Chapter 554: Be Good, Let Me See

“It’s Shimura!” “He truly is the Strongest Wind, his reputation is well-deserved!” Amidst the exclamations, Shimura drew his longsword. “You’re not going to kill me?” Huche was stunned; he didn’t understand why Shimura would let him go. “I wouldn’t harm the family of a girl who likes me,” Shimura said indifferently. “She told me before this duel that you are her brother.”

While reading this part of the plot, Nagato was immersed in the ups and downs of “The Romantic Ninjutsu Tales of Shimura: Volume 7,” which was interspersed with a great deal of indescribable content.

The image of the protagonist, Shimura—at once righteous and wicked, romantic and unrestrained, yet deeply loyal and righteous—as well as his tangled, complicated emotional entanglements with various female Ninja, made for a fascinating read for Nagato.

Although he wasn’t interested in the explicit descriptions, he really enjoyed the comparatively smaller main plotline.

In these years, he had almost zero experience in romantic matters, caring almost exclusively about the development of the Amegakure and the Akatsuki.

Every time he went out, he would have Konan use paper to hide his Main Body, and then the Six Paths of Pain would carry out the actions; strictly speaking, Nagato was also a shut-in.

However, just as he was reading about Shimura letting his opponent Huche go, simply because the man was the brother of the girl who admired him, and was sighing in his heart, a familiar aura quietly approached, and then, a cool hand gently rested on his shoulder.

Nagato shuddered violently, and almost as a conditioned reflex, he slammed the beautifully bound novel, which had a slightly suggestive cover, shut with a “snap.”

He turned his head stiffly, and sure enough, he saw Konan holding Miharu, standing behind him, tilting her head slightly, eyeing him and the book he had quickly closed with suspicion.

Miharu blinked her big eyes curiously in Konan’s arms, looking at Nagato and then at Konan, seemingly not understanding what had happened.

“What’s wrong, Konan?” Nagato tried to make his voice sound natural, while quietly covering the cover of “The Romantic Ninjutsu Tales of Shimura: Volume 7” with his hand.

Konan didn’t answer immediately; her gaze swept over Nagato’s slightly guilty face and the book he had hurriedly hidden, her brows furrowing slightly.

She handed Miharu, who was in her arms, to Tayuya, who had been following behind, responsible for taking care of Miharu and bringing her over.

Tayuya immediately understood, took Miharu, nodded respectfully to Nagato and Konan, then turned and left the room with the child, thoughtfully closing the door behind her.

Only Nagato and Konan were left in the room, and the atmosphere was somewhat subtle for a moment.

“What book are you reading? Why were you so engrossed in it? You didn’t even notice when I came in.”

Konan walked over to the chair opposite Nagato and sat down, her gaze still filled with inquiry.

She knew Nagato; if it wasn’t something particularly captivating, given his level of alertness, he wouldn’t have failed to notice her approaching.

“The Romantic Ninjutsu Tales of Shimura” was currently a phenomenal work in the Shinobi World, its popularity even surpassing many traditional Ninjutsu classics.

The true identity of the author, “Comical Author of Lanling,” remained a mystery, sparking countless speculations, but strangely, almost no one really delved into it.

After all, in the field of literary creation, using a pen name was perfectly normal, and this author’s writing style was seasoned, the plot was gripping, and whether it was the regular version or the R18 version, both were widely acclaimed in their respective markets and had countless fans.

Konan had heard a little about it before and had even glimpsed snippets of the regular version by chance, finding the story truly well-written.

But right now, seeing Nagato’s “guilty conscience” look, and associating it with the book’s title and that suggestive cover…

A thought suddenly flashed through her mind.

She remembered that not long after they first arrived in Hidden Leaf Village, when Jiraiya occasionally returned home, he would write his “Icha Icha Paradise” while gritting his teeth and beating his chest, mentioning another “evil book” that was sweeping the Shinobi World, saying it “corrupted the atmosphere,” “stole the market,” and “had descriptions that were unbearable to look at yet made people unable to stop reading,” and the name of that book seemed to be “The Romantic Ninjutsu Tales of Shimura.”

Could it be that what Nagato was reading was this very book?

But when did Nagato buy this kind of book?

Given his personality and experiences, how could he be interested in this kind of… um… novel?

“It’s nothing,” Nagato tried to bluff his way through, his eyes drifting elsewhere, “This is… a book Jiraiya left behind, I found it when I was organizing things, just reading it casually.”

He brought up Jiraiya’s name, hoping Konan would drop the subject.

After all, Jiraiya had indeed left behind quite a few books, among which were not a few “strange” works.

However, the more Nagato tried to cover it up, the stronger Konan’s curiosity and that indescribable “concern” grew in her heart.

She knew Nagato too well; he was not a person good at lying, especially not in front of her.

“It’s nothing?”

Konan stood up, walked around the table, and moved closer to Nagato, her tone carrying a hint of unquestionable authority, “Then let me see.”

“Konan…”

Nagato subconsciously wanted to hide the book more securely, a flush of embarrassment appearing on his face.

Some of the descriptions in the book were just too explicit; he didn’t want Konan to see him reading this kind of thing—that feeling… was too awkward, and it would also damage the steady image he had built in Konan’s mind over the years.

“Be good, Nagato.”

Konan had already walked to his side, extended her hand, her tone calm but carrying a sisterly authority, “Let me see.”

Her heart was actually more astonished than angry.

She never would have imagined that the Nagato who once obsessed over making the world feel pain, who carried a heavy mission, the Nagato who, although he had let go of his paranoia, was still quiet and reserved, focusing on recovering his body and adapting to a new life, would actually secretly read this kind of… um… popular fiction, and the kind with a bit of color, at that!

The contrast was just a bit too big.

Nagato looked at Konan’s extended hand, then looked at the expression in her clear purple eyes that brooked no refusal, and knew that he couldn’t dodge it today.

He sighed, and as if resigning himself to fate, he took out “The Romantic Ninjutsu Tales of Shimura: Volume 7” from under the table and handed it to Konan, while turning his head away, his ears slightly red.

Konan took the book, opened the cover, and her gaze quickly swept over the table of contents and the text on one of the pages. Sure enough, the writing was fluid, the plot gripping, but between the lines, it was indeed interspersed with some… um, rather direct and explicit descriptions.

A flush of red couldn’t help but rise to her face, but more than that, she felt a mix of annoyance and amusement.

She looked up, watched Nagato’s awkward “waiting for judgment” expression, and couldn’t help but let out a “pfft” laugh.

“So… you like reading this kind of book?”

Konan’s tone was teasing, but there was no blame in her eyes; instead, there was a sense of novelty at discovering another side of Nagato.

Nagato: “…”

What could he say?

He could only hope that the ground would crack open and swallow him whole.

Loving Book So Far?

Chapter 555: Eleven Books