Kakashi made a decisive move.
With a swift motion and a sharp "whoosh," a massive scroll, nearly half his height, unfurled in front of him. At that moment, the Explosion Ninja's fist came into contact with the rune inscribed on Kakashi's hand and linked to the scroll.
Suddenly, the Underworld Seal drawn on the scroll came alive, pulsating as if it had a heartbeat of its own.
"Hula!"
The black runes writhed and sprang forward, biting down on the Explosion Ninja's arm like a wild beast clamping its jaws shut!
"Aah—!"
As the symbols twisted and changed shape, Kakashi could only watch as the soul within the Explosion Ninja was ripped away, forcefully extracted by the sealing technique.
Moments later, the soul was completely sucked into the scroll, and the ninja's body crumbled into ash.
"As expected of Morkel's invention... This technique is incredibly powerful," Kakashi murmured in awe.
Even as he spoke, he suddenly felt a burning sensation in his palm. Looking down, he realized the scroll had ignited on its own and was already turning to ash.
Elsewhere, in the Cloud Shinobi Village's command center, every battlefield movement was being monitored in real time.
Seeing the scroll burn up, the Tsuchikage asked curiously, "Was there an error in the process? Why did it suddenly catch fire?"
Morkel shrugged and explained calmly, "That's intentional. Any ninja sealed using this scroll gets a unique spiritual mark engraved on their soul. Once they're returned to the underworld, the seal ensures they can never be summoned again via Impure World Reincarnation."
He continued, "Also, every Underworld Sealing Scroll is different. After sealing, it self-destructs to prevent the scroll from falling into enemy hands or being reused to summon the same soul again."
Hearing this, everyone in the command center was visibly impressed.
Raikage raised his thumb in admiration. "Konoha's genius never disappoints. You've even thought about the aftermath. Impressive!"
Tsuchikage followed up with a practical question. "But these are one-time-use scrolls... How many do you have?"
Morkel shook his head. "Just one. I developed it recently and gave it to you for field testing."
Raikage looked surprised. "Just one?"
"No worries," Morkel replied. "Gather all the Sealing Ninjas at the headquarters. I'll teach them how the spell works, including how to encode the unique markings for each scroll."
The Tsuchikage raised an eyebrow. "You're going to share the entire sealing technique?"
It was surprising—sealing techniques this advanced were usually considered family secrets, passed down and guarded for generations. Especially a technique so effective it could render Impure World Reincarnation useless.
Morkel only chuckled. "There's nothing to hide. It's not even that complex."
"Even if I didn't invent it, someone else would've figured it out eventually. We're in the middle of a war. Now's not the time for secrets."
The Tsuchikage fell silent, reflecting on Morkel's words.
He remembered how angry he had been when he learned that Morkel had secretly mastered Dust Release. But now, seeing the young man generously sharing an immensely powerful technique he had created through tireless effort—he realized how narrow-minded he had been.
No wonder Morkel had risen to such heights so quickly. He had both talent and heart.
Raikage came over and gently patted the Tsuchikage's shoulder. "We're old now... This new generation of shinobi has already surpassed us."
Tsuchikage bristled. "What do you mean 'we'? I'm decades older than you!"
Raikage laughed. "True. But the reality is the same—we've been left behind."
Not long after, Raikage summoned the Sealing Ninjas from the Fourth Division who had stayed behind at headquarters. He instructed Morkel to teach them the Underworld Sealing Technique personally.
---
Several Hours Later…
In a small classroom, Morkel took a sip of tea while standing in front of the blackboard. He sighed in frustration.
"Really? You don't understand even this?"
"This is just a basic cubic equation with two variables and a spiraling sealing formation. A few minor adjustments, and you're done. How is that difficult?"
The Sealing Ninjas, though elite in battle, now sat before him completely humbled. They looked like schoolchildren being scolded.
They wanted to defend themselves, but they dared not speak.
The technique Morkel was teaching seemed simple in his mouth, but to them, it was like being asked to solve calculus after learning basic arithmetic.
Morkel sighed again. "Alright, let me go over it again."
He tapped the blackboard with his pointer. "First, set the foundational seal, then layer the chakra flow sequence, and…"
The ninjas immediately straightened up, hanging onto every word. They didn't want to miss a single syllable.
After another few hours of instruction, some of the brighter ninjas finally began to grasp the basics of the Underworld Seal.
Morkel was exhausted. He now understood why his teachers in the modern world were always irritable.
Standing at the front of the room, trying to teach advanced techniques to people with the most basic knowledge—it was mentally draining.
"Alright, I've done my part. Those of you who get it, go teach the others. I'm going to rest."
With that, Morkel used the Flying Thunder God Technique and vanished.
---
Back at the Classroom
Not long after Morkel left, Tsunade entered the room.
"Where's Morkel?" she asked.
One of the Sealing Ninjas replied, "He went back to Turtle Island for some rest…"
Tsunade nodded. "So? How's progress with the Underworld Seal? Can you make the scrolls on your own?"
The Sealing Ninjas exchanged bitter looks.
"Well… barely."
"Hokage-sama, it's not for lack of trying," one of them said. "But Morkel's explanations were just… too advanced."
"Exactly! Are all of Konoha's jutsu this complex? Morkel's not even seventeen! How does he know this stuff?"
"Now I finally understand why Konoha is the strongest village."
Tsunade blinked in confusion. "Is it really that difficult? He seemed so casual when explaining it earlier…"
She turned to look at the chalkboard.
Her jaw dropped.
Written on it were things like: "Entangled spiral structures," "Binary-cubic infinite variable manipulation," "Gabha's theorem," and… "Dog tracking logic of the Inuzuka Clan"?
"…Gulp."
Tsunade's throat made an audible sound as she swallowed.
She had never even heard of some of these formulas.
No wonder the Sealing Ninjas were struggling. Even she was baffled!
Still, she kept her composure. "Ahem… Alright, carry on. I'll check in with headquarters."
---
Turtle Island
Back on Turtle Island, Naruto was still practicing the Tailed Beast Bomb.
Watching him struggle, Morkel frowned. "He's still having trouble with it?"
He turned to Killer Bee. "What's going on?"
Bee shrugged. "I don't know. He keeps losing focus. He needs an 80/20 balance of energy and chakra, but he can't maintain it."
"Losing focus?" Morkel muttered.
He knew Naruto well. He wasn't the brightest, but he always focused when it came to training—especially something as critical as this.
As Morkel pondered, Naruto was mid-practice and suddenly looked dazed.
"Hey, Naruto!" Morkel shouted, snapping him out of it.
Naruto shook his head, blinking. "Huh…?"
"What happened?" Morkel asked.
Naruto looked troubled. "I… I'm not sure. For a moment, it felt like someone else was using my chakra."
Morkel's eyes narrowed. "What do you mean?"
Naruto continued, "It was like my Nine Tails chakra was being borrowed… And at the same time, I saw strange flashes in my mind. Images from places I've never been."
"Can you remember any faces?"
Naruto shook his head. "No, just that they had Nine Tails chakra too."
Morkel's expression turned serious.
"In this entire ninja world... besides you, who else could possibly have Nine Tails chakra?"
.