Naruto and Naruto Shippuuden

[Captain_Aizen13]

For those who remember Rock Lee's first goal as a genin, he was training and preparing to beat his own team mate Neji, since it was believed that Neji was the best and most talented of any genin. Of course Rock Lee never got to meet Neji in battle, but based upon his performance against Gaara, do you think Rock Lee could have taken Neji if they had fought right then in the chunin prelims. Please discuss.

Edited July 31, 2015 by Koby

[DeathTheKid]

It's really hard to say considering Lee's speed and Neji's byakugan.

Since Lee is my favorite character I'd have faith in him beating Neji with his speed alone. Lee has to be one of the fastest if not the fastest at the time. I doubt Neji would be able to keep up with Lee's attacks since Gaara's barely could and it was the ultimate defense.

Good question though. I'd like to see battle someday happen.

[RikuoAmero]

I'd have to say yes, Lee would have had a very good chance at winning against Neji. Like when he defeated Sasuke, having a super eye means squat if the guy throwing the punch is moving too fast for your body to react to.

Then again...unlike Sasuke, Neji had much more experience with his Byakugan and was clearly focused in Taijutsu.

So...to put it short, Lee would have a very good chance of winning, but not a certainty.

[shyguysteve]

I believe he would have, the posts before mine are good opinionated facts. But the only reason I say this is because he would have to open the inner gates to get be at the speed that was too fast for Gaara's sand. Neji is more so fast in close hand to hand combat while Lee (like Bruce Lee) can hold his own with such rapid foot work he could fight long distance and short both hand to hand.

Opening the inner gates didn't just boost Lee's speed it also boosted his strikes. Aside form that if Neji shut off the chakra points in Lee's body, Lee's physical condition (I think) is so well orginized he could just bare knuckle brawl Neji without using chakra and win.

[Vigilence]

It would have been a good match. However I think Lee would have won since Lees skills are solely based on Taijutsu which gives him a natural advantage over Neji's Taijutsu, which is mainly a chakra counter.

Edited October 23, 2012 by Vigilence

[Captain_Aizen13]

You guys raise very good points. Personally I think Rock Lee would have won, it's not a certainty but it's where I would put my money in a bet. The reason for this is because (as others have said) Neji relies really really heavily in shutting his opponents chakra down and as fate had it, that means nothing to Rock since he never used chakra to begin with. But even more so than that, I think the MAIN reason Lee would have won is because Neji was incredibly arrogant and mentally he could not fathom the idea of anyone being as good as him. I think Neji would have mocked and toyed with Rock Lee, and then once he realized his shit was about to get busted by Inner Gates, it would have been too late. Also, there's the fact that Neji could not have kept up with Lees speed, which again makes his bloodline eyes useless.

The reason I made this poll was to see how many people would agree with what I always thought the result would have been, and I see almost everyone thought the same thing. It's a shame they didn't get to fight, I would have preferred Rock to beat Neji over Naruto. I think it's ironic how Rock always thought Neji was the hardest possible matchup for him, when in reality he was probably the hardest possible matchup for Neji and neither one realized that.

Obviously, for those who have been watching the series later, you probably figured out why I didn't say "who would win if they fought NOW" because clearly Neji's growth in skill has more or less stopped altogether. I guess the writers lost interest in his character after the chunin exam and he's pretty much not shown anything amazing since that time. It would be a no brainer that Rock would win as time went on.

[shyguysteve]

I guess the writers lost interest in his character after the chunin exam and he's pretty much not shown anything amazing since that time. It would be a no brainer that Rock would win as time went on.

Its because he is based souly on Bruce Lee that they couldn't add to his abilities. For being the well known Tai jutsu master the only way to make Lee interesting is to make up a new Tai jutsu for him. Aside from that, Lee is probably the most perfect character. He needs no improvements. While everyone else is straining themselves for more power.

I'm using perfect in the context of without flaw.

[Koby]

I honestly think it'd be hard for Rock Lee to have beat Neji in the Chuunin Exams. Neji could easily block the chakra gates that allow Rock Lee to power up and then it'd be simply Rock Lee's normal taijutsu vs. all of Neji's abilities. Rock Lee may be strictly taijutsu which makes him pretty much excellent at it, but Neji's taijutsu is excellent too. He can make like 320 punches shutting off all the chakra points within a single technique in like 15 seconds. I believe Rock Lee would need to make use of opening the gates to match that kind of speed at the time of the Chuunin Exams, in which Rock Lee only opened the gates when it was his last option, which means Neji would have already blocked it's use before it came to that.

[Captain_Aizen13]

I honestly think it'd be hard for Rock Lee to have beat Neji in the Chuunin Exams. Neji could easily block the chakra gates that allow Rock Lee to power up and then it'd be simply Rock Lee's normal taijutsu vs. all of Neji's abilities. Rock Lee may be strictly taijutsu which makes him pretty much excellent at it, but Neji's taijutsu is excellent too. He can make like 320 punches shutting off all the chakra points within a single technique in like 15 seconds. I believe Rock Lee would need to make use of opening the gates to match that kind of speed at the time of the Chuunin Exams, in which Rock Lee only opened the gates when it was his last option, which means Neji would have already blocked it's use before it came to that.

You must remember that Inner Gates doesn't use chakra, it takes limiters off the body and is a skill that only be obtained through hard physical training. Rock Lee can not use chakra at all. Inner Gates is not genjutsu or ninjutsu. If the move required chakra, Rock Lee couldn't use it. Therefore Neji chakra block has no effect.

But for sake of open thinking, let's say that Inner Gates was a chakra technique. It could speculated that opening the Inner Gates might force those chakra points in the body to re-open even after being blocked. If you think about the nature of the movie, it's all about forcing limiters to open. Technically, there's the chance that it could force a blocked charka point open as well.

[Koby]

I honestly think it'd be hard for Rock Lee to have beat Neji in the Chuunin Exams. Neji could easily block the chakra gates that allow Rock Lee to power up and then it'd be simply Rock Lee's normal taijutsu vs. all of Neji's abilities. Rock Lee may be strictly taijutsu which makes him pretty much excellent at it, but Neji's taijutsu is excellent too. He can make like 320 punches shutting off all the chakra points within a single technique in like 15 seconds. I believe Rock Lee would need to make use of opening the gates to match that kind of speed at the time of the Chuunin Exams, in which Rock Lee only opened the gates when it was his last option, which means Neji would have already blocked it's use before it came to that.

You must remember that Inner Gates doesn't use chakra, it takes limiters off the body and is a skill that only be obtained through hard physical training. Rock Lee can not use chakra at all. Inner Gates is not genjutsu or ninjutsu. If the move required chakra, Rock Lee couldn't use it. Therefore Neji chakra block has no effect.

But for sake of open thinking, let's say that Inner Gates was a chakra technique. It could speculated that opening the Inner Gates might force those chakra points in the body to re-open even after being blocked. If you think about the nature of the movie, it's all about forcing limiters to open. Technically, there's the chance that it could force a blocked charka point open as well.

It was never stated he couldn't use chakra, only that he had no talent for ninjutsu and genjutsu. As for the limiters, what do you think they are? It's limiters on the 8 specific points of the Chakra pathway. By removing the limiters it allows more chakra to flow than the body can normally handle. He's able to remove the limiters because he's trained his body so much in the art of taijutsu. Taijutsu typically does not require chakra, though chakra may be used to enhance its techniques as is the case of gaining new abilities by removing the limiters (which again is something he can only do because of the massive amount of training he has put his body through, a normal ninja wouldn't be able to handle the strain that removing the limiters puts on the body).

Also Neji isn't "blocking" them, he's technically destroying them. They'll need time to heal. Say you had a power cord connected to another power cord with a fuse between them. If the fuse is destroyed, the current can't flow through. Same ordeal with the chakra points. Once destroyed, even if the limiters are removed, the chakra can't properly flow through the body.

Quote from the Wikia:

The Eight Gates are eight specific points on a person's Chakra Pathway System. They limit the overall flow of chakra within a person's body. The basis for the idea of the chakra gates comes from the body's limits on the functions within it. This makes the body much weaker, but it keeps the body from expiring too soon. By undergoing intense training, one can learn how to open these gates allowing the user to surpass their own physical limits at the cost of extreme damage to their own body.

Source: http://naruto.wikia.com/wiki/Eight_Gates

[shyguysteve]

I honestly think it'd be hard for Rock Lee to have beat Neji in the Chuunin Exams. Neji could easily block the chakra gates that allow Rock Lee to power up and then it'd be simply Rock Lee's normal taijutsu vs. all of Neji's abilities. Rock Lee may be strictly taijutsu which makes him pretty much excellent at it, but Neji's taijutsu is excellent too. He can make like 320 punches shutting off all the chakra points within a single technique in like 15 seconds. I believe Rock Lee would need to make use of opening the gates to match that kind of speed at the time of the Chuunin Exams, in which Rock Lee only opened the gates when it was his last option, which means Neji would have already blocked it's use before it came to that.

Yeah that is true. Other then his natural talent Neji also used his own kind of Taijutsu. And I dind't think of it now but Lee should totally learn it. Its Tai jutsu and it doesn't require hand signs from what I remember of the trigrams.

[saminyt]

Yeah that is true. Other then his natural talent Neji also used his own kind of Taijutsu. And I dind't think of it now but Lee should totally learn it. Its Tai jutsu and it doesn't require hand signs from what I remember of the trigrams.

Are u talking about Neji's gentle fist. If so, then no, Lee can never learn it bcoz it requires the Byakugan to see the enemy's chakra points.

Now onto the main topic. I agree with Koby that during the chunin exams, Neji would have dominated Rock Lee. Im not saying any details here coz Koby's explanation is enough I think. And I also agree with some other posts saying Neji's growth totally stopped after the Chunin exams. If they were to fight now, I would definitely give my vote to Rock Lee.

[Captain_Aizen13]

I honestly think it'd be hard for Rock Lee to have beat Neji in the Chuunin Exams. Neji could easily block the chakra gates that allow Rock Lee to power up and then it'd be simply Rock Lee's normal taijutsu vs. all of Neji's abilities. Rock Lee may be strictly taijutsu which makes him pretty much excellent at it, but Neji's taijutsu is excellent too. He can make like 320 punches shutting off all the chakra points within a single technique in like 15 seconds. I believe Rock Lee would need to make use of opening the gates to match that kind of speed at the time of the Chuunin Exams, in which Rock Lee only opened the gates when it was his last option, which means Neji would have already blocked it's use before it came to that.

You must remember that Inner Gates doesn't use chakra, it takes limiters off the body and is a skill that only be obtained through hard physical training. Rock Lee can not use chakra at all. Inner Gates is not genjutsu or ninjutsu. If the move required chakra, Rock Lee couldn't use it. Therefore Neji chakra block has no effect.

But for sake of open thinking, let's say that Inner Gates was a chakra technique. It could speculated that opening the Inner Gates might force those chakra points in the body to re-open even after being blocked. If you think about the nature of the movie, it's all about forcing limiters to open. Technically, there's the chance that it could force a blocked charka point open as well.

It was never stated he couldn't use chakra, only that he had no talent for ninjutsu and genjutsu. As for the limiters, what do you think they are? It's limiters on the 8 specific points of the Chakra pathway. By removing the limiters it allows more chakra to flow than the body can normally handle. He's able to remove the limiters because he's trained his body so much in the art of taijutsu. Taijutsu typically does not require chakra, though chakra may be used to enhance its techniques as is the case of gaining new abilities by removing the limiters (which again is something he can only do because of the massive amount of training he has put his body through, a normal ninja wouldn't be able to handle the strain that removing the limiters puts on the body).

Also Neji isn't "blocking" them, he's technically destroying them. They'll need time to heal. Say you had a power cord connected to another power cord with a fuse between them. If the fuse is destroyed, the current can't flow through. Same ordeal with the chakra points. Once destroyed, even if the limiters are removed, the chakra can't properly flow through the body.

Quote from the Wikia:

The Eight Gates are eight specific points on a person's Chakra Pathway System. They limit the overall flow of chakra within a person's body. The basis for the idea of the chakra gates comes from the body's limits on the functions within it. This makes the body much weaker, but it keeps the body from expiring too soon. By undergoing intense training, one can learn how to open these gates allowing the user to surpass their own physical limits at the cost of extreme damage to their own body.

Source: http://naruto.wikia....iki/Eight_Gates

I see you have a point. However I just realized something, Neji would never have bothered to attack Rock Lees Chakra points because without knowing about those gates it would have been pointless, he KNEW Rock Lee had nothing but basic moves. I think Rock would have opened the Gates before Neji hit his power points. Once the gates were open, Neji could never have targeted Rocks system, he was moving too fast. In fact, I doubt if he could have hit Lees charka points even without the gates, Rock Lee was the fastest of any genin after all.

[Rogue1599]

Neji is one of my favorites, but I believe Lee is much too fast to beat him.

[Ray]

I dont see why Neji couldn't hit Rock Lee before he has a chance to open his gates. Rock Lee isn't all that fast without his gates. Plus Lee isn't a thinker. Blocking Neji's attacks would be his undoing. Yes, thats right, I'm a fan of Neji- bite me ^^

[Koby]

I don't see why people underrate Neji's speed. Seriously, someone who can punch hundreds of times in a matter of seconds is pretty damn fast.

They show Lee moving around rapidly, but Neji not so much, but if Neji needed to move, he'd be extremely fast.

[mnop]

Interesting question.

My opinion I think Rock Lee would have won since he almost defeated Gaara and his absolute defense. Additional the big plus on Neji's side to control the chakra flow of your opponent does not kick in (at least I guess that because of only using Taijutsu)

But in the end this is just a guessing game

[Hawkester]

Interesting question.

My opinion I think Rock Lee would have won since he almost defeated Gaara and his absolute defense. Additional the big plus on Neji's side to control the chakra flow of your opponent does not kick in (at least I guess that because of only using Taijutsu)

But in the end this is just a guessing game

Actually it does, because if you remember when Rock Lee opened the gates in his body, they basically allowed the chakra to flow easier, hence the increase in speed and strength. If Neji managed to close the chakra points on Lee's body, I reckon he would find it harder to move and impossible to open the gates. By harder to move, I mean when Naruto fought Neji and Neji closed all of Naruto's chakra points. Before Naruto used the demon fox chakra, you could see that he was finding it harder to move. Then again I'm going off memory, so that might not of really happened.

Edited December 16, 2012 by Hawkester

[gaarra]

i would have to say yes

[warri0rheart]

I believe he would, but i guess he didnt train to much lol