Basic Sealing Jutsu

The Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, and the two Hokage Advisors, Utatane Koharu and Mitokado Homura, had not slept all night. No matter how hard they racked their brains, they could not think of anyone capable of pulling off such a feat.

Neji, on the other hand, had slept soundly. A huge weight had lifted from his heart, and for once, he had gotten a good night's sleep.

Early the next morning, Neji took out the Sealing Jutsu he had obtained from Root the night before and began trying to learn them.

He looked over the least difficult one, the Five Elements Seal, and frowned despite himself. "Without the basics to build on, this really is hard to understand."

For the first time, Neji, who had always been a genius at Ninjutsu, found himself unable to make sense of what he was reading.

The Five Elements Seal would not have been kept by Root if it were simple. Although it was not powerful enough to seal a Tailed Beast, it was still a formidable Sealing Jutsu. Without a solid foundation, learning it would be difficult.

Neji put away the scroll for the Five Elements Seal and opened the one for the Yin Seal. This time, he understood the parts concerning Medical Ninjutsu, but everything about Sealing Jutsu remained a blur.

He shook his head and reluctantly put the scroll away. It was not time to study the other Ninjutsu scrolls, either. He needed to solve the main problem first; everything else could wait.

The Main Family absolutely forbids me from learning Sealing Jutsu. I'll have to get some through Sasuke, Neji thought.

Neji activated his Byakugan and looked toward the Uchiha Clan compound. Sure enough, he spotted Sasuke skipping class to train alone at home.

He put the scrolls away and headed toward the Uchiha Clan compound.

As for the Main Family's warning, Neji no longer took it very seriously. His attitude was simple: he would listen to what they said, but he would not change.

The Hyuga Clan would soon travel to Kirigakure to visit the Kaguya Clan. Neji had to master Sealing Jutsu while he still could.

He did not have much time. At the very least, he wanted to master the Five Elements Seal.

The Five Elements Seal would already be useful. It could not seal an entire Tailed Beast, but it could seal a portion of a Tailed Beast's Chakra.

Neji had only just approached the Uchiha Clan's Training Ground when Sasuke sensed someone coming.

At the sight of Neji, a flash of delight crossed Sasuke's face. He stopped training and asked, "Did you get what you wanted?"

There had been quite a commotion the night before. Konoha ninja had even come to search this remote corner of the Uchiha Clan compound.

Sasuke could easily guess that something major had happened in the village.

Neji nodded. "I did. It's exactly what I needed, and I got something extra besides."

Seeing the pleasure on Neji's face, Sasuke could not help asking, "What did you get?"

"Several extremely powerful Ninjutsu. If used well, any one of them could make someone a true powerhouse," Neji said.

"Then you were pretty lucky!" Sasuke did not ask what the Ninjutsu were, much less ask to have them. Neji had risked his life to obtain them, and Sasuke understood that.

Neji nodded. "I was. Everything went smoothly last night."

Then Neji said, "I don't know whether you'll be able to learn the Ninjutsu I got last night, but I'll make you a copy in a bit."

After a moment of silence, Sasuke said, "Forget it. You risked your life to get them. I can't take them."

"You may not realize how much you've helped me, but I do. Take the Ninjutsu, and don't feel guilty about it," Neji said.

Sasuke still hesitated. He felt that the help Neji had already given him was more than enough to repay what he had done for Neji. Neji owed him nothing.

Neji tried again. "There'll be plenty more things I need your help with. The stronger you are, the better it is for me. I can't do without your help when the time comes."

"You still need my help?" Sasuke asked, puzzled.

Neji was far stronger than he was now. He had broken into Root Base alone without a scratch. Sasuke thought Neji might be no weaker than his brother who had wiped out their clan.

Neji nodded. "Of course. In fact, I need your help right now."

"All right. I'll take them, then. Whatever help you need later, just ask." After all that persuasion, Sasuke finally accepted.

"Get me a few Sealing Jutsu. They don't have to be high-level. Anything will do," Neji said.

Sasuke looked at him. "Don't you already have better ones?"

Neji was a little embarrassed. "When I looked at the two Sealing Jutsu I got last night, I realized I couldn't quite understand them."

Sasuke understood at once and felt a secret thrill. So there's a Ninjutsu even you can't understand!

"Oh, I see..." Sasuke said, deliberately drawing out the words.

"Hah." Neji shot Sasuke a sidelong look. "Look how pleased you are with yourself. You're acting as if you could understand them."

"Maybe I could," Sasuke said lightly.

He certainly was not going to mention that several of the Ninjutsu he had copied during that period were Sealing Jutsu.

"You copied Sealing Jutsu with your Sharingan?" One look at Sasuke's smug expression told Neji what he was thinking.

Caught out, Sasuke could not keep up the act. "You guessed that too?"

Neji gave a dry laugh. "How could I not? It's written all over your face. If you had a tail, it would be sticking straight up."

Sasuke had nothing to say. The Byakugan really was formidable. Perhaps there was some truth to the claim that it could see into people's hearts.

He could only chalk it up to Neji's Byakugan.

Looking at Sasuke as he pretended nothing had happened, Neji said, "Enough talk. Let's go back first."

Sasuke left the Kunai, Shuriken, and other Ninja Tools scattered across the ground where they lay and headed straight home.

Back at the Uchiha Clan Head's residence, Sasuke rummaged around and pulled out several blank scrolls.

Neji knew the place well by now. He spread out a blank scroll, took a brush from the holder on the desk, and began writing.

For the two of them, with their inherited Dōjutsu, remembering something after a single glance was only a basic ability.

Sasuke did not sit idle, either. He picked up a brush and began writing on another blank scroll.

Sasuke had copied only four Sealing Jutsu with his Sharingan, and they were all fairly low-level. The highest was merely C-Rank.

Binding Formation, Cloth Binding Seal, Four-Corner Seal, Six Directions Barrier. Neji glanced at the Sealing Jutsu Sasuke had written down.

They're fairly basic, but that suits me just fine, Neji thought.

What Neji was writing was far more complicated. Sasuke had finished all four Sealing Jutsu, but Neji had yet to finish the first one, the Spirit Transformation Technique.

"The Spirit Transformation Technique?" Sasuke frowned as he read what Neji was writing. "Is this an S-rank Ninjutsu? It's so complicated!"