Genin Takedown - 2

"No one else then?" The proctor made one last call and the enduring squads stayed quiet.

Hayate nodded, "Very well. As of now, the third stage has begun. The board will display two random names of those remaining to fight." He gestured to a huge score board high on the left side of the far wall.

Everyone present looked up expectantly as names flashed rapidly on the black screen and finally settled on two of them.

Hayate restrained a loud cough, "Er-hem! The first match will be between..." He consulted the board's readout, "Aburame Shino and Rock Lee. All other ninja must proceed up to the balcony now."

Sato and Hinata, stunned, did not at first move. Shino appeared totally relaxed, but they, on the other hand, could not help but fear for him as he was the first to fight.

The silver haired boy frowned inwardly and then padded up to the balcony to rejoin his sensei. Hinata suppressed her anxiety, frightened by how quickly it had started, "Um...good luck, Shino-kun."

"Thank you." His calm attitude upset her as she departed.

Neither Neji or Tenten could have gotten a word in edgewise to Lee due to Gai's last minute pep-talk, "Now listen Lee, do nothing but your best! The fires of Youth burn brightly within you!"

"I will Gai-sensei!"

"Good luck my student!"

"Gai-sensei!"

"Lee!"

"Gai-sensei!"

"Lee!"

Gai promptly punched him in the face to get him moving, tears of joy rolling down his cheeks. Lee recovered immediately, saluting his teacher and teammates, who could only sigh at the sight of him as they ventured up to the higher level.

It was a scene that had bewildered all who had not been witness to it before. So, naturally, Team 2 weathered it quite well, as did Teams 7 and 8.

'It wasn't nearly as bad as it was the Tanabata Festival...' Haku recalled with a shudder.

Without further interruption the two Leaf genin faced off, neither intimidated in the least, as Hayate ended yet another coughing fit.

"Ready? You may begin." Hayate backed away, letting the battle commence.

Shino, calm and smooth, drew a kunai. His eyes scanned Lee from behind his dark glasses, who had taken a ready pose. He predicted that Lee was going to come into close-quarters to fight. This would complicate things because Shino knew he fought best at a distance. He had to maintain the space between them.

"It will be an honor to fight against another talented shinobi from my village!" Lee proclaimed, leaping forward with surprising speed.

The Aburame boy threw the kunai with precise timing, but thanks to his training with Tenten, Lee dodged it effortlessly and continued on. Lee turned, preparing for a roundhouse kick, and was dismayed when it was easily countered.

The watching shinobi were silent as Lee cast a flurry of expert punches which Shino blocked with great effort. Kurenai admitted to herself while observing that Shino was, in her opinion, her most gifted student. He was able to adapt to most opponents. He kept up well with Lee, but Kurenai knew that soon he would use his cunning to disable his opponent's taijutsu.

Lee, while weaving away from what could have been a brutal hit, saw an opening in Shino's defense and went for it. With a cry, Lee planted a terrible uppercut squarely on Shino's lower jaw. Hinata squeaked in spite of herself.

Shino, a moment later, dispersed into a swarm of Kikaichu insects, much to Lee's shock. The bugs of Shino's doppelganger took hold of the enemy, slowing his movements as he struggled to get them off.

Shino appeared behind Lee, his insects scuttling away from their host in increasing numbers as they joined together to attack Lee.

"My insects will drain you of your chakra," The Aburame boy warned, as Lee swiped them off frantically, still trying to get nearer to his opponent, "You may avoid injury if you give in now."

Naruto, leaned excitedly on the railing between his teammates, impressed, "Oh man...Bushy-brows is in trouble! He better do something soon..."

Haku nodded in agreement, still nervous over his future fight. Gaara, unlike his friends, knew that Lee was much more capable than most gave him credit for.

Hinata shifted her eyes to Sato. Much to her surprise he was wearing an anxious expression. His midnight blue eyes were focused on the match below and held no trace of anger as they had before.

'Maybe Sato-kun is worried now...' Hinata pondered, noticing his change in behavior, 'This match was a shock to him. Is it possible that he wanted to fight Shino-kun himself?'

It seemed likely. Sato had trouble letting go of his anger, even if it was sparked through his teammates looking out for his safety. Now Shino was in a fight that Sato had never imagined could have taken place, and he was unsure of how he was supposed to feel at all.

Kurenai turned her crimson eyes to Gai, who had his signature grin plastered to his face as he observed the match. She knew by now that there were definite parallels in skill between the student and teacher, if that were any more indication of her fears.

Lee ended his struggle against the insects clambering onto him by the hundreds, and instead looked up to his mentor questioningly, waiting for a signal. Tenten frowned, hoping he wasn't planning anything too drastic. Once Gai had given him a thumbs-up and a huge, dazzling smile, Lee's expression changed.

Shino wondered why it was taking Lee so long to surrender, but he decided to stay cautious, sensing a change in strategy fast approaching.

Many people watching had blinked and missed it, as the Kikaichu insects attempting to drain Lee's chakra were blown off of him all at once, and the boy in green vanished. Kakashi, observant as ever, gave a look of disapproval to Gai, wondering when he had taught the boy to open chakra gates.

The sudden surge of energy had stunned the bugs, leaving them belly-up on the floor and unable to move. Shino had no time to react once Lee had reappeared, moving extraordinarily fast, and hit him with a vicious, high-speed flying kick.

Sato flinched.

The Aburame boy flew across the room, to the horror of many in the audience, and crashed into the opposite wall with a small yet noticeable shockwave. The impact knocked the wind out of him, but he was still able to function. Shino took a moment to regroup.

'How was he unaffected by my insects? That was no normal amount of chakra...' Shino righted himself, ready to fight again, but unable to understand what had just happened.

"How can Bushy-brows move that fast?" Naruto muttered in astonishment.

"It is a result of his training with Gai-sensei, I believe," Haku answered, also in awe, "He is much stronger than I had originally thought..."

Lee stood patiently, wearing a confident expression as he anticipated Shino's thoughts, "You see now that your insects were not able to drain my chakra and will not be able to in the future!"

Slowly, the Kikaichu insects on the floor began to regain mobility and returned to Shino, hissing to him their dislike of his opponent. In his own mind he agreed with them. Lee was a bit too energetic for his taste.

Shino threw a round of shuriken as he rushed at Lee, who was also approaching, and prepared to create another clone from his insect allies. Again with an invisible speed, Lee disappeared before the projectiles could reach their mark. Frustrated, Shino skidded to a halt and formed seals: a costly mistake.

Lee reappeared again, low to the floor, and kicked Shino into the air before he could complete his jutsu. Lee's teammates watched expectantly, having seen it before as Shino struggled, only to get hit repetitively, preventing him from returning to the ground. His insects could not move fast enough to catch up to them.

Sato was horrified, having never seen Shino take so many ruthless hits. It was at that moment he had given up his resentment. He could accept that his teammates only promised to prevent him from using the Chidori in order to protect him. It had been a poor excuse to squander their friendship.

"Shino! Come on! You've got to fight back!" The young Hatake threw his fists in the air, hollering, "It isn't over yet!"

Kurenai didn't fight the small smile that bloomed on her lips.

Hinata, though surprised, was grateful that Sato had finally broken out of his funk, even if it had taken a long while. Nearby, Team 2 was also startled, for it had been the first time in over five days they had heard a peep out of Sato.

Shino was shocked to hear his teammate cheer for him and countered a number of Lee's strikes in response, buying enough time for his insects to reach him and begin their assault on Lee.

Lee, though inspired by the cheering, was ready to end the battle, "Shadow of the Dancing Leaf!"

Lee's arm bindings came loose and coiled around Shino, restricting his movement, and Sato watched, stupefied, as Lee began pulling Shino down with him towards the ground, head first.

"Front Lotus!" The rapidly spinning combatants crashed down, leaving a cloud of dust in the aftermath of the attack.

An uproar followed, many shinobi were unsure of the end result. Naruto was left speechless, finding it difficult to say anything after witnessing the sheer force of the attack. Jiraiya only smirked, finding it interesting that one so young was incredibly skilled in taijutsu.

When visibility down below returned, Lee was the first to be seen, standing on shaky legs. He looked pleased with his work, despite a few Kikaichu insects still trying to feast on his chakra.