Tsunade's Winnings

On the way back, the four of them walked in silence.

Mirai walked in the middle of the group, the seized tachi hanging at his waist, dark red stains left by dried blood still on his hands.

He lowered his head to look at his hands, then clenched them into fists.

This was a ninja's fate!

But in the end, it was all because of the cruelty of the Shinobi World!

No wonder Nagato had said that line—how many floors could you carry a sack of rice up?

Meanwhile, in Konoha.

Bang— The door to the Hokage's Office was forcibly pushed open.

Shimura Danzō entered with his cane, his single eye fixed directly on Hiruzen Sarutobi behind the desk.

"Hiruzen, why did you let the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki leave the village?"

Hiruzen Sarutobi set down the document in his hand and took a helpless puff from his pipe. "Danzo, I've told you many times. Knock before entering the Hokage's Office."

"Don't give me that useless nonsense!" Danzo strode inside, his cane striking the floor with a dull thud.

"The Nine-Tails Jinchuriki is the village's strategic asset. You just let him leave the village?

If something happens, if the Nine-Tails loses control or gets taken away, can you bear that responsibility?"

Hiruzen Sarutobi took a puff of smoke and slowly exhaled. "Mirai isn't a tool. He is a Konoha ninja, and a ten-year-old child.

He has his own Jonin instructor and a complete mission record. There won't be any problems with Jiraiya leading the team."

"There won't be any problems?" Danzo sneered. "You're always this naive, Hiruzen.

A Jinchuriki should be kept under strict watch in the safest place, not allowed to run around everywhere."

"He is a Jinchuriki, yes, but first and foremost, he is a Konoha ninja!" Hiruzen Sarutobi's voice sank.

"I approve of Lady Mito's philosophy—to maintain the bond between a Jinchuriki and the village through ties and affection, not chains and cages."

Danzo's single eye narrowed slightly. "Ties? Affection?

"Hiruzen, war could break out at any moment. What we need are weapons, not flowers raised in a greenhouse.

Give that child to me. Within a year, I can turn him into a qualified weapon of war, better than any ninja—"

"Impossible!" Hiruzen Sarutobi cut him off. "Danzo, this is my final warning—don't set your sights on Mirai Uzumaki!

He will not join Root. There is no room for negotiation on this matter."

Danzo stared at him for a long time.

Smoke drifted slowly between the two of them, and the air seemed to have frozen solid.

"Hiruzen! You'll regret this." Danzo finally threw out those words before turning toward the door.

"Danzo." Hiruzen Sarutobi called after him. "Remember, I am the Hokage!"

Bang!

Danzo did not look back. He slammed the door shut and left, and the Hokage's Office fell silent again.

Hiruzen Sarutobi remained seated, his pipe glowing and dimming as the weariness in his eyes deepened beyond usual.

At the same time, outside Konoha Hospital.

Tsunade changed out of her white coat, patted the wrinkles from her collar, and stretched lazily. "All right, work's done for today. Time to clock out."

Kushina followed her outside, her red hair tied into a ponytail and a bandage stuck to her forehead. She already looked rather convincing.

Yet her expression carried a listless boredom. "Big Sister Tsunade, Mirai has been gone for two days now. I wonder how he's doing...

Has he been eating properly? Has he gotten hurt? Has he met any pretty girls on the road..."

"That last part is what you really care about, isn't it?" Tsunade shot her a glance.

"Of course not!" Kushina denied it quickly, though her face still reddened a little.

"I'm just a little bored! Mirai is usually right there. Even though he always teases me, at least there's someone to talk to."

Tsunade thought for a moment, then her eyes suddenly lit up. "Bored? Perfect—come on, I'll take you somewhere fun."

"Where?"

"The casino."

Kushina froze for a moment. "The casino?"

"That's right." Tsunade threw an arm around her shoulders, smiling boldly. "We're free anyway, and your Big Sister Tsunade's hands are itching. Just in time to win a few rounds.

By the way, you've got money on you, right? Lend me some."

"Huh?" Kushina looked miserable. She was quite interested in visiting a casino for the experience, but lending money to Big Sister Tsunade meant it would never come back.

Grandma Mito had left her and Mirai a commercial street. It was an asset purchased after she had married over from the Uzumaki Clan, and rent alone brought in tens of millions of ryō every month.

But even that couldn't withstand Big Sister Tsunade's "borrowing"!

It would have been one thing if the amounts she borrowed were small, but the problem was that she never repaid them. She lost it all at the gambling tables.

"You definitely have some." Tsunade gave her no chance to refuse. "Come on, come on, let me show you what real casino thrills are!"

Kushina was muddleheadedly dragged into the casino, and then Tsunade muddleheadedly emptied her wallet.

Konoha's casino was not small, and the atmosphere inside was even livelier.

The clatter of dice, the rattle of chips, and the cries of gamblers mingled together in a deafening uproar.

The moment Tsunade entered, she seemed like a different person. Full of energy, she squeezed up to the dice table and slapped a stack of chips onto it.

Kushina curiously looked around, then heard Tsunade's bold voice—

"Triples! All in!"

She immediately came to her senses and tried to stop Big Sister Tsunade from blowing through all her little savings, but it was already too late!

"No more bets!" the dealer called excitedly, then lifted the dice cup—three sixes.

The entire room went quiet for a moment before erupting in shocked cries. "No way! It was triples!"

Tsunade stood stunned for two seconds, staring down at the doubled pile of chips, her expression turning into an indescribable daze.

Honestly, she had gambled so many times in her life, but she had basically never won!

And every time she did win... something bad happened!

Kushina tugged excitedly at her sleeve. "Big Sister Tsunade! You won! That's so much money!"

Tsunade did not respond. A scene from the previous night suddenly flashed through her mind—

Mirai had sat at the dinner table and casually asked about Nawaki's mission.

At the time, she had thought the kid was merely asking in passing, but thinking back now, there had been something off about that child's expression.

She was not good at using her brain to analyze complicated matters, but her intuition had never deceived her.

The last time her luck at gambling had been especially good was the day before Grandma Mito died.

The time before that was when Great-Grandfather Hashirama died...

Tsunade abruptly gathered up the chips on the table and grabbed Kushina's hand. "We're not gambling anymore."

"Huh? Why?"

"We're going to find Nawaki." Tsunade's expression had lost all its earlier lightness, replaced by a rare gravity. "I have a feeling something happened."

Before Kushina could react, Tsunade had already dragged her out through the casino doors.