Konoha's Good Beast

Neji was a lot like him, but the identity of the Branch Family hung over his head. From childhood, he had been branded with the mission of being a bodyguard. His pride had its limits, there was no special reason for it, and he was unlikely to become a lone wolf.

Sasuke invited Neji out again. The moment they met, Sasuke felt that Neji's expression was somewhat unnatural.

Neji turned back, activated his Byakugan, and glanced behind him before saying to Sasuke,

"It might not go too smoothly when you ask me out this year. What are you planning to do?"

Sasuke was a little confused, sensing that there was a reason behind this.

"What?"

But Neji merely gestured behind him.

Before the person appeared, his voice arrived first, carrying from a great distance as though he were afraid Neji would run off too quickly without waiting for him.

"Neji, please continue accepting my challenge today!"

"After persisting for a week of one thousand squats and one thousand straight punches every day, I have become stronger!"

A thick-browed, wide-eyed fellow emerged from the woods and entered the training ground, only to discover that Neji was not alone.

"No way, I'm not the first one here to challenge Neji?"

Without a moment's hesitation, he made another decision.

"Then please let me be today's second challenger, Neji!"

Though Sasuke found the boy's appearance somewhat unfamiliar, someone who called Neji "classmate" and had such thick brows and big eyes could only be Rock Lee.

Good grief, he was a tiny little thing, with a long braided ponytail swinging behind his back. His center-parted bangs half-covered his brows, and paired with those thick eyebrows and big eyes, he looked unexpectedly lively and handsome.

His light-colored training clothes were heavily worn, simple and natural, making his diligence and earnestness obvious. Though he was a guy with a braid, the good thing was that he was not half-bald!

Everything about him carried the flavor of Sasuke's old homeland, China, making Sasuke feel very close to him.

If Rock Lee had confessed to Sakura Haruno dressed like this, he would not have been rejected outright.

It was not an issue with the eyebrows at all. The hairstyle and green jumpsuit were clearly to blame.

Looking at Rock Lee made Sasuke feel as though Might Guy had come one step closer, putting him in an excellent mood.

Neji, however, merely smiled at him before turning to Rock Lee. "I only intend to accept one person's challenge. Why don't the two of you fight first?"

Then he turned and walked to the side of the training ground, assuming the stance of someone ready to watch a show.

Think about it. Really think about it.

Sasuke had already gleaned from Neji's behavior just how clingy Rock Lee was. Neji was plainly asking him to take the hit for him.

Without considering Sasuke's opinion at all, Rock Lee immediately shifted his attention to him.

"Then, unfamiliar classmate, time is of the essence. Let us begin at once!"

Good grief. Ever since leaving the Academy, no one bothered with formalities like the Seal of Confrontation or the Seal of Reconciliation.

Without even shouting a start, and without asking Sasuke's name, Rock Lee charged straight at him. If he had not followed it up with a punch after getting close, Sasuke would have thought the move was called the Rocket Headbutt.

What level was Rock Lee at right now? Sasuke was genuinely a little curious.

After dodging several of Rock Lee's punches, Sasuke found that it seemed to be nothing special. He began to strike back, blocking the incoming fists and kicks in an instant before pressing Rock Lee straight to the ground.

Still, although his moves were straightforward and full of openings, the force transmitted through his arms when blocking was quite considerable.

Releasing the little guy on the ground, Sasuke asked,

"Still want to continue?"

Freed from the restraint, Rock Lee sprang upright.

"No problem, I still have the strength to continue!"

Good grief, Sasuke had not asked whether he still had strength. He had asked whether Rock Lee understood his own shortcomings. Clearly, Rock Lee had not thought that far. If Sasuke did not give him a proper beating, this really would turn into a battle of attrition.

Sasuke casually exchanged moves with him several dozen more times. As long as Sasuke did not deliberately grapple him, Rock Lee would charge at him again and again.

Without considering endurance, Rock Lee's stamina could probably rival Naruto's.

There were almost no new tricks left. He was merely a bit stronger and charged forward mindlessly like a boar. He posed no threat to Sasuke at all.

When they clashed once more, Sasuke slipped behind Rock Lee, pulled back his arm, locked his throat, then stepped back and forced him down.

"Let's stop here. You still can't beat me."

"Damn it! After Neji, has another powerful opponent appeared?! My efforts are still not enough. At this rate, I won't even be qualified to challenge Neji!"

When Rock Lee got up, there was not the slightest sign of discouragement on his face. He immediately declared,

"Next time, I will definitely defeat you and earn the chance to challenge Neji!"

After making his declaration, Rock Lee walked to the edge of the field on his own and watched Sasuke—who had obtained the "qualification to challenge Neji"—with expectant eyes. It was obvious that he intended to spectate.

Sasuke and Neji had already fought six or seven times, and Sasuke strictly controlled the amount of "progress" he showed each time.

In truth, if he exposed even a slight opening, Neji could easily seize the opportunity.

Sasuke's stamina was definitely better than Neji's. After all, while Neji attended class, Sasuke had Shadow Clones attending his classes.

Wear him down, wear him down...

If I want to win, I just need to hold out longer and avoid exposing openings as much as possible. Honestly, Neji's attacks aren't fatal with just chakra point strikes, as long as I'm not afraid of pain. Of course, he still had to avoid being hit by Neji as much as possible. Neji was not much slower than him in terms of agility. Even if Sasuke went all out, as time went on, he would still get hit to some extent.

If he won last time, then this time he should expose an opening early. As long as he did not make a mistake against the same move Neji used before, Neji seemingly could not tell that Sasuke was going easy on him. He had to learn Kakashi and Might Guy's fifty-fifty spirit when competing.

Of course, considering that he had not used Ninjutsu at all, his act of going easy on Neji was still very obvious.

Today, there was a spectator. Neji, you're definitely winning! I said so!

Not every spar could bring a new breakthrough in Nintaijutsu. Perhaps after ten days or half a month, the only improvement would be slightly better stamina.

In the open space, the two continued exchanging blows, making Rock Lee at the edge of the field itch to join in.

Before long, the two retreated from each other, panting heavily.

"Let's stop here for today. The more times we fight, the more familiar we become with each other's moves, and the harder it becomes to break them."

"Not at all. You fought Rock Lee first, so your stamina was somewhat depleted. If you had been at full strength, perhaps I would not have lasted until the end."

Those were the polite words exchanged after a spar, but Sasuke always felt that Neji was deliberately avoiding victory as well.

But it's fine. I still have that move!

Neji also knew Sasuke's habits. It was hard to say that the courtesy he had learned had nothing to do with Sasuke. Verbal sparring was boring, so he directly shifted the topic to Rock Lee.

"What do you think of him?"

"He seems full of drive, but he appears to lack a teacher. His moves have no technique to speak of. What a pity. Otherwise, he really could have exchanged a few moves with you. What's his name?"

Hearing himself mentioned in their conversation, Rock Lee hurried over from afar, raising one hand as though answering a question at school, and proactively replied,

"My name is Rock Lee! I would also like to know your name, classmate!"

Sasuke, however, looked toward Neji. "Is my reputation that small now?"

Neji shrugged. "There probably aren't many people in the whole school who don't know you, but clearly, he..."

His expression said it all.

"Neji, is he some Important Figure at the Academy? I actually don't know him. How rude of me."

"Uchiha Sasuke. Not an Important Figure."

Rock Lee first looked enlightened, then gradually became confused.

"So it's Uchiha Sasuke! I... I feel like I've heard that name somewhere."

The Uchiha had ultimately fallen into decline. But to lower the Uchiha's reputation even further, while he did not need to lose to Rock Lee, it sounded pretty good for one person challenging Neji to become several people competing to challenge Neji.

"Ramen, let's go? My treat."