One day later, in the southwest of the Land of Fire, Tanzaku Town.
Since the mission had been completed beyond expectations and there was no need to rush back, Tsunade suggested they make a "convenient stop" to rest.
Then, under Shizune's expression of just as I thought mixed with blatant disdain, Tsunade shamelessly led the three members of Team Ten into Tanzaku Town for what she called "rest and relaxation."
Though it was called a town, Tanzaku Town was in fact a massive entertainment hub renowned throughout the southwestern region of the Land of Fire.
It gathered more gambling establishments than anywhere else in the ninja world, ranging from low-end dens to luxurious casinos, along with lavish hotels, theaters, and pleasure districts. Its lights never went out, and the noise never ceased. Wealthy merchants, nobles, and even shinobi between missions flocked here in search of excitement and a place to squander their money.
This place was a true money pit—the shinobi world's version of Las Vegas.
Inside the brightly lit and lavishly decorated main hall of a large casino, the slot machine section buzzed with activity. Cigarette smoke hung in the air. The clatter of chips, the spinning of reels, excited cheers, and disappointed groans blended into a single deafening cacophony.
Tsunade sat expressionlessly in front of a slot machine flashing dazzling lights, mechanically feeding coin after coin into the machine before slamming the button.
Clatter!
The symbols spun rapidly across the screen before finally stopping.
As expected, the result was yet another combination that barely missed a winning line.
Another coin.
Another pull.
Another loss.
Again and again.
Meanwhile, Shinichi stood half a step behind her like a human coin rack, expressionless as he held a tray full of tokens.
Whenever Tsunade ran out, he silently scooped up another handful and passed them over. Without even looking, she accepted them and continued feeding the seemingly bottomless money-eating machine.
Shizune and Kurenai were nowhere to be seen.
After arriving in Tanzaku Town, Tsunade had brushed them off with an excuse so flimsy that even she probably didn't believe it herself.
"Once I win big, I'll treat you to a feast and buy you pretty clothes."
With that, she had sent the two disapproving girls off to wander the town.
As a result, the critical responsibility of keeping an eye on the legendary Sucker Queen and preventing her from doing anything irrational after losing too much had fallen squarely onto Shinichi's shoulders.
Truthfully, Shinichi hadn't wanted to come in at all.
But he had to keep watch over Tsunade. If she got carried away after a losing streak and decided to pawn off the ninja tools they had just acquired from Takumi Village in exchange for more chips, things would become very troublesome.
Never mind whether the casino would even dare accept them. The mere possibility of such a scene was already entertaining enough.
Another loss.
The symbols stopped once again on a completely worthless combination.
Not even the smallest consolation prize.
Your luck really is impressively awful.
Even with Shinichi's current state of mind, he couldn't help but complain inwardly.
He had watched Tsunade battle her way through the slot machine section for more than two hours now. She had switched machines over twenty times and still hadn't hit even the smallest payout. Her only results were small losses, medium losses, and large losses cycling endlessly.
If he hadn't been strictly controlling how many chips he handed her each time, she probably would have lost even more.
On the bright side, she was only playing relatively harmless slot machines, where each bet was limited.
She hadn't gone to the gambling tables yet, nor had she joined the card games or roulette tables where tens of thousands—or even hundreds of thousands—of ryō could disappear in a single round.
So far, she had lost less than one hundred thousand ryō.
To ordinary people, that was a fortune.
To Tsunade—or to Shinichi, who was covering the losses—it was still within acceptable limits.
He considered it insurance money paid to avoid even bigger problems.
After all, Tsunade's legendary tendency to lose every gamble she touched was, in a way, a highly effective early warning system.
In some respects, it was even more reliable than his current Entry, Avoiding Misfortune.
If Tsunade ever started winning—even if it was just a small win—he would immediately raise his guard to the highest level and begin worrying about the safety of both himself and the entire team.
Because whenever this woman started having good luck at gambling, it usually meant something catastrophically bad was about to happen.
It was practically a law of causality.
"Damn it! This machine is definitely rigged! It doesn't feel right!"
After yet another complete loss, Tsunade muttered irritably under her breath and started getting to her feet.
"Let's switch machines! The one next to it looks much better! I've got a feeling this next pull—no, the one after that—is definitely going to hit the jackpot!"
"Tsunade-sensei."
Shinichi finally couldn't hold back any longer.
"Since we sat down here, this is already the twenty-third machine you've switched to. You've practically tried every machine in this section."
As he spoke, he deliberately shook the coin tray in his hands.
Only a few pitiful tokens remained inside.
"Why don't we call it a day? It's getting late. We should go get dinner. Shizune and Kurenai have probably finished sightseeing and are waiting for us."
Tsunade looked at the nearly empty tray.
A trace of hesitation and unwillingness flashed across her face.
She opened her mouth as if trying to come up with another excuse.
At that moment, a sudden commotion erupted near another row of slot machines not far away.
A middle-aged man wearing gold-rimmed glasses and dressed like a low-level office worker suddenly let out a miserable wail. His knees buckled, and he collapsed to the floor before frantically slapping himself across the face.
Smack! Smack! Smack!
The sound drew countless glances from nearby patrons.
"I lost it all! Everything's gone! It's all gone!"
The man cried and screamed, tears and snot running down his face.
"I'm not human! I'm a beast!"
"I'm never gambling again! Never!"
"I swear it! I'll quit gambling completely!"
"Sage of Six Paths! Please, just give me one more chance!"
The unexpected spectacle immediately attracted a crowd of onlookers, who gathered around pointing and whispering among themselves.
"Huh? Isn't that Watanabe? He lost everything again?"
"I heard he came straight here right after getting paid today. Tsk..."
"That's rough."
"But he brought it on himself."
The comments from the surrounding crowd only made the man named Watanabe feel even more ashamed. He kept repeating that he would quit gambling while continuing to slap himself, his cheeks already swollen and red.
Seeing this, Shinichi was just about to use him as a cautionary example and remind Tsunade once more that gambling was a bottomless sea and that turning back was the shore.
At that moment, several men with shifty eyes and slick manners—obvious casino regulars—gathered around Watanabe and began talking him into staying.
"Come on, Watanabe, don't say something so final! The money you lost isn't gone. It's just being kept here at the casino for you! If you really quit now, you'll never get that money back. Wouldn't that be a huge loss?"
"Think about it. How much is your monthly salary, really? If you don't gamble, how are you supposed to win back what you've lost? How are you going to pay off your debts? With that little salary of yours, how many years would that take?"
"I'm not trying to persuade you or anything! But I have a friend who had it even worse than you. He lost his house, his wife ran off with another man, and he nearly jumped into a river. But then his luck turned around. One lucky streak and he made it all back. Bought a new house, got himself a new wife too—a young, beautiful one. What's that tell you? It tells you there's always a chance. The question is whether you're willing to take the gamble and whether you can hold out until your luck arrives!"
"That's right! Watanabe-san, you're already at rock bottom! Once you've reached the end of the darkness, dawn is just ahead! You're about to bounce back! If you quit now, aren't you just pushing away the good luck that's about to come your way?!"
After that barrage of arguments, Watanabe, who had been sprawled on the floor swearing to quit gambling, gradually stopped slapping himself.
His eyes began to waver violently with indecision, and his breathing grew heavier.
And when those words drifted into the ears of Tsunade—who had already lost interest and was preparing to accept Shinichi's suggestion to leave—they seemed to carry some strange magic of their own.
Her eyes lit up instantly.
She spun toward Shinichi.
"Shinichi! One last round! We'll use whatever chips are left! This time, you do it! Just press whatever you want! Win or lose, I absolutely won't play again! I swear!"
Gamblers really are hopeless.
Shinichi sighed inwardly and said, "Your words, not mine. One final round, and then we leave."
"Right, right, right! My words! Hurry, you do it!"
Tsunade nodded repeatedly and vacated the seat, her eyes locked onto the screen.
Shinichi walked over helplessly and dumped every remaining chip from the tray into the machine.
He quickly selected matching symbols.
Then, under Tsunade's suddenly widening eyes, he casually slapped the massive start button.
"W-Wait! You little brat! Why did you pick all sevens?!"
Tsunade nearly choked on her own breath, her eyes bulging.
"Three sevens is the jackpot combination! Do you have any idea how low the odds are?! That's basically the same as throwing the money away! Aaaah! My money!!"
Shinichi didn't answer.
He simply watched the screen as the spinning symbols gradually slowed.
The first reel stopped.
A bright, gold-trimmed 7.
Tsunade's eyes widened instantly.
The second reel wobbled as if struggling to decide.
Then it stopped.
Another 7.
"T-Two..."
Tsunade's voice trembled.
Her hands unconsciously clenched into fists.
The third reel determined the final result.
It spun the slowest of all, as though deliberately torturing the nerves of everyone watching.
Ding!
Finally, under Tsunade's nearly suffocating gaze, the third reel stopped squarely on a glittering golden 7!!!
Three sevens stood side by side, shining brilliantly across the screen.
Ding-ding-ding-ding-ding!!!
"JACKPOT!!!!"
"CONGRATULATIONS!!! GRAND PRIZE WINNER!!!"
The slot machine erupted with deafening electronic fanfare that echoed throughout the entire gaming hall.
Its lights flashed wildly like a miniature festival.
Enormous numbers appeared on the screen, rolling upward nonstop, accompanied by an endless shower of animated gold coins.
A jackpot.
And not just any jackpot.
The highest-multiplier jackpot—the three-sevens grand prize.
Tsunade: "(°△°|||)"
Shinichi: "(´-ω-`)"
Tsunade froze completely.
Her mouth hung slightly open as she stared at the unbelievable number displayed on the screen.
Then she looked at Shinichi beside her, who remained perfectly calm, as though all he had done was flip a switch.
Her mind went completely blank.
Who am I?
Where am I?
What just happened?
I won the jackpot?
H-How is that even possible?!
Just then, several well-dressed casino employees hurried over with remarkable speed, as though they had been waiting nearby all along.
Smiles plastered across their faces, they approached respectfully.
Leading them was a middle-aged man who appeared to be the manager.
He immediately bowed.
"Congratulations, Tsunade-sama! Congratulations, Higashino-sama! Congratulations on winning the grand prize! It is our immense honor to witness such a momentous occasion!"
Clearly, this casino's powerful backers had their own intelligence network.
Not long after Tsunade and Shinichi—two major figures of the ninja world—had entered the establishment, the owner behind the scenes had likely already been informed and quietly instructed the staff to treat them with the utmost care.
Neither offending them nor allowing any accidents to occur was an option.
Faced with the manager's flattery, Shinichi merely nodded.
"Please help us exchange the chips."
"Of course! Right away!"
The manager responded so quickly he practically tripped over himself.
"Please accompany Tsunade-sama to the VIP room and rest for a moment. We will settle everything immediately!"
He waved his hand, directing his subordinates to clear away the curious crowd and open a path for them.
Half an hour later.
Inside a private room at a high-end restaurant called Moonview Pavilion in Tanzaku Town...
The table was already covered with exquisitely prepared dishes, but Shizune's attention was clearly nowhere near the food.
Her wide eyes remained fixed on the blonde woman sitting across from her, who was trying her best to act nonchalant despite being completely unable to suppress the upward curve of her lips.
"Tsunade-sama? Y-You said you won money? At a casino? And not just a little?"
Shizune's voice was filled with disbelief.
There was even a hint of horror in it.
Ever since she could remember, this woman had never once walked out of a gambling hall with money in her pocket. Every single time, she left completely cleaned out, often buried in debt.
Won money?
That was more unbelievable than the Sage of Six Paths coming back to life.
Could the place be haunted?
Or maybe the casino had made a mistake?
All sorts of ridiculous theories flashed through Shizune's mind.
Tsunade picked up a cup of sake and took a refined sip, doing her best to appear calm and composed.
Unfortunately, the grin she couldn't suppress gave her away completely.
"Ahem! What's so surprising about that? I've dominated casinos for years and have more gambling experience than anyone. Winning big is perfectly normal, isn't it?"
"Alright, alright. Order whatever you want. Don't even look at the prices! After dinner, if there's anywhere you want to go or anything you want to buy, just say the word! I'm in a good mood today, so I'll pay for everything!"
However, the suspicion in Shizune's eyes only deepened.
No way...
Shinichi was the one who won it, wasn't he?
Her gaze drifted toward Shinichi, who had remained calm ever since sitting down, leisurely eating appetizers as though none of this had anything to do with him.
...
After dinner, Tsunade grandly led Shizune and Kurenai back to the busiest shopping district.
Shinichi politely declined their invitation to join them, saying he wanted to take a walk by himself.
Tanzaku Town was even livelier at night than during the day.
Neon lights glittered everywhere, and the streets were packed shoulder to shoulder with people.
Meanwhile, Shinichi wandered alone through the town's maze-like streets illuminated as brightly as day.
"Where could it be?"
He slowed his pace and gently closed his eyes, focusing entirely on the strange feeling in his heart.
The sensation was growing clearer.
Stronger.
More insistent.
Following that vague intuition, he turned two bustling corners before entering a relatively quiet side street.
The lighting here was much dimmer.
Pedestrians were few and far between.
The contrast with the lively main roads was so stark that it felt like an entirely different world.
Trash bins and piles of discarded junk lined both sides of the alley, and a faint odor of decay lingered in the air.
Standing at the entrance, Shinichi slowly swept his gaze across the sparse passersby and the surrounding shadows.
The feeling in his heart reached its peak.
It's nearby.
But what is it?
"Big brother... could you spare something to eat...?"
A weak, trembling voice came from the shadows of a nearby alley.
"I'm so hungry... I haven't eaten in two days..."
Shinichi turned toward the sound.
A boy who looked to be about five years old was curled up among the clutter in a corner.
His long brown hair was dry, tangled, and poorly maintained, hanging loosely around his shoulders.
The clothes he wore were obviously too large for him, torn and filthy in numerous places.
He was barefoot, his feet covered in dirt and dust.
Oh?
Something stirred in Shinichi's heart.
He stepped forward, crouched down so they were at eye level, and pulled two banknotes from his pocket before offering them to the boy.
The boy froze.
His eyes locked onto the money.
To him, it was an unimaginable fortune.
A moment later, he accepted the bills with trembling hands.
Lowering his head deeply, he repeatedly thanked Shinichi, unable to suppress the emotion in his voice.
"Th-Thank you, big brother! Thank you so much! You're such a good person!"
"What's your name?"
Shinichi gently patted the boy's hair and asked softly.
"I don't have one."
The brown-haired boy fell silent for a moment.
Then he shook his head blankly.
His voice grew even quieter.
Ever since he could remember, he had been wandering from place to place, surviving by begging.
He didn't remember his parents.
He didn't remember where home was.
"I see."
Shinichi smiled faintly.
Just as I thought.
Jackpot.
...
An hour later, inside a luxury suite at one of Tanzaku Town's high-end inns.
Tsunade, Shizune, and Kurenai returned from shopping laden with bags full of purchases, satisfaction written all over their faces.
But when they opened the door to Shinichi's room, they were surprised to discover someone else inside.
A young boy.
He sat nervously at the table, holding a steaming bowl of ramen and eating it one small bite at a time.
He had already changed into a clean set of new clothes.
Yet judging by his stiff posture and awkward movements, he seemed completely unaccustomed to warmth, cleanliness, and being cared for.
At the sound of the door opening, the boy startled and looked up.
A strand of noodles still hung from his mouth.
His slightly frightened eyes darted toward the three unfamiliar women, and he instinctively shrank back.
"Shinichi? Who's this?"
Tsunade raised an eyebrow and set down her shopping bags.
Her gaze moved back and forth between Shinichi and the unfamiliar child.
Shizune and Kurenai also stepped closer curiously.
Shinichi smiled and pointed at the boy.
"Tsunade-sensei, Shizune, Kurenai. Let me introduce you. This is..."
"Yamato."
That's right.
The nameless brown-haired street orphan Shinichi had picked up in Tanzaku Town was none other than the future Konoha shinobi who would survive the Wood Release experiments, successfully obtain the power of Wood Release, and come to be known as Yamato.
At the same time, in the distant Land of Water, isolated overseas, at a port perpetually shrouded in dense mist—
A tall young woman with a cold, aloof demeanor stepped onto the soil of that fog-covered nation.
Pakura.
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