Chapter 1: Illusion
When Rock Lee realized that Neji's life had been extinguished while he was holding him in his arms, his mind went into shock.
The multiple skewered and disemboweled bodies of ninjas from the Five Great Shinobi Villages. The deafening sound of the ominous monster howling ferociously. The remaining ninjas from the army squads tried their best to avoid the stinging tails of the diabolical creature. The sickening smell of blood and death covered the entire battlefield. The grotesque situation was so intense that tears began to flood the young Taijutsu specialist's face.
—Lee... Stop crying... —Gai-sensei's voice sounded firm but pained. Lee did not have the strength to look up at his teacher. His face was closed with fear and the pain of death.
Tenten looked worriedly at her dejected companion and tried in vain to find words of comfort.
"As long as we don't give up the feelings that Neji left us..." Gai-sensei continued, "Neji will live on in us! We will always be connected to him that way!"
Everything started to move in fast forward and the conversations became more and more distorted.
What was the point of all this? It had only been two days since the Fourth Great Ninja War had begun. They were supposed to have risked their lives to prevent the resurrection of the Jûbi (Ten Tails), to prevent the deaths of their loved ones. But it was all in vain. The battles between the shinobi and the dead resurrected by the Edo Tensei (Resurrection Technique) began to devastate the allied ninja.
Rock Lee realized that this war was truly pointless.
He began to barely hear one of the two people on the monster's head talking about emotional ties and other trivial matters. Kakashi and Naruto's reactions and exchanges followed suit. It became more and more difficult for Lee to process the information.
Many questions began to pop into his head, making him feel even more confused than he already was.
Was the great Hatake Kakashi talking to the enemy? He knew that it was the former teammate of his master's rival, but even he knew that it was sheer madness to try to reason with an enemy under these circumstances. They wouldn't have time to formulate a better counterattack strategy.
It didn't make any sense.
Was Naruto, the ninja who had defeated his teammate Neji with one of the most ingenious strategies during the Chūnin Exams, trying to sympathize with this person? In the middle of the battlefield? Why did he do that? Why did he do that?
Was he trying to convince him to change his beliefs and worldview at a time like this? At that very moment? After he was so close to his goal and after he had killed so many ninjas? They would lose the opportunity to assassinate him and finally end the war.
It didn't make sense.
And most of all, Gai-sensei and Tenten didn't seem to care about Neji's death? Why this lack of emotion? Why did their teacher speak with such lofty words at a time like this? Wasn't Neji the wayward student whom he had been trying so hard to reach in training after training? And why did Tenten barely show any grief over Neji's death? Didn't she care enough to mourn him? Hadn't she bonded with Neji since they became teammates? Had the war deemotionalized her so much in such a short time that she was acting so absurdly stoic?
It made no sense.
—A dream world where our comrades are created in such a way that they never cause us grief or fear... it doesn't make sense… —he heard Naruto say in a moment of mental clarity. —That would be an insult to his memory and that would be what killing our comrades really means... I don't care if it's a curse... I keep the real Neji... Right here!
The black-haired boy looked into Naruto's eyes as he pounded his fist on his chest with unbearable vehemence.
Lee blinked and looked at Naruto, at his eyes. They were apathetic, without any emotion. There was no anger in his body, just a blatant disinterest. Strange, everything was absolutely strange about the craziest ninja of Konoha.
Did he seem to be holding an emotionless speech? Yes.
Did Naruto's tone of voice reflect concern over Neji's death? No.
Was he trying to buy time for other nearby troops to attack the enemy when they weren't paying attention? The other ninja seemed to be attracted to such pomp and bombast.
No one did anything. The answer was no again.
Lee saw Naruto approaching him and trying to touch his right shoulder. Instead of accepting his companion's touch, he flinched in rejection. The black-haired boy's face reflected deep fear.
Who was this person? Was it the Uzumaki Naruto he really knew?
No.
He pulled Neji close to his chest and looked at him. He saw the white eyes, completely frozen by the death of his companion. He saw the drops of blood falling from the corners of the cold, lifeless lips. He looked at the face, much paler than it had been in his companion's life. Once again, the great pain of loss and desolation enveloped him.
Still, a halo of doubt surrounded the cold body.
Who was that person? Was it Neji? Was it the Hyuga Neji he knew? Wouldn't the famous Hyuga no Tensai have used Hakkeshô Kaiten (Eight Trigrams Palm Rotation) to avoid impalement by the stakes? Would the real Neji have had a similar suicidal and reckless attitude in trying to save Naruto and Hinata in such an easily resolved situation?
All the questions agreed on the same answer: No.
As the connections in his brain fused, he felt a flashing sensation followed by an incredibly sharp pain that penetrated through the temples of his head and into his mind without warning. His vision revealed distorted colors that separated and reunited in waves. The shapeless sounds followed the same undulating sequence. Rock Lee felt them so intensely that he fell to his knees on the floor, clutching his head tightly to endure the agony.
What was that? A sonic attack from the enemy? Some kind of crude psychological tactic affecting his mind? Rock Lee glanced around quickly, cupping his hands over his ears. It seemed that no one but him was affected by the terrible pain.
He began to breathe heavily, panting, trying to recognize the rhythm of the torture, trying to find out where it was coming from and who was doing it. But he couldn't identify anything or anyone.
It was like watching one of the television shows he enjoyed as a child. A place where everything moved at a different pace than when he watched the characters interact and felt them all pass over him.
Then he recognized the symptoms. He'd felt them before. On countless occasions. He might not have been an expert on them, but he'd suffered them enough to know their effects well.
Confusion, total alteration of sight, sound and sensation. Brain manipulation, misperception of reality.
There was no doubt. Rock Lee was in Genjutsu.
—
— AAAAAAAAAAAAAGGGGGGGGGGGHHHHHH!
—Kid, stop struggling! —a doctor shouted as he grabbed the patient.
—Don't let go of his leg or he'll hit me again! — another shouted in response.
The normally quiet NMU hallway was filled with stunned visitors and patients watching the scene from a safe distance.
It was an improbable situation. Four doctors and three ninja nurses were struggling to restrain the jovial Genin Rock Lee.
He was in a state of extreme rage. Just a few minutes ago, the boy had completely lost control of his body. His normally jovial demeanor had turned into an extremely violent and aggressive mix, as evidenced by his reddened face and intense struggling.
—Grab him by his arms and don't let go! —a ninja nurse suddenly ordered, barely able to restrain the boy with the thick eyebrows.
—Careful, he's biting me!
—Lee, stop resisting! —A girl with her hair tied back suddenly shouted in a desperate and futile attempt to reason with him.
Tenten watched with great dismay and fear at the senseless behavior of her teammate Rock Lee. The girl, visibly shaken, did not understand what was happening. Moments before, he had been fine, with his typical energetic demeanor, chatting and joking despite being admitted to NMU.
Why had a peaceful morning visiting their convalescing teammate turned into a scene straight out of a mental institution? How long had it been since Lee had been in this state? It seemed like hours.
Tenten was so worried that she was determined to do something, even if it was desperate.
—Stop, Tenten! If you act recklessly, you'll get hurt again!
The chocolate-haired girl stopped at the sudden order, prompted by her need to help the doctors and nurses stop Lee.
—But we can't let him go on like this! —she asked her companion. —This is very strange, Neji, and you know it!
It was true. Hyūga Neji also had been present during his teammate's sudden outburst. He couldn't believe what his eyes were still seeing. The white-eyed young man's mind tried to process the situation, to find a solution as the doctors and nurses seemed unable to stop Lee's escalating rage.
"I can only think of one option... Byakugan!" he thought as he executed the technique.
His white eyes began to scan Lee as soon as they entered activation mode. He looked at his legs and arms, visibly shaken by the mishap Lee had suffered. Nothing was out of the ordinary. His lower abdomen and torso also showed no signs of damage.
However, everything changed when his eyes fell on his teammate's head. He began to see chakra waves moving rhythmically and repeating themselves. They had a strange shape. He saw how these fluctuations seemed to enter and exit Lee's skull in chakra threads that seemed to cover his entire face, almost as if it were a metal cage. It was something strange, a technique he had never seen before. However, he quickly identified the type of wave and the type of technique that was affecting Lee's mind.
—Get out of the way now! —Neji shouted as he quickly moved to where one of the orderlies was holding Lee below the shoulders.
Positioning himself behind him, he wrapped his strong arm around Lee's neck as he began to apply slow but firm pressure with another limb, squeezing the back of Lee's neck. Immediately, the angry boy's expression began to change. His face, filled with rage and anger, began to change to one of desperation as he tried, with little success, to find a way to break free of the grip.
—Don't let him go now! Leave it to me! —Neji ordered the medical team that was assisting him with the painful task.
Everyone decided to hold the boy firmly and determinedly. Rock Lee began to cough and finally gasped violently for air. Neji maintained the rear-naked choke, trying to adjust the force enough to avoid causing serious damage. He watched with the Byakugan as the blood slowly slowed to a trickle down Lee's neck.
The young black-haired genin's brain began to recognize the lack of blood flow, and Neji noticed that the chakra waves seemed to subside, very slowly at first, then more quickly.
It took only five seconds for Rock Lee to fall completely unconscious into his teammate's arms.
—
Haruno Sakura entered the entrance of the Ninja Medical Unit, known by its acronym NMU, at eight in the morning. The place had sober, bright colors that soothed those who entered, while the smells evoked cleanliness and hygiene.
As usual and according to established protocol, the ninja rested in this building adjacent to Konoha Hospital without fear of being spied upon or attacked. On some occasions, the shinobi referred to the NMU as a "hospital" to avoid unnecessary interference from the civilian population or foreign ninjas who might have infiltrated.
Sakura walked leisurely to the reception desk. The pink-haired girl held a small bouquet of a single daffodil: a simple but beautiful flower. It was with a similar flower that Sakura, accompanied by her childhood friend Yamanaka Ino, had gone to visit Uchiha Sasuke at the NMU to wish him a speedy recovery.
About a month ago, the examination process for Chūnin rank candidates had begun in Konoha and Sasuke had been one of the lucky few to pass the preliminary stage. However, it had not been without its difficulties and injuries. The least the girl could do was to visit her teammate and wish him a speedy recovery.
Sakura's mind also flashed back to the disappointment she and Ino had felt when they discovered that the Uchiha boy had left the NMU without warning. She also remembered the great annoyance this incident had caused the ninja medical staff of the NMU.
"Sasuke-kun really can be very impulsive sometimes...", the pink-haired girl thought with a slight smile on her lips as she stood directly in front of the NMU reception desk.
—Good morning, could you tell me which room Genin Rock Lee is in? —Sakura asked warmly.
She watched as the receptionist went through the day's extensive patient roster without saying a word. It was a busy season for hospitalizations and medical care.
—Room 227, Area B. Go upstairs and down the hall to the right. —the receptionist replied efficiently.
After thanking the UMN employee and going to the top of the stairs, Sakura also remembered that the last time she had been there, she hadn't only visited Sasuke, but had also tried to visit Rock Lee. He had been seriously injured in a surprise ambush during his last mission together with the other members of his graduation team.
Although the four ninjas survived, they were severely wounded, especially Lee. In fact, it was Ino herself who told her, through the words of a distraught Tenten, that the black-haired young man's injuries were so severe that the doctors declared his days as a shinobi over.
The pain this news caused her was overwhelming. The mere memory of seeing a wounded and desperate Rock Lee doing one-armed push-ups in the UMN courtyard, refusing to be expelled from the Shinobi hierarchy system, was too much for her to bear.
Ever since she was little, Sakura had believed that boys pushed themselves too far, to the point where they were unable to recognize the line that separated them from the point of no return. After graduating from the Ninja Academy, this belief became even stronger in her mind.
Sakura had arrived at the second floor of the UMN. Shortly after going up, she was about to turn right as the receptionist had instructed when she saw two nurses whispering to each other as they headed for the same stairs she had used a short time before.
—Did you hear what happened to the Genin who came in a week ago? —one of the nurses said, tiredness and concern visible in her eyes.
—You mean the one from 227, the boy who was ambushed? I heard it could have been a nervous breakdown due to stress. —she replied to her colleague, scratching the back of her neck. —It's possible he developed post-traumatic stress disorder from trying to remember the moments of the attack.
Sakura's ears perked up at the previous words. She felt herself freeze in the middle of the hallway as the two medics passed by. —It's a shame... A boy so young and already in this condition...
—But I heard that his teammate suddenly put him in a chokehold to knock him unconscious and stop him from being aggressive. —the other nurse continued as they both walked down the stairs. —I know these types of patients can be intense, but I think you were too extreme with him...
—I guess he didn't know how else to react. Not everyone is a doctor and knows how to handle these situations...
Sakura could hear a faint whisper of a voice that became more and more distant after she had crept up the stairs. What does sudden aggression mean? Post-traumatic stress disorder? A chokehold? Rock Lee? By 'teammate' mean Neji or Tenten?
All these questions ran through Sakura's mind as she walked steadily towards room 227 of Area B of the NMU.
—
Numerous bright flashes flashed through Rock Lee's mind. The extreme pain in his head worsened to the point where he could no longer see the battlefield, only a vast, dark plain. He squeezed his eyes shut as his body sank to the ground. He tried to hold his head in his hands in a desperate attempt to ease the pain. He was unsuccessful. Different moments he had experienced personally in the past, moments he had experienced with Neji, with Tenten and with Maito Gai in the past. Moments he had experienced as a member of the Konoha 11. Moments he had shared with his family and loved ones. He felt all those moments begin to rewind in his mind in a stinging way.
Rock Lee felt like he was floating, spinning upside down in a great whirlpool that was beginning to become a deeper, blacker vortex. It was accelerating as his memories receded. The speed made him nauseous and he felt like he was going to throw up. After a while, the pitch-black darkness slowly but brilliantly dissipated. The light was so blinding that Lee found it difficult to open his eyes because of the pain. The black-haired boy feared that his mind would begin to see strange colors or move violently again. Instead, little by little, he thought he heard voices.
—I think he's starting to become conscious. He's moving his eyelids... —he heard someone say in a very low voice.
—Rock Lee... can you hear us? Can you open your eyes? —another voice asked firmly.
Faced with these questions, the young Taijutsu specialist made a titanic effort to open his eyes, which resulted in a brighter light. When it seemed he could see better, the first thing he could make out as he adjusted to the brightness was a distant, flat surface that looked like the ceiling of a building. As his pupils began to scan around him, he saw two people he identified as medical personnel standing on either side of him. One appeared to be checking his pulse from the joint of his arm with a device whose name he did not know. The other person took a small flashlight from his right lab coat pocket and held it over his eyes, shining a beam of light into his eyes again.
—His pupils are still dilated... He could show signs of reactivity until he goes through a period of rest. —the woman Lee identified as a doctor pondered.
—The blood pressure monitor reads 92 beats per minute. He's experiencing tachycardia," Lee identified the man as a nurse. —In that case, I suggest you prescribe midazolam and let him sleep to help him recover.
The doctor agreed after a moment, put the flashlight back in her pocket, and let the nurse work. Lee watched as a syringe was brought in while the nurse prepared his arm to administer the sedative intravenously. He began to feel overwhelmed. He didn't want to go through this again.
—No... Please... I don't want to go back there... —Lee tried to say with great difficulty.
The black-haired boy's eyes seemed to beg, especially after he noticed that more people were standing around him. Suddenly, a voice made him stop his fear.
—Calm down, Lee... —A girl's voice that sounded incredibly familiar made him look up.
There he could see his two teammates, Neji and Tenten. Both were looking at him with what he could only describe as a strange mixture of relief and concern.
—It's all over now…— Neji said in a reassuring voice. —Just rest…
He looked into his teammate's bright white eyes and felt a relief and security he hadn't felt in a long time. Neji was alive. He hadn't died. He could understand that they had been saved from the war and that they were in a peaceful place as the sedative the nurse had administered seemed to take effect.
What Lee didn't have time to understand before everything went black again was why Neji and Tenten looked the same as when they took the Chūnin Exams.
—
The light breeze blowing through the bedroom window slowly woke Rock Lee. The young man from Konoha realized that he was lying in a bed, possibly in a medical facility due to the color and design of the sheets. After his vision finally focused, he tried to become aware of his own body. He noticed that his heartbeat had calmed down and his head had stopped spinning. The intense pain had also stopped. He sighed with relief, feeling much better.
—It's good to see you're calmer. —Lee heard from the left side of his bed.
He turned his head on his pillow and seemed to recognize the nurse at his side. It was the same one who had administered the sedative. Then he looked to his right, to the foot of his bed, and saw two people waiting for him. Neji and Tenten were there again, silent as the doctor began to examine him.
—They asked me to stay with you until you woke up in case you had any side effects. Although you look much better… —the nurse continued, checking his pupils and jotting down notes on a piece of paper.
—I only remember a little of what happened and... —Lee tried to say before the nurse started talking again.
—The doctor will come now and tell you what you'll be doing in the coming weeks... I'll also tell you that it's possible that your body has generated a stress attack as a result of the assault you suffered. Sometimes there can be psychosomatic effects that occur afterwards. This may have been your case...
As the nurse continued to inform him of his condition, Lee felt the situation begin to seem very strange when he realized he was in a hospital. Lee looked out of the window and saw the Hokage monument. Indeed, he was in Konoha, far away from the battlefield of the Land of Lightning. They must have been evacuated from there. He wanted to know what it was like, but his mind was filled with so many questions that it was difficult for Lee to process them. When he was finished, the nurse began gathering his supplies to leave the room.
—The physical therapist will be here in an hour to continue your muscle recovery therapy. —the nurse said as she opened the door for him to leave. —It might be a little tough after what you've been through, but it's important that you keep moving to prevent muscle atrophy. Get some rest until then.
The room fell silent for a few moments. Lee continued to stare at the door at the entrance to the room. No words were spoken until Tenten tried to lighten the situation.
—Good heavens, Lee. You scared us to death. I'd almost prefer it if you didn't scare us like that again. —the girl said, trying to sound cheerful.
—It seems that whoever used that Genjutsu on you wanted to scare us all. I saw with the Byakugan that it seemed quite powerful... I had no choice but to strip you naked to get you out… —Neji replied, trying to explain his violent actions against his teammate.
Rock Lee felt the pieces in his head fall into place. It was true. He had been attacked by a Genjutsu. He remembered how, inside the illusion, he had felt his senses becoming extremely dull. If it was Neji who was helping him, then it wasn't a bad decision to use a Genjutsu on him. Thanks to this, Lee remembered that he had known a strategy to stop a Genjutsu a long time ago. Kankaku Shadan (Sense Blocking) flashed through Lee's mind. Strong and concise, but with the great weakness of paralyzing the victim of the illusion for an extended period of time.
—So... it was true... —Lee muttered, confirming his thoughts. "Neji, Tenten, how long was I under the Genjutsu?"
Tenten shrugged, seemingly unsure. Neji answered his teammate.
—About five minutes. The doctors still think it was a nervous breakdown. I've already reported the situation so they can investigate and take care of the person who cast the Genjutsu. —Neji shook his head somewhat indignantly. —It's unbelievable that there are teammates at the UMN who make a living out of these bad jokes…
—Well, well... The important thing is that it's all over now, and we can get back to focusing on our recovery. —Tenten replied, her hands slightly raised, trying to calm the atmosphere.—Although it sucks that it happened before the Chūnin exams... I hope you'll recover by the time it's time to fight, Neji.
What does that mean, someone attacked him with Genjutsu at the UMN? This was completely impossible. Lee knew that the illusion had begun to take effect while he was standing in front of the Jûbi, on the battlefield in the Land of Lightning, hundreds of miles away from Konoha.
Then the black-haired boy looked at Tenten and then at Neji. Indeed. Not only did they look the same as when they were 14, but they seemed to look different, in a different way, in a different style. Rougher and more rugged, but beautiful at the same time. It was them, but not the way he had seen them the last time. But what did that mean? Did he look like her? That wasn't possible either. All three of them should look like seventeen or eighteen-year-olds.
—There's something I don't quite understand... —Lee started, trying to find the right words. —Why am I here? I mean... I know I was in a Genjutsu, but we were just on the battlefield... How come we're in Konoha Hospital?
At these questions, Tenten looked at Neji with great surprise, while Neji looked bored at Lee's statement.
—Lee, I think you didn't just damage your head in the ambush. The Genjutsu must have hit you hard for you to talk such nonsense… —Tenten explained. —We weren't on a battlefield. We were ambushed in the southwestern forest that borders the Land of Rivers, don't you remember?
—That's right. A core group of four Sunagakure ninja attacked us without warning and left us in very bad shape... —Neji explained with great seriousness. —Especially you, Lee…
The black-haired boy frowned, a puzzled expression on his face. Now, the situation made no sense at all. What do you mean, they were ambushed? They were in the middle of the battlefield of the Land of Lightning, fighting against the resurrected Uchiha Madara and the traitor Uchiha Obito to stop the attack of the Jubi and the destruction of the shinobi world. It was a direct battle in the open field. An ambush would have been impossible.
—That can't be... —Lee whispered as he tried to gather his thoughts.
—What are you talking about? We don't understand what you're saying…
—I'm saying it's impossible! —Lee said suddenly, startling Tenten. —We weren't in the Southwest Forest, we were in the Land of Lightning!
Lee's shout made Tenten frown, taking her teammate's words even more seriously.
—Don't talk nonsense, Lee! How could we be in the Land of Lightning?! It's very difficult for Konoha to get permission to enter their territory! Not to mention a team as unsung as ours! Did the genjutsu erase the information you learned at the academy from your mind or was it the beating you received?!
Tenten's barrage of words left the hospitalized boy even more confused, and he didn't give up trying to convince her. Lee looked anxiously at his hands as he slowly began to tell his classmates about some of the things he had seen and experienced during the war: the attacks by dead ninjas, the resurrected, the monster Jûbi, the hundreds of ninjas killed, Neji impaled.
Neji and Tenten became increasingly worried and confused by everything Lee said. To them, the boy was clearly delirious. It was hard for him to realize that the genjutsu had ended and that he was finally in the real world.
—War? Monsters? —Neji raised his eyebrow in surprise. —Me dead?
Tenten pressed the fingers of her right hand between her eyebrows, trying to regain her composure.
—Lee, what's absolutely impossible is all this nonsense you're telling us… —Tenten said, finishing her words. —Right now, we're in complete peace with the rest of the Shinobi villages. Well, almost... because Sunagakure was the one who attacked us without warning a week ago. I still can't believe that the children of the Kazekage risked breaking the relations between the two villages…
Lee began to shake his head quickly. Had his interactions with the Suna ninja during the Chūnin examinations also been part of the Genjutsu?
—No, that can't be... That wasn't supposed to happen... I mean, it's already happened, it can't be…
Neji watched as Lee babbled a tangle of inconsistencies. The black-haired boy was trying to make sense of something that had supposedly already happened, like the Chūnin exams, but he couldn't help but spout nonsense. This made Neji deeply concerned for his teammate.
—What you say about the Chūnin exams is impossible. —Neji continued, trying to remain calm. —Don't you remember that all promotion exams are internal and specific to each shinobi village? The candidates are completely anonymous, except to the opponent they are supposed to fight. It would be foolish for the villages to reveal each other's secrets regarding techniques and soldiers.
—You can add that with everything that's happened, the finals are currently on hold… —Tenten added to Neji's words.
Lee shook his head again. The word "impossible" came to his mind again. He was sure that he had already experienced the Chūnin exams, that he had already lived five years of his life. He couldn't have been in an illusion for that long. There was no such known power. Rock Lee was heartbroken.
—But I swear it's true. It's true, I saw it... —he said, discouraged by the words of his companions. —And I didn't just see it, I lived it... I know I've lived everything I've told you... You have to believe me...
Neji sighed as he approached the bed of his wounded companion. He felt useless to see his companion like that. Lee was a stupidly optimistic person, and now he looked so depressed that he felt the urge to comfort him.
—You better get some rest. I'm sure you'll feel better after meditating for a while… —Neji said with compassion in his eyes and voice as he gently placed a hand on her shoulder.
Tenten nodded, feeling similar to Neji. The young girl urged her to leave Lee alone for a while to rest and collect his thoughts. It had been hard enough for the boy to suffer the brunt of the ambush without having to deal with the negative effects of a Genjutsu from a bad shinobi companion.
Lee, for his part, didn't want his companions to leave through that door. He didn't want the matter to end there. He had the feeling that this was all a joke, a terrible mystery. He still had many questions in his mind that he wanted to solve. He searched for something that could convince Neji or Tenten that what he'd experienced under the Genjutsu for five years was true.
Suddenly, a fact flashed through his mind that would change Neji's life forever. A fact that could convince them that everything he'd seen and experienced was real.
—Wait! —Lee shouted, causing his classmates to turn around before heading out the door.
Tenten turned quickly and angrily to face the boy with thick eyebrows. Lee had a firm and calm demeanor that unsettled the girl.
—What now, Lee? If you don't stop, we'll have to call...
—Uzumaki Naruto. —Lee said suddenly. "Uzumaki Naruto is your opponent in the Chūnin Exams, Neji, right?
Neji turned around completely and looked directly into Lee's eyes. Lee realized that he had opened them too wide. Tenten knew something was wrong.
—How do you know that? —Neji approached Lee again. —I didn't tell anyone about my opponent when I was preparing my battle strategy…
Tenten looked surprised at the change in the situation. She saw Lee smiling triumphantly in front of her, as if he'd just discovered a secret buried underground. It felt like the black-haired boy was dominating the room.
—I didn't want to say this, but if you don't listen to me, I will tell you that Konoha will be destroyed by Orochimaru, Otogakure and Sunagakure in the next two weeks and... —Lee continued ominously. —The Sandaime Hokage will die.
This statement took Neji and Tenten by surprise, not only because of Lee's uncharacteristic seriousness, but also because of Sakura, who was eavesdropping outside of room 227.
—
OFFICIAL NINJA PROFILE
Ninja Registration Number: 012561
Last Name: Lee
First Name: Rock
Nickname: Gejimayu (Flogging Eyebrows/Bushy Eyebrows) / Konoha no Utsukushiki Aoi Yajū (The Beautiful Green Beast of the Hidden Leaf Village)
Date of birth: November 27th, 067 Modern Age
Sex: Male
Status: Handicapped
Blood Type: A
Affiliation: Konohagakure no Sato, Land of Fire
Clan/Family: Lee Clan (Merchant Clan)
Team: Graduate Genin of Team 03 - 079
Ninja rank: Genin (079 Modern Age)
Ninja category: Rescuer
Chakra type: Unknown
Kekkei Genkai: Nonexistent
Occupation: Unknown
—
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