Gathering Senjutsu chakra in silence, Sasuke stood poised in Kakashi's training grounds, his eyes scanning the surroundings.
The ground was a mosaic of familiar faces, all gathered in mere minutes to witness what promised to be an unforgettable clash.
From Genins who tried to attack Naruto to Konoha 11 with their sensei to Tsunade with Shizune.
'It's impressive it took just 10 minutes for pretty much everyone to come.'
Kakashi through his training regiment called everyone to witness the match held under the pretext of honouring Last Tsunade arrival.
Seeing the crowd, Sasuke felt a surge of excitement he couldn't feel in fights he fought in the B rank missions.
Only mission that stirred up his spirit was his fight with Haku.
He knows he can't possibly be better than Naruto who is the reincarnation of Ashura and the Jinchuuriki of the strongest tail beast, but it doesn't demotivate him to train.
It doesn't discourage him to seek tougher fights.
Whether because he had the body of the Uchiha or the body where Indra reincarnated, he had long for a fight even if it bring him to brink of death once again
Knowing Rock Lee's strength, his irrational desire will be fulfilled.
As Sasuke gathers the Senjutsu chakra, the crowd buzzed with energy
"Hey, do you guys know how strong this Rock Lee guy is?" Naruto asked others, unfamiliar with the 'Lee' lineage, to seek insights.
"He is a Might Guy student, who specializes in Taijutsu like him, but I haven't seen him fight so I can't say for sure about his strength." Asuma answered, through a haze of smoke.
The name of Might Guy had mixed reception in the crowd.
Genins had no idea who Might Guy other than the eccentric guy they see in the street that does wacky stuff and needed some mental help, on the other hand their Genin Corps Captains and Jōnin Captains knew him and explained to them about him.
While Might Guy wasn't famous like Kakashi for Genins, he garnered respect from his peers by his battle prowess and his dedication for training and is well known as the best Taijutsu user alive and second strongest active Jōnin in Konoha.
Considering they saw him training the most with Rock Lee, they assumed he would be strong.
But strong enough to defeat Sasuke? Everyone has mixed opinions about it where Tsunade was about to take the opportunity to bet, before being halted by Shizune, who was sick with this shit.
Rock Lee, who removed his training weight beforehand as per the request of Sasuke, arrived at the ground, greeting Sasuke who was anticipating him.
Tsunade, assuming the role of referee, promised impartiality and the authority to end the match if necessary, ensuring fairness and safety.
Even if her decision is considered unpopular , she won't change her mind, though there isn't one prestigious enough question in the first place.
As they took their stances, drawing their battle plans in their mind, they heard chants of Sasuke from the crowd.
Like Sasuke expected, his fangirls cheered for him, which compelled the boys to give him a death glare in return which was unfazed by Sasuke.
'Oh well, not my fault.' Sasuke smiled, enjoying the chant.
Briefly impressed by Sasuke's popularity, Lady Tsunade commenced the fight.
"Hajima"
Opening his Three Tomoe Sharigan, he used body flicker to close the gap between them.
In switch motion, Rock Lee responded with a roundhouse kick, which was quickly evaded by Sasuke and answered back with a jab.
Blocking it with his right fist, Sasuke backed away before his legs got hit with Rock Lee's sweep kick.
They smile at each other, before their fist collides with each other after closing the gap.
A minute hasn't passed, yet the spectacle captivated all present, from the youngest Genin to the seasoned veterans, each move sparking debates and predictions.
'Indeed you were right to make the match.' Kakashi thought, seeing the Genins he trained to be so invested in a fight for the first time.
He was a bit surprised Sasuke's eyes matured to progress to Three Tomoe Sharigan just after the mission but Kakashi wasn't an expert, so he didn't think much about it.
In the field, it seems as if they were in a stage where they dance through their punches and kicks.
Numerous evasion and blocking of both sides caused the crowd to speculate whether they were evenly matched, but for Sasuke and Rock Lee, it was meaningless, as this too little to judge their battle prowess just by looking at their warm up.
'Ready to face it!'
Looking at his determined eyes, Sasuke backed away and witnessed Rock Lee's transformation.
"Gate of Opening, open!"
"Gate of Healing, open!"
"Gate of Life, open!"
Crowd was amazed by the pressure they felt from Rock Lee.
Looking underneath, you may mistake a heavy object that has fallen in the sky, creating a crater.
Rock Lee with his skin turning red, his pupils turning white, his hair standing on end, and his veins bulging all over his body, everyone can see a green aura that surrounds his body, making him more 'devilish' and vicious, no longer looking like a silly goofball.
"Get ready Sasuke." he said, taking his stance, promoting Sasuke to use Sharin no hensō to use his EMS.
He is not going to use ninjutsu anyway due to Lee's immense speed that can grab his hands, so Sasuke wasn't worried about the duration.
Except for this one.
"Fire Release: Chakra mode!"
Clocking himself with a thick layer of flame chakra, he applied Blaze Release: Kagutsuchi to control and shaped the thick layer, removing its contact with Sasuke's body to nullify its downside, making it a true spiked shield.
Maintaining his grin, he stared at Rock Lee and proceeded for the next phase of their fight.