The Essence of Youth

The moment Kiba Inuzuka stepped onto the field, his gaze began sweeping the surroundings.

After much deliberation, he pointed toward Team 10. "Rock Lee, let's have a match!"

"Alright." Although Rock Lee was still feeling unwell after using the Front Lotus in the second round, he did not refuse the fight.

That simply was not the kind of person he was.

"Rock Lee, how are your injuries?" Might Guy asked.

"Ah, Guy-sensei, I'm fine. I won't use the Front Lotus." Rock Lee flashed a broad, toothy grin. The Front Lotus was a forbidden technique, and there was no need to use it against classmates.

"Excellent! Let your blood boil!"

"Yes, Guy-sensei!" Rock Lee was instantly brimming with fighting spirit again, his enthusiasm fully charged.

Rock Lee leaped into the arena and assumed an opening stance toward Kiba Inuzuka.

Kiba Inuzuka's expression did indeed shift slightly. "Sorry, Rock Lee. Gaara can't be chosen among the remaining people, I can't beat Neji, and everyone else has already fought. I could only choose you. How about I leave Akamaru out of this?"

He meant every word. Although Neji Hyuga was only from a branch family of the Hyuga Clan, his reputation as a genius had already been well known at the Ninja Academy.

Kiba Inuzuka loved fighting, but he was not brainless.

"No need. Don't hold back for my sake." Rock Lee said each word with firm resolve. "Even without ninjutsu or genjutsu, one can still become an outstanding ninja. Guy-sensei taught me that, and it is also my ninja way."

"Kiba, giving it your all is the greatest respect you can show me!"

Rock Lee had it fairly rough too. It was not that he could not learn ninjutsu; controlling chakra was simply far too difficult for him. At Might Guy's suggestion, he found a path of his own—the ultimate pursuit of taijutsu!

"Alright." Kiba Inuzuka answered seriously as well. At the same time, Akamaru swallowed a soldier pill, roaring as his body turned crimson.

"Cough, cough, cough..." Hayate Gekko flipped through his notebook and scribbled away. "Rock Lee versus Kiba Inuzuka! Begin!!"

"Hayate, are you alright?" Kakashi Hatake came over and asked with concern.

"Cough, cough, I'm fine." Hayate Gekko had only become a special jonin because he was seriously ill.

"Now that Orochimaru is eyeing Konoha covetously, the Third Hokage has specifically dispatched every jonin and chunin to ensure nothing goes wrong. Naturally, it is my duty to serve as the proctor for the third match."

It was rather sad, really. Jonin were the absolute fighting force of every village! A village's overall strength was further reflected in both the quality and quantity of its jonin.

"You'll be fine." Kakashi Hatake could only pat him on the shoulder as encouragement.

Meanwhile, the battle between Rock Lee and Kiba Inuzuka was already in full swing.

Their battle could truly be called a contest of taijutsu!

Kiba Inuzuka used the Four Legs Technique. Both his movements and attacks resembled those of a beast, and with Akamaru assisting him, his assaults came crashing in like waves.

Rock Lee, meanwhile, practiced pure taijutsu!

He cast aside his obsession with chakra, abandoned the use of ninja tools, and focused solely on taijutsu.

While others studied ninjutsu, he ran long distances with weights and kicked massive trees.

While others practiced chakra control, he did frog jumps up Konoha's longest stone staircase beneath the blazing sun.

While others trained with ninja tools, he served as Neji's punching bag and Tenten's sparring partner for ninja tools.

All of it was for taijutsu!

Boom! Boom! Kiba Inuzuka launched himself forward on all fours, charging at Rock Lee, while the latter braced himself on one hand and lashed out with a sweeping kick.

It was a clash of pure power! Even the sonic boom from their collision rang out.

"Rock Lee, well done! Go! Unleash your youth!" Might Guy stood with one foot on the railing, tears streaming down his face in excitement!

There was probably no second person in the entire ninja world so "passionate."

With Might Guy shouting like that, Kurenai Yuhi at the sidelines refused to be outdone. She urged Hinata Hyuga to cheer, and even had Shino Aburame use Destruction Bugs to form words of encouragement!

In the arena, the two exchanged blows again, evenly matched!

"Rock Lee, let's settle this with the next move." After separating once more, Kiba Inuzuka said with boiling excitement.

"My thoughts exactly!" Rock Lee leaped onto the stone at the edge of the arena, the one carved with a figure forming hand seals. He reached down and removed his leg weights, then pulled out two rows of iron bars.

He casually tossed the iron bars aside, and when they hit the ground, they smashed a huge crater into it!

"Akamaru, let's go!" Kiba Inuzuka shouted as chakra erupted from his body. The next instant, he and Akamaru shot forward in unison, man and dog spinning in from two directions to shred their opponent!

Fang Over Fang!

The young rookies watching from the sidelines felt their hearts rise to their throats. After this strike, the victor would be decided!

Rock Lee, standing atop the stone, moved once and became an afterimage, vanishing from where he stood. In the blink of an eye, he appeared in midair, spinning in the direction opposite Fang Over Fang as he smashed one foot downward.

Even Might Guy was stunned by this sight!

"Ahhh! Rock Lee actually created his own taijutsu! Ahhh! Aahhh!"

The renowned jonin temporarily lost the ability to speak coherently!

Tianming was equally shocked. By this point in the preliminaries, the strength of Konoha's twelve young rookies had far surpassed anything he had imagined.

If the twelve young rookies were already this monstrous, then just how powerful would forces like the Akatsuki Organization, Six Paths of Pain, and Obito be later on?

It was at that moment that Tianming grew excited!