The day passed quickly, since Kira had woken up in the late afternoon, and with it came the sleepy haze of twilight. The sky was the color of wine and cherry, mixing in with the oncoming blue of darkness. At this time, when Kakashi and Kira would train late, Kira would run over to the lake where the summer heat was most prominent, to catch the bugs that skidded on the water surface, while Kakashi read his book.

But there wasn't time for that tonight. That night, the winners of the third task in the Chunin exams would be put before the leader of Kaze, to be finally honored as Chunin class Shinobi.

The office where they stood in was fairly large; a traditional Japanese styled room, with large windows that let in the cool night breeze, and large mats on the floor. There were photos of past Kaze leaders, and even paintings of old Kaze Konekos. Kira stared at them in wonder. Were they really her predecessors?

She looked at the familiar faces around her; they were all winners of the third task, all Nekos she knew, but none of them were her friend. She sighed to herself, shuffling her feet. Most of them were talking quietly to each other, whispering and laughing nervously occasionally. Kira didn't have anyone to talk to. Akemi's words kept ringing in her ears, Did you know that you're the reason that half our clan is gone!? Why my parents died for your sake!? Kira didn't even know Akemi's parents; how could she have killed them? How could she have killed half their clan? She was only four years old when they invaded; she didn't remember a thing.

She stared down at the headband that still clung to her neck, wondering what her father would have said to her if he had heard what Akemi had said. Would he have confessed that it was true?

But the words still left a searing pain etched in her heart.

You make me sick.

"I don't care about Akemi. She had no right to do that."

Kira's ears perked up at the sound of her former friend's name. She swiveled her ear to the left to hear the conversation taking place next to her.

"Huh, Chizuru?"

"Don't you get it? She just betrayed the only friend that poor girl had. Don't you think that's just…I don't know, wrong?"

"Yeah, I guess," The other voice sighed, "I really don't know much about it…but it still wasn't right."

"I know, and to think she brought up that whole thing about her parents dying. Don't you think Kira's gone through the same problems she had…?" The cat girl's voice trailed off slightly. Kira turned to see all the eyes of the six girls on her, staring in an almost embarrassed way. They didn't know she was listening to her. Kira didn't care, but she didn't know what to say at the moment. She simply let her eyes fall to the floor, trying to pretend she didn't care.

But she did. She cared that someone was acknowledging her feelings. She looked over slightly to see the young girl that was talking before. She had long blonde hair with very light brown ears. Kira's eyes flickered; she remembered seeing her in the exam many times, but had never talked to her. She was talking to Akemi the entire time.

Which was what Akemi had wanted.

The awkward silence stayed, since no one wanted to talk after that. It had become apparent that they were standing with the Kaze Koneko.

They probably all knew I'd be here, Kira said to herself bitterly.

"Is the man's arm all right?" Kakashi turned to the doctor next to him. He was still in the hospital, as he had decided to stay there until Kira was done with her Chunin acceptance. The sky had gotten dark, but the hospital room was still bright; office employees getting ready for the night shift. It was peaceful and quiet, almost empty.

The man looked up from his clipboard and smiled.

"Yes, he is," he nodded, "No serious harm done. It just surprised everyone, because…," he took a prolonged sigh, "The move she attempted is a kill strike." Kakashi leaned forward in his chair from shock.

"You're kidding," he said quietly, "I…never think she'd do that…I…don't know as much as I should about Nekos."

"It's called the Shikon attack," the doctor explained in a somewhat serious tone, "its street name is the "porcupine bite". When a Neko gets old enough, their teeth are able to grow at will, but most Neko Shinobi only activate it when they are in battle. It's an assassination move, usually used on the jugular vein, where they will bite and their teeth will grow until they reach their full length." Kakashi winced.

"But don't worry;" the doctor said reassuringly, flipping a few pages on the clipboard before setting it down on the desk near by, "She isn't old enough to have her fangs grow that way, although it can still be very painful. That's why Nekos must attend a Jonin training school at age ten, because that's when their old enough to use some attacks." Kakashi remembered hearing these same words from Masaru. He didn't know that this was what they meant, however; that someone had the ability to rip of a ninja's arm using that technique. The thought scared him slightly.

"But, I guess it shows that she's a fiery little konuchi," the doctor smiled suddenly, "She'll make a fine Shinobi." Just as Kakashi was about to agree, the door to he room opened suddenly with a slight bang. It was Atari.

"Excuse me, Kakashi-san," he said, a look of fright on his face, "Can we speak to you?"

"What's wrong?" Kakashi asked, slightly unnerved by Atari's pale face. Atari was silent for a while, his frightened look turning into a look of regret.

"Something's happened," he said quietly.

The small click of a door being slid opened almost seemed to ring out in the room. Everyone stayed still, not moving. They were Chunin now, and they knew that any movement they made could give off an unwanted signal. Now was not the time to show fear.

"My, my, what interesting Genin we have here," a voice said, gliding into their ears like silk. Although the voice was mysterious, it also was calming; making the children relax slightly. Footsteps almost echoed in the room, accompanied by two other pairs. When the Nekos looked up, they saw the leader of Kaze, flanked by two guards. Everything they said about her was true. She was a Neko woman, one of the most beautiful and powerful. Her deep plum colored eyes stared back at them, her pointed black ears calm. She had a sense of elegance and class about her that made Kira feel safer; it had been a while since she was with an adult of her own kind.

Tora stood before the students in a placid manner, her eyes scanning them. The usual passers; small, cute, innocent looking enough, but she knew that with their skills that helped them pass the grueling exam, they were also to be taken very seriously. They were, after all, Chunin now.

"I'm not much of a speech maker," Tora suddenly said in her catty voice, her long, elegant tail giving one long swish, "So I'm just going to come right out and say that you all made it to the level of Chunin. Congratulations."

A wave of small but happy smiles spread through the now Chunin Shinobi. Kira felt herself smile, her ears pricking up, but when Tora's eyes landed on her, she became somewhat shy and only looked back, waiting for her to say something else. Tora stared down at her with her soft eyes, but suddenly smiled down at her warmly.

"You know, girls," Tora said, facing the group again, "Being a Chunin isn't easy, and I'm sure you all know that. You will be faced with much harder challenges, some that will put you in a position where you will have to decide what's more important: Friendship, or death." Her eyes suddenly sharpened, glowering down at the belittled students. They perked up slightly, somewhat frightened, but eager to hear the Leader of Kaze's wise words.

"I want you all to know, that when you become true Shinobi of the Land of Wind, friends will be the only thing you have. Enemies will seek after you, chasing your skills and hunting you down," she looked towards Kira, as if emphasizing her point, "We are a special race, and for that we pay the price. But you must all keep those dear to you close to you heart. If you lose that, then you have nothing."

A soft silence descended on the lamp-lit room, a whisper of a breeze blowing in. Kira let the words sink in. Kakashi had told her this many times. He was always going on about putting your friends first, and she believed that. She smiled at the woman; she liked her.

"Further more," Tora's mysterious smile returned, "I want you all to remember that you represent the land of wind, and while we don't have gen-jutsu or ninjutsu skills, we are still one of the greatest races in a-" The students were so focused that they nearly jumped when the door behind them slid open roughly. They all turned their heads somewhat awkwardly as they stared at the three men in the doorway: Masaru, Atari, and Kakashi.

Kira's ears perked up at the familiar faces, but her eyes lit up when she saw Kakashi.

"Lady Tora," Atari said, somewhat breathing heavily as if he had ran there, "May we speak to Kira Koneko please?"

Kira's ears snapped up at the sound of her name. She looked at their faces. They were different; almost sullen and depressed. She wondered if she had done something wrong, and that she hadn't qualified for Chunin after all. Was it because he had bitten that medical op? Was she in big trouble for that? What was happening?

"…Yes, if it's that important," Tora said quietly, looking at the disheveled look in the men's eyes. As a Neko, she could sense the emotions of others, and what their eyes were telling her now wasn't anything she wanted to hear. She gave a look to Kira and nodded kindly, reassuring her that it was okay. Kira looked at her with slight doubt, but nodded and bowed politely before running off towards the familiar men who closed the door once she stepped out into the hallway with them.

Despite the looks on the guests, and what they seemed to be telling Tora with her eyes, she smirked slightly to herself.

I should be bowing to her, she chuckled to herself.