Kiba's POV (Entryway to Courtyard - Iron Arena)
"You must listen, my dear student, for before you stand a wall. Too high to climb over, too wide to go around, too… eh- down to get under. Yes, many would call it insurmountable. Most, in fact, luckily, you have the guidance of Konoha's Sexy Beast. Indeed, you are armed even further, the power of You-"
Just how often did Gai continuously lecture Kiba? Much to the Inuzuka's chagrin, Gai habitually did so. Even the most benign of activities were treated so mainly. Standards are to be held at all times, even throughout his hellish training. Kiba stayed with the team due to his friendship with Lee and Sakura, but it was hard. If Gai hadn't been an oddly good sensei somehow, Kiba would've surely snapped by now. Well, good in the training, it had turned Kiba into a beast, able to keep up with Lee with his weights. Without it, he hadn't seen a Genin he could keep up with Lee then. But his advice or teachings often meant little to Kiba. Most of the time, he found some absurd way to tie it into the power of "youth." And the rest, some ridiculous moral code that seemed needless to him. He was jealous of the other teams with a more standard Jounin sensei. Jealous of Naruto and Tenten, as much as it hurt to admit, Kiba wasn't sure he would have defeated either. It made his blood boil; Naruto was his friend, but he was always slightly behind him for the entirety of the academy. Friendly and competitive yet safe, he never truly stood a chance in Kiba's eyes. Yet Naruto had somehow surpassed him, so much so that the weapon girl that would likely leave Kiba bleeding and defeated seemed utterly outmatched by Naruto. Kiba also held no illusion of who was the favorite between him and Gaara, even by his own odds. He felt no humor in the irony of an Inuzuka being considered the underdog.
"Now I know your foe is considerable, likely one of the strongest Genin here. But I know with my training and your yout-" Even his sensei subtly suggested Kiba was outmatched here. Somehow, he had become the runt of this litter. Kiba knew better than most what happened to them.
"Don't worry so much, Gai; I have a secret weapon! No one in the exam is ready for me now!" Kiba roared with a smile that felt only a little forced. It matched the smile Sakura had given him before they had split up, her to the audience area and him to the contestant area. She had said the right words, wishing him well and saying she was confident in him. Yet Kiba had sensed her lack of faith in him. It, combined with Gai, made him seethe inwardly.
"Confidence goes hand in hand with youth Kiba, but-" Gai started but stopped when Kiba shoved himself by him.
"I don't need youth, Gai; I'm not the weakling you all think I am," Kiba said. His fear of Gaara was simply smothered by his hatred of how everyone he felt was looking down on him. Kiba tried to stomp his way into the arena, but Gai grabbed his shoulder.
"I understand your emotions; despite what you may think, Lee and I have been there. So I know you won't back down, so let me offer more practical advice. Use that anger and your youth and hit that monster with everything you have with the intent to kill. Even when you do, it may not work; if he survives, he'll likely defeat you. May even kill you, for the sake of Akamaru, if that unyouthful monster should get a hold of either of you, surrender there and then. Kakashi should step in then; I'll be there shortly after. Otherwise, this may be the end of your career." Gai said seriously, eyes boring into Kiba's back intensely.
Kiba held back a growl but nodded, stomping forward. He was done feeling inferior; he would hit Gaara with everything he had, just like Gai had said. And when he did, and it worked, he would revel in everyone's shattered perspective.
Naruto's POV (Entryway to Courtyard - Iron Arena)
Naruto walked back into the entry/exit of the arena, heading back to the stands for the Chunin hopefuls. But as he walked through the dim halls, he saw someone standing in the middle of it. It seemed Gaara had been following and had decided to wait for him. Was it time? Had he chosen not to stay and try whatever plan he had now? It would be bad if he had; in the enclosed hall, Naruto thought even his training wouldn't allow him to do too much. Gaara could merely drown the hall in the sand, and Naruto would have nowhere to go. Naruto steeled himself and drew Riptide from his back; maybe he could cause the hall to collapse if he had to. That may slow the monster down.
Gaara, creepy as ever, silently eyed Naruto as he got closer. I'm not even flinching at seeing Naruto draw a weapon. Naruto understood it; he doubted Gaara's power that he was ever unarmed. Naruto had prepared himself for their eventual fight; he wouldn't fall here.
"Calm yourself. Your time is soon, but I cannot risk taking you yet." Gaara said simply.
"A risk it would be," Naruto replied stiffly.
"Have you learned anything in the month?" Gaara asked with a knowing tone. Naruto felt his frown deepen. Gaara had indeed predicted it.
"I have." Naruto curtly replied.
"And do you see why we cannot exist with humans as is?"
"No, I see that I have to work harder than others." Naruto snapped, his anger towards the villagers bleeding towards Gaara. How dare he mock him now? Did he think he'd lose his mind instantly or something?
"Ha, you hold onto that false hope. Such keeps you human; you think it's good, but you will need much more than humanity to survive our encounter." Gaara promised as he stalked on.
Naruto would've replied angrily, but something about Gaara's words weighed on Naruto. He growled as he marched on reaching the area. He glanced around before seeing. Shikamaru, Shino, Neji, Yuno, Sai, Hinata, and Lee gathered on the left side of the area, standing near the railing and still waiting to notice him. Omoi, Samui, and Fuu sat in the seats chatting. Samui offered Naruto a wink upon seeing him and Fuu an excited wave. Temari and Kankuro sat in the back by themselves, looking bored. Kankuro seemed to make a tiny stick figure do an impressively dynamic dance. While Temari busied herself by throwing wads of paper at Shikamaru and Sai. Who were, from Naruto briefly heard from her, on her "shitlist." Shikamaru seemed to dodge these effortlessly, always doing so as efficiently as possible. Sai seemed to think this was a game and patiently let her tee off. Each time Sai was hit, he would attempt to bring the wad back. Temari didn't mind the auto-reload much, either. But Naruto didn't see Ino anywhere. He glanced towards the crowd, figuring maybe she had decided to watch with Sakura, the two being good friends. But he didn't see her anywhere. Before he could ponder much further, Naruto felt someone tap his shoulder. He turned to see Neji and Shikamaru both standing before him.
"Come on, blondie," Neji stated before returning to his railing spot. Shikamaru nodded before explaining.
"Very nice victory there; I didn't even know that scary woman was so strong; she's such a drag. Anyway, the next match is about to start. I have a feeling this will be troublesome." Shikamaru said darkly. Naruto nodded and headed over with them. He hoped Kiba wouldn't die here, maybe even do well before losing. But as much as it hurt him to say, he was sure he would lose. Surely, Kakashi sensei wouldn't let him die. But still, Naruto would be ready himself. He could step in if needed; he wouldn't watch as Kiba would die.
As he gazed down into the courtyard, he saw that the match had begun. Kakashi had hidden his presence, and Kiba could be seen tossing something to Akamaru. Suddenly, the dog turned red, and with a bark and roar from Kiba, they both became beastly versions of Kiba. It seemed Kiba was ready…
Somehow, Naruto knew Kiba was wrong.
Gaara's POV (Courtyard - Iron Arena)
He watched as the human roared and his dog barked before becoming a merge between man and beast. Gaara supposed, for a human, it was interesting at the very least; he certainly wasn't opposed to becoming less human. Yet their so-called beast mimicry was aptly named. He knew the absolute beast; they were much more impressive than this human's mimicry.
The human weaved more hand signs, seemingly aiming to activate another technique. Gaara supposed he could summon his sand to chase the man around, but he was sure he'd be a squirrely one. Better to go with Plan A. So he merely watched as the human finished his signs; he and his dog were in sync.
"You should've stopped me; letting an enemy activate a technique is a dumb move." Kiba roared as he prepared to set off.
"Maybe for weak humans like you. For me, it makes little difference." Gaara lectured simply.
Kiba roared as he raced forward, activating his technique. "First up, Fang Over Fang!" He roared before becoming a tornado of gray. His dog followed up as both slammed towards Gaara. Gaara did not flinch as a wall of sand intercepted them. Nor did he feel any pressure when both made it through the sand. Close but close didn't matter in this cruel world. He attempted to crush them, though both managed to free themselves by flying back. But suddenly, one of the blurs called out. "Wind Style: Air Platform!" Kiba yelled before he suddenly snapped back even quicker. Gaara growled as an even more giant wall blocked it again. The idiot seemed intent on making this last.
Kiba's thoughts were much more straightforward. 'I can keep this up for one minute. Using Fang Over Fang repeatedly and Air Platform for me and Akamaru is draining. If I can just hit him once, it should finish him!'
Gaara was unaware of such, and it mattered little to him. Kiba and Akamaru slammed into his defenses repeatedly. Searching for an opening and never managing to breach his sand. Truthfully, this was boring. Time to stop playing…