War of Silence chapter 22

In a hidden laboratory base within an abandoned Fuyuki warehouse filled with advanced equipment, test tubes, and computers. A handsome blue-haired man with his ears replaced with golden cones stood naked in a shower grumbling to himself.

"Ugh, how troublesome..." he spat in a dry and irritable tone. "Who'd thought I needed to use Nikushibuki this early in the war!?" He then got out of the shower and dressed himself in a white towel while rubbing his temples. "And now I have to go through the process of remodeling my body all over again" he then looked over to one of his monitors and smiled. "Still…at least something good came out of this inconvenience"

"Mayrui-Sama?" A voice of a young woman called and the man looked over to the open door.

"Ah Nemu, so you finally return to base…" he then sneered at her. "Took you long enough…"

The woman bowed her head. "My apologies"

Mayuri then dismally turns his head to face the screen. "Anyway, since you're here we can now finally start making perpetuations in counter these Servants…" The screen then showed various video clips of all the battles that took place in the past seventy-two hours, which were gained by the various recorder bugs he set out throughout the entire city. Which included his recent fight against Assissan while a long grin stretched across his face. "And this time they will know the meaning of inconvenience"

Meanwhile, at the Emyia residence, Saber was busy practicing with a wooden sword in the dojo as she remembered her crushing defeat by the captain-level Shinigami and the humiliation and powerlessness she had felt at that moment.

"Senbonzakura Kageyoshi" she muttered in bitterness before relaying the rest of her feelings in thought.

'A Bankai composed of millions of blades that swirl around the air like a storm of sakura petals among the wind' She thought long and hard. 'Too many to count let alone evade or even block" She grabbed her sword tighter. 'Even with all my instincts and experience...I couldn't find a path to victory at all...'

She then lowered her head. 'And if his Bankai was that formidable...the other Bankai yet shown by the other captains could be just as dangerous...' She then straightened out her right hand. 'Even if I was at my full power and could use the full use of my noble phantasm...' she furrowed in frustration. 'It may still not be enough to defeat the Shinigami...' she then lowered her sword. 'In fact...the one person who likely stands the best chance in defeating them is...'

Suddenly Rin entered through the door of the dojo and saw Saber training herself.

"Well it seems you are about at full health as expected" She then cast a look of worry. "But I can assume that is not what is bothering you huh?"

Saber then turns away from Rin. "I...have failed my master Rin, falling easily to the enemy...and made him prioritize his safety over my own"

Rin then frowns and then lets out a breath. "Yes well... you alive now aren't you?"

Saber gripped both of her hands into fists as they trembled. "My life should be the one that should be endangered not his!" she snapped catching Rin off guard and on seeing this Saber immediately calmed herself down.

"As a knight, I bound by honor to serve my master and lay my life down on to them...and to fail in doing that tarnishes that"

Rin then raised an eyebrow at what Saber said and shook her head in amusement. "My...I never thought that you two could be so alike..."

The Heroic spirit then raised an eyebrow. "What do you mean?"

"What I mean..." Rin began to explain. "Is that Shirou also believes that the lives of others are more important than himself...to the point that he doesn't value his own life in the process"

Saber winded her own eyes a bit. "What?" she said taken aback.

"Rin then smiled at the Servent. "Saber...I am not saying that you should abandon your code of honor or anything...but you should never feel ashamed of being rescued or being cared for" she said resolutely while Saber was stunned at Tousaka's words. "Because that means that your own life is valuable and important...even if you don't think so otherwise"

Saber then took in Rin's words and then looked back at her wooden sword and remembered the times she, and the archer trained with each other and the determination he had in stopping the grail wars and preventing the Shinigami from abusing it.

And remembering how Shirou risked everything to save her life...regardless if she was his servant or not.

"Perhaps..." Saber spoke softly. "There is more to my life than just my duty and honor" She then looked over to Rin. "Anyway where is Shirou?"

"Oh I send him out to get some fresh air"

Saber winded her eyes "You Wha-"

"Don't worry" Rin interrupted her. "I had Archer, Berserker, and Illyasviel look after him so he should be able to arrive home safely" She then remembered hearing the intense argument that Archer and Shirou got into beforehand and a sweat of doubt crossed over her face which was not overlooked by Saber who then stared at Toksaka with doubt.

"Hopefully..."

Meanwhile, a less pleasant conversation within the streets of Fukuki was taking place...

"It was foolish of you to converse with the enemy like that kid…" Archer criticized Shirou while in spirit form. "Let alone take in his idiotic drivel…"

Shirou then glanced irritably at Archer. "Maybe useless to you…but to me it is something that needs to be heard if I want to protect people"

Archer then growled at the young Magus. "Resolve alone will not enable you to protect anyone Shirou and discarding your fears will not make you immune to the consequences of your actions!"

Shirou then furrowed his brow and remained silent. 'I know that...I knew that my ideals of protecting people can be rather fruitless and even hypocritical at times"

Archer stood silent as he listened to the boy's words.

"After all…when trying to protect someone you sometimes have to take the life of another and unless you have the power to protect someone you're likely not going to accomplish anything aside from getting killed yourself" Shirou then looked up into the distance. "I knew all of that…yet I didn't want to confront the flaws or my doubts on it… because it was the only thing that I could find meaning in my life"

He then took a deep breath. "But Ichigo…he made me realize that despite how impossible and hypocritical such ideals are…it doesn't change the fact that I can still protect people, gain the strength to do so…and be willing to face the consequences of my actions"

Shirou then looked toward Archer with determination. "Because regardless of what you said about me rescuing Saber it doesn't change the fact I succeeded in doing so. Because if I did nothing she would have died regardless and any faults I have done in rescuing her can be addressed the next time I do a stunt like that" The young magus then offers his hand to Archer. "And I am more than willing to accept any help...even yours if you are willing"

Archer then looked at Shirou as he bared his teeth in frustration…and utter helplessness at his situation.

"So…you refuse to let go of your ideals despite how flawed they are?" he asked in a low yet almost pleading tone"

Shirou then smiled softly at Archer. "Let's just say…that despite their flaws…I cannot deny their beauty in them"

Archer then looked away from Shirou and many thoughts ran through his head and flexed out both of his hands… 'It would be so easy now…to lop off his arm and kill him now…to prevent him from committing the same mistakes I have made…even if most likely my future and self will not be undone…and yet'

He then allowed his hands to relax.

Before then taking and shaking Shirou's hand. 'I can't deny their beauty either'

"Don't think that this means I am going to go easy on you" Archer smirked haughtily.

Shirou then smiled back. "Wouldn't have it any other way"

All the while Illyasviel watched over the two with an amusing yet heartfelt expression.

"You know Berserker I just now realized that Shirou and Archer seem much more alike than I thought...and it is not just because they wield the same magecraft"

Her Servent mumbled as if agreeing.

"Well either way it is nice to see they are getting along now..."Illyasviel expression then sadden. "Though I wonder...when this alliance eventually ends...should tell my relationship to him?"

Berserker then glanced over to his master and then looked away and the young Einzbern sighed.

"Well...that time will come when it comes I suppose..." The young Magus mumbled to herself and then she and Servant continued to follow Archer and Shirou home.

Meanwhile, as the Servants and Magi began to walk back to base. Ichigo stood over a rooftop and watched Shirou with a smile and then another figure approached him.

"Are you sure it was wise to help those two like that?" The voice of Shunsei spoke out to Ichigo. "I mean this will very likely make it that much harder to win this war"

Ichigo then sighed. "Yeah maybe…but I couldn't just stand by and not help with his problems…plus I don't think he or his group wants to use the grail"

Shunsei then hummed. "Can't say I disagree since I also came to that conclusion myself…still, I hope you ready to face them when the time comes to Kurosaki" Shunsei warns. "Because I doubt every one of us will come out of this war unscathed"

The Substitute nodded. "Yeah I know…but at the very least I will be fighting them without any regrets"

Shunsei gave Ichigo a look of understanding. "Well, I am glad to hear that" he then looked up into the sky. "Because I have a feeling then things about to change drastically"

Later on, deep within the Matou manor, Shinji was in a heated argument with his grandfather.

"What do you mean I am no longer a master in the Holy Grail War!" he screamed in rage.

"It is as I have said you fool" Zouken spat. "It is obvious that you are not worthy of being a master. Given your embarrassing folly with that Shinigami at your school!"

Shinji then bared his teeth in fury. " I would have defeated that captain if Rider-"

"Wasn't busy saving your worthless hide the moment you passed out from the captain's very presence!" Zouken harshly snapped back. "And now that all the servants are allying themselves to eliminate the Shinigami in this war I refuse to allow a failure like you to ruin this chance to bring back honor to our family name"

Shinji's body shook in embarrassment and with even greater rage. "You can't do that!" he screamed out in blind hysteria and then showed off his book of false attainment. "Have you forgotten that you need me to command Rider because Sakura was too spineless and you too old to participate!?" he boasted loudly in a smug yet desperate voice while Zouken remained silent. "Because regardless of what you think of me great grandfather I am still the best option you have in winning this-"

SLICK!

"AAAAAAAARRRRRRAAAAAAAGGGGGg!" Shinji screamed out in unimaginable pain and fright. As he grabbed his wrist… the hand that once held his book was now a bloody stump and then he felt a powerful presence approaching him that immediately pinned him to the floor.

"You are mistaken Shinji," Zouken said as the mysterious figure picked up the book of false attainment. "While I needed someone besides myself and Sakura to win the war that did not make you the only option and in the end, while I rather hope that could bring about some use out of you…your weakness has forced me to take on more drastic measures"

Shinji then looked at the figure before him…and his eyes winded and dilated. While the boy's body stood frozen and his mouth went in silence in pure horror.

Standing before the inept magus was a huge bear-sized monster covered in brown and black robs, with dark pale bungling muscled arms, and clawed feet and hands. Its head was covered in a massive main of white hair that looked as bleached and white as a ghost. His face was covered with a mask seemingly made out of bone and devoid of features. Save for two curved horns on its forward and two eye holes that revealed inhuman eyes with curved-like markings underneath them. With the eyes having pitched black scala and piercing yellow glowing irises like that of a hungry beast…or a ghoul.

"And I can only hope…" Zouken said he looked over the monstrous figure before. "That this Menos I have bread for the past two hundred years will finally bear fruit"

Zouken walked out of the room while Shinji continued to cry in agony, while the Meno's looked on at Shinji in what could be described as pity...and then moved towards him much to the young boy's horror.