The peak efficiency of knowledge and strategy is to make conflict unnecessary.
In the tumult and uproar, the battle seems chaotic, but there is no disorder, the troops appear to be milling about in circles but cannot be defeated.
Keep your friends close and your enemies even closer.
Begin by seizing something which your opponent holds dear; then he will be amenable to your will.
The natural formation of the country is the soldier's best ally
So in war, the way is to avoid what is strong and to strike at what is weak. Water shapes its course according to the nature of the ground over which it flows; the soldier works out his victory in relation to the foe whom he is facing.