*Chapter 36: Charge! Charge! Charge!*

Sasuke's crimson Sharingan spun, its tomoe tracing the rapid movements of Rock Lee's warm-up routine.

The numbers in Sasuke’s system panel jumped again, but his focus remained locked on Lee.

The movements themselves weren’t particularly complex. The difficulty lay in Lee’s speed.

"Got it," Sasuke muttered, deactivating the Sharingan. He closed his eyes, replaying the sequence in his mind with perfect clarity.

---

Rock Lee, meanwhile, couldn't contain his surprise.

He’d caught sight of Sasuke’s Sharingan—those legendary eyes often compared to Neji's Byakugan.

*A genius of the Leaf Village.*

Lee swallowed hard, a mix of admiration and unease welling up within him. He didn’t believe Sasuke could defeat him in combat at this moment, but he also knew better than to underestimate a genius.

“What’s he doing now?”

Lee watched as Sasuke, who had been standing still moments before, began moving.

Step by step, Sasuke mirrored Lee’s warm-up routine with precision. The right leg stretch, the left leg stretch, the joint rotations—each movement matched Lee’s own, as if Sasuke had been practicing for years.

Lee’s jaw dropped as Sasuke started his second cycle, gradually increasing his speed.

“This… this is what a genius looks like?”

Lee’s mind spun with disbelief. When he had first learned this routine, it had taken countless corrections from Guy-sensei to get it right. Yet here was Sasuke, perfecting it after mere minutes.

---

Sasuke completed the warm-up 15 times before finally stopping. Beads of sweat glistened on his forehead as he wiped them away with the back of his hand.

“I’m done.”

His words broke Lee from his trance. The speed and skill Sasuke displayed had left him stunned.

Sasuke glanced at his system panel. The routine had warmed him up, but his E-rank speed attribute had kept him from matching Lee's pace. Still, it was enough to help him gauge the gap between them.

+5

Another system notification popped up. Sasuke blinked, realizing the system had credited him with points for “showing off” in front of Lee.

*Really? I didn’t even mean to this time!*

Shaking his head, Sasuke tried to keep a low profile—or so he told himself.

“Let’s start running,” Lee said abruptly. Without waiting for a response, he shot forward like a bullet, his speed immediately leaving Sasuke in the dust.

Sasuke blinked at the trail Lee left behind. The green blur darted in and out of the forest, almost impossible to follow.

“Do I scare him that much? Was that really necessary?”

Sighing, Sasuke started jogging at his own pace. While he admired Lee’s speed, he knew his current physical limits. Pushing too hard would only hurt him—and possibly his precious *5E1D panel.*

Sweat poured down Sasuke’s face as he settled into a steady rhythm.

---

Swoosh!

Lee blurred past him, lapping him with ease.

Sasuke grit his teeth. *Unbearable.*

He wasn’t just Sasuke Uchiha—he was a transmigrator with a system. Letting Lee lap him like this? Out of the question.

“Charge! Charge! Charge!”

Adrenaline surged through Sasuke as he pushed himself harder, his pace quickening. The burning in his legs and lungs intensified, but he refused to stop. He had to test his limits, to see if effort alone could push his attributes higher.

The green blur of Lee continued to lap him, again and again. Each time, Sasuke’s determination only grew stronger.

---

Eventually, exhaustion overtook him.

His breaths came in ragged gasps, his throat felt raw, and his legs screamed in protest. He slowed to a stop, pale and drenched in sweat.

Panting, Sasuke opened his system panel.

*Physique: 147 points.*

No change.

A wave of disappointment washed over him. It seemed his attributes couldn’t improve through training—only system points could increase them.

---

Just as Sasuke prepared to stop, a faint ding ding! rang in his ears.

He froze, his tired eyes snapping back to the panel.

*Physique: 148 points.*

His heart skipped a beat.

"It worked?"

His gaze darted to another corner of the panel.

*Speed: 2 points.*

Though it was only a single-point increase, it was enough to reignite Sasuke’s motivation. His attributes could improve through effort, albeit slowly.

A grin spread across Sasuke’s face as realization dawned.

---

By combining training with system point allocation, Sasuke now saw a new path forward:

1. *Hard work* for slow but steady improvements.

2. *Acting cool* for a burst of progress.

“Lee, just you wait,” Sasuke murmured, a smirk tugging at his lips. “I’ll see how long you can keep showing off in front of me.”

And with that, Sasuke resumed his training, his steps filled with renewed determination.

(End of Chapter)