The Eight-Year-Old Me Became Hokage

"Big brother, your grandson Kazekaze is an absolute genius!" No, he's a genius among geniuses, practically a monster!" Tobirama couldn't contain his excitement as he praised Kazekaze.

Normally, when outside, Tobirama had to maintain his cold and authoritative image. But in front of Hashirama, he could relax a little. And now, with Kazekaze's shocking talent, Tobirama was so exhilarated that he was practically rambling. After all, ever since Hashirama, the Senju Clan had been on a steady decline. It felt as if… "The Senju Clan has one whole stone of talent—Hashirama took nine parts, Tobirama took three, and the rest of the clan is in debt by two!"

Hashirama's son, Mokuken, had no ninja talent whatsoever. He hadn't inherited Hashirama's Wood Release secret techniques, nor did he possess monstrous strength. He also lacked the strategic mind of a Hokage. No matter how much training he received, the best he could achieve was becoming a Jonin at most. If he were to inherit the Hokage position, it wouldn't just fail to convince the village—it could even lead to internal division.

And when it came to handling external threats, he simply wouldn't have the ability. The other Senju clan members weren't much better. With no other options, Tobirama had no choice but to train Sarutobi Hiruzen as the next Hokage. To be clear, Tobirama was not as selfless as Hashirama. Absolute power was always more reliable when held by one's own people. His firm opposition to Hashirama's proposal of making Uchiha Madara the Hokage was proof of that.

But now, Kazekaze's talent was like Columbus discovering a whole new continent—Tobirama was ecstatic!

"Wait a minute, Tobirama.What do you mean, genius? Monster? What exactly did Kazekaze do in the Forest of Death?" Hearing Tobirama's cryptic excitement, Hashirama was utterly confused. But deep down, he was very interested. After all, this was his own grandson!

It was only now that Tobirama realized how incoherent he had been. Taking a deep breath to calm himself, he recounted everything that had happened in the Forest of Death. How Kazekaze adapted to survival. How he found himself in danger. And finally, how he unleashed his chakra and effortlessly took down the terrifying beasts that even Sarutobi struggled with!

To Hashirama, this entire story sounded completely absurd.

'Unleashing chakra? Instantly killing two beasts weighing over twenty tons each?'

Forget when he was seven—even at fifteen, he wouldn't have been able to pull that off!

'When I was fifteen, I was still skipping stones at the river with Madara…'

DONG.

Hashirama's mood instantly plummeted.

"Big brother, don't tell me you're jealous of Kazekaze's talent?" Tobirama teased.

"Jealous? No, of course not—it's just that what you're saying sounds way too exaggerated!" Hashirama hesitated before adding, "Kazekaze is only seven years old. He hasn't even received formal training. And suddenly, he's mastered monstrous strength? That kind of talent is insane!"

Although Hashirama outwardly appeared shocked and surprised, Inside, he was thinking— 'As expected of my grandson!'

"Now do you understand why I called him a genius? A monster?" Tobirama clenched his fists, his eyes practically glowing. "I can guarantee you—he'll be Hokage in less than ten years!"

Tobirama's words were firm and decisive. He had already given up hope for the Senju Clan's future, but Kazekaze changed everything. His talent, calm personality, adaptability, and colossal chakra reserves checked every single box for Tobirama's ideal Hokage successor. If anything, he exceeded expectations! Hard work could determine a ninja's minimum potential. But chakra reserves? Either you had them, or you didn't. No amount of training could turn chakra into chatonra!

In other words, the upper limit of a ninja's strength was determined by their chakra reserves. The reason Tobirama originally had high hopes for Sarutobi was because he had a naturally large amount of chakra compared to his peers. But now? If Sarutobi's chakra was like the tiny stream where Hashirama and Madara skipped stones… Then Kazekaze's chakra was a vast ocean!

"Tobirama, you need to calm down," Hashirama interrupted, feeling overwhelmed.

Both Tobirama's descriptions and his expectations for Kazekaze were staggering. Was this really the same cold-faced brother he knew? This wasn't like him at all!

"Did I hear you correctly? Hokage in less than ten years? Kazekaze is only seven years old!"

Hashirama's jaw nearly hit the floor. Kazekaze was only seven! Even if everything Tobirama said was true, That wouldn't change the fact that he was still just a child! In ten years, Kazekaze would be only seventeen. A seventeen-year-old Hokage? That was ridiculous! Hokage selection didn't just require approval from Konoha's high-ranking officials and villagers. It also needed the Daimyo's recognition!

No matter what, ninja villages still existed under the Daimyo's authority. The village handled military affairs. The Daimyo handled politics and economics. Without the Daimyo's financial support, ninja villages would be severely limited in what they could do. When Hashirama nominated Uchiha Madara as Hokage, the Daimyo was his biggest obstacle!

A seventeen-year-old Hokage? The Daimyo would never approve that!

"Being Hokage isn't just about strength. There are political factors—especially the Daimyo's approval."

While Hashirama was amazed and delighted by Kazekaze's talent, The idea of him becoming Hokage at seventeen was simply too much. Of course, this had a lot to do with Hashirama's personality. He had overwhelming strength, but lacked the dominant personality of Tobirama. Not only did he care about the Daimyo's opinions, He had even bowed to the other Kage—despite being stronger than all of them combined. Those same Kage who, in front of Madara, wouldn't even dare to breathe too loudly. If Hashirama hadn't been such a nice guy, the ninja world could have been unified during his era!

"No, big brother, you misunderstand me," Tobirama shook his head.

Unlike Hashirama, he was far more assertive. In the original timeline, he had appointed Sarutobi as Hokage with just one sentence—without ever consulting the Daimyo.

"I knew it—seventeen is way too young for a Hokage," Hashirama sighed in relief, patting his thigh.

Still, while he found the age ridiculous, He had no objections to Kazekaze eventually becoming Hokage. Based on what he knew about the Daimyo, they would probably approve Kazekaze around the age of twenty-four. But then— Tobirama's next words completely shattered Hashirama's expectations.

"I said less than ten years—not exactly ten years!" Tobirama paused briefly before continuing,

"In other words, Kazekaze could very well become Hokage at sixteen, fifteen… or even fourteen!"

Hashirama: "???"