Chapter seven. The change within.

Thread, needle, scissors and other accessories had a busy evening. Getting everything ready for the next day was quite easy: once you've got the elements, you are set. It was late, that night, when the lights of the small house finally went off, and a shinobi decided it was time to sleep.

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It was the crack of dawn when TenTen and Neji, the former tossing a kunai in her hands, the latter lazyly practising hand seals, sat under a tree in Training Field Seven. They wore bandages, forearm to knuckle. Some feet away, Gai, his back turned to them, was preparing the field for his special training.

- Any signs of him?
- On his way. He's just in ti- WAIT!... Kami Kage! What does he think he's doing?

Panting breaths and a swish confirmed Neji's confused statement.
Green jumpsuit, hitai-ate tied at his waist, bowl-cut fringe covering his forehead, baggy orange legwarmers... Lee ran in, holding his knees to regain his breath.

TenTen jumped back several steps. The kunai in her hand fell to the floor as she twitched.
– Gyaaah! GAI SENSEI'S SHADOW CLONE!!!
- TenTen, you do not recognize me? This outfit is THAT awesome! Not even my teammates know who I am! You are GREAT, Gai sensei!
- No shadow clone. More like... Lee in early Halloween mood – Neji chimed in, looking at his teammate with the same disgusted expression he dedicated to Gai's choice of clothing.
– What, you borrowed sensei some clothes? What happened to your kimono? -
TenTen was still reluctant to accept his sudden change.

- Burnt... it – Lee straightened his body, looking much more confident and sure of himself than before. – Has...has training... started... yet?
- Well, no – TenTen's eyes were squinting him, trying not to pay attention to the new, slim profile that fabric was giving Lee. – About to start, I guess.

Just then, Gai turned round and walked in a self-satisfied way towards his students. He cast a worried look around, seemingly not taking in Lee's peculiar appearance, and focusing only in his two other students.

- Well, I see you two are ready to start. Strange! Lee seems to be missing, he's never late... I wonder if he's okay.
One bandaged hand lifted up.
- I am here, Sensei!
- Hahah, nice joke! You surely are nice, young man! Now, seriously, where's Lee?
- In front of you, wearing your clothes. – Neji couldn't resist the quip.

The jounin was about to start laughing again, but stopped, staring widely-eyed at his Genin student. Lee stared in return, widening his own pupils. TenTen sighed in exasperation, Neji snorted.

- You are.. using a unitard... –
Lee nodded.

- Your hitai-ate... is on your waist –
Another nod.

-You-you cut your hair like... me –
No new nod, but a squint at his fringe.

- Wait a moment... You cannot be Lee!
Lee blinked.

- He was wearing chakra bandages, and you are not! And there is NO way you can get these unitards in Konoha! No one sells them!

His students stared in amazement as Gai retreated. TenTen squealed, kunai in hand, jumping at a tree branch. Neji settled for Jyûken, Byakugan eyes at the ready.
They didn't even notice how and when he charged towards them, past them and...

- YOU THINK YOU TRICKED ME? HA! YOU FOOL!!

...slammed a punch at Lee's face.

The Taijutsu underachiever flew past his astonished teammates, past two training posts, a big log, three bushes and landed with a pained yelp some thirty yards away.

But it wasn't over. Gai swooshed towards him, shouting at the top of his lungs:
- SHOW YOURSELF, WHOEVER YOU ARE!!!! YOU ARE NOT GOING TO DECEIVE MAITO GAI WITH THAT CHEAP HENGE!

Another yelp of pain, a hand lifted to shield any other attack, and a muffled voice replied.
- I CADDOT DO A HENDGE! ZENZEI, IT IZ ME, DOCK DEE!!
It huuurtsss... I think he broke my nose...

That seemed to convince Gai.
"I-it WAS Lee!"

Instinctively, he bent over the tearful, ashamed Genin, while his mind brought him a nearly-forgotten memory of his.
Another Sensei, kneeling in front of a little Genin.
Holy Kage... if he runs away... I'll feel like a failure!

Lee was struggling to sit up, his eyes covered by his hair. Blood was running through his nostrils. Tears were flowing from the boy's eyes.
"I... It took me so long to get to look like Gai sensei, and now he... he is mad at me, he thinks I am an enemy... w-what did I do wrong?!"
– I-I am- I am so-so-sorry...

- N-no, Lee... it's ME who's sorry. Are-are you okay?
Lee nodded, tears welling in his round eyes. Suddenly, the pain and numbness in his nose stopped and he was moved to the core with his sensei's worry.

- Sensei...
- Lee...
- SENSEI!
- LEEE!

TenTen's kunai slipped AGAIN from her fingers, as her eyes opened the size of saucers and her jaw refused to return to its place. Neji closed his tenketsu, closed his eyes and wished his ears could be closed too. The reason... a racket of sobful wails from Lee and loud bellows from Gai, who were hugging and crying like there was no tomorrow. Obviously, they were on a world of their very own, oblivious to TenTen's moans of disgust and Neji's twitching attempts to keep his cool...

- OKAY! ENOUGH! DRY THOSE YOUTHFUL TEARS! KICK THE LOG THREE THOUSAND TIMES AND FORGET ABOUT THIS INCIDENT!
- RIGHT AWAY, SIR! – Lee shouted in a teary accent.
- Uh... sensei? Can we start out very delayed training session FIRST? It's almost daybreak... - A highly pissed-off voice broke the touching moment in two.
- T-true indeed, Neji... Give.. give us a minute to get... ready.

Gai rose, his eyes still full of tears. He was still considering Lee's choice of clothing with an incredulous, yet touched expression. The boy had decided to mirror him... in every single aspect. Save for one... his eyes wandered down to his leg-warmers, baggy in absence of his trademark weights.

Sniffling, Lee got up, his nose dripping thick pools of blood. TenTen and Neji, in silence, dug into this new information and processed it. Making Gai angry had this consequences... it was better to talk things over than to argue.