Next Time, Come Play Again~

Eiji was an honest man, too.

He had no idea how to bluff Lord Tsunade while making it seem even remotely reasonable.

"Um... Actually, I found this blade. Do you believe me?"

Tsunade let out a cold laugh. Naturally, she did not believe Eiji's nonsense.

Why don't you say it fell from the sky, too?

But she had just won a million ryō, so she was in a good mood and could not be bothered to argue with Eiji over it.

She tossed the blade back to Eiji. "Come find me whenever you feel like playing again. I'll be happy to oblige."

Eiji turned and left, tears of resentment streaming down his face.

Damn it!

This is too much!

I actually ended up being mocked by the biggest Fat Sheep in the Shinobi World!

If this gets out, how am I supposed to show my face again?

And all my damn money is gone. Where am I supposed to get the money to buy a house now?

He quietly returned to his room. The two seniors were already asleep.

But Eiji simply could not fall asleep.

No. I have to think of a way to get my money back.

This was no longer about the mission. It was a matter of dignity.

In the room next door, Tsunade was happily counting her money.

"See? I told you. I was going to win big today. In a few days, we'll switch to a bigger casino and win back everything we lost over the past few years."

But as she counted, Tsunade suddenly stopped.

Her luck at gambling was terrible.

Every time she won, some kind of accident would happen.

She had earned so much today. Surely nothing strange would happen this time... right?

Tsunade crawled under the covers, countless unpleasant memories flashing through her mind.

She did not fall into a deep sleep until dawn.

The next morning, everyone went downstairs for breakfast.

Shizune held Tonton in her arms and noticed that Eiji was nowhere to be seen.

"Where's Eiji?"

Tenzo brought over two plates of steamed buns and a dish of pickles.

"He didn't seem to sleep much last night. He's making up for it now. Lord Tsunade hasn't woken up either?"

Shizune nodded. "They probably played too late with Eiji. Besides, Lord Tsunade hasn't gotten up before noon in the past few years. You'll get used to it."

The three of them found it strange that Eiji had somehow managed to hit it off with Lord Tsunade.

When Kakashi and Tenzo heard that Eiji had lost all night, they nearly popped their eyes out.

"Good, good, good."

"The biggest Fat Sheep ran into an enormous Fat Pig, huh?"

Aside from having heard the rumors about Lord Hashirama losing to Tsunade, this was the first time they had heard of Tsunade winning so spectacularly.

While the group was chatting, Eiji came rushing down from upstairs.

Without saying a word, he grabbed a steamed bun and started gnawing on it.

The three of them shuddered.

"Eiji, are you eating steamed buns or murdering them? What did they ever do to you?"

"Exactly, Eiji. It wasn't the buns that won your money, so you..."

Honest Tenzo had only gotten halfway through his sentence when he felt a palpable killing intent.

"Th-then I'll go settle the bill. Breakfast is on me this morning."

He quickly fled, afraid that Eiji would challenge him to a duel with a blade.

Eiji gritted his teeth. "Senior Shizune."

"Hmm?"

"Where's the nearest Ninja Tool Shop?"

"Turn left after you go out. It's the third shop."

Eiji finished the meat bun. "Ninja tools are important to a ninja. The same goes for Orochimaru. I'll go see if I can find any information."

Shizune and Kakashi exchanged a glance.

"We thought Eiji would be wallowing in the pain of losing money, but he recovered pretty quickly."

"Only the five of us and Tonton know about this. Don't tell anyone else."

"Okay."

At the Ninja Tool Shop.

There was little business so early in the morning, and the owner was dozing in a reclining chair.

Eiji slowly walked inside. "Wake up."

The owner was startled by Eiji's sharp gaze. "Lord Ninja, how may I help you?"

Eiji closed the door and stared fixedly at the owner for a long while.

The owner's face turned pale, and his voice trembled.

Think, you idiot! Have I offended Lord Ninja somehow recently?

Eiji slowly reached into his ninja tool pouch and pulled out a thick stack of Explosive Tags.

I'm finished.

The owner knew how powerful Explosive Tags were. Is he going to blow me into pieces and scatter me all over the place?

"Do you recognize this?"

"Recognize it?"

"Is it valuable?"

"Huh?"

"What are you 'huh'-ing about? Is it valuable?"

"Valuable, very valuable. They cost five hundred ryō each. But my little shop doesn't carry them. If Lord Ninja wants anything, please take whatever you like. I only ask that you spare my life."

Eiji felt that something was off.

"When did I say I wanted your things? Are the ninjas of Konoha really this uncivilized?"

The owner immediately fell to his knees and knocked his head against the floor.

It's over. He really is here to take my life.

The owner knew that, in the eyes of these ninjas, ordinary people's lives were worthless.

Especially in a lawless border area like this, people died every day.

He just had not expected his turn to come today.

"Ayaka, Yui, Yua, Ayu, we'll meet again in the next life."

The owner slowly closed his eyes. "May I ask one thing of Lord Ninja? When you do it, please be quick. I'm afraid of pain."

"Are you insane?" Eiji tossed the Explosive Tags onto the counter. "Exchange these for money."

Owner: ?

Who the hell is insane here?!

Half an hour later.

Eiji walked out with two hundred thousand ryō tucked away.

The owner went and changed into a new pair of pants, then waved enthusiastically.

"Welcome back next time."

Eiji suddenly turned around, frightening the owner into sprinting back inside.

Oh no. Did I say something wrong again?

At noon.

Tsunade had gotten up as well, and the five of them gathered for lunch.

They also exchanged information about Orochimaru.

But Tsunade was clearly uninterested in any of it.

She only wanted to go out and win an even bigger sum that night.

"Since there is no news about Orochimaru, let's set off for the next place."

Tsunade took out a warm banknote and stuffed it into Eiji's hand.

"This is your lesson. Don't gamble again in the future, okay~"

Tsunade's voice was soft and gentle, but it pierced Eiji's heart like a knife.

"You!"

Tsunade propped her chin up with one hand. "You can write an IOU, too. I still have great faith in the reputation of the Uchiha."

AAAAAAAH!

Eiji felt as if his Sharingan were about to evolve into the Mangekyo.

"Two seniors, wait for me a moment."

Eiji took banknotes from his backpack and slammed them onto the table.

"Again!"

Kakashi and Tenzo covered their faces in despair.

It's over. Eiji has become a gambling addict.

Half an hour later.

Eiji hugged Xiao Er and hid in the farthest corner.

He looked utterly pitiful.

Eiji had never imagined that, despite being the only cheat in this world, he was still worse than Tsunade when it came to gambling.

He steeled himself. Forget it. I'm done playing. I can just get double the amount back from Danzo later.

He was just about to stand up and leave when he suddenly sensed a fluctuation of Chakra.

Eiji frowned. It's not the Masked Man, and it's not Zetsu. Then who is it?

Ah, I know.

Eiji suddenly came up with a brilliant idea.

The mission only required him to beat Tsunade. It had never said they had to gamble with money.

He walked over to Tsunade. "Lord Tsunade, would you like to bet with me again?"

Tsunade laughed so hard that she shook like a flower in the breeze, leaving Eiji staring at her without blinking.

"Don't just say one round. I'll bet as many rounds as you want!"

Eiji bent down and whispered in a voice only the two of them could hear, "Let's bet on who can find Orochimaru first: me or Lord Jiraiya."

Tsunade pondered this briefly. "Kid, I was actually going to tell you this earlier. Orochimaru isn't someone the three of you can handle."

She tapped Eiji's forehead protector. "You're only a Chunin. Just stick to missions with lower difficulty."

Eiji simply repeated, "Are we betting or not?"

"Sigh, fine. I'll play with you."

"If you win, I'll give you a gift. If you lose, you give me a banknote worth five hundred thousand ryō."

Tsunade naturally believed that Jiraiya would find Orochimaru first.

No matter how unreliable he was, he was still the famous Toad Sage.

The three of them were ultimately just a little short of his level.

Besides, for some reason, she always had an uneasy feeling.

"I'm tired. Let's go back and rest."

Tsunade rose and left, completely unaware of the smile tugging at the corners of Eiji's mouth.

Finally, she took the bait!