Jiraiya's Proper Opening Method!

"Bring him here! I want to confront him face-to-face!"

A few minutes later, Shisui left the bookstore with a flushed face.

Recalling what he had just said to Jiraiya, he couldn't help but feel a twinge of guilt for selling out his teammate.

He had originally intended to tell Uchiha Shingen the truth about this, but he abandoned the thought after a second's reflection.

I can't afford to lose face like that!

Jiraiya, on the other hand, seemed to have noted Uchiha Shingen down in his little black book, determined to have a showdown with this wicked little Uchiha brat.

He would show him what a true great author was!

Calculating the magazine's release date, Jiraiya waited right on time at the entrance of the bookstore that Uchiha Shingen frequented.

His eyes stared fixedly at the customers inside, waiting for his prey to arrive.

Once nine o'clock passed and the Konoha Police Force began their shift change, Uchiha Shingen walked into his usual bookstore just as he did every day.

The moment he stepped through the door, Uchiha Shingen sensed something was wrong.

Why does it feel like I'm being targeted by something?!

Is it because of the trouble Shisui caused last time?!

No!

There's no killing intent; it feels more like... resentment?!

After a brief thought, Uchiha Shingen didn't pay it much mind.

After all, even among the high-ranking officials of Konoha, no one would be bold enough to strike at a member of the Uchiha in a place like this.

That would be tantamount to completely obliterating the fragile tacit understanding that had just been established between the two sides.

Uchiha Shingen walked familiarly to the shelf where Make-Out Hell was displayed, and just as he reached out to pick up a copy, his wrist was grabbed.

"You must be the Captain Shingen that little brat Shisui mentioned, right?!"

A strange, low voice rang out.

Uchiha Shingen looked up at the speaker, and what met his eyes was none other than the long-awaited Jiraiya.

"Who are you..."

"I am the author of Make-Out Hell. I heard your critique of my book from Shisui, and he told me you have quite a lot of opinions about it!"

"I'd like to hear what kind of advice you have."

"After all..."

Jiraiya's eyelid twitched.

You can say I'm a bad person, but you cannot say my book is bad!

"Humbly accepting a reader's critique is the very root of progress!"

Shisui?!

That kid came here to buy books?!

Uchiha Shingen thought for a moment, realized what had happened, and after silently greeting Shisui's ancestors, he turned his full attention to Jiraiya.

The aura is quite strong, and the attire looks somewhat familiar.

But perhaps I'm overthinking it.

After all, there shouldn't be any ninja with a functioning brain who would neglect their proper ninja duties to pour all their energy into forbidden books.

Thinking this, Uchiha Shingen immediately felt at ease.

Being caught gossiping about someone was a bit awkward, so Uchiha Shingen began to make excuses on the spot:

"I've followed it from the first issue to the present, never missing a single one, so I suppose I can barely be considered one of your core readers."

"If you ask me."

"Your book isn't entirely without merits."

Jiraiya's lips curled up, and he pricked up his ears, waiting quite proudly for Uchiha Shingen's words.

"For instance, the illustrations are quite good!"

Uchiha Shingen flipped to a page at random and pointed at the exquisite, revealing illustration to comment.

"These curves, these legs, this skin..."

"And besides that?!"

"Nothing else."

Jiraiya laughed in anger:

"Care to guess which parts of this book weren't written by me?!"

"..."

Uchiha Shingen was stunned, and once he realized what was going on, his old face flushed red:

"Illus...trations?!"

Seeing Jiraiya's expression growing darker by the second, Uchiha Shingen quickly changed the subject and began discussing the craft of writing:

"If you ask me, there are actually many areas in this book of yours that could be improved."

In his past life, Uchiha Shingen had read countless stories.

From male-oriented to female-oriented, harem to CEO romance, pure love to angst-filled tragedy—he had read everything, both the readable and the unreadable, and his mental reservoir was practically overflowing.

Now that he had finally met a real author, his floodgates were wide open.

"The plot is too straightforward. The protagonist is either having a tryst at an izakaya or bumping into a stunning proprietress at a hot spring to spend a night of passion, only to pull up his pants the next day and move on to the next round."

"It's so crude it's practically unreadable!"

"If you want to satisfy the reader's desires, you can't just write about desire. You need emotion. You need to write about them struggling on the edge of morality and lust, write about them drowning in desire while being tormented by their own conscience!"

"You need to take them from resistance to surrender, from struggle to embrace..."

"Take this chapter, for example. The entry point is quite good, but the execution is incredibly rough. If you ask me, you should..."

Uchiha Shingen pointed at one of the volumes and began to critique it.

He rambled on, frantically unloading all the private theories he had bottled up inside.

He didn't know if any of this would actually be effective, but being able to vent to the author of Make-Out Hell might just result in this guy writing something worth reading in the future.

Jiraiya stood quietly to the side.

His expression shifted from initial disdain to being moved, and finally, to utter astonishment!

He had met many readers before, but most of what he heard were empty praises; many even hailed Make-Out Hell as a masterpiece, reading it daily.

But after hearing Uchiha Shingen's words, he realized that he had been shallow all along!

The last remnants of Jiraiya's resentment vanished in an instant. He quietly crouched down beside Uchiha Shingen to take notes, even occasionally finding time to hand Uchiha Shingen a glass of water.

His attitude toward Uchiha Shingen transformed from initial contempt and anger into pure awe!

This man was born to write books with him, not waste his time in the Police Force!

By the time Uchiha Shingen voluntarily stopped talking, it was already nearing noon. He glanced at the notebook Jiraiya had filled to the brim and nodded with satisfaction:

"I think that's all I have to say."

"See if there's anything else you want to ask..."

"Shingen-kun!"

Jiraiya grabbed Uchiha Shingen's hand, feeling as if he had finally found a kindred spirit:

"It wasn't until I met you today that I understood—er, that forbidden literature could be approached this way. You were practically born for this line of work!"

"Have you considered changing jobs?!"

"Stop staying in the Police Force. Come with me, travel the ninja world, and let's create the greatest work of all time!"

Uchiha Shingen politely declined.

He had been willing to say so much purely because he had been disgusted by this man's books in the past and hoped to see something remotely readable in the future.

As for giving up his nine-to-five job at the Police Force for this? That was naturally impossible!

"Is that so? That's truly a pity."

"I had originally planned that we could write together, put your name on the new book, and split the royalties fifty-fifty."

"Since your mind is made up, I won't bother you any further."

"What a shame, to finally find someone on the same wavelength as me, sigh..."

Jiraiya sighed, and seeing that Uchiha Shingen's resolve was firm, he said no more.

"Wait, did you say split the royalties fifty-fifty?"