Senju Hashirama's Repentance

Yes, Senju Kyogawa did have his own savings. Although he was only five years old, the mission he had participated in back then came with a reward. Furthermore, because it was a mission to escort a noble, the payment Kyogawa received was surprisingly substantial even after the commission was deducted.

Watching Senju Hashirama's eager and expectant gaze, Senju Kyogawa sighed, then proceeded to take out his little stash. Under Hashirama's look of envy, jealousy, and hate(?), he prepared to place a bet.

However, facts proved that...

Senju Kyogawa was not even as tall as the betting table.

Ah, what an embarrassing and sorrowful truth.

Senju Kyogawa could not see what was happening on the table at all.

"Move it, kid, don't block the way." A man placing a bet shoved Senju Kyogawa aside, clearly finding him a nuisance.

[Shorty...] the system suddenly mocked.

Upon hearing the system's ridicule, Senju Kyogawa felt immense shame, and two faint blushes slowly spread across his fair little face.

It really wasn't Kyogawa's imagination; how was this system getting more and more lively?

Senju Hashirama picked Kyogawa up, making it easier for him to see the situation on the table.

Driven by anger, Senju Kyogawa desperately wanted to prove himself through the bets, so he huffed and placed his wager directly.

"A kid this small is playing high-low too..."

"These parents are really unreliable..."

"Looking at that bowl cut, he doesn't seem reliable either..."

Hearing the surrounding chatter, Senju Hashirama couldn't help but reflect on himself—bringing his younger brother, who had just recovered from a serious illness, to a place as chaotic as a casino did seem, perhaps, maybe, really unreliable?

Then, it reached the exciting part.

The result was unexpected—

Senju Kyogawa...

Won the bet!

"Waaaah—oh ho—" Senju Hashirama cheered happily. He looked at Senju Kyogawa with novelty, as if looking at some rare treasure:

"Little Kyogawa, you're amazing~"

Senju Kyogawa puffed out his chest proudly. Even though he was short, he knew how to gamble!

That's right, in his past life, due to a lack of money, Senju Kyogawa had once done some work in casinos, so he was quite skilled at guessing high or low—unlike Senju Hashirama, that big fat sheep who was both terrible at gambling and loved it.

Then Senju Kyogawa became somewhat addicted. He bet more and more, winning larger and larger amounts, and the people around him flocked to this table, surrounding it until it was almost impassable.

The crowd let out continuous gasps of amazement; they hadn't expected a five-year-old child like Senju Kyogawa to be so formidable.

Those few Senju ninjas whom Senju Kyogawa had seen within the Senju compound also looked at him with glowing eyes, looking as if they wished he were their own younger brother.

[Ah, it seems most of the Senju clansmen are both terrible at gambling and love to play...] Senju Kyogawa thought.

However, Senju Kyogawa didn't bet too much; he only won back all the money Senju Hashirama had lost earlier, then won a little bit more.

"Hehe~ Kyogawa, how are you so good at this? Teach your big brother~" Senju Hashirama asked curiously.

Senju Kyogawa had had enough of gambling by now, so he told Senju Hashirama to put the money away and leave the casino.

After hearing Hashirama's words, he thought for a moment and said:

"Ah... about that..."

"It's just... like this, like that, and then like this..."

"Did you understand, Brother Hashirama?"

Senju Hashirama wore a petrified expression, staring blankly at Senju Kyogawa, all the emotions in his eyes converging into one sentiment—I don't understand a word of that.

Although they had won a few rounds, the owner of the casino clearly saw that Senju Kyogawa and Senju Hashirama were ninjas and didn't dare to provoke them. Furthermore, Senju Kyogawa hadn't won an excessive amount. Therefore, there was no need for the casino to provoke two ninjas over such a small sum of money.

Thus, Senju Kyogawa and Senju Hashirama left the casino quite smoothly.

And then...

They unfortunately ran into Senju Tobirama.

"Big Brother, why are you here? And why is the little brother out too?" Senju Tobirama was wearing casual clothes and seemed to be just strolling around the area; he hadn't expected to run into the two of them.

Seeing Senju Hashirama holding Senju Kyogawa, and noting that Kyogawa's complexion was quite rosy, Senju Tobirama felt relieved, thinking: [Although Big Brother isn't very reliable at times, at least he still looks after his little brother.]

Meanwhile, Senju Hashirama was thinking: [It's over—how did I run into Tobirama again—]

Senju Tobirama approached the two in a fairly good mood, then suddenly stopped. He looked at Senju Hashirama with a sharp gaze, immediately catching the guilty, shifty-eyed expression on his brother's face.

Senju Kyogawa was still trying to cover for Senju Hashirama at this moment, saying, "Oh, Brother Hashirama saw that I was bored, so he brought me out for a walk."

Senju Tobirama clearly didn't believe it. He seemed to smell something; his nose twitched a few times, he took a few breaths, then leaned closer to Senju Hashirama and Senju Kyogawa to sniff again, finally confirming his suspicions.

Then, his expression turned abruptly gloomy, and he questioned Senju Hashirama in a stern tone:

"Big Brother—didn't I tell you not to come to the casino? Why are you here again? And—you brought Kyogawa with you."

Senju Hashirama rubbed his nose guiltily, then muttered in a low voice, "Tobirama, you really have a dog's nose... If I had known you were coming here, I wouldn't have come... Who could have guessed I'd be caught right in the act..."

Seeing that Senju Hashirama still showed no signs of repentance, Senju Tobirama couldn't hold back anymore. He gritted his teeth and spat out two words:

"Big—bro—"

The crows in the trees were startled into flight, cawing raucously as they circled in the air for a moment before vanishing into the distance.

Senju Kyogawa stood in the shade, watching as Senju Tobirama grabbed Senju Hashirama by the ear and lectured him—it was an old routine.

Senju Hashirama had been beaten again—this was truly a classic tradition in the Senju clan leader's household.

In the past, the Senju clansmen could see the clan leader's eldest son, Senju Hashirama, being chased around the clan grounds by Senju Butsuma every two or three days, one running while the other pursued.

Looking at it this way, Senju Hashirama getting beaten was really one of the few parent-child activities their family had...

"Your younger brother doesn't know any better, but do you not know either—" Senju Butsuma's roar was earth-shattering, loud enough to reach the entire Senju compound: "How old are you! To actually take your younger brother to a place like a gambling den—"

Senju Kyogawa stood to the side, plugging his ears with his hands and huddled in a small corner, trying his best to minimize his presence.

Meanwhile, Senju Tobirama kept fanning the flames from the sidelines: "Exactly, Big Brother, you're being too thoughtless. It wasn't just the little one; I saw several other Senju children there too... Honestly, why does everyone keep dragging their younger brothers and sisters to gambling dens..."

Senju Hashirama was currently performing a dogeza before Senju Butsuma, tears and snot streaming down his face as he repented for his mistakes:

"Yes, Father, it's all my fault... How could I have taken little Kyogawa to a gambling den... I deserve to die, boo-hoo-hoo..."

Senju Kyogawa stood to the side, silently watching the scene, hoping only that the "fire" would not spread to him.