who had just started practicing hand seals, what he needed to focus on was proficiency—letting his fingers adapt to every movement. Blindly pursuing speed would only be putting the cart before the horse.

Thus, over the following days, Uchiha Kiyoshi did not pay excessive attention to the speed of his hand seals. Instead, he repeatedly formed the twelve seals at random, allowing his fingers to become familiar with the various forms and react quickly according to his will to complete the corresponding seal.

Although Uchiha Kiyoshi did not pursue speed, he still kept each seal within two seconds. For the increasingly proficient Uchiha Kiyoshi, the pressure was not great.

This had another benefit as well: it caused less damage to his fingers, allowing him to practice for longer.

Even so, daily practice still left Uchiha Kiyoshi's fingers sore and swollen.

Fortunately, as a major clan, the Uchiha Clan had many well-developed resources. There were medicines specifically used to treat and relieve finger fatigue, prepared for ninjas practicing hand seals. After generations of long-term improvements, their effects were excellent.

Moreover, clan members received a twenty percent discount when purchasing them.

Compared to medicinal baths, this type of medicine was much cheaper. A month's supply cost only ten thousand, which Uchiha Kiyoshi could barely afford.

With medicine to promptly treat his fingers, Uchiha Kiyoshi's progress was not slow.

In just five days, Uchiha Kiyoshi had already passed the beginner stage. He could now quickly react and form whichever seal he wanted.

Uchiha Kiyoshi had also secretly tested himself. Going all out, he could now form one seal per second!

Five days to double his speed was already quite fast. Moreover, Uchiha Kiyoshi could feel that as he practiced each day, he could continue improving after becoming more proficient.

"My hand-seal practice is basically complete. I only need to practice every day from now on. Next, it is time to investigate the principles of hand seals."

Uchiha Kiyoshi had seen explanations of hand seals in the Archives.

Chakra was formed by merging Physical Energy and Spiritual Energy. Therefore, aside from using one's control to directly manipulate Chakra's movement, bodily movements could also cause the Chakra within one's body to move. Among the most delicate parts of the human body, the hands naturally became the focus.

Different hand seals caused different reactions in the Chakra within the body.

Previously, Uchiha Kiyoshi had only known this claim. He knew that it happened, but not why. He did not understand what these so-called different reactions actually referred to.

"Today, I will properly experience what these different reactions are."

Uchiha Kiyoshi focused his mind, paying attention to the Chakra within his body as his hands began forming seals.

As he formed the seals, Uchiha Kiyoshi could feel his Chakra tending to move. However, because Chiba Kiyo's attention was focused on it, the Chakra remained under Uchiha Kiyoshi's control and did not begin moving. As long as he stopped holding it back, the Chakra should naturally move along with the hand seals.

Afterward, Uchiha Kiyoshi released his control. He even actively pushed the Chakra to complete the corresponding movements as he continued his research.

"So that is how it is. Different seals correspond to different changes in Chakra, and combining seals means linking together Chakra's movements. For example, the Rat Seal can make Chakra move to the right arm, while the Ram Seal can make the Chakra that has moved there continue onward into the hand. So, if the Ram Seal is formed after the Rat Seal, Chakra will move directly from the lower abdomen to the right arm, then continue into the right hand.

"What needs attention should be the connection between different seals. Only by controlling the timing can this process be completed smoothly. Otherwise, if the Ram Seal is formed before the Chakra reaches the arm, the process cannot be completed.

"Furthermore, there is more than one such connection. With the Rat Seal followed by the Ram Seal, aside from this process, Chakra can also be moved to the left leg and then continued into the left foot. There are other processes as well, and some of them even require the same connection timing.

"If that is the case, releasing Ninjutsu should involve certain specific Chakra circulation processes, and what a ninja needs to do is complete the correct circulation?"

Uchiha Kiyoshi felt that he had found the right method for learning Ninjutsu.

Ecstatic, Uchiha Kiyoshi continued his research, wanting to see what combinations roughly existed between the different seals.

"Isn't this just high school mathematics—permutations and combinations? I know this!"

Brimming with confidence, Uchiha Kiyoshi began trying again and again, attempting to find every Chakra reaction corresponding to each seal and then combine them with one another.

However, just as Uchiha Kiyoshi was full of energy and ready to continue researching nonstop, the aching pain in his fingers jolted him awake.

"Ugh! I was so focused on the research that I did not consider what my fingers could handle. What a miscalculation. I can only continue after they recover."

Uchiha Kiyoshi gave a bitter smile and helplessly stopped his research.

Now that he thought carefully about it, Uchiha Kiyoshi drew in a sharp breath at the various Chakra changes that different seals could produce.

"Just the Rat Seal alone corresponds to more than twenty kinds of Chakra circulation?"

Thinking of this, Uchiha Kiyoshi sighed at how impulsive he had been earlier, directly starting to test them one by one.

He clearly knew it was a problem of permutations and combinations, yet he had still rushed straight in. It seemed he was still not calm enough.

Now that he could not move his hands, Uchiha Kiyoshi could only rely on imagination, recalling the sensations from before, trying various combinations, and summarizing the experience he had just gained.

As Uchiha Kiyoshi categorized them, he discovered that hand seals had far too many effects on Chakra. It was highly likely that he would not be able to research all of them himself.

Why did he say that? Through categorization, Uchiha Kiyoshi discovered that the reactions caused by hand seals could not all be perceived merely by forming a seal and observing Chakra's flow. Some reactions only gave Chakra a tendency and could not fully mobilize its movement. They required the ninja to consciously control it and give it a "push" while forming the seal.

If that was the case, there were likely many tendencies he had yet to perceive.

What was even more frightening was that, under normal circumstances, a ninja's Chakra was stored in the lower abdomen rather than dispersed throughout the entire body.

In other words, the changes caused directly by forming a seal were only that seal's effect on the Chakra in the lower abdomen! Beyond what could be felt through direct hand seals, what changes would occur if there were Chakra in places that normally had none?

"This is far too enormous a project, isn't it? No wonder creating Ninjutsu is so difficult. So that is why?

"Is this method unique to me, or do many people already know it?"

Uchiha Kiyoshi kept analyzing, uncertain and suspicious, but he still calmed himself down.

"Probably not. Otherwise, there would not be no records of it in public.

"Most ninjas probably just follow other people's guidance, memorize the required circulation routes, and gradually accumulate knowledge.

"Only I would be bored enough to experience and summarize them one by one, right?"

In truth, Uchiha Kiyoshi had guessed wrong. How could no one in the Ninja World have thought of doing this over a thousand years? Such people were simply rare. Moreover, this kind of attempt was usually made only when someone had just begun cultivating, and at that stage, their Chakra control was nowhere near as outstanding as Uchiha Kiyoshi's, making it difficult for them to discover anything.

"More ninjas should have summaries in this regard, at least summaries of Chakra reactions and the like. It is just that theirs are based primarily on the routes used by Ninjutsu they have already learned, supplemented by their own gradual explorations.

"And I am the exact opposite. I have not even cultivated Ninjutsu yet, so out of boredom, I tried to summarize it?"

Uchiha Kiyoshi shook his head and stopped thinking about such things.

Perhaps reminded again of the vast number of different Chakra reactions, Uchiha Kiyoshi's head began aching. After considering it, he made a choice.

"I should first record the most superficial reactions—the Chakra reactions in the lower abdomen that can be directly mobilized through hand seals—then gradually study the other parts of the body. Finally, I will collect the hidden reactions one by one, those that only produce a tendency. That last step can only be accumulated slowly.

"As for the issue of combinations, perhaps it should be separated out and studied independently."

Having organized his thoughts, Uchiha Kiyoshi now had a direction. In the time ahead, he would gradually sort through and summarize things according to this line of thought.

However, he had other matters to attend to now.

Uchiha Kiyoshi applied ointment to both hands, wrapped them up, and left the house.

After leaving, Uchiha Kiyoshi headed straight for the Archives.

Over the past few days, aside from practicing hand seals, Uchiha Kiyoshi had continued visiting the Archives to search for all kinds of information, hoping to find a way to solve the problem of Chakra being unable to nourish the body.

Uchiha Kiyoshi truly could not accept it. How could such a fine cultivation system fail to grant longevity?

Even in all sorts of martial arts novels from his previous life, even if cultivation did not extend one's lifespan, as long as one had no hidden injuries, one could at least live to a hundred, right?

After coming to the Ninja World, it would have been one thing if cultivating Chakra could not increase lifespan. But it even shortened one's life. What the hell was that?

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