138: Light Illuminates Konoha, Rock Lee's Hidden Lotus Palm

"Reverse Lotus!" Rock Lee roared, plunging into the sand and dust cloud toward Gaara.

Opening the Fifth Gate granted him unimaginable power, but at the cost of extreme physical strain. 

The immense force radiating from him cracked the ground as he moved, carving a trench through the arena like an invisible bull. 

Dust and sand filled the air.

"Incredible, has Lee gone berserk?

"I can't even see him this time. He's too fast."

Even some of the Jonin couldn't follow Lee's movements.

Sasuke quickly activated his pathetic two-tomoe Sharingan, but could barely keep up with Lee's speed. 

Even if his eyes could follow, his body wouldn't be able to react in time.

"Damn it! Another genius?" Sasuke was once again frustrated by the sheer number of strong ninja among his age group in Konoha. 

He had always been praised as a genius, but was it true? He fell into deep self-doubt. 

As the Chunin Exams progressed, he realized that geniuses in Konoha were a dime a dozen. 

Even the excitement of him having learned the Chidori had diminished.

Unlike in the original story, Sasuke had been pushed harder by Natsuki, the top student, these past few years.

This led him to master Chidori earlier, so he didn't arrive late to the match like before.

BOOM!!

A massive roar erupted from the swirling sand and dust. 

The audience realized that a sinister chakra was rapidly rising within the cloud, radiating a thick killing intent.

"What's happening? Could that gourd kid actually be blocking Lee in this state?" The gazes drawn to Lee shifted back to Gaara's position, now covered in a massive cloud of sand and dust. 

A terrifying aura brewed within.

Those who had experienced the Nine-Tails' Rampage 12 years ago wore expressions of sheer horror. 

This aura was too similar to the Nine-Tails'.

"Damn, Gaara released that thing!" Maki, the team leader, paled.

Gaara was the One-Tail jinchuriki. 

The chakra in the arena clearly belonged to Shukaku, the One-Tail. 

He glanced at the Fourth Kazekage, relieved to see him sitting calmly. 

He breathed a sigh of relief. "Thank goodness, Lord Kazekage is still here."

The Kazekage, renowned for his Magnet Style: Gold Dust, had repeatedly suppressed Shukaku's rampages in Sunagakure. 

With him around, there wouldn't be a problem. 

If Maki knew that the Fourth Kazekage had been assassinated and replaced by Orochimaru, his reaction would have been quite different.

Bang!

Bang, Bang!!

BOOM!!!

"What? What in the world is that thing?"

Rock Lee, submerged in the dust cloud and sand, slammed into the sand, executing reverse lotus. 

A massive wall of sand rose, blocked his path. 

The wall continued to rise and expand, its range growing larger and larger. 

Lee's powerful blows landed, causing localized collapses, but the wall quickly regenerated. 

He could sense a sinister chakra maintaining the sand.

"Such massive chakra… even the Hokage couldn't compare, right?" Lee was stunned. 

He had never seen a monster with such limitless chakra.

Yes, a monster.

He had initially thought it was Gaara. 

But when he looked up, he saw a beast head larger than a house staring down at him.

Its pitch-black eyes were bigger than his entire body. 

As the dust settled after his failed attacks, the true form of the sand wall was revealed. 

It wasn't a wall at all, but the foot of a monstrous creature covered in sand. 

Standing beneath it, Lee felt as small as a mole. 

The monster seemed to be looking down at him as if wondering who was tickling it. 

But this slight dip of its head allowed Lee to spot Gaara perched atop the monster's head.

"What? Gaara summoned this monster?" Lee's eyes nearly popped out. 

As a ninja, he knew about the Summoning Technique, although he couldn't use it. 

He had witnessed the power of Natsuki's summoning beast in the first round. 

But Gaara's summon was far more terrifying. Ordinary ninja knew little about Tailed Beasts, so Lee mistook Shukaku for Gaara's summoning beast.

"Cough..."

As Lee pondered how to deal with this behemoth, the strain of the Fifth Gate finally overwhelmed him. 

He coughed, blood trickling down his chin.

"Oh no! my body's breaking down already. I have to finish this quickly." Rock Lee focused on Gaara, who remained still atop Shukaku's head. 

Even now, he wasn't considering surrender. 

Becoming an excellent ninja was his dream.

If he couldn't even pass the Chunin Exams, how could he face his teacher? Wouldn't all his hard work become a joke?

"Lee, give up!

"You can't beat that monster!"

Might Guy shouted anxiously from the stands. 

Now that the dust had cleared, everyone could see the massive Shukaku. 

Some terrified civilians were already fleeing in panic. Even the ANBU and security ninja leaped to the edge of the arena, ready to defend against the One-Tail's rampage.

"Teacher, I can do it!

"I will persevere my ninja way!

"Even if I only use taijutsu, I won't lose to anyone!"

Rock Lee gave his teacher a thumbs-up, his white teeth flashing. 

It was as if Might Guy himself had possessed him. 

Might Guy was nearly moved to tears.

In the next instant, Lee stomped the ground, causing a five-meter radius around him to collapse. 

He shot upwards like a cannonball, along Shukaku's massive body. 

In the blink of an eye, he reached the top.

"Ah..."

"Leaf Great Whirlwind!" He roared, transforming into a blur as he lunged towards Gaara.

Bang!!

But before he could get close, darkness fell. 

A gigantic shadow loomed over him. 

Lee was swatted away like a fly by a massive claw. 

He soared into the air, towards the rising sun.

Whoosh!

The fierce wind howled in his ears. 

Rock Lee felt like he'd been hit by a train, pain crushing him from all sides. 

The Fifth Gate's effects completely wore off. After a brief, intense pain, his limbs went numb, and the pain began to fade, he regained a bried moment of clarity.

'Am I… dying?' This was the body's self-preservation mechanism kicking in at the peak of pain.

"Lee!"

He vaguely heard Guy's heartbroken cry from far below.

'I'm sorry, Teacher. I let you down.'

The howling wind gradually lessened, the force of the blow dissipated, and his ascent slowed. 

He could see wisps of mist beside him and distant clouds.

'Was I… sent flying to the clouds?!!'

Rock Lee could think, but he couldn't feel his body. 

His body was probably shattered beyond repair. 

He chuckled wryly to himself. The wind faded. All his senses were disappearing. 

He had never felt so peaceful.

"A palm technique that descends from the heavens."

For some reason, words that felt like Natsuki's from years ago flashed through his mind. 

He had stumbled upon Natsuki and Hinata's training and asked Natsuki for guidance. 

This was what Natsuki had told him. He also said that mastering it would grant incredible recovery abilities.

Unfortunately, after all these years, Lee could only manage to generate some wind with sheer brute force.

'What was that technique called again?'

Rock Lee racked his brain but couldn't remember. 

This was the calmest and clearest his mind had ever been, since he could only feel his head. 

Yet, he couldn't recall the name of the technique.

His body reached its apex, flipped due to inertia, and began to fall. 

From the vast height, he strained his eyes to see below. 

The gigantic monster was roaring at the sky. 

At some point, the crowd around the arena had begun to scatter like ants. 

'Was the monster going to attack them?

'Damn it, that bastard's hurting innocent villagers! I wish I could just slap this monster to death.'

'Slap... slap to death?'

Rock Lee's eyes widened. 

He remembered.

He remembered the name of the technique. 

The palm technique that descends from the heavens.

"Hidden Lotus Palm!"

The moment he whispered those words, they echoed throughout Konoha.

A warm current surged through Rock Lee's body, revitalizing him. 

He could feel his limbs again. 

His heart pounded, his pulse throbbed, his entire being brimming with renewed power.

An endless light shone behind the rapidly falling Rock Lee, and a faint golden silhouette could be seen. 

On this day, the entire village witnessed the Buddha.

[tl/n: holy moly! I didn't know the palm technique Natsuki taught him was the Buddha's palm from Kung fu Hustle!! Man… the movie brings back so many good memories! 

So the name of the move here is originally something like palm of tathagata. It can also be translated as just buddha's palm, which is used in Kung fu hustle, but to make it more relatable to Naruto, I used the name Hidden Lotus Palm, I will continue to use it, but I just wanted to make sure you guys got the reference!]

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