"Interesting!"
Tsunade's big, sparkling eyes locked onto Shiranui Itsuki. "Who are you?"
"I'm Shiranui Itsuki!"
"What a strange name," she said, tilting her head, then raised her fist with a teasing grin. "But Itsuki, you should know, I don't need your help dealing with that guy!"
Itsuki nodded, calm and collected. "I know. I'm not here to help you."
"Oh?"
Tsunade's eyes narrowed slightly, surprised.
"I'm here to challenge you!"
Itsuki dropped the small stone he had been fiddling with. A subtle flick of his wrist, and the spatial kunai slid silently from the sleeve of his jacket.
"Challenge me!?"
Tsunade squinted at the kunai, her sharp instincts kicking in. She raised her fist, a sly, predatory grin spreading across her face. "It's been ages since anyone dared challenge me at school!"
The tension in the air crackled. A battle was about to erupt…
"No, no, no! You've got it all wrong!"
Itsuki waved his hands and pulled a perfectly square stone from his pocket. Using the tip of the kunai, he carved a few dots into it. "This is a dice."
Then, from another pocket, he pulled out a stack of small leaves. "These are leaf cards!"
"I'm going to use these to defeat you!"
A mischievous grin spread across his face. "They're… fun little toys."
Tsunade, seeing Itsuki tuck the kunai away, relaxed. She didn't mind—beating up Daiyu had already been satisfying. What intrigued her even more were these strange little gadgets. Somehow… they held an irresistible charm for her.
"What are these?"
The little Tsunade leaned forward, curiosity sparkling in her eyes, completely forgetting everything else.
"Gotcha!"
Itsuki's grin widened. From the moment he received this task, he knew brute force was useless—there was no way to defeat the princess of the Senju clan with sheer strength. So… he had to lure Tsunade, the legendary powerhouse, into his game of chance ahead of time.
Ten minutes later, Itsuki released the dice. It rolled across the rough ground, finally settling on a number.
"Two!"
"Hahaha! This time, you're doomed!"
Tsunade picked up the dice, laughing heartily. She had lost thousands of ryo in this short time, but now she finally had a chance to win. Confidence radiated from her as she rolled the dice again.
"Roll…"
The dice clattered across the ground. Being trained by numerous masters since childhood, controlling a dice to land on six was effortless for her. Sure enough, the die slowed, revealing a six. A smug smile curved her lips.
But then, a strange, subtle breeze swept across the dice…
"Roll…"
The die wobbled slightly in the wind.
"One!"
"Impossible!"
Tsunade fell back, utterly stunned, her pink, cute little face full of disbelief.
As expected.
Itsuki chuckled and picked up the dice, offering it to her. "Princess Tsunade, I'll leave this in your hands."
Beyond money, Itsuki had also bet some… more interesting things.
Tsunade swatted his hand away, pouting. "I know, you little rascal! You've been unbelievably lucky, winning so many rounds from me…"
Lucky? No. Itsuki thought with a sly grin. She just had terrible luck.
Scratching her head in frustration, Tsunade added, "But my Second Grandpa will never approve of this. Looks like I'll have to ask First Grandpa."
"First Grandpa?"
Itsuki's eyes went wide. If his memory served him right… Tsunade's Second Grandpa was the Second Hokage, Senju Tobirama.
And the First Grandpa?
That would be the legendary Senju Hashirama—the God of Shinobi himself.
Wait… Hashirama was still alive?