"He's as strong as I thought!"
Blown back by the gale, Rock Lee clung to the wall with his feet, staring at the calm Izayoi, his face alight with exhilaration.
As the airflow weakened, he vanished again, but this time he didn't reappear near Izayoi.
Instead, he became a streak of black afterimages, circling Izayoi at blinding speed.
So fast was he that the tiny shadows stirred a cloud of dust, forming a white vortex that enveloped Izayoi.
In the next instant, Lee materialized before Izayoi, throwing a punch.
Izayoi didn't move.
As the fist neared his face, it froze.
On closer inspection, the fist—and Lee himself—was merely an afterimage.
"Leaf Great Whirlwind!"
A shout rang out as a gust spun into existence on Izayoi's right, revealing Lee's true form.
A 360-degree spinning kick, charged with momentum, hurtled toward Izayoi.
Against any of this year's rookies—save perhaps Shino Aburame with his insect substitution—that kick would've ended the fight.
But as always…
Lee's speed was great, but Izayoi's was greater.
Just like with the earlier Leaf Whirlwind, the kick never landed.
This time, it wasn't Wind Release—it was Izayoi's forearm.
Bang! A shockwave erupted from where Izayoi's arm met Lee's shin.
Blocking a kick that could send countless pounds flying, Izayoi's arm didn't budge, solid as steel.
His sleeve hid the reason from view.
Under Lee's wide-eyed stare, Izayoi shifted from blocking to grappling, seizing Lee's ankle. With a twist, he swung, aiming to slam Lee into the ground.
With astonishing arm strength, Lee braced his hands against the floor, absorbing the impact, then wrenched free, landing with a forward flip.
Izayoi didn't press the attack, withdrawing his hand and watching Lee silently.
From start to finish, he hadn't moved a single step.
The Rookie Nine were stunned.
"Earth Release nature transformation too?" Kakashi Hatake's three-tomoe Sharingan spun, one of the few to discern Izayoi's blocking method.
To others, Izayoi's taijutsu seemed phenomenal, completely overpowering Lee even with those weights.
But to Kakashi, Izayoi was a bona fide ninjutsu genius.
Lightning Release nature transformation taught to Sasuke and Hinata, the fire vortex in the Forest of Death, Wind Release earlier, and now Earth Release—Izayoi had mastered four nature transformations.
Could this kid… have all affinities? Kakashi wondered.
Even with all affinities, such mastery required relentless training!
No wonder the Hyuga clan didn't oppose their heiress's connection to him—they'd long recognized and invested in this unpolished gem.
"What a prodigy! Such chakra, such ninjutsu talent—he must be a genius awakened across generations. But… Senju, or Uzumaki?"
Orochimaru's lips curled into a sinister smile, his thoughts aligning with Kakashi's, suspecting Izayoi's full affinity and pondering his ancestry.
Bang, bang, bang…
The sounds of combat rang out as Lee, undeterred by being outmatched, pressed his assault with growing fervor, each strike stronger than the last!
Izayoi ceased using ninjutsu to counter, instead activating the Kagura Mind's Eye to sense Lee's movements while boosting his speed with Lightning Release chakra, engaging in a fierce taijutsu duel.
In the arena, two afterimages spun like high-speed tops, clashing repeatedly.
Each collision briefly revealed their forms before they shifted positions, colliding again.
When fist met fist or foot met foot, whether from raw force or chakra, invisible shockwaves burst from the point of impact.
Their speed escalated, no longer confined to the ground, occasionally leaping into the air, a dazzling blur.
Sasuke's eyes could just keep up, but Naruto and the others were utterly lost.
Even Special Jonin weak in sensory skills watched in awe.
They'd never imagined this year's Genin would produce two such monsters.
Elite Jonin and all-rounders, observing Izayoi—who didn't seem a taijutsu specialist yet matched Lee's speed—marveled, "Incredible nature transformation, incredible chakra control!"
Though Sasuke and Hinata used Lightning Release to boost speed, they couldn't compare to Izayoi.
Not in speed itself.
But in how, after a speed surge, they struggled to control their bodies or needed time to adapt before pushing further, with limited endurance.
Izayoi, however, mastered his enhanced state instantly, pushing his speed to the limit in a heartbeat.
This demanded not just powerful nature transformation but extraordinary chakra control.
And the latter was key.
To have such chakra control at this age explained how he'd mastered multiple nature transformations so young.
Spectators could almost see it: in a few years, Konoha would gain another all-rounder Jonin.
But soon, the Jonin realized they'd underestimated Izayoi.
After countless exchanges, the top-like afterimages of Izayoi and Lee finally paused.
Lee, breathing heavily, sweat beading on his brow, stared at Izayoi.
Izayoi, still unruffled, smiled. "Your taijutsu is impressive, but if this is all you've got, this fight's about to end. Do you have anything stronger?"
Lee glanced instinctively at Might Guy.
Seeing Guy-sensei's toothy grin, thumbs-up, and nod, Lee's face lit up.
As he unwound the bandages from his hands, he said, "I have a stronger technique, but it's a forbidden move banned against comrades! Last time, against Sasuke, I nearly broke that rule, and Guy-sensei punished me."
"But against you, Izayoi, I believe you can handle the power of Lotus."
With bandages trailing to the ground, Lee fixed Izayoi with a resolute gaze. "Izayoi, with this move, I'll prove that hard work can surpass genius!"
The Genin leaned forward, rapt.
Even the Jonin watched Lee intently.
Kakashi, who knew Guy best, had a bold suspicion.
"Surely Guy didn't teach him that forbidden technique?"
The next moment, Kakashi's guess was confirmed.
Through Byakugan and Sharingan, Lee's brain surged with chakra, flooding his meridians as if a limiter had been released.
His aura shifted.
Many Jonin sensed an overwhelming pressure from Lee, capable of defying higher ranks.
Izayoi noticed too, his expression turning wholly serious.
Without using Tenseigan powers, Izayoi was eager to test the might of the Eight Gates, one of the three legendary techniques.
Then, before his eyes, Lee flickered, crossing meters in an instant to throw a straight punch.
Izayoi reacted swiftly, raising a hand to parry.
But in a flash, Lee repeated his trick, vanishing without even an afterimage, reappearing behind Izayoi. His fist became a claw, aiming to grapple and bind Izayoi with bandages.
Zzt, zzt, zzt…
A crackle of electricity sounded.
Blue-white arcs, like writhing snakes, flared around Izayoi.
Before Lee's hand could touch him, he recoiled, shocked, and leapt back.
"Is that… Cloud Village's Lightning Release Chakra Mode?"
"No, it's just… shape transformation!"
"What a guy—not just nature transformation, but shape transformation too?"
"Such Lightning Release talent—it's like Kakashi-sensei reborn!"
"…"
Gasps echoed from the second-floor stands.
The speakers were all Jonin.
To Kurenai, their words stung.
She gave a wry smile, feeling the Hokage had misassigned teams.
With talent like Izayoi's, he should've been Kakashi's student.
Had Izayoi trained under Kakashi, he might've mastered numerous elemental ninjutsu, perhaps even Chidori, or the S-rank Lightning Cutter, blending nature and shape transformation.
The Genin, most unfamiliar with nature transformation, let alone shape transformation, were clueless.
Only Sasuke's eyes gleamed. "So Lightning Release chakra can be used like that!"
Unbeknownst to him, this was the Chidori Current he'd later develop.
Bang!
With Chidori Current active, Izayoi's speed surged. He flickered to Lee, throwing a punch.
Lee instinctively blocked with both arms, but the next second, his eyes bulged in pain.
A kick had struck his stomach, Izayoi sending him crashing into a wall, leaving a small crater and spreading cracks.
Izayoi didn't pursue, his body wreathed in blue-white arcs. "That was only a 20% speed boost—not quite forbidden. You've got more, right? Show me your real trump card!"
Sliding down the wall like a fallen painting, Lee hung his head, silent.
But those with dojutsu or sensory skills saw something that made their pupils shrink in shock.
"Eight Gates, Third Gate: Gate of Life… Open!"
Lee crossed his arms, the air around him twisting upward.
As he raised his head, his eyes were pure white, pupils gone.
His face flushed red, veins bulging, white steam rising from his body.
With a mighty shout, green energy erupted around him.
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