Chapter 166: The Wager with Tsunade.
The story shifts. While Uchiha Ten was leading Uchiha Sasuke and the other two on a mission, the final vacancy in the Akatsuki Organization had been filled.
"Uchiha Itachi, how dare you look down on my art!"
The Master artist Deidara continued to chatter incessantly while they traveled; he was still harboring a grudge about being taken down by a single genjutsu from the Sharingan.
He firmly believed that if Uchiha Itachi hadn't used those "despicable" tricks, he would have definitely been defeated by his explosive art.
Moreover, it seemed his clay supply was running low, which was also a problem of no small significance.
"Hmph, only eternity is worthy of being called art."
Sasori spoke up. His voice, muffled from within Hiruko, sounded like that of a middle-aged man, which contrasted sharply with his perpetually youthful appearance.
"Nonsense! Only the brilliance of an explosion is worthy of being called art!"
"I have never seen the slightest bit of brilliance in an explosion," Sasori said with utter disdain. "And since you were taken down the moment we met, your art is nothing more than self-indulgent grandstanding."
Because Sasori was a Puppet, all his thoughts were concentrated in his "Core." This was his greatest weakness, but this weakness also allowed him to shed many of the limitations of a human body, making him almost immune to genjutsu.
"You!" Deidara was furious. The mouth in the center of his palm moved rapidly. "I'll let you see what true art really is!"
Boom!
Deidara threw the explosive clay at Sasori, but Sasori, hidden within Hiruko, reacted quickly and dodged it with a swift movement.
"Enough!"
Just as the two were getting heated and wanted to have a real fight, Uchiha Itachi, who was walking in the lead, frowned and stopped them.
"Hurry back to report, and then wait for Pain to assign subsequent missions."
"It can't end like this! He actually insulted my art!"
Just as Deidara was ignoring the warning and wanted to strike again, Uchiha Itachi flashed to his side and grabbed the hand he used to create explosive clay.
At the same time, the Three-Tomoe in his eyes rapidly connected head-to-tail, and the unique Mangekyo Sharingan pattern appeared in Uchiha Itachi's eyes.
"I said, enough."
Uchiha Itachi's tone was icy, causing Deidara, who had already suffered at his hands, to immediately lose his momentum and behave himself much more.
Deidara, this great artist, might have a volatile personality, but he wasn't stupid. If he didn't have absolute certainty of victory, he would restrain himself from acting out.
Of course, if someone were to directly mock his explosive art or look down on it, it would probably be difficult to resolve the situation.
Uchiha Itachi was always a person with a sense of propriety, so he certainly wouldn't provoke Deidaraagain.
"Let's keep moving; we'll have plenty to be busy with later."
After diffusing the tension with Deidara, Uchiha Itachi continued on his way. Sasori also remained silent, maneuvering the massive body of Hiruko to follow closely behind.
"Tch, once I develop my ultimate art, you'll all have to pay the price for mocking my art!"
Deidara's muttering naturally reached the ears of the three traveling ahead, but none of them cared. There were simply too many eccentric teammates in the Akatsuki Organization; if they had to mind every single one of them, the Akatsuki Organization would have probably been destroyed several times over...
While Deidara was in position and heading toward the Akatsuki Organization base with Uchiha Itachiand the others, Jiraiya and Naruto found Tsunade.
"Hokage? No, no, no. There is no way I'm going back with you."
Tsunade shook her head repeatedly. She no longer had the ambition she once possessed, and furthermore, the Senju Clan was long gone from Konoha; there was simply no meaning for her to return.
After the consecutive deaths of Kato Dan and Senju Nawaki, Tsunade developed a phobia of blood. Moreover, due to some of Hiruzen Sarutobi's policies, the Senju Clan had fallen into decline. Without any attachments and suffering from psychological trauma, Tsunade had even less reason to return and take over the mess that was Konoha.
"But Konoha needs you..." Jiraiya certainly knew this would be difficult. "The Old Man has already..."
"I know, and I am deeply grieved as well!" Tsunadeinterrupted Jiraiya. "But that is not a reason for me to return. Konoha has developed just fine without me for the past few years."
This was the truth; not just Konoha, but the entire Ninja World would continue to develop just fine even if it were missing one person.
"But Konoha currently lacks someone to stabilize the overall situation," Jiraiya said, unwilling to give up. "After Konoha has transitioned smoothly, you can step down from the position of Hokage."
"With you here, Kakashi Hatake should be able to hold things down until the new generation grows up," Tsunade said, glancing unobtrusively at Naruto beside Jiraiya. "Besides, you have already made your decision, and under your guidance, Kakashi Hatake will be able to handle the role after adapting for a period of time."
"But the internal strife among Konoha's high-ranking officials is chaotic, and Kakashi Hatake is still too young, and his track record isn't impressive enough. I'm worried..."
"Then why don't you just take on the role of Fifth Hokage yourself?"
"I'm simply not cut out for that..."
"And you think that I, someone with a blood phobia and a gambling addiction, am cut out to be Hokage?!"
Tsunade's few words left Jiraiya speechless. Furthermore, the latter was naturally at a disadvantage when facing Tsunade; the usually glib Jiraiya immediately lost his spirit.
"Tsunade, tell me, what will it take for you to agree to return to Konoha with me?"
"Then I'll ask you, Jiraiya: what do you need me to do so that I won't return to Konoha with you?"
The two of them dragging things out with their evasive banter gave Naruto a headache. He still had many plans to complete, and now was not the time to play these games with the two of them.
"If you marry Master Jiraiya, he will..."
A horrified Jiraiya suddenly stood up, pulled Narutointo his arms, and covered his mouth with his hand. He knew full well that the consequences of angering this woman were disastrous.
Sure enough, Tsunade, who was known for her heavy-handedness, threw an iron fist, and while Naruto, the instigator, didn't receive the brunt of it, Jiraiya ended up taking the fall for him.
"I was going to treat you to a drink, but I suppose this is just as well; it saves me quite a bit of gambling money." Tsunade clapped her hands, ignored Jiraiya who had crashed through the tavern wall, and stood up to call Shizune to leave.
"Collect the damages from that white-haired pervert."
With that final remark, she settled the compensation issue with the shop owner. After stepping outside and looking left and right, Tsunade suddenly felt extremely frustrated.
"Come with me to the casino to blow off some steam!"
Whenever she was indecisive or feeling frustrated, she would head to the casino; this was Tsunade's way of doing things. Outsiders couldn't say much about it, after all, her strength was there for all to see, and even if others wanted to press for payment, they would have to think twice.
However, Tsunade's gambling etiquette was actually decent; although she would skip out on the bill when she had no money, she would definitely pay it back once she had funds.
"No need to go to the casino. Big Sister Tsunade, how about a wager with me?"
"Kid, I'm old enough to be your grandmother!" Although Tsunade was quite pleased, she still reiterated this, otherwise, it would be awkward to mess up the generational hierarchy.
"Hey, who told you to be so young? A slip of the tongue, a slip of the tongue." Naruto scratched his head in a show of feigned embarrassment, then took out two dice cups and six dice.
He tossed them to Tsunade, sat cross-legged on the ground, and placed a stack of property deeds beside him. "These are my chips. We'll compare the sizes; one round decides the winner!"
"Lady Tsunade, our money..." Shizune still wanted to dissuade her, because she could see just how big of a gamble Naruto was making this.
Those were property deeds for shops on the bustling main streets of Konoha, and they were worth a fortune.
"You don't need to worry about that!" Tsunadewaved her hand to stop Shizune's dissuasion, then turned to ask Naruto with interest, "I don't have enough money. What do you expect me to use as a wager?"
"I'm just a kid, so I have no right to ask about things like returning to Konoha to be Hokage, but I, as a Disciple, can still have a say in my Master's affairs."
Naruto looked up at Tsunade, his face showing a cunning expression. "Big Sister Tsunade, dare you bet on whether my Master marries you?!"