The Fear in Their Eyes
Lee walked through the village with steady steps.
His body had healed faster than expected—faster than should have been possible. Even though he had pushed himself beyond human limits in the fight against Gaara, he felt no strain, no exhaustion.
Only silence.
And the eyes of the people around him.
For years, Lee had been ignored. He had been the loud boy with no talent, the one who tried too hard, the one who would never be a true shinobi.
But now?
Now, they looked at him differently.
Not with admiration.
Not with respect.
But with fear.
He saw it in the civilians as they walked past him, whispering under their breath. He saw it in the Genin, the ones who had once dismissed him as a joke—now they kept their distance.
Even the Chūnin, the elite warriors of the village, glanced at him with something hesitant.
And the Jonin…
The Jonin were watching.
Not openly. Not obviously.
But Lee could feel it.
The way their eyes tracked his movements, the way they analyzed his presence, his body, his power.
Like they were trying to decide if he was safe.
Or if he was a problem.
Lee did not react.
He simply kept walking.
He had been underestimated for so long that he should have felt pride in their attention.
But instead, all he felt was isolation.
Because this was not what he wanted.
This was not why he trained.
He had worked all his life to prove himself, to stand as an equal among shinobi. But now that he had finally done it, he realized something terrifying.
He was no longer one of them.
The Hyūga's Doubt
Neji watched from the distance, his arms folded as Lee passed by.
He had yet to speak to him since the fight.
He didn't know what to say.
For so many years, he had told himself that fate was absolute.
That those born without power would always be weak.
And yet, here was Rock Lee.
A shinobi with no talent, no clan, no ninjutsu—and yet, he had defeated Gaara.
Fate should not have allowed that.
Neji clenched his fists at his sides.
Because if fate could be broken—
Then everything he had believed in was a lie.
The Uchiha's Resentment
Sasuke stood on the rooftops of the village, watching Lee move through the streets below.
He had spent days replaying the fight in his mind, trying to understand.
Trying to rationalize.
Lee had moved faster than he could track.
Lee had shattered Gaara's ultimate defense.
Lee had won without ninjutsu.
That last part haunted Sasuke the most.
Because if someone like Lee could become that powerful through pure effort alone—
Then what did that mean for him?
For Sasuke Uchiha, the last of his clan, the prodigy meant to restore his bloodline?
Sasuke's nails dug into his palms.
It meant he was falling behind.
And that—
That was unacceptable.
The Hokage's Concern
Hiruzen Sarutobi sat in his office, watching the reports pile on his desk.
The fight between Lee and Gaara had already begun shaking the foundation of the shinobi world.
There were whispers from the other villages.
Suna had already sent an official request for a full evaluation of Rock Lee's abilities.
Kumo had begun requesting more information on Konoha's training methods.
Even Iwa—a village that despised Konoha—had quietly reached out to their spies, demanding answers.
Because this was no longer just about a single fight.
This was about something much bigger.
Hiruzen set down the scroll, exhaling through his nose.
The other nations would not ignore this.
Lee had proven something dangerous.
That hard work alone could rival even the strongest bloodlines.
And in the world of shinobi—
That was not something they could allow.
The First Attack
Lee knew it was coming before it happened.
His body had changed. His senses were sharper, his instincts faster. He could feel the disturbance in the air, the sudden shift of movement behind him—
An ambush.
Two shinobi, masked, moving silently through the alleyway. Their movements were clean—ANBU level.
Lee did not turn.
Instead, he closed his eyes.
Breathed in.
And vanished.
The next second, he was behind them.
The two shinobi froze.
Because they had not seen him move.
Not even for a second.
Lee's voice was quiet.
"Who sent you?"
Silence.
Then—a flicker of movement.
A kunai lashed out toward his throat. Fast. Precise. Lethal.
But to Lee—
It might as well have been moving in slow motion.
His hand snapped forward, catching the blade mid-air.
The shinobi stiffened.
Lee tightened his grip.
And the kunai shattered.
The two attackers exchanged a glance.
Then they vanished.
Fleeing.
Not out of strategy.
Not out of duty.
Out of fear.
Lee did not chase them.
Because he did not need to.
He already knew what this meant.
This was only the first test.
A warning.
Konoha was watching him now.
And the world was not far behind.
Final Scene: Orochimaru Moves
Deep beneath Konoha, in a hidden chamber far beyond the reach of any shinobi patrol, a single man sat in the dim light.
Orochimaru.
The Sannin smiled to himself, his golden eyes glinting with amusement.
The attack had been meaningless.
A probe. A simple test.
And Lee had passed it flawlessly.
Orochimaru exhaled slowly, his fingers tapping against the stone table.
He had originally come here for Sasuke.
To mold him. To shape him. To break him into something useful.
But now—
Now, there was something far more interesting in Konoha.
And Orochimaru had never been able to resist a perfect experiment.
His lips curled into a slow, hungry grin.
"Yes…"
He whispered to himself.
"This will be fun."