Chapitre 28: Reluctant Teacher
As I arrived back home from my first day at the academy, I smelled freshly baked cookies. The smell emanated from the back of the house where laughter also echoed.
Though a little confused, I went back to check what was happening because usually, Mom didn't have people over at this time of day.
"Yeah, I know I said I wouldn't take another student since Daichi passed on to the pure lands, but the village elders were so impressed with him that they wanted me to be his teacher and guide him to be a great sealer. Unfortunately for them, I don't care about what they think. I mean, really, if little Haru hadn't come to me and asked to give him a chance, then it wouldn't have happened." The raspy voice of the woman laughed alongside my mother's light laughter.
Making my way into the kitchen, I picked up on a little of the conversation before it stopped. I couldn't even stop to hide and eavesdrop on the rest.
"I can tell you're over there, you rascal. Don't even try to spy on the rest of the conversation," the older voice called out to me as I tried to tiptoe over to a closet.
'Well, it was worth a shot,' I thought while a lopsided smile formed on my face.
I stepped around the corner into the kitchen and saw an old lady with a face wrinkled with years of experience and snow-white hair to match it, a trademark of older Uzumaki clansmen losing their vitality.
'Huh, could this be the older Uzumaki dad and the elders were talking about a few months ago?' I asked myself in my head.
"Hehe, sorry, I just wanted to test out some new 'stealth' techniques we learned in the academy today," I said as I scratched the back of my neck.
"Now, that was just an awful excuse, boy," the old lady stared at me as if trying to read the depths of my soul.
"Yeah, I know. I was just curious about who Mom had over at this time of day," I answered honestly this time as the old lady nodded.
"My name is Yoko Uzumaki, and I will be your sealing teacher. That's only if you can impress me over the first week," she stated, making sure I knew this wasn't a done deal.
Not one to back down from a challenge, I smirked and hardened my resolve to impress this older lady as much as I could.
"You better start making room for a new student then, Yoko-sensei, because I'm not going to fail to impress you," I told her, the fire of a new challenge playing in my eyes.
The older lady nodded while saying, "Then, to test if you're worthy to be my student, we will conduct a week-long test. You will have to learn the basics of a containment seal, and then you will have to replicate a containment seal without it failing. If you can pass this challenge, then I will take you as my student. If you fail, then you probably won't ever see me again. Understand?"
I nodded my head once more, looking at the books piled in front of her.
"I should probably get going and let you two do what you have to do," my mom mused and got up, leaving the kitchen.
I looked towards her and told her I loved her, then turned back to Yoko, my 'hopefully' new sensei.
Yoko opened her mouth and started talking. "Alright then, let's get to the basics. In the sealing world, we measure our progress similarly to the way shinobi ranks work, but also a little differently. We have genin seals that work on the basics of sealing, up to Kage level seals, which are at the highest levels and take a very talented and hard-working ninja to master. In the same breath, most of us specialize a lot more than in the ninja arts. Normally, most ninjas will end up as chunin and genin, but that's not necessarily the case in sealing. If you have a special talent to comprehend a certain specialization, you can reach the grandmaster level while staying at the bottom in another category. That is how the sealing ranks differ from the ninja ranks."
I nodded along to what she was saying. "So, some people can reach the grandmaster level in, say, defense seals, and while they are proficient in many of the other sealing branches, they are still called grandmasters just because of their mastery over defense seals."
"Yes, although most of the time if you have the talent and hard work to become a grandmaster in one, you more than likely will end up a grandmaster in at least three other specializations."
"So what exactly are the specializations within the sealing realm?"
Yoko let out a tiny smile. "Good question, boy. The specializations within the sealing realm are defense (battle), defense (village), offensive, infrastructure, security, object, tailed beast, medical, and barrier."
"Mhm, can I ask what you specialize in, Yoko?"
"Of course you can. I specialize in the art of object, tailed beast, and barrier sealing. I'm also a grandmaster in everything but medical and village defense. In those two, I have the second-highest rank, that being the master rank."
You could practically hear my jaw clang on the floor as my mouth fell open hearing how adept she was at the sealing art. 'Man if I couldn't afford to not become her student before, I really couldn't afford it now.' I thought to myself as I considered how much I could learn from her.
"Wait, you said there are ranks in the art of fuinjutsu as well?" Thinking back to before I learned she was a powerful seal's mistress.
"Yep, and they are measured similarly to them as well. The lowest-ranked sealer is called an initiate Sealer (Genin). Up from there, we have Adept Sealers (Chunin). Next are Expert Sealers (Jonin), second to last are Master Sealers (Elite Jonin), and last but not least are Grandmaster Sealers (Kage). As I said previously, each rank is exponentially harder to jump to than the next."
"So I'm starting at the initiate sealer rank then. Let's do it; I'll get to adept rank in no time."
"Alright then, let's get started," Yoko looked back at me as we got started on the week-long test she had laid out for me.
----
Day 1:
Shiran's brush moved fluidly, a dance of ink and chakra. Unlike most novices, he had already mastered the art of infusing chakra into his calligraphy as evidenced when he made the Crimson Spiral Seal. Yoko watched impassively as Shiran improved his brush strokes both big and small.
Day 3:
With the basics behind him and his brush strokes getting better by the day, Yoko decided to move on to the symbols and kanji involved in the Uzumaki clan's sealing techniques. Shiran practiced more and more complex symbols under Yoko's guidance, each time getting smoother and faster. His hands moved with a grace that stirred the air, the symbols glowing faintly with chakra.
Day 5:
On day 5, Shiran began to craft a containment seal of the Initiate rank. The seal was drawn by Yoko, and it was simple yet elegant, designed to hold a small object within its bounds. As he drew the final stroke, the seal hummed to life glowing faintly, ready for its test. Yoko, seeing that the seal had been finished by Shiran, came over and inspected it to make sure everything was drawn perfectly and nothing would explode in their faces.
"Alright Shiran, go grab one of those yellow flowers from over there and place it in the center of the seal."
Shiran nodded and went over to grab the flower. He came back and sat next to his seal, watching as the flower he set in the middle of the shimmering barrier froze and stood all by itself inside of the ethereal barrier.
"Congratulations Shiran, you passed my test, and in only 5 days at that. You should be both proud of yourself and hungry for more because if what I see in you can come to light, then it would be a boon for the entire Uzushiogakure," Yoko said while letting her wisened eyes unfocus for a second.
"So that means that I can call you Yoko-sensei, right?" I asked with a little hope and humor mixed in.
"Yes, you can call me Yoko-sensei, you brat. Now, let's go; we have to tell your parents about how you did."
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