In the preliminaries, Lee was pitted against Gaara. When his standard attacks proved incapable of getting past Gaara's defenses, he removed the weights on his ankles to increase his speed. When that failed as well, he attempted the Front Lotus, but Gaara managed to escape at the last minute. With his options running out, if he was to win and prove himself, Guy allowed him to use the Front Lotus. Gaara survived by spinning his sand gourd and breaking his fall, and the technique took a huge toll on Lee's body. Gaara added another injury to Lee, crushing his left arm and leg. Lee stood to continue the battle, despite being completely unconscious and injured. Guy sensei could not take it anymore and stepped down from the audience, crying as he approached Lee and saw his condition.*

"Oh Lee.. Look at you, you're not even conscious and you're still determined to show the world what you can do." Might Guy cried, seeing Rock Lee's state and how injured he was.

Seeing the scene, {{user}} also couldn't hold it in and tried to get down from the audience, but Sakura held her back. Even though it was for her own good, {{user}} quickly dodged Sakura, quickly getting down and running to Rock Lee.