Hey, folks. Time for another chapter. School started the 25th, and I'm already doing homework. I already feel the pressure of being a senior.

Other than that, I got 1.25k views on the day chapter 3 came out. Best personal record so far for me (Wohoo~!) and I got 106 favorites and 114 follows from three chapters! This makes this story my best one so far! Thanks for the support guys!

Kinunatz: Yes, Naruto already has Magic Circuits, he hasn't used them yet for Magecraft as he has Chakra as an alternative. While the era of Magi is done, the Magic Cicuits, Od, Prana, etc. didn't disappear. It's just dormant within people around the world. He will use Chakra and Prana to use his Servant's abilities, but the use of Magic Circuits will be at a later time. Until he can use his Magic Circuits and Prana, Chakra will fuel his Servants.

It will be explained better in the chapter where Naruto is introduced to Prana, Od, Mana, and such.

Disclaimer: first chapter

Chapter 4: The Weight of a Sword

It's noon and had been two days since Naruto woke up from his month-long coma. The boy professionally hid himself from the public and his friends as he trained with Saber continuously in Team seven's training ground. Apparently, Kakashi and Saber saw improvement skyrocket as he found ways to get around a parry and trained his muscles to be faster to make faster strikes.

In the Hokage Mansion, the largest building of the Village, Tsunade was sitting still in her seat as she just heard the news about the Akatsuki, an organization that wanted the Biju inside Jinchurikis, from Jiraiya yesterday. In other, simpler words, Naruto is in danger. As the way things are, Naruto staying here will only hinder his progress; villagers are calling for his head. They are accusing the boy of being the reason Sasuke left, the reason the Uchiha died (which wasn't that far off), and that he should die for accessing the Kyuubi's Chakra. The fear of Kyuubi corrupting Naruto was a tale already spread around since the boy's birth, but the actual use of the Biju's Chakra set the villagers off into rage and panic.

How did the villagers even know of the boy's use of Kyuubi's Chakra? The Hokage had only one possible answer: the Civilian Council.

Mission debriefings, while are Shinobi matters at heart, they are also recited to the Council, both the Civilian and Shinobi sides. Kakashi, despite being seemingly lazy, was detail-oriented when it came to mission debriefings. When Tsunade heard the part where Kakashi felt the Kyuubi's Chakra being used, she saw the predatory glares and vicious sneers the Civilian Council had. Tsunade only suspected that it was through the Civilian Council's treasonous action that the villagers know about Naruto's use of the Biju's Chakra.

Naruto needed to be out of the village fast! It would only be a matter of time until the villagers find out the boy is now conscious and would riot for his head. She had only one option, "Jiraiya!" she yelled. The wandering Sannin entered her office via window and looked at the Hokage.

"Hey, Hime. What do you need?"

"Take him on a training trip." Tsunade ordered rather than answered.

"When?" The Toad Sage queried.

"By noontime tomorrow."

"So soon? Tsunade, he just woke up. He should have some time for his friends," Jiraiya persuaded, "He needs to stay here for a bit; he may show that he's happy, but inside he's hurting. He thinks it's his fault Sasuke left."

"And so do the villagers and the Civilian Council," Tsunade snapped back at her teammate with venom in her tone by the mere mention of the corrupt Civilian Council.

Jiraiya sighed, reluctantly agreeing to Tsunade's order; she won't change her mind anytime soon. "Shouldn't he be here to hear this?" Jiraiya asked his teammate while scratching the back of his head.

"He'll know about it from you." Tsunade answered, totally avoiding responsibility, "Besides, you're his master, you have the responsibility of telling him."

Meanwhile, at Team seven's training ground, Naruto maneuvered out of harm's way as he ducked under Saber's horizontal slash aimed at his side. Saber pointed her sword at the rising trainee and thrusts the wooden blade. Naruto twists his body just enough to marginally dodge the sword. The whiskered blonde grinned; he made Saber defenseless and open for a counterattack. Swinging his sword as fast as he could, Naruto saw Saber not attempting to dodge. Saber waited, and while Naruto's swing looked incredibly fast for a trainee, it was still too slow for Saber. At the last moment, Saber turned and tilted her head to the right and lowered her body while it also turned to the right. She was utilizing the momentum of her turning to swing her sword as powerful as she could muster along with her arm strength. Naruto, during the two/ three days of training had adjust to his swordmaster's speed, and while he could clearly see the blade going for his gut once again, he couldn't react fast enough.

Saber completed the rotation. Her head was by Naruto's side and her sword reaching her Master's gut. With a step, she anchored herself. The sword met her Master's flesh, and with her right foot anchoring her, she used her momentum and arm strength to spin Naruto an ungodly amount of times as he flew forward and rolled away once he hit the ground.

"Dead," Saber stated calmly. She ignored her Master's moans and complaints of pain. Kakashi looked at the scene and chuckled slightly. Sakura on the other hand recoiled and hypothesized how painful that blow could have been. All the while, Tenten, Ino, and Hinata were spying from the trees surrounding the open area.

The three girls had heard from the Hokage that Naruto had woken up. They were also told that he already started training in Team seven's training ground. What the Hokage didn't say was that Naruto had taken an interest in swordplay, nor did she say that Naruto also has a strict, powerful, and flawlessly skilled master of swordplay.

Naruto, still groaning, stood up with a bit of difficultly, "Saber-sensei…can we take a break? I'm hungry."

"Of course, Naruto." Saber answered. After that conversation with Tsunade, Naruto had figured that Saber should get comfortable speaking her Master's name, or people would look at her strangely. Thankfully, she obeyed and fulfilled the order as soon as Naruto said that, "Where would you like to eat?"

The young Master's gleaming smile told everything in Kakashi's and Sakura's eyes. It was even painfully obvious to the hiding trio in the trees. Naruto had an insatiable craving for Ichiraku Ramen.

"How about you guys?" Naruto asked Kakashi and Sakura.

"Sure," Answered the other two members of Team seven.

Naruto turned to the trees, where the Kunoichi trio were hiding, "How about you, girls? You coming?" Naruto asked them with a smile on his face, "I think I have enough to feed everyone here a bowl…how about it?"

The hiding girls were certainly shocked to be spotted. Naruto never showed such aptitude in paying attention to his surroundings…heck, he didn't even pay mind to using weapons other than shuriken or kunai in a fight! Who the heck is this new Naruto? Tenten was surely interested, while Ino didn't know what to think about the improved Shinobi. Hinata on the other hand still had a crush on the blonde Shinobi. The girls jumped off their perch and landed in front of the remnant of Team seven and the swordmaster.

Tenten spoke first, "Sure, I'll take that offer," She smiled as she agreed to the treat. The weapons mistress poised her hands just above her waist, where her hips were starting to show the curvature of her body.

Ino patted her stomach, "I do need some food inside me. You got yourself a deal, Naruto."

Hinata lowered her hear and played with the indexes of her fingers, "U-Um…I'll go, Naruto-kun…" Her voice, low and meek, showed her unnaturally high level of shyness expressed by any single individual.

"Heh…So what're we waiting for? Let's go!" The blonde boy cheered loudly before sprinting off into the general area of Ichiraku Ramen stand. The remaining Shinobi and Kunoichis gave a synchronized, collective sigh; Naruto, even though he has improved at least a tiny bit, still acts so juvenile when it came to his favorite food in the world.

Inside Naruto's mindscape, the resident sword wielders were conversing with each other. They were trying to figure out Naruto's strengths and his weaknesses while wielding a sword.

"He's quick," Archer commented, "Slow reaction time, though." Berserker and Ruler nodded in agreement. Despite not learning the way of the blade, their Master is only subpar to a normal Knight's swing speed.

"Technique is also lacking," Ruler stated, "Though I have no doubt Saber can teach our Master properly. The King of Knights should be able handle our budding Master."

"Bud…ding? MAster?" Beserker asked believingly, "Mas…ter is groWING! Claws!" The Black Knight cheered loudly.

"Berserker, if thou can't give substantial criticism or advise, I suggest thou to keep thy unruly mouth shut for the rest of this conversation."

"Master is quite spry with his unconventional attacks." Assassin praised. Berserker agreed, nodding at her statement.

"Master… Sh!..Ows…exCEPTional USE! Of tactics. NO one…would! Be ABLE…to GUess!" Berserker finally contributed to the conversation, and Ruler had to agree. Their Master's mind would try to get his body to move to the tactic he would conjure up. While there were plans that almost seemed flawless, they were better than the average Knight would be able to think of in the middle of battle.

"Why is Saber teaching Master the unconventional way? Shouldn't she be teaching Master proper techniques and stances? Why hath she forgone fundamentals? I'd thought a crash course into swordplay was something she was beyond her ability to teach?"

Archer thought about Ruler's questions deeply. True, Saber would be the type to prioritize fundamentals over sparring any day… "Maybe…" Archer started, "Maybe she's testing him. You've seen Master's swings and movement. They look rough around the edges, but to him, it seemed natural; he moved like water when he would dodge some of Saber's hits," Archer turned to the Chakra beast inside the cage next to the conversing trio, "Kyuubi-san, do you have any idea why Master moves so proficiently despite learning for only three days?"

"No," Kyuubi answered, "I have no idea how he has improved so much with an impromptu training method. However, I can say that Saber is still testing him."

"Still?" Ruler repeated curiously, "Why wouldst she do that? She should hath seen Master's strength's and weaknesses by now."

"The brat is constantly learning," Kyuubi replied, "Saber can't keep up with the kid's rapid progress and quick thinking. While she can still win, Saber is seeing the skill gap between her and the kid dwindle to an extent because of the kid's battle instincts. You could see that when he almost caught Saber off guard, correct?"

"That is true…" Archer agreed. Naruto's progress was far too fast for any trainee could accomplish. Not even talent could even hope to explain the sheer speed of Naruto's increasing skill with a blade in terms of tactics and swordplay, "I guess Saber can't properly gauge Master's skill because of the speed."

"It could be an innate skill?" Ruler suggested. Kyuubi thought for a moment and inspected the seal. It focused on that tiny speck of foreign Chakra inside; it was one of two, and one was fluctuating itself quite abnormally for the duration of the battle between Naruto and Saber.

'Could it be?' Kyuubi suspected the answer, but conclusive evidence was nigh impossible with only a fluctuating foreign Chakra as evidence for an answer.

Outside in the real world, Sakura walked side by side with Naruto as she and the others walked to Ichiraku Ramen. While she looked happy on the outside, she felt morbid on the inside. The secret that was revealed inside the Hokage's office was something she didn't expect from the resident prankster of Konoha.

Naruto was the Jinchuriki of the Kyuubi no Kitsune, the same beast that destroyed almost half the village thirteen years ago on October tenth…

Then it clicked! That was Naruto's birthday.

The more Sakura thought about it, the more she became baffled at how much she didn't know Naruto. She didn't know how hard Naruto had it as a child, she didn't know how Naruto mustered up a smile everyday, she didn't know how he could live without parents, and she surely didn't know how Naruto felt being alone for the first few years of life. While she knew his likes and dislikes, she didn't know his true feelings- his mentality. It surely explained why he wanted to be Hokage in the first place: to be recognized rather than ignored as a monster.

Admittedly, her mother had told her to stay away from Naruto. She didn't call Naruto a monster or anything, just a 'problem child.' And like any child should, she followed her mother's orders. Sakura was ashamed of her actions. She decided she'd redeem herself by becoming a better teammate.

"So Naruto…when did you get into using swords?" Tenten turned, walking in reverse to look at him and asked the blonde Jinchuriki, "You were all for taijutsu rather than kenjutsu if I remember correctly…" Naruto chuckled nervously, his pace slowing just slightly to be barely noticeable. Ino jumped into the conversation as well, tackling the boy by his back.

"Yeah! Since when did you take interest in swords?" Hinata nodded shyly, wanting to know how her crush had taken an interest in a less desirable aspect of a Shinobi compared to taijutsu or ninjutsu.

"I don't know…I just wanted to learn a way to get stronger. Saber-sensei is giving me that chance."

Saber presented herself into the conversation, "I found Naruto here punching and kicking a tree in various ways and just leaving bruises on his body. He lacked finesse…so I decided to teach him how to use a sword," she patted Naruto's back to strengthen the lie she presented to the girls. Kakashi noted that it was quite a believable lie, and he might've fallen for it had he not known the truth.

Ino smiled, "Well look how lucky you are Naruto. You got yourself a teacher out of pity." Naruto frowned and pointed his tongue at the platinum blonde Kunoichi snickering, "Oh lighten up, Fishcake. It didn't hurt did it?" The boy in question grumbled as the group reached the Ramen stand.

As Naruto entered, he yelled, "Teuchi-jiji! A bowl for everyone! On me!" The stand owner heard his voice and went on to create the orders quickly. The man was glad his favorite customer was back, and with friends too. Teuchi metally cheered because it was more money in his pocket and a full stomach for his customers; a win-win situation in his book.

"Coming right up, Naruto!"

From a distance, Jiraiya saw Naruto's face of glee, and he couldn't help but feel disheartened by giving the boy bad news. Leaving the village and his friends after waking up three days of leaving a month-long coma would devastate the boy. There was still time. He has until tomorrow to leave; plenty of time to create a proper farewell party (Sorta kinda). Jiraiya disappeared into the crowd to meet his disciple's friends to tell them about his plans for a farewell.

Several hours later, Naruto was back in Training Ground seven, meditating in front of the river the area has. Saber had told him to meditate for a while because she had a test for him to take. What the test is about, Naruto was extremely curious to find out. So he followed Saber's order to meditate. He sat cross-legged, his hands intertwined by his stomach, and closed his eyes to focus and clear his mind.

It worked…for the first half a minute. Naruto couldn't stand waiting. A dynamic individual like himself can't hope to ever meditate properly for an indefinite amount of time, and it doesn't help that he's far too curious and excited to keep himself composed. He tried calming his mind again, and it successfully ceased his incessant jittering.

He focused on the flow of his Chakra. He felt it flow throughout his body in a constant and rapid flow. It flowed to his limbs, to his head, and even to his heart; however, there were more subtle places where he felt is Chakra flow. Around his arms and back, he could feel his Chakra siphoning off from what seemed to be underdeveloped Chakra pathways. He tried pushing Chakra to these underdeveloped pathways and strained under the stress of forcibly opening a pathway for those strange anomalies within his pathways. And as soon as he almost succeeded in forging a pathway for the incomplete Chakra pathways, Saber cut his concentration off.

"Master," She called out to Naruto, "I've prepared your test. Follow me please." Naruto stood up and followed his Servant to a small forest clearing by the river. In the middle of the clearing was a beautiful ornamented sword. Gleaming silver steel shone alabaster white under the moon's rays. The blue and gold design on the blade and its cross hilt gave the true impression of royalty.

"What is that sword?" Naruto asked Saber as he stared at the beautifully crafted blade set in stone.

"That is Caliburn, Master," Saber responded, "My first sword and the sword that started my legend." Naruto noticed the sad tone in her calm voice, but he chose to not pursue that conversation and chose to focus on the sword, "I want you to pull it out of the stone."

"Huh? Pull it?" Naruto turned to look at his teacher with a disbelieving look, "Really? I waited to pull a sword from a stone?"

"Master, what do you think a sword is?" Saber asked seriously.

"Huh?"

"Just pull Caliburn from the stone."

Without any hesitation, Naruto pulled at Caliburn's hilt. It didn't budge one tiny bit, not a millimeter off from its position. Naruto pulled again, with greater force. He still couldn't move Caliburn from its rocky sheath.

"Why? Why won't it budge?"

"The sword doesn't see you as capable of being King." Saber answered bluntly.

"King?"

"A Hokage in more relative terms," Saber explained properly, "It doesn't think you deserve the title of a leader, not with your mindset at least."

"What do you mean?" Naruto asked, truthfully curious about his mindset is at the moment.

"It means, that you are not ready to make sacrifices for the greater good. A leader has to make sacrifices that benefit his people. You not wanting to kill Sasuke is a good reason for that. He is a traitor to your village, yet you pester on about convincing him to come back to a village that will punish him for his actions!"

"But I can tell my side of the story and they'd have to believe that he'd change!" Naruto vainly reasoned with the slightly angered Saber, "He's a Shinobi our village prides in!"

"FOOL!" Saber's authoritary voice boomed across the training ground, "You can't expect a person to change just from one fight! It's gradual; the kind of scenario you are saying is but a fool's dream! A sword is not just some fancy decoration swordsmen have on their persons. It's a tool of death! You cannot handle Caliburn for you are not yet ready to take a life! A sword is meant to end a life, and Caliburn sees that you are far too restrained to kill even in a profession that specializes in killing."

"But-"

"And to add on from your statement…he is a Shinobi your village prides in? Really, Master? They pride themselves on a traitor? What are you telling me? That this village is a village of traitors? What blasphemy are you talking about?" Saber ranted angrily at her Master, who kept taking a step back from her booming voice, "You need to see reality, Master. You cannot expect a crime to be punished with a slap of the wrist; especially not a traitor!"

"No! I can't do that!" Naruto answered, desperately denying the task to kill Sasuke if necessary, "I just can't do that!"

"Why not?" Saber roared, "What other reason could validate you to not kill a traitor?"

"Because Sasuke is a friend! And as a friend, I won't kill him for such a reason like that! And besides, you don't know Sasuke like I do!"

"Oh? And what do I not know about Sasuke?" Saber asked, purposefully egging her Master into a corner, "What is so redeeming about your revenge-obsessed friend, who impaled his left hand into your heart, and left the village for power?"

"…" Naruto wordlessly muttered underneath his breath. Saber leaned forward, trying to hear her Master's answer.

"Hmm…?"

"Sasuke acknowledged me! That's why I don't want to kill him. He saw that even in my lackluster skills as a Shinobi, that I was a person that he could go toe-to-toe with. He was the first person my age to see me as a person and not some piece of crap on the ground! So sorry if I don't want to kill a person that saw me as a person!"

Archer could feel the conflict within Naruto's heart shake the very foundations of his ideals. The fact that his Master will have to accept the fact that Sasuke might die by his Master's hands in the future just silenced Archer as he listened to the conversation along with the other Servants. Ruler, Lancer, and the rest except for Berserker were just like Archer, and felt the pain Naruto experienced.

Berserker was moved despite his Master's hesitance to cut down a traitor, his Master's friend. Such powerful one-sided loyalty to a friend that nearly killed him deserves some kind of twisted praise at least. Naruto truly had the heart of a knight even if he isn't fit for a crown right now.

"I can't do that, Saber! I can't!" Naruto cried as tears burst forth, "I won't kill Sasuke…I won't…I won't do it!" Naruto ran from the clearing and headed to an unknown destination. What he did know was that the burden of a sword was indeed heavy…and that he was not prepared to wield one until he could accept reality.

In another place, Sasuke stood in a golden theater filled with red roses and red banners. Various floors could be seen were many spectators could watch a play of some sort unfold. He held in his hands a wooden sword that he repeatedly swung methodically to train his muscles. On his left shoulder, a red marking of a fireball surrounded in lightning glowed through his blue shirt.

"Master, are you ready for your next spar?" a feminine voice asked from behind.

With a deep breath, Sasuke turned to the owner of the voice, "Yes, Saber. I'm ready."

And that's it folks. What do you think? I honestly don't know what to think about this chapter. I'm just putting Naruto in an emotional rollercoaster aren't I?And I'm also testing his ideals too. Dammit, I'm just making more plot come off instead of fighting! I wanna get to a big fight!

Oh! And Sasuke gets a Servant too because Indra reincarnation stuff…or something like that. Sage's blessing and…yeah.

Besides that, I hoped you enjoyed this chapter. Review, follow, favorite, I don't care.

This is Azure, signing off…