The golden colors of morning were just beginning to flow back to the sky as the world awoke from its sleep. At the gate, the Neko students were all lined up in front of a medical healer, waiting to be examined. Kakashi stared in amazement. It wasn't a pretty sight. They were tired, hungry and wounded. All of them were marked with scratches, cuts, their faces marked in dirt. But the thing that made Kakashi wince was to see the arrows sticking out of them.

What happened in there? Kakashi thought to himself as the children stood in line, wavering slightly from the pain. All of them had at least one arrow in them, sticking out of their leg or arm. They were all whimpering slightly in pain, too tired to talk to one another. Kakashi saw the Neko that Kira was talking to earlier, being examined by the healer.

"Two arrows," the healer said to a proctor behind her. The proctor nodded and wrote it down on a clipboard. Kakashi still couldn't believe what was happening. This was a Neko exam?

He tried to look for Kira in the line, but there was no sight of her. He began to get worried. Had she not made it at all? Was she lost somewhere? He watched as one Neko was pulled to the side by a proctor. She had four arrows in her, exceeding the amount required to pass to the next exam.

As the line soon thinned out, and they were down to the last student, proctors began gathering over, eager to see the last student. Kakashi walked over, knowing that it was Kira. The crowd suddenly gasped, exclaiming in shock. The children looked quietly; too exhausted and hurt to say anything.

"I can't believe it," one proctor said in awe, "No one's had a score like that in a hundred years." Kakashi pushed through the crowd to see none other than his student, being observed by the healer, who was also in shock.

Kira didn't have a single arrow in her.

"That's amazing," another proctor remarked, "She really is the Kaze Koneko." Kira watched the crowds around her in confusion. Kakashi could sense how confused she was: All these people staring at her, marveling at her inhuman stealth. It was almost impossible for anyone, let alone a regular human, to pass the test with a single arrow.

"All right," Masaru's commanding voice suddenly boomed over the amazed murmurs as he stepped forward, facing the line of Nekos, "To those that I'm not speaking to, you have obviously failed. Go to the medic, unless you like having those arrows in you, but other than that, you are free to go. Try again next year." The group of failed participants left with their teachers, going to the medical building near by, a sense of rejection and loss of pride with them. Kira watched them leave, feeling remorse. A lot of those that just left she had already been friends with. But she was glad to have Akemi by her side.

Masaru turned to the awaiting participants.

"To those of you here, I congratulate you," he smirked, "Not many human ninja can accomplish what you did today. This shows that you are ready to proceed to the final task," his eyes landed on Kira. She looked up at him with her dirt ridden and scratched face and only glared back, wiping her eyes. Masaru smirked down at her.

"Well, if you'll all follow me, we can proceed to the fighting arena," he said in his snake like voice. The proctors followed, the Nekos hesitatingly following also as they walked along the dirt path that lead back to the building, where the last task would be held. While walking, the remaining participants stared at Kira. The arrows that were in them had already come out, given that they were not very strong, but could still hold a lot of damage. They almost glared at Kira, when they realized that she had not a single mark from an arrow on her.

"What is she?" someone whispered as they made their way to the battle area. Kira's ears fell slightly limp. If she had had her way, if she knew this was going to happen, she would have purposely made noise so that she would be shot with an arrow.

"Great job," Akemi whispered, limping slightly by the pain in her leg, "You're really something." Kira was silent, but smiled at Akemi.

"You too," she whispered.

"Hey there."

Kira looked up to see Kakashi walking beside her. Her mouth fell open and she gaped up at him, grinning, he eyes shimmering in the morning light. Kakashi smiled down at the face he had learnt to love so much over the past few months. He was so relieved to see that she was okay.

"Kakashi sensei!" Kira smiled wearily up at him as he patted her head, "How'd I do?"

"Great," Kakashi smiled down at her, "You broke the record. They said the last person to accomplish a score like that was the last Kaze Koneko." Kira looked downward.

"Yeah, I guess," Kira sighed. Kakashi looked questionably at her. It puzzled him to see that she had asked him how she did, even though countless people were telling her that she passed with flying colors.

"…Kira," Kakashi suddenly leaned down and said quietly, "Don't let those people get you down. You did great. Just because you're called the Kaze Koneko doesn't mean you have to live up to their standards. You know that, right?" Kira looked up at her teacher with surprised. To his surprise, she merely gave a soft smile.

"No—it's—all right," she smiled, "I'm fine. It's nothing to get worked up over."

She suddenly raced ahead to catch up with Akemi as they made to way to complete the final task. Kakashi watched her. Would she be ready?

He shook his head. Of course she would; she was who she was, she was the Kaze Koneko. But Kakashi still saw her as the little kitten that grabbed the silver bell from him without him knowing. The Kira that outsmarted him beyond belief and still looked up to him like a god. And after what she said, when she felt so out of place by her own identity, his words were all that was needed to cheer her up and bring her back.

Kakashi sighed in despair.

How could they say she didn't need him?