As the battle officially ended, Tsunade turned toward Ryan, arms crossed, her expression a mix of irritation and disbelief.
"You little brat! Secretive as ever!" she huffed. "Did you already know this would happen? Is that why you agreed to fight me like this?"
Her glare could have made a lesser man sweat, but Ryan only offered a sheepish smile.
"I swear, I didn't expect this," he said, raising his hands in mock surrender. "I was just messing around, you know? You're the one who took it so seriously."
Tsunade narrowed her eyes. "Messing around?"
Ryan shrugged. "If you'd gone a little easier on me, your arm wouldn't have broken."
A vein twitched on Tsunade's forehead.
He's got a point… she begrudgingly admitted to herself. No one forced me to hit him at full power…
Still, the realization only made her more frustrated. With a sigh, she flexed her now-healed arm, grateful that her medical ninjutsu had restored it to normal.
Meanwhile, the other Hokages had their attention elsewhere. Specifically—on their pockets.
The sudden sound of loud, boisterous laughter cut through the arena.
"HAHAHAHA!" All eyes turned toward Hashirama, who was practically glowing with joy.
"I'm so sorry, everyone," he said, not looking sorry in the slightest. "But that's 500,000 points in my pocket now!"
The room collectively froze.
"Wait… what?" Tobirama's head snapped toward his brother, a dangerous edge to his voice.
Minato blinked. "500,000? From what?"
Kakashi sighed, already sensing what had happened. "Let me guess… You bet on Ryan, didn't you?"
Hashirama grinned. "Yup! 50,000 points. Ten-to-one odds." He patted his chest proudly. "And now I'm rich!"
The realization hit them all at once.
"I knew it!" Naruto groaned, gripping his head. "I should've bet on Ryan, too!"
"Unbelievable," Sasuke muttered, shaking his head.
Tobirama's face darkened. "You mean to tell me that while the rest of us lost thousands of points, you just casually made half a million?"
"Pretty much!" Hashirama beamed.
Tobirama scowled, dragging a hand down his face. "Damn it… I only bet on Tsunade because I knew Anija's luck was ridiculous! I thought if he bet on Ryan, it meant Ryan would lose!"
"Oh, that's tragic," Kakashi deadpanned, barely holding back a chuckle.
Hashirama, meanwhile, was beaming. "See, Tobirama? Sometimes, you should just believe in my gut instincts!"
Tobirama's left eye twitched. "I am going to kill you twice."
The atmosphere shifted.
A moment ago, Hashirama was just another Hokage. Now, he was a target of everyone's jealousy. Everyone's eyes locked onto him, their expressions ranging from envy to sheer regret.
Madara pinched the bridge of his nose, sighing deeply. "You're telling me that in one bet, you made the equivalent of a top-tier mission reward?"
"Jealous?" Hashirama smirked.
Minato exhaled, shaking his head. "I don't even know what to say..."
"You could say, 'Hashirama, you're the greatest gambler Hokage ever,'" Hashirama suggested.
Tsunade, still annoyed over her loss, snorted. "Yeah? Try betting against me next time and see what happens."
Ryan, meanwhile, just stood there, watching the chaos unfold with a bemused expression.
After the small uproar had settled, the group left the arena, returning to the Hokage Conference Room space. But even after they sat down, the conversation didn't shift away from the fight.
Tsunade aside, everyone was talking about it.
"Ryan's defense is absurd," Naruto said, shaking his head. "I used to think Kamui was the best defense ever. Y'know, 'cause you just phase through everything. But this guy? He doesn't even need to dodge to attack! His defence is passive attack."
"No kidding," Kakashi agreed. "At this point, I don't think he even needs to dodge attacks anymore."
Tobirama leaned forward, fingers steepled. "If his durability is truly that extreme, then assassination techniques would be completely ineffective against him."
"Right," Sasuke said, crossing his arms. "It doesn't matter how skilled an enemy is—if they can't hurt him, then what's the point?"
"I mean," Minato added thoughtfully, "if this keeps up, Ryan might not even need a personal guard as Hokage."
Everyone nodded in agreement. They had seen his defensive power firsthand.
Tsunade's full-powered punches could reduce boulders to rubble and crack the ground with ease. Her raw strength was one of the most devastating forces in physical combat.
And yet, Ryan had taken it head-on.
He didn't block. He didn't dodge. He let her hit him.
And the only thing that happened was that he got sent flying—because he was too light.
Meanwhile, Tsunade—the attacker—had been the one injured. The absurdity of it all was still sinking in.
"It's honestly insane," Obito admitted.
"Yeah," Kakashi agreed. "This level of defense is practically cheating."
"I'll say," Tsunade muttered, still rubbing her wrist. "I don't care what anyone says—I'm not fighting him again."
Ryan, who had been silent until now, finally spoke. "Come on, guys. It's not that bad."
Everyone turned to stare at him.
"Not that bad?!" Naruto echoed. "You just stood there and let yourself get punched! And you won!"
Ryan scratched the back of his head. "Hey, I didn't plan for it to end like that…"
"Still, it did," Sasuke pointed out.
As the group continued talking, a certain thought began to form in everyone's mind.
A heavy silence settled over the room as the same thought crossed both their minds. Then, at the exact same time—
"We should challenge Bushy Brows!" Naruto declared.
Sasuke smirked. "Eight Gates Might Guy… I wonder if even he could break through that defense."
Kakashi, who had been quietly observing, immediately palmed his face. "Please don't."
Obito scoffed. "You idiots have a death wish? If Guy goes all out, there won't even be ashes left."
"Not if we had Ryan's defense!" Naruto argued.
"Yeah," Sasuke added, eyes narrowing. "We need to see where the limits are."
Madara, who had been silently listening, suddenly chuckled. "Hah. Now that is a fight worth watching."
Ryan chuckled, crossing his arms. "I mean, it could be fun… but you guys do realize Might Guy is from Konoha too, right?" He raised an eyebrow. "Hokage or not, he's already one of the strongest shinobi to ever live. Who's to say that in some timeline, there's a Might Guy who actually became Hokage?"
The room fell silent for a moment as that thought settled in.
Naruto's jaw nearly hit the floor. "Wait… You mean to tell me there could be a timeline where Bushy Brows is Hokage!?"
Sasuke exhaled through his nose, shaking his head. "Tch. That sounds ridiculous."
But before anyone could shoot the idea down entirely, Kakashi hummed in thought. "…Well, he did get offered the position once," he muttered.
Dead silence.
Tobirama's eye twitched. "Please tell me you're joking."
"He turned it down," Kakashi clarified, his tone unreadable. "But if things had gone differently…"
Madara let out a rare bark of laughter. "Now that would be a Hokage worth fighting."
Hashirama, meanwhile, was practically sparkling. "A Hokage that relies solely on taijutsu and pure willpower? That sounds amazing!"
Tsunade pinched the bridge of her nose. "That sounds like an absolute nightmare."
Ryan smirked. "Well, if there is a Might Guy who became Hokage, maybe one day he'll end up joining this chat group too."
The mere suggestion made everyone pause. The thought of a Hokage, Might Guy, with his energy and enthusiasm, suddenly appearing in their ranks was… concerning.
Tobirama groaned into his hands. "That is the worst possible thing I've heard all day."
"Well," Minato said, laughing lightly, "at least the group would never be boring."
Everyone's gaze turned toward the Lottery.
"…Maybe it's time I tried my luck," Kakashi said, eyeing the rewards section.
"Yeah," Naruto grinned. "I think I might take a spin too."
One by one, the Hokages exchanged glances.
Ryan's battle had ended, but the real battle for the next ridiculous reward was only beginning.
Ryan's latest draw had left everyone stunned. The effect was simply too overwhelming, beyond what anyone had anticipated.
When they first read the description of his reward, they had been surprised, sure, but without seeing it in action, there had been no real sense of its power.
Now? After witnessing it firsthand? Everyone understood.
This reward wasn't just powerful. It was outright broken.
Ryan was already incredibly strong, but with this new enhancement, his abilities had reached an absurd level. The sheer exaggeration of it left the entire room silent for a few moments.
Then, almost in sync, people started eyeing the lottery panel with a certain hunger.
The thought was the same in everyone's mind—I need to try my luck too.
Even if they didn't land a jackpot-tier reward like Ryan, there was still a chance to get something useful. Even an ordinary reward could be valuable, and if it turned out to be something they couldn't use, they could always sell it back for points.
It was all upside down. No reason not to try.
The atmosphere shifted. One by one, the Hokages started showing clear signs of anticipation.
But no one was more eager than Tsunade.
She had just fought Ryan herself. She had felt his defense firsthand. She had punched him with everything she had—and yet, he had taken the hit without so much as a scratch.
If she could get the same reward he did… Her fists clenched. I have to draw too.
And just as the tension built, Hashirama clapped his hands together, grinning like a kid about to start a festival.
"Well, it looks like everyone wants a turn at the lottery!" he announced, his voice brimming with excitement. "Then let's all do a draw!"
The room buzzed with energy.
Hashirama continued, "Everyone gets a chance! Whatever rewards you get will depend on your luck!" His smile widened. "And afterward, let's compare results—see who got the best stuff!"
A pause. Then—
"Sounds great!" Naruto grinned.
"I'm in!" Minato agreed.
"Good, good! Let's do it already!" Tobirama said, surprisingly enthusiastic.
"About time!" Tsunade cracked her knuckles.
The excitement was contagious. Even Ryan couldn't help but smirk. Seeing all the Hokages lining up to gamble on the lottery was a sight to behold.
This… this is going to be interesting.
Just as he was getting into the mood, though—
"Ryan!" Hashirama suddenly turned to him, looking uncharacteristically serious. "You're not allowed to participate."
Ryan blinked. "Huh?"
"This time, you only get to watch," Hashirama declared. "We're not including you in our rankings."
Ryan raised an eyebrow. "What? Why?"
"Because your luck is too ridiculous!" Hashirama huffed. "If we let you join in, what's the point of the rest of us even playing?!"
"Exactly!" Tobirama crossed his arms. "There's no competition if one person is guaranteed to get something absurd!"
"That's right!" Naruto chimed in. "Ryan's luck is basically a cheat code!"
Minato nodded. "If he enters, we already know who's going to win."
"Of course," Hashirama added, smirking slightly, "you can still draw if you want… but your results won't count in our ranking."
Ryan let out a wry chuckle. "Damn. Can't I be first just this once?"
At his words, everyone turned toward him, looking downright offended.
"I'll go!" Tobirama exclaimed. "You still want to be first?!"
"Right?! Give the rest of us a chance, will you?!" Naruto added.
"Are you even hearing yourself?" Sasuke muttered, shaking his head.
Minato sighed. "Ryan, you're always first."
"Being first isn't enough for him, apparently," Kakashi deadpanned.
Hashirama grinned. "See? It's settled!" He clapped Ryan on the back. "Just sit back and enjoy the show!"
Ryan shook his head, amused. Honestly, it didn't bother him. This whole thing was just a fun event—there were no actual stakes.
If everyone thought his participation would ruin the balance, then fine.
He'd sit this one out. After all, watching this group gamble? That was bound to be entertaining in its way.
---
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