Naruto: Experience Pain, Start by Copying the Entire Shinobi World

At the entrance to Konoha Village, the morning light was just right.

Qianxuan bid farewell to Tsunade. Before leaving, Her Majesty Queen Tsunade, in a "business-like" manner, took out a shabby little cloth bag from her bulging wallet and tossed it to Qianxuan.

"This is your travel expense. Be careful with it, and remember to get the receipts for reimbursement when you get back."

Qian Xuan weighed the light bag in his hand, listening to the lonely clinking of the few copper coins inside, and his face turned green.

Is this how you treat a beggar?

Seeing Tsunade's smug "you've finally met your match" smile, he could only swallow his anger and silently stuff the "huge sum" into his pocket.

Who told me to be so rude and show off my secret stash of money?

Now things are really messed up; she's lost control of the finances and her status in the family has plummeted.

Xiao Nan had been waiting for a long time under the big tree at the entrance of the village.

She changed into a dark blue outfit that allowed for easy movement, and tied her smooth blue hair into a neat ponytail. She looked like a sharp blade drawn from its sheath, exuding a cold and aloof aura that kept strangers at bay.

But the hands hidden in the sleeves were tightly gripping a small, hard-covered notebook.

"Let's go."

Qianxuan walked to her side and lazily yawned. His posture didn't look like he was going on some secret mission at all; it looked more like he was going to a market in a neighboring village.

The Land of Rain is west of Konoha, and the straight-line distance isn't far. If a ninja travels at full speed, two days is enough.

But Qianxuan clearly had no such intention.

He led Xiao Nan along scenic forest paths, stopping every now and then to comment on an unfamiliar wildflower or a strangely shaped bird.

"Look at that bird, it's shaped like a ball, and it flies pretty fast."

"The mountain over there is shaped a bit like a rice ball."

Xiao Nan followed behind him without saying a word, but her icy face was covered with a thick layer of frost.

In her mind, she was frantically flipping through her little notebook.

The first rule of the "Countermeasures Manual" is: He will use all sorts of boring topics to try to break down your psychological defenses and create a relaxed atmosphere.

Countermeasure: Remain silent and express your disdain with your eyes.

Xiao Nan tried her best to stare at Qian Xuan's back with her coldest gaze.

However, after walking for a long time, Qianxuan didn't even turn his head once, still talking to himself, his interest undiminished.

Xiao Nan felt as if her internal energy had hit cotton, leaving her feeling suffocated.

As evening approached, the two entered a rather bustling town.

The town was brightly decorated and bustling with activity, as if some kind of festival was being held.

"You're lucky."

Qianxuan's eyes lit up. Without saying a word, he grabbed Xiaonan's wrist and led her into the busiest market.

Xiao Nan's body tensed instantly.

The warmth emanating from her wrist made her usually calm heart skip a beat.

Article 17 of the Countermeasures Manual: He will look for various opportunities to make unintentional physical contact to test your bottom line.

Countermeasure: Break free immediately and give a stern verbal warning!

Just as Xiao Nan was about to lash out, Qian Xuan had already slipped into the crowd like an eel. She was pulled along and followed him involuntarily, her warning words stuck in her throat.

At the market, the aroma of various snacks mingled with the laughter of people, filling the air with a delightful fragrance.

Qianxuan was like a child who had never seen the world, finding everything novel and interesting.

He bought a skewer of takoyaki, ate one himself, and then, without saying a word, put the remaining one to Xiaonan's mouth.

"Open your mouth and have a taste."

Xiao Nan subconsciously took a step back, her brows furrowed.

Article 32 of the Countermeasures Manual: Feeding is an ancient trick to break down a woman's defenses, and it is absolutely unacceptable!

"I'm not hungry."

She coldly refused.

"You have to eat even if you're not hungry."

Qian Xuan's tone carried an undeniable air of domineering authority.

"That's an order."

Xiao Nan was stunned.

She looked at Qian Xuan's face, which was so close to hers and had a slightly mocking smile on it. Then she looked at the passersby who were casting curious glances at her. Her cheeks began to burn uncontrollably.

In the end, she reluctantly opened her mouth.

The warm meatballs melted in my mouth, carrying the sweetness of the sauce and the freshness of the octopus; the taste... was surprisingly good.

Seeing Xiao Nan's awkward expression—clearly she liked it but trying to remain calm—Qian Xuan's smile deepened.

He took her hand and continued strolling through the market.

As Qianxuan passed a small stall selling jewelry, he stopped in his tracks.

Xiao Nan's gaze was also drawn to a hairpin on the stall.

It was a butterfly-shaped hairpin made of blue glass, shimmering with a dreamlike luster under the light.

She glanced at it only once before quickly looking away.

But Qianxuan still managed to capture that brief, fleeting moment of stunning beauty.

He didn't say anything, he just pulled her along and kept walking.

Not long after, he made an excuse to go to the toilet, slipped back alone, and bought the hairpin.

That evening, Chigen booked a deluxe room with a private courtyard at the best hot spring inn in town.

"We...should share a room?"

Xiao Nan stood at the door, looking at the excessively large bed, her voice slightly strained.

Article 78 of the Countermeasures Manual: He will definitely use various excuses to ask to share a room, which is the most dangerous signal!

Countermeasure: Never submit, even at the cost of death!

"What are you thinking about?"

Qian Xuan rolled his eyes at her and pointed to a paper door next to him.

"That's your room. I don't want you to dismember me with pieces of paper in the middle of the night."

Xiao Nan's face instantly turned red to the roots of her ears.

She rushed into her room as if fleeing and slammed the door shut.

Qianxuan watched her fleeing figure, then shook his head with a smile.

In the courtyard, the steaming open-air hot spring, under the moonlight, resembles a piece of warm, lustrous jade.

Qianxuan soaked in the water comfortably and let out a long sigh of relief.

"Company-funded travel suits me better..."

Just as he closed his eyes to rest, a faint sound of water came from the hot spring pool next door, which belonged to Xiao Nan.

The two pools are separated only by a sparse bamboo screen about half a person's height.

Qianxuan opened his eyes and could clearly see a delicate silhouette slowly sinking into the water behind the screen.

He cleared his throat.

"How's the water temperature?"

The sound of water behind the screen stopped.

After a long while, a muffled sound finally came.

"fine."

"Oh, right, this is for you."

Suddenly, Qianxuan picked something up from a rock by the pond and handed it over through the screen.

Xiao Nan hesitated for a moment, but still reached out her hand.

It feels cool to the touch and smooth to the touch.

When she looked at it, she recognized it as the glass butterfly hairpin she had seen at the market during the day.

"you……"

"I bought it because you seemed to like it."

Qianxuan's tone was very casual.

"Consider it... a thank you gift for taking care of those troublesome women for me."

Xiao Nan held the hairpin, and for a moment, she didn't know what to say.

In her little notebook, she wrote down 108 ways to deal with this man, but she didn't write down what to do when he was nice to her.

"Why...why are you so good to me?"

She finally asked the question.

"Um?"

Xuan seemed to be taken aback for a moment, then laughed.

"Do I need a reason to be nice to you?"

He leaned against the pool wall, looking at the moon in the sky, his voice softening slightly.

"I've heard Jiraiya mention the three of you in Amegakure."

Xiao Nan's body trembled slightly.

"Yahiko is a remarkable man; his ideals are great."

Qianxuan's voice sounded exceptionally clear in the quiet night.

"Nagato is a kind person to the core. And you are the most important link between the two of them."

"You deserved a better future."

Xiao Nan fell silent.

She hadn't expected Qianxuan to say these things to her.

This man, who always seemed to be grinning and acting like he had no sense of propriety, actually knew everything.

"don’t worry."

Qianxuan's voice carried a reassuring power.

"From now on, I'm here for you! I'm fucking terrifyingly strong!"

"I will make sure that it never rains again in Amegakure."

"I will make Yahiko's ideals come true in another way."

"I will make Nagato turn back into that silly boy who would cry over the death of a puppy."

Xiao Nan listened quietly, her hand gripping the hairpin tighter and tighter.

She felt that the fortress in her heart, built with ice and indifference for more than a decade, was melting away little by little.

The moonlight, like water, fell upon her shoulders.

She lowered her head, looking at her somewhat blurry reflection in the water, and then at the glass butterfly in her hand that looked as if it might take flight at any moment in the moonlight.

She suddenly felt that her densely written "Countermeasures Manual" seemed... a bit superfluous.