Every casino in the ninja world dreamed of landing a big whale.
However, the casino boss in Tanzaku Quarters was starting to think he'd found a fake one. He kept looking up at Tsunade. Was this woman really the legendary whale? Weren't legendary whales supposed to lose every single bet? So why was this blonde ninja cleaning out his casino today? No matter how many gamblers tried to take advantage, they all ended up losing everything they had.
"Odds! Open the dice cup!"
At the gambling table, the blonde ninja sat alone, waving her hand carelessly at the dealer before taking a big gulp of sake. She drank quickly, almost desperately, as if trying to get drunk as fast as possible. Sake splashed from the cup, running down her neck and onto her chest.
The dealer stole a glance at her, swallowed hard, and opened the dice cup. When he saw the dice inside, his face instantly turned pale. "One, three, five... odds!"
"She won again?"
"How is this possible?"
"How much has she won today!"
"How can someone like this be the legendary whale!"
The gamblers watched in despair as Shizune gathered up the stacks of money. They started arguing loudly, accusing each other of cheating.
Bang!
The blonde ninja slammed her fist on the table, pointed a finger toward the door, and yelled, "If you have money, sit down! If you don't, get out!"
"..."
The gamblers looked at each other, then hunched over and shuffled out the door.
Shizune held the stacks of money, her expression a mixture of joy and worry. "Lady Tsunade, we've won enough for today. Let's go, shall we?"
If it were any other time, Shizune would have been happy all day about Tsunade winning so much. But having just overheard the negotiation between Orochimaru and Tsunade, her mood was still tense. As a Konoha ninja, she knew they absolutely couldn't cooperate with a rogue ninja, right?
Tsunade was silent for a moment. After downing another bottle of sake, she threw the empty container to the ground. "Come on, let's continue!"
The dealer at the table trembled. "Ma'am," he said apologetically, "the shop is closing for today..."
If they kept losing like this, the casino was going to have a new owner by the end of the day. And if word got out that he'd lost the entire casino to the "legendary whale," he'd have a hard time ever finding work in another one.
"I'll play with her!"
Someone walked into the casino and sat down directly at the table. He placed a thick stack of cash down and looked up at the blonde ninja. "Hmm, how about it? We'll play the simplest game: odds or evens."
"..."
Tsunade's eyes widened. She stared in disbelief at the man sitting across from her. A blush rose to her cheeks, and she lowered her head with a bitter smile. "Heh, it seems I really have had too much to drink, getting drunk this early..."
Tears slowly streamed down her face.
Tsunade kept her head down, not daring to look at the man. That was a warmth she would never forget. Even after all this time, she could still remember his voice and his face. The elder who had always been so patient with her, always spoiled her, had just appeared so abruptly before her.
"Lord First Hokage!" Shizune looked in disbelief at the man who had suddenly sat down. His appearance was exactly like that of the legendary God of Shinobi, Konoha's First Hokage, Hashirama Senju.
After a moment, Shizune's expression tensed. "What is going on? Were you sent by Orochimaru?"
"Hmm? You've seen that little brat who uses forbidden jutsu?" Hashirama glanced at them in surprise. Seeing Tsunade silently crying with her head down, he scratched the back of his head. "Hey, Little Tsuna, don't cry! Let's have a gamble first! The sound of dice makes people happy, you know!"
Shizune thought, What kind of ridiculous theory is that! How could dice possibly make people happy! Every time Lady Tsunade and I pass a casino, the sound of dice just reminds me of our money disappearing... It's a sound that makes me want to cry!
Perhaps because so much had happened today, Tsunade's mood gradually calmed. She felt powerless against the twists of fate and could only passively endure the shock. She had often imagined meeting her great-grandfather again after she died.
It should have been an intimate reunion between an elder and his granddaughter, or a child proudly showing her achievements to her grandfather.
But meeting at a gambling table... that didn't seem entirely out of character, either.
The dice cup slowly began to shake.
Hashirama declared with great confidence, "Odds!"
Tsunade was even more confident. "Evens!"
They were both very familiar with each other's gambling skills—and luck. Things like judging the roll by listening to the dice were skills they'd never rely on. They depended entirely on something even more unreliable: intuition! Only intuition would guide them to a win!
These were two gambling idiots with terrible luck.
Hashirama knew very well that his granddaughter had learned to gamble from him as a child. Before he died, Tsunade had only ever won against him once; all the other times, she had lost completely.
Tsunade was also very clear about this, but her luck had been strangely good today. She hadn't lost yet, and the Hashirama in front of her was notoriously terrible at gambling. She had learned from him for so long and had lost count of how much money she'd wasted using the "skills" passed down from the God of Shinobi.
Shizune stared nervously at the slowly opening dice cup, muttering to herself, "Lord First Hokage taught Lady Tsunade to gamble, so his skills must be terrible, right? And Lady Tsunade's luck has been great today, she hasn't lost yet..."
"Six, six, six, house wins all!"
The dice cup opened, and the dealer was overjoyed. When the dealer rolled three of the same number, everyone lost, regardless of whether they bet on odds or evens. It was a rare outcome.
A dark shadow seemed to pass over both Hashirama and Tsunade. They lowered their heads, their faces grim.
"Hey, Little Tsuna, why is your luck still so bad!"
"It's obviously because Great-Grandpa came!" Tsunade looked at Hashirama with dissatisfaction. "I won a lot of money today! This is the first game I've lost!"
"Then, shall we continue?"
"Of course! I have to prove myself in front of you!"
Half an hour later, at the casino entrance.
Hashirama and Tsunade stood side-by-side, both looking dejected. After a moment, they tried to comfort themselves. "Without the burden of money, it's so relaxing..."
The now empty-handed Shizune could only think, Maybe these two should just stay away from casinos forever.
Perhaps the only real gain was that Tsunade was no longer as depressed as before. She seemed to have returned to her usual self.
The First Hokage reached out and gently patted the blonde ninja on the forehead. "Alright, Little Tsuna," he said softly. "Since you've lost all your money, it's time to come back to Konoha with us and take up the position of the Fifth Hokage!"
"Huh?"
"Eh?"
-----
Bonus:
Hashirama: We lost all the money. Let's go back so you can be the village leader, okay?
Tsunade: ...Okay.
Shizune: What if someone objects...?
Hashirama: I'm the First Hokage.
Tsunade: I'm the First Hokage's granddaughter.
Shizune: Can't mess with them... Nope, can't mess with them... So impressive...