"Why did you ask me to learn those seals? I didn't have to make a single one during the entire process," Kaida asked.
"Are you really asking me such a silly question? I thought you had some smartness, maybe the pain from the procedure was too much," Mitsuru said, placing her hand on her chin as if pondering some deep theory.
"I'm sorry to disappoint you, Sensei. Your disciple is not that smart. Now, can you please tell me the reason?" Kaida said. Dealing with Shisui had trained him enough to handle such scenarios, but one thought crossed his mind: 'Sensei is unusually playful today.' Since it wasn't a bad thing, he didn't point it out.
"Simple. When I was making seals on your body, did you know which type of seal I was making?" Mitsuru asked.
"Yes, Sensei. It was a slightly advanced version of the Healing Seal I had learned," Kaida replied.
"And when those two were making seals?" Mitsuru continued.
"They made some type of array that combined a storage seal with a chakra suppression seal and a chakra absorption seal. But it wasn't a normal one. He must have modified it to absorb chakra from me rather than from the environment, and..." Kaida went silent, stopping mid-sentence.
"Yeah, you know every single seal that was inscribed on your body. Only a fool would get a seal inscribed on their body without knowing anything about it. Also, you'll have to maintain those seals in the future. What would happen if you messed up some strokes because you didn't know the seals? Everything would go to waste, and you'd either have to forget about this jutsu or do everything over again," Mitsuru explained.
Kaida shuddered at the thought of such a future.
"I understand, Sensei," Kaida said.
"Good. Now, you can go back and take some rest for today. DON'T even think about using the seal. Let your body get accustomed to them first, and only start filling the seal with your chakra tomorrow," Mitsuru gave a strict warning.
"Okay, Sensei," Kaida said with a smile. He once again thanked Mitsuru for her help and then headed back to his home.
---
"Oh! You're back. How did the procedure go?" Shisui asked as soon as he saw Kaida entering the house.
"It went well, brother," Kaida replied as he entered the house, a silly grin on his face. "I now have an S-rank jutsu—and one of the best ones at that."
"Great, show it to me!" Shisui replied with the same energy.
"Umm... I'm currently very low on chakra because of the procedure, but I can at least show you a nerfed demonstration," Kaida said, his grin still intact. But then he remembered Mitsuru's advice to let his body get accustomed to the seal first before using it. Though it mainly applied to adding more chakra into the seal, he decided to hold off activating the seal for now as well.
"Brother, Sensei told me not to use the seal today. I'll show it to you tomorrow," Kaida said.
"No problem. What matters is that you finally achieved your goal," Shisui responded.
---
While Kaida was having an ideal talk with his brother, the higher-ups of Konoha were having a different type of conversation.
"So, he's learned the Mitotic Regeneration Jutsu," Hiruzen said, puffing out a thick cloud of smoke from his pipe.
"Yes, Lord Third. As per your orders, Lord Kiyoshi and Lord Tatsuo themselves made the process as perfect as possible. Both of them are resting at the moment because of the fatigue, but according to them, the process went seamlessly and the results were perfect too. Though it's not at the same level as Lady Tsunade, that boy now has the second-best healing jutsu in Konoha," the Anbu reported.
"Do you think it was a good idea to teach that boy something so precious, and without even asking Tsunade, since this is her jutsu?" Homura asked, adjusting his glasses.
"There's no need for me to ask permission from my student. As for that boy's qualifications... his talent is his qualification. Having a 3-tomoe Sharingan, going toe-to-toe with Itachi in kenjutsu, and possessing specialist-level medical jutsu capabilities—not to mention his progress in genjutsu and fuinjutsu—he might be the most versatile ninja among the younger generation right now. So, if he wanted to learn something, what reason did I have not to let him?" Hiruzen asked, releasing more smoke from his pipe.
"Because he's an Uchiha," Koharu added with a tinge of annoyance in her voice.
"And? I'm still waiting for the reason," Hiruzen said.
"Don't play games, Hiruzen. You know the power balance will be shattered if the Uchiha get their hands on this jutsu," Koharu argued.
"And how will they get this jutsu? Will they dissect that boy and break through the concealment seals made by two of Konoha's best fuinjutsu grandmasters? And that too, when I've given him my protection?" Hiruzen asked, as if he had just heard some kind of joke.
"We don't know. They might try. Don't you remember just a few months ago they were showing rebellious tendencies? Who knows—maybe their Curse of Hatred is awakening again," Koharu warned.
"We both know the reason for that, Koharu. Danzo forced them into that position, killing so many Uchiha and giving them all life-threatening missions under my name. How do you expect them to behave?" Hiruzen asked.
"Why are you taking their side so much, Hiruzen?" Homura chimed in. It was unusual for Hiruzen to support the Uchiha so strongly.
"I'm not supporting them. You two are just trying to portray one of the most important clans in our village as villains. Just imagine if the Uchiha weren't part of Konoha. Our village would lose a quarter of its strength," Hiruzen stated. It was a bold claim, as comparing a clan to a quarter of the village's strength meant Konoha depended on them.
Even though Koharu and Homura wanted to deny it, deep down, they knew it was true. The Uchiha, with their high number of jonin and their dojutsu, were a crucial part of Konoha's strength. But that was also the problem—everyone was uncomfortable with how powerful they were. This resulted in the ambiguous situation where everyone knew the Uchiha were important for Konoha, but they didn't want them to grow any stronger.
"That boy will also join the Anbu in the future. He's not only an Uchiha but also a Senju, so don't worry too much," Hiruzen said, understanding what the two elders really wanted to express.
"Fine," Koharu said simply. Even if they had more to say, Hiruzen's tone in his last sentence left no room for further discussion.
After they left, Hiruzen turned to the corner of his office.
"What do you think?"
"It's good for the village that we now have a pseudo S-rank ninja," Shikaku finally spoke, having been silent throughout the discussion because there was no need for his input.
"Pseudo S-rank... quite a new term there," Hiruzen commented.
"He's not really Kage-level at the moment, but if he activates the Mitotic Regeneration seal along with his 3-tomoe Sharingan, he may reach that level for a short period of time. But that's it. It's not permanent, and considering the side effects, he won't be able to use it often either. So, he's not truly a Kage-level ninja, not even low Kage-level. But he could reach that stage... that's why I call him a pseudo Kage-level ninja," Shikaku explained in detail.
"Fine, but you know I wasn't asking about that," Hiruzen said.
"The Chunin Exam?"