Woo Hoo! Another chapter done! I have to say, this part took a lot of contemplating and imagination. First I didn't know what to write, and then when I knew what to write, I didn't know how to set it up. And when I finally got to the set up, I couldn't figure out how to make it flow. But, it came out okay. I'm not sure if the action's good enough for it to be pictured though. Oh well, here's chapter nine.

Be warned! Minor violence ahead! (But that won't stop you from reading it, would it?)

Try reading this at night. I dare you to.


"Here, let me get that for you." Sasuke took the third platter that was on the table while Itachi balanced two plates with his hands along with two bowls and a fork. He was reaching for the third dirty dish when the AIR grabbed it for him.

"Thank you." The crimson eyed man gave a grateful nod to the robot as he carried the dishes to the kitchen to be washed. The robot smiled when he heard Itachi thank him, following after the smaller man with the third plate.

After returning from Kakashi's, Itachi did the same thing he did yesterday: change Sasuke's bandages. This time, some parts of his body like his legs and upper arms didn't have to be wrapped anymore because they had already healed. The cells had fully regenerated and covered the rips and tears forced together by string and stitches. The only wounds that hadn't healed was the chest and neck. Slight gashes and slits were ever-so-present but were disappearing slowly with every hour of the day. This time, the changing bandages session was not as quiet and tense as it was last time. Perhaps this was because Itachi had slowly gotten used to the AIR's company and had not thought of him as some foreign stranger anymore with each passing day. Sasuke had noticed the change, and he took pleasure in it. Just knowing that Itachi was slowly learning to accept him, warming up to him, was enough to send the robot spiraling into a state of ever-so-noticeable bliss. Acknowledgement from Itachi, to him, meant the first step towards fulfilling the promise.

Running water was heard from the kitchen accompanied by the soft clanging of plates as they were washed, dried, and put on the dish rack. The earlier conversation at Kakashi's had brought the two closer together and fully gotten rid of the tense feelings. And now, later on in the day, the occupants of the house had just finished dinner and was now washing the plates. They had delivered food to Kakashi's just about an hour ago and had come back to enjoy dinner themselves without the presence of the white haired man. Well, Itachi was the only one to eat but Sasuke was there keeping him company, better than Kakashi's company with all his unnecessary remarks upsetting the peaceful atmosphere.

Itachi wiped his hands on a piece of cloth once he was done with the dishes. He left the kitchen while the AIR finished up on washing, wiping the counter dry, and hanging the cloth before exiting the kitchen himself. Sasuke ascended the stairs to the second floor and went to his bedroom, intending to relax a little. His ears picked up sounds of a showerhead being turned on thus signifying that Itachi was taking a bath. That gave him some time alone.

Sasuke had already taken his bath ahead of time under Itachi's orders. The red eyed man didn't want to change the bandages only for them to be taken off or, in another case, get soaked when it was the robot's turn to bathe. So, he told Sasuke to take his bath in advance before the changing session began.

Sasuke pulled the sliding wardrobe door aside to reveal a full-body mirror. He stared at his reflection long and hard, looking into those glassy onyx eyes of his. As he scrutinized himself, questions resurfaced into his mind, 'Who was I? What did I do in my past? Was there some reason for me being here? What's my role in society?' He wanted those questions answered. How ironic it was that he possessed those answers, and yet didn't have the right to know them. Knowing he wasn't going to get those answers by just staring, the AIR pulled the sliding door back to cover the mirror. He then moved to sit on his bed, which was positioned right next to his window. There was no need to turn the light switch on because he had night vision.

The robot looked out from the second floor onto the dark nightscape illuminated by the moon's pale, ghastly glow. Everything was bathed in the celestial body's eternal blaze. The trees were dark and barely visible, outline only seen as black shadows against the ground, highlighted by the livid light. Dark silhouettes swayed with the wind, as their counterparts repeated the same action in mimicry. Ashen colors stretched across the plain as the moon's luminous shine transmuted the pigments, shading their complexion, and distorting objects of everyday life into inklike images. The distance was conceal in shadows as there was no sun to reveal their features. Even the mountains looked like giant nebulous towers of lineament. Up above the moon radiated brilliantly, shining merrily along with the thousand twinkling stars. Small gray clouds passed along the night sky, obscuring lucent light for a few seconds before moving along.

Looking out at the night scenery made Sasuke rethink about the questions that had surfaced when he gazed into the mirror. Did he really want those questions answered? If he did remember, he would have to leave, but is going back to his previous lifestyle worth leaving? Was his previous life better than his life right now? Did he really want to know who he was? 'I'm happy living here. I'm really happy, and now that I think about it, I don't care about my previous memories as much as I thought I would. It would be nice to know, but... I want to stay here more longer. I want to be with...' The robot's thoughts trailed off after that and onyx eyes instead moved to look outside his bedroom door. He knew very well who he was referring to. He knew, deep inside, why he wanted to stay so badly. It was for one person...

Sounds of a door opening could be heard from outside. That meant that Itachi had gotten out of the shower. Itachi and Sasuke's bedrooms were right across from each other respectively. If Sasuke was to look from a certain spot in the room, he could actually see a part of Itachi's room. But it wasn't as though he had never been in there before so that peeking spot was nothing to him.

Sasuke continued staring out the window in his pitch-dark room, admiring the night landscape. He was startled by the room suddenly getting fully enveloped in light. A quick turn of his head and there was Itachi, standing by the doorway, one hand on the light switch and the other holding a towel against his wet hair. Rivulet drops of water ran down his raven locks and tiny beads of the liquid clung onto his watery tresses. His bangs stuck together and weaved just on top of his forehead. Side locks trailed down soft cheeks and framed the perfect face.

"I was wondering where you were," stated Itachi, explaining his reason for his sudden appearance in the room.

"Is there something you need," asked the robot. A shake of the head was the answer. Itachi stayed standing where he was and proceeded to dry his hair with the towel. The AIR watched his movements and after a few seconds, said, "Do you want to sit down?" Itachi looked at his not-so-human roommate before slowly making his way to the robot's bed, sitting down against the edge. He continued to dry his hair, not saying anything at the moment.

Sasuke took in the other body on the bed, smiling a soft smile. Itachi did look better with his hair down; it framed his face and body elegantly, like a pitch-dark curtain. A shroud of darkness against twinkling stars, surrounded by a magnificent nebula in the background, refined and captivating. And with a moon too, a splendid moon to shed light to a dark gloomy world. For some reason, that description matched his recent thoughts about the night sky as he had stared up at it from his small second floor window. The smile got wider. 'I'm happy here.'

The grinning AIR found himself averting his face from Itachi's peripheral vision, embarrassed that he was smiling for no apparent reason. No, he had a reason, but it was embarrassing to explain. His eyes redirected back to outside the window, completely at ease. That is, until he saw something. A shadowy shape zoomed right below his eyes, through the front yard of their house and disappeared in a split second.

"Huh," was the first thing uttered from the AIR. 'What was that?'

That caught Itachi's attention from his hair drying. "What's wrong?"

"I thought I saw something," said Sasuke slowly. "Outside," he added in.

That got Itachi moving from his side of the bed to Sasuke's, positioning himself so that he was right next to the AIR, looking out the same window. The only difference was that Sasuke had his legs dangling off the side of the bed while Itachi was kneeling on the sheets. In their current posture, they were so close that Sasuke could smell the shampoo and conditioner that Itachi used. It was fresh off and smelled like lemongrass and night rain. It was a nice mixture that went well with Itachi's hair, smoothening it and producing a silky feeling. Oh, how the robot wanted to run his fingers down those fair tresses and feel just how sleek the jet black locks were. "I don't see anything," declared Itachi in a soft voice, bringing Sasuke back from his fantasies. They had bigger things to worry about other than hair.

"I saw a figure, a dark shadowy figure or shape moving. It ran right past our yard. I couldn't make out what it was but it didn't look human. It was fast too. It disappeared in the blink of an eye," said Sasuke. 'It was right there. I saw it moving.'

"Perhaps your eyes are malfunctioning," suggested Itachi. "I don't see anything." He peered into the outside darkness but could see nothing out of the ordinary. Everything looked the way it was supposed to look. There was nothing different about the scenery.

"But I saw it," said Sasuke, uncertainty present in his voice. 'Or maybe my eyes really do need to get checked.'

"I'll look at your eyes tomorrow." That surprised Sasuke. It was as thought Itachi knew what he was thinking of the second he thought of it. "But if it will set your mind to ease, we can take a look around outside." To this, the robot nodded.

Both males advanced from their positions on the bed to the doorway. They made their way downstairs and through the hallway. Itachi made it to the front door first followed by the robot. He, hesitantly, put his hand on the doorknob and turned, opening the door slowly bit by bit before the whole entrance was accessible. Itachi stepped out onto the front porch and surveyed the surroundings, the only visible light coming from the moon and the small porch light hanging from above. Sasuke trailed after and went to stand protectively by Itachi, stance ready in case something was to jump out and attack them. He saw something, and even if it could have been a trick of the eyes, there was a chance that figure was real. And he didn't want to take that chance of letting his guard down, especially when it came to Itachi's safety as well. Cautious and protective feelings took over in his emotion chips and the robot unconsciously went to stand a little way in front of the smaller man with him, still positioned at the side yet a little forward than the other.

Two pairs of eyes scrutinized the whole area, looking carefully with the small amount of light provided. Nothing was found out of the ordinary. A few more minutes outside and the two could see that it was pointless to continue standing outside looking for something when they didn't know what it was. Crimson orbs met opposite black ones as they both concluded in their heads, 'It was probably nothing,' and 'We should go back inside.'

So, following their thoughts, both went back inside. Itachi stayed behind at the entryway, shutting the door tight and locking it from the inside with the bolt. He met up with Sasuke sitting on the couch in the living room. The robot was lost in his thoughts, trying to recall what he saw. 'I thought for sure I saw something.'

After taking a seat next to the contemplating AIR, Itachi turned to him and said, "You should forget about the shadow. It was probably nothing."

"Yeah, maybe," said Sasuke with a smile. He wasn't convinced but if Itachi didn't want him to continue pursuing the subject, then he wouldn't. Besides, he didn't want the long haired man to be worried or concerned because of him. And maybe he really was just being too paranoid about dark sneaky shapes in the dead of night. 'Hopefully it was nothing.'

But Sasuke was dead wrong. At about that time after that thought came to him, the lights abruptly flicked off without a second's notice. Everything went black, plummeting the whole house into absolute total darkness. "What happened," asked Itachi, not daring himself to move in a place he couldn't see.

"I don't know," said the robot. A thought came to his mind, "Was there something wrong with your electricity generators?"

"No. But one of the wires may be broken. This has happened before... Yet they don't usually break under normal circumstances..." stated Itachi.

"Never mind how it broke; we should fix it soon." Sasuke began to leave the living room but stopped when he saw that Itachi was not moving from his spot.

"I can't see where I'm going," said Itachi. And that was true. He couldn't see his hand even if it was put in front of him. Oh, it was a really GREAT time for the moon to be obscured by the clouds. Sasuke smiled as he watched Itachi stand there, trying to get his eyes to adjust but failing miserably. If you didn't have night vision, then you didn't have it. The robot walked up to the smaller man and took his hand gently in his. He tightened his grip and could feel Itachi tightening his too.

And just when things began to look better, they started getting worse. Now, losing power all of a sudden wasn't all that scary, but what came after that was.

Thump... Thump... Thump... Thump...

Both residents of the house automatically jumped when they heard the sounds. Itachi's other hand unconsciously came up to grab Sasuke's sleeve as they both froze in place, too frightened to move or say anything. But there was one question that had to be voiced. "What was that," whispered Itachi, not daring to talk more louder. Silence was heard as the two in the room waited to see what would happen next, whether it be more thumping noises or something else entirely.

Thump... Thump... Thump...

"It's coming from the front door..." whispered Sasuke to Itachi. "No, outside the door. It sounds as though something's being hit against the door. This could be related to the shadow I saw earlier."

"We shouldn't go fix the generator. Let's wait until morning. I don't think it's safe to go outside," suggested Itachi. At this point, Itachi still couldn't see anything. Sasuke's voice, to him, was coming from the darkness. But he knew that the robot was right next to him, holding his hand, telling him silently not to be afraid. If it had been him all by himself dealing with a situation like this, he wouldn't know what to do. "We shouldn't use any flashlights or alternate forms of light for now. Whatever that thing is, it could identify where we are in the house if it sees light. I'm hoping that thing is as blind as I am right now."

Thump... Thump... Thump... Thump...

"You locked all the other doors to this house, right?" The long haired man gave a nod, knowing that Sasuke would see it. "And all the windows are closed?" Another nod. "Then we're safe for now, unless that thing manages to knock down the door."

"What is it," Itachi asked again.

Sasuke turned to the direction of the thumping and said, "I'll go see what it is."

His hand loosened it's grip on Itachi's and he slowly began to walk away but before taking two steps, a voice cut in, "No, don't leave me here alone." The AIR could feel a hand reach out and grab his shirt again. Sasuke could hear the slight desperate tone in Itachi's plea. 'Is he really this scared?' Making up his mind, the robot brought his hand up and grabbed ahold of the hand that was clutching onto his shirt, squeezing it gently, prompting Itachi to let go of the fabric and move to hold the slightly bigger hand offered to him. "I'll come with you then."

"What, no. We don't know what we're dealing with. It's better to be safe and cautious," said Sasuke.

Thump... Thump... Thump... Bam...

"That thing's not going away. If you're going to deal with it, then I'm coming too." The AIR could see Itachi's serious face in the darkness. He was not backing down. By now, the thumping noises had gotten more violent, turning instead into aggressive hits against the front. The sounds of the impacts echoed throughout the entire house and drained away into the silent atmosphere.

Sasuke started to say something, but Itachi interjected before he could open his mouth, "It's my house. I have a right to come with you."

"Alright, but I go first. And be careful. We don't know what we're dealing with," said Sasuke at last, finally making up his mind. Holding Itachi's hand, the AIR ventured through the hallway, walking slowly and cautiously towards the door, now shaking against it's frame.

Bam... Bam... Bam... Bam...

To say that Sasuke was not afraid was a lie. To be honest, the robot was just as scared and alarmed as Itachi was. The place they lived didn't have much trespassers as it was located far away from other's company. Just who or what would venture out into the middle of nowhere and attack them? If they wanted to do a break-in burglary, they wouldn't try to force the front door open, especially when they knew there were people there. 'It's got to have seen me and Itachi when we went out onto the front porch. So why is it attacking us? We have no enemies; or do we?' As the robot watched the door trembling on it's hinges nearing, he would feel Itachi tighten his hold on him.

Finally, they were right in front of the door. It seemed like an eternity before they reached it and seconds seemed to turn into hours as they stood cautiously, perhaps waiting for the shaking to stop, for the thing to go away, and for them to pretend as though nothing had happened. That silent wish didn't come through. They were there, that thing was there, and if they didn't do something quick, they were going to feel the wrath of whatever was beyond that door.

"Okay, it's obvious this thing's not gonna go away on it's own. I want you to stand back, alright. I'll open the door and take a quick peek. If that thing tries to force it's way in, I have enough strength to push it back when I shut the door," said the AIR to Itachi. He, reluctantly, let go of the smaller, softer hand he had been holding and taking Itachi by the waist, led him a little ways farther from himself. 'If this thing does attack before I can prepare myself, then at least let me be injured instead of him.'

'I cannot see in this dark so Sasuke is my guide. He's the only one who can do anything. The only thing I'm good for is standing in the corner and waiting it out. Yet I don't want to just sit back and wait. I want to do something, but in this darkness I can't. It's this helpless feeling again... Why doesn't it ever go away?' Itachi wanted to push Sasuke aside and tell him he was fully capable himself, but he wasn't.

At about this time, the door looked as though it was about to break off from its hinges. Slowly, Sasuke reached for the door knob. His fingers turned the lock back counterclockwise as a click sounded quietly to show the door was unlocked. Then, the robot grasped the whole handle. 'Okay, I'm going to stay calm. I'm going to prepare myself for whatever I see. I won't be surprised or caught off guard,' the AIR told himself, taking a deep breath. He would not be fazed at whatever was behind the door. Nothing would startle him. Or, that was what he hoped for.

Sasuke slowly turned the doorknob and opened the entryway by a crack. The force that struck him was enough to knock the door back a couple more inches widening the entrance for the intruder to come in.

"Holy Crap!" exclaimed Sasuke as he struggled to push the door back shut. His eyes had already captured the image of the intruder as soon as it came hurdling itself at the crack. He knew what that thing was and as he predicted, it was the same black shadow he had seen earlier.

Wham...

"Shit, it's head got in!" Sasuke was now putting his whole weight on the door, trying to either push the thing back outside or smash the head in, hoping it would die. Sadly, the intruder was not giving up, as it was still pushing itself in, forcing its body through the crack all the while straining to push Sasuke back. The thing gave a low deep growl that sounded like a mad animal. Sasuke leaned his weight against the door as he brought his foot up. He slammed it down hard against the creature's head. The creature gave a yelp that quickly turned back into a more louder roar. It snapped back but didn't get much distance as it's head was still caught in the doorway.

"What's going on? What is that?" Itachi couldn't see anything. The only things he could hear was Sasuke swearing, the growling, and a lot of hitting and thumping noises. And that was worrying him like hell. 'If only the porch light was on... Too bad our electricity's down...' Itachi felt very alarmed. He didn't know what was going on. It made him feel so vulnerable. To be kept in the dark without any knowledge to protect or assure yourself whatsoever, it was scary. That was what Sasuke had felt when he had awoken without any knowledge of anything. It was only through Itachi that he got the feeling of security. But now, it was Itachi's turn to feel in the dark, literally. Only Sasuke knew what was going on, only he knew what to do, and only he could help Itachi now.

How ironic it was that their roles would be switched.

"Sasuke!" called Itachi again to the darkness, hoping for an answer. This time, he got one.

"It's... Dammit... a... God, why won't you give up already!" Another thud was heard as Sasuke slammed his foot down again on the prowler. He continued, "Some sort of mutated... dog!"

This totally surprised Itachi. He wasn't even sure if he had heard Sasuke correctly. "A What?"

"A dog, well close to one. This thing is about the size of a small horse. It's got yellow eyes and razor sharp teeth. And there are things pointing out of it's back. Definitely not a regular dog," said Sasuke, still struggling with the door. The dog, as Sasuke put it, let out a violent bark as it managed to force one of its front paws into the doorway. "Shit!" Sasuke swore again. It was getting in. The robot moved to hit the dog beast again but this time, he was a bit late on the attack for the creature extended its neck before the foot could connect with the target. Knife-like teeth sank into biological flesh and Sasuke's foot would really have gotten torn off if it wasn't for his servo-mechanic skeleton. The deformed dog's powerful jaws would probably have been able to chew through bone. The robot noticed long-fleshy antennae looking things protruding from the dog's head. Patches of pink skin with no fur stood out against the dirty-coal colored hide.

The sudden attack brought the robot off balance as the being pulled back from the doorway, taking Sasuke along with it. This caused Sasuke to let go of the door. He fell onto the porch but with one swift kick, managed to land one on the dog's head, enabling the intruder to let go of his leg. The dog let out a sharp bark upon the hard contact but didn't show any sign of fear. Instead, it chose to run around the robot, aiming for the entryway yet again. Sasuke didn't have to think for a second as his mind processed what that thing was planning, 'It's going for Itachi!' His brain screamed at him to do something but his body moved more faster than his mind could comprehend as soon as he heard an audible cry from inside.

Itachi had heard the loud thump of the robot's body when he fell; he knew that the door was widely open now and accessible to anyone, or anything. And just when the moon decided to appear after being obscured by the clouds, Itachi saw the creature for the first time. He also noticed another thing: the thing was coming towards him.

The dog pounced towards the long haired man and Itachi cried out as he ducked out of the way. Snarling teeth and malicious eyes stared at him before Itachi quickly scrambled to his feet, running out of the hallway and into the living room. The dog ran after him, perhaps deliberately blocking the path to the doorway so he had nowhere else to go except more further into the house.

By now, Sasuke's emotion chips were on total concern and worry mode, to the point where his thoughts were a jumbled mess. He couldn't process actions and what he was doing or going to do. All that ran through his mind was that Itachi was in danger, and he had to do something quick before his angel got hurt. There was this feeling inside of him, this motivating feeling that welled up inside of him. He knew one thing, and one thing only.

'I have to protect him... I need to protect him... I need him...'

Itachi felt himself bump into the table stand as he ran into the living room. The lamp on top of the stand wobbled as he maneuvered himself around it quickly. At about this time, Itachi was only relying on the moon as his source of light. He could barely see everything clearly, only the shapes and silhouettes. He took another step backwards as the shape of the dog came crashing into the table stand, fully knocking it down along with the lamp. He watched with wide eyes as the dog picked itself up, recovering from the crash, and stared straight at him, teeth bared and eyes holding an unmistakable message. He knew what the dog wanted. It was hungry. And it wanted him for dinner.

The dog charged again, leaping into the air like before. Itachi took a step back but realized he didn't have anywhere he could retrogress to. The couch stood in his way, blocking any route of escape. He balled up his fists and closed his eyes, awaiting the miserable fate that was to befall him. The pain didn't come.

A loud thud and crash was sounded throughout the house. Itachi opened his eyes and the first thing he saw was Sasuke, arms grappled around the creature, trying to pin it down and keep it from moving. The robot had tackled the dog from behind before it's mouth could reach Itachi. The thing thrashed violently, growling and barking, showing rows of razor sharp teeth. It's powerful hind legs kicked into the robot's abdomen, front claws scratching the robot's chest and arms. It's three tails whipped and lashed out forcefully. The weird spikes on it's back protruded and jabbed dangerously into the AIR. That didn't faze Sasuke in the least bit. He continued holding on, refusing to let the creature get to Itachi, despite the small droplets of blood already forming on his clothes.

'It doesn't matter... All that matters is that Itachi doesn't get hurt...'

The two struggled fiercely with the other on the ground. Furniture was toppled and moved as the two rolled around, trying to hit the other. Sasuke mostly aimed for the head, hoping that with enough repeated hits, the dog would get knocked unconscious. The dog mostly went for all parts of the body, ferociously trying to tear them apart. It was fortunate that Sasuke was a robot. If he had been human, he would have gotten ripped to shreds a long time ago.

'I can't just stand here and do nothing...' thought Itachi. He had to help out in some way. Making up his mind, the crimson eyed man dodged around the couch, ran out of the living room, and headed for the basement door. After descending the stairs, he ran blindly towards the spot he remembered putting it. Reaching frantically around, touching all of the things that were lined up against the wall, feeling if it was the thing he was looking for, Itachi finally found it. It was a lead pipe. He quickly dashed back up the stairs and once again found himself staring at the robot and dog wrestling on the floor. One of the robot's hands was gripping the front legs tightly while the other was grabbing at the throat, trying to push the head away from him. The dog growled all the while, landing solid kicks as Sasuke struggled to pin down the hind legs with his own two legs. Itachi saw this as an opportunity to make his move. He raised the lead pipe above his head and then brought it down hard with all his strength on the mutated dog's head. A loud bam sound was heard followed by a howl of pain and then ending with a whimper. The dog stopped moving and became limp, it's whole body relaxing.

When Sasuke felt the oppression subside, he too relaxed, relieved that the struggle was over. Untangling himself from the body of the nonmoving dog, the robot stood up. But instead of checking his own body damage, he immediately went over to Itachi and asked in a voice laced with obvious concern, "Are you aright?" Itachi gave a nod as he set the pipe down on the floor, leaning it against the couch. Sasuke gave a smile of relief. 'Itachi's okay.' Of course it was obvious that Itachi wasn't harmed. The AIR didn't even give the dog one chance to get close to the apathetic man. Still, he had to ask to make sure, otherwise the concern wouldn't subside.

Still, the feeling that he had at the beginning didn't go away. It stayed, despite the fact the danger was gone. The same motivating feeling, the same desire... 'The wish to protect...' It was still there.

"I should go and fix the generators," stated Itachi as he began walking away from the robot.

"I'll go with you," said the AIR immediately. He didn't want to be separated from Itachi, even if it was for only a small distance. The feeling was still inside him. For some reason, he felt as though he should stay close to the silent man. A tugging sensation that was by far indistinguishable to him. 'Everything's alright now. So why do I still feel this way?' the robot asked himself. It confused him that at that moment of time when Itachi could have gotten hurt, a compelling force drove him past comprehensible thought to protect him. To keep him from harm, even if it meant new wounds for the AIR.

'But even if I did get injured, it would only be on the outside. It doesn't hurt and the wounds can heal eventually. Perhaps maybe tomorrow they would be gone already. Is that why I chose to fight with that dog? Did I only step out because I knew that the dog could never badly harm me physically, or was it for some other reason? If I had been a human instead, would I have done the same thing, knowing it could kill me?' Sadly, Sasuke would never have that questioned answered because he wasn't a human. But perhaps he had felt something that could be somewhat similar to human instinct. An instinct and a will to protect towards a certain someone...

And that said person managed to jolt the robot back from his thoughts with a sentence, "No, you stay here." The robot opened his mouth to protest, clearly not supporting the fact of Itachi going out alone in the dark when there could be more mutant dogs loose out there. Itachi spoke first before he could argue, "You're injured. Clean yourself up first."

Sasuke could not argue with that. He had blood on his clothes, even though it was little. It didn't stain his entire shirt but for the sake of it, changing into clean clothes was the more desirable option, especially when his shirt had some rips and tears from the grapple earlier. He turned around to go to the bedroom, but knew immediately that it was a bad idea. For as soon as he turned his back on the dog, it leaped up in a split second and charged for Itachi.

'It's not dead yet...' both the robot and human thought. Itachi's mind reacted as quick as his brain processed the attack and he ducked away. The dog didn't stop and after failing the first time tried again the second time, growling the same malicious growl. This time, it was angry and it's eyes budged out more than ever. It was pissed for being attacked back, and if it couldn't fight against Sasuke, then charge for the other: Itachi.

Sasuke made it over to Itachi's side in the blink of an eye. He grabbed hold of the smaller man with one arm and brought him close to his chest, positioning himself so that he was right in between the assailant and the target. The monstrous dog could not withdraw his attack and his teeth sank straight into Sasuke's arm yet again, the one that wasn't holding onto Itachi. This time, it was Sasuke's turn to get pissed. 'That thing is trying to bite him again... That thing is trying to attack him again... THAT THING IS TRYING TO HURT ITACHI AGAIN?' That set him over the edge. The robot let go of Itachi's slim figure before balling his hand into a fist and smashing it down against the dog's head. The dog let go of the arm, leaped up into the air yet again, and instead of attacking with it's mouth, decided to use it's knifelike claws. The claws lashed forward.

Sasuke embraced Itachi, enclosing the lithe body within his arms. Crimson eyes widened as Itachi felt arms come around him. The warmth was suffocating as his face was pressed against the strong chest. His body automatically tensed with the close contact. It had been a long time since anyone had hugged him. It felt weird to him. Itachi was at a loss of words. His mind was blank at the small action.

But Sasuke didn't just embrace Itachi for the heck of it. It was again for the same reason, protection. The action successfully protected Itachi from being lashed by the claws of the mutated dog, but the damage had to be inflicted anyhow. Sasuke took the hit himself as the claws came in contact with his back. Fabric tore and grotesque scraping sounds were heard as the talons raked through the robot's back. Itachi's eyes widened at what was happening to Sasuke.

'He's getting hurt to protect me. He's deliberately getting lacerated, so that I won't get injured...' This really got to Itachi. He couldn't, wouldn't let another person get hurt just because of him. 'It's already happened more times than one... Even if this is a robot, I can't stand to just watch helplessly... I can't let it happen again...' The noticeable tightening of the robot's arms around him was enough to finalize his decision. In one swift movement, Itachi maneuvered his way out of the AIR's arms. He pivoted in a fleeting manner, hair flaring out and streaming like strands of gossamer ribbons. In a sudden second, he had the lead pipe in his hands again. And in another quick moment, he had bashed it into the intruder's head. The abnormal canine howled but before it could retaliate, Itachi had raised the stick back up, bringing it down on the mutant's head.

Sasuke saw how the hits were not hard enough to be effective on the dog. He reached out his hand and took the stick from Itachi, meeting the red eyes with his charcoal orbs. The robot gave a nod and Itachi let him have the pipe. The AIR took one step towards the enemy before raising the pipe. His eyes were hard and cold, mouth set into a grim line. Sasuke brought the pipe down with one final blow, successfully striking the dog's head. The impact came with a loud bam, echoing throughout the silent household. The dog swayed a little before finally collapsing onto the floor.

The robot knelt down to check if the beast was really dead or if it was playing dead like the last time. Itachi watched a distance away, waiting for the confirmation. Concluding that this time was real and not an act, Sasuke said to Itachi, "It's dead." The smaller man breathed a sigh of ease, relieved that the danger was over. He collapsed onto the couch that was conveniently right behind him. "Itachi?" questioned the robot.

"I'm fine, just tired," replied Itachi as he closed his eyes and reposed his body. He felt the weight shift on the spot next to him and upon opening his eyes, found the robot sitting next to him, apparently worn by the fight.

And that was how they spent the next few minutes, sitting on the couch next to each other thinking about their first ambush by an animal since coming here. It almost felt as though everything had been a bad dream, that it never happened, but it was real. The tiredness in Itachi's body and wounds on Sasuke's was evidence that the attack really did happen. Not to mention the corpse of the dead animal, lying on the floor motionless. The AIR noticed this, "What should we do with the body?"

"Let Kakashi have it," answered Itachi.

"We're just gonna give him the body?"

"Yes, he'll dispose of it for us. Burying it would only leave a stench here." Sasuke gave a nod of understanding. Itachi looked at the corpse, and then at the robot. The dog really did a number on the spiky haired AIR. He'd have to tend to those wounds. But first... "I'll fix the generators now. You clean yourself up." Itachi left the room and this time, Sasuke let him go. The tugging sensation was gone now, so it was safe.

Sighing, the robot headed out the living room and up the stairs to his bedroom. He grabbed a clean pair of clothes and a towel and entered the bathroom. Unraveling the bandages from his chest and body, the onyx eyed android stepped into the shower. He turned the showerhead on and let the water run down his form. 'Great, now I have new wounds. And the old ones haven't even healed yet,' thought Sasuke sarcastically. A more deeper look into why he got hurt and the robot smiled a happy smile despite the fact his biological flesh was torn beyond compare. Was it worth it?

'Yes, it was worth it,' concluded the robot as he thought of the person he got injured for. 'Definitely worth it.' A small flicker flashed through the light bulbs followed by brilliance as the whole house was filled with the luminous blaze of light. 'Looks like Itachi managed to fix the generators.'

The robot exited the shower. He grabbed the towel and dried himself as best as he could. Then, Sasuke put on the pair of pants he selected and left the bathroom. His shirt would have to wait. Sasuke entered his room and found Itachi sitting on his bed. In his hands was a first-aid kit, as expected by the shirtless AIR. Itachi motioned for him to sit down and the robot obeyed. The smaller man moved behind Sasuke and started unrolling a reel of bandages. He traced his fingers over one of the lash marks on the body in front of him, calculating how deep it was and how much attention it should need in order to heal.

Sasuke smiled, looking behind his back to the silently working man. Itachi looked up as soon as he saw the turn of the head and their eyes met. Catching the happy grin, Itachi asked, "Why are you smiling?"

The robot only shook his head but his smile never left or disappeared. "No reason," was the answer. Itachi tilted his head, a sign of confusion. It was obvious he was trying to understand what the AIR was thinking of. Too bad he couldn't guess just what was going on inside the mind of the person he was now caring for. Sasuke turned his head back to it's original position of looking ahead and let Itachi do his work. No use confusing the beautiful black haired man.

He was, however, surprised when the fingers stopped moving, replaced by a warm sensation of something pressing up against his back. No, two things, it was. He could recognize one of the things as Itachi's hand, spread out against the right side. But he couldn't tell what the source of the other sensation was. A look back and Sasuke gave an inaudible gasp. It was Itachi's forehead. His forehead was resting on the robot's back along with his hand, positioned right next to his face. The black haired beauty had his eyes closed while he leaned in to the warm aura the robot was emitting. Sasuke didn't know what to say. Luckily, the AIR didn't have to speak first this time. While keeping his head down with his forehead as the only source of contact, Itachi whispered, "Thank you... for saving me."

Sasuke kept on staring back at Itachi, not trusting his mouth for the moment to say anything. His eyes held surprise in them because he had never expected Itachi to do something like that. Thank him, yes, but to put his forehead against him, never. Slowly, the smile that had disappeared during his moment of shock returned, more wider than ever. The AIR answered back in the same hushed tone that Itachi used, "You're welcome."

Nothing was said after that. However, despite the silence in the room, Sasuke's smile didn't diminish when the bandaging session was over nor did it fade even when they were getting ready to go to sleep. 'Another barrier down, another step closer... That promise will be fulfilled.' And with that, the AIR's thoughts drifted back to his earlier musings, the reason he was smiling before the small act of gratitude by Itachi. A reason, a purpose, a thought that made him content as he drifted into his sleep mode.

'I'm happy here... being with him.'


Itachi still has a FIRE in him! But seriously, using lead pipes, don't try it please. Sasuke's so sweet to Itachi. And yes, barriers are falling! Go Sasuke! Okay, enough of mindless chatter now. In the next chapter, it will be explained where the dog came from. (Although you probably could have guessed) And also, another thing will be discovered that will put Itachi's trust in Sasuke on the line. Oooo, what could it be?

Review please! I read your reviews! They are so wonderful and I greatly appreciate them!