"Yes, that's him!"
Genya nodded emphatically and started making things up.
"That guy got his hands on a few... um... pretty... explicit booklets somewhere. You know, those... picture books."
He gestured, trying his best to look as though he had been forced to see something indecent.
"A few times, he dragged me over all secretive and said it was required reading for men..."
Genya wore an expression that said he could hardly bear to remember it.
"I didn't want to look, but he insisted I study them with him... You know how he is. He's pretty strong, and he just won't leave you alone..."
He sighed, looking deeply troubled.
"Maybe that was when I accidentally... remembered some... useless things. And today, somehow, I just..."
He stopped at exactly the right moment, giving Kurenai Yuhi a look that said, "You understand. It's all Naruto's fault for leading me astray."
He had perfectly cast himself as an innocent, "studious" young man who had been "corrupted" by a bad friend.
Kurenai Yuhi looked at him skeptically.
Naruto? That boisterous blond kid whose head seemed to contain nothing but ramen and pranks?
He collected that sort of thing? And dragged Genya into "studying" it with him?
That sounded ridiculous any way she looked at it...
But Genya's "sincere" expression, tinged with embarrassment and regret, was a masterclass in acting.
And when she thought of Naruto's usual unpredictable antics and boundless curiosity... perhaps... it wasn't entirely impossible?
"Was it... was it really Naruto?"
Kurenai Yuhi loosened her grip a little, though her gaze remained suspicious.
"Absolutely!"
Genya raised a hand as though taking an oath, silently apologizing to a certain blond friend far away in Konoha.
*Sorry, my brother Naruto! For the sake of your buddy's happiness-and getting me off the hook-you'll have to sacrifice