The blue lightning danced in Hagoromo's palm as if it were alive. His fingers seemed barely able to suppress the mass of chakra; danger and destruction felt imminent.
Kakashi and the others instinctively leaned back, their bodies trying to put as much distance as possible between themselves and the lightning. Their subconscious was screaming at them about how dangerous this thing was.
Meanwhile, Hagoromo—acting as the "original creator" while performing the jutsu right in front of its true future inventor—didn't feel even a shred of shame.
"A destructive power comparable to an S-rank jutsu!"
Unlike Kakashi's cautious retreat, Minato Namikaze's eyes lit up. While the power was impressive, that wasn't what truly captivated him. He saw something else: this was a no-seal ninjutsu. Achieving such a drastic change in chakra nature and form without hand seals was incredibly difficult. This was what fascinated him most.
"Truly remarkable, Kushina. I didn't expect your disciple to develop a no-seal ninjutsu of this caliber..." Minato said with genuine admiration. Currently, inspired by the Tailed Beast Bomb, he was in the middle of developing his own no-seal technique, the Rasengan. However, he was still in the experimental phase; the Rasengan was only a simple prototype, far from being able to incorporate chakra nature transformation.
No-seal ninjutsu didn't require hand signs, allowing for instant activation in battle—an incomparable advantage over jutsus that required dozens of seals.
"Of course! This just proves I'm an excellent teacher who knows how to guide students to their full potential," Kushina boasted.
Hagoromo briefly considered mentioning that he had completed the technique before meeting her, but quickly dismissed the thought. He had zero interest in seeing the consequences of telling her the truth.
However, noticing Minato's misunderstanding about the technique's nature, Hagoromo quickly corrected him. "Minato-senpai, you're slightly mistaken. This jutsu isn't technically a no-seal ninjutsu."
"Is that so? But you didn't perform any seals just now," Minato replied, looking puzzled. Had Hagoromo's hands moved faster than his eyes? Impossible.
"In reality, Chidori does require hand seals. It's just that my body is unique; I have a naturally high affinity for Lightning Style, which allows me to release it without seals," Hagoromo explained as the lightning in his hand dissipated. "But for anyone else, the seals are necessary."
To demonstrate—and because he was a "principled" pirate who didn't want to rob Kakashi of the ability to use his own future move—Hagoromo began to perform the seals slowly.
Ox —> Rabbit —> Monkey
After the three seals, the burst of lightning reappeared in his palm.
Hagoromo was effectively giving Kakashi the "source code." He believed that as the original developer, Kakashi would likely master the technique quickly once he knew the sequence.
"I see. So it's a matter of innate talent," Minato said. His interest in the technique waned slightly once he learned it wasn't a true no-seal jutsu like the one he was pursuing.
Still, Minato had to admit Hagoromo was a genius. Setting the Chidori aside, being able to manipulate Lightning Style with such proficiency at his age was no small feat.
At this point, Hagoromo could use both Lightning and Fire Style—the two natures he was born with. Naturally, he preferred Lightning. While Fire Style was great for area-of-effect damage, Lightning was superior for concentrated destruction. Plus, there was a practical reason: he couldn't get his hands on any A-rank Fire Style jutsus.
Apparently, even Kushina didn't know any A-rank Fire Style, and rumors suggested Konoha didn't have many to begin with. It was a sad state of affairs.
Aside from his innate natures, Hagoromo was studying other elements under Kushina, though results weren't immediate.
Regardless of what everyone else thought, Hagoromo enjoyed the meal. For the next few days, he barely saw Kushina. It wasn't until Minato left that she returned to the sealing development with renewed vigor. Within a week, she cleared the remaining hurdles, and the forbidden technique was finally complete.
One morning, a week later, at the edge of the barrier in the northwest corner of Konoha, two figures—one large, one small—were moving stealthily through a deserted dense forest.
Kushina was carrying a massive sealing scroll. She stopped a specific distance from the village's protective barrier.
She couldn't go any further; otherwise, the barrier would react and alert the Anbu, which would put an end to their secret experiment.
"Hagoromo, come here. Take this scroll and place it right against the edge of the barrier. For certain reasons, I can't get too close," Kushina told him.
Hagoromo nodded and took the scroll, which was taller than he was, and walked to the edge. He understood why she couldn't get close: after she had tried to sneak off to the front lines once, the barrier had been calibrated to detect the Nine-Tails' chakra. If she approached, the Hokage would know instantly.
To Kushina, Konoha was both a protective shield and a cage.
Hagoromo carefully placed the scroll at the very edge of the barrier and unfurled it on the ground as instructed. The interior was covered in dense characters and complex formulas that formed a geometric pattern far more intricate than the standard Four Symbols Seal—and quite different from the "Reverse Four Symbols" of the original timeline.
Once it was set, Hagoromo sprinted back to Kushina's side. He wasn't being a coward; he just wanted to be far away from the dangerous thing.
"Reporting to the Second Platoon Leader! Our 'Italian Cannon' is in position and ready for detonation!" he reported.
Kushina didn't understand the reference, but she understood the intent. She nodded, her expression unusually stern.
"Let's move back. Then move back some more. The range of this thing is still unclear; we need to ensure our own safety."