The Legendary Fat Sheep

Three days had passed since Akiyama Shun last helped Might Guy.

Over these past few days, Akiyama Shun could clearly feel that this Might Guy liked to stare at him whenever he had nothing to do during class.

If this were in the past, he certainly would have felt uncomfortable, but now he didn't care at all.

Because that Kakashi had already been doing the exact same thing for a month.

Every day during class, these two stared at him more often than they looked at the teacher.

"It is Shizune and Akiyama Shun's turn for cleaning duty today. School is dismissed."

After Kazama Shinya finished speaking, he left the classroom, and immediately, cheers erupted within the room.

"Yay! School's out!"

Of all the times in the day, Obito looked forward to dismissal the most, though he didn't rush out of the school in one breath like the others.

Because Nohara Rin hadn't left yet.

Seeing her still tidying up her desk, Obito hurried over to help.

"Rin, let me help you pack your books."

"Thank you, Obito."

"Hehe~"

The current Obito had not yet been crushed by a boulder; he was still a bright, sunny youth who could be happy just by watching Rin and hearing her voice every day.

"Shun, I'm heading off first. Remember to come find me to play tomorrow! I found a great spot for hide-and-seek this time; I definitely won't be the first one caught!"

"Don't worry, even if I find you, I'll pretend I didn't see anything."

"What is that supposed to mean~ You definitely won't be able to find me!"

After Yuhi Kurenai finished tidying up, she also left, and soon only Akiyama Shun and Shizune remained in the classroom.

Oh, there were two people peeking from the window outside the classroom, but after Hatake Sakumo and Might Duy arrived to pick them up, the two boys followed their fathers home.

"Um... classmate Akiyama Shun, could I ask you for a favor?"

Just as Akiyama Shun was preparing to start cleaning, he noticed Shizune stammering, as if she had something to say.

"Could you handle the cleaning duty by yourself today? I suddenly remembered something very bad. Don't worry, I'll handle the next duty all by myself!"

"Huh?"

Akiyama Shun looked at Shizune with a face full of confusion. After the girl hesitated for a moment, she began to explain the reason.

"To keep Lady Tsunade from gambling, I've hidden all of our money, but this morning, I suddenly felt like Lady Tsunade was acting all suspicious."

"I didn't think much of it this morning, but during class today, I kept wondering: did Lady Tsunade figure out where I hid the money?"

"If she finds the money, she'll definitely go drinking and gambling again and lose it all! I have to hurry back and check!"

Akiyama Shun's mouth twitched as he listened; he could only say that she was truly worthy of being Tsunade, the legendary "Sucker."

Shizune's trust in her was still too high—she knew for a fact that Tsunade was up to no good!

However...

This was actually a good opportunity!

In truth, while his rampant display of talent brought many benefits—such as the attention of high-ranking figures and the possibility of early graduation—it also came with drawbacks!

And that drawback was the man with the most eyes, the one who respected the Susanoo the most, and the one who treated Izanagi as a mere Substitution Technique: Shimura Danzō!

This old geezer was also a high-ranking figure!

Although this old schemer only became truly twisted after the Third Shinobi World War, that didn't mean there weren't problems now!

With Akiyama Shun's current performance, he would undoubtedly be targeted by that old schemer in the future. At first, the Third Hokage might be able to help block it.

But if he displayed any Kekkei Genkai, to a mad dog like Shimura Danzō, he would be a prime piece of meat, and that old schemer would dare to kidnap him by force!

If Tsunade were added to the mix, things would be different.

Tsunade's status was very special: her grandfather was the First Hokage, Senju Hashirama, her grand-uncle was the Second Hokage, Senju Tobirama, and she herself was one of the Sannin who shook the shinobi world.

With these two covering for him, no matter how crazy that old dog Shimura Danzō was, he should at least act a little more restrained.

Moreover, getting to know Tsunade early would also help with his early graduation.

"It's fine, I'll go with you to find Lady Tsunade."

"Huh?"

Just as Shizune was about to ask what would happen to the cleaning duty, she saw Akiyama Shun begin to weave hand signs.

With a "poof," two people identical to Akiyama Shun appeared by his side.

Akiyama Shun tossed the mop to the two Shadow Clones.

"Let's go!"

"How do you know the Shadow Clone Technique?"

Shizune was a bit dazed; a ninja student who had only been enrolled for three months, and a B-rank ninjutsu that rivaled the level of a jonin.

No matter how one looked at it, these two things simply shouldn't be linked together!

"I learned it by watching others use it, but that's not important! Let's go!"

Hearing the urging of Akiyama Shun, Shizune let out a dazed "oh" twice, her brain giving up on pondering the question as she began to worry about the situation with Tsunade.

She led Akiyama Shun all the way back to their home.

"Lady Tsunade! Are you home?"

Shizune called out, but there was no response.

The two opened the door, but there was no sign of anyone inside.

Akiyama Shun only saw a Disaster Thunder Pig.

This creature was actually Tsunade's pet, though within this household, it effectively belonged to Shizune's "faction."

Every time there was no money left in the house, Shizune would find a place to sell Tonton, and once the money was secured, Tonton would escape and return—a classic case of a pig playing the long con.

"It seems she isn't home."

Akiyama Shun took a look around and spoke up.

"The money is gone! She must have gone to the casino!"

A scream erupted from the bedroom, coming from Shizune.

She then shoved the door open, grabbed Tonton, and sprinted outside, with Akiyama Shun following close behind.

The two soon arrived at the entrance of a casino.

Before entering, Akiyama Shun carefully observed the area; it was just an ordinary casino with no ninjas standing guard.

Once they stepped inside, the noisy clamor of the crowd flooded their ears from every direction.

However, neither of them paid any mind to the noise, focusing instead on scanning their surroundings in search of Tsunade.

At one particular gambling table, a larger crowd had gathered than at any of the others.

As soon as they approached, they caught a glimpse of Tsunade gambling through the gaps in the crowd.

At that moment, Tsunade was holding a large glass of alcohol, pouring it into her mouth.

"Lady Tsunade!!"

Shizune shrieked, rushing into the crowd to grab Tsunade and pull her away.

"Shizune! Aren't you supposed to be on duty today? Why are you here?"

Tsunade was also stunned to see Shizune, and she immediately began to struggle.

With the monstrous strength that made her famous throughout the ninja world, she could certainly have broken free from Shizune's grip with ease, but since they weren't enemies and Shizune was still just a child, Tsunade didn't dare use her full force for fear of hurting her.

"Stop gambling! Otherwise, we're going to be broke again!"

"Damn it, we're already broke! I've already borrowed so much!"

"What? One million ryo! How did you lose it so fast?"

Shizune looked at Tsunade in astonishment; the two of them looked like they were performing a comedy sketch.

Akiyama Shun could barely keep a straight face.

He glanced around the table and saw that the other gamblers all had large piles of money in front of them; there was no need to guess—it had all come from Tsunade.

At this moment, they were all grinning as they watched the scene unfold.

Akiyama Shun sighed.

While Tsunade and Shizune were busy playing tug-of-war, Akiyama Shun sat down in Tsunade's seat.

"I'll play with you all."