I really don't know what was going through my mind when I asked Itachi why he was a sadist. Not only could it have gotten me killed, but it was painfully obvious that my partner wouldn't give me a straight answer. That is, if he even bothered to answer.

It took Itachi a few moments to come up with a reply. My guess is, he was fighting the urge to kill me, and had to calm himself down before speaking. I was only slightly surprised when he gave me a question for an answer. Well, surprised, and extremely relieved. This meant I wasn't about to die a horribly painful death.

I replied to his question, and he finally replied to mine. So, being a total sadist wasn't something he could help? Can't say that surprised me. Cruelty's in human nature; I guess Itachi felt that more strongly than some people did.

I went back to cleaning my sword, when another thought occurred to me. Itachi had just willingly told another human being something about his personality. Such a feat should have brought on the apocalypse, if nothing else.

All this did, though, was peak my curiosity about my partner. Did he actually have a personality, under that stoic front? Well obviously he had to, since he's human and all. 'Human' being used as loosely as possible, mind you.

So, then and there, as I was scrubbing away at a particularly tough blood stain, I vowed to learn everything I could about Itachi. Maybe then I could figure out what precautions I had to take to keep him from maiming and/or killing me.

A few days later, I snuck into Pein's office and stole Itachi's file. Sir Leader was busy with Konan, doing Kami knows what in their room. Actually, it doesn't take much imagination to guess what they were doing, and it's enough to make me depressed. Not because they're having sex; at least, not exactly. It's just that they're screwing, Sasori's banging Deidara, and I'm pretty sure Kakuzu is doing Hidan, since our resident banker's too cheap to shell out for a whore whenever he gets in the mood. Everyone's getting laid but me; how sad is that?

Oh, right, I was talking about Itachi's file.

Well, the first few pages didn't tell me anything I didn't already know; mostly, it was just reports on the Sharingan, and the murder of his clan. The next few pages talked about his choice of weapons, fighting style, yadda yadda, nothing I didn't already know.

The rest of the file was about the same, and within five minutes the thing was back on Pein's desk. It was probably the biggest waste of time I've ever inflicted on myself. Well, aside from the few times I managed to convince myself to listen to Pein giving Itachi and me information on our missions. Nothing can top that bore fest.

As I made my way back to our room, I realized how much I knew about Itachi that the file didn't even mention. The fact that he was quiet, liked dango, and openly admitted to being a sadist. Those items weren't worth mentioning in that manila folder, but they were true of Itachi nonetheless. They were the little quirks about him that made the weasel…human.

I know what you're thinking. Something along the lines of, "Did he just call Itachi a human being? That can't be right."

Expect that it is. For some reason, after that trip I was able to picture him as a person, instead of just a cold-blooded killer. Itachi had likes and dislikes, thoughts on several subjects, opinions on many more, and at one point in time may have had emotions. Although I'm fairly certain that any feelings my partner may or may not have had are long gone now.

It was weird, at first; to have to share a room with someone whom you thought of as an ingenious yet psychotic murderer for years on end, and then suddenly decide that maybe they actually have a human side. Very weird, to be truthful. Actually, it was downright creepy.

I couldn't help but watch my partner more closely after that. I was desperate to find out anything about Itachi that his file had neglected to mention.

I got an excellent chance to take in Itachi's…Itachiness, I guess you could call it, when we left on our next mission. The assignment involved a long trek halfway across the country, and it would just be Itachi and me. The perfect chance to study the little weasel, in my book.

So, after getting the basic necessities together, we set out for our latest target. I had no clue what we were going to do (once again, I hadn't paid any attention to what Pein was saying. Try listening to that guy talk for a while, and you'll understand why.)

Itachi took the lead, and I followed close behind. The weather was pretty nice; very warm, with a soft breeze blowing every now and again. We were trekking through a forest path, and sunlight filtered down through the trees, illuminating some spots while leaving others in the shade. I didn't pay much attention to the scenery, though; my focus was Itachi.

My partner walked rather stiffly, as if he were prepared for an attack at any moment. He walked lightly along the road, not making a sound as he walked along, and he was dead silent.

I frowned at this. If anything about Itachi disturbs me more than his sadistic nature, it's these long spells of silence from him. He never says much, unless he absolutely has to, and it's not because he's a man of few words (although he kind of is). Itachi just bottles up everything inside of him, and only lets it out when he's mauling his latest victim.

This kind of behavior can't be healthy; either for him, or for me, since there's a damn good chance I might end up as a victim of his one day.

During my meditation, we've exited the forest, and are now walking along a wide, dusty road exposed for all to see. I wish we were back in the forest; it provides better cover, and even with our hats blocking out most of the sunlight, the heat is nearly unbearable out in the open.

Itachi seemed to agree with me. Strange, right? Anyway, when a tea shop appeared in our view, he turned and walked straight in, not saying so much as a single "Hn," to me about this. Oh well; that's Itachi for you.

We sat down, and waited for a woman to come by and take our order. I knew I'd be the one talking to the waitress (and if that wasn't obvious, you too may want to stop somewhere and get out of the sun for a while) and asked Itachi what he wanted to eat. He shrugged, and turned his head to silently watch the people around us eat. I narrowed my eyes, and sighed inwardly. Great, now I had to come up with something for him to eat.

Just then, I remembered the talk we'd had a while back in our room. He liked dango! I realized this just in time, because right then a girl walked up and asked us what we'd like. I placed the orders, and waited.

When the food arrived, Itachi waited until the woman had departed before so much as sparing his plate a glance. When he looked down, his eyes widened slightly, before gently moving to look up at me. "You said you liked dango, right?" I asked as nonchalantly as I possibly could.

He nodded and picked up the sweet treat, gently nibbling on the sweet. His eyes traveled to my plate, before going back up to me. "You like gyoza, then?"

I nearly choked on the aforementioned dumpling I was eating. Had Itachi honestly just asked me a question about what I liked?! "Yeah, actually," I answered calmly.

"Seems odd," he commented.

"What, were you thinking I'd like sushi?" I jokingly replied.

To my shock, a smile briefly darted across his face, before he shook his head and returned his attention to the sweet in his hand.

As I continued to eat, it occurred to me that for the first time in, well, ever, I had just had a conversation with my partner. Moreover, I'd seen Itachi smile.

Well well. It appeared Itachi Uchiha was capable of emotions after all.