Kakashi was also angered by Guy's actions, but Guy told Kakashi that Lee had something he wanted to prove and protect, even at the cost of his life.
Meanwhile, Lee, after evading another round of Gaara's attacks, began to erupt. Even Takeru could see with the naked eye a stream of hot air rising from Lee's body, very similar to when Ren was used in Nen.
"I don't know what you're trying to do, but it ends here!" Sensing some unknown change happening to Lee, Gaara prepared to finish him off for good.
"Yeah, no matter what, it will all end after this move!" Hearing Gaara's words, Lee spoke to himself.
'Sasuke, Neji, Naruto... I can't be the only one to fall here. Guy-sensei, please acknowledge me. Now is the time to uphold my Ninja Way!'
Powerful air currents burst from Lee, and his appearance changed. Veins bulged on his face, his body turned red, and a layer of green energy shimmered on the surface.
"The Third Gate, Gate of Life, open!" As Lee's words fell, the powerful air currents caused the rubble around him to rise.
"Is he going to move?" Seeing this, Kakashi said solemnly.
"No, not yet," Hearing Kakashi, Guy shook his head.
"And, the Fourth Gate, Gate of Pain, open!!" With the opening of the Gate of Pain, Gaara finally took action. A simple movement caused a massive collapse of the ground below.
But Lee instantly appeared beside Gaara, kicking him into the air with a Shadow of Dancing Leaf.
The resulting shockwave even affected the second-floor spectator stands. Everyone instinctively used their hands to shield themselves from the powerful air blast and dust.
As for Takeru, he activated a Nen Barrier, easily protecting himself and Ui and Ritsu beside him.
The tremendous force from that single kick caused cracks to appear in Gaara's Sand Armor.
"Sand Armor again, huh? Then let's see how you like this!" Lee said, already appearing above Gaara. He kicked him flying, then erupted with extreme speed to appear behind him, striking him back up into the air.
After that, Lee treated Gaara like a soccer ball, rapidly kicking him in mid-air. In almost an instant, he landed over a dozen kicks.
Under Lee's terrifying assault, Gaara's Sand Armor continuously crumbled away.
"You're really stubborn, huh. In that case..." Seeing that Gaara seemed to be holding on, Lee struggled to clench his right arm, its muscles already torn.
"This is the final blow. The Fifth Gate, Gate of Limit, open!!" As he closed in on Gaara, Lee forcibly opened the Fifth Gate.
Gaara's arms, originally prepared for defense, were bypassed by Lee, who instead delivered a punch directly to his chest. Gaara, who should have been sent plummeting down by the immense force, was tightly held back by Lee's bandages.
"This way, the match ends!" Pulling Gaara back in front of him, Lee struck down fiercely with his right arm and right knee.
After the attack, Lee's right arm and right leg were completely wrecked. His whole body immediately exited the Eight Gates state, and he even tumbled down from the air.
However, Lee's all-out punch was largely absorbed by the sand from the gourd on Gaara's back, which transformed to cushion the impact.
Consequently, although Gaara seemed heavily injured, his condition was still much better than Lee's.
Gaara, lying on the ground, could even barely raise an arm. Then, a giant sand hand slowly began moving towards Lee.
Seeing the sand hand, Lee sensed danger. But the negative effects of the Reverse Lotus were now fully manifesting, and even moving was extremely difficult.
"How... how can he still attack after being hit by the Reverse Lotus?!" Lee looked on incredulously as the seemingly slow-moving sand engulfed his left arm and left leg.
"Sand Coffin!" Though he could barely control enough sand to fully envelop Lee, his left arm and leg were enough. Gaara clenched his outstretched hand, and the sand compressed violently. Lee, howling in pain and unwillingness, lost consciousness.
"Die!" Though Lee seemed to have passed out, Gaara had no intention of letting him go. He gathered sand again, aiming to finish him off.
But at the critical moment, Guy stepped forward. With a single palm strike, he dispersed Gaara's sand attack, then simply stared at Gaara.
"Why... why did you save him?" Looking into Guy's eyes, Gaara seemed to recall his childhood self and his uncle, and couldn't help but clutch his head and wail.
"Because this guy... because this guy is my precious student!" Guy stated directly.
'Gaara won't understand those words.' Gaara's Jonin Instructor, Baki, sighed.
"I won't fight anymore." After a moment of silence, Gaara's sand quickly returned to the gourd on his back. Without looking back, he left.
"He said he won't fight anymore," Sakura said blankly.
"The moment Guy rushed in, Lee lost," Kakashi stated matter-of-factly.
"Winner, Gaa—" On the other side, Hayate was about to announce the result when he saw Lee, covered in blood, trembling as he stood up.
'He opened five gates. His arms and legs are destroyed. He shouldn't be able to stand!' Kakashi also stared in shock at Lee.
Watching this scene, Takeru felt a mix of emotions. One had to admit, the willpower of people in this world was indeed formidable. Most of all, Lee at this moment deeply moved even Takeru.
Also, the reason Lee lost just now wasn't because the Eight Gates were weak, but because Lee's body was still too fragile. Although a Ninja's body was much stronger than an ordinary person's, it was far from invincible. Takeru even suspected Lee's basic stamina and defense attributes hadn't even broken 80...
That explosive power had already caused his body to completely break down. Furthermore, during his attacks, though they looked fierce, due to the pain and bodily fragility, he hadn't been able to unleash his full power.
"Lee... that's enough. It's over. Your body can't support you standing anymore, Lee... you... you fool..."
Guy initially wanted to say something more to Lee, but when he saw the vacant, unconscious look in Lee's eyes, he froze. Tears uncontrollably streamed down his face.
"Even after losing consciousness, you still want to prove your Ninja Way? Lee, you have already... become an excellent Ninja!" Thinking this, Guy could no longer hold back and embraced him.
"This... is this really something a human can do?" Sensing Lee's condition, Ui and Ritsu fell into silent contemplation. They didn't know what could drive a person's will to such a level, refusing to yield even after losing consciousness...
"Winner, Gaara!" At this point, after confirming the situation, Hayate announced.
"Lee!" Sakura upstairs also wanted to go to Lee.
"Sakura, what could you do even if you went? Even if he received your encouragement, he would only feel worse," Seeing Sakura's action, Kakashi stopped her.
"Hmph, there was no way he could defeat Gaara," Temari said with a smirk.
"You are the Jonin in charge of him, right?" The medical team, after giving Lee preliminary treatment, was stunned. They looked at Guy and asked.
"Yes."
"Please come with me." Upon Guy's confirmation, the medic spoke directly.
"We've managed to stabilize his breathing, but he has comminuted fractures all over and muscle tears. I think the recovery will take a very long time. If it were just that, it would be okay. But his left arm and leg suffered severe damage. The injuries are too grave."
"Although I hate to say this... he can no longer continue living as a Ninja."
After bowing to Guy, the medics silently carried Lee away on a stretcher.
Takeru had been observing Lee's condition all along. He knew that by forcibly opening five gates this time, Lee was thoroughly crippled.
At least until Tsunade returned, Lee's injuries couldn't be healed, and he would even need crutches to walk.
However, Takeru could help treat him. Compared to Tsunade's fifty percent probability, Takeru had a ninety percent chance of curing him completely, and without the life-threatening risk.
But under the watchful eyes of everyone now, Takeru had no intention of treating him.
After all, he hadn't even acted for Tenten and Hinata earlier. It wasn't for any particular reason… he just didn't feel like acting for the time being.
"Wha... what? How can this be... This must be a lie, right?" Watching Lee being carried away, Naruto felt an inexplicable sorrow. Remembering all their encounters, Naruto couldn't imagine how he would feel if such a thing happened to him. He probably wouldn't be able to accept it either...