[Yakushi Nonō]

As these words left his lips, everyone present fell silent.

Looking at Akiyama Shun's youthful face, they were all at a loss, not knowing what kind of expression to put on for a moment.

"If you're the one betting against him, then what am I supposed to do?"

Tsunade looked at Akiyama Shun in confusion.

"Help me wip—ahem, Lady Tsunade, you should go back and rest first. You've had too much to drink."

Shizune gave Akiyama Shun a grateful look and, without waiting for Tsunade to reply, hurriedly pulled her toward the exit.

After Tsunade was dragged out of the casino by Shizune, the gazes of everyone present fell upon Akiyama Shun.

"Kid, how old are you?"

"Does it matter how old I am, as long as we're gambling?"

Seeing the confident expression on Akiyama Shun's face, everyone present burst into laughter.

This absurd scene attracted even more casino patrons; some even stopped their own games to gather around and watch the show.

"Hahahaha! Fine! Then you're on! But I'll say this upfront: don't go crying if you lose too much. It won't do you any good to call your parents later."

After a bald man finished speaking, the entire casino was filled with arrogant laughter.

Akiyama Shun said nothing, simply tidying up the gambling table in silence.

Was he lucky?

Not a chance!

He was a down-on-his-luck guy who always hit the pity timer on card draws and a freak of nature who would crack open a double-yolk egg only to find a rotten one.

However, gambling wasn't just about luck.

Regardless, he used to be a champion at Dou Dizhu and had even practiced rolling dice. As long as neither side cheated and it came down to pure skill, he was confident he could be invincible in the Ninja World!

If they dared to cheat, well, he was sorry, but he would really have to let them experience the terror of a ninja.

The only reason Tsunade was in this state—having entered a complete "give-up" mode after the deaths of her younger brother Nawaki and her lover Kato Dan—was that she was using the thrill of the casino and the pain of losing money to numb her internal trauma.

Otherwise, with the petty tricks used in this casino, even an ordinary Genin could spot them, let alone someone with Tsunade's insight; she simply couldn't be bothered to care.

In the past, he had never relied on gambling to make ends meet because he was busy establishing his persona. Now that his image as a civilian genius was set, there was naturally no need to keep up the act.

Outside the casino.

Tsunade and Shizune were still locked in a frantic tug-of-war.

"Let me back in! Isn't it ridiculous to leave a child in there?"

Shizune and Tonton held onto her legs for dear life, refusing to let Tsunade go.

"Just come back with me first!"

Just as the two were struggling, the casino doors opened.

The moment the doors swung wide, a crowd of gamblers began wailing and running out, as if there were something terrifying inside.

At the tail end of the gamblers, Akiyama Shun walked up to the two of them carrying a large sack, which he tossed casually onto the ground.

"Lady Tsunade, you can go back now. I've won it back for you."

The sack opened, filled to the brim with money.

"???"

What did this mean?

Tsunade and Shizune stopped their struggle simultaneously, staring blankly at Akiyama Shun.

What was going on?

Did this mean that in the short time they were struggling, Akiyama Shun had won all the money back?

"That's not right, I didn't even bring this much money with me in the first place?"

After rummaging through the sack, Tsunade looked at Akiyama Shun in confusion.

She had only brought one million when she arrived, but now, a rough estimate put this at five million!

Five times the amount!

"Oh, I just happened to win a little extra on the side. By the way, Lady Tsunade, don't gamble anymore in the future. That table was all in on it together; they were deliberately trying to swindle your money."

Even though he knew Tsunade was aware of it, Akiyama Shun still offered the reminder.

Shizune looked at the money, listening to Akiyama Shun's words, and was completely stunned.

Having been with Tsunade for so long, her only impression of gambling was losing money.

How could he say he "just happened to win a little extra" so casually?

Was winning money at gambling something that could be done so easily?

Tsunade walked up to Akiyama Shun and pulled him into a hug.

Charging in with a body slam!

"Kid, your name is Akiyama Shun, right? Shizune has told me about you. She said your grades at the academy are excellent, but I never expected you to be this talented at gambling too!"

"How about this: you come work for me. Whenever I lose all my money and have nothing left to bet with, you can go win some more for me to gamble away!"

"That way, I won't have to go around swindling and cheating to scrape up cash anymore! And I won't have to rely on that guy Jiraiya to pay off my debts either!"

Shizune, standing to the side, was stunned into silence. What on earth was this?

Why go through all that unnecessary trouble?

Why not just have Akiyama Shun go gamble and win money directly?

No, wait!

Why does it have to be gambling at all?

And more importantly, how can you say something like "swindling and cheating" so loudly and without a shred of shame!

At this moment, Shizune looked at Tsunade, who was still hugging Akiyama Shun, and felt nothing but embarrassment.

How could anyone ask a model student to specialize in gambling just to win money for her to lose!

Akiyama Shun couldn't help but laugh at Tsunade's words.

Hearing him laugh, Tsunade laughed even louder, but as she did, her head suddenly tilted to the side.

She had fallen asleep.

"Um... sorry to trouble you. Let me help take Lady Tsunade back."

Shizune's face was bright red, and she was too embarrassed to look at Akiyama Shun; her toes were already busy digging a hole in the floor.

"It's fine, I'll help you. I don't have anything else to do anyway."

Akiyama Shun chuckled, and together with Shizune, they carried Tsunade toward her home.

As for the bag of money, Tonton carried it.

Don't let the Thunder Pig's small size fool you; it is a ninja beast, after all, and it's quite strong.

By the time they carried Tsunade home, night had already fallen.

"I'll head back to rest now."

After Shizune thanked him, Akiyama Shun used the Body Flicker Technique to leave, quickly returning to his own home.

He had triggered a side quest today and boosted Tsunade's favorability; it seemed his luck was quite good.

It was time for a pull!

Two months had passed since his last draw.

At this moment, Akiyama Shun's gold coin count had reached [3560]!

That's right, a full twenty-pull!

Let's go!

As the card-drawing animation ended, the rewards appeared before Akiyama Shun's eyes.

[Artifact]

[Kusanagi Sword Shard x1 (1/100)]

[Summoning]

[Enma Shard x1 (1/100)]

[S-Rank Ninja]

[Tsunade Shard x8 (8/100)]

[B-Rank Ninja]

[Hatake Kakashi (Youth) Shard x20 (20/40)]

[Haku Shard x18 (18/40)]

[Kimimaro Shard x8 (8/40)]

[C-Rank Ninja]

[Yakushi Nonō]

[...]

His luck was indeed good!

He had finally pulled an artifact shard and a summoning shard!

Even though he only got one of each, getting them at all was a great start!

The haul of ninja shards was also excellent, netting him eight shards for the S-Rank ninja Tsunade!

Among the B-Rank shards, the counts for Kakashi and Haku were steadily increasing, and he had also gained a new one: Kimimaro.

Kimimaro was also incredibly powerful, possessing a Kekkei Genkai called "Shikotsumyaku," just like Haku.

Several C-rank ninja fragments.

However, the biggest gain this time was that complete C-rank ninja card!

Yakushi Nonō!

Her combat strength was indeed not strong, but she was a medical ninja!

She knew the Chakra Scalpel and even the A-rank healing jutsu, Mystical Palm Technique. If it were any other A-rank jutsu, Akiyama Shun's chakra might not be enough, but the Mystical Palm Technique was different.

The most unique aspect of this technique was that it adjusted chakra based on the severity of the ailment during treatment; if too much chakra were input, it could even disrupt the patient's internal circulatory system, making it perfect for Akiyama Shun!

Tsunade was also a medical ninja, and with this card, it would be much easier to farm favorability with Tsunade in the future!