As Hayashi had concluded, she was bound to be in a casino; just as Jiraiya was always found near a bathhouse, Tsunade could always be found where gambling took place.
Konoha had no shortage of gambling dens, ranging from the well-known establishments to hidden back-room operations.
Never having stepped foot in any of them before, Hayashi couldn't pinpoint her exact location.
Still, match the three clues — beautiful, bold, and reckless spender — and no matter how deep Tsunade hid, he would uncover her.
Well… Hayashi had clearly underestimated Tsunade's ability to vanish.
Every time a rumor spread that the "big spender" was seen somewhere, he would sprint over only to find she had already lost every ryo and disappeared before he arrived.
What kind of bottomless pit was this?
Her fastest record: losing the entire reward for an S-rank mission in under five seconds.
She was a force of destruction when it came to money.
"Efficient spender" didn't even begin to cover it.
Aside from silently giving Jiraiya a thumbs-up for the chaos he would endure, Hayashi spent several days observing Tsunade's patterns and habits.
So a few days later, fully prepared, he chose his moment and headed straight to the Senju compound.
The Senju estate sat at the heart of the Village, its main gate opening onto a lively snack street.
The Uchiha and the Senju lived relatively close, partly because the village's limited space and partly to make it convenient for friendly — or contentious — discussions between the Senju and Uchiha leaders, like Madara and Hashirama used to have.
Hayashi, who had been watching over Mikoto at Konoha Hospital, left from there, grabbing something that passed for breakfast on the way.
Let's call it breakfast, even though it was almost noon.
About thirty minutes later, he reached the spacious Senju grounds.
He scaled the wall and walked toward a modest but elegant house.
Though only a small number of Senju remained, they did not all live in a single household.
Nawaki stayed near the main gate; Kushina lived closer to Mito's old courtyard deep inside the compound.
Tsunade had once lived near Kushina, but after Mito's passing she moved away to avoid painful reminders.
So Kushina and Nawaki were not there to accompany Hayashi; he would handle this on his own.
After knocking on the cottage door, no one answered for a long time.
"Playing possum?" Hayashi muttered.
He was sure Tsunade was inside — that was the only reason he had come.
He knocked again, persistent, ready to wait until she answered.
"If this is a delivery, just leave it at the door," came a half-dead voice from inside.
Who said he was a delivery man? Hayashi thought, glancing at the food in his hands.
If he had known she'd ordered take-out, he wouldn't have brought anything.
"It's me, Tsunade-sensei," he said politely, then added after a pause.
There was a long silence inside.
Just as Hayashi was on the verge of losing patience, her voice came again.
"Oh, it's you. Got the day off? No missions to take?"
"Now that the war is over, I wanted some rest, so no missions recently."
"How convenient, so do I."
Hayashi knew that well — otherwise she wouldn't have skipped hospital duty and Nawaki's training to wander around every day.
Still…
"Could you open the door, please?"
"Mm, wait a moment, I'm getting dressed. I heard sleeping nude is fashionable in Konoha these days, so I tried it last night."
Hayashi blinked.
A few moments later Tsunade finally opened the door in pajamas.
"So, what brings you here?" she asked casually, pretending innocence.
Of course she knew why he had come: Mikoto's injury.
While it wasn't life-threatening, it certainly needed medical attention.
For someone like Tsunade — one of the greatest medical nin in Konoha — it was manageable.
And she enjoyed teasing her students about responsibility, so this visit was an opportunity for both.
"I'm here to have some fun," Hayashi said with a bright smile.
He knew Tsunade reacted better to gentle words than forceful ones, so he kept his tone light.
"Fun?" Tsunade laughed. "What fun could you and I possibly have?"
"You're still too inexperienced," Tsunade teased lightly. "If you want to play with your teacher, take a few more years."
"If you insist on dragging this conversation that direction, sensei, I won't object — but remember, everyone will blame you, since I'm still a minor."
Suddenly the door burst into splinters around him.
Tsunade stood in the doorway, fist clenched but her smile warm, as if she were merely greeting a friend.
"What exactly did you just say? Care to repeat that?"
"I meant it literally, so don't get the wrong idea," Hayashi replied with a playful shrug and a quick gesture as if adjusting imaginary glasses.
"I really came to find my teacher," he continued, "about the subject of gambling."
"Gambling? You gamble?" Tsunade looked at him with mild disdain.
"Heh-heh," Hayashi grinned slyly.
"Ever heard of a card game called Three Card Brag?"