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The other side, Kakashi and Gai, having finished their deep discussions, returned to supervise the sparring match.
Kakashi watched Sasuke, while Gai watched Rock Lee.
Naruto felt incredibly depressed, no need to even mention it.Ā Kakashi, who raised you, anyway? Was it my chuunibyou dad or your internet-addicted teammate? Why are you taking such good care of Sasuke!?
He shot Kakashi a fierce glare.Ā Kakashi, you just wait. When Minato comes back in the Fourth Great Ninja War, I'll have him beat you to death, then give Kushina a note so she can beat you to death again.
Naruto, already depressed, turned his head and saw Tenten staring intently at Neji, which made him even more depressed.
So, both sides have someone to care about, but I'm the only one no one's paying attention to.
Just as Naruto considered whether to drag Hinata over to watch, Rock Lee formed the Confrontation Hand Seal towards Naruto: "I'm ready, Naruto-kun."
This was the hand seal Konoha ninjas used for sparring. Its counterpart was the Reconciliation Hand Seal.
"Oh. I'm ready too." Naruto just remembered he needed this, and returned the Confrontation Hand Seal.
After the song finished, the four moved almost simultaneously.
"Leaf Great Whirlwind!" As the second chorus began, Rock Lee leaped and launched a probing leg attack at Naruto.
Yes, the second chorus, because Naruto had set it to loop.
Naruto returned a similar move to Rock Lee. Their two legs clashed together, making a sound like metal striking metal.
Naruto was wearing weights, and so was Rock Lee. This was also why Naruto didn't use Naruto-style Wing Chun to block that kick; the force was too great, and blocking it with his hands would make him lose his balance.
Both landed simultaneously and began close-quarters combat. Without any opening stance, Rock Lee went straight for Naruto's chest with a direct punch.
This time, Naruto-style Wing Chun came online. He took half a step forward, grabbing upwards at Rock Lee's wrist. Rock Lee also took half a step forward, bending his forearm back, striking Naruto's palm with his elbow.
It hurt a little, but Naruto could endure it. Because his tolerance for pain was extraordinarily high. How much could it hurt, compared to hundreds of clones exploding at once?
Grabbing Rock Lee's elbow, he lifted it up, and with his other hand, he balled a fist and aimed for Rock Lee's stomach. Rock Lee used his other hand to block Naruto's fist, exerting force with one hand while using his other elbow as a pivot point on Naruto's palm to leap up, aiming both knees at Naruto's chest.
Naruto quickly retracted his hands, blocking Rock Lee's knees, and was pushed back two steps.
Wait, Lee, your routine is off. I'm fighting you with Wing Chun, and you're fighting me with Muay Thai? Aren't you supposed to be fighting with Drunken Fist?
Ignoring the pain in his hands, Naruto chose to go on the offensive this time.
On the other side, Sasuke and Neji were also in the initial stages of taijutsu probing. Neji belonged to the type that dominated with one set of Gentle Fist techniques. Sasuke, on the other hand, integrated the strengths of many schools. Coupled with the Sharingan's dynamic vision, he could always use various methods to neutralize Neji's attacks. Overall, Sasuke had the advantage.
The main reason was Sasuke's relative understanding of Gentle Fist, as there had always been someone who used Gentle Fist among those he trained with. How well did he understand it? Meaning, even if the Sharingan couldn't see the chakra points, it could see enough for Sasuke to perform a set of Gentle Fist himself.
This was also one of the reasons Naruto had such an easy time fighting his brother-in-law before, because he was familiar with the Hyuga's attack patterns and had ways to counter them. Hinata, unknowingly, had sold Neji out, and twice at that.
Coupled with the current background music, if Neji understood the situation, he could basically lie on the ground and give up resistance, while mournfully lamenting, "I'm not naturally strong; I'm just destined to be defeated."
The two fought for over a minute. Initially, Naruto still used Wing Chun, but after realizing Rock Lee had a counter for it, he abandoned Wing Chun and instead used the Tree Punching martial art he had practiced for years. The method must have been developed by Rock Lee and Gai. There are no invincible techniques in the world; they are all conceived by people and will always have a way to be countered. Moreover, Naruto's technique wasn't true Wing Chun; it was a self-created style, so it was normal for taijutsu masters like Gai and Rock Lee to break it.
"Lee, take it off," Gai said, giving Rock Lee a thumbs up. He had watched long enough to understand the gap between the two.
Aside from the fact that Rock Lee hit Naruto once and Naruto hit Rock Lee twice, even if they just kept exhausting each other, Rock Lee would be the one to lose. Gai understood the yellow-haired kid's physical condition. Forget Rock Lee, even if you brought Neji and Sasuke over for a tag-team match, he could exhaust all three of them in one go without breaking a sweat. Maybe he could even take down Kakashi afterwards. With that kind of stamina, Rock Lee couldn't outlast him.
"Okay, Gai-sensei!" Rock Lee happily sat on the ground, removing his weights.
Naruto didn't interrupt him; he was removing his weights too. Almost simultaneously, they stood up and engaged in battle again.
After Naruto gave up on Wing Chun, Rock Lee returned to his normal mode. His fighting style was tough, and his attack techniques were also excellent. Naruto's fighting style could be summed up in one word: reckless.
After a short exchange, Naruto, enduring Rock Lee's punch to his chest, kicked him flying.
Rock Lee performed a carp leap to stand up, his hands crossed over his head: "Gai-sensei, I'm going to useĀ thatĀ move!"
Rock Lee realized he might not be able to beat the opponent and was about to activate his awakening.
Gai returned his words with a smile.
"Eight Inner Gates, First Gate, Gate of Opening, open!"
"Second Gate, Gate of Healing, Third Gate, Gate of Life, open! Fourth Gate, Gate of Pain, open!"
Veins bulged on Rock Lee's forehead, and his body began to emit green light again. Naruto began to form hand signs, preparing to use Wind Entanglement to face the enemy.
"Naruto-kun, here I come!" Rock Lee lowered his arms.
"Come on!"
Rock Lee suddenly exerted force, his speed incredibly fast. Naruto also charged forward, his speed equally rapid.
"Boom!"
Their fists collided, kicking up a large cloud of dust. Naruto recoiled a few steps, his Wind Entanglement dispelled.
He cursed Kakashi under his breath.
Look at this crappy skill you taught me. Not only was it negated by Neji's chakra, but it can also be blown away by the strong airflow accompanying Rock Lee's Eight Inner Gates.
Kakashi's Wind Entanglement was unreliable; he could only rely on his own secret technique.
Frantically stuffing ice into his mouth, Naruto activated his Secret Technique: Nine-Second Death. As soon as the skill was activated, steam began to rise from Naruto's mouth and nostrils, followed by his ear canals, and then his pores.
Naruto hadn't initially intended to use this move. The consequences were secondary; it was just that after four seconds, he had to clench his buttocks and anus, which made him feel very uncomfortable. If he didn't clench, he would have a jet acceleration like inĀ KartRider, which was unacceptable.
"Continue," Naruto exhaled a puff of white air.
"Alright, Eight Inner Gates, Fifth Gate, Gate of Closing, open!"
Rock Lee understood Naruto's technique and didn't dare to be careless, activating his strongest state. Both sides collided again. Two high-speed, high-strength ninjas clashing, the battlefield unconsciously began to expand.
Sasuke and Neji on the other side had already stopped fighting. The visibility under the swirling dust wasn't a major issue, but the constantly flying tree trunks and rocks made it impossible for the two to continue fighting. It was impossible to fight; just dodging all that chaotic stuff was troublesome enough.
Leaping onto the treetops to distance themselves from the battlefield, the two stood facing each other, exchanging glances, a sense of mutual appreciation between them. Dealing with teammates who fought like their lives depended on it was indeed a headache.
Secret Technique: Nine-Second Death is a technique that gets progressively stronger after its release. In the first three seconds, Rock Lee, with his faster speed from opening the Fifth Gate, pressed Naruto. By the fourth second, Naruto could barely keep up with Rock Lee.
In the fifth second, Naruto matched Rock Lee's speed.
In the seventh second, Naruto kicked Rock Lee flying, causing him to break several trees.
Rock Lee struggled to get up. Gai called a stop to the match. He was afraid Rock Lee might get overexcited and open the Sixth Gate. With Rock Lee's current physique, opening the Sixth Gate would definitely cause irreversible damage. Unlike the Chunin Exams, where Rock Lee needed to embody his ninja way, this was merely a casual spar.
It was just that both participants were fighting like their lives depended on it.
The winner had been decided. Logically, they should have performed the Reconciliation Hand Seal, but one was incapacitated by the after-effects of opening the Fifth Gate, and the other's legs were unsteady from the after-effects of his secret technique, so they simply let it go.
Naruto sat down on the ground with a thud and took out a water bottle to drink. This secret technique was indeed powerful, but its after-effects were quite severe. Why was this technique so powerful? Because it killed you quickly.
This is a major characteristic of forbidden techniques: the quicker you die, the more powerful they are. Look at the Reaper Death Seal, how powerful it is, capable of sealing even the Nine-Tails. But Minato died less than two minutes after Kushina spoke, right after using it. And the Eight Inner Gates' Eighth Gate, how powerful it is. Gai, after opening it, didn't even last a minute before collapsing.
And Naruto's secret technique? Only nine seconds. Quicker than those two. If it wasn't powerful, it wouldn't live up to that death countdown. This is also due to Naruto's special physique. For most people, setting aside whether they can even use it, even if they could, lasting five seconds would be impressive. And even if they survived, they would suffer severe after-effects, with their meridians utterly ruined, something even Tsunade couldn't heal.
This is also why Sasuke copied it but didn't use it. Using this skill is worse than using the Eight Inner Gates. Why use it? To commit suicide?
It's fast, indeed. Quicker than slitting your own throat.