Board Thread:Naruto Discussions/@comment-995176-20161122010151/@comment-734582-20161122182021

AsianReaper wrote: What do you mean people are powerful because they're Jonin, but not Jonin because they're powerful? Basically to be Jonin you need to be smart and adaptable and tactically capable. They're all skills you can also apply to creating, learning and combining Jutsu. So it's not that people who are strong, become Jonin. Rather, it's that Jonin possess skills that are also useful to become strong. E.g. that very tactical analysis you need to make proper decisions, also help you see through the enemy's tactics and make you both a better fighter AND a better commander. While virtues like patience help you train better.

Note that people like Itachi remained perfectly calm when under deadly threats against godlike enemies, and so survived (rather than freaking out and dying). But that perfect calm and dedication also helped him train endlessly in his shuriken jutsu, and thus becoming strong.