After winning the bet, Mo Yu was in a great mood.
A full 55,000 taels of silver—converted into gold coins, that's 55 gold coins.
He was already very close to reaching his target of 100 gold coins.
Looking at Uchiha Fugaku, who appeared to be in a daze, Mo Yu removed his kunai.
"I'll kill you!"
Suddenly, Uchiha Fugaku went mad and pulled out a kunai, aiming for Mo Yu's neck.
Mo Yu's eyes flashed coldly, as if he had already anticipated this move. He easily dodged and then grabbed Fugaku's arm with one hand.
With a "crack," he dislocated Fugaku's arm.
"Ahhh!" Fugaku cried in agony, rolling on the ground, wailing in pain.
Tsunade walked over with a cold expression, her eyes flashing with anger as she looked at Fugaku.
"Keep yelling, and I'll kill you!"
This bastard dared to make a move under her nose. If anything had happened to Mo Yu, she, as the referee, would be derelict in her duties.
Fugaku immediately shut up, gritting his teeth to endure the excruciating pain, not daring to make a sound.
"Mo Yu, I'm sorry, I was careless just now," Tsunade apologized.
Mo Yu smiled and said, "It's fine. I wasn't hurt."
Seeing that Mo Yu wasn't angry, Tsunade sighed in relief and smiled. "Congratulations, you won this bet. Starting tomorrow, your name will spread throughout Konoha. Let's see who will still dare to call you a useless brat."
"Fame doesn't matter. As long as the money is right, I'm good with it."
Mo Yu was unreserved in his answer.
Tsunade was momentarily stunned, then laughed and patted Mo Yu's shoulder. "Haha, you're something! I like you. Speaking of which, I have to thank you this time. You made me win, so from now on, if anyone says I always lose in bets, I'll have a good comeback."
Mo Yu secretly laughed. "That might not be true. You'll probably carry that reputation for a while."
Tsunade kicked Fugaku, who was still lying on the ground, and said, "Stop pretending to be dead. You lost the bet. Hand over the money."
Fugaku's face was as pale as a ghost, sweat pouring down from his forehead. One of his arms was hanging limply, while with the other, he tremblingly took out a silver note.
"I… I only have 10,000 taels on me. The rest, I'll give later."
Tsunade took the silver note and handed it to Mo Yu, then glanced at Fugaku and said casually, "Giving it later is fine. But let me warn you, don't try any funny tricks, or else…"
Fugaku shivered.
Just now, he had indeed thought about delaying the payment, since the bet didn't specify when the money was due.
Now, hearing Tsunade's words, all his schemes were instantly crushed.
"And you, Orochimaru. Where's your 5,000 taels? You're not planning to go back on your word, are you?" Tsunade extended her pale hand, smiling mischievously.
Orochimaru snorted coldly and cast a venomous glance at Mo Yu before pulling out a 5,000-tael silver note from his robes.
"I have some things to do, so I'll be leaving first."
As he passed by Mo Yu, Orochimaru's cold voice entered Mo Yu's ears: "Kid, I'll remember this debt."
Tsunade heard what Orochimaru said and muttered under her breath.
"Petty."
She then handed the silver note to Mo Yu.
"Don't worry, if he dares to trouble you, come find me."
Mo Yu looked at the silver note in Tsunade's hand, thought for a moment, and didn't take it.
"Tsunade, this 5,000 taels is something you helped me win, so I can't accept it."
"Are you sure?" Tsunade smiled at Mo Yu.
Mo Yu hesitated, then finally nodded firmly, "I'm sure. I'm already delighted with the 50,000 taels I earned today."
For someone who was obsessed with money, like Mo Yu, making this decision required a great deal of willpower.
However, after weighing the 5,000 taels against the opportunity to get on Tsunade's good side, he decisively chose the latter.
From another perspective, this could be seen as maximizing his benefits.
Seeing Mo Yu's decision, Tsunade's gaze toward him changed.
5,000 taels was no small amount, especially for a child from a commoner background.
To be able to give it up so decisively wasn't something everyone dared to do.
"Alright, I'll accept it." Tsunade generously put the silver note into her pocket and then stuck out her tongue, looking a bit embarrassed as she said, "If it were normal, I wouldn't care about 5,000 taels, but unfortunately, I lost all my money on a mission. I have nothing on me right now."
Jiraiya looked at her in shock. "You still dared to gamble with no money? What would you have done if you lost?"
Tsunade said, "Well, of course, I had confidence in Mo Yu. I believed he wouldn't lose."
Mo Yu and Jiraiya both gave her doubtful looks.
Tsunade, feeling uncomfortable under their stares, finally gave in, saying, "Alright, alright, even if I lost, it wouldn't matter. Worst case, I'd just default. After all, I'm not worried about having too many debts."
Mo Yu thought to himself: Now that's more like it. This is the true nature of a gambler.
Jiraiya, looking regretful, slapped his chest and stomped his feet. "What a loss, what a loss. If I had known, I would've joined in on the bet. Now, I could've made 5,000 taels for free. No, I should've bet 50,000 taels. After all, I have thick skin, and I'm not afraid of being called a cheat."
Tsunade chuckled.
Meanwhile, Fugaku's face was as dark as ever, looking like a roasted pig. He felt like a clown—first, he was outwitted by Mo Yu, then by Tsunade. He wanted to find a hole to hide in.
"Teacher Dongxiang, I won't waste your time. Please start the exam." Tsunade spoke up.
"Alright," Dongxiang You replied and began arranging the exam.
As for Mo Yu, of course, he didn't need to participate. Having defeated Uchiha Fugaku, his strength was evident to everyone, and no one doubted it.
Uchiha Fugaku's face was ashen.
Not only had he lost 50,000 taels, but he was also forced to forfeit the graduation exam.
Even though he was young and could participate again next year, his reputation had been completely ruined.
In less than a day, his infamous name would spread throughout the village alongside Mo Yu's rise to fame.
Thinking about how he would be dealt with by his father when he got home, he wanted nothing more than to die on the spot.
"Mo Yu, we'll never be at peace!"
Uchiha Fugaku screamed inwardly in fury.
He didn't dare to take it out on Tsunade or Jiraiya, so he would vent all his hatred on Mo Yu.
...
Tsunade and Jiraiya left, having arranged to eat together next time.
Uchiha Fugaku, too ashamed to stay, fled home in disgrace.
Mo Yu, on the other hand, focused on the other students who were participating in the exam, but his mind wasn't on them. He was replaying the battle with Uchiha Fugaku in his head.
Two main factors allowed him to defeat Fugaku.
First, Fugaku's underestimation of him. Second, his lack of experience—compared to Mo Yu, that is.
From the beginning, Fugaku had been too talkative, which allowed Mo Yu to seize the initiative.
Once he fell into a passive position, Fugaku didn't retaliate effectively. Instead, he became flustered and desperate, playing his strongest card without even testing Mo Yu's abilities.
It was like a game of land cards, where Fugaku played his trump card right at the start, only for Mo Yu to easily dodge it.
He didn't lose unfairly!
After making his analysis, Mo Yu shifted his focus elsewhere.
"Earned another 50 gold coins. What should I exchange for next?"
With enough funds now, he was determined to properly equip himself.