"Bang!"
The door to the Hokage's Office was shoved open roughly, and the Third Hokage, who had been sneaking in some reading, hurriedly stuffed his book into a pile of documents.
Shimura Danzō strode in with a dark expression, pounding his cane against the floor. "Hiruzen! I suspect spies from another village have infiltrated Konoha and are spreading this vulgar reading material to slander my reputation!"
With that, he slammed a gaudily bound book onto the desk.
It was the same book the Third Hokage had just hidden away: The Lustful Ninja Chronicles of Shimura, which had recently taken the Shinobi World by storm.
Hiruzen Sarutobi cleared his throat twice and opened the book with an air of composure. "Danzo, while the protagonist of this book is named Shimura, the story describes a young ninja who is 'seven feet tall, rugged, and handsome'..."
His gaze lingered on Danzo's wrinkled, one-eyed old face, plainly saying: Don't flatter yourself.
Danzo's face turned livid, and his lone eye nearly spat fire. "This is clearly a veiled reference to me! This womanizing rake is tarnishing the reputation of our Shimura Clan!"
The Third Hokage suppressed his laughter and rubbed the pages with feigned solemnity. "Still, it does seem quite popular with the public. I hear bookstores have been selling out lately..."
"Hiruzen!"
Danzo's roar made the window frames buzz and even sent a faint tremor through the documents on the desk.
"You shameless old fool!"
Fury blazed in his lone eye as he jabbed a finger hard against the page.
"This book actually writes about me and Chiyo of Sunagakure... Hmph! Have you seen how old that woman is?"
Flustered and furious, he flipped to a particular chapter and pointed at a passage. "Look at these obscene descriptions! If Sunagakure gets the wrong idea and this sparks a conflict between our villages, who will take responsibility?"
Hiruzen Sarutobi leisurely exhaled a smoke ring and opened the book, utterly unperturbed. "Danzo, you're being far too sensitive. And stop imagining yourself in the story!
"The book clearly states that this 'Chiyo' is a kunoichi from the same village as 'Shimura.' Konoha and Sunagakure are in two different countries. How could this cause an international dispute?"
You complain that Chiyo is old, but are you any younger?
He added, "Don't exaggerate everything."
The Third Hokage knew exactly what was at stake.
If he actually let Danzo arrest the author of this bestseller, where would he find such entertaining reading material to relieve his boredom?
Was he supposed to pass the time staring at Danzo's old face instead?
He slowly turned another page, and his eyes suddenly lit up. "Still, this passage is rather interesting... The scene where this 'Shimura' confesses his love under the moonlight is quite romantic."
Danzo's face went from livid to purple, and he nearly crushed the cane in his hand.
Staff passing outside the Hokage Building instinctively quickened their steps. None of them wanted to get caught in an argument between these two powerful men.
"Kakashi, you've seemed awfully listless lately!"
Might Guy bounded over to his friend, a broad grin lifting the corners of his mouth.
When he caught sight of the cover of the book in Kakashi's hand, he froze.
It was no longer the familiar Icha Icha Paradise, but a gaudily bound book titled The Lustful Ninja Chronicles of Shimura.
"Huh? Oh, it's you, Guy..."
Kakashi weakly lifted his eyelid, sprawled on a bench like a beached fish.
There was a heavy dark circle beneath his one exposed eye, and even his usually spiky silver hair looked limp.
"Because I've discovered another masterpiece besides Icha Icha Paradise that's worth staying up all night to read."
He weakly waved the book in his hand, its pages rustling with the movement. "Sorry, but I probably won't have the energy to spar with you for the next couple of days..."
Guy's eyes widened in disbelief as he leaned closer to inspect the cover. "The Lustful Ninja Chronicles of Shimura? Could this be about Elder Shimura Danzō's..."
He suddenly lowered his voice. "Romantic exploits?"
With a secretive air, Kakashi flipped to a dog-eared page. The explicit description made Guy's face turn crimson in an instant.
"Th-this is even more than Icha Icha Paradise..."
The hot-blooded teacher stammered for a while, then suddenly clenched both fists, fierce flames blazing in his eyes. "In that case! Let me rescue you from this slump with the passion of youth!"
"Have mercy..."
Kakashi groaned and laid the book over his face, his voice muffled beneath its pages. "Once I've finished savoring this book, I promise I'll join you for a hot-blooded match."
Just three days earlier, while searching his mission target's residence for confidential documents, Kakashi had stumbled upon The Lustful Ninja Chronicles of Shimura on a bedside table.
He had only meant to leaf through it to see whether the book his target read so often contained any clues, but it had drawn him in.
He immediately decided to use the annual leave he had saved up for so long and immersed himself in its pages all night.
"I really... can't put it down..." he murmured, gently brushing his fingertips over the author's name, Lanling Xiaoxiaosheng.
The further Kakashi read, the more completely the work captivated him.
Its delicate portrayal of the characters' inner lives and precise handling of tangled emotions reminded him of the impact Icha Icha Paradise had made on him when he first read it.
The novel built a world entirely different from reality-there were no Five Great Nations or tailed beasts. Its protagonist, Shimura, came from a peaceful little village, yet harbored the lofty ambition of becoming the greatest ninja in the world.
In the turbulent era depicted in the book, powerful ninja clans ruled their own territories, and the young Shimura set out on his journey full of passion.
Along the way, he encountered two kunoichi, the most touching of whom was Chiyo from his own village.
This gentle yet resilient young woman poured all her love into Shimura. Though he was deeply attached to her, he could never abandon the pursuit of his dreams.
He refused to waste his life in a small village on trivial missions such as hunting wild beasts and clearing farmland. All he wanted was to make a great name for himself in that chaotic age.
At the end of the first volume, Chiyo tried everything to keep Shimura in her country, even using every charm at her disposal.
Yet Shimura ultimately made up his mind. Leaving only a corner of his heart for the woman who loved him so deeply, he continued on his journey in pursuit of his dreams.
Unlike the direct, passionate style of Icha Icha Paradise, this work went beyond scenes that made readers blush and their hearts race, portraying an ordinary man's struggle in a troubled age.
The helplessness and difficult choices that permeated its pages inevitably reminded Kakashi of his own life as a ninja.
"Even Icha Icha Paradise pales a little beside this masterpiece..."
He could not help voicing his admiration.
"Lanling Xiaoxiaosheng... What a genius author!"
Kakashi's fingers trembled with excitement, and he wished he could find this author's other works immediately.
At that moment, missions and sparring matches were the furthest things from his mind. All he could think about was what would happen next in the story.