Naruto: Adopted By Tsunade

War broke out again.

Unlike the Third Ninja War, this one was just between Konoha and Kumogakure—a probing conflict.

Last time, Kumogakure failed because Minato alone stopped the A-B combo—Fourth Raikage A, and the Eight-Tails Jinchūriki, Killer Bee.

But now, with Minato dead, Kumogakure seized the chance to strike.

If Konoha, without Minato, couldn't hold, Kumogakure would profit greatly.

Worst case, if they didn't get anything, they'd just negotiate—no big loss.

Konoha couldn't afford to fight to the bitter end.

In the original story, this war lasted two or three years.

Natsume remembered so clearly because Kumogakure caused a major incident during the peace talks.

Their leader tried to kidnap the Hyuga heiress Hinata, but was killed by her father, Hiashi.

Kumogakure demanded Konoha hand over the murderer, threatening renewed war.

In the end, Hiashi's twin brother Hizashi died in his place, settling the matter.

…

Tanzaku Quarters.

A den of vice not far from Konoha.

Food, drink, women, gambling—everything.

It never disappoints.

Natsume wandered the bustling streets, looking around.

Compared to the rebuilding Konoha, Tanzaku Quarters was lively.

Vendors, bars, casinos, and scantily clad women at every doorway.

In the cold weather, plenty of people were eager to warm them up.

Tsunade ignored it all, carrying a red case in one hand and Natsume in the other.

Confidently, she stopped at a casino.

"Natsume, use Transformation Jutsu to change your face," she said, letting go. "You won't be allowed to gamble looking like a kid."

Natsume nodded, transformed into a handsome man in his twenties.

"Not bad," Tsunade commented. "Who is he?"

"No idea," Natsume replied. "Some random guy I saw just now."

Actually, he'd transformed into Seto Kaiba.

Let's play some heart of cards!

"Let's go."

Tsunade opened the door, drawing everyone's attention.

The casino owner noticed her necklace and paled. "Is that her?"

"Who?" a cheongsam-clad dealer asked. "Is she famous?"

"Idiot!" the owner snapped. "You work at a casino and don't know? She's the legendary big loser!"

He couldn't help but smile with glee.

Tsunade didn't care. She opened the case full of cash. "Change it all for chips!"

"Right away!" the owner responded enthusiastically.

Everyone in the business knew she always lost.

Here comes the cash cow!

Soon, she had 150,000 ryo in chips—not a fortune, but not nothing.

For a ninja, that's about the pay for a B-rank mission.

Of course, you have to split task rewards with the village and your team.

To get 150,000 ryo, you'd have to do three or four B-rank missions.

But as one of the Sannin, Tsunade could easily earn that.

If not for her gambling, she'd live well—just look at Jiraiya and Orochimaru.

Jiraiya wandered the world.

Orochimaru spent a fortune on research.

"Give half to my apprentice so he can play too," Tsunade said.

The owner glanced at Natsume, smiling.

The apprentice of a cash cow must be a cash cow too.

Double the profit!

Natsume got 80,000 in chips and sat at a random table.

There were many games.

But, at Natsume's suggestion, Tsunade only played something like high-low.

Rules: win, double your bet; lose, the house takes your stake.

In theory, the odds are 50/50.

But that's only true over many rounds.

In dozens or even hundreds of rounds, the odds rarely balance out.

Plus, the house takes a 5% cut from winners.

It's hard for them to lose money.

The dealer shook the dice and called for bets.

Tsunade hesitated, then bet 3,000 on "small."

Natsume put down 8,000 on "large."

He didn't bet it all—he wanted to see if Tsunade's luck was really that bad.

The dice showed six, five, five.

"Congratulations to those who bet 'large,'" the dealer announced.

Tsunade wasn't upset.

She lost 3,000, but Natsume won more.

She gambled partly for fun, partly to forget sad memories.

She didn't really care about money.

But Natsume was different.

Tsunade now saw him as a little brother, so she played along.

She was actually pretty happy.

But the casino owner wasn't.

Are you two exploiting a bug in my casino?

Natsume wasn't secretive.

Soon, other gamblers began copying him.

The owner's face grew darker.

They didn't lose money, but profits were way down.

Seeing others win hurt more than losing himself.

"Nice!" Tsunade said, counting her winnings. In just a few hours, she'd made 100,000 ryo.

Unheard of.

She didn't care about the money, but still got excited seeing the pile grow.

"Come, let's try another casino."

She dragged Natsume to the next spot.

…

By dusk, Natsume checked his account—satisfied.

He'd made a million ryo in a day.

That's as much as an extremely dangerous, time-consuming S-rank mission.

"Natsume, you're young. Want me to keep it safe for you?" Tsunade grinned, eyeing the account book.

Wait, why does that sound familiar?

Natsume remembered how his mom used to help with his New Year's money as a kid.

He quickly shook his head. "I'll keep it myself."

He'd joined in for Tsunade's sake, but he wasn't passing up the money.

Plus, his organization needed funds.

Tsunade ruffled his hair. "Alright, you keep it."

Most kids, she wouldn't trust.

But Natsume was smart and responsible.

And he'd earned that money.

"Let's come again tomorrow."

She clearly hadn't realized there might be a problem.

But it was fine—they could just use Transformation Jutsu.

She never used disguises when gambling, which is why her big loser reputation was so well known.

…

Back in Konoha, after dinner and three hours of Wood Release training, Natsume finally had time to himself.

He started thinking about his next steps.

With a million ryo, he could rent a place as a temporary base.

But there was no one to use it.

Kabuto was still too weak—he'd need two or three more years.

Natsume stroked his chin and suddenly thought of Karin and her mother.

There was potential there.

Two Uzumaki clan ninjas—too good to pass up.