"Thank you, Renya-san!"
Tsunade beamed as she tucked the hefty sum of money into her personal storage scroll.
Jiraiya and Orochimaru exchanged surprised glances, eyes lighting up.
If she'd just gotten money from their sensei… didn't that mean she could finally pay them back?
Tsunade had lost countless times in the gambling halls and often went to the two of them to borrow money.
As time went on, her debts only piled higher.
By now, Tsunade owed the two a total of three million ryō — Jiraiya being the main creditor, with two and a half million loaned out to her.
At first, Orochimaru didn't know what she was doing with the money and lent her five hundred thousand.
But once he found out Tsunade was borrowing money just to gamble, he never agreed to lend her another coin.
As for that idiot Jiraiya, though…
Even after learning she used his money for gambling, he still lent to her willingly, without hesitation.
When he ran out of cash and couldn't even afford to eat, he'd come crawling to Orochimaru for a loan.
Orochimaru could only stare speechlessly at this fool.
He suspected Jiraiya must've taken one too many blows to the head while being mobbed by angry women after peeping at the bathhouse.
That would explain how he'd actually turned into a real idiot.
"Renya-san, Grandpa Tobirama, I'm heading out first!"
The moment Tsunade got the money, she couldn't wait another second — she just wanted to rush to the casino and win back everything she'd lost before.
If she won it back, then it wouldn't count as losing!
Saying that, she stood up and left without hesitation.
Casino, here I come!
Jiraiya, who had been happily stuffing his face, suddenly felt the food lose all flavor.
That money was his living expenses!
If he didn't chase after her right now, all of it would be gone!
"Renya-sensei, Second-sama, thank you for the meal!"
Jiraiya hurriedly wolfed down the rest of his rice and left in a flash.
Only Orochimaru remained, calmly sitting in his seat, savoring each bite.
He had long since given up hope of ever getting that five hundred thousand back.
Lending money to a gambler was no different from throwing dumplings at a dog — gone forever.
Rather than nag Tsunade to repay her debt, he might as well treat it as a lesson learned.
As for Jiraiya?
That guy was a hopeless idiot with no sense of self-preservation.
Every time Tsunade asked to borrow money, he'd hand it over without a second thought.
Utterly beyond saving.
"Orochimaru, you're not going with them?"
Renya didn't seem like he was trying to send him away — it was just a curious question.
"Renya-sensei, I'm not full yet," Orochimaru said with a smile.
Seeing Tsunade and Jiraiya leave, Senju Tobirama slowed his pace of eating.
With two mouths gone, there was plenty left for the rest of them.
He had no interest in the conversation between Renya and his disciple, simply enjoying the food on his own.
After all, he'd been craving a proper meal like this for months.
"Judging by how Jiraiya bolted out just now, did something happen?"
Renya turned to Orochimaru, curious.
"Not really. It's just that Tsunade owes him a lot of money, and he's off to collect."
Orochimaru explained the situation casually while eating.
"Tch, that Jiraiya really has a big heart..." Renya sighed.
He wasn't even a loan shark — why keep lending money to a gambler?
Didn't he know gamblers could do anything when desperate?
Hearing their conversation, Tobirama's chopsticks paused midair.
So Tsunade had been asking for money to gamble, huh?
And here he'd been giving her pocket money all this time...
Luckily, he hadn't given her too much — only about five hundred thousand in total.
Forget it, lesson learned.
He pretended nothing had happened and continued eating, offering Renya a warning.
"Kid, next time don't give her any pocket money."
"Got it, old man," Renya replied with a light chuckle.
After all, the casinos in Konoha were his businesses. To keep profits high, he'd even stationed professional gamblers in each one.
So when he gave Tsunade money, and she lost it in his casino — wasn't that just money moving from his right pocket to his left?
And with Tsunade as a walking lucky charm for the house, the gamblers around her would go wild every time she sat down at a table.
When that happened, the casino's profits would skyrocket.
Tsunade was practically the casino's mascot.
Whenever she was present, the day's revenue soared.
After the gamblers won some money off her, Renya's professionals would take turns playing and win it all back.
Of course, they couldn't make it too obvious — they had to let some gamblers take a small cut to keep hope alive.
Today you win, tomorrow you lose — and that's how gamblers got trapped in the cycle.
They'd keep chasing losses until they were completely broke, only to swear they'd never come again…
And yet, a few days later, they'd be back.
There's a reason they say: "Nine out of ten gamblers lose."
Tsunade, however, was the exception — a "ten out of ten loses" case.
With her around, gamblers went completely insane.
No matter how bad their luck was, they'd always feel like they were doing better than the "golden goose" beside them.
And once they got hooked, the casino would harvest them all.
Renya's casino empire had brought him immense wealth.
Orochimaru's earlier estimate of Renya's fortune had been far too conservative.
Tsunade gambling there was nothing more than left hand paying right hand.
Forget ten lifetimes — she could gamble forever and still never win her money back.
"Renya-sensei, Second-sama, I'm full now," Orochimaru said, setting down his chopsticks and bowing politely.
"Thank you for the meal."
One had to admit, Orochimaru was nothing if not well-mannered.
His personal charm went without saying.
"Remember to come often," Renya said with a smile.
"I will, Renya-sensei."
Of course, Orochimaru didn't actually plan to freeload here often.
He wasn't the type to take polite words literally.
Not understanding when someone's just being courteous could be a real pain.
Then again, if it were Jiraiya… that idiot might actually believe it.
...
"Tsunade, please, give me back the money! Don't go to the casino again!"
Just as Orochimaru stepped outside, he saw Jiraiya clinging tightly to Tsunade's leg, looking utterly desperate.
"Jiraiya, let go of me!" Tsunade frowned in irritation.
"I told you, once I win it back at the casino, I'll pay you back with interest!"
If she gave him the money now, she wouldn't have anything left to gamble with.
So for now — repayment was off the table.
"No, Tsunade!"
Jiraiya refused to let go, clutching her leg even tighter.
"If you don't give me back my money, I'm seriously going to starve!"
He'd lent Tsunade every single ryō he'd earned from missions these past few months — he literally had nothing left to eat.
"Trust me, Jiraiya!" Tsunade said with a serious look. "This time, I'll definitely win it back! You'll get your money soon!"
"No way! You said the same thing last time! And the time before that!"
Jiraiya shook his head furiously, lowering his expectations.
"Just pay me back one hundred thousand for now, and we can settle the rest slowly, okay?"
These days, debtors were like kings, forcing creditors to beg.
"Jiraiya, don't you trust me?"
"I do! But can't you at least give me something back first?"
"Idiot," Orochimaru muttered under his breath.
He didn't bother involving himself and simply walked past the squabbling pair.
In the end, Tsunade finally gave in to Jiraiya's relentless pestering and handed him fifty thousand ryō.
Of course, the rest was long gone — lost at the casino.
"I knew you'd lose it all," Jiraiya mumbled. "You might as well have just paid me back everything instead."
"Shut up! If it weren't for your stupid jinxing mouth, I wouldn't have lost!" Tsunade snapped, face flushing red with anger.
"Jiraiya, lend me fifty thousand more! This time I swear I'll win it back!"
Jiraiya: "..."
Do I look like an idiot to you?