"Am I in trouble?" Kira asked as they walked down the hallway. They said nothing; not even Kakashi. Kira had asked him the question, not even remembering Atari's name and still not trusting enough to even look up at Masaru. She tugged at Kakashi's sleeve as they turned a corner.
"Kakashi sensei," she chirped quietly, reaching up to tug at him, "What's going on?" Kakashi didn't answer. Kira began to get worried. She felt her heart beat against her chest. Biting someone wasn't that bad, was it? Was she in really big trouble now?
Finally, they opened the door to a quiet and secluded office down the hallway.
"Step inside," Masaru said quietly, not looking at Kira. His voice was neither commanding nor angry. It almost sounded apologetic. Kira stared up at Masaru, but didn't narrow her eyes in suspicion like the first time they met. She simply looked up at him with an apologetic look of her own and stepped inside quietly. The two other men followed; Kira craning her head back to make sure Kakashi was still there. Once they were inside, they shut the door quietly.
"Take a seat, Kira," Atari said quietly, tapping the chair. Kira quickly sat down, eager to hear the news. Was she going somewhere? Was she being already promoted to Jonin? Some of her suggestions didn't make sense, but she had begun to rack her brain with any sort of reason as to why she was summoned here by these remorseful looking men.
Masaru sat down at his desk, Kakashi and Atari standing on either side, leaving Kira sitting by herself in the middle of the small room. It was silent. The sound of a clock ticking seemed to echo loudly. Kira swung her feet slightly off the chair, not wanting to look up at the three pairs of eyes that stared at her.
"Kira," Masaru said quietly, in a tone Kira wasn't used to from him, "Something…has happened, and you need to know about it." Kira blinked.
"Okay," Kira said casually, her tail swinging underneath her chair. Kakashi sighed to himself sadly, feeling his heart wrench. He knew the carefree expression he had grown to love so much would be gone in a matter of seconds. The three Shinobi looked at each other before Masaru turned to Kira. He looked almost older. He had a sort of sullen expression that someone would get when at a funeral, paying respects. Kira, however, still had no idea why she was here.
"Kira," Masaru said quietly but clearly, lifting his grim eyes to meet hers, "Your mother is dead."
Kira blinked once more. She cocked her head in slight confusion, until the words suddenly hit her as if by force, almost knocking her back.
Dead. Mother? The words didn't make sense. She tried to piece them together in her mind, feeling her heart begin to race. Dead. Mother. Something had happened.
Mother is dead?
"I'm sorry to be the one to tell you this," Masaru continued quietly, looking at the wild eyed expression on Kira's face as she began to work herself up into a slight pant from fear, "We just found out. An Akatsuki member reportedly murdered her in her home almost ten hours ago. The police say that they they're going to try to find any other concluding evidence, but unfortunately, they can't track the Akatsuki down," he shook his head, "I'm so, so sorry that we were the ones who had to tell you this; it's a terrible thing."
The room was quiet as they looked at the little cat girl. Kakashi almost felt his heart break. The sunny days he had spent with her, the laughter, the learning, the smiles were all disappearing before his eyes, being wiped away by the wild-eyed look on her face as she sat there, gripping the edges of the chair, her tail bristled as she breathed heavily, her red eyes wide and scared. She was shaking. It was all too much. Was this how it was supposed to happen? Was this her life now?
An orphan?
Kira attempted to speak, but no words came to wind, only a soft whimper. She lifted her now icy hands, feeling them shake before her. The world startled to disappear around her, letting her fall, no hands to catch her.
Mother's dead. The only parent she remembered, the only one she could remember soothing her when she as upset, chasing her fears away, nurturing her, loving her.
And now she was gone forever.
The horrified look on the child was not surprising to the saddened Shinobi, but from the way she looked down at her hands, the way her body shook, how she didn't say anything, they felt discomforted by it. They had talked before, about how the child had just gone through battling her only friend and had just passed the Chunin exams, that now was not the time to tell her, but they knew that the next day she would be leaving to go to train with the leader of Kaze.
"It's too dangerous now," Masaru shook his head, "The Akatsuki are on the move, searching for her, I'm sure of it; they already got to her mother. How do we know she'll be safe under the care of the leader of Kaze?"
"We can't relay on your instincts alone," Kakashi growled, feeling his own hands shake slightly, "It's her future in your hands."
"Let her go," Atari suddenly said, stepping forward, "I'll be with the leader of Kaze, and I'll look after her, Kakashi, I promise. Running away would be absurdity and cowardly. We're going to protect her with her our lives." Kakashi silently stared at his friend.
He was right.
"At least she'll be with her own kind," Atari continued hopefully, "If she has friends, she might become more trusting to people. It's the safest option we have, considering Orochimaru's position."
Kakashi lifted his watering eyes to meet Atari's.
"I'll let her go," Kakashi said softly, nodding his head, "If it's the safest thing I can do for her."
"Kira…," Kakashi said quietly, hoping his voice would wake Kira up. Kira lifted her head, new tears pouring from her eyes. In all of Kira's life, she had never cried so much as she had in the past day.
Was this the way life was going to be now?
She shook as she stared at Kakashi as she hid her trembling mouth in her cold hands, feeling the memories of her mother come to a grinding halt. There would be no more. She didn't have any time to bask in her warmth and love. It was over.
"N—No!" Kira jumped up and screamed, making a dash for the door.
No one stopped her.
She slid it open and raced down the hallway, running as fast as she could; running away from the monster that had caused all the trouble.
Mother, father…dead.
Why did they abandon me!? Kira sobbed to herself.
Painful memories screamed back the answer in her ears.
"Don't you know who you are?"
"You're finished."
"Why my parents died for your sake?!"
"You make me sick!"
"No one ever wanted to be your friend."
"No! No, no! I can't take it anymore!" Kira sobbed, blindly running down the lit hallway, feeling the world crash and tumble around her. Seeing the entrance door through her blurry eyes, she sent the doors flying open with a gust of wind, running out into the cold night air, into darkness.
Kakashi bolted through the doors, gasping for breath, staring around him. He needed to find her. It was nearly impossible at the speed she was going, not to mention the cold night air that set in, but if he didn't, anything could happen to her. Maybe Orochimaru was there now, in the trees, waiting to catch her while she was defenseless and haul her back to his comrades, where they would make her their slave. Kakashi couldn't bear the thought. He panicked. He needed to find her. He wanted to make everything better for her.
He saw her standing there, drenched in moonlight, covering her face in her hands while she gulped back sobs. Kakashi watched, relieved, but also heartbroken. Kira turned, the white light reflecting from her eyes. For a while, the two stood there, looking back at each other. Suddenly, Kira slowly walked towards Kakashi, her feet echoing in the night. Kakashi stayed still, unsure of what to do next, afraid that anything he might do would send her running again. She was now standing in front of him, her eyes fixated on the cold ground, her tears glistening in the moonlight.
Kakashi slowly reached out a hand and rested it on his student's head. Kira trembled, her tears welling up even bigger. Suddenly, she threw herself at Kakashi, burying herself into his stomach as she cried her eyes out.
As the wind picked up, sending the fall leaves scattering into the air and the dark trees bowing in the wind, Kakashi held Kira close, the two staying that way for a long time.