For now, let's set aside how harshly Senju Hashirama was punished that night for secretly taking Senju Jingchuan to the casino.
In any case, after that day, Senju Butsuma once again issued an order in the Senju Clan, emphasizing that gambling was forbidden.
And Senju Jingchuan was now thoroughly enjoying all the care and attention from his clanmates.
On the battlefield, Senju Jingchuan served as a medic in the rear, treating the wounded. He helped the Senju Clan's ninja survive at a higher rate, giving the Senju a clear advantage over the Uchiha in their war.
Senju Butsuma was practically grinning from ear to ear. He wished he could tell the whole world how he, Senju Butsuma, had gotten the better of Uchiha Tajima this time.
Of course, treating the wounded had also brought Senju Jingchuan plenty of benefits.
First, Senju Jingchuan had earned a great many Cuddle Points and Healing Jutsu experience points.
Second, Senju Jingchuan's reputation in the Senju Clan had grown better and better. Almost nobody mentioned that he had once been considered a monster anymore.
On top of that, Senju Jingchuan had shown remarkable flair at the casino before, managing everything with ease at the gaming table and raking in a fortune. That had made him extremely popular with the Senju who were fond of gambling.
And Senju Jingchuan was simply too beautiful, like a lovely little doll made of white jade. Even the Uchiha Clan next door had few children as good-looking as him, and people naturally loved beautiful things.
As a result, Senju Jingchuan had become something of a lucky charm in the Senju Clan.
His grandparents, who were lucky enough to live to their fifties or sixties, doted on him; the grown ninja who went to battle cherished him for his Healing Jutsu; and a whole group of children looked up to him as their big brother.
That's right, Senju Jingchuan was doing quite well among the younger generation of the Senju Clan, too. The reason went back to that day—
Senju Jingchuan had been checking on the crops he'd planted in the communal fields.
Those days were some of the hottest of summer. The temperature climbed especially high around noon, and Senju Jingchuan had been working alone in the fields until his face turned red from the sun.
He wiped away the sweat on his brow, straightened up, and rubbed his aching back and shoulders.
Looking at the weeds covering the vast stretch of land still left to clear, he couldn't help feeling stumped.
For a five-year-old body, such hard labor was a bit too much.
Even after working for several hours straight, Senju Jingchuan had only managed to clear a small part of the field. His efficiency was downright terrible.
He was exhausted.
Senju Jingchuan plopped down on the ground, put his hands on his hips, and complained between gasps.
"Little Jingchuan! It's lunchtime. Why are you sitting there?" A tall man spotted Senju Jingchuan sitting in the field and walked over.
Senju Jingchuan squinted, raising a hand to shield his eyes from the sun. At last, he made out the man calling to him in the distance.
It was Senju Mui, Senju Toka's cousin. Senju Jingchuan often saw him beside Senju Butsuma, and had gotten plenty of Cuddle Points from him, too.
"I'm pulling weeds!" Senju Jingchuan cupped his hands around his mouth and shouted back at Senju Mui.
"Pulling weeds? So you're clearing out the weeds... But what are you growing in this field? I've never seen seedlings like these before." Senju Mui had come closer by then. He looked over the potato field where Senju Jingchuan was working and asked in confusion.
"These are potatoes. They can yield five thousand per mu. You can steam them, fry them, or boil them..." Senju Jingchuan explained, giving Senju Mui a look that said, How do you not know this?
As a "potato enthusiast," Senju Jingchuan couldn't help swallowing at the thought of all the different potato dishes he'd eaten in his previous life.
Senju Mui gave him a strange look, clearly unconvinced. He thought the child was just making things up and said, "I've never heard of a crop that can yield five thousand per mu."
But then he grinned and encouraged Senju Jingchuan. "Keep it up, little Jingchuan!"
"If these potatoes really yield five thousand per mu, we'll have to take fewer missions, hahaha!"
"I will! You'll get to eat some this autumn!"
Now that Senju Jingchuan had made such a bold claim, he had no reason to give up.
But those few fields were simply too large. What was he supposed to do?
The clan had more missions to handle those days. Senju Hashirama and Senju Tobirama were almost always away on missions, and there were hardly any adult ninja left in the clan grounds. Senju Jingchuan had no one else he could ask for help.
So Senju Jingchuan told a few Senju "little radishes" around his age that he was going to work in the fields.
The young ninja had never farmed before and were curious, so they went together to the communal fields.
Of course, once they got there, some of the children couldn't understand why Senju Jingchuan wanted to do this.
"Jingchuan, why are you farming?" Senju Miwako asked him curiously.
Senju Miwako was two years older than Jingchuan. She was pretty and trained hard, so most of the boys her age had a crush on her.
"Let me think... Once these crops are harvested, our parents, brothers, and sisters won't have to go on missions!" Senju Jingchuan did his best to explain it in a way even a child could understand.
Senju Miwako's eyes immediately lit up. It was obvious that Senju Jingchuan's explanation had won her over.
Quite a few of the other children nearby also smiled happily.
Just then, a boy beside Senju Miwako—Senju Yuya—said scornfully, "You're supposed to be a future ninja, but Senju Jingchuan is farming here. How can he possibly be worthy of being the clan leader's son?"
"Don't let Senju Jingchuan fool you, everyone! These crops won't grow!" Senju Yuya shouted.
A few boys nearby began whispering among themselves.
"My dad tried farming before. It was exhausting, and the food he grew wasn't even enough for him..."
"Yeah, yeah. I heard that's why the Senju Clan chose to go out and take missions..."
"Could Jingchuan really be tricking us?"
Hearing the children start to doubt Senju Jingchuan, the boy couldn't help wearing a smug smile.
"Jingchuan would never do that! I believe him!" Senju Miwako stood her ground and supported Senju Jingchuan.
Seeing the girl he liked place her trust so firmly in Jingchuan, Senju Yuya's cheeks turned red with anger. He shouted at Jingchuan, "I'm their leader. If you want us to help, you'll have to beat me!"
Senju Jingchuan looked at Senju Yuya with amusement. He could see right through the boy's little scheme. He just wanted to show off in front of the girl he liked.
Senju Jingchuan accepted Senju Yuya's challenge.
And the result was—
The Water Release that Senju Yuya usually took pride in among the children turned into nothing more than a stagnant puddle against Senju Jingchuan.
"Water Style: Water Dragon Jutsu!"
A tiny water dragon, about the size of two adult fists, shot out of Senju Yuya's mouth.
The water dragon was small, but fast. In the blink of an eye, it was right in front of Senju Jingchuan. But as soon as it got close, the flames around Senju Jingchuan burned it into steam. It didn't even dampen his clothes.
The other children couldn't help bursting into laughter at the ridiculous sight.
Senju Yuya instantly lost his temper. He pulled a kunai from his waist and lunged at Senju Jingchuan.
Senju Jingchuan leaned backward to dodge the thrust, then used his five-year-old agility to circle behind Senju Yuya and give him a light kick.
Senju Yuya landed face-first with a hard thud and cried out in pain.
That was how Senju Jingchuan became famous in a single battle—famous among the children, anyway—and got them to help him pull weeds.
After Senju Jingchuan's fight with Senju Yuya, he became the king of the kids, reigning supreme over the children of the Senju Clan.
Word spread among the children, and the adults of the Senju Clan heard about the so-called potatoes that yielded five thousand per mu. They only assumed Senju Jingchuan had exaggerated, though, and treated the whole thing as a joke.
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