The entire training ground fell dead silent.
Everyone was stunned by the fight that had ended in a flash —and by the absolute power Tejima Shinichi had displayed.
Yet in that silence, Uchiha Sasuke's eyes suddenly blazed with excitement; he couldn't help but exclaim under his breath:
"Yes! That's the feeling!"
The out-of-character reaction instantly drew Haruno Sakura's attention.
She stared at the excited, almost vindicated look on Sasuke's face, utterly bewildered.
"Sasuke-kun? What… what's with you? Why do you look… happy?" Sakura asked, confused.
Beside her, Uzumaki Naruto gaped at Sasuke, then seemed to recall something hilarious; he snorted, a mischievous grin spreading across his face.
"He-he-he…"
He nudged Sakura with his elbow, voice low and trembling with suppressed laughter:
"He-he, Sakura, it's 'cause Sasuke used to—"
"Naruto!!!"
Sasuke snapped back to his senses, face flaming. Flustered and furious, he lunged and clamped a hand hard over Naruto's mouth, cutting off the rest.
It wasn't that Uchiha Sasuke couldn't accept defeat.
In six years at the Ninja Academy he had lost to Shinichi countless times.
He simply found being slammed into the ground like a sack of sand far too humiliating.
"Mmmph-mmmph…!"
Naruto struggled, but Sasuke pressed even tighter, glaring daggers that screamed, Say it and you're dead.
Watching the two scuffle, Sakura was a knot of question marks, utterly lost.
'What on earth… is going on?'
On the field, Tejima Shinichi brushed non-existent dust from his hands and looked down at the temporarily immobilized Rock Lee.
"Satisfied now?"
To end the nuisance quickly he had indeed used a bit of force.
Right now Lee felt every bone loose and his guts churning; he couldn't get up for a while.
Watching, Hyuga Neji slowly calmed the veins around his Byakugan and sighed inwardly.
'As expected… the gap is still absurd.'
Rock Lee truly hadn't gone all-out; neither the Eight Gates nor his weights had been released.
But Shinichi's casual, swat-a-mosquito ease still left him feeling powerless.
Shinichi said nothing more and turned to leave with his teammates.
"W-wait…!"
Gritting through the pain, Lee propped himself on an elbow, voice hoarse.
He reached for the heavy weight straps on his legs, eyes burning with refusal to quit.
"I haven't lost! I can still —let me take these off and fight with my real strength—"
His fingers hooked the buckles—about to pull…
Clack… Clack…
Just then a hard tapping echoed, approaching from afar.
Everyone followed the sound: a good-sized tortoise was calmly plodding along the corridor into the training ground.
"A… turtle?" Sakura blinked, stunned.
"Why's there a turtle here?" Kobayashi Takeshi muttered.
Under the puzzled stares the tortoise reached the center and stopped beside the struggling Lee.
Next second—
Poof!
A cloud of white smoke burst from its shell!
When it cleared, a man in the same green spandex, bowl-cut hair, and eyebrows even thicker than Lee's struck a "handsome" pose atop the shell!
His teeth flashed blindingly.
"Lee!!! It seems you've met the setback of youth!"
It was Lee's Jonin Instructor —Might Guy!
The grand entrance left everyone dumbstruck.
Naruto was first to react, pointing and yelling, "Whoa! Another brow-bro—and they're even bushier!"
Neji quickly averted his gaze, face darkening; Tenten covered hers, wishing the ground would swallow her.
Guy hopped down, glanced at Lee on the ground, then at the calm, departing Shinichi.
"Teacher!" Lee cried, finding courage at the sight of him. "I—"
Guy raised a hand, flashing his trademark grin. First to Shinichi:
"Young man, well done! Clean Taijutsu! You're Tejima Shinichi, right? Yamato mentioned you —no wonder—mm!"
His words hinted at more, but he left it there, then spun to Lee, voice thundering:
"Lee! Remember! Real victory isn't about a moment's win or loss—it's whether you can learn from failure and burn youth's flame even hotter! Your training's far from enough!"
"Besides, the power of the Eight Gates and removing weights is a blade to protect precious comrades, not a toy for pointless showing off!"
Lee froze, tears brimming, struggling to rise.
"Teacher!"
Seeing this, Guy stepped in and personally lifted him up.
For a moment the two locked eyes, and the air began to swirl with something ever stronger —called "youth"!!!
Shinichi's face changed; he spun to Kobayashi and Satō Yū, who were still gaping.
"Move! Upstairs, now! If we don't leave we're done for!"
"Huh? Shinichi, what—" Kobayashi began.
But Shinichi didn't wait; a Body Flicker Jutsu —Whoosh!— and he was gone, already striding for the exit without looking back.
Kobayashi and Satō exchanged blank stares, baffled by his "panic".
Yet in the second or two they hesitated… it was too late!
Behind them Might Guy's passionate roar exploded:
"Ooohhh—!!! Lee!!! That's it! This is the youthful way to face setbacks!!!"
Immediately Lee answered, choked up but just as loud:
"Teacher—!!! I understand!!!"
Then, under every Genin's stunned gaze, the matching-green-spandex master and student charged and slammed together in a fierce, tight hug!
"Waaaah—!!!"
Both burst into rich, flowing tears, bawling like waterfalls under the sun.
They slapped each other's backs and shouted in tearful unison:
"THIS—IS—YOUTHHHH—!!!"
The roar nearly lifted the roof off the training ground.
Kobayashi and Satō froze as if paralyzed.
Tenten again covered her face; Neji silently turned away.
Sakura stood agape, jaw on the floor.
Naruto pointed at the pair, mouth open, words failing him.
Uchiha Sasuke scowled in disgust, as if his eyes had been polluted!