Seeing how excited Jiraya was acting, Yujin momentarily thought that maybe he should have left without mentioning anything about a book recommendation, but now it was too late. He could only blame his own friendliness for wanting to chat a bit and not appear rude.
"Here are the best books."
In a well-hidden corner of the store, a place Yujin had never been before, he found a small shelf with some books. Jiraya picked one and handed it to him.
"Her Needs?"
Yujin read the title aloud and didn't understand what it was about. The book's cover was brown, without any art or photo, very simple, only the title and the author's name. On the back, it was blank, with no introduction to the book. When Yujin was about to open the book, the shopkeeper approached and commented.
"Checking again? I already told you it's going to take a while, don't keep insisting."
Jiraya quickly approached the manager respectfully and spoke with his best smile, which wasn't much.
"Don't talk like that, Manager. I'm an old customer of yours. Just give me a hint. Just a little hint if the editor liked it. I need to know if the idea is good to continue writing."
The manager crossed his arms and looked at Jiraya with narrowed eyes.
"I already told you, no. I handed the outline of your book to the editor, and he will decide if it's good or not. If I were you, I'd focus on finishing writing instead of pestering me here."
He then quickly left, not giving Jiraya any more opportunity to speak.
Jiraya seemed disappointed, but still turned to Yujin and commented.
"This book is really good, I recommend it. I'll be going, Yujin, take care."
Jiraya then turned to leave, but seeing him so disappointed, Yujin sighed.
"What was that about? Did you write a book?"
When his supposed expression of disappointment quickly disappeared to be replaced by an expression of extreme interest, Yujin sighed; he made it again.
"So, you noticed? Haha, yes, I'm writing a book. It's not complete yet, but I sent an outline to the village editor through the manager to see if he's interested in publishing my story, but so far, I haven't received a response, and I'm afraid to continue writing without knowing the editor's opinion."
Yujin nodded slightly, understanding Jiraya's dilemma.
"If you want my opinion, I-"
"But of course, thank you for offering. Come, I'll show you what I've written so far, and you tell me your impressions."
Yujin just wanted to say that Jiraya should patiently wait for the editor's response while writing the book, just like the manager said, but he couldn't finish.
Unable to finish his sentence, Yujin paid for the book recommended by Jiraya and was practically dragged to a nearby restaurant. Jiraya offered to pay for a meal in exchange for his impressions of the book, and Yujin accepted while taking a manuscript that Jiraya handed him.
"This is just the beginning. I already have the whole book outlined, but I only wrote a few chapters seriously so that I could send them to the editor."
It was only about twenty or thirty pages, so Yujin felt comfortable reading while waiting for the meal.
The title of the book is "A Tale of a Gutsy Ninja."
The story is set in a world similar to the ninja world, and the main character is named Musasabi Naruto. As he began reading the introduction, Jiraya explained.
"I based the protagonist a bit on my personality."
Yujin started to worry about what he was reading. Jiraya's personality is no secret; the pervert of the village. Carefully, Yujin continued reading. Sometimes, when he didn't understand a word, he would ask Jiraya.
"Don't you know how to read?"
Yujin shook his head without feeling ashamed.
"A bit. I can write, but in another language. I can speak, but I have difficulty understanding the writing of these lands. I'm studying to improve."
Jiraya didn't know much about Yujin or his past. Although he was curious, he wasn't close enough to ask about such a sensitive topic, so he kept his curiosity to himself.
Yujin continued reading and began to understand a bit about how the protagonist thought.
The protagonist was a good person and believed that one day people could communicate, thereby ending war and hatred among them.
This was somewhat similar to Yujin's philosophy, so he felt sympathy for the character. Consequently, he began to realize that maybe Jiraya wasn't such a bad person. If he had beliefs similar to Naruto's, he could see a common ground between them, which might be enough to form a friendship.
In the middle of the story, the food arrived, and they began to eat. While eating, Yujin continued reading. An hour later, they finished eating, and Yujin continued reading while sipping a glass of water.
Jiraya felt how slow Yujin was reading, but he didn't get impatient. He was excited to hear his impressions of the story.
An hour later, Yujin finally finished reading and handed the manuscript back. The first thing he did, however, was ask a question.
"You said Naruto's personality was influenced by yours. Do you share the same philosophy of breaking the cycle of hatred, and that one day we can have lasting peace?"
Jiraya raised an eyebrow upon hearing this but answered nonetheless. He didn't expect him to ask that.
"No... I mean, yes. Initially, I didn't have that opinion. I never thought deeply about these issues; I just did what I was told, it's my ninja duty. Recently, however, a situation made me rethink my life. That's when Naruto was born. While I questioned my life, choices, consequences, and life as it is, the character of Naruto formed in my mind, and eventually, I came to the same conclusion as the character; we can't continue like this, we have to be better, we have to stop hating so that we can break the cycle of hatred and destruction."
...
Yujin was silent for a long time, thinking about the past and his beliefs. Although he didn't like the story of the book much, he liked Naruto's character and his idealism.
"It's quite idealistic."
Jiraya smiled bitterly upon hearing that, immediately understanding Yujin's perspective. He understood it himself. Naruto Musasabi is an extremely idealistic character, and one thing about ideals is that reality always destroys them.
"Yes... I also think it's not very realistic, but I believe we must have ideals, even if we don't have the ability to act on them."
Yujin nodded in agreement with Jiraiya's statement and commented slowly while drinking water.
"I don't say it's bad. Ideals are important because they are our concrete ideas of a better future. It's important to dream of a better future, but it's not enough just to dream; we have to act. And that's where idealists suffer. When you act based on your ideals, reality knocks on your door and tells you how insignificant you are."
Yujin was never very idealistic. He was raised by a Martial Arts Master but received a good education. He knew how to read and write. He read dozens of books while training under his master.
This is an impressive feat considering that where Yujin came from, books were extremely rare. There were no bookstores selling books. The books that did exist were created by wealthy people or feudal lords and usually kept for themselves in their private libraries.
In a way, Yujin can be seen as a Scholar in the world he came from due to the number of books he read and the amount of knowledge he acquired.
His master educated him to always seek knowledge, and books are the greatest sources of knowledge there is.
Precisely because he had read so many books, Yujin is someone who understands reality better and knows that although ideals are important, they should not be followed blindly and must be balanced with realism, prudence, and pragmatism.
"I understand your point of view, and I don't disagree; I have a similar view, but I believe in a better future. Naruto is very idealistic, but that's why he's a character in a book. He serves as a model of how people can be. People don't need to be exactly like Naruto, but as long as they can be a little more positive about the future and let go of hatred, I believe the future will be better."
Jiraya seemed convinced of what he said. So convinced that it impressed Yujin a bit, who smiled.
"I have a similar philosophy, but much less admirable. I don't want anyone to follow it."
Jiraya seemed interested in Yujin's thoughts and listened silently with utmost attention.
"I witnessed how insane war can be where I come from."
Yujin took a deep breath when he started talking about war, clearly uncomfortable.
"War is far beyond simple concepts of good and evil. War is pure insanity, chaos, directionless destruction. Everything it touches, regardless of what it is, is eventually destroyed or distorted. That's why I also dream of a future without war, and I believe that one day we will achieve lasting peace when we can understand each other. People aren't as complicated as they seem; everyone just seeks happiness. The difference is how they achieve it. We all believe in the same ends, but we follow different means."
Jiraya nodded, following Yujin's reasoning, which is quite similar to his own.
"The difference between my ideal and Naruto's is how he wants to do something to change it with all the means at his disposal. There's nothing wrong with that, but in the end, he's just one person, just an insignificant individual. This world is simply too big; there are many people in it. How does Naruto plan to change the thinking of all these people? It's not as easy as wanting it to happen and making it happen."
"People are stubborn. They always believe they are right. While some can be humble and question if they could be wrong, they still believe they are right until something makes them realize they are wrong."
At some point, Jiraya took out a notepad and started jotting down something while listening attentively to Yujin.
"Therefore, I believe it's an impossible task for one person to change the world. It takes a multitude. I don't know how you will continue writing your story, but if you want to give a realistic tone to Naruto, I think he should realize this and strive to influence other people. Not just the people he knows but everyone around him, and create a virtuous cycle where eventually he can positively influence the world. Of course, for that, he would need to always be honest, never lie or deceive, and be strong above all. People follow the strong, not the weak."
Jiraya nodded in agreement the whole time. When he saw that Yujin finished what he wanted to say, he commented.
"You gave me many new ideas, and for that, I thank you. Your thinking is very similar to mine. Naruto will indeed follow a thorny path to become the leader of his village, so he can change how the village interacts with the world from within. With that, he can make beneficial changes and end the war once and for all."
He then paused and, with an expression of embarrassment, said.
"Don't tell anyone, that's a spoiler."
Yujin smiled and nodded.
"I'm glad then."
Jiraya calmed down a bit and, observing Yujin, commented with narrowed eyes.
"What you said... Those were your ideals, not your philosophy, right?"
Yujin was surprised by Jiraya's sharp perception. He didn't expect him to notice that.
"You're right... You can be quite sharp sometimes."
Jiraya smiled proudly but gestured with his hand, waiting for Yujin to continue, and that's what he did after sighing a bit.
"Yes, that's my ideal. I believe in it, but I don't follow-"
Yujin paused for a moment and then got lost in thought, as if he suddenly realized something. He then picked up the magazine he bought earlier and flipped to the article he was reading before.
On item 8, it was written:
'8. Have ambitions and goals: Having objectives and consistently seeking personal growth is attractive. Share your ambitions and goals with the woman, and be willing to support her in her own dreams. This creates a partnership based on shared aspirations and a joint pursuit of a meaningful future.'
Yujin read this passage several times and thought of Tsunade, for what she went through, and how she still suffers today. He pondered for a long time, leaving Jiraya intrigued.
For several minutes, Yujin remained silent, contemplating something deeply.
Finally, he took a deep breath and made a decision. Standing up from the table, he spoke to Jiraya.
"I take back what I said earlier. Jiraya, I'm going, I need to think about something. Good luck with your book; I'm excited to see it finished."
Jiraya tried to stop Yujin from leaving, but eventually gave up when he saw that he was already lost in thought again as he walked away.
"What was that?"
***
Author's notes:
This was an especially long chapter, longer than usual, because I wanted to delve a bit more into how Yujin thinks. He is a complex character, extremely intelligent, with a will of steel, but he also has his demons, and we'll explore that better in the next chapter.
Sometimes, I find myself confused about what to do with extra chapters. I write chapters daily, always posting as soon as I finish editing. However, when I'm in a good flow and want to keep writing, I end up producing an extra chapter, and I'm unsure about what to do with it.
If I post it, I might lose feedback from the previous chapter. If I don't post it, having an extra chapter feels uncomfortable because I'm uncertain whether to write more the next day or wait for the chapter to be released before continuing. I find it essential to write and post promptly since I have current feedback on the story, and it remains fresh in my mind all day.
If I keep writing extra chapters and accumulating without posting, there will come a point when I'll be ten chapters ahead, and I won't remember which chapter I'm posting that day, making it challenging to understand your reactions without rereading the chapter entirely.
A little context:
For those who don't know, Jiraya's book, "A Tale of a Gutsy Ninja," was the first book Jiraya wrote in the original story. He was inspired while taking care of the three orphans of Ame. Namizake Minato read the book and liked it a lot, especially because Minato was Jiraya's student and saw a lot of Musasabi Naruto in Jiraya. That's why he named his son Uzumaki Naruto, the protagonist of the original story, after Musasabi Naruto. He wanted Naruto to be similar to the main character of the book, a kind character who wanted to help people and end the war.