In the dark backstage area, Yamanaka Sōichirō had been on edge the entire time. Suddenly, a blinding white light shone before his eyes as the door opened. Gin stepped in, carrying a large basket of clothes. After cheerfully greeting him, Gin placed the clothes in front of him.
"Sōichirō-nii, I brought the clothes. Try them on and see if they fit~"
"Thanks!"
Although confused about why Gin brought such a large basket, Sōichirō didn't have time to ask questions after being hung out to dry for so long. He picked up a garment and prepared to put it on, but as soon as he looked at it, he froze.
"Did you grab the wrong ones? These are for female prisoners, right?"
Blushing deeply, Sōichirō stared at the bright pink underwear in his hand, nearly coughing up blood. Trembling, he clutched the undergarment and questioned Gin righteously.
"No choice! Your clan's luck is terrible. The gacha pool kept pulling off-target. Just make do with whatever fits~"
Standing beside the basket, Gin helplessly shrugged, giving Sōichirō a "nothing I can do" expression.
"Terrible luck? Ridiculous~"
Though inwardly focused on the colorful clothes, Sōichirō didn't dig deeper. Instead, a spark of excitement lit up in his eyes as he rummaged through the basket like a child on New Year's.
"Ahem… this set'll do. It can barely cover me."
After carefully selecting a relatively normal set of clothes, he walked alone into a corner and began to change.
"Sōichirō-nii, you forgot the underwear!"
Seeing that he only took outerwear, Gin assumed he was getting forgetful with age and called out.
"Too much chatter! We elder shinobi believe in frugality. Underwear is optional!"
Now dressed, Sōichirō walked out solemnly from the corner with a serious expression, which made Gin feel oddly unsettled.
"Alright, let's head out. I'm sure your Yamanaka clan members are getting impatient~"
Gin, always observant, had caught a glimpse of bright pink at Sōichirō's lower back out of the corner of his eye, and his respect for the old guard silently increased.
"Wait, where's Kazuyo?"
Just as Sōichirō was about to step out, he remembered another clansman and asked hurriedly.
"You mean Kazuyo-kun? His draw is still pending. Might take a while. You go on ahead!"
Still not understanding the full situation, Sōichirō, trusting Gin, followed him out.
"Quite the crowd out there!"
Even before stepping through the door, Sōichirō could hear the excited cheers and couldn't help but marvel.
"Hehe, they're all here to cheer for your Yamanaka clan. Let's go, Sōichirō-nii!"
Grinning, Gin gestured for him to follow.
"Hmph! Though I've been imprisoned for years, the legend of Yamanaka Sōichirō still lives in the shinobi world!"
Buoyed by the crowd's energy, Sōichirō adjusted his loose trousers and strutted out proudly.
"Eh? Why's he wearing that? Where's the hot bikini?"
"Damn it! I wanted the 36D leopard print!"
"Isn't that the old rice geezer?"
As Sōichirō appeared, the scene erupted in protest. Curious onlookers had stretched their necks hoping to see the avant-garde fashion showcased earlier, only to find a withered old man in normal clothes. Outraged, they booed loudly.
"Booo! Bring it out!"
Not expecting boos instead of applause, Sōichirō looked disappointed. He had prepared an entire speech. With a sigh, he swallowed his words and began looking for his clansmen. But then a furious scream nearby caught his attention.
"Is… is that Minako?"
He squinted at the crazed but beautiful woman nearby. Her face seemed familiar. Tentatively, he called out.
"I sacrifice my love life for the rest of my life! GIVE ME THE SSR!!"
Before Gin could answer, Yamanaka Minako, eyes bloodshot, cursed like a woman possessed, resembling a gacha addict on the edge.
"Hahaha! It's sparkling! It's sparkling!!"
Just as Gin prepared to say something about luck being fake, the screen truly did flash with gold.
"Congratulations! You got a completely average men's shirt *1."
"...Ten more pulls!"
Clearly dissatisfied, Minako waved her hand and demanded more.
"Stop, Minako! You've already racked up over a billion in debt!"
Sarutobi Sasuke, observing from the side, tried to reason with her.
"No! I won't stop until I get the limited edition!!"
Completely obsessed, Minako stared at the smiling girl on screen with burning eyes, wanting to slap that smug face.
"Minako, what on earth are you doing?!"
Sōichirō had been trying to make sense of her behavior, but upon hearing the amount of debt, he was horrified.
"Don't stop me! I need to charg— Wait… Grandpa Sōichirō?"
Annoyed, Minako shooed away the voice—until she caught a glimpse of the speaker. Her expression froze.
"Minako…"
Seeing his descendant again, Sōichirō was overwhelmed with emotion, his eyes filled with tears.
"Grandpa Sōichirō, give me money!"
"Pfft!!!"
Gin, unable to watch any longer, worried that Sōichirō might drop dead on the spot. He quickly intervened and handed Minako her winnings, along with the still-confused Kazuyo.
"Since you're the first customer, I'll throw in a bonus. Take your winnings and check if anything's missing."
Looking at Sōichirō, who was barely breathing, Gin softened. He waved for his men to bring over the prize list and boxes.
"No need, I remember them all. Every single one."
Now regaining clarity, Minako's teal eyes shimmered with disbelief. She still didn't know how she, once known for calmness, was driven mad by a mere gacha game.
"Let's see… bikini, leopard print, school swimsuit, nurse outfit, Balenciaga, teddy bear briefs…"
She squatted and counted her loot carefully—after all, she spent a fortune. Selling these bizarre outfits to Fire Nation nobles might recoup some of the loss.
"...Wait! I'm missing the Hello Kitty pink panties!"
Her expression turned grim as she glared at Gin.
"No way, impossible. Maybe check again?"
Gin was bewildered. He swore nothing was missing.
"Ahem, Minako… that bright pink panty might've gotten stuck in another outfit. I'm dizzy. Help me home!"
Just as Gin and Minako faced off, Sōichirō, supported by others, spoke up weakly.
"Fine, I'll check again later. Hurry and help Elder Sōichirō home!"
Seeing him on the verge of collapse, Minako gave up on the missing underwear and left with her clansmen.
Tsk tsk… Sōichirō-nii, who knew you had such hobbies~
Watching them leave, Gin's gaze lingered on the bright pink waistband at Sōichirō's back and sighed inwardly, appearances truly deceive.
"So, who wants to redeem someone next?"
Having pocketed a tidy billion, Gin turned his attention to the rest of the anxious alliance.
"Can we negotiate the price?"
After witnessing what happened to the Yamanaka, Sarutobi Sasuke tried to negotiate.
"Come on, it's 2 million per person. No price changes."
Gin shut it down immediately.
"Then can we skip the gacha and pay directly?"
Shimura Ken'ichi asked from the side.
"Of course. There's no forced spending here."
Gin shook his head with a sincere smile.
"Alright, here's the money. Release Uncle Jinji!"
Seeing this was clearly a money pit, Ken'ichi quickly handed over the ransom while others secretly mocked Minako for being a sucker.
"But before that, I've got something nice to show you all~"
Gin ignored the money and pulled out sealed envelopes labeled with clan symbols, handing them out.
"Tch, more tricks. What now, you damned curly-haired demon?"
Ken'ichi tore his envelope open while cursing.
"AH!"
"NANI?!"
"Wha—"
Everyone else opened theirs and quickly wore the same shocked expression.
"Gin-san, isn't this… a bit too much?"
Sasuke hid his photo and looked at Gin with complicated emotions.
"You all think the Uchiha are heartless?"
Instead of answering, Gin asked calmly.
"Of course! You even stripped Uncle Jin—Ken'ichi, why are you covering my mouth?!"
Just as Ken'ichi tried to explode, a large hand clamped over his mouth.
"Gin-san, thank you!"
To everyone's surprise, Akimichi Shinji bowed deeply.
"Huh? Why thank him?"
"Look at the pictures. Look closely at our elders' conditions."
Ken'ichi complied and looked again.
"They're… normal?"
"Exactly! That's what's strange! Who still looks healthy after decades in prison?"
Shinji pointed out how their relatives looked plump, cheerful, and well-fed.
"Wow… they do look better off."
Everyone realized their relatives didn't seem tortured—they looked like they were at a resort.
"Sorry, we misunderstood~"
Sasuke and the rest bowed with gratitude.
"So… still want to gacha?"
Gin was surprised the photos worked even better than expected. He'd meant them as leverage but accidentally earned goodwill.
"Of course! My uncle's huge, he needs more clothes!"
Shinji stepped forward with his wallet.
"That's what I like to see—true whales!"
Weighing the money in his hand, Gin beamed.
"Today is another profitable day~"
"Tobirama, is money really this easy to make?"
Hashirama was stunned by the gold rush.
"Is this guy insane? He just made enemies of every clan."
Tobirama looked grim.
"What're you guys mumbling about? Want to join in?"
Gin strolled over, curious.
"No no no. The Senju clan can't handle this madness."
Even the thick-headed Hashirama saw the danger behind the cute gacha girl on screen.
"Such a shame."
Gin looked disappointed but quickly moved on.
"So I heard there's some meeting I need to attend. When is it?"
"The Uchiha actually sent you?"
Tobirama looked at him with sympathy.
"I'll just sit there and eat snacks. You guys talk."
Gin waved it off.
"You know who we're meeting today, right?"
"Who cares. It's probably just some clan wanting to join Konoha."
"It's the Hyūga. And they requested to spar with the Uchiha."
Gin froze.
"What? Those white-eyed freaks bored outta their minds?"
"They want to determine who's Fire Country's top eye clan."
"Fine. I'll go knock on the shrine and drag out my big cousin. Let those frogs in the well see what real power looks like."
Gin turned to leave.
"No! It's just a friendly match! Don't call Madara!"
Hashirama panicked. If Madara got involved, the Hyūga might go extinct.
"Really, Hashirama? You agreed to this nonsense? You know our strength."
"There's a complicated reason, I—"
Seeing his brother hesitate, Tobirama stepped in.
"They promised a large donation to fund Konoha's construction. But only if they could spar with the Uchiha."
"I see… betraying your beloved Uchiha over some petty cash. So heartbreaking… I must—"
"I'll go reject them right now—"
"—demand fifty percent!"
"Huh?"
The Senju brothers were stunned.
"Didn't you hear? We want half the Hyūga's donation."
Gin held up five fingers.
"You money-grubbing curly freak! Where's your pride?!"
Tobirama nearly fainted from rage.
"I'm fighting for clan honor! No one has more pride than me! Say one more word and I'll raise the price!"
"You have no shame!"
Tobirama was about to explode.
"I'm just being helpful!"
Gin defended himself.
"What about all the clans you scammed?"
"Watch, they'll thank me!"
Gin nodded toward the freed prisoners in extravagant clothes.
"They're probably wishing you were dead!"
Tobirama sneered—just as Sasuke approached.
"Gin-san, on behalf of the alliance, thank you for your kindness!"
(End of Chapter)
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