Betting with you, do I need to cheat?

"Brat, what's with that look? Believe it or not, I'll beat you to death?"

Tsunade clenched her fist, her eyes hostile.

"Ahem, Lady Tsunade, your look doesn't seem like you're trying to learn how to defend yourself," Shizune said, trying to ease the tension.

She had said things like this many times before and didn't care if Tsunade got angry.

Tsunade glanced at her, then back at Kyoichi. Noticing their similar expressions, she retracted her fist and snorted, "Gambling is a sacred profession. Cheating is an insult to my person."

"I believe that," Kyoichi said, returning the cards to Shizune and smoothly agreeing.

Tsunade's expression improved.

She smiled and continued, "However, even if I don't cheat, I can still observe others. If some fool dares to cheat in front of me, won't I be able to catch them and make them pay off my debts?"

"……"

Shizune looked at Tsunade in astonishment. After a few seconds, she couldn't find any flaws in her logic.

But.

The next moment, Kyoichi said disdainfully, "Are you overthinking things? With your luck, anyone who knows your name wouldn't dare to cheat."

"Brat, you want to fight, don't you!"

Bang!

One punch cracked a section of the mountainside.

Tsunade's face darkened.

What is he implying?

That I can win money even with my eyes closed!

This brat had provoked her gambling skills repeatedly, showing no regard for her Sannin title.

"If you don't believe me, we can gamble. The simplest way: guess the points."

Kyoichi reached out and took the deck of cards back.

"Hmph, brat, I'll let you know that winning money from me, Princess Tsunade, isn't that easy."

Right there, by the roadside.

The two began to deal. Shizune watched, dumbfounded.

What kind of development is this?

She stared at the game. Kyoichi didn't reveal his cards, instead placing two face down on the ground.

Tsunade looked at them and a smile appeared on her face.

"Aren't you going to look?"

"I'll definitely win, no need to look. I'll just reveal them later."

"……"

Damn it!

Tsunade's lips twitched. She wished she could punch this kid to death.

He was too infuriating.

Afterward, she signaled Kyoichi to flip his cards.

Kyoichi turned over his two cards. Tsunade looked at her hand…

Then, she silently covered her cards and put them back in the deck.

"Again!"

"……"

"Again!"

"……"

"Damn it, brat, are you cheating?"

Three rounds.

Kyoichi hadn't looked at his cards at all, but he still ended up with a higher hand than Tsunade, infuriating her.

This brat is cheating.

It's definitely not my fault!

"Heh heh, do I need to? Besides, you're a Sannin. Can't you tell if I'm cheating or not?"

Kyoichi smiled.

A gambling addict like her always suspects others of cheating, when in reality, she's just unlucky.

"Impossible!"

Tsunade's eyes flickered with uncertainty.

Kyoichi stood up and said, "This is boring. Shizune, play a few rounds with Lady Tsunade."

"Me? I don't know how..."

Shizune's expression was blank.

"It doesn't matter if you don't know how. You don't need to know anything to play with Lady Tsunade."

"???"

Tsunade tilted her head, her beautiful face filled with murderous intent.

Shizune broke out in a cold sweat.

She really started playing.

After a moment...

"I'm not playing anymore, it's boring!"

Tsunade threw the cards down.

She had lost all five rounds.

The crucial point was...

The other party didn't even know how to play. They let her see the cards after drawing, and every time they lost, it made her so angry!

"See, didn't I tell you, Lady Tsunade? If you want to catch someone cheating, you should just stop gambling yourself. Otherwise, who needs to cheat to beat you?"

"..."

That made sense!

After losing money, she could just watch others and catch them cheating.

Then, she could extort a sum of money, and the casino would even thank her!

Of course.

It would be even better if the casino was secretly cheating. She could directly blackmail them.

Tsunade was devoted to gambling and disdained such underhanded tricks, but these were not gambling; they were means to earn money to pay off her debts.

Brilliant!

She was overjoyed, completely forgetting the meaning behind Kyoichi's words.

Unlucky?

That was common sense!

Tsunade knew herself that her gambling luck was strange. If she actually won, she would have to worry.

Gambling outside, besides satisfying her own desires, had another purpose: through gambling, she could know if the people she cared about were safe.

So far.

Since leaving the village, she hadn't won a single time.

"Right, are there any other ways to make money and avoid debts?"

Tsunade's eyes lit up.

This kid seemed uninterested in these unorthodox methods, but he knew quite a bit about them.

Kyoichi fell silent for a moment after hearing this, then said, "Have you considered... getting a pet?"

"A pet? What for? We can't even feed ourselves."

Shizune said pitifully.

They really couldn't feed themselves.

They finally earned some money back, but it wouldn't last a few days before Tsunade gambled it away. Now, all their daily expenses were earned by Shizune herself using Medical Ninjutsu.

"Idiot! A pet is also property. If someone comes to collect money, I can give them the pet, and that would settle the debt, right? Then let it run back. Yes, it's perfect! But this way, the pet needs to be trained, preferably with chakra..."

Tsunade's mind raced, and she quickly came up with a complete plan.

The Sannin were all intelligent people.

Kyoichi nodded, feeling a bit strange at the same time.

This development...

Wasn't he trying to persuade her not to gamble?

Oh well.

He couldn't convince her.

After all, Tsunade gambled not purely for the sake of gambling.

He sighed.

Just then, the system notification sounded.

Kyoichi froze for a moment.

He summoned the system.

In the mission log, there was still one unread entry.

This was the mission reward from before, after Shisui and the others completed their practical combat training.

[Completed 'Practical Combat', 'Will of Fire' Instruction]

[Evaluation: Excellent]

[Reward: Genjutsu: Bringer-of-Darkness Technique]

However.

The next entry left him speechless for a moment.

[Completed 'Sleight of Hand', 'Debt Repayment' Lecture]

[Evaluation: Good]

[Reward: Body Disturbance Charge]

This counts too?

This technique is quite practical.

Fine, even if the subjects taught were a bit strange...

He glanced at Tsunade, a wave of emotion washing over him.

Tsunade stood by the railing, gazing into the distance, and suddenly sighed, saying, "Kid, if you have a hard time in the village in the future, feel free to come find me... Just don't die!"

"Don't worry, I understand."

Kyoichi waved his hand.

He naturally understood Tsunade's meaning.

Konoha seemed harmonious on the surface, and the Senju clan was a great contributor to Konoha, but in reality, it was not so. Not to mention Hiruzen Sarutobi, Danzo in the shadows seemed to suppress and be wary of the Senju clan.

Tsunade understood, but simply didn't say it.

Now that Kyoichi had awakened the Senju physique and become a Jonin, if he made contributions in future wars and his prestige increased, he might have a chance to contend for the Fourth Hokage position.

But.

Would Hiruzen Sarutobi and Danzo agree?

Tsunade felt...

It was unlikely.

That old man didn't truly consider Kyoichi his own, otherwise, he wouldn't have gone to such lengths to arrange for them to meet.

She patted Kyoichi's shoulder and said, "You're like a brother to me, I'll cover for you. As long as you don't rebel, no one will dare to say a word if you leave the village."

"If that day comes... I will."