Chūnin Challenge: Rock Lee vs. Sasuke!

Drawn to test himself against an Uchiha and openly crushing on Sakura, Lee calls Sasuke out for a fight. Naruto, tired of standing behind his teammates, jumps in first and is dropped in an instant, prompting Lee to declare himself the mightiest genin in the Leaf. Intrigued at last, Sasuke engages, only to be launched by Lee's Leaf Whirlwind.

Sasuke activates his Sharingan to read the technique, but Lee explains it is useless here: his moves are pure hand-to-hand martial arts, and even a copying eye cannot make the body react in time. As Lee sets up the Shadow of the Dancing Leaf for a finisher, a huge turtle interrupts and scolds him for reaching for a forbidden move. Might Guy then appears atop the shell, strikes his student across the face, then embraces and weeps over him.

Team 7 can only stare, Sasuke stunned to have lost to someone he writes off as a freak. Guy boasts of leading his rival Kakashi in their lifetime record and departs. Before going, Lee admits the true top genin is his teammate Neji, and Naruto seizes the chance to needle Sasuke about how much harder Lee trains. The squad's thoughts then turn to the looming Chūnin Exams.

Rock Lee debuts and challenges Sasuke, knocking Naruto out effortlessly before demonstrating that his taijutsu cannot be countered by the Sharingan. Might Guy arrives to halt Lee's forbidden finisher and is revealed as his teacher and Kakashi's self-proclaimed rival. Lee confesses that Neji, not himself, is the strongest genin among them. The team refocuses on the upcoming Chūnin Exams.

Set during the Chūnin Exams arc and adapting two chapters, the episode establishes the rivalry between Might Guy and Kakashi, whose ongoing contest stands at fifty wins to forty-nine at this point.