Fists of Fury

"Our students are in the final match!"

Watching Naruto and Rock Lee enter the arena, Might Guy gave Kakashi a thumbs-up. "It's fate, my eternal rival, Kakashi!"

"Ah, yeah."

Kakashi gave an unintelligible sound and played along. After all, he couldn't imagine Naruto losing. "You know a little about Naruto's strength, don't you? Why not have your student forfeit right away?"

"I believe in my student. I believe in Rock Lee!"

Might Guy looked at Rock Lee, his expression softening. "He's a hard-working genius!"

At that moment, Naruto and Rock Lee stood silently facing each other in the arena.

"Actually, I wanted to fight Uchiha Sasuke from your team. If I beat him, I could prove that hard work can surpass genius."

Rock Lee suddenly spoke. "But I've changed my mind. Sakura Haruno from your team is so cute, and I really like her! So, I'm sorry, but I'm going to give it everything I've got and show off all my strength and manliness!"

"Then I'm afraid you'll be disappointed. Sakura already likes someone, and it's Uchiha Sasuke, the guy you wanted to fight. So she won't accept your feelings."

Naruto said seriously, "Besides, have you ever thought about what you'd do if a genius worked just as hard as you? How would you surpass them through hard work?"

"If I become better than that Uchiha Sasuke, Sakura will definitely start looking at me!"

Rock Lee was unfazed. "I firmly believe hard work can surpass genius. So if a genius is working hard, all I have to do is work even harder!"

"That's a good belief to have. I hope you can keep it up."

Naruto smiled. "Also, I've been looking forward to fighting you."

"Me?"

Rock Lee was taken aback. "Why?"

"Because a lot of people I know say Team 3 specializes in Taijutsu, and that you're the strongest Genin in Konoha when it comes to Taijutsu. As it happens, I'm pretty confident in my own Taijutsu."

Naruto continued, "So I have a tiny little question about whether your Taijutsu is really stronger than mine."

"I see."

Rock Lee answered solemnly. "I'll use my strength to put your doubts to rest!"

Naruto glanced at Rock Lee's feet. "Then you should take off your weights first."

"Huh?"

Rock Lee was startled. Only Teacher Kaido should have known about the weights he was wearing. "Sorry, it's a promise I made to Teacher Kaido. I can't take them off just like that."

"Then ask him now. I think he'll agree."

Rock Lee was taken aback again, then called out to the stands. "Teacher Kaido, can I take off my weights?"

Might Guy looked at Kakashi, who replied, "Let your student give it everything he's got, unless you want the match to be over in an instant."

Might Guy trusted Kakashi, so he gave Rock Lee a thumbs-up. "No problem! Your opponent is worthy of your full strength!"

"Oh!!"

Rock Lee removed the two weighted bands from his legs and tossed them to the ground. The hard stone floor was struck with enough force to leave two deep craters. "Now I can move around more easily."

Gekko Hayate looked at the two new craters on the ground with awe, then walked closer and politely asked, "Are you two ready?"

Naruto and Rock Lee: "Ready!"

Gekko Hayate: "Ninth match, begin!"

Rock Lee appeared in front of Naruto as if by teleportation and threw a quick punch.

Naruto moved even faster, raising his left hand and striking the inside of Rock Lee's wrist with the back of his hand, knocking the punch aside.

Rock Lee immediately changed tactics. He lowered his body, pulled back his fist, and swept his leg toward Naruto. "Leaf Gale!"

Naruto silently concentrated a large amount of chakra in his foot. Without even lifting it, he stomped straight through the tiles and anchored himself in place.

Their legs collided, the two shinbones pitting their hardness against each other.

So hard! His body's been trained just as much as mine!

Rock Lee was secretly astonished, but still confident. Taijutsu isn't just about physical strength!

He changed tactics again, balancing on one foot as he kicked his other leg up toward Naruto's chin. "Leaf Whirlwind!"

Naruto didn't dodge. He raised his right hand and brought his fist down!

Fist and foot collided, then bounced apart.

Naruto took two steps back and steadied himself.

Rock Lee rolled twice across the ground, then quickly got back to his feet.

"That's enough warm-up."

Naruto pressed his palms together. "You've tested me enough, too."

Some people in the stands looked horrified. That was only a warm-up?!

Rock Lee nodded and clenched his fists. The chakra within him suddenly surged wildly. "First Gate: Gate of Opening, open! Second Gate: Gate of Healing, open! Third Gate: Gate of Life, open!"

The first two gates didn't visibly change Rock Lee, but when he opened the third, his skin turned red, and the chakra surging through him formed a layer of green energy around his body.

Naruto, on the other hand, only developed black, spiral-shaped markings on his skin. There were no other effects; he looked utterly unremarkable.

Rock Lee wasn't finished. "Fourth Gate: Gate of Pain, open!"

The green energy radiating from him grew even stronger, but his body seemed unable to bear the strain. A thin trickle of blood ran from his nose.

Gekko Hayate looked grave and silently backed away several meters, leaving the entire arena to the two fighters.

The fight was about to begin.

Naruto and Rock Lee vanished from where they stood. Almost simultaneously, an impact erupted in the middle of the arena, shattering the floor and whipping up a gale that sent fragments of stone flying in every direction.

Some spectators were buffeted by the wind so badly they couldn't open their eyes, let alone watch the match.

But those who could keep up with Naruto and Rock Lee's speed were completely absorbed by their clash, unable to look away.

Fists pounding flesh—nothing described the battle between Naruto and Rock Lee better.

Their thoroughly trained bodies, driven by vast reserves of chakra, clashed with a force beyond the limits of human strength:

Naruto: "Ora ora ora ora!"

Rock Lee: "Aah-tah aah-tah aah-tah aah-tah!"

There were no complicated moves, no dazzling ninjutsu—just fists flying faster and faster, over and over.

Their fists collided without pause, bounced apart, then clashed again and bounced away again... The sound of fist against fist echoed through the arena, making everyone's heart race.

"Go, Naruto!"

Sakura couldn't help shouting.

"Don't lose, Rock Lee!"

Tenten also couldn't help cheering on her teammate.

But Rock Lee's body was already nearing its limit. While he could still hold on, he gritted his teeth and focused all his strength into his next punch. "Fifth Gate: Gate of Limit, open! Hidden Lotus!"

Naruto had no named move to shout. He lowered his center of gravity, as if rooting his feet into the ground, then threw a simple, unadorned punch that collided with Rock Lee's.

The arena floor crumbled beneath them. The spreading shockwave shook the foundations and made the entire building tremble.

When the dust settled, Naruto stood in place, still holding his punching stance. Rock Lee stood motionless in front of his fist. His bowl cut was swept backward as if blasted by a head-on gale. The bandages on his right hand had all burst apart, and his arm was covered in torn wounds that continued to bleed.

Rock Lee struggled to turn his head and looked behind him. A straight furrow stretched all the way to the wall, where a fist-shaped hole had been punched through it. In a trembling voice, he said, "I... lost."