As usual, Kushina was teaching Menma Sealing Jutsu in a clearing in the Konoha Forest, while Naruto was at school with Menma's Shadow Clone.
This routine had continued for about a week. Over the past week, Naruto had grown increasingly downcast. He seemed listless no matter what he did, but acted as if nothing was wrong whenever he was around Kushina.
Meanwhile, Menma had made remarkable progress over the past week. He had become very adept at basic Sealing Jutsu, such as sealing objects and living beings.
Sealing Scrolls generally came in two types. The first was more convenient: you simply infused it with chakra to retrieve or store objects. However, this method could only be used to store inanimate things, such as food, drinks, and ninja tools.
The other type depended on the user's own skill. It required a high level of mastery in Sealing Jutsu, but once you were proficient enough, you could even seal a living person inside.
Kushina was now teaching Menma intermediate Sealing Jutsu, including techniques involving Sealing Spaces and memories. These techniques required not only a high degree of chakra control but also a deep understanding of Sealing Jutsu.
"Menma, techniques like Sealing Space generally require a medium, such as a sheet of paper or a mark. On top of that, you need to combine them with what you learned earlier and seal the jutsu inside the medium." Kushina patiently explained it to Menma.
Menma listened attentively as Kushina demonstrated. She took out a sheet of sealing paper, formed Hand Seals, and sealed the jutsu formula inside it.
"Watch closely, Menma." As she spoke, Kushina placed the paper against a rock and began forming Hand Seals.
As soon as she finished, the rock was sucked right into the paper.
"That's amazing!" Menma's eyes lit