Chapter 45 – Ren vs Lee
Ren grinned while looking at the mission prompt.
'Kage level, huh? Hina and Ino will be ready soon, but Sakura might need some more time,' he thought thoughtfully.
As Ren remained lost in thought, he completely failed to notice the dangerous glares Hinata and Ino were directing toward Sakura.
Sakura turned toward Ino to thank her, but the moment she saw their expressions, a chill ran down her spine.
'Wh-what did I do?' she screamed inwardly.
Then realization struck her.
'Damn it... this is getting dangerous.'
She instantly panicked. Ino and Hinata slowly approached her with very kind smiles that didn't look kind at all to Sakura.
She wanted to run away, but her legs froze in place. Hinata and Ino casually dropped an arm around her shoulders.
"Well, since you are technically our junior, let us help you with your training," Ino said with a bright smile.
Sakura's soul nearly left her body.
'Waaaa! I'm doomed!' she cried internally.
"N-no need. I can train myse—"
Ren, who had been thinking deeply, suddenly snapped out of it and nodded happily.
"Yeah, it's a good idea. You two can train her basics in taijutsu and other things."
He honestly felt relieved. Teaching basics was always a pain, so since Hinata and Ino volunteered, he happily agreed.
Sakura nearly fainted on the spot.
'I'm dead... I'm absolutely dead...'
Shikamaru, who had already understood the situation, gave Sakura a sympathetic look. Tenten also understood what was happening.
A knowing smile appeared on her face.
'My, so that's how it is,' she thought while giggling internally.
Naruto and the others instinctively kept a safe distance from Hinata and Ino after seeing their smiles.
Soon, time passed as the semifinals continued. Eventually, it became Tenten's turn.
Genma raised his hand.
"Next match: Tenten vs Temari!"
Ren looked toward the blonde-haired girl thoughtfully. In his opinion, Temari was one of the most talented kunoichi of her generation.
Though in the original timeline her strength only reached Kage level, with the correct guidance, she could become even stronger. The thought amused him greatly.
Recently, he had unconsciously started looking at every talented girl through the eyes of a trainer. Temari noticed his gaze.
She was also curious about this super genius. A civilian-born genius who had completed an S-rank mission and fought against a Jonin like Zabuza while surviving.
The match started instantly as Tenten opened her massive scroll. Weapons flooded out endlessly as countless kunai, shuriken, and blades rained toward Temari.
Temari scoffed while opening her giant war fan.
With a single flap, powerful winds erupted outward and scattered every weapon effortlessly.
Ren sighed helplessly.
This was a losing match from the start. Temari was an absolute counter to Tenten.
Tenten continued attacking repeatedly, trying different angles and trajectories, but every attack was blown away before it could even reach Temari.
The spectators watched in surprise as Temari calmly stood in place, casually dealing with everything thrown at her.
Tenten gritted her teeth and jumped back while opening another scroll. More weapons appeared and attacked from multiple directions at once.
Temari smirked slightly.
"Wind Style: Great Sickle Weasel!"
Massive blades of wind tore through the arena. Tenten's attacks were destroyed instantly as the remaining winds slammed into her body.
Tenten crashed painfully against the wall.
Genma looked toward her briefly before raising his hand.
"Match over! Winner: Temari!"
Temari closed her fan calmly and walked away. As she passed by Ren, her eyes briefly met his.
A small smile appeared on her lips before she continued walking. Ren merely chuckled softly.
Soon, the semifinals continued one after another. The crowd loudly cheered as the matches progressed.
Finally, Genma stepped forward again.
"Last match of the semifinals: Ren vs Lee!"
Ren blinked once before muttering,
"So Gaara and Sasuke got a free pass."
A grin slowly spread across his face as he jumped down into the arena.
"A fight with Lee... now this is going to be fun."
His excitement was completely genuine.
Hinata and Ino exchanged glances.
"He is actually excited for the fight?" Hinata muttered in surprise.
Ino grinned knowingly.
"Well, with the Eight Gates, Lee is a monster. Of course Ren is excited."
Lee stood above excitedly before jumping into the arena as well.
"Youshiiii! Let's have a youthful showdown!"
His eyes burned passionately as he pointed toward Ren.
"Let's see what the person stronger than the Uchiha has!"
Ren's mouth twitched slightly.
The two formed the hand seal of confrontation while staring directly at each other.
Hinata, Ino, Sakura, and the others watched the arena excitedly. They had never truly seen Ren fight seriously before.
Even the Jonin observing the exams focused more carefully now.
"The match starts now!" Genma shouted before disappearing from the center of the arena.
The instant he vanished, both Lee and Ren exploded forward simultaneously.
Boom!
Their fists collided head-on.
A shockwave spread across the arena floor as cracks instantly formed beneath their feet.
Both engaged in taijutsu as fists and kicks collided continuously. In that short amount of time, they had already exchanged dozens of moves.
Naruto's eyes widened.
"What the hell?!"
Lee appeared in front of Ren and threw a powerful kick toward his head. Ren calmly raised his arm and blocked it.
The impact forced Ren backward several steps.
Lee's eyes sparkled in excitement.
"What incredible taijutsu!"
Ren grinned and countered with a punch. Lee instantly ducked under it as the pressure from the punch blasted apart the wall behind him.
Everyone watching sucked in a cold breath.
"Kahahaha! Good!" Lee shouted excitedly as he unleashed a barrage of kicks and punches.
Ren matched him blow for blow. Their fists and kicks collided repeatedly as shockwaves spread across the arena.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
The audience stared in disbelief as the two exchanged attacks at monstrous speeds. Most Genin couldn't even follow their movements properly.
Hyruzen blinked.
"Monster Strength? Did Ren recreate that jutsu by himself?"
Looking at Ren, he couldn't help but recall Tsunade in her youth.
A nostalgic smile appeared on his face.
"He truly is a genius," he chuckled. "And that Lee is not bad either," he muttered while stroking his beard.
Sakura swallowed nervously.
'T-this is...? Are they really the same age as us?'
Lee suddenly flipped backward and wrapped the bandages around his arms tightly. A grin spread across his face.
"What a youthful match!"
He launched Leaf Hurricane toward Ren.
Ren slammed his fist down using Monster Strength.
BOOM!
The audience gasped loudly as the ground beneath Ren's fist shattered apart.
Guy muttered proudly while tears flowed from his eyes.
"Truly a youthful battle!"
A massive crater appeared where Ren had been standing moments earlier.
Lee reappeared behind Ren and kicked toward his spine. Ren twisted his body midair and blocked the strike with his forearm.
Even then, the impact sent him sliding backward across the arena.
Lee attacked relentlessly while Ren defended, blocking, dodging, and countering.
Naruto stared with sparkling eyes.
"So cool!"
Hinata and Ino remained calm despite the destruction happening in the arena.
Sakura noticed their expressions and blinked.
"You two aren't worried?"
Ino crossed her arms confidently.
"Worried about what?"
Hinata nodded calmly.
"They still haven't used any techniques seriously yet."
Sakura froze.
'This isn't serious yet?!'
Back in the arena, Lee suddenly appeared above Ren.
"Konoha Hurricane!"
A devastating axe kick descended toward Ren's head.
Ren raised his hand, taking the hit head-on. The impact sent dust flying everywhere.
The audience held their breath nervously.
As the dust slowly cleared, Ren was revealed standing calmly with one hand raised above his head, blocking Lee's kick completely.
Lee's eyes widened in shock.
Ren grinned brightly.
"Your taijutsu is amazing, Lee."
Before Lee could react, Ren grabbed his leg, spun once, and threw him across the arena.
Boom!
Lee crashed into the wall but instantly flipped back onto his feet. Blood dripped from the corner of his lips, but his eyes only burned brighter.
Guy clenched his fists proudly.
"That's it, Lee! Show your youth!"
Lee turned toward Guy in disbelief.
"But, Gai-sensei, you said never to use this on friends—"
Guy grinned and shouted,
"Remove it, Lee! If you don't fight with everything you have, it would be disrespectful to Ren!"
He gave Lee a thumbs-up.
"Gai-sensei!"
Lee's eyes watered.
"Yoshiii!"
He shouted as he reached toward his legs and started removing the weight gear.
Kakashi stared in disbelief.
"Gai... don't tell me you taught him that technique?"
Guy grinned proudly.
Kakashi was dumbfounded.
Ren's eyes sharpened slightly.
'Looks like he is about to use the real stuff now.'
The atmosphere around the arena instantly grew tense.
Lee took off the weight gear and held it casually.
"Pheew... now it feels much easier to move."
Naruto scoffed.
"Tsk, how much could those even wei—"
He froze as Lee released the weights.
BOOOOM!!!
The weights smashed into the ground, creating massive craters as dust clouds rose everywhere.
Silence filled the entire stadium.
Even the Jonin watching widened their eyes slightly.
Naruto's jaw dropped.
"What the hell are those things made of?!"
A grin spread across Ren's face.
Ino laughed softly.
"Now things will start getting serious."
Sakura swallowed nervously.
Hinata looked toward Ren while smiling gently.
'Go for it, Ren,' she muttered inwardly.
Lee slowly lowered his stance.
The air around him changed completely.
His previous cheerful expression disappeared, replaced by absolute focus.
Ren rolled his shoulders while smiling excitedly.
Now this fight was finally getting interesting.