Cats and Dogs (Naruto)

Chapter One

A/N: Images used is just found from google searches (unless otherwise stated as fan art given to me).. I don't art well

The Land of Claws was a small country with very few Shinobi. It was a country where many once prominent and proud clans went into hiding after falling into ruin, like the once noble Nekota Clan. The Nekota Clan was once a strong clan of animal trainers particularly known for their work with big cats. Because their numbers were now so small, the Land of Claws didn't have a hidden village of Shinobi, but there were few that showed promise and the head of the once proud Arachna Clan, a clan of spider handlers, was able to get three promising young shinobi to enter into the chunin exam being held in The Hidden Leaf Village.

"I'm nervous!" Layla, a girl of thirteen with bright bubblegum pink hair that she wore in two braids flopped over her shoulder, whined. She and her two teammates stopped at the gate to the Hidden Leaf Village to check in with the two guardsmen and show their passes of entry. Layla didn't come from a prestigious clan like her two teammates and always worried she was far too average to be a shinobi. Hurriedly she dug through the pockets of her pale blue kimono styled top for their passes and a letter the Arachna Clan's leader instructed her to have delivered to The Hokage.

"Don't be nervous. My clan's head wouldn't have sent us if he didn't think we were ready." Mace, a boy of fourteen with dark black as night hair that was overgrown and unkempt and covered his piercing silver eyes, mumbled. He was next in line to become leader of the Arachna Clan and usually took the leading role on their missions as he was the oldest. They were cleared to pass and the guards took the letter assuring them it would get to The Hokage.

"I'm just afraid I'm going to hold you two back, you're both so amazing." Layla looked to her companions, she always felt like she was dead weight.

"Lala-chan worries too much." The smallest of the group, Shiro, a young girl of twelve with long perfectly tousled snow-white hair and bright cat like eyes in a startling shade of pure violet giggled, resorting to the cute nickname she'd given her senior. "Right, Kuro?" She poked at the snoozing black cat perched atop her head.

"Mer." The black cat hmphed not liking that the trio was disturbing his nap.

"Oh! I finished our forehead protectors!" Shiro giggled happily as she dug through her small black messenger bag and retrieved three forehead protectors each with a different colored band. Since they didn't technically come from a shinobi village their forehead protectors had no symbol engraved in them, Shiro offered to paint them each one and the other two couldn't refuse. The cat like girl wasn't the kind of person someone could say no to. She handed the forehead protector with the black band to Mace and he shook his head at the cutesy little spider she had painted on it. Layla's was on a pale blue band and had a cute fluffy bunny painted on it. Shiro's was on a frilly purple band with a cute little cat painted on it. She secured it around her neck causing her companions to stare at her as it looked like a cute frilly collar and even had a little bell dangling below it.

The trio wandered around the large village in a stunned silence. The Hidden Leaf Village was so big and lively. People were bustling about, and there were shinobi everywhere. There were shops and restaurants on every street. Their village was small, there were only a handful of hospitals in their whole country and they were all more than a day's travel away from their small village.

"Wow." Layla stared in awe as they wandered the streets in search for the inn they were staying at. "This place is huge!"

Shiro stopped walking as a delectable smell wafted in the air making her mouth water and her tummy grumble quietly. Her companions, noticing she was no longer in step with them, turned curiously to find her staring with stars in her eyes at a nearby food stall serving various seafood street fare.