Chapter 20: The First Match
The arena for the third exam was packed. It showed how important this event was. Many powerful people were in the crowd, and everyone was looking forward to the fights.
The drawing of lots began. As expected, the results were different from before. Gaara wasn't matched against Rock Lee. He was matched against Takahashi.
Lee's opponent this time was Kankuro. A real case of enemies meeting. And Temari's opponent was changed to Neji.
Takahashi sighed to himself. If it were Shikamaru, Tenten might have had a chance. He was a reasonable guy. But against Neji? He could only wish her good luck.
Neji's skill wasn't top-tier like Naruto's future power-ups, but when it came to being a qualified ninja, he was definitely near the top. He was strong, calm, and always mission-focused.
Gaara's team also saw the matchups. They hadn't expected this.
Kankuro didn't seem to care. In his eyes, Takahashi was the only real threat on that team. The others weren't worth his time. And now he was facing this "Rock Lee" guy. He'd asked around. This guy had very little chakra. How could he be a challenge?
The first match was Lee's.
Kankuro stepped onto the field with a look of pure contempt. In his opinion, there were maybe five genin in Konoha worth his attention. The rest were just small fish. He'd faced real danger and death. He would never lose to a pampered Konoha flower, especially a fool like this.
As the match started, Might Guy stood next to Kakashi, with Team Seven nearby. Kakashi sighed quietly. From what he knew of the two fighters, Lee had no sure way to beat Kankuro. A puppet master's tricks were tricky, and Kankuro had the advantage in a straight fight.
But he didn't say this out loud. Pointing out something that couldn't be changed would just annoy people.
He glanced at Guy from the corner of his eye and saw the man was filled with confidence in his student.
Tenten whispered to Takahashi, "Hey, who do you think will win?"
Takahashi glanced at her. Their teacher is right there. Why ask me? Besides, Konoha's famous copy ninja was standing nearby. He preferred to be modest about these things. People who were too flashy often died quickly.
He passed the question right to Guy. "Whoever wins or loses, Guy-sensei already knows the answer in his heart. Let's just watch."
Seeing Guy's proud expression, Tenten suddenly understood. "You mean Lee will win?"
Takahashi shook his head. "I mean Lee is going to hang this Sand Village guy out to dry and beat him badly."
Hearing this, Kakashi and Team Seven couldn't help but look over. Their eyes were full of doubt. They clearly didn't believe it.
They'd seen Kankuro's skills in the Forest of Death. They were strange and powerful. In comparison, Lee's abilities seemed so ordinary, even weak. How could he beat a skilled puppeteer?
Sakura's face practically had "I don't believe you" written on it. Kakashi just quickly looked away.
Down on the field, Lee looked at the countless spectators and felt his blood boil. It had been so long since he'd had a good, hearty fight. He was always protected behind Takahashi. Even he felt he needed a real battle to prove himself.
Kankuro brought his puppet, Crow, onto the field. He didn't bring his other puppets, Black Ant and Salamander. That showed how little he thought of Lee. A real puppeteer used all his tools.
He looked at Lee and sighed dramatically. "You're really unlucky. Drawing me in the first match. Looks like your run ends here. Your whole team has to face the three of us. I don't know what to say about luck that bad."
Lee didn't waste words. He just took his fighting stance. "Konoha's Rock Lee!"
Kankuro stopped talking. The chakra strings on his fingers twirled, and the Crow puppet opened its mouth, spewing out a cloud of purple smoke—his Black Secret Technique: Poison Smoke Bomb.
Before Lee could react, it shot out a volley of poison needles. Three waves of dense, green needles. Even a scratch would badly weaken his opponent.
Lee quickly backflipped away. His combat intuition was top-class. Even with his vision blocked, he could use his sharp senses to dodge.
Seeing all his attacks miss, Kankuro frowned. It seemed this Lee guy was tougher than he thought.
He summoned his other puppet, Black Ant. Up above, Might Guy had been watching closely. Seeing the enemy was getting serious, he decided it was time for Lee to stop holding back.
"Lee!" he yelled down. "You can take the weights off now!"
Hearing this, Lee looked up, surprised, then determined. "Understood, Guy-sensei!"
He then began taking heavy weights off his legs. Others might scoff. What difference could a little weight make? It couldn't close the real power gap.
Kankuro was even more amused. "Hahaha! Are you giving up? Fine. I'll put you out of your misery quickly."
Lee didn't speak. He just took the weights off, held them in his hands, and gave Kankuro a sharp look. Then he threw them.
"Are you crazy? You think you can hit me with— Dammit!!"
Kankuro's taunt died in his throat. His nerves screamed a warning. He dodged on instinct just as the weights Lee had thrown shot past him like cannonballs, never slowing down. They smashed into the arena wall with a tremendous CRASH.
The spectators high above felt the floor tremble. When the dust cleared, everyone stared at the huge crater in the wall, their eyes wide. Even Kakashi was shocked. He was fighting with those on?
Neji's eyes were also wide. He unconsciously looked at Takahashi, only to find his face was perfectly calm. A realization dawned on Neji.
"So... he already knew?" Neji couldn't help but feel a pang of humility. "It seems I was the frog at the bottom of the well."