"Lady Tsunade, what are you doing?" Senba asked hesitantly.
"Please!"
Tsunade looked up, her brown eyes shining with an unprecedented light—the look in a gambler's eyes when they see a secret to guaranteed victory.
"I've been gambling for over twenty years and have never truly won! I lose every time! I've even lost to the point of almost pawning my underwear"
Her voice was full of grief and indignation. "Do you know what they call me? The Legendary Sucker!"
"No matter which casino I walk into, they celebrate. The dealers look at me as if I'm their own mother... no, as if I'm their biological father who's just there to give them money!"
Tsunade gritted her teeth. "I've tried every method! Changing the gambling tools, the place, the time, and even the color of my clothes! It's useless! I still lose!"
Tsunade grabbed Senba's shoulder, her grip so strong it made him frown. "But you're different! You're not cheating with Ninjutsu; you actually know how to win!"
"So..."
Tsunade took a deep breath, her expression as serious as if she were requesting to learn a forbidden technique. "Please teach me this winning method! In exchange, I can teach you medical ninjutsu! Or Taijutsu! Or... or whatever you want! Just as long as I can win once! Just once!"
Senba looked at the future member of the Sannin, Konoha's strongest medical ninja, and the Fifth Hokage before him.
A hero who would save countless lives in the future was currently begging a six-year-old child to teach her how to gamble.
This scene was truly too surreal.
'It would be stupid not to take advantage of this situation.' Senba took a deep breath and then proposed his conditions.
"I can teach you gambling techniques, but I have three conditions."
"Never mind three conditions; as long as you can make me win every bet, I'll agree to thirty." Tsunade agreed without hesitation.
"The first condition: you must teach me medical ninjutsu."
"The second condition: after I graduate from the Ninja Academy, you must help me rise quickly through the ranks at Konoha Hospital—provided, of course, that my medical ninjutsu is up to standard."
"The third condition: take the two of us to a casino right now and help us place bets. You'll get a ten percent cut of the winnings."
Tsunade fell silent for a moment, re-evaluating the six-year-old child in front of her.
His calm expression didn't match his age.
He was still carrying nearly 600,000 Ryo in cash, yet he didn't show any excitement or nervousness.
This composure... She suddenly thought of her reckless brother Nawaki and compared him to the Uchiha kid before her.
They weren't even in the same league. Just like Orochimaru and Jiraiya, there was a clear distinction between a genius and an idiot.
"Fine." Tsunade suddenly laughed, stepped back, and looked down at Senba.
"Then it's a deal. We'll gamble in my name. I'll give you the winnings privately; the casino people won't dare cause me trouble."
She paused, a cunning glint flashing in her eyes. "Anyway, the money I've lost to casinos over the years adds up to at least tens of millions of Ryo.
And not just one place. I'm a regular at all the casinos in Konoha, big and small. All the money left over from drinking went there. I even tricked Nawaki out of his money and lost it."
Her tone actually carried a hint of pride.
Minato whispered, "Tr-Tricked her brother out of his money?"
Tsunade said righteously, "That was a loan! A loan, do you understand? I'll pay him back when he grows up. Anyway, it'll be a long time before he's an adult."
Minato's expression became very subtle. He suddenly felt the woman in front of him was extremely unreliable.
Meanwhile, Senba didn't feel much surprise; he had long known what kind of person Tsunade was.
A terrible gambler, losing every bet yet still wanting to play. Thirty years later, she would even transform into a little girl to run away from debts. Tricking her brother out of his money now was actually considered having a conscience.
"Let's go."
Tsunade waved her hand and turned to leave. "I know a good place. It has a nice environment, high stakes, and most importantly, it's where I've lost the most."
Her tone carried a strange sense of excitement.
"I've lost so much; it's about time I win some back!"
...
Ten minutes later, they stood before a casino with a sign that read "Fortune Casino."
Tsunade strode in, followed by Senba and Minato.
Inside was a spacious hall, brightly lit and filled with smoke. Various people sat around several gambling tables: middle-aged men who looked like merchants, ninjas in uniform, and some thugs who looked like they weren't to be trifled with.
The Dealers stood behind the tables, skillfully shaking dice cups and dealing cards.
As soon as Tsunade entered, someone noticed her.
"Yo, Lady Tsunade, back again?"
"How much did you bring today? Wasn't last time's loss enough?"
"Come, come, there's a seat over here."
A few regulars greeted her with a laugh, their tone mocking.
Tsunade just snorted and walked straight to the dice table in the center.
"Move aside. I'm going to win back my losses today."
She stood before the table, pulled a cloth bag from her robe, and poured it out.
Clatter!
A pile of cash rolled out. A rough count showed about 600,000 Ryo, which was all the money Senba won from her.
The dealer was a middle-aged man in his thirties with a long, thin face and shrewd eyes. He glanced at the pile of money, then at Tsunade, and asked with a smile, "Lady Tsunade, have you... struck it rich today?"
"Cut the nonsense." Tsunade slapped the table. "Exchange this for chips, the highest denomination!"
The dealer didn't ask further. He gestured for an assistant to take the cash and soon brought back six round chips, all golden chips with a face value of 100,000 Ryo.
Tsunade held the six chips in her hand and whispered into Senba's ear, "Kid, it's up to you."
Senba nodded. "Don't worry, we won't lose a single round!"
Because Tsunade lost every bet, the casino had set up a separate table for her to prevent others from exploiting the bug by betting against her.
The rules were simple: betting on big or small pays one to one, betting on a specific total pays one to five, and betting on a triple pays one to ten. If a triple was rolled and Tsunade had bet on big/small or a specific total, the dealer won directly.
The dealer picked up the dice cup and began to shake it. The dice rattled inside with a crisp sound.
Thud!
The dice cup hit the table. Without delay, Senba said to Tsunade, "Four, five, six. Fifteen points."
Tsunade's eyes lit up and pushed all the chips onto the table. "All-in! Fifteen points!"
The dealer's smile stiffened. "All-in? On a specific total?"
He glanced at Tsunade and Senba, feeling uneasy. Why was this legendary fat sheep acting so aggressive today?
But a casino is a business; there was no reason to refuse a customer's bet.
The dealer's smile stiffened slightly as he revealed the dice: four, five, six—fifteen points!
A chorus of gasps erupted from the surroundings.
"She hit it?!"
"Are you serious?!"
"This luck..."
Tsunade was stunned for a moment, then burst into laughter.
"I won! I really won! Quick, pay up!"
The dealer's expression was grim, but he still honestly counted out five times the chips and pushed them toward Tsunade.
600,000 Ryo became 3,000,000 Ryo.
Minato stared blankly from the side.
"One... one time, and it quintupled?"