Tatsumi groggily pulled himself out of bed. He looked across his room at a picture of himself and Mine after a successful mission. A lone tear fell from his eye as he recalled the night before. Mine had died in his arms as they kissed for the first and last time. He got out of bed, only to walk to the other side of the room and sit back down, picture in hand. Tatsumi sat there for fifteen minutes staring at the picture full of regret and misery.

Suddenly the door opened and Leone stood there, staring at Tatsumi, wishing there was something she could do to make him feel better.

"Her death was hard on all of us..." said Leone as she slowly walked towards him and put her hand on his shoulder.

Tatsumi slowly tilted his head to look up at her. He stared into her caring eyes and felt slightly better, knowing not everyone he cared about was taken from him.

"Yeah..." Tatsumi mumbled, not able to fully focus on anything besides the picture.

"You really liked her didn't you?" Leone said softly as Tatsumi set down the picture and wiped his eyes.

He nodded as he stood up and turned to face Leone. She stared into his eyes, expecting an answer. A few moments later she could see he wasn't in the mood to discuss it any longer, and asked him if he wanted to go get some breakfast.

"Sure" Tatsumi said softly, clearly not back to his normal mood.

Tatsumi and Leone walked down to the dining room, where Akame stood drooling over the smell of the food she was making. She greeted the two as they sat down, Leone picking up the entire bottle of red wine and taking a drink. Akame stood there, also grieving the loss of her long time comrade. She walked into the kitchen, serving the group their breakfast and sitting down in the chair adjacent to Tatsumi. Najenda walked in moments later and took her seat at the head of the table, quietly beginning to eat her food.

The entirety of breakfast passed by slowly as everyone had refrained from speaking. Shortly after their meal, Tatsumi began washing the dishes. Leone walked up and insisted on helping him. They worked quietely for several moments, neither one speaking. A few minutes later Leone could no longer stay quiet, she turned to Tatsumi.

"I know you miss her, we all do." She said softly, looking at him.

Tatsumi continued to wash the dishes, doing his best to ignore what she had said.

"Tatsumi..." Leone mumbled, regretting she even brought the topic up.

She went back to her dishes as Tatsumi spoke up for the first time.

"It's my fault. If it weren't for me Mine would still be alive, Susanoo too..." Tatsumi said, Leone looked down at the floor, tryint to process what he had just said.

"Tatsumi you know that isn't -" Tatsumi cut her off. "It is true!" Tatsumi growled.

"Why did you guys come for me?! You knew the dangers and yet you still made the choice to rescue me!" Tatsumi said, suddenly filled with anger and sorrow.

"Because we care about you Tatsumi! We all do... some even more than others..." Leone said also filled with emotion.

They opted to end the conversation after that, Leone wondering if he picked up on the hint she gave him.

Later that evening Tatsumi was back in his room with the door closed, presumably mourning his fallen comrades as he had done during his free time for the past twenty-four hours. Perhaps also contemplating Leone's words.

"Some more than others huh...?" Tatsumi mumbled to himself.

Najenda had just recieved word of an underhanded deal just outside the capital. This operation had been allowed by a high ranking officer in the capital's military, and needed to be dealt with. Leone and Akame were sent to the farm. The barn, quite inconspicuous, was very average and aroused no suspicion, perfect for less than reputable characters to assosiate without interference.

"I've got them" said Leone, sensing them in the barn not too far from their current location.

"Good, I'll go in through the roof, you attack from the front." said Akame, emotionlessly.

Leone sprinted forward at an blinding speed, utalizing her Teigu's abilities to their fullest. Akame however took a more stealthy approach, quietly leaping into the air, and in through a window at the second floor. Akame unsheathed her sword, just as Leone was sent through the floor of the barn's second level.

"Leone!" Akame exclaimed, perplexed at the fact that someone was able to land such a powerful blow to Leone.

"The military officer... He's a Lieutenant! Not only that, he has a Teigu!" Leone groaned, coughing up blood.

Mere seconds later a hulking figure burst through the ground with ease. It was a man, very tall and muscular in stature, weilding a massive hammer. Akame steeled herself, preparing herself for the inevitable fight.

"No" Leone said as she got back to her feet.

"I can handle this! Just take care of the little guys!" Leone growled as she cracked her knuckles.

Akame jumped down through the hole made by the hammer weilding maniac and began to dispatch the Lieutenant's less combat-ready associates.

"You don't know what you're in for!" the large teigu user roared as he charged at Leone, hammer raised high above his head.

Leone sidestepped the hammer's crushing blow, mouth agape as she gazed upon the massive destruction caused by the hammer.

"Wha?" Leone said to herself as the Lieutenant smirked.

"I am Lieutenant Guren, and this is my teigu!" he said full of vigor.

"This is the Catastrophe Bludgeon, a warhammer that causes an explosion on impact, utterly destroying everything in its path!" Guren exclaimed, his thunderous voice echoing throughout the building.

Leone grinned, ready for a fight. She lunged forward, fist pulled back. Guren braced himself for impact, holding Catastrophe Bludgeon's head in front of him. Leone's fist connected with the hammer, pushing Guren back slightly. He then pulled the hammer back, preparing for an assult. Leone veered to the left, swiftly dodging the crushing blow. Leone then prepared for an attack of her own, letting out a small roar and dashing at him, landing a blow to his lower jaw. Guren stumbled back, suprised that she was able to land a hit on him.

"What is your name girl?" Guren said, suddenly interested in the details of this powerful stranger.

"Leone" she said, honoring his last wish.

"Who do you work for?" Guren continued his questioning.

"As confident as I am that this is the end for you, I won't be revealing any sort of confidential information." Leone said sternly.

Leone then decided the conversation was over, and began her offensive. She dealt out punches at ludicrous speeds, pushing Lieutenant Guren back and eventually breaking through his defenses entirely and sending him flying through the side of the barn. Guren stood, coughing blood and staggering slightly. Just as Guren steadied himself Leone burst through the wall and directly into an unsuspecting lieutenant, knocking him unconcious and ending the fight.

"Leoneee!" Akame shouted, sword bloodied and face displaying joy.

"I'm fine" Leone said with a smile.

"This is great! Not only did we complete the mission but we even got a teigu to bring back!" Akame said with delight.

"Are you okay?" said Akame, expression switching from happiness to worry the moment she saw all of Leone's injuries.

"I'm fine of course, you know how good my rejenerative powers are!" Leone said, dispelling Akame's worries.

The next fifteen minutes or so was spent traveling back to Night Raid Headquarters, Akame feeling slightly guilty that Leone had to carry the large war-hammer back with them. As they walked home, Leone couldn't help but think of her battle, sure it wasn't a particularly tough fight, but if she had been caught off guard... She decided that her job was too dangerous for her to keep her feelings bottled up inside forever, she would tell him when she arrived home.