Hey guys! Well, so far this fic has been going better than I have planned... I guess. I totally have the whole plot formed in my head, so, don't worry, I know what I'm doing

Disclaimer: hmmm... if I owned Naruto, wouldI honestly be writing FANFICTION ? But, if I did own Naruto, I would make a life sized Gaara plushy-doll ! Man, I love that kid.

Chapter Three: And So It All Begins.

"On your mark... get set... GO!" The man shouted. Hundreds of ninjas ran towards the gate all at once, pushing and shoving each other to their destination. Sakura braced herself to meet the forest's dark, damp climate as she ran towards the gate, Kiba by her side.

Akamaru barked. Sakura gasped when she saw Sasuke not far inhead of them.

'Dammit.'

Shit. (A/N: ...inner Sakura... just reminding you)

The young Uchicha's hair blew in the fall's light wind. He pumped his legs faster and faster as he raced his oppenents. A smirk seemed to be permanentaly planted on his face. Determination ran thru his body as he told himself he would not lose.

"Alright, Sakura, why don't we decide where to go to first..." Kiba said, scratching his head.

A soft blush appeared on Sakura's face. "...Oh yeah, I forgot..." She said, turning her head to hide her red face.

Kiba quickly took out a map. "Hmmm... It looks like we are closest to... The Sound Stamp. Which is in... this direction." He said, pointing to the northeast.

And, with that, they were off, jumping thru the trees in a very skillful manner. However, it soon began getting dark, and the two could barely see where they were going.

'Oh no... what if I fall or do something really clumsy and stupid? Then what will Kiba think! I better watch where I'm going...' Sakura thought worridly.

"Hey Kiba, do you know if we're almost there?" Sakura asked. She had began getting tired, and she had sore legs.

"We should be there... right about.. now." Kiba said, looking in front of them.

A light grey statue stood six feet tall in front of them. A little table stood right in front of it, with a little stamp perched on top.

"Well, I guess we should stamp our paper..." Sakura said, looking into the far distance.

"Yeah..." Kiba replied, doing what he was told.

You could tell the two were a little nervous around each other. They didn't exchange words much, and when they did it was short and to the point. Kiba truley wanted to start a conversation, but every topic he could think about sounded stupid. He opened his mouth, but only to shut it again, worried about how he would sound. Finally, Sakura broke the silence.

"So... This is an interesting tournament. I haven't heard much about it." She said.

"Me neither, but it must be important. I saw a lot of people from out of our town in the crowd. I even saw that sand ninja. Gaara of the Desert or whatever." Kiba replied.

Sakura shivered. It was so creepy how he could control sand like that... and she had heard about his 'Desert Coffin' and 'Desert Funeral' thing... It totally freaked her out. Just as she was thinking about the sand ninja, she heard a voice behind her.

"Kiba... I think we should get going... I think I hear something..." The girl said.

"Sure. Where do you want to go next?" He asked.

"Anywhere away from here..." Sakura said, checking her back.

The two jumped on a tree and began their search for the next stamp.

But, Sakura heard a loud ear splitting crack beneath her feet.

"K-Kiba!" She shouted, right before falling to her certain doom.

Akamaru barked. 'Ohh no! Should I jump?' Kiba thought.

An unknown force seemed to push Kiba off the tree and towards the girl, not caring if he got wounded or not, only caring for the girl.

The space between Sakura and Kiba became smaller, as Kiba reached out his hand.

"Grab my hand!" He yelled, stretching his arm out as far as he could.

Sakura nodded as she reached for Kiba's hand, praying that she would survive this fall.

SPLASH!

The young couple had landed in water.

"Where are we?" Kiba said, spitting water out of his mouth.

"We're in a... SWAMP! EWW!" Sakura said, jumping up, trying to shake the water off of her.

"Ew...ew...ew... soo nasty... ew!" Sakura murmered, still shaking in disgust.

"Well... at least we're not dead!" Kiba said, looking at the bright side.

Sakura looked over at Kiba for his optimistic quote. "Thanks for trying to save me... even if I was in no danger." Sakura said, giving Kiba a quick hug, then pulling back in embarrasment.

Kiba gave her a dog-like smile, a light blush appearing on his face, which he emmediately tried to hide.

'All right! She hugged me!' Kiba was dancing on the inside.

"Uhmm... why don't we try to get to dry land?" Kiba suggested. Sakura gave a nod in reply.

All right ! Score ! Did you see that blush on his face ?!

'Obviously.' Sakura thought to herself.

Sakura thought she heard a noise behind her. Was is a cracking branch ? Was is a splash of water ? Unfortunately, she hadn't heard it loud enough to decide.

As they got closer and closer to dry land, it became colder.

"Probably because the trees hid all the sunlight, and its night-time." Kiba explained, noticing Sakura's shaking body. "Do you want my jacket?" He asked sweetly.

Sakura did a back-flip in her mind.

HELL YEAH !

"Yes, please." She said calmly in reply. Kiba quietly removed his jacket, slowly handing it to the freezing girl. Sakura gave him a warm smile.

'Yes ! All right, go Kiba !' Kiba thought to himself, smiling back at her.

Sakura heard another noise coming from behind her. She grabbed Kiba's arm in an attempt to hid behind him, but instead she was facing the potential danger.

"What is it?" Kiba said, a worried look on his face.

"..I-I heard something..." Sakura said shakily. She turned her head into Kiba's chest, she was terribly frightened. Kiba embraced the scared girl, looking around him, checking to see if there was someone there. "It's okay... it's okay..." He said over and over. But everything was not okay. Akamaru barked, he had sensed the danger.

"Kiba, can we set up camp or just rest here ? My legs are killing me, and I'm tired." Sakura said, yawning her last sentence.

Sakura laid down on the floor, by a nearby tree. Kiba lay behind her, with his eyes closed but he was still very much awake.

Sakura heard another noise, and scooted over by Kiba. Her face was once again buried in his warm chest. Sakura was very drowsy when Kiba's arms magically formed around the sleeping girl, a smile on his face. This was going to be a very fun tournament.

Yeppp, that's chapter three I hope you liked it, I tried to make it longer... Anyways, please Read and Review!!

And for all you Gaara lovers (coughmecough), I have a surprise for you in the next chapter! WOOHOO !

Gaara: Ohh lord... not that...

Me: Ohhh yes evil smile Please R&R !

Gaara: You just said that.