Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto and I probably never will.
Author's Notes: Not much to say this time around...Hopefully the small amount of people still reading this will be please.
The sun stood high above the large crowd of people lined up before the long rows of registration booths, each of them waiting for their turn to sign up for the highly anticipated tournament to test their combat skills. Rock Lee stood behind Hozaku as he looked around excitedly at the people gathered in the packed narrow marketplace of Maple Village.
"There sure are a lot of people here," commented the young ninja. Hozaku chuckled at his fighter's words.
"The Maple Village tournament is the ultimate crowd pleaser. This is where legendary fighters like Makunouchi Ippo and Jin Kazama were literally born," the older man explained. Lee heard of these legendary fighters. They were not trained to be ninjas, but they conquered the rings with their raw strengths alone. And for this reason, Lee unconsciously drooled at the idea of fighting in the same ring as these legendary individuals. Then something caught his eyes.
"Um, Hozaku-san?" Lee tugged at his shirt.
"What?" he asked. Then he saw it, too. They were both looking at the same young boy with a single village head protector that seemed to hold the same blond hair together, the same gray vest that hung over a plain white t-shirt, and a single katana sheath hanging on his back.
"Tenchi," they both whispered in unison. At that moment, the young blond ninja sneezed on the back of the person before him.
"Who's that with him?"
Hozaku looked at where Lee was pointing and saw a tall lean man with long flowing silvery hair. He was wearing a long white robe and a pair of dark sunglasses that rested uneasily on the bridge of his nose. Hozaku unconsciously clenched his fists.
"Lee, be prepared," he said.
Puzzled by his words, Lee can only nod and acknowledge him. He glanced at his fight promoter's clenched white knuckles and quietly stared at the two potential opponents in his path, a single sweat forming on his forehead.
Chapter 9: On With the Fights!
Lee looked around their hotel room, slightly disheartened by its condition. The walls were deeply scarred and the paints were scraped off the surface with cockroaches crawling beneath the cracks that ran rampant across it. Their only toilet was standing on its back while the broken faucet in the sink quietly dripped on its own, the shower curtain strewn messily over the bathroom floor. However, their beds were made neatly and the sheets seemed to have been changed recently, bringing a sense of contrast to their room.
"Um, how much did we pay for this room, Hozaku-san?" Lee inquired, putting his bags on the cleanest corner of the room. His companion stood in the middle of the space, picking his nose and looking out the window.
"Nothing. I came here to get paid. Not to pay for some shabby hotel rooms," he replied. Lee frowned, both at his remark and the foul stench that seemed to be coming from the closets.
"Anyways, rest for a bit. Our training session will start soon," Hozaku advised. Lee looked up happily at the notion of undergoing some form of training.
"What kind of things will this training entail?" the young boy asked, almost beaming at the older man. This both disturbed and impressed Hozaku.
"Well, you'll see," he said. This didn't satisfy Lee's curiosity one bit, but he held it back. He plopped down on his side of the bed and tried not to concentrate on the stench.
"I'll be back later," Hozaku told him. He watched the young ninja nod slightly as he began to doze off. The promoter smiled and closed the door behind him, heading off to the promoter's court to gather some information.
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When Hozaku arrived at his desired destination, there weren't too many people around, which puzzled him. There usually were many fight promoters gathered here to chat and boast about their new fighters.
"Where are they?" he asked to no one in particular.
"Already training," someone answered. Hozaku turned around and saw the same white robed man with the dark sunglasses he saw in the morning.
"Goru," Hozaku whispered, a bit annoyed by his presence. The mysterious silver haired man smiled, walked over to a nearby table and picked up a flyer. Looking it over, he chuckled lightly to himself.
"Maple Village Tournament. The most anticipated line up this year, with the return of Goru the genius promoter," he read it over loud enough for Hozaku to hear it. Then the tall lean man turned around and crumpled the flyer in his hands before the other promoter.
"This disgusts me," he told him. Beads of sweat began to form on Hozaku's forehead.
"A little publicity disgusts you?" he asked him. Goru nodded and threw the ball of paper behind him.
"Some of us are sincere in wishing to enjoy these events for what they're worth," the white robed man answered quietly.
"But with these type of absurdity floating around, I can't enjoy myself. I don't like seeing my opponents waiting for me in anticipation and fear. I like to see them enjoy themselves and boast. Brag even," he explained.
Hozaku gulped. Goru pointed an accusing finger at the older man before him and frowned.
"See what I mean? It's no fun at all," he said with disappointment. Hozaku furrowed his eyebrows.
"So everyone is off to train, are they?" the older man muttered. Goru tucked his hands within his sleeves and began to walk away. Then he stopped by the exit.
"Though there seems to be some hope this year," he said. "There are several ninjas that seemed to have snuck in this time. Including yours."
With that, he left silently, as if he was never there to begin with. Hozaku gritted his teeth and punched the wall next to him to ease his excitement.
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Lee tread behind his promoter through the nearby plains. The older man seemed to have something in his mind that was bothering him and it was apparent on his face, but Lee decided not to ask him about it.
"So what are we doing here?" Lee asked once they stopped. Hozaku turned around and held a rock in his left hand.
"Know what this is?" he asked him. Puzzled by his question, Lee kept silent.
"A rock?" he finally muttered, a bit unsure of the older man's intention. Hozaku nodded, tossing the piece of rock in the air and catching it again.
"Yes. A rock. Then do you know what it means to destroy this rock?" he asked him. Lee scratched the back of his head doubtfully.
"Um, by breaking it with force?" he answered. His fight promoter sighed and shook his head.
"No. This rock. It's a solid material formed from solidifying different type of minerals together. To destroy this rock would mean separating these different type of minerals."
With that Hozaku tossed the piece of rock in the air again. But instead of catching it, he pulled his fist back and punched it in mid-air. On impact, the rock exploded into a pile of fine grain of sand and it flew away in the passing wind. Lee watched in utter amazement.
"How is that possible?" he allowed himself to mouth, still unable to believe his own eyes.
"There's a big difference in breaking something and destroying something, Lee. And this will be the defining difference in your matches," Hozaku added. "Futari no Kiwami. Other wise known as the "double impact fist."
"Futari no...Kiwami?" Lee blinked in bewilderment. Hozaku tossed him another piece of rock and Lee clutched it in his hands on instinct.
"Yes. And I want you to figure out how to use this technique on your own. That will be your training," said the older man. Lee looked at him with wide eyes.
"But..." he began.
"I already gave you enough hints to complete this on your own," Hozaku told him. Then he turned around and began to walk back towards the village.
"Come back in time for dinner," he said. Lee watched the older man disappear over the hill and looked at the piece of rock in his hand as he bit his lower lip.
"Futari no Kiwami," he repeated.
He then threw the rock in the air and punched it as hard as he can. The piece of rock broke off into tiny chunks and spread over the grass.
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The next morning, Hozaku woke up from his bed and looked outside the dirty broken window beside him, catching a face full of warm sunshine. Then he remembered.
Lee didn't come back yesterday.
He immediately got dressed and walked out of their room. He ran out to the plains where he last saw him and stumbled over a huge pile of broken rocks that seemed to be scattered across for at least a mile.
"This kid..." the promoter whispered. He ran across the broken piles of rocks and saw the boy ahead, breaking a gigantic boulder into tiny pieces with his raw and bloody fist.
"Stop!" Hozaku shouted.
Lee turned around and saw his promoter come up to him. He waved at him weakly and returned to his task. Hozaku finally caught up to him and held Lee's fist drenched in blood.
"What do you think you're doing?" he barked. Lee looked tired and satisfied at the same time.
"I...just had to keep going," he answered. "I managed to actually do it once, but I don't remember how I did it. So I just kept trying again."
The older man looked at him curiously. Then he spotted the safely protected grain of sand at Lee's side, away from the other broken pieces.
"Stop now. You have a match later today and if you further damage your fist, we just won't stand a chance," he said. Tired, Lee plopped on the ground and looked up at the cloudless sky.
"I had it. I actually had it," he kept repeating.
"No you didn't. You just lucked out once," Hozaku corrected him afterwards. He watched the young ninja doze off before him and he let out a huge sigh.
"Stubborn little bastard."
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The stadium was designed like a large ball park with seats arranged in a gigantic oval around a field of fresh green grass. In the center, there was a large pool of water that seemed to stretch for at least a quarter of a mile. Extending from the depth of this body of water were two pieces of carved woods in the shape of large Y's. Hung on top of these two pillar like structures was a five feet wide wooden plank made from an oak reinforced with other materials. Above the stadium were large score boards that displayed the names of the fighters and their partners. One of them read Rock Lee and Hozaku Tomahara.
The two stood before the Y shaped wooden pillar and looked above at the large crowd gathered at the stadium to watch the fight.
"First impression is everything, Lee. Give them what they want," said Hozaku. Lee nodded, tightening the bandages around his right injured fist in order to numb the pain and to stop it from swelling too much.
Then his fight promoter handed him a tiny ear plug. Lee took it and looked up at the older man with a confused expression.
"I will be talking to you from down here to instruct you on your strategies, among other things. Put that ear plug in your right ear and you will be able to hear me. Got it?"
The young Genin placed the mechanism in his right ear and gave him the thumbs up sign.
"I will win this one for you, Hozaku-san," he said. Then he began to climb up the wooden pillar by hand. His opponent, Asuma was already waiting for him on the planks to welcome him with his naked rock hard abs. He wore a white bandana on top of his bald head and a pair of black sweat pants with white stripes stretching across the length of his legs. He cracked his knuckles threateningly and shook his head sideways to relax his thick neck muscles.
"So you're up first," greeted the finely tuned fighter. Lee bowed to him formally and stuck out his right hand.
"Pleased to meet you. Let's have a good one!" the young ninja exclaimed. Asuma stuck his hand out like a good sport and noticed the hidden village head protector on Lee's waist.
"A shinobi, ey? You don't really look like one though," Asuma admitted. Lee smiled gently at his remark.
"So I've heard countless times in the past," he said. Asuma felt himself cautiously eyeing the boy for any surprises he might be concealing.
"Let us find out who's stronger," the shapely fighter proposed. Then they both took on their starting fight stances. Asuma had his fists stuck out before him in the fashion of any trained kick boxer, and Lee had his default stance of one palm stuck out before him while hiding the other fist behind his back.
"Lee, can you hear me?" came the voice from his ear plug.
"Yes!" shouted Lee, throwing off Asuma in the process.
"You idiot! Just keep quiet and listen to me. Now, right when the ref begins the round, I want you to take your distance and use projectile weapons," Hozaku instructed.
"Okay, now. Begin!" a voice filled the stadium. The two fighters did not hesitate. Asuma came swinging at the young ninja, and Lee did as he was told. He took out three shurikens and threw them towards his opponent. The young ripped fighter charged ahead and rolled underneath the oncoming flying objects, avoiding them completely in the process. Lee jumped over the rolling form of Asuma and ran towards the opposite direction, while taking out another three shurikens. He then bounced them over the oak, which sparked off the plank and flew off head on towards its target. Asuma jumped off the plank, stuck out a single hand and gripped the edge of the oak and swung himself around underneath it and back on the surface of the plank.
"He's got a good promoter with him," commented Hozaku. Lee wasn't so sure if he should be impressed at the moment. He took out a kunai from his pack this time and threw it across to the other side. Asuma arced his back and easily avoided the sharp projectile.
"Think again, Asuma-," warned the young Genin. Then Asuma noticed it. The kunai was strung at one end with a fishing wire.
"Damn!" he spat. He looked behind him and saw the flying kunai redirect itself and come back towards him. He dodged it again by stepping aside at the critical moment and saw Lee take out another seven kunais from his pack.
"I call this the Flying Octopus combo. Came up with it some time ago, but I wasn't able to try it until now," Lee told him. He then threw his entire supply of kunais at him, all of them strung at one end with the near invisible wires.
Asuma braced himself for the oncoming barrage of kunais. He saw them come slowly at him in his mind and began to move his highly flexible body around them all with ease. Lee orchestrated his flying weapons with the flick of his fingers and tried again and again to injure his opponent who was seemingly becoming faster with the passing time.
"Is this all you've got?" Asuma teased. When he looked over at where the young boy in the green outfit used to be, there was nobody to be seen. Yet the kunais kept on coming at him.
'What's going on,' thought the fighter. He looked to both his left and the right, yet the plank seemed to be completely deserted aside from himself. Then he heard footsteps coming from underneath him.
"Are you kidding me?" he murmured. Lee emerged from underneath the planks and delivered a spinning heel kick across Asuma's chin, which caused him to twist his entire body in mid-air. The kunais then spun around the air-borne fighter and constricted him with the fish wires. Lee used it to send him flying down towards the body of water underneath them.
"Nice, Lee. If he falls into the water, we win by ring out," Hozaku said.
Lee watched Asuma fall towards the pool of water.
"What the...?" the young boy started. He saw Asuma twist his body around and reach for the pillar with his hands. His arms grew longer and they held on to the Y shaped pillar. From there, Asuma swung himself around and crawled up to the plank and jumped back on top of the surface.
"How...How did you...?" Lee asked.
"I ate a strange fruit in my youth and since then, I was able to stretch out my limbs like rubber bands. Quite strange, huh? But more importantly, how did you walk underneath the plank?" Asuma inquired.
"By focusing our chakra on the soles of our feet, ninjas can walk on any surface," Lee explained.
"That rubbery body of his. That may explain his flexibility as well," Hozaku said through the ear phone. Lee clenched his teeth in frustration.
"Use your Octopus Combo again and bring it to a long range fight, Lee," his promoter advised. The young boy attempted to throw his kunais again when his hand was held back by the outstretched right arm of Asuma.
"Nah, I won't have you use your toys again," he said. Lee tried to shake his grip away, but his opponent held on strong. He then lifted Lee in the air and smashed his body against the hard wooden plank. The young ninja yelped as he felt an excruciating pain traveling through his spine.
Then Asuma spun him in the air and released him at maximum velocity and Lee felt himself being thrown like a baseball across the stage. As he neared the end of the plank, he reached out and held on to the top part of the Y pillar all the way at the other end. He slid back on the plank and watched Asuma stretch both his hands at an alarming speed. They went past him and held on to the top part of the pillar behind him. Then Asuma began to retract his body all the way towards Lee, his feet positioned to deliver a huge drop kick.
"Evade, Lee!" Hozaku ordered.
The boy in green jumped up and landed back on the plank once Asuma got past him.
"Naive," snickered the rubbery fighter. Lee turned around and saw him come back towards him again, about twice as fast as before. Lee ducked over and felt his opponent graze his back.
"Lee, dodge again!" his promoter shouted.
On cue, he performed a somersault and avoided the collision for the third time.
"Now, go knock out the top part of that Y pillar!"
Lee got the idea and charged towards the pillar. He then jumped up and broke off the top part of the pillar in which Asuma was holding with his hands, just enough so the pillar will still support the plank. This caused his opponent to panic.
"Is it over yet?" Lee wondered.
Unfortunate for him, Asuma used the broken pieces of the pillar to float on top of the body of water.
"Is that even legal?" the young Genin thought out loud as he observed his opponent.
"Damn, the pillars are still part of the stage so they're counting it. The battle isn't over yet!" Hozaku explained.
Lee saw Asuma climb back up the stage with his outstretched hands.
"Thought you had me, didn't you?" boasted the fighter.
"Okay, change of plan, Lee. Go in and turn it into a close quarter combat so we can render his ability useless," came a desperate voice from his ear phone.
Immediately, Lee charged in. He ducked under the rubbery arms and blocked Asuma's stretched legs with both his hands. He side stepped and kicked back with his feet, only to connect with the air. He then watched Asuma slither across the stage, slinging himself away from Lee by swinging himself around underneath the wooden plank. Lee ran back and tried to step on his hands that appeared every now and then as he swung across the stage to set another long ranged attack against Lee.
"You're like a monkey, Asuma-san!" shouted Lee. He heard his opponent chuckle as he kept avoiding him.
"And you're like a stubborn bull, Lee!" countered the rubbery man.
"This is so annoying...Take this!"
The young Genin held back his fist high in the air and punctured a hole through the plank. The crowd went nuts over his immense strength and this bold attack even surprised Asuma. But the young ninja reeled back in pain from using his injured fist on accident.
"Damn! Damn! Damn!" hollered the ninja. As he tried to ease his pain, he heard Hozaku in his ear piece.
"You idiot! You were trying to use the Futari no Kiwami, weren't you?" accused the voice. "You can't even properly use the technique yet! Plus if you were to demolish the plank, you'd fall into the water, too. What were you thinking!"
Lee felt dizzy from having Hozaku shout in his ears. He then saw Asuma slither back out from hiding.
"You're strong..." he complimented. He then began to pummel Lee with his fists, reeling them back and launching them again every time like a geared up toy. Lee took the punishment without complaint. Then he felt himself being lifted in the air again.
"This is the end for you, Lee. Hopefully your next match won't be as hard," he said.
Then the boy felt himself being thrown down towards his watery end. Asuma dusted his hands and walked over to get a better view of his audience so he can better grasp his own victory.
"Not just yet!" came a voice from far away.
With that, Asuma felt himself being bound by a long roll of bandages, rendering his ability useless. He felt himself sliding back on his back and his face warm from having to stare up at the sky.
"What's going on?" He tried to look behind him as he felt himself slide towards one end of the plank. Then he saw it. The roll of bandages seemed to originate from the hole made in the plank previously by Lee.
'No wonder I couldn't see it coming...' thought the rubbery man. Underneath him on the other side of the wooden board, Lee was dangling on by his own bandages.
"Good one. So how are you going to finish me now?" Asuma asked. Right at that moment, Lee unwrapped more of his bandage and allowed himself to dangle even further down. Afterwards, he swung himself towards a pillar and ripped his bandage. Then he tied the other end to the pillar he occupied, making sure that it was tight, and climbed back up on the surface.
Lee stared down at his tied up opponent. He then delivered a blow to his stomach that nearly knocked the wind out of Asuma.
"I could just punch you over and over until you've become unconscious and be declared a winner, but that's not who I am. Please forfeit now before I am forced to do so," he suggested.
Asuma looked at him with a mixture of amusement and pain from having been attacked unguarded.
"That's asking too much, don't you think?" Asuma asked, winking up at Lee. "You're the clear winner of this round. Why must you ask me to admit defeat?"
Lee smiled down at him.
"Because as much as I enjoyed this fight, I wouldn't want my opponent to walk away from the fight without knowing the pleasure in having fought and lost. As my role model, Gai sensei have told me before, you also have to understand the beauty of losing in order to truly appreciate winning," Lee explained.
"Winning all the time and never admitting defeat makes the whole experience mundane. To know both sides of the battle is the true key to enjoying the life of a fighter."
Asuma's face became rigid. He then smiled brightly upward at the young ninja.
"I lost. I admit defeat," he said.
As soon as the words reached Lee's ears, the whole crowd got up and applauded the victor of the long and invigorating combat. The announcement of his victory echoed through the stadium as he lifted Asuma back from the plank, having untied him previously.
"Good job, Lee," congratulated the older man through his ear piece. Lee looked over down the stage and at his fight promoter, who flashed a smile for him.
Lee gave him his signature thumbs up sign, his "nice guy" pose in order to show him that he had done what he set out to do.
To be continued...
Author's Notes: I actually took on the advice of someone who left me a review saying that I ought to use techniques and such from other animes and games. If you're familiar with Rurouni Kenshin and One Piece, you'll know what I've done with this chapter.
This one actually came out a lot faster than I imagined it would, so kudos for me. Anyways, I hope this chapter was good enough to read for some of you. Till next time.