Looking at the unremarkable small building before him, Mizuki never imagined the Sealing Unit had fallen into such a pitiful state. This wasn't even deserving of being called the Sealing Unit—it felt more like a gathering place for slacker ninja. It seemed that Konoha had enjoyed peace for too long, allowing internal problems to multiply. The unit was shockingly understaffed—only a few people were sorting through documents, completely unrelated to sealing techniques. Probably only after Tsunade became Hokage would the Sealing Unit see any real restructuring.
Seeing this situation, Mizuki couldn't help but feel disappointed—the hope he'd pinned on this place had vanished.
Originally, he had assumed this would be one of the top forces in the ninja world. Even the Uzumaki clan, famed for their mastery of sealing techniques, had been feared—and then wiped out. In Konoha, one would expect a research center focused on sealing techniques to be a high-security facility. Yet here he was, walking in so easily, witnessing such a discouraging scene.
In Mizuki's opinion, judging from this situation, it was likely that the real core and major research centers of sealing techniques were either hidden elsewhere, while this location served only as a maintenance site for daily seals and document sorting. Or perhaps sealing techniques had become secret trump cards controlled by a select few privileged individuals.
Though sealing techniques rarely drew attention, their importance was unquestionable. From Iruka's Binding Seal Formation, to Jiraiya's Fire Sealing Method, from the Evil Sealing Method to the Yin Seal, from the Hyuga's Cursed Seal to the tailed beasts' jinchuriki sealings, all were applications of sealing techniques—even Kaguya Otsutsuki had been sealed away using them. Clearly, the power and potential of sealing techniques were immeasurable; judging from the effects already known, there seemed to be almost nothing they could not achieve.
"Mizuki, what are you doing here?" A surprised female voice came from the side—it was Chiharu Tsubaki.
"I came to see you, Chiharu," Mizuki said, turning around. "Starting tomorrow, I'll be going on a mission. I might not have much time afterward, so since I had free time today, I dropped by."
"Huh? You've never really come before, so why come here today? Are you worried about the mission?"
"No, it's just a mission assigned by the Third. Not particularly dangerous, though it will take quite a lot of time."
"Then that's good. Mizuki, I still have plenty of time before my shift ends, go ahead and look around if you want. I need to handle something first, so I can't stay with you~"
"You go do what you must, Chiharu. I'll just wander around for a bit."
...
Mizuki wandered nearly everywhere inside the building. Except for a few passing figures busy with their tasks, he found very little of value. He randomly approached someone and asked, "Hey, what are those books and scrolls on that shelf over there? Can I take a look?"
"Oh, those ones? Most of them are maintenance records and processing logs regarding Konoha's barrier arrays, along with all sorts of other random stuff. Nobody even knows their purpose anymore. The information recorded in them is outdated and won't be used again—they're scheduled for destruction soon. Feel free to browse, but don't take anything."
"I got it. I just plan to flip through them to kill some time. Sorry for interrupting; you go on ahead."
After watching the faceless ninja walk off, Mizuki calmly pulled up a chair, picked up one of the books from the shelf, and started reading.
At first, he had merely intended to kill time and see if anything caught his eye—but gradually, the more he read, the deeper his frown grew.
It was unknown how much time had passed. Mizuki placed the scroll he was holding back on the shelf.
"Unexpected gains," Mizuki murmured, rubbing his temples as his head pounded. "Sealing Techniques... they're far more dangerous and incredible than I imagined. No wonder even Kaguya otsutsuki couldn't overcome it."
In Mizuki's opinion, the information on these shelves seemed utterly meaningless when viewed in isolation. However, if organized according to logic from his past life, the conclusions drawn might not grant him actual power directly, but the indirect benefits surpassed expectations.
"At present, it's clear that the 'priority' of Sealing Techniques in this world is absurdly high."
Indeed, Mizuki knew a bit of Sealing Techniques himself and understood the basic theories, but never studied them thoroughly—simply due to lack of intelligence. Most people in the ninja world would likely regard the scrolls on these shelves as trash, yet Mizuki sensed something unusual within them.
"Sealing Techniques are essentially regulations and extensions of the world's will: that much is certain."
In his previous life, he had read a popular sci-fi novel called *The Three-Body Problem*, containing a passage that left a deep impression: Imagine treating a painting as an imaginary world. The painter would be an omnipotent god. If the god punctured holes every centimeter on the canvas, then after careful scientific study, the beings inside the painting might conclude a universal truth: there must be a hole every centimeter in our world. Isn't that ridiculous? For us, creating those holes is like giving language and laws to the tiny beings within the painting. Similarly, if the patterns and arrangements in sealing techniques were regarded as some kind of language, then sealing techniques themselves represent rules, laws, or truths of the world—an essential framework deeply embedded in this world. Mastering them would bestow supreme power. Unless countered by absolute strength or opposed equally with other sealing techniques, they'd be extremely difficult to handle.
"But achieving results through Sealing Techniques requires extensive trial-and-error experimentation, which demands a vast amount of time—a resource I currently lack the most. It looks like I'll need to acquire existing knowledge and techniques to study. Although, considering my linguistic knowledge, talent, and personal interest in cryptography from my past life, along with Mizuki's academic background, Sealing Techniques seem to be my best path forward. They offer the most reliable shortcut to gaining an edge over others."
Thinking thus, Mizuki pulled out another scroll and began reading slowly.
The sun had already dipped toward the west, yet Mizuki remained immersed in the pleasure of studying. Fortunately, his past self had also possessed this somewhat admirable specialty.
Suddenly, Mizuki twitched—a restless sensation came from his right arm.
"It's Anko. Why is she here?"
"Hey, it's Mizuki! Seems like no matter where I go, I bump into you. Here to see your little fiancée again?" She called out before stepping into view.
"Yes. But it's still early; I'm just killing time waiting for Chiharu to finish work. What brings you here?"
"The Celestial and Terrestrial Scrolls from the Chunin Exams reportedly contained Sealing Formulas stored here by the Sealing Team. Let me check if they're still here."
"Hmm, not sure about that. I doubt it though. This place is such a mess, probably impossible to find anything."
"I'll go ask first." With that, she strode off decisively.
Mizuki didn't think much of it and continued leafing through the scrolls until Chiharu came over to call him.
...
"You weren't interested in Sealing Techniques before—after all, they aren't known for boosting combat power much. Why are you so into them now?"
"Well, I've got nothing better to do. Might as well pass the time. Actually, they get pretty interesting once you dig a little deeper."
"Oh? If you're interested, I can teach you something. Though I don't know much myself, we could learn together."
"Great." Mizuki was more than happy to agree.
"Okay then, what do you want for dinner tonight?"
"Beef stew with potatoes."
"Then let's go get the groceries together. It's been a while since we last made dinner together."
"More meat, no cilantro."
"Yeah yeah, got it." Chiharu laughed.
...
Early the next morning, Mizuki arrived at the Forest of Death after finishing the paperwork.
"This must be the place. It really is huge. The plants and trees are all colossal. Who knows what terrifying creatures lie deeper inside?"
Thinking this, Mizuki still didn't hesitate and plunged headfirst into the dense forest.
...
After successfully luring two elephant-sized wild boars into a pit trap, Mizuki sighed in relief and sat on a rock to rest.
"If even two wild boars can coordinate trap-setting and flanking maneuvers, their battle intelligence is completely beyond that of ordinary genin. If there were more of them, even I wouldn't be able to handle it easily. No wonder this world can give birth to summoned beasts. Without control, the emergence of intelligent non-human life would be only natural. In this chakra-filled world, humans have long become accustomed to interacting with other intelligent beings. But then, what exactly are the purposes of figures like the Snake Sage, Frog Sage, and Katsuyu getting involved in human conflicts? Their true intentions remain unfathomable."
After resting briefly, Mizuki resumed his hunting mission. As he worked, his right arm began warming up again.
"What's going on? If yesterday was just coincidence, today doesn't add up. They promised nobody would come, yet someone's secretly watching me again?" Mizuki couldn't help but feel annoyed.
"I'm sure I haven't revealed anything suspicious, yet they're still monitoring me. Looks like things aren't simple after all. Fortunately, I don't have any plans yet. Originally, I wanted to set up some fallback plans here in the Forest of Death, but I guess that'll have to wait for now."
Following his mission routine, one by one, giant beasts fell beneath Mizuki's hands. As the sun dipped low, he decided to leave. He headed straight to the entrance of the Forest of Death, where Anko Mitarashi was already waiting.
"How did it go today?"
"Lady Anko, there are many problems. This workload is overwhelming. Completing it within ten days will be difficult for just the two of us. I think we should request reinforcements."
"Feigning composure, Mizuki replied, "I'd say Iruka is a decent ally. Most creatures in the Forest of Death may be powerful, but they fight solo. Iruka's Binding Seal Formation is an effective tool, especially against simple-minded beasts."
"Hmm, I'll report the situation to The Third. Let's call it a day. Head back now—we'll meet here again tomorrow morning."
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