Dead Demon Consuming Seal

From Narutopedia

Dead Demon Consuming Seal[1]
Name
Kanji	屍鬼封尽
Rōmaji	Shiki Fūjin
Literal English	Dead Demon Consuming Seal
English TV	Sealing Jutsu: Reaper Death Seal
Debut
Manga	Chapter #123
Anime	Naruto Episode #72
Data
Classification	Fūinjutsu, Kinjutsu
Rank	S-rank
Class	Offensive
Range	Short-range
Hand seals	Snake → Boar → Ram → Rabbit → Dog → Rat → Bird → Horse → Snake → Clap Hands
Users Minato Namikaze Hiruzen Sarutobi

This seal invokes the powers of the death god (shinigami). Once called upon, the death god hovers behind the user and inserts its arm into their soul. At this stage only the user can see the death god. To perform the seal the user need only grasp the target. The death god's arm extends from their chest and grabs the soul of the target, immobilizing them and allowing them to see the death god as well. Soon after the sealing is completed the death god consumes the soul of the user as well, sentencing them to an eternity of battle with their target in its stomach. A swirl-pattern is left on the stomachs of those that have had something sealed within them using this jutsu.

There are many mysteries surrounding this seal, and the exact workings seem to be known to no-one. One of the mysteries is how the Fourth Hokage managed to leave behind some of his life energy to act as a fail-safe.

[edit] References

1. ↑ Second Databook, page 228