One month later — Training Ground 99.
Naruto, Neji, and Lee all arrived as promised.
Neji lifted his chin and looked down at Naruto with pride.
> "Come at me."
He had spent the entire month preparing for this day. Neji had been training like a madman, so much so that even his uncle, Hyūga Hiashi, wondered if perhaps he had gone overboard when punishing him with the Caged Bird Seal last time.
> "Lee."
> "Yes, Naruto-sensei!"
At Naruto's call, Rock Lee stood ramrod straight, eyes burning with determination.
> "Lee!" Lee turned to Neji and held out his hand in a formal stance.
> "Hmph." Neji just snorted coldly, not even bothering with a greeting.
To him, Rock Lee was nothing more than a joke. There was no chance a failure like him could win.
That was the pride of the Hyūga Clan's "genius."
---
The Duel Begins
Lee made the first move — launching forward at incredible speed and aiming a brutal roundhouse right at Neji's kidney.
It was the kind of kick that screamed "I will destroy your kidneys and everything they stand for."
Neji didn't panic. Calmly focusing chakra into his hands, he switched from fists to palms — and with the fluidity of the Gentle Fist, redirected the blow with ease.
> "You're strong, Neji," Lee complimented without hesitation.
> "Hmph. Barely acceptable," Neji muttered coldly.
If this is all he's got, I've already won. Neji was confident. Perhaps a little too confident.
Lee's expression sharpened.
> "Then I'll get serious now."
Without delay, he launched a flurry of sweeping kicks.
Knee up — rotation through the waist — an explosive whip of the leg slicing the air like a lash.
High, middle, low — a series of fluid, relentless strikes aimed at Neji's head, chest, and abdomen.
He finished with a sweeping leg strike, twisting his hips and swinging with everything he had.
Each attack rolled into the next with no pause. Lee's offense was blinding.
---
The White Eyes Open
> "Byakugan!"
Faced with such aggression, Neji had no choice but to activate his bloodline limit.
Veins bulged around his temples, forming the signature web of the Byakugan — the Hyūga Clan's legendary eye technique.
360-degree vision. X-ray perception. Chakra pathway detection. A telescopic, hyper-insightful visual field.
His vision sharpened to its absolute peak. Lee's movements, while fast, were now readable.
Every strike was countered with precise Gentle Fist deflections.
> "Such power… such speed…"
Neji shook off his tingling forearms, quietly impressed by Lee's growth over the month — though he didn't show it on his face.
> "Is that all you've got?"
If this was it, the victory still belonged to him.
The Gentle Fist was the perfect counter to physical taijutsu — and in a one-on-one battle with someone of equal level, Neji was untouchable.
Though… he was starting to feel the strain.
> "I admit you've grown strong. Your strength and speed… they're making me work for this."
He offered a forced smirk.
> "But that's all they are — effort. Hard work. Not enough to surpass me."
> "Anyone else in our class would've lost by now."
> "But unfortunately for you… your opponent is me."
> "The genius of the Hyūga clan — Hyūga Neji."
> "I've already seen your fate. You're destined to lose."
He was stunned that Lee had improved so much — and even more stunned at what it implied.
> If Lee could grow like this in a month…
Could I? Could I defy fate too?
---
Respect Between Fighters
> "Naruto-sensei said you're strong."
Lee's eyes were steady as he looked at Neji with sincere admiration.
> "And you really are. That's why I'll fight you with everything I've got."
> "Wait. Are you saying you haven't been going all out?!" Neji's voice cracked.
Was this guy serious?!
Just how much had he grown in a single month!?
There's no way. Taijutsu took years to master — countless hours of repetition.
How could he catch up in just one month?
> It's impossible.
He's bluffing…
But Lee didn't say anything more.
Instead, he turned to Naruto, who gave him a small nod.
Without hesitation, Lee untied the white bandages wrapped around his legs.
Neji's jaw dropped.
> "What the—?!"
Weights.
Under the bandages were weights — slabs of heavy metal strapped to his legs.
When Lee dropped them, they hit the ground with a CRASH, kicking up a cloud of dust.
Neji hadn't noticed them before, his attention focused on Lee's chakra.
> Those… those weights…
He was moving like that while wearing them?!
Lee stretched his legs and cracked his joints, the difference in movement already obvious.
He stared at Neji seriously.
> "Here I come."
And then—he moved.
---
Too Fast to Follow
> "He's—fast!!"
Even with Byakugan fully active, Neji could only see flickers of Lee's motion.
No longer held back by his weights, Lee was a blur — faster than Neji could process.
It's true Lee's weights weren't as massive as during the Chūnin Exams in the original timeline, but neither was Neji as strong as he would be then.
He didn't know Rotation. He hadn't mastered Eight Trigrams: Thirty-Two Palms.
> "Gentle Fist!"
Neji fought seriously now, pouring everything he had into each counter.
The Hyūga clan's Gentle Fist could target chakra points, sealing off the opponent's chakra flow.
It was said that once a Hyūga got close, no ninja — no matter how skilled — could escape defeat.
Unfortunately for Neji, his opponent was Rock Lee.
Lee's power surpassed his. His speed left Neji in the dust.
If Neji had learned full domain techniques like Eight Trigrams Palm Rotation, maybe he could've kept up.
But he hadn't.
It didn't matter how precise your strike was if you couldn't hit your target.
> "All martial arts under heaven… none can match the speed of the swift."
Neji threw fists, palms, kicks — and hit nothing.
Meanwhile, every punch Lee landed made Neji wince and stagger.
In the end, Neji could do nothing.
He was completely and utterly overwhelmed.
No counters. No counters.
Just a one-sided beating.
Neji, the genius of the Hyūga clan, was reduced to a punching bag.
And finally—
> Neji collapsed, his face bruised and swollen, beaten into the dirt.
Defeated. Completely.
Hyūga Neji had lost.
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