"Next, the fourth match of the Preliminaries—Rock Lee of Konoha versus Omoi of Kumogakure!"
Gekko Hayate's voice carried a barely perceptible breathlessness from his frail health.
Yet it still reached everyone's ears clearly in the spacious Arena. The moment he finished, a wave of chatter swept through the sidelines.
"Rock Lee? That ninja who only practices taijutsu?"
"Holy shit! You're not talking about Might Guy, are you? The one they call the Blue Beast? Those two look so alike."
"His son?! Or his student?"
"Omoi from the Cloud Village... I heard he's a swordsmanship expert, and he's always muttering to himself. Kind of weird. I saw him on the big screen earlier, but he didn't really stand out."
"Taijutsu against swordsmanship. That should be worth watching!"
Amid the chatter, two figures entered from opposite ends of the Arena, one after the other.
Rock Lee wore his signature green jumpsuit, with his Konoha forehead protector tied around his waist. Its metal plate reflected a dazzling gleam.
His gaze was sharp as a blade, fixed firmly on his opponent. His hands clenched into fists, and pure, burning fighting spirit surged around him, as though he were announcing his hunger for victory to the entire world:
"Guy-sensei, I'll prove that taijutsu is the strongest!"
His opponent, Omoi, wore the Cloud Village's signature dark ninja outfit. Tousled silver-white hair fell across his forehead, giving him a carefree air.
At that moment, he had both hands in his pockets and was muttering, "What a pain. If I'd known the Chunin Ninja Exams would be this much trouble, I never would've agreed to Lord Raikage's request...
"If I lose, I'm definitely getting chewed out when I get back. They might even send me to some even more remote assignment. Just my rotten luck..."
The way he