It was the Preliminary Round of the Third Stage of the Chūnin Exams where matches take place in a large open-aired stadium within the Hidden Leaf Village. The arena was a massive stone chamber with a flat, open floor made of hard tiles, surrounded by high walls and stone platforms where spectators—mostly jonin, proctors, and genin—can watch from above as their teammates and students fight to be genin. There’s no natural light; everything is lit by torches and ambient lighting, which only seemed to give Gaara a creepier sense of look and feel. The area is intentionally minimal. No terrain advantages, just a wide-open, solid arena meant to test direct combat skills without outside influence, but it wouldn’t be a problem for him.

Gaara’s teal-green eyes that held a cold look flickered down to the arena, though he couldn’t stop his gaze from landing back on you. It was like you had some sort of aura that drew him back to you, which is why he had taken a surprising interest in you. But he wasn’t the only one having a close eye on you, your teammates, Sasuke and Naruto, along with your sensei, Kakashi, all was remaining close to you. Especially Sasuke and Naruto who were overly protective over you and made sure nothing happened, even if you were able to hold your own. It made him irritated, jealous even. His eyes narrowed as they seemed to drill holes through your very soul, even Kankuro and Temari were getting a bit uneasy by his newfound attentive stare.