There are twelve hand seals in total: Rat, Ox, Tiger, Rabbit, Dragon, Snake, Horse, Sheep, Monkey, Rooster, Dog, and Pig, each with its unique hand gesture.
When Uchiha Fūka first started practicing, his fingers began to tremble after just the fourth seal. By the eighth seal, his pinky was starting to cramp, and by the time he completed all twelve seals, both hands were aching and sore, making him feel quite miserable.
After practicing for over half an hour, Fūka's hands were cramping up badly.
"Argh! It hurts so much!"
But Fūka knew he had to persevere. At just six years old, his body was highly adaptable. If he delayed practicing until his fingers were set, it would be much harder to make progress.
"Keep going!"
Gritting his teeth, Fūka continued to practice, with beads of sweat dripping down his forehead and soaking through his clothes. He practiced each seal one by one, taking breaks when his hands cramped and then continuing. Gradually, the sun began to set, casting a blood-red glow across the small yard.
Fūka's fingers were now swollen and bruised, with his pinky and ring fingers barely able to move.
"Ugh!"
Fūka slumped onto the grass in the yard, his hands aching so much he felt like he might as well have them amputated!
"Right, I wonder if Chakra can help with this pain."
Fūka quickly closed his eyes and channeled his blue Chakra to flow into his hands.
He could see a faint blue glow at his fingertips in the sunset, making it look quite magical.
However, without any medical ninjutsu training, Fūka found that no matter how much Chakra he channeled to his hands, it didn't have any real healing effect.
"Sigh."
Just then, the carefree Obito Uchiha strolled in.
"Fūka, it's dinner time!!!"
Obito's face was beaming with joy. After helping several elderly ladies across the street that afternoon, he earned the "Lifelong Achievement Award for Helping Others," making him feel like he was on cloud nine.
Then he saw Fūka sprawled on the ground, his hands looking like deformed chicken feet.
Obito's eyes widened. "Fūka, what happened to your hands?"
He rushed over, grabbing Fūka's hands, inspecting them with an expression of a concerned scholar, almost as if he was about to nibble on them.
"Damn it, it hurts! Let go!" Fūka pulled his hands away, glaring at Obito. "I'll guide you with the cooking tonight."
"What? Why like this?" Obito looked dejected, but under Fūka's insistence, he finally gave in.
However, Obito's cooking skills were subpar. Despite Fūka's repeated reminders, he still made numerous mistakes—forgetting to add salt, using sugar instead of seasoning, and even burning the dish.
Obito scratched his head, looking awkwardly embarrassed.
"Well, at least the rice is done."
Fūka, feeling helpless, made do with the meal and kept a close watch on Obito while he washed the dishes, only letting him leave afterward.
With the moon hanging high in the sky, Fūka soaked his hands in hot water to ease the soreness before starting his tree-climbing and water-walking exercises.
These techniques were meant to train Chakra control. Some people excel at them immediately, while others take longer to master. Fortunately, Fūka's twenty-plus years of life experience helped him quickly adapt after overcoming his initial fear of heights during tree climbing.
"This is quite interesting!"
Fūka stood on the tree trunk, parallel to the ground, occasionally turning his head to take in the surroundings. The changing perspective offered a novel view, and after a while, he adapted to the new vantage point. He walked back and forth along the trunk and finally made his way to a branch, hanging upside down like a bat.
The gravity made Fūka's insides feel uneasy. He instinctively used Chakra to protect his internal organs, quickly relieving the discomfort.
"Let's try water-walking next!"
Fūka descended from the tree and went to the small pond in the yard. He slowly covered his feet with Chakra and gently stepped onto the water's surface.
Splash!
Fūka fell straight into the water.
"Damn it!"
Fūka swam out, soaked through.
"This doesn't make sense; it went so smoothly with the tree-climbing."
Fūka tried again, covering his feet with Chakra and stepping onto the water. This time, he was more cautious. When his feet began to sink, he would retract them. His shoes were soaked, but he made no progress.
It wasn't until late at night, with the moon high above, that the six-year-old Fūka finally couldn't keep his eyes open.
"Yawn~ Looks like I'll have to wait until tomorrow."
He quickly took a bath and went to bed.
The next morning, Fūka was woken by the noisy Obito from next door. After a groggy breakfast, he discovered that his hands no longer ached.
"Done? Could this be my time-traveling advantage? Quick recovery from soreness and fatigue?"
Fūka carefully examined his hands. They were smooth and delicate, with fingers as slender as green onions. As he looked, he was mesmerized by his own hands, his eyes almost forming heart shapes.
"Sigh, such perfect hands. In my previous life, not playing the piano would have been a crime."
Shaking his head with a sigh, Fūka began to refine his Chakra.
With his vast mental energy, refining Chakra was relatively easy for Fūka. After all, with 10 trillion cells in his body, extracting energy was straightforward.
As Fūka felt the Chakra slowly increase within him, he experienced a profound sense of fulfillment.
"So this is what it feels like to get stronger."
By noon, Obito arrived on time again, clamoring for the meal Fūka had prepared.
Fūka didn't mind the fuss. He cheerfully made a three-person meal.
"Fūka, why three servings?" Obito asked, puzzled when he saw the amount of food.
Fūka rolled his eyes. "One portion is for your grandma."
Obito was taken aback, then tears started to flow. "Wuwu, Fūka, you're too kind! I've decided—I'll be your friend for life!!!"
Obito stomped on the dining table, shouting with a fierce expression, his forehead veins bulging, looking like he was ready to cook Fūka and serve him as a dish.
Fūka's eye twitched. He swiftly kicked Obito off the table.
Sorry, he had a bit of a cleanliness obsession.
In the end, with tears in his eyes, Obito packed up a portion and hurried back to his own home.
Fūka shook his head, chuckling bitterly. "Obito is too kind."
Thinking about the future events where Obito becomes Tobi, destroys Konoha, kills his teacher's wife, and instigates wars, he is like a completely different person.
"Is this what they call 'the deeper the love, the deeper the hate'?"
After lunch, Fūka looked at his perfect hands and resumed practicing hand seals!