Tsunade the Gambling Addict

When Jiang Feng saw the real Tsunade standing before him, as if she had stepped straight out of a manga or anime, he finally understood why that female passerby had gritted her teeth so bitterly at the mention of Tsunade.

The four of them found Tsunade in a small gambling den at the end of the street. The lighting was dim; Tsunade stood in the light, while the four of them remained in the shadows.

Frankly speaking, Tsunade's condition was even worse than the female passerby had described.

She slumped over the gambling table, her pale golden hair a tangled mess, its ends badly split. Her eyes were bloodshot, her face haggard, as though she had not slept for days and nights.

A scattered pile of banknotes lay on the table before her, along with a few coins. That was probably the last of her money. Yet even added together, it only came to a few thousand yen.

Tsunade, her eyes red from losing, shoved all the money forward with one small hand. The dealer cheerfully counted the wager, then dealt the cards to both sides.

A circle of onlookers stood two or three meters away, all shouting, "Open it! Open it! Open it!" They could not wait to see this famous Big Fat Sheep lose everything and crawl out of Tanzaku Town naked.

The result, naturally, did not disappoint them. Like every gambler who swore they would win it all back on their final hand, Tsunade lost her last bit of money.

At that moment, Tsunade looked as though her heart had died. She froze for two or three full seconds, then abruptly rose and grabbed the gambling den's manager, asking whether he could lend her more money.

The manager could only keep smiling and shake his head.

Asuma and Kurenai Yuhi continued staring blankly at Tsunade as she wheedled and pleaded with the casino manager. The idol in their hearts had utterly shattered, and their last trace of wishful thinking vanished.

Jiang Feng, meanwhile, appraised Tsunade with a different kind of gaze.

Even in such a miserable state, with the image of a gambling addict blinded by losses completely devoid of any sex appeal... she was still beautiful. She was the most alluring woman in this gambling den—no, in this entire town. Without question.

Her tender, pale skin seemed soft enough to break at a touch. She was tall and slender yet still voluptuous, and a glimpse of her full, perky assets showed above her collar. With every movement, they trembled and swayed like waves of snow.

It was no wonder other women envied someone with such a perfect figure and appearance.

"Lady Tsunade!"

They could not let Lady Tsunade embarrass herself any further. Wearing Konoha's Jonin vest, Kurenai Yuhi squeezed through the crowd, stepped before Tsunade, and lowered his head.

"Lady Tsunade, Lord Hokage sent us to bring you back to Konoha."

"Senior Kurenai!"

Tsunade was slightly younger than Kurenai Yuhi. The moment she saw the old acquaintance who had suddenly pushed his way over, her eyes lit up. She immediately released the gambling den manager and grabbed Kurenai Yuhi instead.

"Do you have any money on you? I haven't eaten in three days..."

"Uh, I only brought a few ten thousand yen..."

Honest Kurenai Yuhi assumed Tsunade intended to stop gambling. He had just taken out his wallet, planning to find somewhere to treat her to a meal, when he suddenly felt his hand go empty.

"I'll count it as a loan."

Tsunade snatched the wallet from Kurenai Yuhi's hand, pulled out all the money inside, and tossed it onto the gambling table before stuffing the wallet back into his hand.

"Continue. I refuse to believe your luck can stay this good forever..."

"Open it! Open it! Open it..."

"No way, I lost even this!?"

Tsunade's eyes widened. She then looked toward Kurenai Yuhi, who had been ignored for nearly a full minute. "Senior Kurenai, do you have any more money? Lend me a little more. Next hand—next hand, I'll definitely turn my luck around. I have a feeling my good luck is about to come..."

"That was all the money I had on me..."

"Really? You're not lying to me? Believe me, even 1,000 yen is fine. I'm not picky. I'm just one hand away from turning my luck around. Even 100 yen will do..."

After repeatedly confirming that there was nothing left to squeeze from Kurenai Yuhi, Tsunade sighed in utter despair. Like her soul had been drained away, she reluctantly left the gambling table.

The crowd immediately scattered like birds and beasts. Everyone knew that Big Fat Sheep was about to slink out of Tanzaku Town once more, only to return in high spirits after building up another nest egg, ready to offer up her fortune to the casino and those bastards blessed with good luck.

It had been like this for years, over and over again.

"Lady Tsunade, should we find somewhere to eat and rest for the night first, or return to Konoha immediately?"

Kurenai Yuhi felt it was time to talk about returning to Konoha.

"Konoha? Return to what Konoha? When did I ever say I was going back to Konoha? Didn't I have Jiraiya tell the old man long ago? From now on, I have nothing to do with Konoha. Whether I live or die is none of your business."

Had she not said so? Kurenai Yuhi froze, then quickly realized that Tsunade indeed had never agreed to return to Konoha. The Third Hokage had never said that merely finding Tsunade would mean they could bring her back to Konoha.

Damn it. The Hokage had set them up. This mission really was not that simple.

Straying into the halls of heaven~ Sacrificing one's life to keep company, yet unable to overcome fate's foul weather~

"By the way, Senior Kurenai, did you come alone?" Tsunade suddenly realized that Kurenai Yuhi had most likely not come by himself.

Although Kurenai Yuhi had nothing left to squeeze, he still had teammates.

"Uh, I also have my students."

Students?

So he had become a squad-leading Jonin? In that case, his team members should be relatively young Chunin or Genin. They would not have much money on them, but every little bit counted—and young people were generally easier to fool.

"Ahem!"

Tsunade coughed lightly twice, putting on a prim and proper air as she prepared to swindle a child out of New Year's money. She said solemnly, "Kurenai-senpai's students? Then I definitely have to take a look. Where are they...?"

Tsunade glanced around and found Jiang Feng and the other two hiding in the dimly lit corner. Her gaze paused briefly on Asuma and Girl Kurenai Yuhi, then settled on Jiang Feng, who stood expressionlessly with a sword in his arms. Her eyes lit up, and she could no longer look away.

Kurenai Yuhi returned to the three of them and introduced them one by one. "This is Asuma, the Hokage's son. This is my daughter, Kurenai Yuhi..."

The two youngsters greeted Tsunade with complicated feelings. Although their idol had fallen from grace, she had still been their idol for many years. For the moment, they simply could not see her as some disgraced celebrity.

Tsunade merely nodded perfunctorily at the two youngsters' greetings. When it was Jiang Feng's turn, before Kurenai Yuhi could introduce him, Tsunade suddenly revealed his identity.

"I know you. You're Uchiha Jiang Feng."

"Hm?"

Jiang Feng tilted his head in confusion. He had many friends—an enormous number of friends—but Tsunade was not among them.

"Jiraiya mentioned you to me... He said you were different from every Uchiha, even from everyone else. Someone people would recognize the moment they saw you, and never forget afterward."

Tsunade no longer remembered how she and Jiraiya had ended up talking about Uchiha Jiang Feng, but she still remembered how Jiraiya had described him.

He had not described Jiang Feng's appearance or personality. He had described nothing at all. He had merely sighed and said a long passage.

[Different creators have different writing styles and artistic styles. The characters they create are all different. No matter how strange or unconventional the rest of us may be, we all seem like characters written by the same creator.

When one day you meet a man who, from the very first glance, makes you suspect that he is a character created by someone else, then don't doubt it. That person is Uchiha Jiang Feng.]

Tsunade had not believed those words before. Now, she did.

This brat Jiraiya had praised so highly... really was special.