The Konoha Theory of Virtue!

"Take a look at this, Shisui."

While Uchiha Shisui was still reeling from the radical statement he had just heard, Uchiha Chen patted his shoulder and handed him a scroll.

Shisui took the scroll with a puzzled expression and unfurled it, his eyes immediately catching the bold characters at the top:

<Statistical Table of Jōnin and Ordinary Shinobi in Konoha from the End of the First War to the Third War>

???

Confused, Shisui frowned and began to read the statistics on the scroll from the beginning.

The Uchiha Clan had twenty-eight Jōnin at the end of the First War, with over seven hundred registered shinobi; by the Third War, they had twenty-one Jōnin and exactly six hundred registered shinobi.

Hyuga, Ino-Shika-Cho, Sarutobi, Shimura.

After scanning the data in the scroll, Shisui pondered for a moment and grasped the intention behind Uchiha Chen presenting these figures.

Among the dozen or so medium-to-large clans in Konoha, the number of Jōnin and shinobi had remained stable or seen slight growth over the twenty-plus years from the First War to the Third War, with only two exceptions.

Uchiha and Sarutobi.

The Uchiha Clan, once the premier clan of Konoha, had declined, while the Sarutobi Clan had surged from four Jōnin and over five hundred shinobi to eleven Jōnin and over a thousand shinobi during these two decades.

Today, in terms of sheer numbers, the Sarutobi Clan was the largest in Konoha, and in terms of overall strength, they were second only to the ancient, prestigious Uchiha and Hyuga clans.

The naked data did not lie.

Shisui felt as if the light scroll weighed a thousand pounds, making his hands tremble slightly.

"Actually, it wouldn't matter if the Hokage took care of his own clansmen, skimmed a bit from the village to subsidize his family, or even suppressed the Uchiha!"

Uchiha Chen stood up from the bluestone and gazed into the distance at the Hokage Rock, which was faintly visible in the twilight.

"I truly think it doesn't matter; everyone has selfish motives! The real problem with Sarutobi Hiruzen is not this, but that he lacks virtue!"

Virtue?

Shisui was even more confused. He opened his mouth to say something like 'the Third is a kind-hearted elder,' but his throat felt inexplicably dry.

"Yes, virtue!"

Uchiha Chen raised his hand and pointed toward the Hokage Rock. Shisui followed his gesture, his gaze landing on the stone face of the First.

"The First possessed the virtue of a god!

He was the 'God of Shinobi,' the strongest individual in the millennium since the Sage of Six Paths founded the Ninjutsu Sect. With his Wood Release, he was invincible against all, so he didn't care!

He didn't care how many Jōnin or powerful individuals the Uchiha had, because after Uchiha Madara died, he could have wiped out the Uchiha Clan with one hand at any time, in any place."

(Senju Hashirama: Do you see my hundreds-of-meters-tall 'virtue'? I'll let you have nine hundred and ninety-nine hands first!)

Is this what you call virtue?

Shisui suspected there was something wrong with his ears.

"Of course, this is great virtue!" Uchiha Chen didn't need to look at Shisui's face to guess what he was thinking.

"To be able to destroy the once-hostile Uchiha at will and yet choose not to—is this not 'benevolence'?

To be able to act recklessly with his martial power and yet choose to unify the world and establish the shinobi village system—is this not 'righteousness'?

That is why the Uchiha were wholeheartedly convinced by his great virtue; they obeyed every order he gave. Even when the Uchiha clan head, Madara, defected from Konoha, not a single person dared to follow him."

Uh, so that's what 'virtue' is?

Shisui didn't know whether to laugh or cry. Upon closer reflection, Uchiha Chen's words seemed to hold a twisted sort of logic.

People admire strength, and the Uchiha admired it more than most. It was plausible that the First had subdued the Uchiha through his martial virtue.

"The Second, Senju Tobirama, possessed the virtue of a supreme leader!

His strength was far inferior to the First and Uchiha Madara!

Yet, in an era when the Two Heroes of the Ninja World had passed away, he was still stronger than the Kage of other villages and was the strongest in the ninja world at that time.

He did not fear the Uchiha's Jōnin, but he remained wary of the Mangekyō.

He personally developed countless forbidden jutsu specifically to counter the Uchiha—this was his 'wisdom.' He also handed the powerful Military Police Force to the Uchiha, took your grandfather Kagami as a disciple, and used rules to restrain and drive the Uchiha—this could be called 'propriety.'

His virtue was effective, but it wasn't as open and honorable as the First's, which is why the clan was only half-convinced by him."

That actually makes sense!

Shisui nodded slightly. Uchiha Chen's words could be corroborated by the behavior of the elders in the clan:

Whenever the First was mentioned, they would sing his praises without a hint of arrogance; when the Second was mentioned, they would use all sorts of sarcastic remarks, yet they still spoke well of his governance.

However, when it came to the Third.

Shisui shook his head, truly not wanting to recall those foul-mouthed rants.

"And what about the Third?" Uchiha Chen spread his hands.

"He is strong, but not strong enough, so he has no virtue.

Uchiha Madara was a special case, but powerful Mangekyō users like Uchiha Izuna appear in the Uchiha clan every generation or two.

The Second could defeat a prime Uchiha Izuna, but can the Third?"

He is not up to the task!

Therefore, he is full of wariness toward the Uchiha, and only by restricting them both openly and covertly can he sleep soundly for a single night.

And as the Uchiha gradually decline under his rule, resentment naturally festers, and they are completely unconvinced by him!

Shisui nodded. Although Sarutobi Hiruzen is known as the Professor of Ninjutsu, he is indeed far inferior to the First, the strongest in a millennium, and the Second, who barely managed to be the strongest in the Shinobi World.

In the past twenty years of the Shinobi World, there have been four universally recognized kings:

The Strongest Shield Third Raikage A, the Wings of Iron Sand Third Kazekage, the Particle Style Ōnoki, the Demigod Hanzo of the Salamander, and the Professor of Ninjutsu Sarutobi Hiruzen.

These five are generally considered to be on the same tier, half a notch above many other top-tier experts like the Third Mizukage and the Sannin.

Although the Third Kazekage and the Third Raikage A have already died in battle, based on the intelligence gathered, Shisui still has a judgment regarding the strength of these five:

The Third Raikage A and Ōnoki are more difficult to deal with than Sarutobi Hiruzen.

Of these two, one possesses the highest defense and error tolerance in the Shinobi World with his Lightning Release Armor, and the other has Particle Style that kills upon contact and can fly; both are extreme in their own ways.

Sarutobi Hiruzen, on the other hand, is like an honor student who scores 90 in every subject. His total score is very high, but if you have one subject scored above 90, you can try to fight him. Even if you are defeated, escaping from his hands is easier than escaping from the Third Raikage A or Ōnoki.

Wait, why have I started thinking about how to kill the Hokage?

Shisui shook his head vigorously, but this treasonous thought could not be shaken off; it even took deeper root in his mind.

My brain is no longer clean!

Shisui looked at Uchiha Chen with grief and indignation.

Could this kid have received too much information at once and had his brain malfunction?

Seeing the look of someone who had been broken on Shisui's face, Uchiha Chen whispered with a guilty conscience:

"Shisui, are you alright?"

"I have never heard your perspective before, yet it seems to have some logic to it. I am unable to distinguish right from wrong for the moment. I will have to think about it carefully later."

Shisui let out a long breath and asked with some confusion: "There is one more thing. How did you discover that I had awakened the Mangekyō? I hid it so well!"

Because I have read the manga!

Uchiha Chen naturally could not say that, so he feigned mystery and replied:

"Why? Because... the Sharingan..."

In that instant, countless images flashed through Uchiha Chen's mind, and he had a sudden flash of inspiration, thinking of a certain white-haired man wearing a mask.

"Your Chakra levels!"

Uchiha Chen quickly provided a logical and well-founded analysis:

If one uses the twelve-year-old Kakashi, who had just been promoted to Jōnin, as a unit of Chakra measurement, then Shisui, also twelve years old, had less than 0.9 Kakashi units just a few months ago.

But now, his Chakra volume is close to 3 Kakashi units. Such an unreasonable increase in Chakra in a short period of time has only one possibility:

Shisui's Yin Release has undergone a qualitative improvement! He has awakened the Mangekyō!

Perfect deduction!

As for why he had to use the Kakashi from two years ago as the Chakra measurement unit...

Don't ask!

This is called: "If Heaven had not given birth to Hatake Kakashi, the Chakra measurement of the Shinobi World would have been as long as an eternal night!"