"Ino... how did you do that?" Mrs. Yamanaka asked, holding back a laugh. "Tell me exactly how you performed the Secret Technique just now..."
"It's just advancing one seal at a time. When I first formed the Rin Seal, my mind became very calm, and my perception became sensitive, then..."
Ino began her explanation from the very first seal, "Lin." She described how her heart became tranquil, how her perception expanded, and how she gained a perception of human emotional states far richer than Malice Perception or the Kagura Minds Eye. She explained how she linked and locked onto Kana, aligned her own meridians, and then struck with a single blow—one "Xing" and it struck her very soul... A chill suddenly crawled up Kana's spine... "How... how is that possible? You already locked onto me back during the Dou Seal?"
She hadn't noticed a thing!
For a Ninja of the Yamanaka Clan, this was simply inconceivable. An elite Ninja of the Yamanaka Clan, whose perception was naturally sharper than that of ordinary Ninjas, had been targeted without even the slightest reaction... Mrs. Yamanaka was equally astonished. "You locked onto Kana at that point? And then, through that lock, you performed the Secret Technique?"
"Yeah..."
Ino nodded vigorously.
"You said that you vibrated your entire meridian system, mainly the Twelve Standard Meridians and the eight extraordinary vessels, to release the Secret Technique?"
"Yeah."
Mrs. Yamanaka and Kana finally understood—Kana understood why she "couldn't budge her," and Mrs. Yamanaka understood why Kana had seemed so fragile and weak. This wasn't a gap in spiritual power between a five-year-old child and a young adult kunoichi; it was a power that far exceeded the concept of a "Bloodline Limit." It was a compounded, ultimate spiritual power!
Consequently, while the projection of Ino's spiritual power didn't seem powerful, its actual quality was staggering.
It would be a wonder if Kana could have pushed her away!
Mrs. Yamanaka added, "But of these nine seals, besides Lin and Xing, the remaining seven are all ineffective. How were you able to produce different results?" As a native of Konoha, Mrs. Yamanaka's first thought was, "Could it be that Ino's bloodline has undergone atavism, granting her the power of our ancestors?"
If Ino had heard Mrs. Yamanaka's thoughts, she would have certainly rolled her eyes—what did her ability to use the Kuji-in have to do with atavism?
Kana said, "Exactly. Which member of our clan didn't try those hand seals when they were young? We all thought we'd be special, but in the end, we were just like everyone else..."
If that weren't the case, the seven seals—Bing, Dou, Zhe, Jie, Zhen, Lie, and Qian—wouldn't have been discarded and ignored.
Ino blinked and said, "Let me guess—did you all form the seals one by one, independently? Just like learning the twelve hand seals of a Ninja, learning the movements, practicing hand speed, and trying them one by one... then becoming familiar with them through extensive practice?"
"Yes..."
"But these Nine Seals and the Twelve Seals are completely different. These Nine Seals do not generate Chakra; they target the human heart. Moreover, they must start from 'Lin,' with each state being layered one by one. If you treat them as individual, independent seals, you will never discover the functions of the middle seven..."
"It's like a formula. If the premise of the formula is zero, then the result of the formula will also be zero, making it meaningless."
"'Bing' is built upon the foundation of 'Lin.' 'Lin' calms the mind, allowing one to feel even the slightest ripple from the outside world through the eyes, ears, nose, skin, and meridians. When we focus our attention on a single meridian, that is Chakra Perception. Only on this basis can the Bing Seal produce results..."
"'Bing' allows you to feel subtle emotional changes like joy, pain, and jealousy, helping you distinguish between enemies and allies."
"'Dou'..."
"..."
"Lin" and "Xing" were the seals most commonly used by the clan's Ninjas and didn't really need explaining, so Ino focused her explanation on the seven seals everyone had abandoned.
This "layering" method of sealing was fundamentally different from the Twelve Earthly Branches Hand Seals used by Ninjas. It was something that someone accustomed to Ninja thinking and theoretical education would never have imagined.
If it weren't for Ino, a little girl who possessed memories of her "previous life," this "method" would likely have remained buried forever.
"Layering them, using the Rin Seal as a foundation and advancing step by step... so that's how it is..."
After listening, Mrs. Yamanaka immediately tried it. She formed the nine seals in sequence, but being used to "independent" and "combined" sealing methods, trying this unprecedented "layering" mode made her feel clumsy. She struggled to balance everything and had to try seven or eight times before she barely managed to successfully achieve the Bing Seal.
That wonderful sensation was like coating her perception with the colors of emotion, making it instantly more vivid.
"Dou!"
Mrs. Yamanaka chose Kana... Slowly releasing the hand seal, Mrs. Yamanaka took a deep breath, her eyes flashing with a strange brilliance. "So, is this what the clan's Secret Technique was originally meant to be? The power of perception can be expanded or concentrated, and can even lock onto a target individually... I wonder if it can lock onto multiple targets simultaneously..."
Kana also gave it a try, similarly stumbling through the layering process, though the effect wasn't very strong.
But—
It was undeniably real.
"Sigh, it looks like in addition to 'the twelve great laws' and 'the three essentials of chakra,' I'll need to write another book..."
"That won't do, Ino. The clan's Secret Techniques can only be passed down orally and never written down—otherwise, a Secret Technique wouldn't be much of a secret."
Mrs. Yamanaka ruffled Ino's hair.
"That's right, Princess Ino—Secret Techniques must only be passed down orally. That is the best way to maintain secrecy!"
Kana also took the opportunity to tease Ino, ruffling her hair in return, since the little girl had just been pinching and poking her.
"Fine, then regarding this Secret Technique... Mom, I'll leave the task of teaching Dad to you. I won't teach him; he's too slow. Kana, you teach Nana. As for the rest of the clan, let Dad decide who to teach and who not to."
After Ino finished speaking, she began a new experiment with the Nine Seals... If she had the foundation of Lin, then directly connecting to the Jie Seal, then... Ino began testing things out on her own...
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