Lunulupae watched the two sides stare at each other warily.

With the exception of the perverted gaze from the toad-like smelling man, the rest of them were on edge, which the phantasmal beast caught on to immediately.

"A-ah. If I may ask...would you like to star as the main heroine of my new novel?" Jiraiya recovered, quickly switching modes from that of a pervert to a sophisticated pervert. "You would become famous, and I'll happily give you 90% of the earnings. You would be set for life!"

Something cracked within Shirou.

"DON'T ACCEPT HIS PROPOSAL!" He shouted in panic. He had read the perverted Sannin's work just to craft fan mail along with Pein's. He still didn't know what kind of code the Sannin had that even the leader of Akatsuki was forced to write such perverted content. First hand experience of the novel warned him that having Lunulupae as the star of such a genre would only come back and bite him in the ass later.

Jiraiya jerked out of his trance after hearing Shirou's voice. His eyes widening as the Sage took in the young criminal's appearance. "Heh, looks like the jig is up."

Shirou gritted his teeth together. How did they find him? He destroyed the Hiraishin kunai that marked his escape, covered his tracks, and even doubled back to see if anyone followed him.

Nothing, or as far as he knew it. Yet here were three of Konoha's most capable at the very location of Akatsuki's old meeting spot.

Kakashi frowned. "Master Jiraiya, please don't take the situation lightly. We have no idea what they are both capable of." Itachi was already tensed, ready to cover the rest of his side.

"I know. That's why rather than making an enemy of Shirou and his wonderful friend, I'd like to talk it out instead." Jiraiya grinned while wiggling his eyebrows at the lady.

Shirou's eyes twitched. This pervert was still ogling Lunulupae. Any wrong move and he would make sure that man would regret making any moves on her. Exposing a few abilities wouldn't hurt as long as he kept his reality marble a secret.

"Flattered. But I'm busy helping my daughter's friend." Lunulupae smiled.

For a moment, Shirou caught himself stumbling in shock at her reply.

You can't be serious.

"I see...it is only right that Lunea's beauty had to have come from somewhere after all." Jiraiya nodded sagely, quickly connecting the pieces of information together. The little girl may be a criminal, but he knew that the young lily would only bloom into a beautiful flower given some time.

Kakashi's eyes widened upon realizing The Sannin's conclusion. Whereas Itachi remained unperturbed by the knowledge.

Does she not care about getting sexualized? How was she dealing with the old man's leering eyes?

Shirou shook his head as he snapped out of it. "If you're here for me, I'm busy. Force me to go with you and we'll risk getting discovered by both Pein and Hanzo." Shirou assumed that the three of them didn't know about Tobi, and Shirou wasn't going to waste time explaining about the man.

More importantly, if a fight broke out here, then all his progress would be wasted. Tobi would learn of his survival, and Shirou could say goodbye to his only chance at the statue.

"Please, kid. We know how dangerous Tobi is. Right now, we're more interested in learning why you're going this far to tackle him alone." The man single-handedly tried to release the Kyuubi on Konoha. His threat level was basically on par with the entirety of Akatsuki in their eyes. The only difference was Akatsuki's assault was successful while Tobi's failed.

Itachi and Kakashi stayed quiet. They trusted Jiraiya's expertise to defuse the situation. They were capable, but their combined experience still fell short of Konoha's best spymaster.

"You know about Tobi?" Shirou frowned at the discovery. Why was Konoha aware of the man behind Akatsuki? By chance? Even Shirou wasn't aware that Akatsuki's resident clown was the reason the organization existed, and he only learned it from Pein himself.

Jiraiya grinned a smile full of retribution. "We've got a bone to pick with that man. He tried to attack Konoha alone once. It nearly worked. So learning that Akatsuki was his little project made us more than pissed to see him succeed the second time." He held his arms wide open. "So here's the deal. Tell us what your intentions are, and if they align with ours, then perhaps we can work together." The Sage crossed his arms back together, awaiting Shirou's answer.

Said boy narrowed his eyes. "You're awfully straightforward about this." Unnervingly so. This was the spymaster of Konoha, and Shirou wasn't going to underestimate the man.

"Well I can't play coy now can I? If I don't place all the cards right now, we're definitely going to lose a fight with you two. I'm not so confident fighting something at the caliber of that beauty beside you." Jiraiya grunted. It was the truth. He was a Sage, and knew more than most when it came to the strength of phantasmal beasts.

To put it simply, he was trapped in a corner.

Jiraiya knew that him, Itachi, and Kakashi combined wouldn't stand a rat's chance against Lunulupae.

At least she ignored rats.

"Perfect. More hands are always better."

What?

Shirou stared at Lunulupae horrified.

"Shirou came to me for help. The five of us would make it easier. Especially since I can distract Tobi by moving across Amegakure."

He didn't like this plan at all. Those people at the frontline wouldn't know what hit them. The looks of Kakashi and Itachi showed that they also pitied the poor souls.

"Alright then. Mind filling us in on how we're going to find this so-called Gedo Mazo? We have Shirou's old words, but I'm sure he was holding back on all of it."

That night, the third and fourth factions operating in Amegakure merged.

Four weeks after Shirou arrived in Amegakure, and seven weeks after the war's beginning.

Shirou peered from atop another ruined building, watching another battle take place.

Explosions rocked in the distance, visible to the average person, but audible for Shirou's lightly enhanced senses. These were different from the explosions in the past week or so.

They were stronger.

Shirou frowned. It was already bad enough that many civillians found themselves without homes after the damage caused by the two warring factions. Was this really the goal Pein had in mind when he planned to instigate a revolution against Hanzo? The people were suffering, and slowly but surely, leaving.

The changes were already here.

More and more people were fleeing, the streets already half empty. Itachi informed the rest that a relief effort had been established to the west of the city, so that refugees could make an attempt to escape the battlefield.

At least, Hanzo and Pein's forces were content to leave the escaping civillians alone.

The longer this war went on, the harder it would become.

Not just for the people, but also for Shirou.

Less people in the city meant less cover for him and the others.

Shirou retreated from his perch, climbing down the roof using the good old fashioned way…with hands and feet. He had seen Jiraiya and the others traverse the walls by literally walking on them, but Shirou himself didn't know the secret to their technique, and was forced to climb walls normally.

Or as normal as possible anyway. Climbing trees really boosted his ability in that regard.

It took him a few seconds to descend to the lower floor, jumping through a window and into the ruined hallway. Shirou walked down the hall quickly, glancing at each room he passed. Many of them were in a state of disarray, their inhabitants clearly packing their belongings as quickly as possible and fleeing their homes. This was one of the few buildings that Shirou found relatively unharmed so far, both sides having not fought nearby yet.

He frowned. The scene was somber, just like many others.

Once Shirou exited the building, he was greeted with a small crowd. The people were walking around hurriedly, the normally packed streets already at a half of their size. Where before, Shirou would easily melt into the crowd, here it was easier to pick out the foreigners. He lightly rubbed the weak noble phantasm in his pocket, trusting the illusion to keep him safe. As far as he knew, they would only see him as a resident of Ame, also affected by the war.

But before he could go, Shirou noticed something.

"Please sir…I need money for my sick brother…"

A small child, only a few years younger than him. The girl was begging, holding an empty can. She was approaching strangers desperately.

"I-I need medicine for my brother…painkillers, the doctor said. J-just enough so I can bring him out the city west."

His slightly enhanced ears heard her voice from afar, along with the clinking of a few coins. Judging from the sound, the can contained barely enough for the girl to get by for her next two meals.

Shirou paused. He wanted to avoid attention, but leaving the girl without help was against his principles. If the doctor couldn't help her brother, then the only choice was to find help somewhere else. The girl was younger than him, but she was determined to try her best, even if it meant endangering herself.

It was like looking at a mirror, reminding Shirou of how he used to be.

He frowned.

"Can you s-spare some change s-sir?"

It was the exact opposite of what he wanted right now. But the girl approached him out of desperation, and hardened he may be, Shirou was still largely the same boy who carried a dream to save people.

Seeing this war only reminded Shirou that he could never take his eyes away from those in need of saving. Every way he looked, there was always someone in need of help. Food, money, medicine. It was all there, waiting for him to swoop in.

But Shirou couldn't help all of them. There was only so much he could do. Most of his savings from work in Akatsuki had already been used to anonymously fund startup relief groups outside the city. The little he had left only amounted to a few weeks worth of food. Any longer and he would be looking for jobs in the battlefield, then Tobi would start noticing.

So Shirou could only help the girl in other ways.

Shirou smiled at the girl, nodding and gently nudging her shoulder. "Can you lead me to your brother? I can help you with more than just money."He slipped into the can a handful of bronze with one silver coin hidden in the middle, enough to buy the girl more than enough medicine and food to last the week.

It should give them sufficient supplies until they reach a village outside Ame.

The girl's eyes widened as she caught the silver glint amidst the bronze. Shirou quickly rotated her around, then pushed her forwards. "Don't let anyone see it." He whispered while they walked.

The others wouldn't notice if he burned an hour or two carrying her brother outside the battlefield.

…

…

…

Once Shirou left the first refugee encampment outside Ame, he huffed in annoyance.

Someone had been following him the entire time.

"Come out already. You know this is a waste of our time."

A rustle of leaves whispered the arrival of his stalker.

"Then if you knew that, why do it?"

Konoha's best spymaster quickly appeared leaning on a tree, staring impassively at him.

"I couldn't just leave her alone to desperately help escape. It's clear that she's separated from her parents. You can't expect her to bring her brother out safely."

That was an understatement. By the time Shirou arrived at their shelter, or the ruins of one, the brother was a few days away from dying. The doctor who asked the girl to leave the battlefield had given her hope that she could find help outside, but the wounds the brother carried couldn't be treated. At. All.

Shirou could only imagine the influx of other patients the doctor had, and the best he could do was give the girl a little more hope.

Since Jiraiya had started trailing him a few streets after finding the girl, he would've also seen his little "spell", somehow healing the boy from death's door.

Nothing like casually tracing Avalon inside the boy would be seen, buuuut maybe the effects were more obvious.

Like per se, the return of color to an otherwise pale boy just a few minutes earlier.

Yeah…Shirou still doubted the boy would need medical aid by tomorrow's sunset. Avalon was not going to degrade due to his unique circumstance with the world, so Shirou would have to dematerialize it later on.

"Kid, I would call you a miracle worker. Even Tsunade can't heal a person that fast."

Well…there goes his cover.

"Would you believe me if I said I was a magician?"

"The greatest medical one there is."

"Yeah, let's go with that."

Seeing as the pair of odd allies were already on the outskirts, they didn't have to be as cautious. Switching into high gear, the two dashed towards the location of their hidden base.

Kakashi gulped down the small can of soup.

Six weeks. The mission had been going on for six weeks. They originally brought two months of supplies with them, but when their mission parameters changed, the trio from Konoha started rationing. Equipment and medicine were fine, but food was the main problem. It was getting harder and harder to buy food from the shops. Prices skyrocketed as the risk of transportation increased, and the demand shot up with it. People were fighting over scraps, and other outright stealing from store owners because they couldn't afford to purchase anymore.

Kakashi didn't blame them. They lost their jobs once the war began, and times were getting harder.

…

…

…

"We need to find another way to get food."

The group of four was silent. The main goal was finding the Gedo Mazo, which was already looking impossibly difficult after one month of searching. But more importantly, was the food they had on hand.

If they didn't find food soon, then their supplies would run out in four weeks.

Shirou closed his eyes. He didn't want to do this, but it was clear that he couldn't keep holding back. The group needed to continue operating at their best, and losing food was detrimental to their performance.

Jiraiya already knew that he was hiding his true skills. He may have shown Konoha his tracing skills to change objects, but to heal a boy from dying meant more than changing. It meant knowledge. Shirou must have known how a body worked for him to eliminate the problems within, and while yes he did, he wasn't confident in his own abilities. He had traced his body countless times to know which cells did which, but had not trained in actually modifying them.

So the next best thing he could do was trace an EX Rank Noble Phantasm that wasn't tied to the world.

Yeah, because that was clearly easier than just practicing human anatomy.

What could Shirou do but play along? Especially when Jiraiya had shared his findings with the others.

And since Jiraiya was more suspicious of him now more than ever, might as well breach the gates and overwhelm them on the spot.

"I have a way to get us what we need, but I need you all to keep a secret."

The Konoha shinobi turned to him.

Shirou reached out and traced three Hiraishin kunai. The three landed in front of each one, the trio staring at the iconic weapon of The Yondaime Hokage.

"I will make a dash for the refugee corridor tomorrow. It will take me a day to find the closest village or town that is safe. I need you all to stop searching for the Gedo Mazo and stay hidden until I find one. Once I do, I'll teleport to each of you with supplies I bought."

"Brat, did you just make these out of thin air?"

"Yes."

"Is there anything else you could do to make our lives easier? Aside from being the greatest doctor on this side of the world. Tsunade will be more than pissed after I share with her your ability" Jiraiya huffed. "It's not exactly fun spending a month searching for this damned statue without help."

Shirou thought for a little bit, before tracing another trio of daggers.

"These ones have a communication runic array. From what I know of chakra, it's rather similar to prana. So just channel it into the dagger. This way, you can talk to all of us. I'm sorry that it doesn't have a one-way setting."

"We'll take what we can get. This is already an impressive tool you got here." The Sage picked up the dagger, studying the array and weapon intently. He and the others quickly tucked it away, intent on studying the magic on it. "Let's hope Shirou doesn't get into any trouble tomorrow."

Shirou kicked another rock in frustration.

Eight weeks.

Where? Where was Tobi hiding the statue?

The entire city had been picked clean, along with the surrounding vicinity. Surely Tobi had to have kept the statue nearby to keep it safe.

But no. Not only had they found nothing, they were at their wits end.

"Alright kid. We've been here for two months now. We're still stuck here helping you, but I'm not convinced that this Gedo Mazo exists."

Jiraiya tapped the table irritatedly. Behind him Kakashi and Itachi still continued to act professionally, but even Shirou could tell they were tired.

They were losing faith in him. The only thing keeping them around was Lunulupae, who checked up on their progress every night.

Shirou closed his eyes…there was only one other choice he could make. The war was nearing its end, and Akatsuki was knocking on the doors of Hanzo. Despite the man's best efforts and his stronger army, they had been taking a beating from the entirety of Akatsuki.

"If we can't find it, then Tobi is our only option."

Jiraiya banged the table at that.

"You're mad! Attacking him is going to fail on our part! Are you asking us to be wiped out?!" He growled angrily. "Tobi would easily escape us, then Akatsuki would assume Konoha's involved in the war!"

"Who said you needed to show yourselves?"

Jiraiya paused.

"Explain."

"For this final attempt, I need to find an Akatsuki member and trace their ring. As I'm sure you've guessed, I can copy objects and trace them by simply seeing them."

"That's a stretch, but yes. You've got quite the ability there." Jiraiya commented.

"The ring is tied to the Gedo Mazo, and should give us the location. The only problem is that once I come close, Akatsuki would discover me. I've been avoiding all Zetsu patrols, but coming close to any Akatsuki member would mean running into them. Once they recognize my energy, I'm going to be discovered."

Shirou took a deep breath.

"So this means I have to make a dash for a member. After I trace the ring, I will flash back to you and we'll rush straight for the ring. By then, Tobi would know I survived. We'd still have to fight him at the statue."

"You're awfully banking on us trusting that there is a statue."

"I'll pay you for it."

Jiraiya's eyes twitched. "You're going to pay us seven weeks worth of service you know. Two S-ranks and an A-rank doesn't come cheap."

Now what could Shirou pay them with…

"I'll give you that special medicine I gave the boy."

"Bullshit."

"You said Tsunade would kill you for it."

"Alright you got a deal."

Shirou could only hold his head in his hands.

If Arturia Pendragon ever learned of him using her sheath as a bartering tool, the king would never let him live it down.

It's a good thing this was a new world.

Besides, it was a sheath. Not exactly a weapon Konoha could use. If anything, the sheath would become a prized artifact capable of healing anyone. It would be impossible for the thing to be abused when the ninjas weren't practitioners of that line of magic.

Right?

"Is something wrong dear sister?"

The white haired girl stared across her, looking at her smaller sibling. The girl was distracted, which was usually not the case when it came to food. It was breakfast, and the two had been served a healthy fare by the fairies. It was the norm, since their subjects wanted their two kings in perfect health.

In fact, they had never gotten sick even once in their entire lives.

How odd.

So it was an anomaly that her sister looked like she lacked sleep. Their responsibilities worked hand in hand, and the work was split between them evenly. Then why was her sister looking a bit off?

Almost as if something bad had happened. But if something were to happen, then she would've known about it.

After all, the pair of them were leading Britain, or The Fairy Isles, depending on who you asked.

Arturia Avalon looked at the sheath in her lap intensely.

"Avalon reacted again. A third time after the second one two weeks ago. The first happened a few years ago, but this makes it the third time."

Morgan Le Fay blinked, then took a sip from the tea in front of her. "Have you contacted Merlin about it? That advisor of yours should be on the task."

"He's not back yet, busy gallivanting with female fairies or humans he fancies."

"Surely he's noticed as well? He is well versed in Avalon and its secrets."

"You overestimate his ability to remember things once he's drunk."

Ah. That was a good point actually, Morgan thought. Merlin was very capable in assisting them in leading the kingdom, but would prefer to toss the responsibilities aside and walk off to who knows where.

The last time they found him, he was asleep on the castle roof naked.

That was one memory Morgan didn't fancy.

"Have you tried contacting your…other version?" For some reason, the other Arturia held some deep animosity for the elder sibling.

Perhaps because her version of Morgan Le Fay had never mended their broken relationship? She and Arturia were enemies up until the day they put aside their differences for the sake of Britain.

Arturia achieved her destiny, becoming the king of Britain.

Morgan achieved her dream, invited as a fellow king to rule beside her sibling.

It was no longer her destiny, having broken that once she lost her way. The world summoned another child of destiny for Britain, one to replace her, and yet somehow…because of two travellers, fate had changed.

That path of thought led to memories of those dark days, and the light that shone to save her from despair.

For at one point, before the two became kings, came another pair of worthy kings. Both were not known to anyone at the time, but only realized after their loss.

They, who taught the girls that kings weren't created, that kings weren't destined.

But that kings were chosen, by the people they lead.

Morgan looked down at the gardens beside the castle. There, amidst the garden of blooming flowers and of glowing trees, stood a statue.

A statue of a pair of people, lost travellers they introduced themselves, yet both carried a somewhat familiar bearing when they travelled the land.

Lost they say, yet their actions spoke of recognition.

Like the land they were in was a land different from what they remembered.

They, who came from a memory long in the past. Yet still stayed strong within their minds. For they were the ones who changed everything.

The statue was made in memory of two travellers. One obviously a foreigner, the other?

…almost like an identical twin to the two kings of Britain.

Red hair, golden eyes, and a humble bearing.

Fujimura Einzbern.

Beside him, a young mirror of the two kings.

A teenage girl with a ponytail dressed in light white armor.

Lily Saber.

Both names were lies, as confirmed by Merlin. But they were the names the pair of travellers gave them.

And as such, they were the names of the two legendary kings that Britain lost the day it was saved.

For they sacrificed themselves to save her, and her sister.

And with that sacrifice, the rest of Britain.

Author's Note

Ah fuck it. Volume 2 has taken way too long. We have 2-3 more chapters, and we're off to Volume 3. In the meantime, enjoy the Volume 4 leak.

Yes, I'm also way too excited to finally start on a new volume, and who doesn't want a Morgan and Castoria arc? Throw in Saber Lily and Fujimura Einzbern too!

Yes, I'm crazy and this fic is a mess.