A Most Unlikely Rider

by NeonZangetsu

You know, after all these trials, all those tribulations, after everything I've done...I didn't expect to actually die. And yet I did. Murdered by my best friend, no less. Of course I'd jump at a chance to change my Fate. No matter the cost. Help a little chick fly? Done. Fight another war? Done. Lose my mind? Already did! A Most Unlikely Rider, indeed! Narutoxharem.

5. First Selection (Part IV)

A/N: (EDITS AHOY! Added some stuff, polished up dialogue, and threw in more content~!)

Big author's note here, feel free to skip it if you like.

So very tired...this chapter...mind of its own...kept growing...AND GROWING...

MORE THAN TEN THOUSAND WORDS FOR YOU ALL!

...why is it dark outside? Pretty sure it was morning when I started this...

In any case, I didn't want to impulsive and post this when it was incomplete. I wanted to take my time and finish off the first round properly.

Disclaimer!

I own no references, nor dialogue related to Fate Extra or its other affiliated properties. Its merely lifted from the game. ESPECIALLY regarding Shinji and Rani, including Drake toward the end. Furthermore, this chapter is jam-packed with just about all the good stuff, romance, chaos, humor, death, you name it!

Weren't expecting an update this soon, were you?! Surprise!

I DID say that the last chapter was merely half of the greater whole did I not?

On another note I'm pleased to see that everyone enjoyed the little food fight, I wasn't expecting to get that many reviews!

Now, onto your questions, comments, and concerns!

Q: My biggest complaints about this chapter is that you seem to be treating Shinji like he is Fate incarnation, whereas per WoG Shinji in Extra is actually a good person, if with a crappy attitude. His biggest issue is that he's 11 year old genius hacker who has no idea that the Moon Cell isn't some super-VR game.

A: *Sighs deeply*

He's eight, actually. And that DOES NOT excuse his behavior. He isn't remotely kind or useful until the events of CCC and EVEN THEN he's a right and proper dick until that point. In Extra? He's a downright ass, one who refused to accept defeat right until the bitter end. Worse, when he beats you, he openly mocks you for dying. I should know, I picked up the game for the sole purpose of my research into this story. I'll grant that Shinji may not know the true nature of the Holy Grail War, and may even tolerate his Servant, but that's no reason to give him preferential treatment.

Q: Can Kurama fight?

A: Yes, but...well. Lets just say he needs space to do battle. Confined spaces are NOT his thing. This chapter explains it.

Q: I see you, boi! I know what you're plotting for next chapter...and kudos to you for it!

A: Why, thank you! To address your earlier concern. Command Spells CAN be taken too, but its complicated. It requires consent-forced or otherwise-from the party losing the spells. After all, Sola did it-through great effort-in Fate Zero. Furthermore, in this war, you can only use two and need to hold one in reserve. If you lose all three-BAM! You're gone, done, deleted out of the war.

So don't expect little Hakuno to give hers up willingly.

Q: Hakuno's coming out of her shell isn't she?

A: Indeed she is and this is only the beginning of something grand.

Q: Seems Drake's got an eye for Naruto...?

A: Lets just say they mesh well together given their personalities. They're both the sort to live as they please, not caring what others think of them. Drake, even more so. After all, why would a pirate care what a few rogue Servants thought of her? She's the sort to throw herself headlong into anything she does and consequences be damned.

Q: TAMAMO WHEN?!

A: TAMAMO SOON!

Q: Ahaha! I noticed a few extra Servants in the last chapter! Was that intentional?

A: *Whistles innocently*

Q: Are you deliberately concealing the Masters?

A: Yes, that's intentional on my part. I think we all know who Tamamo's master is, but Nero...well. I ain't telling.

Q: Clever of you, keeping Shinji out of the loop with the injury. At least this way we don't have to deal with him. I WANNA STRANGLE THE LITTLE BASTARD!

A: You know what they say, being Shinji is suffering.

I'll keep injuring him too, if it keeps people happy! Believe it or not, this Shinji is actually nicer than his Fate Stay Night counterpart. Younger, too. Alas, in the games he doesn't really do anything to help our dear protagonist until the events of CCC. Even then, dealing with him didn't leave a good taste in my mouth. I felt pity towards the other Masters to be sure, but Shinji? I was just glad to get him gone and not deal with him anymore.

Worry not, his time in this chapter is brief, and then he's done.

Q: What kind of direction can we expect here?

A: If you expect this to fully follow the games...you're going to be surprised. After all, what's the point of a story if it tells the tale of what already happened?

Now then!

TO BATTLE WE GO!

Angry pirates are scary pirates~!

Obvious references are obvious and I own nothing!

"Sheesh! How in blazes are you still moving?!"

"Because we are legends, you and I! DO YOU HEAR ME DRAKE?! Legends! Heroes? Villains? Good? Evil? What do those words mean to us? Nothing! We're beyond that! Believe me when I say that nothing short of chopping off my head is going to kill me; and I'll be damned if I expect any less of you! Now! Bring out your cannons, el Draque! Call down your Armada! Unfurl your sails! I'll take all that you have and sink it! Now...COME!"

...you know, in another life, you'd have made a good first mate."

"Less talking more shooting!"

"Aye-aye, roger wilco!"

~?

First Selection (Part IV)

Drake encountered him again in the labyrinth...

...but not in the manner she expected.

No, not at all.

In theory, a Servant could enter the maze without their Master. The reverse was also true; any Master with even meager potential could use this opportunity the hone their skills. To become stronger than what they once were; to address their shortcomings and failures. This was the Moon Cell and the impossible became possible here. Most, however, simply didn't feel the need.

Why should they?

For a Master to venture into the maze without a Servant was tantamount to a death sentence; if only because of the vicious programs lurking within. The reverse was also true. No self-serving Servant worth their salt had the least desire to wander these corridors and train alone, if only because doing so would demean them. Be beneath them. Even that so-called holy knight had his pride; Drake certainly hadn't seen him enter the labyrinth without his Master.

It wasn't as if there were any reward to be gained in doing so beyond experience. After all during any given round one could-and often would-only ever find their chosen opponent for said round lurking within. Battle was permitted here, albeit in a limited three minute scope.

Such were the ironclad rules of S.E.R.A.P.H. and so they would remain until the system deemed otherwise. Staking out the competition was useless here. Unless your Noble Phantasm involved some sort of arena trap that lingered after you departed the labyrinth-and she knew a few-then it was wholly useless to linger here. Of course, it was important to acquire the "Triggers" for each round and thus many ventured in regardless of the danger...

"No, no, no!" Naruto's voice rose in admonishment as she skirted the corner, "Not like that! Put your back into it!"

"I'm trying!" answered the soft, petulant whine. "Will the two of you ease up?!"

"Do or do not, young padawan!" Kurama crowed. "There is no try!"

"Don't you DARE throw that reference of me, furball!"

For someone so keen on kicking up chaos, Rider was quite capable of ducking out when it suited him. She hadn't been surprised when he spirited away his Master in the aftermath and brought her here. The poor thing had almost no battle sense whatsoever, and it was important to rectify that. Servants couldn't truly "level up" in the digital sense of the word, but their saint graphs and cyber frames could be adjusted. Thus, it didn't come as a shock when she happened upon one Hakuno Kishinami and her Servant within...

...no, wait. She told a lie. It was actually quite the shock.

She nearly gasped outright and gave herself away, only managing to skirt backwards at the last moment.

Propped up against a nearby wall, Naruto and Kurama weren't fighting at all. Rather, they looked on proudly as their tenacious Master-sheathed in a strange red shroud-wrestle a horned program to the ground and break its neck with a great struggle. It baffled her. Why make that little squirrel fight? Was he trying to prepare her for combat? With only a few days left? And how could someone so tiny pull a stunt like that? It likely had something to do with that fell cloak she was wearing...but why was Rider clapping?

"Marvelous!" Naruto crowed in faux english. "Now do it again!"

Rather than rejoice, the little brunette flopped onto her back with a groan at his mockery.

"Again?!" her timid voice rose in a petulant whine. "We've been at this for hours now! You're killing meeeee~!"

"Better me than Drake!" the blond clicked his tongue at her in mild admonishment. "Now again! Without the cloak this time!"

"Slave driver!" Hakuno flailed on the floor like a petulant child, flinging accusations at him as she rolled back and forth. "Backbiter! Unfair unfair unfair!"

...I think we broke her."

Roaring laughter answered Kurama.

"What? We've only been at this for twelve hours!"

Aghast, the female Rider could only look on with horrified amusement.

It would be the simplest thing to shoot Naruto in the back now; to strike while his guard was down. One barrage from her cannons ought to do it. She would unleash her Noble Phantasm and wipe him out before he could even think about fighting back. He couldn't possibly protect himself and his Master at the same time. Yet she couldn't bring herself to do it. No, She didn't have to fight him here. There was no one here to force her hand. Not today at any rate, given Shinji was still...convalescing from his...new injures.

Quite a pity, really.

He had been so close to recovering from his earlier wound...then he'd fallen and dashed his head against a cabinet. A very hard cabinet. From what she'd been told, he might not recover until the seventh day. Perhaps not even then. How convenient. If she didn't know better, she would've thought Naruto was actively running interference on her part. No. Surely not. What could he possibly have to gain by separating them? She needed to kill him. She had to. Especially when one considered the alternative. No. It was just a bump in the road. Something to shake her expectations. She would have to kill him of course,

And yet his smile stilled her.

Bah! What was she, some blushing maiden?!

In the end, Francis Drake never found her answer.

Blue eyes snapped towards her hiding place but rather than call her out, the blond merely grinned and waded into the fray before a nearby program could think to dispatch his exhausted mistress. A quick swipe of his hand dispelled the cloak from Hakuno's prone form, another plucked his tiny master from the ground to sling her over his shoulder and the third...well.

"Fine!" Hakuno's Rider declared. "My turn!"

For all his silver tongue the whiskered Rider proved himself quite capable in the realm of combat as hordes of enemy programs descended upon him. Rather than retreat Rider palmed and kunai and bounded forward with a loud whoop of joy, heedless of Hakuno's quiet yelp as she held on for dear life. Drake nearly reached for one of her pistols, concerned by what she thought to be little more than a suicidal rush. She needn't have feared for him. Even with only one arm available to him the enemies before them were swept aside like wheat from chaff.

An irate program found its head stove in by a vicious kick, only to be used as a springboard as Rider leaped away.

Still airborne he flicked the kunai he'd been clutching at one of the larger viruses-Drake had a heartbeat to glimpse the strange paper attached to its hilt-before kicking off a wall and lunging into the ensuing blast of heat and flame that followed. Framed by the subsequent explosion the whiskered warrior landed in a pointed crouch, smashing a clawed hand through the vertical torso of another would-be contender even as scythed his legs out and caught two more on the backswing. Unfortunately in doing so he whipped poor Hakuno about like a rag doll. Needless to say, the poor girl was less than amused.

"How are you doing this?!"

The blond seemed to relish in the combat, even if his Master did not.

"Ninja, remember!" The Red Rider crowed as they vaulted away. "If I couldn't do something like this I'd be an embarrassment to my village! Now! Point me at the next enemy, Master!"

"I'm tryyyyyyyyyying~!" she wailed. "Stop flailing around!"

From her vantage point, Drake had a prime view of the girl's green face. Poor thing. At the end of the day, she was only human. Last she'd checked, the human body did not appreciate being tossed every which way. Least of all with a stubborn kitsune clinging onto it for dear life.

"Urk...I think I'm going to be sick...

The next program fool enough to approach them found itself shredded by a strange spiraling sphere of sorts stemming from Naruto's hand; bits of data scattered about on the wind. Even as his first fist drove forward he reached back with the other, deftly hauling Hakuno further onto his shoulder and out of harms way before she could tumble off his back. Again he pivoted and again his gaze held hers despite the distance between them, despite her doubts, despite everything. Then that startling grin flashed out and he flung himself back into the fray, his Master hanging off him like a half-forgotten coat. That dispelled the last of Drake's doubts. He knew she was watching them. He knew and even still, he persisted in this farce.

Blond bastard was showing off.

"Hmmph! Useless, useless, useless!" he vanished in a gold streak and reappeared moments later, cackling like a madman. "You can't touch me!"

Hakuno took a long moment to sigh-and stifle he rising gorge-as her Servant bowled through a fresh wave of enemies. With both arms free he opted to forgo the convoluted combos he'd been playing at. Now? He crashed through anyone and everything in his-their!-way. Even slung over his shoulder like a sack of wheat the little brunette still managed to radiate waves of visible embarrassment. Had she known she was playing host to an audience, that humiliation would've intensified tenfold. As things stood, it already took all of her strength just to cling onto his shoulders and keep herself from being flung off in her entirety.

...where do you even get these references from anyway?" she murmured.

"What can I say?" Kurama flashed her a roguish grin. "Grail's thrown a few of them at us. Next enemy!"

"I can't find anything if I fall off!" the brunette yelped as a particularly vicious leap rattled her to her bones. "Put me down already!"

Naruto flicked her a sidelong glance and paused just long enough to sling her up onto the back of his neck. Suddenly secure Hakuno saw her opportunity and seized it like a drowning woman; small fingers grabbed hold of his thick mane for all she was worth, just as he surged forward again. From there she found she had a rather comfortable vantage point; indeed, it now fell to her to call out enemy programs wherever she saw them. She silently suspected Naruto and Kurama already knew where to find them, but it gave her frazzled mind something to, something to distract her, and for that, the young Master was inordinately grateful.

"Better?"

...not that she'd ever tell him that.

Hakuno wrinkled her nose at him, refusing to admit it.

"Fine, just don't start spouting nonsense on me out of the blue-

"MudamudamudamudamudamudamudamudamudamudamudamudaMUDA!

As if waiting for that very reply Naruto launched himself at the next program and flung his body into a mad flurry of blows.

"DO NOT!"

In the chaos of shouting and muffled curses that hastened on the heels of that remark, no one heard Francis Drake cackle. If Naruto did, he didn't raise any objections. It was the simplest thing to follow in their wake and make sure nothing...untoward happened. Deluding herself proved another matter. Try as she might, the faintest thorn of guilt pricked at her as she followed in their footsteps. Idiot. Stupid girl. Fool of a wench. This was her chance! Even if Naruto knew she was lurking, his Master was still weak! One shot through the back of her head would do the deed and she'd be done with it!

No, she wasn't doing anything wrong by observing them she told herself; no, not at all.

She didn't even begin to question herself until the following day.

Seven seas, what had she gotten herself into?

---

(...02020...)

---

When had she come undone?

For all her bravery and bountiful boasting Francis Drake found that she'd lost her nerve. She wasn't smitten-certainly not if she had anything to say about it!-but neither could it be said that she remained steadfast in her resolve as she'd once been. Killing him was still her duty, yet now she found it a bitter one. Thus, she was undone. She rather liked Naruto; he had a certain way about him, a roguish charisma that reminded her of better days, of sails and the seven seas. He was wild and fierce and he was going to kill her if this kept up.

Or she would kill him.

Still, it was the only option going forward. If she did not end him then he would doubtlessly slay her in turn. No two ways about it. There was no way around this. They had to fight and that fight required a definite victor; if not S.E.R.A.P.H. might well delete them both out of hand. But for some reason her very soul cried out against the idea of striking Naruto down! Why?! She already knew the answer. She liked him. She wanted to raise hell with him, drink to all manner of stupid things, and, quite simply, cause as much trouble as she could. It was in her nature to be drawn to like-minded spirits and loathe though she might be to admit it, they were very much alike.

In all fairness, she tried to avoid him as long as possible.

As ever, her nature betrayed her.

No surprise, there.

It should've been a simple matter of lurking in the Infirmary with Shinji; or, barring that, simply remaining in her spiritual form to conserve energy. The former proved impossible within an hour-if only because her Master was utterly insensate and she found herself bored out of her mind with no one to keep her company beyond the nurse. There was something...strange about that one, but she just couldn't put her finger on it. No, Francis Drake had never been the sort to rest on her laurels, even in her living days. Her second life as Servant proved just as troubling.

So.

Hiding it was then. Good. She could do that.

Until she suddenly couldn't because that didn't work either!

The school grounds were certainly large enough in that regard. If someone didn't want to be found then they wouldn't be. Some Servants simply elected to remain astral for the sake of privacy until needed and in doing so thereby removed the possibility of conflict altogether. Drake couldn't bear to do this if only because it was so damned uncomfortable for her; she craved a deck beneath her boots, or barring that, solid ground. Without any such surface underfoot she grew quite restless indeed.

To her credit she managed to keep to herself for an entire day.

For a full twenty-four hours the pirate queen managed to utterly elude Hakuno Kishinami and her troublesome Servant. They made no attempt to look for her and she certainly didn't go looking for trouble. Loathe though she was to do so, she spent much of that time in astral form, hiding away in obscure places like the library or the cafeteria even as her pride prickled against her cowardice.

Good on her.

But she still failed.

Quite spectacularly at that.

Everything came to a head late in the afternoon, just as she'd slipped by a Master and their Servant. The latter was a great mountain of a man bearing equally great scars upon his body, twin swords dragging harshly upon the round in his wake. Oddly enough, it was this seemingly harmless encounter that finally pushed her boiling emotions over the edge. Why should they be able to strut about without a worry or care?! Why shouldn't she?!

"That tears it!"

In a rare fit of pique Drake chose to resume her physical form right then and there with that very shout, much to their surprise.

"Just who the hell does that blond bastard think he is!?" she shouted at no one in particular. "Make a coward of me, will he?! I'll keelhaul him for this!"

"Nice temper you've got there! Use it well!" The hulking swordsman-also a blond, some small distant part of her noted-merely laughed at her abrupt outburst and kept walking without a care in the world. His female master scurried after him with a cry of "Berserker! Wait!" before Drake could get a good look at her. She found herself reminded of a little grey mouse hiding in the shadow of a much larger predator. Had that been the sole consequence of her actions, she might've been able to slip back into anonymity with relative ease.

It was not.

Little did Drake realize she had manifested at the worst possible time; no sooner did the brash blond berserker round the northern corner than another blond came barreling down the opposite end of the hall. Alas, this one recognized her almost immediately, gave a loud cry of triumph, and made a beeline for her straight away. Damnit. For a fleeting second, she almost believed he'd let her be-

This time her fellow Rider called her bluff spectacularly. "Heya, Francis! Or should I just call you Drake?"

For once in her life, the pirate actually froze. "Drake?" she choked on the word. "How did you...?"

"Did I stutter?" he shouted back. "Don't go anywhere! Wanna talk to you!"

Although Naruto had glibly given her both his name and class upon their first meeting, Drake had never told him her name. That he suddenly knew it without being told...damnation. That didn't bode well. Moreover, at his side Hakuno looked almost resigned to meet her-after all, she'd almost been shot but there could be no mistaking the small, rueful smile adorning her lips. Judging by her somewhat frazzled appearance Draka hazarded a guess at what she'd been up to; she looked as though she'd just come straight from a hard fought battle with something viciously unpleasant. Worse it looked as though she'd won against whatever it was.

For some reason that set the Rider even more ill at ease.

Even Naruto looked livelier than before; the spark in those baby blue eyes was now a roaring flame, one that threatened to swallow her whole. She could still sense the thread of prana connecting to him to his master, but that once desperate drip of mana had evolved into a babbling brook. Lovely. He'd likely gotten a few of his skills back as a result. Not enough to concern her, but enough to take notice all the same. They'd clearly been a busy bunch of bees when she wasn't looking. Not that she was looking mind you, nor was she concerned...nope!

Not in the least!

Oh, who was she kidding?! She was concerned! Very concerned! Anything that had those two smiling was probably bad news for her! Given time and proper conditioning they would become stronger yet and that would only make matters worse. Her fellow Rider was clearly spoiling for a fight, if not in the traditional sense, then another.

Belatedly, she realized they weren't alone.

At a distance she hadn't seen the newcomer. Hakuno was ever on Naruto right as expected, but on his left...no, hiding behind him...

"Who the hell is this?"

She found herself gazing down at a young girl who appeared to be of Indian descent. Hers was a blank face with startling violet eyes framed by glasses and wavy light purple hair tied into a half ponytail. Her out proved far too eccentric even for Drake to consider wearing; with its varying hues of white and blue, golden bracelets, and nearly exposed chest. A pair black tight shorts and white-purple stockings complete the strange getup, giving the pirate queen a prime view of those long legs, and well...!

Hey, the kid could wear what she wanted. She was the last person to judge. And yet...

...why do I have a bad feeling about this?" she finished with a growl.

To her dismay, the girl actually bowed.

"Good day."

That mechanical voice, that expression...it was like speaking to a doll. A lifelike doll perhaps, one designed and built to look a like a human, but a doll nevertheless. Something deep inside of her recoiled at the knowledge lurking behind that placid gaze. Here was someone who knew far too much for her own good-who had ways of divining information that Drake didn't truly understand-an unexpected reef for her bravado to breach against, an unseen

"This here's Rani." Naruto beamed, patting the smaller girl on the back like a proud parent. "She helped us find out quite a bit about you while you resting on your laurels."

'I was not!' Drake wanted to shout, to denounce him, but her fellow Rider brutally beat her to the punch.

"I think you know why we're here, Rider." the quiet steel in Naruto's voice cut into her like a knife.

"Dunno what you're talking about." She feigned ignorance with a sniff.

"You're none other than Francis Drake, the woman who destroyed Spain's Invincible Armada. Aren't you? By all means, deny it." his grin only grew when she didn't and her silent dread mounted as a toothy smile split his whiskered face. "Otherwise known as El Draque to your enemies. The woman who brought down the sun. Second to circumnavigate the globe. You're of the Rider class, like me. Your flagship is none other than the Golden Hind and likely one of your Noble Phantasms at that. Did I leave anything out?"

A moment of awkward silence passed between the two.

Drake's arm snapped back to strike him.

Then, incredibly, Naruto exhaled.

"Aaand since I just revealed your life story to the world like a complete and utter asshole, here's mine." In defiance of everyone's expectations, he ripped both hands from his pockets and folded them behind his head, smiling like a man facing the gallows. "I'm Uzumaki Naruto. You know that much already. Might as well tell you the rest. Loudmouth shinobi, wannabe Hokage, and a failure of a friend. No weapons to speak of, I fight primarily with my fists and Kurama, who just so happens to be my main Noble Phantasm. There." he clapped his hands together sharply. "Now we're even."

Her arm dropped like a wet noodle.

Kurama turned positively livid. "BOY!"

"Rider!" Hakuno exclaimed, aghast. "Why?!"

Even Rani blinked, silently taken aback by this turn of events.

"What?!" he scoffed in the face of them all, thumbing his nose. "I couldn't just spill all her info like that! Fair's fair! Now we can have an honorable match!"

Kurama lunged from Hakuno's shoulder and promptly proceeded to throttle his partner. "This is a war, you dolt! There's no such thing as honor! Has the Grail taught you nothing?!"

"I've learned plenty, furball!" the blond snapped back, childishly sticking out his tongue in blatant defiance of the fox's fury. "What I choose to do with it is my concern! If I'm going to fight her then it'll be on fair terms! If you don't like it then stay out of the fight!"

"Keep this up and I just might!"

"Bah! Go play with the girls and let the grown-ups talk will ya?!" Exasperated the blond retaliated the only way he knew how; rather than strangle his lifelong partner-and he looked like he wanted to-he simply snatched him up and flung him headlong into Hakuno. The startled brunette flailed for a moment before catching him, and with a muffled apology to Rani, withdrew to a reluctant distance, likely in an attempt to give them privacy.

Drake felt no such inclination.

The moment they'd fallen out of earshot her arm whipped back with explosive force and cannoned into the right side of Naruto's face.

"Idiot!"

She expected him to block it or dodge out of hand; or barring that, strike back at her in recompense for her temerity. Much to her chagrin the Red Rider took the hit without protest, his face snapping to the opposite side. He grunted, staggered. Silently offered the other cheek. So she slapped that one, too. When next Naruto turned his face she realized he hadn't been vulnerable at all-he'd allowed her to hit him. Serene golden eyes with slanted pupils gazed back at her and to her dismay Drake realized she'd actually hurt herself by striking him. Even now her squished fingers throbbed in sullen protest.

When she moved to strike him again, he finally intercepted her at last, snagging her by the wrist.

"Satisfied?"

Scoffing, she ripped her limb away.

No. She wasn't. Not in the least. Something about that honesty of his infuriated her; it struck a sullen chord somewhere deep within her rotten soul. Was it pride? Did he think himself better than her; that he would be able to beat her even with his identity revealed? Or was he simply that naive? His full name didn't ring any particular bells beyond what had been provided by the Grail, but the fact that he'd openly revealed himself to her in full view of others against his Master's wishes resonated with her, making her feel filthy for thinking to use that Master against him. Moreso that she would likely still go through with it, given the chance...

"Why'd you tell me all that, huh?!" she growled, seizing him by the scruff of the neck. "You know I'll only use it against you, don't you?!"

Naruto considered her for a long moment before his head bobbed. "I know."

Genuinely at a loss, she didn't resist when he wriggled free of her.

"I'd be furious if you didn't!"

As she looked on those strange golden orbs faded back to their true blue, but her shame remained. Something told her that Naruto must've died young before he became a Servant; not simply due to his viewpoint, but rather the singular focus of his worldview. In his eyes he viewed battled as something to be avoided; and if it couldn't be avoided, then let it be as fair as possible. Why else would he bend over backwards to make things easier for her?

"I can't change who I am." A small, miserable smile flashed out at her. "I hate people who lie to themselves. What would that make me if I did the same?"

"Why me, then?" refusing to let the matter drop, the piratess bodily-blocked him when he tried to squeeze past. "You must have a reason beyond that. I barely even know you, yet you've gone out of your way to help me not once, but twice! Why?!" To her confusion-and later delight-the blond actually blinked at that and averted his gaze. What was he muttering to himself? Something about redheads? Trying to press the matter only made him clamp down all the more.

In the end he actually laughed at that sullen remark.

"Because you remind me of somebody I used to know. In another life we might've gotten along." With that low blow he snapped of a small salute and turned to leave. "For what its worth, I really didn't want to kill you, so I thought I'd give you a fighting chance-

"Waitwaitwait!" A new voice cried out in a rush, catching him flatfooted. "You there with the handsome soul! Stooooooop~!"

Both Rider's turned as one as someone dashed down the stairs.

Hmm. Perhaps that was another misnomer. To say "dash" would've implied that said newcomer actually ran downstairs. They didn't. This one all but somersaulted the last of the steps with flawless grace, bounding forward to alight in a pointed crouch near a somewhat startled Naruto. Before the blond could even think to offer the slightest syllable of protest they-she!-seized him by his shoulders.

"What are you thinking?!" she cried, shaking him like a rag doll! "Idiot! Fool! Imbecile! What manner of Servant goes willingly to their own death?!"

Any severity his words might've held vanished in the moment.

"What." Naruto deadpanned flatly.

"The hell." Drake finished.

Her kimono was certainly...unique. Yes. Unique. That. She looked as though she would fall out of the tiny little blue number any moment. Of course, that did nothing to distract from her ephemeral beauty. Those bright eyes, framed by flowing pink hair, a body many would gladly kill for. She was rather reminded of...oh blast, what was the word again? The Grail-given information she'd been supplied with offered it readily enough when she reached for it. A courtesan? Drake hadn't seen one of her like in an age. Certainly not...whatever-whomever-this Servant was. Were those fox-ears? Jutting out of her hair? Was that a tail?!

"I cannot believe what I just heard!" The latter was positively thrashing in agitation. "In all my time as a Caster I've never heard such nonsense! Why would you want to die for that seaweed brat?! Tell me at once!"

The duo each exchanged a dumbfounded look between one another. "Seaweed?"

"I meant that blue-haired runt with an ego the size of mars!"

Several floors below, Shinji gave a mighty sneeze.

Drake slapped a hand over her mouth and silently amended her opinion of the woman.

A high end courtesan, then.

On a certain level she knew she should be defending herself, much less her Master's honor. But that remark proved too much for her to handle. Despite her very best efforts a snicker still slipped out of her, which of course spurred Naruto to do the same, which in turn led to a giggle, followed by a mad cackle as the latter threw her head back as she sagged against the nearest wall and clutched at her aching sides. Seriously-seaweed?! It was too much. The damn broke and she could contain herself no longer. That did it. She gave up.

"I...you...I can't...ha!"

In her flickering peripherals she was distantly aware of Naruto promising Caster something, reassuring the irate pinkette that he was very much trying not to die, but she couldn't care less. The fraying thread of her sanity had snapped at long last and as such Whatever it was must've been grand indeed, for the kitsune-like maiden all but skipped away. Only then did Drake trust herself to speak and not dissolve into a fit of giggling. Damnit, she hadn't known she needed that. It felt...freeing. To simply laugh at the world, consequences be damned.

...right. See you tomorrow then." Naruto sighed, pushing a hand through his hair. "May the best Servant win?"

Incredibly, he even went so far as to offer that very palm to her, fingers extended.

At a loss, Drake could only shake his hand-and herself-in mild dismay.

"I am going to kill you. You realize that, don't you?"

A rogue grin flashed out at her. "We'll see."

How little she knew.

How little indeed.

---

(...03030...)

---

When the time finally came Drake didn't fight it.

There could be no escaping their destiny; the Moon Cell had spoken. Nothing would change its ind. They were meant to do battle. One would die. The other would live. One would fall. The other would ascend. Though she might well loathe the idea of killing Naruto now, the alternative was unacceptable. She wouldn't die just so he could live. She wasn't that sort of girl. Whatever strange feelings had bloomed between them, they simply were't meant to be. Their battle would be short and swift; neither had the least desire to drag out the others suffering. Such a damn shame. Perhaps they'd meet again in another life.

If the memories of this War lingered in the Throne.

If they weren't all deleted outright.

If one survived their final battle.

If she remembered him.

If.

The thought made her restless, nearly set her to shaking as she followed her Master into the elevator.

Shinji had indeed recovered-if only just-enough to do battle, though she doubted his ability to hold up in a fair fight. She'd had to secure the two triggers on her own, and with great effort at that. Brat better be grateful to her for all the work she'd done. If she survived this he'd be paying extra, she would see to that herself!

Down into the abyss they went, one to each side, Master and Servant alike.

Were it not for the thin barrier between them, she suspected they might've come to blows then and there.

Hakuno remained unreadable as ever, a little chick watched over by the soaring falcon that was Naruto, a protective guardian prepared to shred anyone who dared do her harm.

Not so Shinji.

Her Master obviously felt the need to assert his dominance given how long he'd been out of sorts, for he spoke first:

"Look who didn't chicken out and run away." he sneered, directing all his spite and vitriol toward the one target he believed would never fight back. "Oooh right, I forgot following directions is all you're good at. Get a clue, huh? You're no match for us! Never in a million years are you going to defeat me. Shoulda ran away when you had the chance!"

Drake expected Hakuno to wilt, or at the very least, take offense. Instead she found only pity from the little brunette.

The small smile that bloomed back at her was all too familiar. "I won't know until I try."

Shinji jerked back with a hiss as though he'd been struck.

"Excuse me?" Her simple reply aggravated him more than any taunt every could. "When did you grow a spine? Did you forget you never got the best of me at school, like, ever? How many times do you plebes have to be reminded that you'll never be on the level of a genius like me?! But, I guess I better get used to it, since nobody here can defeat me!"

Drake silently rolled her eyes as he continued to rant unimpeded. He might be her Master, but the kid talked far too much for his own good. Hmph. Made him a decent villain at least...

"My Servant El Draque and I are completely invincible." When Rider didn't contest this, the blue-haired boy took it as an admittance of fact. "Man, you have some seriously shitty luck to have gotten paired with ME in the first round. Don't worry, since wer'e such good friends I'll make sure you go out with a big-

"BANG!"

Naruto's fist slammed into the glass between them like a sledgehammer, shattering the barrier like brittle glass and causing the boy to jump in the same instant. For a fleeting instant Drake thought he might cross over to their side, take Shinji by the throat and-

"Do shut up, boy." Kurama drawled, dispelling that surprisingly pleasant thought. "Idiots like you give me indigestion."

Shinji's face grew pallid. "Wha?! How dare you speak about me like that! You're just a Servant!"

"And you're just a snack." the fox waved a paw.

"Quiet, rat!"

Surprisingly it was Hakuno who stiffened at this remark. "Shinj, for once in your life...stop talking. Now."

Perhaps she ought to say something, lest the little brunette take matters into her own hands."

"Ha!" her laughter sounded forced, even to her own ears. "They have a point, Master."

"Hey!" Shinji squawked. "Whose side are you on, Rider?!"

"Your side, of course." Drake preened, heedless of the repulsive look her response garnered her from her fellow Servant. "You paid me, so I'll fight ably by your side. Face it, letting them throw the match wouldn't satisfy either of us. That, and I'd dislike giving less than my full effort."

There it was, her challenge, flung at Naruto, demanding nothing less than his best.

Draping herself over her Master, Drake gave his ear a hard tug, but her gaze-and her words-were not solely for him alone. "C'mon, let your instincts take over," she goaded. "Everything's so much better if you fight for it-food, women, victory. Besides, we're villains. That means if nothing else, we're allowed to be flashy. If you're going to be one, might as well be as flamboyant as you please. Don't hold back."

"Tch!" Her Master fought to free himself from her grasp, to no avail. "I'm not a villain, you hag! I'm the hero of this story!"

Naruto barked a harsh laugh that mirrored her own.

"Hahaha!" Oh, but he was! He just had yet to realize it! "Temper, temper little one! You've got big balls for being such a tiny man. I admire that."

"Hey, stop!" Try as he might, the bluenette couldn't writhe free of her grasping fingers. "I said stop! Don't pat my head, you baboon! And you reek of alcohol!"

Did she? Surely she hadn't had that much.

In any case the elevator chose that moment to open and she never had her answer.

The arena itself lived up to its name in both size and scope; in that it resembled a grand galleon of sorts, a sundered ship locked underwater and breached against a reeft. Bits of flotsam and jetsam drifted about outside of the barrier, caught by some unseen current. There was more than enough room to do battle here. One could unleash multiple Noble Phantasms at once and still have space left in spades. Say what you would about S.E.R.A.P.H. and the Moon Cell, but they knew how to prepare a battlefield. Both parties paused, somewhat swayed by the majesty of it all.

Hakuno swallowed thickly. "Its...bigger than I'd thought it would be."

A fine place for her final battle indeed, Drake mused.

Now if only Shinji would shut his mouth.

"What're you standing around gawking for?! All bark and no bite! That's what they say, isn't it?" Sure enough, when she came back to herself the stubborn hacking was braying on again. "Well, that's you! I'm gonna humiliate you two so bad that after this game you'll never crawl out of your mom's basement!"

"Really? That's the line you wanna go with?" Naruto arched an eyebrow. "You do realize the loser of this battle will die, don't you?"

His words drove a spike of hesitation-and concern!-through Drake's heart. Until this very moment she'd assumed Shinji had at least known what he was getting himself into. After all, the Holy Grail War wasn't some grand game that one entered on a whim; this was a battle to the death, a hellish fight from which only one could emerge. Yest, only the victor earned the right to walk away. Everyone else was destined to die. Even with all the hacking prowess in the world, overriding the Moon Cell itself was nigh on impossible. Death was final here. If he didn't know that...

"Ha! Lies won't fool me!" Shinji's response only confirmed her gross miscalculation. "I'm not falling for it!"

The Unlikely Rider rolled his shoulders in a shrug. "Have it your way then."

...by the seven seas, her Master was an idiot.

"Oh, so your goal isn't just victory, but humiliation?" Outwardly however, she refused to let any such concern show, if only to avoid an embarrassing show of weakness. "What a greedy little boy you are, Shinji! Very well, I'll bring the rope for you to truss that little squirrel up once we finish with her Servant."

That had the effect she desired.

"Rope...?"

She'd thought to rile up Hakuno but no, it was Naruto who whispered that word. For a fleeting instant-a sliver of a second-he sounded surprisingly vulnerable. Hakuno risked a glance over her shoulder at the stoic form of her Servant. A silent tremor wracked the whiskered warrior's body as he tucked his chin into his chest, his golden mane hiding that striking gaze from her view. For a moment-just a moment-she wondered if she might've made a mistake, might've pushed too hard in her attempts to make her fellow Rider fight with all his might.

Nah.

"Don't even think about going easy on them, El Draque." Shinji snarled, seizing on what he perceived to be weakness. "They should have backed down when they could-

In a flash of gold Naruto suddenly loomed before her Master, his teeth bared in a silent snarl, arm cocked back for a killing stroke. Drake rounded on him, summoning a pistol to her hand even as she realized her efforts to be futility in-and-of-itself. How had he gotten past her? She hadn't even seen him move!

"She warned you." the words were a hiss. "You should've stopped talking."

Too fast!

Without thinking Drake spun to give her Master a hard mule kick in the chest just as those clawed fingers found the fabric of his jacket. Caught by the unexpected kick the loud-mouth Master found himself catapulted out of the blond's reach and backwards to safety. Shinji probably didn't see it that way. Rather than have his heart torn from his chest, he instead suffered the inimitable indignity of tumbling across the deck. Three times he bounced, skipping like a flung stone before crashing into the mizzenmast with a harsh crack. Judging by the awkward lurch of his body she suspected he'd broken something.

Broken was better than dead.

"My leg!" he cried, clutching at right ankle, "What the hell was that for, you bi-

Naruto's gaze snapped toward the boy like a razor whip, but it was Kurama who roared.

"IF ONE MORE WORD COMES POURING OUT YOUR FOOL-MOUTH I WILL FLATTEN YOU!"

A cold light burned in those blue eyes and belatedly Drake realized she'd pushed too far, too fast. Much too fast. It wasn't fear she'd glimpsed earlier. Far from it. Even little Hakuno was gazing at her in silent scorn, though that scorn found itself far and away eclipsed by the towering fury of her Servant. Well! Mission accomplished then! She hadn't thought Rider was even capable of being angry! But this! THIS!

This was rage.

Pure glacial fury, a lake-no, an entire ocean!-of emotion, frozen over in an instant. Oh yes, he'd swallowed her lie hook and sinker. Now she just had to survive whatever came next. He wouldn't be holding back now, not after all she'd said and done. She needn't worry about anything beyond killing him...or so she told herself. Then that glacial gaze snapped back to her and she found herself otherwise...preoccupied. On a whim, she drew her cutlass, sliding her rarely used weapon free from the aether-

It saved her life.

Cold steel kissed Drake's throat in the same instant that she raised her blade to the blond's nape. At a stalemate, both froze. Neither Rider relented. Now, on some level knew she ought to be happy. A heartbeat slower on her part an' that kunai might have taken her life. So why did that betrayed look sting so much? He looked like she'd torn out his heart and stomped on it. Damnit! She felt like she'd kicked a puppy! A puppy with teeth, she reminded herself as she gazed into those wild slitted eyes.

"Isn't it enough that you're trying to kill me?!" Her fellow Rider snarled at her over their crossed blades. "Do you have to humiliate her, too?! Show her mercy, at least!"

"Hmph, mercy isn't in my vocabulary." Drake riposted, forcing him to block lest he lose an arm. "I have a thirst for the finer things in life, and that's all I care for." her eyes held Naruto, daring him to object-to challenge her lie-as they continued to dance around one another. "I may not have good fortune when it comes to men, but with humans or bombs, there's a certain fatal inevitability to life, wouldn't you say?"

A distant crash-accompanied by Hakuno's startled yelp-informed her Shinji had climbed back to his feet and gone on the attack.

Good. Brat was finally making himself useful.

Naruto turned and nearly lost an eye.

"Pay attention!"

They broke apart in a flurry of steel and Drake found herself chuffed to be the one who drew first blood; a longer reach coupled with her cutlass allowed her to strike first and open a thin slice just above Naruto's right eye, momentarily blinding him. The blond retaliated by flinging his knife into her face, cutting a red welt across her thigh before slamming into the deck at her feet. Yet he hesitated on the follow-through, reluctant to seize the faux opening left to him when she tried to bait a flinch. Seemed she'd have to push harder to make him take her seriously after all.

"What's wrong, boy? Not so tough without that fox, are ya...?!"

Her fellow Rider pointed down.

...what was that crackling sound?

She followed his hand and balked at what she saw.

This...this didn't make any sense. He'd only thrown one knife! She'd seen it! So why?! Why were the half a dozen surrounding her?! He was fast, she could accept that, but to throw five additional knives when she wasn't looking was unheard of. Meaning he'd likely duplicated the first somehow. What sorcery was this? When she looked to Naruto for some sort of affirmation, Drake found on his rapidly retreating back.

Too late, she saw the note wrapped around the hilts.

Too late, she remembered his fierce penchant for explosions.

Too late, she recalled exactly what she'd witnessed in the labyrinth.

Naruto's free hand snapped up, fingers forming an unfamiliar symbol of sorts.

The lone word that followed said seal was one that Francis Drake was painfully intimate with.

"Bang."

In the ensuing firestorm Drake never heard herself scream; never felt her coat smolder away from her shoulders, never saw the burns blossom along the length of her forearms. No, it was the smell that she remembered; the searing rush of heat and napalm that stuck with her even as her world went white. She could only breath, only gasp as the air seared her throat, as she stubbornly charged through in the vain hope that if she could just get past this, she would be able to make him pay It was all that drove her, all that sustained her in that moment

Then she was out the other side, hacking and coughing harshly.

...now that's more like it!" she croaked, grinning at him. "I felt that one!"

Another kunai clattered to her feet and she leaped back, expecting another blast.

"Ninja, remember?" The Most Unlikely Rider smiled ruefully. "If you're going to behave like this, then I see no reason to play fair. How'd you like my new trick?"

Ah, but was it a trick? He'd had another chance to kill her just now, but he hadn't taken it. Had he so desired, he could've swarmed her with clones while she burned. Even now, she was vulnerable as she recovered, barely able to do anything until Shinji noticed her and fired off a code cast.

"What's wrong, afraid to use your clones?" she hissed out on a thread of breath. "Don't want to tire your little chick out?"

This time, there could be no mistaking the slight twitch in Naruto's face; one that betrayed his concern. He wanted her out of the way, and quickly, while conserving the lion's share of his mana. Something spiteful stirred in her at the sight. Worried about his little squirrel, was he? Tough. He'd be focused on her for the duration. When she was through with him, he wouldn't even look at that pipsqueak. Wait. Where had that thought come from?

Casting off that unexpected thought and the whispers it brought, the King of Storms took up arms once more.

Shinji must've finally noticed her, for a wash of healing energy burgeoned her body at these words.

"Now, are you ready to go for broke?!" she roared!" Its time to splurge!"

Blue eyes narrowed. "Now that's not fair at all."

"I'm a pirate you, fool! I don't give a-

Pivoting away from her blade, the Unlikely Rider abruptly surged forward. No doubt intending to bound over her and go to his Master. As if she'd let him! Simultaneously pleased and annoyed by this change of pace, Drake thrust her sword to the deck and took up her pistols, one to each hand. Drake waited, tensed at his approach, watching his legs tense...

...there!'

Her pistols barked leaden death just as he leaped, a quintet of shots bursting from the twin guns as one.

Three shattered into harmless ash as he battered them away with one quick arc of his knife. Three others took him in the upper torso as she unloaded a fresh volley into his flitting form. Three more were evaded entirely as the blond impossibly twisted his body in midair. Her final shot missed entirely as he spun to seize hold of a nearby rope and swung away, using the excess momentum to vault out of her range. Alighting upon the starboard side of the ship, he paused just long to snap off a one-fingered salute in her general direction before hurling a brace of shuriken toward Shinji.

"Hey! Hands off the kid!"

True to his base nature, her Master abandoned his short-lived attack on Hakuno with a shriek and ducked behind the main mast for safety. Hakuno, lacking much in the way of offense, immediately took the opportunity to retreat to her Servant's side. The quick, thankful look she flashed him set Drake's blood to boiling.

"Come back here, coward!" She bounded after him with a roar, snapping off a wild shot as she charged. "I'm not done with you yet!"

Rather than dodge, Naruto simply caught the bullet in his teeth.

Still grinning, he bit down and shattered it utterly.

Gods that was so freaking metal of him.

Almost made her proud, really.

Unfortunately, that pride was overshadowed by all her unyielding rage!

With an oath that would've made even the sternest of sailor blush, the scarred Rider called down her heavy artillery. Four towering cannons manifested just above her shoulders in an instant; their purpose manifest, intent clear. Drake crossed both arms before her bosom, a rare grin stealing across her stern face. Within moments they were primed, ready to fire. Heat built in the barrels, pure energy ready to be unleashed at a moment's notice. These were weapons of myth forged by her legend, not even a fifth of the true firepower she possessed.

It would suffice for the opening volley.

"Naruto!" her voice carried even at this distance, the terrible frothing fury behind it proved startling even to her own ears. "After all you've said to me, you're not going to try and dodge this, are you?! We wouldn't want to hit that brat behind you now, would we?!"

Blue eyes bulged.

In the same instant he gave Hakuno a hard shove to safety.

"Scoot!"

Then his world became fire.

Much to Drake's delight he didn't even deign to dodge, pausing just long enough to cross his arms before the blaze consumed him. She liked it so much that she loosed another volley. And another. Another still. Only when she felt her energy begin to dip did she relent, her feisty gazed fixed firmly on the burning horizon. When he made no effort to emerge from the roaring conflagration, delight withered into disappointment. Surely he wasn't down already. Surely someone of the Rider class wouldn't fall so easily...

"How'd ya like that?!" She shouted into the blaze. "Hot enough for you?!"

The faintest breeze at her back informed was her only warning.

Then she knew only pain.

Naruto's counterattack came hard and fast; that same spiraling sphere she'd glimpsed before in the labyrinth now smashed into the spine of the unprepared Francis Drake with the fury of a thousand men. Her body didn't so much lurch as it did soar-ripped from her perch on the deck she found herself smashed down deep into the hold in a vortex of writhing energy, a veritable maelstrom that consumed and thrashed and ripped and tore at her already faltering defenses until nothing remained.

Again, he didn't kill her.

Drake expected more of the same anger from him as she scraped herself off the floor, or hesitation at the least.

What she received instead was...

...silence. Cold, bitter silence.

He stood above her, framed in the waning light of the arena, and that whiskered face held no scorn for her. No hate. No spite. She was beginning to think that he simply wasn't capable of it anymore. Rather than foolishly chase her down into the great tear he'd made, he waited patiently for her to gather her strength and leap out. To face him once more. Only then did Drake truly glimpse the inscrutable expression he wore. No, it certainly wasn't anger lurking behind those beautiful blue eyes.

On the contrary he appeared...disappointed in her.

"I thought you were better than this, you know." to her dismay she realized he'd seen through her ruse-worse, he pitied her for her charade. It only made he flames of her hatred burn hotter. "You don't need to threaten me to make me fight. But that's not what this is about, is it?" No. No no no! Not pity! She despised pity! Loathed it! Had no need of it!

"Don't look at me like that!" in that moment, something tore at her. "You're no better than me!"

To her mild chagrin, Naruto didn't react to her final taunt.

...you're right. Lets make an end of this."

Instead, he raised his right arm.

"Hakuno. Stay back."

She did just that.

"Kurama."

When next he spoke the very earth trembled underfoot. His partner needed no further provocation; he all but leaped from the brunette's shoulder's to alight upon the blond's outstretched palm. Terrifying eyes darker than any abyss held hers, narrowed with scorn. There was no witty retort offered here, no subtle jab at her less-than-honorable tendencies. He simply gazed back at her silently...and perhaps a bit sad. Or annoyed. Hmm. She couldn't rightly be sure. Animals were always hard to read.

Naruto held out his arm and Kurama leaped off it.

Warily, Drake watched him vault forward-

"WHATINTHEBLUEHELL?!"

In place of the once puny fox she suddenly found herself face to face with a towering kitsune large enough to easily crush her underfoot. Her mind's eye recalled the glint in Naruto's eye when he'd called Kurama his Noble Phantasm. With a mounting sense of dread she realized she might've finally bitten off more than she could chew here. He was of the Rider class, after all. It only made sense. She'd expected he had something to do with Naruto's summoning, but never in her wildest dreams had she thought something like that could be brought back into the world. It reeked of divinity, or something perilously close.

She couldn't kill this thing.

Not by herself, not with her cannons alone.

She'd have to use the Wild Hunt, and perhaps not even then-

The fox's maw parted and her fear came roaring back to life in that moment. "Now, then." his voice was thunder itself. "What was that about a snack?"

"Rider!" Shinji shrilled at her. "What the hell are you doing?! Use your Noble Phantasm already!"

Perhaps he was right.

There was nothing left to be gained by holding back now, not against something like that. She didn't relish the thought of being caught in those jaws. Any thought she'd had of dragging this fight out had died a swift death the moment she laid eyes on that thing. If she didn't bring it down now it would drown her, sure as an ocean grave. The idea galled her more than words and she fought down a shudder.

"Here is where my life stretches!" She flung a pistol upright and fired a lone shot as Naruto advanced on her. "Remember my name as you go! Temeroso el Draque!" The air rippled at her call as her ultimate weapon made itself manifest, the greatest fleet the world had ever seen. "I am the woman who set the sun! You rascals, it's time! The King of Ghosts, Night of the Storm, this is the beginning of the Wild-

And then the fox exhaled.

A swell of overwhelming light-could light be black?-burst from Kurama's jaws just as the first of Drake's ships emerged. Caught unprepared by the sudden surge, a dozen vessels were annihilated outright, followed by a score more as the great beast brought another blast to bear. More followed in their wake as the nine-tailed beast unleashed a fresh shot.

Drake choked, a specter of hopelessness stealing over her bravado.

By then the rest had realized the threat and converged their fire, only for the towering kitsune to leap at the nearest and using it as a springboard. One of them actually managed to rattle off a volley, but the towering fox simply shrugged it off and leaped again, tearing it asunder with a fresh scream in return. Something buckled in her at the sight. No. No, this was all wrong, it wasn't supposed to happen like this! The Wild Hunt was her trump card, her ace in the hole, and yet this thing...this thing...!

"Terrifying, isn't he?"

Her gaze snapped back to her flank, only to find a familiar pair of blue eyes blazing into her own.

"Don't worry. Kurama isn't here to fight you." Naruto cracked his knuckles slowly, painstakingly, as he closed the final gape between them. "His job is to keep those pesky ships of my-our-way while you and I have a little chat."

"And what do you know?!" she shrieked!

He barreled forward, heedless of the gunfire she greeted him with.

"No. I don't know everything. But you appear to be the one...who knows NOTHING!"

One shot found his shoulder in a grisly red spray, another his side, and still a third caromed off a kunai as he swatted it away. Yet still he bulled on towards her, fearless in the face of her fury. By the time Drake realized her peril and through to pull out her cannons it was already too late. A clenched fist halted mere centimeters before her and her body betrayed her in an actual flinch this time. A feint?! A knee greeted her gut, driving the wind from her lungs as surely as a storm at sea. Her cannons howled in his face and he swayed low, allowing their concentrated fire to sweep harmlessly overhead, then rewarded her with a headbutt of his own.

"Misery, misery, misery." the words escaped him as a growl as she stumbled away. "That's what you've chosen."

A right hook crunched hard against her face, driving the breath out of her again.

"I offered you friendship and you spat in my face. And for what?! A fool!"

Clenched knuckles sheathed themselves in her stomach, punctuated by two quick strikes to her abdomen. A booted foot swept her legs when she tried to scramble away, uncaring as her cutlass cut a red trench across his forearm in retaliation. Buckshot lodged in his chest and still he fought on, kicking her to the deck. When her sword struck out again it speared straight through the blond's hand; rather than retreat he closed his bloodied fingers around it and ripped it from her grasp entirely, flinging it over the swaying rail.

"Hell, I didn't even want to kill you! But you've left me no choice!"

Her cannons thundered back at him and this time, he proved a hair too slow.

He still didn't slow. "Sheesh, I blew off half your face! How are you still moving?!"

Naruto turned his head and spat out a tooth, glowering at her as his visage knitted back together.

"Because we are legends, you and I! DO YOU HEAR ME DRAKE?! Legends! Heroes? Villains? Good? Evil? What do those words mean to us? Nothing! We're beyond that! Believe me when I say that short of chopping off my head is going to kill me; and I'll be damned if I expect any less of you! Now! Bring out your cannons, El Draque! Call down your Armada! Unfurl your sails! I'll take all that you have and sink it!"

His speech left her torn; she wasn't sure if she should kiss him or simply kill him.

...you know, in another life, you'd have made a good first mate."

"Less talking more shooting!" he fired back.

Outwardly, she feigned a smile.

"Aye-aye, roger wilco!"

Inwardly, however, her mind flailed madly for a solution. For a plan that would extricate her from this mess she'd gotten into.

It found one quickly, almost immediately. Shinji had all but soiled himself from fear. Even now he was scrambling back as Hakuno stormed after him. Useless. She'd find no help there. Kurama remained preoccupied with the Wild Hunt, preventing her armada from raining down its wrath upon them. That...left Hakuno all but unguarded, unprotected even as her Servant continued to beat Drake to a bloody pulp. It would be the simplest thing to fire on her from here. But would she? Could she? Something in her recoiled at the thought. It felt...cheap somehow, as though doing so would forever stain her legacy-

"Rider! By my Command Spell, I order you! Kill this stupid bitch! Kill her now!"

In the end, the choice was taken from her when Shinji raised a hand. Had he simply shouted at her, she could've ignored him and fought on in the slim hope of victory but no, she already felt it. The command latched onto every fiber of her being, burned through her very soul and took control. Even as her mind remained her own and she protested, her saint graph betrayed her. It was useless to resist; doing so only weakened her further as another blow rocked her world internally.

'Sorry, kid. Nothing personal.'

She turned her cannons.

Naruto saw. Stiffened.

"No!"

It was a split second decision; a choice made in a matter of moments.

Hakuno scarcely saw it as such; one moment Naruto had been beating back Drake; the next he turned and flung himself at her instead. A golden hand graced her shoulder and shoved pushing her out of harms way before she could comprehend the danger, before she realized what was happening, indeed, before she could even think to cry out. Only then did she see. Time slowed to a crawl, all the colors of the world taken at a draw, fading to black and white as she soared backwards. The faint scent of gunpowder wafted on the breeze.

And for the first time since they'd met, Naruto cried out in pain.

The four-fold blast took him low in the side and blew off a leg, flinging him away like a broken doll. It all seemed to unfold in slow motion for Drake. She knew she'd hit him, knew she'd only gained said hit because of her Master's cheap tactics. Even so she couldn't bring herself to look away. Kurama spun, distracted by Rider's pain, and was promptly struck down by a concentrated volley. He struck the floor of the arena and tumbled away with a wordless cry, his large form already shrinking as the link between them faltered.

Somehow, the sound reactivated Shinji.

"YES!" With an exultant cry the boy threw his arms back and rejoiced. "It worked! I knew it would!"

Somehow, Drake doubted that had been his plan at all.

Idiot, he'd wasted a Command Seal on this?

Unfortunately her Master's...less than stellar choices didn't end there. Rather than retreat and allow her to finish the job like a professional the little scamp insisted on trying to make his way over to Naruto. Nevermind the fact that Hakuno was nowhere to be seen, nevermind that her Servant was still very much alive-though mortally wounded perhaps-he had to be a fool and twisted the knife. The thought caused her to banish the Wild Hunt without hesitation. That was overkill now. It wouldn't be needed...for what came next.

"Listen, we really should-

"No!" her Master batted away her hand. "I want to savor this!"

So she allowed him to limp closer, her scorn growing with every passing moment.

"Not so tough now, are you?!" He grinned at the still form. "Any last words before we finish you?!"

Gods that boy needed to clam up. To her surprise however, laughter greeted them. Sprawled on the deck though he was, the Red Rider only grinned.

"I'll give you this much; your strategy was flawless." Naruto croaked, propping himself up on his elbows. "Really. I had no way to counter beyond throwing myself into the line of fire. "But you. Made one. Fatal. Mistake."

"Oh, and what's that?" the blue-haired boy scoffed back, sneering.

Rider started as strong hands clamped onto her leg and dragged her down with a hoarse yell. In a fit of brilliance she realized what was about to happen-that she'd been played-and tried to fought upright, to no avail. Her opponent was well on his way to restoring already, and he clung onto her like a tenacious possum, refusing to release her.

A flickering crimson blur burst behind the still-stunned Shinji.

"You underestimated her."

Perhaps, had her "Master" been more knowledgeable they would've realized their peril; Rider could transfer his cloak with a touch, lend his energy to those he deemed worth. He'd done so earlier, mere moments before his legs had been blasted off his body. But they did not, and they WERE NOT and thus, they fell prey to the oldest trick in the book. Small knuckles swung back, forming a claw, the borrowed shroud mimicking her movements like some twisted puppet. Bright eyes blazed up, wild and furious, framed by wavy brown hair. A lone, fell declaration ripped through the poor Master's ears as he stared death in the face.

'I've blundered.'

Hakuno showed no mercy.

"Get away...FROM MY RIDER!"

Five chakra-coated claws raked across Shinji's face, taking his eyes before seizing hold of his visage. A strangled scream fled from his lips but Hakuno didn't hesitate; rather, she paid it no mind and bulled onward, hauling him forward to slam his spindly body against the ground. Something broke in her grip and she screamed, dragging him hard.

Furious, she turned and spat, kicking him away.

Even from this distance Drake could see the blood.

Those wounds were mortal. It was only a matter of time now.

"Wait! No! Stop!" Perhaps realizing his peril, Shinji began crawling backward like a drunken crab. "You can't do this to me! I'm only eight years old!" His words stood at odds with his older avatar, but they ran true in spite of his overwhelming fear. "Would you really kill a kid?!"

To her credit, Hakuno actually hesitated at that.

"Don't!"

Looking back, Drake didn't even realize Naruto was no longer clinging onto her back. By the time she realized those cloying hands had released their hold on her-by the time she saw it was already over. Perhaps Hakuno realized what Naruto had intended as well. Perhaps she realized he intended to take the killing blow himself, to keep her from bloodying her hands. Perhaps not. In any event, it was already too late. A single bound carried the little brunette forward, bringing herself well within striking distance. She couldn't let her do it.

She didn't give Shinji time to think.

Not even to defend himself.

Silently, she took aim...

"Sorry about this."

...and fired.

A single round impacted Shinji's skull before he could even realize his own peril. It was a clean shot. Through and through. A quick death. Nearly instantaneous. Shinji scarcely had time to realize his demise before his gaze rolled back into his head and he breathed his last. Drake felt it, then. Her contract, already weakened, finally guttered out with nary a sigh. Well. This certainly wasn't how she'd expected to go out. Hakuno spun, rounding on her with those big brown eyes, wide and confused. Poor thing. She really wasn't cut out for this war.

Gasping, she tumbled backward into Naruto's arms.

"Ah...I see. If this is death...if you're the one to kill me...then I accept it."

Perhaps the Moon Cell took mercy on Francis Drake for this last honorable act; because her broken body began to crumble almost immediately. A faint fuzzy sensation interposed itself over her senses, bringing with it an almost pleasant numbness. Her already blurry vision collapsed further, tunneling on itself.

"You idiot!" Oh. Was Naruto shouting at her? "Why did you do that?"

"Had to do it." she sighed, even as she began to falter. "You never would've taken me seriously otherwise. I had to push you, make you want to kill me. As for my Master...

She settled for a mute shrug.

"No, wait!" Flailing, he grasped at her fading form. "Hang on! Damnit, I can fix this! I know I can...!"

Damnit, why couldn't he just let her died in peace? He had to make her emotional at the last. For a brief moment the pall lifted and those iron arms encircling her were warm. Terribly so. It would be so easy to just close her eyes and drift off. Maybe she should. Ought to be less embarrassing. The idea of simply fading out like this...hurt. She wanted to spend more time with him. To laugh. Live. Love. The last thought rattled her badly, if only now that she'd admitted to herself. No wonder her pride had bristled so badly when she'd seen them...

...you're a nice person, Rider." her pale visage curved in a small smile, her good hand rising to cup his face. "Too nice. Still...I think that's why...at the end...I think I really...did love...

You.

Hakuno knew the word, though Drake never spoke it. The scarred pirate was too proud. Too stubborn to admit the truth, even in her death throes. She cared about Naruto. Perhaps that was why she'd attacked him with such ferocity. She hadn't been able to do anything about it; nothing to help, not even a Code Cast of her own. She simply had none to use. As she looked on, watching her body crumble, she regretted that powerlessness, the same emotion in her own Servant's eyes. Why else would he shed tears for her? There was nothing he could do. Nothing she could-

Wait.

Her gaze shifted.

Fell upon her right hand.

Rather, the marks lurking there.

There was something she could do.

Naruto had drilled everything he knew about the war-and the Moon Cell had given him quite a bit-into her head. He'd also told her of the Command Spells she bore. To never use them, unless it was an emergency. These three marks could accomplish almost anything. Make the impossible possible. Surely Drake didn't deserve to die like this. She admittedly knew little about the flashy Servant beyond her penchant for cannons, but she seemed nice enough, and Naruto clearly cared about her. Naruto, who had been so kind to her, so proud of her, always working her, always pushing her to be her best, yet never so much that she might break.

Never once had he asked her for anything, never had he demanded anything in return.

He, who refused to abandon her when all others did.

It was time to repay that favor.

With that, the smallest of seeds sprouted in her mind, a tiny idea rapidly taking root. Could she do it? Was it possible? She didn't know. No, she had no way of knowing. She, who was very much a failure of a Master, who knew only what little she'd been taught, forced to garner information secondhand. It should, in theory. The principle was sound. Of course, it could kill her. But that miserable look etched into her Servant's face was far worse.

Grimacing, she rose from where she had fallen on her knees and gripped her wrist.

"Heed my words!"

Both Servants snapped to the right.

She held out a hand, palm splayed towards Drake.

Upon her wrist a single Command Spell pulsed in time with her heart, resonating alongside her words. A single stark red symbol stood out amongst the trio, writhing and humming like a thing alive. The privateer realized what she intended in an instant; Naruto was only a heartbeat behind, blue eyes bulging, but in his weakened state couldn't climb upright. What was she thinking? Trying to forge a second contract with a Servant was one thing, but to do so while one was dying and the other on death's door...!

"My will creates your body," she intoned solemnly in time with each faltering heartbeat, words rising over the fading din in her ears. "And your might guides my destiny...

"Oi! Stop! Stupid squirrel!" Kurama hissed! "You're going to burn yourself out! You'll die!"

"Will...not!" Hakuno bulled onward through gritted teeth, heedless of their shouts and curses and pleas to cease. "Servant before me...if you heed the Grail's call and consent to my will and reason...the answer me! Do so and I will entrust my destiny to your fleet!"

Gasping out the last, she dropped to her knees before Drake and offered a hand, fingers splayed.

"Please!"

Those wide brown eyes-that earnest plea of a maiden's heart-bored into Drake, and held her fast. Fixated her. Rooted her. Even in her last moments she felt some semblance of exasperation, a stray spark of painful pride reluctantly stirred up from the dying ashes of her heart. Foolish little girl. Why take this risk? For her? For Naruto? Or for something else? She didn't know. Her arm twitched, a silent longing springing to life deep within.

Trembling fingers stretched out, brushing her own.

...what the hell. I accept these terms!"

Then there was light.

---

(...0o0o0...)

---

"Reckless little squirrel!"

In the roaring sea of light and brilliance that followed, Francis Drake was vaguely aware of the events that followed; of a great presence brushing against her consciousness. Be it innocent of malignant she knew not, but whatever it was, it seemed...pleased with her. She must've blacked out somehow in the interim, because when she woke the arena was gone, replaced by the hideous white-washed walls of the infirmary.

Indeed, when she finally came to, her next sight was that of Naruto shaking his poor Master like a leaf. The sight was only made more comical by the small form of Kurama tuggng at her ear.

The trio turned when she stirred.

...why're you looking at me like that?" she muttered as climbed to her feet. "Is there something on my face? Oi!"

Hakuno clapped both hands to her mouth. "Oh, dear."

Only the did Drake realize she was looking up.

Her head barely came up to Naruto's chest.

What in blazes?

"Don't freak out!" Naruto's hands waved wildly even as she opened her mouth to shout. "Hakuno doesn't have enough prana to actively support both of us at the same time yet! With me so far? Looks like you got the short end of the stick. Supposed I ought to count my blessings. That could've happened to me." As she looked on in quite consternation he thumbed his chin and chuckled softly. "Although its not a bad look for you, all things considered...shorty. Maybe we can find a way to fix this...?"

Drake tilted her head.

"What are you on about...?" Why did her voice sound higher?

A broken shard of reflective glass sailed her way in response, leaving her to flail at it.

"Here." her fellow Rider exhaled in a long-suffering sigh. "Probably better if to show rather than tell you...

The pirate queen reached for the tumbling piece, only to find that she had to reach much farther than expected to grasp at it. Not by much, but for a Servant the distance proved noticeable. Was her depth perception off somehow? Was this a side effect of forging a new contract on the verge of "death" as she'd been? Naruto was openly grinning now, but somehow his words still didn't register until she saw herself. Truly saw herself.

Turning the broken shard over in her grasp, she balked at the girl staring back at her.

Indeed, the pristine visage that stared back at Francis Drake was most certainly her own and yet not. Her scar remained but faded, more an annoyance than the grisly reminder of her past legacy. A hand rose in confusion to trace this strange reflection. body felt firmer in places, yet lighter in others, as though she'd cast off a terrible weight she hadn't been aware of. And her girls...well. Not much change there. This new appearance stood in silent testament to a portion of her legacy, one she'd rather not speak of, an era where she'd only just set out onto the sea. She was most assuredly still herself, just...younger. Shorter, too. By at least a head!

A muscle jumped in her jaw, pounding alongside a thick vein in her temple.

Naruto was openly laughing now, and her cheeks began to burn.

In the end, only three words came to Drake's mind.

Aqua orbs bulged explosively.

"Shiver me timbers!"

A/N: STOPU!

Hakuno is NOT going to go around saving every Servant she finds. At most she can only pull this trick off one more time and that's assuming she has the mana for it. As you can see, there are...a few side effect with forging a new contract with a fading Servant when one doesn't have enough circuits to adequately sustain them.

And there we have it.

Naruto definitely channeled a little bit of Archer's snark there at the end.

YES, that "Berserker" you saw earlier was exactly who you thought it was. His name stars with B-E-O- and ends with W-U-L-F.

And YES Tamamo and Nero get far more screentime in the up-and-coming chapters.

Let it not be said that I follow conventional rules!

Hakuno's taken custody of Drake, Shinji is gone *spits* and now our poor little squirrel has to contend with two Servants. The latter is also trapped in a teenage form at present, much to her infinite consternation. Confused? Think of Medea Lily or Artoria Lily. Now we've got Drake Lily, in her late teenage years. Let me know if you want it to last, because that's going to kick up all kinds of chaos.

And yes, Hakuno HAS stolen Servants before. Fate EXTELLA explicitly states it at one point.

Furthermore, Command Spells CAN be taken from someone, but its not a nice process.

I don't think anyone is going to weep for Shinji.

So In the Immortal Words of Atlas...

...Review, Would You Kindly?

And enjoy the previews!

May the make ya laugh!

(Previews)

"You're sooooo fluffy~!"

Kurama absolute hissed.

"One more word and I'll bite you."

---

"Boy bring that ass here before I drag it myself!"

The enemy Servant took off a dead sprint.

"YOU'LL NEVER TAKE ME ALIVE!"

---

...is this really necessary?

"You tried to shoot Hakuno in our fight. I'd say it is."

"But whyyyyyyyyyyyy~?!

---

"Why help us?"

Her tail was actually wagging. "Why, that handsome soul of yours, of course! Can I have it?"

---

He offered her a mug.

"We're Servants, you know." Drake deadpanned. "We can't get drunk...I think."

"Never know until we try!"

R&R~!