Previously:

"Sorry." She apologized to Lee, surprising him. "But I think that's enough for now."

"Yes, that's enough, Lee!!!" A deep gravely voice barked sternly.

"!!" Sakura and Naruto gasped as they all looked over to see who was talking.

"!!!" April said, nearly losing her balance and crushing Lee's throat in her surprise. It was a giant red tortoise. 'No way… did that turtle just… talk!?' She wondered as her jaw dropped, and her eyes widened in shock.

Chapter 38: START…!!

'What's going on…?' Sasuke wondered as he craned his neck to see what was happening below, still in the air.

"Sasuke-kun!!!" Sakura yelled, running over to catch him and break his fall, while Lee used the opportunity to escape while April was still stunned and rushed over to kneel respectfully in front of the tortoise.

'Sasuke was defeated… What happened while I was out…?' Naruto wondered as he watched from the side, bewildered. Since when was April stronger than Sasuke…!?

"Are you all right, Sasuke-kun!?" Sakura asked urgently as Sasuke glared in Lee and April's direction, covered in sweat. 'He's shaken…' She realized, disturbed. 'He didn't even try to protect himself from the fall…'

"So, you were watching…" Lee said nervously, looking down guiltily, as he faced the tortoise while sitting in seiza.

"Lee!!! That technique is forbidden!!!" The tortoise scolded him gravely. He had just been about to stop the boy himself when that girl intervened. He spared April a quick glance and noticed that she was still gaping at him like she had seen a ghost. Was this her first time seeing a summoning animal?

'The turtle… The turtle is talking…!! Its mouth is moving, and words are coming out!!' April thought, shell-shocked. She thought she had gotten used to the rules in this world, but it seemed she still had a ways to go… She had never expected a talking animal to appear… Did no one else find this strange? Was that supposed to be normal?

'What's that turtle?' Naruto wondered, blinking. Why was there suddenly a random turtle in the middle of the room?

"I'm sorry… I just…" Lee apologized nervously. He was also a bit shaken after his encounter with April. He had not been expecting someone as talented in taijutsu as Guy-sensei and himself to be there. She had really caught him by surprise. He was going to have to be more careful next time.

'He's in trouble…' Naruto realized as a thought suddenly occurred to him. 'Could that turtle be… Bushy-Brow's sensei!!?' He wondered as the tortoise hit Lee with a piercing glare, causing him to flinch.

"B-But I wasn't planning on using the other one…!" Lee quickly stuttered defensively.

"?" Sasuke and Sakura said as they all sweat-dropped while watching the ridiculous scene playing out before them.

'Other one…?' April thought, snapping out of it when she heard that. So he did have something more dangerous up his sleeve…

"Hey, hey!!" Naruto said as he ran over to join them.

"What?" Sakura asked, a little surprised to see that he was already up and running around as if nothing had happened.

"That's… a turtle, right? Right!?" Naruto asked, pointing at the red tortoise.

'Naruto!' April thought, relieved that she wasn't the only one having issues with the fact that Lee was carrying on a conversation with it as if it was the most normal thing in the world.

"Isn't that obvious?" Sakura retorted. He didn't hit his head that hard, did he?

"Can a turtle become a ninja sensei?" Naruto asked.

'… That's what was bothering him?' April thought, dumbfounded. 'Wait, so not only is he fine with the fact that it can talk, but he's trying to promote it!?'

"How would I know!!?" Sakura snapped impatiently.

"You fool!!!" The ninja tortoise continued to scold Lee sternly. "You think you can get away with an excuse like that!!? You already know what it means for a shinobi to reveal his special techniques…!!"

"Ossu!!" Lee answered obediently.

'Damn…' Sasuke cursed mentally as he wiped some dirt from his cheek. 'I lost to these weirdoes…?' He thought angrily, gritting his teeth. How could he have lost, yet April was able to defeat Bushy-Brows so easily…? When did she get that strong!?

"?" April said, glancing back at him when she felt his glare on her back. 'Don't tell me he's mad that I saved him? He really needs to get over himself…' She thought with a frown, sweat-dropping. That superiority complex of his was a real nuisance.

"Are you prepared to face the consequences?" The tortoise asked Lee.

"Yes…" Lee answered a bit glumly, not at all looking forward to receiving another scolding.

"Then here comes Guy-sensei!!" The tortoise announced as a strange man appeared on his back with an explosion of smoke.

"Geez!! You guys are the epitome of adolescence!!" The man said, striking an outrageous pose in his green jumpsuit and flack jacket. All four members of Team 7's eyes nearly popped out of their heads.

"…" April's eye twitched. She felt like she was looking at an older, more extreme version of Lee… But what was with this sharp pain she suddenly felt in her eyes? A man in a jumpsuit shouldn't be swinging his hips like that without warning! It hurt to look.

"!" Sasuke grimaced, looking deeply disturbed.

"!!" Sakura exclaimed in revulsion with her mouth hung open in horror.

"Ack!!" Naruto shouted, shocked and appalled. "Eeeeew!!!! He's got even thicker eyebrows!!!"

"Super thick… Super bobbed hair…" Sakura said, stunned to see just how far off the charts this man's level of lameness was. He actually made Lee look half decent in comparison.

"Those are incredible eyebrows… I've never seen that before…" Naruto added, also stunned.

"This world is full of mysterious things…" April agreed, sweat-dropping. A vein throbbed on Lee's head. That was the last straw.

"Hey!!! Stop insulting Guy-sensei!!!" He yelled at them, making a fist.

"Shut up!!!" Naruto snapped back with a vein throbbing on his forehead. "All these freaks keep appearing!! How the hell are we supposed to react!?!?" He demanded hotly.

"What did you…!?" Lee demanded incredulously.

"Hey, Lee!!" Guy-sensei said, getting his attention.

"Oh!! Yes…" Lee said, remembering why his teacher was there in the first place, as he turned to face him, ready to accept his punishment.

"You… FOOL!!!" Guy shouted as he clenched his fist and suddenly nailed his student in in the face with straight punch that had enough force behind it to send poor Lee flying.

"Ugh!!" Lee grunted in pain as some blood flew from his mouth.

"!!" April and Naruto shouted in alarm as they and the rest of their teammates' jaws dropped and they watched in wide-eyed horror as Lee hit the floor. What the hell…!?

"Huh!?!" Sakura exclaimed incredulously. What kind of teacher was that!?!?

"…" Sasuke furrowed his brow and sweat-dropped. Seriously, these guys were freaks… Who just lets themself get hit like that?

"You are… You are…" Guy said shakily as he walked over to Lee, kneeling down beside him.

"Sensei…" Lee said as he looked up and saw the tears streaming down his teacher's face, deeply touched. "Sensei… I… I…" He struggled to get the words out as hot tears of his own began streaming down his face, stinging his swollen cheek.

"That's enough, you don't need to say it!" Guy said dramatically, absolving him of his sins without hesitation.

"Sensei!!" Lee cried as they threw their arms around each other in a strong, manly(?) embrace.

"!?" Naruto exclaimed as his face twisted in shock, doing an excellent impression of Munch's The Scream. What were they doing!?

'The bromance is strong with these two…' April thought wryly as she sweat-dropped again. It was like something out of a cheesy 70's show… the only thing missing was an orange sunset with waves crashing in the back round.

"Uhh…" Sakura groaned, blushing slightly as she grimaced, feeling embarrassed just watching them.

"I lost to him…?" Sasuke thought as the crease in his brow deepened, starting to teeter away from chagrined into mortified.

"Yes!! This is what youth is all about!" Guy declared with tears in his eyes as he held on to Lee, so touched he was shaking slightly.

"Sensei!!" Lee said.

"You know… that's some good stuff." Naruto said once he got over his initial shock. He wouldn't mind being hugged like that sometime.

"No way!!!" Sakura told him, suddenly worried for his future. These guys were a bad influence! "Too dangerous!!! Way too dangerous!!!"

"It's all right, Lee." Guy said as they finally separated, patting his student on the shoulder. "Youth and mistakes go hand in hand."

"You are too nice… Sensei…" Lee said, deeply touched.

'Yeah, but he just slugged you not two seconds ago…' April thought, sweat-dropping. Personally, she was against domestic violence.

"But you did start a fight and almost broke my rules… Your punishment will take place after the chūnin exam." Guy told Lee firmly.

"Ossu!" Lee said respectfully, accepting his fate with a salute.

"Five hundred laps around the practice range!!"

"Ossu!!!"

'Isn't that a little extreme…?' April thought as they all sweat-dropped. These guys were really hot-blooded.

"…" Sasuke said as he watched their idiocy. Seriously, he couldn't believe he lost to that…

"Stupid…" Sakura remarked, chagrined.

"Hey, hey!! What the hell was that turtle?" Naruto asked, not quite ready to give up on the topic yet.

'These kids are Kakashi's…' Guy realized upon taking a closer look at them.

"Ah!!" Naruto said when he realized he was looking at them.

"No! He's looking over here…" Sakura said warily.

"Hey you guys, how's Kakashi-sensei doing?" Guy asked casually.

"You know Kakashi?" Sasuke asked.

"Know him? Hehe…" Guy laughed, stroking his chin.

"?" April raised an eyebrow while Sasuke furrowed his. One second they were staring at him, and the next he was gone.

'Huh!?' Sasuke thought, flinching in shock.

'Behind!!' April guessed, whipping her head around just in time to see Guy reappear right behind them in a puff of smoke.

"People refer to us as 'eternal rivals'…" Guy informed them. He was impressed the purple-haired girl had managed to turn to meet him. He recognized her as that famous outsider, April Starr. She hadn't become Kakashi's student for nothing.

"!!!" Her teammates gasped. Sakura and Naruto flinched, completely caught off guard.

"When did he…" Naruto asked as he spun around, nearly falling over in his surprise.

'This guy…' Sasuke thought warily. A bead of nervous sweat dripped down the side of his face.

'He's fast!!! There wasn't even a flicker when he moved!!' April thought, extremely impressed. His speed was on the same level as Haku when he used his Demonic Ice Mirrors!

"The record stands at 50 wins and 49 losses… I'm stronger than Kakashi." Guy finished with a gleaming smile, striking his 'nice guy' pose.

'No way… He's fast, his speed is above Kakashi's…' Sasuke thought, furrowing his brow. 'Is he human…!?'

"See!!? Guy-sensei is incredible!!" Lee said excitedly, glad to see from the looks on their faces that they were finally beginning to understand.

'Damn it!!' Sasuke cursed internally, clenching his fists.

"Sorry about Lee." Guy apologized to them. "I swear on this face it won't happen again." He promised with another sparkling smile. "I swear to this refreshing face."

'Refreshing…?' April thought wryly, sweat-dropping. Has he looked in a mirror lately? What amazing self-confidence. 'Well, he certainly seems like he could give Sensei a run for his money, I'll give him that… but I'll believe the whole 'rivals' thing when I see it for myself…' She decided. If they were really 'eternal rivals', then how come they had never heard of him before? She had a hard time picturing Kakashi-sensei getting worked up enough to go through the trouble of competing with such a hot-blooded guy…

'Above Kakashi…? Damn it… It's true…' Sasuke thought, gritting his teeth in frustration.

"You guys and Lee should head over to the classroom." Guy said as Lee started gathering up his loose bandages to rewrap his hand.

"!" Naruto said when he noticed how beat up it was. Bushy-Brow's hand was covered in scars, and his knuckles were bruised. 'He…' Naruto thought, gasping in realization.

"Good Luck, Lee. Later." Guy said, bidding his student farewell before disappearing to return to wherever he had come from.

"Ossu!" Lee answered dutifully while re-bandaging his hand. The red tortoise disappeared in a puff of smoke. "Sasuke-kun, I'll say one more thing." Lee said as he finished, pulling the bandages snug with his teeth. "The truth is, I came here to test my abilities. I lied before. Most likely the strongest Leaf genin is on my team. I entered this exam to defeat him… And you are also one of my targets." He confessed before glancing at April. "As are you, April Starr." He added with a smirk. To think there was another genin so skilled in taijutsu… He now hoped to fight her again as well. "Be prepared during the exam!!" He told them as he leaped into the air and landed back on the level above, running off to rejoin his team.

"Right back at you." April said with a smirk. She was looking forward to it. She hadn't been able to enjoy a good old-fashioned straight-up taijutsu only duel in a long time.

"…" Sasuke said as he stared after Lee with a scowl on his face, trembling as he clenched his fists at his side.

"Sasuke-kun…" Sakura said, concerned.

"Oh well… Looks like the Uchiha clan ain't worth much these days." Naruto remarked casually.

"Naruto!!" Sakura yelled incredulously. How dare he!?

"Keh… Shut up…" Sasuke growled darkly. "Next time, I'll beat him…" He said, redirecting his glare at April, as if it were her fault. She frowned at him in return. What a sore loser…

"Sure… even though you just got your ass kicked…" Naruto retorted calmly. Sasuke turned his glare on him next, narrowing his eyes dangerously as he grit his teeth in anger.

"Hey, Naruto!! Don't…" Sakura started to yell, but April held a hand up to stop her. She could tell from the look on Naruto's face that he knew what he was doing, and this needed to be said. She was tired of Sasuke looking down on everyone, and he could learn a lot from your mistakes if he wasn't so busy denying them. Life itself was a great teacher, and everyone is in a constant state of learning.

"You saw his hand, right…?" Naruto continued, undaunted. Sasuke's eyes widened slightly in realization. "That Bushy-brow mush have trained really hard… every day. More than you. That's all it is."

'Sasuke-kun…' Sakura thought as she watched him.

"That's exactly right." April agreed, removing one of her gloves, revealing the bandages they were hiding. She loosened them a little so she could pull them aside to show them one of the faint scars on the skin beneath. "I've been training to master JDK since I was six. If I didn't take such good care of my hands, they would look even worse than his. Remember this Sasuke, effort without talent is a depressing situation… but talent without effort is a tragedy. Fear not the man who has practiced 10,000 kicks once, but the man who has practiced one kick 10,000 times." She finished confidently with a rueful smile. Sasuke relaxed slightly for a moment then clenched his fist.

'Sounds fun…' He thought. "Hmph… This is getting interesting, this chūnin exam…" He said aloud with a smirk. The others smiled, glad to see that he had recovered.

"Yeah!!" Naruto agreed with a grin.

"Yup!!" Sakura said brightly.

"Naruto, April, Sakura—Let's go!!" Sasuke said excitedly, taking the lead again.

"Time to take names and kick ass!" April said confidently as she pulled her glove back on.

"Hell yeah!!!" Naruto agreed enthusiastically.