Land of Fire, Konohagakure
Inside the Hokage Building, within the office at its highest point...
Kaizen Arashi, the newly appointed Fourth Hokage, sat heavily in his chair, rubbing his temples in frustration. In front of him were stacks of intelligence reports, all with one thing in common—alarming movements from Kirigakure, Iwagakure, and Kumogakure. War was looming. The Third Great Ninja War was close—closer than anyone would dare admit aloud.
Kaizen, a transmigrator from another world, had long known this day would come. He wasn't born a genius or a prodigy. As a civilian orphan, he had relied solely on foresight and perseverance. He trained obsessively, developed his own ninjutsu techniques, and eventually caught the attention of Tsunade, who became his mentor. He even managed to save the life of Uzumaki Kushina during a critical incident, earning the trust of Hiruzen Sarutobi himself.
Bit by bit, Kaizen manipulated the currents of fate and climbed to the top. Before the Third War could erupt, he had already seized the title of Hokage, bypassing the expected succession line. Now, he stood at the pinnacle of Kage-level strength. Yet, deep down, Kaizen knew—it wasn't enough. Not for what was coming.
The monsters in the latter stages of the Naruto timeline—Madara Uchiha, Kaguya, the Ōtsutsuki—those calamities were beyond comprehension. His current power wouldn't be enough to survive them, much less defeat them. And worst of all? He had made it this far without a system cheat.
Until now.
As Kaizen mulled over how to deal with the fragile peace and the threat of war, an unexpected sound echoed in his mind like a robotic chime.
[Senju Hashirama has joined the group chat.]
[Senju Tobirama has joined the group chat.]
[Tsunade has joined the group chat.]
Kaizen's eyes widened.
"What...?"
Suddenly, his office dissolved into white light. In the blink of an eye, Kaizen found himself in a pure white space—an ethereal dimension. In the center was a massive circular table, reminiscent of the Knights of the Round Table.
Floating text appeared in front of him:
[Welcome to the Konoha Hokage Chat Group.]
[Here, members can exchange information, resources, intelligence, and even request cross-dimensional assistance.]
[You are the designated group leader.]
[Upon reaching five members, the World Leaderboard will unlock. At ten members, the "Heaven Conquest" mode will activate.]
[As the group owner, you can summon meetings, invite or remove members, and manage group settings.]
Kaizen blinked, speechless.
"Konoha Hokage Chat Group…?"
He processed it quickly. "So it's limited to the Hokage of this world, but it has an eventual cross-dimensional conquest mode?"
While it wasn't quite like the all-encompassing chat groups he'd read about in his past life, this was still something special. Unlike those chaotic groups filled with individuals from different worlds and conflicting ideologies, this one consisted solely of Konoha Hokage. That meant—at least for now—they shared a common ground.
"This… this might just work in my favor."
Kaizen felt a surge of excitement. Finally, a cheat that could propel him beyond his limits.
He pulled up the current member list.
[Fourth Hokage – Kaizen Arashi (Group Leader)]
[First Hokage – Senju Hashirama (Group Member)]
[Second Hokage – Senju Tobirama (Group Member)]
[Fifth Hokage – Tsunade (Group Member)]
"Three Hokages already? And all from the Senju clan too…"
He couldn't help but smirk. "Too bad the Third Hokage isn't here. If he were, Hashirama and Tobirama could see how badly their legacy was squandered by Sarutobi Hiruzen."
Kaizen imagined Tobirama's reaction if he learned that his own student allowed Danzo and Root to fester, contributing to the fall of the Senju clan. That thought alone made Kaizen grin.
Still, he couldn't add any more members yet—the remaining slots were greyed out. It seemed he'd need to wait until the group leveled up or triggered another function.
"Well, no point wasting time. Let's see what this group can do."
Kaizen pressed the "Call Meeting" button.
[Ding! The group owner, Fourth Hokage Kaizen Arashi, has initiated a meeting.]
[All group members will be summoned to the Round Table in spiritual form.]
[Meetings occur once every three months and are mandatory.]
Suddenly, portals of light opened all around the white space.
—Meanwhile, in the past—
Konoha, 10 Years Ago
Within the Senju Clan's ancestral home...
Senju Hashirama lay weakly on a futon, his breathing shallow. Time had not been kind to the First Hokage. Despite his immense chakra reserves and regeneration abilities, his body had deteriorated since the Valley of the End battle with Madara.
By his side stood Tobirama, ever the loyal younger brother, and Uzumaki Mito, his wife, who watched over him with worried eyes.
Hashirama coughed weakly. "How's… the village?"
"Rest, big brother," Tobirama replied. "Everything is under control. You just focus on recovering."
Hashirama shook his head. "I'm not afraid for myself. But if I go… the other villages will see it as an opportunity. War might break out again."
Tobirama clenched his fists. "Let them try. I'll bury them all if they threaten Konoha."
Suddenly, Hashirama's expression froze.
[You have joined the Konoha Hokage Chat Group.]
[Group owner Kaizen Arashi has summoned a Round Table meeting. Please attend.]
Hashirama sat up instantly, surprising Mito and Tobirama.
"Did you hear that?"
"Hear what?" Mito asked, confused.
Tobirama narrowed his eyes. "What's going on?"
Hashirama looked around. There were no chakra fluctuations—no signs of genjutsu or sensory manipulation. And yet… something had clearly spoken to him within his mind.
[The Round Table meeting will begin shortly.]
"'Hokage Chat Group'...?" Hashirama murmured, eyes scanning the ethereal text. "So this is only for Hokage?"
He mulled it over. Something this bizarre had to be investigated. If it was dangerous to Konoha, he had to neutralize it. If it wasn't, then it might be an opportunity.
"I'm going in," he said decisively.
Before Mito or Tobirama could stop him, Hashirama whispered, "Join."
A burst of prismatic light wrapped around his body, and he vanished.
Back in the white dimension, Kaizen watched as Hashirama materialized at one of the empty chairs, looking surprisingly serious despite the surreal surroundings.
"…So you're the group leader?" Hashirama asked.
Kaizen bowed slightly. "Kaizen Arashi. Fourth Hokage."
Before they could speak further, two more lights appeared—Senju Tobirama and Tsunade, both arriving at their designated seats.
Tsunade blinked and looked around, then locked eyes with Kaizen. "Wait… what is this? Why are we here? Who are you?"
Kaizen smiled. "Welcome to the Hokage Chat Group. You'll want to sit down. This is going to change everything."
—To be continued—
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