The Demon Child

Naruto Makes A Clone

Chapter 11: Naruto Makes A Clone.

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In the following weeks, one fact, in particular, was made most clear to Sakura. Fujitsu (seal making) was an art form that demanded nothing less than complete control over one's own chakra network and a vast amount of knowledge about the inner workings of the seal in which you were making. As such it was an art form that few ninjas ever cared enough to try to learn for the simple fact that it needed such dedication and skill to even perform even the most basic of seals. But she could see why it was so highly respected even in this day and age. In the hands of a true master of the art whole armies were nothing but a minor annoyance. looking to her left at Naruto she couldn't help but be amazed at his rapid increase in skills. But she also could see the clear signs of withdrawal syndrome. The boy's obsession with ramen was unhealthy. Still, she knew that was what was pushing him to improve in his seal-making abilities and for that fact alone she was happy.

"Wrong, Naruto that seal matrix is incorrect for this type of seal. You have been reading over the books I gave you the other day haven't you"? Miniko asked already knowing he likely didn't and on the off chance that he did, he didn't seem to understand much of it.

"I did read them but they don't make any sense". Naruto said as he dismissed the now worthless paper and renewed his work on yet another seal.

"How goes your clone training? Have you at least mastered that? Miniko asked as he eyed the boy's 27th attempt at making a basic level one seal. He could see the boy's eyes filled with unrelenting determination to master this particular seal. He couldn't help but remember his own son looking just as determined to master his seals so many years ago. He could even recall that red-haired girl who he seemed to be around in the latter years of his life. He couldn't recall her name but he could recall how skilled she was. She was far more into swords than her clan's best-known trait but even so her skills with seals were masterful, to say the least. The loss of such promising shinobi that night was truly a grave loss not just to him but to the village. Pulling his mind back to the here and now with no small amount of willpower, he turned to face his grandson once more.

"No, but I feel I'm real close. I had one form but it popped almost as soon as it formed. Sakura says I used far too much so I'll pour a bit less the next time I try". Naruto answered as he finished off the seal matrix for the 27th time that day. Miniko could already tell it was better but better in its form or its useability was unknown. He would have to wait to see how it faired with Naruto's super dense chakra. But he knew one thing for sure it was at the very least a better-looking matrix but given its basicness that wasn't much at all. Moving his eyes over to Sakura he could feel a bit of pride form in his chest at how fast she was progressing in her own training. Had he not been there to oversee it he would have thought his grandson was lying. But what he was seeing proved to him she may not be an Uzumaki but she had their unquestionable ability to learn a seal and then reproduce it. A fact that showed she was doing quite well even if she had only recently started to make seals.

"Very good Sakura, but remember that for a seal to work it needs to be without any gaps. You have a few in this one. Start over and try again". He watched as Sakura replaced her old seal and started work on a new one only this time focusing her full attention on both her chakra and the seal matrix. He waited until she looked up and nodded before speaking once more.

"Now, let us go through each part of the seal before we move on to creating a more complicated version. After all, this will give you a little bit more freedom to concentrate on the actual sealing rather than attempting to do something half done". This time when he spoke, he didn't even need to look at Naruto to see that his grandson had already forgotten what he'd been talking about. It didn't surprise him in the slightest, it wasn't the first time that had happened. The two worked for the next couple of hours, sometimes stopping to discuss different techniques they'd come across during their previous attempts at creating a higher-level seal or to explain the basics of what they had learned thus far. At times Sakura would be working intently on one seal only for her concentration to slip away for moments before she caught herself and tried to refocus back on to the task at hand. Once they reached the point where he was confident Naruto and Sakura had gotten the hang of this seal, he deemed it time to call it a day and return home.

-

Naruto in turn sighed dramatically, knowing he wouldn't win this fight but nevertheless walking out of the training field. Sakura a few steps behind him her head low from the lack of any meaningful progress. Sure she had made a passable seal but even she knew it wasn't close to what it could've been.

-

The next day the three were once again hard at work on their training. Naruto was busy forming clones while Sakura was busy trying to improve her seal work By the time lunchtime rolled around Naruto was so exhausted that he barely managed to get himself to the table to eat. However, once he saw what was sitting atop the table Naruto's eyes grew wide in happiness and joy. A big bowl of ramen. Taking the bowl in hand Naruto downed the meal in less than a minute making Miniko laugh when he saw the noodle that was hanging from his mouth.

"You have something on your face". Miniko said as he pointed at his grandson. Naruto in turn padded his face before finding the solo noodle and eating it with a grin. "What's got you so happy?" he asked once Naruto finally swallowed down the noodles and set the bowl aside.

"Sakura is going to master her seal. I can feel it!". Naruto said enthusiastically, jumping up and down in excitement so sure that today she would master the seal she had been working on for the past few days.

Miniko smiled at his enthusiasm and reached across the table and ruffled his hair.

"Yes of course she will, but she hasn't been able to master anything that she has made yet, which is why I am here. Remember what the book said about chakra? It's not about just being able to manipulate your chakra system and make it do things. You have to actually be able to shape the energies." Miniko informed his grandson who still had some doubts but eventually settled back down and ate another portion of ramen. Once the trio had eaten they were once again working hard on their various assignments. Naruto with his clones and Sakura with her seal. Miniko was just about to call it a day when Naruto yelled out.

"I made a clone". Naruto said as he placed his hands on his knees trying to get some much needed air. When Miniko saw the clone he was taken aback. It wasn't a normal clone. No it was a shadow clone. His grandson had just preformed an A-rank forbidden jutsu by accident.