The Melancholy of Zenin Naoko

(60% anti-theft ratio)

Murakami Naoko, the only Transcendent in all of Japan, never imagined that she would be reborn after dying, let alone as the legitimate daughter of an incredibly feudal, male-dominated family.

As the legitimate daughter of the Zenin family, a clan of jujutsu sorcerers, Naoko seems to have only two possible fates: awaken a cursed technique and serve as a high-quality vessel to bear superior sorcerer descendants, or have no cursed technique and become a high-class marriage pawn, strengthening the Zenin family's position in the jujutsu world.

But...

Having inherited her supernatural ability from her past life and awakened the family's hereditary Ten Shadows Technique, Naoko easily tore the house apart. She tilted her head, wearing a baffled expression.

“‘Make me head of the Zenin family, surpass the Six Eyes of the Gojo clan’? Doesn't the Zenin family have its own mental hospital?”

Rather than waste time on something so boring, obviously it would be much more fun to team up with her friends, crush those rotten mandarins, and remake the world into something she liked.

But why had the friends who were supposed to remake the world with her all started acting so strangely lately, always saying weird things?

The blond Special Grade sorcerer: “If there's anyone Naoko cares about, you can tell me. I'd be very happy to meet someone Naoko approves of~”

Her stone-faced childhood friend from school: “I've always been watching you.”

The immature white-haired guy next door: “Huh? Obviously the Six Eyes and Ten Shadows belong together.”

The odd-ponytailed curse user: “I hope someone will walk beside me on the path to my ideals.”

Could these people please act normal and stop being such bizarre weirdos and cryptic riddlers? I feel like I can't fit in anymore.

#Miss Naoko Is Deeply Melancholy Again Today#

Reading Guide:

1. This is a gender-swapped Naoya. Since she has lived a different life as a woman, the heroine's personality differs from Naoya's, but she's still very dark and awful, and not particularly likable. Please proceed with caution if that bothers you! I wrote a gender-swapped awful person, so surely nobody expects her to be kind and virtuous.

2. The author was steeped in Japanese light novels while writing this. When words in some sentences are followed by words in parentheses, it's intentional: “written as the words outside the parentheses, read as the words inside.” Since this may be confusing, I'm explaining it here.

3. Although the tags say serious drama, this is really a trashy Mary Sue harem story where men, women, and everyone in between falls in love with her. It's not a power fantasy. The true male lead is 5t5. Their romance may look a little abnormal for various reasons, but these two really are true love.

4. The heroine's character concept was inspired by Murakami Haruki, and some chapter titles refer to his works. Some details may also have been inspired by the corresponding original works. When that happens, I'll mention it in the author's notes. Readers familiar with those works can look for the related Easter eggs, too.

5. The story spans a long period and contains many original characters, major changes, and personal interpretations. Some original characters have substantial roles for plot reasons, so please proceed with caution if that bothers you. The full outline is based on the first 24 volumes of the original manga and does not account for later developments.

6. The author is terrible at writing, so there may be all sorts of plot holes and contrived developments. Please keep your expectations low while reading. The story is full of overwrought angst, and any out-of-character portrayals of the original characters are entirely my fault. If anything bothers you, blame me, not the characters I've written.

7. The character design on the cover is of Naoko as a girl, and I have commercial permission to use it from Nienie.

8. If you don't like it, please click the X. Let's all be nice to one another.

9. Please support the official release, and enjoy reading.

[For my next book, I want to practice writing romance. I should be writing this one: Don't Trust That Uchiha]

You were an orphan for as long as you could remember. One day, on your way home from work, you got hit by a truck and received a bonus package: amnesia and reincarnation in another world.

The good news: In this life, you were born in a small village called Takumi Village. Your family had more than a dozen members, your grandparents were alive, both your parents were present, and you had a twin brother. Your family got along well, and your life was peaceful and happy.

The bad news: When you were eight, everyone in your clan except you was wiped out because your swordsmith grandfather had offended a powerful person you couldn't afford to cross. That person sent people to kill them all.

But the powerful person took an interest in you because you had the “Tearbone Swordheart,” also known as the family women-only, unbeknownst-to-the-owner magical constitution of “turning into top-grade tamahagane when cheated on.” After you narrowly escaped death, you were dumped in your enemy's hometown as future forging material. You grew up alongside your enemy's son, the clan head, and his cousin as childhood friends.

Then, on the anniversary of your relationship with Childhood Friend No. 1, you learned that he had jumped into a river and killed himself. Two years later, just as a mysterious masked man stabbed straight through you, your memories of your previous life suddenly awakened. From Childhood Friend No. 2, who had watched you get killed, you learned the truth: Childhood Friend No. 1 had only dated you on orders from the higher-ups.

You, who only realized as you lay dying that you'd been reincarnated into a nationally beloved manga from your previous life: ...Did these past-life memories really have to show up so late? One star, absolutely one star!

The good news: Maybe because you left a bad review, you were reborn.

The bad news: Maybe because you left a bad review, you were reborn on the day your family was wiped out and you arrived in your enemy's hometown.

You: “...”

Can you still take back that bad review?!

No refunds. Things have come to this, and since you can't possibly defeat your enemies, you only have one option: learning from your last experience of being adopted, you decisively refuse the offer to be taken in by your enemy's clan. You resolve to live quietly in a corner of the village, far away from your enemies, and survive one day at a time.

As long as you can hang on until they bring about their own downfall, you'll be safe, since you weren't with them when they were killed!

Believing this, you got the new life you'd been hoping for. Everything seemed to be getting better, until one day you suddenly (finally) discovered, to your horror, that your two childhood friends seemed to have been reborn with their memories too.

And they had never intended to let you go, even from the very beginning, when you wanted nothing to do with them.

*

Before Shisui died, the things he couldn't let go of included Konoha, his clan, and his childhood friend and lover.

She was fragile and sensitive, and saw him as her whole world. She had once told him to his face that she would die without him.

Filled with deep guilt, he entrusted his eyes and his lover to the person he trusted most, Itachi, then leapt into the Naka River. There, he discovered that he had returned to the age of ten.

After confirming that it wasn't a genjutsu, he learned the future of the shinobi world from Itachi, who was said to have been reborn after dying as well. Together, they managed to prevent the Nine-Tails' attack in time, and worked to smooth over every source of unrest before it could take root.

Everything seemed to be getting better, except for one thing that had gone wrong from the start.

As he repeatedly tried to approach his lover, who had not been adopted by the Uchiha this time, she kept evading him. At last, unable to take it any longer, he locked her away and used genjutsu to coax the truth from her. Shisui, who had seen another side of the future, smiled.

“Didn't you say you'd die without me? Don't worry, this time I absolutely will not abandon you.” The black-haired, red-eyed boy's smile was still warm. He gently stroked his lover, who had once again become docile under the influence of his genjutsu, and met the gaze of someone watching them from the shadows.

The two Uchiha silently came to an understanding.

You must not leave my (our) side.

Even if we descend into hell, you will come with me (us).”

Theme: After all my long struggle with myself, I'd rather be myself.