The pre-flop betting had already inflated the pot to over eight thousand yen. Four players saw the flop - an extremely unfavorable situation for Tsunade.
The more people in the pot, the more ridiculous hands can hit. It wasn't just pocket twos; even pocket aces, the king of heads-up play, turn fragile in a multi-way pot.
The flop came down Ten of Clubs, Jack of Diamonds, Queen of Hearts - a highly connected board screaming straight possibilities.
The player to Tsunade's left fired 12,000 yen, an over bet that exceeded the current pot.
Seeing the overbet, Tsunade didn't hesitate for even a second. She shoved a stack of chips straight into the middle. A true gambling maniac - never looks at the board, just goes all in.
Uchiha Mai could only mutter "damn." Her momentum was unreal. She was playing pocket twos with the confidence of someone holding a Broadway straight from Ten to Ace.
"Big sis… on a Ten-Jack-Queen board, how are you calling an overbet like that?"
Mai leaned close and whispered into her ear, covering his mouth. Because he was young and good-looking, Tsunade didn't mind his closeness at all.
"Your opponent raised ten times the big blind pre-flop, then followed up with an overbet on a connected board. He's very likely holding AK, AA, KK, or a pocket pair above Tens.
At the very least, he has a pair plus a straight draw - and there's a good chance he already completed the straight. What are you planning to do with pocket twos against that?"
Tsunade burst out laughing and smacked the back of Mai's head.
"Haha! Kid, you really don't understand anything. I've got a pocket pair. There are still two cards to come - I've got a solid chance to hit trips."
Mai fell silent.
Chasing trips on a straight-heavy board was pure insanity. Even if she hit three of a kind, it would still lose to a straight.
Unless the turn and river magically paired the board into a full house, she had no real path to victory.
"And besides," Tsunade continued, pulling Mai closer as she muttered, "that guy's been watching me all night and already won a ton from me. I can tell - he didn't hit anything. He's bluffing. I'm calling him down to catch it and vent my anger!"
Mai was speechless.
This woman was beyond saving. You don't catch bluffs without a hand. Calling with pocket twos on a straight board - chances were his 'bluff' would still beat her at showdown.
The decision was already made, and Mai had no intention of saying more. They had just met; overstepping boundaries would only cause trouble.
The turn revealed the Six of Hearts, and the river followed with the Seven of Spades - neither card improved Tsunade's hand in the slightest.
The aggressive player bet 30,000 yen on the turn, then 90,000 yen on the river. Every bet was massive, each nearly matching the size of the pot.
Tsunade never folded, calling all the way to the end with absolute confidence that she'd catch a bluff.
Instead, she lost to AK, which completed a clean straight.
Fourteen ten-thousands of yen vanished in a single hand.
When the opponent saw that Tsunade had called everything with pocket twos, he froze in shock. The reputation of a "walking ATM" was well deserved.
Over the next few hands, Tsunade played far more cautiously - probably because losing 140,000 yen in one shot hurt. Even so, due to sloppy play, she still bled another seventy or eighty thousand.
"I'm done playing!"
Tsunade tossed her last chip to the dealer, grabbed her bottle, and pushed through the crowd, grumbling,
"Bad luck today. I'll come back tomorrow."
Mai sighed.
Bad luck? This is pure skill-based losing.
The surrounding spectators all sighed in regret as well. They'd arrived too late to milk the big spender - and now they couldn't even enjoy the view.
Once Tsunade stepped away from the table, Minato finally approached her respectfully.
"Tsunade-sama."
"Hm? Little Minato?"
She slapped his chest twice with enough force to nearly make him spit blood.
"Tsk tsk… it's been years. You've grown up nicely. Solid chest. What are you doing in Tanzaku Street? Aren't you afraid Kushina will find out and break your legs for coming to a casino?"
"Cough… cough…"
Minato steadied himself before replying,
"Tsunade-sama, Kushina knows I'm here. The Hokage learned of your presence in Tanzaku Street and specifically ordered me to lead a squad to escort you back to Konoha."
The three-year deadline had arrived - the Dragon King of Konoha had sent his envoy.
"I'm not going back."
Tsunade rejected him flatly.
She glanced at Minato again and teased,
"Not bad, you're already a team captain. Where are your teammates? Don't tell me they've surrounded the entire casino, waiting for your signal to trap me with some Four Violet Formation."
"Tsunade-sama, you're joking again."
Minato gestured behind him - to Might Guy and Kakashi - and then toward Mai standing near Tsunade.
"These are my three teammates: Might Guy, Hatake Kakashi, and Uchiha Mai."
"Oh?"
Tsunade gave the three a quick once-over.
The silver-haired one had to be Kakashi - just like his father.
The thick-browed bowl-cut definitely wasn't an Uchiha; those guys were arrogant, but always good-looking.
That left the red-eyed kid - Mai.
"Uchiha kids are really crafty. So young, yet already lying so smoothly."
Tsunade bent down, pressing a hand on Mai's head, sneering.
"You knew who I was and still dared to call me 'big sister.' You're going to be a menace when you grow up."
Mai spread his hands helplessly.
"But I wasn't wrong. Based on appearances alone, Tsunade-sama doesn't look much older than me. Even considering your actual age, you're only a bit older than Sensei Minato. That gap is small enough - calling you 'big sister' seems perfectly reasonable."
This woman was impossible to please.
In Shippuden, she hated being called old. Now she hated being called young.
One day, I'll make you cry while calling me 'big brother.'
"Whatever."
Tsunade waved her hand dismissively and walked out of the casino with a relaxed, lazy grace, leaving behind only her back as she spoke:
"I'm not returning to Konoha. Tanzaku Street is far more interesting. The casino's full of talented people who talk nicely - I love it here.
You can go back and tell the old man I'm not done having fun yet.
Or… beat me and drag me back by force."
Negotiations failed. Preparations for force were inevitable.
Mai was just about to rush forward - planning to "accidentally" cut his arm, trigger her blood phobia, knock her out, and carry her back to Konoha - when Minato grabbed him by the collar.
"What are you trying to do?" Minato asked in alarm.
Kids these days were way too bold - this one was thinking of attacking a Sannin.
"I just wanted to persuade Tsunade-sama a bit more…"
Only then did Mai realize that acting in public was impossible. There were likely spies from other villages nearby, and Tsunade's hemophobia absolutely could not be exposed.
(End of Chapter)