Konoha: The King of Souls from Uchiha

c60: This is Very Filial

"What is the meaning of your life?"

Uchiha Gen's gaze was full of expectation, the glint in his Sharingan reflecting appreciation and belief in the future.

"To make the Uchiha clan great again greater than ever before!"

Uchiha Itachi responded earnestly, his eyes calm but his tone resolute.

"Very good," Gen nodded, "but when you talk to others about your dream, I think you should add one more line."

"What do you want me to add, Brother Gen?"

"Make Konoha great again make Konoha even greater."

"Because we Uchiha aren't just any shinobi we are one of the pillars of Konohagakure."

"Make the Uchiha great again, and naturally, Konoha will rise with it."

Itachi pondered this deeply. He recalled stories of how Uchiha Madara once stood alongside Senju Hashirama to found Konoha. If the Uchiha had always embraced such a mindset, maybe the clan's destiny would have turned out differently.

"Brother Gen, you're right. I'll add that sentence from now on."

Uchiha Fugaku... is this really how you educated Itachi? Gen thought to himself. How could any father drag his barely seven-year-old son to the battlefield and still expect him to bear that kind of weight with silence and honor?

That's not strict discipline, it's detachment masked as tradition. You never even explained the burden you forced on him, only projected your frustration. If I were their father, I'd guide them with meaning, not merely demand results.

This, this is the true meaning of life.

Life is born, life dies, life struggles… but life has no meaning? That's the kind of cynical nihilism that infects broken adults, not children.

At such a young age, what "profound" thoughts about existence could they truly grasp? Adults who force such thinking on them are either naïve or cruel.

"It's all just nonsense. Pretentious adult nonsense," Gen muttered under his breath.

"Very well," he continued aloud. "Shisui, Itachi would you like to hear my thoughts on the meaning of life?"

"Yes!" Shisui answered, eyes shining like twin moons.

"I would too!" Itachi leaned forward, as if grasping for truth he'd always craved but never received.

"Then listen carefully choose a goal, a dream, and pursue it with everything you've got."

"When you're old, and you look back on your journey, you won't regret wasting your youth or feel ashamed for living passively."

"That's how people should live. What do you think?"

Such simple words, yet they hit like thunder. Shisui felt a chill; the words resonated like the Will of Fire once spoken by the Third Hokage, but with the clarity of a peer, not a leader.

He's so far ahead of us in wisdom, thought Shisui. To think someone our age can speak with such gravity…

Itachi, silent for a moment, clenched his fists. This will be my motto. I'll inscribe it on my wall, live by it, become it.

"There's more."

"An inch of time is worth an inch of gold—but you can't buy back even a second once it's passed."

"Youth is fleeting. If you waste it waiting for the right time, the leaves will fall before you ever bloom."

"I urge you not to treasure silk-robes while you're young, but to cherish your youth itself. When flowers bloom, don't hesitate to pick them. Don't wait until the branches are bare and regret comes too late."

Gen's words—part proverb, part poetry made Shisui's eyes gleam with admiration. In that moment, he seemed not like a shinobi, but a philosopher, a sage.

Even Itachi, always so calm, looked utterly enchanted. Little stars twinkled in his eyes as he memorized every word, already planning to write them down when he returned home.

Gen glanced at the two, quietly satisfied with their reactions.

If I quoted every poem and philosophy I remember from school, would I become the clan's sage?

But no, he reminded himself: Too much at once spoils the lesson. Better to build layer by layer. Let the seed grow before planting the next.

"These teachings about time and life don't mean you should work endlessly."

"Don't rush. Balance diligence with rest. Use the right methods—that way, everything becomes more efficient."

"Understand?"

He smirked inwardly. This way, I have an excuse to take it easy later. Let them burn themselves out if they want. I'm not doing the 007 routine.

"Understood!" Shisui and Itachi answered in unison, serious yet energized.

"Good."

Clap!

Suddenly, Uchiha Gen clapped his hands together. "I almost forgot! I still haven't answered Itachi's original question. Let's circle back."

"The one-country-one-village system has been in place for decades. But look at what's happened."

"The First Shinobi World War erupted soon after the death of the First Hokage, Senju Hashirama. The Second Hokage, Senju Tobirama, led us to victory but he too fell."

"Then came the Second Shinobi World War. And the Third, which only ended recently."

"With each war, the scale grew. The death toll rose. And now…"

He paused. His tone darkened.

"Now we're back to the days of the Warring States children forced to the front lines."

"Itachi, if you weren't still so young, you'd already be out there. Did you know Kakashi Hatake entered the battlefield at five? He became a Chūnin at six. He was leading squads when other kids were still learning to read."

Itachi shivered. He knew of Kakashi's feats but hearing them spoken like this made it feel terrifyingly real.

The cycle of death and duty. The burden of legacy. The fate of children groomed for war.

"This obviously goes against the founding ideals of Konoha.ideals built to keep children away from war, to build a stable village, and to pursue lasting peace."

"Doesn't the current situation prove that the First Hokage's beliefs were too idealistic, too naïve and ultimately flawed?"

"They're not flawed!" Uchiha Itachi refuted with conviction in his young but firm voice.

"Sigh… The First Hokage truly had noble intentions, but perhaps… his methods were too hopeful." Uchiha Shisui exhaled, eyes filled with sorrow.

"That's why I believe there's only one path to real peace in the shinobi world: unification of all hidden villages under one banner!"

As someone who had been Chinese in his previous life, the Grand Unification principle had long been etched into Uchiha Gen's soul. Deep down, his instincts naturally resonated with Uchiha Madara's long-condemned ideology.

"You believe that a united ninja world can bring about true peace?" Shisui asked, a flicker of hope in his eyes.

"I want to say yes, but I can't be sure. It's a path no one has fully walked."

"Uchiha Madara had the vision but he lacked the opportunity to realize it."

"But if we manage to unite the ninja world properly and govern it with true wisdom, I believe we could bring peace for at least a century perhaps even several."

"That span is enough for us and future generations to discover a method for preserving peace indefinitely."

"Isn't that worth striving for?" Gen's eyes shone like tempered steel unyielding, clear, and sharp.

In truth, Gen had already conceived of a long-term blueprint for permanent peace something rooted in civilian education, economic control, and an information network but it was too fantastical to say aloud. Anyone who heard it now would probably call him mad!

No need to push that yet. These words alone were already powerful enough to plant the seeds of conviction in Shisui and Itachi seeds that would guide them for a lifetime.

"Good! Excellent! Perfect!"

"In addition to making the Uchiha and Konoha great againthis shall be my life's greatest goal!" Shisui's eyes burned with new resolve, his Sharingan spinning slightly.

"And mine too. I, Uchiha Itachi, will dedicate my life to this path!" Itachi declared. His youthful face carried a maturity far beyond his years, his gaze filled with blinding clarity the kind of clarity only those who have glimpsed a higher meaning can possess.

"Then from today, we are comrades!" Gen smiled.

"Comrades?" Shisui tilted his head.

"Yes. Same mind, same goal, same hardships, same joys. Together we endure, together we prosper."

"Ah, I get it now. Trust you to make it sound so grand…" Shisui grinned, "We really are comrades, huh?"

"We are indeed gay!" he suddenly exclaimed.

Gen twitched slightly at the awkward phrasing, but Itachi was already dazzled.

Two simple words yet such weight! he thought. Brother Gen truly has a way with language!

"So, Brother Gen," Shisui said after a moment, "what's the first step toward our ultimate goal?"

Uchiha Itachi also turned toward Gen, his expression filled with intense curiosity.

"Make the Uchiha great again, make Konoha great again, then make the entire shinobi world great again. It's a progression. One step at a time."

"And the first step is a 'small' goal."

"Have an Uchiha become Hokage."

Hiss… Both Shisui and Itachi inhaled sharply, overwhelmed.

Even the legendary Uchiha Madara failed to become Hokage. The village's current fourth Hokage was already decided and he wasn't from the Uchiha clan.

But the Fifth? That was an open field. Whether it ended up being Minato Namikaze or Orochimaru, both of them had Uchiha protégés under their command.

Hiss... Brother Gen is already executing the plan?! Shisui was stunned. He actually laid the foundation this early?!

Looking at Shisui's reaction, Gen could tell what was going through his mind. In truth, he hadn't thought that far when he started this was sheer improvisation but why not lean into it?

He gave a silent, cryptic nod.

Hiss… Shisui nearly trembled. This move… It could change everything!

Seeing Shisui this shaken, Itachi was bewildered. His face scrunched with confusion. What is going on with Shisui-nii-san?

Following the spirit of "ask when you don't understand," Uchiha Itachi promptly raised the question on his mind.

In response, Shisui began to explain everything from his relationship with Minato and Orochimaru, to how the Uchiha had quietly gained influential ties within future Hokage candidates' circles.

When Itachi heard this, he was shaken to his core. His gaze toward Gen was practically reverent, his eyes glowing like the evening stars.

As for his father's so-called approval or participation Uchiha Itachi had long since stopped caring. Just giving a perfunctory nod any rational adult can do that. If you opposed it, you'd practically be betraying the clan!

Whoever stands in the way of Uchiha, Konoha, or the unity of the shinobi world must fall.

If Gen had known what Itachi was thinking at this moment, he would've been stunned.

Now that's what I call being filial!

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