Avaya shifted impatiently. The dead line for the test had passed and now those moving on were gathered in the main room, listening to an old man prattle on about something. Avaya could hardly be bothered to pay attention. She instead observed the genin while she sat beside Gaara.
Like she had planned, the blond boy and his team made it through, along with the dog boy's team and the other teams that had unknowingly assisted in Avaya's plans. The black wolf wagged her tail. She could see her plans taking shape already. Though by the looks of it, not everybody was up to par. She could smell it.
As she was sniffing the air, something made her bristle. A low growl started to build in her chest. The woman-who-is-a-man was there. Something else about him set her on edge. He stank of snakes, chemicals and death. He was bad news. Very bad. And his team was something to be wary of. Just then he looked at her and their eyes clashed. Avaya snarled as her fur stood on end. There was no way in hell she would let him or his team any where near Gaara.
Gaara looked down at the black wolf by his side when he heard her begin to growl. His curiosity turned to worry when she began snarling. Her tail, for the first time in Gaara's memory, was down, almost between her legs. Her ears were laid flat and her lips were drawn back, exposing all of her teeth. Her fur was on end, making her look bigger than she already was.
The redhead followed her gaze. There was a woman from sound whose eyes were locked with the wolf's. Gaara did not like it. Making his wolf act like that could only mean that person was a threat. A very large and strong threat. He placed a hand on his wolf's head. Instantly she quieted and relaxed. She looked up at him, the tip of her tail just barely wagging as she let out a small whine.
Gaara kept his hand resting on the wolf's head as he put his attention back onto the speaker, who was now a sickly Chunin. The man kept coughing as he explained the rules. Then, the drawing started.
Names flickered across the screen as it randomly selected who would be the first to fight. The redhead kept his eyes glued to the screen along with everybody else in the room. He wanted to fight. Gaara wanted to kill something. When the first names halted and appeared on the screen, Gaara could not help but to feel a little bit irritated.
Avaya watched the screen with the rest of the people. She could practically smell Gaara's bloodlust. In the back of her mind, the wolf hoped Gaara's blood lust would not disrupt her plans. But foremost on her mind was the woman-who-is-a-man. She was gauging his expression as he watched the screen with too much interest. When the names were chosen, she was still watching him. Only when a sick, delighted look briefly flashed across his face did Avaya look at the screen. Sasuke Uchiha verse Yoroi Akado.
Avaya sensed Gaara's disappointment and despite the situation, the wolf had to snort in amusement. She stood and brushed up against his leg, urging him to get moving as everyone else filed to the stairs that lead to the platforms above the fighting rink. They, along with Gaara's team, climbed the stairs on one side of the room and settled down to watch the fight.
Avaya could sense something was wrong still the boy on the blonds team. Sasuke Uchiha was his name, as Avaya now knew. On his neck, where that mark was, a horrible stench was being emitted. It made her was to growl. The smell was similar to that of the woman-who-was-a-man still, and every time Sasuke tried to use any sort of jutsu, the stench became stronger.
Avaya could not help but to watch in contempt as the other boy attacked Sasuke, stealing his chakra. Avaya ignored the blond boy's shouts as she concentrated on the match, only understanding that he was insulting Sasuke, who was getting more and more frustrated.
The wolf watched as Sasuke's eyes landed on the boy in green. A flicker of an idea flashed through Sasuke's eyes. Avaya watched as he performed a new technique, one without the use of his chakra. It won him the match and Avaya had to give him props for figuring out that using chakra would be a bad idea.
When the instructor took Sasuke out of the ring, Avaya's interest was peaked. Even more so when the woman-who-was-a-man, followed them. She watched them leave intently before turning to the next match. She felt Gaara's hand begin scratching behind her ear and she closed her eyes, enjoying the sensation.
Gaara watched the match intently, focusing on the Uchiha. When it was over he looked down to see his wolf staring at Sasuke even more intently than he had been. He watched her as she watched Sasuke leave with his instructor and as the Sound team leader followed him.
The redhead noticed how, unconsciously, the wolf's fur stood on end when she looked at the Sound Jonin. As she focused back on the next match with the same calculating intensity as before, though with less interest, Gaara could not help but to wonder once again how intelligent his wolf really was. Her near human intelligence combined with her animal instincts, made her seem far more human than she appeared.
Gaara reached out his hand to scratch behind her ear. Under his touch the wolf visibly relaxed. She was his wolf and the only one he came close to caring for. He turned back to the match, still petting his wolf.
Avaya had little interest in the next match. It was between the boy on the puppy's team. Shino Aburame, as Avaya learned, the bug user, and the boy that had attacked Sasuke's team. As Avaya had expected, Shino won the match. And she decided she liked the bug boy, if only because he defeated the annoying pest who would interfere with her plans.
Kankuro's match was next. Avaya had no interest in this match. She did not even bother to watch. She knew Kankuro would win, and that was all she even bothered to learn. The match following his was the girl with pink hair, Sakura, and the blond girl, Ino.
While it did not interest Avaya via information, it was amusing to watch. She let out a snort when the two girls knocked each other out, causing Gaara to look at her before turning his own attention back to the fights.
As with Kankuro's fight, Avaya had no interest in Temari's fight. She knew Temari would win. Even when the boy who used shadows fought, Avaya held little interest. She did not perk up until the next match. Naruto Uzumaki, the blond boy who smelled sort of like Gaara, and Kiba Inuzuka, the boy with the puppy. Avaya let out a sort bark, causing everyone around her to jump and stare at her. Except for Gaara, he just stared at her for a moment before turning his attention to the match.
He would not say it, or even express it, but the redhead was obviously curious as to what made the wolf so interested in the match. Gaara could feel his wolf trembling with excitement as she watched the match. He observed her carefully before figuring out what she was excited about.
Her amber eye's darted back and forth between the blond boy and the puppy in excitement. While he could not understand why she was excited about the boy, Gaara could make a guess over the puppy.
His wolf either really liked puppies or was excited to see one, or, she thought of it as prey. More likely though she was excited to see it. When the puppy's tail gave a wag at his wolf's bark, he guessed he was correct in assuming that the wolf liked the puppy. Gaara stored the information away subconsciously. He may not like people and lived to kill and fight, but his wolf was his wolf after all. His wolf was different.
After the match between Naruto and Kiba, Avaya lost interest again. The wolf observed the fight between the two Hyuga's without interest, only gaining information she deemed would be useful at some point. Though Avaya's interest was caught when, Hinata, the girl fighting, made a reference to Naruto.
The wolf's amber eyes moved from the fight to watch the blond boy. She was almost certain of it now. He might be able to help Gaara. That hyperactive boy in orange might be able to show Gaara a world with light, something that, as a wolf, Avaya would be unable to do. Her plans were falling into place more and more at each passing moment. She would just have to be patient.
At last the fight ended. Avaya decided she did not like the older boy, though she did feel compassion for the girl. She watched, with her animalistic, calculating eyes as Hinata was taken away, and as Naruto swore revenge. Then, with a start, she looked at the board. Gaara had to be going soon.
Sure enough, just as she looked, Gaara's name appeared on the screen. Her tail wagged excitedly as she nudged Gaara's hand in a good luck gesture. He looked at her briefly to give a small nod of acknowledgement, and then he was gone in a swirl of sand, only to reappear down on the floor of the small arena.
Gaara looked down when he felt a cold, wet nose nudge his hand. His wolf was staring up at him, a wolfish smile on its face while its tail was waving back and forth in excitement. It was his turn to fight and prove to himself that he existed.
He gave a small nod to the wolf, a silent acknowledgement to its silent well wishing, before disappearing in a whirlwind of sand, appearing down on the floor below, awaiting his opponent. It was the boy in green with the odd hair and giant eye brows. No matter. The redhead would still destroy him
Avaya watched the fight between Gaara and the strange boy in green, Rock Lee. The boy was fast, but not too fast for the red head's sand. Rock Lee was barely keeping a step ahead of Gaara's sand. Any moment he would mess up and Gaara would land a blow on the Konoha Genin. That moment soon came and Rock Lee was throne into a wall. Still though, he got back up and continued to try to land a blow on Gaara, only to get thrown back again and again.
Avaya could hear Sakura gasp when Rock Lee was on his back, Gaara's sand rushing toward him. She snorted. Gaara was holding back, the boy would be fine. What was not expecting, however, was for him to completely doge the sand and flip onto the statue.
The wolf girl observed carefully as the weird boy knelt down and took off some ankle weights at his sensei's prompting. At first she failed to understand how they would make such a difference, but as they fell, Avaya soon understood. The weights were more than just simple ankle weights; they were far heavier than that. They crashed into the ground, causing huge craters. Avaya's worry for Gaara suddenly spiked.
Rock Lee was suddenly darting around Gaara, too fast for her to see, and Gaara's sand was barely able to stop his blows. Then, the moment Avaya feared the most came true. The Konoha Genin broke through Gaara's sand. Avaya stood up, eye's darting as she watched the match, her worry for the red head growing by the second.
Unable to do anything, Avaya was forced to watch as Rock Lee sent Gaara high into the air, out of reach of the sand. Bandages from the boy's arm began to wrap around Gaara as the fell, spinning faster and faster. Avaya let out a whimper in her fear for the red head just before he hit the ground. In that split second his eyes found her amber ones and Avaya saw an unknown emotion flash through his eyes. Then everything was obscured by dust as he crashed into the ground.
When it cleared, Gaara lay prone on the ground, eyes and mouth open, but unmoving. Avaya paced nervously at the railing as people began to cheer. But when the proctor walked over, Gaara began to crumble. It was a sand shell. A look of panic crossed Rock Lee's face as Gaara rose from the sand behind him. There was a maniac look on the red head's face. Avaya stood stock still as she took everything in.
With a crazed grin, Gaara sent the sand at his opponent, knocking Rock Lee back despite his attempts to block. The boy, who was considerably weakened from his final attack, was at Gaara's mercy. And the red head knew it. A wave of sand hit the Konoha Genin, sending him flying into the wall. Dust was everywhere as Gaara licked his lips in excitement.
Rock Lee was forced to doge for his life now as Gaara sent blast after blast at him. Gaara prepared to use his desert coffin, but to everyone's amazement, Rock Lee stood and dodged once again with his speed. The smirk on his face had Avaya sighing. He was way too cocky. It was going to get him killed. Gaara would completely destroy him. She paused for moment to take a sniff. Rock Lee's scent was changing.
She watched intently as the boy's chakra became visible and his power increased. Then he was gone. Avaya felt her fear spike once again as the arena was enveloped in dust and rocks. Gaara was then, once again, sailing high into the air, Rock Lee right behind him.
Avaya felt cold terror envelope her body as Gaara was pounded through the air, his sand unable to keep up, over and over and over. Not once did the red head touch the ground or have he chance to defend himself. With a final kick, Gaara was sent whizzing toward the ground, only for Rock Lee to catch him by the sash, and pull Gaara toward him. Gaara was pummeled by a serious of vicious punched to the stomach before he finally hit the ground.
The ground erupted into a cloud of dust. Enveloping Gaara, as Rock Lee rolled away, energy spent. When the dust cleared, Gaara was on the ground cushioned, his gourd turned to sand. Gaara sent his sand after Rock Lee once again. The boy, who was too exhausted to do more than crawl, was caught by the deadly wave. His arm and leg were crushed. He finally passed out. But Gaara was not finished. He sent a finally wave at the boy, intending to kill him. Avaya let out a sharp bark.
Gai looked up at the large wolf on the platform. The second its bark had rang out, Gaara had begun pulling back. Even if Gai had not interfered, the attack would not have killed his student. The Jonin decided there was more to the animal than meet the eye. He looked back at the confused redhead.
Gaara was confused. Why had the man gotten in the way? Gaara's opponent had failed, so the man should have let Gaara finish it. He stood, his gourd reforming, and began walking away as he was named winner. As he walked, his wolf suddenly joined him, sniffing his injuries. It was only then that he realized he had pulled back when her stern bark had rung out.
A/N Sorry it's been so long every body, but I'm back now. And soon the main part of the story will begin. Review, no flames :)