"Little Biwa, can't we talk this out properly?"
Kneeling on a washboard, Sarutobi Hiruzen was utterly baffled. He had no idea what was wrong with his wife today.
Her period had come?
"So this is why you haven't been coming home for dinner these past few years. Sure enough, you've been up to no good in the Hokage Building!"
Her face frosty, Sarutobi Biwako flung out six thick books, each bearing the title Ninpō Sōkyū.
Even the Sarutobi Hi no En on the covers bore a seventy-percent resemblance to Sarutobi Hiruzen. His heart skipped a beat as he realized he was in trouble.
"Sarutobi Hiruzen, you've really grown some nerve. You actually had someone write this shameless autobiography for you. What, do you think I'm old and faded now? Are you planning to take dozens of concubines?
If I hadn't gone browsing at the bookstore, I never would have discovered your little secret!"
Her voice remained icy, even chilling. Sarutobi Biwako was truly furious this time.
Although she could tell that Biwa Ya in the book had been based on her, Sarutobi Hi no En had far too many confidantes, and many of them clearly corresponded to people in real life.
There was even a scene involving that slut Utatane Koharu. How could she not be enraged?
"Little Ya, listen to my explanation..."
Seeing that his wife was angry, Sarutobi Hiruzen hurriedly rose to approach her and explain himself. But the moment the words left his mouth, he silently cursed.
He had become deeply obsessed with Ninpō Sōkyū lately, enjoying it so much that he was nearly unable to distinguish fiction from reality. In his panic, he had actually called his wife by Little Ya, the name of the character based on her. He was truly finished now.
Sure enough, hearing her husband call her Little Ya only made Sarutobi Biwako angrier.
"Stay kneeling!"
"You're calling me Little Ya now? Do you really think I'm that Biwa Ya from the book? You've just confessed without being asked!"
The expression on her face grew even colder. Sarutobi Biwako felt that she had been far too indulgent toward her husband in the past, allowing him to develop so many reckless, death-seeking thoughts.
Sarutobi Hiruzen's expression turned even more bitter. He had never expected his wife to visit a bookstore and discover this set of Ninpō Sōkyū. He was truly finished this time.
Leaving aside the bloody domestic violence within the Sarutobi Family, in a hidden underground location far beyond Konoha, an old man with wild gray-white hair hurled the thick book in his hand to the ground.
"Absurd! Why would I, Uchiha Madara, covet the Sarutobi Family's treasures? And send my daughter there as an undercover agent!"
Anger surged in his heart. Uchiha Madara was genuinely furious.
Although the book never explicitly used his name, did they really think he would fail to recognize himself just because they used the name Uchiha Genban?
Moreover, the illustration of Uchiha Genban resembled him by at least fifty percent, especially that wild, arrogant delinquent hairstyle, which was practically iconic.
He did not object to becoming a character in a novel. It only proved that his reputation was legendary throughout the ninja world, so much so that even Master Yunzhongniao could not help but use him as a template for characters in every book. But Uchiha Genban in Ninpō Sōkyū was simply revolting.
What Secret Treasure could the Sarutobi Family possibly possess that he, Uchiha Madara, would covet? They even sent their own daughter in as an undercover agent to investigate.
Though he had never married and had no daughter, that still did not make it acceptable.
Did Uchiha Madara not care about his dignity?
And that Sarutobi Sagen character, clearly based on Sarutobi Sasuke, was equally disgusting. Sarutobi Hiruzen's father, Sarutobi Sasuke, had indeed possessed decent Fire Release back then, but that was all. What qualifications did he have to become Uchiha Madara's close friend?
Only Hashirama was qualified to stand as his equal!
After venting his anger, Uchiha Madara used Chakra Threads to drag the book back and continued reading.
There was no helping it. Life without Hashirama was lonely as snow. Fortunately, he had happened to discover novels written by someone named Ichikabe Tōkō Yunzhong Niao a few years ago, and they were quite interesting.
Some of the settings within had given him considerable inspiration, and he had spent the past few years following that master's works.
Even though Uchiha Genban, who had been based on him, was revolting in Ninpō Sōkyū, the novel as a whole was still quite compelling, especially the Fen Jue technique and those Heavenly Flames.
Speaking of which, Amaterasu among the Uchiha Clan's Mangekyo Dojutsu could probably count as a type of Heavenly Flame too, couldn't it?
"Uchiha Diban, who was based on me in Shading the Heavens, was so much better and so much more domineering. Even though he was defeated in the end, he still deserved the title of Imperial Sovereign. Why is this one so disgusting?"
Muttering unhappily, Uchiha Madara felt that when he had the chance, he needed to find Ichikabe Tōkō Yunzhong Niao and have him write an incomparably domineering novel with himself as the protagonist.
Just like Night Emperor Ye Yuefan, the protagonist of Shading the Heavens!
Shimura Kentei had no idea that an elderly dance king had already set his sights on him. He was fully focused on developing various ways to induce brain death, gradually developing Absolute Rationality Mode through this miserable trial-and-error method.
The development process was indeed miserable, but he had long since grown accustomed to it. Back when he had developed that D-Rank Body Strengthening Secret Technique, he had died and been crippled countless times.
He had more than enough patience in that regard!
However, this training session was suddenly interrupted by an uninvited guest. Shimura Kentei was a little dumbfounded upon seeing who it was.
"Miss, why are you here? Did something go wrong with Nawaki's cultivation of that secret technique?"
Looking at Uzumaki Mito before him, Shimura Kentei pondered her reason for coming.
Tsunade's Shadow Clone, hidden in the shadows, was also wondering why Uzumaki Mito had come. Tsunade herself had long completed the second stage of water-walking training, after all. Her strength spoke for itself.
"It's inconvenient to talk here. Let's go somewhere else!"
Glancing toward where Tsunade's Shadow Clone was hiding, Uzumaki Mito's Shadow Clone spoke in a low voice.
She did not want her granddaughter to learn of why she had come.
"Follow me!"
Though even more puzzled, Shimura Kentei did not refuse. He rose and headed toward the cliffside base.
Tsunade's Shadow Clone wanted to follow, but an Adamantine Sealing Chain suddenly lashed out, binding her entire body to a tree. Then, using the chain as a medium, a set of Fuinjutsu was formed.
The chakra within her body was completely sealed away. Now, she could not even dispel this Shadow Clone.
The Shimura Clan ninja secretly protecting her was similarly restrained.
"Damn little pervert, what kind of love potion did you feed Grandma? I already lured you out, so why did Grandma follow you out too?
Could it be that Grandma has really been lonely all these years?"
Tsunade's Shadow Clone raged inwardly, wishing she could rush over right now and humanely destroy that little pervert.
She had thought that getting him out of the clan under the pretense of training would settle things. She had even planned to find an opportunity to talk with him and resolve that absurd matter through words if possible.
Who could have expected that she had underestimated her grandmother's attachment to that little pervert? Uzumaki Mito had actually come to the Death Forest to meet him in secret.
She could figure out what her grandmother and that little pervert would do next with her toes. The thought filled her with rage!
At the same time, she felt immense sorrow for her granduncle. Grass had probably already grown over his grave, the lush green kind.
Leaving aside Tsunade's Shadow Clone's fury, on the other side, Shimura Kentei brought Uzumaki Mito into a stone cave at the cliffside base and poured her a cup of tea.
"The conditions here are a bit crude!"
Smiling apologetically, Shimura Kentei sat down cross-legged and waited for her to speak.
"I came this time because I want you to ask Master Yunzhongniao to write a novel with Hashirama as the protagonist!"
Uzumaki Mito was not someone who liked to beat around the bush, so she directly stated her purpose.
She had actually entertained this idea for a long time. Her growing friendship with this little brother over recent days had made the old thought increasingly intense, and today, she finally could not resist sending out a Shadow Clone to discuss it.
Although she did not know who Ichikabe Tōkō Yunzhong Niao really was, he certainly had some connection to the Shimura Clan.
After all, the Xinhua Bookstore had been opened by the Shimura Clan several years ago, and the related merchandise for those novels, such as the exquisite clothing in the illustrations, was also sold by the Shimura Clan.
Clearly, even if Master Yunzhongniao was not a member of the Shimura Clan, he was certainly closely connected to them. He might even be within the Shimura Clan right now.
It was inconvenient for her to visit the Shimura Clan, and even less convenient for her to discuss this matter directly, so she could only seek out this little brother.
She hoped it would work!
Meanwhile, Shimura Kentei, seated opposite her, was utterly dumbfounded. He truly had not expected her to make such a request.
He had heard in his previous life of ladies who were no less bold than men, whose appreciation for island adult films and action movies surpassed that of many full-grown men. He had never expected to be fortunate enough to encounter such a bold connoisseur himself.
"Miss, do you read Master Yunzhongniao's Yellow Volumes too?"
After recovering from his shock, Shimura Kentei cautiously asked. He felt that this miss might truly be a kindred spirit, which immediately made him feel even closer to her.
He liked bold and grand ladies like this. Just as the saying went, she could grace a hall, manage a kitchen, serve as a general or knight, and become a whip-wielding queen.
"I've read a few. Some of the settings inside are quite interesting!"
Uzumaki Mito nodded calmly. She did not deny it, nor did she feel embarrassed. She had long passed the age of a young girl's shyness.
Besides, setting aside those passionate scenes, the novels were genuinely good and had given even her quite a bit of inspiration.
"Having Master Yunzhongniao write a novel with the First Lord as the protagonist will be difficult, but I'll do my best to persuade him.
By the way, do you have any requirements for this novel?"
After thinking it over, Shimura Kentei did not refuse. He even asked whether she had any requests.
What a joke. How could he miss such a good chance to deepen his progress with this miss?
In any case, he was planning to write a new book before long. It did not matter whose template he used for the protagonist. It would be even better if he could make this miss owe him a favor.
"Thank you so much. As for requirements, I do have one. Hashirama cannot be unfaithful.
Mm, there can't be more than three female leads!"
Uzumaki Mito showed her gratitude, then her expression changed as she stared seriously at this little brother.
She did not want the character based on Hashirama to turn into that kind of humanoid self-propelled cannon. After thinking about it, though, she felt that would go against Master Yunzhongniao's writing style, so she relaxed the number of female leads to three.
After all, she had heard that writers all possessed their own pride. She could not make this little brother's task too difficult.
"Alright. I'll try to persuade Master Yunzhongniao."
Pretending to hesitate for a while, Shimura Kentei reluctantly agreed, saying he would do his best to handle the matter.
If he made it look too easy, it would be hard to make this miss owe him a major favor!
"By the way, Miss, would you like Master Yunzhongniao to write a new book with you as the protagonist?
The kind without a male lead!"
A sudden flash of inspiration struck him. He had thought of a way to further deepen his progress with this miss.
"Would Master Yunzhongniao agree?"
Tempted, Uzumaki Mito showed a somewhat embarrassed expression. She felt it was not good to trouble this little brother so much, yet she was extremely moved by the suggestion.
"Don't worry, Miss. I'll do my best to persuade Master Yunzhongniao!"
Seeing that she was indeed tempted, Shimura Kentei immediately thumped his chest in assurance, declaring that he would definitely make it happen.
If this worked, it would absolutely elevate his relationship with this miss to the level of confidants. He might even obtain several S-Rank Uzumaki Sealing Techniques!
(Thanks to readers Jiyu Lanting, Reader 20190403200420882, and Reader dvh for the rewards. I'll give you special extra updates after the book goes premium!)
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