Icha Icha Paradise

A week later~

Obito had moved into his new home, a two-story house with a fairly large yard and a small grove of lush green bamboo. It was a quiet, secluded place, and Cheping had done a very satisfactory job.

The study,

Obito set down his pen. The revised edition of Icha Icha Paradise was complete, and he had signed it with his pen name, Xiaoxiaosheng.

Adapting the novel hadn't been as easy as he'd imagined. Although he remembered the story and some scenes from the screen adaptations, it was still very difficult to render them in the language of the Naruto world. But after a week of burning the midnight oil, he'd finally finished.

Obito put the manuscript in a folder and called out, "Cheping, find a printing shop and print a thousand copies. Here's the manuscript. Make sure the contents don't get leaked." He handed the manuscript to Cheping.

"Yes!"

Three days later, the thousand books were printed. Obito took a few copies to a bookstore.

"Boss, I'm back."

"Oh, it's you, kid. What books do you need this time? I'll give you a discount!"

The bookstore owner remembered the boy well. He'd bought a large number of history books nobody wanted, and even asked a very silly question.

"Boss, I'm not buying books this time. I'm here to sell one. An elder of mine likes writing books. Here, take a look." Obito pulled a beautifully printed book from his little backpack. The cover showed a man and a woman dressed in kimonos.

"Hm? This is..." The bookstore owner took the book. With years of experience selling books, he could tell this was an indecent one.

"Suku-i!!!" The bookstore owner flipped through the pages. Every few pages, there was a gorgeous illustration. His excitement was plain to see.

"Ahem! Boss, what do you think of the book?"

"Not bad. It's a fine book! Your elder is very talented." The owner said as he looked at it.

"Then I'll leave the books here for you to sell. Each one costs 999 ryo, and you'll earn 99 ryo for every copy sold. You don't have to pay for the books; all you need to do is give them a shelf in the most prominent spot. What do you think?"

"Hm? Are you serious? Can you make that decision?" The bookstore owner finally looked up, his face full of disbelief.

"Of course. My friend has entrusted everything to me. He's a literary genius who only loves writing. The vast world of literature is all he yearns for, so he's left these mundane affairs to me," Obito said, spinning a tale.

"Indeed, only someone devoted to writing could produce such a fine book!" The bookstore owner nodded in agreement, then asked, "Of course I'd take a deal like this. How many books do you have, and when can you bring them over?"

"The first batch is 199 copies. I can deliver them tomorrow. Once they're sold, I'll bring over the second batch," Obito said.

"Can this book only be sold at my bookstore?" The owner pushed up his glasses.

Dream on. You want exclusive rights? I'm not just doing this for money. The most important thing is to expand sales and make Xiaoxiaosheng known to more people! Obito thought.

"That won't do, boss. This is a deal where you don't have to pay a thing, so don't get too greedy!" He rolled his eyes. He wasn't worried the bookstore owner would refuse to cooperate. Even if he did, plenty of others would be willing.

"Heh, I was just asking. If it's not possible, then so be it. I'll wait for your books. Can I keep this one?" The owner asked, clutching the book tightly in his hands.

"You can have it. When the books arrive tomorrow, make sure to put them in the most prominent spot. I'll allocate the second batch according to each bookstore's sales. And don't print any copies yourself—the consequences will be severe!" Obito waved as he left the bookstore.

He visited several more bookstores using the same approach. This way of distributing books was truly unbeatable.

All he'd have to do from then on was restock the bookstores on time. He'd make a fortune!

"Cheping, get a few people from the Konoha Military Police Force to keep an eye on these stores and the printing shop. If anyone prints copies illegally, arrest them on the spot," Lu Ming said.

"Yes!" Only his voice could be heard; the man himself was nowhere to be seen.

Still, Obito trusted him to handle things. The Konoha Military Police Force was such a useful tool, of course he should make good use of it. Besides, cracking down on piracy and protecting copyright holders was part of the force's job, wasn't it?

"Lady Tsunade! Are you home?" After wrapping up the book sales, Obito ran to Tsunade's house and called out.

After quite a while, a black-haired girl about his age opened the door a crack, revealing one dark, round eye.

"Who are you? What do you want with Lady Tsunade?" the girl asked, puzzled.

This must be Shizune, Dan Katō's niece. After Dan Katō died, Tsunade took Shizune in. Later, in the original story, she even became Tsunade's assistant, and the two were both teacher and friend to each other.

"I'm Obito Uchiha. A few nights ago, I had drinks with Lady Tsunade at an izakaya, and we hit it off right away! It was like finding a long-lost big sister. I've come today to invite Sister Tsunade out for drinks."

"You? How old are you? Children aren't allowed to drink. How could Lady Tsunade drink with a child? I'm definitely going to have a serious..." Little Shizune chattered on for a whole minute. Who would've thought Shizune was such a chatterbox!

"Shizune, who are you talking to?" Tsunade's lazy voice came from inside.

"Sister Tsunade! It's me, Obito Uchiha!" While Shizune wasn't paying attention, Obito pushed open the door and squeezed past her, making her little face darken. As the saying went, the persistent suitor won the girl; if he wanted to charm a girl, he had to be thick-skinned...

"Oh, it's you, kid. I remember you. What do you want?" Tsunade looked as if she'd just woken up. She wore a plain white nightgown and rubbed her messy blond hair.

"I came to invite you out for drinks, Sister Tsunade. To the same izakaya as last time. It's my treat!" Lu Ming said, walking up to Tsunade and looking up. What a magnificent sight! It completely blocked her face.

"Sure! Wait here a moment. Shizune, go play with him first. You two look about the same age. One of you's already drinking and chasing girls, while the other still wets the bed at night! Hahaha..." Tsunade laughed as she ruffled Shizune's hair.

"Lady Tsunade!!!" Little Shizune's face turned bright red, and it looked as if flames were about to shoot from her eyes and nose... How could she say something like that in front of a boy she didn't know!

"Heh, wetting the bed is normal. Some people are still doing it at seven or eight. Don't take it too seriously," Obito said.

"Does Obito wet the bed too?" Little Shizune felt a warm sense of kinship, as if she'd found someone just like her.

No, I don't wet the bed. I'm one of the rare exceptions, a peerless genius destined to stand out from the crowd.

"Hey! Where are you going? Sister Tsunade told you to keep me company!"