Director Mitsuo Fukuda regarded Kira's actions as based on Japanese people's thoughts, and emphasized a large development occurring to his character across the series.

Lacus then gives Kira ZAFT's new mobile suit, ZGMF-X10A Freedom (ZGMF-X10A フリーダム),[14] which he uses to accompany the Archangel, whose objective has also changed to ending the war.

[15][16] When piloting Freedom Kira is noted to avoid hitting enemy mobile suits' cockpits to reduce the number of human casualties.

[21] Despite being shocked by his origins as the Ultimate Coordinator, Kira continues to fight alongside the Archangel until their opponents, including Rau, have been defeated and the war comes to end.

[22] During Mobile Suit Gundam SEED Destiny, Kira has been living in the secluded Marshall Islands since the end of the war within the country of Orb.

[28] Having obtained a weapon of mass destruction, Durandal imposes the Destiny Plan, a rule which removes freewill and dictates a person's entire life based on their genetics.

[31] He is also featured in films Mobile Suit Gundam SEED Destiny: Special Edition, which retell the events from the television series and adds a scene of Kira becoming a member of ZAFT after the war ends.

[32][33] In Mobile Suit Gundam SEED Freedom (set 2 years after the end of Destiny), Kira has moved to the PLANTs with Lacus, and has become the member of a peacekeeping organization called COMPASS alongside Shinn, and other comrades from his past with the Earth Alliance and Orb.

After defeating Orphee and Ingrid with Freedom's giant sword, the war ends and Lacus and Kira descend to Earth on a beach, where they share a kiss.

[36] The manga Mobile Suit Gundam SEED: The Edge Desire features a story about Kira's recovery following Freedom's destruction.

[55] Fukuda said that he was influenced by the September 11 terrorist attacks and formed the image of the main character of SEED based on the concept of an Islamic soldier fighting in the US military.

The setting in which the mechanics that appear are powered by electricity was influenced by Gear Fighter Dendoh which Fukuda previously directed, and when it came to handling the Gundam, he focused on its aspect as a symbol of the character piloting it.

For the final episode of the series, Fukuda aimed to bring Kira to his lowest where he becomes unstable when Flay is killed by Rau, leaving a major impact in him, considering himself a failure for failing to protect her.

When it came to this scene in both retelling films and HD remaster of the series, Fukuda wanted the original audio to remain the same as he feared adding a song or changing the background music would have ruined it.

His characterization was made to change briefly across the story as Kira faced Gilbert Durandal's ideals and became a person more compromised with war in contrast to his original pacifist persona after this incarnation was challenged multiple other characters in regards to his actions in the battlefield.

[64] Fukuda recounts that his wife, late writer Chiaki Morosawa, wanted a character punch Kira due to lack of violence outside mobile suit fights as well as sink the Archangel.

[84][85] Kira, along with five other notable mecha and pilots from the Gundam series, was recognized in the second set of "Anime Heroes and Heroines" stamps, released in Japan in 2005.

In the 2007 Seiyu Awards, Sōichirō Hoshi was a nominee in the category "Best Actors in supporting roles" for his portrayal as Kira in the Gundam SEED Destiny OVA, but lost to Akira Ishida and Kōki Miyata.

[97] Chris Beveridge from Mania Entertainment liked Kira's handling of the mobile suits and his ability to reprogram them, finding it as a new concept in the Gundam franchise.

While in the early episodes of the series, Kira was attracted to her, he had not planned start a relationship with her with sexual tones that felt written to make Flay similar to a prostitute.

[100] Kira is described by Sophia Tate from University of Tasmania as a realistic war soldier but more sympathetic than his rivals as, while he suffers grief during, he does not expose such ideals of revenge shown by his friends.

[101] In the book Japan and Asia: Business, Political and Cultural Interactions, Kira is noted to be properly linked with the Freedom mobile suit he pilots as his actions can be treated as a terrorist despite the pílot's desire to end war at any cost especially in Destiny.

[102] Also writing for Mania Entertainment, Kim Wolstenholme was worried about how much Kira's and Athrun's relationship would be focused in Gundam SEED, but liked that Lacus Clyne's introduction added tension to it.

He said, "If that's real, this story may be more interesting than I thought ..."[104] Ross Liversidge from UK Anime Network enjoyed Kira's and Athrun's rivalry which resulted in well-done fight scenes from each of their mobile suits as well as intense drama due to how originally the two were friends.

Due to the compilation films not carefully adapting the television series, both Anime News Network and the Fandom Post feel like Kira's struggle to keep up with his philosophy of not killing and his relationship with Athrun do not work in this format and thus only returning fans might enjoy the movies.

[112] In 2021, UK Anime Network writer Ross Locksly stated that despite several criticism the Western audience tends to give Kira to the point of calling him a Mary Sue, he still viewed Kira as an outstanding anime character due to his formal and caring demeanor which contrasts stereotypes as well as his constant team ups with Mu la Flaga in the first SEED to protect the Archangel from ZAFT forces.

[119] HobbyConsolas praised Kira's characterization and his relationship with Lacus as an appealing couple due to their mutual caring in SEED Destiny as well their actions in the plot.

[120] Despite finding flaws within the narrative, Mania liked how Kira is forced to drop his pacifist methods on Stella leading to her death resulting into an appealing conflict between him and Shinn who wants to avenge her.

[128] Manga News claimed that because Kira comes across as a more flawed in individual in Freedom than in Destiny when dealing with fights and remembering his encounter with Durandal and philosphy that his character was more enjoyable to watch.

[123] The sixteenth episode of Gundam SEED features a scene in which Kira is seen dressing after getting out of a bed where Flay lies sleeping naked, suggesting a sexual relationship.