Author Note

Hi there and welcome to another chapter. I thank everyone who offered me their insights, so I will answer some of you who either pointed things out or asked questions.

Dadragon562 – I appreciate the criticism and I would be thrilled if you could help being a beta for this story. As for the questions, while Shirou's interactions with the others will be less than UBW, Rin and Sakura will have a big participation in the big scheme of things. However, I will only reveal it later. Keep tuned for the next chapters.

Michas – Even if it's a bad review, I appreciate it. It helps me review my work more.

Daizuke - No it won't be a harem story.

Tl34lt12 – Thanks for the review. Yes, Rin and Sakura will be in the story. Rin more since it is based on UBW somewhat. Sakura will also play a role in it.

1740 – Well, that would be revealing, but yes they will.

Toa Solaic – Well, the mere mention of his name added by the fact that his father's name keeps popping up, made Shirou less resistant to Ilya's claims.

The-killer40513 – Saber is the main female protagonist, but Rin and Sakura will play their parts as well.

Now here comes the chapter.

Fate Stay Night: Sword and Arrow

Part I – Fifth Holy Great War

Chapter 4 – King's desire

The following morning after the encounter with Berserker and, after a sizeable breakfast, Shirou and Saber were at it once more, training their swordplay to prepare him for future encounters. This time, however, they opted to make things a little more interesting. Instead of the regular wooden swords, they were training with real weapons. Shirou with his regular katana and Saber with one of her own. Only her sword was one of her master's designs, albeit based on her memories. She manifested the sword she wanted inside her mind, so that her master could see and then project it. It was a simple old British sword, which Arturia Pendragon, before being nominated king, would use to practice her swordsmanship with her brother, with a similar handle to Caliburn and the steel length like Shirou's katana, albeit thicker.

Shirou needed to adapt to difference in weapons.

Fighting with identical swords is nice and all, but doing this, he would improve at a much faster rate. Plus, with a wooden sword, the sense of danger is reduced to a bare minimum. Not that Saber would slice his body in half, but at leas this way they could work in a much more similar war-like environment.

Hence why instead of wooden sounds, now became more menacing steel attrition. Contrary to his expectations, however, it didn't mean that his servant would take it easy considering the injuries. He had already suffered multiple cuts around his arms and torso, because of it. Obviously, the woman was far too engrossed in having a nice fight…ah nice tutorship to worry about his well being. Not that he ever asked her to do that, of course. Her expression showed that she was enjoying this far more than he was comfortable with.

Whether she was enjoying the fighting part or the fact that he was covered in bruises was something to ponder.

After they returned yesterday from their fight against Berserker, Shirou had served some tea and some snacks for a late-night meeting before they went to bed.

Shirou expressed great concern about the information of having a sister, though their focus right now was on the Servant Berserker. Despite it all, Saber explained that with the amount of mana that her master provided for her it was more than enough to allow her the strength to fend Heracles. Also, Saber approved of Shirou's engaging against Ilya. She was somewhat worried that her master would not fight seriously considering the man's ideals of justice. She approved his wording that he would take the fight to the point of incapacitation only. She was onboard with that. All it took was to take care of the servant, even if the master still had the command seals.

Without a servant, no master could pose a threat to Saber.

They discussed Hercules's possible weaknesses and Shirou figured that he would need to use stronger weapons to even make some damage. Arrows, alone, wouldn't do much aside from annoying him. Saber explained to him about her own A-ranked noble phantasm Excalibur, but both master and servant agreed that it would be more of a ace in the hole plan and only use in case of dire need. According to Saber, just using it required a lot of mana and would allow other enemies to seize the opportunity. Not to mention that it would pretty much reveal her identity and that's a major negative issue at least when they had yet to meet other servants and masters.

Eventually, they went to bed seeing as Shirou needed to conserve his energy.

Back to the present, their usual spar has ended when Saber managed to cause a considerable slash on Shirou's stomach. He doubled in immediate pain while using some healing spells to speed the recovery. Saber just wasn't concerned. For some reason, her master's wounds didn't take long to heal. So much so that she wondered if he had regenerative abilities like her. Still, injuries like these built character and she smiled at his pain resistance. His focus was not lost despite the deep injury. Saber, then, kneeled in front of her master as she thought deeply about what she was about to reveal to her master. She wasn't afraid of his reaction as she had plenty of time to think about it, though it would be quite surprising if Shirou of all people did not understand her reasons.

Despite the injury, Shirou could see her serious expression, which meant that she wanted to talk about something important.

"Shirou, I was serious last night when I said I wanted to tell about my desire for the Grail."

"Like I said before, Saber, you don't need to…"

"While I appreciate that you are respecting my need for secrecy, master, I feel it's only honorable to divulge it to you, considering that you have told me your reason."

Shirou flinched at the sudden response and simply nodded. He did say to her that he would listen if she wanted to.

"Sorry…please go on." Saber released a sigh and closed her eyes.

"The legend says that the one who takes the sword out of the stone would be crowded King of Britannia. The one the sword had chosen would have to divulge his entire time and effort towards the welfare of the kingdom. I knew about this oath before I decided to go forward. I knew about the necessary sacrifices beforehand. Once I took the sword off the stone, Arturia Pendragon would cease to exist and King Arthur would remain. I forfeit my life the moment I took Caliburn." Shiro listened as the images in his brain sent him back to the scene of a young Saber doing the deed. He could now hear the voice of the man next to her explaining these very risks to her. "When I took the sword in my hand, I have made a pledge to protect the kingdom with all my strengths. I have made an oath to simply consider the needs of the kingdom above my own." The scene shifted to a young Arturia getting ovations from her subjects and receiving the crown. "For quite some time, I was successful." Shiro could see her saddened look almost instantly and he couldn't help but want to reach a comforting hand on her shoulder, which earned a surprised look from his servant.

She nodded in appreciation at the strength he provided her to continue.

"After a while, many events occured and people started to look at my leadership in question, even those who swore their blades to me at the time. One of my fellow knights once said to me that I lacked leadership because I could not understand the hearts of men." Shiro frowned his eyes but said nothing at that. "Truth be told, I ponder about that even now, Shirou. When I swore to protect the Kingdom, I had at that point given up on me and focused on what was needed of a king. My decisions, in the end, appeared harsh and, to many, looked like a dictator. At the time, our borders were under constant attacks and many decisions I made turned out to be wrong….so very wrong."

Saber had tears in her eyes right now, but she continued.

"Upon my death, I soon realized that the kingdom would be better if it weren't me who took Caliburn from the stone that day. If another took the throne instead of me, then the people I cared about would not have to die." Images of her knights on the ground appeared in Shiro's mind as he was able to see the king in dire sorrow, despite not being able to mourn properly.

"So your wish is for the sword to choose someone else instead of you…"

Saber nodded rather focusing on the ground, rather than look at her master right now. Contrary to his noble goal, hers appeared quite cowardly.

"I took an oath that day, Shirou, an oath I have to take it seriously through the end of times, if necessary."

Shiro embraced his servant immediately and she could not help but gasp at the motion.

"Such a heavy burden you have placed upon yourself, Saber and for quite a long time. Though I would not agree with this train of thought, it would be quite hypocritical on my part to criticize." Saber looked at the man's caring eyes and smile. "You care about your people, Saber. It's quite evident and I understand about this oath you took as it is quite similar to my own ideals. Perhaps, it's this reason why we are together right now as master and servant. Our ideals are quite similar." Shirou could see that his ideals acquired from his father were quite like Saber's life.

Saber whipped the tears from her face and nodded in appreciation.

"Yes, they are indeed Shirou." Shiro then took both her hands and gently took her hands together.

"Though now a part of me really wants to save you..." Saber could see her master's captivating smile as his vision lacked focus for a second, before he looked straight at her.

"I understand you desire to protect the people you love, and I respect that. If that is your true desire by the end of this war, then let us move forward together." Saber could not help a small blush to appear on her face at the notion of her master wanting to save her. For some reason, she keeps having these strange feelings and a part of her cursed herself for appearing like a damsel in a fairy tail. Despite it all, she appreciated his recognition. Indeed, he was right. Master and servant have indeed a connection based on their personality.

And theirs match more than Saber ever realized.

"I think so…"

Shirou nodded and then got up seeing as his wounds were already healed. He offered his hand and Saber accepted with a smile on her face.

They soon went back to the house as Shirou needed to get ready for school.

"So, like I said two days ago, where you go I go, Shirou." He nodded as he inspected his wounds for any sign of blood.

"Of course. We can go. There is a park close to the school and I'm sure you can stay there while I finish class, although it would be quite boring for you."

"I don't mind…it's better to be close to you in case you get attacked. That Rin person will be there and if she tries to attack you with Archer, I must be nearby. Not to mention the possibility of the school having another master."

He accepted the explanation and turned towards the kitchen.

"I will make you some sandwiches and I can meet with you in the park during classes. At least, so that you don't get bored to death with nothing to do."

The servant nodded in appreciation, as she always enjoyed his sandwiches and pretty much everything that left from his kitchen. Eventually, Shirou had left towards school with Saber next to him. Their commute was uneventful until they had arrived at the park that Shiro had mentioned. The school building appeared small from their location, but Saber could at least see where he would be just in case.

Shirou saw Saber choosing one of the park benches and placed the basket with the sandwiches.

Inside, there was even a book that she picked up from his house to pass the time.

"Okay then, see you in a couple of hours, Saber." He saw her hand waving back at him. The servant for her turn saw her master's back for a while, before looking around to observe the scenery. It was a good day, she mused, as a couple of families were having fun talking to each other. Saber found herself quickly reminiscing on her conversation with Shirou about her wish.

Once more, she remembered her words of wanting to save her, which brought a smile on her face.

Ever since she told him about her wish, Saber felt lighter…as if a huge weight has been lifted off her shoulders. She felt good at being acknowledged by her master, she reasoned. Shiro after all had earned her respect.

===At the School===

Shirou didn't take more than five minutes to reach the gates of the school yard. He figured that Saber would not be too bored, considering that she was used to open spaces. Back in her days, Britannia must have hundreds of parks such as these for the king to use at her leisure. He then remembered about her wish to the Grail. While it was indeed a heavy burden on her part, Shirou wondered if he could ever commit to such notions like she did. Her wish simply existed through time and space as her oath never wavered. He found great respect for Saber for doing so, though what he said to her was true.

He wished that there was a way to save her as well. With such identical ideals, he guessed that if the roles were reversed, she would have tried to help him as well.

As soon as stepped foot inside the school, however, Shiro felt the same sensation he once had with Rin, only this time stronger…way stronger.

Though he disguised it well, this was certainly the work of a servant.

"So, you felt it too, huh?" He turned and saw Rin Tohsaka behind him with a serious expression on her face. "No doubt, this is a work of a servant." They could feel the heavy bounded field that went around the school.

"Who would have thought that the school would have three masters." Rin turned to him and studied his expression.

"I didn't take you for a fool Emiya. Coming here alone without your servant is like asking to be killed."

The redhead narrowed his eyes at her in a minute. He cared little about explaining about his strategies with Saber.

"Is it a threat, Tohsaka?" Rin took a step back and relented somewhat. Yes, Archer was there with her and she could use him to attack Emiya, but she remembered that he managed to hold his own against Lancer. Taking some composure, Rin cleared her throat.

"Huh, never mind what I said. Now, I suppose it would be ideal for us to join forces here at least to deactivate this bounded field. No doubt, the master will come to us in the end." Shirou nodded at the offer. For some reason, whoever is behind this is targeting the students and the staff, so Shiro had to do something about it.

"We can track the seals together alright, but that's it." Rin looked at him for a while and turned her face with an indignant sound. Seems to me that he doesn't trust you master. Rin snorted at her servant's amused comment. The servant in question pondered on yet another difference but said nothing. Shiro, for his part, immediately communicated what happened to Saber, who in turn, agreed with the part-time partnership between masters to rig the bounded field. Saber told him that this work could be of a Caster class servant and he nodded. You call me the minute you perceive threat, Shirou. I will be there in less than a minute. Shirou said ok in his mind to his servant as he followed Rin inside the building.

"Emiya, meet me on the school rooftop after class, so we can disarm the bounded field. For now, there are too many people here."

Shirou nodded, earning a mental approval from Saber.

===At the Park===

Saber was calmly flipping through the pages of her book while taking an occasional bite from her sandwich. A couple of hours ago, she had a quick conversation with her master about a servant's actions in the school. She relaxed after that, seeing as the rule implied that no fight would be carried away in broad daylight. So, she had just settled into taking it easy and enjoying her reading as she waited for Shirou to appear throughout his classes. It didn't mean that she had closed her link with him, though. If any conversation occurred between Shirou and Rin, she would listen.

She even giggled a couple minutes ago upon hearing Shirou complain about his sister figure teacher discussing with another of his classmates.

She then took her eyes away from the book with a smile when she saw Shirou approach to take a seat next to her and offer her some coffee.

"I don't know if you had it already, but I brought it for you." Saber took the offering and saw her master blowing slightly to cool the drink, before taking a zip. She did the same and took a zip. She preferred tea, but it was good as well.

Shirou just relaxed by her side as she offered him one of his sandwiches, which he accepted gracefully.

"So, what do you think are Rin's intentions?" Saber took a zip of the coffee as she pondered.

"Alliances throughout the war does sometimes work in our favor, but I feel that she just wants this alliance so that we do not attack her. She feels threatened since I almost killed her servant that day."

"Yeah, I wouldn't put it past her for thinking like this. So, you said that this field was from a Caster class."

"Other servant classes can do it, but Caster is more skilled at it. Caster class servant normally possesses the same skills as a magus. What do you intend on doing, Shirou?"

"Right now, disrupting the bounded field is a must. Many students and teachers are feeling the strain, meaning that whoever is doing this is planning on attacking humans for mana. Though, I assume that once we deal with the bounded field, the servant will appear and attack us. Although, come to think about it, if the servant needs to attack others for mana, then the master must not be supplying the servant enough, which means that he or she is not adept in mage craft."

"Indeed, you may be right. Though, you and Rin are exceptions being so young and powerful magus at that. Normally, one would expect you two to have many more years of experience." She finished her coffee and concluded. "If this new master is a student, then he or she is new to the field. Do you happen to know if anyone of your classmates comes from a known magus family?" Shirou looked at her and looked at the sky in wonder. Passing quickly through the names he knew, the only magus families were both Tohsaka and Matou, but the Matou's prowess was pretty much dormant these days. Shirou doubted that Sakura would be a master and he just could not see Shinji being one, though he could not rule it out, despite how obnoxious he was.

"Aside from Rin, only Sakura and her brother Shinji, they are both Matou."

Saber frowned immediately, remembering about one Matou Kariya, Lancelot's master, from the last war.

"You mentioned this Sakura as the girl who comes by your house on occasion." If Saber is correct, then Shirou found it strange, seeing he had never sensed mana coming from her. Though seeing as she comes for breakfast at his house for a long time now and he simply never bothered to check. Now, he felt like punching himself for his carelessness.

"Maybe, it could be her, though to be honest, she just wouldn't do something like this. Her brother Shinji would, though. He is quite an ass. Well, I need to get back now Saber. After class, we will start with deactivating the seals and it may take little more than an hour to do so. After that, we can go home and then perform some rounds for enemies throughout the night. Well, assuming that we don't get attacked today." Saber nodded and went back to her book.

===At the School===

Once classes were finished, Shiro and Rin worked together to disable the bounded fields. The last one was located on the roof.

"Okay, I guess we found all of them." Shirou announced as he disrupted the last one. He immediately looked behind to see Rin's servant materialize.

"Did you find anything, Archer?"

"Whoever the servant is, is masking its presence. The feeling is too faint, and I can't pinpoint its location."

Shirou was busy, however, just looking at the white-haired servant in scrutiny. As soon as Archer appeared, Shirou had felt something resonate within himself. An image appeared in his brain, though it was quite blurry. Clouded skies…a dark plain field filled with swords. Shirou could also see the very same sword that Archer used against Lancer sprawled on said field. Archer, for his turn, crossed his arms as he stared back the boy. Rin caught them both staring at one another and she wondered what was going on. Shirou then closed his eyes and turned to Rin in order to bid her goodbye when both of them heard someone screaming.

Both masters ran towards the source and Archer sighed before turning into spirit form once more.

If it was up to him, he would have attacked and killed the fool right there.

However, he doubted that Saber was far from their location, so it would be close to suicide. Somehow, the boy would be able to defend himself long enough for her to appear and Archer just could not be taken away so soon. He had a mission after all.

Shirou and Rin soon found a girl on the floor unconscious and Rin performed her magic to at least give the wounded girl enough to wake up soon.

She was about to finish her magic when Shirou traced a sword and slashed a hidden chain to pieces that would have skewered Rin's head. Rin had barely enough time to fall on the ground in surprise.

'Saber, I think I found the servant…'

'On my way…'

"Rin, take care of her please. I will be right back."

Rin tried to stop him, but he had already vanished towards the secluded green area near the school. Archer soon materialized next to her.

"He may be skilled but facing a servant on his own is quite foolish." Rin sighed in annoyance, forgetting that said person had just saver her life. And now she owed him for doing so. Rin looked towards the building and frowned seeing the ass Shinji looking at her. Is he behind this? Archer, let`s go…

===With Shirou===

Shirou had passed by the heavy foliage and placed his katana in front of him as he tried to pinpoint the Servant's location.

He could feel his link with Saber getting stronger, meaning she would be here very soon. He was able to feel the attack coming and blocked the attack once more. The servant, though, maintained the attack from a distance, forcing Shirou on the defensive. His reinforced eyes worked hard to even trace this servant's movements, though the strength behind the attacks were rather lacking.

"Aren't you going to use a command seal to call your servant?"

Shirou could see her now that she stopped moving. It looked more like a dominatrix than a heroic spirit. Long purple hair, sensual outfit and with a blindfold on her eyes.

Shirou saw her dashing forward for an attack once more and did the same to meet her halfway, surprising the servant who flipped her small daggers to parry his katana. While this was not her top speed, it was impressive that a magus could follow, much more parrying her attack with one of his own. Shirou silently thanked his training sessions with Saber as she had shown him the speed in which a servant use to fight.

Rider attempted once more and Shirou still parried her blow for blow, before both meet in the middle.

"You seem intent on facing me on your own, boy. Contrary to my master, you have courage."

Shirou didn't waste time and dashed towards the servant in order to continue the attack. He told his servant his plan to ambush Rider. Shirou dodged the invisible chain that would have grabbed his arms and surged closer to Rider. The servant, however, used her agility to create some distance. Shirou projected four swords on top of his head and sent them all towards Rider, forcing her on the defensive. Some of the swords injured her arms, forcing her even more on the defensive. If Rider had a more capable master, she would have the mana necessary to use her most lethal attacks, but her coward of a master didn't have any, meaning she had to take it from others.

The rain of swords suddenly became too much to just defend and Rider dodged them instead.

Rider then increased her speed to finalize the boy when she looked up. However, before she could so much as place her in a threatening position, Saber came flying at her and slashed her invisible sword, with a vertical slash. Saber stood crouched as Shirou saw Rider frozen in place. In less than two seconds, her blindfold was cut in half as too many blood poured from Saber's attack.

Rider's body vanished right afterward as Shirou approached Saber.

"Are you alright Shirou, I got here as fast as I could…"

The boy passed his hand over his injured wrist. While Rider's attacks weren't that strong, Shiro didn't reinforce his entire arm, hence his wrist was bleeding a bit.

"Nothing major…in fact the ones I received from our training hurt two times as much." Saber smiled at her master. Normally, she would call on his rash decisions to face a servant alone, but he had called to her before doing so and could very well hold his own until she appeared to help. She could see that her master slowly managed to incorporate new abilities, even skills that could attack from a distance. Aside from his arrows, Shirou learned to use swords and other weapons as projectiles and that certainly makes him very dangerous…not to mention the fact that he can project noble phantasms and even use those as projectiles.

"We need to head back, Saber. The servant may be gone, but the master is still nearby. We have to take down the barrier."

They both ran towards the school until they saw Rin and Archer waiting for them outside the school perimeter.

Shirou looked around and could not find the woman that they rescued.

"What happened to her, Rin?" The woman crossed her arms in annoyance at being stuck there while Shirou went to face the servant.

"She will be fine…I was about to grill Shinji into ordering her servant to drop the bounded field, but I guess that's was your servant's doing."

Shiro snarled at Shinji being behind this, slightly relieved that it wasn't Sakura.

Saber released her invisible sword and relaxed her arms, while looking at both master and servant, wary of their actions.

"I may have delivered the killing blow, but it was Shirou who defeated Rider." Both Rin and Archer looked at Saber in surprise, even Shirou found himself slightly uncomfortable for the phrase, which earned a mental smacking from his servant. 'Like you feel awkward getting praised for it, how do you think I feel receiving praise that belonged to others?'` Shirou could not help but agree with her, though. He would be the first to take the spotlight away from his face at the first opportunity.

"Anyway, Emiya…"

Shirou looked at Rin who was showing a stoic expression back at him.

"I know you said that our alliance was only until we deactivated the bounded field and dealt with Rider and Shinji, but we can agree to a cease fire between us at least."

"Is there a reason, Tohsaka?"

At his response, both Saber and Archer tensed getting ready for battle.

Shirou for his part was looking at Archer instead of his master and for some reason, he became angry at the very sight of him.

Rin, however, sighed at the high level of hostility that now existed between them. She regretted not helping him when he faced Lancer on his own at the time.

It was her responsibility as a Tohsaka to stop Servants from killing humans.

"Yes, I apologize for not doing anything to help you against Lancer that time and I also thank you for saving me from Rider. The reason for the cease-fire is because I'm quite worried about the servant Caster and its actions so far." Shirou wondered what happened, before his mind remembered the events that occurred right before the war started. Saber told him today that this bounded field was usually Caster's field of expertise, as Caster Servant was also a magus just like the masters. "Yesterday, we found trace of Caster's mana close to the Ryuudou Temple. The Servant has been attacking multiple humans to gather as much mana as possible, though her reasons still elude us."

"So, you wish to focus on Caster first, then in hopes to stop the attacks on the citizens."

Rin nodded and she was relieved to see a smile from the redhead. Shirou turned to his servant and received a subtle nod from Saber.

"At least, your intentions are noble. Ok, we can agree with a cease-fire for now. Not to mention that right now I can't stand to look at his face."

The servant in question snorted in derision at the comment, though Saber looked at her master in wonder.

"You seem like you wish to say something…out with it, though I won't say that I even care about your opinion." To that Shirou frowned.

"For some reason, just by looking at your face, just makes me want to punch you." Oh…the feeling was quite mutual. Archer mused as he dematerialized.

"That wasn't very nice Emiya…" Shirou simply shrugged and turned to walk away, but not before extending the same courtesy.

"Take care for now Tohsaka, just beware of Berserker. We crossed swords with him, and I can tell that Archer would have trouble."

Rin could see that Shirou was speaking the truth and she simply nodded in appreciation, before going her way.

"Should I even ask?"

Shirou released a sigh as he knew what Saber wished to understand.

They were already walking outside the school towards the charted bus that would take them close to Emiya's House.

"I don't know…Saber…something about Archer that I cannot quite figure out. When I looked at him, I could see glimpses of myself standing on top of a dark field filled with swords. It was also quite strange how angry I became upon looking at him." Saber frowned at the explanation. Usually, that would mean that both her master and Rin's servant had a connection somewhat. Though, Saber could not figure out Archer's identity as a heroic spirit from the past. From what she gathered from Shirou's memory, he was fighting against Lancer using two small swords and in close combat. Theory wise, the archer class would be most effective by striking from a distance. Fighting like he did was similar to a Saber Class servant.

"Something to ponder, then. This connection, as you mentioned, may be key for us to figure out Archer's identity." Shirou nodded, though he remained contemplative.

"Now, I would suggest that we can practice with smaller swords tonight. Small swords, although less powerful, are more agile. You already trained against larger weapons and against Rider, you had a bit of trouble, parrying the more agile strikes, am I wrong?" Saber smirked as she saw Shirou's shoulder slump in defeat. He just could not hide from an expert fighter like her after all. Though he now pondered on the remaining servants and figured out what his servant wanted to imply.

"Since Archer is the only one left that fights with a small sword, then our fight may be inevitable, right?" Saber nodded, happy that her master could think long term.

"Certainly. From the servants that still lives, Archer is the only one that strangely favors a sword, strange as that may be, considering his specific class."

Shirou understood as they entered the house as Shirou activated the bounded field.

He saw Saber marching ahead towards the Dojo. He really was not surprised that his sensei wanted to start practicing right away.

===At the Dojo===

"Okay Shirou, could you trace the same swords that Archer used in his fight with Lancer."

The boy nodded and closed his eyes before two energies surged in each of his hands. Immediately, the swords called Banshou and Bakuya appeared in Shirou's hand, before he looked at Saber for the next step. Saber, for her turn, manifested her invisible sword and charged at Shirou with the intent to kill. Shirou took a step back at the sudden aggression but stood his ground as he placed both the swords in front of Saber's to parry her weapon. He then attacked her with one of the swords while the other served to keep Saber's sword at bay. Saber moved her sword slightly to parry Shirou's attack, before flipping and attacking Shirou's exposed torso. The master reinforced his legs and evaded Saber's attack.

The woman fighter noticed that Shirou was more at ease than fighting with a regular katana.

She also noticed that his movements were similar to Archer's at least based on Shirou's memories.

Shirou even managed to create some distance and flipped his body in order to increase the strength of the attack, but for a master of swords such as her, she managed to parry the attack and even forced him to drop his guard. Her sword found flesh and Shirou flinched in pain. Shirou ignored the pain and kept on attacking, this time more focused on not giving her many openings, earning a nod in recognition from Saber. Fighting with a different style meant that he needed time to adjust. Although he was fighting more attuned to his style, Shirou still incorporated the defensive postures of his katana style of fighting. He would place the swords close to one another, so as that one would attack and one would defend if needed be.

Good…Shirou is adapting well to a different style of fighting…he could use this to be one step ahead of his opponent.

They kept fighting like this for an entire hour, before Saber stopped.

"You seem quite comfortable fighting like this, Shirou." Shiro looked at the swords in wonder, now more lost than ever.

"Yes, it seems so. Though I've been fighting for a longer time using a katana. Perhaps, we can train in different styles of fighting. With these swords, I must remember to focus on defense. With the katana, I can fight more balanced."

Saber looked at her master in surprise at his level-headed analysis. She was afraid that Shirou would lose himself with this style.

"For someone who's more self-taught, you are quite a gifted student, Shirou."

The boy smiled at the phrase and bowed in respect, before blushing in surprise at his stomach's complaint.

"Oh yes, hunger is the enemy." Saber laughed and nodded.

===Inside the House===

After they had dinner, Shirou had decided on a quick shower before heading to bed. He figured that Saber was on the kitchen watching TV or simply drinking some tea so he opened the door to the bathroom and was about to enter, before his face became redder than a tomato. Master saw Servant bathing naked on the bathtub and froze immediately. His eyes betrayed him on the spot, going over Saber's toned body from head to toe. Saber, for her part, was surprised and blushed at the implication.

"Sorry, Shirou…please I ask you to refrain from using the bath at this time. Though I can't restrict my master's actions, I would ask if you could wait a couple of minutes."

Shiro was shocked that he was caught staring and turned immediately.

"I...It is I who apologize, Saber…I didn't know you were here…"

"I do not wish for you see my body, Shirou. A muscular body like this would appear unattractive to men, right?" Shiro wondered about that, despite still blushing…truth be told, he had already burned the image of her naked body in his mind. "My body is not the same as Rin's…not a girl's…"

"Saber…what are you talking about…that's not true…"

When he turned once more, he could see that the girl was blushing as well at his comment and quickly yelled sorry a couple of times, before leaving the bathroom just as Saber dib her body in the bathtub, only keeping her nose above the water limit. Despite the obvious awkward situation between master and servant, Saber found herself smiling at the situation…or rather her situation with her master. When she appeared before him, she was at first relieved that at least she was summoned to a capable master. Then, when they came to know one another more thoroughly and even sharing their thoughts and dreams of the past, Saber could see many of her own ideals and oaths in him. It didn't take too long for her to consider Shirou as a comrade and even a friend, despite their mission as contenders in the holy grail war. And now there were times like these that her master would catch her by surprise and it a good way, forcing her to consider something that not once in her life she ever considered it.

Her life was nothing but duty and responsibility, so she paid little mind to any thought about herself or her wants and needs.

Now with a new blush of her own, Saber could not help but linger on the possibility of her being perhaps being more to him than what they are right now…

Behind the bathroom door, a similar thought entered Shirou's mind as the image of her naked passed in his mind once more.

Author Note: And that is the end of chapter 4. It was quite curious that the bathroom scene in UBW showed both Shiro and Saber blushing like crazy because in UBW, Shiro's love interest is Rin. In Fate, where his love interest is Saber, the girl just appears before him naked and even go as far as to say is no big deal to see her naked. I kind of figured it would be the other way around. Anyway, for those who believe that by 1-2 chapters, they relationship will evolve, it's going to take a bit longer. It just would not be credible if out of nowhere Saber develops feelings for him. In the Fate series, she had only realized her feelings on the last episodes. While I will not take that long, I will at least make subtle scenes to develop the relationship.

Also, for those who believed that Rider was too weak, do remember that in UBW, she was taken out of the equation rather quick. With a weak master like Shinji and not having as much mana as the rest, Rider was too weak.

Not to mention that like Archer, Shirou is developing his skills with sword projectiles from a distance.

Now the battles are going to be more intense as we reach the intermediary of the war.

Still next chapter.

Finally, I ask that, if possible, please review my work.

I enjoy reading your comments as it helps me understand that you enjoyed it (or not). It also allows me to learn if I made a mistake and could thus fix it. So, please review, even if only to express that you liked the chapter or not.