Kano watched the rest of the matches seriously, but they really weren't interesting. The ones who were supposed to advance still advanced, and the ones who couldn't still couldn't.
The only exception was Rock Lee.
This time, without facing Gaara, he completely crushed Inuzuka Kiba. Sasuke, as usual, was affected by the Cursed Seal and Kakashi had to send him to the hospital early.
There was nothing Kano could do about it; unless she went straight to Orochimaru, Sasuke would just have to endure the Cursed Seal on his own.
With the prelims over, the finals would begin in thirty days. Instead of heading home, Kano dragged Naruto along to visit Sasuke.
They ran into Kakashi, who was just leaving. Naruto pestered him for special training, but Kano knew Kakashi was going to give Sasuke private lessons, so she held Naruto back and told him not to make a scene at the hospital.
Afterward, Kakashi found Ebisu to train Naruto, while Kano—who didn't need any training—went straight home. Unlike those orphans, she still had family waiting for her.
She took a long bath, chatted with her mother for a while, then spoke with Karin and told her not to go out for the time being. What followed was a rare, leisurely month with no missions and nothing urgent to do.
After all, those little chicks would have a tough time against Zabuza, let alone that pure-stat monster Shadow Deer Tube.
Kano slung her bag over her shoulder, dressed up beautifully, and set off to find Jiraiya. She hadn't planned on asking him for training—she didn't particularly want a toad summon either. She just wanted to see the handsome old man who had once moved her to tears.
Though much time had passed and many of her original memories had blurred, the Pervy Sage would definitely be peeking into the women's bath.
Before that, however, she took a moment to extract two deer shadows (because her clansmen were all copying her Ninjutsu, leaving the Village's deer supply depleted; these two had been freshly culled). She resolved that this time she would level up using only deer.
Riding an upgraded Shadow Deer, she headed for the hot springs. Not knowing exactly when Jiraiya would arrive, she decided to go in early and wait for him to begin his peeping.
She knew Jiraiya would come, so even when she slipped into the water she kept her pure-white bath towel wrapped tight. She adored him, but she didn't want him seeing everything.
She kept her eyes on the men's side of the bath, and finally there was movement.
Someone was peeking!
Kano rose from the water, her delicate feet pressing against the cool stone—utterly comfortable. Droplets slid from her toes, leaving a trail of tiny footprints.
She stepped slowly to the front of the peephole.
With her back to the hole, she let the towel slide down. Her fair, smooth, graceful figure was about to be fully revealed.
Peeking through the hole, Jiraiya's eyes widened; he wasn't going to miss a single detail.
But when the towel had slipped halfway, he met Kano's bright, mischievous gaze as she looked back.
'You're peeping at me, Jiraiya.'
For a moment Jiraiya was startled—he'd been discovered!
'Haha, just kidding. Keep your voice down or you'll be found out. I can cover for you, Lord Jiraiya.'
In fact, Kano was wearing a swimsuit under the towel; she wasn't that careless.
'Y-you know who I am?'
Jiraiya whispered; in all his years of peeping, this was the first time he'd found an accomplice.
'Of course. You're one of the Legendary Sannin. But talk less or we'll be noticed. Just listen—I want to ask you something. Take on a student.','Not me, but a friend of mine. He'll definitely satisfy you, so please teach him with everything you've got. He should arrive soon. If he starts making a racket, just tell him Kano's in this bath; that should keep him from ruining your fun.'
Just as in the original story, Naruto soon showed up for training at the springs. Ebisu was taken out by a single move, and Naruto clung to Jiraiya.
When Naruto was about to shout and wreck Jiraiya's peeping, Jiraiya remembered what Kano had said.
'Kano's in that bath over there—don't you want a look?'
With that single line, the rowdy Naruto fell silent. His face flushed red, and even his pants pitched a tent.
'R-really…?'
Naruto asked in a hush, clearly tempted.
Jiraiya hadn't expected it to work so well. Since returning to the Village he'd heard talk of Konoha's songstress, Kano, but hadn't imagined her popularity was so great she could silence even a brat like this.
They said Kano was a flawlessly pretty girl with a sweet voice and a gentle heart—Konoha's famous Idol.
Jiraiya had never met the beautiful diva either, and he wanted to—she might even make good material.
"Of course it's true. I'm the Toad Sage—when have I ever lied to you? If you don't look now, that little girl might be gone."
Naruto swallowed hard, heart pounding, feet moving forward on their own.
Is this kid a fan of Konoha's songstress? The moment he heard his Idol was next door, his little head took full control of his big one.
Step by step Naruto approached the hole in the wall, torn inside. What if he got caught? Would Kano hate him? He had a thousand reasons not to look, yet his body refused to obey.
His breath came in short gasps; steeling himself, he pressed his eye to the peephole.
Curious, Jiraiya quietly burned a tiny hole with Fire Release—double peeping.
Kano had heard the noise. Wrapped in a towel, she rose from the wall and stepped where every inch of her could be seen, making sure Naruto would get the view.
Seeing Kano right there, Naruto's breathing turned heavy, blood rising in his nose.
"Naruto, are you peeking?"
Kano turned, striking a playful pose as she looked toward the hole.
The words startled Naruto; beside him Jiraiya chuckled—he'd been startled the same way moments earlier.
"Since you want to look, I'll let you."
Kano undid her towel and spread it wide, revealing a blue bikini.
"Like what you see?"
Startled, Naruto had jerked back, but at her words he scrambled to the hole again.
The full sight sent blood streaming from his nose; he nodded helplessly, though Kano on the other side couldn't see.
She could guess well enough.
"Peeking at a girl without permission is wrong. Don't peek at any other big sisters. But you can look at me—I give you permission."
In that instant, faced with her blushing, innocent smile, his heart fluttered far beyond mere desire.
Even Jiraiya felt it: that sweet, clear first love of youth.
It was as if he'd returned to his own teenage years; Kano's gentle words plucked at his heartstrings, summoning memories of his white-moon first love.
A love pure of lust, stirred only by the heart!
In that moment Jiraiya settled on his subject: Kano and Naruto it would be.
Sincere, spotless romance, he decided, could outshine mere fleshly pleasure.
Across the wall, Kano had no idea both men had been struck clean through the heart by Cupid's arrow; she'd only meant to give Naruto a little treat.
She knew he liked her, and she liked him—though their kinds of "like" weren't quite the same.
If Naruto could turn into a girl, she supposed she could accept that.
In her previous life she hadn't cared much for bodily privacy; becoming female had changed that a bit, yet she still felt comfortable letting Naruto look.
Without waiting for a reaction, she snugly re-wrapped her towel.
"All right, reward time is over. Want more? Train hard and take first place in the finals. See you later!"
With that, she left.
Naruto burned with new drive; blood roaring, he itched to crush every opponent, win first place, and go on a date with Kano-chan!
Jiraiya agreed to train him.
A girl in love quietly arranges for a legendary master to guide her beloved—romantic beyond words!
That's it: no sequel to icha icha paradise. His next book would be the tale of a boy and girl who love and support each other—tentatively titled First Love in the Human World.
"Hey, kid—you like that girl, don't you?"
Naruto scratched his cheek, embarrassed, then nodded.
"Yeah, I like Kano-chan!"
"Then work hard. She's a good girl."
"I'll win her over, no matter what it takes!"
"Good. From here on, your training's in my hands. To impress the girl you like, you'll need to survive my tough regimen."
"Really? Thanks, Pervy Sage!"
"In return, you'll tell me every detail about you and Kano. I'm all ears."
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