A/N: SORRY FOR THE WAIT! This chapter was really tough to type. I hope I didn't leave you all in suspense for too long, sorry about that .…

Iemitsu was shaken out of his thoughts when he heard footsteps outside of the door. He checked his watch. 10:21, right on the mark.

He smiled and got up to open the door, but his smile faded when he heard that Tsunade wasn't alone. Iemitsu paused near the door and strained to hear the conversation outside.

"Thanks for inviting me to Hokkaido," said Tsunade, "I still wish Iemitsu went with us though."

Iemitsu felt a rush of happiness when he heard that she had missed him, but his mood dampened considerably when he heard the familiar voice that answered her.

"It was a shame that he couldn't come," replied Reborn, "but the vacation was still fun, wasn't it?"

Frowning, Iemitsu leaned a bit closer to the door. Tsunade was careful to make sure her apartment door didn't have a peephole because she knew that people who were trained could find a way to look in, not to mention that she didn't need it anyway, being able to detect the person's intentions before even setting eyes on him or her. Though he couldn't see them, he could've sworn Reborn's tone grew a bit heavier.

After a brief silence, Iemitsu heard Tsunade clear her throat in embarrassment.

"So, ummm, I have a training seminar tomorrow," said Tsunade nervously, "It lasts all morning, but I'll be done in time for my shift at the café. Maybe I'll see you there?"

"Of course," sad Reborn, sounding a bit surprised, "I wouldn't miss a chance to see you again."

Iemitsu bristled. How dare he try to smooth-talk her like that, he thought angrily, though felt the slightest spark of uneasiness at the streak of sincerity in his voice.

"I'll see you tomorrow then," said Tsunade.

If Iemitsu could see them right now, he would've been absolutely furious when Reborn leaned forward to give Tsunade a good-bye kiss. Reborn smiled at her.

"See you."

Iemitsu heard footsteps growing fainter and went back to the couch, expecting Tsunade to come in. After a short while, he heard her sigh and unlock the door. He saw her eyes widen with surprise as she noticed him there.

"Iemitsu-nii!" said Tsunade in shock, "You're here!"

He raised his eyebrow at her astonishment. "Yeah, I am," he said suspiciously. That's odd, he thought warily, normally, she would be able to sense my presence stronger than anyone else's since we've been together for so long. Not only that, but she would usually immediately launch herself at me, but she seems to be behaving…strangely…like she's hiding something.

Iemitsu got up and walked towards her. "You said you had something to tell me?"

Tsunade closed the door and hesitated. "Well, you see, it's about the investigation," she said slowly, "Actually, it's about my brother's fate as a whole. Do you remember what I told you about him, about Tsuna?"

"Yeah, I remember," said Iemitsu, "You told me that in your family, he was the only one who saw you as a person rather than a tool. He tried to spend time with you even as your parents gradually pulled away and focused their attention on him. Tsunayoshi was the only one who cared about you and kept you from slipping away into the darkness. Just before he died, his last words to you were, 'Tsunade, listen to me. You must try your hardest to preserve your life. It won't be easy completing your fate, but you must try, try as hard as you can. You must do it for yourself, so that you will live.' That's why you made it your goal to complete what he gave up to save you."

Tsunade sighed and leaned against the door. "You're right," she said softly, "He was everything to me when I felt that no one cared. My brother was my lifeline, as pure as the white rose that people associated with him. Because of him, I lived, and I swore to finish what he started, what he wanted me to do. I thought he wanted me to complete his fate, but now I think I know what he really wanted."

"What're you saying?" said Iemitsu, a sinking feeling in his stomach telling him that something seemed to be terribly wrong.

Taking a deep breath, Tsunade forced out the words,

"I'm resigning from the Interpol."

A stunned silence filled the room. Then Iemitsu spoke, his disbelief clearly evident in his voice, "What? You can't possibly be serious."

"I am," said Tsunade quietly but firmly, "I have already filled out the forms necessary and gave them to the agent who was stationed at the train station to make sure Leoko would come back. I signed the secrecy form that made it clear I wasn't to discuss this with any outsiders or else I and anyone associated with me will be silenced." She looked at him with a small smile. "I've already made my decision."

Iemitsu couldn't believe what was happening. He felt anger and confusion build up inside of him, and he was barely able to keep his voice from trembling when he finally spoke.

"So you're just going to throw everything away," he growled, "Everything you worked for, everything that you've devoted yourself to for the last four years, you're just going to toss it away like that? You're going let your brother die in vain?!"

Tsunade flinched at his words, but her gaze held steady. "No," she said, "I'm going to do what my brother really wanted me to do. He knew I was unhappy with my life, so he gave me the chance to escape from the whole madness and finally be free. Tsuna loved me even more than I loved him, and he died for my happiness, not for me to keep doing the one thing that caused me so much suffering."

Iemitsu was about to blurt out another set of questions when somehow, through the haze of confusion that was starting to cloud his mind, he noticed something weird.

Her hair's down, he realized, she never lets it down unless she is in disguise. She's also messing with something around her neck, a necklace maybe. That's strange, she never wears jewelry. In fact, I have never seen her behave like this until…

He narrowed his eyes as bits and pieces began to come together and approached Tsunade slowly. "What happened on that vacation?" he asked, suspicion leaking into his voice.

"What?" replied Tsunade, startled.

"I said, what happened on that vacation?"

"Onii-chan, I—"

"Don't call me that!" yelled Iemitsu. Shock and hurt flickered in Tsunade's eyes, but Iemitsu was too busy watching her rub subconsciously at something on her neck to notice. Suddenly, Iemitsu jumped forward and pinned Tsunade against the door, causing her to yelp in surprise. The impact caused her hair to fall back and reveal a small mark on her neck, one that he knew wasn't a work injury.

All of a sudden, everything from the conversation outside the door to Tsunade's weird behavior made sense. Iemitsu's fury immediately bubbled to the surface.

"What did he do to you?!" he roared. Tsunade was beginning to look a bit scared, but Iemitsu was too angry to care. "How could you have let him do this to you?! How could you have fallen in love with the enemy?! How could you have betrayed Tsunayoshi like this?! His life, his hopes, his dreams, his future, he gave it all up to you! How could you have thrown those away for…for…a criminal?!" He had stopped yelling then, but his one unspoken question still rang in the depths of his mind:

How could you have chosen Reborn instead of me?

Tsunade, confused and hurt, began to also feel a bit angry. "I never told you all of my brother's last words," she hissed, "I only told you what I thought was important at the time, but now I know that the part I dismissed as insignificant was what he was trying to tell me all along. He said to me, 'If you happen to find someone who you're willing to go through anything for, take the chance, because love is the only force fate can't change.' Tsuna wanted me to be happy. He wanted me to fall in love." Tsunade glared at Iemitsu defiantly as she said the words that shattered his heart,

"And I did."

Iemitsu felt his world come crumbling down, the pain in his chest increasing ten-fold, but Tsunade wasn't done talking yet.

"I put all my trust in you four years ago on that day," she said, furious, "You gave me a new purpose in life, and I began to depend on you as someone who would encourage me. I finally figured out what my brother gave his life for, and I was hoping you would understand, like a brother should. But I forgot," she spit the last words out with venom, "you aren't my onii-chan anymore."

"It's you who doesn't understand a thing." Iemitsu wasn't shouting anymore, but his voice was filled with so much barely contained rage that it shocked Tsunade into silence. "It was torture, absolute torture, to stay so close to you, yet restrain myself from being closer. I couldn't be your legal brother anymore without going insane. I knew it was foolish to hope, but I couldn't stop hoping, hoping that one day, you would…" Iemitsu drifted off and looked down.

Tsunade couldn't believe what she was hearing. No, she didn't want to believe what she was hearing. But she had to know the truth, the truth about the man who had been her surrogate brother and filled a little part of the void her real brother's death had left. "I would what?"

Iemitsu looked up, and if what Tsunade saw in his eyes wasn't proof enough, what he did next put her doubts to rest. He leaned in closer and said in a soft voice, "That you would love me in the same way I love you." Unable to control himself any longer, he pressed his lips onto hers, four years of hidden feelings of unrequited love finally revealing itself. Tsunade's eyes widened in shock and she desperately tried to push him away, but he only kissed her harder, fueled by passion. He pressed his body against hers, completely oblivious to Tsunade's struggles because the only thing in his mind was his need for her to be fulfilled at long last. Finally, Iemitsu's grip on one of her arms loosened, and she shoved him away with such force that she stumbled forward and hit the table, knocking over the picture frame on it. The sound of the glass shattering finally snapped Iemitsu out of his trance-like state. Looking at Tsunade's eyes swirling with fear, astonishment, and a hint of even…disgust, he felt horror seeping in as the realization of what he did sunk in.

She never loved me as anything more than a brother, he realized, and, now, I've destroyed the only relationship we had.

Tears beginning to well up, Iemitsu managed to choke out "I'm sorry," before opening the door and hurrying out into the cool air of the night as tears began to fall.

Reborn had been listening to the raised voices next door for a while now. He was worried when he heard Tsunade begin to argue with the other person (probably Iemitsu since no one else would have a spare key to Tsunade's apartment). Though he couldn't hear the exact words being said, he knew that something was off because Tsunade usually would never get into such a heated conversation. When Reborn heard the sound of shattering glass, he finally made up his mind and decided to go investigate. He hastily threw on his shoes and stepped outside, allowing his eyes to adjust to the low level of light. Reborn frowned as he approached Tsunade's door.

That's strange, her door's unlocked, he thought, and do I hear…sobbing?

Tentatively, he opened the door slightly and peered in, and was shocked to see Tsunade collapsed in a pile of glass shards, tears streaming down her face. He rushed in to her side.

"Tsunade, are you ok?" asked Reborn, concerned. Then, realizing that was a stupid question, he quickly revised it to, "What happened?" He saw a few pieces of glass smeared slightly black are realized she was bleeding. "Your hands are all cut up!" he exclaimed, "You need to get it treated." Reborn began to stand up, but Tsunade's voice, so soft and wrought with pain, stopped him.

"Did you know that Iemitsu loved me?" she asked, her voice slightly hoarse.

"Of course," said Reborn, confused, "He was your brother, after all. Well, technically he was your former brother but—"

"Not in that way," interrupted Tsunade. She continued to stare at the picture in her bloodstained hands sadly and her tears began to drip onto the photo. "Not in that way."

Reborn felt his heart sink and a pang of sympathy. Oh, realized Reborn, she finally knows how Iemitsu feels, and based off what I see, she found out the hard way. "Yes," he admitted, "I did know."

There was a short pause, and then Tsunade let out a short harsh laugh. "I'm supposed to be a profiler," she said, a pained smile on her face, "One of the best in my class. I can almost write a biography on a complete stranger after a 15 minute conversation. I'm supposed to be an expert at getting into people's minds and finding out whatever they're hiding, but in the end, I'm just a rookie who isn't even able to know what her own brother feels. We spent four years together, and I was completely blind to his feelings. I'm nothing more than a fool."

The tears were flowing more freely now, and she began to choke up, her voice cracking, "I never saw him as anything more than my brother, and I would've never thought he saw me as something more. I was naïve to think that way, and now I've hurt Iemitsu more than I ever thought imaginable. I know I can't blame him for what happened, for what he feels, but the idea of him loving me in that way, the feel his lips felt on mine, I can't help but feel repulsed."

She hugged the photo to her chest and began sobbing harder, her small frame shaking. Watching Tsunade looking so lost and hurt, Reborn couldn't help but feel a rush of anger towards Iemitsu for hurting her so much. He knew that he couldn't blame Iemitsu for falling in love with her (after all, he did too.), but he just couldn't forgive anyone who could make Tsunade cry so hard.

Finally, unable to take it anymore, Reborn did the only logical solution he could think of,

He kissed her.

Tsunade was shocked into silence, and Reborn wrapped his arms around her comfortingly. "There," he said softly, "now you can think of that kiss instead."

Tsunade's widened eyes relaxed a bit and she laid her head on his shoulder, her sobs subsiding a bit.

"You said it yourself," murmured Reborn soothingly, "You will always consider Iemitsu as your brother, right? So even if his love for you is different, he still loves you, and you love him too. Isn't that what matters?"

They stayed in that position for a little while longer, then he felt Tsunade nod. Reborn stood up and offered his hand to her, unknowingly mirroring an event that happened four years ago. He let out a sigh of a relief when Tsunade took it, and pulled her up.

"Come on, let's get your hands fixed up," he said. Reborn led her to the sink and found several first aid materials in a cabinet. She certainly is well stocked, but then again, I guess she can't go to the hospital in her unique situation, he thought, dismissing a strange feeling of uneasiness at the amount of medical supplies. He quickly grabbed a roll of cloth bandages and some disinfectant and hurried back to where Tsunade was standing. Reborn took her hands from behind and gently washed them, noticing with a twinge of worry that her blood was darker than last time, nearly pure black. When Tsunade's tears finally stopped flowing, she relaxed and leaned back against his chest, taking comfort in his warmth and familiar scent. Reborn felt his heart jump, a feeling that once had been absolutely foreign to him that now felt absolutely natural. He carefully dried her hands, disinfected them, and wrapped them up. Looking back at her, he noticed with a smile that she was nearly asleep, her eyes half closed, revealing only a crescent of gold underneath.

It is pretty late, thought Reborn. Though he would've given anything in the world to hold her longer, he, for once, didn't give in to his own selfish desires, knowing that he had kept her up really late already the night before. With a soft chuckle, he lifted her up bridal style, which, of course, caused her eyes to snap open and protests to begin streaming out in stuttered sentences. Reborn just smiled and carried her over to her room. He put her down and her words slowly faded to mumbles and her eyes began to close. Reborn held her seemingly small and fragile hand in his and he knew that this was the hand he wanted to hold for the rest of his life.

(A/N: SUPER CONFUSING DIALOUGUE AHEAD! This part has both POV's in it, so it is really confusing. So basically, thoughts without '…' are one character's thoughts and thoughts with '…' are thoughts they're having simultaneously.)

A ghost of a smile graced Tsunade's face when she felt Reborn's hand envelope hers.

I'm giving up everything that made up my whole life to be with you, she thought.

Reborn couldn't help but look at Tsunade with a slightly adoring gaze.

I'm sacrificing what I built up from nearly nothing to stay by you.

'The person I trust most is telling me this is a mistake'

Leoko refuses to accept my decision to leave what I had devoted myself to.

Iemitsu can't understand that I finally know what my brother wanted for me.

'But they don't know how I feel, how being with you makes everything seem so right.'

The business will suffer a tough blow when I leave.

The Interpol will lament the loss of one of their best agents when I'm gone.

'But that's ok.'

Because Tsunade,

Because Renato,

'I love you'

Even as the thought hung in the air, the sky outside cleared up and a bit of moonlight filtered through the blinds and vaguely illuminated a red fedora in the closet right behind Reborn, as if it was pointing out the secrets that still divide them.

Leoko sat at his desk in the building where the business was mainly located, glaring at the weasly man in front of him.

"So, did you find anything?" demanded Leoko, his tone making it clear that he expected to hear a 'yes'.

"Ummm, yes, Leoko-san," said the man nervously, "Information on her was unusually hard to find and we really thought we wouldn't be able to retrieve it, but a short while ago, something new about her was apparently added somewhere and we were able to piggyback on the—"

"I don't need to hear the specifics," growled Leoko, "Just give me the information."

The man, who seemed like he would break down at any given moment, quickly pulled a file folder out of his bag and handed it to Leoko.

"You may go," said Leoko, dismissing the man as he opened the folder. As he read more and more, the missing pieces to the puzzle finally fell into place, and he began to formulate a plan. By the time he got through the entire file, he had a whole plot figured out. He leaned back and stared at a picture of Tsunade. The picture showed her usual honey golden eyes and brown hair—only she was wearing a suit and a red fedora. He grinned.

My, my, thought Leoko, aren't you a clever girl, dear Tsunade-chan? Your deception was so well done that under different circumstances, I would consider recruiting you.

He pulled out a lighter and set the corner of the photo on fire, breathing in the smoke with a dark satisfaction.

Unfortunately, you're in my way, so I have no choice but to destroy you. Let's see how much Reborn still loves you after he knows who you really are.

A/N: YET ANOTHER CLIFFHANGER! DOES MY EVILNESS HAVE NO BOUNDS :D? I can't believe my story has come so far and I'm sad to say it's slowly coming to an end. Thanks to it's so SUNNY XD, Guest, Anisthasia, and Saaniser for reviewing! I appreciate it so much! :D

R&R PLEASE!