Chapter 221: A Moment of Emotion Just for Fate Fans
She was free.
The black corruption covering Sakura's body shattered and scattered the moment the dagger pierced her.
In terms of raw power, Rule Breaker was perhaps the weakest Noble Phantasm in existence—it couldn't even take the life of an ordinary person.
Its effect was singular: to nullify all forms of magecraft, including contracts between Masters and Servants.
This seemingly toy-like dagger was the natural enemy of all magic.
However, simply breaking Sakura's contract with the shadow wasn't enough to solve everything.
The hole remained. The evil of this world remained. The Holy Grail remained.
Even someone as inexperienced in magecraft as Shirou Emiya could sense the overwhelming magical energy, like a ticking time bomb ready to explode.
"It's not over yet."
He didn't even have time to say a proper goodbye to the girl he loved.
Shirou entrusted Sakura Matou and Rin Tohsaka to Rider, who had just arrived.
"Take Rin and Sakura outside."
"And what about you?"
The long-haired woman studied the boy up and down.
"And what about you?" she repeated.
"I have to put an end to this." Shirou answered without hesitation.
"No matter what happens, just get them out of here first. This cave is about to collapse. I'm counting on you."
According to the original setting, due to the influence of Archer's arm, Shirou Emiya should have already lost a large portion of his memories—he shouldn't even recognize Rider at this point.
But since this detail was difficult to convey through visuals alone and given the constraints of the series' runtime, Shinji decided to ignore it altogether.
That said, Shinji still cleverly avoided having Shirou directly call Rider by name in his lines.
If an official novel adaptation was released in the future, they could always add this detail back in.
Shinji thought he was being quite smart about it.
But Rider wasn't too pleased.
"So he still remembers Sakura Matou and Rin Tohsaka, but forgets about me? Shinji, are you mocking my lack of presence?!"
Of course, that was just Rider complaining to Shinji behind the scenes during production.
On the silver screen, she merely gave Shirou her blessing.
"I'm going now. May you be victorious."
With that, the Servant carried the two sisters in her arms and rushed toward the exit.
"Hoo—"
Shirou Emiya took a deep breath, relieved.
Then, he turned his gaze toward the Greater Holy Grail.
The tremors in the cave grew more intense. The ceiling above was crumbling, and shattered rocks were piling up into heaps of rubble.
The total collapse of this vast underground chamber was now just a matter of time.
But for the future of the girl he loved, Shirou Emiya stepped forward without hesitation.
At this point, his body was already in terrible condition. His joints had stiffened, his limbs twisted.
Overusing the Heroic Spirit's arm for projection had caused blades to manifest inside his body.
If this continued, he'd end up skewered from the inside out.
Pain, exhaustion, emptiness—all these negative sensations pushed Shirou's heart to the brink of breaking.
But it didn't matter anymore.
He just needed to hold on a little longer.
If he could just erase the black shadow, clean up the last remaining mess—then it would all be over.
Unfortunately, fate seemed determined to test him.
Perhaps divine favor had already been exhausted in the previous two routes, because the boy now faced one final obstacle.
"Kotomine… Kirei."
Shirou Emiya spoke the name of the man standing before him, bathed in the glow of crimson-black flames.
"It seems we've both barely managed to survive, Shirou Emiya."
The priest responded with an expression of pure amusement.
As if bound by fate, Shirou Emiya and Kirei Kotomine once again met before the Holy Grail.
"This was deliberately arranged by Shinji Matou, wasn't it?"
Shibamatsu speculated.
"That's probably right," Alice nodded excitedly. "It's a perfect full-circle moment—this is Shinji Matou's gift to us fans!"
The original Fate/stay night movie—where many Fate fans' dreams began—had its protagonist, Shirou Emiya, face Kotomine Kirei in the final battle.
And now, in what Shinji Matou calls "the final version" of FSN, Shirou Emiya once again finds himself standing against Kotomine Kirei in the ultimate showdown.
This moment is one that only Fate fans can truly appreciate, a moment of deep emotional resonance reserved for those who have supported Fate from 2003 until now.
Even Alice, who initially became a fan solely out of interest in magecraft, couldn't help but recall her own journey with Fate over the years when she saw this scene. These memories filled her with a sense of happiness and fulfillment.
However, despite being a direct recreation of the final battle from the FSN movie, the audience didn't see it as Shinji Matou simply plagiarizing his own work.
That's because, unlike the previous version, where both combatants radiated youthful vigor, this time, Shirou Emiya and Kotomine Kirei were nothing more than battered and broken remnants of themselves.
Shirou's condition was horrendous—so much so that anyone with even a basic understanding of magecraft would assume that, realistically, he should already be dead.
Yet Kotomine Kirei, standing across from him, wasn't in much better shape.
The pitch-black mark over his heart made it clear to everyone—this man was already a walking corpse.
His life was no more than a flickering flame, like a candle struggling against the wind.
His weakened state was evident from his movements; gone was the muscular priest who once battled Hassan of the Cursed Arm for hundreds of rounds in the forest.
Now, Kotomine Kirei was a man who would die within minutes.
Under normal circumstances, two dying men like them should have just sat down, had a heartfelt conversation, and spent their final moments reflecting on life.
But for the sake of their beliefs and goals, Shirou Emiya and Kotomine Kirei had no choice but to drag their broken bodies into one last fight.
After all, a meaningful discussion between them was impossible—they both knew their ideals were irreconcilable, so much so that words alone could never bridge the gap.
The only way to settle this was with their fists.
This was something both of them confirmed after just a few brief exchanges.
And so, Shirou Emiya slammed his foot into the ground and charged straight at the priest.
The battle between the boy and the priest had begun.
This was the final action sequence of the Heaven's Feel route, and arguably, the last major fight in the Fate/stay night series itself.
Yet despite the significance of this battle, Shinji Matou deliberately went against the expectations of the Fate franchise, which was famous for its spectacular action sequences.
There were no Servants clashing in battles beyond human capability.
No dazzling displays of magical effects.
No intricate, beautifully choreographed martial arts duels like those seen in previous Servant fights.
Instead, it was nothing more than two men, brawling savagely inside a collapsing cave.
Both of them were barely clinging to life—there was nothing left for them but a brutal exchange of blows.
There was no strategy, no refined technique, just sheer willpower and desperation.
Kotomine Kirei still utilized Bajiquan to some extent, but compared to his previous fights, his movements were far less refined.
Yet despite its simplicity, this scene gripped nearly every audience member watching.
In fact, it wouldn't be an exaggeration to say that this was the fight they cared about the most.
Through Shinji's directorial choices, the audience's focus was drawn entirely to the characters themselves.
This battle had little to do with saving the world.
It wasn't about protecting innocent people—at least, not from the perspectives of the two combatants.
Its tension didn't stem from conventional stakes like global catastrophe.
Instead, it came from pure emotion.
It came from Shirou Emiya's unwavering devotion to Sakura Matou.
"I will only be a hero for Sakura Matou."
This was the vow Shirou had made to Sakura midway through the series.
And now, he was using his very life to fulfill that promise.
No matter how many times Kotomine Kirei's fists struck him, no matter how many times he collapsed to the ground—Shirou Emiya would always get back up.
Despite all the men giving the exact same answer, no one really knew what they were actually thinking.
One thing was for sure—every single one of them now deeply resented Shinji Matou for making them go through this.
"Damn you, Shinji Matou! Why did you have to make the protagonist fight so desperately?! Are you trying to make us boys with girlfriends look bad?!" —Every boyfriend, ever.
"Achoo! Achoo!"
Feeling the waves of resentment crashing toward him, Shinji sneezed several times in a row.
"Damn, that was a lot. Which beauty is thinking about me right now?" he shamelessly thought to himself.
◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆
Fortunately, Shirou Emiya's bizarre condition worked in his favor—his body continuously sprouting blades meant that every time Kotomine Kirei struck him, he ended up injuring himself as well.
The very phenomenon that had originally been tearing Shirou's body apart had now become the weapon that would help him defeat his enemy.
Kotomine Kirei quickly noticed this and adjusted his strategy.
Instead of aiming for Shirou's torso, he began targeting his head.
"Fine, if your body is too tough to hit, I'll just go for another spot."
Even if Shirou's skull was filled with blades, Kirei figured that smashing his head would still guarantee victory.
Kotomine Kirei knew he didn't have much time left to live.
Trading his remaining life and an arm to take down the boy in front of him was more than a fair deal.
However, just before the final moment—right before his fist connected with Shirou Emiya—Kirei's hand froze in midair.
"So this is it… It all came down to just a difference in timing. My luck really is terrible."
Just like Shirou Emiya, Kotomine Kirei's body had already been dead for some time.
The only thing keeping him moving was sheer force of will.
Unfortunately, his luck ran out—his body gave out just a fraction of a second earlier than the boy's.
"You win, Shirou Emiya."
"I don't know how much longer your body will last, but if you still have a purpose to fulfill, you'd better hurry."
Slowly, Kotomine Kirei collapsed.
His voice was completely indifferent, as if he were casually commenting on tomorrow's weather.
"You're the last Master standing. Step forward to the Grail and claim your wish."
With those final words, the priest's life finally reached its end.
He died at the very last moment—just before the descent of the Holy Grail.
<+>
If you want to see more chapter of this story and don't mind paying $5 each month to read till the latest posted chapter, please go to my Patreon[1]
Current Chapter In Patreon: Chapter 271: Amakusa: I Want to Curse Someone...[2]
Link to the latest chapter: https://www.patreon.com/posts/129588249?collection=31097[3]
https://www.patreon.com/collection/31097?view=expanded[4]
[1] https://www.patreon.com/collection/31097?view=expanded
[2] https://www.patreon.com/posts/im-not-master-im-129593131
[3] https://www.patreon.com/posts/129588249?collection=31097
[4] https://www.patreon.com/collection/31097?view=expanded