Orochimaru, Tsunade, and Jiraiya were all Hiruzen's disciples, and he trusted them greatly.
Now that the three of them had grown into capable Ninja, it was time to give them more responsibilities, and some things needed to be explained to them.
"Kazuki? Kushina seems to have a good relationship with him. I heard Kushina mention him before."
"But is that kid really that talented? Can he really compare to Kagami-senpai?"
Tsunade also knew Kagami. An Uchiha who could be recognized by the Second Hokage, who was hostile to the Uchiha, was indeed a good person.
As Hokage, Hiruzen couldn't lead them on missions, so many of those missions were led by Kagami. During that time, Kagami taught them a lot.
Hiruzen nodded slightly, looking at Kazuki, who was chatting with Kushina and Minato, and said, "This child, Kazuki, is the youngest Uchiha in history to awaken his Sharingan."
"He has already achieved good mastery in Fire Release and Lightning Release. Even without the Sharingan, he has the strength to graduate early."
"If he hadn't applied for early graduation, your record of the fastest early graduation might have been broken by him."
"As for now, I suspect he might already have Chunin-level strength."
"Oh? A six-year-old Chunin?" Orochimaru looked at Kazuki with interest, his snake-like tongue licking his lips.
Hiruzen reminded with a light cough, "I'm just saying he has strength comparable to a Chunin. As for whether he can become a Chunin, he still needs to pass the assessment."
"Moreover, since he didn't actively apply for early graduation, I won't proactively make him graduate either."
Tsunade followed his gaze and looked at Kazuki. For some reason, she felt a sense of familiarity from this child.
What's going on with this Uchiha?
"Tsunade, are you interested in becoming his teacher?" Hiruzen asked, pointing at Kazuki.
"Me, become his teacher?" Tsunade blinked.
She had just been wondering why Kazuki gave her such a familiar feeling, and now Hiruzen gave her such a proposal.
"Although my surname isn't Senju, I still have the Senju bloodline in me. He's an Uchiha."
Hiruzen took a puff from his pipe and said with a chuckle, "What's the problem with that?"
"Didn't Tobirama-sensei also take Kagami as his disciple? First Hokage-sama even allied with the Uchiha to establish Konoha."
"Now the Senju clan has disbanded, and the Uchiha are also a part of the village. This child, Kazuki, is also a part of the village. Why can't you take him as a disciple?"
"This might even become a beautiful tale. He needs you to protect his growth."
In fact, he could have easily let Kazuki become Orochimaru's disciple, but after a moment of hesitation, he still chose Tsunade.
Hiruzen subconsciously still favored Orochimaru to become the next Hokage. If Kazuki were to become Orochimaru's disciple, Kazuki might become a Hokage successor then.
Nawaki's talent would likely struggle to compare with Kazuki's.
Of course, if you add the Senju's fundamental support, ten Kazuki wouldn't be a match for Nawaki. The villagers of Konoha would be more willing to support the Senju clan.
But in that case, the Uchiha would likely become even more chaotic.
Having Tsunade become Kazuki's teacher would eliminate this problem.
To compensate Kazuki, Mikoto could become Orochimaru's disciple, thus giving the peace faction two main pillars, led by Kazuki and supplemented by Mikoto.
Then Kazuki would be from the Hokage faction but would find it difficult to become Hokage. In Hiruzen's view, this was the best outcome.
It wasn't that Hiruzen was prejudiced against Kazuki or scheming against him. It was simply that the Uchiha were not suitable.
As friends and comrades, the Uchiha were very reliable, but if an Uchiha became Hokage, who knew what would happen?
Believe it or not, if an Uchiha became Hokage, they would dare to declare war on the Ninja World on the second day, and then Konoha would be gone.
Tsunade was silent upon hearing this. Once Kazuki became her disciple, the Uchiha clan would likely be in turmoil again, especially the anti-Hokage faction members, who would view Kazuki as a thorn in their side.
Kagami became Tobirama's disciple because Tobirama's strength was sufficient, but what did she, Tsunade, have?
Moreover, Tsunade inwardly admitted that she wasn't the most suitable person to teach Kazuki.
Orochimaru was!
As for Jiraiya, Tsunade simply ignored him.
"Think about it carefully. This child's situation is quite difficult right now."
Hiruzen sighed and said, "If you take Kazuki as your disciple, I can allow you to take Kushina as your disciple later as well."
"Kushina?" Tsunade showed surprise. She was somewhat aware of Kushina's possible future fate.
Tsunade originally thought Kushina might never leave Konoha in her lifetime.
Unexpectedly, Hiruzen actually agreed to let her take her as a disciple.
"Mm. Kushina is a good child. She has found her bonds in Konoha. As her older sister, you can't just ignore her, can you?"
"Moreover, you are the most suitable person to teach her, aren't you?"
"If she can learn Mito-sama's Sealing Jutsu, as well as your Super Strength and Medical Ninjutsu, even if she only becomes a Ninja, she can still stand on her own in the future."
Hiruzen was also very satisfied with the children in the Ninja Academy now.
Shinnosuke, Nawaki, Mikoto, Kazuki, Kushina, Hiashi, Hizashi, plus the new generation of Ino–Shika–Chō, these were all the cream of the crop among Konoha's new generation.
As long as they grew up, Konoha's future was promising.
Tsunade was tempted. She knew Kushina, her cousin, who had been brought up by her grandma, very well.
Regarding her talent in Sealing Jutsu, Mito said Kushina's talent was no worse than hers.
And the Uzumaki clan's physique and vitality would allow Kushina to learn Super Strength and Medical Ninjutsu, which would likely be a permanent solution.
Thinking of this possibility, Tsunade was very tempted.
At this moment, Minato had already stepped onto the training ground.
His opponent was a member of the Sarutobi clan. In this battle, Minato showcased his solid fundamentals and his ability to seize opportunities to the fullest, defeating his opponent with great rhythm.
"Sensei, that blonde kid, do you know him?" Jiraiya's eyes lit up when he saw Minato.
As a Ninja from a civilian background, Jiraiya naturally had a fondness for civilian Ninja. In Minato, Jiraiya saw a reflection of his past self. This child is like me.