This... is this still the Great Fireball Technique?!" Everyone looked at Rock Lee in shock, unable to believe what they saw.
As we all know, the Great Fireball is only a C-rank Ninjutsu, and its single attack power is relatively standard.
However, Rock Lee's fireball was far too abnormal!
The sand had melted!
In mid-air, Rock Lee stood frozen, staring at his own hands in disbelief.
"Is this the power of Ninjutsu?!"
He looked at Shukaku, now a molten glass sculpture, and couldn't believe that he was the one who caused it.
"Damn it, thick eyebrows!" Naruto shouted, "I knew you could do it! Hahahaha!"
Rock Lee scratched the back of his head, embarrassed.
Click!
Suddenly, a sharp crack echoed as Shukaku's hardened form fractured.
The monstrous figure broke free from the glass, though now it was several times smaller than before.
"Damn it!" Shukaku looked at his diminished form, roared in rage, and swung his tail to attack Rock Lee.
This damn little bug had actually caused him such serious damage—unforgivable!
"Come on!" Seeing that his Ninjutsu was effective, Rock Lee's confidence surged. He shouted and rushed at Shukaku again.
However, his speed was clearly not as fast as before.
"Lee, what on earth happened to you?!" Neji clenched his fists below, staring in disbelief at Rock Lee battling Shukaku mid-air.
He hadn't expected that the former dead-last of their team would suddenly possess such overwhelming power.
In taijutsu, Lee had already left him far behind. He had thought he still held an edge in Ninjutsu, but now Lee had suddenly released an S-rank level fireball.
Neji felt a deep sense of defeat.
"Is this fate?"
"Am I destined to be someone else's stepping stone?"
Snort!
Suddenly, a cold voice interrupted his thoughts.
"If you continue to comfort yourself with that excuse of 'fate,' your career as a shinobi will end here."
Neji turned and saw the man Naruto called "Boss Haruto" standing behind him with Ino and Hinata.
"What do you mean?" Neji asked, trying to mask the emotions in his voice.
"Fate?" Haruto scoffed. "What is fate?"
"Is it the 'Caged Bird Curse' carved into your forehead just because you were born into the Hyuga branch house?"
"And that justifies every failure?!" Haruto's voice rose.
"So, when you win, you're the genius of the Hyuga Clan?"
"And when you lose, it's because your vision is incomplete?"
"What a load of garbage!" Haruto spat to the ground.
"The status of being Hyuga only gives you a better platform to understand the shinobi world. Whether you succeed or not still depends on you!"
"Does Rock Lee have a noble bloodline?" Haruto gestured to Lee mid-battle. "He's just a civilian ninja!"
"But even such a civilian has now shown strength that surpasses yours."
"Uchiha Sasuke was born into a prestigious clan!" Haruto continued. "But look at him—he still struggles against a nobody sometimes!"
"Fate? That's just the excuse you use to feel better about not trying hard enough."
"I..." Neji opened his mouth, but no words came out.
Lei Luo's words were harsh, but undeniably true.
He had enjoyed the status of a Hyuga genius while resenting the clan.
He hated that his Byakugan was incomplete and envied the main house.
He blamed the clan for his father's death—yet even when the clan head reached out to him, he had refused.
But now, beaten by Hinata and watching Rock Lee rise before his eyes, Neji finally started to confront the truth.
Haruto's words cut deep because they were true:
He still hadn't dared to face his real self.
"Brother Neji!" Hinata spoke softly, but her voice carried weight. "Father has always treated you like his own son."
"He has long felt guilty over uncle's death and wanted to make it right… but the clan elders…" Hinata trailed off.
Even as the main house heir, she could not speak freely about them.
"Sou ka..." Neji murmured. Something clicked inside him.
"But how did Lee suddenly become so strong?!" Neji still struggled to understand it.
"He was normal on missions before the Chūnin Exams. Since then, it's like he's a completely different person."
"Hehe!" Haruto smiled. "Want to know the answer? Then come visit my Golden Egg Shop."
With that, Haruto turned and walked away with the two girls at his side.
Rock Lee likely wouldn't hold out much longer.
Haruto clenched his fists.
That scheming Third Hokage had deliberately waited until Lei Luo was the most unprepared to throw this burden on him.
Though Haruto was strong, even he had limits—especially when going up against a massive Tailed Beast alone.
"What a sly old man!" Haruto muttered bitterly.
A-choo!
Far above, on the rooftop, Sarutobi Hiruzen—still exchanging shuriken with Orochimaru—suddenly sneezed.
"Haha!" Orochimaru sneered, "Sensei, it seems your age is catching up to you. You're already falling apart!"
"Hmph, Orochimaru!" Sarutobi Hiruzen snapped, "You better save your breath!"
"You dared to collude with the Sand Shinobi and launch a war against Konoha. I won't let you walk away this time!"
"Really?" Orochimaru grinned with cold malice. "I wonder if you'll still say that… after seeing this!"
He formed a long, intricate series of hand seals, then slammed his hands onto the roof tiles.
"Summoning: Impure World Reincarnation!"
Three purple-black spirals opened in the ground, like holes in time itself.
From them, three wooden coffins slowly rose.
"What?!" Sarutobi's eyes widened in shock.
"You wicked disciple… you actually mastered that technique?!"
"Haha!" Orochimaru cackled. "I have to thank you, sensei—for not killing me back then!"
Sarutobi Hiruzen narrowed his eyes as the three coffins fully emerged, his expression solemn.
End of the Chapter.
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