The Mysterious Book

"However, compared to these confirmed facts."

"There is one thing now that I need you, Konan, to personally verify."

"Hm?"

Hearing this, a soft sound of confusion escaped Konan's lips.

The Masked Man, seemingly unbothered, continued in his usual low, steady tone:

"When we were completing our mission, that guy took a trip out under the guise of personal business."

"Afterward, he obtained a mysterious book from a commercial street in the Land of Fire."

"When I asked him about it, he deliberately pulled out an unrelated novel, trying to use it as a cover."

"Unfortunately, all of this was seen by me."

The Masked Man wore a smile that suggested everything was under his control as he continued:

"Therefore, I want to know if there is anything suspicious about that mysterious book in Chen Xiaoxi's hands."

"Konan, since you were the one who recruited him."

"You should be the one to go and investigate it personally."

"I recall that the cover of the book should be yellow..."

A few minutes later.

On the other side of Amegakure, inside Chen Xiaoxi's residence.

At this moment, a bored Chen Xiaoxi was continuing to flip through Icha Icha Paradise, which he had gotten from Hatake Kakashi, working hard to complete a side quest.

"Tsk tsk tsk, it really lives up to its reputation as the number one bestseller in the ninja world..."

"No wonder Kakashi likes it so much."

Chen Xiaoxi muttered to himself with a smile while flipping through the pages rapidly.

The stories inside, They weren't just exciting; they were downright stimulating.

Just then, The door to his room was suddenly pushed open.

"Click."

Following that, paper swirled through the air, instantly filling the room before coalescing into a human shape.

Chen Xiaoxi turned his head and immediately saw Konan standing beside him.

Why was she here?

Chen Xiaoxi's expression froze for a moment.

Konan, while glancing unobtrusively at the book in Chen Xiaoxi's hand, said:

"Chen Xiaoxi, I came to... hm?"

Her voice trailed off halfway, and she suddenly stiffened, frozen in place.

Because, in that brief moment, she had clearly seen the content written on the pages...

In an instant, Konan's face went blank.

She was completely dumbfounded.

This... this was the "mysterious book" that the Masked Man was so curious about?

Was there something wrong with his brain?

Before coming here.

Konan's mind had been filled with all sorts of speculations regarding the "mysterious book" the Masked Man had mentioned.

Secret ninjutsu scrolls, intelligence from other nations, geographical records, and so on.

But no matter what, she never could have imagined... that it would actually be a piece of smut!

That Masked Man definitely had something wrong with his head!

After being stunned for a long while.

Konan turned her head stiffly toward Chen Xiaoxi, her eyes filled with a strange look as she spoke:

"Did you... go out of your way to buy this book?"

"Uh, yeah."

Chen Xiaoxi nodded and held up the book, "What, do you want to read it too?"

"..."

Konan's expression froze instantly.

"No, I'm good."

"I won't disturb your reading any longer; I'll be going now."

As soon as the words fell, Konan, her expression strange, immediately unfurled her paper wings and fled through the window as if escaping. One could faintly discern a slight flush on her face.

Inside the room, Chen Xiaoxi stood holding the lewd book, feeling somewhat bewildered.

What was going on?

She left before he could even finish his sentence?

Even if the content in Icha Icha Paradise was quite explicit, it shouldn't have been enough to provoke such a reaction, right?

Chen Xiaoxi scratched his head.

Forget it, he might as well continue reading.

A short while later, Konan returned directly to the meeting building, her expression still quite peculiar.

The Masked Man's gaze shifted, and he asked in a deep voice:

"How was it?"

"Did you uncover any useful intelligence?"

"..."

Konan remained silent for a moment. Finally, she raised her eyes to look directly at the Masked Man and said indifferently:

"Nothing."

"Your deduction was wrong."

"The book in his hands is nothing more than an ordinary novel."

"Aren't you being a bit too suspicious of him?"

By the end, Konan's brows were slightly furrowed.

The Masked Man was momentarily stunned.

Just an ordinary novel?

This...

That was impossible.

Why would he go out of his way to a bookstore several miles away just to buy an ordinary novel?

The Masked Man was suddenly filled with confusion.

If that were truly the case, wouldn't he be far too idle?

Obito suddenly realized that he was finding it increasingly difficult to understand the various peculiar actions of this youth named Chen Xiaoxi.

After a long while, he decided to set his doubts aside for the time being. He then looked toward Konan and the others and said:

"Forget it, let's put that aside for now."

"A few days ago, I had you investigate the past of this Chen Xiaoxi in the various great nations. Has there been any progress?"

This was the mission Obito had secretly entrusted to them.

Hearing this, Pain did not answer, while Konan, standing to the side, closed her eyes and shook her head, saying calmly:

"No suspicious findings."

"After screening through various intelligence networks, we discovered that—"

"Throughout the entire ninja world, the name 'Chen Xiaoxi' has never appeared in any country or organization."

"Therefore, the most likely explanation is—"

"He is indeed like us; all records of his existence were destroyed during the Great Ninja War."

"He is truly a lone wanderer, displaced by the conflict."

Konan lowered her eyes and finished speaking softly.

In truth, by the time the investigation was halfway through, Konan had already come to believe that Chen Xiaoxi was also someone who had experienced the war.

Otherwise, it would be impossible for him to possess such top-tier strength at his age.

The strong are all forged by suffering.

Just like Nagato.

Just like Konan.

Just like the deceased Yahiko.

Like Chen Xiaoxi, after being ravaged by war, they were all people who no longer existed in the records of any nation.

Furthermore, a few days ago, while Konan was conversing with Nagato, she suddenly made a startling discovery—

Chen Xiaoxi's features, in certain respects, bore a striking resemblance to Yahiko when he was a child!

Upon realizing this, Konan was struck with a sudden epiphany.

Only then did she understand why she had felt such a sense of familiarity the very first time she laid eyes on Chen Xiaoxi.

Perhaps this was also the reason why she had always harbored a natural affinity for him.

After all, compared to the dangerous Masked Man before her, Konan was far more willing to trust someone who shared the same tragic past as her—

a lone youth who had walked out of the desert.

"No suspicious points, then..."

"In other words, we can at least be certain that this fellow is not a spy from some hidden village."

"...Very well."

"Since that is the case, the investigation into him shall be suspended for now."

The Masked Man stood up, his Sharingan flickering as he spoke in a low, steady voice:

"The formation of the Akatsuki continues."

"We cannot allow our plans to be delayed just because of this one individual's addition."

"After some time has passed,"

"I will likely bring in a rather different member."

"All of you should also pick up the pace and continue recruiting those on the list I gave you earlier."

"...Understood."

Pain nodded slightly.

As it stood, the Akatsuki only had six members on the surface.

Excluding himself and Konan as the leaders, there was only Chen Xiaoxi, Kakuzu, the unreliable Orochimaru, and the even more unreliable pitcher plant, Zetsu.

If they were to realize that grand plan for peace, such manpower was, of course, far from enough.