As Lee and Sasuke took their positions to fight, Naruto sat to the side, deciding to watch the match unfold. He wasn't interested in fighting Lee himself, he didn't know much about Lee's abilities, and he was genuinely curious to see how strong both of them were.
It had been a while since he'd last seen Sasuke in a real fight, and as for Lee, Naruto had never seen him in combat. But having trained with Guy twice now, Naruto knew Lee might be pretty strong too.
Still, Sasuke was a genius, so Naruto found himself slightly leaning toward him when it came to who might win.
As the fight began, Lee made the first move.
In an instant, he closed the distance and aimed a kick at Sasuke's waist. But Sasuke had seen it coming he twisted his body slightly and blocked the kick with both hands.
'He's so strong,' Sasuke thought, feeling the impact reverberate through his arms.
His hands were still slightly numb from the blow, but Lee didn't stop. He immediately followed up with a punch aimed straight at Sasuke's face.
Seeing the swift punch coming, Sasuke tried to dodge to the left but in that very moment, Lee vanished and reappeared on the same side Sasuke was dodging toward.
'How is he this fast?' Sasuke thought, a flicker of fear running through him as Lee appeared right in front of him.
Sasuke couldn't react in time and Lee's kick connected squarely with his face, launching him backward and slamming him into the wall.
'What?! Sasuke lost that easily?' Naruto was beyond shocked, eyes wide as he watched the scene unfold. It wasn't even a proper fight it was a one-sided beating at this point.
For a moment, the room was completely silent, until Sasuke slowly began to push himself up from the floor.
"Don't get ahead of yourself, bushy brows. I was just a bit careless," Sasuke muttered, standing up with a cold glare directed at Lee.
With a flash, he activated his Sharingan. Everyone in the room could see the change...his eyes turning red, with two tomoe spinning in each.
"Sasuke~ looks so handsome now… wow, is that the Sharingan of the Uchiha clan~?" Sakura swooned like a fangirl, eyes sparkling as she stared at him.
"Sasuke, show that bushy brow what an Uchiha can do!" she added, trying to boost his confidence.
"Hmph." Sasuke snorted coldly, refocusing on Lee.
"Now I'll show you the true power of the Uchiha clan."
This time, Sasuke was the one to strike first. He dashed toward Lee, his expression sharp as he tracked Lee's every movement. With his Sharingan, he was confident he could read and anticipate everything Lee was about to do.
But as they clashed again in hand-to-hand combat, Lee quickly overpowered him. He landed a clean punch to Sasuke's gut in mere seconds—Sasuke couldn't even make proper use of his Sharingan.
Sasuke grunted in pain but kept fighting, throwing punches and kicks—but Lee dodged them all effortlessly, barely breaking a sweat. That only made Sasuke more frustrated.
Just as Sasuke was about to land a blow, Lee ducked down and swept at his legs.
"Konoha Whirlpool!"
Sasuke lost his balance, and before he could recover, Lee delivered another powerful kick to his face sending him flying again.
'Why? Even with my Sharingan, I still can't keep up with this guy...'
Sasuke looked utterly defeated in that moment, but there was also anger behind his eyes—anger at his own inability to match Lee.
Gritting his teeth, he pushed forward again, determined to close the distance.
'Guy-sensei... I'll prove it to everyone that hard work can Indeed defeat natural talent!'
Lee's eyes sharpened as he stared down the approaching Uchiha.
To Sasuke, Lee vanished only to reappear right in front of him, delivering a devastating kick to his abdomen and sending him flying. Lee didn't stop there; he followed Sasuke mid-air, body moving with flawless precision.
"Dancing Leaf Shadow!"
"Sorry, Guy-sensei... I'm using that move."
Lee unwrapped the bandages from his arms, the long white cloth unraveling and swaying mid-air like ribbons caught in the wind.
"This is my victory!"
Just as Lee was about to finish the technique—
A red turtle suddenly appeared out of nowhere.
Lee halted mid-move instantly.
Sasuke plummeted downward, but Sakura rushed forward just in time, catching him and softening his landing. Lee had already vanished from the air.
"Lee, stop right there!" a deep voice commanded.
It came from the red turtle—Ningame, Guy-sensei's summoning beast.
Lee quickly moved beside Ningame, trembling slightly as he stood straight and bowed his head respectfully.
"You were watching... the whole time?" Lee asked, sweating nervously.
"Lee," Ningame said firmly, "that technique is forbidden. You know that."
"I-I'm sorry... I didn't mean to..." Lee stammered, clearly shaken.
Naruto, who'd been watching silently until now, was the most shocked of all.
"Wait a minute... That turtle can talk?!"
His jaw nearly hit the floor. He'd seen Ningame before but back then, the turtle hadn't spoken a word.
As Naruto leaned in to get a closer look, a puff of smoke erupted above Ningame's shell—and in an instant, Guy-sensei appeared, striking a dramatic pose mid-air before landing in front of everyone.
"Heeey, what's shaking'? How you doing, everybodyyy? Life treating you good?"
"..."
Naruto wasn't even surprised anymore he'd seen Guy act like this before. But Sakura and Sasuke both shuddered involuntarily, a chill running down their spines at his ridiculous entrance.
"Yo, Lee!" Guy said, flashing what he thought was a cool, stylish pose.
"He... he has even bushier eyebrows than Lee," Sakura whispered, shuddering as she stared at the bizarre man. His bowl-cut hairstyle and green jumpsuit looked almost creepily identical to Lee's.
"Don't slander Guy-sensei! He's one of the greatest ninja in the entire world!"
Lee immediately snapped, clearly offended by Sakura's reaction to his beloved teacher.
"Lee, come closer. It's time for your punishment," Guy said, his tone suddenly grave as he slowly clenched his fist.
"Yes, sir!"
Lee quickly obeyed, stepping toward him without hesitation.
The moment he got close—
BOOM!
Guy punched Lee square in the face, sending him flying across the room.
"You fool!!"
Lee crashed hard but quickly scrambled up to a kneeling position. Guy was already beside him, bending down on one knee.
"I'm sorry, Lee… but this is for your own good," Guy said solemnly.
"I understand, Guy-sensei," Lee replied, eyes welling up.
"Lee… you…"
"Sensei…"
Without another word, the two launched into each other's arms, tears streaming down their faces in perfect sync.
Wait… where was that romantic music coming from?
"Sensei… I—"
"Enough, Lee. You don't need to say it. I understand."
(￣﹏￣)
'What the hell am I even watching today…?'
Naruto stared blankly at the dramatic scene playing out between master and disciple.
"It's okay, Lee… This is just part of growing up," Guy said gently, eyes shimmering with emotions.
"Sensei… you're too kind to me!" Lee sobbed openly, tears streaming down his face.
"To correct this mistake… your punishment will be ten thousand one-finger push-ups!" Guy declared, suddenly intense again.
"Yes, Guy-sensei!!"
Lee jumped to attention, saluting dramatically while still crying.
"Lee, you see that blazing sun over there?" Guy pointed dramatically into the distance. "Let's burn our youth just like that! Let's go, Lee!!"
'There's no fucking sun here… We're literally inside a building… How can anyone see a sun in here?'
Naruto sweat-dropped, too tired to question their logic anymore.
Sasuke, on the other hand, was the most annoyed of the group.
'How could I lose to someone so lame?'
"Sensei, I still have to register for the Chunin Exam," Lee said, awkwardly remembering his original reason for being here.
"Oh, that's right, Lee!" Guy placed a hand on Lee's shoulder, suddenly composed again.
"You go ahead and register. I'll meet you later." He gave one final iconic thumbs-up to Naruto.
"Good luck to you guys as well!"
And with that, he vanished in a blur.
"I'll see you guys at the Chunin Exams!" Lee called out cheerfully before disappearing in a flash himself.
For a while, the trio just stood there, stunned by the utterly bizarre performance they had just witnessed.
"Umm… should we go?" Sakura finally said, breaking the silence. "We still have to get to the next spot before the exam starts."
"Yeah… let's go," Naruto agreed, still not sure what to make of any of it.
The three of them began walking silently toward the next location for the Chunin Exams.
Well almost silently.
Naruto was struggling to hold back his laughter the entire time, his shoulders trembling from the effort.
Noticing him, Sasuke glared. "You got a problem, dead last?"
"No No How could I possibly have a problem with the great Sasuke Uchiha?" Naruto grinned. "I wouldn't dare anger you. What if you activate your Sharingan and beat me up like you just did to Rock Lee?"
Sasuke's lips twitched at the sarcasm.
"Shut up, Naruto! Lee was strong. Can you even beat him?" Sakura snapped, instantly jumping to defend her precious Sasuke.
"Oh Sasuke~" Naruto suddenly mimicked, "You looked so cool! Beat that bushy brow and show him the true power of the Uchiha clan~!"
"..."
BAM! BAM!
Naruto was promptly smacked on the head by both Sakura and Sasuke—earning him two fresh bumps for his trash talk.
As they continued walking, Naruto quietly shifted gears. He began mentally analyzing Lee's movements. Watching Lee fight had opened a new door in Naruto's understanding of strength.
If people like Rock Lee were also competing, then even Sasuke might not be the top contender in the Chunin Exams.
What surprised Naruto the most was how Lee had overwhelmed Sasuke using only taijutsu. No ninjutsu, no genjutsu—just raw speed, power, and skill.
It wasn't that Sasuke couldn't see Lee coming. His Sharingan could track the movements. The real issue was that his body couldn't keep up, even if his eyes could predict the attack. That's what made Lee so terrifying.
As for Naruto… he realized he wouldn't have been able to react at all. His instincts might let him dodge once or twice in the heat of the moment, but not consistently like Sasuke could.
While those thoughts lingered in his mind, the trio finally arrived at the building where the Chunin Exam would begin.
It looked just like any other multi-story training facility. When they entered the first-floor classroom, they found it already packed wall to wall with genin from different villages. The room was brimming with tension.
Everyone inside radiated a fierce aura the moment Naruto and his team stepped in.
Most teams were already waiting. It didn't take Naruto long to register, and the three of them found a spot to stand while the countdown timer above the chalkboard ticked down.
As they waited, Sasuke suddenly felt someone hug him from behind.
Turning his head slightly, he saw a familiar blonde girl clinging to his back.
"Sasuke! I finally found you! Geez, I missed that handsome face of yours," Ino said with a big smile, her hand resting on his shoulder.
"HEY! Ino-pig, get your filthy hands off Sasuke-kun!"
Sakura exploded in anger, her fists clenched.
"Shut it, billboard brow! I'll touch whoever I want!" Ino shot back, still clinging to Sasuke like it was her right.
At that moment, more of their classmates started gathering near them.
"Yo, Naruto! Long time no see," Kiba said, walking over and giving Naruto a light nudge on the arm.
He stared at Naruto's face for a second something looked different. But Naruto still looked mostly the same, so Kiba just shrugged it off. Maybe some things had changed over time.
Only Shikamaru looked a bit puzzled. 'His face keeps changing… but at least it looks normal now…' That thought calmed his nerves a little.
Seeing Sakura and Ino arguing over Sasuke for the millionth time, Shikamaru let out a deep sigh.
"What a drag…"
Off to the side, Hinata stood silently, blushing faintly as she snuck glances at Naruto from behind. She muttered something under her breath and quickly looked away whenever he shifted.