Konoha Ninja Shop System

"Hahaha! Tsunade, stop joking around. With your terrible luck at gambling, you actually want to call yourself the God of Gamblers? You'd be better off returning to the village with me and taking up the position of Hokage!" Jiraiya laughed heartily, shaking his head.

Despite being a professional and experienced shinobi, Tsunade's bold claim caught him completely off guard. In all his memories, Tsunade had never once walked away from a bet as a winner. In fact, she seemed to have the uncanny ability to lose at absolutely everything she gambled on.

If this conversation had taken place in the past, Tsunade would have already lost her temper and given Jiraiya a solid beating for mocking her. That was just her style.

After all, lies can be brushed off, but the truth? That cuts deeper than any kunai.

But things were different now. The times had changed, and so had Tsunade. She was no longer the easy target in casinos, the so-called "fat sheep" that everyone could fleece. Instead, she had earned a new title — a rising legend among gamblers, a true God of Gamblers in the ninja world.

Jiraiya noticed her silence and immediately sensed danger. He instinctively closed his eyes, bracing himself for the impact of Tsunade's iron fists.

But after waiting for several seconds with clenched muscles, the expected punch never came.

Curious, he cautiously opened one eye — and then both — just in time to see Tsunade calmly toss a newspaper down in front of him.

"You don't believe me? Fine. See for yourself. It's on page four, lower-left corner, second to last line."

Jiraiya furrowed his brow, still suspicious, but picked up the newspaper. He unfolded it and scanned the page, locating the line Tsunade had pointed out.

His eyes widened in disbelief.

> "Shocking! Just yesterday, the Fire Nation's newly crowned gambling king, Hikawa Teppanyaki, was thoroughly defeated by Princess Tsunade. Five out of the seven major casinos in the Fire Nation have already fallen to her!"

Jiraiya read the bold headline once again to make sure he wasn't imagining things. He then looked up at Tsunade, who stood there with an amused, almost smug expression.

Could this really be the same Tsunade he knew? The one who once bet on the color of a leaf and still lost?

He narrowed his eyes and scrutinized the article's byline. Maybe it was some second-rate, sensationalist tabloid spreading misinformation.

> "Published by Ninja World All-Knowing Co., Ltd. — Intelligence Division."

Jiraiya's mouth twitched.

This wasn't just any tabloid — this was the Ninja World's most notorious and surprisingly accurate intelligence network. Their reach extended across continents, and their information, while occasionally bizarre, was rarely wrong.

His confidence wavered.

"If it's from them..." Jiraiya muttered, trailing off.

"Since when did you become so good at gambling?" he asked, genuinely puzzled.

Tsunade crossed her arms, her expression a mix of pride and mild annoyance. "I've been gambling for decades, Jiraiya. Even if I started off terrible, wouldn't I eventually improve? It's not like I can lose for the rest of my life."

Jiraiya chuckled awkwardly, rubbing the back of his head. "That's... fair."

But then he turned serious, his eyes locking onto hers. "So, you're really not planning to go back? Not even to become Hokage?"

Tsunade shook her head firmly. "No. I have zero interest in becoming Hokage."

Jiraiya sighed deeply, disappointment washing over him. "I understand..."

He had known her long enough to recognize when her mind was made up. Trying to persuade her now would be like trying to stop the tide from coming in. And unfortunately, Jiraiya wasn't Naruto — he didn't have the magical ability to talk people into changing their hearts.

He stood up slowly.

"If you've made up your mind, I won't force you. The village has many candidates. We'll find someone else. If worst comes to worst, we can just let Shimura Danzō take the position officially."

Tsunade smirked at that. "If that old fox Danzō becomes Hokage, the entire village will be in for a nightmare."

Jiraiya chuckled. "Well, that's the old man's problem now. I've said what I needed to say. I'll head off and look for that bastard Orochimaru."

Without waiting for a response, he turned and walked away.

Once Jiraiya had left, Tsunade stared after him for a long moment, a complicated expression clouding her face.

"I can't become Hokage in my current state..." she muttered.

The memories came flooding back — during the last Great Ninja War, she had watched her lover, Kato Dan, die before her eyes. The trauma had been so overwhelming that it had left her with a severe case of hemophobia.

After that, she had lost all hope, all ambition. The very idea of becoming Hokage felt ridiculous to her — a foolish dream for foolish people.

How could someone like her, paralyzed by the sight of blood, lead a nation of warriors?

She let out a short, bitter laugh and looked down at the deck of playing cards in her hand.

"How could being Hokage possibly compare to being the God of Gamblers?"

As she said this, the cards she held transformed — in an instant, every card flipped into an Ace of Spades, and then, just as quickly, shifted again to become the Two of Hearts.

Had any professional gamblers been present, they would've rushed into the kitchen to grab their life savings and throw it at her feet.

---

Outside the Casino

"Mr. Jiraiya! You're here! I've already pinpointed Orochimaru's exact location. When do we leave?" a young shinobi codenamed 0007 said eagerly, bowing respectfully.

Jiraiya's eyes lit up. "Now. Let's go."

He hadn't seen Orochimaru in years — not since the man had defected. He had spent much of that time searching, following dead ends, chasing rumors. And now, finally, there was a real lead.

"Understood! Let's head straight for the Land of Rain!"

0007 took off at high speed, with Jiraiya close behind.

"The Land of Rain..." Jiraiya repeated softly.

The name stirred memories — memories of three orphans he had once trained there. Children he had found in the war-torn landscape, their eyes filled with desperation. He had pitied them and taught them ninjutsu, hoping it would help them survive in a world as cruel as theirs.

But in the end, those children had died... or so he believed.

"Mr. Jiraiya? Mr. Jiraiya!" 0007's voice snapped him out of his reverie.

"I'm coming, I'm coming!" Jiraiya called, quickening his pace.

---

Rain Country — Hidden Rain Village

Under cover of night, 0007 and Jiraiya snuck into the village, weaving through back alleys and avoiding patrols.

"Be careful, Mr. Jiraiya," 0007 whispered. "The Land of Rain is now under the control of the Akatsuki. If we're discovered, it could be fatal. And please, don't expose me. If they find out I helped sneak you in, I'm finished!"

Jiraiya raised an eyebrow. "Wasn't Rain Country ruled by Hanzō of the Salamander?"

"You're really out of touch, Mr. Jiraiya! Hanzō of the Salamander was killed years ago — by the Akatsuki's leader!"

"What?! Hanzō is dead?" Jiraiya exclaimed, his voice echoing a little too loudly.

"Shhhh!" 0007 nearly cried. "We're supposed to be stealthy!"

Jiraiya quickly clamped his hands over his mouth. "Sorry! I was just... shocked."

He wasn't exaggerating. Hanzō had been a legend — the so-called "demigod of the shinobi world." For someone like that to be killed... the leader of Akatsuki must be beyond terrifying.

0007 glanced around nervously. Seeing no one nearby, he let out a breath of relief.

"Don't scare me like that again, Mr. Jiraiya. If Lord Kakuzu hears us, we're both in trouble."

"Kakuzu? Who's that?"

"He's Akatsuki's gatekeeper, sort of. If you want to enter the core village area, you need his approval. If he finds out I brought you in secretly, I won't live to see tomorrow."

Jiraiya nodded thoughtfully. "Is Kakuzu the one with green eyes, a mask on his face, a forehead protector from the Hidden Waterfall Village, and a black cloak with red clouds?"

0007 gasped. "You know Lord Kakuzu?! If you'd just said that earlier, we wouldn't have needed to sneak around like this—"

"I don't know him," Jiraiya interrupted calmly.

"...Then how do you know what he looks like?" 0007 asked, his face full of confusion.

Jiraiya swallowed hard, eyes flicking past 0007.

"Because..." he said slowly, raising a finger to point behind his informant. "...He's right behind you."

0007 froze

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