The innkeeper was a middle-aged person with unkempt facial hair and a rough appearance, dressed in a woman's kimono - making it impossible to tell whether they were a man or a woman.
When Minato pushed the door open with his three students, the owner didn't move an inch behind the counter and lazily asked:
"Welcome.
How long will you be staying, and what kind of room do you want?"
Minato glanced at the price list. Luckily, it was still within his budget.
Carefully pulling out a few low-denomination bills, he laid them on the counter and said:
"One standard room. Two days for now."
"The standard room only has one bed."
"That's fine. I'll sleep on the tatami," Minato replied. For a ninja, not having to sleep outdoors was already a luxury.
The innkeeper smacked their lips in displeasure. They looked important, yet were unbelievably stingy. Still, after taking the money, they pulled out a key from a ring and slapped it onto the counter.
"Second room from the end on the left."
"Got it~!"
Minato took the key, thought for a moment, then borrowed the poster from Guy and spread it out in front of the innkeeper.
"Have you seen this woman around recently?"
Tanzaku Town wasn't big - just a few streets. If you really wanted to find someone, asking around would usually do the trick. Minato had officially entered mission mode.
"Hm?"
The innkeeper put on their glasses and leaned closer, examining the poster carefully while making thoughtful "hm… hm~" sounds, as if they truly recognized Tsunade.
But they offered no clear answer - just kept dragging it out, while discreetly rubbing their thumb and index finger together.
Got it.
With a bleeding heart, Minato pulled out another 1,000-yen bill and slapped it onto the counter. Gathering intel came with necessary expenses.
Only then did the innkeeper tuck the bill away and say:
"I've seen her."
…And then?
Minato waited, but nothing followed. When he noticed the innkeeper rubbing their fingers again, he realized they wanted more money.
Ah…
Just as Minato was about to reach into his wallet again, Uchiha Mai grabbed his hand.
"How much did this counter cost?" Mai asked calmly.
The innkeeper looked confused but answered anyway:
"About 1,500 yen. Picked it up cheap from a second-hand market. Why?"
"No reason."
Mai shook his head - and in the next instant, he exploded into motion. Chakra surged into his leg as he unleashed a whip kick against the side of the counter.
CRACK!
The counter shattered into a pile of broken wood.
"!!!"
The innkeeper collapsed onto the floor in terror. Only now did they realize that these people were ninjas - not the kind of "customers" you could casually fleece.
To ordinary civilians, ninjas were absolutely untouchable beings… unless you had hired them.
Back during the Second Great Ninja War, the Legendary Three encountered the young Nagato and his companions in the Land of Rain. Orochimaru had once suspected they were spies and even considered killing them.
That spoke partly to Orochimaru's cruelty - but it also showed how, in certain situations, ninjas truly were harbingers of death for ordinary people.
Uchiha Mai took Minato's wallet, pulled out 2,000 yen, handed it to the innkeeper, and pointed at Tsunade's poster.
"Now tell us everything you know about this woman."
Minato was simply too kind.
The innkeeper accepted the money with trembling hands and, afraid of missing any detail, hurriedly replied:
"A-about ten days ago, this woman came to Tanzaku. She spent money like water.
At first, she stayed in the best hotels and drank the finest alcohol. Day or night, she went to the casino almost every day, staying there at least four or five hours each time."
"Later, I heard people calling her things like 'big fat sheep' or 'little lamb.'"
"Then, every couple of days, the level of the hotel she stayed in dropped… and the alcohol she drank got worse too.
Until yesterday, when she came to my inn and rented the worst room. At this rate, she'll be sleeping on the streets soon."
That was a cliff-like drop in spending power.
"How much did she lose?" Mai muttered.
"I heard over ten million yen," the innkeeper replied.
Good grief.
After years in this world, Mai had a solid grasp of ninja-world currency. Roughly speaking, 100 yen here was equivalent to about 1,000 yen in his previous life.
Or, to simplify - think of a 100:1 exchange rate with the dollar.
More than ten million yen meant over a million dollars. That was no small sum.
"Where is she now?" Mai asked.
"At the casino."
The innkeeper pulled out a map of Tanzaku Town and pointed to a spot.
"She changes hotels often, but she always goes to the same casino. It's the largest one in town - high-stakes tables, low-stakes tables, everything. They even provide free cigarettes, bottled water, and snacks."
Free snacks?
Guy's eyes lit up immediately. He stroked his chin and said solemnly:
"Just a theory - it might not be true.
But do you think it's possible Lady Tsunade goes there just to… eat for free?"
Hmm… not impossible.
They had barely arrived in Tanzaku and already made progress.
Uchiha Mai pulled out two 200-yen bills and handed them to the innkeeper.
"Clean the room properly.
At eleven tonight, boil a pot of hot water. I'll need it for a bath. Got it?"
"Got it!" the innkeeper replied with an ingratiating smile.
"Let's go. To the casino."
Mai stuffed the wallet back into Minato's hand and headed straight out with Kakashi and Guy, leaving the squad leader staring awkwardly at the innkeeper.
Ah…
Why did it feel like having him there made no difference at all?
The students were growing stronger at an absurd pace - and they handled problems decisively too. It made Minato, their teacher, feel completely unnecessary.
What was a squad leader supposed to do in a situation like this?
Urgent. Online advice needed.
Maybe… this was just what it meant to teach geniuses.
After finishing his internal pep talk, Minato used Body Flicker, turning into a streak of golden light and catching up to the students within seconds.
Tanzaku Town wasn't large. A few minutes later, the four arrived at the casino the innkeeper had mentioned - lavish and imposing.
The ninja guards at the entrance barely glanced at the three kids. Customers were customers. As long as you could lose money, no one cared how old you were.
The moment he stepped inside, Uchiha Mai sensed something unusual.
Judging by the markings, one table was clearly a low-stakes table. Such tables were never empty, but they never attracted massive crowds either.
Yet right now, dozens of people were packed tightly around it, layer upon layer.
Something was definitely going on there.
(Transition chapter - please support 🙏)
(End of Chapter)