A/N- Yep this is officially the longest chapter I have written so far. My imagination went rampant on this one…so…yeah… I had a lot of fun writing this chapter, so enjoy! XD

"Wow, the Sapporo Factory sure is grand," said Kureko, staring at the dynamic shopping arcade in front of him, "Of course, it's nothing compared to the hotel you got a reservation at, Reborn."

Reborn opened his mouth to reply, but was nearly knocked over by Keiko who seemed ready to burst.

"Yeah, yeah, this place looks great," she said impatiently, "Now if you will excuse us, Tsunade and I are going to go emergency shopping. We'll call you later!" Keiko ran off, dragging a very unfortunate Tsunade with her.

"Wow, the Sapporo Factory sure is a great place," said Leoko indifferently, "Now if you will excuse us, Reborn and I are going to the nearest bar to get some of this famous beer or what-not."

"I think there's one around the block," said Kureko, checking his pamphlet.

"Perfect," said Leoko, "Since you have a girlfriend and all, I guess you can't come with us. We all know Reborn is just with Tsunade to gain more information, so it's perfectly fine if he goes with me." Before Reborn could protest, Leoko grabbed him by the arm and dragged him in the opposite direction.

Is it possible that Keiko and Leoko are secretly related? thought, unknowingly echoing Tsunade's thoughts from earlier that day.

He watched Leoko drag Reborn out of the building and smiled. Leoko says that Reborn only cares about Tsunade because of her valuable information. However, the pained look on Reborn's face says otherwise. It seems like Tsunade is more than an informant now.

Kureko looked around at his surroundings. Now, what am I going to do?

Reborn was sulking at the counter, shooting glares at Leoko who seemed blissfully unaware of Reborn's intense hatred.

Why did Leoko have to drag me along to watch him flirt? thought Reborn, fuming, it's such a waste of time, and he knows I don't really like drinking since it dulls my senses. I only do for business courtesy, not to drown my reason.

Not to mention the fact that I feel a bit guilty being here.

Reborn stopped glaring at Leoko and sighed wistfully. Leoko says that I'm only interested in Tsunade because she has a unique connection to the Black Hunter, and that was true, for a little while, he thought, but now, I can't hide behind that excuse anymore. I admit it, she's no longer just an informant for me to use and throw away. I mean, come on, her intelligence, intuition, and weapons handling skill is on par with mine and may even be greater, her unique bloodline gives her skills that set her above the rest, and she, herself, just has something that seems to attract attention. Tsunade is…

special.

She's the only one that can take my breath away, the only one that can make me feel vulnerable, the only one that can make me, the youngest criminal mastermind known to man, feel this way. This feeling…is this…

love?

Reborn was mulling over the thought when movement in the corner of his eye caught his attention. Two girls were giggling in a corner and shooting not-so-innocent looks his way. Oh shit, he thought, I really don't want to deal with this right now. He looked over at where Leoko was still charming a growing crowd of more giggling girls. Umm Leoko? he thought, as the two girls began approaching him, you missed two!

"Hey there," said the taller girl with red highlights seductively, "I'm Aika-chan, and this is Emiko-chan," she gestured to the shorter girl with her hair dyed blonde, "Are these seats taken?"

Sometimes lying is the best course of action. "The seats are taken," he said coldly, "just like I am."

The girls giggled. "You're funny," said Aika flirtatiously, sitting down in the seat anyway, "I like that in a man. Tell you what," she leaned in closer, "how about you show two girls a good time and your little girlfriend won't have to know a thing?"

Reborn stared uncomfortably into Aika's brown eyes. Brown… he thought, momentarily distracted, so different from Tsunade's honey-golden ones. He shook his head and pulled away. You should be able to handle this easily, Reborn chided himself, so why can't you?

What's wrong with you?

Luckily, Reborn's cellphone rang at that time he jumped up and winked at both Aika and Emiko, some of his old charm returning, "Sorry ladies," he said smoothly, "I have to take this. Maybe you can go talk to my friend over there," he pointed at Leoko, "he seems to be in the market for a girl." Reborn tipped his fedora at them as he slowly backed away, "Bye." He rushed out of the door.

Reborn leaned against the wall outside and let out a huge sigh of relief. He answered the phone. "Kureko, I cannot thank you enough for your timing," he said gratefully.

"Girls flirting with you again?" Kureko said knowingly, "Well if a good looking guy like you goes into a bar, you will get hit on."

"I know, that's why I didn't want to go," growled Reborn.

"You know, usually, you can handle flirty girls fine," said Kureko slyly, "So what happened?"

Reborn flushed dark red. "I-I don't know," he stammered, "I just couldn't seem to concentrate."

Kureko chuckled. "Well Keiko just called me and said that she has officially fixed the major fashion crisis and wants to meet us near the front entrance where we came in. I'm heading over to the shop where they are because Keiko needs some help with her bags. See you and Leoko there?"

"You'll probably see me, but not Leoko," said Reborn, looking through the window at Leoko's entourage, "We can pick him up later when we're going to dinner."

"Ok then," said Kureko. He paused and then added, "Oh, and don't worry; I won't tell Tsunade you were at a bar." He hung up with a smile.

Reborn hung up too and sighed. Although I appreciate your secrecy, Kureko, he thought wearily, with Tsunade's skill, she'll probably figure it out quickly. He began walking back to the Sapporo factory.

Emiko noticed Aika staring out the window at the well-dressed man that Aika had been flirting with earlier.

"Aika-chan?" she said curiously, "Why are you still staring at him?

Aika shook herself out of her daze and smirked at Emiko, "He intrigues me," she said boldly, "He has a sense of…mystery and danger shrouding him." She stood up and stretched. "I need a name for this creature," she purred, "His friend is too common to interest me. I'll be pursuing the rarer prey." Aika looked back at Emiko, who was looking at her with awe and admiration. "Ta ta!"

She walked out of the bar.

Sometimes, I think Keiko would be an ideal Interpol trainer, thought Tsunade breathlessly.

In 30 minutes, Keiko had dragged her to seven shops, made her try on 28 outfits (including 3 yukatas), and bought 12 outfits (9 of which were for Keiko herself).

If Kureko hadn't showed up, I think I would've collapsed from exhaustion, even with my training, thought Tsunade as she struggled with the remaining four bags, even so, any normal person would've collapsed by now.

"Hey Kureko-kun?" she panted, "Is Keiko secretly a superhuman or something?"

Kureko groaned as he rearranged the bags on his arms. "You know?" he replied wearily, "At times like this, it seems like a distinct possibility."

"Reborn-kun!" exclaimed Keiko happily, "Nice to see you again!"

"It's been literally half an hour!" said Reborn, amused, "And looking at the state of Tsunade and Kureko, it's been a tough 30 minutes."

Tough doesn't even begin to explain it, thought Tsunade, trying to control her relief and happiness from seeing Reborn.

Reborn walked over to Tsunade and took two of her bags. "There," he said, "now you can catch your breath before Keiko drags us somewhere else."

"Thanks," said Tsunade gratefully. She looked up at Reborn and felt her heart speed up again, and she knew it wasn't because of her exhaustion.

"Hey, lovebirds?" panted Kureko, "I would like some assistance too!"

Reborn and Tsunade both blushed and hurried over to where Kureko was. Tsunade took one of the bags and Reborn took two. Kureko sighed in relief. "Whoever knew yukatas weighed so much?" he said.

"Tell me about it," muttered Tsunade.

Keiko skipped over to them with her usual bright smile. "Looks like everyone's here!" she said cheerfully, "Except Leoko, of course. He's picking up girls again." She sighed. "At least that means he'll stop hitting on us, right Tsunade?" Keiko turned to Tsunade, who seemed to be distracted, "Tsunade?"

"Hmm?" Tsunade snapped out of her daze, "Oh sorry, yeah, it's a relief to be away from Leoko's advances."

Keiko looked at her strangely, "Are you ok Tsunade?"

Tsunade smiled and said, "Yeah, just fine. I was just distracted by something outside."

"Ok!" said Keiko, returning to her usual peppy mood, "Let's spend another two hours here and then return to the hotel. It'll take some time for us to get ready for dinner."

Yeah, for you to get ready and to drag me through various stages of experimentation, thought Tsunade.

Keiko grabbed onto Kureko's arm (which nearly made him fall over) and began pulling him along. Come on!" she shouted, "Let's go!"

Tsunade began following them, but she stopped and shot a glance behind her shoulder. Someone's watching us, she thought uneasily, it doesn't seem to be a harmful presence, but it wants something.

"Tsunade?" said Reborn.

"Coming!" Tsunade reluctantly turned back towards the group. That's not the only problem though, she thought, He—no she, it's definitely a female presence—may be looking at the group, but her attention is fixed on one person. She gritted her teeth. Reborn.

Hmmm, interesting, thought Akai with a small smile. She tapped a perfectly manicured finger on her blood red lips. So his name is Reborn, huh? Quite unusual. Since the perky girl is clinging on to the other guy like her life depends on it, I'm guessing his 'girlfriend' is the brunette. Akai watched as they walked away, chuckling at the brunette's wary glances, looks like her instincts aren't as bad as her looks (A/N- BUUURRRRNNNN! XD) she thought arrogantly, she's not that bad-looking, but compared to her, I should be a real trophy. I just need more time to work my charm. She began walking after them, careful to keep a good distance. Let's see how much you really love your girlfriend, Reborn.

There's no doubt about it, thought Reborn, that girl from the bar is stalking me.

They were at a jewelry store where Keiko was flitting from counter to counter with Kureko in tow. Tsunade was quietly looking around, though her constant backward glances showed that she also was aware of their follower.

When did girls looking for a one night stand become so freaking persistent? he thought, frustrated. He had to compliment her on her efforts, but she obviously was inexperienced at shadowing and he had spotted her the moment they started moving. Reborn had hoped it was a coincidence, but after an hour, it was obvious she was not here to do some shopping.

Dammit! What do I do now? Reborn saw Tsunade shoot another look over her shoulder and thought of a risky idea. This idea is a bit unconventional, he thought, but it just may work. My tone when conversing with Akai wasn't solid and probably led to some doubt. My plan should put those doubts to rest. It has some risks, but, he looked over at Tsunade, I don't mind taking these particular risks.

So Reborn knows our stalker? thought Tsunade, watching Reborn tense up whenever their inexperienced follower came into view. Well I guess I shouldn't be surprised, she thought with a twinge of…jealousy? Tsunade shook off most of the feeling and returned to her thoughts. He's pretty popular around women, so it's no wonder that he may be stalked, though none are very good at it. Tsunade was so immersed in the thought of Reborn's possible fan club that she almost didn't notice Reborn coming up behind her and looking over her shoulder. She froze.

"You've been standing here admiring that necklace for a long time," said Reborn, nodding at the display case, "You know, if you want it, I can buy it for you."

"What?!" said Tsunade, thoroughly taken aback, "Oh no, it's ok, you don't have to—"

"It's fine, it'll be sort of a late welcome present to Tokyo," said Reborn.

Despite Tsunade's protests, he called the store clerk over and bought the necklace. As the store clerk went to finish the transaction and place the necklace in a box, Tsunade turned to face Reborn and arched an eyebrow at him. "Well that was an expensive way to get my attention to discuss our potential stalker," she said accusingly.

Reborn shrugged. "It seemed to be the smoothest way to get us in front of the mirror so that we could watch her without shooting backward looks all the time," he said nonchalantly, "The clearest and biggest mirror was behind the cash register so I got us there the easiest way I could without arousing suspicion. Besides," he said, watching the mirror out of the corner of his eye, "I think that necklace suits you well."

Tsunade couldn't help but blush slightly. "The necklace was a thin gold chain with a gold rose pendent dotted with small black diamonds on the edge," she hissed, "Couldn't you have bought something less expensive?"

"It just happened that it was the one you were looking at at that time," said Reborn, "It was just a matter of bad timing."

(A/N- A black rose…now where have I mentioned that before?)

Tsunade sighed. "Never mind," she said quietly, "So who is that girl? Someone you met at the bar earlier?"

Reborn opened his mouth to ask how she knew, but Tsunade shook her head. "Before you ask, your breath smells faintly of the famous beer that was produced here. Although there is a brewery on the premises, you would have to go somewhere else, such as a bar, to actually drink it. Knowing Leoko, he probably dragged you along and bought you a glass even though you didn't drink much of it. Your sleeve has a few cigarette ashes on it. I know you didn't bring any cigars on this trip since you don't really smoke, so the only way the ashes got on your sleeve is if you accidently laid your arm on them. The Sapporo Factory only allows smoking in designated areas, which you wouldn't go into. Therefore, the only place you could've gotten them is in a bar, where nearly everyone has a cigarette and the ashes can fall on the counter."

Reborn chuckled. "I knew you would be able to figure it out," he said in admiration, "Yes, she's some girl that tried to flirt with me at the bar. Usually, I would be able to handle this but," he shot an uneasy glance at the mirror, "this girl is unusually persistent."

Tsunade looked at Reborn, "And I assume you have a plan to get rid of her?"

"I do," said Reborn, turning his attention back to Tsunade, "but I'll need your cooperation."

"Well you just spent about 25,000 yen on me to get me here," said Tsunade, "I don't think I can back out now. So what do I need to do?"

"Follow my lead," said Reborn softly, "and don't kill me afterwards."

Tsunade was going to ask what he meant, when Reborn leaned over and kissed her.

The last thought that came to Tsunade's mind was, Reborn is a good kisser.

Then her mind went blank.