Lee's thrill of victory faded along with the sound of falling shards.
The silence that filled the arena was cold and uncomfortable.
In the center of the crater, Gaara's body broke into pieces...
...of sand.
Tenten took a step forward, confused. "What…?"
Before he could finish, the real Gaara appeared right behind Lee, his gaze empty and sadistic, his smile twisted with bloodlust.
"Replacement," Li Shang muttered, his eyes narrowed.
He had noticed the trick, but did not intervene.'This is his battle... and Gai is here. He would never let the boy die.'
Gaara slowly raised his hand. The sand around Lee rose like a living snake, cascading down.
Lee tried to react, but exhaustion overcame him. The energy released by the Primary Lotus had left him exhausted—his body was no longer responding.
The sound of sand crushing rocks echoed.
"It's over," Li Shang muttered.
The spiritual pressure emanating from Gaara was suffocating. Even the jounin in the stands felt the weight of that uncontrollable chakra.
The fight was decided—or so it seemed.
Lee fell to his knees, his face covered in sweat and blood. His left arm trembled, his legs wobbled.
Gaara walked forward slowly, his gaze hungry.
"More... I want to see blood..." he whispered, his voice cold as steel.
Li Shang suspirou.'He fought well. But his opponent is simply the worst possible match for his style.'
'A fragile body and absolute defense... Lee can't overcome this with taijutsu alone.'
Gaara moved his hand, and the sand began to envelop Lee's body again.
But then — a different sound.
Crack.
Lee stood up.
His muscles trembled, his breathing ragged... but a flame burned in his eyes.
"I... I'm not done yet."
Gai, in the stands, clenched his fist, his eyes teary but with a smile.
"This boy…" he murmured. "He's going further than I ever could."
Li Shang watched silently.
Lee's chakra fluctuated unsteadily, but something was changing.
It was as if the will to fight was forcibly shaping the energy—a combustion of the soul.
"I won't… be the only one to lose!" Lee shouted, his eyes fixed on Gaara.
The memory of his companions pierced him like a bolt of lightning.
Sasuke, Naruto e Neji seu rival.
"If they didn't lose… then neither did I!"
The sand moved to swallow Lee again, but he dodged it with a shadow.
Even with torn muscles and fractured bones, he pushed his body beyond its limits.
"Lee, give up, it's over!"
Sakura's shaky voice echoed through the arena, breaking the suffocating silence. Her teary eyes sought Gai, pleading with him to stop.
But the bushy-browed man just crossed his arms, a proud smile forming on his face.
"The Lotus of Konoha blooms twice."
Kakashi turned around in disbelief. "Gai... don't tell me..."
"Yes, Kakashi." Gai's tone was calm, but his eyes held emotion. "This boy... can open the Eight Inner Gates."
In the center of the arena, Lee moved his body tremblingly. His aura pulsed with intensity, and then—BOOM!— a burst of chakra tore through the air.
The color of his body changed. Veins bulged beneath his skin, and chakra emanated almost visibly, like liquid fire dancing around him.
"Third Gate of Life... open!"
The ground cracked beneath his feet.
"Fourth Gate of Pain... open!"
Lee's scream reverberated around the arena walls. His body moved, and in an instant, he was gone.
Only the sound of destruction followed him.
CRASH! CRACK! BOOM!
Gaara didn't even have time to react. The sand that had always protected him barely managed to rise, crushed by blows coming from all angles.
The red-haired youth was thrown from side to side like a rag doll, his body being whipped by the air and the impact.
With each punch, the air trembled.
With each kick, the arena crumbled a little more.
Even Kakashi took a step back, feeling the violent wind hit his face.
"Unbelievable..." he muttered, eyes wide.
Gai watched in silence—pride and pain mixed on his face.
On the field, Lee stood for a moment, his body a wreck. His muscles trembled like ropes about to snap.
"Fifth Gate of Closure... open!"
The burst of energy was so intense. And then, in a single leap, he disappeared again.
When he reappeared, he was standing in front of Gaara—so close that his eyes were reflected in the other's.
"This is... my last strike!"
The impact was like a roar of thunder.
"BOOOOOOM!"
A shockwave swept across the arena. Dust, stone, and chakra mingled in a violent storm.
The observers raised their arms to protect themselves.
And in the midst of the chaos... silence returned.
Li Shang watched intently with the Byakugan, his gaze dark.
'He lost...'
Even pushing his body to its absolute limit, Lee had not been able to completely break through the sand armor.
The blow was monumental—but the sand from Gaara's gourd had absorbed the final impact.
When the dust settled, the result was revealed.
Lee lay motionless, his body contorted with exertion, still panting.
Gaara, in the center of the crater, was standing—panting, but unharmed.
The sand armor on his body crumbled into dust, revealing only scratches.
He slowly raised his arm.
The sand around him moved like a living beast, crawling towards Lee's fallen body.
Everyone's breathing stopped.
"Sand Coffin."
The world froze.
The dust still hung in the air, frozen as if time had been sealed in an eternal instant. The deafening roar of the impact faded, replaced by an absolute silence that made even Li Shang's heart skip a beat.
And then... he saw.
For a brief instant, a translucent silhouette covered Lee's fallen body—a youthful-looking figure with long silver hair and a cultivator's robe fluttering amidst an intense golden light.
Yang Xiao.
The name escaped Li Shang's lips almost soundlessly, like a forgotten prayer.
"Yang Xiao..."
The dry sound of the sand crunching was like the prelude to death.
But before the final blow reached him—something flashed.
A sharp sound of wind. A whirlwind.
Chakra flowed in a spiral, tearing through the air.
"Hakkeshou... Kaiten!"
Li Shang appeared in the center of the arena, his body spinning at high speed, creating a translucent dome of chakra that repelled the sand.
The impact was brutal — an invisible wall pushed Gaara back.
When the whirlpool ceased, Li Shang was standing, holding the unconscious Lee in his arms.
Gai, who had remained motionless until then, took a step forward.
"Neji... Lee..." he murmured, his voice trembling.
Pride and fear mingled in his gaze.
"Examiner, my companion cannot continue the fight."
[Author's Note:This story was originally written in Portuguese, so there may be some translation errors. If you notice any, please let me know so I can fix them. Thank you for reading!]