The next day.
The Ninja Academy buzzed with voices. People from other ninja villages had come to take the Chunin Ninja Exams, making it exceptionally lively.
Hongshi and his two companions arrived at the entrance. "Tch, why are there so many people?"
Hongshi walked into the crowd, immediately drawing countless gazes.
"Oh my god! You're so tall!"
"Holy fucking shit, he must be two meters tall!"
"Good grief, what is that thing? Black as charcoal, and that head is way too shiny!"
"Wow, the girl beside him is so pretty!"
Hongshi did not mind what others said, but the sounds coming from inside the second floor made him very uncomfortable.
"Smack!"
"Oh, come on. Just give it up."
"Seriously? You dare take the Chunin Ninja Exams like this?"
"Please let us through!"
It was Tenten's voice.
"Smack!"
"Ah!"
Hearing that, Hongshi's anger shot straight to his head. "Fuck, you dare hit my girl Tenten!"
Two people wearing Konoha Forehead Protectors were humiliating the three of them outside Room 301.
To keep their strength hidden, Tenten and her teammates had not fought back. Rock Lee in particular had been beaten black and blue.
"If that's all you've got, get lost!"
"Smack!" Just as they were about to strike Tenten, a pair of large hands suddenly appeared and seized their hands.
"You! Let go of me!"
Hongshi naturally knew these two were Jonin in disguise, but he refused to watch Tenten get beaten. "I'll count to three. Apologize to Tenten, or from today onward, you'll only have one arm."
Yuhan also popped up beside him. "Oh, Hongshi-kun, don't be like that. The exams haven't even started. Don't make things so tense."
"Hmph! Anyone who bullies my girl Tenten has to pay. One!"
"You bastard, let go of me!" The two tried to break free, but Hongshi's hands were like iron clamps, immensely strong and squeezing harder by the moment.
"Two!"
Tenten also urged him from the side, "Hongshi-kun, let it go."
Hongshi sighed upon hearing that. "All right, since you say so."
The two Chunin had nearly reverted to their true forms and used the Substitution Technique to escape. Only now did they breathe a sigh of relief.
However...
"Since Tenten's letting you off, you two pieces of trash can get lost."
With that, he flung them straight out.
Looking at the shattered window, the assembled ninja were all astonished. "This guy is so strong!"
Gaara of the Sand Waterfall, who was among the crowd, also witnessed the scene. "Is this guy that strong? It would be nice to face him."
After the crowd buzzed for a while, someone discovered that this was actually only the second floor. They headed upstairs, leaving only a handful of people behind.
The two who had been thrown out were now outside the Ninja Academy. They released their Transformation Technique, revealing themselves as Konoha's Chunin, Kotetsu Hagane and Izumo Kamizuki.
"That guy's strength is ridiculous!"
"He really is something else!"
"Hongshi-kun!" Sakura's voice rang out.
Yuhan replied, "Oh! Sakura's here too."
Sakura and her two teammates squeezed through the crowd and stood before Hongshi. "You really are amazing, Hongshi-kun!"
Upon seeing Sasuke, Hieimon shyly took an iron rod from his ninja tool pouch. There were a few more jutsu formulas on it now, and the material was different as well. "S-Sasuke-kun, I made this on a sudden whim last night."
Sasuke accepted the iron rod. "Thanks."
"No, no, no, it's my honor to help you."
Sakura suddenly felt a burning gaze behind her, making her hair stand on end. She turned around, only to see Rock Lee looking at her with slightly flushed cheeks. "(^_−)☆ You must be Sakura! Please go out with me! I swear to protect you with my life!"
"(≖_≖) No. I hate bushy eyebrows."
"(⌒.−)＝★ Then, Big Sister Yuhan, please go out with me. I swear to protect you with my life!"
"(≖_≖) No, I already have someone I like."
Rock Lee said, "Damn it! Then Hongshi is my only choice."
"∑(❍ฺд❍ฺlll)"
"∑(❍ฺд❍ฺlll)"
Hongshi said, "∑(❍ฺд❍ฺlll) You! Stay away from me!"
Rock Lee stood before Hongshi. "I hear you're strong. I'd like to spar with you."
Since Tenten and her teammates were two years older than Hongshi, Rock Lee was not one of his childhood friends.
Hongshi let out a long breath. "Damn you, you scared the shit out of me. Just a spar? Come on, then."
Rock Lee took his stance. "My name is Rock Lee."
Hongshi smiled. "My name is Kira Hongshi."
"Then pardon me!"
Rock Lee's figure vanished in an instant, then appeared behind him, moving extremely fast.
"Konoha Gale!"
Hongshi neither dodged nor evaded, as though he had not reacted at all.
"Got you!"
"Bang." It was like kicking an iron plate. Hongshi did not budge.
"What! Konoha Strong Fist Whirlwind!"
"Bang." He still did not move an inch.
"Damn it! Konoha Strong Fist Chain Whirlwind!"
"Bang! Bang! Bang! ..."
Hongshi, who had not budged at all, finally spoke. "Rock Lee, doesn't spinning like that make you dizzy?"
"Try this! Front Lotus!!! Front Lot... Front... ﾞ━=͟͟͞͞(Ŏ◊Ŏ‧̣̥̇) You're too heavy! I can't lift you!"
So he jumped away and continued using kicks.
"Tornado Destroys Parking Lot!"
The Main God said, "Something weird seems to have slipped in again."
"Bang, bang, bang, bang, bang, bang..."
"Crack!"
"(°ー°〃) Ah! My foot!"
Who knew how many kicks he had thrown? White smoke was rising from the back of Hongshi's head. A sharp crack rang out, and the foot bent at a bizarre angle. It had actually broken...
"What!" Neji activated his Byakugan and saw that Rock Lee's leg was indeed broken.
The Main God said, "You still need the Byakugan to tell at this point!!!"
Even so, after landing, Rock Lee stood on one leg, gritted his teeth against the pain, and still assumed a fighting stance. "My youth won't stop burning because of one leg!"
This surprised Hongshi somewhat. "Oh? You can still fight?"
"Konoha Strong Fist Straight Punch!"
"Konoha Continuous Strong Fist Straight Punch!"
"Crack!" Another sharp crack came from his right hand.
"Rock Lee, stop fighting. Your right hand is broken too."
"No. My youth won't stop burning because of one leg and one hand!"
"Useless, useless! Burn, my youth! Konoha Strong Fist Headbutt!"
"Konoha Continuous Strong Fist Headbutt! Aaaaah!"
"Bang!"
"Bang, bang, bang..."
Tenten said, "Σ(っ°Д°;)っ Lee! Enough! Your head's cracked!"
"Useless, useless! My youth won't stop... I'm so dizzy... stop burning because of one leg, one hand, and one head!"
"Konoha Great Steel Fang!"
Neji could no longer bear to watch and stepped forward to stop him. "Rock Lee, enough! You're no match for him. If you keep biting, you'll lose all your teeth!"
Hongshi smiled faintly. "Neji, your death... Neji, you're a sensible guy."
"No, I'll fight until the moment my youth burns out. I have no choice but to use the Eight Gates Released Formation!"
Hongshi chuckled. "All right, come find me once you can open all Eight Gates."
Yuhan rolled his eyes at Hongshi, then stepped forward to examine Rock Lee's injuries. "All right, stay still. I'll heal you."
Only then did Rock Lee sit on the ground. "Oh, my angel."
Yuhan said, "Don't move. If you move, I'll chop your leg off (≖_≖)."
"Please keep treating me and don't think about anything else, okay?"
Rock Lee's years of high-intensity Taijutsu training had provided a measure of protection, so these were only ordinary fractures. Under Yuhan's skilled medical Ninjutsu, he soon recovered completely.
Hongshi stepped forward and looked at Rock Lee. "Mm, Rock Lee, I admire your willpower. Let me give you a gift."
"A gift?"
Hongshi pressed his hand against Rock Lee's chest. "Sealing Jutsu: Earth Release, Four Symbols Seal: Multiple Super Hardening Technique."
There was no sensation at all. A ring of Four Symbols Seal formulas merely appeared on Rock Lee's body before disappearing. "No need to thank me."
With that, Hongshi and his two companions left.
Throughout the entire process, only Neji, who possessed the Byakugan, understood what had happened. "He can actually fuse Sealing Jutsu with Earth Release techniques. Could it be Ninjutsu that only activates under specific conditions? What a genius!"
Hongshi said, "Oh dear, you've discovered I'm a genius again."
After his treatment, Rock Lee seemed to have forgotten what had just happened. He stood up and spoke to Sasuke again. "Are you Sasuke Uchiha? Let's settle this!"
Neji said, "..."
Sasuke said, "???"
What followed differed little from the original story. Although Sasuke was considerably stronger now than in the original, Rock Lee still utterly thrashed him with the boost from the Super Hardening Technique.
Just as Rock Lee was about to unleash the Front Lotus, Teacher Guy made a dashing entrance and kicked him, ending the fight.
Sakura said, "Aaaaah, another one with even bushier eyebrows! Blegh..."
Rock Lee said, "Don't you make fun of Teacher Guy!"
Naruto said, "∑(❍ฺд❍ฺlll) Why do these weird people keep showing up one after another!"
Guy stood behind Rock Lee and gently patted his shoulder. "(´-ι_-｀) Lee."
"???"
"(.•ω•)σ)´Д`) Hi-yah! You idiot!"
Guy drove a straight punch directly into Rock Lee's face, sending him flying several meters. "Not bad. Your body's gotten a lot tougher!"
"(°ー°〃) Is this really his teacher!"
"Σ(ŎдŎ )ﾉﾉ He actually hit his student! That was way too brutal!"
"Teacher Guy! (*꒦ິ⌓꒦ີ)"
"Lee! (*꒦ິ⌓꒦ີ)"
The two embraced tightly once again.
Naruto said, "Are these two sick in the head?"
Tenten and Neji could no longer bear to watch and went straight up to the third floor.
Hongshi and his two companions also shook their heads and headed upstairs.