Naruto's POV (Path to Leaf Camp - Land of Iron)
Naruto had rarely felt so excited in life. He had done it! His whole team had as well. They were one more step closer to becoming Chunin. Naruto had drawn closer to his goal and had to fight to continue. That was fine with him; he loved fighting, after all. He was so engrossed in his head that he barely noticed Ino and Neji approaching him. Ino engulfed the blonde in a hug with a laugh, while Neji merely shook his head at the touchy reunion as he sighed.
"It has been a mere two days." He chided with a raised brow.
"Ah, is Neji jealous? Does he need some love, too?" Ino teased, walking towards the genius with arms open for a hug.
"Merely feeling sick from your ridiculous displays of affection." He countered. "It is good to see you two doubtless. Even better to see we have all made it this far."
"Course we did; we trained ourselves into the dirt!" Naruto cheered happily. "We're gonna go all the way, of course! Well, I hope you two will go far enough to be beaten by yours truly!"
"Your confidence is well founded if not slightly misplaced," Neji countered. I will win these exams after having defeated you." The two friends stood in front of each other, staring each other down with an excited smile and a smirk, respectively.
"HA! Wanna rematch pretty boy!" Naruto said with a foxy grin.
"Shame your little rematch will be outshined by my beautiful skills." Ino interrupted the rivals. Pushing both back by their faces and stepping between them.
"Naruto, " a familiar voice rang out. Team Seven spun around to see Gaara standing before them. Behind him were Temari and Kankuro, racing over. They looked panicked. "It is time. You will either join me, or I will kill you, " the redhead said darkly.
"Gaara, lil bro, we can-" Kankuro started.
"Silence. I never mind killing pests like you." He threatened, leveling his apparent brother with a glare.
"I'm not going anywhere with a creep like you. Nor would I let some bastard kill me. You should never talk to your family like that." Naruto responded, Riptide now in hand. A determined frown etched into his face. "Some of us aren't lucky enough to have siblings. Some of us wish we had the family you so casually threaten."
Neji and Ino were shocked not only by the menacing presence of Gaara, who seemed to dwarf anyone they had fought, but also by the shockingly menacing presence Naruto had made, seemingly now intending to oppose Gaara directly in defense of strangers.
"They are merely humans, Uzumaki. In time, you will see I'm right. We are treated as nothing more than a beast. Now that your secret is out, it's merely a matter of time before you learn. Once you see the level of despair only our kind can experience, you'll be begging for death." Gaara informed. "That's why if you don't join me, I'll kill you."
The two young men started to leak their killer's intent. Gaara's was intense, procuring images of death by crushing sand for the shinobi present. Naruto's felt massive and yet not malevolent. Temari and Kankuro were shocked into silence. Ino and Neji slowly walked forward. Aiming to help their comrade but doing so somewhat reluctantly.
Before things could genuinely kick-off, eight samurai were suddenly in their midst. The group quickly moved in and surrounded the young jinchuriki. Swords were drawn and nearly dripping with chakra, four stuck to each man's blade surrounding them. The only one without a helmet was an older man who wielded dual katanas. His face was scarred, and he had a rough, shaggy beard covering the lower half. He was garbed in the standard armor. His face was indeed displayed as a method of identification.
"We are aware of what you beasts are." The man speaks. "I am Lieutenant Riezo of the Samurai Grand Council. If you had planned to trouble this land with your accursed nature, you planned woefully. You will either surrender or be slain like the beast you are." At this, the other samurai sank their blades closer to the throats of Naruto and Gaara.
"Wait! You can't just go around killing shinobi without proper reasoning." Temari said with a frown as she drew her fan. Kankuro seemed to agree as well as he flexed his hands. Surely he created Chakra Threads to prepare for battle.
"I believe she speaks well," Neji interjected as well. He kicked two of the blades away from Naruto and placed himself between the samurai and Naruto.
"Get away from our Blondie before things get ugly," Ino said, drawing a slightly longer kunai with a flower hanging from its rung.
"HEY! LEAVE NARUTO ALONE BULLIES!" Fuu called out suddenly, flying in and hovering over the group.
"Yet another one! Call in backup! We cannot allow them to roam freely." Reizo said angrily as he gestured. Suddenly, even more samurai ran in, leaving the group of shinobi outnumbered significantly. "We are samurai on a similar level to a Jounin grade shinobi. This is the last chance we are offering. Those of you without the cursed energy may leave without trouble. But we cannot allow this to continue; you were lucky to be allowed in. Yet alone to roam our land without a guard. We will take you to Mifune, and he will care for you." Naruto flinched at the harsh tone the man held. Unlike Lee, Choji, Ino, and Neji, the man seems to hate him purely for his status. Had Gaara told the truth?
"Yo yo yo! A gathering of jinchuribros! Tension is rising; we are just trying to survive. No need for panic; the Killer Bee is arriving! WEEEEE,'' A voice rhythmically rapped out.
Everyone in the large group slowly turned. They were all stunned by the arrival of a strange rapping man. He stood much taller than most, easily six feet tall. He was well-built and looked similar to A. He seemed to sway into the group, seemingly enjoying a song the others couldn't hear. Behind him stood Omoi and Samui. Both appeared tense as well, with a slight touch of embarrassment emanating from both.
There was a marked silence broken by the blunt call of a certain blonde. "Who the hell is this guy!" Naruto called out quizzically.
The man named Bee didn't offer much of a response, merely walking into the group of samurai. Reizo seemed to growl before raced forward, attempting to draw his blade. Bee merely dashed forward.
He slammed his foot into the hilt of Reizo's blade, stopping the man from drawing it. Reizo growled as he attempted to force his blade free but could not outstrength the strange man.
"You damn monsters! It was impossible to accept this mere juvenile beast. Yet alone one who dared assault this land once!" Reizo said nastily, his voice breaking from emotional stress.
"Showing your hate so plainly. Pretending that you don't understand B. Weee!" Bee rapped in response, seemingly not bothered by the attempt to harm him. "Dontchu, you know we are supposed to behaving? I feel this is something I shouldn't be explaining." Bee finished with a slight frown.