"Sensei, I'm back. Here's the lunch I prepared for you."
Shisui lifted the tent flap, holding roasted fish and chicken, a smile spread across his face.
"From your expression, it seems everything went smoothly."
Sima Yi, who was lying on the mat pretending to nap, opened his eyes at the sound and revealed a smile.
"Hehe, nothing can be hidden from Sensei."
Setting down the food, Shisui stepped forward to help him sit up and softly recounted, "At today's meeting, I had Brother Kai take the lead as you taught, and sure enough, we pushed the blame for the Mist Ninja attack onto Mitokado."
Shisui spoke animatedly, recounting the details of the morning meeting.
Sima Yi listened quietly while eating the barbecued food, occasionally nodding as if deep in thought.
"That commander is quite clever. He doesn't easily take sides but acts decisively."
"Jonin Suzaku, right?"
Shisui pondered, carefully considering Sensei's evaluation.
"Jonin Suzaku immediately stopped Kai before he could act, and then decisively dismissed and detained Mitokado Shogo. That was indeed decisive. But to say he doesn't easily take sides..."
Shisui furrowed his brow and thought for a moment before adding, "The Ino-Shika-Cho trio has always supported Lord Third. Just yesterday, he asked me for the captives. Isn't that supporting Mitokado and the others?"
Sima Yi looked at Shisui in surprise, not expecting that after just a morning apart, Shisui had begun to think critically.
"You're starting to learn to think, which is good. But you still don't see the bigger picture. Third is Third, and Mitokado is Mitokado."
"Exchanging captives after the war is only natural. He merely reminded you; he didn't insist on keeping them last night. When Kai and Mitokado clashed verbally, he also didn't intervene. That already shows he doesn't want to get involved in this matter."
"Then why protect Shogo Jonin in the end?"
"Your thinking is becoming too harsh."
Sima Yi did not explain further, instead looking at Shisui with a serious expression.
"Eh?"
Shisui was taken aback, caught off guard by the sudden reprimand.
"Don't hold anyone to the standards you set. If you want to see the truth of a situation, you need to learn to think from the other person's perspective; only then can you understand the pros and cons."
"From the other person's perspective…"
Shisui pondered, thinking about what he would do if he were Nara Suzaku at that moment.
"He is the commander of the Eastern Front. If he allowed Brother Kai to incite other Jonin to take action, it would inevitably cause chaos. That would be Jonin Suzaku's dereliction of duty."
Shisui murmured his analysis, his thoughts becoming clearer.
"Shogo Jonin is a member of the Mitokado family. Nara doesn't want to incite public anger, but he also doesn't want to offend the Mitokado family, so he chose to transfer him to Third!"
"Very good." Sima Yi stroked his beard and nodded in satisfaction, "But you've still overlooked one point."
"Please teach me, sensei!"
"His position has always been with the Hokage, and the Hokage's goal is still to suppress Uchiha, so he won't allow Uchiha to establish prestige in front of the other ninjas, which is why he intervened at the last moment to stop Kai."
"Not only that, do you remember his deployment regarding the Uchiha today?"
Shisui nodded and replied, "I have to lead the Uchiha clan members to stay back and keep an eye on the remaining Mist Ninjas to prevent any dangerous actions.
But…
Is there a problem with this? Uchiha has always been the last to leave the battlefield; this is a trust in our strength!"
Sima Yi fell silent, giving Shisui a deep look before sighing lightly, "The road ahead is long and heavy."
"Eh?"
Upon hearing this, Shisui quickly scratched his head, slightly retracting his neck, feeling quite embarrassed.
Sima Yi shook his head, getting up to leave with a serious expression
"You lead the troops to hold the rear, yet they return to Konoha in large numbers to receive the people's adoration. When you return to Konoha, will there be anyone waiting to welcome you?"
"No." Shisui shook his head, looking somewhat dejected. This wasn't his first time on the battlefield.
But each time they returned, all that awaited them were their own family members and clan members, not the village.
"With such actions, who will still know of Uchiha's merits? Who will remember Uchiha's kindness? Over time, there will only be hatred, not gratitude. How can the Uchiha endure in such a way?"
"No, we are ninjas. Ninjas are the nameless ones who uphold peace in the darkness!"
Shisui's gaze was intense; this was his ninja way, his long-held conviction.
And what about Sima Yi?
He looked at Shisui, gradually confirming his own thoughts. Instead of directly countering the idea of what a ninja was, he calmly asked, "Were those two Mist Ninjas ninjas?"
Shisui didn't understand why his sensei's thinking was always so unpredictable, but after a moment of consideration, he honestly replied, "Yes."
They can extract Chakra, use Ninjutsu, and even have official ninja numbers in the Hidden Mist Village. Who can say they are not ninjas?
"Is the Daimyo of the Land of Fire a ninja?"
"No."
"What's the difference?"
"The difference is that Mist Ninjas are…"
Shisui's pupils constricted. What is the distinction between a ninja and a non-ninja?
His first thought was that Mist Ninjas can use Chakra and Ninjutsu, rather than practicing his ninja way.
"Because Mist Ninjas can extract Chakra and use Ninjutsu, while the Daimyo cannot, right?"
Sima Yi walked in front of Shisui, a half-smile on his face. "Setting aside Chakra and Ninjutsu, Mist Ninjas and the Daimyo have no difference at all. Now tell me, what are Chakra and Ninjutsu?"
"They are tools for killing."
Shisui lowered his head, his hands trembling slightly. It wasn't just Chakra; this pair of eyes was merely a tool for him as well!
A tool for killing, and a tool to restore the relationship with his village and family.
"So, do they need to impose a shackling definition on themselves because of a knife or a hoe?"
Sima Yi's expression was indifferent; these things had always been tools to him. Reputation, credibility, and prestige were consumables, and binding oneself with them was a foolish act.
Shisui was left speechless; he knew that the person Sensei was talking about was him.
Simply because of Chakra, Ninjutsu, and that exam, he became a ninja, becoming an anonymous figure who had to sacrifice in the darkness.
Who defines such ninjas?
Shisui couldn't even recall when he began to hold such thoughts.
However, all along, everyone clearly…
His pupils trembled slightly. He wanted to argue for Konoha, to defend the Third, to justify himself, and to advocate for the profession of ninja, but no matter how he thought about it, he couldn't find any reason.
Yes, Sensei was right.
The reason ninjas are ninjas is simply because they can extract Chakra and use Ninjutsu.
Shisui sighed and painfully closed his eyes; his ninja way, the path he had always adhered to and practiced, had been shaken by Sensei—no, by himself.
He was still too young.
Sima Yi shook his head; his words were actually a fallacy. This ninja was not the same as that ninja, but Shisui had been constantly guided to deny himself. Perhaps once he calmed down, he would realize something was wrong.
However, Sima Yi wouldn't give him that chance.
"Now, tell me, without this identity of a ninja, the Uchiha and they are all citizens of Konoha. If there is no distinction, why are they repeatedly mistreated?"
"Because… because the Third wants to suppress the Uchiha!"
"Hahaha, that's right."