Naruto: The New Beginning

75. Gaara

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Hinata was taken aback by Naruto's reaction. "Naruto-kun?"

"Huh?" Naruto suddenly realized this wasn't a friendly gathering but the Chunin Exams, and he quickly explained, "Oh, I mean, that Gaara guy is really strong and cold. If Ino ends up fighting him, it could be dangerous."

Hinata, also feeling nervous, looked at Gaara, who was eagerly waiting to enter the arena. He seemed incredibly fierce. "What should we do?"

"I hope Ino just forfeits, or the examiner steps in to save her." Naruto wasn't too worried about Ino's life being in danger.

With so many examiners present, they probably wouldn't let the heiress of the Yamanaka clan get killed.

Besides, his father is still here. No matter how fast Gaara's movements were, they couldn't be faster than the Flying Thunder God Jutsu.

Asuma must have realized something too. He exchanged a few words with Ino earlier, then finally nodded, signalling her to enter the arena.

Ino's thoughts were simple. If Sakura could last a while against Sasuke, then forfeiting without trying would just let Sakura win by default, her competitive spirit made her decide to give it a shot.

Moreover, she didn't believe a shinobi from Sand Village could be stronger than Sasuke.

She had no idea how much Sasuke was holding back when he fought Sakura.

"Preliminary match number five, begin!"

As soon as Hayate Gekko finished speaking, I immediately made a hand sign, preparing her Yamanaka clan's secret technique:

"Ninja Art: Mind Transfer Jutsu!"

Ino's body slumped to the ground as her jutsu hit Gaara. Surprisingly, it worked smoothly; Gaara didn't move, allowing her jutsu to connect.

However, Gaara's body trembled slightly, and his expression twisted into something dark.

Three seconds later, Ino's consciousness was forced back into her body, and she scrambled back, terrified.

She stared wide-eyed at Gaara. "A monster...!"

Gaara, clutching his head, screamed in pain before raising his gaze, his voice filled with malice. "I'll kill you... kill you..."

Gaara waved his hand, and the cork from the giant gourd on his back popped off, releasing sand that surged towards the terrified Ino.

"I-I forfeit!" Into managed to shout, her voice trembling. Immediately, a gust of wind blocked Gaara's sand, scattering it.

Gaara didn't stop, his bloodlust only growing. He continued to control the sand, trying to push it through the wind.

The Sand Village's Jounin, Baki, quickly descended to restrain Gaara. The plan wasn't ready; Gaara couldn't lose control here.

Temari also hurried down, grabbing Gaara and trying to calm him down.

Kankuro's expression darkened as he followed, ready to assist.

Asuma instantly appeared next to Hayate, his eyes locked on Baki, his hands ready to draw his trench knives.

Baki quickly explained, "Don't misunderstand. Gaara occasionally loses control of his bloodlust. If I'm right, that girl must've used the Yamanaka clan's Mind Transfer Jutsu, which might have triggered Gaara. So..."

Gaara, with his hand still on his head, gradually calmed down, his usual indifferent expression returning. He followed Temari back to the stands.

Sakura jumped down to Ino's side, her hands glowing with healing chakra as she checked Ino's condition. After confirming there were no serious injuries, she let out a sigh of relief.

Ino still hugged herself, trembling, clearly terrified.

Sakura waited for her to calm down a bit before helping her stand.

Despite their rivalry, when something serious happened, Sakura cared for Ino more than anyone else.

"Ino, what did you see? Why are you so scared?" Sakura asked, concerned.

"Monster..."

"Ino." Asuma interrupted her, "You mustn't tell anyone what you saw today."

"Huh?" Sakura was curious, but since Asuma had spoken, she didn't press further.

"Yes." Ino gritted her teeth and, with Sakura's support, slowly walked back up to the stands.

Naruto watched Ino's trembling form, wondering if she had seen Shukaku.

Incredible, Ino, you almost got hit by one of the Sand Village's deadly weapons.

"Hey, Kurama, is Shukaku scarier than you?" Naruto wondered if his tailed beast could be that terrifying.

"Him?" Kurama scoffed. "That one-tailed bastard is nothing compared to me."

"Then why was Ino so frightened?"

Kurama glanced at Naruto, annoyed. "You're just as dense as always. When you were three or four, you weren't scared of me. You even dared to talk back. That girl's reaction is what a normal human child should have when seeing a tailed beast for the first time."

"Em... I guess you're right." Naruto realized he had been taking Kurama's presence for granted.

After all, Kurama was lazy, loved stories, and enjoyed watching the chaos unfold. Naruto almost forgot that a tailed beast was one of the strongest forces in this world.

He had a perception of Kurama & another tailed beast from his previous world.

This was the first time Naruto truly understood the fear that tailed beasts instilled in ordinary people.

As he watched Sakura help Ino to a seat, Naruto offered his spot on the couch.

Even if you're on a date, you can't ignore someone in need, especially an acquaintance.

"Thank you," Ino said weakly, sitting down.

Hinata and Sakura sat on either side of her, talking softly to ease her nerves. Shikamaru and Choji also came over to check on her.

Sasuke looked around. "They're all busy. Can I go to Naruto now?"

"What's up with that red-haired guy?" Sasuke could tell Gaara is strong, but he didn't understand why Ino was so terrified.

"I'll explain later," Naruto said with excitement on his face.

"That guy isn't an ordinary ninja," Shino's voice suddenly cut in.

Naruto and Sasuke turned to see Shino standing nearby. "When did you get here?!"

Shino, holding a small insect on his finger, ignored Naruto's question. "The bugs are afraid of him."

Kiba, who had followed Shino, was trying to calm Akamaru, who was trembling in his arms.

"Awww..." Akamaru whimpered, hiding in Kiba's embrace.

Naruto gently patted Akamaru's head. He had watched Akamaru grow from a small pup to a dog bigger than Kiba. Seeing him scared like this made Naruto emotional.

Shukaku, just wait—Naruto glanced at Gaara. Scaring my dog like that? I'm not letting this slide!

"Winner: Gaara. The next match will begin shortly," Hayate finally announced.

The screen displayed the next match-up:

[Zaku Abumi vs Shigure]

Naruto glanced at the screen. Who are these two? Are they just background characters?

There was no sense of anticipation.

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